Brewers needed a lot of things to go right to end long skid as well as brutal week

The Brewers took the field Saturday night at Miller Park looking for something positive, anything positive, to happen for them.

Little did the Brewers know that so many good things could happen at once for a team desperate to snap a seven-game skid and emerge from one of the toughest weeks a team could endure.

Let us count the ways that led to the 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers:

» Max Muncy played third base for the Dodgers, not banged-up Justin Turner (we’ll get to why that mattered a bit later).

» Brewers starter Chase Anderson allowed only two runs in the first inning despite throwing a whopping 43 pitches.

» Rookie Corbin Burnes entered the game with the bases loaded and no outs in the Dodgers fifth, and surrendered nary a run.

THE GAME:5 Takeaways | Box score

D'AMATO:Brewers fans are willing to give Josh Hader benefit of doubt

HAUDRICOURT:Brewers face daunting task in overcoming four terrible days

NOTES:Brewers hope Ryan Braun's return boost sagging offense

MLB:Live scoreboard, box scores, standings, statistics

» Josh Hader put the most difficult four days of his life behind him and pitched two scoreless innings, hearing overwhelming support from the home fans in the process.

» Christian Yelich hit one of his biggest home runs of his first year with the Brewers, tying the score in the sixth with his leadoff shot off Clayton Kershaw.

» Keon Broxton capped the decisive three-run rally with a two-out, run-scoring triple off Kershaw.

» Corey Knebel bounced back from a crushing blown save Sunday in Pittsburgh to battle through a tough ninth inning, retiring Manny Machado – the potential tying run – to end the game.

Yes, it took all of those things to snap the Brewers’ seven-game losing streak, not to mention quash a ton of bad karma. Nobody said this was going to be easy.

It might not have happened without The Adventures of Max Muncy at third base, but the Brewers weren’t giving this one back. Muncy’s brutal error in the sixth accounted for the final two runs against Kershaw, who allowed just one earned run in absorbing the loss.

“We needed a win,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “It’s good to get a win. After the all-star break and losing streak beforehand, it’s been a while since we got a win.

“We needed it for sure. It was a great team win, with contributions up and down the roster. Those are the best kind.”

Beyond moving past the losing streak, the Brewers and Hader were able to take another baby step toward redemption from the harm caused when disgusting tweets from his youth were unearthed as he pitched in the All-Star Game. Friday was one of the toughest days of Hader’s life as he tearfully apologized to his teammates and addressed the media for the first time to try to explain those expressions no longer represented him as an adult.

On Saturday, Hader was back where he wanted to be, on the mound in a tight game, firing fastballs by hitters. He struck out the side in the eighth, dominating as he did in the first half when he was known for on-field exploits, and afterward seemed more than a little relieved.

“I was focusing on my job and not letting anything from the past haunt me, and not be a distraction,” Hader said. “This is what I love to do. It helps me clear my mind. That’s really what it did today.

“It felt natural. It’s something that eases my mind a lot. It’s just my relaxation. It felt great. I’m not going to let this distract me from my job.”

As for the noticeable support from the stands, Hader said, “That means a lot, having the Milwaukee support and knowing they know my true character, and forgiving me for my past. That’s not who I am today."

What can you say about Burnes? Most rookies with two games of major-league experience never would be trusted with a bases-loaded, no-out mess with a win so badly needed. But that’s how highly the Brewers think of the hard-throwing righty, a starter in the minors being used out of need in the bullpen.

“We decided a while ago he was going to have to pitch these innings,” Counsell said. “We don’t know a ton about him but as a player who’s been drafted not long ago (fourth round in 2016) and has gone fast through the minor leagues, he’s experienced a lot already and he’s shown he can handle a lot. There’s a little trust there.”

As a sign that perhaps the worm has turned for the Brewers, Burnes’ big break had the makings of a run-scoring wild pitch. But catcher Erik Kratz recovered the ball and flipped to his pitcher, who made the swipe tag on Kershaw, of all people.

Burnes then whiffed the dangerous Matt Kemp and retired the beleaguered Muncy, who probably wished he had remained in the team hotel, haunted or not.

Of being given absolutely no room for error, Burnes said, “You have to be prepared for anything. Those are the kind of things you dream about. Switching from a starting role to being a bullpen guy, you just want the ball and get out there to do what you can to help the team win.

“That was a big situation, especially with the skid we were on. Hopefully, we can turn this into a nice little streak.”

And thus ended the most trying of weeks, allowing all in the home clubhouse to exhale and smile. Seven games? It probably felt like seven weeks to some without a victory.

“Obviously, it was nice to snap that streak,” Yelich said. “I feel like you just need, like one (win), just to get some positive vibe back on the team.

"You break through, you can take a deep breath and be like, ‘Alright, we got back on the right side of things and now we can just try and build off that.”