Dodgers have no answers for Kyle Schwarber and Phillies in Game 3 loss

They had them down. They let them up.

They squeezed them down to their last gasps. They backed off and gave them new life.

In any ordinary five-game playoff series, a team leading two-games-to-none can lose a game and maintain a clear advantage. But the heavyweight happenings here between the Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies is no ordinary series. And by losing a potential clinching Game 3 Wednesday night at a stunned and boo-filled Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers are suddenly and dangerously close to blowing it.

The 8-2 defeat to the Phillies in the National League Division Series factually means the Dodgers still lead two-games-to-one with two more chances to close out their favored foe.

⚾ Phillies 8, Dodgers 2 — FINAL

Kyle Schwarber hit two home runs and the Phillies scored five runs in the eighth inning off Clayton Kershaw to extend the best-of-five series for at least another game.

The Dodgers lead the series, 2-1, with Game 4 set for Thursday at 3:08 p.m. PDT at Dodger Stadium.

Top of the ninth: Facing reliever Blake Treinen, Philadelphia’s J.T. Realmuto lined out and Max Kepler flied out. Nick Castellanos then grounded out.

Bottom of the ninth: Against Phillies reliever Taijuan Walker, Will Smith flied out to center field. Kiké Hernández drew a walk before Max Muncy singled to right, moving Hernández to third.

Dalton Rushing struck out while pinch-hitting for Justin Dean. Tommy Edman then drove in Hernández on single that got past Phillies shortstop Trea Turner to make it 8-2 Philadelphia.

Tanner Banks then took over on the mound for the Phillies and got Shohei Ohtani to fly out to right field, ending the game.

⚾ Phillies 8, Dodgers 1 — Through eight innings

Top of the eighth: J.T. Realmuto led with a solo home run to left field off Clayton Kershaw to extend Philadelphia’s lead.

Kershaw then walked Max Kepler before Nick Castellanos reached base on a fielding error by third baseman Max Muncy. Bryson Stott advanced the runners to third and second on a sacrifice bunt.

Trea Turner followed with a two-run single into shallow right center to give the Phillies a 6-1 lead.

Kyle Schwarber then hit a two-run home run to right field, making it 8-1 Philadelphia. It was Schwarber’s second home run tonight.

Bryce Harper then hit a double. Alec Bohm followed with a single to left field, but Kiké Hernández prevented another Phillies run when he threw out Harper at home plate.

Justin Dean made a jumping catch into the wall in straightaway center field on a ball hit by Brandon Marsh to cap Philadelphia’s five-run inning.

Bottom of the eighth: Facing Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering, Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernández and Freddie Freeman grounded out.

⚾ Phillies 3, Dodgers 1 — Through seven innings

Top of the seventh: Clayton Kershaw took the mound to open the seventh, giving up a leadoff single to Trea Turner. Kyle Schwarber then drew a walk.

Teoscar Hernández made a sliding catch on a Bryce Harper liner to right. Then, after a pitch from Kershaw got away from Will Smith, Turner took third, but Smith was able to get Schwarber out at first after he floated too far to second base and couldn’t get back in time.

Kershaw intentionally walked Alec Bohm to draw the favorable matchup against Brandon Marsh, who lined out to right field for the third out.

Fans cheer as Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw runs out of the bullpen and onto the field at the start of the seventh inning.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Bottom of the seventh: Miguel Rojas, pinch-hitting for Andy Pages, grounded out to first base. Tommy Edman grounded out to third before Ranger Suárez got Shohei Ohtani to fly out to the warning track in left field.

⚾ Phillies 3, Dodgers 1 — Through six innings

Top of the sixth: Jack Dreyer took over on the mound for the Dodgers. J.T. Realmuto lined out to right before Max Kepler drew a walk. Nick Castellanos flied out to center field and Bryson Stott grounded out to first to cap the frame.

Bottom of the sixth: Freddie Freeman struck out before Will Smith singled to right field. Kiké Hernández followed with a shallow popup to center that fell between Trea Turner and Brandon Marsh.

Max Muncy then grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning.

⚾ Phillies 3, Dodgers 1 — Through fifth inning

Top of the fifth: Bryson Stott led with a single to right-center field. Trea Turner followed with a single up the middle, prompting Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to replace Yoshinobu Yamamoto with Anthony Banda.

Yamamoto gave up six hits, three earned runs, struck out two and walked one.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto exits the game in the fifth inning.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

With Banda facing Kyle Schwarber, the Phillies executed a double steal, with Stott and Turner advancing to third and second with no outs.

