Slumping Brewers must improve their approach at the plate to have any hope of coming back in NLCS

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers are making the types of mistakes at the plate that they avoided while producing the best regular-season record in the major leagues.

No wonder they’re leaving home facing a 2-0 deficit against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the best-of-seven National League Championship Series.

“We’ve just got to play better,” Brewers designated hitter Christian Yelich said. “It’s not an ideal start to the series, by any means. Just have to continue to battle and find a way to get the offense going. I’ve got to be better. We’ve got to be better. It’s just facts.”

The Brewers ranked second in the majors in on-base percentage (.332) and third in runs (806) and batting average (.258) while posting a franchise-best 97-65 regular-season record.

But they’ve totaled just five hits through the first two games of this series and mustered only one run in each of them.

The Brewers got just two hits in a 2-1 Game 1 loss, as two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell allowed one hit and no walks over eight shutout innings fo Los Angeles. They managed three hits Tuesday and fell 5-1 as Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched the first postseason complete game in eight years.

During the regular season, the Brewers had the best chase rate in the majors, meaning they swung at the lowest percentage of pitches outside the strike zone. But their inability to work counts the last two night allowed Los Angeles’ starters to go deep into the games and prevented the Brewers from getting many shots at the Dodgers’ vulnerable bullpen.

“Both those pitchers were as dominant as two pitchers have been,” Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy said. “We chased way more than we’ve chased all year. We’ve been the best in baseball at not chasing. These pitchers brought out the worst in us.”

The most notable example came when Blake Treinen struck out Brice Turang swinging at a neck-high fastball with the bases loaded to end Game 1.

But the chasing was prevalent again Tuesday, allowing Yamamoto to pitch a complete game for the first time since entering the majors last season on a 12-year, $325 million contract.

Jackson Chourio homered on Yamamoto’s first pitch to continue his impressive postseason. The 21-year-old already has four career postseason homers to tie a Brewers record he now shares with Orlando Arcia and Prince Fielder.

But the Brewers accomplished little else. Their only other hits were two-out singles by Brice Turang in the third inning and Sal Frelick in the fourth.

The lack of punch was particularly frustrating because the Brewers had knocked Yamamoto out in the first inning of a 9-1 victory over the Dodgers the one time they faced him in the regular season. Yamamoto gave up five runs — three earned — and got only two outs in that July 7 game.

This time, the Brewers had no answers for him.

“He wasn’t missing over the middle of the plate,” Turang said. “We hit some balls hard but they were standing right there. Sometimes it’s part of the game. He hit his spots.”

Milwaukee’s struggles are up and down the lineup thus far in the series.

Yelich, a three-time All-Star and the 2018 NL MVP, is 0 for 13 in his last four games. Two-time All-Star William Contreras and Andrew Vaughn each homered twice in the NL Division Series against the Chicago Cubs, but both are hitless so far in this series.

“We’ve got to take batter at-bats,” Chourio said through an interpreter. “That’s where it begins. But you have to credit those guys. But we haven’t had so much luck go our way. We have to stick with our plan and stick with process and hopefully change things around.”

The Brewers remain confident they can turn this series around. They won all six regular-season matchups with the Dodgers, all in July. The Dodgers are playing much better now than they were then, but the Brewers realize they can show much more discipline at the plate than they’ve displayed the last two nights.

“You guys might have us counted out,” Murphy said. “And I understand that — 90% of the teams that have been in this situation don’t win the series. But this team has been counted out a lot this year. And I think there’s some fight left in them.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Abner Uribe leaves the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the seventh inning in Game 2 of baseball's National League Championship Series, Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy talks to his players durung a pitching change in the eighth inning of Game 2 of baseball's National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Freddy Peralta walks to the dugout after the top of the fifth inning in Game 2 of baseball's National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Members of the Milwaukee Brewers watch during the ninth inning in Game 2 of baseball's National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

Milwaukee Brewers fans react during the sixth inning in Game 2 of baseball's National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

WASHINGTON (AP) — White House chief of staff Susie Wiles has been diagnosed with early stage breast cancer but will continue working during her treatment, President Donald Trump said in a social media post on Monday.

Trump said Wiles’ prognosis is “excellent” and described her as “one of the strongest people I know.” He said Wiles plans to begin treatment immediately but made no suggestion she was pulling back on her work as one of his closest advisers.

“During the treatment period, she will be spending virtually full time at the White House, which makes me, as President, very happy!” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. “She will soon be better than ever!”

It comes as the Republican president confronts mounting challenges on global and national fronts, from the war in Iran and soaring oil prices to this fall’s midterm elections and Americans' concerns over affordability.

Wiles, 68, is a longtime Trump ally who rose from his campaign co-chair to his closest adviser and counsel. The first woman to become White House chief of staff, Wiles spent decades as a lobbyist and political operative in Florida and led Trump’s 2016 effort in the state.

She mostly shuns the spotlight but drew attention in December with an unusually candid Vanity Fair interview in which she made critical remarks about Trump administration leaders including Vice President JD Vance and Attorney General Pam Bondi. Trump underscored his trust in Wiles in the aftermath, calling the interview a “hit piece” and describing Wiles as “fantastic.”

In his Monday post, Trump reiterated that Wiles is “tough and deeply committed to serving the American People.”

“Melania and I are with her in every way, and we look forward to working with Susie on the many big and wonderful things that are happening for the benefit of our Country,” Trump said, referring to first lady Melania Trump.

President Donald Trump speaks during a board meeting of the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts in the East Room of the White House, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Washington, as White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, looks on. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

FILE - White House chief of staff Susie Wiles waits for the arrival of President Donald Trump for a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House, March 2, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, FIle)

White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles attends a board meeting of the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts in the East Room of the White House, Monday, March 16, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

FILE - White House chief of staff Susie Wiles listens as President Donald Trump meets with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House, Feb. 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

FILE - White House chief of staff Susie Wiles listens as President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after signing an executive order reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug in the Oval Office of the White House, Dec. 18, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)