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TORONTO — Addison Barger just rocked Toronto, launching the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history.

If the Blue Jays go on to win the World Series, the sixth inning in Game 1 on Friday night may only be known as “The Inning.†By the time Alejandro Kirk launched a two-run shot of his own, Rogers Centre was shaking and rattling, the Blue Jays on the verge of a Series-opening win that would tilt the scales in a Fall Classic too many billed as a mismatch.

The Blue Jays†nine runs were the second-most scored in a single inning in the history of the World Series, trailing only the 1968 Tigers and the 1929 Philadelphia Athletics, both of whom scored 10.

Barger started the day on the bench with lefty Blake Snell on the mound, but by the time he pinch-hit for Davis Schneider, he ended up digging in against a lefty anyways in Anthony Banda. Just like Daulton Varsho, who launched a rare left-on-left homer off Snell in the fourth, Barger had homered off a lefty just once this season, his 20 other blasts coming off righties.

The 25-year-old was wide-eyed rounding the bases, just as shocked as everyone else in the building by what heâ€d just done. Barger was a bright spot in the Blue Jays†regular season, but hadnâ€t given this team as many moments down the stretch and into the postseason. Thatâ€s all forgotten history now with one of the biggest home runs this organization has ever seen in its first World Series game since 1993.

The rally started, like so many have, with the bottom half of the Blue Jays†lineup scratching away. First, they chased Snell, then they just kept throwing jabs. Postseason star Ernie Clement delivered the first bases-loaded single before a Nathan Lukes bases-loaded walk and an Andrés Giménez single. These arenâ€t names that match up against Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman when most fans look at this Series, but thatâ€s what makes the Blue Jays great. Itâ€s why, as they showed us with one incredible inning, they can shock baseball and win the World Series.

Moments like Bargerâ€s are what this team is chasing. The Blue Jays wedged a hobbled Bo Bichette into the lineup playing second base for the first time in his MLB career because they needed to chase offensive upside in a Series where “good†wonâ€t be enough.

Barger, in the sixth, did something great, the highlight of an inning we could be talking about for a long time in Toronto.

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LOS ANGELES — Jacob Misiorowski held off the Los Angeles Dodgers with 102 mph heat. When he faded, so did the Milwaukee Brewers.

The 6-foot-7 rookie right-hander came out of the bullpen to escape a first-inning jam and struck out nine as the Brewers rallied in a game that remained tied through five innings.

When his velocity dropped in the sixth, Tommy Edman hit a go-ahead single and the Dodgers went on to a 3-1 victory and a 3-0 NL Championship Series lead.

“I think I had a few starts during the year that I felt better, but I felt good,†Misiorowski said. “I did my job and felt like I performed the way they needed me to.â€

Misiorowski debuted in June and went 5-3 with a 4.36 ERA in 14 starts and one relief appearance. Milwaukee has used him three times in relief during the playoffs. He has a 1.50 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 12 innings with three walks.

He threw 17 pitches from 100.1 mph to 102.5 mph from the first through fifth innings, but his fastball ranged from 97.6 mph to 99.1 mph in the sixth.

Will Smith singled with one out on a slider in the middle of the strike zone and Freddie Freeman walked after falling behind 1-2 in the count. Edman, who had struck out twice against Misiorowski, lined a low slider into center on Misiorowskiâ€s 73rd and final pitch. Smith scored for a 2-1 lead as Sal Frelick made a weak throw.

Abner Uribe relieved made a run-scoring error on an errant pickoff attempt.

“We needed him today, and he was there for us,†Brewers third baseman Caleb Durbin said of Misiorowski. “Wish we couldâ€ve had his back a little bit more.â€

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With a runner on first and two outs in the fifth inning of Game 4 of the ALCS, Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider walked out to have a chat with starting pitcher Max Scherzer. It went about how you would expect if you’re familiar with Max Scherzer.

As soon as Schneider reached the mound Thursday, Scherzer began barking at him. It was unclear if Schneider wanted to pull the future Hall of Famer or simply talk about the next batter, Randy Arozarena, but the message from the pitcher was the same.

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In a word: “No.”

Scherzer proceeded to strike out Arozarena and smack his glove in celebration.

The veteran right-hander made sure to let Schneider know what happened as he walked into the dugout.

Among the people entertained by Scherzer’s reaction: his dugout.

