Dodgers at rest after sweep
Darvish, Bellinger provide boost to eliminate Arizona.
LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers’ 1-16 skid from late August into September seemed strange while it was happening. After spending all summer as the most resilient, resourceful team in baseball, Los Angeles suddenly stopped scoring the extra runs and earning the late-game breaks that had made it so dominant.
When the 104-win Dodgers swept past Arizona and into the NL Championship Series on Monday night, that late-season slump looked even more inexplicable. But it’s clear the Dodgers have flipped their switch back on again, and that should worry every prospective opponent. After four days off, the Dodgers will get back to work this weekend when they host either the Chicago Cubs or Washington on Saturday to begin Los Angeles’ fifth NLCS in 10 years.
The Dodgers earned an extended break with their one-sided series victory over the Diamondbacks, one of the few teams to give consistent trouble to Los Angeles in the regular season. The Dodgers capped the sweep with a 3-1 win in the clincher, getting timely offense from rookie Cody Bellinger and a strong start from late-season pickup Yu Darvish before the bullpen and closer Kenley Jansen slammed another door. “You look at the three games in the series, and they’re all team wins,” said manager Dave Roberts, whose club outscored Arizona 20-11. “From the first pitch, there was a plan in place, and we executed. We were relentless every single pitch.”
The last four times the Dodgers played for the NL pennant in the past decade, they came up short of their first World Series since 1988. The Cubs and the Nationals both pose enormous challenges, but the Dodgers earned their fifth straight NL West title, racked up the best record in baseball and then swept past Arizona to get back in position for their best shot yet at the Fall Classic.
Late Monday: Bellinger homered, drove in two runs and flipped over a dugout railing to steal an out for Darvish, helping the Dodgers beat the D’backs. Darvish struck out seven over five innings to outpitch Zack Greinke and earn the righthander his first postseason victory in three tries.
“Yu’s one of the best pitchers in the world,” said Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes, who also homered. “When he’s on his game, it’s tough for any lineup.”
Four relievers combined to preserve a three-hitter. Jansen worked around a single for a three-out save. Only four Arizona batters reached base, including Daniel Descalso with a homer.