MILWAUKEE -- The last time the Brewers and Dodgers met prior to Friday night’s series opener was in Game 4 of last season’s National League Championship Series. The Dodgers won that game to sweep the series and earn a trip to the World Series.
After going 6-0 against the Dodgers during the 2025 regular season, the Brewers scored just four runs in the NLCS -- one run in each game. The lack of offense doomed Milwaukee, which had its sights set on a first World Series appearance since 1982.
But with a new season comes a chance for the Brewers to turn things back around against the Dodgers. Milwaukee wasted no time getting started, jumping on Los Angeles starter Justin Wrobleski for four first-inning runs, matching their entire NLCS output, en route to a 5-1 win at American Family Field.
After Jackson Chourio and Brice Turang hit consecutive singles, William Contreras, who cut down Shohei Ohtani on an attempted steal of second base to end the top of the first, belted a Statcast-projected 410-foot homer to left. His fourth round-tripper of the season staked the Brewers to an early 3-0 lead against Wrobleski, who came in with a 2.49 ERA.
Contreras’ homer came in his first at-bat after switching his walk-up song to “El Rey” by Vicente Fernandez.
“I heard it two days ago and I really liked it, so I figured it was time to make a little bit of an adjustment,” Contreras said through interpreter Daniel de Mondesert. “We’ll rock with the new one until I stop hitting.”
Sal Frelick’s sacrifice fly later in the inning pushed the advantage to 4-0 as the Brewers sent 10 batters to the plate in the first.
“I’m very happy with the way the team has been able to play the past two, three weeks and finding different ways to win ballgames,” Contreras said. “The team is more complete now and playing good ball.”
The lead grew to 5-0 in the second on Andrew Vaughn’s run-scoring double.
This year’s Brewers squad, which features a few new faces and is still forging its identity, has a “great opportunity” in facing the Dodgers in a three-game series pitting two of MLB’s top teams, manager Pat Murphy said.
The Brewers (30-18) sit atop the NL Central having won 12 of 14 and came into this series against the reigning World Series champions riding high from a three-game sweep of the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
“Anytime you can beat the Dodgers, a team of that stature, it builds something inside of you,” Murphy said. “But as we found out last year, regular-season games aren’t the only thing.”
After getting by the Cubs in five games in last season’s NL Division Series while tallying 22 runs, the Brewers were outscored by the Dodgers, 15-4, in the NLCS.
“The Dodgers played that series, in my mind, as good as you can play,” Murphy said.
Milwaukee is finding success so far this season with a daily shuffling of the lineup. Friday marked the first time that the Brewers used a repeat lineup after 47 consecutive unique ones this season.
But it wasn’t just about the offense in the series opener.
Logan Henderson, making his fifth start of the season, faced the minimum number of batters through three innings before giving up a leadoff single to Ohtani in the fourth. The Dodgers loaded the bases in the inning with two outs, but Henderson got Max Muncy to pop out to end the threat.
After giving up a single to Teoscar Hernández to start the fifth, Henderson retired three straight, including a strikeout of Ohtani for the final out.
Henderson gave up just two hits over five scoreless innings. He walked three and struck out seven in the 85-pitch outing (57 strikes). He now has a 2.23 ERA in 10 career starts.
But Henderson was quick to give credit for his performance to his batterymate.
“He doesn’t get enough credit for what he does behind the plate,” Henderson said of Contreras. “He really took control of the game. He was pressing the button and I was just following what he was doing.”
Brewers starting pitchers haven’t allowed a run over 18 innings in the past three games, while recording 26 strikeouts.
“There are pretty high standards and they all live up to them,” Murphy said of his young staff.
Three Brewers relievers -- Shane Drohan, Aaron Ashby and Chad Patrick -- combined to limit the Dodgers to one unearned run over the final four innings. Patrick notched his second save.