For a World Series that was supposed to feature an epic battle between sluggers Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, guys like Mark Leiter Jr., Luke Weaver, Alex Vesia and Anthony Banda sure got a lot of face time.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were left wondering why they can’t win in October after they were swept out of the NL Division Series.

Brusdar Graterol never gave up hope that his mother would be able to see him pitch in person in the major leagues.

Michael Busch doubled in the go-ahead in the fourth inning, Mookie Betts homered and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Houston Astros 3-2 in an acrimonious game.

Manny Machado homered early and added an RBI double off Clayton Kershaw, and Jurickson Profar singled home the go-ahead run in the sixth inning as the San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3 to even their NL Division Series at a game apiece.

Edwin Díaz struck out Gavin Lux on a 102.8 mph fastball to escape a jam in the eighth inning, and the New York Mets beat the major league-best Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3.

Cody Bellinger hit two homers, Tyler Anderson allowed two hits over seven innings and the Los Angeles Dodgers completed a statement-making sweep of the revamped San Diego Padres with a 4-0 victory.

The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres 8-3 for their seventh consecutive victory.

Julio Urias won his eighth consecutive decision and Miguel Vargas drove in two runs in his major league debut as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants 3-0.

Juan Soto’s RBI triple capped a four-run fifth inning and the lowly Washington Nationals defeated the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers 4-1.

Mookie Betts broke an eighth-inning tie with a three-run homer and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants 9-6 after blowing a five-run lead in the seventh.

Tony Gonsolin pitched seven strong innings for his 11th victory in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 5-3 win over the Chicago Cubs.

Trea Turner had three hits, including a home run, Freddie Freeman reached base three times in his emotional return to Atlanta and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Braves 4-1.

Chris Taylor hit three homers and drove in six runs to help the Los Angeles Dodgers beat Atlanta 11-2, cutting the Braves' lead to 3-2 in the best-of-seven NL Championship Series.

Mookie Betts homered and drove in three runs, Will Smith also went deep and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the San Francisco Giants 7-2 to force a decisive Game 5 in their NL Division Series.

Corey Seager hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the eighth inning, when the Los Angeles Dodgers went deep four times to rally past the San Diego Padres 11-9.

Justin Turner and AJ Pollock singled home the tying and go-ahead runs through the same infield hole in the eighth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied past the Atlanta Braves 4-3 to complete a three-game sweep.

Chris Taylor broke an eighth-inning tie with a two-run double and the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied for a 5-3 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

Lance McCullers Jr. threw 6 2/3 shutout innings and the Houston Astros withstood the raucous, heckling fans at Dodger Stadium to blank Los Angeles 3-0.

Chris Taylor drove in three runs with a tiebreaking double that capped a 14-pitch at-bat in the sixth inning, rallying the Los Angeles Dodgers past the St. Louis Cardinals 9-4 to snap a three-game skid.

Clayton Kershaw lasted one inning in the shortest start of his stellar career in the opener, Trevor Bauer didn’t get through the fifth in the nightcap, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-3 to sweep a split doubleheader.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Dustin May will have Tommy John surgery next week, sidelining one of baseball’s top young pitchers for the rest of the season.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Dustin May has been put on the 10-day injured list with an arm ailment, the latest setback for the pitching staff of the World Series champions.

Eric Hosmer delivered the tying and go-ahead RBIs in the seventh and eighth innings, helping the San Diego Padres beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-2 to avoid a sweep in the first series of the year between the NL West rivals.

(AP Photo/Derrick Tuskan)HOUSTON – Catcher Jason Castro has agreed to a $7 million, two-year contract with the Houston Astros, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Thursday because the deal had not been announced. Castro played for both the Angels and the Padres last season where he appeared in 27 games and hit .188 with two homers and nine RBIs. He spent the previous three seasons with the Twins where he played 208 games and hit .229. Castro had his best years with the Astros where he 617 games and was named to the All-Star game in 2013.

(AP Photo/Eric Gay)ARLINGTON, Texas – Walker Buehler pitched in the World Series like the Los Angeles Dodgers' aces of old. Buehler struck out 10 over six innings in a pulsating performance, and Los Angeles beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-2 on Friday night for a 2-1 World Series lead. He became just the second player to drive in runs with both a homer and a sacrifice bunt in the same Series game. Steely-eyed like Hershiser, who won MVP honors of the 1988 Series, Buehler has supplanted Kershaw as the Dodgers’ ace. He has allowed one run in 13 Series innings that include seven scoreless in Game 3 against Boston two years ago.

(AP Photo/Eric Gay)ARLINGTON, Texas – More was not merrier for Los Angeles Dodgers pitchers. By the end of the Dodgers’ 6-4 defeat Wednesday night, which evened the Series at one game apiece, it appeared the Dodgers are down to essentially a two-man rotation of Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw. Alex Wood (six outs) and Jake McGee (three) finished with shutout relief, but the damage yielded by the earlier parade of pitchers was too much to overcome. Gonsolin has a 9.82 postseason ERA, allowing eight runs in 7 1/3 innings, and May a 5.00 ERA, giving up five runs in nine innings. It remains to be seen whether this merry-go-round will be a fun ride for Roberts and the Dodgers.

A look at what's happening around the majors Wednesday:___BULLPEN SAVEDThe Dodgers were so good in Game 1 of the World Series, they helped themselves for Game 2. Top relievers Kenley Jansen, Blake Treinen and Brusdar Graterol should all be fresh for a bullpen game against Tampa Bay after they weren't needed in an 8-3 win Tuesday. Jansen has more blown saves (three) than conversions (two) in two previous World Series and also struggled this fall, but he seemed to have himself righted by the end of the NLCS. Manager Kevin Cash — uncharacteristically slow to pull starter Tyler Glasnow in Game 1 — also has fresh arms in the bullpen. After separating his troubled right shoulder while bumping forearms celebrating his go-ahead homer in NLCS Game 7, the Dodgers slugger touched feet with teammates after going deep in the World Series opener Tuesday.

