On Friday night the Padres played their first playoff game at Petco Park with fans in attendance since 2006. It doesn't take a fool to know the place was going to be bursting with energy and awfully darn loud.
Dodgers starter Tony Gonsolin said he wasn't concerned about the atmosphere before his Game 3 start. Too bad for him he wasn't around long enough to enjoy it. From the first pitch to the last the Friar Faithful let out 16 years worth of frustration in a 2-1 win that put San Diego on the doorstep of history.
Gonsolin was knocked around immediately. Juan Soto doubled for his first extra-base hit of the playoffs and scored on a Jake Cronenworth single to make it 1-0 Padres after an inning. In the 2nd inning, Trent Grisham singled off the bag at 1st base and Austin Nola hit a missile off the left field fence, prompting Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to pull his opener after just four outs.
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L.A.'s bullpen was able to limit the damage until the 4th inning when Trent Grisham continued his postseason surge. The centerfielder hit a rocket into the right field seats, a solo shot that's his 3rd home run in six playoff games to put San Diego on top 2-0 and for a moment the press box at Petco Park was literally shaking.
Meanwhile, Snell was not efficient but he was effective. He struck out the side in the 1st inning and got out of a jam in the 3rd by punching out Trea Turner. Snell allowed one run, on a Mookie Betts sacrifice fly, over 5.1 innings of work. In the 6th inning he gave up a double to Max Muncy and skipper Bob Melvin replaced him with Nick Martinez, who promptly struck out Justin Turner and got Chris Taylor on a dribbler to end the threat.
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After that it was set up exactly how Melvin wanted it for his bullpen.
Luis Garcia worked a perfect 7th with two strikeouts. Robert Suarez worked around an infield single by Trea Turner in a scoreless 8th. That left it up to Josh Hader in the 9th. When they traded for the All-Star closer they envisioned him in these exact kinds of situations.
He is pretty darn good again. Hader locked down his 2nd save of the series with a 1-2-3 final frame, and now Padres fans can truly dare to dream. San Diego is one win away from dispatching their long time tormentors from up the 5 freeway and they have the right guy on the mound to do it. Joe Musgrove will get the start on Saturday night, trying to pitch his home town team into the National League Championship Series for the first time since 1998.
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