Everything from late-game heroics to surprise outcomes to controversy has come about in six combined games of the National League Divisional Series, leaving no shortage of storylines for Tuesday's slate.
The two apparent underdogs are each one victory away from the NLCS, as the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets have both jumped out to a 2-1 lead on their respective opponents. The Los Angeles Dodgers and St. Louis Cardinals are now tasked with winning a must-win game on the road in order to push it to the decisive Game 5.
The action starts in the mid-afternoon and stretches into the late night on Tuesday, so take a look below at everything to know.
Tuesday's NLDS Schedule
Live streaming available on TBS.com.
Game 4: Los Angeles Dodgers at New York Mets
With the Mets-Dodgers series turning toward Citi Field for Game 3 on the heels of Chase Utley's suspension and subsequent appeal that allows him to remain eligible to play—though he wasn't in Monday's lineup—until the appeal hearing (go figure), one could have expected a raucous environment in which the Mets would come out aggressive and guns blazing.
That's exactly what they did. New York's bats absolutely caught fire in a 13-7 win over L.A. in Game 3, pushing the team one victory away from the NLCS. And had it not allowed a late Dodgers comeback in Game 2, New York would already be there.
Mets batters are raking so far in the postseason, especially the lefties, as Mark Simon of ESPN noted:
That trend from the Mets lefties plays perfectly into Tuesday's game, as they face Clayton Kershaw after his Game 1 defeat. All four hits Kershaw let up in the series opener were to left-handers, one of which was the go-ahead home run by Daniel Murphy.
Kershaw himself admitted "I felt a little more comfortable against the righties" after that game, per Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. That may be an understatement.
While the Dodgers pitchers are getting carved up, the same can't be said for the Mets, as John Buccigross of ESPN observed:
Just like in 2014, the Dodgers' biggest strength—stout pitching—appears to be abandoning them with the season on the line. They're facing another opportunistic lineup that takes advantage of the slightest mistake.
The X-factor all along to the Mets' success has been the bats, and they've awoken when it matters most. Another big day from them will put the Big Apple in a frenzy and clinch their spot in the NLCS.
Prediction: Mets 7, Dodgers 5
Game 4: St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs
It's almost surreal—OK, it is surreal—for any baseball fan younger than 100 years of age that two long-struggling organizations are making a magical surge to the NLCS at the same time.
Joining the Mets in that regard are the Chicago Cubs, a team that is at least a year or two ahead of schedule in competing at the top of the NL. An immensely young lineup is playing up to every bit of its potential.
That was on display in Game 3, as the Cubs got an uncharacteristic outing from ace Jake Arrieta and still won comfortably. The win came by way of six huge home runs, all of which the Cubs crammed into one tweet:
Chicago's more than century-long World Series drought is mentioned often, and the team's playoff success is certainly long overdue, but the Cubs are embarking on even more history entering Game 4. They can clinch a playoff series for the first time ever at Wrigley Field, as ESPN's Kevin Negandhi observed:
The Cubs just seem to have the magic on their side this postseason, but they're also going up against a club that's no stranger to channeling that special extra gear. Practically all of the Cardinals' deep postseason runs in recent history have come in clutch situations when it was easy to count them out.
Faced with a similar position Tuesday night, it's hard to see the Cardinals quivering and laying down to their longtime NL Central rivals. This series has five games written all over it, and St. Louis will afford itself the opportunity to return to Busch Stadium.
Prediction: Cardinals 4, Cubs 2
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