Brewers reveal pitching plan for NLCS Game 3 vs. Dodgers, Aaron Ashby will start

Douglas Santo

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Brewers reveal pitching plan for NLCS Game 3 vs. Dodgers, Aaron Ashby will start image

The Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers will play Game 3 of the National League Championship Series on Thursday afternoon in Los Angeles.

Game 3 will start the first of three games in Los Angeles, if the Brewers can extend the series to Game 5. The Dodgers currently lead the series 2-0, and have a chance to close out the NLCS at home.

The Dodgers will start pitcher Tyler Glasnow in Game 3, and the Brewers announced on Thursday morning that reliever Aaron Ashby will be their starter.

Brewers reveal pitching plan for Game 3

The Dodgers' pitching plan is quite simple, at least early on. Glasnow will start Game 3 and go as long as he can or until he gets into trouble. Then, the Dodgers have a near-fully rested bullpen to relieve Glasnow.

As for the Brewers, Ashby will get the start just as he did in Game 1 of the NLCS. Logistically, the Brewers will get two left-on-left matchups within the first four batters of the game this way.

However, the Dodgers did switch outfielder Teoscar Hernandez and first baseman Freddie Freeman in the batting order in Game 1 so that if Ashby went 1-2-3, the lefty, Freeman, wouldn't bat until the second inning.

After Ashby, the Brewers will likely turn to veteran starter Jose Quintana. Quintana only pitched once in the NLDS against the Chicago Cubs, but did throw three scoreless innings.

"To get this opportunity, I think it’s a privilege. Right now, we are focused to win a game, the first game," Quintana said (h/t MLB.com). "And after, we can focus on another game. But L.A. always is a big crowd. It’s huge. The fans are amazing. We’ve been here before, so we know how it is."

With heavy bullpen usage in the first two games of the series, the Brewers will likely look for Quintana to go as deep as he can once he enters the game.

This will be the third time Quintana faces the Dodgers this year. In his first outing he gave up just one run over six innings. However, in his second outing, the Dodgers scratched across four runs across six innings.

"I’ve been watching videos, the whole lineup … Shohei, Freddie, all the lefties are really, really tough," Quintana said (h/t MLB.com). "They are [some] of the best hitters in baseball. It’s always a challenge."

However, the Brewers do have rookie pitcher Jacob Misiorowski ready to piggy-back Quintana if needed.

"Postseason is completely different," Quintana said (h/t MLB.com). "You don’t have limits. You always face batter-by-batter, hitter-by-hitter and just focus to keep it going, because for all pitchers it can be short."

If the Brewers can get a deep outing by Quintana, they could save Misiorowski for Game 4. But, they'll worry about that when they get there.

One other note on Ashby starting the game, Quintana allowed a bases loaded walk and a home run to Shohei Ohtani earlier this year. So, Ashby starting the game gives Ohtani one less plate appearance against Quintana.

Regardless of the Brewers' pitching performance, the offense needs to wake up if the Brewers expect to get back in the NLCS on Thursday afternoon.

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Douglas Santo

Douglas Santo is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. As a senior at Arizona State University, he will complete his B.A. in sports journalism with a minor in business in December 2025. Before his time with Sporting News, Douglas covered the NFL and MLB for Athlon Sports and contributed as a digital reporter for Arizona PBS/Cronkite News. He is also the head of Sun Devil Daily, managing all content produced about Arizona State Sports.