The Los Angeles Dodgers are hoping for a better outcome with their bullpen game this time. They will use several relief pitchers as they attempt to finish off the New York Mets in Game 6 of the NL Championship Series on Sunday night. Manager Dave Roberts has not yet revealed who will start for the Dodgers.
The Mets will send Sean Manaea to the mound at Dodger Stadium. New York won 12-6 on Friday, bringing the best-of-seven series back to Los Angeles.
The Dodgers aim to reach the World Series for the fourth time in eight years. They only won one title during this period, which was in the shortened 2020 season against Tampa Bay. They haven’t clinched an NL pennant at home since 1988, despite holding a record 24 titles.
“The chance to do it here in LA in front of these fans will be very special,” said pitcher Evan Phillips on Saturday. This will be the Dodgers’ third bullpen game in the postseason and the second one against the Mets.
“The good thing for us is that bullpen games have become pretty normal, so we’re prepared for whatever happens that day,” Phillips explained. “We’ll get the information before the game, and we’ll be ready to go.”
Manaea has a record of 2-0 with a 2.65 ERA in his playoff starts, including a win in Game 2 against LA’s bullpen at Dodger Stadium. “We’ll keep a close eye on him and adjust if necessary,” said rookie Mets manager Carlos Mendoza.
Manaea mentioned he struggled in his last start, which went into the sixth inning.
“I threw a lot of balls to the arm side, which isn’t typical for me, so I couldn’t quite connect my mind and body to make the adjustment,” the left-handed pitcher said. “I’m just trying to get through that and hope to go deep into the game.”
In Game 2, the Mets attacked the Dodgers’ bullpen early, scoring six runs in the first two innings and winning 7-3. This victory also ended the Dodgers’ streak of 33 straight scoreless innings in the playoffs.
“Similar to what we did in Game 2 with the expectation of better execution,” Roberts said about the plan for Sunday. He mentioned that the Dodgers would “be a little bit more aggressive” in bringing in their key relievers earlier than in Game 2.
Roberts had success using this strategy when facing elimination against the San Diego Padres in Game 4 of the NL Division Series.
He didn’t hesitate to call on important relievers Michael Kopech, Alex Vesia, and Phillips, all of whom pitched by the sixth inning. The Dodgers won that game and finished off the Padres in five games. However, Vesia is injured and didn’t make the NLCS roster.
Mendoza was considering using Jesse Winker as the designated hitter again and bringing Jeff McNeil back to second base. Winker went 2 for 3 with an RBI triple, and McNeil had two RBIs in Friday’s win.
“I thought the at-bats were really good especially for a guy that hasn’t played for a long time, especially the situational hitting,” Mendoza said about McNeil. “We don’t know who we’re facing. We’ve still got to wait and see what we got here.”
Roberts was planning his pitching order based on how the Mets set up their lineup.
“It’s an all-hands-on-deck situation,” he said. “And with the ‘pen, there’s only so much you can push each guy. So it’s kind of just depending on where they’re at as far as kind of hitter, pitch count, all that stuff.”
This is the first time the teams have met in the NLCS since 1988, when the Dodgers beat the Mets in seven games and went on to win their sixth World Series title.
