It’s a shocking second straight loss at home. The Los Angeles Dodgers are on the brink of an upset in the postseason for the third straight year.
The Dodgers fell 2-4 to the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 2 of the best-of-three National League Division Series (NLDS) of the 2023 Major League Baseball postseason on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. They dropped both games at home following a 2-11 loss in Game 1.
The offense was disappointing as well, with starters being pulled early in both Games 1 and 2. Veteran Clayton Kershaw had the worst outing of his career, allowing six runs (one earned) on six hits and one walk in ⅓ of an inning, while Game 2 starter Bobby Miller showed his rookie limitations, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks with one strikeout in 1⅔ innings. According to MLB.com, it was the third time in history that two starters failed to complete two innings in a single division series, joining Boston in 1999 and 2021.
The offense, which was volcanic in the regular season, also went cold. They were held to two runs in Games 1 and 2 by Arizona starters Merrill Kelly and Zach Gallon. Defending MVP Mookie Betts is 1-for-7 with a walk and Freddie Freeman is 1-for-6 with a walk and two strikeouts. The entire lineup has been inconsistent at the plate, going 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position.
This was unthinkable before the series began. The Dodgers won the NL West in the regular season with a 100-62 record (.617 winning percentage). They won a whopping 16 games more than second-place Arizona (84-78, .519). The power differential is stark, but the postseason has been one-sided in Arizona’s favor for two games.
“The Dodgers have a habit of dominating the regular season and then underperforming in the playoffs,” ESPN noted after the game. In last year’s NLDS, the Dodgers lost to the San Diego Padres in three games to one after coming up through the wild card. They won 22 more games than San Diego in the regular season, but that meant nothing in the big game. Tied for the second-largest postseason win differential upset of all time. Previously, in 2021, they were swept in the NLCS by the Atlanta Braves in four games, ending their World Series hopes. They had 18 more wins than Atlanta in the regular season.
If it happens to Arizona this year, they’ll be victims of an upset for the third straight year. Baseball is a volatile game, and we don’t know what will happen in the short term. That’s the nature of baseball, but no one expected the Dodgers to be so helplessly outclassed, and even the Dodgers themselves were baffled.
According to local media, including ESPN, Betts said, “It’s unreal, we had a couple chances and couldn’t capitalize. It’s a role for me and Freeman and we’re not doing it. There are no excuses.”
Freeman added, “We’re really frustrating ourselves. (In the fifth inning) with runners on second and third and a 1-1 count, I missed a three-pitch cutter (that was fouled off). When you miss something like that, you can’t sleep. I’m sure a lot of us won’t be able to sleep tonight.”
Max Muncy said, “It was a really bad game, I was just annoyed. It wasn’t much fun,” he said, adding, “Arizona hit a clutch shot. In the playoffs, that’s really important. You’ve got to hit when it counts. Arizona did that a lot of times and we didn’t do that. It’s on us.”
Of the 31 teams that have dropped Games 1 and 2 at home in a best-of-three series in history, only three have gone on to win Games 3-5. 9.7% chance of a reverse sweep. The 2001 New York Yankees, 2012 San Francisco Giants, and 2015 Toronto Blue Jays overcame the low odds.토토사이트
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “A lot of our guys have been on the brink of elimination before. We have to win the next three games with better pitching and hitting than we have been. We’ve won three in a row before, and we have the guys to do it. If we win Game 3, we can go from there. We have to find a way to flip the script.”
Betts added: “We’re all frustrated, but all we can do now is focus on the next game. It’s disappointing, but we have to put it behind us and move on. We can’t keep feeling bad about what we didn’t do,” Betts said, showing his determination to fight back.
The Dodgers will have a day off on Nov. 11 before traveling to Arizona’s Chase Field for Game 3. The Dodgers will start veteran Lance Lynn. Roberts said, “We have a day off tomorrow, so we could use the whole bullpen in Game 3. Mike Peppiott, Michael Grove, all those guys are ready to go if we need them,” Roberts said.