Padres Going With Seasoned Veteran As Game 4 Starting Pitcher vs. Brewers

It’s Walker Buehler’s turn to keep the San Diego Padres’ season alive.

Following its Game 3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Division Series on Tuesday night, San Diego announced that Buehler will start Game 4 on Wednesday night (10 p.m. ET on FS1).

Buehler missed Games 1 and 2 of the series, as he was placed on the paternity list. He was activated Monday, taking the place of fellow right-hander Randy Vásquez on San Diego’s roster.

Buehler made 32 starts for the Padres in the regular season, his most in a single season since 2021 — a year that saw the right-hander earn his second All-Star nod with the Los Angeles Dodgers (2019 was his other All-Star campaign). Over said outings, Buehler recorded a 4.63 ERA, a 1.35 WHIP and an 88 ERA+, while totaling 131 strikeouts and 0.9 strikeouts over 153 ⅔ innings pitched.

The 32-year-old Buehler has made 18 starts and 19 appearances altogether in the postseason, all of them coming with the Dodgers, with whom he spent the first seven seasons of his big-league career (2017-22 and 2024). Buehler boasts a career 3.04 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in the playoffs, while totaling 114 strikeouts over 94 ⅔ innings pitched.

The Padres went 4-2 against the Brewers in the 2026 regular season and are now a combined 4-0 at home against Milwaukee, which hasn’t yet named a starter for Game 4. Prior to the divisional round, San Diego swept the Chicago Cubs in the Wild Card Series, out-scoring Chicago 12-1.

Regarding Game 3, Padres ace Michael King pitched the final two innings, getting a game-ending double play after putting two runners on the basepath in the top of the ninth. King pitching the ninth inning was partially a result of superstar closer Mason Miller, ironically, being placed on the paternity list before Game 3 and, therefore, unable to pitch.

The Padres, who trail the Brewers in the series 2-1, are seeking their first trip to the NL Championship Series since 2022. Should San Diego pull off the series comeback, it would face the winner of the NLDS matchup between the Dodgers and Atlanta Braves in the NLCS.