Baseball reasons. And, truth be told, the bloodthirsty cheers for him had all but died out by game’s end. The wild card round is complete, and we’re nearly finished with the divisional series’ in both leagues. Up 2-0 entering the seventh, with the bullpen options not all that appealing, Kershaw remained in, allowed two questionable infield singles, then hung a curveball at the worst possible time to Adams for a three-run shot.
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The Dodgers and Royals aren’t so different.
Unfortunately for both the Dodgers and Royals, both of those aces have struggled in their playoff careers.
Utley saw no action in the game, but the Mets treated the raucous crowd to something far more satisfying than a fastball to Utley’s backside and another one of baseball’s stupid, benches-clearing hold-me-back showdowns: A 13-4 drubbing of Utley’s Dodgers that now leaves the Mets set up for the best type of revenge. Unfortunately, he hasn’t lived up to expectations in the postseason. His statistics and accolades speaks for themselves: in eight seasons, Kershaw has combined for a 114-56 record (a. 671 winning percentage), to go along with a 1,746:466 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a 2.43 earned run average. And it would mean sending the $300 million Dodgers home from the postseason empty-handed for the third straight year. In seven series since his playoff debut in 2008, Kershaw has gone a poor 1-6 with a 4.99 ERA.
But this time, Kershaw was just as dominant as he normally is during the regular season. Kershaw’s lone playoff win came against the Atlanta Braves back in 2013. Last year, the Giants won at Pittsburgh in the wild-card game and then rolled past Washington and St. Louis before beating the Royals in the World Series.
Working on only three days’ rest, Kershaw shut down the Mets for seven innings and Justin Turner delivered a key hit against his former team.
The Mets put two on against Chris Hatcher and Kenley Jansen – with help from what appeared to be a missed foul tip by plate umpire Chris Guccione on what would’ve been strike three for David Wright – in the eighth. He didn’t have a awful day, but Kershaw was outpitched by Jacob deGrom.
In Game 4, Kershaw was nails.
(Photo: Getty) Johnny Cueto owes the Royals a big game performance in Game 5.
The Mets, meanwhile, got plenty of hits against Dodgers left-hander Brett Anderson and five relievers. “Just support.” Collin McHugh will pitch for the Astros against Johnny Cueto in the series finale.
The Kansas City Royals acquired Cueto from the Cincinnati Reds before the 2015 Major League Baseball trade deadline. Coincidentally, Kershaw has the lowest.
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Here, danger arrived because Kershaw couldn’t handle Cespedes’s spinning bouncer to the third-base side of the mound. Matz missed time down the stretch because of a back injury and hasn’t pitched in a game since September 24, but was 4-0 with a 2.27 ERA in six starts this season. Rose became a Mets enemy in Game 3 of the 1973 NL Championship Series at Shea Stadium, when he took out shortstop Bud Harrelson trying to break up a double play, leading in turn to a brawl. He’s a free agent this offseason, and this could be his last chance to prove his worth for bidding teams.
