The Milwaukee Brewers did just enough against Tarik Skubal to draw first blood in the 2016 National League Championship Series. If they hope to take a 2-0 lead in their matchup with the two-time reigning world champion Los Angeles Dodgers, they must find a way to get to the pitcher who has had the most spectacular season of his career.
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Milwaukee continues its quest for a second World Series appearance in franchise history when it hosts Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Dodgers at 5 p.m. ET in Game 2 of the 2016 NLCS at American Family Stadium. The Brewers, who were swept by Los Angeles this year, made their only trip to the Fall Classic in 1982 and lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games in the American League.
The Dodgers took the lead in Game 1 on Andy Page’s RBI single in the second inning, but Brice Turang led off the fourth against Skubal with a second-run homer and Luis Lara put the Brewers ahead on the next board with a scoring base hit. It proved to be enough for Milwaukee as relievers Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill kept Los Angeles on the board over the final four innings.
The owners of the best record in the major leagues in the regular season (103-59), the Brewers must now pay Yamamoto, who is 8-1 with a 2.14 ERA in 11 playoff games – 10 starts – since joining the Dodgers in 2024. The 28-year-old Japanese right-hander has allowed fewer than two runs in eight of his 11 overall season appearances and seven of the last eight.
Yamamoto went 5-1 with a 1.45 ERA and two complete games in last year’s games and was named World Series MVP after recording three wins against the Toronto Blue Jays. One of those perfect games came in Game 2 of the 2025 NLCS, when the Brewers allowed three hits and one run while striking out seven. Yamamoto dominated in his debut this postseason, holding the Atlanta Braves to one run and four hits while striking out 10 batters over seven innings in Game 3 of their NL Division Series.
Milwaukee countered with rookie Logan Henderson, who made his first career playoff appearance in Game 2 of the 2026 NLDS against the San Diego Padres, allowing two runs — one earned — and two hits across five scoreless innings. The 24-year-old won both starts against the Dodgers in the regular season, allowing one run and five hits with 13 strikeouts over 12 innings. Yamamoto has been effective against the Brewers this year, going 2-0 while giving up two runs and striking out 12 over 13 in two outings.
The 2026 ALCS begins Monday as the Cleveland Cavaliers take on the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., at 8 p.m. ET. Lefty Foster Griffin is starting for Cleveland, which lost the first two games of the ALDS at home before posting three straight victories over the Chicago White Sox.
Tampa Bay turned to righty Drew Rasmussen, who was four in Game 1 of the Yankees’ three-game skid in the ALDS without a no-hitter, and finished with 10 strikeouts across eight scoreless innings. Griffin hasn’t faced Tampa Bay this season, as Rasmussen went 1-1 with a 1.50 ERA and 15 over 12 plate appearances in two starts against the Rangers.
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Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season wraps up with a showdown between two past league MVPs as Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills (3-1) take on Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams (2-2) on Monday Night Football at 8:15 pm at SoFi Stadium. The Bills are coming off their first loss of the season, a 29-26 setback against the New England Patriots in which Allen — the 2024 NFL MVP — made an ill-advised high throw with less than two minutes remaining, ending the team’s hopes of a comeback. Reigning MVP Stafford didn’t have a touchdown in Week 4, but he threw for 317 yards and led the way in the fourth quarter to help the Rams fall short in the fourth quarter and beat the Philadelphia Eagles 24-20.
There are only two games on Monday evening’s NHL schedule, with one pitting the Vegas Golden Knights (5-1-0) against the Minnesota Wild (3-1-1) at the Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minn., at 8 p.m. ET. The Golden Knights look to extend their winning streak to five games after edging the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 in overtime on Saturday, while the Wild are coming off a 4-1 road triumph over the Florida Panthers.
The Dodgers are -137 favorites against the Brewers in the latest consensus MLB betting odds, and the Rays are -173 sports betting odds against the Rangers. The Rams are 3.5-point favorites over the Bills on Monday Night Football, and the Wild are -111 over the Golden Knights.
