MLB Playoff Picks – Dodgers @ Brewers

by Thomas Quaynor for Wannamakeabet.com

The highly-anticipated National League Championship Series (NLCS) begins tonight with Game One, as the No. 2 seed Los Angeles Dodgers (100-62 in the regular season, NL West Champions) visit the top-seeded Milwaukee Brewers (103-59, NL Central Champions) today at American Family Field on Fox.

The Dodgers and Brewers finished with the top two records in MLB this year. They faced off seven times during the regular season with the Brewers prevailing 4-3. The Dodgers took 2 of 3 in Milwaukee in May, while the Brewers won 3 of 4 in Los Angeles in August. The teams are meeting in the NLCS for a second straight season, the third-seeded Dodgers swept the top-seeded Brewers 4-0 a year ago.

Los Angeles is looking to advance to and win the World Series for a third straight year, while Milwaukee attempts to advance to the World Series for the first time since 1982 — the franchise’s only World Series appearance. The Brewers have never won a World Series in their 57-year history. 

Tonight’s starting pitchers are Tarik Skubal (6IP, 7K, 1ER in the 2026 postseason) for Los Angeles and 2026 NL Cy Young favorite Jacob Misiorowski (4IP, 6K, 2 ER) for Milwaukee. Both players started Game One of the NLDS for their teams. Skubal got the win in Los Angeles’s 5-3 victory against Atlanta, while Misiorowski got a no-decision in Milwaukee’s 3-2 comeback victory against San Diego. 

GAME ODDS

Moneyline: Los Angeles (-107),   Milwaukee (-113)

Run Line: Los Angeles -1.5 (+171),   Milwaukee +1.5 (-209)

Run Total: over 6 (-112),   under 6 (-108)

SERIES ODDS

Los Angeles (-160),   Milwaukee (+130)

HOW BOTH TEAMS ADVANCED TO THE NLCS

Both teams received opening round byes due to finishing 1st and 2nd in the National League.

The second-seeded Dodgers faced the third-seeded Atlanta Braves (94-68) in a best-of-five, Divisional Round series beginning on Oct. 3. Los Angeles eliminated Atlanta 3-1. After winning the series opener 5-3 against Atlanta, the Dodgers dropped Game Two 3-2 and appeared to be in for a tough series, as they headed to Atlanta to face Braves’ ace Chris Sale (2.16 ERA, 200 K’s in the regular season) in Game 3.

Los Angeles defeated Atlanta 3-1 in Game 3 at Atlanta, as star pitcher and 2025 World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto (10 K, 1 ER, 7 IP) outdueled the aforementioned Chris Sale (7 K, 3 ER, 5 IP). The Dodgers did all of their scoring in the fourth inning courtesy of a two-run homer from veteran third-baseman Kike Hernandez and a solo homer from star first baseman Freddie Freeman. Yamamoto improved to 8-1 all-time in the postseason.

The Dodgers picked up a 4-1 win in Game 4 at Atlanta to eliminate Atlanta. Andy Pages’ bases-loaded, two-run single in the seventh inning broke a 1-1 tie. Max Muncy added a solo homer in the 9th inning that gave the Dodgers a 4-1 lead. It was Muncy’s franchise-record 19th homer with Los Angeles. The Dodgers’ pitching staff held Atlanta to a total of 2 runs in Games 3 and 4 in Atlanta. 

The top-seeded Brewers faced the red-hot, fourth-seeded San Diego Padres (91-71) in the Divisional Round beginning on Oct. 3. San Diego swept the Chicago Cubs 2-0 in the best-of-3, Wild Card round and entered the NLDS winning 19 of their previous 22 games. 

Milwaukee eliminated San Diego 3-1 in a hotly-contested series. The Brewers picked up a pair of one-run, comeback wins in Games 1 and 2 to take a commanding 2-0 lead. Milwaukee rallied from a 2-0, second-inning deficit to win the series opener 3-2. The Brewers then overcame a 3-1, seventh inning deficit to defeat San Diego 4-3 in Game 2. Jackson Chourio’s two-run single with two outs in the 9th inning won it for Milwaukee.

Game 3 saw San Diego return the favor with a 4-3 win of their own to pull within 2-1. Milwaukee went on to win Game Four 3-1 and eliminate San Diego, thanks in large part to the heroics of Garrett Mitchell. The 28-year-old outfielder went 2-for-4 with a triple, a run scored and the tiebreaking RBI in the 5th inning. Mitchell also robbed Manny Machado of a game-tying, two-run homer in the 8th inning to preserve the lead.

