Brewers beat Dodgers 2-1 in NLCS Game 1 behind Turang's homer
Key takeaways
- The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series.
- Brice Turang hit a solo home run off Tarik Skubal, and rookie Luis Lara drove in the go-ahead run.
- Milwaukee's bullpen shut down the Dodgers' lineup, which stranded nine runners on base.
The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 on Sunday night. It was Game 1 of the National League Championship Series. One swing changed the game.
The bullpen finished the job.
Brice Turang homered off Tarik Skubal in the fourth inning. Rookie Luis Lara hit the go-ahead single in the fifth. Milwaukee's relievers then shut down one of the best lineups in baseball.
The Brewers now lead the series 1-0. They are chasing their first ever World Series title.
What happened
The Dodgers struck first. In the second inning, Andy Pages singled to right field. Shohei Ohtani scored on the play.
Los Angeles led 1-0.
It did not last long. In the fourth inning, Turang took a 95.5 mph sinker from Skubal. He drove it the other way into the left-center field bullpen.
The solo home run traveled 384 feet. The game was tied 1-1.
Turang had struggled in last year's playoffs. He went 1 for 15 against the Dodgers last October. This time, he delivered when it counted.
It was his second career postseason home run.
In the fifth inning, Milwaukee took the lead for good. Garrett Mitchell drew a leadoff walk. Rookie Cooper Pratt moved him over with a sacrifice bunt.
Then Lara, another rookie, grounded an RBI single into center field. Mitchell scored. The Brewers led 2-1.
Skubal took the loss. He struck out seven and gave up five hits. But the two runs he allowed were enough to decide a tight game.
The Dodgers chased Milwaukee starter Jacob Misiorowski in the fifth inning. Misiorowski is the favorite for the NL Cy Young Award. But he was not sharp.
He gave up five hits and one run in 4 1/3 innings. He struck out five.
What came next was the real story. Four Milwaukee relievers combined to shut out the Dodgers. They gave up just two hits the rest of the night.
DL Hall replaced Misiorowski and got Freddie Freeman to ground into a double play. That fired up the crowd of 42,617. Abner Uribe struck out Pages with runners on the corners in the sixth. Aaron Ashby pitched two scoreless innings.
Trevor Megill got the final three outs for the save.
The Dodgers had one last threat in the ninth. Kyle Tucker walked. Pinch-hitter Josue De Paula walked too.
But Mookie Betts flied out to the center-field warning track. The game was over.
Why it matters
This was a historic matchup. It was the first NLCS between two 100-win teams since 1976. That year, the Cincinnati Reds swept the Philadelphia Phillies. Both teams were stacked then.
Both teams are stacked now.
But the Dodgers' bats have gone quiet at the wrong time. They grounded into three double plays. They stranded nine runners.
They went 1 for 6 with runners in scoring position. They are now 2 for 22 in those spots this postseason.
Los Angeles is trying to win its third straight championship. No team has done that since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees. The offense looks nothing like a dynasty right now.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts admitted it will not be easy. "You can't go into a long series against a team that has the best record in baseball and expect to just win four," he said. "It's going to be a long series.
"
For Milwaukee, the win means more than one game. The Brewers had lost seven straight postseason games to the Dodgers. That included a sweep in last year's NLCS.
This was payback in front of their home crowd.
The bullpen numbers are stunning. Milwaukee's relievers have now allowed one earned run in 23 2/3 postseason innings. In October, games are won by the bullpen.
The Brewers have the best one left.
Turang's turnaround also matters. He was lost in last year's series. He came back and hit the biggest home run of his career.
His manager Pat Murphy praised him. He said Turang stayed inside the ball and drove it back up the middle.
Lara's moment was special too. He is a rookie. He said through an interpreter that winning the World Series is his dream.
He was happy to help his teammates. That single in the fifth could end up being the biggest hit of his young career.
What happens next
Game 2 was set for Monday evening in Milwaukee. The Dodgers sent Yoshinobu Yamamoto to the mound. The Brewers countered with Logan Henderson.
Yamamoto has been a playoff star. He is 8-1 with a 2.14 ERA in 11 postseason starts. Last year, he threw a three-hitter against Milwaukee in Game 2 of the NLCS.
The Dodgers need him to be great again.
Henderson is making his second career postseason start. He went 2-0 with a 0.75 ERA in two starts against the Dodgers this season. Milwaukee trusts him against this lineup.
After that, the series moves to Los Angeles. Game 3 is Wednesday. Game 4 is Thursday.
Game 5, if needed, is Friday.
The Dodgers cannot afford to fall behind 2-0. Their offense has to wake up. The Brewers smell blood. They know they are four wins from their first World Series.
It was a comeback Sunday across sports. In the NFL, the Ravens beat the Falcons 30-23 in overtime behind Tyler Huntley's late heroics. The 49ers edged the Seahawks 32-29 in another thriller.
Milwaukee is one of five current MLB teams that has never won it all. This might finally be their year. But the Dodgers have the talent to turn it around fast.
Game 2 will tell us a lot.
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