Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 on Sunday night in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, a rematch a year in the making. The Brewers took the opener after the Dodgers swept them in the NLCS last year.
How the Game Ended
The game turned in the fifth inning. Rookie Luis Lara stung a first-pitch changeup from Tarik Skubal up the middle to score Garrett Mitchell, who had drawn a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a Cooper Pratt sacrifice bunt. Milwaukee can score in many ways, but taking a fifth-inning lead on a manufactured run and holding it for the rest of the game captured how the Brewers reached the NLCS. It also showed that this is a different Milwaukee team from last year’s group.
Bullpen Carries the Brewers
Milwaukee’s bullpen was the star of Game 1. DL Hall, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill combined to throw 4⅔ scoreless innings and worked out of tough situations with composure. Ashby deserves special credit for covering two innings and inducing a pair of eighth-inning infield popups from Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani. Uribe also struck out a batter with runners on to keep Milwaukee ahead.
The Defining Stat: Three Double Plays
Jacob Misiorowski struggled early, but the Brewers’ defense bailed him out. Milwaukee turned 6-4-3 double plays to end both the first and second innings. After Misiorowski left in the fifth, Hall immediately induced an inning-ending double play to stop another potential rally. Misiorowski’s fastball hit 102 mph during the game.
What It Means for the Series
Since the Dodgers’ championship-winning run began in 2024, this is only the second time they have lost the opening game of a playoff series. The first was in last year’s World Series, when they bounced back to beat the Blue Jays in Game 2 with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound. Yamamoto starts Game 2 on Monday at 5 p.m. ET. Falling into a 2-0 series hole against a team as strong as the Brewers could create serious problems for Los Angeles.
