2024-10-12 18:20:04
NEW YORK — Back in late May, when the Mets last saw the Dodgers, the series changed their season. The Dodgers swept the Mets in three games, prompting shortstop Francisco Lindor to call a players-only meeting at Citi Field.
The group spoke to each other about accountability. To this day, many Mets credit that meeting for the turnaround that followed.
The best-of-seven series will begin Sunday evening in Los Angeles.
“It’s not going to be easy,” Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo said on clinch night, when asked about a matchup against either NL West team. “None of this is. That’s what postseason’s all about. But we like our chances against anybody.”
The Dodgers won four of the six regular-season matchups against the Mets. They’re the top overall seed, and they feature the sport’s best player in Shohei Ohtani. The Mets are the lowest seed on the NL side of the bracket. But that doesn’t quite tell the story of these two teams, as the Dodgers have battled injuries all year, particularly to their rotation, while the Mets have produced MLB’s best record since May 30 — the day after their last series against the Dodgers ended.
The Mets also have some fortuitous recent history on their side. In 2015, an underdog Mets team waltzed into Chavez Ravine and upset the Dodgers in the decisive Game 5 of the NL Division Series, then made it all the way to the World Series. They would like to do something similar this time around.
But the perennially contending Dodgers have other ideas. They want to prove that despite all the adversity they’ve faced this season, they have what it takes to run deep into October and add a second World Series title in the last five seasons.
“We’re going to celebrate tonight, as you can see,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after the Game 5 win over the Padres. “But the job’s not done, and you will see the focus, the fire going forward, with the expectation to win eight more games. And that Mets team is playing really good baseball, but we’ll be ready.”
Here’s everything you need to know about Game 5.
When is the game and how can I watch it?
Game 1 of the NLCS is scheduled for Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT at Dodger Stadium.
All games are available in the U.S. on MLB.TV (authentication to a participating Pay TV provider is required). Live games are also available in select countries outside the U.S. For full details, click here.
Who are the starting pitchers?
Mets: The Mets are deciding between three fully rested options for Game 1: Sean Manaea, Kodai Senga and Luis Severino. All have their pros and cons and should start the first three NLCS games in some order. The Mets intend to announce their decision on Saturday.
Dodgers: The Dodgers weren’t ready to announce a Game 1 starter, but all signs point to Jack Flaherty getting the ball. The right-hander wasn’t used Friday and would be lined up to start.
What are the starting lineups?
Mets: Throughout the Wild Card Series and NLDS, manager Carlos Mendoza’s daily lineup decisions were straightforward. Not counting what has essentially been a DH platoon between J.D. Martinez and Jesse Winker, Mendoza used the same personnel in six of the team’s seven games during those rounds. But things will grow more complicated in the NLCS with second baseman Jeff McNeil likely to return from a wrist injury. It’s unclear how Mendoza plans to work McNeil in at second base and right field, since Jose Iglesias and Starling Marte have both been playing well.
Dodgers: The Dodgers are dealing with some injuries to Freddie Freeman and Miguel Rojas, but they should be lining up almost the same as they did in Game 5 of the NLDS against the Padres. Kiké Hernández has earned a spot in the lineup moving forward, which could mean Rojas’ playing time will be limited.
How will the bullpens line up after each team’s starter?
Mets: Given off-days from Thursday through Saturday, the Mets will enter the NLCS featuring as fresh a bullpen as they’ve had at any point since mid-September. Everyone should be available, though that doesn’t mean there are no concerns. Top of the list is closer Edwin Díaz, who has had only one clean inning since Sept. 21. During the 2024 postseason, Díaz has walked five of the 17 batters he faced. One of the Mets’ top priorities will be getting him right.
Phil Maton and Ryne Stanek will continue to operate as Díaz’s top setup men. The Mets also have left-hander David Peterson to deploy as anything from a high-leverage, left-on-left weapon to a multi-inning length option.
Dodgers: It was a long NLDS for the bullpen, but it played a monumental role in the Dodgers finishing up the series with 24 consecutive scoreless innings against one of the best offenses in the Majors. Blake Treinen, Evan Phillips and Michael Kopech will be the big right-handed options for Los Angeles. Anthony Banda and Alex Vesia, assuming he’s healthy, will continue to handle the main responsibilities from the left side.
Any injuries of note?
Mets: McNeil is near-certain to be on the active roster after he wraps up play in one last Arizona Fall League game on Saturday. The second baseman/outfielder has been out since Sept. 6 due to a fractured right wrist, but he rejoined the team last weekend and has been participating in daily baseball activities ever since. McNeil appeared in the AFL on Friday and is scheduled to do so again on Saturday. He’ll fly straight from there to Los Angeles.
Lindor still receives daily treatment on a back injury he sustained in mid-September. But these days, it barely bothers him. He’s essentially back to being a full-strength player.
Dodgers: Freeman could be limited as the series wears on as he continues to play through a badly sprained right ankle, but the star first baseman should be ready for Game 1 on Sunday. Rojas is dealing with a tear in his left adductor and could come off the bench as a pinch-hitter or defensive replacement. As for Vesia, the left-hander will undergo further testing on his left side on Saturday after exiting before the eighth inning on Friday with what the Dodgers are hoping is a cramp.
Who is hot and who is not?
Mets: Alonso homered twice in four NLDS games, both of them to the opposite field. He has been on fire since going deep to give the Mets the lead in Wild Card Series Game 3 in Milwaukee. Nimmo went 4-for-14 with a homer during the NLDS and has been hot for the past two weeks. Lindor, of course, has developed a knack for coming through in moments big and small, as evidenced by his NLDS Game 4 grand slam and his .906 OPS during that series. But no one is hotter than Vientos, who had multiple hits in all four NLDS games and batted .563 for the round.
As for the not-so-hot Mets, they’ve been clustered in the bottom third of New York’s lineup. Marte, Alvarez and Taylor combined to bat .135 in the NLDS without an extra-base hit.
Dodgers: Perhaps nobody on the Dodgers likes October more than Kiké Hernández, who now has 14 career postseason homers following his second-inning drive off Yu Darvish in Game 5 of the NLDS. Teoscar Hernández has also been huge for the Dodgers this postseason, with a pair of clutch homers.
The Dodgers could use some more offensive production from Muncy, Smith and Edman, all of whom struggled at times against the Padres. Ohtani will also look to bounce back from his first three-strikeout postseason game.
Anything else fans might want to know?
• The Mets and Dodgers have met three times in October, dating to a 1988 NLCS win for Los Angeles in what’s still considered one of the greatest postseason series. The Mets earned some revenge in the 2006 NLDS, sweeping the Dodgers, and again in a highly entertaining 2015 NLDS win.
• One subplot of this series will be the performance of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who was excellent for the Dodgers in NLDS Game 5. The Mets were reportedly the only team to match Los Angeles’ $325 million offer last offseason to Yamamoto. Now, the Mets will look to score a win off him in the postseason.
• While the Mets led baseball with a 67-40 record from May 30 through the end of the season, the Dodgers weren’t far behind, at 62-42. Both ranked in MLB’s top five over that stretch.
