Following two ultra-frustrating losses to start the ALDS, the Yankees — and us as fans — got a needed reprieve on Monday night. With the series now headed to New York for Game 3 (and Game 4… maybe), Monday was an offday for the Yankees and Blue Jays, and the Mariners and Tigers in the other AL series.
However, over in the National League, all four remaining teams were in action for Game 2 in their respective matchups. Let’s check in on what happened Monday night, as the playoffs rolled on.
National League Division Series Game 2
Dodgers
4, Phillies 3 (Los Angeles leads series 2-0)
A late Phillies rally came up one run short as the Dodgers held on to win both games on the road and take a 2-0 lead back to Dodger Stadium.
Most of the game was a pitchers’ duel between the Phillies’ Jesús Luzardo and the Dodgers’ Blake Snell. Through the first six innings, they had each allowed just one hit and scoring chances were sparce. Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson sent Luzardo back out for the seventh, but he allowed two hits to start the inning, and at that point they went to the bullpen. That’s when the game-deciding sequence happened.
After getting one out, Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering got a grounder, but with a runner on third, shortstop Trea Turner went home. Teoscar Hernández managed to just beat the tag at home, giving the Dodgers the first run of the game. Kerkering got on the verge of keeping the damage there, but a walk loaded the bases and eventually led to a two-run Will Smith single, and then a Shohei Ohtani ribbie after Kerkering had been replaced.
The Phillies got on the board themselves when Turner picked up an RBI in the eighth, but the real drama came an inning later. Facing Blake Trenien, Alec Bohm and J.T. Realmuto got the bottom of the ninth started with two-straight hits, setting the Philies up with two runners in scoring position. Nick Castellanos then delivered with a two-RBI double, and he even managed to evade a tag on a close play at second, putting the tying run 180 feet away.
At that point, Rob Thomson, for some reason, called for a bunt, which wasn’t executed perfectly, and some good Dodgers’ fielding led to them getting Castellanos at third.
While Harrison Bader singled to put the winning run on base, the Phillies couldn’t do anything after that, as the Dodgers escaped a dramatic ninth inning. Meanwhile, if the Phillies can’t comeback in the series, that bunt call is going to loom large.
Brewers 7, Cubs 3
(Milwaukee leads series 2-0)
For a second straight game, the Brewers overcame an early deficit and powered their way past the Cubs, as they’ll take a 2-0 lead back to Chicago.
This game didn’t start all that differently than Game 1 of this series. In the top of the first, the Cubs struck quickly. With two runners on, Seiya Suzuki gave Chicago an early lead with a three-run homer. However just like in Game 1, Milwaukee immediately struck back in the bottom of the inning. While Shota Imanaga got the first two outs of the bottom of the first, the Brewers got him for two two-out singles, before Andrew Vaughn hit a three-run homer of his own to tie things up.
Neither starter ended up lasting very long, and as it turned out, the Brewers had a big advantage in bringing star rookie Jacob Misiorowski out of the bullpen. He went three scoreless innings, as Milwaukee built up a lead in the process.
William Contreras gave the Brewers a slim led with a solo shot in the fourth inning, but Jackson Chourio — having left Game 1 early with a hamstring injury scare — delivered the big moment with a three-run shot in the fourth inning.
Following the Chourio bomb, the Cubs had no answer. Even after Misiorowski left, Chicago couldn’t get anything going on offense, as Brewers’ pitching combined to retire the last 12 batters in a row.
So now, both NL series will pause again for a day, but when they pick up again on Wednesday, we could see a pair of sweeps and a 2018 NLCS rematch confirmed. The Dodgers will be heavy favorites to send the Phillies packing back at Dodger Stadium for Game 3, while the Brewers will try to knock the Cubs out in their own Friendly Confines of Wrigley. Philadelphia and Chicago are in the same 0-2 hole as New York; will any force a Game 4, or will they all roll over? We’ll find out soon enough.
