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And then there were four. From Opening Day when teams start 0-0 and had dreams of what could be, the 30 MLB have been whittled down to a precious two in the National League and two in the American League. The Milwaukee Brewers joined the Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners in that club Saturday. Now, those four are set to do battle to see who will compete in the 2025 World Series.
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Division Series Digest
Brewers Vanquish Cubs, Set For Dodgers In NLCS
Final score: Brewers 3, Cubs 1
Series: Brewers win 3-2
Next game: Dodgers at Brewers in NL Championship Series, Monday, 8:08 p.m. at American Family Field (TBS)
They did it with their All-Star season leader in saves pitching the first inning and two rookie pitchers with a combined 37 starts coming on in relief. And in a season in which homers were often hard to come by, they only scored via the long ball. It all came together in Game 5 of the NL Division Series for the Milwaukee Brewers, who blew a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series only to show what made them the best team in MLB this season by beating the Chicago Cubs 3-1 at American Family Field to move on to the NL Championship Series. In making their first trip back to the NLCS since 2018, the Brewers will get another shot at the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers for a shot at their first and only trip to the Fall Classic since 1982.
William Contreras, Andrew Vaughn and Brice Turang hit solo homers — all with two outs — while rookie right-hander Jacob Misiorowski tossed four innings to earn the victory in a winner-take-all game against their NL Central rival just 91.8 miles to the south in their first postseason matchup. This is a rivalry that had the intensity raised when the Cubs hired away manager Craig Counsell before the 2024 season, only to see the Brewers won the NL Central both years. So the tension was high for the Brewers, who hadn’t won a postseason series since winning the 2018 NLDS. They had been 0-6 since, including losing five straight potential clinchers. That included a stunning ending to last year’s NL Wild Card Series on a three-run homer by New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso against Devin Williams in the last game called by legendary radio announcer Bob Uecker. So when the Brewers dropped back-to-back games at Wrigley Field, including a 6-0 loss in Game 4, to see the Cubs even this series, the thoughts of another postseason failure were running through fans’ minds.
But this Brewers team has been different in many ways this season, which came to the forefront in Game 5. It started with Trevor Megill, who ranked third in the NL with 30 saves before a late-season right flexor strain took him out of that role. Megill, the second pitcher to make his first start of the year in the postseason (behind Craig Stammen of the San Diego Padres in 2020), was given the opener role for one simple reason: The Cubs, as well as the Brewers, had scored in the first inning of all four previous games — accounting for 11 of their 16 runs in the NLDS. But Megill set the tone for the Brewers by retiring all three batters he faced and unleashed a primal scream in front of the home crowd as he walked off the mound.
The Brewers’ offense kept their streak alive, however, against the Cubs’ own opener in left-hander Drew Pomeranz. That came when Contreras tagged a 3-2 four-seamer for his second homer of the series, this one going into the Brewers’ bullpen in left-center for a 1-0 lead. The Brewers’ pitching plan continued with Misiorowski, the flamethrower who hit 104.1 mph during his three-inning outing in Game 2. Unlike that outing, Misiorowski seemed more under control throughout this appearance. But that could have been because the second pitch he threw in the game was driven out of the park by Seiya Suzuki to quickly tie the game. Misiorowski retired the final seven batters he faced and got the Brewers’ bullpen to the sixth inning. During that time, the Brewers struck again, this time on Vaughn’s solo homer in the fourth inning.
The biggest threat the Cubs put together came after Misiorowski exited. Left-hander Aaron Ashby allowed a single to Michael Busch and hit Nico Hoerner before striking out Kyle Tucker. Ashby was given the quick hook in favor of rookie right-hander Chad Patrick, who made 23 starts during the regular season but has fulfilled a key bullpen role thus far in the postseason. Patrick got Suzuki to line out to left and struck out Ian Happ. Turang added his first homer of the postseason in the seventh inning for a 3-1 lead and Abner Uribe posted his first two-inning save to send the Crew to the NLCS.
