Pat Murphy's Game 5 opener shows clear emphasis on first inning's importance

In the chess match of a postseason series, Pat Murphy and Craig Counsell have entered the endgame. After the Milwaukee Brewers dominated the opening, opting for the Milwaukeean defense, the Chicago Cubs countered with the Wrigley Gambit and took Games 3 and 4. Now, each team has the other's king in sight, and it will take a strategic series of moves (aka pitching decisions) to put their opponent in checkmate.

Counsell was first to play, electing to start Drew Pomeranz in tonight's crucial Game 5 matchup. Pomeranz is a tough matchup for the Brewers hitters and has hit his stride over the past few weeks. He has yet to allow an opposing hitter to reach base through five appearances in the 2025 postseason. Rather than turn to a traditional starter, the Cubs are opting to make the Brewers’ lives difficult in the first inning, but the decision does rid them of a high-leverage arm later in the game.

Just moments ago, Murphy countered. Though some anticipated a lefty to start for the Brew Crew in Game 5, neutralizing the threat posed by Cubs' slugger Michael Busch at the top of Counsell's batting order, the Brewers manager is instead turning to one of his most trusted bullpen arms to start the winner-takes-all contest, in an effort to end the Cubs' frustrating streak of scoring in the first inning.

As a result, 2025 All-Star Trevor Megill is starting Game 5 of the NLDS for the Milwaukee Brewers.

Pat Murphy turns to his All-Star closer, Trevor Megill, to start Game 5 of the NLDS

The move is a clear response to the first inning struggles that Brewers pitchers have shown throughout the series. Murphy tried to put an end to them before they began in Game 2, starting southpaw Aaron Ashby as an opener to slow down the Cubs' left-handers at the top of the order, but that only led to right-hander Seiya Suzuki teeing off on an elevated changeup and giving Chicago an early 3-0 lead.

In response, Murphy is electing to throw one of his best arms in the first frame of tonight's game, All-Star closer Trevor Megill. After a late-season injury initially put Megill's postseason availability in question, the Brewers' manager has elected to throw him into a different role during the playoffs, easing him back into the high-leverage situations that he frequented during the regular season. The 31-year-old flamethrower has responded excellently.

In two appearances during the NLDS, covering five total outs, Megill has allowed just one hit and one walk. His fastball is a few ticks down from where it sat during the regular season, but with the adrenaline from the crowd on Saturday night and a lethal knuckle curve to go along with it, Cubs hitters face a tough task in the first inning, which is exactly what Murphy was hoping for.