Rob Issa, FISM News
The Atlanta Braves and San Diego Padres evened their National League Division Series on Wednesday.
Both series resume Friday with the defending World Series champion Braves visiting the Phillies and the Padres hosting the Dodgers.
Homers lead Padres over Dodgers
Manny Machado hit a home run and added an RBI double off Clayton Kershaw, and Jurickson Profar drove in the go-ahead run to lead the Padres over the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-3.
“We’re going to compete,” Machado said. “We’re going to try to do everything possible to help our team win every single day. That’s what we started in New York, and we’re going to continue to do that until we’re not.”
The Padres upset the New York Mets in the wild-card round to advance. They beat the Dodgers for the first time in the postseason.
“It’s probably as back and forth a game as you are going to see,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “A lot of drama to it. Fun win.”
Jake Cronenworth homered off Blake Treinen in the eighth inning to give the Padres an insurance run.
The Padres got three solo homers from Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy, and Trea Turner.
“Don’t take anybody lightly in the postseason,” Freeman said. “They’re here for a reason. They play good baseball, they played really good against the Mets, and they just came out on top today.”
Left-hander Blake Snell will start Game 3 for the Padres, who will play in their first postseason game in front of fans at Petco Park in 16 years.
The Dodgers are sending All-Star righty Tony Gonsolin, who won 16 games in a career-best regular season, to the mound.
Braves blank Phillies
The Braves got six shutout innings from right-hander Kyle Wright and help from Philadelphia’s shaky defense in a 3-0 win over the Phillies.
The Braves tied their series thanks to Wright’s masterpiece in a game that started almost three hours late because of rain. Wright outdueled Phillies ace Zack Wheeler. He gave up only two hits and struck out six.
“As he’s out there and figures things out, he’s going to continue to develop and grow and gain confidence,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said of Wright. “With that arsenal he’s got, he can be a force for a long time.”
The Braves broke a scoreless tie with a three-run rally in the bottom of the sixth when Wheeler unraveled after retiring the first two batters.
Wheeler hit Ronald Acuña Jr. near the right elbow on a 96 mph fastball and waited several minutes while Atlanta’s slugger was checked by the training staff. Acuna ended up staying in the game and Wheeler, who threw a few pitches during the delay, wasn’t the same afterward.
Dansby Swanson walked and Matt Olson hit a sharp grounder that went past first baseman Rhys Hoskins, driving in the first run.
“I think if you asked Rhys, he would say he should make that play,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said.
Hoskins admitted he should’ve made the play.
Austin Riley followed with an infield single down the third-base line that made it 2-0. Travis d’Arnaud then hit an RBI single up the middle.
“I feel I had the confidence to pitch at this stage,” Wright said. “They have a really good lineup, and I knew that. But I knew if I executed, then I was going to give myself a chance. And I really believe that.”
Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber, who led the NL with 46 homers in the regular season, struck out three times. He is 1-for-18 in the playoffs.
“For me, you’ve got to be able to put the ball in play,” he said. “I’m the guy at the top of the lineup. I’ve got to be able to get on base for these guys. I don’t feel bad or anything up at the plate, so I just have to make the adjustments and go from there. Put in a good day’s work and then be ready to go on Friday.”
Right-hander Aaron Nola starts Game 3 when the Phillies play their first home game in the postseason since 2011. The Braves will send either righty Charlie Morton or righty Spencer Strider, who hasn’t pitched since Sept. 18 because of an oblique injury.
Next Up
All times Eastern
Today:
Astros (1-0) vs. Mariners (0-1), 3:37 p.m., TBS
Friday:
Yankees (1-0) vs. Guardians (0-1), 1:07 p.m., TBS
Phillies (1-0) vs. Braves (1-0), 4:37 p.m., FS1
Padres (1-0) vs. Dodgers (1-0), 8:37 p.m., FS1