LOS ANGELES (AP) — The star-studded Los Angeles Dodgers, so used to winning year after year, find themselves in unfamiliar territory lately — on the brink of playoff elimination.
The two-time defending World Series champions are aiming to become the first National League team to win a third straight title and the first club to three-peat since the New York Yankees from 1998-2000.
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Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy can't stop an RBI base hit by Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Joey Ortiz during the eighth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki leaves the game during the eighth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell walks off the mound during the seventh inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani sits in the dugout during the ninth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
But that seems increasingly unlikely.
The Dodgers are facing a 3-0 deficit against Milwaukee in the National League Championship Series after losing 6-2 on Wednesday. They'll need to win four games in a row to advance, starting Thursday in Game 4 at Dodger Stadium.
“It looks like we’re going to have to make a little more history along the way if we want to accomplish that,” third baseman Max Muncy said. “We still have the pitching staff to be able to do it. We just have to get some hits.”
Offense has been sparse in the postseason. The Dodgers are 3 for 32 with runners in scoring position overall and 1 for 14 against the Brewers. Los Angeles cranked out 204 homers in the regular season — seventh in MLB — but have none so far in the NLCS.
“It’s just this whole series they’ve outslugged us, outhit us,” manager Dave Roberts said. “We’ve got to get a lead and find a way to tack on.”
The Dodgers scored twice in the sixth inning to take a 2-1 lead in Game 3 before pinch-hitter Kiké Hernández came up with runners on second and third and one out. But he struck out swinging, and Tommy Edman took a called third strike to end the inning.
“That was the game right there,” Hernández said. “We need to put the ball in play. I struck out and gave Tommy a way harder job with two outs. I have had two of the biggest at-bats in the series for our team and I haven’t been able to come through. I just need to do my job.”
Tyler Glasnow is scheduled to pitch Thursday for the Dodgers, who are 44-42 in postseason elimination games. If they can find a way to win, they would host Game 5 on Friday.
“We’ve never been in this big of a hole,” Hernández said, “but we’ve had our backs against the wall plenty of times before, and we’ve come out of it. We’re just trying to do it one more time.”
Except none of the Dodgers' hitters are doing much of anything. Kyle Tucker, who struggled mightily in the regular season, has been a bright spot. He's batting .304 after going 1 for 3 on Wednesday.
But the top of the lineup — Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernández — was a combined 1 for 11 in Game 3, when the Dodgers totaled five hits.
The deepest slumps involve four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani and catcher Will Smith. Ohtani was 1 for 2, raising his average to .182 a year after being MVP of the NLCS sweep against the Brewers. Smith was 1 for 4 with a two-run double, but his average is far south of the Mendoza Line at .074.
In Game 2, the Dodgers mustered just three hits in a 7-4 loss.
The only team in major league history to come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a best-of-seven postseason series was the 2004 Boston Red Sox, who got a gutsy stolen base from Roberts to spark their comeback against the New York Yankees in the AL Championship Series.
Roberts was asked if he might reminisce with his Dodgers players about that before Thursday's game.
“I don’t think so. I think they’ve seen the documentary. They know it can happen,” he said.
See AP’s full MLB coverage here
Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy can't stop an RBI base hit by Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Joey Ortiz during the eighth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki leaves the game during the eighth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell walks off the mound during the seventh inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani sits in the dugout during the ninth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers hit the second-fewest home runs in baseball during the regular season, even as they topped the majors with 103 wins.
Maybe they were saving their biggest swings for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Jake Bauers and Garrett Mitchell launched back-to-back homers off Blake Snell as Milwaukee regained the lead in the seventh inning, and the Brewers beat the Dodgers 6-2 on Wednesday to build a 3-0 cushion in the National League Championship Series.
Jackson Chourio also went deep on the first pitch of the game to help the Brewers close within one win of their first NL pennant. Milwaukee was in the American League when the franchise reached its only World Series, a seven-game loss to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1982.
“Job’s not finished yet,” Mitchell said.
Game 4 is Thursday at Dodger Stadium, where the Brewers can become the first major league club to complete a postseason sweep after getting swept by that same opponent in the previous postseason.
Los Angeles took all four games against Milwaukee in the NLCS last year.
The Dodgers had just gone ahead 2-1 in the sixth before getting stunned. The loss pushed the two-time defending World Series champions to the brink of elimination.
