Brewers Edge Padres 3-2 in NLDS Game 1 After Roof Truss Call
Milwaukee takes a 1-0 series lead over San Diego in a tense opener that ended with a bizarre ground-rule ruling on a ball that struck the American Family Field roof.
The Milwaukee Brewers took Game 1 of their National League Division Series against the San Diego Padres 3-2 on Saturday, but the game's decisive moment arrived in the top of the ninth inning when a potential go-ahead home run by Ty France struck a roof truss at American Family Field and was caught for an out.
France, the Padres first baseman, drove a pitch deep to right field with a runner on base and the Padres trailing by one run. The ball hit one of the stadium's roof supports in fair territory, then dropped almost straight down, where Brewers center fielder Jackson Chourio tracked it and made the catch. Under the ground rules at the stadium, a ball that hits the roof in fair territory remains in play. San Diego challenged the ruling, but the call stood, giving Milwaukee the second out of the inning. Jackson Merrill then lined out to right field to end the game.
The bizarre finish capped a back-and-forth contest that featured strong pitching and several missed opportunities on both sides. Milwaukee, which finished the regular season with the best record in baseball, handed the ball to rookie right-hander Jacob Misiorowski for the first postseason start of his career. The presumptive National League Cy Young favorite struck out Padres leadoff hitter Fernando Tatis Jr. to open the game and finished with six strikeouts over four innings, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk.
San Diego opened the scoring in the second inning when designated hitter Luis Campusano singled to right field with two runners on, bringing home the game's first run. The Padres added another run on a fielder's choice to take a 2-0 lead. Milwaukee answered in the third when Jackson Chourio launched a two-run homer, the hardest-hit ball of his career, to tie the game.
The score remained tied into the seventh, when Milwaukee turned to reliever Abner Uribe. Uribe allowed Tatis and Manny Machado to reach base, then hit Ty France to load the bases. Left-hander DL Hall entered and induced a flyout from Merrill to escape the jam. In the bottom of the seventh, Brewers catcher William Contreras hit a solo home run off Adrian Morejon to put Milwaukee ahead 3-2. It was just Contreras' second hit of the season against San Diego pitching.
Both teams left multiple runners on base throughout the night, a pattern that kept the game close. Milwaukee's bullpen navigated another threat in the top of the eighth before the ninth-inning drama unfolded. The Brewers' victory gives them a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series. Game 2 is scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Milwaukee.
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