The Dodgers show no panic and dominate the Padres to force a decisive NLDS Game 5

In the hours before Game 4 of the National League Division Series on Wednesday night at Petco Park, there was a quiet but palpable conviction in the Dodgers’ dugout that belied the seemingly dire state in which they found themselves.

Sure, the team was facing its third straight exit from the NLDS, losing two games to one to the San Diego Padres.

And no, they weren’t at full strength, playing without injured veterans Freddie Freeman and Miguel Rojas on the same day they opted for a bullpen game from their struggling pitching staff.

But unlike the last October couples, they showed no panic. They felt no fear.

Read more: Plaschke: Dodger up! Desperate Dodgers drop Padres and return to Dodger Stadium for Game 5

“We have the players and the people who can do it,” outfielder Teoscar Hernández said in his pregame press conference. “And I trust every single man in this clubhouse.”

At the end of the night, that optimism turned into postgame celebration, and the Dodgers saved their season with a resounding 8-0 win.

Unlike last year, when they lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks’ pitchers at the end of the season, their lineup looked locked in, scoring three runs in the first two innings against Padres starter Dylan Cease, who was pitching for the first time in his career on three days’ rest , before adding two more in the third inning for an early 5-0 lead.

Unlike in 2022, when the Dodgers blew a late lead in a Game 4 exit in this building, their bullpen didn’t collapse down the stretch, either, as eight different pitchers pitched in the Dodgers’ first postseason shutout since the wild-card round merged in 2020.

With the best-of-five series tied 2-2, Game 5 is scheduled for Friday night at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers’ road to a win in Game 4 began after the Padres’ win in Game 3. In his postgame press conference on Tuesday night, Padres manager Mike Shildt announced that Cease, who started Game 1 of the series, put the ball in play 4 would get in a three day break.

For some on the Dodgers, that was good news. Not only because they had beaten Cease by five runs in less than four innings in their Game 1 win, but also because for the first time in three postseasons they got the chance to see the same starting pitcher twice in a series.

“I think as a hitter you’re just going to be ready in your zone,” Roberts said before the game about his lineup’s approach to hitting Cease a second time. “And if there is a mistake, be prepared to make it.”

From the first inning, Roberts’ hitters were.

Just like in Game 3, Mookie Betts set the tone with a home run in the first inning, scoring with a full-pitch fastball in the middle of the zone. And instead of wasting the initial momentum like they did on Tuesday, the Dodgers just kept going from there.

Quality second-inning at-bats from Gavin Lux (a walk) and Kiké Hernández (a two-strike single) led to RBI singles from Shohei Ohtani (who had just one in his last 12 at that point) and Betts and made it it’s 3-0.

Then, with Cease out of the game, the Dodgers added two more in the third when Will Smith ended his streak of nine hitless at-bats and started the series with a two-run home run straight up the middle.

The 5-0 lead was more than enough breathing room for the Dodgers’ lockdown bullpen.

Ryan Brasier opened the game with four straight outs. Anthony Banda took over from there by stranding two baserunners in the second.

Roberts became aggressive in the third, closing in on Michael Kopech despite already leading by five runs.

Left-hander Alex Vesia had the most outs of anyone, pitching 1⅔ innings and stranding two more runners in the fifth inning.

The mixing and matching continued from there, with Evan Phillips, Daniel Hudson, Blake Treinen and Landon Knack getting the game over the finish line.

While it wasn’t an ideal situation for a club that spent nearly $500 million on starting pitching in the offseason, it worked. Luis Arraez, Jurickson Profar and Fernando Tatis Jr. each had just one goal. Manny Machado went 0-fer with two strikeouts against four different pitchers.

Wednesday was not without adversity for the Dodgers.

Read more: Shaikin: How “Beat LA” entered the Dodgers-Padres rivalry lexicon

As expected, Rojas was unable to play due to his adductor injury. Freeman was initially in the starting lineup, but suffered a graze wound after spraining his right ankle less than two hours before the game.

In their absence, Ohtani (one hit, two walks, one RBI), Betts (two hits and two RBIs) and Teoscar Hernández (two hits) delivered star-caliber performances — even accounting for a crazy play in the fifth inning that resulted in a possible RBI double von Hernández hit the arm of third base umpire Mark Ripperger, resulting in Ohtani being ejected at home plate.

Meanwhile, the bottom of the batting order was equally impressive.

Kiké Hernández capitalized on his first start of the series with two hits (while also switching between third base and center field depending on whether a flyball or groundball pitcher was on the mound), making a strong case for to remain in the lineup for Game 5. Lux continued his strong streak with an infield single in the sixth and an insuring two-run home run in the seventh. Even Tommy Edman, who didn’t have a hit, contributed with a sacrifice bunt that scored a run.

It was everything the Dodgers expected going into the game; and everything they failed to accomplish in the last two years when they faced elimination.

Instead of allowing another mid-series wobble to lead to a complete collapse in October, they fought back and forced a winner-take-all showdown at home in Chavez Ravine.

For more Dodgers news, subscribe to Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the beginning of each series.

This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.