Random rantings and ravings about the Los Angeles Dodgers, written by a small consortium of rabid Dodger fans. With occasional comments on baseball, entertainment, pop culture, and life in general.
Here we are, at the final game of the 2025 MLB season, on the first day of November.
Part of my process is to try and look at each game objectively beforehand. And when I look at this one, it doesn't seem like we've got much of a shot (despite fangraphs giving us a slight edge, 57.1%). Here's how I'm seeing it, in the hours before this game:
Max Scherzer is going to be fired up. Not only does Scherzer have experience starting a World Series Game 7 (Nationals vs. Houston, 2019, in which he went five innings of seven-hit, 2 ER ball in a game the Nationals eventually won), but he also was pretty effective against the Dodgers in 2025 WS Game 3, going 4.1 IP and giving up 3 ER and getting 3 Ks in a game that was decided well after his contributions. In WS Game 3, Will Smith struck out to strand Ohtani in the first; Tommy Edman and Kiké Hernandez struck out after Teoscar Hernandez' solo shot in the second; and the third ER came when Ohtani hit a RBI double off of Mason Fluharty (who relieved Scherzer). Scherzer won't exit this game early. And I'm sure he will be on.
We still aren't batting very well. Don't let yesterday's win fool you. We finally strung some hits together in the third inning of Game 6, but that was it for us that game; 2-for-6 with RISP, and only four hits with 12 Ks. The 12 Ks in yesterday's Game 6 continues a pretty concerning trend: 15 Ks in Game 5; 13 Ks in the marathon Game 3; 13 Ks in Game 1. So in four of the six World Series games, we are up there flailing, evidenced most clearly by albatrosses Teoscar Hernandez and Max Muncy (10 Ks each this World Series).
Our defense has been atrocious. Teoscar Hernandez has already cost us runs on the basepaths this postseason as well as runs in the outfield off of horrible routes and stupid dives. Max Muncy had a misplay early in Game 6 around which Yoshinobu Yamamoto was able to work, but how can we count on those strokes of luck? And in Game 5, the missed double play opportunities rattled Blake Snell and curtailed his outing.
We have no choices in the bullpen. I get it, all hands on deck and everything, and we'll probably see Tyler Glasnow tonight (after hurling only three pitches yesterday), not to mention possibly Blake Snell. But who else are we going to use in this pen? Roki Sasaki was shaky last night. Wrobleski is a tightrope. And if Blake Treinen enters the game, it's an automatic loss. Dave Roberts has made some deft bullpen choices this entire postseason, but I think he's out of options at this stage.
Not to mention, we haven't gotten to the Toronto bullpen, which was supposed to be a weakness. After getting Kevin Gausman out yesterday, I thought we might tack on some insurance runs, especially against relievers we've seen before. But Mason Fluharty, Louis Varland, Seranthony Dominguez, and Chris Bassitt all shut us down.
Rogers Centre is going to rock. The Toronto crowd has brought it all series--abating only in the split second that allowed Kiké Hernandez to hear Andres Gimenez' broken bat and realize he had the chance for a game-ending double play last night!--and it will be the most hostile (albeit polite) crowd the Dodgers have faced all year.
On the other hand...
What if Mookie's breakout yesterday works not just for him, but for the rest of this morobund lineup?
What if we get some heroic relief performances like we saw from Justin Wrobleski yesterday?
What if steady veterans like Miguel Rojas get into the starting lineup for the first time, and continue to play spectacular defense thet solidifies the infield?
What if unsung, late-season additions like Will Klein and Justin Dean suddenly hit the big stage...and totally impress with their brains and talent?
It's baseball. Strange things happen. Like this:
Or this:
Or even, this:
Crazy things happen in baseball, which is why even the best teams only win 60% of the time.
And maybe there is something to Mookie Betts' post-game prediction that Shohei Ohtani's story arc seems to have a flair for the dramatic, where he rises to the occasion.
I don't think Ohtani can do it alone, though. And Yamamoto can't save the team this time, so it is going to depend upon someone else.
The Dodgers have had a lot of lucky bounces and breaks this World Series. Let's see if we have one more in us.
The Dodgers only had four hits all game (to the Blue Jays' eight hits), and even made the game's only error (a Max Muncy misplay). And yet, the Dodgers prevailed in World Series Game 6, 3-1, capping another largely-medicore game at the plate (12 Ks, with three of those coming from Teoscar Hernandez' continual whiffs in his 0-for-4 night) with a very surprising road victory.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto had another great postseason start, though his line: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB and 6 Ks, didn't match up to the amazing standards of a couple of his other complete game postseason starts. Which left the fate of this game to the bullpen, with the Dodgers nursing a two-run lead that came after three runs in the third inning (one-out double from Tommy Edman to get things going; RBI double from Will Smith; and then a clutch two-run single by Mookie Betts):
The Betts single silenced the Rogers Centre crowd a bit, even though the Blue Jays got one back in the bottom of the third to make it 3-1. But the crowd got louder as the Dodgers bullpen buckled, but did not break. Justin Wrobleski yielded a two-out double to Ernie Clement, but then got Andres Gimenez to strike out and end the seventh inning. Roki Sasaki had two on in the eighth with one out, but got Bo Bichette to foul out and then Miguel Rojas fielded a Daulton Varsho bullet to escape that jam.
Sasaki was not so lucky in the ninth, leaving men on second and third--which was fortunate in itself, thanks to late-replacement Justin Dean having the veteran-like wherewithal to raise his hands when Addison Barger's double became lodged under the outfield padding. This forced the umpires to call a dead ball and stop Myles Straw (pinch running for Alejandro Kirk, who was HBP to start the inning) from scoring the Blue Jays' second run. But Sasaki then was pulled for...potential Game 7 starter Tyler Glasnow.
