Jackson Chourio gets Saturday off against D-backs

Chourio takes a seat after going just 3-for-21 during a five-game series against the division-rival Cardinals earlier this week. The 22-year-old franchise cornerstone will get a bit of a mental reset break in the front-end of the twin bill and figures to return for Saturday’s evening showdown at PNC Park. It’ll be rookie Luis Lara taking over in left field with Garrett Mitchell hitting second in the opening contest.

It appears to just be a routine day off. Luis Lara is playing left field in Chourio’s absence on Friday, as he’s now spelled in center field, right field, and now left field in three of the last four games. It’s plausible Lara is going to be a governor on any of the other Brewers outfielders seeing full-time action, especially with their sizable lead in the NL Central.

Chourio was given Saturday off originally, but he replaced Jake Bauers in the contest and was able to pick up a solo homer in the ninth. Unfortunately for Milwaukee, that homer came with the Brew Crew trailing by two, and no one was on base. Chourio has homered 13 times in the first half of 2026 with a slash of .293/.350/.529 to go with those roundtrippers.

Chourio clobbered a solo homer in the eighth inning to extend Milwaukee’s lead to 7-2. He also drove in a run with a single in the fourth to bring his RBI total on the campaign to 33, while the homer was his 12th. Chourio has played at a star level since coming back from the injured list, and the pair of hits along with a walk now has him slashing .295/.349/.533. That’ll certainly play.

Chourio’s home run was his 11th of the season. He wasted no time getting the offense started for the Brewers as he homered on the first pitch from David Peterson. It would end up being his only hit of the night and the Brewers managed only one other run in the loss to the Cubs. Chourio is hitting .298 with an .881 OPS and 31 RBI.

Chourio’s home run came at a pivotal, momentum shifting point in this game. The Brewers jumped out to a quick 5-0 against Gavin Williams and the Guardians before Daniel Schneemann hit a grand slam to cut that lead to just one run. Chourio homered in the bottom of that frame and took the Guards right back out of it. That was his 10th home run in just 37 games so far this season, nearly halfway to his total from all of last year in what looks like it could be the big breakout we’ve been waiting for.

Chourio followed up his two-homer effort Saturday with a roundtripper to leadoff the game against Cristopher Sánchez. The 22-year-old has already hit seven homers in the month of June, and nine on the season; a total more impressive when you remember Chourio missed the start of the year. He’s as talented as any player in baseball, and he’s shown as much for most of 2026.

Chourio’s strikeout rate is up to 25 percent last year after he came in at 21 percent in his first two seasons, but his average exit velocity is also up by about three mph and he’s hitting .318/.366/.554 with eight homers in 34 games. He might make a run at his first All-Star appearance despite missing the Brewers’ first 33 games.

Chourio wasted no time keeping up the power barrage in Las Vegas, taking J.T. Ginn deep for a two-run homer in the first inning. That would be his only hit in the game. The home run was his fifth of the season while slashing .301/.356/.496 with five homers, 23 runs scored, 19 RBI, and five steals across 146 plate appearances.

It’s Chourio’s third career two-homer game and first since Apr. 6, 2025. It’s also his first time this year finishing with four runs or four RBI. He’s 8-for-13 with four extra-base hits in four games this month, raising his OPS from .721 to .878.