Brewers fans in disbelief after Dodgers pitcher's complete turnaround in World Series

The 2025 National League Championship series was a disaster for the Milwaukee Brewers; that much is more than true. After one of the most memorable wins in franchise history -- a Game 5 win in the NLDS over the Chicago Cubs -- the Brewers' offense gave the team no chance to win against the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers.

However, two things can be true at once, and there's no denying that the Brewers ran into a historic pitching performance from the Dodgers' starting rotation in the NLCS. From Yoshinobu Yamamoto's nine-inning gem in Game 2 to Shohei Ohtani's 10 strikeouts (and three home runs) in Game 4, it truly was one of the most impressive performances by a starting staff in a single postseason series.

What set the tone for it all was a near-spotless performance from 2x Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell, whom the Dodgers signed to a five-year, $182 million contract last offseason. Snell was masterful in Game 1 of the NLCS; his command was incredible, and he seemingly placed every changeup exactly where he wanted. The result was an eight-inning outing in which Snell faced the minimum and struck out 10.

However, since the World Series began, Snell suddenly looks like a different pitcher, much to the frustration of Brewers fans.

After NLCS gem, Blake Snell has allowed eight earned runs in two World Series starts

Much of the baseball world gave zero chance to the Toronto Blue Jays in the World Series, with the claims that the Dodgers are "ruining baseball" suggesting that Los Angeles is a dynasty other teams couldn't overcome without the aid of a salary cap.

However, in contrast to how he took the wind out of the Brewers' sails in the NLCS, Blake Snell gave the Blue Jays hope in the World Series right out of the gates, with a brutal performance in Game 1. Snell allowed eight hits and five earned runs in five innings of work, walking three and striking out just four in the process. It was, simply put, the opposite of his performance from Game 1 of the NLCS.

Then, in a crucial Game 5 last night, Snell once again took the mound for Dave Roberts' squad. This time, Davis Schneider, who hit just 11 HR all season, led the game off with a homer to left, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. the next batter, who is on an absolute tear in the postseason, followed it up with a homer of his own, giving the Blue Jays an immediate two-run lead. Snell allowed four more earned runs in the contest before exiting in the seventh, bringing his World Series earned run total up to 10.

Toronto went on to win Game 5, sending them back home needing just one win in two games to topple the behemoth that is the Los Angeles Dodgers. Meanwhile, Brewers fans have to be watching these games and thinking to themselves, “What if this was the Blake Snell that we got?" How different things could have been if even just one of the Dodgers' four elite starting pitchers didn't have their best stuff in the NLCS, and especially if it were Snell, who would have started two games in the NLCS if the series had continued.