Kuzul

The Los Angeles Dodgers didn’t receive a sterling performance from starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw in Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Friday, but a couple of home runs and a strong bullpen effort allowed the NL West champions to sneak out a 4-3 win over the Washington Nationals on Friday night.  

Washington now trails 1-0 with Game 2 slated for Saturday afternoon at Nationals Park. It got off on the wrong foot in search of the franchise’s first division series victory since 1981. 

Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer allowed 17 first-inning runs this season—his most in any stanza, according to MASN’s Mark Zuckerman—and his trend of starting slowly continued Friday. 

Corey Seager stepped into the box as the second batter of the day, and he promptly crushed a solo home run over the center field fence in his first career postseason at-bat to give the Dodgers an early 1-0 lead, as MLB showed on Twitter: 

The Nationals didn’t experience similar success on the scoreboard during the game’s opening stages, but they did make Kershaw work. Specifically, Washington loaded the bases in the second, and Scherzer worked an eight-pitch at-bat against the southpaw before he popped out to shallow left. 

As the Washington Post‘s Jorge Castillo noted, the Nationals had to take solace in silver linings as the Dodgers maintained a slight edge: 

Once that crisis was averted, the Dodgers collectively exhaled and continued to find success in spots against Scherzer.

After Andrew Toles singled to start the inning, Chase Utley scored him from second on a single of his own to push the Dodgers’ lead to 2-0. A couple of batters later, Justin Turner followed in Seager’s footsteps and crushed a two-run home run to give L.A. a cushy 4-0 advantage. 

CSN Mid Atlantic’s Chase Hughes put Scherzer’s struggles in context: 

But just when it looked like the wheels were starting to fall off, the Nationals responded. 

With men on second and third, Anthony Rendon delivered a two-run single to left field to slash the Dodgers’ lead in half. 

By the time the third inning came to a close, Kershaw had thrown 66 pitches and allowed five hits in what proved to be another less than stellar postseason display. 

ESPN Los Angeles’ Steve Mason believed Kershaw didn’t look like himself on the mound in hostile territory: 

Kershaw gutted it out through the end of the fourth inning after he allowed Washington to cut L.A.’s lead to one, but his command remained shaky.

Los Angeles’ ace ultimately logged 101 pitches through five innings—which represented the most he tossed since returning from the disabled list on Sept. 9, according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group. 

Sporting News’ Jesse Spector broke down Kershaw’s evening once the three-time Cy Young Award winner was replaced by reliever Joe Blanton: 

Conversely, Scherzer struck out five and gave up five hits over six innings. However, two costly mistakes served as blemishes on an otherwise impressive outing, per Zuckerman: 

Once the starters sat, the Dodgers bullpen took over. 

Blanton, Grant Dayton and Pedro Baez combined to pitch 2.1 no-hit innings, and they served as a stellar bridge to closer Kenley Jansen—who was brought aboard for his first successful five-out save since April 13 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, per ESPN Stats & Info. 

Jansen’s clutch effort was amplified by the fact he retired Trea Turner, Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth in the ninth to give his side a 1-0 series lead. 

The Nationals will now turn to Tanner Roark (16-10, 2.83 ERA) to try to stem the tide in Game 2, while the Dodgers will trust Rich Hill (12-5, 2.12 ERA) on the mound as they seek to take a 2-0 lead back to Hollywood and advance to the NLCS for the first time since 2013. 

Postgame Reaction

According to ESPN Stats & Info, the Dodgers are in an advantageous spot entering Game 2: 

Hoornstra later relayed word from manager Dave Roberts regarding Jansen’s potential usage later in the series: 

The Los Angeles Times‘ Bill Shaikin noted Jansen was in favor of that plan: 

As for the Nationals, Daniel Murphy owned up to his decision to try to swipe second when he was caught stealing. 

“There are two choices there, be safe or don’t run,” he said, according to MLB.com’s Alex Putterman. “It was a bad play.”

As for Danny Espinosa (0-for-3 with three strikeouts), manager Dusty Baker just noted it wasn’t the shortstop’s night. 

“Espinosa can turn around and hit the next pitch out of the park,” he said, according to the Washington Post‘s Chelsea Janes. “That’s what’s kind of frustrating…his swing was long tonight.”

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

A pitcher’s duel between Johnny Cueto and Jon Lester was likely to come down to one mistake, and Chicago Cubs second baseman Javier Baez was the one capitalize on that lone slip-up.

Baez’s solo home run with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning was the only scoring in Game 1 of the National League Division Series, a 1-0 win for the Cubs over the visiting San Francisco Giants.

