With a massive 11-2 win against the Atlanta Braves, the Los Angeles Dodgers stayed alive in their hunt to repeat as World Champions. With the victory, also won their seventh consecutive elimination game.
All-star Chris Taylor put the team on his back by homering three times and knocking in six runs. Taylor ended the night 4-for-5. Taylor and AJ Pollock essentially beat the Braves themselves in a way. Pollock homered two times and knocked in four runs, as the two combined for ten RBI. Let’s hope the offense continues to explode in the next two games.
However, another injury was added to the books. This time, right-handed reliever Joe Kelly is due to miss the rest of the postseason with a right bicep strain. In-Game 4, the Dodgers lost Justin Turner for the season, and now they’ve lost one of their most trusted relievers.
The Dodgers are now without Kelly, Turner, Max Muncy, Clayton Kershaw, and Dustin May just to name a few of the notable injuries they’ve encountered this year.
Dodger manager Dave Roberts has relied on his bullpen heavily throughout the postseason, and now he will miss a key piece of it in Kelly.
Heading back to Atlanta now, the Dodgers will hand the ball to Max Scherzer for Game 6 and Walker Buehler if there is a Game 7.
So, if the Dodgers want to head back to the World Series for the second straight year, they’ll have essentially two top Cy Young winning candidates on the mound. Anyone would like those chances; however, it is easier said than done, as we know the offense will have to produce results similar to their effort on Thursday night.
You’ve probably heard about the Atlanta sports curse at this point, so it would be fitting for the Dodgers to win two straight in Atlanta. However, they’ve won just once in five meetings at Atlanta in the regular season and postseason combined.
In Game 6, the Braves are handing the ball to right hander Ian Anderson, who started Game 2.
In his previous start, Anderson went three innings, allowing two runs along with three walks and three hits.
Scherzer opposed Anderson in Game 2, going 4 ⅓ innings and allowing two runs on four hits. This came after Scherzer had closed out Game 5 of the NLDS against the Giants and stated post game his arm was fatigued.
For many of us, this is a sort of Deja Vu, as the Dodgers were in the same exact position last year down 3-1 to the same team, although a couple things have changed.
Right now, all they can do is focus on Game 6, as it will be important for them to get out to a early lead to quiet down the crowd. Last year the Dodgers were not facing this sort of a challenge on the road..
Still, there is no one you’d probably want to have going into this scenario than Scherzer and Buehler.
First pitch for Saturday’s Game 6 is at 2:08 p.m. Pacific.
Well we will be throwing two of our best at them Let us hope this time the results are far more favorable. Taylor’s performance may have just elevated his free agency price even more. He will get a bigger deal than Zobrist did. He is younger and more versatile. Dodgers will have a lot of questions to answer this offseason.
Price added to the roster to replace Kelly.
Getting my Max Scherzer Dodger card in the mail today!
No Scherzer tomorrow. Arm has not responded. Bullpen game.
Buehler announced this morning as the game 6 starter. Win or go home. I totally get it.
Every time they do a bullpen game, I have fear of the bullpen imploding before they reach Treinen and Jansen. Bruihl, Bickford, Gonsolin, Phillips, and even Price don’t strike me as playoff caliber arms. Sooner or later there’s going to be a high scoring game for both sides where the Dodgers have to just out hit the opponents.