Dodgers finish off the comeback, break hearts from the mountains to the coast, and beat the Braves
The eighth pitch was deadly.
Kike Hernandez sent the eighth pitch of hit at-bat in sixth inning to launch a game-tying homer.
Then Cody Bellinger sent the state of Georgia into shock by drilling the eighth pitch of hit visit to the plate into the right-field stands for the lead run.
And the quiet-since-the-fourth Atlanta bats had no answer, the Dodgersā pitching sealing the deal by needing only 10 pitches in the top of the ninth to earn a trip to the World Series.
Atlanta had a 3-1 lead, but some mistakes, some remarkable Los Angeles defense, and just-a-little-bit-better Dodgers pitching turned being on the fringe of the World Series to another chapter in the city and stateās heartbreaking history of performances in big situations.
After scoring 23 runs in the three wins, Atlanta managed 10 in the three losses. The Dodgers outscored the Braves 39-33. In Game 7, Atlanta went 2 for 5 with runners in scoring position to 1 for 10 for LA.
More mistakes hurt Atlanta. Another baserunning blunder killed a potential big inning in the fourth when the Braves had nobody on and runners on second and third and got nothing after that. The Braves had only three hits, and earned six walks.
It was a fairly classic game from the start.
The Braves got one in the first off starter Dustin May on walks to Ronald Acuna and Freddie Freeman, followed by Marcell Ozunaās single. The inning went downhill quickly for Atlanta, Travis dāArnaud grounding into a double play and Ozzie Albies striking out.
They added another in the second against Tony Gonsolin on Dansby Swansonās third-pitch homer to left.
Rookie pitcher Ian Anderson got two outs in the third, but then walked Justin Turner and gave up a double to right. Both came in on Will Smithās single to center. Another walk followed before a fly to center ended it.
Turnerās was the first run Anderson has given up in the postseason. Anderson had 73 pitches in three innings. May needed 18 to get through the first.
Albies led off the top of the fourth with a walk and stole second, and Dansby Swanson followed with a walk. Austin Riley put Atlanta up with a single to center that easily scored Albies.
Gonsolin was pulled after 41 pitches, giving way to Blake Treinen to face Nick Markakis with two on and no outs.
The runners advanced on a wild pitch.
Markakis sent a hard grounder to third. Swanson surprisingly started home, and got in a rundown. He was quickly tagged out, and then Riley was tagged out at third for an unusual and crushing double play.
The Dodgers went from disaster to calm, and the Braves lost huge momentum.
Tyler Matzek took over for Anderson to start the fourth. The Dodgers got two one-out runners on, and they advanced on a wild pitch, and Matzek just missed on a 3-2 fastball to load the bases for Max Muncy, who already had a grand slam in the series.
Matzek got some momentum back by fanning Muncy on a 2-2 fastball.
And the Dodgers got it right back when Mookie Betts robbed Freddie Freeman of a homer to right in the top of the fifth.
Shane Greene got a double play to get out of the fifth with the 3-2 lead intact. That wasnāt the case in the sixth, after A.J. Minter gave up a towering no-outs solo shot to pinch-hitter Kike Hernandez on the eighth pitch of the at-bat.
Chris Taylor doubled and moved to third on Bettsā fly to center. The Braves defense came up big when Albies gunned down Taylor at home on Corey Seagerās grounder to second.
On came Chris Martin, who needed four pitches to finish the inning.
In the seventh, the Dodgers finished the Braves.
Atlanta used six pitchers, with Martin getting the loss. Los Angeles used five, with Julio Urias getting the win.