Breaking down historic double play that robbed Dodgers of extra runs in NLCS Game 1

In Game 1 of the NLCS against the Brewers, the Dodgers looked like they had it made in the top of the fourth when Teoscar Hernández walked and Will Smith and Tommy Edman singled to load the bases with one out. Max Muncy, who has a career 1.047 OPS and eight homers with the bases loaded, came up to the plate to try to give Blake Snell, who was pitching a one-hitter, a lead.

Muncy smacked the ball into deep, straightaway center field — 404 feet — but Brewers' Gold Glove outfielder Sal Frelick had a read on it.

He tracked it down and jumped, but in the blink of an eye the ball was out of his glove and bouncing off the wall. Still, he recovered and threw to cutoff man Joey Ortiz, who then shotgunned the ball to William Contreras behind the plate as Hernández was sliding home from third.

Home plate umpire John Libka ruled him out there, Contreras jogged leisurely over to third base with the ball to touch it as Smith lingered at second, and the inning was ... over?

Frelick was standing in center field with his arms up, looking stunned. Smith, still on second, looked over at Tommy Edman in disbelief.

It was ruled an 8-6-2 double play, the first in postseason history.

Brewers' turn postseason-first 8-6-2 double play against Dodgers in NLCS Game 1

It was officially scored as follows: "Max Muncy grounds into a double play, center fielder Sal Frelick to shortstop Joey Ortiz to catcher William Contreras. Teoscar Hernández out at home. Will Smith out at 3rd." Muncy said afterwards, "It's definitely the worst fielder's choice, double play I've ever hit into in my life."

So, what happened?

Credit has to go to the umpiring crew for being locked in on the play; both of their calls on the field (Hernández out at home, Smith out at third) were challenged and upheld by MLB replay review. The Dodgers' baserunners, however, thought that Frelick caught the ball, which led Hernández to go back to third and tag before bolting home to score what he thought would be a sac fly. Because the ball got to the cutoff man so quickly, Smith didn't move.

But the ball wasn't caught, so everyone should've kept their heads down and advanced to the next base. Hernández was out without Contreras even attempting to put a tag down, and Smith was out at third, also on a force. Absolute madness.

The extra insurance from at least one run on that play would've been nice when Roki Sasaki and Blake Treinen looked dangerously close to blowing a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the ninth, but since everything worked out in the Dodgers' favor in the end, this is one that we can just look back on as an awe-inspiring baseball oddity.