The Dodgers return to Dodger Stadium on Wednesday night with the National League Championship Series already pressing hard against them. Milwaukee took the first two games at home, leaving Los Angeles one loss from a 3-0 hole that has almost always ended a postseason run. The Brewers will hand the ball to left-hander Robert Gasser, while the Dodgers are expected to counter with Blake Snell in an 8 p.m. ET Game 3 on FS1.
Los Angeles needs a foothold at home
Milwaukee’s 2-0 advantage came through two tense wins at American Family Field, and the Dodgers now need to turn the series before the arithmetic gets historic. Of the 42 clubs that have opened a best-of-seven postseason series down three games to none, 32 were swept. Only one came all the way back: Dave Roberts’ 2004 Red Sox against the Yankees.
Roberts knows a comeback begins with a single win, not a grand declaration.
“It’s certainly a challenge,” Roberts said. “Can we do it? Absolutely. But it’s just: You want to get that first one.”
The Dodgers arrive with the pedigree of back-to-back World Series champions, but their offense has not yet found much traction. Kyle Tucker has been their steadiest bat at 6-for-20 after a disappointing regular season. Shohei Ohtani is 3-for-20 this postseason, while Will Smith is 1-for-23.
- Game 3 is Wednesday at Dodger Stadium, beginning at 8 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. CT and 5 p.m. PT.
- FS1 will carry the game nationally, with FOX Deportes and FOX One also listed for coverage.
- Milwaukee can take a commanding 3-0 lead; Los Angeles can make the trip back to Southern California feel like a reset.
Gasser’s late-season rise meets a likely Snell start
Gasser started the year at Triple-A Nashville, but he earned this October assignment with a strong finish. His surge began on Aug. 26 at Citi Field, when he entered after Dustin May was hit by a first-pitch comebacker. Since then, Gasser’s sweeper and growing comfort have carried him into Milwaukee’s young rotation alongside Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson.
Over his last seven appearances, including six starts and an NLDS Game 4 outing, Gasser is 2-0 with a 1.73 ERA. His ability to work deep would be valuable for the Brewers, whose Game 4 starter remains undecided and who could play three straight days in Los Angeles if the series extends.
Snell had not been officially named, though he is the expected Dodgers choice. He owns a 2.19 ERA in five 2026 starts at Dodger Stadium, postseason included. Injuries to his shoulder, elbow and groin kept his innings total down during the season, but he has been productive when available.
His first postseason appearance was uneven: Snell walked five Braves in 3 2/3 innings in NLDS Game 2, though Atlanta scored only once. His recent history against Milwaukee offers a much sharper memory. In last year’s NLCS, Snell struck out 10 Brewers and faced the minimum through eight scoreless innings.
Milwaukee’s lineup questions and Los Angeles’ cold bats
Should Snell start, Brewers manager Pat Murphy will have choices against another left-hander. In Game 1 against Tarik Skubal, Murphy used Andrew Vaughn at designated hitter instead of Christian Yelich and put Luis Lara in right field ahead of Sal Frelick. Vaughn doubled and Lara drove home the winning run, but Murphy reconsidered those decisions afterward and said Yelich was expected to start the rest of the way.
A likely Milwaukee alignment, based on its NLDS Game 1 lineup against Padres lefty Robbie Ray, would look like this:
- Jackson Chourio, left field
- Brice Turang, second base
- William Contreras, catcher
- Jake Bauers, first base
- Christian Yelich, designated hitter
- Cooper Pratt, shortstop
- Luis Lara, right field
- Garrett Mitchell, center field
- Joey Ortiz, third base
Contreras has been at the center of Milwaukee’s early-series push. In Game 2, he launched a game-tying homer in the fifth inning, then added a tying single and later a go-ahead single.
“Keep going,” Contreras said. “The goal is not to think about where we’re at. … Just focusing on what’s next.”
Yelich and Contreras each had multiple hits and multiple RBIs in that postseason game, becoming the fourth Brewers teammate pair to do it and the first since Yuniesky Betancourt and Ryan Braun in Game 1 of the 2011 NLCS. Turang, Pratt and Hamilton also recorded multi-hit games, giving Milwaukee five players with more than one hit. The club had last reached that mark in Game 1 of the 1982 World Series, with Paul Molitor, Jim Gantner, Charlie Moore, Ted Simmons and Robin Yount.
Roberts has used mostly similar lineups through two games, but facing Gasser could prompt adjustments. Ohtani and Smith have already been moved down to fourth and fifth amid their struggles, and Ohtani could be held out of the starting group.
A projected Dodgers order:
- Mookie Betts, shortstop
- Freddie Freeman, first base
- Teoscar Hernández, left field
- Shohei Ohtani, designated hitter
- Will Smith, catcher
- Andy Pages, center field
- Kyle Tucker, right field
- Kiké Hernández, third base
- Miguel Rojas, second base
Relief depth and a few October numbers
Milwaukee’s bullpen has made the first two games difficult on Los Angeles and carries a 0.31 postseason ERA over 28 2/3 innings. Abner Uribe has appeared in all six Brewers playoff games, while Aaron Ashby has worked in five. Neither has allowed an earned run. Closer Trevor Megill warmed in Game 2 without entering, and DL Hall also remains scoreless this postseason.
May’s relief appearance in Game 2 added another wrinkle. Murphy said the right-hander could still be available to start Game 4.
Los Angeles got an off-day at a useful time after Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s short Game 2 outing forced the club to use seven of its nine relievers. Milwaukee has now seen every Dodgers bullpen arm except Edwin Díaz, the club’s leading high-leverage option whether the situation comes in the ninth or earlier.
- Ohtani is playing through right biceps and left knee issues, while Freeman has a lingering right knee concern.
- Will Klein, recovering from right elbow discomfort, has faced hitters but has not appeared in a game since July 31 and is viewed as depth rather than a primary option.
- Blake Treinen, sidelined by right shoulder inflammation, is not expected to pitch again this postseason.
- Milwaukee is 39-37 this season, playoffs included, when the opponent scores first. Excluding the shortened 2020 season, the 2009 World Series-winning Yankees were the most recent champion to finish above .500 in those games.
- The Dodgers have had only one hitter record a hit with runners in scoring position through six postseason games. The 1983 Phillies, with Gary Matthews Sr. going 3-for-6, and the 2020 Athletics, with Chad Pinder at 4-for-6, are the only other clubs in that position.
For the Brewers, the task is to keep playing the next inning and the next at-bat. For the Dodgers, it is more immediate: win Wednesday, bring the series back to life, and avoid becoming another club trying to solve baseball’s toughest October deficit.