That was one of just three hits that Cueto allowed while striking out 10. He’d retired eight in a row before going to 3-2 on Baez and left one over the plate. The ball barely cleared the fence in left field, wedging into the basket over the ivy.

Lester allowed five hits and struck out six in eight innings for Chicago, retiring the final 13 batters he faced for the win.

Game 2 is set for Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.

Scroll down for all of our real-time updates, statistics, tweets, pictures and analysis of Game 1 in Chicago.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Toronto Blue Jays moved within one victory of reaching the American League Championship Series with a 5-3 victory over the Texas Rangers in Game 2 of the division series on Friday at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas.

Troy Tulowitzki hit a two-run homer in the second inning, and the Jays never relinquished the lead, though there was plenty of drama over the final three innings. J.A. Happ, who went 20-4 in the regular season, picked up the win after giving up just one run over five innings of work.

Toronto, which captured Game 1 of the series by a 10-1 score on Thursday, is starting to pick up a lot of steam after surviving an 11-inning wild-card battle with the Baltimore Orioles. The Jays now return home to Rogers Centre with an eye on closing out the series in Sunday’s Game 3.

The Blue Jays jumped out in front in the second inning, which started with an always dangerous leadoff walk to Jose Bautista. Sure enough, the visitors took full advantage two batters later when Tulowitzki crushed a homer to left to grab the early lead.

Statcast provided further details about the supercharged blast from the five-time All-Star:

A two-out rally allowed the Rangers to get back within one in the fourth.

They belted out three consecutive singles courtesy of Nomar Mazara, Carlos Gomez and Ian Desmond, who brought home Mazara with his base knock to center. A weak groundout by Carlos Beltran brought an end to the threat, though.

Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News noted Happ’s struggles the third time through an order, which is when the Rangers got on the scoreboard:

Not being able to generate more runs in the fourth inning was a turning point because the Jays responded with three runs in the fifth.

Kevin Pillar, Ezequiel Carrera and Edwin Encarnacion all connected on solo homers in a five-batter span to give the Blue Jays a 5-1 lead. The explosion of power against Yu Darvish is rare, as he gave up just 12 long balls in 17 starts during the regular season. 

Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News pointed out the Texas starter tied the wrong kind of record: 

ESPN Stats & Info passed along another interesting stat concerning the fifth-inning meltdown:

The Rangers missed an opportunity to trim the lead in the seventh. Desmond started the frame with a double and advanced to third on a groundout. He tried to score on another grounder, this one by Adrian Beltre, but a slight hesitation allowed Josh Donaldson to throw him out on a bang-bang play.

Ari Shapiro of Jays Journal commented on a tough start to the series for the center fielder:

There was still a chance to rally after a walk to Rougned Odor put two runners on base. But Jason Grilli got Jonathan Lucroy to pop out in foul territory to end the inning.

Texas got two runs back in the eighth, which featured a scary moment involving Toronto reliever Francisco Liriano. Carlos Gomez hit a line drive right back through the box that struck Liriano hard before ricocheting into center for an RBI single.

Barry Davis of Sportsnet discussed the chilling moment, which even made Gomez cringe as he ran toward first base:

The Rangers added another run on a groundout by Desmond, but closer Roberto Osuna struck out Beltran to prevent any further damage and preserve the lead into the ninth.

After a scoreless top of the ninth, Beltre gave the Rangers a glimmer of hope by leading off the bottom of the inning with a double. Osuna responded by getting the next three hitters out in order to secure the victory, inducing Mitch Moreland to fly out to end it.

SportsCenter spotlighted the key stat coming out of the Jays’ two wins in Texas:

Looking ahead, along with being in a favorable position in the series, the Jays’ outlook for the entire postseason has become far more optimistic since Tuesday. They struggled during the final month of the season, but that extra-inning triumph over Baltimore seems to have provided the spark they needed.

Now the focus is on closing out the Rangers as quickly as possible, both to avoid a potential comeback and to get some extra rest for the pitching staff. Aaron Sanchez gives Toronto an advantage on the mound in Game 3 with Colby Lewis being his expected counterpart for Texas.

On the flip side, the Rangers need to start coming up with more hits in clutch situations if they want to climb out of the 2-0 hole. They had a couple of chances for big innings Friday and just couldn’t capitalize, and that’s always problematic against a club with as many power bats as the Blue Jays have.

Postgame Reaction

Steve Argintaru of TSN passed along an update on Liriano from Blue Jays manager John Gibbons:

Meanwhile, Rangers manager Jeff Banister lamented the fact a handful of bad pitches is all it took to turn the game in Toronto’s favor, per Daniel Kramer of MLB.com.

