Dustin May exits after being hit by line drive

Misiorowski will square off against Dodgers trade deadline acquisition Tarik Skubal, who was reportedly pursued by the Brewers prior to the deal with Los Angeles, to kick off the best-of-seven opener in Milwaukee. Logan Henderson will start Game 2, and the plan is for Robert Gasser to get the nod in Game 3. There are plenty of narratives here, but the most compelling to monitor is whether Misiorowski can go shut down Los Angeles’ star-studded lineup multiple times to help lead the Brewers to the Fall Classic for the first time since 1982. The hard-throwing 24-year-old allowed two runs over four innings during his playoff debut against the Padres last weekend.

It wasn’t clear until this afternoon whether Gasser would get a start in the series, but he did and came through nicely in his first appearance since Sept. 25. Based on this and the way he ended the regular season — he had a 1.67 ERA in his final six starts — he probably ought to be ahead of Dustin May in line for a potential Game 3 start against the Dodgers.

Gasser has not yet pitched this postseason. The left-hander had a 3.87 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, and 103/35 K/BB ratio in 190 1/3 innings for the Brewers this season. His last two outings were six and seven innings, respectively, so there is not likely to be a pitch count on him, but the Brewers will also happily go to their bullpen early if they feel it’s the right move.

May struggled to locate in his three innings, and while he was able to keep the Padres off the board in the first two frames, he gave up a pair in the third in a less-than-spectacular outing for the 29-year-old. He walked a pair while allowing three hits, and threw just 27-of-52 pitches for strikes. May would likely be available to pitch in Game 5 if necessary.

Murphy noted that aside from his postseason experience and his success against the Padres this season, the Brewers specifically “brought him in to do that”. He’ll start opposite of Padres’ right-hander Nick Pivetta when the series shifts to San Diego on Tuesday evening.

Harrison relieved Dustin May after May gave up two runs in three innings. The left-hander has really struggled at the end of the year, but this was a reminder of the good he’s provided in 2026 and lowered his season ERA to 4.20 and helped him pick up his 11th win of the season. It would not be a surprise at all if Harrison pitched in a similar role in the postseason; particularly if Milwaukee advances to a seven-game series.

It was one of the best outings of the season for Gasser, whose nine strikeouts set a new career-high. Gasser’s lone earned run came in the fourth inning when he allowed a solo homer to Ivan Herrera to tie the game at 1-1. Gasser would not allow another run or hit the rest of the way and has been tremendous heading into the postseason. The lefty ends the season with a 5-5 record and a 3.87 ERA, but has allowed just five earned runs over 27.0 innings while striking out 25 batters in September.

May was pitching on three days’ rest, so this was a planned short outing. He’s expected to work again Sunday against the Cardinals before the Brewers firm up any NLDS plans.

Gasser was excellent on Saturday, holding the Orioles scoreless through six innings. He cruised through most of the game, limiting Baltimore to three baserunners through five frames. His biggest challenge came in the sixth as he loaded the bases with one out before inducing a ground-ball double play. Gasser returned to complete a scoreless seventh inning. He struck out two. The 27-year-old left-hander will take a 4.01 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, and a 94/34 K/BB ratio across 103 1/3 innings into a start against the Cardinals in Milwaukee on Friday.

May made it through the first two innings without much trouble, but in the bottom of the third inning he would fall victim to a three-run homer by Pete Alonso after he allowed the first two batters of the inning to reach base. May would retire Gunnar Henderson in the next at-bat, but followed that with a double by Coby Mayo and a single by Samuel Basallo before plunking Christian Encarnacion-Strand to load the bases with only one out. May would leave after the HBP and was bailed out by reliever Shane Drohan, who retired the next two batters he faced to end the bases-loaded threat. May has allowed five earned runs over 12.0 innings of work this month and will look to rebound from this outing in his next start, which is scheduled for Thursday against the Phillies.