Brewers beat Dodgers 7-4 in NLCS Game 2 behind Contreras and a perfect bullpen, take 2-0 lead
William Contreras homered and drove in three runs, Milwaukee overturned three Dodgers leads, and four relievers threw five perfect innings as the Brewers beat Los Angeles 7-4 on Monday to go up 2-0 in the National League Championship Series.
The result: The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-4 in Game 2 of the NLCS on Monday night at American Family Field, ESPN and MLB.com reported. After Monday’s game, Milwaukee leads the best-of-seven series 2-0, with the series shifting to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Wednesday night, according to MLB.com.
Contreras’ night: Catcher William Contreras went 3-for-4 with three RBIs, MLB.com reported. He drove in Brice Turang with a first-inning single off Yoshinobu Yamamoto, hit a 436-foot game-tying home run to center off reliever Kris Bubic in the fifth, and singled in the go-ahead run in the sixth. MLB.com said he became the fourth player with three separate game-tying or go-ahead hits in a postseason game, and the first since Sandy Alomar for Cleveland in the 1997 ALDS.
Three leads, three answers: The Dodgers took a lead three times in the first six innings, and each time Milwaukee answered in the bottom half of the same inning, MLB.com reported. Jake Bauers drew a 12-pitch walk in the third, and Christian Yelich followed with a two-out, two-run single for Milwaukee’s first lead. Freddie Freeman’s sacrifice fly off Dustin May put Los Angeles back in front in the fifth before Contreras tied it. Turang and Bauers each added RBI singles in the eighth for insurance.
Yamamoto chased early: Yamamoto, who threw a complete game against Milwaukee in last year’s NLCS sweep, recorded only eight outs — the shortest postseason start of his career, MLB.com said. ESPN reported the Brewers averaged 5.3 pitches per plate appearance against him and he got just four swings and misses on 75 pitches. “He just didn’t have it tonight,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, according to MLB.com. “Which is very rare.”
The bullpen: Dustin May, JoJo Romero, Abner Uribe and Aaron Ashby combined for five perfect innings, retiring the final 15 Dodgers. MLB.com called it the most all-perfect innings by a bullpen in a postseason game, and ESPN Research said it was the first time in playoff history a team posted five perfect relief innings in order. Ashby got the last five outs, striking out Miguel Rojas to end it. ESPN said Milwaukee relievers have allowed one earned run in 28⅔ postseason innings.
Sloppy defense: Both teams made two errors, ESPN reported. Brewers starter Logan Henderson made two throwing errors — on a pickoff attempt and on a bunt — and allowed four runs, two earned, over four-plus innings, MLB.com said.
What they said: “They’re going against arguably one of the best teams in baseball ever put together,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “And they don’t care. They won’t be denied,” ESPN and MLB.com reported. “We haven’t accomplished anything yet,” Yelich said, according to MLB.com.
The stakes: In best-of-seven postseason series, teams up 2-0 have won 79 of 95 times, MLB.com noted. The Dodgers are trying to become the first National League team to win three straight titles, ESPN reported, while the 103-win Brewers are chasing their first World Series trip since 1982.