Scherzer wound up staying in the game for the start of the sixth inning. He got the first two outs with a Cal Raleigh flyout and Julio Rodríguez strikeout, but then he walked Jorge Polanco on his 87th pitch of the game. That finally led to Schneider pulling him for left-hander Mason Fluharty, who ended up allowing Polanco to score.

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Scherzer’s final line: 5 2/3 innings, 3 hits, 2 runs, 4 walks and 5 strikeouts in a pivotal Game 4 that the Jays won 8-2 to tie this series 2-2.

After the game, Schneider didn’t seem too worried about his pitcher’s vigor:

“Been waiting for that all year, for Max to yell at me on the mound. … I was joking with him, Iâ€ve been waiting for that moment since our Zoom call in the offseason before we signed him. Loved it. Thereâ€s a little more of that in between (before) I sent him back out for the sixth, too.

“It was awesome. I thought he was gonna kill me. It was great. He locked eyes with me, both colors, as I walked out. Itâ€s not fake. Thatâ€s the thing. Itâ€s not fake. He has this ‘Mad Max’ persona, but he backed it up tonight. The infielders had a good laugh, too, and he got the job done.â€

Scherzer’s explanation:

“I understood where the game state was, knew how I wanted to attack, and all of a sudden, I saw Schneids coming out, and I went ‘Whoa whoa whoa whoa, Iâ€m not coming out of this ballgame. I feel too good.’ And so we had a little conversation that basically I wanted to stay in the ballgame, but just with some other words involved.”

The postseason hasn’t always been kind to the three-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champion, but it has never been for a lack of intensity. Scherzer is a guy who can be seen growling and muttering under his breath, often profanely, between pitches during the regular season, and he hasn’t changed at 41 years old and on his seventh MLB team.

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There’s a reason Toronto wanted a pitcher like him on a team with playoff aspirations, signing him to a one-year, $15.5 million deal before the season. It wasn’t always pretty during the regular season, with a thumb injury knocking Scherzer out for most of the first half and a 5.19 season ERA, but he answered the bell in Game 4, putting his team in position to tie a series that felt nearly lost as it left Toronto.

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SEATTLE — It was a party that this region hasnâ€t seen in 24 years, and Julio Rodríguez got it started in a big way on Wednesday night.

The Mariners†star center fielder blasted a two-run homer during the first inning of Game 3 of the American League Championship Series against the Blue Jays, hammering a middle-in fastball from Shane Bieber into the home bullpen and sending T-Mobile Park into bedlam.

Wednesdayâ€s contest was just the sixth ALCS game in the ballparkâ€s history and first since 2001. The Mariners obviously lost that series to the Yankees and remain MLBâ€s only team thatâ€s never played in the World Series. With a commanding 2-0 series lead in this best-of-seven round, theyâ€re in a favorable position to advance — but they continue to preach urgency, with Rodríguezâ€s first-inning homer being a prime example.

The ball scorched off Rodríguezâ€s bat at 112.2 mph and sailed 414 feet, nicking the out-of-town scoreboard beyond left field before dropping in front of his reliever teammates. And it scored Randy Arozarena, too, who led off with a walk then stole second base to put Bieber on the ropes.

The Mariners have now scored 18 of their 34 runs in these playoffs via homers, after ranking second in MLB during the regular season by scoring via their homers at a 50% clip. Rodríguez also went deep during the first inning of Game 2 with a three-run shot that proved vital, given how Toronto mounted momentum shortly after and eventually tied that game in the second against Logan Gilbert. The Blue Jays also went on to score five runs in the third inning against George Kirby in Wednesday’s Game 3.

In Seattleâ€s limited postseason history, Wednesdayâ€s homer was just its fifth in the first inning — and Rodríguez now accounts for two of those in the past two games alone. The other three were from Cal Raleigh, Edgar Martinez and Mike Cameron.

In these playoffs, and after his first at-bat on Wednesday, Rodríguez is slugging .567 with a .910 OPS and eight RBIs through 30 at-bats, propelling from the torrid second half in which he was among MLBâ€s most productive players.

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SEATTLE (AP) Jorge Polanco hit a game-ending single in the 15th inning, and the Seattle Mariners advanced to the AL Championship Series by outlasting the Detroit Tigers for a 3-2 victory Friday night in the longest winner-take-all postseason game in baseball history.

With one out and the bases loaded, Polanco drove in J.P. Crawford with a liner to right on a full-count changeup from Tommy Kahnle. Crawford held his arms in the air as he touched home plate while the Mariners poured out of the dugout to celebrate in front of a frenzied crowd of 47,025.

