The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Saint Louis Cardinals Sunday in the first game of the National League Championship Series, 9-6 at Miller Park. Down 5-2, the Brewers erupted for six runs in the fifth inning. Ryan Braun started the scoring with a two-run double. Prince Fielder followed with a two-run homer and Yuniesky Betancourt later added his own two-run homer. Braun hit a two-run homer in the first to stake the Brewers to an early 2-1 lead. Braun finished with two hits and drove in four. Betancourt, Jerry Hairston Jr., and Jonathan Lucroy all had two hits. Zack Greinke didn’t have his best stuff but it was enough to pick up the win. Greinke allowed six runs on eight hits in six innings. Takashi Saito, Francisco Rodriguez and John Axford all threw a scoreless inning of relief. Axford picked up the save.
The Brewers have a 1-0 lead in the NLCS. They will host the Cardinals in game two tonight. Shaun Marcum takes on Edwin Jackson. Your home for Brewers baseball, 93-9 FM WDOR, will have tonight’s contest. Coverage begins at 6:30. First pitch is at 7:05.
Notes:
The winner of game one of the NLCS has advanced to the World Series in 16 of the past 19 postseasons.
The team with home-field advantage in the NLCS has lost the series in seven of the last nine years. The 2004 Cardinals and the 2008 Phillies were the two with home-field advantage that advanced.
The six run fifth inning by the Brewers ties the franchise postseason record for most runs in a single inning. The Brewers had a six run seventh inning against the Cardinals in Game 4 of the 1982 World Series.
Prince Fielder has now hit three postseason home runs in his career. That ties him with Paul Molitor and Ted Simmons for most career postseason homers in Brewers history.