Banda struck out Schwarber before Bryce Harper flied out to shallow right field, keeping the runners in place.

Banda intentionally walked Alec Bohm. Brandon Marsh then drew a time violation while coming to the plate, getting assessed an automatic strike before Banda struck him out to get out of the bases-loaded jam.

Bottom of the fifth: Bohm, Philadelphia’s 6-foot-5 third baseman, made a stretching catch on a liner to deny Tommy Edman of a hit. Ranger Suárez struck out Shohei Ohtani before Mookie Betts singled to center.

Teoscar Hernández grounded to short, with Trea Turner forcing out Betts at second.

⚾ Phillies 3, Dodgers 1 — Through four innings

Top of the fourth: Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber hit a 455-foot home run that hit the roof of the right-field pavilion to tie the game. It was the longest home run in the postseason so far.

Bryce Harper followed with a single to left field before Alec Bohm singled to center. Harper took third after Andy Pages’ throw bounced past Max Muncy and into the Dodgers’ dugout, allowing Harper to score and make it 2-1 Philadelphia. Pages was charged with an error on the play.

Brandon Marsh followed with a sacrifice fly to deep left field that scored Bohm to make it 3-1 Philadelphia.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto then gave up a ground-rule double to J.T. Realmuto on a liner that bounced over the wall in the right-field corner. Max Kepler flied out to center and Yamamoto struck out Nick Castellanos for the third out.

Bottom of the fourth: Phillies pitcher Ranger Suárez struck out Freddie Freeman and Will Smith.

Kiké Hernández then drew a walk before Max Muncy singled to right field. Pages popped out to short to leave two stranded.

⚾ Dodgers 1, Phillies 0 — Through third inning

Top of the third: Nick Castellanos flied out to deep left field. Mookie Betts made a running, over-the-shoulder catch on a flare to shallow center to deny Bryson Stott of a hit. Betts then made a charging grab at short before throwing out Trea Turner at first to cap the frame.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto has not given up a hit through three innings.

Bottom of the third: Facing Phillies pitcher Ranger Suárez, Tommy Edman hit a first-pitch home run to left field to make it 1-0 Dodgers.

Shohei Ohtani grounded out to first base and Mookie Betts lined out to left field. Teoscar Hernández grounded out to second to end the inning.

⚾ Phillies 0, Dodgers 0 — Through second inning

Top of the second: Brandon Marsh grounded out to third, J.T. Realmuto struck out and Max Kepler flied out to right field.

Bottom of the second: Kiké Hernández flied out to Nick Castellanos in the right-field corner. Max Muncy then lined out to right field before Aaron Nola struck out Andy Pages.

⚾ Phillies 0, Dodgers 0 — Through first inning

Top of the first: Former Dodger Trea Turner grounded out to pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto on a bunt before Kyle Schwarber grounded out to first base. Yamamoto then walked Bryce Harper on six pitches.

Andy Pages made a nice running catch at the warning track in center field on a liner off Alec Bohm’s bat. The Phillies are being aggressive at the plate — every batter took first-pitch swings.

Bottom of the first: Facing Aaron Nola, Shohei Ohtani flied out to left field.

Mookie Betts followed with a triple to right-center field that got past diving center fielder Brandon Marsh. By the time right fielder Nick Castellanos picked up the ricochet off the wall, Betts was well on his way to third. It was Betts’ first career playoff triple.

Nola struck out Teoscar Hernández before he hit Freddie Freeman on the foot with a curveball to put runners on the corners.

Will Smith, making his first postseason start this year, took a called third strike on a knuckle curve from Nola to leave two stranded.

Game 3 could be the biggest test yet for the Dodgers’ bullpen, especially if they are in position to close out the series.

Unlike in the wild-card round and Game 1 of the National League Division Series, Tyler Glasnow will not be available in relief, as he is projected to start Game 4 if the series gets there.

Manager Dave Roberts also effectively ruled out the possibility of using Game 1 starter Shohei Ohtani or Game 2 starter Blake Snell in relief — even though they wouldn’t be back online to make a start until Game 5 on Saturday.

“I’m staying away from that,” Roberts said. “They’re not a part of any kind of equation or math that I’m thinking through.”

The bigger question will be the status of Emmet Sheehan (who pitched two innings in Game 2 on Monday) and Roki Sasaki (who has pitched in each of the team’s past three games in the last week.

