Game 1 of the National League Championship Series was a painful loss for the Milwaukee Brewers, but perhaps more pain would’ve actually resulted in a Game 1 triumph?
Trailing 2-1 with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Brewers second baseman Brice Turang evaded being hit by an inside sweeper to make it a 2-2 count. Had Turang been hit by the pitch, it would’ve brought a run home and tied the game at 2-all.
“Well, if you see me look in the dugout, I’m thinking, ‘Damn.’ I know it. Everybody knows it. I couldn’t tell you why I did it. I just got out of the way,” Turang said about the narrow pitch after the game, according to MLB.com. “That’s just how it is. You see me look in the dugout, and I’m thinking to myself, ‘I could have turned into that.’ There’s nothing I can do. I have to move on to the next pitch. …
“You turn your leg, you wear it. Just like a natural reaction to get out of the way. The last pitch, he’s [Los Angele Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen] a big sinker guy. He threw a four-seamer up at the top. That’s just what it is. You move on. As much as it sucks, you move on.”
Following the ball, Turang proceeded to strike out swinging at a high fastball, stranding the bases loaded and giving the Dodgers a Game 1 win on the road.
Of course, according to MLB, “a batter must make an attempt to avoid being hit by a pitch in order to receive first base.” Granted, Turang could’ve also sold a hit-by-pitch well.
“Your natural thing is to [get out of the way],” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said about the pitch that nearly hit Turang. “I know he was thinking the same thing after the ball passed. He’ll learn from that situation, but it’s hard. Even if you try to maneuver yourself, it’s hard to get hit by the pitch because it’s so reactionary.”
Turang, who finished the Game 1 loss 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, has totaled one home run and two RBIs while boasting a .125/.160/.292 slash line across Milwaukee’s six games this postseason. In the regular season, Turang had 18 home runs, 81 RBIs and 24 stolen bases, while posting a .288/.359/.435 slash line and 5.5 wins above replacement. Turang, a 2024 Gold Glover, also posted 7 DRS at second base.
As for the rest of the game, left-hander Blake Snell tossed eight scoreless innings for the Dodgers, recording 10 strikeouts and surrendering just one baserunner. Snell was pulled for Roki Sasaki to begin the bottom of the ninth after Los Angeles scored a run in the top-half of the inning. However, Sasaki was later relieved by Treinen with two outs in the inning after the former gave up a run and put three runners total on the basepaths, with the latter eventually shutting the door.
Turang and the Brewers, who won an MLB-high 97 games this season and defeated the Chicago Cubs in five games in the NL Division Series, aim to even up the NLCS in Game 2 on Tuesday night (8:08 p.m. ET). Freddy Peralta will take the hill for Milwaukee, while Los Angeles turns to Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
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