Brewers Notebook: Turang’s Homer, Lara’s Single Lead to Game 1 Victory
To open this year's NLCS, the Milwaukee Brewers showed that they are a different squad than the one the Dodgers swept in last year's series.
Milwaukee Brewers versus Los Angeles Dodgers Part Two, Jacob Misiorowski versus Tarik Skubal, small market versus big market, however you wanted to look at it, the 2026 NLCS had plenty of storylines to follow. On Sunday, the series actually began with a game that was as hard fought as everyone expected.
It was the Dodgers who would strike first in Game 1. After a four-pitch leadoff walk to Shohei Ohtani and a single by Teoscar Hernandez, Andy Pages hit a one-out single to the opposite field to give Los Angeles a 1-0 lead. The Dodgers would load the bases after that but leave everyone stranded.
The Brewers would even things up in the fourth. With Skubal cruising and having allowed only one hit so far in the game, Brice Turang hit a leadoff homer out to the Milwaukee bullpen in left. It was the second baseman’s second career postseason homer and first of 2026.
Just one inning later, the Brewers would take the lead thanks to the team’s two impressive rookies. After Garrett Mitchell walked to start the inning, Cooper Pratt laid down a successful sacrifice bunt to move the runner and Luis Lara hit a single to center to make it 2-1.
That’s all the Brewers’ bullpen would need to take it the rest of the way as closer Trevor Megill would notch his third save of the postseason to give his team a Game 1 win. The 2-1 final score just happened to be the same score the Dodgers won by in Game 1 of last year’s NLCS, but this time Milwaukee flipped the script in their favor.
Brice Turang Has Entered the Postseason Chat
For as many of the Brewers stars that showed up with big moments against the Padres in the NLDS, one big name was missing. Turang, one of the team’s top offensive performers during the regular season, largely struggled at the plate across four games.
He went just 2-for-16 with two walks and three strikeouts against San Diego and was looking to set things right early against the Dodgers. One swing of the bat helped him do just that.
The 26-year-old lefty impressively took a Skubal sinker on the inside corner and drove it out to left center for a 384-foot home run. Some late night work in the batting cages seemingly helped set his swing back on the right path.
“If you could see how many hours he’s put in the cage the last two days, it’s pure and simple,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said of Turang after the game. “He’s been in there above and beyond. It’s just great to see him come back and have an offensive game like that.”
“Very blessed to have some guys staying late with me and helping me out through those times,” Turang said. “Sometimes it’s just going in there and hitting, and maybe you feel something and you’re like, okay, there it is. And then just having a conversation.”
Turang finished his night going 1-for-2 with a home run, a walk, and a sacrifice bunt. Combined with several stellar defensive plays, it ended up being one of the top playoff games of his young career.
Jacob Misiorowski Has Another Short Postseason Outing
After lasting just four innings in his first start of the postseason against the Padres, Misirowski set out against the Dodgers attempting to make a longer go of it this time out. Technically, he did, though not by much.
This time, Misiorowski lasted just 4.1 innings. After a fairly efficient first inning, Los Angeles worked him for 35 pitches in the second inning alone, raising his pitch count to 47 and pointing to another short outing for the Brewers ace.
Despite the Dodgers making him work, Misiorowski largely stood up to the pressure. He gave up five hits and three walks, as well as a very questionable balk, over his 4.1 innings, but still struck out five and only allowed the one run.
“I didn’t have my best stuff,” Misiorowski said after the game. “Their approach was really good, obviously trying to foul stuff off and get me out of the ballgame and try not to go deep in the game. So they really did their thing, and I had guys behind me helping me.”
Whether his stuff was at its best or not, his manager was still impressed with the effort. That goes double when you consider how much he was relied upon during the regular season.
“I thought he was great,” Murphy said. “Pitching a series like this, his innings are up to almost 190 this year. That’s way over, way over what he’s ever done. The kid’s bound to be a little bit tired, you know what I mean?”
“Again, he gave us 13 outs. I thought he was really good. His stuff wasn’t great, no, it wasn’t, but it’s still pretty darn good.”
Brewers Rookies Keep Showing That No Moment Is Too Big
Milwaukee rookies Pratt and Lara were two highly-regarded prospects that both made their debuts midway through the 2026 season. Even they may not have expected what large roles they’d already be playing come the postseason.
Lara has wowed the Brewers faithful with spectacular catches in the outfield seemingly every other game. It was his bat, however, that did the talking against the Dodgers. His RBI single came on a first-pitch changeup from Skubal, a pitch he only saw one of in his four-pitch strikeout in the third inning.
“Really I was just looking to push the run across,” Lara said of his approach afterward. “That was the only thing that was going through my mind. That’s what I’m focused on in that moment is just finding a way to connect, put the ball in play, and find a way for the run to score.”
Pratt set up that play with his perfectly executed sacrifice bunt, though his efforts on the day were even more evident on the defensive side. He was a part of all three Milwaukee double plays, including one in the second that he kicked off with a perfect spinning throw to second to end a Dodgers scoring threat.
“The moment’s not too big for them, and they understand their responsibility,” Murphy said of the duo prior to the game. “And I think they have maybe not a lot of awareness, but enough awareness of their responsibility and the standards we have to play to. And that’s what gives me confidence that they can handle that at….young 20’s.”
The Brewers Bullpen Comes Through Yet Again
While it is often many of the Milwaukee starting pitchers that receive plenty of praise, the team’s bullpen was just as good, if not better, this season. Their 3.40 ERA was tops in the National League and third best in all of baseball while their 7.0 combined fWAR placed second in the NL and fourth in the majors.
This postseason, Brewers relievers have taken things to a whole new level. In the NLDS, they pitched a combined 19 innings and gave up just three runs, one earned, on 11 hits and eight walks while striking out 16.
On Sunday night, they struck again as the held the Dodgers scoreless upon Misiorowski’s exit from the game. In those 4.2 innings, the combination of DL Hall, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby, and Megill held Los Angeles to two hits and three walks while striking out three.
Uribe has been called on to do some particularly dirty work. Though over half of his work came in the eighth inning during the regular season, he’s been utilized anywhere from the sixth to eighth innings this postseason. The key is that he’s always being deployed to face the best batters in the opponent’s lineup.
“Uribe is a monster, man,” said Murphy after the game. “He’s a guy you want out there in every big situation. And the great thing is he wants to be out there in every bit situation.”
With a bullpen like the Brewers have, even uber talented teams like the Dodgers can be shut down to end a game. That’s exactly what happened in Game 1 of the NLCS, allowing Milwaukee to change their recent playoff fortunes against L.A. and seizing the momentum going into Game 2 on Monday.
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Matt Carroll is a writer for Just Baseball and former site expert at Reviewing the Brew. He studied journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and currently…