The Los Angeles Dodgers will be fighting for their lives when they take the field at Dodger Stadium Tuesday afternoon.
After winning Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Washington Nationals, they have dropped the last two and must come up with wins in Games 4 and 5 if they are going to advance to the National League Championship Series.
The Nats rode the power bats of Anthony Rendon and Jayson Werth to record an 8-3 victory in Game 3 in Los Angeles Monday. Rendon hit a two-run home run in the third inning off Dodgers starter Kenta Maeda, while Werth crushed a 450-foot homer off Los Angeles closer Kenley Jansen in the ninth inning.
The Dodgers will either go with Clayton Kershaw or Julio Urias on the mound in this potential elimination game, but the team had not made an official announcement as of Tuesday morning.
Kershaw pitched five innings Friday and was credited with the win in the series opener, but he did not control or dominate the Washington hitters.
Urias is well-rested and quite talented, but he would be getting the start in an elimination game, and it seems likely that manager Dave Roberts will want to go with his best pitcher in such an important game instead of a 20-year-old, relatively untested pitcher.
However, Kershaw spent more than two months on the disabled list this year with a lower-back injury, so the Dodgers may not want to push him on short rest.
“With an elimination game, we still have to win two games,” Roberts said after the loss, per Doug Padilla of ESPN.com. “So the thought of having Julio pitch at home, versus the road is something we’re thinking through, and what gives us the best chance to win two games. And obviously, yeah, you have to win [Tuesday] to win on Thursday.”
The Nationals have not announced their starter, either. It is possible that they could go with Joe Ross (7-5, 3.43 ERA) and save Max Scherzer (20-7, 2.96 ERA) for Game 5—if that scenario is required.
Tuesday’s game will be played at 5:05 p.m. ET and will be televised by Fox Sports 1.
Both the Nationals and Dodgers are still considered underdogs to win the World Series, according to Odds Shark. The Dodgers are +1200 (bet $100 to win $1,200) to be crowned world champions, while the Nationals are +700.
Prediction
There are many variables since neither side has announced its starting pitcher. However, the Dodgers need to win to stay alive, and they will be the more desperate team.
It would take a lot for Roberts not to go with his ace, and the feeling is that Kershaw will get the ball. Kershaw has struggled throughout his postseason career and is not at his best right now, so it may not be the proper time to expect a remarkable effort from him.
That may be the key. While some may see Kershaw as vulnerable, this will be the time that he comes through with a postseason gem. The Dodgers win Game 4 and square the series.
Chicago at San Francisco, Chicago leads series 2-1
It took 13 innings for the San Francisco Giants to get their first victory of the series against the Chicago Cubs, and by winning the third game, manager Bruce Bochy’s team is back in the NLDS.
The Giants rallied for three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to take a 5-3 lead into the ninth as a result of a two-run triple by Conor Gillaspie and an RBI single by Brandon Crawford off flame-throwing closer Aroldis Chapman.
With the Giants poised to win, NL MVP candidate Kris Bryant hit a game-tying, two-run homer in the top of the ninth to tie the score at 5-5.
The two teams remained locked up until the bottom of the 13th, when Joe Panik doubled home Crawford with the winning run. The Cubs lead the best-of-five series by a 2-1 margin.
“Just because we’re down, we’re not out,” Panik said after the game, per Janie McCauley of the Associated Press (h/t CBSSports.com). “If we’re breathing, we’re still fighting.”
The Cubs will send John Lackey to the mound Tuesday night at 8:40 p.m. ET against Matt Moore. The game will be televised by Fox Sports 1.
The Cubs remain favored to win the World Series with odds of +210. Chicago is looking for its first World Series title since 1908. The Giants are +1600 underdogs to win the World Series, and they have won three championships since 2010.
Prediction
The Giants succeeded in putting the heat on the Cubs by winning a game in this series in front of their rabid fans.
However, the Cubs won 103 games in the regular season because they were the best team in baseball, and they will have a strong pitcher on the mound in Lackey.
He was 11-8 with a 3.35 ERA this season along with a 1.057 WHIP. Additionally, Lackey has been a part of two World Series-winning teams (2002 Anaheim Angels and 2013 Boston Red Sox), and he should be able to pitch effectively in a closeout game on the road.
Moore was 6-5 this season with a 4.08 ERA and 1.332 WHIP in 12 starts for the Giants. It may be much harder for him to limit Chicago’s offense.
Look for the Cubs to pull away in this game and earn the series victory.
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