Category: Baseball

How many of you utilize the MLB app? In addition to the new SB Nation app, the MLB app is a daily stop for me. Unfortunately, the app opens with the final Orioles game showing as canceled.

If you navigate over to the scores tab, you’ll see two NLDS games on the docket for today. The canceled game feels like a dark omen for 2027. Let’s enjoy the baseball while we still can.

Padres at Brewers, Game 2, 4:00 pm. FS1

RHP Michael King (12-10, 3.21 ERA) vs. RHP Logan Henderson (11-3, 2.47)

Manny Machado and his Padres were on the wrong end of a brutal ground rule incident last night. San Diego will look to put the bad break behind them and even the series this afternoon.

This is the type of game the Padres had in mind for Michael King when they signed him to a three-year, $75 million deal last December. Will the Orioles add a starter like that this winter? We’ll see.

Braves at Dodgers, Game 2, 8:00 pm. FS1

TBD. vs. LHP Blake Snell (4-1, 1.90 ERA)

The Braves had yet to announce a starter as of Sunday morning. Chris Sale could make an appearance if things go as planned for the Braves.

The Dodgers will continue their march to another World Series crown with Blake Snell taking the ball today. Yoshinobu Yamamoto is scheduled to start Game 3 in Atlanta.

Yesterday’s games certainly had their share of drama, with the Rays edging the Yankees 1-0. But the biggest talking point is undeniably Ty France’s out in Milwaukee, the ball glancing off the roof for an out. That is, undeniably, the rule. Should it be? A fair question, though most neutral indications are, it might well not have left the ballpark, given the velocity and launch angle. Me, I’m thinking (ok – hoping) that might be the moment the Padres’ late-season magic evaporated, and as a result, they’re about to do likewise from the playoffs. We might get an idea after today’s rematch.

The AL gets a day off, so it’s just the two games on the Sunday, with the NL home teams having taking both openers. The Braves are going with pseudo-opener Ray Kerr, who went 3.1 innings in the Wild-Card Series. Won’t be easy for them facing Blake Snell, Atlanta having struggled against left-handers this year, with a .696 OPS in the regular season.

• San Diego Padres @ Milwaukee Brewers 1:00 pm (0-1), FS1
• Atlanta Braves @ Los Angeles Dodgers 5:00 pm (0-1), FS1

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The NLDS continues tonight with Atlanta Braves vs. Los Angeles Dodgers Game 2.

The Dodgers took Game 1 yesterday, 5-3. Los Angeles’ trade deadline acquisition Tarik Skubal delivered as their Game 1 starter, striking out seven across six innings, and the Dodgers powered past the Braves thanks to home runs by Max Muncy, Kyle Tucker and Teoscar Hernandez.

After today’s game, the series will move to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4 and with a win today, the Dodgers could take a 2-0 lead into the second part of the series.

Historically, per MLB, teams that take a 2-0 lead in any best-of-five series have gone on to win that series 89% of the time (83 of 93), while teams that lose Games 1 and 2 on the road have recovered to win the series just three times in 36 chances.

Here’s how to tune in to the Game 2 of the NLDS without cable.

Braves vs. Dodgers time

Game 2 of the Braves-Dodgers NLDS is scheduled to begin today, Oct. 4, at 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET.

How to watch Braves vs. Dodgers NLDS Game 2 for free

If you don’t have cable, you’ll need a live TV streaming service to stream the ALDS for free.

DIRECTV is our favorite service for trying live TV for free. Right now, you can take advantage of a five-day free trial before saving $30 on your first month. We recommend the Choice plan, which includes FS1 as part of its 125+ channel options.

Braves vs. Dodgers NLDS schedule

• Game 1: Dodgers 5, Braves 3
• Game 2: Oct. 4, 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET (FS1)
• Game 3: Oct. 6, 3 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. ET (FS1)
• Game 4: Oct. 7, 3 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. ET (FS1)*
• Game 5: Oct. 8, 5 p.m. PT / 8 p.m. ET (FOX)*

*if necessary

Why Trust Post Wanted by the New York Post

This article was written by Angela Tricarico, Commerce Streaming Reporter for Post Wanted Shopping, Page Six, and Decider.com. Angela keeps readers up to date with cord-cutter-friendly deals, and information on how to watch your favorite sports teams, TV shows, and movies on every streaming service. Not only does Angela test and compare the streaming services she writes about to ensure readers are getting the best prices, but she’s also a superfan specializing in the intersection of shopping, tech, sports, and pop culture. When she’s not writing about (or watching) TV, movies, and sports, she’s also keeping up on the underrated perfume dupes at Bath & Body Works and testing headphones. Prior to joining Decider and The New York Post in 2023, she wrote about streaming and consumer tech at Insider Reviews.

