Brewers Manager Pat Murphy Bench Cooper Pratt After Two Mistakes in Mets Loss Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy benched rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt during Tuesday night’s 3-2, 10-inning loss to the New York Mets after two critical errors in the game left Murphy seeking a more focused and committed performance from the 22-year-old. The decision came amid a tense matchup against Mets starter Zac Thornton, with Pratt’s mistakes contributing to the Brewers’ defeat. Pratt’s first issue arose in the third inning when the Mets’ Garrett Mitchell and Joey Ortiz opened the frame with singles. Murphy instructed Pratt to lay down a bunt with two runners on base and no outs. Pratt initially fouled off the first bunt attempt before pulling his bat back on a fastball over the middle for strike two. He later fouled off two more pitches before hitting a comebacker to Thornton, who threw to third to force Mitchell out. Thornton then retired Jackson Chourio and Brice Turang to end the threat. Two innings later, Murphy removed Pratt after a shallow fly ball to right field. The ball dropped between three New York defenders and bypassed right fielder Carson Benge. Although the play resulted in a single, Pratt did not immediately run hard out of the batter’s box and was held to first base. Murphy believed Pratt could have reached second, emphasizing the need for sharper focus and effort. “I know who this kid is,” Murphy said. “He’s a great kid. It’s not laziness. You gotta have your head in the game. These games, like today, come down to Lindor’s great catch, an errant throw, whatever it may be, you’ve got to be locked in if you’re going to play at this level. So it was hopefully a good learning experience.#new_york_mets #milwaukee_brewers #pat_murphy #cooper_pratt #zac_thornton