Selecting Glasnow here was a ballsy move by Dave Roberts (as was getting Sasaki to pitch the eighth inning; Sasaki was clearly not sharp with a 25-pitch eighth and a shaky start to the ninth). But credit Roberts for pulling out all the stops tonight--there is no Game 7 if we don't win Game 6 anyway--and so, Glasnow entered with two RISP and none out.
Three pitches later, it was over. Glasnow had some luck to get Clement to pop out to Freddie Freeman. But then the game ended on a crazy 7-4 double play when Gimenez flied to Kike Hernandez in left, a bloop single wiht a 40% probability of being caught--and Kike Hernandez had the composure to not only catch, but then gun the ball back to the infield, where Miguel Rojas caught Barger sleeping off of second base.
Kiké even said, postgame, that he lost that fly ball in the lights:
(and how sweet is it that Kiké is wearing a rotowear Yamamoto shirt! It's here, by the way--and no, we don't get a commission for this link.)
Watching that ninth inning, all I could hear was the echoes of Joe Carter's 1993 Game 6 walkoff home run. It seemed like Toronto was just about to fulfill its destiny there in Game 6.
Instead, we have a Game 7 tomorrow. I'm still in shock having peeled myself off the floor, after watching this one.
Dave Roberts tried to introduce basepaths in Thursday's practice, something the team had not experienced for the last two games.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto vs. Kevin Gausman.
The Dodgers' 2025 season is poised to end tonight, and even with Blake Snell's crappy start throwing batting practice at the beginning of Game 5, or Teoscar Hernandez' continual misadventures in right field, or failed double play attempts in the infield, it wasn't those mistakes that ultimately derailed the Dodgers' 2025 World Series bid.
It was the hitting. Or lack thereof.
In a particularly awful time for everyone in the starting lineup to get cold, we've got Mookie Betts, Will Smith, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, Tommy Edman, Max Muncy, and Andy Pages all flailing at the plate. The Game 5 lineup--which thankfully did not include Pages--amassed 15 strikeouts and too many first-pitch infield flies to give the Blue Jays any pressure.
So the Dodgers all got out to Rogers Centre today and took batting practice--which the LAT reported that Roberts took as an exciting positive (whoop dee frickin' doo!)--rather than moping in their hotel rooms, I imagine.
There will be plenty of time for moping if our offense continues to be lost tonight.
Let's frickin' go, Dodgers! Show us a treat, not a trick.
In last night's debacle, the Dodgers looked listless at the plate, possibly exhausted from the 18-inning affair the night before. But it would be too easy to say the Dodgers were just tired, since the Blue Jays also would have been just as tired (save a couple of Blue Jays who were removed for pinch runners early in Game 3).
The fact is, the Blue Jays' lineup--with five players batting .300 or better this postseason--is still coming to hit and get on base. And the Dodgers' lineup has exactly zero players batting .300 or better this postseason.
And that's a problem that one night's lack of sleep can't explain away.
We either get that together tonight, or we are doomed. We've got Blake Snell poised to be outdueled by rookie Trey Yesavage again, just as he was in Game 1.
How do you reward a guy who just hit two home runs and four extra base hits, and reached base a record nine times in a marathon World Series Game 3?
Send him to the mound to start the next game 17 hours later, of course!
I don't know how Shohei Ohtani is possibly going to do this, but he's starting Game 4 tonight. I don't know how the bullpen is possibly going to do it, either, after throwing 227 pitches (on top of starter Tyler Glasnow's 85 pitches) to keep the Blue Jays off the board for 13.1 innings yesterday.
All I know is, the Dodgers offense simply has to step up more than what it has to date this World Series. No more stupid infield fly outs, or swinging at the first pitches of an at bat. And remember, a lot of the Blue Jays starters left Game 3 early to go relax and recover, unlike many of our starters.
Game 4 is a must-win if we want to stop this series from returning to Toronto. Let's take care of business, bats!
They stop serving beers in the seventh inning at Dodger Stadium, in order to make sure that a stadium surrounded by expansive parking lots filled with a sea of cars won't have a slew of inebriated drivers behind the wheels of their vehicles.
In last night's game, however, Dodger Stadium probably could have kept serving beers for a couple more innings. We didn't go home until after Freddie Freeman won the game in the bottom of the 18th inning, in what is now tied for the longest game in World Series history.
That said, I was at Game 3 last night, and I indulged in a full-throttled, 25-ounce beer following Freddie Freeman's amazing walk-off home run. It was glorious, about as much so as a semi-cold Michelob Ultra beer could be.
And this is its own story.
------
Ms. Sax and I got to the game at 4p, about an hour before first pitch, which was a controversy in itself. I would have gotten there at 2p when the gates opened; however, she thought that was nuts. She was probably right; traffic was bad, but not horrible, getting into the Stadium; and we were comfortably in our seats by 4.20p. And it was worth it to have not aggravated Ms. Sax further on this one; this was her first World Series game, and although I was familiar with the majesty of the first World Series home game pre-game show and wanted to see all of it, I didn't want her to be angry going into this one.
(Little did we know that we would be at the Stadium for eight hours!)
Along the way, we stopped at the Home Plate Bar where we splurged on overpriced cocktails: a spicy habanero mule that came smothered in tajin that got all over the place (what a mess!), as well as a spicy margarita. Both were pretty tasty though a little light on the Svedka Vodka. (We now own these two collectible plastic receptacles that I'm sure will sit unused in the back of our bar for a decade or so.)
Cocktails in hand, the pre-game ceremonies were awesome (as always). The fireworks during the starting lineup introduction. The unveiling of the huge flag on the outfield grass. The perfectly-timed flyover, even with the inclusion of the Canadian National Anthem as part of the pre-game routine.
I was happy. Ms. Sax was happy. Let the games begin.
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I got my first beer after the second inning, following the Dodgers having taken the one-run lead on Teoscar Hernandez' solo home run. When Shohei Ohtani added his own solo shot in the third, we were rocking, despite Freeman getting thrown out by a mile to end that frame.
