The Milwaukee Brewers were on the cusp of completing a significant comeback on Sunday. They just needed Christian Yelich to deliver.
The Milwaukee Brewers achieved a 9-7 win over the Chicago White Sox on Sunday after trailing 7-2. In the eighth inning, Christian Yelich provided the climactic moment in his team’s big comeback.
Yelich launched a three-run home run to right field to cap off a six-run eighth inning for the Brewers and give Milwaukee a 9-7 lead they would not relinquish. Yelich did not start Sunday’s game, and he was called upon to pinch hit for first baseman Gary Sanchez.
It marked the first pinch-hit home run of Yelich's career. On Monday, he took the time to speak with MLB Network about the moment.
“Yeah, it was pretty cool,” Yelich said. “Hadn't done that yet. You know, not a ton of opportunities and when I did get the opportunity we definitely didn't do that so it was a cool moment for the guys yesterday and just a good win for us all around.”
Yelich, a three-time All-Star and former Most Valuable Player Award winner, has been a perennial starter during his career, which made the situation of pinch hitting unique for him. However, it was a moment he knew might happen, and he did what he could to remain prepared for it.
“You know, it's just one of those things where you kind of finish in a good spot that lets you do that,” Yelich said. “And, you know, you spend the whole game getting ready for that situation. Murph kind of let me know like a couple spots where it might happen.”
Yelich emphasized that ending up in a pinch-hitting situation means that you have a chance to impact the course of a game. With two outs and a point needed to at least tie the game, Yelich made the most of the moment.
“You try to follow along the game and the lineup and find a spot where you know you potentially could be in that situation,” he said.
“And anytime you're not starting, you know that if you do get in the game it's going to be in a situation like that against a leveraged guy you know with a chance to either take the lead or tie the game so you're just trying to stay you know mentally and physically ready,” Yelich said.
Yelich is off to a great start for a player who's 34 years old. Through three games, he has gone 6-for-10 at the plate with five RBIs and a walk.
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