MILWAUKEE -- If Game 1 is any indication, we might be headed for a classic of a National League Championship Series.
The Brewers won the opener, 2-1, in a thriller on Sunday night at American Family Field. The Dodgers will be looking to bounce back with postseason hero Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound for Game 2.
“We've just got to reset,” said manager Dave Roberts. “We've got our guy going tomorrow, who we trust undoubtedly. And we've got to win a baseball game.”
They sure need it. In the history of all best-of-seven series, teams that have fallen behind 2-0 have rallied to win that series just 16 times in 95 tries (17%). Milwaukee sends rookie right-hander Logan Henderson to the mound with a chance to take a commanding lead.
“There's going to be a lot of adrenaline there,” said Henderson, who allowed one earned run over five innings against the Padres in Game 2 of the NL Division Series. “I feel like learning how to control the emotions last week is going to help coming into this start.”
Here’s what you need to know:
When is the game and how can I watch it?
Game 2 is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET/4 p.m. CT/2 p.m. PT on Monday at American Family Field and will air nationally on FOX and FS1.
All series are available in the US on MLB.TV with authentication to a participating Pay TV provider. Games also are available live internationally, although not in Canada. Sportsnet is MLB's exclusive English language broadcaster in Canada for every Postseason game, while TVA Sports will be covering the entire AL Postseason and the World Series in French and Broadcaster RDS will cover the entire NL Postseason in French.
Who are the starting pitchers?
Dodgers: RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Key stat: Threw first career MLB complete game in 2025 NLCS Game 2
Yamamoto went on an incredible run last postseason, including his NLCS complete game against the Brewers. The reigning World Series MVP added to his October track record with seven innings of one-run ball against the Braves in the NLDS last week. The Dodgers have won all but one of Yamamoto's 11 postseason appearances, in which he has a 2.14 ERA.
Brewers: Logan Henderson, RHP
Key Stats: In 24 career starts in the regular season and postseason, has never allowed more than three runs.
The Brewers’ other 24-year-old right-hander doesn’t have Jacob Misiorowski’s fastball velocity, but he’s in the 90th percentile of fastball run value, according to Statcast, and pairs that pitch with the Brewers’ best changeup. And he’s pitched some big games. In an August 16 duel with Tarik Skubal at Dodger Stadium, Henderson outpitched the lefty, throwing a career-high seven innings for a victory that gave the Brewers the series, the season series and cemented their position atop MLB’s overall standings for the remainder of the regular season after Misiorowski had pitched Milwaukee back to that perch the previous day. That’s why the Brewers have home-field advantage for as far as they can go in the playoffs.
What might the starting lineups look like?
Dodgers: Facing another right-hander, the Dodgers could run out a similar lineup to Game 1. Manager Dave Roberts dropped a struggling Shohei Ohtani to the cleanup spot or lower in the previous three games, which is likely to continue. Will Smith's scuffles have been even greater, but Roberts said he is planning on keeping him high in the lineup for now.
Projected
1. Mookie Betts, SS
2. Freddie Freeman, 1B
3. Will Smith, C
4. Shohei Ohtani, DH
5. Teoscar Hernández, LF
6. Max Muncy, 3B
7. Andy Pages, CF
8. Kyle Tucker, RF
9. Tommy Edman, 2B
Brewers: The NLDS against the Padres could provide a guide, as the Brewers faced a lefty in Game 1 (Robbie Ray) followed by an ace righty (Michael King) in Game 2. Here’s how they lined up against King, leaving Jackson Chourio at the top to maximize his at-bats but introducing more left-handed bats like Christian Yelich and Sal Frelick.
Projected
1. Jackson Chourio, LF
2. Brice Turang, 2B
3. Jake Bauers, 1B
4. William Contreras, C
5. Garrett Mitchell, CF
6. Christian Yelich, DH
7. Sal Frelick, RF
8. Cooper Pratt, SS
9. David Hamilton, 3B
How will the bullpens line up after the starter?
Dodgers: L.A. had to use three relievers behind Skubal in Game 1, but Alex Vesia (16 pitches), Evan Phillips (17 pitches) and Tanner Scott (nine pitches) should all be available for Game 2. Scott and Edwin Díaz are the top leverage arms in the Dodgers' 'pen, with the latter being the most likely to get the ball in save situations -- even if he has not been officially renamed the closer.
Brewers: The Brewers keep riding the quartet of left-handers DL Hall and Aaron Ashby and right-handers Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill, and why not? They have combined to allow just one unearned run in 19 2/3 innings in the postseason so far. Uribe has pitched in all five of Milwaukee’s games, Ashby and Megill in four of the five and Hall in three. All told, Brewers relievers have a 0.38 ERA in the first five games of this postseason while holding the Padres and Dodgers to a .163 average in 23 2/3 innings, tied for the third-lowest mark through a club’s first five postseason games (minimum 15 innings).
Any injuries of note?
Dodgers: Ohtani (right biceps, left knee) and Freeman (right knee) are managing lingering injuries. World Series hero Will Klein (right elbow discomfort) has faced hitters, but he has not pitched in a game since July 31 and is viewed as more of a depth option. Blake Treinen (right shoulder inflammation) is unlikely to pitch this postseason.
Brewers: None.
Who is hot and who is not?
Dodgers: Tucker went hitless in Game 1, but he walked twice and has been one of L.A.'s most consistent bats. Pages has also heated up in the previous three games, as he has the Dodgers' two -- and only -- hits with runners in scoring position this postseason. Smith is hitting just 1-for-19 and has struck out seven times. Ohtani picked up a hit and a walk in Game 1, but he has yet to get going. He hit on the field on back-to-back days before the NLCS opener, which is something he only does when trying to break out of a slump.
Brewers: Turang was 2-for-16 in the NLDS and 4-for-his-last-48 in the postseason before he connected for a tying home run in the fourth inning of Game 1 against Skubal and the Dodgers. … Luis Lara became the fourth Brewers rookie to drive in a run in the postseason, with Chourio (who had two RBIs as a rookie in 2024) and Frelick and Caleb Durbin (who had one RBI apiece).
Anything else fans might want to know?
• According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the 17th time in history that a pair of 100-win clubs are meeting in the postseason and the sixth such occurrence in the LCS round. Before this year, the last was the 2019 ALCS between the Astros and Yankees. The only NLCS to feature a pair of 100-win teams was in 1976 between the Phillies and Reds.
• The Brewers are the 10th team in postseason history to have each of their first five games decided by one or two runs, and they're only the fourth instance in the last 110 years.