Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
Things looked as dire as can be for the Dodgers to start the 8th of Game 3 of the NLCS. They were down three runs to the Braves, playing all around like absolute trash aside from maybe the pen and basestealing (not baserunning), and they were staring down an 0-3 series deficit, from which only one team has ever come back from.
Well, that level of despair is what it seems is necessary for the Dodgers to get their shit in gear, because Cody Bellinger homered out of nowhere for a game-tying shot in the 8th and Mookie Betts then doubled in the winning run to give the Dodgers a 6-5 victory and now they’re right back in the series.
What happened during the rest of the game? Well, basically the Dodgers took the early lead behind Corey Seager‘s two-run homer in the 1st yet again.
Charlie Morton looked like he was about to last two outs at a point in the game there, but he made it through and kept the Dodgers at bay early.
And the Dodgers once again gave the lead back. After Walker Buehler looked solid through three, he then had an absolute disaster in the 4th and ended up leaving before Morton. The Braves scored four in the 4th on a Freddie Freeman single, a one-out Austin Riley “double” that Gavin Lux simply misread due to unfamiliarity with the wall in center, the umpire then missed a strike three call on Joc Pederson and he singled in a run, then Adam Duvall singled as well to tie the game. After a walk loaded the bases, Dansby Swanson hit a ball off Seager (on a play he should’ve made) for a “single” for the lead, and after Morton struck out, Buehler walked Eddie Rosario to force in a run and make it 4-2 before being removed.
The Dodgers pen limited the damage after that, with Corey Knebel and Phil Bickford combining to give up an insurance run in the 5th to make it 5-2, but that was all.
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While the lineup of the Boys In Blue couldn’t get it started all game, they were jolted awake in the 8th. Will Smith led off with a single and AJ Pollock had a one-out single of his own to put the tying run at the plate. I noted, somewhat dismissively, that the Dodgers had a chance to turn this game/series around somehow.
Well, Bellinger did just that, on a comically high fastball out of the zone, a pitch he struggled with all year, for a dramatic, ridiculous game-tying shot.
But that only tied the game, it was Mookie who came up with the game-winner off Jesse Chavez, making it 6-5 with a double.
MOOOOOOKIE! pic.twitter.com/2iR7Pj4qHA
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 20, 2021
Kenley Jansen then was tasked with not making this into a huge letdown, and all he did was strikeout the side.
Holy shit, man.
Game 4 is tomorrow, somehow.
