*Photo from the Japan Times*
Los Angeles wins series 1-0
With the lights of Chavez Ravine shining down on the field, it wasn't the stars that came out, but rather a utility player by the name of Chris Taylor. Justin Turner homered, Taylor delivered the winning homer, and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the St.Louis Cardinals 3-1 in walk off fashion on Wednesday night.
With the win, we get to see an extension of what was one of the best regular season series in baseball, and what figures to be one of the best playoff series in baseball. The Dodgers advance to the NLDS, where they face the 107 win San Francisco Giants, with games one and two taking place in San Francisco on Friday and Saturday.
Dodgers starter Max Scherzer said of the impending matchup that "They’re a great, talented team. They obviously showed that over the course of the season, so it’s going to take absolutely everything from us to win this series. So here we go, let’s play some baseball."
The Cardinals jumped out to a quick lead in the first inning, when Tommy Edman came across home plate on a wild pitch to take a 1-0 lead for the Cardinals. It stayed that way until the 4th inning, when Turner whacked a game tying solo home run into the left field seats to tie things up 1-1. It remained until the 9th, when, with Cody Bellinger on base, Taylor shot a walk off two run home run to left field, winning the game in epic fashion.
Taylor talked about recounting his walk off homer down the road, saying that "These are the types of moments that you dream about and live for. To be able to look back on this for the rest of my life, I just feel fortunate that I was able to come through in that spot."
Kenley Jansen got the win in the 9th, working a scoreless frame to set the stage for the Taylor walk off. Scherzer lasted 4 1/3 innings in a no decision, allowing one run on 3 hits and 3 walks, fanning 4 hitters in his outing. Joe Kelly finished the 5th inning for Scherzer, followed by relief appearances from Brusdar Graterol, Blake Treinen, and Corey Knebel.
For the Cardinals, TJ McFarland got the loss, allowing Bellinger to get on base in the 9th, which was technically the winning run for the Dodgers. It was Alex Reyes who was on the mound for the Taylor homer, his only batter faced. Adam Wainwright went 5 1/3 innings of gutsy pitching, allowing one run on 4 hits and two walks, striking out 5 hitters. Luis Garcia and Giovanny Gallegos also pitched.
Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said following the loss that "We got a clubhouse full of guys that are hurting, Alex included. This team didn't come here just to play this game, this team came here to win and move on and take down our 12th World Series championship."
The Dodgers start game one on Friday against the Giants, with Walker Buehler starting the opening game of the series. The Cardinals head home for the winter, as they prepare for spring training in February.
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