In MLB, teams that won Game 2 after losing Game 1 in a best-of-five postseason series have reportedly gone on to win the series 34 of 67 times. On Sunday, the Atlanta Braves beat the defending World Series Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, in Game 2 of their division series clash. With the series leveled, the Braves will enjoy home-field advantage for the next two games as the series moves to Truist Park. Following their Game 2 upset, the Dodgers manager, Dave Roberts, dissected what went wrong with his team.
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Blake Snell’s rough outing stands out as a key factor.
Blake Snell’s early exit
The Los Angeles Dodgers used six relievers on Sunday, as many as the Atlanta Braves did for their scheduled bullpen game. Blake Snell’s early exit forced Roberts to hand the game to his relievers.
Snell lasted only 3.2 innings, allowing 1 run on 3 hits and issuing 5 walks in his 90-pitch outing. When asked about what went wrong with Snell, Roberts pointed to the lack of command over his pitches. It allowed the Braves’ hitters to chase the veteran starter.
“He [Snell] just was fighting himself with his delivery all game,” said Roberts, per MLB Network. “Today it was just because I think that the fastball was really good, the changeup had been good at times, but I think in total he didn’t have fastball command, didn’t have slider command, and the changeup wasn’t there. He was pulling it… He just wasn’t sharp tonight.”
Snell’s trouble started in the first inning. He walked Matt Olson and Ozzie Albies to load the bases. He failed to escape the jam and allowed an RBI single to Mauricio Dubon. For the next two innings, Snell appeared to have found his footing before he gave up walks to Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin. Roberts did not take any more risks and pulled him for Brock Stewart.
Since his return to the Dodgers roster following his elbow surgery, Snell has gone only five innings deep in September. However, alongside Snell, Shohei Ohtani’s performance at the plate has also raised concerns.
Shohei Ohtani struggled against the Braves
Shohei Ohtani has previously won championships for the Dodgers. However, the Japanese superstar has struggled extensively this season, with multiple injury setbacks. This year, he even landed on the IL for the first time since he joined the Dodgers. He was reinstated to the lineup only days before the regular season ended.
With Ohtani completely shut down from pitching, there is even more focus on his production as a hitter. However, he failed to provide the offensive spark the Dodgers needed against the Braves in Game 2 and Game 1. He went 1-for-4 and struck out twice. Manager Roberts pointed to his chase rate.
“I think with Shohei, it’s just that if you look at the at-bats, there’s a lot of chase. And I think that it’s like, you know, it’s hard to square up, put good swings on balls that are out of the zone. And so that’s kind of what it boils down to,” said Roberts, per MLB Network.
With the series leveled, Game 3 is a must-win for both teams to gain the upper hand in the series. Veteran Chris Sale will take the mound for the Braves at Truist Park.
“Every starter on their [Dodgers] staff is a Cy Young guy,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “It doesn’t get any easier, but I like the fact that we go back home even, and we have Chris Sale.”
Sale finished the regular season with a 14-9 record and a 2.16 ERA. He holds a 2-3 record with an ERA of 4.30 and 43 strikeouts in 7 career appearances against the Los Angeles Dodgers. As for the defending World Series champions, ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto will take the mound in Game 3.