The Dodgers were heavy favorites to win the National League pennant before COVID-19 delayed the season. They remained so once the truncated schedule began. The Dodgers were looking to sweep the Padres in Game 3 of their National League Division Series late Thursday.
The Dodgers have it all. They deserve their chalk status, even if they didn’t live up to it last season. But, should the Dodgers advance to the NL Championship Series, they should beware of the Braves.
The Braves completed a three-game Division Series sweep of the Marlins with a 7-0 victory Thursday in Houston. They swept the Reds in two games in the wild-card round. The Braves have won five consecutive playoff games for the first time since 1999. That’s the year they lost the World Series to the AL’s Evil Empire, the Yankees.
I’m not saying the Braves would beat the NL’s big-money bullies, the Dodgers. The superior team tends to win over a seven-game series. The Dodgers have more starting pitching for the longer series. They hit a lot more than the Marlins and Reds.
I am saying the Braves look like a tougher draw than before the postseason began.
“I don’t know who we’re playing yet,” Braves catcher Travis d’Arnaud said. “I know we feel really confident in ourselves.”
They should. The big question for the Braves was how their young starting pitchers would hold up. Max Fried, Ian Anderson and Kyle Wright were set to pitch the biggest games of their careers. They’ve responded by leading the Braves to four shutouts, most in franchise history.
The Braves ended their losing playoff series streak at 10 by beating the Reds. Now they are back in the NLCS for the first time since 2001. Game 1 is Monday in Arlington, Texas.
“I’m just glad the narrative is changing,” Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman said. "There’s not a lot to talk about now, so we’ll start our own narrative.
The Marlins essentially were finished Thursday once the Braves took a 5-0 lead in the fourth inning. Soon after Ronald Acuna crossed the plate to score the fifth run, Adam Wainwright said what many Braves backers must have been thinking.
Wainwright, the Cardinals right-hander, was in the Fox Sports broadcast booth. His team sent the Braves home in last year’s NLDS. Wainwright saw something different in this Braves team.
“The Braves are playing with a type of excitement and emotion right now that they feel like this spot in the playoffs is not where they are ending this year,” Wainwright said. “Those guys are out to prove a point this year.”
The Braves have that going for them heading into the NLCS. They’ve developed a strong, intangible spirit while winning three consecutive NL East titles. The Braves said early this season that COVID-19 restrictions on getting too close weren’t preventing them from coming together. That had to help when their starting rotation fell apart.
Names change on manager Brian Snitker’s roster, but the chemistry remains strong. Last year it was brash third baseman Josh Donaldson. He left, and the Braves added carefree slugger Marcell Ozuna. And there’s fun-loving mainstays Ronald Acuna, Freddie Freeman, Ozzie Albies
The Braves' light seemed to die in each of the past two postseasons. But it’s always hard to tell which comes first, the poor performance or the diminished belief. The Braves lacked lineup depth while losing the 2018 NLDS to the Dodgers in four games. In last year’s NLDS, they fell apart in the deciding Game 5 against the Cardinals.
This October the Braves are playing good baseball while building mojo. They’ve allowed five runs in five games, including four shutouts. Their bullpen has been charged with just one run over 17-1/3 innings. The Braves won two games in which they didn’t hit a home run.
With each victory you can see the Braves puff out their chests a little more.
“I think the guys in that room are confident that we have a pretty good club and a chance to do something special,” Snitker said.
These Braves are better than the version the Dodgers faced in the 2018 NLDS. Back then the Braves were too new to October and too limited to compete. Now they have confidence, a better lineup and a deeper bullpen. Pitching depth is the one weakness.
That’s no small matter. The Braves needed only two starters against the Reds and three against the Marlins. They’ll need at least four in the NLCS, which also includes no off-days. If Fried and Anderson start games 1 and 2 and stay on normal rest, they wouldn’t be available again until games 6 and 7.
Snitker has expressed a willingness to use his best relievers three days in a row. He also likely will have to patch together a bullpen game or two in the NLCS. There’s a chance his reliever corps could be stretched thin.
“Seven days in a row, we’re going to need all hands on deck,” Snitker said.
Or maybe it won’t turn out that way. Fried, Anderson and Wright will face a tougher lineup in the NLCS. They’ll also have more confidence.
“Everyone was talking about the offense, and now they are going to talk about our pitching, and that’s good because they deserve it,” Freeman said.
The Dodgers are rich in pitching. Manager Dave Roberts has multiple good options, depending on the situation. His lineup is so good that those pitchers usually have a cushion.
Right-hander Walker Buehler walked four Padres hitters in Game 1 and left after four innings and 95 pitches. The Dodgers brought in another good starter, Dustin May, and he pitched two scoreless innings. In Game 2, lefty Clayton Kershaw gave up two homers, and closer Kenley Jansen surrendered two runs in the ninth inning. The Dodgers still won 6-5 while cranking out 11 hits.
It would help the Braves if the Padres-Dodgers series goes longer. If it goes to Game 5 on Saturday, it would mean some pitchers used wouldn’t be available to face the Braves early in the NLCS.
“I hope they beat each other up for the next three days,” Snitker said.
I’m thinking the Dodgers will close out the Padres, if not Thursday night then Friday. If the Dodgers advance, they’ll find the Braves aren’t an easy out as in 2018.
About the Author
