MILWAUKEE — Jacob Misiorowski’s first pitch Saturday sizzled in for a called strike at 104.8 mph, seemingly portending what lay ahead. Facing San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr., the Milwaukee Brewers ace had wasted no time setting the big-league postseason velocity record.
But this is October. Almost nothing is predictable. In what turned into a battle of blistering bullpens, Brewers catcher William Contreras delivered a tie-breaking solo shot in the bottom of the seventh against Adrian Morejon, the hardest-throwing lefty in baseball. And in the top of the ninth, Padres first baseman Ty France launched a fly ball so high it struck a cable near the roof of American Family Field … and came straight down into Jackson Chourio’s glove for an out that was confirmed upon review.
If not for home-field architecture, would it have gone out for a go-ahead home run? We’ll never know. At any rate, this was how the Brewers, owners of the majors’ best regular-season record, survived and held on for a 3-2 victory in Game 1 of a riveting National League Division Series. Meanwhile, the Padres, the sport’s hottest team since late July, find themselves just two losses from elimination.
Did the Padres waste a golden opportunity?
The Padres entered this game on the wrong side of an apparent mismatch. Misiorowski presented a far tougher challenge than anyone the Chicago Cubs threw in San Diego’s wild-card series. Robbie Ray, often erratic since he was acquired at the trade deadline, was up against a disciplined, plucky Brewers lineup. Then, in a role reversal, the Padres fouled off 30 of Misiorowski’s pitches and singled their way to two early runs. They survived Ray’s 2 2/3 innings. Until the bottom of the seventh, they were in prime position to steal a critical Game 1 in hostile territory. That was before Adrian Morejon surrendered just his second home run since July 4. Because of that rarity, and because the offense could not maintain its peskiness against the Brewers’ bullpen, the Padres will enter Sunday with their backs nearly against the wall. — Dennis Lin
After working only four innings, when might The Miz pitch again?
Jacob Misiorowski had thrown only 13 1/3 innings in the previous 24 days, so rest wasn’t a problem. But he sure wasn’t sharp, and he needed 88 pitches to slog through four innings against the Padres. The short outing raises the idea that The Miz could return on three days’ rest if the Brewers find themselves facing elimination in Game 4. But keep in mind that 88 pitches is basically his average (it was technically 89.7 pitches per start, discounting a tune-up outing late in the season), and Misiorowski has never pitched on three days’ rest. If asked, though, he’d almost certainly say yes.
“Give me the ball,” he said Friday when asked about possible bullpen duty at some point this month. “That’s plain and simple. That’s my answer.” — Tyler Kepner
Brewers manager Pat Murphy on Jacob Misiorowski
Jayson Stark
Do the Brewers dig the long ball after all?
In a power-hitting era, the Brewers stand out for leading the majors in wins while hitting the fewest home runs in the National League. And yet look at what turned Game 1 — a two-run blast by Jackson Chourio to tie it in the third, and a go-ahead shot by William Contreras in the seventh, which proved to be the game-winner. The Brewers showed that while they don’t rely on the homer, they do have it in their playbook: Chourio, Contreras, Jake Bauers and Brice Turang all went deep between 18 and 26 times this season. — Kepner
