On a Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee, the first seeds of October baseball were planted as the Brewers welcomed the Padres to open a best-of-five division series — a ritual that carries within it the full weight of a long season's labor. Manager Pat Murphy made his choices deliberately, trusting Christian Yelich's history over the safer arithmetic, while a young pitcher named Misiorowski carried the hopes of a franchise that knows both the sweetness of October walks-off and the sting of early exits. Playoff baseball, as Milwaukee has learned across decades, does not reward the past — it only asks
Brewers host Padres in NLDS Game 1 with Misiorowski on mound
Yelich's career speaks for itself, what he means to this team speaks for itself.
Mark
So the Brewers are the one seed and the Padres are the four seed—that's a pretty significant gap. How much does that matter in a five-game series?
Mimi
It matters in terms of home-field advantage and regular-season performance, but five games is short enough that a hot team can absolutely make noise. The Padres wouldn't be here if they weren't capable.
Luke
Right, but we should be clear about what we actually know. The Brewers won more games in the regular season. That's the fact. Whether that translates to a series win is what we're about to find out.
Mark
Murphy's choice to start Yelich over Vaughn—that seems like a statement about trusting experience in a big moment.
Mimi
It does, and Murphy was explicit about it. Yelich has history against Ray, he's been swinging well, and his track record with the team speaks for itself. It's not a knock on Vaughn; it's about matching up.
Luke
Though we should note that Murphy also said Vaughn would be important to the series. So this is Game 1 positioning, not a wholesale benching.
Mark
The Brewers have been in these Game 1s before. What does that history tell us?
Mimi
They've won three of their six NLDS Game 1s, so they're slightly above .500 in these moments. The 2025 game against Chicago was dominant—nine runs in the first two innings. But they've also lost Game 1s and still won the series, like in 2021 against Atlanta.
Luke
The thing is, Game 1 outcomes don't predict series outcomes very reliably. The 2018 walk-off against Colorado was dramatic, but that's one game. What matters is the next four.
Mark
What about Ortiz playing hurt? That seems risky.
Mimi
Murphy acknowledged he's not at 100 percent, but the team believes he's ready. They've managed his workload carefully during the week so he wouldn't be overexposed.
Luke
The key word there is "believes." We don't know how much the injury will affect his performance. We'll find out in real time.
Mark
And Misiorowski—is he a concern as a young pitcher in a playoff game?
Mimi
He throws extremely hard, which is his strength. Murphy was careful to say they're not looking for him to max out in a bullpen session, which suggests they're thinking about his workload across the series, not just Game 1.
Luke
That's smart management, but it also means if he struggles early, they might need to lean on the bullpen sooner rather than later. We don't know how deep he'll go.
O Pulso
- The Brewers enter as the National League's top seed, but their own playoff history is a reminder that seeding offers no guarantees — they have won and lost Game 1s in equal measure.
- Pat Murphy's decision to start Yelich over Vaughn against left-hander Robbie Ray signals that Milwaukee is betting on experience and recent form rather than conventional matchup logic.
- Third baseman Joey Ortiz is playing through an abdominal injury that had visibly affected his focus, adding a fragile human element to an otherwise carefully constructed roster.
- Jacob Misiorowski's workload is being managed with unusual caution — Murphy has no interest in seeing his hard-throwing starter burn out early in what could be a five-game war.
- A quiet personal thread runs through the series: Padres infielder Jake Cronenworth's wife, Brooke Fletcher, is the daughter of former Brewer Scott Fletcher, born in Milwaukee — a small reminder that these rivalries are never purely abstract.
On a Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee, the first seeds of October baseball were planted as the Brewers welcomed the Padres to open a best-of-five division series — a ritual that carries within it the full weight of a long season's labor. Manager Pat Murphy made his choices deliberately, trusting Christian Yelich's history over the safer arithmetic, while a young pitcher named Misiorowski carried the hopes of a franchise that knows both the sweetness of October walks-off and the sting of early exits. Playoff baseball, as Milwaukee has learned across decades, does not reward the past — it only asks what you can do now.
The Milwaukee Brewers opened their postseason at home against the San Diego Padres, with Jacob Misiorowski on the mound and the weight of recent October history pressing quietly on the afternoon. Manager Pat Murphy had made his key decision before the first pitch: Christian Yelich would start at designated hitter over Andrew Vaughn, a choice rooted in Yelich's documented success against Padres starter Robbie Ray and the momentum he had carried into the series. Murphy was straightforward about it — Yelich's track record spoke, and he was swinging well.
Milwaukee's Game 1 history in division series is a study in contrast. In 2025, they dismantled the Cubs with a six-run first two innings and cruised to a 9-3 win. In 2018, they survived a ninth-inning tie against Colorado before Mike Moustakas singled home the winning run in the tenth — Yelich standing on second — and went on to sweep. But there were darker memories too: a 3-1 loss to Philadelphia in 2008, a defeat in the strange strike-shortened 1981 playoffs. The lesson the franchise has absorbed is that Game 1 sets a tone without writing the ending.
