The Nationals take Game 3 by the score of 8-3, with a chance to clinch the series Tuesday in Los Angeles.
In what was looking like another tightly-contested playoff game, the Washington Nationals blew the game open in the ninth inning, tagging closer Kenley Jansen of the Los Angeles Dodgers for four runs en route to an 8-3 victory in Game 3 of their NLDS matchup.
Jayson Werth, who went 3-for-4 on the day with a pair of RBI and runs scored, took Jansen’s first pitch of the inning deep for a solo homer. The normally dominant closer could not command his signature cut fastball and later gave up a two-RBI double to Ryan Zimmerman and an RBI single to Chris Heisey to put the game out of reach.
The game got started with yet another first inning RBI by Dodgers rookie Corey Seager, who plated Justin Turner on a double. The Nationals took the lead with a big third inning, highlighted by a two-run homer from Anthony Rendon. Carlos Ruiz would later hit a pinch-hit homer for the trailing Dodgers in the fifth to tighten the game at 4-3.
For the second straight game neither starting pitcher factored into the decision or lasted five innings. Nationals starter Gio Gonzalez seemed in line for a win, but could not get out of the fifth and posted a final line of 4.1 innings, 3 runs, 4 hits, 1 walk, and four strikeouts. Dodgers starter Kenta Maeda only lasted three innings, giving up four runs on five hits and two walks, striking out four.
The underrated story of the series so far has been the bullpen play. With Game 1 starters Clayton Kershaw and Max Scherzer also failing to pitch deep into the game, the teams’ bullpens have been tasked with pitching several innings. The Nationals pen has been remarkable, pitching a combined 12.1 scoreless innings through the first three games of the series.
The attention now focuses to Game 4 on Tuesday, which will get started at 2:05 p.m., PT. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts suggested that Kershaw may start the game, which may or may not persuade Nationals manager Dusty Baker to go with his ace, Scherzer, in a rematch of Game 1.
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The game will air on FS1 and FOX Sports Go streaming devices.
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