Dodgers look to Zack Greinke to extend playoff run

“You have to get on him early before he gets rolling to have a shot”.

Los Angeles Dodgers grounds crew worker Justin Patenaud paints the National League Division Series logo on the field in preparation for Thursday’s game 5 between the Dodgers and the New York Mets in Los Angeles, Wednesday, October 14, 2015. He homered earlier in the fourth inning off Kershaw, the second of the three-time Cy Young victor in the NLDS, but flied out off closer Kenley Jensen to end the inning, per New York Post.

The Dodgers have appeared in three NL Championship Series since 2008 and lost all three, most recently in 2013 when they fell to the St. Louis Cardinals 4-2. Both are 1-0 in this series, although Greinke wasn’t as overpowering in Game 2 as deGrom was in Game 1.

As they should. The season is on the line. Greinke earned the win in Game 2 on Saturday, when he gave up two runs on five hits and no walks while striking out eight over seven innings in the Dodgers’ 5-2 victory.

“Well, there’s a reason why we thought, hey, look, if we’re up 2-1 in Game 4 that we’re going to save him because he’s the guy we want on the mound”, Collins said.

With Greinke and deGrom meeting, Kershaw says the series is “dead-even”.

Jansen has said that he is capable of pitching more than one inning, and in the most important game of the season, it’s time to trust your best reliever, not rely on a committee of secondary pitchers. “We saw that in Game One”. He’s just very impressive, just very tough to square up. “We’ve got all the confidence in the world that if we get to the next round, he’s going to be a part of that rotation”. His 1.66 ERA over 32 starts was the best in the major leagues. One of two right-handers on the Dodgers’ postseason roster, he has allowed two or fewer runs 27 times. DeGrom’s fastball averaged 94.9 miles per hour in the regular season, Syndergaard’s was a bit harder, and both men throw the pitch a lot to great effect.

However so will the Dodgers, who had fits with deGrom and Syndergaard in the first two games. Waller, who joined the team in 2006, also had a stint as the bench coach in 2009-10.

“When you’re facing Kershaw and Greinke in four of five games you know that runs are going to be at a premium and they have definitely been that with those two guys on the mound”, Wright said.

On the plus side, ace Jake Arrieta hit two home runs and almost had another.

Mattingly said catcher Yasmani Grandal is 50-50 to play Thursday because of his left shoulder that he tweaked in Game 3.

Asked to contrast the mood on the plane to California for Game 5 with that ahead of Game 1, Collins said: “We’re pretty positive still”. “I think personally the more I see a pitcher, the more advantage I have”. As a result, tomorrow night’s Game 5 will be hosted by the Dodgers.

HARVEY AVAILABLE: RHP Matt Harvey, who pitched five innings Monday, told Mets manager Terry Collins that he wants to be available for tonight’s game. Once he was pulled, Bartolo Colon, Tyler Clippard, and Jeurys Familia pitched four innings of one-hit, shutout ball.

When the Mets devised their playoff pitching rotation, they did so with deGrom in mind for a possible Game 5. And when you’re on the opposite end of that support, you know how important it is to silence the critics and prove your potential. “But we have an opportunity at least to extend”.