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The LA Dodgers prevailed against fierce rivals San Diego Padres in the National League Division Series to progress to the championship series for the first time in three years.
The best-of-five clash witnessed a fair share of controversial moments with the Dodgers coming under fire after two consecutive defeats (Game 2 & 3). However, the NL West winners turned things around despite many expecting them to crash out of the postseason at the hands of their division rivals.
Following the decisive Game 5 win over the Padres that confirmed the Dodgers' NLCS berth against the New York Mets, third baseman Max Muncy sent an impassionate message to the naysayers for doubting the NL West winners.
"80% of you f****rs didn't believe in us. 80% of you f***ers thought we were gonna lose," Muncy said while celebrating with his teammates in the clubhouse.
Kike and Teoscar Hernandez back Yoshinobu Yamamoto's strong start to seal Dodgers' NLCS berth
While the Dodgers' star-studded trio of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman were in the spotlight during the regular season, it was the Hernandez duo, Kike and Teoscar, who helped the team edge the Padres on Friday.
Kike Hernandez struck a solo home run in the second inning for a 1-0 lead before Teoscar added a second solo shot in the seventh to give the hosts a two-run lead. Kike was bullish on the team's aspirations after securing the NLCS qualification.
“We didn't come here to win the NL West," said Dodgers center fielder Enrique Hernandez, “We came to win the World Series.’’
Teoscar shared the same sentiment, saying:
“This, is why I came here.’’
It was redemption for Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who went for five runs in his first postseason start in Game 1 of the NLDS. Yamamoto pitched five scoreless innings amid a pitching duel against compatriot Yu Darvish of the Padres.
The Dodgers rookie's strong start was backed by the bullpen as the NL West winners shut out the Padres in the series finale, stopping their division rivals from scoring in 22 straight innings in the series.
