The Los Angeles Dodgers nearly let Game 2 against the Philadelphia Phillies slip away and manager Dave Roberts’ decision in the ninth inning almost cost them everything.
After a dominant start from Blake Snell, who tossed six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts and only one hit allowed, the Dodgers appeared to be cruising toward a comfortable 4-0 win over the Phillies.
But as has become a frustrating pattern this entire season, the bullpen made things far more stressful than necessary.
Heading into the ninth inning with a 4-1 lead, most fans expected manager Dave Roberts to hand the ball to rookie sensation Roki Sasaki to close it out.
Since returning from injury, Sasaki has been lights-out in his new bullpen role, throwing four scoreless innings of relief, including two clutch postseason saves. He quickly established himself as the Dodgers’ most reliable late-game arm, making Roberts’ decision not to start the ninth with him all the more puzzling.
Instead, the Dodgers’ skipper went in a different direction, calling on veteran Blake Treinen, who entered with a 9.64 ERA in September and plenty of lingering concerns about his command.
That decision backfired fast. Treinen surrendered three straight hits and two earned runs in just 12 pitches, forcing Roberts to scramble as the Phillies made it a one run game.
As Dodger Nation noted, Roberts explained his thought process after the game:
“I thought about it,” Roberts said of going to Sasaki. “He hasn’t gone two of three much, at all. Just figuring the run right there, Blake’s pitched some of the biggest outs, innings in the postseason for us. And felt really confident right there. And with (Alex) Vesia behind him, if needed. So I didn’t want to just, kind of, preemptively put (Sasaki) in there. Again, I felt good with who we had with a couple of our highest-leverage relievers.
Luckily, the Dodgers were able to survive the questionable decision from Roberts.
Dodgers’ Rotation Keeps Delivering Amid Bullpen Uncertainty
The Los Angeles Dodgers bullpen blew 27 games during the 2025 regular season, the most in Major League Baseball.
Per FanGraphs, the Dodgers’ bullpen has racked up 96 meltdowns this season, the most in team history. It’s a brutal stat that perfectly sums up how often the bullpen has flipped winnable games into crushing losses this season.
At the beginning of the season, the Dodgers brought in one of the best relievers in baseball in Tanner Scott who had a 1.75 ERA in 2024. This year has been a different story for Scott as has a 4.74 ERA and has 10 blown saves.
Several other relievers have struggled as well, including Blake Treinen, whose ERA has climbed to 5.41 after posting a 1.95 mark in 2024, when he was one of the Dodgers’ most reliable bullpen arms in the postseason.
Because of the recent bullpen struggles, the Dodgers have had to rely on their starters to get the job done and they have delivered:
In the month of September, their starting pitchers have been nearly untouchable, combining for a 2.09 ERA.
In his last five games, Blake Snell has thrown 32 innings, only allowing three runs and striking out 46 batters in that span.
For Yoshinobu Yamamoto, it’s been more of the same dominance. In his last five starts, he has only given up two earned runs while striking out 43.
Shohei Ohtani and Tyler Glasnow have also been rock solid for their rotation that is putting up some of the most dominant numbers we have ever seen.
Dodgers Outlook After Going Up 2-0 on Philly
We can debate Dave Roberts’ decision in Game 2 all day, but the bottom line is the Dodgers escaped Philadelphia with two wins and now lead the series 2-0 heading home.
Despite Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts going just 2-for-18 over the first two games, Los Angeles has found production elsewhere. Teoscar Hernández, Will Smith, and Kiké Hernández have all delivered in key moments to pick up the slack offensively.
Game 3 is set for Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium, where Yoshinobu Yamamoto will take the mound with a chance to send the Dodgers to the NLCS.
Still, LA cannot afford to get complacent. The Phillies have been one of baseball’s toughest teams all season and they’re more than capable of flipping the momentum in an instant.
Dodgers Survive Despite Dave Roberts’ Big Mistake in NLDS Game 2