The Dodgers can wrap up the 2017 NLCS and clinch their first National League pennant in 29 years with one more win tonight over the sad sack Cubs in game 4 at Wrigley Field. This is of course a joyous scenario. The lame ass Cubs eliminated the Dodgers in the NLCS last season forcing us to watch their awful pennant ceremony. The soul-sucking narrative of the Cubs finally breaking their 108 years of losing was tiring hearing about every second of the postseason. The Dodgers sick of that, decided they would play better in the 2017 postseason. This is the perfect outcome. The Dodgers are one win from the World Series and sweeping those jerks out of the playoffs. Yes please!
Tonight they’ll give the ball to Alex Wood. The southpaw hasn’t pitched in nearly a month, but I don’t think that matters. The Cubs are like zombies right now and this series is over. Even if the Dodgers don’t clinch tonight it’s highly unlikely they won’t clinch in Chicago.
The Dodgers will also shuffle their lineup again against Chicago starter Jake Arrieta. Yasmani Grandal returns to the lineup behind the plate, and Curtis Granderson is back in the lineup as well. Granderson is playing center field, with Andre Ethier back in left. Silver Fox Chase Utley returns to second base despite being ohfer in the postseason. Here is the Dodger’s lineup below.
#ThisTeam // NLCS Game 4:
Taylor SS
Bellinger 1B
Turner 3B
Puig RF
Ethier LF
Granderson CF
Grandal C
Utley 2B
Wood P pic.twitter.com/ExRSwMKJ2B— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 18, 2017
TBS announcer’s favorite player Javier Baez returns to the Chicago lineup, much to the delight of Ron Darling and the rest of the TBS crew. Albert Almora Jr. will bat lead-off and Jon Jay is dropped down to eighth in the Chicago order. Arrieta hasn’t pitched much since a hand injury derailed his season. Here is the Cub’s lineup below.
Here is tonight's #Cubs lineup.
NLCS Game 4 preview: https://t.co/B1PLkmw2uV pic.twitter.com/Siv90cQmzV
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) October 18, 2017
The Dodgers are so close I can taste the champagne. Let’s do this!!! Let’s go Dodgers!!!!
Dodgers @ Chicago-NLCS game 4-Dodgers lead series 3-0
Alex Wood-16-3 vs. Jake Arrieta-14-10
Game time-6 PM PST – TV-TBS
Go Blue!
6, 7, 8 seem quite a drop in production. We shall see. They might surprise us.
27 outs from the World Series!
Do I (or should I) win a prize for correctly predicting this line up even before last night’s Game 3 even started?
The ALCS looks like it’s going go 7 Games ….
Not a good move by Roberts tonight, lacking the go for the throat mentality, like last night putting Stripling in the game to close. Not good. Now he repeats that mentality by putting Grandull in at Matador and Grandullerson in CF. Hey anything can happen or happen to ya, I hope Roberts isn’t going to see what might happen to him. He’s had a winning hand and he is choosing to toss away two winners and ask for two new cards. I don’t like what I am sensing. I hope that the Cubs are so demoralized that it doesn’t matter but…
They must have data on Culberson having some kind of platoon split, so if you have to play Taylor at SS with a RHP, then your choice is either Joc or Granderson, and they did sign Granderson to hit Arrieta, so here you go. Grandal may find a nut today …
I am also curious on how Ethier does in CF; but Wood likely keeps most things on the ground in the early innings – hopefully! Ethier will be needed a lot if Seager’s back doesn’t improve enough for him to play SS, which is a very demanding position. Seager for a pinch hit HR in the WS? I can only dream how he does the fist pump around the bases (he doesn’t show any emotion whatsoever- just a well oiled baseball machine needing some off season replacement parts …).
Hopefully this is the last we see of Granderson and Grandal this post season as starters.
I meant Ethier in LF not CF. He’s a good outfielder if he’s healthy enough.
NOt sure if Grandull can find his own nuts with both hands. lol
It’s Pennant time guys!
Wood pitching to grounders. Good.
Wood pitching to flyballs. Bad. 928 feet of homer bad. Granderson bad.
It’s abundantly clear now that Grandal and Granderson should not start the rest of this series and, if we make it to the WS, should just be left off the roster.
Granderson for sure
Granderson is hitting 045 when runners are in scoring position, since he joined the Dodgers.
Grandal walks don’t help much as he’s too slow. Waste of a roster spot.
That loss is totally on Roberts, once I saw the lineup I told my wife that we had no chance tonight. Pull your head out of your ass Roberts, terrible lineup and even worse in-game lack of managing. How can you let Reddickson K four times. He literally only fouled off two pitches in 4 at bats. He needs to be dropped from the WS roster. Reddickson is done, put a fork in him.
Of all the trades that FAZ has made, the acquisition of Curtis Granderson will go down as the worst pick up in team history. Since the first week of the trade he has been the worst hitter in the major leagues. He had some initial success, but since then, bupkis. I did not think it possible that a player could fit in less than Reddick last year. Granderson is so much more worse it is not funny. And to have that guy hitting in the 6 hole, unreal. I would have much rather seen 4 at bats from Joc Pederson than the futility I had to witness when this worthless piece of cow dung was at the plate. He should not be on the roster for the World Series. The other thing is that the bullpen was outstanding again and the starting pitcher gave up all the runs. 3 more HR’s off a Dodger starter. That’s 6 in the series. Baez’s second shot was unreal because that pitch was so low in the zone, I did not think he could hit it, but he did. JT is the series MVP hands down. Kershaw-Quintana tomorrow. Lets finish this.