There was an idiot in our section wearing a George Springer Toronto Blue Jays jersey, and we were riding him (and his namesake player) all game long. Boos, yells of "cheater!", and consistent mocking probably got to both of the people in the Stadium with this unfortunate sartorial choice--Springer was 0-for-3 with 2 Ks before removing himself from the game, mid-AB, in the seventh inning--but this guy was soaking up the vitriol pretty well. And then, following Alejandro Kirk's home run, the fan turned around to our section and held his finger to his mouth, telling us to be quiet. Andres Gimenez added a fourth run, and the Dodgers were suddenly down 4-2. This started the feeling of tension that would not abate for another five hours or so.
We got two runs back in the fifth inning, off a Shohei Ohtani RBI double and a Freeman RBI single, to tie the game. The Blue Jays took the lead again in the seventh inning on a Bo Bichette single to right that Teoscar Hernandez lollygagged (yet again), allowing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to score all the way from first. Tension, again.
And then Ohtani came back and powered "a center-cut fastball" (as Joe Davis put it), depositing it in the Left Field Pavilion to tie the game at five:
It should be noted that Ms. Sax has not been the biggest fan of Ohtani, mostly because he hasn't done much at the games that we happen to attend together. Tonight flipped that script. That second home run, Ms. Sax lost her mind--I think it was the first pitch of the AB--and Ms. Sax could not believe it. Ohtani reached base nine times last night, with four extra base hits (for only the second time even in a World Series game)? I think she's an Ohtani fan now.
And then, the tension began, for the next 11 innings.
So, about that beer....
------
Like any smart Dodger fan, I went back up to the concourse after the top of the seventh, knowing that they would be cutting off alcohol sales soon. After hitting the restroom (and washing my hands, thank you!), I grabbed my second Michelob Ultra can of the night.
When I got back down to our seats, Ms. Sax did not look happy.
"Did you see my text?"
I gulped. "No."
I looked at my phone. She had asked me if I could please not get another beer--a fair ask given I was driving in what I thought would be the next hour (ha!); she knows I love beer; and yeah, it's probably good overall to be drinking less of this wonderful nectar in general, given the obvious health factors.
However, it was too late. I had the beer in hand. So I said I was sorry, and I put the beer in the cupholder in front of me. And there it sat.
Now, Ms. Sax had quickly forgotten about this beer, thanks to the well-timed Ohtani home run. But she was right there with me with the tension and all the missed opportunities that played out in the innings ahead of us.
Roki Sasaki having to come in in the eighth, in a jam, to bail out Jack Dreyer's two-on, one-out situation. Tommy Edman, in one of his many defensive highlights this game (despite an error as well), nailing Isiah Kiner-Falefa at third to preserve a scoreless ninth. Ohtani IBBd in the ninth, only to be caught stealing in front of Mookie Betts (who continued his postseason malaise with a 1-for-8 showing last night, squandering multiple game-winning opportunities).
Davis Schneider thrown out at home in the tenth with a perfect throw by Edman and tag by Will Smith. Clayton Kershaw coming in with the bases loaded to relieve Emmet Sheehan (an admirable 2.2 IP with 2 Ks), to get a clutch ground out (Edman!) in the top of the 11th inning. (This was an especially gut-wrenching moment, as I was pretty certain the baseball gods were going to be cruel to Kershaw once again in the postseason, and yet we amazingly survived.)
And the Dodgers had so many chances that just didn't work out. Will Smith, Teoscar Hernandez, even Freeman himself all hit deep fly balls that died on the warning track due to the thick marine layer that you could feel like a soup, even from the stands. Said Max Muncy in The Athletic:
But as Game 3 went on, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy noticed dew on the grass and moisture on top of the dugout railing. After eight seasons with the Dodgers, Muncy knew what that meant. A marine layer had descended on Dodger Stadium, and good luck trying to hit the ball out.
“Nighttime here is really hard to hit,” Muncy said. “I’ve seen it so many times. Balls just die in the night.”
Freeman thought he possibly hit a homer in the 13th, but his 103.9-mph shot fell short of the 395-foot wall in center. He hit another ball to center 104.4 mph at a lower launch angle in the 15th, and got the same outcome.
Other Dodgers experienced similar frustration. Smith dropped his bat as if he hit a homer in the 14th, but his 101.5-mph drive got knocked down. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts thought Teoscar Hernández’s 101.4-mph blow had a chance in the 16th, but no, that one didn’t go out either.
Leading off the 18th, Freeman got another chance. And when Little left a 3-2 sinker in the heart of the plate, he connected again to center. This time, he hit the ball 107.4 mph at a 34-degree launch angle, the right combination to finally unlock a homer.
Did Freeman think it was gone?
“I was not sure,” he told me in his postgame interview on Fox. “Just because of the other couple. My swings were getting better and better as the game was going on. I’m just glad I was able to get the opportunity again.”
Throughout all these moments, I was just staring at that beer, convinced that if I took one sip, it was going to cost the Dodgers the game. Every time we escaped the top of the inning scoreless--the Dodgers relievers pitched 13.1 scoreless innings following Tyler Glasnow's start--I knew that it was the right choice to abstain. And every time we failed to capitalize on an opportunity to win the game, I stared at that can of Michelob Ultra and wondered how much my jitters would have settled with a swig.
"You ever see the sun rise at Dodger Stadium?", I asked Ms. Sax.
She did not find that very funny. She kept imploring the Dodgers to win it, screaming "I want to go home!". But I did ask (politely, albeit a bit disingenuously) if she wanted to leave early, and there was no way she was going to leave early.
"I'm too invested at this stage," she said. "Let's win this."
Will Klein, the last Dodger pitcher available, entered the game in the top of the 15th inning. This is a guy who wasn't even on any of the other postseason rosters for the Dodgers this year. But we had no other options.
And Will Klein was the man last night.
