The Los Angeles Dodgers lost a heartbreaker to the Washington Nationals in Game 2 of the National League Divisional Series 4-2. The Nationals had the momentum the entire game. All throughout the game the focus was on the Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw. It has already been known from the fans that Kershaw is a great regular season pitcher but it seems when the playoffs come around he disappears. Early on the Dodgers went down 3-0 and it seems as if history was repeating itself with Kershaw not coming through. When the fifth inning came around the Dodgers started to make a resurgence, and was determined to win the game. The Nationals was even more determined to not let them get over the hump.
They had a cushion at the beginning of the game and ran with it. Strasburg is a guy who kno
ws his opponent. He understands the capabilities of Kershaw.
“Whenever you face a guy like Kershaw, the runs are going to be at a premium. For the guys to give me a little cushion to work with is great. At the same time you can’t pitch to the scoreboard. I’ve done that before and it did not end well. That’s something I have learned along the way.”
Strasburg led the way with 10 strikeouts over six scoreless innings, and only allowing three hits and that was ultimately the determining factor of the game. He spoke on his dominance of game 2.
“You try to do your homework and look at their weaknesses a little bit. But they have a deep lineup and not much weaknesses there. You just got to go out there and pitch to your strengths.” After losing game 1 there was a little bit of pressure put on Strasburg. Going down 2-0 against a team that has been to the World Series twice in a row would not be good for the Nationals.
“I’ve learned over the years, pressure is a funny thing and it’s something you have complete over. There’s a lot of expectations and excitement over games. Over the years I’ve trained my mind to think every single game is just as important.” Strasburg stated.
The Dodgers was one hit away from heading up to Washington up 2-0. They made an incredible comeback but they were too little too late. And there seems to be no concerns from the players. Kershaw said “ We had our chances. We knew it was going to be a tough night for us. They did a great job of putting guys on base and putting the pressure on us.” They understand these games are not going to be easy. Dodgers had the momentum at the end of the game. Bases loaded with a full count. And they ended up striking out that ended the game. We’re up for a great series ahead up. It won’t be a cake walk up for either team. Stay tuned for game 3!
