*Photo from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette*
Atlanta leads series 3-2
This series is on a collision course. It is so far playing out exactly like last year, which is great news to hear if you are a fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chris Taylor certainly did his part. Taylor blasted 3 home runs, AJ Pollock homered twice, and the Dodgers routed the Atlanta Braves 11-2 on Thursday night.
In addition to his 3 home runs, which is spectacular enough, Taylor had 6 RBI total, which is the second most in team history for RBI in a single playoff game, trailing only a 7 RBI game in game 5 of the 2017 NLCS by Kike Hernandez. Taylor also now has 9 RBI in elimination games this postseason, which is tops in Dodger history. He got a curtain call from the Dodger faithful as a result.
Taylor said of his curtain call that "I think any time you do something cool, when you do it in Dodger Stadium, it makes it that much sweeter. I think this is a special place and these fans are awesome, and for it to happen for the first time on this stage in front of this crowd, it was a special moment."
Freddie Freeman got the party started in the first inning for the Braves, giving them a 2-0 lead against opener Joe Kelly with a two run home run to center field. In the second inning, a solo home run from Pollock and a two run shot from Taylor gave the Dodgers a 3-2 lead, which they only piled on to. In the 3rd, Taylor added an RBI single to increase the lead to 4-2 in favor of the Dodgers.
In the 5th, Taylor hit a two run home run to center, adding to the lead and making it 6-2. In the 7th, a solo home run from Taylor opened the floodgates and made it a 7-2 ballgame. In the 8th, Trea Turner got on the scoresheet with an RBI single to make it 8-2 Dodgers. Later that inning, Pollock blasted off, launching a 3 run home run to make it an 11-2 lead.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts addressed the breakout of the hitting, saying that "I guess when our backs are against the wall, we play our best and fight. But that’s just not an ideal spot to be in, even right now, elimination game in Game 6, but I guess it brings out the best in us."
Kelly was the opener for the Dodgers and lasted just 2/3 of an inning before leaving with an injury, which Roberts said was likely to end his season. It didn't have much effect, as the bullpen chorus that came in after Kelly was very effective, holding the Atlanta offense scoreless from the first inning on. That host of relievers was Evan Phillips, Alex Vesia, Brusdar Graterol, Blake Treinen, Corey Knebel, and Kenley Jansen, with Graterol and Treinen each throwing two innings.
Max Fried got hit with the loss for the Braves, being charged with 5 runs on 8 hits and two walks, striking out just 3 hitters in 4 2/3 innings, falling to 0-1 this series. Chris Martin was responsible for one run after finishing the 5th inning. Dylan Lee was charged with one run in two innings pitched, and Jacob Webb gave up 4 runs in one inning.
For the Braves, they are heading down the same rabbit hole as they did last year. Literally the same results in each game. Win the first two, lose game 3, win game 4, lose game 5. For Atlanta's sake, they don't want to lose games 6 and 7 and have this series be once again a carbon copy of last season, when they also choked a 3-1 series lead.
Atlanta starter Ian Anderson said "I think it's something we know about, but it's something that we're definitely on a mission to kind of dispel. So, yeah, I mean, we're still in a good spot. The vibes are still good and we're going to hop on a flight, head home and be ready to play Saturday."
Game 6 is on Saturday in Atlanta, with Anderson taking the mound for the Braves, while Max Scherzer gets the start for the Dodgers.
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