Dave Roberts 2026 Dodgers Postseason Bullpen Usage
Dave Roberts's aggressive bullpen management failed to stop the Milwaukee Brewers, who posted a 0.31 ERA over 28 2/3 innings. The Dodgers now face a 3-0 deficit in the NLCS, with only the 2004 Red Sox having ever recovered from such a postseason hole.
The Los Angeles Dodgers entered the National League Championship Series as back-to-back defending champions, but they now face a 3-0 deficit against the Milwaukee Brewers. This series has exposed severe cracks in the managerial strategy, specifically regarding how Dave Roberts utilizes his pitching staff. The team finished the regular season with a 98-64 record and won the National League West for the third straight year, yet that dominance evaporated once October arrived. I see the data clearly: the Dodgers cannot sustain their offensive output against a bullpen that holds opponents to a 0.31 ERA over 282/3 innings. That figure is the lowest bullpen ERA across any six-game span in MLB postseason history involving at least 25 innings, dating back to 1913. The numbers do not lie, and they show a team running out of answers while its opponent runs out of errors.
The collapse in Game 3
Blake Snell threw 101 pitches in Game 3, retiring 14 consecutive batters through the middle innings before the seventh-inning collapse. He allowed four hits and two walks while striking out nine in six frames, but he surrendered three home runs in total. One was a leadoff shot on the first pitch of the game, and another came off the last pitch of his start. Roberts defended keeping Snell in for the seventh inning because the left-hander had retired 13 or 14 batters in a row and looked dominant. "I just saw that through the sixth inning, he retired 13 or 14 in a row, and his stuff was really good," Roberts said. The decision backfired when Jake Bauers worked an 11-pitch at-bat and launched a two-run homer to put Milwaukee ahead 3-2. Garrett Mitchell followed with a solo shot to make it 4-2, ending the Dodgers’ streak of winning their previous 18 postseason games when leading after six innings. Snell became the second pitcher in MLB history to allow a home run on the first and last pitches of a postseason start, joining John Smoltz from the 1991 NLCS.
Bullpen depth and historical odds
Roberts managed the bullpen with specific matchups in mind, but the execution failed to match the intent. In Game 2, Roki Sasaki faced the Brewers in the fourth inning after Alex Vesia finished the third. Roberts explained he wanted to cover six-plus innings and felt Kris Bubic was a perfect spot against left-handed hitters. Bubic recorded only two outs on 22 pitches, allowing William Contreras to tie the game with a solo home run. The manager also kept Brock Stewart in for the bottom of the sixth instead of bringing in Tanner Scott, citing a desire to keep Contreras on the ground. Contreras hit the first pitch into the outfield grass to give Milwaukee the lead. These moves highlight a pattern of aggressive management that did not yield results. The Dodgers are now one win away from elimination, facing a historic hurdle. Only the 2004 Boston Red Sox have ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven postseason series, and Roberts was part of that team as a player. The Brewers’ ability to turn narrow deficits into commanding advantages has defined this series, forcing the Dodgers to find solutions that simply do not exist in their current playbook.
