Brewers Sweep the Dodgers Aside and Book a First World Series Since 1982
Milwaukee erased a 4-0 deficit in Game 4 at Dodger Stadium, ended Los Angeles's bid for a third straight title, and now waits on an ALCS that is suddenly level at 2-2.
The Milwaukee Brewers are going back to the World Series for the first time since 1982 — and they did it the hard way, erasing a four-run deficit at Dodger Stadium to win Game 4 of the NLCS 6-4 and complete a stunning sweep of the two-time defending champions, per MLB.com.
A 4-0 lead that didn't survive the fifth
For four innings, Los Angeles looked ready to extend its season. Shohei Ohtani launched a three-run homer in the second — his first of the postseason — right after Andy Pages' RBI single, and Tyler Glasnow retired his first ten Brewers. Then the fifth inning unravelled: the Dodgers' bullpen issued four walks, Milwaukee stole two bases, David Hamilton singled home Sal Frelick, and Jake Bauers drew a bases-loaded walk to make it 4-4, per the AP.
Mitchell's hammer, Hamilton's insurance
Garrett Mitchell — who also homered in Game 3 — crushed a 409-foot leadoff shot off Tanner Scott in the sixth, on an 0-2 count, for the lead. Hamilton added a two-out solo homer off Edwin Díaz in the ninth, and Aaron Ashby worked the final three innings for the save in front of 49,104. Bauers was named NLCS MVP, per MLB.com's series takeaways.
What it means
Milwaukee has won seven of eight postseason games, and the sweep buys roughly a week of rest for a heavily worked bullpen — and for NL Cy Young favorite Jacob Misiorowski, whose innings count manager Pat Murphy admits the club is watching closely. William Contreras (1.157 postseason OPS) has carried an offense that has absorbed Jackson Chourio's slump. "We've come close a bunch of times to getting to this point," said Christian Yelich.
World Series Game 1 will be in Milwaukee. The opponent remains unsettled: the ALCS between Cleveland and Tampa Bay is level at 2-2 after the Rays' 7-3 win in Saturday's rain-delayed Game 4. For the Dodgers, a season chasing a third straight title ends in a sweep — their first taste of October from the wrong side in three years.