![Brewers 50/50: October 9, 2011 – Milwaukee’s first ever NLCS game win [VIDEO]](https://wtmj.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/GettyImages-129022014-scaled.jpg)
It was the biggest game to date in the history of Miller Park.
The NL Central champion Brewers hosted the loathed co-archrival St. Louis Cardinals in the first game of the National League Championship Series, with home field for the entire postseason in their hands if they got past the Cardinals.
A twilight back-and-forth slugfest ensued in front of 43,613 fans on a warm Sunday afternoon.
St. Louis started with a Matt Holiday single off of starter Zack Greinke in the top of the first inning.
With one swing of the bat, Ryan Braun responded. The 2011 MVP slammed a long ball to the left center field stands, sending two runs home and giving Milwaukee a 2-1 advantage.
The Cardinals responded big in the fourth and fifth innings, as a three-run homer by postseason hero David Freese and a Lance Berkman single put Milwaukee in jeopardy, trailing 5-2.
No problem, said the Brewers’ power-hitting lineup in the bottom of the fifth inning.
First, a Ryan Braun 2-run double. Next, a Prince Fielder two-run launch that could have reached orbit.
Finally, Yuniesky Betancourt (wait, Yuniesky Betancourt?) blasted a deep bomb that finished off a six-run rally and put Milwaukee in prime position for victory.
They finished the job with a 9-6 win, one of two victories the Brewers grabbed in their first-ever NLCS.
