The Los Angeles Dodgers kept their season alive in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, earning a 7-3 win over the Atlanta Braves to force a Game 6 on Saturday afternoon.
The pivotal swing of the night for the Dodgers came in the sixth inning when Will Smith hit his first home run of the postseason.
With the Dodgers trailing 2-1, Mookie Betts got the rally started with an infield single to begin the inning. After Max Muncy drew a two-out walk, Smith stepped to the plate to face Braves left-handed relief pitcher Will Smith.
It marked the first time in MLB postseason history that two players with the same name faced each other. The Smiths previously got together on Sept. 6, 2019, when the reliever was a member of the San Francisco Giants. That at-bat ended on the Dodgers’ Smith striking out in a loss.
He got the better of their postseason matchup as despite falling down in the count 0-2 on two pitches that should have been called balls, Smith worked the count full.
The Braves’ Smith then made a mistake, leaving an inside fastball up a bit. The Dodgers’ Smith took care of the rest, launching a three-run home run to left field to give L.A. its first lead of the night.
While the head-to-head meeting made postseason history, the Dodgers’ catcher was hardly moved by it. “It’s a common enough name,” Smith said. “I had the at-bat against him last year and went to high school with another kid named Will Smith.”
Seager also makes history in Game 5 win
In addition to the Smith vs. Smith matchup, Seager also made history with his aforementioned two home runs, giving him four in the series.
He became just the third player in Dodgers franchise history to homer four times in a series, joining Steve Garvey (1978 NLCS) and Duke Snider (1952 and 1955 World Series).
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