Yamamoto vs. Sale.
The Dodgers are a combined 0-for-9 with RISP this 2026 NLDS, which is a lot of the reason why Atlanta now has home-field advantage in the series. Oh, and they're starting Chris Sale, who absolutely dominated us in his last outing against the Dodgers: CGSHO, with 5 H and 11 Ks (0 BBs), on August 27, 2026.
We counter with a pitcher that we forced into a gazillion high-leverage situations during our 2025 World Series Championship run. It's not fair, for sure. And in fact, Yamamoto was the losing pitcher that August 27 game against Sale, when he gave up only one run (on only four hits, fewer than the Dodgers!), and still lost.
Meanwhile, on offense, there are many Dodgers who need to figure out how to hit this NLDS, and quickly: Tommy Edman, Will Smith, and of course, the one in the spotlight, Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani in particular looks completely lost at the plate as Braves pitches go down and away and he keeps chasing balls way out of the zone.
I'm not hopeful. As Ken Rosenthal reminded us in his last Dodgers profile, baseball is hard.
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