MILWAUKEE – The last time the Dodgers dropped the first game of a postseason series, right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto evened last year’s Fall Classic by tossing a complete game.
That dramatic World Series would go the distance, with Yamamoto as its MVP and the Dodgers hoisting the trophy for a second consecutive year. If a three-peat is in the future, Los Angeles will need Yamamoto to deliver again.
After the Dodgers’ 2-1 loss to the Brewers in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Sunday night at American Family Field, Yamamoto will take the ball in Game 2 for a second straight year and face rookie right-hander Logan Henderson.
“Any loss in the playoffs is not great, but it's a long series,” said Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. “It's just the first game. Come back out tomorrow with Yamamoto and feel pretty confident.”
Though two-time American League Cy Young winner and midseason acquisition Tarik Skubal took the tough-luck loss on Sunday, the 2026 Dodgers have four aces in their postseason rotation – and Yamamoto might be the best when the calendar flips to October.
The Dodgers are 9-1 in his postseason starts and undefeated in his six on the road. Among pitchers with at least 10 postseason starts, Yamamoto ranks as follows all-time:
ERA: 2.24 (fifth)
WHIP: 0.83 (second)
BA: .175 (second)
SLG: .272 (second)
“Just completely to be honest with you, I'm not sure,” Yamamoto said via an interpreter when trying to explain his postseason success. “I just do the same routine, and I haven't really changed much.”
Ahead of last year’s NLCS start, Yamamoto stated that losing wasn’t an option, then backed it up by pitching the first complete game of his career in a 5-1 victory over the Brewers in Milwaukee.
Yamamoto followed that up with the aforementioned World Series start against the Blue Jays, becoming the first pitcher with back-to-back complete games in the postseason since the D-backs' Curt Schilling in 2001, and the first Dodger since Orel Hershiser in 1988.
Only three of Yamamoto’s 10 postseason starts have come after a loss, but he has a 1.23 ERA in those outings. Like a fireman in the bullpen, Yamamoto is seemingly the rotation’s stopper.
The Dodgers certainly feel confident with Yamamoto on the mound, but with runs at a premium, they need to capitalize on their opportunities with men on base and support their starters.
“It's the same as Skubal, same as Scoob,” said Mookie Betts, who flied out to center with two runners on to end the game. “Obviously, it does matter what they do, but the offense has to figure out a way to get some more timely hits. But we do need to keep applying pressure like we've been doing. But we've got to figure out how to break through.”
In all best-of-seven postseason series, teams that have fallen behind 1-0 have gone on to win the series just 70 of 197 times (36%). In series with the current 2-3-2 format, teams that have lost the first game on the road have gone on to win the series 34 of 103 times (33%).
Only one of those teams handed the ball to Yamamoto, and it worked in the Dodgers’ favor.
“We feel good with our guy, feel good about the ability to prevent runs,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “Henderson is a really good young pitcher. He had his way with us I think at our place, maybe here as well.
“You can't go into a long series against a team that has the best record in baseball and expect to just win four. It's going to be a long series. We knew it coming in. We had our chances, but they made plays, pitches when they needed to. We've just got to reset. We've got our guy going tomorrow, who we trust undoubtedly, and we've got to win a baseball game.”