LOS ANGELES — You could see the red taillights in the parking lots, out beyond the zigzag pavilion roof at Dodger Stadium, in the bottom of the 10th inning Wednesday night. It was the same scene in 1988, in the first game of the World Series, when the Dodgers trailed going into their final at-bat.

Those fans missed the famous Kirk Gibson home run that propelled the Dodgers to their last championship. These fans missed a quiet 1-2-3 inning, a pointless replay review, and a throng of delirious Washington Nationals celebrating their first trip to the National League Championship Series.

The Nationals were due for a night like this. Since their breakthrough season in 2012, they had won more games than every other major league team except the Dodgers, yet had never survived the division series. In the same time frame, the Dodgers had won four division series, and twice captured the N.L.C.S.

Now they are out, dazed and discouraged by a 7-3 loss in 10 excruciating innings in Game 5. The Nationals will face the St. Louis Cardinals for the right to crown a new N.L. champion — and the Dodgers will have more free time than usual in October.