Jacob Misiorowski did not have the clean October ride Milwaukee wanted in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, but the Brewers’ 24-year-old ace kept the Dodgers from turning a laborious start into a runaway inning. He left Sunday night at American Family Field after 4 1/3 innings and 94 pitches, with the score even at 1-1 and a runner aboard in the fifth.
Key takeaways
- Misiorowski opened with 11 straight fastballs, including a 102.3 mph first pitch to Mookie Betts and a 104.0 mph heater to Freddie Freeman.
- The Dodgers scored their lone run against him in a 35-pitch second inning, when Andy Pages singled home a run.
- Los Angeles had the bases loaded with one out in the second, but Kiké Hernández bounced into an inning-ending double play.
- Misiorowski threw 85 pitches, 55 for strikes, through four innings after a balk prolonged the fourth.
- DL Hall took over in the fifth and got Freeman to hit into a double play, preserving the tie.
- Game 2 of the NLCS was scheduled for Monday at 5 p.m. ET, 4 p.m. CT, on FOX, FS1, FOX Deportes and FOX One.
A fastball-first opening, then a grind
Misiorowski arrived with the regular season’s reputation as one of baseball’s most difficult arms to square up, but the postseason has made him work for every out. In Game 1 of the NLDS against San Diego, he lasted four innings on 88 pitches, with 30 foul balls helping drive up the total.
That Padres outing produced his lowest whiff rate of the season: 11 misses on 52 swings, or 21.5 percent. The Dodgers followed a similar script, spoiling pitches and extending at-bats against a pitcher accustomed to overpowering hitters.
The first inning, however, looked like vintage Misiorowski. Betts saw the 102.3 mph opener, and Freeman singled after taking a 104.0 mph fastball. Misiorowski did not go to an offspeed pitch until No. 12, using a slider to help finish the inning when Will Smith hit into a double play.
Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy had noted before first pitch that Misiorowski’s emotion is part of his makeup, but that the young right-hander has made considerable strides in handling tense moments. Murphy said the goal is no longer simply getting through the opening inning without expending too much energy; Misiorowski wants to pitch deep into games.
He carried himself calmly after the first, as though it were a routine summer outing. The trouble was that the Dodgers would not let him settle into an efficient rhythm.
Dodgers extend the innings, Brewers escape the fifth
Shohei Ohtani began the second with a four-pitch walk. Kyle Tucker later worked a 10-pitch free pass, and Pages put Los Angeles ahead with his RBI single. With the bases full and one out, Misiorowski avoided a much harsher line when Hernández rolled into the double play.
The right-hander held Los Angeles scoreless in the third, but the inning required another 22 pitches and brought his foul-ball total to 16. A balk in the fourth kept that frame alive for six additional deliveries, leaving him at 85 pitches entering the fifth.
Murphy told the broadcast that Misiorowski did not have his sharpest arsenal, but praised the starter for competing through it.
Two batters into the fifth, after a one-out walk, Murphy went to the bullpen. Hall inherited the jam and erased it when Freeman grounded into a double play. Misiorowski’s night was done, and the Brewers had kept Game 1 level despite a start that demanded every bit of his resolve.
