Rhys Hoskins hit by pitch with bases loaded in 9th inning, Brewers beat Rockies 4-3

DENVER (AP) — Willy Adames hit a tying sacrifice fly in the ninth inning and Rhys Hoskins was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded as the Milwaukee Brewers rallied past the Colorado Rockies 4-3 on Tuesday night.

Brenton Doyle homered for the third time in two games and hit an RBI double for the Rockies. Colorado left fielder Nolan Jones recorded another sizzling outfield assist with a 100.8 mph throw to the plate to deny the Brewers a run in the seventh, keeping the game tied at 2.

In the ninth, the Brewers loaded the bases with one out against Nick Mears (1-4), who allowed Adames' deep fly to center that tied it at 3. Mears re-loaded the bases with a walk and was replaced by Justin Lawrence, who threw a 3-2 pitch inside that clipped Hoskins on his upper body.

“You’ve got to make guys throw the ball over the plate," Hoskins said. “Stuff is so good now that if you’re helping guys, you’re going to fall behind pretty quick. We did a great job of that tonight, put pressure on the other team. I got to face a guy coming in with the bases loaded. I like that for the hitter every time because the pressure is on the pitcher there.”

Lawrence said he was trying to throw a fastball low and inside to Hoskins.

“I went away a few times in a row with the slider,” Lawrence said. “If I locate a good pitch down and in, it might freeze him right there and we’re not having this conversation but, you know, it just got away from me and it got him.”

Colorado lost for the seventh time this season when leading after eight innings, the most such losses in the majors.

The Brewers posted their 26th come-from-behind win this season, most in the majors. Their last six wins have all been come-from-behind victories.

NL Central-leading Milwaukee had dropped its previous six games at Colorado.

“That last inning, we were fortunate, too, but give our guys credit. This has been a tough place for us to pull off a victory,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “We didn’t get the big hit offensively, but we pecked away and came up with enough.”

Rob Zastryzny (1-0) got the last two outs in the eighth, and Trevor Megill worked the ninth for his 18th save in 19 opportunities.

The Rockies took a 3-2 lead in the eighth on Doyle's run-scoring double. Doyle homered in the second inning after going deep twice in Colorado's 8-7, 10-inning win over Milwaukee on Monday.

In the seventh, Milwaukee's Brice Turang hit a high flyball that fell for an RBI double when right fielder Hunter Goodman lost it in the lights. Turang was thrown out by Jones while trying to score on Adames' two-out single. Jones has the two fastest outfield assists in the majors this season after he made a 101.3 mph throw a night earlier to get a Brewers baserunner at second.

Dallas Keuchel, making his second start for the Brewers after they acquired him from Seattle, allowed two runs in 5 1/3 innings. The 2015 AL Cy Young Award winner had been pitching for the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate before the deal.

Ryan Feltner allowed one run in five innings for the Rockies.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rockies: RHP Antonio Senzatela threw breaking pitches in a bullpen session for the first time in his rehab from Tommy John surgery. He is expected to throw a couple more bullpens before facing live hitters in seven to 10 days and remains on target for a September return. Senzatela had the surgery a year ago.

UP NEXT

The four-game series continues Wednesday with RHP Colin Rea (7-2, 3.61 ERA) starting for the Brewers against Rockies RHP Dakota Hudson (2-11, 5.84 ERA).

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Colorado Rockies' Brenton Doyle, center, is congratulated as he returns to the dugout after hitting a solo home run agianst the Milwaukee Brewers in the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel works agianst the Colorado Rockies in the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Milwaukee Brewers' Christian Yelich singles against Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Ryan Feltner in the fifth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies catcher Jacob Stallings, left, turns to tag out Milwaukee Brewers' Brice Turang as he tries to score on a single hit by Willy Adames to end the top of the seventh inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Rockies' Nolan Jones reacts after getting hit by a pitch from Milwaukee Brewers relief pitcher Rob Zastryzny in the eighth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Milwaukee Brewers relief pitcher Trevor Megill reacts after striking out Colorado Rockies' Elias Diaz to end a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Milwaukee Brewers' Andruw Monasterio slides across home plate to score the tying run on a sacrifice fly hit by Willy Adames off Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Nick Mears in the ninth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

The ball bounces off Milwaukee Brewers' Rhys Hoskins after he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in the go-ahead run while facing Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Justin Lawrence in the ninth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 2, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

LONDON (AP) — After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer stepped through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday.

When he did, he entered the alternate reality of a man who meets regularly with King Charles III and has ultimate control of Britain’s nuclear missiles, all while adjusting to life in a creaking 17th century landmark and trying to balance his work and personal life.

On his first day in office, Starmer will get briefings from senior civil servants about key issues facing the government, receive congratulatory phone calls from world leaders and begin the process of appointing his Cabinet.

Here is a look at some of the other traditions and responsibilities he faces on his first day inside No. 10.

The first time a prime minister walks through the uber-polished door of 10 Downing St., household staff and civil servants by custom line the entrance and clap for the new leader and his senior team.

It is Starmer’s introduction to the people he will live and work with, most of whom served his predecessor only a few hours earlier.

