LOS ANGELES -- There is hot, there are sizzling, and then there is Eddie Rosario of the Braves.
Rosario had four hits in a game, the second in the National League Championship Series. He also tied a Braves postseason mark with 12 total bases. This led to Atlanta's 9-2 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves now have a 3-1 series lead over Los Angeles. They can win their first pennant since 1999 by winning Game 5 at Dodger Stadium on Thursday.
"This entire postseason he’s been pretty much incredible," stated Braves leader Freddie Freeman. He homered, doubled and walked, but was overshadowed Rosario's madness.
Rosario was a mere two runs short of becoming the second postseason player to hit for the complete cycle. However, his bat is just too hot. Rosario had already hit a triple, homer and single in the game. He then drove to the right in the ninth for his second homer. This was a three-run shot that culminated a four-run Atlanta rally that opened the game.
Rosario stated, "It's postseason. No matter what, the cycle. I want to help the team win." "Three RBI are better than hitting a double," Rosario said.
Rosario scored the cycle against San Francisco Giants on Sept. 19. He needed just five pitches to achieve this feat. This started a hot streak that has continued into the most high-stakes games in Rosario's career. Rosario's batting average has risen to.354 in 22 games, with five homers. His bat is hot because it's one bat. Rosario stated that he used the same stick that he used to hit the cycle.
Rosario stated, "I've been using the bat that I hit for a cycle with and it hasn't disappointed." "I still had the double, and I was like, man, this bat hasn't let me down yet."
Rosario has a total of.588 in the NLCS with a pair four-hit games. Rosario is the first player to record a pair four-hit games in the LCS. Robin Yount, a Hall of Famer, was the only one to do it in any postseason series.
It was a good result for a player who was not-tendered last fall by the Minnesota Twins, didn't latch onto a new team until Feb., struggled during a half season with the Cleveland Indians, and was then traded away at the trade deadline.
Rosario stated, "I came here to showcase my talents and show the world who I am as a ballplayer." "I felt like I had success with Minnesota, but I struggled in Cleveland so I wanted to make sure I displayed my talents properly when I arrived here."
Postgame questioners were quick to remind the Braves that Atlanta held a 3-1 lead in the NLCS last year, but lost three straight games to Los Angeles and fell one game short of ending the pennant drought. The Braves' response to every question in this vein was simple: It is a different team, and it is a different year.
Freeman stated, "[It's] 2021." "2020 was last year. This is a completely different team. If anyone is thinking about 2020, I believe everyone wants to be in the 3-1 lead so we'll take it."
The Dodgers have seen the different team aspect in full force. Rosario, Joc Pederson (in-season outfield acquisition) and Adam Duvall have been the Braves' offensive leaders in this series. They have combined to hit.404 against L.A. with four homers, 14 RBIs, and Rosario. All other Braves have hit.225 with two and seven RBIs.
Atlanta must still take the final step. But things are looking up for the Braves better than Thursday. Max Fried, baseball's most popular hurler, will be taking the mound. The Dodgers will use a bullpen game in order to save their season. Fried, who is from Southern California, and was a Dodgers fan growing up, has a chance to end his boyhood club.
"What he did in the second half, pretty much throughout the entire season, after those first few weeks, every time you saw No. Freeman stated that 54 on that mound gave him a good feeling.
If Freeman's sentiments are correct, the Braves will return to the World Series for only the second time in this century.
Freeman stated that he was only 14 years old when the team went. "So we have a great team, and we are playing very good baseball. We hope to take this thing home and make it to the World Series."
