NewzLOS ANGELES (AP) — Jake Bauers went home to Southern California and walked away with an MVP trophy.Bauers hit a two-run double in the fourth inning Thursday to begin Milwaukee's comeback, and the Brewers rallied for a 6-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers that completed a four-game sweep in the National League Championship Series.The 31-year-old first baseman also drew a walk that forced home the tying run in the fifth to help Milwaukee advance to the World Series for the first time in 44 years.“There was never a doubt,” Bauers said. “There was never a doubt in that dugout what was going to happen tonight. We knew we were going to win that game.”Bauers was selected the NLCS MVP after going 4 for 14 (.286) with a home run and six RBIs in the series.
He worked three walks and finished with a .983 OPS.Bauers was born in Newport Beach and went to Marina High School in Huntington Beach about 40 miles south of Dodger Stadium.If performing at his best in front of family and friends was rewarding, seeing Los Angeles in the playoffs for the second consecutive season heightened his senses. Bauers learned something from how the Dodgers reacted when they wiped out Milwaukee in the 2025 NLCS on the way to their second straight World Series title.“Watching the way they carried themselves on the field after sweeping us last year was a little bit eye-opening,” Bauers said. "We won the (NLDS) against the Cubs, and I think we kind of celebrated like that was something.“Those guys swept us, they sent us home, and you would have thought it was a handshake line at a spring training game.
That’s something that I carried with me. That’s something that I remembered. Yeah, it was a little bit of motivation to just say, we’ve got to keep going until there’s not another game left to play.”It's not just in the playoffs that Bauers has shined.
Earning consistent playing time from Brewers manager Pat Murphy in his seventh major league season, Bauers set career highs across the board with a .266 batting average, .874 OPS, 26 home runs and 86 RBIs.The left-handed-hitting Bauers also made his mark in Games 2 and 3 of the NLCS with long plate appearances. His 12-pitch walk against Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 2 came just before a two-run single by Christian Yelich that gave Milwaukee the lead in a back-and-forth 7-4 win.Bauers also hit a go-ahead homer off two-time Cy Young Awa… LOS ANGELES (AP) — After 44 years, the Milwaukee Brewers are finally going back to the World Series.Propelled by a lockdown bullpen and repeated comebacks, the young and fearless Brewers swept the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers out of the playoffs Thursday with a 6-4 victory in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series.“We weren’t coming in to play patty-cake," manager Pat Murphy said.
“We were hungry, and as long as it’s an even playing field, we’re going to come in and give it our best shot to win. That’s exactly what we did.”Garrett Mitchell hit a go-ahead homer in the sixth inning and Milwaukee’s brilliant relievers slammed the door late, giving a vocal contingent of Brewers fans their chance to celebrate in the Dodger Stadium stands.Now, the Brewers get an opportunity to win their first title after topping the majors with 103 wins during the regular season. Milwaukee has a week off before hosting Cleveland or Tampa Bay in the World Series opener on Oct.
23.“I’m excited that we've got a few more games to play and get to go home with the fans and celebrate there, too,” Mitchell said.Shohei Ohtani’s first home run this postseason helped put the Dodgers ahead 4-0 in the second inning before the Brewers came back to complete a four-game sweep.No. 9 hitter David Hamilton’s two-out solo shot off Edwin Díaz gave Milwaukee a two-run cushion in the ninth. Hamilton had just four homers in the regular season.“We got down early tonight and we were like, it’s going to be a great story,” Brewers captain Christian Yelich said.
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