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Ben Zobrist called Jon Jay’s 15-pitch masterpiece against the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night the best at-bat of the season and he isn’t exaggerating. The Chicago Cubs beat the Brewers in 10 innings for the second straight night at Miller Park, winning 5-4, but it was only made possible thanks to one of the rarest plate appearances of the 2017 season.
Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff was starting to falter after a strong first two innings and Jay’s 15-pitch at-bat to begin the fifth inning doomed Milwaukee’s righty. Woodruff got ahead of Jay 0-2, however the Cubs lefty took two balls out of the strike zone and then fouled off 10 consecutive pitches!
The battle finally came to an end on pitch 15, as Jay lined a single to right field. Incredible at-bat and according to ESPN, it was only the third time this season that a hitter fouled off 11 pitches in a plate appearance.
This one started a rally, as Woodruff looked off after facing Jay, hitting Kris Bryant on a 2-2 pitch. Following an Anthony Rizzo grounder that advanced runners to second and third with only one out, Zobrist jumped on a 97 mph fastball to give the Cubs a 4-3 lead.
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He got a lot of looks at Woodruff’s stuff thanks to Jay’s awesome effort.
Jon Jay's 15-pitch AB. 10 foul balls in a row on a 2-2 count. Capped it off with a single. "Best At-Bat all season" -Ben Zobrist #Cubs pic.twitter.com/9D2J3ZJe16
— Aldo Soto (@AldoSoto21) September 23, 2017
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) September 23, 2017
Best At-Bat all season by anyone anywhere https://t.co/INXslxcOgL
— Ben Zobrist (@benzobrist18) September 23, 2017
Woodruff’s pitch count shot up to 92, and he was taken out after five innings. It was only the second time out of his seven starts this year that he allowed more than three earned runs.
