The Los Angeles Dodgers secured their spot in the National League Championship Series after a tense 2–1, 11-inning victory over the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4 of the NLDS on Thursday at Dodger Stadium in front of 50,563 fans. The game ended on an error-filled walk-off by the Philadelphia Orion Kerkering in the 11th.
Nonetheless, it was Los Angeles rookie Roki Sasaki who stole the spotlight. Manager Dave Roberts brought Sasaki in during the eighth inning, replacing a red-hot bullpen. Facing a strong Phillies lineup, the 23-year-old recorded three flawless innings, striking out two and allowing no hits or walks. His best pitch topped 100 mph, generating a groundout against Alec Bohm, and he relied heavily on his splitter, throwing it 11 times.
Dodgers closer Alex Vesia, who pitched a scoreless 11th inning and struck out Harrison Bader to preserve the tie, lauded Sasaki’s performance:
“That was the game. I mean, he was awesome tonight,” Vesia said. “Just the execution. He was still 99, 100, splitter was great. I mean, man. He's a dog. Full. I mean, he goes down in the history books,” per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.
True to Vesia’s praise, Sasaki made history on the mound. He became the first Japan-born pitcher to record three or more hitless innings in relief during a postseason game. Sasaki's outing rose out of the trials of his rookie season. After a September shoulder injury, he returned to accept a bullpen role, rather than his initial starting assignment. In the playoffs, he has excelled in relief, pitching 5.1 scoreless innings over four appearances and earning his only two career saves while lowering his playoff ERA to 0.00.
The victory boiled down to a battle of the mound maestros. Tyler Glasnow went six innings without letting anything past him, yielding just two hits and three walks while striking out eight, matching his longest postseason start. Philadelphia starter Cristopher Sanchez held his own through 6⅓ innings, giving up one run before Jhoan Duran handed Mookie Betts a walk to level the score 1-1. Los Angeles reliever Emmet Sheehan let the Phillies sneak in their only run after slipping up on a potential double play.
The series-winning run came on a bases-loaded grounder by Andy Pages, whose 1-for-23 postseason slump ended when Philadelphia reliever Kerkering’s throw to home went past catcher J.T. Realmuto, allowing pinch-runner Hyeseong Kim to score.
Shohei Ohtani will pitch in Game 1 of the NLCS against either the Chicago Cubs or the Milwaukee Brewers.
