Skubal vs. Misiorowski headlines NLCS Game 1 pitching duel

The NLCS begins with a pitching showdown MLB is positioning as the series' opening act. Tarik Skubal, a two-time reigning American League Cy Young Award winner, is scheduled to face the National League's Cy Young frontrunner, Jacob Misiorowski, in Game 1. The matchup brings together two pitchers who have each been treated as the best bet to take home the sport’s top individual pitching prize in their respective leagues.

Skubal is arriving at the postseason with a reputation that precedes him: MLB’s preview frames him as a two-time reigning Cy Young winner, which matters in October because it indicates sustained dominance rather than a one-year surge. In the postseason, that kind of track record can shape how an opponent approaches not just one at-bat, but entire innings, from pitch selection to bullpen planning and defensive aggressiveness.

Misiorowski, nicknamed “Miz” in MLB’s coverage, enters the NLCS as the pitcher described as a shoo-in to win the National League Cy Young this year. When MLB uses language like that, it typically points to a season-long profile that has kept a pitcher both statistically productive and matchup-resistant, especially against lineups that can force swing decisions with fewer at-bats than in the regular season.

With the matchup set for Game 1, the tactical question becomes how each team tries to balance early leverage with longer series survival. A Cy Young-caliber starter can push lineups into a “see what you can get” approach early, while also raising the stakes on sequencing. If one pitcher gets ahead in the count early, it can compress the opposing hitters’ timing and reduce the number of pitches they can work off for later in the at-bat.

The series itself places those dueling pitching identities on the biggest stage. The NLCS is a two-team sprint where the margin for error is small, and a starter’s ability to keep innings clean can be the difference between a one-run swing and a multi-run problem. Skubal’s background as a reigning Cy Young winner and Misiorowski’s standing as the likely NL Cy Young recipient give both sides a reason to expect the ball to be the center of the early storyline.

For fans watching closely, Game 1 offers a direct test of what each ace’s skill set turns into under postseason pressure. The immediate barometer will be whether Skubal and Misiorowski can keep the quality of contact down in the early innings, and whether either manager is forced into a quicker-than-planned bullpen call. From there, the series’ shape may become clearer: if the aces deliver, the NLCS may hinge on small advantages in leverage spots; if one pitcher struggles, the entire planning framework for the next couple of games will shift.