MLB Roundup 10/16: Brewers take the lead in the NLCS

Brewers go up in NLCS

Milwaukee’s got something going on in this postseason, and it’s been really fun to watch. The big issue with that roster was always supposed to be the starting pitching, but that hasn’t shown up much at all. In fact, it’s been a strength in plenty of games. Now, Craig Counsell deserves plenty of credit for this for managing his pitching staff well, as does their loaded bullpen that can take the pressure off the rotation. On Monday, though, Jhoulys Chacin did the thing. He made it through 5 ¹⁄₃ innings without allowing a run, and from there the bullpen had to cover just 3 ²⁄₃ innings. They did that with ease, at least until the final inning. The Dodgers just couldn’t get anything going on offense for most of this game, and Walker Buehler allowed four runs in seven innings. The young righty wasn’t bad, but he struggled enough to take the L. Things did get exciting towards the end, for what it’s worth, when Jeremy Jeffress loaded the bases and Brian Dozier came up representing the tying run. He couldn’t tie the game, instead striking out to end the game. Brewers win 4-0, and they go up 2-1 in the series.

You can get the Brewers perspective on that Game 3 here, and you can get the Dodgers perspective here.

Brian Snitker gets two-year extension

The Braves were supposed to be at least a year away from real contention in the National League. They, of course, flipped that expectation on its head with a great 2018, and they found themselves in the postseason ahead of schedule with an easy NL East win. Now, they certainly got some help from a disastrous season in Washington and the Phillies falling off in a dramatic way over the second half of the year. Still, the Braves were great, and they got the most out of their young talent earlier than anyone expected. As a reward, they’ve given Brian Snitker a two-year extension. Now, there are a lot of Braves fans who aren’t crazy about their manager’s in-game skills, but he clearly connected with this young team in some way. With so many teams looking for a new manager this year, and the talent pool being as unpredictable as ever, this seems like a smart move for Atlanta. At only two years, they can still cut bait quickly if they have to.