Call to the pen
Fansided

Dodgers Power Past Braves For Third Consecutive Trip to the NLCS

By Sarah Maninger

ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 08: The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate winning Game Four of the National League Division Series with a score of 6-2 over the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on October 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Dodgers won the series 3-1. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 08: The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate winning Game Four of the National League Division Series with a score of 6-2 over the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field on October 8, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Dodgers won the series 3-1. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 5
Next
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 05: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) reacts to getting out of a first inning jam during Game 2 of the 2018 National League Division Series between the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers on October 5, 2018 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA.
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 05: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) reacts to getting out of a first inning jam during Game 2 of the 2018 National League Division Series between the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers on October 5, 2018 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. /

GAME TWO:

CLAYTON KERSHAW VS. ANÍBAL SÁNCHEZ; FINAL SCORE: 3-0 LAD

Game two was a lot like the one that preceded it. The Dodgers scored early, and the Braves couldn’t catch up. They faced an uphill battle, facing Clayton Kershaw, who had the best postseason outing of his career. Aníbal Sánchez pitched well, but could not contain the Dodger offense.

Brad Ziegler Retires. light. Related Story

WHAT WENT RIGHT:

It seemed Aníbal Sanchez was always the guy the Braves were going to send to the mound in this game, and though he didn’t have an amazing outing, he still pitched pretty well. Going 4 and 2/3 innings, he gave up three runs, all of them earned, on two home runs. Giving up three runs in the postseason is not the best, but it’s still a small enough margin for your team to bounce back. The Braves didn’t, for a couple of reasons. One of them is that they weren’t hitting and the other was due to who they were facing; Clayton Kershaw.

In Game 2, Clayton Kershaw gave the best postseason pitching performance of his career. In eight innings, he allowed two hits, no walks, no runs, and struck out three. The game lasted just over two and a half hours (probably the shortest contest we’ll see this postseason) and Kershaw worked fast. Thanks to pop flies and line drive outs, he needed only 87 pitches to silence the Braves lineup.

WHAT WENT WRONG:

For the second night in a row, the Braves’ bats were quiet. Sure, you could say that was due to the ace-like pitching of Ryu and Kershaw, but one thing that is certain about any given team in October is this; you are going to be facing their best pitchers. The Braves, however, are capable of getting hits against pitchers like Kershaw. They could have hit a homer or two, but they didn’t, and we probably won’t ever know why.

Luckily, things were looking up for the Braves, if even just for one day.

Home/Atlanta Braves