Jake Bauers had baseball on the field and family on his mind.
Before Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Sunday, Oct. 11, the Milwaukee Brewers first baseman said the National Anthem pulled his focus away from the moment and onto his wife, Lauren, and the life they’ve built together. Bauers has spent the last nine seasons with six organizations, and he said the anthem gave him a chance to think about how far that winding path has carried him.
“There’s a lot of people I can give credit to, a lot on the staff here for sure, but also I was thinking a lot about my wife,” he said. “We have two kids, and she’s holding it down at home by herself a lot of the time, which it’s a lot. Those kids, they’re a blessing and we love them, but man, they’re a handful.”
Bauers said he nearly walked away after the 2024 season, but his decision changed when Lauren became pregnant with the couple’s second child. That moment pushed him to keep going, even if it meant more time away from home and more pressure on the family back in Milwaukee.
“For her to do that and for her to allow me the opportunity to come here and kind of keep going and just support me any way she can, it’s been crazy,” Bauers said. “It’s been crazy to see her growth as a woman and a mom.
“Yeah, so I was standing out there last night listening to the National Anthem, and I was thinking about her and just she stuck by me this whole time when it wasn’t always easy,” he continued. “I wasn’t always the best husband. I wasn’t always the best father.”
The 31-year-old has also delivered on the field. Bauers gave Milwaukee the kind of middle-of-the-order threat it has been missing in recent years, finishing with a career-high 26 home runs and 86 RBIs. He did it eight years after his MLB debut, and the production helped line up with the Brewers’ franchise-record 103-win regular season.
Milwaukee backed that season up Sunday by beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 in Game 1 of the NLCS, moving one step closer to the franchise’s first World Series appearance this century.
In Other News...
Brewers Just Sent A Real NLCS Message To The Dodgers
The Brewers didnt waste any time reminding the Dodgers that this NLCS is not supposed to be a slow roll for the favorites. Milwaukee took Game 1 on the road behind a mixed-but-effective night from Jacob Misiorowski, who handled the opening stretch before the bullpen and the lineup carried the rest of the load, and the result was exactly the kind of early punch that can change the feel of a series.
Los Angeles did get on the board first with a run that worked through Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernndez and Andy Pages, but Milwaukee answered and then settled into the kind of playoff game that rewards belief and timely execution. The Brewers know the Dodgers pedigree, and winning the opener in that environment sends a clear message that this series may be tighter, and far more uncomfortable for Los Angeles, than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Pat Murphys Message Says Everything About These Brewers Right Now
The Brewers have spent this postseason looking like a team that is not interested in reputation or resume, and their latest stretch against the Dodgers only sharpened that image. Milwaukee has won back-to-back playoff games, a run that made it the first club since 2002 to beat a reigning Cy Young Award winner and a World Series MVP in consecutive games, and manager Pat Murphy has leaned into the way his group keeps answering pressure with production. William Contreras and David Hamilton have been among the names providing the kind of timely support that turns a good October into a dangerous one.
What has made the early series lead even more impressive is how complete Milwaukee has been, from the lineup to the run prevention behind it. The bullpen has been a steadying force throughout the postseason, allowing the Brewers to keep control once they get ahead, and that has been central to how they have built this 2-0 advantage. Murphys message fits the moment because the Brewers are not just winning, they are doing it with the kind of edge that suggests they believe this run still has room to grow. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Just Put A Huge October Question On Jacob Misiorowski
Jacob Misiorowskis first postseason start in the National League Championship Series was never going to be forgotten, and not just because the Brewers opened with a 2-1 win over the Dodgers. The rookie right-hander had to navigate a rocky beginning before settling in enough to keep Milwaukee in the game, while the bullpen did the rest and the offense supplied just enough support with Brice Turangs home run and Luis Laras go-ahead RBI single.
Still, the outing left the Brewers with an October-sized question they cant ignore. Misiorowski showed he could survive when his stuff wasnt crisp, and that matters in the middle of a short series, but the early trouble also made the path uncomfortable in a way Milwaukee will have to weigh carefully as the matchup shifts and the margin for error gets tighter. [Read more 🡒]