The National League Championship Series featuring the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers is set to kickoff on Friday night. The Milwaukee Brewers finished the 2018 regular season with the best record in the National League and will have home field advantage for this series. The Dodgers won the season series over Milwaukee, winning four of the seven games.
The Brewers were able to reach the NLCS after beating the Colorado Rockies in the Division Series. Milwaukee wasted little time in sweeping the Colorado Rockies in three games. The Los Angeles Dodgers needed just four games to eliminate the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS. The Milwaukee Brewers are +140 in game one of the series on Friday night.
Kershaw On The Mound For LA
The Los Angeles Dodgers will send lefthander Clayton Kershaw to the mound in Game 1. Kershaw made the game two start for the Dodgers in the NLDS and gave them a dominant performance. The lefty gave up just two hits and no runs over eight innings against the Atlanta Braves. Kershaw will try to slow down a red-hot Brewers lineup in this game.
Dodgers shortstop Manny Machado blasted a pair of home runs and drove in six runs during the NLDS. Los Angeles hit just .210 as a team in that series, but the Dodgers pounded out eight home runs during the four games. Max Muncy hit a pair of home runs to continue his breakout 2018 season. The Dodgers have a deep and talented lineup, but they are facing a tough pitching staff in this series.
Brewers Bullpen Ready To Roll
The Milwaukee Brewers bullpen has carried them all season long, and they will be well rested heading into this game. The Brewers pitching staff had a 0.64 earned run average in their series against the Rockies, with reliever Jeremy Jeffress allowing the only two runs. Relievers Corey Knebel and Josh Hader combined to throw 5 ⅓ scoreless while giving up zero hits. If the Brewers can get an early lead, their bullpen should do the rest.
The Brewers offense has been on fire during their current eleven game win streak, and Christian Yelich has been their leader. Yelich went just 2-8 during the NLDS, but he was walked a whopping six times by the Rockies. Milwaukee has a .272 batting average so far this postseason but will face a tough challenge against Kershaw in this game.
Brewers Win Series Opener
This is the third straight season that the Dodgers have been in the NLCS. Los Angeles advanced to the World Series a season ago but lost to the Houston Astros in seven games. The Dodgers made a ton of moves during the season to improve their roster, and are playing great baseball headed into this series. The Dodgers are expecting a strong start from Clayton Kershaw in this game.
The Milwaukee Brewers are the hottest team in baseball at the moment, and their bullpen is the best in baseball. Christian Yelich and Ryan Braun lead an improved Brewers offense into this series. The Brewers have a ton of confidence and that will propel them to a series-opening win over the Dodgers. Bet the Brewers +140 to beat the Dodgers in game one of the NLCS.
