Brewers Beat Padres 3-1, Reach NLCS vs Dodgers

The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the San Diego Padres 3-1 on Wednesday night at Petco Park, winning the best-of-five National League Division Series in four games. The victory sends Milwaukee to the National League Championship Series for the second consecutive season, where they will face the Los Angeles Dodgers in a rematch of the 2025 NLCS.

Garrett Mitchell provided the decisive offense and defense. He tripled and scored the go-ahead run in the fifth inning, then robbed Manny Machado of a tying two-run home run with a leaping catch at the right-center wall in the eighth inning. Mitchell also drove in Sal Frelick for the Brewers' first run.

“I think we have a different type of confidence and belief in ourselves together as a team. It's just a quiet, subtle confidence. It's not showboaty. It's just that everyone believes.”

The win snapped Milwaukee's 12-game postseason road losing streak dating back to 2018. Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a solo home run for the Padres, who fell short of their fourth NLCS appearance despite testing the majors' best regular-season team across four close games decided by a combined five runs.

The Brewers will open the NLCS on Sunday against a Dodgers team that swept them in four games last October. Milwaukee president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said the roster believes it can compete regardless of the payroll disparity; Los Angeles carried a $323.6 million opening-day payroll compared to Milwaukee's $125.9 million.