DENVER — Christian Yelich led off the game with a 499-foot homer for Milwaukee, but Randal Grichuk connected twice for the Colorado Rockies, including a three-run drive in the 10th inning to beat the Brewers 10-7 Tuesday night.
The Brewers began the day two games behind San Diego for the final NL wild-card spot.
Yelich gave Milwaukee a great start, launching a drive into the third deck at Coors Field. It was the third-longest home run since Statcast started tracking homers in 2015 — Texas’ Nomar Mazara hit a 505-foot shot in 2019 and Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton hit a 504-footer at Colorado in 2016.
“That’s kind of just one of those ones where everything kind of lines up for you and you catch it in a really good spot,” Yelich told reporters postgame. “Oddly enough, my first homer here in nine or 10 times playing. So I guess if you’re going to wait that long make it count.”
Yelich joked that Statcast should have just made the distance a nice, round 500 feet.
“At least give me the extra foot,” he said while smiling when asked if he was shortchanged by the 499-foot tabulation.
“But it will be cooler tomorrow after the loss wears off.”
Grichuk hit a solo homer that capped a five-run rally in the eighth that made it 6-all. His second home run of the game, and 15th of the season, came off Taylor Rogers (3-7).
But it was Yelich’s that left him impressed.
“That was a bomb,” Grichuk said. “I honestly wouldn’t even be surprised if it was further than 499. That was impressive.”
Daniel Bard (4-4) pitched two innings for the win.
Willy Adames had three hits for Milwaukee, including an RBI double in the 10th inning to drive in Yelich for a 7-6 lead.
Yonathan Daza, who had a three-run homer in the eighth, hit an RBI double in the Colorado 10th that tied it. After an intentional walk and a groundout, Grichuk homered to win it.
The Brewers built a 6-1 lead behind seven strong innings from starter Brandon Woodruff but the Rockies tied the game in the eighth of Luis Perdomo and Peter Strzelecki.
Alan Trejo, who had three hits, had an RBI single in the Rockies eighth that made it 6-2. Daza homered and Grichuk connected with two outs to make it 6-all.
Yelich’s 12th home run put Milwaukee ahead and Hunter Renfroe’s 25th of the year three batters later made it 3-0. A two-run double by Omar Narvaez in the fourth to give the Brewers a 5-1 lead and Adames padded the lead with an RBI double in the seventh.
Elehuris Montero hit a solo homer in the third inning for Colorado’s lone run against Woodruff, who matched his longest outing of the season. He allowed just two hits and struck out five.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.