Health and workload shadowed the Brewers' preparations. Joey Ortiz, nursing an abdominal injury, was cleared to play after a carefully managed week of preparation, though Murphy had watched his focus waver before the diagnosis came. Misiorowski, meanwhile, would be handled with deliberate restraint — Murphy had no desire to see his young right-hander pushing triple digits in a bullpen session, and any relief appearances later in the series would be structured accordingly.
The Padres brought a formidable lineup anchored by Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, and Xander Bogaerts. A small personal footnote connected the clubs: Padres second baseman Jake Cronenworth is married to Brooke Fletcher, a broadcaster and Milwaukee native who is the daughter of former Brewers shortstop Scott Fletcher — a quiet human thread woven into what was otherwise a straightforward playoff rivalry. For San Diego, the series was a chance to prove their fourth-place seeding understated their ability; for Milwaukee, it was the next step in a postseason they had spent all year building toward.
The Milwaukee Brewers, seeded first in the National League, opened their playoff run against the fourth-seeded San Diego Padres on Sunday afternoon, with Jacob Misiorowski taking the mound for the home team. The matchup carried weight not just for the teams involved but for the Brewers' recent history in these moments—they had been here before, multiple times, with varying results that told a story of both resilience and heartbreak.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy made his opening moves with care. He chose to start Christian Yelich at designated hitter rather than Andrew Vaughn, betting on Yelich's track record against Padres starter Robbie Ray and the momentum Yelich had built over the previous week. In his pregame remarks, Murphy spoke plainly about the decision: Yelich's career spoke for itself, his success against Ray was documented, and he was swinging well. Vaughn would have his role, Murphy acknowledged, but this moment belonged to Yelich.
The Brewers' recent history in Game 1s of division series offered both encouragement and caution. In 2025, they had come out swinging against the Chicago Cubs, collecting five hits in the first inning alone—three of them for extra bases—and plating six runs before the second inning was done. Jackson Chourio finished that game with three hits and three RBIs in a 9-3 rout. They won that series in five games. But not every Game 1 had gone so smoothly. In 2008, they lost to Philadelphia 3-1 despite Cole Hamels allowing just two hits through eight innings; the Phillies scored all their runs in the third. In 1981, in a strange playoff format born from a players' strike, they fell to the Yankees 5-3 at County Stadium. The pattern was clear: Game 1 could set a tone, but it did not determine the outcome.
One of the more dramatic Game 1 victories came in 2018 against Colorado. The Brewers held a 2-0 lead into the ninth inning before the Rockies tied it up. In the tenth, with Christian Yelich on second base after a walk and an advance, Mike Moustakas delivered a two-out single on an 0-2 pitch to end it. Milwaukee won that series in a sweep. Three years earlier, in 2015, Corbin Burnes had pitched six scoreless innings against Atlanta, and Rowdy Tellez broke a tie with a two-run homer in the seventh; Josh Hader saved it with a strikeout, but Atlanta won the series anyway, 3-1.
Murphy also had to manage the health of his roster. Third baseman Joey Ortiz was not fully healthy—an abdominal injury had been nagging him, and Murphy had noticed his focus trending downward before the injury was formally diagnosed. But Ortiz had worked hard during the week, and the team had tailored his preparation to avoid overexposure. Murphy believed he was ready. As for Misiorowski, the young right-hander would start, but Murphy was mindful of how to use him in the series. The pitcher threw hard—very hard—and Murphy was not looking for him to reach 101 miles per hour in a bullpen session. If Misiorowski came in from the bullpen later in the series, it would likely be a role reserved for veteran arms, though Murphy left the door open.
The Padres countered with their own lineup. Fernando Tatis Jr. led off in right field, with Manny Machado at third and Xander Bogaerts at shortstop. Jake Cronenworth, the Padres' second baseman, was married to Brooke Fletcher, an on-air talent for the Big Ten Network who had been reporting from the Wisconsin-Michigan State game in Madison that same afternoon—the Badgers won 31-3—before making the trip to Milwaukee. Fletcher was born in the city and was the daughter of former Brewers shortstop Scott Fletcher, a small thread connecting the two teams.
The Brewers' lineup featured Jackson Chourio in left field, William Contreras behind the plate, and Jake Bauers at first base. Garrett Mitchell would patrol center field, with Cooper Pratt at shortstop and Luis Lara in right. The stage was set for a best-of-five series that would determine who advanced to face the National League Championship Series winner. For Milwaukee, it was a chance to build on recent success; for San Diego, it was an opportunity to upset the top seed and prove their fourth-place finish did not reflect their true strength.
Citações Notáveis
He's not going to be 100 percent. But we're hoping that he feels good enough to play.— Pat Murphy, Brewers manager, on Joey Ortiz
I think [that role] is more reserved for veteran pitchers. But it's not out of the question.— Pat Murphy, on potentially using Jacob Misiorowski in relief during the series
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Leia o original em Ventura County Star ↗