Saturday marked the first day of the divisional series, a round the Red Sox have not reached since 2021. For those tuned out of the playoffs since Boston’s exit, there are still plenty of storylines to watch. If you’re on team “I root for the Red Sox and whoever is playing the Yankees” you likely had a good day yesterday.

White Sox 3, Guardians 0 (BOX SCORE)
(CHW leads 1-0)

Munetaka Murakami is electric to watch this postseason already. The series opener in Cleveland was pretty devoid of much offense, but Murakami’s two-run shot was the defining point of the game among the White Sox using six pitchers, including Jordan Hicks, for a combined three-hit shutout. This includes Chicago’s 24-year-old Grant Taylor recording a twelve-out save in which the 3-0 lead never felt in jeopardy.

Dodgers 5, Brewers 3 (BOX SCORE)
(LAD leads 1-0)

This is why, if you’re the Dodgers, you go out and grab the reigning Cy Young winner at the trade deadline if you have the chance. Skubal didn’t disappoint in his first postseason start as a Dodger. He went six strong innings allowing just two hits. Although one of those hits was a solo shot to Sean Murphy in the sixth, he finished his last inning strong with a 3-1 lead (thanks to a Teoscar Hernandez home run) and Kyle Tucker answered that Murphy shot with a home run of his own to bring the lead back to three. Max Muncy would get one of his own also in the sixth to put it on ice.

Rays 1, Yankees 0 (BOX SCORE)
(TB leads 1-0)

Those calling the Yankees’ lineup hapless without Aaron Judge were justified, but it simply took until the divisional series for that retort to have any land legs. And, wouldn’t you know, Drew Rasmussen took his second no-hit bid in as many weeks far into an outing against the Yankees in Game 1. Rasmussen was flirting with history Saturday night before Austin Wells got to him, but that lead was held steady because, in case you think baserunning errors are exclusive to the Red Sox, Wells inexplicably ran to third on a ball he was clearly going to be thrown out on. That ended the inning and, effectively, any threat for the Yankees to win Game 1 even with Gerrit Cole pitching a great five innings of his own despite giving up the game’s only run, a Jon Aranda homer.

Brewers 3, Padres 2 (BOX SCORE)
(MIL leads 1-0)

In Jacob Misiorowski’s first playoff start (and fourth overall appearance) he looked a bit shaken early as he let guys into long counts and neared 60 pitches through two innings. He even let folks respect the offspeed pitches, as he “slowed down” to 98-99 during his fourth inning. Still, he made it through four innings and struck out six. Jackson Chourio hit a mammoth two-run shot to ease Misiorowski’s struggles and make it so that he left the game in a tie, but the defining moment of perhaps the entire day came on William Contreras’ late go-ahead homer.

The 2026 season was an interesting one for James Wood. On one hand, he hit 30 home runs, posted an .891 OPS and hit the ball harder than anyone in the league. However, he hit his last homer of the season on July 26th and was bad after the All-Star break for a second straight season.

Wood had a better season than last year, but he still leaves you wanting a little bit more. I wanted to break down his season and look at the good and the bad. James Wood is an exceptional talent and still only 24 years old. He can also be frustrating though.

First let’s start with the positives. When Wood is on his game, he is a top 5 hitter in baseball. He has shown that over long stretches in each of the past two seasons. Even with his tough finish, Wood had the 9th highest wRC+ in all of baseball and the 5th highest OPS. 

Wood’s average exit velocity, barrel rate and hard hit rate all sit in the 100th percentile. When it comes to quality of contact, nobody does it better than James Wood. It is why he has back to back 30 home run seasons despite not pulling the ball like most power hitters. His opposite field power is legitimately jaw dropping.

