The Milwaukee Brewers are going to the World Series for the first time since 1982, and they will likely be favored to win the Fall Classic.
They won the most games in baseball this year and have lost just one game in the postseason. They swept the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers, and how Pat Murphy managed that series could provide some insight into how he will approach things in the World Series.
Starting Rotation
The Brewers have been waiting for the Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Guardians to finish up their series, but that will not change how they line up in the rotation. They handled business in four games, so Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson and Robert Gasser only had to pitch once. They will be well rested for what's ahead, and here's likely how they will line up:
- Game 1: Jacob Misiorowski
- Game 2: Logan Henderson
- Game 3: Robert Gasser
- Game 4: Bullpen
- Game 5: Jacob Misiorowski (4 days rest)
- Game 6: Logan Henderson (5 days rest)
- Game 7: Robert Gasser (4 days rest)
Obviously, this is assuming nothing crazy happens, but the Brewers will throw a bullpen game after Gasser's turn in the rotation. They have gone through this postseason so far without Misiorowski and Henderson having their best stuff, and have had to use their bullpen more than they would like. However, DL Hall, Trevor Megill, Aaron Ashby and Abner Uribe have been elite in their roles and seem to have no problem with the workload.
In Game 4, the Brewers will likely try to get some length out of Dustin May, Chad Patrick, Shane Drohan, Kyle Harrison and maybe even Brandon Woodruff before handing the ball to Ashby, Uribe and Megill.
Lineup
The lineup for Pat Murphy is not as cut and dry as the rotation. In the National League Division Series and National League Championship Series, he used Luis Lara and Sal Frelick as a platoon in right field and, surprisingly, also benched Christian Yelich for two games for Andrew Vaughn.
However, some things will remain constant. Jackson Chourio will likely lead off for Murphy and play left field. Brice Turang will probably bat second and play second base. William Contreras will catch every game and bat third, most likely. Jake Bauers will play first base and bat cleanup. Outside of those four, anything can happen.
Garrett Mitchell and Cooper Pratt will likely start every game, but their spots in the order could change. Against left-handed starters, Lara will play right field, and Frelick will start against righties. If Murphy sticks with the approach of benching his captain, Vaughn will start at designated hitter against lefties, with Yelich starting against righties.
Third base has seen Joey Ortiz start against left-handed pitching and David Hamilton against right-handed pitching. However, that's not so much of a straight platoon.