The NLCS and ALCS have both gotten off to thrilling starts. Here’s everything you need to know to prepare yourself for tonight’s Game 2 in Milwaukee and tomorrow night’s Game 3 in Seattle, as the Mariners return to T-Mobile Park, looking to capitalize on their amazing home-field advantage.
Dodgers @ Brewers
Game 2 in Milwaukee sets up as a prime pitching matchup, with Milwaukee’s SP Freddy Peralta taking Dodgers SP, Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Both of these stars had lackluster starts in their last outings, with Peralta giving up a 3-run bomb in the first inning of Milwaukee’s eventual Game 4 loss, and the Phillies jumping on Yamamoto for 6 hits and 3 earned runs. It will be exciting to watch these two rebound as both have dazzling strikeout stuff and an ability to generate whiffs at an extremely high rate. If Peralta can avoid getting into trouble early, he has the tools to take over an entire game. For Yamamoto, it’s somewhat of the opposite because tends to start hot, but sometimes loses control in the later innings.
Ohtani, albeit with a small sample size, has had some success against Peralta in just 9 at-bats, hitting two homers against him. However, he struggled immensely during the NLDS series. Whether that was just the Phillies pitching him well or his own internal struggles remains to be seen. Contrastingly, the hottest hitter in the Dodgers lineup by far, Mookie Betts, has not fared well against Peralta, with a matchup average of just .083 in his career. Expect a low-scoring, hard-fought game with these two on the mound, with neither of them willing to give an inch.
Blue Jays @ Mariners
In Game 3, Seattle has a chance to set the tone at home with their eyes set on the World Series. The Mariners have been great at home this season, going 51-30 during the 2025 regular season. On the mound, George Kirby will take the ball for Seattle against Shane Bieber for Toronto. Kirby’s best attribute is his control as he led MLB in walk rate in the 2024–25 seasons. Bieber, on the other hand, carries a past Cy Young pedigree and has lived through big moments, but his recent starts have not been great. He was run out of his Game 3 start in New York, unable to make it through 3 innings.
Onto Cal Raleigh. Man, has that guy been an amazing catcher and leader throughout these playoffs. Raleigh has been everything the Mariners have needed, calling amazing games from behind the plate and coming up with timely hits and home runs. For Seattle, it’s been somewhat of a top-heavy lineup, where Julio Rodriguez and Raleigh have led the charge. For the Blue Jays, it’s been more of a pass-the-baton approach with run support coming top to bottom.
Both series are balanced, and these next two games could swing the October landscape in opposite directions. In Milwaukee, it’s all about which ace finds his rhythm first. In Seattle, the atmosphere at T-Mobile Park should be electric, and if Raleigh and Julio can stay hot and the pitching continues to set the tone, the Mariners have a real chance to put Toronto on the ropes. As the League Championship Series continues, expect drama, tight margins, and moments that define careers. Two games, two cities, and everything still to play for. October baseball at its absolute finest.