*Photo from USA Today*
Atlanta leads series 2-0
Plenty of things went wrong for the Atlanta Braves in game two of the NLCS. Lack of length from the starting pitching, too many walks, and too many strikeouts for Freddie Freeman. Baseball can be funny sometimes. Joc Pederson homered, Eddie Rosario drove in the winning run, and the Braves defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-4 on Sunday night.
It's the second straight walk off win for the Braves, who now head on the road with a 2-0 series lead against the Dodgers. For Rosario, the walk off winner, it's the first time a player has had a 4 hit game and a walk off hit in a playoff game since David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox in the 2004 postseason.
Rosario said of his walk off hit that "I feel great today, and when I feel great, I go aggressive all the time. I know that I faced him yesterday. He got me out. But I didn’t want to try too much today. Yesterday I tried to hit a homer and today I tried to get a base hit."
It was the Dodgers who jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first, with Corey Seager blasting a two run home run to right field. In the 4th inning, Pederson tied the game 2-2 with a two run home run to deep right field, continuing what has been a strong postseason for Pederson. In the 7th inning, Chris Taylor put the Dodgers back ahead, making it 4-2 with a two run double to center field.
That was when the Braves started to come back. In the 8th, Ozzie Albies hit an RBI single, scoring Rosario and cutting the deficit to 4-3. Later that inning, Austin Riley, the hero of game one, delivered the game tying double to center field, and the game got tied 4-4. In the 9th, with Swanson on base, Rosario delivered a single up the middle, making it a 5-4 win for the Braves.
Pederson said of the Braves success that "I think that when we're all pulling on the same string, special things happen. You can see that we're doing that right now. There's no one person that has the pressure on their shoulders that they have to get the job done. It's a new person every day and that's what makes it special."
Will Smith got the win for the second straight day, improving to 2-0 with a scoreless 9th inning. Ian Anderson couldn't last long in his start, allowing two runs on 3 hits and 3 walks, lasting just 3 innings in the start. Tyler Matzek was responsible for the other two runs scored by the Dodgers. The bullpen combination of Smith, Jesse Chavez, AJ Minter, Jacob Webb, Luke Jackson, and Chris Martin held the Dodgers scoreless.
Brusdar Graterol got the loss for the Dodgers, being responsible for the winning run that scored, despite Kenley Jansen actually giving up the hit. It was Max Scherzer who got a no decision in his start, allowing two runs on 4 hits and one walk, fanning 7 hitters in 4 1/3 innings pitched. Julio Urias gave up two runs in relief. Alex Vesia, Joe Kelly, and Blake Treinen also pitched.
Scherzer said of falling down 2-0 in the series that "It's unfortunate. But we got Walk going Game 3, so if the baseball sayings are right, you’re only as good as your next day’s starting pitcher. And so we got Walk going on the mound, and we definitely believe we can win with him."
Game 3 of the series shifts to Los Angeles on Tuesday night, with Walker Buehler getting the start as the Dodgers look to shift momentum in the series. Charlie Morton will get the start for the Braves as they look to keep their foot on the gas pedal in the series.
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