Salma Shah, a special adviser to former Treasury chief Sajid Javid, described the custom as equal parts nice gesture and strange experience, particularly given that the civil servants know little or nothing about the latest batch of politicians moving into the heart of British government.

“I’ve often mused over the fact that no one really claps you on the way out whenever you leave your job,’’ she said during a briefing about the first days of a new administration sponsored by the Institute for Government think tank. “So it’s nice, but it is also quite odd.’’

One of the most sobering moments of any prime minister’s first day on the job is the realization that he now has the ultimate authority over whether to launch Britain’s nuclear missiles.

In the U.K., this is underscored when the country’s top civil servant informs the new prime minister that he has to write “last resort letters” to the captains of Britain’s four nuclear-armed submarines telling them what to do in the event of a nuclear attack that wipes out the civilian leadership.

It is a duty unique to Britain, where there is no “nuclear football,” the briefcase carrying targeting data and launch codes that accompanies the U.S. president wherever he goes.

The letters are placed on board each of the submarines inside safes that are to be opened only if their captains are certain Britain has been attacked and the country’s civilian leaders are dead.

While the letters are destroyed unread when a new prime minister takes office, there are thought to be only four options: retaliate, don’t retaliate, use your own judgment, or put your nuclear weapons under the command of the U.S. or Australia, if possible.

No. 10 Downing St. is as much of a shorthand for Britain’s prime minister as the White House is for the U.S. president. But that’s about all they have in common.

Behind the famous black door of No. 10 sits a warren of interlinked offices, meeting rooms and two residences carved out of three townhouses built in the late 1600s.

With an estimated 400 people working in some 100 offices, the space has become dysfunctional, a workplace consultant said two years ago, recommending that the prime minister’s top team move to a modern office space.

“It’s clear that 10 Downing St. isn’t fit for purpose and much of the muddled decision-making afflicting the government may stem from not having a proper office,” Andrew Mawson, managing director of Advanced Workplace Associates, said in 2022. “No major corporation – or indeed government department – operates from a largely unreconstructed 300-year-old building or has the CEO living above the shop.”

One of the first decisions Britain’s new prime minister will have to make is whether to live in the two-bedroom apartment above 10 Downing St., traditionally the home of Britain’s leaders, or the more spacious four-bedroom apartment over No. 11, formerly dedicated to the treasury chief.

Starmer, who is married and has two teenage children, is likely to follow recent precedent and claim the larger apartment. Other than his predecessor, Rishi Sunak, every prime minister since Blair has picked that option.

No. 10 Downing St. is part of a row of townhouses built between 1682 and 1684 by former diplomat and property developer George Downing. The home of Britain’s prime ministers since 1735, it has been expanded over the years by linking it to the adjoining properties at No. 11 and No. 12.

There were problems from the beginning.

In an effort to increase his profit, Downing cut costs. The houses had inadequate foundations for the boggy ground and the mortar lines were drawn on to give the appearance of evenly spaced bricks, according to the government website.

One former resident, Winston Churchill, described Downing Street with his characteristic flair.

“Shaky and lightly built by the profiteering contractor whose name they bear.”

Before the day is over, Starmer may have his first meeting with Larry the cat, far and away the most famous permanent resident of Downing Street.

Larry, a gray and white tabby who roams the heart of government as if it is his own personal realm — has been a fixture of the residence for more than 13 years, outlasting five prime ministers.

The former stray was brought to Downing Street from the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in 2011 to help control a rodent problem and he has been “chief mouser” ever since.

Larry has the press corps at his paws, with photographers snapping photos of him whenever the news is slow, or all the time really. Larry even has 843,000 followers on X, formerly Twitter.

So here’s the question: After Starmer writes his last resort letters, meets the civil servants and starts to adjust to this huge change in his life, will he make time to scratch Larry behind the ears? And what will Larry think?

After all, prime ministers come and go. But Larry? Well, he had better not be going anywhere says freelance photographer Justin Ng, who is known as Larry's favorite snapper on Downing Street. Perish the thought that Larry might retire!

“I hope Mr. Starmer ... doesn’t underestimate the popularity of Larry,'' Ng said. “Basically, if he wants to stay in power, then Larry has to stay, too.''

FILE - A Police officer patrols 10 Downing Street, in London, Monday, Jan. 24, 2022. After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday, July 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)

FILE - Britain's Labour Party Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria walk past supporters towards 10 Downing Street in London, Friday, July 5, 2024. After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

FILE - Labour Party leader Keir Starmer smiles as he speaks to his supporters at the Tate Modern in London, Friday, July 5, 2024. After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

FILE - Larry the cat, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office poses for the cameras outside 10 Downing Street in London, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday, July 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, File)

FILE - Britain's newly elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria enter his official London residence at No 10 Downing Street for the first time after the Labour Party won a landslide victory in the 2024 general election, in London, Friday July 5, 2024. After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday. (Stefan Rousseau/Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - A view through a screen of 10 Downing Street as a video camera films in London, Monday, Jan. 17, 2022. After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday, July 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

FILE - Britain's Labour Party Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria pose for the media on the doorstep of 10 Downing Street in London, Friday, July 5, 2024.After a few hours of sleep to shake off a night of celebration and an audience with the king, Keir Starmer will step through the front door of 10 Downing St. for the first time as prime minister on Friday. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)