With a 6-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night, the Los Angeles Dodgers managed to stay alive in the National League Championship Series. They managed to hit four home runs off the St. Louis pitching staff, including two solo shots from first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. On the other side of the ball, Zack Greinke delivered a much needed quality start for the Dodgers, only giving up two earned runs on six base hits over seven strong innings. The Cardinals remain ahead in the series, three games to two, as the two teams head back to St. Louis for Game 6.
Game 6 on Friday night will feature an established Cy Young Award winning pitcher against a rookie standout looking to continue his very surprising postseason dominance. It will be the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw against the Cardinals’ Michael Wacha, neither of whom have surrendered an earned run so far in the NLCS. However, Kershaw was credited with the loss in Game 2 due to an unearned run, while Wacha earned the victory striking out eight Dodgers over 6.2 innings.
Although Game 6 is being played in St. Louis, I think home field advantage will be neutralized as long as Kershaw remains in the game. Thru three postseason games, he has only allowed eight hits in 19 innings, while striking out 23 opposing batters. Simply put, the Cardinals need to chase Kershaw out of the game in order to have a chance to come away with a win. In order to do that, they need to do one of two things; jump on the first pitch fastball and string together base hits, or be very patient at the plate and try to drive up Kershaw’s pitch count. I think the Cardinals have a better chance of accomplishing the former, as Kershaw was allowed to throw 124 pitches in a game against the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS.
It will be no easy task for the Dodgers at the plate either, as Wacha has been sensational thru two starts this postseason. He burst onto the playoff scene by taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NLDS on his way to a win, and continued his dominance in Game 2 of this series. This is a very tough spot for a 22 year old rookie appearing in only his third postseason game. As long as he stays composed and follows the lead of his veteran catcher, Yadier Molina, Wacha will keep the game close at the very least.
Speaking of Molina, the Cardinals need his bat to wake up and return to regular season form. He’s managed only eight hits and one RBI in 34 at bats this postseason. The same goes for fan favorite David Freese who is batting an abysmal .152 so far in the playoffs this year.
In true postseason baseball form, this game could very well be determined by stringing together a walk, sacrifice, and base hit. It may not be the most action packed game in the world, but if you love playoff baseball, the entertainment value will be at an all-time high. I think Kershaw will come out with another dominant performance and shut the Cardinals down, while Wacha gives in to his nerves and makes a few mistakes. The Dodgers will even the series and force a deciding Game 7.