Brewers Manager Schools Rowdy Milwaukee Crowd After $4.7M Star Endures Bitter Experience

The Brewers came out as the true wild card from last year. They finished off with a 97-65 record, winning the NL Central and securing a playoff berth. However, an even .500 record has Milwaukee Brewers fans on edge, but their frustration boiled over on Tuesday, drawing a sharp and public rebuke from manager Pat Murphy.

“For them to be booing him out there, that’s just not our best fans, that’s for sure,” Murphy said. “I was disappointed in those people who didn’t support him when he was going through that stuff. Does he probably care? No. Is it expected? That’s fine. But these aren’t machines out there. These are people. I thought that was in poor taste, but I’ve done things in poor taste, too,” he added.

While fans booing the players and team is just part of baseball culture, Murphy drew the line when the Milwaukee crowd targeted veteran Trevor Megill.

On Tuesday, the Brewers were leading the Blue Jays by 4-3 by the eighth, after Jacob Misiorowski’s heroics at the start. But when Megill took over in the ninth, things quickly fell apart. The Brewers’ $4.7 million arm failed to record a single strikeout and allowed three earned runs, handing the Blue Jays a 6-4 lead.

The Brewers managed to fight back and tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, but the bullpen ultimately couldn’t hold on. Garrett Anderson took over in the 10th inning, but couldn’t do much better. He allowed another three runs, and the Jays finished off with a 9-7 score.

Tuesday’s score just amplified Megill’s poor run this year. He is currently standing with a 14.40 ERA in six appearances. While the fans let him hear it, Murphy was quick to defend his pitcher. He reminded the fans that Megill is the same guy who saved the Brewers in the last two years. He is the same guy who posted a 2.49 ERA and 30 saves last year and a 2.72 ERA in 2024.

As per Murphy, Megill, with such stats, deserves more respect from the fans, and a few slip-offs shouldn’t judge his capability. “But he saved 30 games for us last year, so my heart goes out to him right now,” Murphy added.

For the Brewers, the only hope that remains is that Megill was still optimistic after the game. “I’m definitely way better than that,” Megill said. “Pitches can be a lot better. Pitch execution can be a lot better. A lot of things can be better.” Considering how Megill put up numbers last year, it’s still too early to write him off, but Murphy should look out for an alternative.

The Brewers have a bigger challenge as Megill struggles

Megill is clearly struggling this year, and he may or may not get back to his prime in the next few games. However, for the Brewers, it’s a race against time to select their alternatives.

The first name in the list is Abner Uribe, who was the Brewers’ top setup man last year. He had an impressive 1.67 ERA and 90 SOs last year. However, similar to Megill, Uribe is going through a rough patch this year. He has allowed three runs over his last two outings and has a 5.68 ERA! Then the next name could be Jared Koenig, who also had an impressive 2.86 ERA last year. But currently, he is on the IL with an elbow issue.

So, options are very limited for Murphy.

Garrett Anderson could have been another option, but his performance on Tuesday raises questions. Megill is a veteran, and he knows best how to make things work. Moreover, we are almost certain that despite the booing, the Brewers do not have any plug-and-play replacement available right now. So, Murphy pushing Megill despite his rough patch might just be the best thing to do now.

Fans booing their own player is never a good sign for anyone. But winning cures all, and Murphy might be working to make that happen.