The Los Angeles Dodgers opened the National League Championship Series with a 2–1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday night at American Family Field, riding a dominant performance from Blake Snell and a tense ninth inning that nearly unraveled before the final out. Entering Game 1, betting odds reflected the Dodgers’ status as favorites, with most sportsbooks listing Los Angeles around -135 and Milwaukee at approximately +115. Those projections bore out as the defending champions leaned on elite starting pitching to secure a critical road victory in the best-of-seven series.
Snell, making his first appearance of the postseason against the Brewers, delivered one of the finest outings of his career. The two-time Cy Young Award winner pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out ten without issuing a walk. His precision and efficiency overwhelmed the Milwaukee lineup, which had swept the regular-season series against Los Angeles but found little success against Snell’s fastball-slider mix. Brewers manager Pat Murphy called the performance possibly the most dominant he has seen from an opposing pitcher during his decade on Milwaukee’s staff.
Freddie Freeman broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning with a towering solo home run off reliever Chad Patrick. The ball grazed the high air near the closed roof before falling into the right-field seats, giving the Dodgers the first run of the NLCS. Freeman’s swing came at a pivotal moment, as Los Angeles had squandered earlier scoring chances, including a chaotic sequence in the fifth inning that nearly became a grand slam before turning into a rare outfield-assisted double play.
The Dodgers added a key insurance run at the top of the ninth when Mookie Betts drew a bases-loaded walk from Brewers reliever Abner Uribe, working a complete count before taking a pitch low and outside to extend the lead to 2–0. That proved crucial as the bottom half of the inning brought late drama.
Rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki, who had not allowed a run in five and one-third postseason innings entering the night, struggled in his first NLCS appearance. After issuing a walk to Isaac Collins, Sasaki allowed a ground-rule double to Jake Bauers that bounced over the center-field wall, putting two runners in scoring position. Jackson Chourio hit a sacrifice fly to score Collins and cut the deficit to one, while pinch-runner Brandon Lockridge advanced to third. Christian Yelich then walked, putting the tying and winning runs aboard.
Manager Dave Roberts turned to veteran reliever Blake Treinen, who had endured struggles late in the season but delivered under pressure. After Yelich stole second, moving both runners into scoring position, Treinen walked William Contreras on a borderline pitch. With two outs and the bases loaded, Brice Turang missed what would have been a game-tying hit-by-pitch before striking out on a high fastball to end the game. The save marked a significant step forward for Treinen, who had worked to regain form following a difficult September.
Snell’s masterpiece placed him among select company in the postseason. He became the first pitcher since Don Larsen’s 1956 World Series perfect game to face the minimum twenty-four batters through eight innings. He is also the only starter in postseason history to pitch eight innings while allowing no more than one hit, issuing no walks, and striking out at least ten. His performance underscored the depth of the Dodgers’ rotation, which includes Shohei Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Milwaukee, which won ninety-seven games during the regular season, struggled offensively throughout the night aside from the narrow rally in the ninth. Caleb Durbin’s third-inning single was the Brewers’ only hit before Bauers’ double in the ninth, and star outfielder Christian Yelich went hitless in four plate appearances. Murphy emphasized resilience in his postgame remarks, citing Milwaukee’s ability to respond despite long odds, but acknowledged that Snell’s dominance left little margin for error.
The Dodgers, meanwhile, reflected on a critical opening victory that required both elite pitching and tightrope-walking in the final frame. Freeman praised the competitive tension of postseason baseball, calling the win “massive” in a challenging environment.
The series continues Tuesday night with a marquee matchup between All-Star starters Yoshinobu Yamamoto for Los Angeles and Freddy Peralta for Milwaukee. The Dodgers, seeking to advance to their second consecutive World Series, now lead the NLCS 1–0 with momentum and pitching depth on their side.