SPORTSLINE
The Milwaukee Brewers.
The team announced its National League Wild Card Series game times set at American Family Field next week. The first postseason game is set for 4:32 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Game 2 is scheduled for 6:38 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 2. If necessary, Game 3 is set for Thursday, Oct. 3, with the time not yet set. Their lead in the division is no thanks to their ex-manager Craig Counsel with whom the Brewers still have bad blood. Last offseason, longtime Brewers skipper Craig Counsell jumped ship and signed with the Chicago Cubs, fueling a preexisting rivalry. “There’s a big gap, they’re ahead of us by a lot,” Counsell said when asked about the Brewers. “It’s a talented team, on and off the field, it’s a talented team. But there’s a big gap and we’ve got room to makeup, there’s no question about it. So frankly, that makes it daunting.”
Not long after, the Brew Crew began campaigning in the city of Milwaukee with a poster hung on City Hall which came with social media promotion from the club itself. You will see pictures of the Brewers with the headline ‘We are undaunted’ throwing shade at Counsell. As luck would have it, the opposite of Counsell’s word choice perfectly encapsulates the story of the 2024 Brewers — a club that was heavily doubted entering the season and somehow ended up on top of the National League Central for the second straight season. Tickets are now available for the postseason games. Fans are encouraged to pre-purchase parking in advance. Day-of-game parking is available by parking and appeared to get through Sunday’s scanning the displayed lot QR code. Parking lots will open three hours before the first pitch and the ballpark gates will open two hours before the first pitch. Additionally, National League Division Series home games are set for Oct. 8 and Oct. 9, with times to be determined.
The Packers.
Jordan Love is back, sort of. The good news is Packers quarterback Jordan Love’s injured knee game no worse for wear despite a painful hit on a scramble in the second quarter. The bad news is Love will be playing the replay of the game in his head for a day or two before he can shake off the 31-29 loss to the Vikings at Lambeau Field. Despite all the ways Minnesota’s defense tried to confuse Love to take advantage of his two-week layoff, there were plays to be made early on as the Packers fell behind big. But Love’s accuracy was “shaky,” likely due to rust. The biggest regret, though, came midway through the fourth quarter. Down 31-22, the Packers had a first down at the Minnesota 34-yard line after a 36-yard completion to Wicks to start the drive. A field goal or touchdown on that possession would’ve made it a one-score game again, and the Packers had all three timeouts to use on defense if needed. But the Vikings jumbled Love’s mind at just the right (for them) and wrong (for him) time. Veteran safety Harrison Smith came at Love this time, unblocked. Love was in up-tempo mode, so he didn’t use his cadence to get the Vikings to show their hand, and just took a chance. With Smith bearing down on him, Love lofted a deep ball for Wicks in the end zone that he had no chance to catch. Cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. was playing way behind Wicks, got to the ball first, and made the uncontested interception.
It’s a team game, and the Packers simply put too much on Love in these circumstances to win this one. But he finished his postgame comments talking optimistically about what this team has going for it, knowing as a group they can be better for what they battled through Sunday, Love included. Willis is sitting on the bench, waiting like a bird of prey for the prey to stumble.
