MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Brewers have known for some time that if they want to be the best, they have to beat the best. And a year after being swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, Milwaukee entered the National League powers’ rematch looking to show it’s better prepared this time around.
For the Brewers to beat back-to-back World Series champions and reach the Fall Classic for the first time since 1982, they would have to play a nearly flawless series, starting with a strong start in Game 1. But in a Game 1 in which Jacob Misiorowski failed to make it past the fifth inning and Dodgers ace Tarik Skubal dominated Milwaukee’s lineup for the first time in the order, things looked eerily similar to last year’s NLCS disappointment.
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Yet in their 2-1 win over the Dodgers to open the NLCS on Sunday, the Brewers showed they could steal a game from the jaws of defeat even if they weren’t playing their best. And they showed that this Brewers team isn’t afraid of a little adversity.
“It’s just Brewers baseball,” left-hander DL Hall said after the game. “We all bought into that.”
Misiorowski was the Brewers’ MVP this season, and the equation for Milwaukee’s success in this series would always include winning both of the fireballer’s starts. But the Dodgers made the Brewers right-hander work Sunday and cast doubt on that plan. Los Angeles’ hitters took something of San Diego’s approach in the NLDS, throwing out every at-bat and running Misiorowski’s pitch count into the 40s by the second inning. Fifteen of the 19 Dodgers batters Misiorowski faced in Game 1 saw at least four pitches at bat.
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But doing what an ace should do, “The Miz” kept the Brewers in what remained a close game, hitting huge double plays in the first and second innings to limit the damage. Despite only pitching 4 1/3 innings, Misiorowski allowed just one run on an RBI single by Andy Pages.
“Their approach was really good,” Misiorowski said afterward. “I’m trying to get myself fouled and taken out of the ball game and I’m trying not to get buried in the game.”
Misiorowski’s counterpart had a very different start to the match. Skubal dominated the Brewers from the start, striking out six of the first 10 batters he faced. And as the Dodgers left-hander stood out in the Milwaukee lineup while the Brewers ace struggled through some struggles, you could feel the tension building in the anxious crowd.
Milwaukee needed an answer. And this year, whenever the Brewers needed a spark, they usually got it.
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In the first game, it was Brewers second baseman Brice Turang who helped turn the tide in his team’s favor. Turang’s impact started defensively, as he made three solid plays to help Misiorowski out of trouble.
And after using his glove to make an instant impact, the Milwaukee second baseman made the big swing he was waiting for. Turang knocked down a 95.5 mph sinker in the fourth inning, driving it into the Brewers bullpen and tying the game 1-1. His first postseason home run couldn’t have come at a better time.
“I didn’t want to foul my knee again,” Turang joked about his first swing against Skubal. “So I said to myself, ‘I’m going to stay inside of this one.’ … I just try to stay inside, drive it to the middle, and sometimes less is more.
After Turang’s home run, there was a collective exhale across Wisconsin, but the Brewers still had to take – and hold – a lead.
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Rookie right fielder Luis Lara was not on the roster when the Brewers faced the Dodgers last postseason. So when the opportunity to provide his own chapter in Milwaukee’s Game 1 history presented itself, the rookie proved to be huge.
In the fifth inning, Lara hit an RBI single up the middle, scoring Garrett Mitchell, who led off the game with a walk, to give the Brewers a 2-1 lead. The 21-year-old’s hit ended up being the game-winner, as Milwaukee’s bullpen pitched 4 2/3 shutout innings after Misiorowski’s outing.
“Really, I was just looking to push the runner,” Lara said. “That’s the only thing that was going through my mind. That’s what I’m focusing on at that point, is just finding a way to connect, put the ball in play and find a way for the run to score.”
Even when a game doesn’t start as planned, this Brewers team has a knack for finding a way to turn things around in their favor. They’ve done it several times in the playoffs. Their grit and determination helped them overcome a ninth-inning deficit against baseball’s best closer Mason Miller and knock off the Padres in Game 2 of the NLDS, and that mentality was on display again in their Game 1 NLCS win over the Dodgers.
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Last year’s Brewers probably lost a game like that in Game 1 — looking for a big hit, having to change momentum, and with a starter in a jam — but this year’s Brewers preached that they were different, and based on the results of these postseasons, it’s hard to argue with them.
“Guys are getting more experience. They’re learning the game – even for me, I’m still learning, getting experience. That’s a big factor in all of this,” Turang said. “Then not giving up when we are behind in the game and knowing that we can do it. We can make up the points.
“This group is really, really good with that, and that’s part of the buy-in factor that these guys have done. It’s part of learning and understanding and wanting to learn. It’s really cool to see that every day the guys are learning, every day the guys are getting better.”
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The 2026 Brewers have already done something they weren’t able to do in last year’s NLCS: win a game against the Dodgers. Perhaps more importantly, they showed they can win even when circumstances aren’t perfect – the mark of a good team. And with Milwaukee now three wins away from the World Series and with confidence growing, there’s no doubt the Brewers know they’re one.
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