Brewers complete NLCS sweep, ending Dodgers’ playoff run
By Matthew Rodriguez
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ quest for three consecutive World Series titles ended on Thursday night after the Milwaukee Brewers swept the Boys in Blue in the National League Championship Series.
The Dodgers jumped out to an early lead in the second inning after Andy Pages batted in right fielder Kyle Tucker and superstar Shohei Ohtani ended his nearly two-month home-run drought with a three-run homer to right-center field.
But the lead dwindled through four innings as the Brewers inched their way forward, tying the game in the fifth inning and taking the lead in the sixth with a solo home run from center fielder Garrett Mitchell.
The Dodgers kept the Brewers on the edge of their seats with multiple opportunities to claw back the lead, but they failed to bring in runners in scoring position multiple times.
“I think at the end of the day, we got beat,” Manager Dave Roberts said. “We got outplayed in all facets. Those guys played flawless. Defensively, they pitched better than we did. They hit better than we did. They slugged more than we did. You got to sometimes tip your cap. I personally told our guys that there’s no apologies, there’s no sorries. We gave it everything we had and it wasn’t good enough.”
After the second-inning home run, Ohtani, just like the rest of the team, struggled for the rest of the game, going 1-for-4 and striking out three times.
“We didn’t play well but for three years straight we left it all out there,” third baseman Max Muncy said.
According to MLB Network, the Brewers’ comeback secured the franchise in the history books as they became the first team to sweep the team that swept them in the playoffs the previous year. The 1923 New York Yankees are the only other team in MLB history to get swept and win a rematch the following year, but it took them six games to do it.
They went on to win the World Series against the New York Giants.
In their first World Series appearance since 1982, the Brewers will face either the Cleveland Guardians or the Tampa Bay Rays in hopes of capturing the franchise’s first-ever title.
