It was until yesterday afternoon, the fourth day of the postseason, before two starting pitchers completed six innings in the same game. Hours later, two other starting pitchers did it again. It was refreshing to see it, not for some old-fashioned romance, that the pitcher wins. But simply because it’s exciting to watch staff aces push in games where one mistake can make a difference.
Giants right Logan Webb and Brewers right Corbin Burnes
John Hefti / USA TODAY Sports; Benny Sieu / USA TODAY Sports
That’s exactly what happened in the first game, between the Brewers and the Braves at American Family Field in Milwaukee. As he has in every postseason since 2017, Atlanta’s Charlie Morton was trading against the Brewers, who handled just three base runners (two singles, one walk) off the 37-year-old and struck out nine times in six. tickets. Then came the seventh. Morton dropped starter Avisaíl Garcia with a 1-2 fastball. The next hitter and the last member of the Milwaukee Big Boy First Base Club, Rowdy Tellez, completely destroyed a 95.8 mph heater that caught too much of the plate to break the tie at zero.
Corbin Burnes, the nastiest starter in the game, shut out the Braves in six innings even though he didn’t even have his best stuff. Six strikeouts and three walks for the same guy who had 200 (!!!) more Ks than BB this season? It’s like any Daniel Day-Lewis performance for which he is nominated for an Oscar but doesn’t win. Sure, Burnes dazzled as always (no runs, two hits), but at least did not clean the floor with the competition.
The thunder from Tellez made the difference in Milwaukee’s 2-1 win in the first NLDS Game 1 of the day, but Atlanta made it interesting after the Brewers went to their bullpen. Playoff Joc Pederson (not to be confused with his disappointing regular-season alter ego) pinch hit with two outs in the eighth and did what Joc Pederson does best in the Playoff: he hit a home run across the field. In the ninth, the Braves put two men up against Josh Hader, the nastiest closer in the game.
This is where I want to thank Milwaukee catcher Omar Narvaez, who in addition to several key blocks on spiked Haderballs, made a brilliant play for the second out of the inning. With the tying run at second and the lead one at first, slugger Adam Duvall struck a knot in front of home plate. Narvaez cleverly hooked it with his bare hand and fired the second to catch Austin Riley. There was no chance of turning two on the play, so Narvaez could have easily come out at first. But by pitching to second and keeping the lead runner out of scoring position, he ensured that a single by Hader would only tie the game. It ended regardless, because the next hitter, Orlando Arcia, grounded out defensive genius Kolten Wong, but could have it was the difference between a loss in the ninth inning or a victory on the field.
Instead, the Brewers host the Braves for Game 2 today (first pitch at 5:07 pm ET) with a 1-0 series lead. Two more aces will be in the pot: right-hander Brandon Woodruff (2.56 ERA, 5.7 WAR) for Milwaukee and left-hander Max Fried (3.04 ERA, 5.4 WAR) for Atlanta. Let’s do it again.
1. THE OPENER
The second pitching game of the night was in the other NLDS Game 1. Logan Webb, whom many people have pointed out looks like actor Jesse Plemons, silenced the Dodgers for 7 2/3 innings. Walker Buehler, one of two Los Angeles Cy Young contenders, was in 6 1/3 innings and allowed three runs and two home runs.
Wait, did you ask who the hell Logan Webb is? That is totally fair. He’s the first of two guys I’ve never heard of before that baffled the defending champs last night.
But, as Stephanie Apstein writes in her excellent column on San Francisco’s 4-0 win at Oracle Park, it should no longer be surprising that the Giants are beating the Dodgers with Old Men, Boys You’ve Never Heard of Before, and Boys. that I have been injured a lot. This is what they have done throughout the year.
Read Stephanie’s full story: This is what the giants do
2. ICYMI
Did you miss one or both ALDS games last night? We have you covered.
Why the Astros are so dangerous in the postseason by Tom Verducci
Carlos Correa’s double off Craig Kimbrel is the greatest of many reminders of why Houston is successful in October.
JD Martinez provides the Red Sox with the spark they desperately need by Emma Baccellieri
Things looked bleak when he was injured Sunday and missed the first two playoff games. Now he’s back. And also Boston.
Didn’t you get a chance to read yesterday morning’s daily cover story about Kris Bryant? You should definitely do that!
Inside Kris Bryant’s Journey from the Cubs to San Francisco by Stephanie Apstein
Audiences see him as a waxy-eyed Express model and perennial All-Star who led the Cubs to their first World Series title in 108 years. He is also a father who has endured struggles on the field, a crisis of confidence and a devastating personal loss.
3. WORTH NOTING by Tom Verducci
Alex Bregman is similar to Dustin Pedroia – with his pull swing, he was selected by the right team. Just like Pedroia targeted the Green Monster all those years at Fenway, Bregman has thrived by peppering Crawford’s boxes at Minute Maid Park.
View his career offensive numbers at Minute Maid Park by address:
| HOUR | Average | SLG | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Pull |
42 |
.409 |
.842 |
|
Half |
2 |
.277 |
.338 |
|
Opposite |
7 |
.240 |
.415 |
But keep this in mind: at which American League ballpark do you have the highest career average? That’s the guaranteed rate field, site of ALDS Game 3 on Sunday. Bregman has a career bar line of .414 / .500 / .586 in seven career games there.
4. WHAT TO BE CAREFUL
The NLDS continues tonight with two games, while the ALDS is free with a day of travel. First is the aforementioned showdown between the Brewers and Braves: Woodruff vs. Fried. Then it’s the second NLDS game between the Giants and Dodgers, beginning at 9:07 p.m. ET.
One thing to watch out for in the Milwaukee-Atlanta game: Hader needed 20 pitches to close out yesterday’s win for the Brewers. Only seven times this season he pitched that many pitches in one outing, and he pitched only once the next day, which was in late August against the Nationals. He threw 24 pitches on Aug. 21 and then came in to face Juan Soto with two outs in the ninth on Aug. 22, but it only took five pitches to retire Soto and win the save. Obviously, this is the postseason, so Craig Counsell will likely use Hader more often and for longer than in the regular season, if necessary. But it will be interesting to see how he throws if he is asked to take the ball again in a tight game tonight. That’s why the absence of Devin Williams with a broken right hand is a problem. The Brewers win thanks to their elite pitching staff. Take out one of those studs, especially the current NL Rookie of the Year, whose airbender change is the dirtiest thing I’ve ever seen, and it makes it harder for Milwaukee to cover their underwhelming offense.
5. THE CLOSER by Emma Baccellieri
After his bullpen took a beating on Friday, Rays captain Kevin Cash said he wasn’t exactly sure of his pitching plan for Game 3 on Sunday. (“Fortunately, we have 24 hours to talk about it”). But if Tampa Bay decides to start with Drew Rasmussen, as previously projected, the team will make history. Rasmussen is a rookie, like Game 1 starter Shane McClanahan and Game 2 starter Shane Baz, and all three had made just 38 career starts combined prior to October. No club has ever relied on such an inexperienced trio of starters for the first three games of a playoff series.
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Eddie is an Australian news reporter with over 9 years in the industry and has published on Forbes and tech crunch.