BREWERS BEAT DODGERS TO LEAD NLCS TWO GAMES TO NONE

The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-4 in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series, taking a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. William Contreras hit a tying home run in the fifth inning and singled home the go-ahead run in the sixth. Four Brewers relievers combined to retire the final 15 Dodgers batters they faced. The series moves to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Wednesday. The Dodgers, chasing a third consecutive World Series title, managed only three hits in the defeat.

Los Angeles took the lead three times in the first five innings, with Milwaukee responding on each occasion. Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who had entered the postseason with an 8-1 record and 2.14 ERA across 11 career playoff appearances, lasted just 2.2 innings in his shortest postseason start after the Brewers worked deep counts and drove up his pitch count. Yamamoto said after the game that he did not yet know the reason for his early exit and would need to review video to reflect on what happened. The Dodgers went 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position, leaving them 2 for 26 in such situations this postseason. The Brewers are seeking their first pennant in the National League, having previously reached the World Series only in 1982 as an American League team.

The Dodgers last recovered from a 2-0 series deficit in 2020, when they beat the Atlanta Braves in a seven-game NLCS en route to winning the World Series. They will need a stronger batting performance in Game 3 to repeat that comeback. Separately, the Cleveland Guardians won Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against the Tampa Bay Rays.