Dodgers Drop Extra-Inning Thriller to Mets in NLCS Rematch

By: Christian Monreal

The Los Angeles Dodgers hosted the New York Mets on Monday night in a highly anticipated rematch of last year’s NLCS. Fresh off a weekend series win against the New York Yankees in a World Series rematch, the Dodgers continued their marquee matchups by welcoming the Mets, whom they defeated in last year's National League Championship Series to claim the pennant.

Los Angeles sent right-hander Dustin May to the mound to kick off the four-game set.

The game wasted no time delivering fireworks. Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor launched the second pitch of the night into the right-field seats, giving New York an early 1-0 lead. The Mets extended their advantage in the fifth inning, when Brandon Nimmo delivered an RBI double to make it 2-0.

Despite surrendering two runs, May turned in a solid outing, tossing six innings with five strikeouts and keeping the Dodgers within reach.

The Dodgers’ offense struggled for much of the night, but in the seventh inning, Shohei Ohtani reignited the crowd with a towering solo home run, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Then in the ninth, with the Dodgers down to their final outs, Ohtani came through again, this time with a sacrifice fly to tie the game at 2-2 and force extra innings.

In the tenth, reliever Tanner Scott took the mound, but trouble quickly followed. After allowing back-to-back hits, the Mets pushed across two runs to take a 4-2 lead. Scott’s recent inconsistency has raised concerns about the stability of the Dodgers’ closer role.

“It’s a struggle... right now there is no dedicated closer,” said manager Dave Roberts following the game.

The Dodgers nearly rallied once more in the bottom of the tenth, as a single by rookie outfielder Andy Pages made it a one-run game. However, with the tying run on third, the comeback fell just short. The Dodgers dropped the 4-3 opener in a hard-fought, extra-inning battle.

Despite the loss, Los Angeles still holds the top spot in the NL West. They’ll aim to bounce back in Game 2 before hitting the road for a weekend series against the St. Louis Cardinals.