“Four unexecuted pitches is what it boils down to,” he said.

Andy Newberry of the Times Record News noted the Texas bench boss quickly turned the focus to the rest of the series.

“We have to win three in a row; it starts with one,” Banister said.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

FINAL SCORE: Los Angeles Dodgers 4 – 3 Washington Nationals

Although Clayton Kershaw didn’t exude his usual excellence Friday, the Dodgers still seized Game 1 of the National League Division Series road matchup against the Nationals.

Kershaw carefully navigated his way through five innings. He allowed three runs, but the Dodgers tagged Nationals ace Max Scherzer for four behind early home runs from Corey Seager and Justin Turner.

It wasn’t the pitcher’s duel promised, but both bullpens kept the score low. Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen shut the door with a five-out save to give Los Angeles the 1-0 series lead.

Washington will look to even the score on Saturday afternoon behind Tanner Roark, who will face Dodgers southpaw Rich Hill at Nationals Park.

Notable Stats

W: Clayton Kershaw (5 IP, 8 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 7 K)

L: Max Sherzer (6 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 2 HR)

SV: Kenley Jansen (1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K)

HR: Corey Seager (1st inning off Scherzer), Justin Turner (3rd inning off Scherzer)

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

It’s Friday, baby, which is great news on its own, but it’s also a Friday with a full slate of MLB postseason games, which basically makes it the best Friday possible.

Rejoice, my friends, and watch baseball all day.

Below, we’ll break down the schedule, viewing options and make a few predictions for all the day’s action.

I’m sticking with my overall picks to win each series to triumph on Friday, with the exception of one contest.

In the first game, I’m not going to get too creative with my pick. Frankly, I like Yu Darvish to stifle Toronto and win his duel against J.A. Happ. In his last two starts (13.0 innings), Darvish has given up just one run, two walks and five hits while striking out 21 batters.

Unsurprisingly, the Rangers won both of those games.

Yes, the Blue Jays knocked around Cole Hamels on Thursday. And yes, Happ has been very solid this season, so he’ll keep the Blue Jays in the game. But I expect Darvish to tame the explosive Toronto bats, at least for one game.

The second matchup has a fascinating pitching duel of its own, as David Price takes the mound for the Boston Red Sox against Corey Kluber. Price has had his woes in the postseason, owning a 2-7 record in the playoffs with a 5.22 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. He’s also given up 11 home runs in 63.1 innings pitched.

Not good.

But Kluber, Cleveland’s ace, is returning from a quadriceps strain, according to Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com. But Kluber should be just fine.

“It’s the first time in the last three years that [Kluber] has had any kind of breather during the season,” the team’s pitching coach, Mickey Callaway, told Meisel. “The ball is coming out of his hand great. His leg feels fine. His mechanics looked good.”

He added: “The ball was coming out hot. He said, ‘Oh, man, my arm feels great.’ He did really good.”

I think Boston will win this series. But until Price can exorcise his postseason demons, it’s tough to trust him. No, we don’t know how Kluber will handle the postseason spotlight or a fantastic Boston offense. He faced Boston twice this season, giving up just two runs in seven innings in May for a win and four runs in 5.1 innings in an April loss (Price earned the win in that contest, giving up two runs in six innings).

Which Price will we see? Which Kluber, for that matter?

I’ll take Kluber to triumph in a tight contest.

Yes, the third game on the docket, the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. the Washington Nationals, is all about the pitching matchup, too (it’s the postseason—it’s always about the pitching matchup). 

Clayton Kershaw, like Price, has struggled in the postseason with a 2-6 record and a 4.59 ERA. On the other hand, Max Scherzer has been better in the postseason, going 4-3 with a 3.72 ERA, but he hasn’t exactly reminded anyone of Madison Bumgarner in his October appearances.

There are a few reasons to like Kershaw, however. In his only start against Washington this year (Scherzer didn’t start against the Dodgers this season), he went seven innings, giving up just one run while striking out eight. And while his season was shortened by injuries, he still posted ridiculous numbers, going 12-4 with 172 strikeouts, a 1.69 ERA and a 0.72 WHIP in 149 innings.

Of course, Scherzer might win the NL Cy Young this year, so he’s hardly chopped liver. But two factors play in favor of the Dodgers in this contest.

As Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times noted: “The Nationals have plenty of weapons in their lineup, but a series of injuries has slowed their production. Neither Daniel Murphy nor Bryce Harper, the two most dangerous hitters, appears close to 100 percent as the playoffs begin.”

