The National League Division Series came out of Saturday with two very different kinds of pressure. The Dodgers looked built for October in taking Game 1 from Atlanta, while Milwaukee held off San Diego after a frantic opener that included Ty France’s long drive off the American Family Field roof — a blast that did not count as a home run but still became one of the day’s strangest turning points. Now the Padres need a road answer, and the Braves need to decide whether their best arm is ready for an early-season-style workload in October.
Padres may have their biggest bullpen card available
Milwaukee owns a 1-0 series lead heading into Sunday’s 4 p.m. ET Game 2, with Michael King scheduled for San Diego against Brewers rookie Logan Henderson. The Padres got strong work from their relief corps in the opener, but the club’s most intimidating late-inning option never left the bullpen.
- San Diego used four relievers for 5 1/3 innings in Game 1.
- Those relievers surrendered three hits and one run.
- The decisive run came on William Contreras’ home run against Adrian Morejon.
- Milwaukee also leaned hard on its bullpen, using five relievers after Jacob Misiorowski lasted four innings.
Mason Miller did not pitch Saturday, leaving the Padres with a fresh high-octane weapon for a game that already feels likely to turn on a single matchup. Miller last appeared Wednesday in the Wild Card Series, throwing one inning. That remains his only outing since Sept. 26.
The right-hander worked two innings twice during the regular season, including once against the Yankees a month ago. He exceeded one inning nine times overall, though only three of those appearances came after June 24. If King can hand San Diego a lead in the seventh or eighth, the Padres may decide the time for restraint has passed.
King gives them a chance to do exactly that after an excellent Wild Card Series start against the Cubs. But Henderson presents the Brewers with their own workload question. Sunday will mark 11 days since his last competitive outing, Sept. 23 at Philadelphia, and the 24-year-old will be making his first postseason appearance.
Milwaukee managed Henderson’s innings carefully all year. With its bullpen already called on heavily in Game 1, however, the Brewers may need more than a brief, protected outing from their rookie. Henderson will be asked for quality and length against a Padres club eager to bring the series back to San Diego even.
Atlanta’s rotation decision looms behind Snell
The Dodgers, up 1-0 on the Braves, send Blake Snell to the mound for Sunday’s 8 p.m. ET Game 2. Atlanta had not announced a starter, and the uncertainty centers on Chris Sale.
Manager Walt Weiss used Sale to record the final four outs of Thursday’s Wild Card Series-clinching Game 3 against Philadelphia, even though the Braves held a four-run lead. The move secured the series, but it also complicated Atlanta’s plans for the matchup it most needs him to make.
- Sale had been lined up to start Game 2 on four days’ rest.
- His last start on fewer than five days’ rest came April 6.
- Atlanta views Sale as its one true ace in a rotation facing a deep Dodgers pitching staff.
- After Snell, Los Angeles has Yoshinobu Yamamoto positioned for Game 3.
The Braves were stymied by Tarik Skubal in Game 1 and now must solve Snell, who overpowered opponents in last year’s NLDS and NLCS. There may be no ideal moment to extend Sale or ask him to pitch on an unusual schedule, but Atlanta’s path through this series likely requires its ace to look like an ace soon.
Tucker gives Dodgers a needed October lift
Los Angeles also got an encouraging sign from Kyle Tucker in Saturday’s opener. His two-run homer in the sixth inning offered more than a cushion on the scoreboard; it gave the Dodgers a glimpse of the hitter they need for a long postseason run.
Tucker’s first year in Los Angeles had been a disappointing one by his standards, and he had recently stressed that the route matters less than reaching the ultimate goal. For the Dodgers, the regular season is now background noise. A World Series title is the only measure left.
His playoff history has been uneven despite his championship experience. Tucker entered this postseason with a .233 average and .317 on-base percentage across 72 career postseason games. If Saturday’s swing is the beginning of a stronger October, it changes the feel of a Dodgers lineup that has carried concerns about age and inconsistency.
For one afternoon, the answer was simple: Tucker delivered a big swing, the Dodgers took control of the series, and the Braves were left searching for the pitching decision that can keep their October alive.
