MILWAUKEE -- Lorenzo Cain was displeased with himself on Friday night after coming up short on what would've been an exceptional play in right-center field. He didn't miss his next chance to rob Los Angeles of an extra-base hit.
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That chance came in the first inning of the Brewers' 4-3 loss to the Dodgers on Saturday, when Cain took a two-run home run away from David Freese in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series. Cain ranged deep into the right-center-field gap and leapt against the wall to help Milwaukee starter Wade Miley through a scoreless first.
"That's what I pride myself on doing, making plays out there," Cain said. "As a team, that's what we have to do. We have to swing the bats, we have to play solid defense and we have to pitch. Especially against the Dodgers. They are a really good team."
Said his neighbor in right field, Christian Yelich: "That's a momentum-changer at that time. It goes from 2-0 in the first inning to 0-0 and we're coming up to hit."
The catch marked the second time Cain robbed a home run from L.A. with Miley on the mound this season. He also pulled the trick against Cody Bellinger in Miley's 1-0 win at Dodger Stadium on July 31. Cain ranked among the best defensive players in baseball by nearly every metric this season, placing first among NL outfielders in Ultimate Zone Rating, Defensive Runs Saved (20) and third in the Statcast™ metric Outs Above Average (18).
The secret to making plays like that?
"Catch the ball," Cain said. "I dropped my last one, and I was definitely upset about that. Make a play. That's what I pride myself on doing."