When is Padres vs. Dodgers NLDS Game 4? Date, Time and Lineups

SAN DIEGO — For decades, the Padres craved the chance of slaying the “dragon up the freeway,” as late owner Peter Seidler would say. With one more win, they would accomplish just that for the second time in three years.

After spending nearly two days exchanging words, the two National League West rivals finally got a chance to settle their differences on the field on Tuesday in a pivotal Game 3. In the end, it was the Padres who pushed themselves to the verge of advancing to the NLCS with a 6-5 win over the Dodgers at Petco Park.

“It’s good to get two,” said Padres manager Mike Shildt. “But it doesn’t matter until we get three.”

As frustrating as the past two games have been for the Dodgers, they’ll still have a chance to accomplish what they came to San Diego for: Find a way to force the series back for a win-or-go-home at Dodger Stadium on Friday.

If they don’t, the Dodgers will be looking at a third consecutive NLDS exit, which would be another failure for the organization after spending over $1 billion in contracts this winter.

“We’re confident that we can come back and win these two games,” said Dodgers shortstop Miguel Rojas. “We’ve done it throughout the whole season. We all know that we have the team to do it. We just need to wash it off and just be ready to go tomorrow.

Here’s everything you need to know about Game 4:

When is the game and how can I watch it?
Game 4 of the best-of-five series is Wednesday at 6:08 p.m. PT at Petco Park and will air on FS1.

All games are available in the U.S. on MLB.TV (authentication to a participating Pay TV provider is required). Live games are also available in select countries outside the U.S. For full details, click here.

Who are the starting pitchers?
Dodgers: TBD
The Dodgers will be going with a bullpen game as they face elimination, but manager Dave Roberts wasn’t ready to name an opener following the Game 3 loss. Ryan Brasier could be an option, though that’s purely speculation.

Padres: Dylan Cease (14-11, 3.47 ERA)
For the first time in his career, Cease will be pitching on short rest, after he started Game 1 of the series in Los Angeles on Saturday night. He allowed five runs over 3 1/3 innings, including three on a Shohei Ohtani home run. But Cease only threw 82 pitches and hadn’t pitched in nine days prior to that start. After Tuesday’s Game 3, Cease said: “I want to just treat it like it’s a normal start; I feel good.”

What are the starting lineups?
Dodgers: Rojas, who exited the game in the third inning after aggravating his left adductor muscle, says he’s hopeful to be in the Game 4 lineup, but that appears to be unlikely at this point. If Rojas can’t play, the Dodgers will likely lean on Tommy Edman at shortstop. Kiké Hernández or Andy Pages would then fill in at center field.

Padres: With the Dodgers opting for a bullpen game, it’ll be interesting to see how the Padres play their Donovan Solano/David Peralta platoon. Peralta has authored key hits in each of the last two victories. But the Padres might want to keep his bat on the bench for a matchup. Doing so would prevent lefties from being stacked three times in four spots — which is an obvious lane for a lefty reliever.

How will the bullpens line up after each team’s starter?
Dodgers: The Dodgers have their high-leverage arms all rested for Game 4 and they’ll deploy all of them as they face elimination. Evan Phillips, Michael Kopech, Alex Vesia and Blake Treinen will be called to pitch multiple innings if needed. “All hands on deck” is how Roberts described it. If the Dodgers need length, they can turn to Ben Casparius or Landon Knack.

Padres: What’s clear is that Cease will be starting on short rest for the first time in his career. What’s not clear how long his leash might be. Cease has never pitched on three days’ rest and the history of pitchers doing so in the postseason is dicey. So the Padres will be ready with Bryan Hoeing and Adrian Morejon — and potentially even starter Martín Pérez for length. In the late innings, Jeremiah Estrada, Jason Adam, Tanner Scott and Robert Suarez all pitched in Game 3. But none reached the 20-pitch mark. All four should be available.

Any injuries of note?
Dodgers: Rojas could be forced to miss Game 4 after exiting Game 3 early. Freddie Freeman also continues to battle through a badly sprained right ankle, but with the Dodgers facing elimination, it would take a lot of pain for the star first baseman to not be in the starting lineup.

Padres: It would be Joe Musgrove starting this game, if not for the UCL tear he sustained while starting Game 2 of the NL Wild Card Series against Atlanta. Meanwhile, Bogaerts started Game 3 of the NLDS and appears to be fine after exiting Game 2 in the eighth inning because of hamstring cramps.

Who is hot and who is not?
Dodgers: Teoscar Hernández has been a big piece for the Dodgers and he’s showing up again on the big stage. Hernández was responsible for the game-winning two-run hit in Game 1 and hit a grand slam in Game 3 that pulled the Dodgers within striking distance.

On the other hand, the Dodgers are still waiting for Will Smith to make an impact at the plate in this series. The All-Star catcher went 0-for-4 in Game 3 and is now hitless in eight at-bats this series.

Padres: No one is hotter than Fernando Tatis Jr., who is hitting .556 this postseason and has already tied a Padres single-postseason record with four home runs (including two in this series). Meanwhile, Jurickson Profar is 4-for-18 in the playoffs without an extra-base hit, after finishing the regular season 3-for-20.