Brewers seek historic sweep; Dodgers face elimination in Game 4

The Milwaukee Brewers hold a commanding 3-0 series lead over the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, with Game 4 scheduled for Thursday at Dodger Stadium. A Brewers victory would clinch their first World Series berth since 1982 and mark the first time in MLB history a team has swept the same opponent in consecutive postseasons (they were swept by the Dodgers in the 2025 NLCS).

The Dodgers' offensive struggles have defined the series. Los Angeles has scored seven runs across three games, with a .187 slugging percentage and .146 batting average with runners in scoring position—147 points below the Brewers' performance in that situation. The team has not hit a home run in the series. Manager Dave Roberts acknowledged the Brewers' superior approach: "Their ball-in-play averages, gosh dang, it's got to be .400. When they put the ball in play, it's a hit. They're also slugging, which they didn't do last year." Shohei Ohtani, signed to a $700 million, 10-year contract, has been particularly ineffective, batting near the bottom of the order after going 3-for-20 with seven strikeouts in the postseason and no home runs since August 19.

Milwaukee's young roster—featuring a rotation of Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson, and Robert Gasser, along with a relief corps boasting a 0.31 ERA across 28⅔ playoff innings—has overwhelmed Los Angeles' celebrated pitching depth. In Game 2, four Brewers relievers threw five perfect innings in order, a playoff first. Game 3 saw Jackson Chourio and Garrett Mitchell hit back-to-back home runs off Blake Snell as Milwaukee won 6-2.

Historically, teams leading 3-0 in a best-of-seven series have won 41 of 42 times, with 32 sweeps. Only the 2004 Boston Red Sox have mounted a comeback from that deficit, and notably, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts—who stole a crucial base in that series—is aware of the long odds. "It's certainly possible. I've lived it," Roberts said. The Dodgers will start Tyler Glasnow (5-2, 3.53 ERA) against Milwaukee's Shane Drohan, a rookie left-hander, in what amounts to an elimination game. A Dodgers win forces a Game 5 at Dodger Stadium; a loss ends their bid for a three-peat championship—something only the 1998-2000 Yankees have achieved in the modern era.