MILWAUKEE – Brewers manager Pat Murphy emptied his legendary Rolodex for advice about how to handle the layoff afforded MLB’s top two division winners in each league. Five days doesn’t sound like much, but for a ballclub eager to get on with the best stretch of the baseball calendar, it is an eternity. Hall of Famer Joe Torre offered his words of wisdom. So did Murphy’s old friend Joe Maddon.

The consensus?

“They all said, ‘Brutal, man. It’s brutal,’” Murphy said.

So, the Brewers set about finding ways to turn the downtime into a positive for a team that “limped home” – Murphy’s description – on the way to winning a third consecutive division title and securing the best record in baseball. And the way they came out swinging in a 9-3 victory over the Cubs in Game 1 of the National League

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