With every inning that of the four he pitched (72 pitches total, which was twice what he had ever thrown in any major league appearance of his life), more and more of the Dodgers' relief corps were up on the top step of the bullpen, cheering him on and giving him strength. Klein gave up a two-out single to Guerrero in the 15th, then had clean 16th and 17th innings (including a sweet comebacker off of Davis Schneider to end the 17th). And then in the 18th inning, Klein got out of a bases-loaded jam by striking out backup catcher Tyler Heineman, to preserve the scoreless frame.
The beer taunted me, throughout Klein's labors.
I resisted.
And then, finally, came the Freeman home run, in the bottom of the 18th inning. Freeman was the first batter of this inning. And I have to say, when he hit it, it looked like it had a shot to win the game--but so had so many of the other fly balls that game, so who knows? Only when Daulton Varsho started climbing the wall in center did I realize that this one was going to clear the fence by enough.
The Dodgers WIN.
The place went nuts. Freeman, in extras, in the World Series, again. The only man to have multiple walkoff home runs in the World Series, ever.
I hugged Ms. Sax. We slapped hands with everyone around us. We watched Freddie stomp on home plate and the team explode. Pandemonium ensued.
And then I grabbed that can of semi-cold Michelob Ultra and drank all 25 ounces in one bacchanalian quaff.
What an amazing ending.
What an amazing game.
What an amazing beer. (And who ever said that about Michelob Ultra?!)
One starter has long flowing locks of hair; the other guy has two goofy heterochromatic eyes.
One starter made his last start at Dodger Stadium (5.2 IP of 3 H, 1 ER, 8 K ball against the Brewers; coming off a gutty 6.0 IP of 2 H, 0 ER, 8 K ball clinching against the Phillies in the NLDS).
With the series tied, this Game 3 is pretty pivotal. The Dodgers' bats, particularly the big three, still haven't come to life this series; and there's a lot of talk about whether to bench Andy Pages and his .093 average (Pages also does not have a walk in 47 2025 postseason plate appearances...or 67 postseason plate appearances including last season. He had 29 walks in 624 plate appearances (almost 5%) in the regular season.).
And given Glasnow has not gone long in any of his postseason starts, it's going to be up to the Dodgers bullpen at some point, which is terrifying.
I'm going to tonight's Game 3. I feel really lucky...and extremely nervous!
Rogers Centre was ready to erupt again, with the Dodgers scuffling around offensively before finally breaking through on Kevin Gausman in the seventh inning. But the fact that we could keep this game close for that long was only due to the continued heroics of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who spun a 105-pitch complete game victory, limiting the Blue Jays to 4 H and 1 ER (0 BB, 8 Ks), and giving our offense the chance to take and extend the lead late in Game 2.
This is Yamamoto's second straight complete game in the postseason, which is amazing. As per Sonja Chen of MLB.com:
He is the first pitcher with back-to-back complete games in the postseason since the D-backs' Curt Schilling in 2001, and the first Dodger since Orel Hershiser in 1988. The most recent pitcher with multiple complete games in the postseason was the Giants' Madison Bumgarner in 2014.
"I think that you look at Yamamoto," manager Dave Roberts said, "it's kind of the throwback in the sense of when he starts a game, he expects to finish it. And he'll go as long as I let him."
Yamamoto not only prevented the Dodgers from needing to reach into their mixed bag of a 'pen, but he also put his team in a much more favorable position now that the Series is tied 1-1. In the history of best-of-seven postgame series with the current 2-3-2 format, teams that have taken a 2-1 lead at home in Game 3 have prevailed in the series 29 of 48 times (60.4%).
Will Smith and Max Muncy broke the 1-1 tie in the seventh with solo home runs. The Dodgers manufactured two more runs in the eighth inning, on a wild pitch by Jeff Hoffman (scoring Andy Pages from third), and then Smith scoring Shohei Ohtani from third on a force out.
Watching Fangraphs' playoff odds shift will drive one crazy, but here's the recap so far: Going into the Game 1, the Dodgers had a 66.3% chance to win the 2025 World Series. After the Game 1 loss, the Dodgers' chances dipped to 48.4%. And now with the Game 2 victory, the Dodgers are back to 63.4%.
Fox analyst and former Yankee Derek Jeter noted the Dodgers' calm in the wake of the Game 1 loss: "The Dodgers have been here, they know what it takes to win," said Jeter. "They know that losing by 10 runs is the same as losing by one run. It gives the Toronto Blue Jays a lot more confidence, and they're not a team that ever lacks confidence 'cause they know they can hit. But I expect the Dodgers to bounce back."
And bounce back they did, thanks to Yamamoto's leadership and poise.
Well, last night was pretty much a beatdown. Dodgers starter Blake Snell didn't have anywhere near the stuff he's had for this postseason; the Banda brothers in the bullpen kept serving up meatballs, and the offense missed plenty of chances to put this away early, thanks in part to untimely early-count swinging that got Toronto's pen off the hook multiple times.
And Andy Pages is batting .077 this postseason, adding two Ks last night in an 0-for-4 contribution.
All the pundits said our NLDS vs. Philadelphia was the toughest matchup of the postseason. So was the 2024 NLDS against the Padres--the difference being that we had to claw our way past the Mets as well in the 2024 NLCS, whereas we breezed past the Brewers this year.
So Game 1 was a good reminder that this 2025 World Series isn't going to be easy--just like last year.
Let's sack up and steal one on the road tonight, Yoshi!
But the narrative I see tonight is one of redemption, which could craft new chapters for two Dodgers looking to change their stories.
For Blake Snell, tonight's start will make his first appearance in the World Series since his fateful and early exit from the 2020 World Series Game 6. With only 73 pitches and two hits through 5.1 IP, Rays manager Kevin Cash pulled Snell rather than have him face the Dodgers' lineup a third time (which was, statistically, a difficulty for Snell). The Dodgers feasted from there, and ended up winning the 2020 World Series in that game.
Tonight is a chance for two-time Cy Young Award Winner Blake Snell to show the world, on the biggest stage, that he can gut through the lineup a third time.
