MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Brewers will turn to midseason acquisition Frankie Montas to stave off yet another postseason meltdown when they face the New York Mets on Wednesday in the second game of a National League wild-card series.
The right-handed Montas (7-11, 4.84 ERA) will be opposed by left-hander Sean Manaea (12-6, 3.47).
The Mets, who did not secure a postseason berth until winning the first game of a makeup doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves on Monday, twice came from behind on Tuesday to win the series opener 8-4 over the NL Central champion Brewers.
The sixth-seeded Mets gained control with a five-run fifth inning against the Milwaukee bullpen. Luis Severino battled through six innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits in a 105-pitch outing that allowed New York to reset its bullpen. Severino, Jose Butto and Ryne Stanek combined to retire the final 17 Brewers in a row.
Jesse Winker, who hit .199 in 61 games in an injury-plagued season with the Brewers last year, drove in the Mets’ first two runs of the game with a triple.
“They punch, we punched back,” New York manager Carlos Mendoza said. “They took the lead again, and then we were able to bounce back and continue to punch and just continue to stay aggressive.
“We put the ball in play when we needed. We ran the bases well, we put pressure on them.”
The Mets will be going for their first postseason series victory since sweeping the Chicago Cubs in four games in the 2015 NL Championship Series.
The third-seeded Brewers, who took two of three from New York in their final regular-season series, have lost six consecutive postseason games and are 1-10 in playoff games dating back to a loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7 of the 2018 NLCS. Last season, Milwaukee was swept in a wild-card series at home by the Arizona Diamondbacks after winning the division.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy said he expects his club to bounce back like it has done all season.
“This team has responded in all those,” Murphy said. “Remember, the Dodgers beat the daylights out of us twice. We responded. The Yankees beat the daylights out of us twice. We responded. I think we’ll respond.”
Montas faced Manaea on Friday, when the Brewers won 8-4. Montas allowed two runs in four innings without a decision, but Manaea lasted just 3 2/3 innings, allowing six runs (five earned).
Montas is 0-0 with a 5.06 ERA in three career regular-season games vs. the Mets, including two starts. He is 1-1 with a 9.45 ERA in three career postseason appearances overall, including one start.
Manaea was 2-1 with a 3.32 ERA in six starts in September. Aside from his last outing vs. Milwaukee, he went at least 6 2/3 innings in each of the other five starts.
Manaea has struggled in three postseason appearances, including two starts, going 0-3 with a 15.26 ERA in 7 2/3 innings. He is 1-2 with a 5.48 ERA in five career regular-season appearances (four starts) vs. the Brewers.
“Obviously that was a grind there at the end, but you’ve just got to get into the playoffs,” said J.D. Martinez, who had a two-run single in the Mets’ decisive fifth inning. “Just get to these games. The fans, the adrenaline, everything takes care of itself. It will get you up.”
–Jim Hoehn, Field Level Media