In the first half, we saw that power on display consistently. He hit 28 homers before the All-Star break. That legendary first half was a big reason why the Nats were pushing for a Wild Card spot deep into the season. When Wood got hurt and then struggled, you could really feel that impact. The lineup is not the same when he is not rolling.

The run that Wood went on from the start of July until the All-Star break was wild. In those games, Wood went 15 for 33 with 7 homers. Talk about putting a team on your back. That is exactly what James Wood does when he is at his best.

Runs like that are why Wood had a 4.1 WAR season despite missing a month and struggling down the stretch. The talent is so apparent with him. That natural ability can make it frustrating when he isn’t clicking though. In each of the last two seasons, Wood has really struggled after the All-Star break. 

After running into massive strikeout issues in the second half of 2025, I was curious to see if he could hold up in the second half of this year. From the second play resumed after the break, Wood just looked like a different player. He had a brutal road trip to start the second half, and that just set the tone.

Wood did have a monster series against the Diamondbacks, but his impact was muted. Then he went down with an oblique injury at the start of August. The Nats hoped Wood would return quickly, but his recovery took a little while.

However, after a month, Wood was back on the field. Despite being out there, it did not feel like Wood was 100% healthy. He has never been a high energy player, but he was not playing with much intensity at all when he got back. There were a few times where he did not run balls out, and even got benched by Blake Butera. I wonder how much of that was effort related and how much was Wood not trusting his body.

His swing also seemed a little bit off after he came back. Wood did not hit any home runs in September. He still hit a lot of balls hard, but his ground ball rate was 68%. Before September, Wood was elevating the ball more than ever before. That spike in ground ball rate tells me something was off mechanically with his swing and it might have something to do with his injury.

I actually wrote about Wood’s power outage. Unlike last year, Wood’s strikeout rate did not balloon to a crazy level. The reason for his .650 second half OPS this year was just a lack of power. That is weird to say about a guy who has the highest average exit velocity in the league, but it is true.

James Wood does not pull the ball in the air and sell out for power like other sluggers. That is part of what makes him special and unique. However, it also leads to him falling into some homerless runs. As he develops, I hope we see more consistency.

Even though it was not a perfect season and the second half fall off was disappointing to see, the good still outweighed the bad. James Wood remains one of the best young players in the sport. After the season, Wood said there was a lot of meat left on the bone for the team and himself. I absolutely agree with him there.

He is already a very good player, but if he can string together a full season of excellence, he will be an MVP candidate. I still have faith that the monster full season will come. James Wood is a blue chip talent, but he still needs to figure out his second half woes if he wants to reach his ceiling.

Season Grade: A-/B+

After a dramatic Saturday night showdown in Milwaukee won by the Brewers, it’s game two of the NL Division Series Sunday afternoon. RHP Michael King will try to help the San Diego Padres draw even while the Milwaukee Brewers will give the ball to RHP Logan Henderson. First pitch is scheduled for 3pm central time and the game broadcast is available via Fox/FS1.

The first games of the second round are in the books. The young and upstart White Sox came away with a win, as did the low-payroll Rays, the reigning champion Dodgers, and the #1 seed in the playoffs the Brewers. Another win from these two teams puts them one win away from the Championship series and makes it nearly certain they’ll win the series.

We got two games today, both in the NL.

Padres at Brewers (4:00 PM EDT)

Yesterday’s game was arguably the most entertaining. It had everything, from home runs to late blown leads to some ninth-inning controversy. In the end, the league’s #1 seed Milwaukee Brewers came away with the win in front of their home crowd. What will round 2 look like this afternoon?

The Brewers will be sending right-hander Logan Henderson (11-3, 2.47 ERA) to the mound for his first career playoff appearance. The rookie has done nothing but impress in his time with the big league team. After a successful cup of coffee at the end of last year, Henderson established himself not only as one of the Brewers’ best pitchers, but one of the best young arms in the entire sport. Much of today will depend on if Henderson is ready for the big stage that is the playoffs. He’s had plenty of time to prepare for this.

The Padres do not want to go down 0-2. It wouldn’t be the end of the world since they’re heading back to San Diego after today, but you still don’t want to be in that position. They’ll be asking their top starter in Michael King (12-10, 3.21 ERA) to play stopper for them and help even this series. The 31-year-old will be taking the ball for the second time this postseason after he fired off seven shutout innings of one-hit ball against the Cubs. They’ve got to feel good about who they have on the mound today.

