MILWAUKEE — The last thing Gio Gonzalez expected six weeks ago was to be the Game 1 starter in the National League Championship Series.More Brewers coverageBrewers Final Pitch: Chacin dominates mound in Game 3 of NLCSChacin Austin Meadows Jersey , Brewers blank Dodgers to take 2-1 lead in NLCSDespite struggles, No. 23 Badgers still have hope in Big TenStrong winds could be factor for Brewers, Dodgers in NLCS Game 3Photos of the Week: 10/7/18 – 10/13/18The veteran left-hander had slogged through a frustrating season with the Nationals and was 7-11 with a 4.57 ERA when the Brewers acquired him from Washington just before the deadline to trade for players and have them eligible for postseason play.Article continues below ...At the time, Gonzalez was hoping a change of scenery would do him well and was ready to accept whatever role the Brewers had in mind for him as they chased their first postseason berth in seven years. Instead of being a bit piece, though, Gonzalez played a vital role for Milwaukee, posting a 2.13 ERA in five starts, including five-shutout innings in the regular-season finale that sent the Brewers to a Game 163 showdown with the Cubs for the NL Central title.“It’s a pretty cool story,” Gonzalez admitted Thursday as the Brewers and Dodgers worked out at Miller Park ahead of the series opener. “They wanted me to be a part of this.”Gonzalez likely won’t be out there long. The Brewers have kept their starters’ outings short all season, choosing to rely on one of the game’s best bullpens and it’s been no different in the postseason as no Milwaukee starter has worked more than five innings, including a three-inning stint by Brandon Woodruff as part of a “bullpen day” in Game 1 of the NLDS against Colorado.Gonzalez was on the roster for that series but didn’t see action. Some expected Milwaukee to turn to right-hander Jhoulys Chacin for Game 1, but he’ll get the nod in Game 3 instead.“We just like the matchup http://www.piratesfanproshop.com/authentic-colin-moran-jersey ,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said of Gonzalez. “We like the matchup against their lineup. It’s no secret that we’re going to use our pitching a little different than the traditionalists might like and so for us, the first matchup we liked was Gio on the mound.”After avoiding a decisive fifth game against Atlanta, the Dodgers send ace left-hander Clayton Kershaw to the mound for the opener. In 14 career starts against the Brewers, Kershaw is 6-5 with a 2.86 ERA, including a 4-1 record and 1.40 mark in seven career starts at Miller Park.He split his two starts against Milwaukee this season, allowing four runs (one earned) over six innings in a 4-2 loss at Miller Park on July 21 then striking out seven while allowing just two runs over six innings in a 21-5 rout at Dodger Stadium on Aug. 2.The Brewers batted .250 (12-for-48) against Kershaw this season, numbers that were inflated by Christian Yelich, who went 4-for-6 with a pair of home runs against Kershaw in 2018 and is 9-for-17 (.529) against him for his career.“He’s a really good hitter,” Kershaw said. “He’s definitely got some hits off me for sure, so I have to try to not let him do that (Friday).”Yelich is one of the few “for sure” players in Craig Counsell’s lineup, along with fellow outfielders Ryan Braun and Lorenzo Cain as well as first baseman Jesus Aguilar. Beyond that, Counsell has mixed and matched the rest of his lineup depending on matchups all season long and doesn’t expect that to change during the NLCS David Freese Jersey , especially with the Dodgers’ lefty-heavy rotation.That means Hernan Perez, Orlando Arcia and Jonathan Schoop could see significantly more playing time than they did in the NLCS, with Travis Shaw and Mike Moustakas possibly seeing a little less action than they have the last few weeks.“We’ll have some different lineups in this series,” Counsell said. “With three pretty solid left-handed starters, it’s a good chance for our right-handed hitters to do some damage.” MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — By the time their series opener against Kansas City concluded, the Minnesota Twins had played almost as much dominoes as baseball.Play was halted for 1 hour, 31 minutes in the top of the fourth inning and again for 53 minutes in the bottom of the sixth. The game concluded at 12:56 a.m. local time.When all was said and done, the Twins were rewarded for their patience with a 6-4 win over the Royals in a game that ended early Saturday morning.“It was a long night,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “It’s a lot easier when you win.”Jake Cave drew a bases-loaded walk in the fifth inning to score the go-ahead run for the Twins, who held on to win their 50th game of the season.Minnesota had a one-run lead when heavy rain forced the game’s first stoppage. After the delay, Kansas City scored two runs in the top of the fifth off Twins reliever Gabriel Moya (1-0) to take a 4-3 advantage. The Twins responded with two runs in the bottom half of the inning against Brian Flynn (2-3), including one on the walk by Cave.“I just got behind just about everyone it felt like from that second inning on Tyler Glasnow Jersey ,” Flynn said.Minnesota added a run in the sixth before more rain stopped the action once again for nearly an hour.Players from both sides had time to kill while they waited for a series of storms to pass. Dominoes were a popular way to pass the time, while some players watched other games on TV or stayed loose in the batting cages.“I think you learn about people when you go through long nights and stopping and playing, stopping and playing,” Molitor said. “We just tried to keep it as loose as we could up here in the clubhouse and at the same time remind these guys that we had to finish what we had started.”The multiple delays forced both teams to dig into their bullpens. Twins starter Jake Odorizzi exited after 3 1/3 innings, while Royals right-hander Heath Fillmyer was limited to three innings in his start. The two teams combined to use nine relievers.“Just a grind. We just struggled,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “We were behind the counts. It was just a grind for us.”Fernando Rodney pitched the ninth for his 23rd save.Minnesota struck first on Friday with a three-run second inning. Miguel Sano’s liner down the third base line bounced off the glove of Hunter Dozier and into foul territory, allowing two Twins runs to score.Salvador Perez’s 19th home run of the year cut Minnesota’s lead to 3-2 in the third.SANTANA RETURNS TO MINNESOTAFor the first time in more than a decade, former Twins ace Johan Santana is back in Minnesota.Santana made his return to Minneapolis for the weekend as he prepares to be induced into the Twins Hall of Fame on Saturday. The two-time Cy Young winner was joined at Target Field by several former teammates, including Michael Cuddyer, Justin Morneau, Christian Guzman.While talking about his return, Santana got a bit nostalgic about the Metrodome http://www.piratesfanproshop.com/authentic-adam-frazier-jersey , the since-demolished former home of the Twins. On the old Metrodome site sits U.S. Bank Stadium, home of the Minnesota Vikings.“When I saw that, I couldn’t believe the Metrodome wasn’t there, because that was home,” Santana said. “That’s where all the magic happened.”Santana spent eight years with Minnesota before a trade sent him to the Mets. He was 93-44 with a 3.22 ERA during his Twins tenure. He’ll be inducted during a pregame ceremony prior to Saturday’s game between the Twins and Royals.TWINS CLAIM TWO OFF WAIVERSPrior to Friday’s game, Minnesota claimed RHP Oliver Drake off waivers from Toronto and INF Johnny Field off waivers from Tampa Bay. Drake will join the Twins on Saturday, while Field will report to Triple-A Rochester. Drake will take the roster spot of Matt Magill, who will be placed on the paternity list.UP NEXTRoyals: RHP Burch Smith is making just his fifth start of the year after moving from the bullpen to the rotation in early July. Smith posted a 7.47 ERA in his first four starts this season.Twins: RHP Jose Berrios is looking to bounce back from his last outing, in which he needed 106 pitches to get through 4 2/3 innings in a loss to Boston.