The Milwaukee Brewers, accustomed to suffering in the postseason, finally managed to break their October curse. After five consecutive first-round exits since 2019, the Wisconsin team advanced to the National League Championship Series (NLCS) by beating the Chicago Cubs 3-1 in the decisive Game 5 of the Division Series, played this Saturday at American Family Field.

William Contreras, Andrew Vaughn and Brice Turang hit the decisive home runs that made the difference in a tense duel. Five pitchers combined to complete the 27 outs and secure a victory that not only ended the streak of six series losses, but also had a special flavor for eliminating their bitter rival and their former manager, Craig Counsell.

"I'm really happy for the guys. They're an incredible group," said manager Pat Murphy. "A lot of people didn't believe in them at first, but they were relentless. You can call them the 'Average Joes,' but to me they're the 'Above Average Joes.'"

A win worth more than a series

The victory not only meant advancing in the playoffs, but also an emotional outlet for the franchise and its fans. Milwaukee had lost at home in Game 7 of the 2018 Championship Series to the Dodgers, the very opponent they will face again starting Monday in Game 1 of the NLCS.

“This place is unbelievable. The crowd was electric,” Vaughn said. "We did it for them, for the guys. It was something special."

The series against the Cubs had all the ingredients: the Brewers took a resounding 2-0 lead in Milwaukee, the Chicago team responded by calling it at Wrigley Field, and Game 5 was decided in front of more than 42,000 fans who turned the stadium into a cauldron.

Trevor Megill, Jacob Misiorowski, Aaron Ashby, Chad Patrick, and Abner Uribe combined to limit the Cubs to just four hits. Uribe earned his first career multi-inning save, cementing a collective performance that reflected the team's character.

“It's been a while. We had to get over that hump,” Christian Yelich said. "We had great teams, but we couldn't move forward. I'm proud of the guys for staying strong.Now we're playing against a great team like the Dodgers, so we have to keep going.”

The victory was doubly sweet for Milwaukee fans: they eliminated their most hated rival and sidelined Counsell, who managed the Brewers for years before leaving for the Cubs. “I'm disappointed, sad,” the manager acknowledged. “This team did a lot to honor the Cubs uniform.”