The Braves head into their NLDS matchup with the Dodgers carrying plenty of proof from the regular season that they can make life difficult for Los Angeles. Atlanta won five of the six meetings between the teams and did it with a blend of timely offense and dominant pitching.
A big part of that success came from Drake Baldwin and Michael Harris. Baldwin was locked in against the Dodgers, hitting .364/.481/.727 with an OPS of 1.209.
He added two doubles, two home runs, five RBI and five walks. Harris was strong too, posting a .348/.375/.391 line with one walk, one double, two RBI and two stolen bases.
Chris Sale was just as important on the mound. The left-hander made two starts against Los Angeles and turned in a 1.13 ERA while striking out 18 over 16 innings. One of those outings was especially emphatic: a complete-game shutout in a 1-0 Braves win.
For the Dodgers, the series was mostly a grind offensively. Los Angeles averaged only 2.5 runs per game across the six matchups, but there were still a few signs worth noting heading into the postseason.
Mookie Betts and Teoscar Hernandez both handled Braves pitching well in limited chances. Each went 4-for-12, hitting .333 in the season series. That kind of production gives Los Angeles something to build on as the games get bigger.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto also had one of his better outings of the year against Atlanta, even in defeat. In a 1-0 loss, he threw 6 1/3 innings, allowed one run on four hits and struck out eight.
It’s hard to ignore the fact that the Dodgers are the back-to-back World Series champions and bring a loaded rotation and lineup into the series. But Atlanta has already shown it can get the better of them, and that matters.
The last postseason meeting between these clubs came in 2021, when the Braves beat the Dodgers 4-2 on the way to a World Series championship.
In Other News...
Braves Face A Massive Game 2 Decision After NLDS Opener
The Braves opened their NLDS against the Dodgers with a 5-3 loss, and the postgame discussion quickly turned from the scoreboard to how Atlanta manages what comes next. Walt Weiss spent much of his time talking through bullpen usage and the way the game unfolded, while also noting how difficult Los Angeles made things on offense with Tarik Skubal on the mound.
Now the attention shifts to Game 2, where Atlanta is staring at a significant pitching question with Chris Sales availability still unsettled. The Braves will need a sharper offensive night after struggling in the opener, but the bigger issue may be how Weiss pieces together the pitching plan if Sale is not available. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Fans Have Every Right To Question This October Pitching Call
Atlantas postseason pitching choices are under the microscope after Brian Snitker said the bullpen had been emptied in the previous game and that some arms were unavailable because of injury. The manager pointed to the idea of getting the relief group rested for the next night, which helps explain the roster management behind the move, but it does not make the decision feel any less consequential in the middle of October.
Chris Sale being available only sharpens the debate, because this was the kind of game where the Braves had every reason to lean on their best options rather than sort through lower-tier arms. Instead, they went in a direction that left plenty of room for second-guessing, and for a fan base used to thinking big in the postseason, that is exactly the kind of call that sticks. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Already Face A Bigger NLDS Problem Than The Game 1 Loss
The Braves left Dodger Stadium with a Game 1 loss, but the score may not have been the most concerning part of the night. Los Angeles got six innings of one-run ball from Tarik Skubal and three home runs from Teoscar Hernndez, Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy in a 5-3 win, all of it unfolding in near-record heat that made for a grinding October opener.
Sunday evening brings Game 2, and Atlanta now has to answer more than just the immediate damage on the scoreboard. The bigger concern is whether the Braves can settle in quickly enough against a Dodgers team that already looked comfortable, while also coping with conditions that made every inning feel heavier than usual. [Read more 🡒]