“They should be out there playing catch right now,” Roberts said pregame, adding that he’d talk with pitching coach Mark Prior and bullpen coach Josh Bard to see how they’re feeling ahead of first pitch.

Alex Vesia has pitched in all four of the team’s playoff games so far, though has thrown only 12 total pitches in his two appearances this series, which should keep him viable as an option.

Blake Treinen is in a similar boat with three appearances this postseason, but he also gave up two runs on three hits without recording an out in his last appearance in the ninth inning Monday.

One pitcher the Dodgers have yet to use in the playoffs: Clayton Kershaw, who has been shifted to a bullpen role this October.

They have three other left-handers who have yet to pitch this series, as well: Tanner Scott, Anthony Banda and Jack Dreyer.

For the first time this postseason (and one of the few times since early in the season), the Dodgers are fielding a fully healthy lineup.

Will Smith will make his first start of the playoffs in Game 3, after entering as a mid-game replacement in the first two games of the series coming off his right hand fracture.

Max Muncy also returned to the lineup for the first time this series, after sitting against left-handed starters in the first two games against the Phillies.

Muncy’s return to the lineup meant Miguel Rojas was dropped to the bench, after he tweaked his hamstring in Game 2 on a diving play at third base to get a forceout in the sixth inning. But manager Dave Roberts said Rojas looked “really good” pregame and would be fully available off the bench.

PHILADELPHIA — This is over.

Or, from the perspective of the Dodgers, this is just starting.

Because the Dodgers are returning to the World Series.

Technically, they still have to close out their National League Division Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. They still have to win the NL Championship Series.

In hindsight, Mookie Betts made the mystery of his worst career season sound rather simple.

Looking back on it now, the reasons were right there all along.

There was the stomach virus at the start of the year, which caused him to lose 20 pounds and develop bad swing habits while overcompensating for a decline in physical strength. There was the defensive switch to shortstop, which occupied much of his focus as he learned a new position on the go.

If you want to watch every Dodgers game in 2026, you’ll likely need access to all of these outlets: SportsNet LA, Fox, ESPN, NBC, Peacock and Apple TV.

That is not, shall we say, fan-friendly.

Baseball’s holy grail is this: One place to watch your team, and every team, wherever you are. One price. No blackouts. No need to decide whether to pay up for a subscription to an outlet you may never watch after the game ends.

Rob Manfred, baseball’s commissioner, does not need to persuade fans about this. He does need to persuade the owners of all 30 teams about this.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was trying to play the long game Monday night.

Which is why, when his team entered the ninth inning with a three-run lead in Game 2 of the National League Division Series, he gave the save opportunity to Blake Treinen instead of Roki Sasaki.

If all things had been equal, it’s likely that Roberts would have turned to Sasaki to start the inning. In just two weeks since returning from a shoulder injury and being moved to the bullpen, the converted rookie starter has become the club’s most dominant relief option.

PHILADELPHIA — Phillies starter Jesús Luzardo had set down 17 batters in a row going into the seventh inning of Monday’s National League Division Series game. The Dodgers hadn’t had a hit or a baserunner since the first.

And it didn’t look like they’d get another.

“Luzardo,” said Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman, “was amazing.”

PHILADELPHIA — Even Dodgers fans steeped in the lore of Kirk Gibson might not remember the name of Mel Didier.

Didier was the scout who had issued this warning to the 1988 Dodgers: If you’re facing Dennis Eckersley, the mighty closer for the Oakland Athletics, and the count runs full, he’s going to throw a backdoor slider.

Eckersley threw it, Gibson hit it for a home run, and the Dodgers went on to win the World Series.

PHILADELPHIA — A $415-million payroll can buy a team a lot of nice things.

Superstar hitters. Dominant starting pitching. Depth to weather a long season. A level of talent unmatched by any other contender.

This year’s Dodgers have all that, thanks to a payroll (by competitive balance tax calculations) that not only led the majors this season but set an MLB record.

The Dodgers take on the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3 of the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday at 6:08 p.m. PDT.

The game will be televised on TBS, TruTV and HBO Max. Radio broadcasts in the Los Angeles area will be on 570 AM and 1020 AM (Español).

The Dodgers lead the best-of-five series, 2-0.

Here are the latest betting odds for Game 3 of the NLDS:

Here’s the TV schedule for the rest of the series:

*Game 4: Thursday, 3:08 p.m. at Dodger Stadium | TBS, TruTv, HBO Max

*Game 5: Oct. 11, 5:08 p.m. at Philadelphia | TBS, TruTv, HBO Max

* if necessary, subject to change.