Dodgers: NL West Hopes Remain Intact for Another Day

The Dodgers defeated the Giants 3-1 last night in a tightly contested game to keep their NL West hopes alive for another day.

The Rockies clinched a playoff berth last night but that does not mean they have the NL West locked up yet.  With the Dodgers’ victory last night, the Dodgers still have a shot to win the West outright or force a one game tiebreaker on Monday afternoon.  The Dodgers will most likely need to win their final two games to force a one game playoff since it’s unlikely the Rockies lose both games.

One thing working in the Dodgers favor is that the Rockies have to face Stephen Strasburg today and if Sunday’s game is not meaningless, the Nationals may let Max Scherzer pile up his strikeout numbers in one last start.  The Dodgers will play at noon today so the Rockies will either have a chance to clinch the NL West tonight or they could be facing a must win game to avoid a tie for first place with one game left.

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• Hyun-Jin Ryu continued his stellar season for the Dodgers last night.  Not only does Ryu have a 1.50 ERA in September, he has been strong in the second half of the season with a 1.93 ERA.  Ryu is a lock to be in the Dodgers’ postseason rotation if they advance past the wildcard game or win the division.
• Justin Turner has been one of LA’s most clutch athletes since becoming a member of the Dodgers.  Everyone will never forget his walkoff in the NLCS against the Cubs and while the stakes were not as high last night, Turner once again delivered the winning runs, keeping the Dodgers’ NL West hopes alive.
• The Dodgers’ bullpen is starting to settle in at the perfect time.  Kenley Jansen is starting to look like his all-star self, Kenta Maeda is putting together solid relief outings and Pedro Baez has looked like a totally different pitcher in the second half.  Scott Alexander and Dylan Floro are also stalwarts in the Dodger pen who can be relied on night in and night out.

• By winning last night, the Dodgers are guaranteed to play another game after this weekend.  If the Dodgers lose out and the Cardinals win their final two games then the Dodgers will go to St. Louis for a tiebreaker game on Monday afternoon.  While it’s not an ideal situation, the Dodgers can take comfort knowing Sunday will not be their final game.