The Dodgers wasted plenty of chances Sunday night and still found themselves staring at a 2-1 loss to the Brewers in Game 1 of the NLCS.
Los Angeles got the kind of production that usually keeps a team in position to win a postseason game: seven hits, six walks and enough traffic to keep Milwaukee under pressure. But when the key moments arrived, the Dodgers never found the breakthrough swing. They finished just 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranded nine different hitters.
Teoscar Hernandez led the way at the plate, going 2-for-4. Shohei Ohtani reached with a walk and went 1-for-4, and he scored the Dodgers’ only run on Andy Pages’ RBI. Kyle Tucker didn’t collect a hit, going 0-for-2, but he did draw two walks and worked some of the team’s better at-bats.
The Dodgers also forced Jacob Misiorowski to labor, pushing him out in under five innings and driving up his pitch count. That part of the night should have tilted things further in their favor. Instead, Los Angeles couldn’t turn the pressure into enough damage, and the lack of punch left the door open.
On the mound, the Dodgers needed a near-perfect performance once the offense came up short, and they didn’t get it. Tarik Skubal was strong for four innings before the game changed in the fifth. He allowed a homer in the fourth, then the Brewers leaned into a classic small-ball sequence in the fifth to grab control.
Garrett Mitchell walked, Cooper Pratt followed with a sacrifice bunt to move him to second, and Luis Lara delivered the RBI single that proved decisive.
In a game decided by tiny swings, the Dodgers didn’t finish enough of their opportunities, and Milwaukee took the opener.
In Other News...
Dodgers Could Gain A Huge Edge In MLBs Latest Playoff Debate
Major League Baseballs latest CBA pitch could reshape the postseason in a way that matters a lot to clubs that routinely finish near the top of the standings. Among the ideas on the table are a shorter regular season, a longer Division Series and a bigger emphasis on playoff inventory, all of it designed to create more high-stakes October baseball and, just as clearly, more revenue.
For the Dodgers, the debate carries extra weight because they have spent recent seasons in the upper tier of the bracket, the sort of position that could turn a format change into a real advantage. If the league moves forward with giving top seeds more control over their path, it would only add to the leverage that comes with playing deep into October from a familiar perch, and the ripple effect could be felt well beyond Los Angeles. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Open NLCS With An October Test Fans Have Waited For
The Dodgers are finally back at the point of the season where every pitch feels louder, with the National League Championship Series opening Sunday in Milwaukee. It is the kind of October stage this roster and its fan base have been circling all year, and the matchup brings an immediate edge with the Brewers turning to Jacob Misiorowski on the mound.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, will answer with Tarik Skubal in Game 1, setting up a high-end pitching duel right away. For fans tracking the series from afar, the article also lays out the full NLCS and ALCS schedule along with the TV and streaming details, a useful road map as the postseason tightens and every game becomes must-see viewing. [Read more 🡒]
Max Muncy Had The Perfect Reaction To Dodgers Haunted Hotel Talk
The Pfister Hotels haunted reputation in Milwaukee has been around long enough to become part of the Dodgers travel conversation, and Max Muncy is not losing any sleep over it. The third baseman made it clear he is not worried about ghosts, adding a light touch to a topic that has followed visiting players for years more as clubhouse folklore than verified fact.
Mookie Betts has reportedly chosen to stay elsewhere since 2022, and Teoscar Hernandez once left the hotel during last years NLCS because his wife was uncomfortable. Muncys reaction lands on the other end of that spectrum, the kind of shrugging confidence that fits a veteran team on the road, even if the old hotel stories keep drawing fresh attention every time the Dodgers come through Milwaukee. [Read more 🡒]