Tonight is a chance for three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani to show the world, on the biggest stage, the majesty of his offensive power.
Also, I am not buying into the narrative about the Dodgers being heavy favorites on this one. It's certainly not a David vs. Goliath story, not with the Blue Jays owning the fifth-highest payroll in the majors; the beasts in their offensive lineup; or the fact that they have all of Canada behind them (and probably most of America, as well).
Not to mention, tonight's Blue Jays starter, Trey Yesavage, has torn through the playoffs (22 Ks over three starts), and the Dodgers don't tend to perform well against pitchers we've never seen.
This is going to be a dogfight. Game 1 at Rogers Centre is important.
George Kirby got rocked in his last ALCS outing, so this doesn't bode well for the Mariners. Fabian Ardaya over in The Athletic has a semi-balanced breakdown of why the Dodgers might prefer either World Series opponent, but in my mind it's clearly favorable for us to face the Mariners; home field advantage is a slam dunk rationale (MLB television ratings be damned).
It has taken me about 12 hours to fully process what I watched last night (on television, like most of us; though my mom was at the game!). It still does not seem real or even possible.
Coming off the commentary about a woeful postseason at the plate (batting .158 heading into this game), Shohei Ohtani not only flipped the script, he did so in historic fashion: three home runs in a postseason game, as well as 10 Ks and no ER as a starting pitcher in a postseason game.
IN THE SAME GAME.
After getting home from my friend's house where I watched the game, I watched some highlights. At 3am, I got up and watched more highlights and read some articles. And this morning, I read even more articles. And no one can put this game into words.
Perhaps the best piece I've read is Jayson Stark's recap over at The Athletic (paywall), in which he calls last night's game "the greatest game in baseball history." One of his seven points:
5. The greatest first inning ever
Who writes these scripts? Here’s how Ohtani’s first inning went on the mound:
Walked the leadoff hitter (Brice Turang) … then casually struck out the next three hitters … Jackson Chourio on a 100.3 mph scorcher, Christian Yelich on a 100.2 mph brushfire, then William Contreras flailing at a sweeper that dropped 29 inches, to go with 17 inches of vertical break.
Dodger Stadium was louder than a launch pad at Cape Canaveral. Then up stepped the Dodgers’ leadoff hitter — the starting pitcher — who did this …
So 446 feet later, this game would never be the same. And neither would the history books.
History lesson No. 1 — How many starting pitchers had ever blasted a leadoff home run before Ohtani pounded that one? Yep, that would be zero. Not in any postseason game. Not in any regular-season game. But, um, not anymore.
History lesson No. 2 — This was the 1,869th game in postseason history — which means there have been more than 16,000 innings. How many pitchers would you guess have struck out three hitters in a row and hit a home run in the same inning of a postseason game? As always, zero would be a savvy guess. (Hat tip: Elias Sports Bureau.)
[...]
But are we sure — absolutely, positively sure — that this was the greatest game ever played? Of course we are! To show you why, let’s just review a handful of the postseason contenders.
There was the Reggie Jackson Three-Homer Game (that clinched the 1978 World Series for the Yankees).
There was the David Freese Game (that brought the 2011 Cardinals back from the dead in an epic World Series Game 6).
There were the legendary World Series long balls of Kirk Gibson (1988), Joe Carter (1993), Bill Mazeroski (1960) and even Freddie Freeman (last October).
They were all fit for the story books and the history books. But I’d just like to point out one thing:
All those guys forgot to pitch in those games.
And speaking of pitchers, there was Bob Gibson’s fabled 17-strikeout game (in Game 1 of the 1968 World Series).
There was Roy Halladay’s unforgettable no-hitter in the first postseason game of his career (in 2010).
There was Don Larsen’s once-in-a-lifetime perfect game in 1956 — probably the most famous, most romanticized game ever pitched.
But now here I come again to make one small observation: All those guys forgot to hit a single home run on those days.
Really then, how can any legendary game you might want to nominate equal this one? Not to diminish anyone else’s greatest day on a baseball field, but if they didn’t fill up the K column, bash any baseballs out the stadium (and possibly the solar system) and send their teams to the World Series — all in the same game — they can’t possibly measure up. Can they?
So you know those people who like to fire off opinions that it’s time for Ohtani to give up this pitching side gig of his because it’s not worth it … it’s hurting his hitting … he’d be just as valuable doing only one thing? There might be an answer now for those people. How about this:
Any time that comes up, what do you say we just cue up the video of Game 4 of the 2025 NLCS and remind them of what is possible?
“Yeah,” Friedman said. “That’s right. We can just enter it into exhibit and rest our case.”
There were other amazing things that happened in this 2025 NLCS. Like Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto's starts, for example. But at the conclusion of this game, in talking with my friend's kid: there was really only one choice for NLCS MVP. And it happened to be awarded to a guy who was batting 2-for-11 in this series prior to last night's Game 4 (and even with this prolific 3-for-4 with 3 HR performance, his 2025 postseason batting average only lifted to .220--albeit with a .967 OPS now).
To be that amazing from both sides of the plate...as SoSG AC put it, it's like the Bo Jackson avatar back in NES Tecmo Bowl when his speed could have him run backwards and forwards all over the field, evading all the AI opponent tacklers.
Or if you played MLB The Show and spent a ton of time grinding out the best offensive player...and then did the same amount of grinding to create the best pitcher...and then merged the two together so they were 100% attribute-leveled in the same character. I don't think that is even possible in that videogame. They're going to have to change the game, just like Shohei has changed the game of baseball for us.
I mean, what's next. He hits every day. Can Ohtani pitch every day as well? Would you even put that out of the realm of possibility at this stage?
Unbelievable. We will talk about The Ohtani Game for decades to come. Let's take some more time to soak this one in before we think about the World Series.
Everyone is talking about how Brewers manager Pat Murphy, riding rookie phenom Jacob Misiorowski to five impressive flamethrowing innings yesterday in NLCS Game 3, appears to be out of chess moves to thwart the steamrolling Dodgers (up 3-0 in the NLCS).
