Andrew Friedman isn’t asking for a wholesale offensive makeover from the Dodgers in the NLCS. He just wants a few more of the right hits at the right time.
That was the thrust of his comment after Los Angeles finally broke through with a runner in scoring position during Game 4 of the National League Division Series, when Andy Pages delivered a bases-loaded single against Robert Suarez in the series-clinching win. The Dodgers had gone until the seventh inning of that game to get their first hit in that spot, and Friedman made clear he’d prefer not to wait that long against the Milwaukee Brewers.
“No, it was not [part of the plan], but the one [hit] was big,” Friedman said. “I think it speaks to the vast number of ways we can win a baseball game. But certainly, for quality of life, [I] would like us to cash in a few more of those opportunities in the next round.”
That kind of drought can sound alarming in October, but the larger postseason picture softens the edges. This is the time of year when pitching usually rules and clean offensive nights are hard to come by. This season has been even harsher on hitters.
The numbers tell the story. The Los Angeles Angels posted the worst OPS of any team in the regular season at .679, and the best OPS in the postseason is only .688, by the Brewers. In that kind of environment, every hit feels magnified, and every missed chance gets louder than it might in a full season.
That’s why it’s easy to fixate on what the Dodgers didn’t do well with runners in scoring position against the Atlanta Braves. But short series can distort everything. The Chicago White Sox managed 14 hits with runners in scoring position in seven playoff games and still went home on Saturday, while the Tampa Bay Rays moved on to the ALCS with just two such hits.
The Dodgers’ broader October profile suggests their formula is about more than one stat category. They held the Braves to a .145/.259/.242 slash line in the NLDS, and their starting rotation is set up in an ideal way for the Brewers. Both clubs bring deep pitching staffs, which could make the NLCS look messy on both sides.
If that happens, the series may still come down to something much simpler: which team strings together more timely hits. The Dodgers do not have to out-hit Milwaukee over the full length of the series. They only need to do it enough.
Last year’s World Series offers a reminder of how that can play out. The Dodgers hit .203/.294/.364 against the Toronto Blue Jays and still won, even though Toronto put up a stronger .269/.347/.398 line. In October, that gap can be enough - or not enough - depending on when the hits land.
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Dodgers Let Game 1 Slip Away With One Costly Problem
The Dodgers had enough pitching to stay in Game 1 at American Family Field, but not enough offense to make it matter. Milwaukee got a leadoff homer from Brice Turang and leaned on a sharp start from Tarik Skubal before he exited after five innings, while Jacob Misiorowski matched him with five solid frames of his own.
Los Angeles managed just one run and repeatedly stalled when it had a chance to build something bigger. Three double plays wiped out rallies and left the Dodgers with a 2-1 loss, a reminder that even in a tight postseason game, one costly inning can be the difference between taking control and chasing the series from behind. [Read more 🡒]
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Now the pressure shifts immediately to Game 2, where Logan Henderson is lined up for Milwaukee and Yoshinobu Yamamoto gets the ball for Los Angeles. After dropping the opener, the Dodgers are staring at an early test of whether they can settle in quickly and even the series before the matchup starts to tilt toward Milwaukee. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Let A Winnable NLCS Opener Slip Away
A night that started with promise in Milwaukee turned into one the Dodgers will look back on as a missed chance. Their pitching did enough to keep Game 1 within reach, but Los Angeles could not make the most of its opportunities and fell 2-1 to the Brewers in the NLCS opener, a result that felt especially costly in a series where early momentum matters.
The Dodgers finished just 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranded nine baserunners, the kind of wasted traffic that can erase a solid pitching effort in October. Key runs in the fourth and fifth innings put Milwaukee in front for good, leaving Los Angeles to regroup quickly before the next game of a series that already feels tighter than it needed to be. [Read more 🡒]