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Today In Brewer History: Ward's Walkoff

One of the fun things about baseball is that anyone can be the hero.

It's likely all but the most diehard Brewer fans have forgotten Turner Ward. The veteran journeyman outfielder was a Brewer from 1994-96, appearing in 189 games and hitting .233/.328/.362. Four of his 131 Brewer hits were triples, and today we'll tell the story of one of those.

On this day in 1996 the Brewers carried a 5-4 lead into the ninth inning against the Angels at home, and Phil Garner put Ward into the game as a defensive replacement for left fielder Greg Vaughn. The Angels rallied to tie the game so Ward, who wasn't expected to hit, was due up third in the bottom of the final inning.

Ward came up with one out and a runner on first, as Tim Unroe had singled. That left the door open for Ward to be the unlikely hero, as his walkoff triple propelled the Crew to a 6-5 win.

Ward's walkoff triple was the fifth in franchise history, and there hasn't been one since.

With help from the B-Ref Play Index, happy birthday today to:

Today is also the tenth anniversary of Richie Sexson's three-hit game against the Braves in 2003. We covered that event in this space two years ago.