“All three games we’ve played so far, and hopefully that continues, where just every time they score, we come back and score,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “That’s not easy to do in baseball.”
It was the fifth comeback victory in seven games this postseason for the Brewers, who have never beaten Los Angeles in three previous playoff series.
The only other time the Dodgers trailed 3-0 in a best-of-seven postseason series, they were swept by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1966 World Series.
The lone team in big league history to come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a best-of-seven postseason series was the Boston Red Sox in the 2004 AL Championship Series against the New York Yankees.
“We’ve won four in a row a number of times this year,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “We've got to win tomorrow. That’s our only focus.”
Coming into the seventh, Snell had retired 14 batters in a row. The first pitch of the game thrown by the two-time Cy Young Award winner was hit for a home run by Chourio, and his last pitch was Mitchell's solo shot.
Andrew Vaughn drew a seven-pitch walk to open the inning and was replaced by pinch-runner Christian Yelich. Bauers followed with a 412-foot drive to right field on the 11th pitch of the at-bat for a 3-2 lead as most of the players in Milwaukee's dugout came onto the field to celebrate.
“I was looking for a fastball, and I didn’t want to miss it,” said Bauers, who had a team-leading 26 of Milwaukee's 154 regular-season homers.
It was his latest relentless plate appearance, too, after Bauers drew a 12-pitch walk from Yoshinobu Yamamoto that helped the Brewers go ahead early in Game 2.
“I think what changed for me this year was I stopped caring about results,” Bauers said. “I started caring about competing. I started caring about being in the moment and getting out of my own way.”
Watching Bauers work over Snell was “super sick,” Mitchell said.
And then it was his turn.
Mitchell's drive traveled 428 feet to right-center. That chased Snell, who hadn't given up a home run in 46 1/3 innings this year entering the game. It was the first time in his career he served up back-to-back homers to left-handed hitters and only the second time he gave up multiple longballs to left-handed batters in one game.
Bauers and Mitchell became just the third pair of left-handed hitters with consecutive postseason home runs off the same left-handed pitcher. Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper did it for Philadelphia against Atlanta reliever Dylan Lee in a Wild Card Series this year, and Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig connected for the New York Yankees off Bill Sherdel of the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1928 World Series.
Snell gave up four runs and four hits in six-plus innings. He struck out nine and walked two.
The Brewers extended their lead to 5-2 in the eighth on Justin Wrobleski's wild pitch that scored Brice Turang, who reached on an infield single and advanced to third on William Contreras' single. They added another run on Joey Ortiz's two-strike RBI single in the ninth.
The offensively starved Dodgers took a 2-1 lead on Will Smith's two-run double off reliever Abner Uribe in the sixth.
After rookie starter Robert Gasser pitched five shutout innings, Uribe entered and loaded the bases on walks to Teoscar Hernández, Kyle Tucker and Shohei Ohtani. Smith, who was 1 for 25 in the playoffs, doubled off the left-center fence with one out for his first hit of the NLCS.
DL Hall took over from Uribe and stranded runners at second and third by striking out pinch-hitter Kiké Hernández and Tommy Edman.
Hall allowed one hit in 2 1/3 scoreless innings to improve to 3-0 in these playoffs. Trevor Megill got four outs for his second save of the series and fourth this postseason.
The Dodgers played from behind again after the 22-year-old Chourio connected for his third career leadoff homer in the postseason as fans were still heading to their seats.
After that, Mitchell walked and Cooper Pratt singled in the second before Snell retired 14 in a row — six on strikeouts — before getting hammered in the seventh.
The Dodgers had runners on base in all but three innings, but couldn't get enough across. They have yet to homer in the NLCS and are 3 for 32 with runners in scoring position this postseason.
Ohtani was 1 for 2 with a walk while hitting sixth in the order, the lowest he's batted since joining the Dodgers three years ago.
See AP’s full MLB coverage here
Milwaukee Brewers center fielder Garrett Mitchell catches a fly out hit by Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Tommy Edman during the fifth inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell walks off the mound during the seventh inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Jackson Chourio watches his solo home run take flight during the first inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Milwaukee Brewers center fielder Garrett Mitchell yells towards his dugout after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Jake Bauers connects for a two run home run during the seventh inning of Game 3 of baseball's National League Championship Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