Here’s how Milwaukee stacks up this afternoon:

And here’s the Padres’ starting nine:

Braves at Dodgers (8:30 PM EDT)

The Dodgers were clearly the better team yesterday as they dominated in every fashion of the game. Maybe some of that has to do with the near-record heat at first pitch, when it was over 100 degrees on the field. It’s not going to be much better today, but at least for them the start time is a little later so it should be much cooler. Does that benefit the Braves more than the Dodgers?

The reigning champions will be sending postseason ace Blake Snell (4-1, 1.92 ERA) to the mound for his first October start this season. The left-hander has missed most of the season thanks to injuries but one has to wonder if he was really all that banged up. While the Dodgers were able to cruise to another top seed in the playoffs, Snell was able to rest and prepare for this moment, this month. We could be about to see another vintage playoff Snell performance. The Braves will need their right-handed bats to show up tonight.

While the Dodgers know their starter tonight, the Braves are keeping things a bit closer to the chest. As of this posting they have still not revealed their plans for who takes the ball to start this critical game 2. All indications are pointing towards another bullpen game. That didn’t work out so well for them yesterday so if I’m a Braves fan I’m not too confident asking six to eight pitchers to be perfect today. Ideally for them it’d be left-hander Chris Sale getting the ball but the Braves seem to be cautious with him. October is no time for caution. It’s time to lay it all on the line.

Do the Brewers and Dodgers both win today and more or less wrap up their series’? Or do the Padres and Braves have some fight left in them and manage to even the series before heading back to their own homes? Much will depend on today’s outcomes. Don’t you just love postseason baseball?

It’s Game 2 of the National League Division Series. The American League series have that weird off day in between Games 1 and 2 and will resume tomorrow.

That was quite the ninth innin in Milwaukee Saturday night [VIDEO].

It didn’t end the game — it was just the second out — but if not for that roof cable, Ty France likely has a two-run homer and the Padres have the lead.

Instead, they go into today’s game trailing one game to none.

3 p.m. CT: Padres at Brewers (Brewers lead series 1-0)

TV: FS1. Announcers: Adam Amin, Adam Wainwright, A.J. Pierzynski and Tom Verducci.

Michael King, RHP vs. Logan Henderson, RHP

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com preview

7 p.m. CT: Braves at Dodgers (Dodgers lead series 1-0)

TV: FS1. Announcers: Joe Davis, John Smoltz and Ken Rosenthal.

TBD vs. Blake Snell, LHP

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com preview

Day two of the divisional round, with the National League playing both games today.

At 3 o’clock central time, the Brewers and Padres meet once again, man what a game that was last night. Royal killer Ty France almost did something special, but the pesky roof caused some “controversy”. I put that in quotes because it is the ground rules, so the umps got it right. Is it unfortunate? If it was someone other than Ty France, I might agree with you.

Anyways, Michael King starts for the Padres. He was awesome in game one of their Wild Card series against the Cubs. Logan Henderson, a right-hander, who was awesome for the Brewers this season will start for them. That game can be watched on FS1.

The night cap is the Braves at the Dodgers. Starting at 7 o’clock central time. All 8 runs scored in that game yesterday was via the long ball. Blake Snell starts for the Dodgers, Ray Kerr, who started game three of the wild card series against the Phillies, starts today for Atlanta. That game can be watched on FS1 as well.

Who are you rooting for today? And why?

We have a pair of NLDS games today…

In the early game, Milwaukee looks to go up 2-0 on the Padres. Its a 3:00 p.m. start on FS1.

In the late game, the Dodgers try to make it two in a row against the Braves. 7:00 p.m. start, also on FS1.

Talk about them here.

What a heartbreaking way to lose a game. The San Diego Padres had what appeared to be the go-ahead run over the Milwaukee Brewers when Ty France slugged a moonshot out to left field in the top of the ninth inning. Instead, the ball hit the roof and fell straight down into Jackson Chourio’s glove for an out. It almost certainly would have been a homer, but the official ruling is out.

However, San Diego had plenty of positives. The offense got to ace Jacob Misiorowski, tagging him for two runs before he was lifted in the fourth inning. After that, it got hazy. The Padres kept taking worse and worse at-bats as the game went on. Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado both struck out on three pitches in key situations. They’ll need to do better to even the series this afternoon.

