Game 1 of the NLDS matchup between the Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Brewers was everything that heart-racing October baseball should be.
Unfortunately for the Atlanta Braves, they came out on the losing end, coming frustratingly close to erasing a 2-0 deficit in the last couple of innings.
The Milwaukee Brewers survived Game 1 by a final score of 2-1, taking a 1-0 series lead leading up to Saturday’s Game 2.
For the Atlanta Braves, it was a game of “almosts”, culminating in an “as close as you can get” 9th inning against the best relief pitcher on the planet, Josh Hader.
Freddie Freeman, representing the tying run, was left stranded 90 feet away from home plate.
Strangely enough, the Braves have been here before against Milwaukee: two of their three regular-season losses to the Brewers also came by one run, with Hader sealing the win both times.
Nevertheless, a strong start by veteran Charlie Morton gave the Atlanta Braves every opportunity to start the series off on a successful note. The 37-year old right-hander was brilliant from the outset.
It wasn’t until the 6th inning that the veteran Morton began to show signs of vulnerability, and it wasn’t until the 7th that Milwaukee delivered its first – and only significant – punch.
Of course, that punch had to be delivered by a hitter named “Rowdy”, and the punch could be better classified as a haymaker.
The two-run shot from Rowdy Tellez gave Milwaukee the 2-0 lead it needed, and that lead would not be relinquished even in the aforementioned white-knuckled 9th inning.
The Braves’ Joc Pederson made sure to remind fans, however, that the calendar has indeed flipped to “Joctober”, with an opposite-field shot in the top of the 8th inning that drew Atlanta within one run of the opponent – a very familiar place for them this year.
Here’s three takeaways for the Atlanta Braves following the Game 1 loss in the NLDS.