After eliminating the San Francisco Giants in a winner-take-all Game 5 at Oracle Park, the Los Angeles Dodgers are set to face the Atlanta Braves to determine who will represent the National League in the 2021 World Series.
It took 110 wins for the Dodgers to get to this point, while the Braves have won 91 games after defeating the Milwaukee Brewers in four games in the NL Division Series.
The NLCS matchup represents the fifth postseason meeting between the two clubs, and the Dodgers have enjoyed a lot of success against the Braves, winning three of the four prior series.
2020 NLCS: Dodgers defeat Braves 4-3
The most recent meeting between the two teams came last season during the Dodgers’ championship run. It will always be remembered as one of the all-time great postseason series, but not for those associated with the Braves.
Atlanta jumped out to a 2-0 series lead before the Dodgers scored a record 11 runs in the first inning of Game 3 and won 15-3. However, the Braves followed with another win and went into Game 5 with a commanding 3-1 series lead.
From there, the Dodgers won Games 5 and 6 to force a winner-take-all matchup. The Dodgers trailed heading into the sixth inning of Game 7, before Kiké Hernandez tied it with a solo home run.
Cody Bellinger gave L.A. the lead in the seventh with a homer of his own, and that was all the Dodgers needed as Julio Urías sent them to the World Series with three scoreless innings to close out the game.
2018 NLDS: Dodgers defeat Braves 3-1
The Dodgers started the 2018 NLDS with back-to-back shutouts in Games 1 and 2, which were started by Hyun-Jin Ryu and Clayton Kershaw.
Walker Buehler made his first postseason start in Game 3 and struggled, allowing five runs, including a grand slam, in five innings during the Braves’ only win of the series.
The Dodgers came back in Game 4 with Rich Hill on the mound. They trailed going into the fifth inning, 2-1, but scored two runs in the sixth and three in the seventh to send them to the NLCS.
Manny Machado led the offense in Game 4 with four RBI and one home run.
2013 NLDS: Dodgers defeat Braves 3-1
The 2013 NLDS was the Dodgers’ first postseason series during their run of nine consecutive playoff appearances, and it is one of their most memorable.
The teams split the first two games at Turner Field before returning to Dodger stadium.
In Game 3, the Dodgers’ offense broke out for 13 runs, scoring six off Julio Teheran and four off Alex Wood early in the game, then another three off Jordan Walden to put them one win away from the NLCS.
The Dodgers wanted to finish the series without letting it get back to Atlanta for a Game 5, so they turned to Kershaw on short rest.
He delivered by throwing six innings while allowing just two runs. The score was tied 2-2 going into the seventh when Ronald Belisario allowed a run to give the Braves a 3-2 lead.
In the eighth inning, then-Dodgers manager Don Mattingly asked Juan Uribe to bunt a runner into scoring position, but he failed to get the sacrifice down.
On a 2-2 count, Uribe swung away and hit a ball to deep left field while throwing his hands in the air as the Dodgers took a 4-3 lead. All Craig Kimbrel could do was watch.
Kenley Jansen picked up the save with a scoreless ninth and the Dodgers went on to face the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS.
1996 NLDS: Braves sweep Dodgers
During the 1996 NLDS, the first postseason meeting between the teams, the Dodgers did not present much of a challenge for the Braves, who swept them in three games.
The Braves started three Hall of Famers during the series: John Smoltz in Game 1, Greg Maddux in Game 2 and Tom Glavine in Game 3.
The Dodgers did not hit a home run in the series and only scored five runs across the three games.
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