By, Jonathan Michel and Hannah McIlree Franklin, WIS.- The Milwaukee Milkmen looked to end their three-game losing skid against the Sioux City Explorers on Tuesday. The Explorers wasted no time putting runners on base with base hits from Lane Milligan and Jared Walker. The pair dashed across the plate for the first runs of the game when Milkmen catcher Christian Correa committed two passed balls. After Sioux City starter Xavier Altamirano mowed down the Milkmen in the bottom of the first, Milwaukee found a pinch of momentum when starter Myles Smith picked off Chase Harris at first. Logan Trowbridge made a statement with a 3-run jack over the left field fence in the bottom of the third, giving the Milkmen much needed life. Milwaukee’s third baseman Christ Conley nearly put one over the fence earlier in the inning but a hard bounce off the wall kept Conley to a single. With two outs, Brett Vertigan legged out an infield single, setting the table for Trowbridge’s second home run of the year. “He actually got me on the curveball in my first at bat. Yeah it [the pitch] was real slow and I saw it in my second at bat and jumped all over it and it was great that we had runners on,” said Trowbridge. In the fifth, Sioux City put a baserunner on first with Milligan reaching via a walk, but he was cut down on a pickoff throw from Correa, his second of the game following a rough start defensively. Leading off for the Milkmen in the fifth, second baseman Aaron Hill, who reached first on a solid line drive to left field. His hit was followed by a pitching change as Danny Hrbek swapped out Altamirano. Conley worked Altamirano, surviving his at bat, and strutting over to first base on a walk. Putting runners on first and third. Liam Scafariello was ready to be a hero when he stepped in the batter’s box, solidifying a double, and sending Hill back to the dugout. After an inning filled with a walk, strikeout, and a fielder's choice the Explorers decided it was time for a change, and in went Brandon Brosher for Hrbek. Brosher closed out the sixth with an inning ending strikeout. Starting off the bottom of the seventh was Conley heating up the night with another single, but unfortunately the Milkmen couldn’t bring it to a boil, and retired the inning with no extra runs. Matthias Dietz took over for Zach Hartman in the eighth, and had quite the outing, striking out two batters and stopping a ground ball up the middle for the final out of the inning. The bottom of the eighth started with yet another pitching change, however the fresh start didn’t turn out for the Explorers, Milwaukee first baseman David Washington drilled one over the left-center field fence, making it 5-2 Milkmen. Right handed pitcher Nate Hadley made a visit to the mound in the top of the ninth for the Milkmen and was able to hold the Explorers at two runs closing out the night and giving the Milkmen a 5-2 victory. The Milkmen and Explorers wrap up their series on Wednesday evening, first pitch is at 6:35 PM.
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