While starting pitchers Jacob deGrom and Clayton Kershaw made postseason history with their strikeout duel, the New York Mets emerged with a 3-1 victory in Game 1 of their NL division series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The All-Star deGrom struck out 13 over seven scoreless innings to pick up the victory for New York. He topped Kershaw, the former three-time Cy Young winner, who notched 11 strikeouts of his own. Together though, they did something no other opposing starting pitchers had done in postseason history.
For the first time in baseball history, both starting pitchers have at least 11 K in a#postseason game.
— Ace of MLB Stats (@theaceofspaeder) October 10, 2015
We can't overlook what this means to the Mets' franchise. It's their first playoff victory since 2006, and it means they'll go home Monday no worse than even in the series.
New York got one on the board in the fourh inning on Daniel Murphy's solo home run. It broke things open, at least relatively speaking, in the seventh inning when David Wright came through with a clutch two-out, two-run single. Tyler Clippard and Jeurys Familia made that hold, as the Mets stole one on the road.
• Both starters were vulnerable at times, but mostly overpowering. Jacob deGrom was straight up filthy to begin the game, recording his first six outs via the strikeout. His 13-strikeout performance was a joy to watch, and it put him in elite company in Mets' postseason history.
#Mets double-digit K #postseason game Tom Seaver - Oct 6, 1973 Tom Seaver - Oct 16, 1973 Doc Gooden - Oct 4, 1988 Jacob deGrom - Oct 9, 2015
— Ace of MLB Stats (@theaceofspaeder) October 10, 2015
• Despite his excellence, Kershaw is still searching for his second postseason win. He was charged with three earned runs over 6 2/3 innings. Two of those runs came around to score after he'd already departed, and those two runs turned out to be the difference.
• For a time we weren't sure if David Wright would return this season from his serious back injury. In Game 1, the Mets captain looked like his old self, lining a two-run single that proved to be the dagger.
• Daniel Murphy got the Mets on the board with a solo home run in the fourth. He's only the sixth left-handed batter to homer against Clayton Kershaw this season. Curtis Granderson also had good left-on-left success against Kershaw, delivering a pair of singles and a walk.
• The Dodgers' starting outfield did not make an impact offensively. Carl Crawford, Andre Ethier andJoc Pederson combined to go 0-for-10 with one walk and five strikeouts.
• Though he made up for it somewhat with an eighth-inning RBI single against Clippard, Adrian Gonzalez struck out all three times he faced deGrom in Game 1. Two of those came with runners on base.
• Michael Cuddyer had all kinds of trouble in Game 1, especially in the outfield. Terry Collins wanted his veteran in the lineup against Kershaw, but nearly paid for it when Cuddyer misplayed two fly balls in the early innings, both resulting in doubles for the Dodgers. DeGrom pitched around both, but his pitch count was elevated as a result. Cuddyer went 0-for-2 at the plate, so he failed to provide any punch.
More like a key plate appearance. Curtis Granderson had several good ones in Game 1, including his two singles. But his walk in the seventh inning that set up Wright's two-run single was massive. That kept the inning alive, it ended Kershaw's night, and the results essentially sealed the game for New York.
The phenomenal pitching performances for sure, and perhaps how those performances set the tone for the series. We're going from deGrom/Kershaw to Noah Syndergaard/Zack Greinke, which is no step down in quality on either side. We could be poised for another strikeout-filled game.
These teams will be right back at it again on Saturday at Dodgers Stadium. As mentioned, we'll have another dandy pitching matchup with Syndergaard (9-7, 3.24) going for the Mets against Greinke (19-3, 1.66) of the Dodgers.
First pitch is slated for 9:07 p.m. ET. TBS will have the television coverage.
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