SAN DIEGO – First baseman Freddie Freeman was scratched from Game 4 as the Los Angeles Dodgers tried to avoid elimination in their National League Division Series against the San Diego Padres.

Freeman was picked up as a pinch-runner in Game 3 on Tuesday after he limped to first base on a single in the eighth inning. He also left Game 2 on Sunday after five innings due to discomfort with his sprained right ankle.

The Dodgers have made numerous changes to adjust to Freeman’s absence. Max Muncy moved from third base to first base, Enrique Hernandez switched from center field to third base and Chris Taylor got the start in center field.

Reliever Ryan Brasier started for the Dodgers, with manager Dave Roberts saying Tuesday that the team would go for a bullpen game.

Brasier was announced as the starter about four hours before the first pitch at Petco Park. The right-hander pitched in relief in Games 1 and 2 at Dodger Stadium and earned the victory in a 7-5 victory in the series opener.

He was 1-0 with a 3.54 ERA in 29 regular-season games, including four starts.

The Padres took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series with a 6-5 victory Tuesday night, highlighted by Fernando Tatis Jr.’s towering two-run homer, his fourth this postseason.

The Padres turned to right-hander Dylan Cease to start a short rest. Cease started Game 1 Saturday night and lasted just 3⅓ innings, giving up five runs and not factoring in the call.

Cease gave up Shohei Ohtani’s three-run tying run in the second inning in the slugger’s long-awaited playoff debut for the Dodgers. Ohtani is 2-for-11 with six strikeouts since that home run.

Cease was 14-11 with a 3.74 ERA in the regular season. He threw his first no-hitter on July 25 in a 3-0 win over Washington. He was acquired in a multiplayer trade with the Chicago White Sox during spring training.

Padres manager Mike Shildt said Yu Darvish would start Game 5 if the Dodgers extended the series. If the Padres win Wednesday night, Darvish would start Game 1 of the NL Championship Series against the Mets on Sunday.

“We would like to call Yu the Game 1 starter,” Shildt said.

The Dodgers defeated the Padres in the NLDS in the Texas playoff bubble in 2020. The Padres defeated the Dodgers 3-1 in the 2022 NLDS.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.