Turang homer and Lara single carry Brewers past Dodgers in 2-1 duel

Pages put Los Angeles ahead, but Milwaukee had the only two answers that mattered

Los Angeles struck first in the second inning when Andy Pages singled to right to bring home Shohei Ohtani. The play also moved Teoscar Hernández to second and gave the Dodgers an early 1-0 edge, one built without any extra-base damage but with enough traffic to test Milwaukee starter Jacob Misiorowski.

That lead lasted until the fourth. Turang erased it with a solo shot to left-centre, a 384-foot drive that supplied Milwaukee’s only home run of the night and changed the shape of a game that had been leaning toward a low-scoring grind from the opening innings.

The Brewers then moved in front in the fifth. Garrett Mitchell came around on Lara’s single to centre, and that proved to be the last run either side would score. Milwaukee did not pile up offence afterward, but it did not need to. Jackson Chourio’s two-hit night helped keep innings alive, while Turang reached twice and delivered the swing that reset the contest.

Milwaukee’s bullpen protected a slim margin

Misiorowski’s line captured how difficult and how valuable his outing was. He worked 4 1/3 innings, allowed five hits and three walks, and still limited the Dodgers to one run while striking out five. He did not cruise, but he kept Milwaukee close long enough for the lineup to overturn the deficit.

From there, the Brewers covered the rest with a steady relay. DL Hall recorded the final two outs of the fifth, and Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill handled the final four innings without allowing a run. That trio gave up only two hits. Los Angeles still drew three walks against them, yet Milwaukee kept every one of those late threats from turning into the tying run.

That escape work mattered because the Dodgers created chances all night. They finished with seven hits and six walks, but every hit was a single and three rallies ended with ground-ball double plays. Hernández went 2-for-4, Ohtani scored the club’s only run, and Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman added one hit each. The baserunners were there. The hit that could stretch the scoreboard never arrived.

Our take: the Brewers found better shape to their offence

This result was not about one side overwhelming the other. Los Angeles actually put more men on base through hits and walks, 13 to Milwaukee’s 11. The difference was how those opportunities were packaged. The Brewers got one run from Turang’s homer and another from Lara’s RBI single, while the Dodgers had to string together singles and walks without any extra-base support. In a 2-1 game, that contrast is enough.

The Dodgers can look at this as a missed offensive opening rather than a pitching failure. Tarik Skubal allowed two runs in five innings and struck out seven, and the relief work behind him was sharp apart from two walks from Tanner Scott. The staff totaled 13 strikeouts over eight innings. When a club gets that kind of pitching, scoring one run on seven hits and six walks is the part that deserves the harder review.

Milwaukee, meanwhile, earned the win but did not exactly announce an effortless formula. The Brewers struck out 13 times and managed six hits, so there is obvious room for a cleaner night at the plate. Still, they were the tidier team in the moments that counted. With no errors on either side and only one ball leaving the yard, Milwaukee’s edge came from doing just a little more with a little less.

Scoring moments

1. 2nd Inning

   Pages singled to right, Ohtani scored, T. Hernández to second.

2. 4th Inning

   Turang homered to left center (384 feet).

3. 5th Inning

   Lara singled to center, Mitchell scored.