The Milwaukee Brewers moved within two wins of the World Series on Monday night, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-4 in Game 2 of the NLCS behind catcher William Contreras — while the Cleveland Guardians stole the ALCS opener 7-3 from the Tampa Bay Rays.
Contreras went 3-for-4 with three RBIs, crushing a 436-foot solo homer in the fifth to tie the game before singling home the go-ahead run in the sixth. Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, last year’s World Series MVP, lasted only 2.2 innings and surrendered three earned runs as Milwaukee ground through punishing at-bats — including a 12-pitch walk to Jake Bauers that loaded the bases ahead of Christian Yelich’s two-run single.
Guardians rally late in Tampa
In the American League opener, Tampa Bay carried a 2-0 lead into the sixth behind Drew Rasmussen, who struck out seven without issuing a walk. But rookie Chase DeLauter homered to start the comeback, light-hitting catcher Patrick Bailey tied it with a blast in the seventh, and Cleveland piled on late — two runs in the eighth, three in the ninth — for a 7-3 win built on 14 hits. Rasmussen was lifted after Bailey’s homer and is lined up for a potential Game 5.
What comes next
The NLCS now shifts to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Wednesday, with the two-time defending champion Dodgers staring at a daunting 0-2 deficit against a Brewers club that led the majors with 103 wins. In the AL, Game 2 goes Tuesday night in St. Petersburg — Tampa Bay’s chance to even the series, or Cleveland’s to tighten its grip as it chases a first championship since 1948. October has been starved for offense, with teams batting a collective .208, but Monday’s late innings were a reminder that the postseason can still turn in a hurry.
Source: ESPN’s 2026 MLB playoff hub. Related on State News Journal: Austin Peay builds a Fortera Stadium weekend around a top-10 showdown and Indiana State hosts ranked Youngstown State for homecoming in Terre Haute.
