Channel flipping

It's rarely been an issue most years, because most years the Milwaukee Brewers typically aren't playing meaningful baseball in the middle of October. Yet here they are, leading the National League Championship Series 2-1 following a 4-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers last night. Meanwhile, at Lambeau Field, the Packers rallied to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 33-30.

If you're a Wisconsin sports fan, what do you watch? I had a previously scheduled event at our parish last night, so I didn't really watch anything until 9 p.m. We were flipping back and forth between the Brewers and the Packers -- while the Benster likes the Brewers, he's more of a Twins fan, so he was more concerned about events at Lambeau. I have my doubts that the Packers are going anywhere this season, so I was more interested in what was happening at Dodger Stadium.

Post-season baseball is a lot more interesting than most regular season games, because the chess match aspect of the game comes to the fore. Brewers manager Craig Counsell is a Milwaukee kid and he's been wheeling and dealing all season, leveraging an outstanding bullpen to great success. It's an odd way to approach the game and traditionalists who value starting pitching are a big aghast, but so far it's worked well. The Brewers essentially have three starting pitchers right now, all journeymen. But they might have the most effective relief pitcher on the planet in Josh Hader. And they have a versatile lineup with good balance and a genuine star in Christian Yelich.

I grew up with the Bambi's Bombers/Harvey's Wallbangers Brewers, who would bludgeon their opponents with one power hitter after another. They never really had enough pitching, though, and in their only visit to the World Series, they fell short as their ace Pete Vuckovich, who was pitching with a torn rotator cuff, ran out of pitches in the end. Since then, the Brewers have only been close one other time, back in 2011, but this team is better than that 2011 group.

Wisconsin is a football-mad state and the Packers are almost a religion there, but this year, I'm grateful for the Brew Crew. Post-season baseball is a wonderful thing.