The path towards repeating as World Series champions got easier for the LA Dodgers. On Monday, Blake Snell threw six scoreless innings as the Dodgers won 4-3 to take a 2-0 lead in the NLDS over the Philadelphia Phillies.
In the process, they made MLB history by scoring four or more runs in 13 consecutive postseason games. The last team to do so was the 1970-71 Baltimore Orioles.
Now, the series heads back to Los Angeles, where the Dodgers can come away with a three-game sweep and move ahead to the NLCS. For Game 3 on Wednesday, LA will be going with their right-handed fireballer, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, to seal the fate of the Phillies. The general rule of thumb is that it is difficult to come back from a 2-0 deficit, especially when those two losses are at home. With that in mind, the Phillies still have the pressure to stay alive and the daunting task of doing so on the road.
Out of all that has happened, here are three reasons that explain why the Dodgers are well on their way to a sweep.
Pitching Depth
All in all, the Dodgers have greater depth on the mound than the Phillies do. In addition to Snell and Yamamoto, they also have Shohei Ohtani. In Game 1, Ohtani put on a masterful performance in his postseason pitching debut. Altogether, he threw for six innings and had nine strikeouts. As a result, the Dodgers came away with a 5-3 victory.
Not to mention that they still have Tyler Glasnow.
Meanwhile, the Phillies lack depth in their starting rotation due to injuries. They are without Zack Wheeler, whose season came to an end due to venous thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS).
Currently, they only have lefties in their starting rotation with Cristopher Sánchez, Ranger Suárez, and Jesús Luzardo.
Bullpen
Despite substantial challenges from the Phillies, the Dodgers' bullpen held it down in the first two games. It was Blake Treinen who came out and closed out Game 2 after Philadelphia managed to rally in the 9th inning. Dodgers' manager Dave Roberts decided upon Treinen over Roki Sasaki due to his postseason reliability, per Nelson Espinal of Sports Illustrated.
In Game 1, the Phillies' bullpen allowed for three runs in the 7th inning when it was still a one-run game.
Then in Game 2, they gave up four runs in the seventh inning.
Offensive Consistency
Safe to say that the Dodgers have been swinging the bats in the first two games. That is especially true in those clutch moments.
In Game 1, RF Tesocar Hernandez hit a three-run home run in the 7th inning to put the Dodgers ahead 5-3. That same Hernandez went 2-for-3 in Game 2. Also, it was Ohtani and LF Enrique Hernandez who had an RBI each.
Plus, catcher Will Smith had two RBIs of his own.
