All -TIme Classic Baseball - Braves vs Dodgers

Just briefly stepping away from our beloved Red Sox for a dalliance with a couple of star - studded franchises. I am using all time greatest players rosters in playoff mode on MLB 14, and I pitted the Dodgers against the Braves in Game 1 of the NLDS. The result was an epic contest that took 15 innings to decide.

The series opener was a classic pitching duel between John Smoltz and Clayton Kershaw. Both hurlers matched each other with 7 complete innings with Kershaw suffering the only blemish trailing 1-0. Atlanta employed a suicide squeeze in the seventh as Chipper Jones gave himself up to score Dale Murphy from third. Kershaw struck out 8 batters and allowed only 2 hits in his 102 pitch outing. Smoltz was equally dominate as he whiffed 5 batters while surrendering only 5 hits. 

Atlanta handed the ball off to Craig Kimbrel, in the ninth but he couldn't nail it down. Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella sliced a 2 out single through a drawn in infield to plate Gil Hodges to tie the game. Hodges was credited with a triple after Hank Aaron came in on a liner and let it slip past him to the fence.

Los Angeles was in good shape in the top of the tenth as DH Reggie Smith drilled a solo homer to dead center field off Steve Bedrosian to give the visitors a 2-1 lead. The Dodgers then entrusted the game to their closer Greg Gagne, but his first offering was deposited over the left field wall by Braves' first baseman Joe Adcock to prolong the contest.

In the twelfth, the Dodgers had a chance to regain the lead. After his one out single, Matt Kemp attempted to score from first on a Ron Cey single that was cut off in the right center field gap. However, on a perfect relay, Kemp was thrown out at the plate.

Both bullpens were exceptional in extras as Don Newcombe pitched 4.2 innings, striking out three for the Dodgers, but he would suffer the loss. Newcombe had two out in the fifteenth inning with Braves' catcher Del Crandell on first. Second baseman Bobby Lowe, who starred with the Boston Beaneaters near the the turn of the twentieth century, doubled into the right center field gap, and Crandell chugged all the way around to give the Braves the win. Braves' relievers Johnny Sain and Lew Burdette combined for 5 innings of flawless relief surrendering only four hits. Burdette would garner the victory with his 3 innings of work. Check out the highlights below. I have the Red Sox going against the Tigers with Denny McClain facing Pedro Martinez. Stay tuned!