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MLB Playoffs: NLDS, Game 4, Dodgers vs. Braves game thread

By Bobby Mueller

ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 7: Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 and Ozzie Albies #1 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate after the Braves defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-5, in Game 3 of the NLDS at SunTrust Park on Sunday, October 7, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarilli/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 7: Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 and Ozzie Albies #1 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate after the Braves defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-5, in Game 3 of the NLDS at SunTrust Park on Sunday, October 7, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarilli/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /
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The Braves came through when it counted in Game 3, setting up a do-or-die Game 4 in Atlanta with top starter Mike Foltynewicz on the hill, hoping to extend their MLB playoffs stay.

For each postseason game, you will find a “game thread” here at Call To The Pen. This will be the place where fans of the game can use the comment section to chat about what’s happening on the field throughout the MLB playoffs. We’ll be here all the way through the end of the World Series.

After being shut out for the first 19 innings of the NLDS, the Braves got on the board with an improbable bases-loaded walk to pitcher Sean Newcomb, who was 3-for-72 with 49 strikeouts as a hitter in his career. Just after the walk in the bottom of the second inning, Ronald Acuńa, Jr. stepped to the dish.

Dodgers starter Walker Buehler went to a 3-0 count on Acuńa, then got a generous strike call on a fastball well above the zone. When Acuńa launched the next pitch over the wall for a grand slam, Buehler likely wished umpire Gary Cederstrom had called the previous pitch correctly.

The Dodgers came back with two runs in the third and three more in the fifth to tie it, as Chris Taylor and Max Muncy hit home runs.  The Braves retook the lead in the bottom of the sixth on a Freddie Freeman solo homer off Alex Wood. Four relievers, including closer Arodys Vizcaino, navigated through the rest of the game to lock down the victory.

Game 4 will see the return of the Braves’ Game 1 starter, Mike Foltynewicz, who lasted just two innings in his first postseason appearance. He allowed three hits, three walks, and four earned runs, but did strike out five batters. The Dodgers will counter with veteran lefty Rich Hill, who has yet to pitch in the series.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Rich Hill, a 38-year-old veteran of 14 major league seasons, will head to the mound for the Dodgers in Game 4. On the road this season, Hill had a 3.63 ERA and 3.75 FIP. He’s a crafty lefty with a fastball that averages around 89 mph. Hill is primarily a fastball/curveball pitcher who gets batters out by changing speeds and hitting his spots.

The Dodgers’ Game 4 lineup has the same players as their Game 1 and Game 2 lineups, but the batting order has been adjusted in the five through eight spots.

Here is the Dodgers starting lineup for Game 4, with each player’s plate appearances (PA) and wRC+ away from home in parenthesis. NOTE: RC+ is a hitting metric that is adjusted for league and ballpark effects where 100 is average. A 110 wRC+ means that player or team is 10 percent above average on offense. An 80 wRC+ means that player or team is 20 percent below average on offense.

LF Joc Pederson (233 PA, 141 wRC+ on the road)
3B Justin Turner (215 PA, 143 wRC+ on the road)
1B Max Muncy (26 PA, 257 wRC+ on the road)
SS Manny Machado (171 PA, 105 wRC+ on the road)
C Yasmani Grandal (270 PA, 113 wRC+ on the road)
2B Kike Hernandez (240 PA, 89 wRC+ on the road)
CF Cody Bellinger (325 PA, 143 wRC+ on the road)
RF Yasiel Puig (217PA, 156 wRC+ on the road)

Atlanta Braves

Mike Foltynewicz is making this start on three days rest, but he only threw 50 pitches on Thursday so he should be fine. During the regular season, Folty had a 3.19 ERA and 3.64 FIP at home. He has an impressive fastball that averages 96.4 mph, which was the third-highest in MLB among starting pitchers who qualified for the ERA title. He also throws a slider, curve and changeup.

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MLB Playoff Bracket if the season ended today: Dodgers licking chops
MLB Playoff Bracket if the season ended today: Dodgers licking chops /

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    • During the season, the Braves offense finished 15th of the 30 MLB teams with a 97 wRC+, but they were better on the road (101 wRC+, 10th in MLB) than at home (93 wRC+, 23rd in MLB) and they’ll be home on Monday.

    Braves manager Brian Snitker moved Ozzie Albies up from the bottom of the order to the number two hole for this game and Tyler Flowers is in the lineup in the place of Kurt Suzuki, who started Game 2 and Game 3. Both Albies (139 wRC+) and Flowers (203 wRC+) were particularly good against left-handed pitchers this season.

    LF Ronald Acuńa, Jr. (210 PA, 137 wRC+ at home)
    2B Ozzie Albies (337 PA, 94 wRC+ at home)
    1B Freddie Freeman (345 PA, 135 wRC+ at home)
    RF Nick Markakis (346 PA, 100 wRC+ at home)
    3B Johan Camargo (266 PA, 118 wRC+ at home)
    C Tyler Flowers (151 PA, 97 wRC+ at home)
    CF Ender Inciarte (328 PA, 86 wRC+ at home)
    SS Charlie Culberson (145 PA, 79 wRC+ at home)

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