MILWAUKEE –– The Dodgers have had no problem beating the Brewers in the playoffs in recent years.
The regular season, however, had been a different story.
Entering Saturday's game at American Family Field, the Dodgers hadn't recorded a regular-season victory over Milwaukee since Aug. 13, 2024.
Nine straight times since then, they had lost to their smaller-market –– and much less-well-funded –– fellow National League contenders, their longest active streak against any opponent.
The Dodgers have had no problem beating the Brewers in the playoffs in recent years. Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
Finally, that rut finally ended with an 11-3 win Saturday, on a night the Dodgers came from behind early, pulled away for a blowout triumph late, and saw their bullpen make some club history along the way.
"Just across the board," manager Dave Roberts said, "really good ball game."
Down three runs straight out of the gate after a 35-pitch first inning from Roki Sasaki , the Dodgers surged in front with a four-run rally in the fourth; keyed by doubles from Freddie Freeman and Andy Pages , then a go-ahead three-run blast from Teoscar Hernández clanged off the left-field foul pole.
"The Teo homer was a big hit to get us a lead, when we were looking a little bit down and got behind early," Roberts said.
It would be the start of a six-RBI night from Hernández, who matched his MLB career-high with a run-scoring single in a three-run eighth and a two-run single in a four-run ninth.
"I'm just hitting the ball in the air, hitting it hard," said Hernández, who has busted out of an early-season slump by batting .388 over his last 14 games. "I think that's what's been the difference between the last two weeks."
Overall, the Dodgers finished with 10 hits and a season-high 11 walks, including four from Freeman alone. It was their third time scoring double-digit runs in the last week.
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In between all that, the team watched Sasaki settle down to complete a five-inning outing without any further damage, then turned the lead over to their recently flawless bullpen the rest of the way.
With four more scoreless frames Saturday, the club's relief corps has now gone 36 innings without giving up a run. That broke the franchise's previous record-long bullpen streak, surpassing a 33-inning run from the club's 1998 team.
It was also the 10th-straight game their bullpen went unblemished, a stretch that included a bullpen-game shutout against the Angels to start this nine-game road trip.
"They're on a heater," Roberts said. "It's one of those things that, when it doesn't go well, they get the blame, and when it does go well, they don't get a lot of credit. But they are getting the credit now, and it's earned. So really happy for those guys."
Down three runs straight out of the gate after a 35-pitch first inning from Roki Sasaki , the Dodgers surged in front with a four-run rally in the fourth Getty Images
What it means
Now that the Dodgers (32-20) have won a game against the Brewers (30-19), they can go for a series victory on Sunday. The club hasn't had one of those against Milwaukee since July 2024, and hasn't taken a series at American Family Field since May 2023.
Those stats, of course, ignore the Dodgers' postseason dominance of the Brewers.
In October, they have won seven-straight games in the matchup, dating from last year's NL Championship Series sweep to a pennant-clinching Game 7 triumph in the 2018 NLCS.
The win also marked the Dodgers' eighth in their last 10 games, and improved their record on this three-city, nine-game road trip to 6-2.
"We've got a chance to cap it off with three series wins tomorrow," Freeman said.
Either way, their (regular-season) curse against the Brewers has ended.
Who's hot
Literally everyone in the Dodgers' bullpen lately –– including Alex Vesia , Kyle Hurt , Tanner Scott and Jonathan Hernández on Saturday.
Vesia and Hurt entered the game in high-leverage spots, protecting what was only a 4-3 lead in the sixth and seventh innings. They both did so by stranding baserunners, with Vesia working around a leadoff walk and Hurt getting away with two free passes (one of which was intentional).
While Hurt's 0.60 ERA is the best among the Dodgers' bullpen (minimum three outings), Scott's contributions have been perhaps the most important.
Since Edwin Díaz 's injury, he has become the most trusted arm at the back end of games. And after a scoreless seventh inning Saturday that included three strikeouts (with a single mixed in), he now has a 1.31 ERA on the season and 14 strikeouts in his current nine-appearance scoreless streak.
Now that the Dodgers (32-20) have won a game against the Brewers (30-19), they can go for a series victory on Sunday AP Photo/Gregory Bull
Who's not
Max Muncy was still not feeling great Saturday, after exiting Friday's game in the eighth inning when he was hit in the wrist by a pitch .
However, Roberts reiterated that he did not expect Muncy to go on the injured list, after Friday night X-rays on Muncy's wrist came back negative.
Muncy did not play Saturday, and might not be back in the lineup until Tuesday as he works to alleviate swelling and soreness in the area he got plunked. While the X-rays were clean, Roberts said it is possible that Muncy could go for further imaging when the team returns home Monday.
The club won't be in a rush to get Muncy back in the lineup, especially with Kiké Hernández set to come off the injured list Monday after missing the start of the season recovering from offseason elbow surgery.
"Obviously (an IL stint for Muncy) should be considered, depending on how he responds over the next couple of days," Roberts said. "But I doubt it (will be necessary)."
Up next
The series rubber match will be on Sunday afternoon, when Yoshinobu Yamamoto (3-4, 3.22 ERA) faces Brandon Sproat (1-2, 5.75 ERA).
