Luis Lara lined a first-pitch changeup from Tarik Skubal up the middle in the fifth inning to score Garrett Mitchell, giving the Milwaukee Brewers a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLCS on Sunday night. Mitchell had drawn a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a Cooper Pratt sacrifice bunt before Lara’s hit.

Taking a fifth-inning lead on a manufactured run and holding it the rest of the way reflected how the Brewers reached this series. It also showed that this is a different Milwaukee team from the one the Dodgers swept last year.

Bullpen Holds the Lead

Milwaukee’s bullpen was the story after the first run. D.L. Hall, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill combined for 4⅔ scoreless innings and worked out of several tough spots. Ashby was especially effective, covering two innings and inducing a pair of eighth-inning infield popups from Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani. Uribe also struck out a batter to strand two runners and keep the Brewers ahead.

Three Double Plays Made the Difference

Milwaukee’s defense also carried its share of the load. Jacob Misiorowski had trouble early, but the Brewers turned 6-4-3 double plays to end both the first and second innings. When Misiorowski exited in the fifth, Hall got an immediate inning-ending double play to stop another potential rally. Milwaukee turned three double plays in the game.

What It Means for the Dodgers

Since the Dodgers’ championship run began in 2024, this is only the second time they have lost the opening game of a playoff series. The first came in last year’s World Series, and they recovered to beat the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 2 with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound. Yamamoto starts Game 2 on Monday at 5 p.m. ET, and Los Angeles now faces a 2-0 deficit against a Brewers team that has shown it can win in multiple ways.

The series continues Monday, with Milwaukee looking to take a commanding lead and Los Angeles looking to even things up behind Yamamoto.