Crawford hit a leadoff single, Randy Arozarena was hit by a pitch and Julio Rodríguez was intentionally walked before Polancoâ€s big swing on the 472nd pitch of an epic Game 5 that clocked in at 4 hours, 58 minutes.

It was the third one-run game – all with a 3-2 score – in a tightly contested AL Division Series.

“I know we played a long game, but this team never gave up,†Polanco said. “I know there is a lot of emotion, but we are always trying to keep it simple. Iâ€m just trying to go out there and play and trying to get the win.â€

The Mariners left 12 runners on base and still managed to advance to the ALCS for the first time since 2001. Next up is a matchup with the AL East champion Blue Jays, beginning on Sunday night at Toronto.

“Just an incredible ballgame from top to bottom,†Mariners manager Dan Wilson said.

Luis Castillo pitched 1 1/3 innings for the win in his first major league relief appearance. Logan Gilbert, another member of Seattleâ€s rotation, worked two scoreless innings in his first relief outing since his college days at Stetson University in 2017.

“It was such a tough night,†Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh said. “Everyone put their other stuff side and did everything for the team, including Logan and Luis.â€

Detroit wasted a stellar performance by Tarik Skubal, who struck out 13 while pitching six innings of one-run ball. The Tigers went 1 for 9 with runners in scoring position and left 10 on base.

“We had an incredible game today that – unfortunately, somebody had to lose, and that somebody was us, and it hurts,†manager A.J. Hinch said.

Kerry Carpenter put Detroit in front when he hit a two-run homer off Gabe Speier in the sixth inning. Carpenter had four hits and walked twice, becoming the first player to reach five times and hit a home run in a winner-take-all postseason game since Babe Ruth in 1926, according to STATS.

The Mariners tied it at 2 on Leo Rivas†pinch-hit single off Tyler Holton in the seventh. Rivas celebrated his 28th birthday with his first postseason hit.

“He was up to the task tonight,†Wilson said. “It was a huge hit.â€

The Mariners had a runner on second with no outs in the 10th, 12th and 13th inning – and came up empty each time. Arozarena and Eugenio Suárez both grounded into a double play in extra innings.

The Tigers threatened in the 12th, putting runners on second and third with one out. Zach McKinstry was cut down at home when he attempted to score on Javier Báezâ€s grounder to third. After Carpenter was walked intentionally, Gleyber Torres flied out to right.

Dillon Dingler hit a one-out double for Detroit in the 14th, but he was stranded there when Parker Meadows struck out looking against Eduard Bazardo and Castillo retired Báez on a popup to first.

“Guys just kept battling. There were opportunities on both sides after the ninth inning,†Hinch said.

Seattle dropped four of its six games against Toronto this season. The Mariners won two of three in an April series in Toronto, but they were swept by the Blue Jays at home from May 9-11.

—

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  Jesse RogersOct 8, 2025, 08:31 PM ET

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  Jesse joined ESPN Chicago in September 2009 and covers MLB for ESPN.com.

CHICAGO — If the Chicago Cubs could just start the game over every inning, they might get to the World Series.

For the third consecutive game in their National League Division Series against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Cubs scored in the first, only this time it was enough to squeak out a 4-3 win and stave off elimination. All four of their runs came in the opening inning.

“I’m going to tell our guys it’s the first inning every inning tomorrow,” manager Craig Counsell said with a smile after the game. “I think that’s our best formula right now, offensively.”

The Cubs scored three runs in the first inning in Game 2 but lost 7-3. They also scored first in Game 1, thanks to a Michael Busch homer, but lost 9-3. The first baseman also homered to lead off the bottom of the first in Game 3 on Wednesday after the Cubs got down 1-0. He became the first player in MLB history to hit a leadoff home run in two postseason games in the same series.

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“From the moment I was placed in that spot, I thought, ‘Why change what I do? Just have a good at-bat, stay aggressive, trust my eyes,'” Busch said.

Counsell added: “You can just tell by the way they manage the game, he’s become the guy in the lineup that everybody is thinking about and they’re pitching around him, and that’s a credit to the player. It really is.”

Including the regular season, Busch has seven leadoff home runs this year in just 54 games while batting first.

