The Game that got away...

[twobrewers]

If the Brewers fail to make the playoffs this year - especially if only by a game or two - what game during the season are you going to remember most as the game that got away?

 

The Brewers have obviously had a lot of disappointing games this year (are we up to 17 three runs leads blown?) while the Cubs have had a lot of exciting come from behind wins this year. But I can already remember a lot of games this year where I thought - "This is going to be the game that comes back to haunt us"

 

I would imagine for many it was August 6th - and 5 runs to the Philly's in the 9th inning.

 

For me however, it will be Labor Day. It was the Sheets vs Oswalt matchup that should have been a pitching duel. The Brewers were up 7-4 entering the 8th inning. With the combination of two Turnbow walks - and then a Greg Aquino appearance - The Brewers would end up losing. I believe Pence hit a triple to right field - which should have been an error because the only reason Gross didn't catch it was that he slipped and fell while making the catch. (Hence the new grass in right field) After the triple, the game was tied and Estrada let a ball flick off of his glove to score the go ahead run.

 

That was the game that got away for me.

[1992casey]

Because its the most recent, and because all those Sunday blown leads blend into one big nightmare, right now I remember last week's Thursday afternoon game in Pittsburgh.

[markedman5]

The Ramirez walk off HR against the team we are trying to catch now.

 

Unfortunately their are way too many to choose from.

 

The one at Texas also comes to mind.

[Baldkin]

Definately the game when the Brewers took a 5-1 lead and Ramirez ended up hitting a walk off HR off of CoCo @ Wrigley.

 

Probably stings more because I was at the game.

[drezdn]

The 9-7 loss to Houston. The 7-6 loss to the Phillies. (Mainly because I was at both of those games).

[JohnBriggs12]

The loss to the Cubs was the most significant as it meant so much.

 

The loss to the Rangers, up by 3, two out in the 9th, closer on the mound, 2 strikes on 5-6 straight batters and never get the 3rd out. That was brutal. Nearly threw up.

 

The Sunday loss to the Phillies was a gift. As bad as the Rangers loss only spread out a little longer to extra innings.

 

There were at least a half dozen others (losses to Cardinals on back to back days after getting up 5-0 in each, the loss on labor day and other assorted Turnbow meltdowns.

[M Skjellyfetti]

Cincinnati's loss to the Cubs last night. They should have had that one in the bag.

[patrickgpe]

i'll go with the game against the rockies in which we blew a 6-0 lead. There has been too many to count though, just bringing up one that hasn't been mentioned. I will not be visiting this thread anymore, too many painful memories. This division should be in the bag.

[afeter]

most painful = a ram's homerun and subsequent hand job, but the game that got away was the 5 run lead against the phillies.

[biedergb]

I'll go with either of the losses in Busch Stadium in late July. We had a slumping team who we soundly beat on Friday night. Then had early leads on both days games, and could not hold 5 and 6 run leads. We had a 6-4 homestand after the All Star break, then we lost 3 of 4 to Cincy. Taking 3 of 4 against the Cards would have given a 4-4 road trip. This was all while the Cubs were hot, and took 2 of 3 from the Cards earlier that same week. That weekend felt like the turning point from when we had a tenuous lead on the division, to opening it up to a 3 team race for a while. We went 10-18 after that and 5-10 on the road.

 

Edit: To add to that we lost the next 4 sunday games due to a bullpen meltdown. Pyschologically I think the blown losses to the Cards were worse because they kept our slump going at the same time the Cubs were still playing well.

[scrapiron]

Two games "stick in my claw" so to speak.

 

1) Up 3-0 at Texas. Bottom 9, 2 out and nobody on, and they freakin' lose the game 4-3.

 

2) Home against Philly. Going to the 9th up 6-1 and up 6-3 with 2 out and nobody on, and they lose the freakin' game.

 

I mean who loses games like that. Its unnatural http://static.yuku.com//domainskins/bypass/img/smileys/mad.gif

[Paul77]

It might not be the most "important" loss of the year but the one I'll remember most was the April 20th game against Houston at Miller Park. Astros batting, 8th inning and Greg Aquino loads the bases. Ned Yost comes out and what seemed like half the team met on the mound. I remember thinking Aquino looked, for lack of a better word, overwhelmed. I also recall Estrada walking back to the plate with the look of a man who had absolutely no confidence in his pitcher. A few seconds later - boom - grand slam. That was a tough game to drive home from, for me at least.

