The Los Angeles Dodgers lost 6-2 to the Milwaukee Brewers, falling to 0-3 in the NLCS and on the brink of elimination.
No National League team has ever overcome a 0-3 deficit, and the team has been outplayed in every facet, yet the Dodgers still believe.
The feeling inside the Dodgers clubhouse
Manager Dave Roberts laid out what the team needs to think as they face their backs against the wall.
“It’s certainly possible. I’ve lived it. I think the thing is that our guys have been battle-tested and I think the mindset has to be that teams have been down before 0-2, 0-3. You just got to win tomorrow,” Roberts said to Dodgers Nation and the media.
“And so it’s an elimination game. We’ve played a lot of elimination games, and we just have to get a win. We have to find a way to build momentum, and it takes all of us.”
Roberts thinks the team can draw on the numerous times they won four straight games this season.
“They know what’s at stake, and we’ve won four in a row a number of times this year. 10 times, I think, something like that. We got to win them all, so that’s our only focus,” Roberts said after the game.
Roberts isn’t the only person in the clubhouse stressing the need for urgency.
One of the long-time Dodgers and veterans, Kike Hernandez, said the team needs to be ready on Thursday for Game 4 because the Brewers and starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow will be, too.
“We just got to turn the page and come ready to play tomorrow, because I know they will. And I know Glasnow’s going to come in ready to do his thing. So, we just got to figure it out, and you just got to figure it out quick,” Hernandez said in the Dodgers clubhouse, as he fought back emotions.
New Dodger Kyle Tucker shared his vocal belief in the team, making an uncharacteristic proclamation that this team can come back from 0-3, citing their experience.
“This team’s won four games before, so that’s what we’re going to have to do. I believe in this group and the staff, the clubhouse and guys in here, and I think if there’s a team to do it, it’s this team,” Tucker said.
“But it won’t come easy, obviously, and they want to win too. So we just got to come out and get after it tomorrow.”
How the Dodgers can win Game 4
The Dodgers’ recipe is clear — lean on Tyler Glasnow to deliver and take advantage of any scoring opportunities.
Glasnow has the edge on the Brewers, who will be rolling out a bullpen game. Milwaukee’s pitchers will be vulnerable, and the Dodgers can build offensive momentum for the first time all series.
If Glasnow provides stability and the offense comes along, Game 4 should be a relatively straightforward win, though the next three games are an uphill climb.