But you know who's also out of moves?
Dodger manager Dave Roberts is forced to start a guy tonight who is batting .158 with a .641 OPS. And not only that, Roberts is batting him leadoff as well.
One day more. Another day, another destiny.
This never-ending road to victory.
These Brewers try to steal a win but Glasnow and crew kept us in.
One day more.
I did not think this bullpen could.
How can I hope, when they have farted?
One day more.
Tomorrow we can sweep away!
Unless Doc's moves become outsmarted.
One day more to show the world
(Can we win the LCS?)
One more day that rests on Shohei
(Who has been bad at the plate!)
But if he can just go six
(He still has to take at bats)
And I swear we can advance!
The time is now
The day is (tomorrow)
We certainly channeled Les Miz tonight, as Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski carved up the Dodgers lineup for five relief innings. But you kinda thought that when we broke through, this game would be over.
And sure enough, it was. Tommy Edman did the honors tonight, singling in Will Smith to take a 2-1 lead in the sixth, which expanded further when Abner Uribe tried to pick off Edman at first, but threw wide, allowing Fredie Freeman to score from third.
Surprisingly, a 3-1 lead was all the Dodgers needed, with Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, Anthony Banda, and Roki Sasaki holding down the lead from starter Tyler Glasnow (5.2 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB and 8 Ks). Glasnow wasn't as sharp as Blake Snell or Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but it was enough to put the Dodgers up 3-0 in the NLCS.
2001 Yankees — one win away (lost Game 7 of the World Series)
2009 Phillies — two wins away (lost the World Series in six games)
2008 Red Sox — five wins away (lost in Game 7 of ALCS)
2012 Cardinals — five wins away (lost in Game 7 of NLCS)
2023 Astros — five wins away (lost in Game 7 of ALCS)
2010 Yankees — six wins away (lost in Game 6 of ALCS)
2021 Dodgers — six wins away (lost in Game 6 of NLCS)
Put another way, of the seven teams since 2000 that had won two games in the LCS and were vying for a repeat World Series title, five of them didn't even make it out of the LCS.
To be fair, the 2001 Yankees were the only team in that set of seven who had a 2-0 lead in the LCS--on the road, no less!--and then went on to fall short (in the World Series, to Luis Gonzalez and the Diamondbacks).
On the other hand, World Series winners in 2021-2023 (Atlanta, Houston, and Texas) all went up 2-0 in their LCS en route to a World Series Championship.
(Atlanta was also up 2-0 on the Dodgers in the 2020 NLCS, and the Dodgers stormed back to not only win the 2020 NLCS but win the 2020 World Series.)
And did you see what just happened to the Mariners last night? Up 2-0 and heading home for Game 3, the Blue Jays rolled the Mariners 13-4, with five Blue Jays hitting home runs en route to victory. Ouch.
Tyler Glasnow takes the mound tonight for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He's had two appearances in the 2025 postseason: a relief appearance in NLDS G1, where he went 1.2 IP (0 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 Ks), and then a more conventional (and effective) start in NLDS G4 (6.0 IP, 0 ER 2 H, 3 BB, 8 Ks). I was there for that NLDS G4, and he had pinpoint accuracy and was just setting up Ks all over the place, including in high-leverage positions. But Glasnow has gotten through six full innings in only three of his eleven career postseason starts, but no further than that--which means Dave Roberts is gonna have to use the bullpen somehow tonight.
So let's look at some more stats (courtesy ESPN's Get Up from 10.15):
Blake Snell pitched eight innings of no-run ball yesterday? No problem, said Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who went the complete game, giving up only one run (off his first pitch, a leadoff HR from Jackson Chourio), with an impressive line of his own: 9.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB and 7 Ks.
That was Yamamoto's first career MLB CG. And a fine time to break out that performance. It was the first Dodgers postseason complete game since Jose Lima in 2004 (NLDS G3 vs. St. Louis), which was so long ago, this blog wasn't even around then!
The Dodgers have solved their bullpen woes by simply not ever going to the bullpen. Amazing.
Teoscar Hernandez had a key home run to strike back after Chourio's blast, and then Andy Pages knocked in Kiké Hernandez (who doubled) to give the Dodgers a quick 2-1 lead.
And though the Dodgers had many other chances in this game, we simply weren't great--2-for-11 with RISP, and 10 LOB--but we continued to just chip away and extend the lead with a trio of fenceposts in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings. A 2-1 lead stretched to 5-1; the Brewers had to use five pitches after Freddy Peralta, two of them picking up ER on their own pitching lines, and the Dodgers got another win on the road.
Sloppiness still abounds for the Dodgers. Max Muncy (who also homered in the game--making him the Dodger with the most postseason homeruns, all-time) had his second error of the postseason. And Teoscar Hernandez and Mookie Betts both GIDPd, the latter for the second time this series.
We still aren't firing on all cylinders offensively. But luckily, our starting rotation certainly is.
For a team that couldn't win one game against Milwaukee all regular season, it's remarkable for the Dodgers to get two wins on the road to start out this series.
Credit our starting pitchers, Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. If we never have to go to the bullpen, we might actually stand a chance this postseason.
Let's take the Brewers' NLCS Game 1 pitching lineup as an anomaly. The good news is, we've now gotten a good look at six of Milwaukee's relievers, especially Quinn Priester, who pitched innings two through five. And we did get some hits and walks off them (7 H and 8 BB, respectfully), against only 4 Ks, showing better plate discipline than we had against the Phillies in the NLCS.
But today's Game 2 features an actual starting pitcher for the Brewers, Freddy Peralta, and he's a pretty good one at that. Peralta's 5.5 WAR and 2.70 ERA this year ranked him seventh in the majors. Peralta also shut us down in the first of two starts against the Dodgers this year (July 7: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB and 7 Ks), and he earned the win (but was less effective) in his second start against us (July 19: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB and 4 Ks). Perhaps that bodes well for the Dodgers, as he's at least trending in a favorable direction.