The Braves took a 3-1 lead in the NL Championship Series, bouncing back from getting pounded 15-3 the previous night. Ozuna went even deeper in the seventh, a 434-foot shot to straight away center. Wilson became the third-youngest pitcher to allow one or no hits over at least six innings in a postseason game. He had one of the Dodgers’ postseason record five on Wednesday night. GIVING ’EM UPKershaw has now allowed 27 postseason homers, second most in history behind Andy Pettitte (31).

“It’s going to take a while to wind down from that one,” said Bellinger, the 2019 NL MVP. “Certainly turned out being the difference in the game,” Padres rookie manager Jayce Tingler said. Leading off the next inning, Bellinger went after a low pitch and drove it 433 feet to center to make it 4-1. When the Dodgers went to bat after Bellinger's catch, Justin Turner had a sacrifice fly and Muncy his second RBI single to make it 6-3. I’ll keep thinking through it.”HOMER NOTESThe Padres became the first team in 20 games this postseason to lose when outhomering their opponent.

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Dylan Floro works against the Colorado Rockies during the sixth inning of a baseball game Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020, in Denver. While Clevinger was among the 15 pitchers on the Padres roster released Tuesday, fellow starter Dinelson Lamet was again left off because of injury. The Dodgers added a pitcher to their roster for the NLDS, where they will have 14 pitchers and 14 position players after carrying only 13 pitchers for the first round series against Milwaukee. Right-handed reliever Dylan Floro (3-0, 2.59 ERA) was the pitcher added for the longer NLDS. The Padres last week became the first team to use eight or more pitchers in three consecutive playoff games.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw, left, high-fives Justin Turner after the team's 3-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 2 of a National League wild-card baseball series Thursday, Oct. 1, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)LOS ANGELES – Beat up in the postseason over the years, Clayton Kershaw orchestrated one of his best performances against the weakened Milwaukee Brewers. Kershaw struck out 13 while delivering eight innings of three-hit ball, Mookie Betts hit a two-out, two-run double in the fifth, and the Los Angeles Dodgers won 3-0 to sweep their NL wild-card series on Thursday night. Only two of the Dodgers' nine hitters didn't strike out during that span; five of the Brewers didn't. That's where the NL Division Series and NL Championship Series will be contested, as well as the first neutral site World Series.

Los Angeles Dodgers' Mookie Betts, right, gets congratulations from Enrique Hernandez, after Betts hits a two-run home run against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Los Angeles, Sunday, Sept. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Alex Gallardo)LOS ANGELES – Mookie Betts’ two-run homer highlighted a four-run fifth inning, Chris Taylor added a three-run shot, and the Dodgers defeated Houston 8-1 on Sunday night with angry Los Angeles fans letting the Astros have it again. For the second straight day, the Astros were bombarded with messages towed by planes over Dodger Stadium. Go Dodgers” and “Hey Astros Try Stealing This Sign!” read others. Dodgers: Begin a three-game series at San Diego on Monday in a showdown between the NL West's top teams.

MINNEAPOLIS Minnesota Twins right-hander Kenta Maeda has a no-hitter through seven innings against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night, setting the club record with eight consecutive strikeouts in the process. Maeda fanned Ben Gamel to finish the fifth for his eighth straight punchout, passing Jim Merritt (1966) and Francisco Liriano (2010), who both fanned seven batters in a row for the Twins. The major league record is 10 consecutive strikeouts, set by Tom Seaver for the New York Mets in 1970. The 32-year-old got two more groundouts by the Brewers to cruise through the inning and retired his 20th straight batter, Justin Smoak, with a strikeout to finish the seventh. Maeda is in his first season with Minnesota, which acquired him this winter from the Los Angeles Dodgers for pitching prospect Brusdar Graterol.

Minnesota Twins pitcher Kenta Maeda of Japan throws against the Milwaukee Brewers in the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)MINNEAPOLIS Kenta Maeda lost a no-hitter in the ninth inning for the Minnesota Twins, who blew a three-run lead but came back to beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 in 12 innings. Maeda's no-hit bid was ended by Eric Sogard's soft single that soared just over the glove of a leaping Polanco at shortstop. Maeda retired 21 straight batters in a stretch from the first to the eighth innings and finished with 12 strikeouts. Opponents are 0 for 22 against Hader this season, with four walks and one hit by pitch 12 strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings.

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Joe Kelly (17) looks back at Houston Astros' Carlos Correa (1) after the sixth inning of a baseball game Tuesday, July 28, 2020, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)HOUSTON The Houston Astros are trying to put their sign-stealing scandal behind them. The fracas occurred after Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly threw high-and-tight pitches to Astros stars Alex Bregman and Carlos Correa in the sixth inning. There were two outs in the inning when Kelly threw an errant breaking ball over Correas head. UP NEXTRight-hander Dustin May (0-0, 2.08 ERA) will start for the Dodgers when the series wraps up on Wednesday night.

(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)CHICAGO Leury Garca homered from both sides of the plate, helping Dallas Keuchel and the Chicago White Sox pound the Minnesota Twins 10-3 on Saturday. Keuchel allowed two runs in 5 1/3 innings in his White Sox debut after agreeing to a $55.5 million, three-year contract in December. McCann singled in Adam Engel before Garca belted a three-run drive off left-hander Devin Smeltzer in the seventh, making it 10-3 White Sox. It also was the 11th time a White Sox player had connected from both sides of the plate in a single game. WORTH NOTINGThe White Sox announced right-hander Carson Fulmer had been claimed off waivers by Detroit.