Dodgers Edge Phillies 4-3 Behind Snell's Dominance, Freeman’s Defensive Heroics to Take 2-0 NLDS Lead

Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times

Blake Snell delivered a dominant postseason performance, and the Los Angeles Dodgers held off a furious late rally to defeat the Philadelphia Phillies 4–3 in Game 2 of the National League Division Series Monday night at Citizens Bank Park. With the win, the defending World Series champions take a commanding 2–0 lead in the best-of-five series.

Snell, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, allowed only one hit across six shutout innings, striking out nine and walking four. He silenced Philadelphia’s high-powered lineup, including National League batting champion Trea Turner, home run leader Kyle Schwarber, and two-time MVP Bryce Harper, who combined to go just 1-for-10 with five strikeouts.

“We know we’re going to win,” Snell said after his 99-pitch gem. The Dodgers broke a scoreless tie in the seventh inning after Teoscar Hernández led off with a single and Freddie Freeman followed with a double. Kiké Hernández then hit a slow roller to shortstop, and Trea Turner’s rushed throw home allowed the game’s first run to score. Will Smith added a two-run single, and Shohei Ohtani capped the inning with an RBI single — his first hit of the series — making it 4–0.

Philadelphia fought back late. Max Kepler tripled and scored in the eighth to make it 4–1, and in the ninth, Nick Castellanos drove in two runs with a double off Blake Treinen. With the tying run on second, Bryson Stott attempted to bunt, but Max Muncy fielded it cleanly and fired to Mookie Betts, who tagged out Castellanos in a pivotal play.

“That was our only shot to win that game,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “And they executed it perfectly.”

Rookie Roki Sasaki, making just his second postseason appearance, entered with two outs and runners on the corners. He got Turner to ground out to second, but not before Freeman made a game-saving scoop of a low throw to end the game.

“Tommy [Edman] threw one into the dirt. Thankfully, I was able to catch it and stay on the base,” Freeman said. “That was a stressful inning.”

The Dodgers can clinch the series Wednesday at home, where they’ll send Yoshinobu Yamamoto to the mound. The Phillies will counter with veteran Aaron Nola, hoping to stave off elimination. “I love the fight in the eighth and ninth inning,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “We’ve just got to come out fighting.”

Teams taking a 2–0 lead in a best-of-five postseason series have won 80 of 90 times, including 54 by sweep — a number the Dodgers would love to add to in Game 3.