The Los Angeles Dodgers completed an epic National League Championship Series comeback, winning the final three games, including a 4-3 victory in Game 7 over the Atlanta Braves to advance to the World Series for a third time in the last four years.
As was the case quite often throughout the NLCS, the Dodgers found themselves trailing early as the Braves struck for two runs in the first two innings.
L.A. finally got to Braves starter Ian Anderson in the third when Justin Turner walked with two outs and Max Muncy followed with a double. Will Smith then came up with yet another big hit, a two-run single up the middle to tie the game.
The Braves quickly responded with a run of their own in the fourth, although it could have been a lot worse if not for an outstanding defensive play by Justin Turner, throwing to home for the start of a rundown, which ended with him making a diving tag for one out and then firing a perfect strike to third to get another runner to complete a double play.
Mookie Betts also added to his stellar defensive resumé with a home run robbery of Freddie Freeman in the fifth inning to keep the Dodgers’ deficit at one.
It wasn’t until the sixth inning when the Dodgers again tied the game, this time on a pinch-hit home run off the bat of Kiké Hernandez for his second of the series. Hernandez became the first player in MLB history to hit a game-tying pinch-hit home run in a winner-take-all postseason game.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts sent him up there against lefty A.J. Minter, who was great in Game 5, but he left a pitch up this time and Hernandez did not miss it.
Cody Bellinger then had the biggest swing of the night for a solo home run in the seventh to give the Dodgers their first lead of the game at 4-3. It was Bellinger’s second home run of the NLCS and third of the postseason.
Urias takes care of rest
The hope was that the Dodgers would add some more insurance, but they were unable to, so it was a one-run lead for Julio Urias to close it out.
As has been the case all postseason, Urias was outstanding, tossing three perfect innings to seal the deal, ending with Austin Riley flying out to center to end the game and send the Dodgers back to the World Series.
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