MILWAUKEE – At this stage of the playoffs last year, Brewers manager Pat Murphy joked that he was certain the Dodgers couldn’t name eight players on his roster.
asserted
Dodgers → joke → roster
The false humility backfired.
asserted
humility → backfire → ?
Murphy’s words cast a spell on the Brewers, who went from being the winningest team in baseball to a collection of obscure laborers as unremarkable as the podunk town in which they play.
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they → cast → which
The Dodgers swept the Brewers in four games and went on to win the World Series.
asserted
Dodgers → sweep → Series
With his team once again set to take on the Dodgers with a place in the World Series at stake, Murphy has returned to the National League Championship Series with a new tenor and more less conciliatory message.
“We want to kick their butts,” Murphy said.
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Murphy → set → butts
A two-time manager of the year, the 67-year-old Murphy maintains a hokey demeanor that plays well in an unsophisticated market.
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that → maintain → market
Murphy started his news conference as he often does, asking reporters with whom he was unfamiliar to stand and introduced themselves.
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he → start → themselves
He playfully asked Japanese reporters if they could help him land a job in Nippon Professional Baseball.
uncertain
him → ask → Baseball
But before Murphy was the manager of the Brewers, or even the coach at Arizona State or Notre Dame, Murphy was an amateur boxer who moved to Miami with designs of fighting professionally.
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who → move → designs
The day before Game 1, the fighter in him emerged.
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fighter → emerge → him
Murphy said he regretted how he characterized his team last year.
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he → say → team
“I”m sorry I played that underdog card,” Murphy said.
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Murphy → i”m → card
“I probably shouldn’t have played that, used that as an excuse for why we didn’t play well.
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we → play → excuse
“I don’t care who the underdog is.
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underdog → care → ?
I don’t care who the favorite is.
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favorite → care → ?
It’s about getting in the ring and fighting it out.”
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It → ’ → it
“I think any time there’s familiarity it could help,” Murphy said.
uncertain
Murphy → think → ?
“You fight a guy once and you fight him the second time, you should have a better idea.
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you → fight → idea
Everything’s different.
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Everything → ’ → ?
The guy is a little different that you’re fighting the second time, even though it’s the same person.
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it → fight → ?
They’ve got a different strategy, maybe different personnel.”
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They → get → strategy
The Brewers once again finished the regular season with the best record in baseball, this time by winning a franchise-record 103 games.
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Brewers → finish → games
But questions remain over how their unconventional offense translates in the playoffs.
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offense → remain → playoffs
The Brewers had baseball’s highest batting average in the regular season.
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Brewers → have → season
They also had the second-fewest home runs.
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They → have → runs
They also don’t have much of a rotation after their first two starters, Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson.
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They → have → starters
Asked how the Brewers’ fastball-reliant pitching staff would deal with a Dodgers’ lineup with a penchant for hitting fastballs, Murphy replied, “You’ve got to execute because executing pitches is what it’s about.
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it → ask → what
That stops offense.
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That → stop → offense
We’re still going to pitch to our strengths.
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We → go → strengths
It’s like any other fight.
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It → ’ → fight
Styles matter, but we can only do what we can do.
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we → matter → what
I can’t all of a sudden become a counterpuncher if I’m Mike Tyson, and they can’t be Muhammad Ali if all year they fought like George Foreman.
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they → become → Foreman
For the Brewers to have a chance in this series, they will almost certainly have to win Game 1 in which Misiorowski will be their starter.
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Misiorowski → have → which
The prohibitive favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award, Misiorowski beat the Dodgers in Los Angeles on Aug. 15, limiting them to one run over six innings and striking out six.
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Misiorowski → win → six
But pitching opposite Misiorowski will be Tarik Skubal.
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Skubal → pitch → Misiorowski
From there, the Dodgers will have an enormous edge in starting pitching.
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Dodgers → have → pitching
Yoshinobu Yamamoto will start Game 2, after which Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are expected to follow, in that order.
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Snell → start → order
The more games are played, the more the Brewers’ bullpen figures to tire.
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bullpen → play → ?
The Brewers know what they’re up against.
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they → know → what
But they’re also projecting a different energy this year, and they’re counting on that to assist them in overcoming the band of superstars from the entertainment capital of the world.
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they → project → world
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
