MILWAUKEE -- Tarik Skubal has been about as consistent as they come since being traded to the Dodgers this summer, but for the first time in eight postseason starts, the two-time Cy Young Award winner did not record an out beyond the fifth inning.
In a highly anticipated matchup between two of the most dominant starters in baseball, the Dodgers trailed after Skubal allowed two runs through five innings against the Brewers in Game 1 of the NL Championship Series on Sunday night at American Family Field.
The Dodgers were able to chase the Brewers' Jacob Misiorowski -- this year's presumptive NL Cy Young Award winner -- with one out in the fifth inning, but Andy Pages' RBI single in the second was the only damage they managed against him.
It was a tale of two trips through the order for Skubal, who was dominant through his first three innings. He retired nine of the first 10 Brewers he faced, striking out six of them. Andrew Vaughn, who doubled in the second inning, was the lone baserunner he allowed in that span.
But the Brewers came to life when they saw him for a second time. To open the fourth inning, Skubal fell behind 2-0 to Brice Turang, then tried to get back in the count by painting the inside corner with a sinker. Turang launched the offering a Statcast-projected 384 feet to left-center, out of reach of center fielder Pages, to tie the game.
Skubal's command began to falter in the fifth inning, when he issued a leadoff walk to Garrett Mitchell. Gifted a free base, the Brewers played their style of baseball to take the lead. Cooper Pratt bunted Mitchell over to second, and Mitchell scored on a base hit up the middle from Luis Lara.
The Brewers loaded the bases on a Jackson Chourio single and a Turang walk, but Skubal was able to get William Contreras to fly out to escape the jam. Still, the stressful fifth inning raised Skubal's pitch count to 81, and he was lifted in favor of Alex Vesia for the sixth.