The Cubs weren’t done in Wednesday’s opening inning, as center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong came through with the bases loaded for a second time this postseason. In the wild-card round against the San Diego Padres last week, he singled home a run with a base hit. He did one better Wednesday, driving two in on a two-out single to right. That chased Chicago-area native Quinn Priester from the game and gave the Cubs a lead they would never relinquish.

“I’m pretty fortunate in a couple of these elimination games to just have pretty nice opportunities in front of me with guys on base, and I think that makes this job just a little bit easier sometimes,” Crow-Armstrong said.

Crow-Armstrong is known as a free swinger, but batting with the bases loaded gives him the opportunity to get a pitch in the strike zone. He made the most of it — though that would be the last big hit of the game for the Cubs. The eventual winning run scored moments later on a wild pitch.

“I thought we played with that urgency, especially in the first — we just did a great job in the first inning,” Counsell said. “We had really good at-bats.”

The Cubs sent nine men to the plate in the first while seeing 53 pitches, the most pitches seen by a team in the first inning of a playoff game since 1988, when pitch-by-pitch data tracking began.

“We had more chances today than Game 2 but couldn’t get the big hit [later],” left fielder Ian Happ said. “That’ll come.”

The Cubs were down 1-0 after an unusual call. With runners on first and second in the top of the first, Brewers catcher William Contreras popped the ball up between the pitcher’s mound and first base but Busch couldn’t track it in the sun. The umpires did not call for the infield fly rule as it dropped safely, allowing runners to advance and the batter to reach first base. Moments later, Christian Yelich scored on a sacrifice fly.

“The basic thing that we look for is ordinary effort,” umpire supervisor Larry Young told a pool reporter. “We don’t make that determination until the ball has reached its apex — the height — and then starts to come down.

“When it reached the height, the umpires determined that the first baseman wasn’t going to make a play on it, the middle infielder [Nico Hoerner] raced over and he wasn’t going to make a play on it, so ordinary effort went out the window at that point.”

The Brewers chipped away after getting down in that first inning but fell short in a big moment in the eighth when they loaded the bases following a leadoff double by Jackson Chourio. Cubs reliever Brad Keller shut the door, striking out Jake Bauers to end the threat.

Keller pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn the save and keep the Cubs’ season alive. They are down 2-1 in the best-of-five series. Game 4 is set for Thursday night.

“That was a lot of fun to get in there and get four outs and come away with a win,” Keller said. “That was such a team effort there. We’re looking forward to doing it again tomorrow.”

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The location changed for Game 3 of the NLDS between the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs, but the scoring cadence didnâ€t. There were first-inning fireworks in the Friendly Confines, too.

In an NL Central division showdown that produced 13 first-inning runs in the first two games, the Cubs put up a four-spot in the opening frame Wednesday, igniting the Wrigley Field fans desperate for more playoff baseball.

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They’re getting it.

The Cubs maintained their lead the rest of the way, even as the Brewers chipped away, and staved off elimination with a 4-3 victory. Milwaukeeâ€s series lead is down to 2-1, and Game 4 is Thursday at Wrigley.

[Get more Chicago news: Cubs team feed]

In the top of the first inning, the Brewers staked themselves to a 1-0 advantage, in large part thanks to Christian Yelich, who ripped a leadoff double off Cubs starter Jameson Taillon and then scored on a sac fly from Sal Frelick.

While the veteran Taillon ultimately recovered and turned in four innings of work, the same couldnâ€t be said for 25-year-old Brewers righty Quinn Priester. Pitching against the team he grew up rooting for, Priester battled command issues and gave up four runs and two walks in two-thirds of an inning before he was yanked.

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Redeeming himself after losing an infield popup in the sun that advanced Yelich to third in the first frame, Michael Busch blasted a leadoff homer for the second time in the series. Not even swirling Wrigley Field winds could keep this one out of the right-field bleachers.

The Cubs then loaded the bases, and Pete Crow-Armstrong smacked a two-out, two-RBI single to right, chasing Priester and forcing Brewers manager Pat Murphy into a bullpen game early.

In came Nick Mears, the first of five additional Milwaukee arms deployed Wednesday. Almost instantly, Mears fired a wild pitch that catcher William Contreras couldnâ€t corral while Crow-Armstrong swiped second. Ian Happ scored as a result, making it a 4-1 game.

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From there, the Cubs didn’t score again, and the Brewers chipped away at their deficit throughout the night.

Jake Bauers delivered an RBI single in the top of the fourth, and in the seventh, he teed off on reliever Andrew Kittredge’s first pitch, sending a solo shot over the left-center wall and cutting the Cubs†lead to 4-3.

