Milwaukee Athletics

FRANKLIN, Wis. – Milwaukee scored in all but one inning as the Panthers swept the series from visiting Oakland, winning the series finale 14-8.
 
The Panthers recorded 16 hits on the day, including six for extra bases. Charlie Marion led the way with three hits, including his 11th home run of the season and drove in four runs. Joey Spence also drove in three runs, while Milwaukee also got RBIs from Grant Ross, Dylan O'Connell, Dominic Kibler, and Connor Bozak.
 
Riley Peterson started for the Panthers and struck out two batters over his inning of work, while Alex Vander Loop tossed four innings and struck out four. Ross made his first Milwaukee pitching appearance and struck out one batter in the sixth.
 
Aiden Fishnick did not allow a hit over 1 2/3 innings, needing just 12 pitches to record five outs. Riley Golden completed the eighth inning with a strikeout, while Braden Theis pitched the ninth inning.
 
Milwaukee finishes the regular season with 22 wins, including a 14-10 mark in Horizon League contests.
 
"Today is a game where it's easy to not show up with not too much on the line in terms of the standings," said head coach Shaun Wegner. "You want guys to show up and play the same way that they're used to playing, and I was proud of the guys coming out and taking care of business."
 
"The offense was exceptional again, and the pitchers did exactly what we needed them to do. Hopefully this momentum can keep carrying on into the postseason," Wegner said.
 
After Peterson got through the top of the first inning, Milwaukee scored twice in the bottom half without recording a hit, taking advantage of a pair of walks, two hit batters, and two wild pitches.
 
Oakland took the lead with three runs in the top of the second, but the Panthers responded to regain the lead as Ross walked and Marion homered to put Milwaukee up for good.
 
Milwaukee added two in the third on base hits by Spence and Ross, then and added three more in the fourth inning on a groundout by Kibler and two-run double by Spence.
 
The Golden Grizzlies chipped into the deficit and made it 9-5 with a pair of runs in the fifth, which Milwaukee got back right away in the bottom half. Connor Harvie tripled and scored on a Marion single, before a bases-loaded hit by pitch to Bozak forced Marion home.
 
Ross pitched the top of the sixth inning, making his Panther debut on the mound and his first collegiate pitching appearance since Mar. 8, 2025, as a member of Illinois. He allowed a run to score on a wild pitch.
 
Milwaukee scratched across a few more runs in the bottom of the sixth as Marion singled with the bases loaded to make it 12-6. O'Connell then reached on a fielder's choice to bring Harvie across and give the Panthers a seven-run cushion.
 
In the inning, O'Connell stole his 40th base of the season, becoming the first Panther to reach the plateau. The mark extends his lead among Horizon League base stealers, as he is one of just six players across Division I baseball with at least 40 steals this season.
 
Milwaukee continued to score with a run in the seventh on a balk but were held scoreless in the eighth inning despite a leadoff double by John Hadley VI. Oakland took advantage of a leadoff error in the ninth and scored two runs off Theis.
 
Boston Halloran led the Oakland offense with two RBIs, while Carter Hain, Lucas Day, and Nick Mardis all had multi-hit efforts. Ethan Glassman took the loss, allowing six runs over 2 2/3 innings. Halloran pitched the seventh, and Hain pitched a scoreless eighth, as the pair of position players combined to close out the game for Oakland.
 
Milwaukee will enter the Horizon League Baseball Championship as the second seed, sealing its postseason fate with Friday's win over Oakland. The Panthers will take on third-seeded Northern Kentucky at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday at Nischwitz Stadium in Dayton, Ohio.
 
All games of the 2026 postseason will be available on ESPN+, with broadcast links, live stat links, and links to purchase tickets available on the baseball schedule page on MKEPanthers.com.