MILWAUKEE (AP) Jackson Chourio says his knack for getting by in clutch situations comes from a case of failing to deliver on his promise during his freshman year.
Since then, almost every opponent of the Milwaukee Brewers has paid the price, as the best players in baseball now know.
Chourio hit a two-run single against power pitcher Mason Miller with two outs in the ninth inning as the Brewers beat the San Diego Padres for the second straight day, a 4-3 victory Sunday for a 2-0 lead in the NL Division Series.
“I think this is probably one of the first three special moments I’ve had in my career,” Chourio said through interpreter Daniel de Mondesert.
The fact that Chourio didn’t automatically rank him at the top of the list speaks volumes about all the memorable moments the 22-year-old has already produced in his first three seasons. Chourio said his willingness to act in those moments intensified after he struck out Andrés Muñoz, ending a loss to Seattle early in his freshman year.
“At that moment, everything changed for me,” Chourio said. “I told myself I was never going to reach the last out. I would dedicate myself to fighting and doing everything I could for the team and I wouldn’t feel that feeling again after that specific match.”
San Diego, which entered the postseason with 20 wins in its last 23 games, returned home for Game 3 of the best-of-five series on Tuesday after its first consecutive losses since September 1-2.
Milwaukee recovered from 2-0 deficits on consecutive days by beating the Padres’ bullpen. William Contreras hit a game-clinching home run in the seventh inning against Adrian Morejon on Saturday.
“It’s a big challenge,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “They’re a great team. You’ve seen how hard they fight us here in Milwaukee. But we like where we are when we play at home.”
Michael King retired his first 14 batters as the Padres led 2-0, and they led 3-2 when Miller entered to attempt his first six-out save since 2024.
The two-time All-Star closer retired the team in order in the eighth. After a leadoff groundout in the ninth, Miller issued his first career postseason walks against Christian Yelich and Sal Frelick.
Andrew Vaughn flied out and pinch hitter Gary Sánchez walked, throwing six straight pitches.
That brought Chourio to the plate, a day after sparking a 4-3 comeback victory with a tying two-run homer in the third inning.
“Watching those at-bats before, I knew he was a little inconsistent,” Chourio said. “He was throwing balls. I knew he was going to come at me with the fastball at some point, so mentally I was just making sure I was prepared for that.”
Chourio connected on a 2-2 pitch, fielding a 101.3 mph fastball up the middle and outrunning second baseman Jake Cronenworth’s attempt for a diving backhand stop. Cronenworth thought he was inches away from making the play.
“He broke it, but I thought I took a good hit,” Cronenworth said.
The ball bounced into center field as Yelich crossed home plate. Frelick slipped in headfirst, easily beating center fielder Jackson Merrill’s throw.
Miller threw a season-high 40 pitches — his most since 2023 — but said after the game that it didn’t affect him. He topped 100 mph with 18 pitches, the fastest being a 103.5 mph offering that Chourio fouled on.
“I didn’t do my job today, so instead of being here with a win and a series tie, we’re in a hole,” Miller said.
At 22 years and 207 days old, Chourio became the second youngest player to earn a hit in the postseason. Edgar Renteria was 22, but he’s younger than Chourio is today when he had two hits during the Florida Marlins’ run to the 1997 World Series title.
Chourio hit .327 with a franchise-record five homers and 15 RBIs in 14 career playoff games.
“He loves these moments,” Yelich said. “And he knows how talented he is and what he can do on a baseball field. He can do it all.”
Chourio also made a key defensive play in Game 1 when Ty France hit a potential home run in the ninth inning only for the ball to hit a wire on the roof of American Family Field and land in the left fielder’s glove on the warning track.
With the roof open Sunday, France hit an RBI single in the first and another run-scoring single for a 3-1 lead in the seventh after third baseman David Hamilton bounced Fernando Tatis Jr.’s grounder for an error.
Frelick had an RBI single in the fifth after Christian Yelich doubled.
Milwaukee closed to 3-2 in the seventh when Garrett Mitchell scored from third as Cronenworth bounced Hamilton’s grounder and then went past first for a double error.
“We could very easily go home 2-0,” France said. “But the reality is that’s not the case. We have to go and we have to win. No ifs, no buts, we have to play our best baseball now.”
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