Milwaukee threatened to break hearts in the eighth, loading the bases with two outs, and Bauers came up again with the tying run 90 feet away. Fortunately for Chicago, Brad Keller blew by Bauers with a 97-mph, four-seam fastball up in the zone for a clutch strikeout.

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With that, Keller secured the four-out save in the ninth and extended the Cubs’ playoff run at least one more day. Game 4 is scheduled for 9:08 p.m. ET Thursday in Chicago.

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MILWAUKEE – Leave it to the first postseason series between the rival Cubs and Brewers to make history in Milwaukeeâ€s 7-3 victory over Chicago in Game 2 of the National League Division Series.

When the Cubs†Seiya Suzuki and the Brewers†Andrew Vaughn traded three-run homers in the opening frame on Monday night at American Family Field, it marked the first time in postseason history that each team hit a three-run home run (or grand slam) in the first inning.

Even wilder than that? Vaughn’s blast was the first three-run homer or grand slam in Brewers postseason history.

Additionally, the 13 combined first-inning runs scored so far in the NLDS are the most through the first two games of any series in postseason history in the first inning (1989 Cubs/Giants NL Championship Series, 2000 Cardinals/Braves NLDS at 11 each).

“I think that home run was the most important part of the game for us,†Brewers catcher William Contreras said via interpreter Daniel de Mondesert. “After they were able to go ahead, I think that home run there put everyone back in the mentality of no one thought this was going to be easy. But at the same time, maybe it’s not going to be so hard here. I think it just brought the energy back into the dugout, and that’s what Vaughn has been doing ever since he’s got here. He’s been able to put big swings on balls and [has] continued producing for us like he has. I think it was one of the big keys to us winning the game there.â€

Like Game 1 on Saturday, Chicago jumped out to a first-inning lead on a home run. This time, Suzuki crushed lefty Aaron Ashbyâ€s changeup above the zone over the left-center wall, sending it a projected 440 feet with an exit velocity of 111.7 mph, per Statcast.

It was the Cubs’ first postseason homer with multiple runners on base since Addison Russell’s grand slam in Game 6 of the 2016 World Series. All three of Chicagoâ€s home runs in Saturdayâ€s Game 1 loss were solo shots.

Suzuki, who became the first player in Major League history to end the regular season on a four-homer streak and then go deep in his first postseason game, according to Elias Sports Bureau, has seven taters in his last nine games.

“Awesome swing by Seiya,†Cubs left fielder Ian Happ said. “Good ABs, and then Seiya hits that ball. And they did a good job of coming back and answering. Itâ€s a tie ballgame going into the second. Both games, up and down emotions there in the first inning.â€

The Cubs†lead was short-lived, though, as the Brewers countered in the bottom half of the frame.

Vaughn, who hit nine home runs in his first 29 games with Milwaukee but zero over his final 35 regular-season games (and none in Game 1 of the NLDS, a span totaling 146 plate appearances), snapped the drought in dramatic fashion.

“Beginning of the year definitely wasn’t how I wanted it to be, definitely a really tough part of my career,†Vaughn said. “But getting traded [from the White Sox] almost was like an opportunity. Going to [Triple-A] Nashville, trying to work my butt off, eventually getting the call, and trying to take advantage of my opportunity. It’s a really hard game. Just trying to go out there, be the best version of myself, and be like a little kid out there and have fun.â€

Vaughn capped a seven-pitch at-bat by turning on lefty Shota Imanagaâ€s inside sweeper and depositing the offering over the left-field wall. Imanaga, who allowed 15 home runs over his final nine regular-season starts, has given up at least one in each of his postseason appearances now, as well.

“We made a couple mistakes with multiple runners on base, and after getting off to a great start, those mistakes with two, three-run homers, you’re not going to win playoff games giving up two, three-run homers,†Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “That was just too much to overcome.â€

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It was quintessential October baseball.

Two starting pitchers dominating two helpless lineups.

A low-scoring contest in which every stranded baserunner felt like a monumental missed opportunity.

A nail-biting affair decided by one team cashing in a rare scoring chance, and the other failing to do the same.

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In the bottom of the sixth inning in Game 2 of the National League Division Series on Monday, the Philadelphia Phillies had two aboard with one out, but came up empty.

In the next half-inning, the Dodgers faced the same situation, but came away with four runs.

