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Previewing the Dodgers’ three-Game Set Against the Nationals

By Sarah Maninger

WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 13: The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate after winning game five of the National League Division Series over the Washington Nationals 4-3 at Nationals Park on October 13, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 13: The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate after winning game five of the National League Division Series over the Washington Nationals 4-3 at Nationals Park on October 13, 2016 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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Tonight, the Dodgers will face off against their NL East rival, the Washington Nationals for the first time since last year’s regular season. It’s a series that will prove to be a battle of the National League’s most elite.

For many, Thursday, October 13th, 2016 was just another day. For some, it was their birthday or their anniversary. Maybe it was even the day a young student found out they were going to college or passed the BAR. For so many, that Thursday night was just one day closer to Friday.

In the hours that linked Thursday the 13th and Friday the 14th, the Los Angeles Dodgers faced off against the Washington Nationals in Game 5 of the NLDS, a game still remembered by all who witnessed it.

By the 7th inning, the Navy Yards were truly alive. Nationals fans flocked out by the thousands and stayed until the last of the trains stopped running for the night. Specks of blue, the color that covers Los Angeles, could even be seen.

When the game became a close one, the Dodgers leading 4-3 in the home half of the 7th, Dave Roberts called upon Kenley Jansen. Jansen, who was the best closer in the game at the time, tossed 55 pitches, far more and innings earlier than he was used to. Clayton Kershaw took action. He put on his warm-up jacket, grabbed his glove, spoke with his coaches, and jogged out to the visiting bullpen.

Kershaw was coming to save us.

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In the early hours of the 14th, he did. The Dodgers celebrated before leaving D.C for Illinois, in what would be a losing battle against the Chicago Cubs.

Flashforward 18 months; the Nationals are in Los Angeles. These two teams played each other last season, but last season the Dodgers had yet to be crowned the champions of the National League, and the Nationals hadn’t yet lost their third division series in four years.

Now, after momentous wins and heartbreaking losses, these two teams have one, unique thing in common;

They both want to be the last senior circuit team left standing come October.

The Dodgers were that team last year, but there are many who believe that this year, the Nationals will finally get it done. Under the leadership of rookie manager, Dave Martinez, the team from our nation’s capital may just find themselves in the fall classic.

One thing is likely, though. In order to get there, they’ll have to go through the Dodgers.

Tonight begins a three-game series between the two teams, and I kid you not when I say that it will feature one of the best pitching matchups of the season. Clayton Kershaw, the starter, the saver, the leader, will share the mound with reigning Cy-Young award winner, Max Scherzer.

Most of the time, with matchups like this, it’s assumed that the game will quickly become a pitchers duel. Though this is extremely plausible, solid outings won’t be easy for either of these aces. Kershaw will face Bryce Harper at the plate, who has already mashed 8 homers this season. Scherzer, on the other hand, will face a Dodgers offense that is just getting hot and shows no signs of cooling down.

Here is how the following games will look:

Friday: Kershaw (1.73ERA) vs. Scherzer (1.33ERA)
First pitch at 7:10PM PST

Saturday: Hyun-Jin Ryu (2.87ERA) vs. Stephen Strasburg (3.08ERA)
First pitch at 6:10PM PST

Sunday: Alex Wood (3.91ERA) vs. Jeremy Hellickson (3.86ERA)
First pitch at 5:05PM PST on ESPN

The Dodgers have their three strongest pitchers going this weekend. Kenta Maeda has been stellar so far this season, but it set to start in the next series against Miami.

I’ll admit, I am a strong believer in the words that have been uttered a lot lately; “It’s just April.” It is only April, but at the same time, the longer the Dodgers look like a sub-.500 team, the higher it’s probability of becoming a reality. This series is wildly important, not because the Dodgers’ season will be over if they fail, but because the Nats are a team, a really good team, that they will most-likely face come October.

The 2016 NLCS is a happy memory. Game 5 is the kind of game you watch on a rainy, offseason day. It’s the game you watch after the Dodgers lose the World Series, but you aren’t quite ready to stop watching baseball just yet.

The 2016 NLCS, however, was a long time ago. Those victories add no advantage to the games played in the coming days. These teams are different. Their records are different, and their rosters are different.

So, will we see these two teams reunite to play for a spot in the 2018 World Series?

Next: A closer by committee may be needed for Kenley Jansen

Maybe we will, maybe we won’t. That’s an entire season away from now. What we do know is this, Clayton Kershaw is ready for Friday night.

Are you?

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