How Dodgers' underestimation of Brewers' David Hamilton led to key insurance run in Game 4

Garrett Mitchell's go-ahead solo homer off tough southpaw Tanner Scott will likely be the most talked-about swing of the Milwaukee Brewers' historic Game 4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2026 NLCS, and rightfully so. Mitchell's homer, which was the second left-on-left home run that the Brewers center fielder hit in the sixth inning or later in as many days, not only gave the Brewers the lead, but it was also Milwaukee's fifth unanswered run of the contest and solidified the momentum shift in their favor after Shohei Ohtani's second-inning homer.

However, what is bound to get overlooked in the Brewers' path to their first World Series appearance in 44 years is the ninth-inning solo shot that David Hamilton slugged off 2x Reliever of the Year Edwin Díaz. The Brewers' one-run lead, which was the result of Mitchell's sixth-inning heroics, held through the seventh and eighth frames, but Milwaukee undoubtedly wanted some breathing room heading into the bottom of the ninth -- not that the dominant Aaron Ashby necessarily needed it.

Therefore, Hamilton's unlikely homer to right field off the All-Star closer, though it didn't give the Brewers the lead or end up mattering to the final outcome of the game, was something of a nail in the coffin for Pat Murphy's squad in their NLCS sweep of the Dodgers. "Unlikely" isn't an understatement or meant to be a slight to Hamilton; it's simply a fact. The left-handed hitting Hamilton, who the Brewers acquired from the Boston Red Sox in the Caleb Durbin deal back in February, hit just four homers all season. That said, just because Hamilton didn't rack up homers this year, doesn't mean he's not capable of putting the ball over the fence.

Apparently, the combination of the Dodgers' underestimation of Hamilton's abilities, boosted, in part by a bit of gamesmanship by the infielder and his manager, and Murphy's belief in his third baseman's abilities, played a key role in Hamilton's knockout-punch homer in the ninth inning of Game 4.

Pat Murphy, David Hamilton tricked Edwin Díaz into throwing center-cut slider that led to ninth-inning homer in Game 4

During Murphy's post-game interview last night, the Brewers' skipper explained a conversation he had with Hamilton earlier in the day, saying, "I told Hamilton, 'today, you're gonna put a bunt down'...Everybody in the league knows he led the league in bunt hits, because he tried it so much. 'You put a bunt down, I promise you, you will get pitches to hit the rest of the game."

It's a strategy, as Murphy explained, born out of the fear that Jackson Chourio, who followed Hamilton in the Game 4 batting order, strikes in opposing pitchers. If Hamilton laid a bunt down early in the game, the mindset, whether conscious or not, of the opposing pitcher would become, "I just need to attack this hitter. All he can do is bunt and I can't walk him ahead of Chourio."

Hamilton executed the strategy to perfection. In the third inning, with two outs and no one on base, the speedy infielder laid down a "terrible bunt," as his manager called it after the game, and was thrown out at first base. However, the rest of the way, Hamilton went 2-for-3 with an RBI-single and a solo homer.

Hamilton's RBI-single came on a slider that Tyler Glasnow left right down the middle. Already with a runner on second base, the last thing Glasnow wanted to do was walk the ninth hitter and put the tying run on first base with Chourio coming to the plate. So instead, he challenged Hamilton, and the Brewers' third baseman made him pay.

Meanwhile, in the ninth inning, Díaz, who had already covered eight outs and thrown more pitches than he had in a single outing throughout the regular season, clearly didn't want to extend his appearance any longer. Hoping to avoid Chourio, Díaz also challenged Hamilton with a slider right down the middle, which ended up as a souvenir for one lucky fan.

The gamesmanship of Hamilton and Murphy signifies the larger narrative at play between the Dodgers and Brewers. After displaying a lack of power during the regular season, many doubted the Brewers' ability to knock off the Dodgers in their quest for a three-peat, but Murphy's squad responded to that doubt by out-homering Los Angeles 7-1 in the NLCS. The final of those seven home runs was the direct result of Los Angeles' underestimation of Hamilton's abilities.

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