Dodgers take Game 3 from Brewers, sit one win away from NL Pennant

LOS ANGELES — This is the version of the Dodgers everyone feared. The one with the billion-dollar roster, the elite arms, the bottomless bullpen depth. The one that doesn't blink.

With a 3-1 victory over the Brewers in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series, the Dodgers are now one win away from their fifth World Series appearance in the last eight seasons. They lead the series 3-0, and the only question now is whether Milwaukee can avoid a sweep — or whether Shohei Ohtani, scheduled to pitch Game 4 on Friday night, will send them into the offseason.

And fittingly, it was Ohtani — slumping and scrutinized — who ignited Game 3.

Ohtani was mired in a brutal stretch: 2-for-25 with 12 strikeouts, and no extra-base hits since Game 1 of the Wild Card round. That streak ended in the bottom of the first when Ohtani turned a one-handed swing into a leadoff triple down the right-field line.

The next batter, Mookie Betts — hitless in October against left-handers — doubled him home. Just like that, the Dodgers were on the board. Just like that, the heart of their order was alive.

Aaron Ashby, Milwaukee’s left-handed opener, faced four batters. He retired one batter, Will Smith, walked one, and gave up two extra-base hits. His day was over after just ⅓ of an inning.

It was a glimpse into just how relentless this Dodgers lineup can be when the stars are clicking.

The Brewers tied it in the second, when Caleb Durbin hit a one-out triple and scored on Jake Bauers' single — Milwaukee’s first hit on a non-fastball in the entire series. But Tyler Glasnow didn’t unravel. He responded by striking out the side in the third and continued to navigate a high-wire act into the sixth.

Glasnow’s final line: 5.2 innings, one run, three hits, three walks, eight strikeouts. It was another strong postseason start for a rotation that now boasts a 1.54 ERA in October.

When Glasnow walked Andrew Vaughn with two outs in the sixth, Dave Roberts turned to Alex Vesia, who quickly got rid of Sal Frelick with a three-pitch strikeout.

From there, the Dodgers’ beleaguered bullpen — much maligned during the regular season — slammed the door. Blake Treinen tiptoed through trouble in the seventh. Anthony Banda needed just 10 pitches for a clean eighth. And in the ninth, Roki Sasaki, the 23-year-old flamethrower, closed it out with efficiency: 13 pitches, one strikeout, his third save of the postseason.

The turning point came in the bottom of the sixth. With the game tied 1-1, Will Smith singled and Freddie Freeman drew a savvy walk after a pitch-clock chess match with Jacob Misiorowski, the Brewers’ electric rookie reliever who had struck out eight of the first 15 batters he faced.

That brought up Tommy Edman, who delivered the moment of the night — a go-ahead RBI single that gave the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. A few pitches later, it was 3-1, thanks to a costly error: Brewers reliever Abner Uribe airmailed a pickoff throw, allowing Freeman to score from third.

In a series where margins are thin and every mistake is magnified, the Dodgers took advantage. And that was enough. They’ve now won eight of nine games this postseason. They’ve held opponents to three runs or fewer in all but one game. Their bullpen — left for dead earlier this year — has allowed just two runs in its last 16 innings.

They're doing it with dominant pitching. With clutch hitting. With timely defense. With the stars finally playing like stars. Friday night, they’ll hand the ball to Ohtani, who may be just one win away from pitching the Dodgers back into the World Series.