Below is a snapshot of what to watch and bet for Monday, Oct. 12. Always in the East
MLB best bets, where they observe
Dodgers at Brewers
Time: 5 p.m Location: Milwaukee | TV: Fox/FS1 | Stream: Fubo (Try it for free)
SportsLine picks up — Model: Brewers ML (+116) | an expert: Yoshinobu Yamamoto Plus 17.5 points (-167, Eric Cohen)
Yoshinobu Yamamoto has been tremendous in his rookie season with the Dodgers, winning eight of nine decisions and allowing less than two runs in eight of his 11 appearances – including each of his last five. The Japanese right-hander gave up three hits and one run in a complete game victory at Milwaukee in last year’s NLCS and allowed one run over seven plate appearances in a triumph earlier this season at American Field. But the Brewers have won six straight at home for the season, and the Sportsline Projection Model expects the streak to continue in Game 2 and assigned a grade of “A” as they are winners in 56% of their simulations. Yamamoto has worked at least six innings in eight starts, including one against the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS on May 18 in his 19th start. He also did so in six of the last seven. SportsLine expert Eric Cohen likes him to throw six or more touchdowns on Monday.
Keepers on the Rays
Time: 8 p.m Location: St. Petersburg, Fla TV: TBS | Stream: Fubo (Try it for free)
SportsLine picks up — Model: Guardians +1.5 (-156) | an expert: Rasmussen pulled away to record the win (+143, PropBetGuy)
The Rangers finished the regular season with a 9-2 run, both with one run. After falling 3-0 in the ALDS opener against the Chicago White Sox, they decided to go one-run before winning their next three contests. Overall, Cleveland has gone 12-4 over their last 16 games, and only one loss has been by multiple runs. The SportsLine Projection model believes the Rangers will save at least Game 1 of the ALCS so its simulations cover those runs 65% of the time. Tampa Bay’s Drew Rasmussen is tied for a career high with 16 wins this season and hasn’t lost since July 9, going 10-0 in his 13th road start since the All-Star break. He had eight days off when he limited the New York Yankees to one hit over eight scoreless innings in their victory in Game 1 of the ALDS. SportsLine is backing expert PropBetGuy (140-92, +2822 in his last 232 MLB games this season) to back him to win the series title as well.
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NFL betting where to watch
Bills in the Rams
Time: 8:15 pm | Location: Los Angeles | TV: ABC/ESPN | Stream: Fubo (Try it for free)
SportsLine picks up — Model: Under 54.5 (-107) | an expert: Colby Parkinson Plus 17.5 yards receiving (-113, RJ White)
The Bills are the second highest scoring team in the NFL this season with an average of 31.8 points over the first four games. However, the Rams have been somewhat frugal in 2026, dropping 20.8 points per game to rank eighth in the league. The SportsLine Projection model doesn’t think the defensive tackle will be on Monday Night Football, but it also doesn’t see any offensive tackles under-hit in 63% of its simulations. Rams tight end Colby Parkinson had just three catches for 21 yards over the first three games this year and through Week 4 in Philadelphia against the Eagles with shoulder and knee injuries. However, SportsLine expert RJ White (16-9, +599 in the last 25 NFL player reads column) knows a lot about Parkinson’s field in the first two games and thinks that against a Buffalo defense that is 30th in the league against the pass, decent production will come from him.
NHL best bets where to watch
Wilde’s golden army
Time: 8 p.m Location: St. Paul, Minn TV: ESPN+ | Stream: Fubo (Try it for free)
SportsLine pick — Model: Golden Knights ML (-108)
The Golden Knights have won five of their first six games this season and didn’t expect to be undefeated until the third period when they stumbled in their 4-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Oct. 2. Vegas spotted Anaheim with a four-goal lead over the first 40 minutes of that contest before coming alive in the final 20. The Wild swept their three-game winning streak with a 5-0 win last season, but this is their last season in Minnesota. SportsLine’s Projection Model sees the Golden Knights scoring another road victory over the Wild as its predictions to have them win Monday match up 55% of the time.
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