The Padres win Game 4 over the Dodgers on the strength of a five-run seventh inning
On Friday, Petco Park held its first postseason game in front of fans since 2006. It was as loud as ever. The home crowd was quieter the next day as the still strong Dodgers, trying to avoid elimination, built up and held an early lead.
Before the bottom of the seventh inning, it happened. In an incredible comeback, the The Padres sent 10 batters to the plate and scored 5 runs in a row to catch up with the Dodgers, who were stunned.
Two innings later, Josh Hader pitched a scoreless ninth to seal a huge upset and send San Diego to the National League Championship Series for the first time since 1998.
Padres win 5-3. They won three straight NLDS games, the last in epic, come-from-behind fashion, and slayed the dragon on the highway. They will have home field advantage in the most incredible CS game against the Phillies. The Dodgers and their 111-win season are over.
— Alden Gonzalez (@Alden_Gonzalez) October 16, 2022
On Saturday, for most of the first six innings, it looked like the Padres were poised for a major breakthrough. Local teenager Joe Musgrove battled through six innings of two-way ball without help.
Tyler Anderson, who started for the Dodgers, threw five scoreless innings. In the seventh, when it was the Padres’ turn to bat, they already had two runners on base. The Dodgers were leading 3-0 and looked like they would force a winner-take-all Game 5 at Chavez Ravine.
Then Jurrickson Profar walked to start the game. Trent Grisham got hit. The Padres’ first run was scored on a single by Austin Nola. Ha-Seong Kim’s double cut the Dodgers’ lead to one run.
I remember when #Dodgers LHP Tyler Anderson threw five shutout innings vs. #Padres? It seems like a long time ago…
— Mike DiGiovanna (@MikeDiGiovanna) October 16, 2022
Although there were no outs, Juan Soto hit a single to bring in the tying run. Finally, after Yency Almonte homered and got two straight batters, Jake Cronenworth hit a single to center, bringing in the winning runs.
San Diego batted but added nothing. But until then it didn’t seem to matter. In the eighth and ninth innings, the Dodgers did nothing. Although Petco Park was already a mess in the seventh, it got worse.
Jake Peavy, who was Musgrove’s childhood hero, said before the game that this could be the biggest sporting event in San Diego in 20 years. But they still had to play the game.
At 10:54 p.m. Hader hit Freddie Freeman. The home dugout was emptied onto the field, fireworks went off and an unforgettable roar was heard in downtown San Diego. After pulling off a huge upset, the Padres will host the Phillies on Tuesday in the first NLCS game in this city in 24 years.
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