MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers insisted this year would be different.
And sure enough -- one game into this National League Championship Series rematch -- it already is.
The Brewers had their ace on the mound and a raucous American Family Field at their back. They needed Game 1. And they got it, hanging on for a tense 2-1 victory over the Dodgers on Sunday night.
It stood in stark contrast to last October, when Los Angeles won Game 1 on the road, then never looked back, en route to an NLCS sweep. These Brewers will not go down so easily. Not with this version of Jacob Misiorowski. Not with this bullpen. Not with this offense, which suddenly seems capable of beating you with both small ball and the long ball.
Brice Turang’s homer off Tarik Skubal tied the game in the fourth. An inning later, a walk and a bunt got Garrett Mitchell into scoring position, and Luis Lara drove him in, giving the Brewers the lead. The Milwaukee ‘pen made sure it held up.
The Dodgers certainly made Misiorowski work -- particularly during a 35-pitch second inning. Shohei Ohtani opened the frame with a walk and scored on Andy Pages’ RBI single. L.A. loaded the bases with one out. Misiorowski was on the ropes.
But there’s a reason Misiorowski is almost certainly going to win the National League Cy Young Award, and it’s not merely because he throws heat. Without his best swing-and-miss stuff, he still made it work. He got Kiké Hernández to bounce into an inning-ending double play -- featuring a smooth pick at short from Cooper Pratt and an excellent turn at second from Turang.