After trading wins with the Los Angeles Dodgers through the first two games of their three-game set, the Milwaukee Brewers had a chance to close out the weekend with a series win over Los Angeles on Sunday, and they turned to right-hander Brandon Sproat to start the day on the mound.

For Sproat, the afternoon would immediately get off to a shaky start, and his mistakes would largely contribute to a 5-1 loss for Milwaukee.

Sproat allowed a leadoff walk in the top of the first inning to Shohei Ohtani before giving up a double to Kyle Tucker to put the Brewers in scoring position. Sproat and the defense were able to get out of the jam, but it would serve as a very brief reprieve.

In the second inning, Sproat walked the first two batters before notching two strikeouts and getting a lineout to exit the frame without allowing any runs. After the Brewers struck first in the bottom of the second inning to make it a 1-0 game, Sproat retired the side in 1-2-3 fashion.

In the fourth inning, Sproat allowed the Dodgers to get on the board after allowing two singles, hitting Miguel Rojas with a pitch, and throwing a wild pitch to make it a 1-1 game. He was able to get out of the inning, but after allowing a single and another walk to begin the fifth inning, Sproat’s day was over.

Through four innings, Sproat finished with seven strikeouts while allowing four hits, four walks, and three earned runs. After the game, he reacted to his outing and talked about what it will take to be more efficient.

"Not walk guys," Sproat said plainly. "I mean, simple as that, that's what it comes down to. I mean, I didn't do my job again today, four walks. I mean, that's really what it comes down to."

By falling on the wrong side of his pitch counts to put runners on base, Sproat had to find a way to work around those struggles.

"Just continue to try to make pitches," Sproat said. "Try to get a ground ball, try to get a punch out, something. I was able to manage the walks early, but the last one in there in the fifth, that was kind of the final straw, so."

For Sproat, allowing walks adds tension to his outing.

"Yeah, I mean, obviously it adds more stress to you, especially walks," he said. "I mean, we can live with giving up hits, but you kind of gotta flush it quick. And then, as you go on to the next pitch, you just take it pitch by pitch, and that's really all you can do."

Sproat was assessed the losing decision, and he is now 1-3 through 10 games (eight starts). Each time he takes the mound, there is a lesson to be learned.

"Yeah, I mean, every outing, whether it's good or bad, there's an outing you can learn from," Sproat said. "I mean, I guess today, strikeouts are good, sure, on the flip side, four walks, that raises the pitch count. 89 pitches through, four-plus, that's not ideal.

"But getting to 89 pitches is also a positive," he added. "So, there's things to take away from it, and there's things to learn from. Yeah, I mean, like I said, whether it's good or bad, it's definitely a learning experience."

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