MILWAUKEE ¨C Michael King turned in a masterful performance on the mound at American Family Field on Wednesday afternoon.

The Padres¡¯ 28-year-old right-hander took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before giving up a two-out single, and he still had a shutout intact into the eighth before the Brewers finally broke through for a run and went on to post a 1-0 win in the series finale.

King¡¯s final stat line is impressive: only two hits and one run allowed in 7 2/3 innings to go along with just two walks. He also had 10 strikeouts, the second time he¡¯s reached that mark in his career. He had 13 on Sept. 20, 2023 for the Yankees against the Blue Jays.

The only thing missing was a victory.

¡°Michael dominated today,¡± manager Mike Shildt said. ¡°The presence, the rhythm, the conviction, the body language. Everything was top shelf. He threw a great ballgame. It was tough not to win.¡±

• Darvish headed to injured list with neck tightness

Five Brewers pitchers combined to shut out the Padres.

¡°I felt good. I felt like I had a steady mix and was able to command all my pitches,¡± King said.

During Tuesday night¡¯s game, King and catcher Kyle Higashioka went over reports on Brewers batters and devised a game plan.

¡°I felt like we clicked, and I was able to execute,¡± King said.

After walking two batters in the second inning, King retired 15 in a row before Brewers cleanup batter Willy Adames connected for a single to right with two outs in the seventh.

¡°It was poorly executed, actually,¡± King said of the pitch that ended his bid for a no-hitter. ¡°I was trying to go up. If it was up and away, I think it would have been a better result.¡±

King got the final out in the seventh and took the mound again in the eighth. With one out, he gave up a single to Brice Turang, who then stole second. King departed after striking out Jackson Chourio for the second out. Wandy Peralta came on and surrendered a run-scoring single to Blake Perkins for what would turn out to be the game¡¯s lone tally.

¡°Wandy hadn¡¯t given up a base hit to a right-handed hitter all year. It just didn¡¯t work out,¡± Shildt said.

King rebounded strongly from his start on Friday against the Dodgers in Los Angeles in which he allowed four home runs and a career-high seven runs (four earned) in a game that the Padres won in 11 innings.

¡°I really try to have a short memory, whether it¡¯s a good one or a bad one,¡± King said. ¡°Once I go back out there, I just compete. I wasn¡¯t thinking about anything. I was just going out there and executing. It was a good game plan.¡±

King has had his moments early on this season. He pitched seven scoreless innings and gave up only four hits in an April 6 start against the Giants in San Francisco.

Despite the dominant performance on Wednesday, King, who is in his first season with the Padres after five years with the Yankees, didn¡¯t think it was the best of the 23 Major League starts that he¡¯s made.

¡°I didn¡¯t feel as powerful today as I have in the past,¡± he said. ¡°I just executed really well.¡±

When asked when he realized he had a no-hitter in the works, King was quick to respond.

¡°First inning, I¡¯m trying to go perfect every time,¡± he said, smiling.

King¡¯s outing certainly caught the attention of Brewers manager Pat Murphy.

¡°You talk about hitting spots, throwing that two-seamer to both sides of the plate, the changeup, the sweeper. That kid was sensational,¡± Murphy said. ¡°Nobody was hitting him today.¡±

The Padres generated little offense, but they did have a golden opportunity to get on the board in the eighth when Matthew Batten led off with a triple before being stranded.

¡°I put it on myself. I¡¯ve got to get the ball to the outfield,¡± said Higashioka, who was the first to bat after Batten¡¯s triple, and popped out to second base. ¡°I just didn¡¯t get it done.¡±

Higashioka lamented not being able to get a win for King.

¡°He gave us every chance to win,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s up to us to push runs across.¡±

Despite the loss, the Padres took two of three games in the series. After a day off on Thursday, they will face the Blue Jays in San Diego to begin a three-game set.