Brewers’ bullpen and Brice Turang steal NLCS Game 1 from Dodgers, 2-1
Milwaukee edged Los Angeles 2-1 in the NLCS opener at American Family Field, surviving an early push by Tarik Skubal and taking advantage after Jacob Misiorowski exited early.
By SLAM Intel Desk · 4 min read · Updated Oct 12, 2026, 3:01 PM EDT
Reported · Published
The 1–10 score is editorial significance. Measured changes below require source-linked records; the score does not claim a change in win probability or medical severity.
Milwaukee steals Game 1
The Brewers opened the NLCS with a 2-1 victory over the two-time defending champion Dodgers at American Family Field. It was the sort of low‑scoring, high-stakes game playoff baseball is built on: Milwaukee manufactured just enough offense and handed the game to a bullpen that has already become this team’s identity.
Brice Turang supplied the biggest swing — a home run that either tied the game or swung momentum — and Milwaukee’s relief corps shut down the Dodgers after Misiorowski exited early, preserving the slim advantage.
Bullpen to the rescue
Milwaukee’s relievers did the heavy lifting. After the Brewers’ starter left without the length the club hoped for, manager Pat Murphy turned to a lefty/righty mix and matched high-leverage arms in the late innings. That quartet — the group the Brewers rode through the postseason — shut the Dodgers down after the fifth, preventing Los Angeles from stringing together an inning that might have flipped the game.
The result: the Dodgers’ vaunted offense had only one run to show for an evening, leaving Los Angeles with questions about how to manufacture more traffic against Milwaukee’s matchup-heavy bullpen strategy.
What it means for the series
A Game 1 loss forces the Dodgers into the uncomfortable spot of chasing the series on the road. It also spotlights a strategic imbalance: Milwaukee doesn’t need all of its starters to be dominant if the bullpen can shorten games and the offense can produce a run or two at key moments.
Looking ahead, MLB’s series notes list Yoshinobu Yamamoto as the Dodgers’ probable Game 2 starter against Logan Henderson — a matchup that will test whether Los Angeles can respond with length and the Brewers can continue to leverage late-inning matchups.
Key things to watch in Game 2
Can Misiorowski recover and hold up for a traditional ace’s workload in later turns, or will the Brewers need to lean on bullpen depth again? How the Dodgers respond offensively — quicker two‑strike approaches, more situational hitting, or aggressive baserunning to force Milwaukee’s hand — will determine whether Monday’s game is another chess match of low runs and high-leverage relief.
If the Brewers keep executing the small‑ball identity that delivered Game 1, they’ll continue to force the Dodgers into uncomfortable managerial decisions about using high‑leverage relievers earlier than planned.
SLAM Explains
The complicated part, made simple.
Why Game 1 matters in a best-of-seven
Winning Game 1 gives a team both a scoreboard and psychological edge: it forces the opponent to play from behind, alters bullpen usage across the next two games, and increases leverage to use your top starters on schedule rather than accelerating them to make up ground.
Why it matters here
In a tight postseason series like this one, a single low-scoring game decided by relievers and small-ball — rather than a blowout — reshapes management decisions for both clubs and makes the depth of a bullpen a decisive resource.
Sources and attribution
- MLBPublished Oct 12, 2026, 1:36 PM EDT
Reporting attributed to MLB.
- CBS SportsPublished Oct 11, 2026, 11:47 PM EDT
Reporting attributed to CBS Sports.
- Yahoo SportsPublished Oct 12, 2026, 1:44 AM EDT
Reporting attributed to Yahoo Sports.
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