Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations, often calls the playoffs “October theater.”
But if his team executes its preferred postseason game script, all the play could be completely sucked out of the equation.
That’s exactly what happened in the Dodgers’ 8-0 victory over the New York Mets in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series on Wednesday night.
They took an early lead from the batting lineup. Despite their short time in the starting lineup, they had solid performances. And they brought in an overwhelming parade of relievers from the bullpen and piled up nine more zeroes just as much of the Citi Field crowd headed for the exits early.
This may not be a classic October plan, but it’s the one that best suits the Dodgers’ reliever-heavy pitching staff and shorthanded starting rotation. And now, after executing it to relentless perfection, the Dodgers have regained control with a 2-game-to-1 lead and a chance to end the seven-game series before heading back to Los Angeles.
“We feel like we’re in a good place right now,” manager Dave Roberts said, confirming that the Dodgers will start their two best pitchers, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Jack Flaherty, over the next two days.
“Obviously I’m happy,” added outfielder Mookie Betts. “But it’s not over.”
That may be true. But if the Dodgers continue to replicate Wednesday’s blueprint, a return to the World Series may not be far away.
It was the fourth shutout victory in the past five games, but there was no dramatic change in the final stages of the game. There is no change in the lead before or after. Adding to the Dodgers’ consistent offense was the added advantage of a lights-out pitching staff.
Quique Hernandez celebrates after hitting a two-run home run in the sixth inning of the Dodgers’ Game 3 game against the Mets at Citi Field on Wednesday night.
(Wally Scully/Los Angeles Times)
The Dodgers took advantage of several mistakes by the Mets in the second inning to score two important runs and take the lead. They watched Walker Buehler go in and out dangerously for four scoreless innings, and the right-handed pitcher managed to get enough swings and whiffs to compensate for his erratic command.
After that, a reliable relief team took over, helped by late-inning home runs from Quique Hernandez, Shohei Ohtani, and Max Muncy, and continued their stifling postseason run with five scoreless innings, reaffirming the Dodgers’ dominance in this series. did.
“We’re just looking forward to pitching,” reliever Blake Treinen, who pitched seven scoreless innings, said of the bullpen. “So having a lead allows everyone to throw a little bit more.”
That didn’t happen in Game 2, but the Dodgers’ bullpen game fell apart before their most trusted arm could play. But Wednesday was different from the start.
Muncy led off the second inning with a walk, and Teoscar Hernandez hit a swinging bunt before the plate, but Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez recklessly threw the ball to second base, and teammate Jose Iglesias hit a low throw. Both runners escaped and reached safety.
Starting pitcher (Gold Glove Award finalist) Luis Severino himself made several defensive lapses, allowing one run on misplays by two reverse pitchers near the mound, and late in the inning he allowed a sacrifice fly to Tommy Edman. I set the table.
Mets center fielder Tyrone Taylor avoided a big collision with right fielder Starling Marte in the second inning Wednesday, sliding to catch Tommy Edman’s sacrifice fly.
(Wally Scully/Los Angeles Times)
And from there, the Dodgers never looked back.
Buehler had a tough start, punctuated by some satisfying moments.
Only 51 of his 90 pitches found the zone. He threw a first-pitch strike less than half of the time. Furthermore, he walked two balls while hitting batters, causing traffic jams on the bases, and was constantly under stress.
But those situations are exactly where Buehler has thrived during his postseason career (apart from last week’s six-run pummeling against the San Diego Padres).
And on Wednesday, he spun each threat and fooled Mets batters with a curveball that resulted in a whiff and strikeout on six of seven swings, including an inning-ending strikeout of Francisco Lindor with the bases loaded in the second inning. There was also a time when I was robbed. He was a sweeper who got strikeouts on 6 out of 9 swings, and in the 3rd inning, he limited JD Martinez to only two batters and got a strikeout to end the inning. Buehler came off the mound with a total of six strikeouts, some of them with a heavy grunt.
“Being in the big games, that’s literally all I care about,” said Buehler, whose 18 playoff starts ranks second in Dodgers history. “I want to have 25 guys in the locker room that I believe are going to really give me a chance to win. If I was able to build that in the locker room in some way, that’s probably what I’m most proud of when it’s over. It will be.”
Meanwhile, the Dodgers continued to add points.
In the 6th inning, Quique Hernandez struggled from a two-strike count, sinking his second long ball of the postseason and hitting a two-run home run to left, giving him a team-best batting average of .333 in the playoffs.
Manager Roberts emphasized the difference between the 2-0 and 4-0 leads, saying, “It was the biggest hit of the game.”
In the eighth inning, Ohtani hit a towering three-run shot inside the right-field foul pole, hitting 2-for-15 and sending the crowd of 43,883 to the exits with his second home run of the playoffs.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning of Game 3 of the NL CS vs. Mets at Citi Field on Wednesday.
(Wally Scully/Los Angeles Times)
Muncy hit deep in the ninth inning as well, tying the Dodgers’ record with his 13th postseason outburst and ending a night in which he reached base in all five innings at bat (he also had three walks and a single). ).
However, all such production turned out to be unnecessary. Once the Dodgers turned the game over to the bullpen, the Mets never showed a flicker of life again.
Michael Kopech, the closest the Dodgers had to a designated closer at the end of the regular season, was the first out of the bullpen in the fifth inning and, despite a few scares on the warning track, led the team out in order.
Game 2 opening pitcher Ryan Brazier was in a pinch in the 6th inning, but was able to avoid the predicament with two on and one out by hitting a double play at the end of the inning. Treinen, the team’s most trusted reliever these days, seems to have played the No. 7 role exactly, leaving the No. 8 and No. 9 duties to Daniel Hudson and Evan Phillips.
But after Ohtani and Muncy’s second-deck drives, all the Dodgers needed was a two-inning sweep by Ben Kasparius instead.
“Those kinds of things are important,” Roberts said.
Especially for a team that is two wins away from its first World Series game since 2020, the rest of the month will try to replicate Wednesday’s script as much as possible, hoping it can play without the chaos that usually accompanies October intensives. He would be happy.
“The ultimate goal is to have a few days off and be able to come home and watch the World Series,” Treinen said. “Yes, win tomorrow. Focus on that, take care of business and see what happens next.”