And the second factor: “The Dodgers might have the best offense in baseball—when they are facing a right-handed pitcher,” as McCullough wrote.

Look for the Dodgers to maintain home-field advantage and take Game 1.

Finally, the Chicago Cubs will host the San Francisco Giants. The Cubs were the best team in baseball during the regular season. Madison Bumgarner is arguably the best postseason pitcher in MLB history. But Bumgarner won’t pitch until Game 3.

So, yeah, the Cubs should take Game 1. I’ll take Jon Lester, Aroldis Chapman, the loaded offense, Joe Maddon and the best home record in baseball over Johnny Cueto and the Giants in Game 1.

And in this series. 

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Following a tight Wild Card Game, the 2016 National League Division Series is set to kick off Friday with a doubleheader featuring a quartet of legitimate aces.

San Francisco’s Madison Bumgarner continued his otherworldly postseason dominance with a complete-game shutout against the New York Mets on Wednesday, but the Giants will still trot out a star hurler in Game 1 of the NLDS in Johnny Cueto. The remaining three teams playing Friday are also expected to send out top-options, which could make for some low-scoring affairs.

Take a look below at the Game 1 start times, in addition to the television and live streaming schedules, for the NLDS. The full 2016 MLB playoff schedule can be found at MLB.com.

One would be hard-pressed to find a heavyweight pitching matchup like the one expected at Nationals Park, as Clayton Kershaw will battle Max Scherzer.

Kershaw is well established as arguably the premier arm in the game, and he was on his way towards a possible fourth Cy Young honor before a back injury hampered his 2016 season. He was 11-2 with 1.79 ERA before he missed the entire months of July and August. Kershaw went 1-2 in five starts since his return on Sept. 9, but he only allowed four earned runs in that span. 

The 28-year-old finished with 172 strikeouts and a staggering 11 walks allowed, which gives him the best such ratio ever for a starting pitcher, per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian:

Scherzer was certainly comparable, finishing 20-7 with a 2.96 ERA while leading the majors with 284 strikeouts. This put Scherzer, who is challenging for his second ever Cy Young Award and first in the NL, in historic company as well, which MLB Network’s Jon Morosi noted with some help from the network’s research team:

However, both pitchers have not brought their best stuff in the postseason. 

Kershaw is 2-6 with a 4.59 ERA in 13 playoff appearances. He put together a decent run with a 1-1 mark and a 2.63 ERA in two starts last year, but he posted ERAs of over 6.00 in the 2013 and 2014 postseasons.

Scherzer is 4-3 with a decent 3.73 ERA in 12 appearances, but he was rocked for five earned runs in his last playoff start in 2014. Each star will be looking to make a statement on Friday, which could result in a fierce pitching duel.

As for the late game, Cueto takes the hill as he looks to bring his solid playoff performance with Kansas City last season to the Giants. He takes on a bonafide ace in Jon Lester, who finished second in the majors this season behind teammate Kyle Hendricks with a 2.44 ERA.

In his lone start against Chicago this season, Cueto allowed only one run on five hits in seven innings, but he did not earn a decision in the Giants 3-2 loss on Sept. 9. Lester was 1-1 this year against San Francisco, totaling six runs and nine hits allowed in 11.2 innings. He also posted a porous strikeout-to-walk ratio with five punch-outs and five walks.

Getting runners in scoring position could be a difference in this matchup. Cueto sports a 9.82 ERA in 44 innings pitched with runners in scoring position in 2016, while Lester posted a 7.44 mark in 42.1 innings pitched.

Both teams were mediocre in this category offensively. The Cubs finished 21st in the majors with a .252 team batting average with runners in scoring position, while San Francisco came in a spot behind the Cubs with a .250 mark.

With Cueto having inferior numbers in this situation than Lester, and with Chicago being marginally better here at the plate, the Cubs should have a slight edge Friday at Wrigley Field.

Statistics are courtesy of MLB.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox are in fairly urgent situations. Both lost their American League Division Series openers and know that dropping a second straight game would not be good for their postseason aspirations.

The Rangers will try to even their series with the Toronto Blue Jays by sending Yu Darvish to the mound Friday afternoon (1:08 p.m. ET, TBS) against 20-game winner J.A. Happ.

Game 1 of the series was disastrous for the home team. The Blue Jays scored five runs in the top of the third inning and then rolled to a 10-1 victory over Texas ace Cole Hamels. The big bats of Jose Bautista (three-run home run) and Troy Tulowitizki (bases-loaded triple) were booming for the Blue Jays, while Texas could do very little with Marco Estrada.