Milwaukee’s Game Four victory was their first road postseason win since 2018. They had tied an MLB-record with 12 straight postseason road losses when they lost Game 3 at San Diego.

2026 SEASON HEADLINES: LOS ANGELES

After winning back-to-back World Series crowns in 2024 and 2025, the Los Angeles Dodgers are seeking to become the first National League team in MLB history to win 3 straight World Series titles. The last team to win 3 straight World Series titles was the New York Yankees, who captured 3 in a row from 1998-2000.

Los Angeles entered the 2026 season as the favorites to win the National League pennant (+210) and the World Series (+225). The Dodgers also had the highest over/under Projected Win Total at 102.5. The 2026 regular season went according to plan — with the exception of falling 2 games short of the lofty 102.5 projected win total — for the Dodgers as they completed another dominant regular season campaign.

The 2026 Los Angeles Dodgers finished with the second-best record in MLB at 100-62 and won the National League West division for the 13th time in the last 14 seasons. They were rarely challenged by any team in the NL West and finished 9 games ahead of the second-place San Diego Padres.

On Aug. 2, the Los Angeles Dodgers shocked and infuriated the baseball world when they acquired the reigning back-to-back American League Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers for three prospects. The already-loaded Dodgers adding a top-tier pitcher like Skubal seemed to spark outrage for everyone (fans, owners, MLB executives) outside of the Dodgers organization/fandom because they believed it gave the Dodgers an unfair competitive advantage.

With the MLB collective bargaining agreement expiring on Dec. 1, 2026, it is expected that there will be a prolonged work stoppage that could jeopardize most or all of the 2027 season. The Dodgers acquiring Tarik Skubal looks to be a major issue for the owners who want a hard salary cap instituted in order to prevent high-spenders like the Dodgers from constantly getting superstars like Skubal. 

If the Los Angeles Dodgers win the 2026 World Series and complete a three-peat, it will likely upset the owners and lead to a long work stoppage that could jeopardize the entire 2027 MLB season. It will be interesting to see whether the owners remain steadfast on a hard salary cap if the Dodgers were to lose to the Brewers in the NLCS or the American League champion in the World Series. 

The Dodgers remain the favorites (+125) to win the World Series entering the League Championship Series over the other three remaining teams. They are followed by Milwaukee (+300), Tampa Bay (+300) and Cleveland (+650). 

2026 SEASON HEADLINES: MILWAUKEE

Over the last decade (2017-2026), the Milwaukee Brewers have quietly been one of the most successful franchises in MLB. Playing in a small market and not boasting a number of high-profile players prevents them from getting a lot of national headlines. The Brewers won a franchise-record 103 games this year and finished with the MLB’s best record for a second straight year. They also won the National League Central division for a fourth straight season.  

Despite Milwaukee’s tremendous success over the last 10 years, they’ve been unable to advance to or win a World Series. The Brewers are in the National League Championship Series (NLCS) for a second straight season with arguably their best team in franchise history taking the field tonight. Milwaukee is seeking to make the World Series for the second time (1982) in franchise history. They’ve never won a World Series title

Milwaukee has taken a somewhat unconventional route to winning as they rely on an excellent pitching staff led by the exemplary pitching of ace Jacob Misiorowski and a small-ball approach to scoring that does not overly depend on hitting homers. Milwaukee ranked second in ERA (3.51) and 29th (out of 30 teams) in homers with 154. 

The sensational sophomore leap of ace Jacob Misiorowski fueled Milwaukee’s MLB-best 103-win season. After getting off to a blazing start as a rookie last year and then somewhat plateauing late in the season, the 6-foot-7, 24-year-old All-Star amassed an astronomical campaign in year two. Misiorowski posted a 16-5 record, along MLB-highs of 280 strikeouts and a 1.80 ERA. Misiorowski is the overwhelming favorite (-10000) to win the National League Cy Young Award. 

Jacob Misiorowski takes the mound tonight in Game 1 against the Dodgers in what will be the biggest game of his young career. Misiorowski fared well in his lone start against the Dodgers during the regular season, where he struck out 6 and gave up 1 earned run over 6 innings in Milwaukee’s 4-1 win at Los Angeles on Aug. 15. Misiorowski earned the win against the Dodgers.

THE PICK: DODGERS (-107)

Milwaukee finished with the best record in MLB this year and they have the best pitcher in MLB taking the mound tonight in Jacob Misiorowski, but the Dodgers are the back-to-back reigning champs. Nobody has shown they can beat the champs! Take the Dodgers on the Moneyline