#jackflaherty

The right-hander gives the Dodgers' bullpen a much-needed rest with a strong performance LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The Los Angeles Dodgers clearly looked like the better team in game 1 of the NLDS. They beat the New York Mets 9-0 behind a dominant performance from Jack Flaherty. A big question for the Dodgers coming into the series was how much stress they would put on their bullpen. Their relief pitchers carried them to the finish line against the Padres in the five-game NLDS, but now entering the seven-game series portion of the playoffs, it would be asking a lot for them to repeat the same workload.

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 13: Mookie Betts #50 and Freddie Freeman #5 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate after scoring in the first inning during Game 1 of the NLCS presented by loanDepot between the New York Mets and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, October 13, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) Against San Diego, Los Angeles's relief pitchers were one out shy of taking on 27 of the 44 innings. That is essentially three out of the five games that the bullpen pitched, which is not usually a recipe for success, but given how good they have been and how depleted the starting rotation is, their contributions were necessary. Flaherty made sure to give the arms in the pen some well-deserved and much-needed time off heading into game 2, where Los Angeles is now set to throw another bullpen game. https://twitter.com/Dodgers/status/1845642956533076401 Instead of focusing on going deep into the game and applying pressure on himself, the Dodgers' ace just played his game. "You can't think about those things. You gotta go one game at a time, one pitch at a time, and so today I just tried to go out and do my job until Doc said that was it," said Flaherty. He finished the outing with seven scoreless innings, no runs, and only two hits. The Mets did not pick up their first hit of the game until the fifth inning, and the Dodgers are three outs away from breaking the all-time postseason record for consecutive shutout innings (33). "It has been picking up where the last guy left off. You know that the guys coming in after you have got your back, and that is how this whole team has felt. Everybody is just feeding off each other right now," said Flaherty.

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 13: Francisco Lindor #12 of the New York Mets tags out Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers on a stolen base attempt in the second inning during Game 1 of the NLCS presented by loanDepot between the New York Mets and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, October 13, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) The offense certainly fed off his performance and now appears to be hot at the perfect time. The most impressive part about their nine-run night is that they did it with only one extra-base hit. They have lived off the long ball this postseason, and they managed to have their highest-scoring output of the playoffs without a single home run. "Tonight, we kind of checked down and got some big base hits. It was moving a guy over and then getting a knock. I just thought all night long that we were really stubborn. I thought the hitting coaches did a great job of putting together a game plan, and then the players executed," said Dave Roberts. https://twitter.com/Dodgers/status/1845660069322781083 Roberts called this his "most challenging season" as a manager before the game, but so far, it has also been his most impressive. Every string he is pulling has paid off, and it will be interesting to see if the bullpen continues to be his team's biggest strength. The worry is still that they could break down if two more bullpen games are in store for this series. Alex Vesia already went down in game 5 against the Padres, and all it takes is one bad outing from any of the relievers to make their lack of starting pitching look like a potentially fatal flaw.