With Mason Miller ruled out for closer duties, the San Diego Padres and Milwaukee Brewers head into Game 3 of the National League Division Series short-handed in the bullpen. Prior to the opening pitch on Tuesday evening, Miller was added to the paternity list in anticipation of the arrival of his first child with his wife.

Under baseball's collective rules, a player may step away from the roster for up to three days when placed on the paternity list. A Wednesday return is possible for Miller, with Game 4 providing that opportunity — though San Diego first needs a victory in the current contest to extend the series to a fourth game.

With Miller unavailable for late-inning duty, San Diego's ninth-inning relief options are thinner than the team would prefer. A closing role awaited him whenever San Diego's side entered the final innings with a lead intact. Peralta, a left-handed reliever, is set to join the active roster.

Throwing 40 pitches across a two-inning stretch, Miller recorded six outs in his latest appearance. On only three occasions during the current campaign has he managed to record a pair of outs in the same inning.

Trailing by two games in a best-of-five series, the team now faces the prospect of elimination with another loss. Holding a 2-0 series deficit, San Diego faces the prospect of elimination with another loss. Roster decisions on both sides reflect a strategy built around winning a condensed playoff format.

Four bases came to be occupied after a series of walks, and the inning ended when Jackson Chourio drove in the deciding run with a single. According to Stammen, King — previously listed as a potential Game 5 starter — has been moved to bullpen duty for Tuesday. A trade involving King remains a possibility, depending on what terms any interested team puts forward.

With Tuesday's play wrapped up, Los Angeles held a 2-1 series advantage over Atlanta. Ohtani, a four-time MVP, was shifted down to the fifth spot in the batting order when the Dodgers lined up against the Braves.

Ohtani's spot in the batting order was shifted toward the middle by Roberts, a tactical adjustment aimed at matching up against left-handed pitcher Chris Sale. Freddie Freeman drew the second slot in the lineup Roberts constructed, while Kyle Tucker was slotted into the eighth position.

Batting third in the order, Ohtani carries a 3-for-15 record with five strikeouts against Sale across his career. Roberts — speaking to a broadcast outlet — noted that the lineup spots ahead of Ohtani were arranged to create on-base opportunities that would feed into favorable counts by the time his turn arrived. When Roberts informed Ohtani of the lineup adjustment on Monday evening, Ohtani responded with humor.

Spreading left-handed batters across the lineup opens a path for Ohtani to encounter Sale at moments that tilt in his favour. During a September conversation, Ohtani noted that he had weighed asking Roberts to slot him into the seventh spot in the batting order — the same lineup position he had held through his final year with the Angels back in 2020.

Since returning from his injury absence, Ohtani's offensive numbers have dipped below his usual output. Ohtani's numbers at this point in the season mark a trough not seen since late September of 2020. Over the opening pair of NLDS contests, his plate appearances totaled eight, yielding a pair of base hits alongside two strikeouts. According to Roberts, Ohtani has been swinging at pitches outside the zone.

For Game 4 on Wednesday against pitcher Tyler Mahle, the manager indicated that a fifth spot in the batting order was not where Ohtani would likely be placed. Roberts explained that the lineup arrangement offered what he viewed as the strongest path to neutralising Atlanta's pitching — both Sale and whoever the Braves planned to deploy behind him.

Acuña, who carries the label of power hitter, has collected just three hits in 18 postseason at-bats without a home run. Across the first two contests of the series, he collected two hits in nine at-bats. Weiss opted to keep Acuña batting second while shifting him out of right field and into the designated hitter role.