SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Everyone expected a playoff series between the rival Dodgers-and-Giants teams of 100 years. Now they have it.
A winner-take-all Game 5 would be a terrible thing for baseball, and it would have left the sport behind on the October stage.
The NL West champion Giants will take on the defending World Series champ Los Angeles Dodgers to secure a spot in the NL Championship Series against Atlanta.
After the Dodgers’ victory on Tuesday night (7-2), it comes down to Game 5 at San Francisco’s Oracle Park on Thursday.
You can see why Evan Longoria, third baseman for San Francisco, would rather have a best of seven than this short NL Division Series before one or both of these two must go home for the winter.
Longoria stated last week that he felt like the Giants may be in a series, or a moment when baseball might have to restructure the way the playoffs are played — 106 and 107 wins don’t feel like a DS matchup. “… “…I feel like there are two teams that have won this many games. It seems too early to match us up.”
LA and Mookie Betts have had their fair share of winners-take-all games in the past two seasons.
Betts stated that they have had success in this league over the past four, five and six years. You sense it in there, and you find a way that you can do little things that you might never do in the regular season. It’s easy to make an impact on a game.
It will be the season meeting No. It will be the season meeting No. 24 between these talented, and even clubs to be played at 24 Willie Mays Plaza — an allusion to the Hall of Famer’s jersey number.
Los Angeles has 11 and San Francisco 12 awards, respectively.
These teams, which began playing in 1884 and won 109 of their respective games this year, now meet in an all or nothing game.
Walker Buehler, Dodgers pitcher, said that “I believe it’s only fitting.”
Logan Webb, Game 1 winner, was dazzling in his postseason debut. The Giants will take the ball again for them while the Dodgers will be going to Julio Urias, the 20-game winner after he pitched the Game 2 victory.
Buster Posey, Giants catcher, said that “this time of the year you’re going be facing great pitching night after night.” “And you hope that when you get traffic out there, you can get big hits and, because sometimes those chances are limited, that’s something you will be able do on Thursday.”
The Dodgers have scored nine runs and seven runs in their two series wins. The Giants have shutout LA’s slugging team in their two wins.
Webb and two relief pitchers combined to throw a five-hitter in the 4-0 Game 1 victory last week.
Will Smith, a Dodgers catcher, said, “As an offense we got to be ready to go and just put together some good at-bats and score some runs and jump on him early.” They know us. They know us very well. It’s going to be down to who wants it more and who is willing to go there that day.”
These two teams have a rich history of meeting in decisive games to determine who advances.
Bobby Thomson’s decisive Game 3 in a 1951 NL pennant tiebreaker saw him hit what many consider the greatest home run of all time when he connected for the famous “Shot ‘Heard Round the World” – a three-run drive at the Polo Grounds that scored five runs and lifted the New York Giants past Jackie Robinson and the Brooklyn Dodgers, 5-4.
When the 1962 NL pennant was played, the franchises had shifted to California. They played a best of three matchup. San Francisco lost the following day after beating Sandy Koufax, Los Angeles’ ace in the opener. Mays led a four-run rally to win Game 3 at Dodger Stadium 6-4.
The long-time rivals are back, all these years later.
“This is what the baseball wants. As I understand it, all series have been cancelled so we will be the only one in town. Dodgers-Giants is the only show that will keep you occupied if you are a sports fan or have a pulse,” Dave Roberts, Los Angeles manager said.
