NLCS Preview : Brewers vs. Dodgers

Milwaukee, W.I. ~ On Friday night, the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers will open up the National League Championship Series at Miller Park, in what will be for sure an exciting series. The Brewers, one of baseball’s smallest market team, are looking to win the NL pennant for the first time in team history, while the Dodgers, who have the second largest market in baseball are trying to advance to the World Series for the second year in a row.

You are probably thinking, underdog vs. powerhouse, but that’s not really the case. The Brew Crew have the most wins in the NL, at 96, and have home field advantage throughout the series.

The two clubs square off on Friday night to start the series, and then again on Saturday afternoon before traveling to Los Angeles for Game 3, which will take place Monday.

The Brewers last loss came on September 22, which will be twenty days by the time the NLCS starts. Pretty incredible. Milwaukee finished the season by winning eight straight, stealing the NL Central Championship right out of the Cubs hands on a Monday afternoon tiebreaker at Wrigley. They then swept the Colorado Rockies in the NLDS. The Brewers could be due for a loss or too hot to lose. We will see Friday night.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers finished the season with 92 victories, and needed a tiebreaker win against the feisty Rockies to win the NL West. They finished with the third best  record in the NL. Given the amount of payroll they have, and all their talent, they could have done a lot better. However, for more than a month, every thing went wrong for the Dodgers. They lost nine out of ten to the Padres, Reds, and Marlins, all last place teams. Then the Dodgers started playing Dodger-like baseball when Justin Turner returned. Since May 15, Los Angeles has gone 76-45, and they just took three out of four against the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS.

Both teams are hungry for championships. Even though the Dodgers seem to play in October every season, they haven’t won the World Series since 1988. Considering their huge money and depth of talent every season, it is considered a drought by many fans and sportswriters.

On the other side of the diamond, there is the Brewers, who don’t see playoff baseball that often. This is their first playoff appearance since 2011, and only their fifth in franchise history. Milwaukee is in the Championship Series for the third time. In 1982, they beat the California Angels for the AL Pennant, but lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in their only Fall Classic. And in 2011, the Crew lost to the Cardinals in six games in the NLCS. These fans are hyped for playoff baseball; expect Miller Park to be packed and rocking Friday and Saturday.

One thing Brewers fans have seen all season long is their team’s power. The Brewers hit 218 homeruns as a team, second in the NL. Christian Yelich, Jesus Aguilar, and Travis Shaw all hit more than 30 homers this season. Ryan Braun hit 20, Mike Moustakas crushed 28, and Jonathan Schoop blasted 21 between his time with Baltimore and Milwaukee. Almost every hitter on this club has a chance at hitting a homer on any at bat.

Along with the power, the Brewers have pitched remarkably since September 30. In the five games they’ve played since game that time, they’ve allowed just 3 runs as a staff altogether. Many say that the starting rotation is the Crew’s weakness, but the way Jhoulys Chacin has pitched in his final two starts have been outstanding. In the NL Central tiebreaker, he went 5.2 innings, limiting the Cubs to just one run. And in Game 2 of the NLDS, he pitched six scoreless innings. Milwaukee has arguably the best bullpen in the game, one that features Josh Hader, Jeremy Jeffress, and Joakim Soria. Craig Counsell may make things interesting this series.

The Dodgers are a homer heavy team too, they actually lead the NL in runs and homers. Nine players for Los Angeles hit more than two homers, including Manny Machado and Brian Dozier, who were acquired at the trade deadline. In the four games against the Braves, the Dodgers hit eight longballs.

Along with a potent offense, the Dodgers display a dominant starting rotation. While their bullpen doesn’t come close to matching Milwaukee’s their starting pitchers certainly have the upper edge. Clayton Kershaw dominated Atlanta in Game 2 of the NLDS, and Hyun Jin Ryu pitched seven scoreless innings against the Braves in Game 1. While Ryu only made 15 starts this season, he pitched like an ace. His ERA was a stellar 1.97, and his walk/strikeout rate was the best of his career. Walker Buehler has had an excellent rookie series, even though he had a rough night in Atlanta for Game 3. In his last twelve outings of the season, his ERA is 1.55.  The Dodgers bullpen is mediocre until they get to closer Kenley Jansen. Pedro Baez, Scott Alexander, and Ryan Madson certainly don’t make up a bad bullpen, but its nothing compared to the Brewers ‘pen. Expect the Dodgers to pitch well early, but Milwaukee will have an advantage in the later innings.

BY Jacob Szczap