That was the difference in the Dodgers†4-3 victory at Citizens Bank Park, giving them a commanding 2-0 lead in a best-of-five series that will shift to Dodger Stadium for Game 3 on Wednesday.

Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell delivers during the second inning Monday against the Phillies. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

For most of Monday night, a crowd of 45,653 in South Philadelphia sat anxiously in anticipation, waiting for the dam to break in an old-fashioned pitchers’ duel.

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On one side, Blake Snell was dotting his fastball up in the zone and to both parts of the plate, giving the Phillies little to hit while setting them up to flail at his dominant arsenal of secondary weapons. Through four innings, he retired 12 of 14 batters with only two walks issued. He had gotten whiffs on each of the first 11 non-fastballs he threw. And not until there were two outs in the fifth did he give up his first hit.

Opposite him, Jesús Luzardo was equally effective. After stranding runners on the corners in a shaky first, the left-hander locked in and made the Dodgers look silly with a barrage of sweepers and changeups that dipped below the zone. Where he needed 24 pitches in the first, he completed the next five on just 48 throws. In that time, he retired 17 in a row and let only two balls even leave the infield.

Finally, in the bottom of the sixth, the narrative began to change.

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The Phillies generated the gameâ€s first big opportunity, after Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber walked in back-to-back at-bats against Snell with one out. It was the first time all night their lineup had gotten a runner past first. And it happened as two-time MVP Bryce Harper came strolling to the plate.

Snellâ€s plan of attack against Harper was simple. His first pitch was a slider in the dirt. His next was another one up in the zone Harper fouled off. Two more sliders followed, with Harper fanning on the first and fouling off the next. Then, after one change-of-pace curveball was buried in front of the plate, Snell went back to the slider one more time. It darted below Harperâ€s swing for a strikeout. Citizens Bank Park groaned.

The inning ended a batter later, when Alec Bohm chased a 2-and-0 changeup and hit a groundball to third base. Miguel Rojas fielded it behind the bag, clocked the speedy Bohm racing toward first, and decided to go the short — albeit risky — way instead, sprinting to third base and beating Turner to the bag with a headfirst slide.

That ended the inning. This time, frustrated boos rained down from the stands.

Minutes later, the Dodgers would be in front. Unlike the Phillies, they didnâ€t squander their one opportunity for runs.

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Teoscar Hernández led off the top of the seventh with a single. Freddie Freeman followed with a line drive to weak-fielding Nick Castellanos (who was drawn into the Phillies†lineup following an injury to Harrison Bader in Game 1) in right, getting on his horse to leg out a hustle double.

That knocked Luzardo out of the game. And in a move that would soon be second-guessed, Phillies manager Rob Thompson opted for right-handed reliever Orion Kerkering instead of dominant closer Jhoan Duran.

Kerkering got one quick out, striking out Tommy Edman.

But then Kiké Hernández hit a cue-ball grounder to Turner at shortstop. After a slight hesitation, Teoscar Hernández broke for home hard. As Turner fielded the ball and fired to the plate, Hernández chugged in with a feet-first slide. Catcher J.T. Realmutoâ€s tag was a split-second too late.

Teoscar Hernández celebrates after advancing to third on a double by Freddie Freeman in the seventh inning against the Phillies in Game 2 of the NLDS on Monday. Hernandez later scored the Dodgers’ first run. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The Dodgers had opened the scoring — and would only keep adding on.

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With two outs in the inning, Will Smith (who, like in Game 1, entered as a mid-game replacement as he continues to work back from his fractured hand) hit a two-run single to left. Shohei Ohtani, who had been hitless in the series and 0 for 3 earlier in the night, tacked on another with a groundball that got through the infield.

By the time the dust settled, the Dodgers had surged to a 4-0 lead.

They would need every bit of it.

Emmet Sheehan followed Snellâ€s six-inning, one-hit, nine-strikeout gem with two innings of relief, retiring the side in the seventh before limiting damage in the eighth, when he gave up one run after a Max Kepler triple and Turner RBI single but retired the side on a strikeout of Schwarber and a flyball from Harper.

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The real trouble came in the ninth, when the Dodgers turned to Blake Treinen — and not recently ascendant bullpen ace Roki Sasaki — to close the game.

Dodgers pitcher Roki Sasaki delivers in the ninth inning against the Phillies on Monday in Game 2 of the NLDS. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Treinen couldnâ€t, giving up a leadoff single and back-to-back doubles to J.T. Realmuto and Nick Castellanos to bring home two runs and put the tying runner at second.

