The Dodgers came into Game One of the National League Championship Series with bats and pitches blazing, defeating the New York Mets 9-0.
This was a historic night for the Boys in Blue as they now tied the postseason scoreless inning record with 33 innings. They now share the record with the 1966 Baltimore Orioles. Dodgers general manager Dave Roberts noted how reaching the record is “a collective effort.”
“Certainly the players that were involved in all those scoreless innings have been fantastic,” Roberts said. “We’ve been very good defensively, converting outs when we need to. I think the coaches have done a great job of relaying the information and making it tangible.”
Dodgers jump to a 2-0 lead against the New York Mets on Max Muncy’s 2RBI single during the first inning of game 1 of the NLCS pic.twitter.com/zyGr5K3YoW
— Amanda Scurlock (@Amandtastic) October 14, 2024
Starting pitcher Jack Flaherty, a native of Burbank and a product of Harvard-Westlake, struck out six batters and allowed two hits in seven innings. Not only did he have family but he also had friends dating back to his years in Little League in attendance.
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“This game is a lot of fun and I’ve been lucky to do it since I was a little kid,” Flaherty said. “I’m still lucky to be able to do it today and be put in those positions which is why I describe these games as fun as high pressure as they get.”
Flaherty praised catcher Will Smith for this game plan. Smith mentioned how he and Flaherty tried not to be predictable when it came to pitching.
“[The Mets are] a good team but we just executed pitches. Just mixed,” Smith said. “Just go one pitch at a time, and he did a great job executing. It was fun for me to be back there seeing him work and be a part of that.”
Dodgers general manager Dave Roberts talks about their scoreless innings record. They have 33, tying the 1966 Orioles pic.twitter.com/zQG1ZzVCeW
— Amanda Scurlock (@Amandtastic) October 14, 2024
The Dodgers scored early with Max Muncy whacking a two-run single and Shohei Ohtani hitting an RBI single. The 3-0 start forced the Mets to sub their starting pitcher Kodai Senga by the second inning.
The Dodgers were only heating up for the fourth. Kiké Hernández hit a single, setting himself to score off of a single by Tommy Edman. Up by four, Ohtani and Freddie Freeman hit an RBI single each.
Mookie Betts hits a 3RBI double to boost the Dodgers score up 9-0 in game one of the NLCS
— Amanda Scurlock (@Amandtastic) October 14, 2024
By the bottom of the sixth, the Mets were on their fourth pitcher. The Dodgers would not score again until the bottom of the eighth when Mookie Betts hit a three-run double.
“We got to fight,” Betts said. “We want to win a World Series, that’s our mindset, that’s our goal each and every time we step on the field.”
Game Two of the NLCS will be on October 14 at 1:08P.M.