The Toronto starter pitched 8.1 innings before manager John Gibbons pulled him after giving up four hits, striking out six and not walking a batter.

More than anything, the Texas offense will need to come alive. The Rangers were a resounding 53-28 at home this season, as players like Ian Desmond (22 HR, 86 RBI), Carlos Beltran (seven HR since being traded at the deadline by the New York Yankees), Adrian Beltre (32 HR and 104 RBI) and Rougned Odor (.502 slugging percentage, 33 HR) were able to come up with key hits on a regular basis.

Happ will not be easy for the Rangers to solve. He was 20-4 with a 3.18 ERA and a solid 1.169 WHIP, and he also was an impressive 9-2 on the road.

Darvish was 10-7 with a 3.06 ERA and a 1.261 WHIP in his 22 starts this year. The 30-year-old Japanese pitcher was 6-2 at home this year, but his ERA jumped to 4.26 at Globe Life Park.

The Red Sox are depending on David Price to even their series with the Indians after Game 1 starter Rick Porcello gave up three home runs in the third inning and Boston dropped a 5-4 decision.

Price comes into Game 2 of the series (4:38 p.m ET, TBS) with a 2-7 lifetime postseason record, which almost certainly means that there will be some uneasiness in the Red Sox dugout.

Price was somewhat inconsistent throughout the first half of the season but was much better after the All-Star break, going 8-3 with a 3.58 ERA.

Price told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he was unconcerned about his unimpressive postseason record:

I just want to help this team win.That’s the bottom line. That’s the mind-set I want to take out there on the fifth day. And that’s the mind-set I want my teammates to have. I want to be dominant. I want to have that really good postseason game and I know that I’m capable of doing that and I’m excited to pitch [Friday].

Price’s opponent will be Cleveland ace Corey Kluber, who was 18-9 with a 3.14 ERA and a sharp 1.056 WHIP.

The only issue for Kluber is that it has been nearly two weeks since he last pitched as a result of a quadriceps strain. Kluber said he is feeling good and told Julian Benbow of the Boston Globe that he is not worried about being rusty.

The Rangers and Red Sox are not in must-win positions just yet, but both teams need to pick it up considerably after coming up with less than their best efforts in the first games of their respective series.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Toronto Blue Jays are headed back north with a 2-0 lead in the American League Division Series after scoring a 5-3 win Friday over the Texas Rangers.

Four home runs off Rangers starter Yu Darvish helped Toronto build a 5-1 lead after five innings, then late clutch pitching from closer Roberto Osuna sealed the victory.

Troy Tulowitzki hit a two-run homer in the second, and then Kevin Pillar, Ezequiel Carrera and Edwin Encarnacion launched solo shots in the fifth. Texas scored one in the fourth and two in the eighth but left 13 men on base including two each in the first four innings.

J.A. Happ allowed one run over five innings to pick up the win, with the Blue Jays using five relievers to finish the job. Osuna got the last five outs to get the save, allowing one hit and striking out two.

Game 3 is set for Sunday at 7:30 p.m., with Toronto looking for the sweep.

Scroll down for our real-time updates, analysis, statistics, pictures, tweets and everything else worth noting from Arlington, Texas.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The National League Division Series field is set after the San Francisco Giants knocked off the New York Mets in the Wild Card Game, setting up the Giants for an NLDS meeting with the Chicago Cubs.

Madison Bumgarner put the Giants on his shoulders once again in the elimination game, twilring a four-hit shutout to improve his already legendary postseason resume.

Now the Giants will have to take on baseball’s best team, as the Cubs wrapped up the regular season at 103-58 with a staggerling plus-252 run differential.

The Cubs took the season series 4-3, taking three of four at home in September after dropping two of three at AT&T Park in May.

This NLDS matchup will begin Friday at Wrigley Field in Chicago, with first pitch of Game 1 scheduled for 9:00 p.m. ET.

Before the series gets underway, let’s take a position-by-position look at how the two teams match up and make a quick prediction for who will come out on top.

Begin Slideshow

Friday night at Nationals Park, we’ll see something we haven’t seen in more than 30 years: playoff baseball between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals. 

Of course, the last time these two teams met in the postseason, in the 1981 National League Championship Series, the Nationals were known as the Montreal Expos.

Nationals manager Dusty Baker was a 32-year-old star for the Dodgers that season, while Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was nine years old. Most of the players about to partake in the National League Division Series between the two clubs had yet to be born.

It’s been a long time.

How do these two clubs stack up? Which team will be the last one standing when the NLDS comes to an end? Let’s take a look.

Begin Slideshow