Alex Vesia entered next and got two outs (one of them, a crucial play from third baseman Max Muncy to field a bunt and throw out Castellanos at third as the lead runner). Then, Sasaki was finally summoned to face Turner with runners on the corners.

He induced a groundball to second baseman Tommy Edman. Edman spiked his throw to first, but Freeman picked it with a sprawling effort. And once again, the Phillies had failed to completely cash in on a scoring chance — leaving the Dodgers one win away from advancing to the NL Championship Series.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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NEW YORK — For three innings in the decisive Game 3 of this American League Wild Card Series against the Yankees, Connelly Early exuded calm in his fifth Major League start, matching zeros with fellow rookie, Yankees righty Cam Schlittler.

But in the fourth inning, the momentum changed and never turned back, beginning with a fly ball to right-center that fell between Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu for a double by Cody Bellinger. Rafaela, who seemed to take a circuitous route, had it tick off his glove.

That was the start of a four-run inning in which Early gave up three more hits, one walk and another misplay in the field — an error by Nathaniel Lowe. Boston was eliminated from the postseason with a 4-0 loss at Yankee Stadium. As it turns out, that inning, along with Schlittlerâ€s utter dominance, was the ballgame.

Given that center fielder Rafaela and right fielder Abreu are two of the best defenders in the Majors at their respective positions, it was a surprising misplay.

Per Statcast, Rafaela had a 90 percent catch probability. Abreu had an 85 percent chance of reeling it in.

But perhaps those numbers donâ€t account for the challenge of two players — both in their second full seasons — participating in the postseason for the first time, and trying to make a play in a venue that reached ear-splitting decibel levels.

“That was a tough play,†Abreu said. “It was in between us. We were playing very deep, so we couldn’t get there.â€

“Itâ€s hard to say, because it was too loud so we couldn’t hear it,†Abreu said.

Asked specifically if he called it, Abreu said, “Not really.â€

“Right there, I just gave my all to catch it,†he said. “I saw Willy maybe didnâ€t have a chance. I just saw he wasnâ€t going to be able to get to it and I dove to catch it.â€

As the inning built, the question was this: How swiftly would manager Alex Cora go to his bullpen? It turned out not nearly as swift as in Game 2, when Cora pulled Brayan Bello after just 28 pitches in a 2-2 game in the bottom of the third in an eventual 4-3 loss.

The lack of execution by two gifted outfielders threw Cora for a bit of a loop. After using six of his nine relievers in Game 2, Cora was hoping Early, ranked as Bostonâ€s No. 6 prospect by MLB Pipeline, could at least get into the fifth.

“We didn’t play defense. The popup drops, there’s a double, and there’s a walk. They didn’t hit the ball hard, but they found holes,†Cora said. “It just happened fast. The kid did a good job. He threw the ball well and induced them to weak contact.â€

Part of Coraâ€s thinking is that the Yankees still had a pocket of lefties due to come up shortly after Amed Rosarioâ€s RBI single broke a scoreless tie.

Other than Rosarioâ€s single, the only other hard-hit ball of the inning off Early was a single by Jazz Chisholm Jr. that loaded the bases with one out.

The final crushing blow of the inning was Lowe trying to backhand a grounder off the bat of Austin Wells and having it tick off his glove as two runs scored.

“I thought I could get to the short hop and I didnâ€t,†Lowe said. “The in-between hop ate me up. Obviously, they got runs cashed in and we couldnâ€t make up for it.â€

After inducing Trent Grishamâ€s flyout to right for the second out in the fourth, Early was taken out and Cora went to righty Justin Slaten to face Yankees captain Aaron Judge.

Considering Early didnâ€t make his MLB debut until Sept. 9, his composure on the hill at Yankee Stadium was impressive, and something he can build on going forward. The 23-year-old allowed six hits in his 3 2/3 innings, along with three runs (just one earned) and one walk to go with six strikeouts.

Lucas Giolito, Bostonâ€s No. 3 starter for most of the season, would have taken the ball in this game if not for an irritated right flexor injury that knocked him out of the postseason. That put the spotlight on Early, who had a 2.33 ERA in four September starts.

“I think just getting this under my belt is huge,†Early said. “Obviously, the Red Sox trusting me to go out there with the ball in a winner-take-all game means a ton to me.â€

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