Monday, October 14, 2024

NLCS: Lindor Leads Mets To Leave L.A. Even

 

Francisco Lindor connecting on his first-inning blast. @Mets.


The Mets evened the National League Championship Series with a 7-3 win over the Dodgers in Game 2 on Monday afternoon in Los Angeles.

This was an emphatic response to the Dodgers opening the series with a 9-0 win in Game 1 on Sunday night, which was their third straight shutout, and ran their postseason scoreless inning streak to a record-tying 33 innings in a row.

The Mets were doomed from the start as Kodai Senga - making just his third start of the season - did not have it and lasted just 1 1/3 innings, in which he allowed three runs (all earned) on two hits and four walks.

Instead of going with Luis Severino on what would have been a full week's rest, they elected to go with Senga, who only went two innings in Philadelphia in Game 1 of the NLDS, so essentially he was acting as an "opener." Severino, for some reason, will be given 10 days off before he starts Game 3 at Citi Field on Wednesday.

The Dodgers, out of necessity due to the injuries in their rotation to Tyler Glasnow and Clayton Kershaw, went with a similar strategy in Game 2, as they started with reliever Ryan Brasier, who also started their 8-0 win in Game 4 of the NLDS in San Diego last Wednesday.

While it worked then, Francisco Lindor sent an immediate message that it wouldn't in this one, as he blasted a home run into the right field seats to give the Mets an instant 1-0 lead. Even though they didn't add to it, Brasier had to throw 18 pitches and was lifted from the game.

Mets starting pitcher Sean Manaea, who won Game 3 of the NLDS against Philadelphia last Tuesday, opened by striking out Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts before walking Teoscar Hernandez, but getting out of the frame with a Freddie Freeman flyout to right field.

Landon Knack came on for the Dodgers in the second, and he allowed a single to Starling Marte and a walk to Jesse Winker before Tyrone Taylor laced a one-out double to left field to make it 2-0 Mets.

Francisco Alvarez then popped up to shortstop on the first pitch, appearing to give Knack a break.

Lindor, no surprise with first base open, was intentionally walked, to load the bases for Mark Vientos.

The Mets third baseman worked the count to 3-2, forcing Knack to put one in the strike zone, and he blasted one the other way to right field for a grand slam, giving the Mets a sudden 6-0 lead.

Manaea kept it there in the bottom of the second, as he struck out the side while working around a Tommy Edman single and an Enrique Hernandez walk.

The Mets would load the bases again in the third inning against Knack, but Alvarez would fly out to center field to end the frame.

Anthony Banda pitched a scoreless fourth for the Dodgers, and then Brent Honeywell entered in the fifth, and he kept it a 6-0 game.

In the bottom of the fifth, Max Muncy blasted one to right field for a solo shot to get Los Angeles on the board before Manaea retired the next three in order.

After Honeywell had another scoreless inning in the top of the sixth, the Dodgers rallied against Manaea in the bottom half, with Betts and Teoscar Hernandez drawing walks, and then Freeman reached on an error by Jose Iglesias to load the bases before the left-hander exited.

Phil Maton was first out of the Mets bullpen, and he got Will Smith to pop out to second base before allowing a two-run single to Edman that made it a 6-3 game.

Muncy then walked before Enrique Hernandez lined one to Vientos at third base, and even though he bobbled it, was able to turn the inning-ending double play.

Honeywell remained in the game for the Dodgers for his third inning of work, and he navigated around a one-out double to Martet to keep it a three-run game.

Maton issued a one-out walk to Ohtani before yielding to Ryne Stanek, who struck out Betts and got Teoscar Hernandez to ground out to third to end the frame.

The Dodgers got two runners on in the eighth against Stanek before the Mets turned to their closer, Edwin Diaz, to get E. Hernandez to fly out to right field to end the frame.

Edgardo Henriquez, who came on for L.A. in the eighth, remained in the game, and he issued a one-out walk to Pete Alonso, who then stole second base, taking advantage of the little-to-no attention paid to him. That would prove massive, as he would come in to score on a single by Starling Marte that finally got the Mets their seventh run of the day and made it 7-3.

Diaz stayed on to pitch the ninth, and he allowed a single to Andy Pages and a walk to Ohtani before the struck out Betts, T. Hernandez, and Freeman to close it out and earn his second save of the postseason.

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