Dodgers-Braves NLDS opener played in 100-degree heat at Dodger Stadium

Game 1 of the NLDS began at 100 degrees, the second-warmest postseason game at Dodger Stadium, with cooler conditions expected for Sunday's Game 2.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves opened their National League Division Series on Saturday at Dodger Stadium, where the thermometer read 100 degrees when play began. Official scorer Ed Munson logged that figure at game time, even though the board in left field posted 103. By either number, it ranked as the second-warmest postseason contest the ballpark has hosted, and team personnel handed water to spectators as they arrived.

Brent Suter, an Atlanta reliever who holds a Harvard degree in environmental science and public policy, called the conditions out of the ordinary, noting that 100-degree October days in Los Angeles are not the norm and connecting the pattern to a Super El Niño. He added that both rosters would be tested to stay hydrated, with position players carrying the heaviest load.

Tarik Skubal, given the Game 1 start for Los Angeles, said Friday that he expected a scorching outing and hoped everyone would keep up their fluid intake, while also sounding eager to pitch. Asked whether all that water might mean extra restroom trips during the game, he reasoned that sweat would handle most of it.

Dave Roberts has lived through the only hotter October game in the park: Game 1 of the 2017 World Series, which opened at 103 degrees and finished as a 3-1 Dodgers win. Speaking Saturday, the manager stressed hydration and keeping the pitcher in mind, pointed out that both clubs faced identical conditions, and said he would keep tabs on catcher Will Smith while expecting him to be fine.

Shohei Ohtani told reporters Friday that the forecast would not change his own preparation, saying through interpreter Will Ireton that pitchers would feel the heat most and passing along his best wishes to Skubal. Ohtani also appeared in the hottest game in Dodgers history, from the opposing side. On July 6, 2018 in Anaheim, with first pitch at 108 degrees, the Dodgers fell 3-2 on a ninth-inning walk-off; Ohtani, then a rookie, drew a two-out walk from Kenley Jansen and came around to score the tying run.

Eight years ago in Anaheim, the Dodgers skipped on-field batting practice before that game, with Roberts telling reporters that resting in air conditioning improved their odds of winning, per Ethan Bauer of the Los Angeles Times. On Saturday the club did hit on the field, wrapping up by roughly 10:30 a.m., when the temperature sat at a comparatively mild 94.

Triple-digit openers remain rare for the franchise: 29 regular-season games in team history have begun in 100-degree-plus heat, the most recent on September 8, 2024 against the Cleveland Guardians. That 4-0 shutout win came in 103-degree conditions at Dodger Stadium, with Jack Flaherty lasting into the eighth inning and home runs from Ohtani and Max Muncy.

Only one other Dodgers game this season began at 95 degrees or above: an August 23 home meeting with the Pittsburgh Pirates, a 1 p.m. Sunday start played in 97-degree weather. Los Angeles won 4-0 as Blake Snell threw six scoreless innings, and Snell will draw the Game 2 assignment on Sunday evening. That game carries a 5 p.m. first pitch, with forecasts pointing to roughly 90 degrees or lower, and Snell said Saturday he expected to be fine because the sun would no longer sit overhead the way it does for early-afternoon starts.

Game 2 is set for Sunday, October 4, when the Braves visit the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 8:00 PM EDT, with coverage on FS1.