The Dodgers have punched their ticket to the NLCS.
Thanks to some late-inning heroics from Juan Uribe, the Dodgers defeated the Braves 4-3 tonight at Dodger Stadium to finish off the NLDS in four games. This will be the franchise’s 10th trip to the NLCS and their first since 2009.
The Dodgers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead behind a pair of solo homers from Carl Crawford, but the Braves found their way back into the game behind a pair of defensive miscues in the top of the fourth inning. Clayton Kershaw did fine on short rest, allowing two unearned runs over six innings, but Freddy Garcia matched him for the most part. Atlanta would eventually take the lead in the top of the seventh inning via an RBI single from Jose Constanza, but the Dodgers pulled ahead for good when Uribe took David Carpenter deep for a dramatic two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning. The go-ahead homer was set up on a double by Yasiel Puig. Kenley Jansen struck out the side in the ninth inning to lock down the victory.
While the Dodgers have advanced, they’ll won’t know their opponent until the Pirates and Cardinals square off in Game 5 of their series on Wednesday. The NLCS is set to begin on Friday and Zack Greinke should be lined up for the assignment.
