Milwaukee Brewers edge past St. Louis Cardinals 9-6 in Game 1 of NLCS – MLB Playoffs
Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun put in a brilliant performance on Sunday, October 9 to help the Milwaukee Brewers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 9-6. Facing a three run deficit until the fifth inning, the duo, coupled with Yuniesky Betancourt, took on Jaime
Garcia to put the Brewers on the winning track.
With over 40,000 spectators watching the game, cheering with excitement and booing at times, the Brewers’ fans and the team management watched the game with bated breath.
“I don't even know if I heard the ball come off Prince's bat," Brewers’ manager Ron Roenicke said. "I knew it was a good swing and came off nice, but when you can't hear the ball, the sound of it, because of all the people yelling."
Although the predictable rivalry pervaded their atmosphere before and during the game, the Cardinals’ manager Tony La Russa hoped it would not translate into something hostile.
"I don't want our players and their players to be egged on, and I don't think they will," La Russa said. "We're going to play as hard and good against each other as we can."
Game 1 of the best-of-seven NLCS started with Zack Greinke on the mound, giving up a run to Matt Holliday who singled to right to secure an early lead for the Cardinals. Ryan Braun hit a huge two-run homer on Jaime Garcia’s pitch to secure a 2-1 lead for
the Brewers.
Before the Brewers could settle and make use of the lead, David Freese hit a three-run homer in the fourth inning to put the Cardinals on a seemingly winning lead of 4-2. Lance Berkman singled to right in the fifth to take it to 5-2.
As the Cardinals enjoyed their lead up until the fifth, Ryan Braun reversed the course. He hit a two-run double against Garcia only to be followed by a two-run homer of Prince Fielder that enabled Yuniesky Betancourt to get another two-run homer, giving
the Brewers a hard-earned 8-5 lead.
Zack Greinke then came down hard on St. Louis with his pitches that seemed beyond the hitters to play. Coming as reliever, Kyle McClellan allowed a run to Jonathan Lucroy which gave the Brewers a 9-6 lead after Albert Pujols got a single in the seventh inning.
Francisco Rodriguez replaced Greinke and threw a shutout eighth while John Axford threw a hitless ninth to get another save for the Brewers and win the game 9-6. The Cardinals will be disappointed by their performance and will be looking to put in an improved
performance in the next game.
With Game 2 scheduled to be played on Monday, the Brewers will be looking to maintain their strong hold in the Series.
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