(Peralta also started twice in the 2025 NLDS against the Cubs: winning NLDS G1 (5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB and 9 Ks), but losing NLDS G4 (4.0 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 2 BB and 6 Ks). Again, trending in a favorable direction.)
But let's not get distracted from some glaring issues with our own lineup. Shohei Ohtani, 0-for-2 (albeit with 3 BBs) yesterday, is now batting .138 in the leadoff spot. Mookie Betts was 0-for-4 and Teoscar Hernadez 0-for-3 yesterday.
Without those three hitting, we barely eked out the two runs we needed to win Game 1--but let's remember, we've scored two runs or fewer against the Brewers in five of seven games this season, and last night's game was the only time we came out with a win.
And Andy Pages, 0-for-3 yesterday, is now batting .037 in the postseason. I mean, I don't hope for Michael Conforto (who thankfully is not on the NLCS roster). But even he can hit better than .037.
Not to mention, Teoscar fricking' TOOTBLANned yesterday, as well.
If the best highlight the Brewers get from the 2025 NLCS is this absurd double play, I'd be thrilled. Unfortunately, I think they'll have many more highlights in this series. Hopefully, just not any Brewers highlights tonight.
And from the plate, the missed opportunities were more glaring. The Dodgers were 1-for-10 with RISP, 11 total LOB, in Game 1. And if not for Freddie Freeman's solo HR in the sixth, and then Betts' bases-loaded walk RBI in the ninth, we would have been shut out altogether by the effective patchwork of Brewers arms.
But Blake Treinen saved Roki Sasaki's lack of sharpness tonight in the bottom of the ninth, staunching the bleeding after the Brewers scored one run and had the bases loaded, by striking out Brice Turang to notch the Game 1 victory.
We won't be able to depend upon game sloppiness and a moribund offense, if we want to win this series.
Not to mention, we won't be able to expect our starters to go eight full scoreless innings and face the minimum number of batters (24), like Blake Snell did tonight. 8.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 10 Ks. Unbelievable outing by Snell, who put the Dodgers on his back for this NLCS Game 1 victory.
We stole this road win. Let's be sharper tomorrow, okay? (I'm looking at you, Teoscar.)
Let's start with the negative: the Dodgers were basically a mediocre road team this year (41-40), but against the Brewers, the Dodgers came up short both on the road AND at home, losing all six games to Milwaukee this year. In the three games in Milwaukee, we scored a total of four runs, never scoring more than two runs in a game.
So tonight's game at Miller Park American Family Field should not give the Dodgers a ton of hope or momentum, especially coming off of a very fortunate NLDS victory that was partially handed to us by a game-ending error (another weak offensive performance by the Dodgers, might I add).
As a result, I'm not feeling confident heading into this NLCS. The Phillies were a tough opponent in the NLDS, and we barely snuck by them and advanced. The Brewers play great defense, kill you with small ball, and have a grizzled coach who has his team believing. Can the Dodgers, with their bullpen cupboard bare, and their main slugger batting .148 this postseason, really feel like they've got what it takes to win?
We're going to have to step the hell up here. Like Roki Sasaki in the NLDS.
Now that was awesome.
LET'S GO, DODGERS!
UPDATE 10:48a: Ben Casparius makes the NLCS roster; Dalton Rushing (as a third catcher) left off.
MILWAUKEE -- The Los Angeles Dodgers will start lefty Blake Snell in Game 1 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday night while righty Yoshinobu Yamamoto will get the ball in Game 2. It means Shohei Ohtani will get just one start in the series, during the middle leg back in Los Angeles.
"He'll pitch at some point, but we just don't know which day," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on Sunday.
Unlike in previous spots, the Dodgers are not concerned with pitching Ohtani before a day off, choosing to maximize rest for the other starters as the team embarks on its first best-of-seven series this postseason.
"Not as important," Roberts said. "I think just appreciating having four starters in a potential seven-game series and who can pitch potentially twice, and that's kind of the impetus, versus Shohei having that day off after a game."
No starting pitchers named as of this post creation (Friday Oct 10, 9.30p PT). I am out of pocket today but will be keeping tabs on this game.
I can't even pontificate about who'd we prefer to win (we were 0-6 against the Brewers this year; however we were only 3-4 against the Cubs this year, and that includes two wins in Tokyo).
I'm just hoping for a 26-inning game that uses all pitchers on both teams.
In a tense affair that only took 3:30 to complete but felt like an eternity, the Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies on an improbable error, with Orion Kerkering panicking after a botched comebacker, ultimately throwing the ball to the wrong base and wide of catcher J.T. Realmuto, allowing Dodgers pinchrunner Hyeseong Kim to score the game-winning run.
I was at the game and would not have believed this ending despite seeing it with my own eyes.
I guess you can now spell "Phillies" with three Ls.
The truth is, either team could have easily won this series. The Dodgers stole Game 1 in Philadelphia, and then barely survived Game 2, to put Los Angeles in a pretty comfortable position. But after squandering Game 3, it seemed like this Game 4, which rested on a razor's edge, could have gone either way.
Had the Dodgers lost NLDS Game 4, I have to think we would not have been favored to win the series in a winner-take-all Game 5, given the hostility of Citizens Bank Park, not to mention our recent performance where we just squeaked to victories by our fingernails.
But key Dodgers stepped up here in Game 4 to deliver us the win, and we have to give them their rightful commendations:
Tyler Glasnow was nails. Yes, Glasnow's reputation of fragility, coupled with the fact that he only started 18 games for us this year, made me skeptical that we'd see him finish even three innings. But Glasnow's line: 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB and 8 Ks--outdid Phillies starter Cristopher Sanchez's numbers (6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB and 5 Ks).
I wasn't sure why we took Glasnow out after only 83 pitches and six innings, because he was dealing, but I've since read that he was cramping. But his performance kept us in the game, for sure.
