LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers limped through their dress rehearsal during the season, looking at times like they were just a pedestrian team and might even be vulnerable in the postseason.
Suckers.
The Dodgers, once again, have turned it on when the calendar flipped to October, and are threatening go where no National League team has gone in nearly 50 years:
Winning back-to-back World Series.
The Dodgers knocked off the Philadelphia Phillies, 2-1, in 11 innings Thursday, winning the NL Division Series in four games, and now advance to the National League Championship Series to face the winner of the Milwaukee Brewers–Chicago Cubs series on Monday.
It was an epic pitching duel, but ended on perhaps the biggest blunder to end a postseason game since New York Mets first baseman Bill Buckner’s gaffe in the 1986 World Series.
Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering, facing Andy Pages with two outs and the bases loaded in the 11th, appeared to get out of the jam when he induced a soft bouncer. Kerkering fumbled the ball but still had plenty of time to get Pages at first base.
Instead, he panicked. Big time.
Kerkering inexplicably threw home and it sailed over catcher J.T. Realmuto, who was pointing for his pitcher to throw to first.
As the ball rolled to the backstop, the Dodgers were rushing onto the field to celebrate a return trip to the NLCS.
It’s the first time a postseason series clincher has been decided on an error.
The Dodgers appear to be peaking at the right time, winning 10 of their last 11 games, dating back to the final week of the regular season.
And, if you listen to the Dodgers, they feel like they’re just getting started.
“I still think there’s another gear in there,” Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy said. “I don’t think we fully reached where we can be at. That’s not saying we are, and that’s not saying we aren’t. But I still think there’s a whole other level in there we haven’t reached yet.”
Who knows how much better the Dodgers can get the rest of October, but they are a whole lot better now than they were in the summer, believing all along that this day would finally arrive.
“We knew who we were as a team all year long,’’ Muncy said. “Even though we weren’t playing up to it at certain points we trusted who we were. … There were some rough times this year, but no one was faltering in the clubhouse. And I think the reality was the group of guys we have in there, with the amount of experience and talent to just know we were going to come through it.”
Let’s be honest, it’s not like the Dodgers had any doubt that they’d be playing in October. They’ve been in the postseason 13 consecutive seasons, winning 12 NL West titles during the stretch.
It was just a matter of what kind of shape they’d be in once they got into the playoffs.
“Obviously every year in spring training,’’ Muncy said, “every team’s going to show up with a big speech about our goal this year is to win the World Series, blah, blah, blah. The reality of it is there’s only a handful of teams that can actually say that is a realistic goal. And we’re one of those every single year.
“So, for us, making the postseason is not something that you should ever take for granted, and we definitely don’t. But we expect to be here. And once we get to this point, it’s a whole other level. And for a couple of years we went through a stretch where we had a little trouble flipping the switch when we got to this point. We rolled through the regular season, and we just couldn’t find a way to flip that switch at this point in the year.
“The last couple of years, I feel like we’ve found that way. And I think that’s just what’s carrying us.”
Certainly, this heavyweight bout with the Phillies wasn’t easy, with both teams believing this might have been the World Series two rounds early.
This game resurrected memories of Steve Carlton and Don Drysdale the way Phillies ace Cristopher Sanchez and Tyler Glasnow were pitching. It was an old-fashioned pitching duel between Tyler Glasnow of the Dodgers and Phillies ace Cristopher Sanchez, with each pitching six shutout innings, turned into a managerial second-guessing delight.
The move that will certainly be second-guessed into the winter was manager Rob Thomson’s decision in the eighth inning that backfired.
Sanchez, who tired in the seventh, walked No. 7 hitter Alex Call and then giving up a sharp single to Enrique Hernandez, was pulled. Thomson went to closer Jhoan Duran for a potential eight-out save.
Duran induced a bouncer to first baseman Bryce Harper for the second out, with the runners advancing to second and third base, and then Thomson made the move that will have radio talk-show hosts screaming for his head.
He elected to intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani.
Under most circumstances, it would make perfect sense, particularly considering Ohtani has hit two homers in four at-bats off Duran in his career.
This is not normal circumstances.
Ohtani has looked awful at the plate this series, with just one hit in 17 at-bats, to go along with eight strikeouts.
Still, Thomson is well aware of his resume, believing Ohtani could break out at any time, and ordered Duran to intentionally walk him, loading the bases.
Mookie Betts made him pay the price. Duran walked Betts on a full count, with a 101-mph fastball thrown high for ball four, tying the game at 1-apiece.
The move took Dodgers manager Dave Roberts off the hook when he pulled Tyler Glasnow after six brilliant innings, giving up just two hits while striking out eight. Glasnow was at only 83 pitches, but Roberts wanted a fresh arm and summoned Emmet Sheehan, who was a starter throughout the regular season, but is in the bullpen for the postseason.
Realmuto greeted him with a leadoff single to center. Sheehan induced an easy bouncer to Edman at second base, who flipped the ball to shortstop Mookie Betts for one out, but Sheehan was late covering first base, and he missed the return throw from Betts. The ball sailed out of play, allowing Kepler to reach second.
