LOS ANGELES — Anthony Rendon and Jayson Werth homered to move the Washington Nationals to within one victory of winning a postseason series for the first time, with an 8-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Four relievers combined for 4⅔ shutout innings, putting the Nationals up, 2-1, in the series and in position to wrap it up at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday.

Playing 23 hours after tying the series in a rain-postponed Game 2, the Nationals scored four in the third, Rendon sparking the attack with a two-run homer that chased Kenta Maeda. Werth added a solo shot off closer Kenley Jansen in a breakaway four-run ninth.

The Nationals, NL East champions for the third time in five years, were unable to advance during their two previous trips to the postseason. They lost in the first round to St. Louis in 2012 and San Francisco in 2014.

The Dodgers again struggled against left-handed pitching, a problem throughout the season when they had a major league-worst .213 average against lefties.

The Dodgers continued to struggle against lefthanded pitching. Four Washington lefty relievers stymied them in the series’ first two games. Facing lefty starter Gio Gonzalez in Game 3, they got three runs and four hits in 4 innings.

The only Dodger with proven success against Gonzalez was catcher Carlos Ruiz, and he came through with a two-run, pinch-hit homer in the fifth that cut their deficit to 4-3.

After that, the Dodgers mustered just a pair of singles off a Nats bullpen that included lefties Sammy Solis and Oliver Perez. Solis wound up with the win.

It was still 4-3 when Werth homered on a 1-0 pitch from Jansen leading off the ninth. Ryan Zimmerman added a two-run double that bounced off right fielder Josh Reddick’s glove at the wall. The hit scored Daniel Murphy and Bryce Harper, who both walked.

Jansen, the team’s all-time saves leader, was yanked. Los Angeles used all seven of its relievers in the game.

Maeda gave up four runs and five hits in three innings, struck out four, and walked two in his first career start against Washington. The Japanese right-hander who won a team-leading 16 games was one of seven rookies on the Dodgers’ playoff roster.

Maeda found trouble right away against the Nats. He loaded the bases in a 28-pitch first inning on consecutive two-out walks.

After a mound visit from pitching coach Rick Honeycutt, Maeda threw three strikes in a row to retire Zimmerman and get out of trouble.

Maeda retired the side in the second, striking out two, before wilting in the third. He opened the inning by giving up four hits in five batters.