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v454/ilookback/friday.jpg

[pretendastronaut]

I was actually thinking about this the other day and I decided that I was going to put all of those bad games in the past down the stretch. If we get tied or head of the Cubs, and we lose another game like the ones mentioned, I think that one will have to take the cake.

[tomwopat]

I agree with the Ramirez moonwalkoff game, mostly because I was at the game and was showered in beer.

[TooLiveBrew]

I'd vote, but there are honestly just too many from which to choose. I just literally can't get down to one. And that makes me sad.

[jeffy]

I'd vote, but there are honestly just too many from which to choose. I just literally can't get down to one. And that makes me sad.

 

I agree. I'll think of the horror of July and August, the horrible road record all season,...then finally I'll settle on blaming it all on fixation on 1982 and the resulting requirement to wear "retro" uniforms every Friday at home 25 years later. (Record at home in retro uniform is currently 5-7, record at home in other duds is 40-20)

[Oldcity]

I'm proud to say I was in attendance for both the "A-Ram walk-off Cesar Salad Game" and the "Aquino-Yost Fiasco."

 

I'll second the vote for last night's Cinci game. I was very angry last night.

[JohnBriggs12]

Every year with every team there are games that "get away" that should have been wins. Likewise, there's always a few where teams snatch victory from the jaws of defeat (the Braun 9th inning HR in Houston sticks out but few others).

 

However this season, the scales are overwhelming weighted in the negative. Far more games that were seemingly "in hand" were lost than games that seemed out of reach were won.

 

Not that this team didn't win its share of close ones. It did.

 

Depending on what happens, this may go down as the season that got away.

[biedergb]

It's not so much losing a winnable game, as much as losing games that were near locks (ie, Philly 5 run lead in the 9th, Texas 3 run lead with 2 outs) with absolute melt downs. And we are not in the AL East (where having to face the Yankees or Red Sox line-ups have caused several Tums/PeptoBismol moments for opposing AL managers). Losing a couple of games with 5+ run leads happens, and winning a few games when spotting the other team 4-5 runs. But losing 4-5 run leads 4 weekends in a row is what can kill and derail a season. That is the logic that caused me to vote for the Busch Stadium meltdowns. They were followed by the Philly, Houston, Cincy debacles on consecutive weekends. The Texas game stunk, but was one of those hiccups for a young team (it was Cordero's first ER's this season IIRC). The Cubs loss simply stunk and has more importance to the pennant race because it was a 2 game swing in the standings.

[mothershipconnection]

It's definitely the Texas game for me. Seriously, what were the odds of losing that one? If someone had offered 1million:1 odds, I wouldn't have bothered to plunk down a dollar.

[LouisEly]

Stevo, you are banned from going to any more games.

[igor67]

The biggest long shot probably has to be that Texas game, not only 2 outs, but repeatedly having two strike counts with a great strike out pitcher. The philly game might be close. In terms of relevance though the Cubs game is easily the biggest because I'd sure rather be a game up right now than a game behind

[SeriesFinale]

For me it's not any of the dramatic gut-punch losses, but the fact that we couldn't take one lousy game from a crummy Giants team in SF last month...particularly that Sunday game that was lost in the 8th.

[djoctagone]

mine's a little more unusual, because it came at a time when the brewers were hot.

 

it's the game at the metrodome where prince hit his inside the park homer to pull within one run--after being down 5-0 and 9-2.

 

after that, the brewers proceeded to load the bases with nobody out, and the only ball put in play was a sacrifice fly to tie the game.

 

if the brewers put the ball in play more (even a high chopper), a lead is likely and it's cordero instead of spurling on for the bottom of the 9th.

 

it means a sweep of the defending american league central champions and an incredible rally.

[Fear The Chorizo]

I think the recurring theme here is that there have been far too many games that got away when you compare it to how many games the Brewers "stole" by coming back from next-to-impossible circumstances. I remember that big Brewer comeback in Minnesota, only to have it spoiled by a Morneau walk-off in the bottom of the 9th. I remember coming back from being down 7-0 to the Padres only to not get over the hump in that game as well.

 

If someone can post the exact statistic - I believe it's at least 15 games that the Brewers have lost this season when leading by at least 3 runs...and i think that statistic goes on to say that when leading by 3 or more runs after 5 innings. Teams expect to win at least 80% of those situations. If the Brewers had managed to win just half of them, they'd be up by 7 or 8 games and battling for homefield advantage throughout the NL playoffs.

 

Specific to this thread, what sticks in my craw the most was losing the final 3 games of that 4 game set in STL, when we blew 6-0 and 5-0 leads in consecutive days.