Nick Castellanos, who was in a 1-for-13 deep freeze, made Sheehan pay for his mistake by lining a double down the left field line, scoring Kepler for the game’s first run.
The lead lasted right up to Betts’ walk in the bottom of the seventh, turning the game over to the bullpens, with rookie Roki Sasaki retiring all nine batters he faced.
The Phillies had Duran pitch 1 ⅔ innings, Matt Strahm for an inning, and then turned to starter Jesus Luzardo, who was originally scheduled to pitch Game 5.
Thomson wanted to make sure there was a Game 5.
It never happened, thanks to a blunder that will be forever remembered in baseball lore.
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Here’s how Thursday’s game unfolded:
Dodgers win on Orion Kerkering error
The Dodgers loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the 11th and Andy Pages hit a comebacker to Orion Kerkering – who went home with his throw but airmailed it, allowing the winning run to score.
Dodgers’ Alex Vesia stands tall in the 11th
Dodgers left Alex Vesia came on for the 11th and walked Bryce Harper with one out. Then Alec Bohm hit a ball to the edge of the warning track in center that scared the crowd, but went down as the second out. Vesia threw a wild pitch on his first offering to pinch-hitter Harrison Bader that moved Harper to second, but Vesia eventually won a 10-pitch standoff, whiffing Bader to end the top of the 11th.
Jesus Luzardo dominates the 10th
Game 2 starter Jesus Luzardo was brought into the game for the 10th inning and promptly struck out Shohei Ohtani on three pitches. The left-hander got Mookie Betts to fly out and then struck out Teoscar Hernandez to end the inning and send the game to the 11th.
Roki Sasaki pitches perfect 10th
Dodgers rookie Roki Sasaki set the Phillies down in order in the top of the 10th, retiring all nine batters he has faced through three scoreless innings. Jesus Luzardo will come in for the Phillies to pitch the 10th.
Tied after nine: MLB playoff extra innings rules
The Dodgers and Phillies are heading for extra innings in Game 4. Roki Sasaki stayed in the game for a second inning in the ninth and set the Phillies down and has now retired all six batters he faced. Matt Strahm came on for the Phillies and pitched a clean inning to send it to the 10th.
Major League Baseball’s extra innings format is different in the playoffs from the regular season, getting rid of the “ghost runner” starting on second base once a game goes beyond nine innings.
Unlike the previous six months of baseball, extra innings in the postseason will not feature the free runner.
To the ninth: Dodgers 1, Phillies 1
Roki Sasaki came on to pitch the eighth for the Dodgers and retired the Phillies in order. Jhoan Duran came back out for Philadelphia and set the Dodgers down with two strikeouts sandwiching a grounder, sending the game to the ninth inning tied 1-1.
Dodgers tie it on Mookie Betts’ RBI walk
Cristopher Sanchez gave way to Jhoan Duran with runners on first and second in the bottom of the seventh, and the Phillies reliever got Andy Pages for the second out. But manager Rob Thomson opted to intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani to load the bases for Mookie Betts. The former MVP worked the count and drew a walk to bring in the tying run.
Duran struck out Teoscar Hernandez to get out of the inning and send the game to the eighth tied at one.
Phillies strike first in the seventh
Emmet Sheehan relieved Tyler Glasnow in the top of the seventh after the Dodgers starter tossed six scoreless innings. He surrendered a leadoff single to J.T. Realmuto then got the first out on Max Kepler’s fielder’s choice but the ball skipped away out of play as the Dodgers tried to turn a double play, putting Kepler on second.
Nick Castellanos followed with an RBI double just inside third base to bring home the first run of the game.
But Sheehan retired Bryston Stott and Trea Turner to strand Castellanos on second and keep it a 1-0 game heading into the seventh-inning stretch.
Dodgers vs Phillies still scoreless into the sixth
Tyler Glasnow and Cristopher Sanchez have traded zeroes through the first five innings, with each team only managing two hits. Sanchez is only at 62 pitches with no walks and four strikeouts.
Cristopher Sanchez escapes after Alec Bohm’s error
WIth runners on first and third and two outs after third baseman Alec Bohm’s error, Phillies starter got Mookie Betts to ground out and end the bottom of the third.
Game 4 is scoreless heading into the fourth inning.
Phillies defense shines in the second
Mookie Betts led off the bottom of the second with a single against Cristopher Sanchez, then Tommy Edman hit a line drive to left field that looked to be heading for the gap until Max Kepler laid out to make a spectacular diving catch. Sanchez then got Will Smith to ground into an inning-ending double play.
Tyler Glasnow works around Schwarber double
Game 4 is underway at Dodger Stadium and the Phillies threatened in the top of the first with Kyle Schwarber’s one-out double. But Tyler Glasnow got Bryce Harper to ground out and struck out Brandon Marsh swinging after walking Alec Bohm.