Taking the mound

Logan Henderson (MIL) v. Michael King (SD)

What Henderson doesn’t have in tenure, he makes up for in immense recent success. The right-hander posted a 2.47 ERA in 18 starts (98.1 IP) this season with a 1.93 ERA in his final seven starts of the year. Henderson would have been the best pitcher in Milwaukee’s starting rotation if not for a young flamethrower named Jacob Misiorowski.

The 24-year old has never faced the Padres, which should be an advantage for him. His four-seamer, changeup combo is devastating, but if San Diego can have some plate discipline they should be able to beat Henderson. If their offense keeps trying to play the hero, it’ll be another story.

King will be making his second start of this postseason, after pitching a gem against the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the Wild Card series. King took a no-hitter into the seventh that night and was incredibly dominant against a potent offense. He’ll need to do the same this afternoon to give the Padres a shot at winning the series at home.

The Padres’ ace faced the Brewers only once this season (May 13), when he faced off against Misiorowski. King twirled 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball. There’s an immense amount of pressure on King to perform similar to his Wild Card start. If he can get through six quality innings, it’ll be a huge sigh of relief for San Diego.

Batter up!

It was a rough game for the offense. The Padres could have won the game if they hadn’t regressed so much from how they looked in the Wild Card. San Diego’s lineup left 12 runners on and went a dismal 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. The Friars will need to wake up if they have any hope of evening the Division Series in Milwaukee.

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
2. Dustin Harris, LF
3. Manny Machado, 3B
4. Ty France, 1B
5. Jackson Merrill, CF
6. Xander Bogaerts, SS
7. Gavin Sheets, DH
8. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
9. Luis Campusano, C

It’s possible that Sheets continues to only be used in pinch-hit situations. He is still dealing with a foot injury that sidelined him for much of the stretch run. However, with his potent bat left on the bench in Game 1, it’s likely that San Diego turns to the slugger in such an important moment.

Relief corps

The Padres expended a lot of high-leverage relievers in the series opener last night. After starter Robbie Ray went just 2 2/3 innings, San Diego turned to Bradgley Rodriguez, Yuki Matsui, Jason Adam and Adrian Morejon to pitch the final frames. Mason Miller is the only traditional reliever left for the Friars.

That being said, with the off day on Monday, it’s highly likely that everyone except Morejon will be on the table. The southpaw threw two innings and probably won’t pitch unless it’s absolutely necessary. Matsui and Adam each threw just 15 and 16 pitches, respectively, so they’ll factor as the first out of the ‘pen. Should King stumble early, Randy Vásquez could enter the game in bulk relief.

After a drama-filled win in Game 1, complete with homers from Jackson Chourio and William Contreras plus a roof strike in the 9th inning, the Milwaukee Brewers are looking to take a 2-0 advantage in the series this afternoon.

The Brewers will have right-hander Logan Henderson on the mound, making his first career postseason start. Henderson had a 2.47 ERA in the regular season, and is yet to allow more than three earned runs in a start in his career.

“He’s an old fashioned executer.” Pat Murphy said.

The Padres will have their ace on the mound, Michael King. King was phenomenal in his start against the Cubs in the Wild Card series, going seven innings, allowing just one hit and no runs while striking out eight. He has a 3.21 ERA on the season and has won all three of his postseason starts in his career.

“I think the biggest thing with Mike is he sets the ton, and obviously we saw it in San Diego in the Wild Card series. He pounds the zone and keeps those guys off balance.”

The Brewers offense will do their best to throw King off his game. Jackson Chourio, the best big game hitter the Brewers have, will hit leadoff once again. Brice Turang and Jake Bauers will follow him. William Contreras will back cleanup while centerfielder Garrett Mitchell moves up to the 5th spot in the order. Christian Yelich will DH once again and bat 6th. Sal Frelick gets the start in right field today and will bat 7th. Cooper Pratt is back down in the 8th spot and David Hamilton rounds out the bottom of the lineup and is playing third base.

