San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller held himself accountable after he allowed a walk-off hit to Jackson Chourio during Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 2.
"Terrible," the right-hander told reporters when asked how he felt following the loss. "I didn't do my job today, so instead of being in here with a win and a series tie, we're in a hole, so it feels pretty bad."
Miller entered the game in the eighth inning with the Padres leading 3-2. He quickly secured three outs on 12 pitches before returning for the ninth. The All-Star closer struggled to find the zone, walking the bases loaded before Chourio's game-winning hit.
"The cardinal rule is pretty much: You don't beat yourself. And I beat myself today," he said, according to Annie Heilbrunn of the San Diego Union-Tribune. "I mean, a base hit with nobody on doesn't win them the game. A base hit after you walk the bases loaded does."
Padres manager Craig Stammen said he was committed to letting Miller attempt a six-out save, and doing so was part of the plan discussed prior to the game.
"Top of the lineup in the eighth probably made that decision for Mason," Stammen said, according to Heilbrunn. "Going into the game, we were thinking of Mason for six outs anyway, especially how quick the eighth inning went for him. He was just battling the strike zone there at the end."
Miller, who saved 38 of 41 games during the regular season, said he's going to do his best to move past the blown save so he can focus on the remainder of the series.
"Not the first save I've blown, and probably won't be the last one I blow, either," Miller said. "That's part of the job. Failure in my role is really hard to move past. When you look at it, because most of the time when you fail, you lose. Other spots, you get another chance, but that's part of it and I'm going to come back and be prepared to pitch again Tuesday and do my best to help the team win."
Game 3 between the Brewers and Padres goes Tuesday at Petco Park in San Diego.
