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NY wins blowout Game 5, sends NLCS back to LA

NY wins blowout Game 5, sends NLCS back to LA

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NEW YORK – The New York Mets insisted Friday morning that they had another miracle in them.

They couldn’t believe their season would end without a fight.

So they went on the road and proved their claims by defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers 12-6 in front of a sellout crowd of 43,841 at Citi Field who believed with them.

“We’re going to do our best to add to the story,” Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo said, “and create more magic.”

The Mets, down 30-9 in the series and eliminated twice, bounced right back, scoring their second-most runs in a postseason game in franchise postseason history. It was also their biggest success in an elimination game.

“I believe in this group, the character of this team,” said Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, who started the fireworks with a three-run home run in the first game. “We are very resilient.”

The Mets were very proud and pleased with the win, but they have no time to celebrate and fly back to Los Angeles in the hours after the season-saving victory.

They still have a daunting mountain to climb as they trail the Dodgers 3 games to 2 with the National League Championship Series returning to Dodger Stadium on Sunday.

But oh, a six-hour cross-country flight never looked so nice for the Mets.

The Mets are still alive and believe they may have favorable pitching matchups as the series continues.

They will have Sean Manaea in Game 6 while the Dodgers plan to use a bullpen game.

And come Game 7, anything can happen with Luis Severino starting for the Mets against Dodgers starter Walker Buehler.

“I think we’re all confident about that,” Mets third baseman Mark Vientos said. “Of course our backs are against the wall, but last season we had our backs against the wall.

“This is nothing new for us.

“We all definitely have confidence.”

If anyone can understand how dynamics can change dramatically in a series, it’s Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.

He played for the Red Sox in 2004 and had a crucial stolen base in the ninth inning of their Game 4 comeback, with Boston ultimately rallying from a 3-0 deficit in the LCS for the first time in MLB history.

“I think you see that when a team starts to build momentum, things can happen,” Roberts said. “Luckily, based on my previous experiences, I was on the good side of things. But yes, I feel that. “I understand that.”

Alonso, who watched his team get blown out in the last two games, woke up his team, woke up the ballpark, woke up the city and maybe woke up this NLCS too.

He nearly fell to his knees and hit a massive three-run home run 432 feet into the right-center field in the first inning, and the Mets never looked back.

The Mets fans, who had little reason to cheer in Games 3 and 4, stood up for the rest of the game, cheering, dancing and singing to the Temptations’ song “My Girl.”

The Mets, whose offense was halted by the Dodgers, capitalized on the energy beam, took off and never looked back.

They struck out starter Jack Flaherty for eight hits and eight runs in just three innings, the worst loss to a Dodger starter in the postseason since Clayton Kershaw in Game 1 of the 2014 Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Mets scored early and often.

Three runs in the first inning. Five runs in the third. Two more runs in the fourth inning.

The Mets had 10 hits, two doubles, a triple, a homer, 14 baserunners and a 10-2 lead after just four innings.

“This is who we are,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “We have great players. We have great people. A lot of trust in our boys.

“We have shown all year long that this is a group that is resilient. You have this courage. They fight and won’t give up.

Even after falling behind early, the Dodgers still refused to escape quietly, thanks to rookie center fielder Andy Pages having the game of his life.

He hit a single in the third inning, a solo home run in the fourth and a three-run home run in the fifth inning.

Pages, 23, became the youngest Dodger in franchise history to hit two home runs in a postseason game.

The Dodgers will now have to rely on their own resilience as they return to Los Angeles. It’s hardly as if things have been smooth sailing for them this season. They currently have 11 pitchers on the injured list. They only have three healthy starting pitchers.

“It was fun,” said Roberts, “but we still have a lot of work to do.” Your back is against the wall right now. We know that. “We have to go out there and continue to play good baseball.”

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This is how the game went on Friday evening:

Starling Marte’s RBI single brought in Pete Alonso in the eighth, extending the Mets’ lead to 12-6. They are just three outs away from sending the NLCS back to Los Angeles.

Mookie Betts led off the top of the sixth with a solo home run off Ryne Stanek to cut the Dodgers’ deficit to 10-6, but the Mets responded down the pitch with Jeff McNeil’s sacrifice fly after putting runners on second and third had without anyone being outside.

Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages hit a three-run home run early in the fifth – his second long ball of the game – to cut Los Angeles’ deficit to 10-5. Mets right-hander Reed Garrett was cornered by striking out Enrique Hernandez and walking Max Muncy.

The Dodgers won’t make it easy for the Mets.

The Mets scored some crucial insurance runs in the fourth, bringing seven batters to the plate against Brent Honeywell. Jesse Winker hit an RBI triple and Jeff McNeil followed with an RBI single, extending New York’s lead to 10-2 as we approached the fifth.

With two outs to start the fourth quarter, Andy Pages hit a solo home run to left off David Peterson and exchanged a few words with catcher Francisco Alvarez after crossing the plate.

Peterson gave up a bloop single to Shohei Ohtani and then walked Mookie Betts and Teoscar Hernandez to load the bases. Reid Garrett faced Freddie Freeman in the unenviable spot – knocking out the former MVP as he looked to leave the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth.

Things got out of hand for the Dodgers in the bottom of the third after Pete Alonso and Jesse Winker started the inning. Starling Marte followed with a two-run double into the left field corner to make it 5-1 with no one out.

Jack Flaherty retired the next two batters, but the Mets got three straight run-scoring hits with two outs: an RBI single by Francisco Alvarez, an RBI triple by Francisco Lindor and an RBI single by Brandon Nimmo.

After throwing seven scoreless innings in Game 1, Flaherty delivered a dud in the Dodgers’ first chance to win the ball.

Walks have been a killer for the Mets in this series and David Peterson brought in starter Enrique Hernandez to start the second. With two outs, an Andy Pages flare to center moved Hernandez to third and brought in Shohei Ohtani.

Peterson threw a wild pitch that allowed the run to score, then walked to Ohtani to bring Mookie Betts to the plate with runners on first and second, scoring four RBI in the Dodgers’ Game 4 victory.

Playing in what could be his final game with the Mets, Pete Alonso hit a three-run home run to center field off Dodgers starter Jack Flaherty – just what New York needed in the first inning after struggling to score runs in this series .

Shohei Ohtani led off Game 5 with a single and Mookie Betts followed with a double, putting runners on second and third with Mets starter David Peterson out. The left-hander then retired Teoscar Hernandez (groundout), Freddie Freeman (lineout) and Tommy Edman (strikeout) to end the threat, a stunning gaffe in a potentially season-killing inning for the Mets.

Dodgers vs. Mets game 5 times

First pitch is scheduled for Friday at 5:08 p.m. ET at Citi Field.

  • Location: Citi Field in Queens, New York
  • Date: Friday, October 18th

Dodgers vs Mets TV: NLCS Game 5

  1. Shohei Ohtani (left) DH
  2. Mookie Betts (R) RF
  3. Teoscar Hernández (R) LF
  4. Freddie Freeman (L) 1B
  5. Tommy Edman (S) SS
  6. Enrique Hernandez (R) 2B
  7. Max Muncy (L) 3B
  8. Will Smith (R) C
  9. Andy Pages (R) CF
  1. Francisco Lindor (S) SS
  2. Brandon Nimmo (L) LF
  3. Mark Vientos (R) 3B
  4. Pete Alonso (R) 1B
  5. Jesse Winker (L) DH
  6. Starling Marte (R) RF
  7. Tyrone Taylor (R) CF
  8. Jeff McNeil (L) 2B
  9. Francisco Alvarez (R) C

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