The Padres make just some minor changes from their Game 1 lineup. It’s Fernando Tatis Jr, Dustin Harris, and Manny Machado atop their order. Ty France, Jackson Merrill, and then Ethan Salas form the middle of the order. Salas swaps spots with Xander Bogaerts, who drops to 7th for this game. Then Luis Campusano is batting 8th with Jake Cronenworth batting 9th. Campusano is catching today after DHing yesterday and Salas is the DH after catching yesterday.

Pat Murphy did name his Game 3 starter as well. It will be Dustin May getting the ball in San Diego on Tuesday. May is a veteran that has pitched against the Padres more than anyone else in his career. He has a 3.14 ERA against San Diego over his career.

The Brewers will need Henderson to give them a little more length in this game after Jacob Misiorowski lasted just four innings in Game 1. Milwaukee used five relievers to cover the final five innings and King is going to present quite the challenge for this lineup.

It’s looking like it could be another pitcher’s duel. There was a lot of traffic on the bases in Game 1, but not a ton of scoring. Eventually, that dam is going to burst if that trend continues.

Also, the roof will be open for gametime! It’s not often to see October weather nice enough for the roof to be kept open, but on a clear, sunny day, it’ll be roof open and back panels closed. Ty France is sure to be one player who’s excited to see the roof open.

Logan Henderson. Michael King. Brewers. Padres. It’s Game 2 of the NLDS with the Brewers looking to go up 2-0 in the series before it turns to San Diego.

The second phase of this year’s Major League Playoffs are underway after yesterday’s full slate of electric games. From the Chicago White Sox blanking their division rival Cleveland Guardians to Tampa Bay Rays righty Drew Rasmussen nearly no-hitting the New York Yankees at a packed Tropicana Field, the American League matchups provided plenty of excitement.

Today, the spotlight is on the National League teams, who also provided plenty of memorable playoff baseball. The Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers slugged it out at a scorching hot Chavez Ravine. The temperature at first pitch on the field felt like 120 degrees and all eight combined runs in a 5-3 Dodgers victory were scored via the home run.

Meanwhile in Milwaukee, Jacob Misiorowski dialed up a 105 MPH fastball for the first pitch of the Brewers’ contest against the San Diego Padres. It was the fastest first pitch in post-season history. The Brewers and Padres played a tight contest until Milwaukee pulled ahead late on a solo home run. The Padres had a chance to take the lead in the top of the ninth, but a towering moonshot off the bat of Ty France bounced off the roof and landed in the glove of Jackson Chourio.

San Diego Padres (0-0) at Milwaukee Brewers (0-0) — 2:00 PM MDT

Pitching Matchup: RHP Michael King (12-10, 3.21 ERA) vs RHP Logan Henderson (11-3, 2.47 ERA)

SB Nation Sites:Gaslamp Ball, Brew Crew Ball

Lineups:

Atlanta Braves (0-1) at Los Angeles Dodgers (1-0) — 6:00 PM MDT

Pitching Matchup: LHP Ray Kerr (0-0, 1.47 ERA) vs LHP Blake Snell (4-1, 1.90 ERA)

SB Nation Sites:Battery Power, True Blue LA

Lineups:

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

The Braves had a major starting pitching disadvantage in Game 1 of their NL Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.

While the Dodgers trotted out one of the best pitchers in baseball, Tarik Skubal, on extra rest, Atlanta was forced to begin with a bullpen game due to its rash of late-season pitching injuries and the fact that its wild-card series against the Phillies earlier in the week went three games.

While there was the thought that Chris Sale would bounce back from his relief appearance in Thursday’s Game 3 of the wild-card series on one day of rest to start Sunday’s Game 2 of the NLDS, that won’t be the case.

The Braves will instead have left-hander Ray Kerr (0-0, 0.00 ERA in postseason), who delivered as an opener in Thursday’s winner-take-all game against the Phillies, start Sunday night’s Game 2 (8 p.m. on FS1).

Sale, who would have been in line to start Game 2 on normal rest, threw 21 pitches to record the final four outs Thursday on his normal bullpen day.

The 32-year-old Kerr, who made his postseason debut Thursday and wrote another chapter in his long and winding journey to the majors, allowed just one hit and one walk over 3 1/3 scoreless innings, doing his job against the challenging top of the Phillies order.

He’ll have an even tougher task against a Dodgers lineup which will have Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman as challenging left-handed bats in the top few spots of the order. But Los Angeles’ lineup is far more balanced and lethal than Philadelphia’s, making for a more difficult all-around challenge in Kerr’s second career postseason start.