Emmet Sheehan held up. Sure, he made an error that cost us a run. But the kid has now pitched in three 2025 postseason games and is getting a little bit sharper each time. He had a strikeout in Game 1 (2.0 IP) and a strikeout in G4 (1.0 IP), and thought his ERA is still 10.80 this postseason, he's a viable middle-inning bridge, which we need. Keep up the progress, Emmet!
Roki Sasaki, of course, was the breakout story of the day. Holy shit, Batman. Given all the hype of his signing, then the clear discomfort and shaky performances early on this year, and then missing most of the year with a shoulder injury--there was absolutely no way one would think Sasaki would become the postseason closer beast that has emerged late in 2025. Since returning from injury on September 24, Sasaki pitched in only two regular-season games (one inning each; 0 ER and 4 Ks). And then, despite ratcheting up the pressure in each 2025 postseason appearance, Sasaki has shined.
But Game 4's performance, asking the rookie to go three innings of work and watching him face nine batters and sit all nine down--one would have never expected this. Sasaki just hit another level, in a role that he wasn't even expected to play. I can't think of a comparable example. It's amazing.
Clayton Kershaw wore it in Game 3, so that we could have everyone ready for Game 4. Watching Kershaw struggle on Wednesday was just gut-wrenching awful. But if he doesn't pitch those two innings, we use up some of the few options we have in that corroded bullpen (even more corroded now that Tanner Scott is out through the NLCS, not that we'd really feel comfortable using Scott these days, anyway). Hopefully, us advancing to the NLCS will give Kershaw a chance to whittle down his truly unfair 2025 postseason 18.00 ERA (not to mention, his career 4.63 postseason ERA).
The bottom of our lineup broke through. Tommy Edman, who was roping some balls earlier in the game, finally broke through with a single to left in the 11th, for his first hit of the game. Then Max Muncy clutched up and singled to center, advancing pinch-runner Kim to third, and knocking out Phillies Game-5-starter-turned-reliever Jesus Luzardo. Then Kiké Hernandez--now batting .318 with a .809 OPS this postseason, both marks ahead of Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman!--worked the count to earn a walk and load the bases.
And that set up the dramatics for Andy Pages--batting a microscopic .042 with a .122 OPS this postseason--to hit the comebacker that quickly unfolded into an error, with Kim crossing the plate and the Dodgers winning the game. But all four of those players were our 6-7-8-9 in the lineup on Thursday; the heroics were all theirs.
Dave Roberts, again, made all the right calls and beat Phillies manager Rob Thomson in the chess match. Roberts gets a lot of flack, and I know I defend him more than most. But honestly, with Thomson going to closer Jhoan Duran in the seventh inning (Duran ended up blowing ths save by walking Mookie Betts with the bases loaded, which was amazing); then throwing his Game 5 starter in the tenth inning, in a do-or-die move--Thomson was trying everything to give his team the win.
But Roberts' bullpen choices, even going back to how he (ab)used Kershaw in Game 4 (see above), proved to be key. Pushing Sasaki for three frames in Game 3 was ballsy, and it worked out (and so did using Alex Vesia in the 11th, and Vesia might be gaining some girth on his trust tree branch of late). It seems like Doc has gotten a lot better over time about reading the moment and trusting his players in key situations; it may not always work out, but it seems to be successful more often than not. Now, why we are sticking with starting Pages is another issue.
And look, I hated to see it end on Orion Kerkering's shoulders like that. He just freaked out, with 50,000 fans screaming and a bobbled ball that shifted things from routine to chaos in an instant. Yeah, maybe he should have thrown to first base to get Pages. And the play at the plate might have been close. But you don't like to see a walk-off error. I feel for the guy.
Needless to say, it wasn't his fault that the Phillies are going home. Look at their big three: Trea Turner, 0-for-5 on Thursday with 2 Ks, finishing with a .235 average and .551 OPS (Turner did make a sweet defensive play in Game 4 on a grounder). Kyle Schwarber, who erupted for two home runs in Game 3, was a sad 1-for-5 in Game 4, also with 2 Ks, finishing the postseason with a .188 average (and .903 OPS). Bryce Harper, who has not fared well in Dodger Stadium in his career, went 0-for-4 and finished with a .200 average and .600 OPS.
So in NLDS Game 4, combined, Philly's big three went 1-for-14 with 4 Ks.
Now look, our big three didn't do much better: 2-for-13 with 5 Ks across Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman (Roberts wedged Teoscar Hernandez in there for Game 4, batting third but he was worse: 1-for-5 with 3 Ks on his own). Ohtani and Freeman look pretty bad right now, which some speculate is because Philadelphia's lefties are so strong. You know who else has strong lefty pitching? The Cubs (who play a winner-take-all game in Milwaukee Saturday). Gulp.
But I'll think about our adjustments that we'll need to make for the NLCS later. For now, I'm going to revel in the fact that the Dodgers are moving on, having vanquished the team that many believe would be our biggest obstacle this 2025 postseason.
After sitting through 11 innings of totally clenched ball last night, I'm still pretty nervous.
3/28 vs. DET (W, 8-5 (10)): Sax
4/2 vs. ATL (W, 6-5): AC
4/27 vs. WAS (W, 9-2): Dusty
5/17 vs. LAA (L, 2-6): Sax
5/31 vs. NYY (W, 18-2): Dusty, Sax
6/3 vs. NYM (W, 6-5): Nomo
6/15 vs. SF (W, 5-4): AC
6/17 vs. SD (W, 8-6): Dusty
6/18 vs. SD (W, 4-3): AC
6/22 vs. WAS (W, 13-7): AC, Dusty
7/5 vs. HOU (L, 6-4): Orel, Sax
9/18 vs. SF (W, 2-1): Sax
10/9 NLDS G4 vs. PHI (W, 2-1 (11)): Sax
10/27 WS G3 vs. TOR (W, 6-5 (18)): AC, Sax
