Everything begins with Shohei Ohtani and Francisco Lindor in this National League Championship Series. They are at the top of the lineup.
Both players are expected to finish first and second in NL MVP voting and have already made a significant impact early in the playoff matchup between the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets.
They know that only one of them will make it to the World Series.
“I think both of us are in this position where what we did in the regular season is over and what matters is how we produce, what we produce during the postseason,” Ohtani said Tuesday through an interpreter. “I do think we’re perhaps connected in the same sense.”
With the best-of-seven series tied at 1-1, the focus now moves to Citi Field for Game 3 on Wednesday night, where Walker Buehler will pitch for Los Angeles against Luis Severino.
After the Mets had a light workout in the late afternoon, Ohtani and the Dodgers practiced batting under the stadium lights on Tuesday evening.
Ohtani described his impression of Lindor, saying, “He’s a really good guy. He smiles a lot. I do feel like he’s leading the club as well.”
Lindor was asked what he admires about Ohtani, who is very talented. “I admire his shoes. He’s got cool cleats,” the Mets’ star shortstop said, making reporters laugh in the interview room.
“I admire the ability to stay within himself. I mean, he’s a guy that, from day one, has had a lot of pressure on him. There’s been a lot of eyes and cameras on him, and his ability to stay within himself and to not get too big and to stay the course, that, to me, that’s brilliant.
He’s done a fantastic job of maneuvering himself the right way wherever he’s gone.” All these qualities were on display as the teams each won one of the first two games at Dodger Stadium.
Ohtani, who was mostly held back earlier this month in his first postseason, had an RBI single in the series opener and hit another single off the right-center fence that led to two more runs. He also walked and scored twice as Los Angeles won easily with a 9-0 score.
Lindor, who went 0 for 3 with a walk in Game 1, made a strong impact the next day by hitting a leadoff homer after an eight-pitch at-bat, during which he fouled off four pitches from Ryan Brasier.
This home run ended a 33-inning scoreless streak for Dodgers pitchers, matching a postseason record.
In the following inning, Los Angeles intentionally walked Lindor to load the bases for Mark Vientos, who then hit a grand slam, giving the Mets a 6-0 lead and leading to a 7-3 win in Game 2.
With this win, New York was back in the series. “I just love getting things started,” Lindor said. “You just get the crowd and team going.”
Ohtani has also embraced his leadoff position, which used to be an unusual place for such a powerful hitter. That’s not the case anymore.
“I think we have complete solace in knowing that giving our best hitter five cracks to be instant offense, and also believing that the guys in the bottom of the order can create some havoc and get on base. And I thought we did that really well in Game 1,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
“Just give him opportunities. … I can’t predict the game. So I feel good about what I can predict is Shohei hitting 1 and getting the most of the at-bats from our offense.”
The temperature at first pitch on Wednesday night is expected to be just above 50 degrees and will drop further. It was a nice 73 degrees for the first two games in Los Angeles.
“Obviously, the East Coast/West Coast, LA/New York thing is pretty cool. I imagine it’s going to be rocking here tomorrow. That’s what excites me more than anything is the noise and the excitement. And the kind of live-or-die feeling on every pitch is something I’ve really grown to love,” Buehler said.
“I love pitching in the cold, personally. I don’t know why or how. When I was in college (at Vanderbilt), I think I had the first 10 starts that were under 30 degrees one year. So it’s something I’m used to, or at least used to be used to.”
Buehler went 1-6 with a 5.38 ERA in 16 starts this season after missing 2023 due to his second Tommy John surgery. He lost in Game 3 of the Division Series at San Diego, giving up all six runs in one inning, which was a bit unlucky for him.
“I feel confident. So I think that probably was one of my biggest strengths for a long time was my confidence, I guess,” Buehler said. “At times this year that’s kind of wavered somewhat.
The past six or eight (starts), I’ve kind of felt like I’ve been building blocks of some kind. And hoping to keep that going.”
Severino is 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA in two playoff starts after going 11-7 with a 3.91 ERA in his first season with the Mets. He has pitched 194 innings this year, including the postseason, and will be pitching on nine days’ rest.
“I think my arm, right now, feels the same way, feels good. I just need to stick to my routine,” Severino said.
The right-hander said he plans to watch how Padres pitcher Yu Darvish found success against Ohtani in their Division Series.
“He’s been a big-game pitcher. There are some guys that have history with him,” Roberts said. “We’ll be ready for whatever he has planned for us.”
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