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The scheduling of the League Championship Series is always funny to me. One league always plays twice before the other has its first game. In this case, the NL Championship Series already had a team halfway to punching its ticket to the World Series before the first pitch of the AL Championship Series was thrown. That is the price you pay for want Game 1 of each series in prime time and wanting the series staggered so there are no days off until some team is eliminated.
Championship Series Chatter
Contreras, Brewers Go Up 2-0; Ohtani Benched?
Final score: Brewers 7, Dodgers 4
Series: Brewers lead 2-0
Next game: Brewers (LHP Robert Gasser) at Dodgers (LHP Blake Snell), Wednesday, 8 p.m. ET (FS1)
Last year when the Milwaukee Brewers faced Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 2 of the NL Championship Series, the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ right-hander began one of the better runs in recent postseason history with the first of back-to-back complete games, the first of his MLB career. With a rematch in Game 2 of this year’s NLCS, the Brewers turned the tables. The Brewers chased Yamamoto in the third inning, William Contreras homered and drove in three runs, including a go-ahead single in the fifth inning as the Brewers dumped the Dodgers 7-4 to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. The two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers now face a huge task as they head back home for the next three games, with manager Dave Roberts saying that slumping superstar Shohei Ohtani could be benched for Game 3.
The Brewers made Yamamoto work, pushing him to 75 pitches through 2⅔ innings, including Jake Bauers tremendous 12-pitch walk the batter before Christian Yelich’s go-ahead two-run single, his last batter. That was Yamamoto’s shortest of 11 postseason starts. The Dodgers regained the lead with two runs in the top of the fifth, helped by a second throwing error by Brewers right-handed starter Logan Henderson. Contreras, though, hit his third homer of this postseason, a solo shot with one out in the bottom of the fifth to tie it 4-4. That was his fifth postseason homer with the Brewers, tying the club record held by Jackson Chourio. With one out in the sixth and David Hamilton on third after being hit by a pitch, an error on a pickoff attempt and Chourio’s groundout, the Dodgers opted to walk Brice Turang to bring up Contreras. He hit a soft line-drive single to left to break the tie and put the Brewers ahead to stay. The Brewers would score twice more in the eighth.
After Henderson failed to retire the first two batters in the top of the fifth, the Brewers’ bullpen took over. Former Dodgers right-handed starter Dustin May retired all three hitters he faced, with left-hander JoJo Romero pitching a perfect sixth, right-hander Abner Uribe retiring all four hitters he faced and left-hander Aaron Ashby a perfect final 1⅔ for the save. Five perfect innings, with seven strikeouts, by the Brewers’ bullpen is an MLB postseason record.
Guardians’ Late Flurry Shocks Rays
Final score: Guardians 7, Rays 3
Series: Guardians lead 1-0
Next game: Guardians (LHP Parker Messick) at Rays (RHP Freddy Peralta), today, 8 p.m. ET (TBS)
Everything was stacked against the Cleveland Guardians entering Game 1 of the AL Championship Series. Game 1 took place 48 hours after the Guardians won Game 5 of the AL Division Series vs. the Chicago White Sox and they were facing the Tampa Bay Rays, the AL’s best team in the regular season and coming off a three-game sweep of the New York Yankees. But what the Guardians did have working for them was momentum. Behind three hits each from Chase DeLauter, who homered, and José Ramírez, the Guardians stole Game 1 of the ALCS with a 7-3 victory over the Rays.
All of the Guardians’ runs came in the final four innings, including Nathaniel Lowe’s two-run single in the eighth to snap a 2-2 tie. After Cedric Mullins homered in the bottom of the eighth to pull the Rays within 4-3, the Guardians finished strong with three runs in the top of the ninth. Ramirez had an RBI single and Jo Adell a two-run double. Guardians closer Cade Smith pitched a perfect ninth to seal the win.
Rays right-handed starter Drew Rasmussen was very good until giving up DeLauter’s first-pitch leadoff homer in the sixth, his first run allowed in 13 postseason innings, then Patrick Bailey’s leadoff homer in the seventh. That was his final batter after striking out seven and walking none, while giving up eight hits. The vaunted Rays bullpen couldn’t keep the Guardians off the board. over the final three innings, while the Guardians’ taxed relief corps mustered five innings, allowing one run on two hits.
By The Numbers
0.31 Brewers relievers have combined for a 0.31 ERA over 28⅔ innings this postseason, the second-lowest mark through six games in MLB postseason history. The 1991 Minnesota Twins were scoreless through 20⅓ innings over six games.
436 Guardians catcher Patrick Bailey hit the longest homer of his career, a 436-foot shot that tied the game 2-2. Brewers catcher William Contreras‘ homer was also 436 feet.
83.2% In all best-of-seven series, the team winning the first two games has gone on to win 79 of 95 series (83.2%).
Best Moments From Yesterday
A Big Walk
The Brewers’ Jake Bauers probably turned this game with a 12-pitch walk off Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the third inning. The at-bat took 7 minutes, 15 seconds. Here are the 12 pitches in 43 seconds.
Jake Bauers worked a 12-pitch walk to load the bases …Christian Yelich delivered right away for the Brewers 🙌
A Blast And A Bazooka
Brewers star William Contreras‘ trip around the bases following homers is something to soak in.
A trip around the bases, William Contreras style 🍿
We Got You
Rays ace Drew Rasmussen can count on his teammates to pick him up.
The first two batters to get a hit off of Drew Rasmussen this postseason proceeded to get thrown out on the bases
— Talkin' Baseball (@talkinbaseballbot.bsky.social) 2026-10-13T00:17:38.000Z
Noteworthy News
⚾ The Guardians and Rays each made one change to their rosters entering the ALCS. The Guardians swapped pitchers, bringing in left-hander Garrett Cleavinger for right-hander Brody Hopkins, while the Rays added right-hander Slade Cecconi and took off utilityman Daniel Schneemann.
⚾ The Miami Marlins are set to hire Dillon Lawson as their new hitting coach. Lawson was previous the hitting coach for the New York Yankees (2022-23) and assistant hitting coach for the Boston Red Sox (2025-26) until behind fired in April in a coaching overhaul. He joined the Marlins in July as a roving instructor. Lawson replaces Pedro Guerrero.
Articles You Should Read
Glory days keep rolling for Brewers’ Murphy — Tyler Kepner, The Athletic
Dodgers’ three-peat dreams on life support — Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times
White Sox vow to get back up after painful knockout blow — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune
