With the bases loaded and the game tied in the 10th inning Harold Landry Color Rush Jersey , Brad Miller plotted his approach as he came to the plate.

”You just look like you’re going to swing and don’t swing,” Miller said.

Miller drew a bases-loaded walk with one out and the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers rallied past the Minnesota Twins, 6-5 on Monday night.

Nate Orf, playing in his first major league game, was hit by a pitch from Zack Littell (0-2) leading off the 10th. Manny Pina followed with a single and Keon Broxton walked.

Pinch-hitter Hernan Perez, hitting against five infielders, hit a grounder to the left side that shortstop Jorge Polanco fielded and fired to the plate to force Orf before Miller got his chance against Littell.

”It’s tough right now,” Littell said, trying to explain his lack of command in the 10th.

Corey Knebel (2-0) pitched a scoreless 10th with a pair of strikeouts for the Brewers, who trailed 5-1 after Robbie Grossman blasted his first career grand slam with two outs in the fifth off Milwaukee starter Brent Suter.

Milwaukee has allowed grand slams in three consecutive games.

Four Brewers relievers combined on five shutout innings.

”Corey had a dynamite inning,” Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell said. ”It was an outing for the bullpen. They kept us alive in that game.”

The Brewers rallied against Twins closer Fernando Rodney in the ninth to tie it. After retiring pinch-hitter Eric Sogard, Rodney gave up three consecutive singles to load the bases for Travis Shaw, who tied it with a sacrifice fly. Rodney blew his fifth save opportunity this season.

The Twins tied it at 1 in the third on a one-out RBI groundout by Brian Dozier http://www.bearsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-anthony-miller-jersey , one pitch after Dozier appeared to have struck out swinging. Plate umpire Doug Eddings ruled that Dozier had fouled off the pitch, a call argued by Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell.

Suter gave up five runs and nine hits in five innings.

Pina led off the Brewers’ fifth with a homer off Kyle Gibson to cut the Twins’ lead to three. Milwaukee added another run on Miller’s bloop single and pulled to 5-4 when Twins third baseman Willians Astudillo failed to cleanly field Ryan Braun’s grounder near the bag.

Gibson gave up eight hits and three earned runs over five innings.

ORF’S LONG JOURNEY

The undrafted Orf, 28, started at second base. He has been one of the top-producing players in the Brewers’ farm system for many years and fans have long been clamoring for him to be called up, even launching a (hash)FreeNateOrf campaign on Twitter.

”He is one of the more respected and revered players in our organization because of the way he treats people and because of the way he goes about his business,” Brewers general manager David Stearns said.

Orf, whose parents traveled from St. Louis for the game, narrowly missed hitting a grand slam in the fifth but Max Kepler hauled in the deep drive at the center-field wall.

”After I hit it, I was like this is it. This is the coolest thing I’ve ever done,” Orf said. ”Then he caught it.”

HITTING HURLERS

Gibson, who had singles in his first two at-bats, entered the game with just a pair of career hits in 16 at-bats. His single leading off the third was his first hit since June 2015.

”I’d rather go 0 for 5 and go eight innings,” Gibson said.

Suter singled in his only at-bat and Milwaukee reliever Taylor Williams got his first career hit with a sixth-inning single.

TRAINER’S ROOM:

Twins: Reinstated SS Jorge Polanco following an 80-game suspension for testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. To make room for Polanco Mike Foltynewicz Atlanta Braves Jersey , OF Ryan LaMarre was designated for release or assignment. … Recalled RHP Zack Littell from Triple-A Rochester and sent LHP Adalberto Mejia to Rochester.

Brewers: OF Christian Yelich sat out for the fourth consecutive time since leaving Thursday’s game with lower back tightness. ..RHP Aaron Wilkerson was optioned to Triple-A Colorado Springs when Orf was recalled. …Transferred INF/OF Nick Franklin, who has been out since May with a quadriceps injury, to the 60-day disabled list.

UP NEXT

Twins: Jake Odorizzi (3-5, 4.62 ERA) allowed one run and five hits with 10 strikeouts in a May 20 start against the Brewers but didn’t factor into the decision.