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By The Numbers
⚾ The Brewers won on the strength of three solo homers.
Here's how the Brewers won tonight:3 runs3 solo HRGames they won in this regular season when scoring only on 3 solo homers – 0Games they won in 2024 when scoring only on 3 solo homers – 0But somehow, that's how they won the game that sent them to the NLCSBaseball!
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst.bsky.social) 2025-10-12T03:49:43.815Z
⚾ All four runs in the game were scored on solo homers, the second-most runs scored in a postseason game via only solo homers.
⚾ With the Brewers winning at American Family Field, that gave home teams a 68-67 record in winner-take-all games.
In Another League
Similarities Abound In Mariners-Jays Matchup
Series: Best-of-seven AL Championship Series Game 1
Next game: Mariners RHP Bryce Miller vs. Blue Jays RHP Kevin Gausman, today, 8:03 p.m. at Rogers Centre (Fox)
Even though Toronto is north of the border and Seattle is just south of it, did you know the Seattle Mariners have to fly slightly south for their matchup with the Toronto Blue Jays in the AL Championship Series? But the path each team took to the ALCS is quite different. The Blue Jays, the AL’s top seed after winning the East Division, had a relatively easy time dispatching the New York Yankees in four games of their Division Series. The Mariners, the AL West champ and No. 2 seed, had quite the opposite experience, not only needing a full five games, but then taking a 15 innings, a record for a winner-take-all game, to advance.
Both teams are similar in that they are led by superstars — Cal Raleigh of the Mariners and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for the Jays — and have strong starting rotations. They also have key players who are could rejoin the active roster after sitting out the Division Series due to injuries. Most significant is Jays shortstop Bo Bichette, who has a strained PCL in his left knee. Bichette, who slashed .311/.357/.483 this season, might not be at full strength to begin the ALCS, but his role could grow as the series progresses. He was seen running on the field for the first time Saturday. The Mariners will be getting right-handed starter Bryan Woo back from an inflamed pectoral muscle after having a good bullpen session before Game 5.
While the Raleigh and Guerrero will draw a lot of attention, it will be the supporting casts that determine who advances to the World Series, a place the Mariners have never been, while it has been a long time for the Jays since winning back-to-back championships in 1992-93.
Regardless, this feels like a series that feels destined to go the distance. For more detailed breakdowns, check out The Athletic and MLB.com.
⚾ Jays manager John Schneider said rookie right-hander Trey Yesavage and veteran right-hader Shane Bieber are probably starting Games 2 and 3, but that has not been finalized.
⚾ Among the roster decisions facing the Jays is adding length out of the bullpen. Schneider said three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer and fellow right-hander Chris Bassitt could be included for the ALCS.
⚾ Is there clubhouse trouble for the Jays? Outfielder Myles Straw said with a smile Guerrero hasn’t spoken to him in a week and that will continue for another six days.
Best Moments From Yesterday
Crew Celebration
Scenes from the Brewers’ clubhouse.
A Scream, For Openers
Trevor Megill was asked to pitch a scoreless first inning. He did that, then he did this.
Backstop To Backstop
When you are a catcher and hit a home run to the bullpen catcher on your own team.
A View From Afar
How much does Jacob Misiorowski’s curveball move?
A pitcher who throws 101 MPH with a curveball like this?!Jacob Misiorowski's stuff is NASTY 🔥
Articles You Should Read
A new generation of Mariners heroes craft a classic in Seattle — Tyler Kepner, The Athletic
Baseball is always old and always new — Joe Posnanski, JoePosnanski.com
An oral history of the game that turned Bautista into a Blue Jays icon — Mike Wilner, Toronto Star
Blue Jays feel the love — and pressure — of being Canada’s team — Keegan Matheson, MLB.com
Dodgers “counting on” Ohtani to break out of postseason slump — Bill Plunkett, Orange County Register
Fantasy Baseball Coverage
10 lists of 10 names for dynasty leagues — John Villavicencio, Pitcher List
