Picture this: the Los Angeles Dodgers have a payroll almost bumping up to $400 million, according to Spotrac. The front office made moves in the offseason to put Los Angeles in a great spot to get a third straight World Series championship.

But the postseason proved to be their Achilles heel in 2026, marked by a missing offense and some questionable pitching.

With the Milwaukee Brewers earning a sweep of the Dodgers on Thursday night in the National League Championship Series, it will be time for the Los Angeles front office to do some serious soul searching.

Sure, Shohei Ohtani smashed a three-run home run in the second inning to put the Dodgers up 4-0 early. Everything looked set up for a triumphant Los Angeles win and moving things along to a Game 5 on Friday night.

Yet Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow could not keep the Brewers off the scoreboard. Eventually, the Los Angeles bullpen couldn't come up with some key outs itself. Milwaukee eventually went ahead 5-4 on Garrett Mitchell's solo home run, and added another run on David Hamilton's solo homer in the ninth to make it 6-4.

That's how Game 4 ended at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shook up his Game 4 lineup, putting Ohtani in the leadoff spot despite his poor postseason average. Watching Ohtani come through early and the excitement he felt after it should have given Los Angeles an emotional boost. That was his first home run since August.

Instead, they just could not get big hits in key opportunities. This continued a trend that became a part of the Dodgers' downfall.

Diaz came on in the seventh inning, which is a far cry from his closer days. He's been hurt this season, yes, but the Dodgers didn't spend all that money for Diaz to be a set-up guy.

Tucker showed some life during the NLCS, becoming Los Angeles' most reliable hitter. 

Losing a series is always difficult for any team in the postseason. The Dodgers' front office really did its best to provide Roberts with the best players possible.

In the end, though, those players along with other veterans on the ballclub were just totally dominated by a focused, intentional Brewers team. 

Milwaukee now goes to the World Series for the first time since 1982. The Brewers will now wait to see which team comes out of the American League Championship Series.

What does the future hold for Los Angeles? There will be some tough questions asked about the team.

But a bigger problem is looming in the background. Dodgers owner and chairman Mark Walter is facing serious questions about his alleged lack of disclosure around affiliated investments in insurance problems. Walter also is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the feds.

How the Walter situation plays out should get a lot of Los Angeles' fans attention. It's a long offseason and might be made longer by a lockout at the start of next season.

This was not the finish that the Dodgers wanted to have happen.