ARLINGTON, Texas — After losing the first two games of the National League Championship Series, the Dodgers didn’t think it was time to worry. “We all know who we are,” Max Muncy said.
Looking at three consecutive pitching matchups that seemed to tilt heavily in their favor, the Dodgers weren’t worried. “Just win a game and stay on that wave,” Mookie Betts said.
After exploding for a record-setting 11 runs in the first inning of Game 3, it certainly wasn’t time to worry.
But now – it’s time to worry. After losing 10-2 to the Atlanta Braves in Game 4 on Thursday night, the Dodgers have been pushed to the brink of elimination from another postseason that was supposed to validate their regular-season excellence.
Braves DH Marcell Ozuna outhit the Dodgers, 4-3. You don’t win many postseason games when an opposing player outhits your entire lineup.
“You know what – they still have to beat us another time. I still believe in every single guy in that clubhouse,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after another postseason press conference spent fending off questions about his bullpen usage and defending an offense that came up short again.
Facing the Atlanta Braves’ third rookie starter in four games, the Dodgers managed just one hit in the first six innings. Bryse Wilson was playing baseball and football at Orange High School in Hillsborough, North Carolina when Clayton Kershaw was winning Cy Young awards.
But he outpitched the future Hall of Famer for six innings Thursday night, staying longer than the Braves could have hoped in their most optimistic dreams, while Kershaw’s legacy was once again kicked in the teeth by his postseason narrative when the Braves exploded for six runs in the sixth inning.
“They’re similar to us as far as they build on momentum really well,” Kershaw said of that sixth inning. “It seems like they have that domino effect when one thing gets going. They just continue to build on that. They’ve got good hitters too. They’re a good team. We just have to come back and win tomorrow.”
Rookies have pitched 14-2/3 innings for the Braves in this series. Take away the disastrous two-thirds that Kyle Wright suffered through in Game 3 and those novices have held 2020’s most productive offense to one run and three hits in 14 innings.
Wilson spent most of this summer at the Braves’ alternate training site and had just seven big-league starts scattered over the past three seasons to his credit before Game 4 with a 5.91 career ERA.
But he retired 18 of the 20 Dodgers hitters he faced, allowing one walk and Rios’ solo home run, driven into the swirling winds of Globe Life Field on a cool night when Texas’ most expensive box canyon could have used a roof. Oh, wait – it has one but MLB elected to keep it open despite the blustery conditions, having committed to this course when it allowed fans in the park during the coronavirus pandemic.
“At the end of the day, yes, it’s the postseason. Yes, it’s the championship series, crucial game,” Wilson said. “But for me, it’s just baseball. It’s me throwing to the catcher, getting hitters out.”
Oh – if it could only be that simple for Kershaw in October.
Pitching on seven days’ rest after back spasms postponed his first start in this NLCS, Kershaw had baserunners in four of the first five innings. But his only mistake was a low slider that Ozuna drove into the wind and off the facing of the second deck in left field.
Tied at 1-1, it all came crashing down on Kershaw in the sixth – as it has too many times in past Octobers.
Ronald Acuña Jr. beat out an infield single to start the inning and went to second when Kiké Hernandez’s attempt at a highlight-reel play bounced past Muncy and into the photo well. Freddie Freeman bounced a double into the right field corner for his fifth RBI of the series.
“It would have been nice to get Acuña out. He’s pretty quick right there,” Kershaw said. “It’s just part of playing on turf. He chopped one in there. Freddie, I had two strikes on him. Probably went one too many pitches inside. He hit it good but it was on the ground. Still with two strikes, probably gotta make a better pitch.
“That’s a tough way to go for that sixth inning, for sure.”
As Brusdar Graterol watched from the Dodgers’ bullpen, Kershaw faced Ozuna for the third time in the game having been hit hard in each of the two previous at-bats (a double play and the first of his two home runs).
The NL leader in home runs and RBIs this season laced an RBI double into the left-center gap and Kershaw exited the postseason stage, head down and shoulders slumped again.
“The inning prior was a clean inning. He punched the last guy,” Roberts said. “You induce weak contact, tough play and it gets away from the first baseman and he gets second base. There’s another ground ball by the first baseman. We had Freeman played way over in the gap and it turns a single into a double.
“I’m not going to take Clayton out after a weak ground ball and another ground ball off the bat of Freeman. … I felt really good with Clayton at that time.”Graterol and Victor Gonzalez couldn’t stop the bleeding. They gave up a series of well-placed hits including a two-run double by Dansby Swanson, shot past a diving Justin Turner, and RBI singles by Austin Riley and Cristian Pache.
The Dodgers mounted a response in the seventh inning, pushing across a run and loading the bases for Will Smith with two outs. Facing the defense that shifted less than any other team during the regular season, Smith hit a line drive through the middle – and into the glove of Ozzie Albies, shifted behind second base.
Ozuna fought the wind and won again in the bottom of the seventh, his second home run of the night leaving the Dodgers on the canvas.
https://goo.gl/hYDEHJ
No comments:
Post a Comment