2024 NLDS Game 4 Post-Game Thread: I Will Not Go Quietly

Apparently, Don Henley never made a music video for this track, so this is all I could come up with for a visual image.

DODGERS 8, PADRES 0

Dylan Cease lasted 3.1 IP in NLDS Game 1 against the Dodgers. But the Padres, brimming with confidence after winning Game 3 and taking a 2-1 series lead in a best-of-five, sent Cease out there again, on four days rest, for the first time in his career.

Wednesday night, in Game 4, Cease lasted only 1.2 IP. His three ER tonight raised his ERA to 14.40. And the Dodgers jumped on the Padres pitchers all night at Petco Park, with home runs from Mookie Betts (his second in two days, in the first inning off of Cease); Will Smith (his first hit of the 2024 postseason, off of vowel-heavy Bryan Hoeing; and Gavin Lux (off of a fish called Wandy Peralta in the seventh inning).

Max Muncy even had a double, raising his postseason average to .188. Teoscar Hernandez went 2-for-5, and Shohei Ohtani went 1-for-3 with two walks (including an epic nine-pitch AB in the sixth that chased Jeremiah Estrada). Kike Hernandez went 2-for-4.

And sure, Chris Taylor looked like the 2024 CT3: 0-for-4 with 4 Ks (the famous golden sombrero). But in a 8-0 win, we can stomach that malaise.

The Dodgers were 5-for-9 with RISP on a 12-hit evening. The Padres were 0-for-9 with RISP.

And that's because Dave Roberts' use of the bullpen tonight--eight pitchers, in total--was masterful. Ryan Brasier, Anthony Banda, Michael Kopech, Alex Vesia, Evan Phillips, Daniel Hudson, Blake Treinen, and Landon Knack: you guys all stepped up and were superb. And as Ben Clemens of Fangraphs pointed out, a bullpen game usually doesn't go well--especially for the Dodgers--but tonight was a master class:

In a few days, no one is going to remember this game. It was a laugher where no one got eliminated. There were no unforgettable plays. Neither Ohtani nor Tatis made me spit out my drink in sheer wonder. These two rivals are about to play again, with higher stakes and a better pitching matchup. Why would you dwell on this one?

But without the Dodger bullpen, there wouldn’t be a fifth game. Every reliever did his part, with no hiccups. These games go wrong all the time. So give them their due. This was the platonic ideal a of bullpen game, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Friday is going to be spectacular. Buckle up.

I didn't watch this game, but I heard Stephen Nelson and Rick Monday indicating that Padres fans left Petco Park in a hurry tonight. I can't wait to watch the condensed game highlights.

On we go to a winner-take-all Game 5! Let's GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

2024 NLDS Game 3 Thread

Walker Buehler (1-6, 5.38) vs. Michael King (13-9, 2.95), 6p.

Time, as it is said, heals all wounds.

I write this post 24 hours after I was at Dodger Stadium to witness probably the worst playoff loss, if not the worst-ever loss, suffered by the Dodgers...and I have to say, the pain has subsided a bit.

Some of this is a situational comparison, made possible by watching the two ALDS games play out on Monday. As of Tuesday morning, all four 2024 Division Series are tied. Which means all four series go to best-of-three series, held in the lesser seeds' parks: in San Diego, New York, Detroit, and Kansas City.

So for all the Dodgers' many foibles in Game 2: their unlucky GIDPs, their just-short home run balls, a spate of mediocre at bats from key players, their inappropriate fans chucking shit on the field like idiots--we are in exactly the same boat as the Yankees, the Phillies, and the Guardians.

In fact, of the 16 Division Series starters so far, only five of them have gone more than five innings, and that includes Dodgers Game 2 starter Jack Flaherty (5.1 IP), who unfortunately faced off against Yu Darvish, who tied the Dodgers up in knots for seven innings, escaping the few jams into which he got. So every team is highly reliant upon its bullpen.

That's baseball in 2024.

And to be fair to Dave Roberts: his use of the bullpen in Game 1 was a master class (SoSG Orel and I talked about this in Game 2, since there was nothing on the field worth discussing), with brilliant moves like bringing Michael Kopech in for the eighth inning--and then pulling Kopech early, causing Blake Treinen to have to get five outs to win the game (which he did). Treinen capped six innings of scoreless relief for the Dodgers in Game 1.

Conversely, the bullpen let the game get out of hand late in Sunday's game (six runs in the last two frames), but we were cooked by then anyway, with Freddie Freeman already on the bench. This Game 2 loss wasn't on Doc.

One could make the argument that the Dodgers are in a relatively worse state than their top-seeded peers, and it's a fair opinion. We're throwing Walker Buehler, who has had more trouble finding a strike zone than most men finding a g-spot. Mookie Betts was close to a first-inning HR on Monday, but he is still on a 0-for-26 playoff streak and has only 3 XBH since our World Series Championship in 2020 (78 AB, 92 PA). Freddie Freeman's ankle is hanging on with duct tape and popsicle sticks.

Not to mention, we're going to face a hostile Petco Park environment, against the Padres' best arm. It doesn't look good for the Dodgers in Game 3.

Let's see if we can punch back.

Post-Game 125 Thread: A Glimmer of Hope?

DODGERS 2, CARDINALS 1

Things weren't looking good for the Dodgers, coming out of Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Cardinals. Bobby Miller, in his return to the majors since struggling earlier this season, continued to struggle. Freddie Freeman ended the game with a defensive play that jammed his finger, knocking him out of today's season finale.

And yet, the Dodgers came away with a clutch 2-1 victory Sunday, which was neither expected nor easy. Shohei Ohtani broke a scoreless tie in the fifth inning with his 39th home run, and Miguel Rojas tacked on an RBI single to make it 2-0 LA. And even though Lars Nootbar took Daniel Hudson yard in the eighth--AND the Dodgers' 6-9 hitters (Kevin Kiermaier, Kiké "Black Hole" Hernandez, base stealers' best friend Austin Barnes, and Nick Ahmed) went a combined 0-for-14 with 4 Ks--the Dodgers had just enough to eke out a victory for Clayton Kershaw, who went six scoreless in his best start of the year (4 H, 1 BB, 2 Ks, 70 pitches).

Kudos to Michael Kopech as well for picking up his 11th save of the year with a shutdown ninth, overcoming not only the Cardinals but also Barnes, who made an error with one out, throwing wild of first.

Don't get me started on Barnes (who has had one hit for the entire month of August, now appearing in eight games). I've been advised I need to be more optimistic.

And indeed, there was room for optimism following the Dodgers' victory today, after the Rays beat the Diamondbacks in extras (8-7 final, in 12), and the Rockies held on to beat the Padres 3-2. The Snakes were swept this weekend in Tampa, and the Padres lost two of three in Colorado. That leaves the Dodgers three games on San Diego and four games on Arizona, with 37 games to play.