Dodgers NLDS Game 3: Yamamoto Shuts Down Braves, LA Leads 2-1

Dodgers NLDS Game 3 was the night Los Angeles moved to the brink of the NLCS. Behind a dominant Yoshinobu Yamamoto and back-to-back home runs from Kiké Hernández and Freddie Freeman, the Dodgers beat the Atlanta Braves 3-1 on Tuesday night at Truist Park to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five NLDS.

The Dodgers NLDS Game 3 victory sets up a potential series-clinching Game 4 tonight — and Los Angeles is now chasing history as it tries to become the first National League team to win three straight World Series.

Yamamoto's masterpiece

Yamamoto was electric, striking out 10 over seven innings while allowing only four hits and one walk — a postseason career high in strikeouts. He improved to 8-1 with a 2.14 ERA in his postseason career, cementing his status as the Dodgers' ace for the biggest moments — and the signature pitching performance of Dodgers NLDS Game 3.

He outdueled Braves ace Chris Sale in one of the most anticipated pitching matchups of the postseason. Sale, the reigning star of Atlanta's rotation, gave up three runs and seven hits over five innings and never found his rhythm against a Dodgers lineup that made him work from the first pitch — the flip side of the Dodgers NLDS Game 3 pitching story.

The bullpen did the rest. Tanner Scott and Edwin Díaz closed it out, with Díaz stranding Ozzie Albies — who had doubled — at third base in the ninth to slam the door on Atlanta's last threat.

The homers that decided it

The tone-setting swing of Dodgers NLDS Game 3 came from Kiké Hernández, who provided the breakthrough in the fourth inning by launching a two-run homer off Sale that scored Andy Pages, who had singled ahead of him. It was Hernández's 17th career postseason home run, tying him for ninth on the all-time list, according to ClutchPoints' postseason tracking — and the veteran continues to build his reputation as one of October's most reliable performers.

Freddie Freeman followed one out later with his 18th career postseason homer, pushing the lead to 3-0. The homer was sweet redemption for Freeman, who had been robbed of a long ball earlier in the night by Mauricio Dubón's leaping catch at the wall in the third inning.

One notable subplot: manager Dave Roberts moved Shohei Ohtani down to the No. 5 spot in the lineup. Ohtani was 3-for-15 in his career against Sale and went 0-for-4 on the night — a rare quiet game for the two-way superstar, and Dodgers NLDS Game 3 showed this roster can win October games even when he is quiet.

What comes next

The Dodgers NLDS Game 3 result means Los Angeles can close out the series tonight in Game 4, with Tyler Glasnow lined up to take the mound. A win sends Los Angeles to the NLCS and keeps the three-peat dream alive; a Braves victory forces a decisive Game 5 back in Los Angeles.

For Atlanta, the equation is simple but brutal: beat the Dodgers twice in a row or go home. After watching Yamamoto carve through their lineup, the Braves need their offense to wake up fast — because Los Angeles smells blood, and October is when this roster has made a habit of finishing the job.

Zooming out, the Dodgers' October machine keeps rolling. With Dodgers NLDS Game 3 in the books, Los Angeles has now won with dominant starting pitching, timely power, and a lockdown bullpen. According to the Associated Press game recap carried by NBC Sports, that is the exact formula that has made the franchise the team to beat every fall, as reported by the outlet's postseason coverage. The Braves, meanwhile, are learning how thin the margin is in a five-game series: one quiet night from the lineup and one rough outing from an ace, and suddenly the season is on life support.

There is also the Ohtani question hanging over everything. He is the most talented player on the planet having a quiet series, and the Dodgers are still one win from the NLCS — a scary thought for the rest of the National League. If the bats fully wake up behind this pitching, the three-peat talk will stop sounding like hype and start sounding like a forecast.

First pitch tonight is what October baseball is all about: a closeout game on the road, a hostile crowd, and a team 27 outs from the next round. The Dodgers have been here before and thrived. The Braves are playing for their season. Expect everything — and expect it loud.

More from GenZ NewZ: Read our coverage of Yankees Commit 4 Errors, Fall Into 2-0 ALDS Hole vs Rays and Brewers Walk-Off Stuns Padres to Take 2-0 NLDS Lead.

Sources: NBC Sports' AP recap of Game 3 and ClutchPoints on Hernández's postseason milestone.