The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 on Sunday night in Game 1 of the NLCS, a rematch of last year’s series that the Brewers did not sweep this time. Rookie Luis Lara delivered the decisive blow, stinging a first-pitch changeup from Tarik Skubal up the middle in the fifth inning to score Garrett Mitchell. Mitchell had drawn a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a Cooper Pratt sacrifice bunt.
The run was manufactured, and Milwaukee held the lead for the rest of the game. That approach fit the Brewers’ path to the NLCS and showed that this team is not the one that was swept by the Dodgers last year.
Bullpen Steals the Show
Milwaukee’s bullpen carried the game’s late innings. DL Hall, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill combined for 4⅔ scoreless innings and escaped several difficult situations. Ashby deserves special credit after covering two innings and inducing a pair of eighth-inning infield popups from Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani.
Defense Bails Out Misiorowski
The defining stat of the game was three double plays. Jacob Misiorowski struggled early, but Milwaukee’s defense got him out of trouble with 6-4-3 double plays to end both the first and second innings. After Misiorowski exited in the fifth, Hall immediately induced an inning-ending double play to stop another potential rally.
What It Means for the Dodgers
Since the Dodgers’ championship run began in 2024, this is only the second time they have lost the opener of a playoff series. The first came in last year’s World Series, and 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 behind 2-0 in this series against a team as strong as the Brewers would create serious trouble for Los Angeles.
Looking Ahead
Milwaukee now has the early advantage in the NLCS, and the Dodgers must respond quickly. Game 2 on Monday will show whether Los Angeles can answer a loss in the opener, as it did during last year’s World Series.