Miami Marlins-Atlanta Braves
If you like pitching, then this couldn’t have been a better game to watch. Only two hits resulted in two total runs in the game and the final five innings were scoreless. Ian Anderson gave the Braves 17 outs with 8 of them being strikeouts. Many managers would be nervous to trot a rookie out to start game two of a Divisional Series. Unlike Aaron Boone the night before, Brian Snitker allowed Anderson to stay in the game and control the situation.
Two swings were what decided this game. Dansby Swanson hit a solo shot in the second and Travis d’Arnaud hit a home run in the fifth. Travis d’Arnaud’s second home run in 2 days makes many baseball fans wonder where the production was earlier in his career (suddenly the Braves have their late order clutch hitter). All the Braves needed were the two runs. The Braves are only one win away from a trip to the NLCS.
Oakland A’s-Houston Astros
The long ball was in full effect. 10 of the 16 total runs were scored from a home run in today’s game. Six total homers were between the two teams. We were reminded of how no lead is safe and how momentum is only as good as your next inning with runs constantly being scored.
With all the home runs, it’s hard to point to one or two moments that decided the game. Yet, the last two innings the Oakland was at-bat was when we saw the game decided. At the bottom of the seventh, we saw Chad Pinder poke an outside pitch to the right field, barely flying over the fence to tie the game at 7. After the 3-run home run, the A’s scored in a more traditional, small-ball form. The sacrifice flies in the eighth, gave the A’s an 8-7 lead, and then a 9-7 lead. The A’s get to fight another day against the Houston Astros.
Tampa Bay Rays-New York Yankees
The narrative on Masahiro Tanaka can be on an eternal loop. If Tanaka has a hot start, he will have a great outing, allowing one run, or even a shutout. If he struggles early, he will continue to struggle throughout the game. This is exactly what happened on Wednesday night.
In a 1-1 game in the top of the fourth, Kevin Kiermaier, who is known for his defense and not his power at the plate, launched a three-run dinger to essentially put the game away. Tanaka was taken out after the fourth inning, a bad night for the reliable playoff presence. The usually reliable bullpen failed to keep the Yankees in the game. Chad Green has been one of the Yankees’ best pitchers this season. Both Randy Arozarena and Michael Perez had his number, launching solo shots off of him to take him out of the game. Ji Man Choi, who was robbed of a big hit earlier in the game by Aaron Judge, rapped a double to right field to bring in another run off of Luis Cessa to put the game out of reach at 8-2.
We have to acknowledge that Giancarlo Stanton is on a historical tear right now. Stanton hit yet another home run on Wednesday giving him five games in a row with a homer. While the streak is more than impressive, it is a reminder that baseball is a team game. Stanton can’t carry the Yankees by himself, unfortunately, the rest of the roster has yet to contribute to this series. Luke Voit has one hit in this series. Gleyber Torres has two hits and they both have been singles. Gio Urshela had two base hits in Game One but since then has been hitless. It comes as little shock that the Rays have been able to control the series.
San Diego Padres-Los Angeles Dodgers
This game came down to the wire, a thriller to say the least. Clayton Kershaw has a reputation for blowing leads in the postseason. With Dave Roberts well aware, he knew that the opportune time to pull Kershaw would be he showed signs of struggling in the game.
That moment came in the sixth inning with the Dodgers leading 4-1. After back to back Padres home runs, Dave Roberts knew that he had to take Kershaw out before he would blow another postseason game. The move allowed Roberts to go to one of the best bullpens in the majors. A pen that held the Padres to a scoreless seventh and eighth inning.
It’s rare that the play that decides a game is largely recognized as a defensive play. Yet, this game was won on the outstretched arm of Cody Bellinger. In the top of the Seventh, it looked like Fernando Tatis Jr. hit the homer that would give the Padres the lead, Bellinger had other plans with a perfectly timed leap and a snag that ended the inning and ultimately won the game.
That robbed home run is even more appreciated when one considers how the Padres were able to bring the game to within one run in the ninth inning. Kenley Jensen is known as one of the best closers in the game, yet the Padres kept rattling hits off of him and forced the Dodgers to turn to Joe Kelly to close out the game. With the bases loaded, Kelly managed to force Eric Hosmer into a groundout to second to end the game.