Kerr is on two days’ rest from throwing 47 pitches, so it’s a little unclear how many pitches he’ll be available for in this game. The better news for the Braves is that they’ll have a mostly full allotment of their top bullpen arms available for this game after Didier Fuentes, Dylan Lee and Raisel Iglesias were relied on heavily in the wild-card round.

While Sale could in theory be available for a limited pitch count Sunday, it seems far more likely they’re holding him back for Game 3 in Atlanta on Tuesday with the hope that the Braves aren’t in a 2-0 hole.

The Dodgers, in pretty much the exact opposite situation to the Braves, announced their full-series pitching plan before it began. That plan sees left-hander Blake Snell (4-1, 1.90 ERA) get the ball for Game 2 with a chance to grab a 2-0 lead before the series flips to Atlanta.

Snell made just nine starts this regular season, missing the start of the year due to left shoulder fatigue and then loose bodies in his throwing elbow which sidelined him an additional three months after he made his first start.

Since returning and being able to stay healthy since August, though, he’s been effective. He’s thrown five-plus innings in six of his eight starts over the last two months, allowing no more than one run in any outing. He had a 1.17 ERA in four August starts and a 1.08 ERA in four September starts. Over that span, he has 50 strikeouts to 14 walks over 39 2/3 innings.

Snell’s metrics, albeit in a small sample size, look great with his xERA (2.17) not far above his actual ERA.

Snell also has a strong track record in the postseason, with a 7-5 record and 3.27 ERA over 18 games (15 starts) spanning four postseasons with the Rays (2019-20), Padres (2022) and Dodgers (2025). Last season for Los Angeles, he pitched in six postseason games (five starts) with a 3-2 record and 3.18 ERA over 34 innings. He took the loss in Game 5 of the World Series, giving up five runs on six hits over 6 2/3 innings, but then tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief on two days’ rest in Game 7.

Snell’s lone start of this season before August came against the Braves on May 9 in Los Angeles. Atlanta tagged him for five runs (four earned) on six hits over three innings, handing him his only regular-season loss. In six career appearances against the Braves, Snell is 0-3 with a 3.49 ERA but has never faced them in the postseason.

Once again, it would seem the odds are stacked against the Braves Sunday night. They’ll likely need to beat those odds this time to have a realistic chance at keeping their season alive and advancing to the NLCS.

The Padres got screwed Saturday night.

Not by the umpires. Not by replay. Not even by the rulebook.

They got screwed by the roof of the stadium. 

With San Diego trailing the Brewers 3–2 in the ninth inning of Game 1 of the NLDS, Ty France stepped in against closer Trevor Megill with a runner aboard and one out and launched a towering drive toward the left-field corner. France watched from home plate, believing he had just flipped the game — and perhaps the series — with one swing.

Then American Family Field decided to change history.

France’s moonshot struck a cable attached to the retractable roof, changed direction and dropped into the glove of Jackson Chourio for the strangest second out imaginable.

The Padres challenged. The call stood.

And, incredibly, the umpires got it right.

American Family Field’s ground rules state that a ball striking the roof, truss or cable above fair territory remains live. If a fielder catches it, it’s an out. San Diego could challenge whether the ball struck the structure over fair or foul territory, but not whether France had been robbed of a likely go-ahead homer.

“We joked about it at the umpire meeting today about what would happen if the ball hit the roof,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “And it was unlikely, but it happened.”

Of course it did.

This is the same ballpark that produced last postseason’s pinball-machine madness when Max Muncy’s drive ricocheted off Sal Frelick’s glove and the wall before Milwaukee somehow turned the chaos into a double play.

France’s blast was even crueler for the Padres though. 

The fly ball out had a 49-degree launch angle, and an exit velocity of 105 MPH. Those similar numbers at American Family Field have netted seven home runs, so nobody can say for sure where the ball would have eventually landed. France thought it was gone. Even Brewers catcher William Contreras believed it had enough juice to leave the ball park. 

“If that ball doesn’t hit there, it might break the glass up there,” Contreras said.

Instead, Milwaukee’s roof became its 10th defender on the field on Saturday night. 

Game 2 of the best-of-five NLDS is on Sunday at 4:00PM EST.

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