Heroes for the New York Mets in Game 1 of the NLDS weren’t hard to come by as they went into Los Angeles and took care of business.
NLDS, Game 1
Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
New York Mets 3 (1-0) @ Los Angeles Dodgers 1 (0-1)
deGrom W (1-0), Kershaw L (0-1), Familia S (1)
By Robby Sabo
The two key letters coming from Game 1 of the NLDS between the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers Friday night turned out to be “NL.”
The game was a true National League style contest. A quick ballgame that tore through time thanks to two of the best pitchers in MLB: Jacob deGrom and Clayton Kershaw.
In the end though, the Mets could name a few heroes on this night, one that saw them win by the score of 3-1.
Mets go on road and take Game 1 of NLDS over Dodgers, 3-1. Jacob deGrom: 7 IP, 0 ER, 13 K. pic.twitter.com/10ilZsFohQ
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 10, 2015
The only blemish by either starter came in the fourth-inning. Daniel Murphy smashed a solo home run into the right field stands.
HOME RUN!! Murphy! pic.twitter.com/2Fm131P7r2
— New York Mets (@Mets) October 10, 2015
Aside from that blast, both deGrom and Kershaw were magical.
deGrom, though he fell behind in several counts early on, wound up pitching a masterful game. His 13 strikeouts set a new Mets postseason record (surpassing Tom Seaver). He finished allowing no runs and just five hits through 121 pitches in seven innings.
Jacob deGrom's 13 K ties Tom Seaver for most strikeouts in Mets postseason history. pic.twitter.com/nNsqVOaPnc
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 10, 2015
Kershaw was brilliant in his own right. He K’d 11 Mets and only allowed the Murphy home run. That was, until, the seventh inning.
The Mets put two men on with the captain, David Wright, due up. Don Mattingly interestingly pulled the best pitcher in the world even though he had already gotten the best of Wright the previous two times.
He decided to go with the youngster, Pedro Baez. Wright promptly singled in two runs to make the score 3-0.
CAPTAIN CLUTCH!! #DavidWright drives in a pair with a single!!! #LGM pic.twitter.com/TchNqQAPgl
— New York Mets (@Mets) October 10, 2015
deGrom gave way to Tyler Clippard, who allowed the Dodgers only run on the night in the eighth-inning. Jeurys Familia entered in that same frame and picked up the easy four-out save, as he didn’t allow a single base-runner.
For Kershaw, his three runs allowed will make his box-score line look a ton worse than it actually was. For deGrom, there aren’t enough superlatives to describe how he battled early and finished strong.
Curtis Granderson picked up two hits on the night and a huge walk in that two-run seventh inning. Yoenis Cespedes struggled at the plate with an 0-for-4 night and three strikeouts.
Game 2 is slated for 9:07 PM ET from Los Angeles tomorrow night.
Daniel Murphy's solo HR gives @Mets a 1-0 lead. pic.twitter.com/44jzuGhNxo
— Baseball Tonight (@BBTN) October 10, 2015
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