BREWERS GET ROWDY
TELLEZ’S HOMER IN 7TH BREAKS SCORELESS TIE, FUELS GAME 1 VICTORY
MILWAUKEE — Rowdy Tellez fouled off a pitch by Charlie Morton in a scoreless game, then headed toward the dugout for a deep breath and a new bat. It was just the break the Brewers needed. Tellez spoiled Morton’s gem by hitting a two-run home run in the seventh inning, leading the Brewers past the Braves 2-1 on Friday in the opener of their National League Division Series.
‘‘I’m still out of breath,’’ Tellez said. ‘‘It was a crazy moment.’’
Corbin Burnes, Adrian Houser and Josh Hader combined on a four-hitter that gave the Brewers the early lead in the best-of-five series. Game 2 is Saturday in Milwaukee.
Former Brewers shortstop Orlando Arcia grounded to second with runners on the corners to end the game. That came after Brewers catcher Omar Narvaez — who combined with first baseman Tellez on a key double play in the first — blocked Hader’s 1-2 pitch in the dirt to keep Freddie Freeman at third base.
Neither team produced much offense until the Brewers finally broke through in the seventh.
After Morton plunked Avisail Garcia with a 1-2 pitch to start the inning, Tellez ripped another 1-2 offering over the center-field wall to break a scoreless tie.
‘‘Even in those at-bats, I got them where I wanted to be,’’ Morton said. ‘‘I just didn’t finish them off. I hit Avi, and then I grooved one to Rowdy.’’
Tellez was 1-for-13 against the Braves this season until delivering his 411-foot drive, which came right after he fouled off a pitch.
‘‘I don’t know if I broke that bat,’’ Tellez said. ‘‘I just saw something fly off of it. I was like, ‘I need all the help I can get right now.’
‘‘I walked back, and the batboy didn’t even realize. I kind of just collected my breath and calmed myself, got back to the box and said, ‘[Keep] my foot down and just see the pitch and hit the ball hard.’ That’s all I wanted to do.’’
The big hit capped quite a comeback for Tellez, who was activated from the injured list last Saturday after missing about three weeks with a strained right patella.
‘‘It was a tight timetable,’’ Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. ‘‘We knew it was going to be tight. We were fortunate that he got himself healthy. The training staff did a heck of a job.’’
Braves outfielder Joc Pederson, who began the season with the Cubs, lofted a pinch-hit homer against Houser with two outs in the eighth.
Morton’s 85th and final pitch to Tellez was among the few mistakes he made all day. He struck out nine, walked one and hit a batter to continue his recent history of exceptional postseason performances.
Burnes was every bit as good in his first career postseason start. The NL Cy Young Award contender opened the game with back-to-back walks and threw 40 pitches in the first two innings but settled down from there. He struck out six and gave up two hits and three walks in six scoreless innings.
GIANTS 4, DODGERS 0
Logan Webb allowed five hits and struck out 10 in 7‰ innings, and Buster Posey, former Cubs star Kris Bryant and Brandon Crawford homered to lead the Giants past the visiting Dodgers in the opener of an NL Division Series between the teams with the two best records in the majors this season.
Posey hit a two-run homer in the first and Bryant, who went 3-for-3, a solo shot in the seventh against Dodgers starter Walker Buehler before Crawford added a solo blast in the eighth against reliever Alex Vesia. ✶