Brewers: Junior Guerra (4-5, 3.05) surrendered one run and four hits in 4 1/3 innings and received no decision in a 3-1 loss to the Twins in Minneapolis on May 20.

—



J.J. Watt, Greg Olsen and Benjamin Watson are finalists for the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year award.

The recipient of the award that recognizes a player’s contribution in his community and to society in general will be revealed on Feb. 3 at NFL Honors, when The Associated Press announces its individual NFL awards.

Houston defensive end Watt, in his seventh NFL season and a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, had the goal of raising $200,000 for Hurricane Harvey relief in Houston.

His fundraising did a whole lot more, bringing in an incredible $37 million in 19 days. Watt has dedicated himself to finding organizations that will apply the funds in a way he has promised both donors and victims of the storm.

”For me, this nomination is about so much more than one man,” Watt tells The Associated Press. ”It’s about the hundreds of thousands of people who helped donate to those who went through an extremely difficult time and rose above it all.

”I also know this is about honoring the city and its people.”

Watt says he noticed something special evolving from his involvement in the fundraising efforts.

”I learned how much good there is in the world http://www.brownsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-chad-thomas-jersey , how humanity steps up to the plate when they see fellow humans going through difficult times,” he says. ”From my high school and from kids with their lemonade stands … to seeing people putting aside any differences and rivalries and helping out … and how they wanted to donate to be good people and help their fellow humans. It shows how much good light there is in the world.”

Carolina tight end Olsen, who just finished his 11th pro season, has put together two initiatives, one to fight breast cancer, the other to help youngsters with a congenital heart defect.

Olsen’s mother is a breast cancer survivor, and in 2009 he founded Receptions for Research: The Greg Olsen Foundation. The Foundation’s ”Receiving Hope” focuses on cancer research and education programming.

In early 2013, Greg and his wife Kara founded the HEARTest Yard Fund after a routine examination of their unborn son, T.J., revealed the infant had Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS). It’s a family service program administered in conjunction with Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte.

”We meet with the hospital staff and the nurses and doctors and go into these homes,” Olsen explains. ”Just to see and hear the families and have them relay the stories about this program and … what the lives of these families would be like without our program. To hear how it is helping their family life and family dynamic is something far beyond what we imagined.

”It’s been fun watching it grow and have such an impact.”

Baltimore tight end Watson, a 14-year pro, assists countless people through his charitable arm P.J. Hall Color Rush Jersey , the One More Foundation.

Most recently, One More partnered with the International Justice Mission (IJM), the world’s largest international anti-slavery organization working to combat human trafficking, modern day slavery and other forms of violence against the poor. Benjamin and his wife, Kirsten, joined the global fight to end the scourge of sex trafficking.

”There are 2 million children worldwide involved in sex traffic and exploitation,” he says. ”This slavery issue is really a big deal that kind of goes on unnoticed and unheralded.

”People want to help, a lot of times people don’t know how. The problems of the world seem so overwhelming that they do not know where to start. We provide people the opportunity to do something for someone.

”Whenever you help somebody, they end up helping you and you learn as much from them as they do from you.”

Olsen broke into the NFL with the Bears. So the Payton legacy is more than a familiar one for him.

”Playing in Chicago for four years, I saw firsthand what the Payton family has meant to the city and the community,” he says. ”I was a teammate with Walter’s son, Jarrett, at the University of Miami for a year Logan Morrison Minnesota Twins Jersey , kept in contact with him. It’s interesting how many parallels there are. They have a great foundation that does a lot of great work.”

The three finalists emphasize that hundreds of their peers are doing similar work, selflessly and without fanfare.

”A lot of guys are doing those things, more than what people know,” Watson notes. ”One thing I always wanted to do is take advantage of the opportunities as long as I play and after I play.

”We obviously have some influence. Yes, as NFL players … we have the ability to be more visible. Everybody has a sphere of influence they can affect positively, whether it is 10 people or 10,000 people. I want to use it to help people and advocate for people whenever I can, to be someone who stands for what is just and kind and right.”

—

.