New York, NY – After the first inning in last night’s NLDS decider between the Mets and Dodgers, Mets fans felt that sinking feeling again. Jacob DeGrom didn’t have his best stuff and after taking an early lead, the Mets found themselves trailing. Curtis Granderson led off the game with a single and scored on Daniel Murphy’s double later in the inning. Murphy was the Mets’ offense last night.
DeGrom was in trouble again in the second and third innings but didn’t surrender any more runs. Noah Syndergaard was up and down in the bullpen like a yo-yo throughout the game. DeGrom battled hard to get through six innings, only giving up the two runs in the first frame. Murphy tied the game in the fourth inning with some heads up baserunning. After reaching first base on a single and the Dodgers shifting when Lucas Duda walked, Murphy just kept running to the unoccupied third base. He scored on D’Arnaud’s sacrifice fly to tie the game.
Two innings later Murphy was at it again. He belted a solo homerun down the right field line to give the Mets a lead that they wouldn’t surrender. DeGrom finished the sixth inning and Syndergaard finally entered the game in the seventh, overpowering the Dodgers. Familia came in to get six outs without incident and the Amazin’s punched their ticket to the NLCS and put a nail in the coffin of Don Mattingly’s tenure as Dodgers manager.
While Murphy was the hero on the night, the Mets will need some better performances from the middle of the lineup going forward. Lucas Duda went 2-18 in the series with eleven strikeouts. Cespedes and David Wright did not have a good series at the plate either. More contributions will be needed from the middle of the lineup if the Mets are going to beat the Chicago Cubs and win the NL Pennant.
The Cubbies took care of business against the Cardinals in their series and are looking to end a 107-year World Series drought. They’re also looking to make a movie prophesy from thirty years ago come true. Back to the Future predicted that the lovable losers would win the World Series in 2015. Theo Epstein is trying to make that come to fruition this season. The Cubs won 97 games this season, which was only good enough for third place in the NL Central. They’re looking to become the first third place team to win a pennant.
The ALCS starts tonight when the Kansas City Royals host the bat-flippin’ Blue Jays. In the old days, Jose Bautista would get one in the earpiece for his antics. Today it’s par for the course. We’ll get a feel tonight for how well the Royals can quiet the Blue Jays’ formidable lineup.
It’s a fascinating final four in baseball this season. The Toronto Blue Jays ended their two-decades long playoff drought. The Kansas City Royals are returning to relevance after almost thirty years in the wilderness. The Chicago Cubs are looking to win the World Series for the first time since the Ottoman Empire existed. And the bumbling Mets are finally getting it right.
There are plenty of storylines in this years Championship Series. It’ll all begin to unfold tonight.
