The Los Angeles Dodgers have punched their ticket to the Nationwide League Championship Collection and a date with the upstart New York Mets.
On Friday, the Dodgers downed the San Diego Padres, backed by solo house runs from Enrique Hernandez and Teoscar Hernandez and a gutsy outing by beginning pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, profitable Sport 5 of the NLDS, 2-0.
Listed below are three takeaways from the motion:
Enrique Hernandez proves he is an all-time postseason gamerEnrique Hernandez was accountable for the primary and maybe most essential run for the Dodgers, hitting a second-inning house run off Yu Darvish, which set the tone for the remainder of the sport. After going deep, supervisor Dave Roberts mentioned by way of the sport broadcast that “sure gamers need the massive second,” and the numbers again it up.
Posting a profession stat line of .238/.308/.405 with a .713 OPS, Enrique Hernandez would not seem to be the kind to thrive within the playoffs. Nevertheless, the 33-year-old steps it up within the postseason.
With regards to playoff standouts, it would take some time to get to Enrique Hernandez’s title. Nevertheless, after going 1-of-3 with a homer in Sport 5, he is cemented himself as a clutch playoff performer, slashing .277/.351/.548 with a .899 OPS in 75 video games.
Yamamoto gave Dodgers begin they wanted
After the bullpen pulled the load in Sport 4, the destiny of the Dodgers’ season was in Yamamoto’s fingers, and he delivered. The Japanese star had his first huge MLB second, holding the Padres scoreless by 5 innings whereas permitting solely two hits off 63 pitches.
Roughed up by the Padres in Sport 1, Yamamoto responded on Friday, preserving San Deigo off steadiness all through the evening regardless of ending with solely two strikeouts. It was the form of tone-setting begin the Dodgers wanted within the greatest spot attainable.
Based on Greg Harvey of OptaStats, Yamamoto is the primary Dodgers pitcher to report 5.0 innings or extra shutout innings whereas permitting two or fewer hits in a winner-take-all state of affairs. Moreover, it is a feat solely eight pitchers have completed in MLB historical past.
Padres’ NLDS loss falls squarely on the offense’s shoulders
A victory away from punching their ticket to the NLCS, the Padres failed twice, with a non-existent offense responsible for the historic collapse.
Since scoring six runs within the second inning of Sport 3, the Padres went 24 consecutive innings with out pushing a run throughout the plate. Over that stretch, San Diego’s one by 4 hitters, Luis Arraez, Fernando Tatis Jr., Jurickson Profar and Manny Machado, got here up woefully small, combining to go 5-of-39.
Moreover, after gaining a 2-1 collection lead, the desk appeared set for the Padres. Shohei Ohtani wasn’t a lot of an element on the plate for the Dodgers, and L.A. needed to depend on its bullpen on the mound in Sport 4 and Yamamoto, who San Diego shelled for 5 earned runs over three innings in Sport 1, for Friday’s winner-take-all contest.
As an alternative of capitalizing, the Padres’ bats disappeared, and even the most effective pitching performances would not have saved them.
San Diego is not any stranger to current playoff disappointment, dropping within the 2022 NLCS (4-1) and 2020 NLDS (3-0). However blowing the 2024 NLDS to the rival Dodgers, within the trend it did, is arguably probably the most devastating playoff loss within the franchise’s historical past.
