Los Angeles Dodgers (1-0) at Washington Nationals (0-1)
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Los Angeles Dodgers (1-0) at Washington Nationals (0-1) LHP Rich Hill [12-5, 2.12] | RHP Tanner Roark [16-10, 2.83] Sunday, October 9 l Game #2 / NLDS l Nationals Park l Washington, D.C. l 1:08 P.M. Television: FS1 l Radio: 106.7 The Fan & Nationals Radio Network Standing: 95-67, 1st place, National League East • Home: 50-31 • Road: 45-36 • Streak: W2 • Last Five: 3-2 • Last Ten: 6-4 NATIONALS NEWS OPPONENT LOS ANGELES DODGERS The Nationals and Dodgers opened the first-ever playoff series between the two clubs on Friday, Oct. 7 at Nationals Park...The Dodgers and Montreal Expos met once in the Post- season, in the 1981 National League Championship Series -- which LAD won, 3-2, with help from several familiar faces...The ties between the Nationals and Dodgers run deep, starting with Nationals manager Dusty Baker, who played for LA for eight seasons (1976-1983)... HELLO, OCTOBER Baker was a two-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger, and a Gold Glove outfielder for the In the 12th season since baseball returned to Washington, D.C., the Washington Nationals Dodgers, hitting .281 in 1,117 games with 144 home runs, 179 doubles, and 586 RBI, and an were crowned National League East champions for the third time in the last five years...The integral part of the aforementioned 1981 World Series Championship team...Joining him on 2016 Nationals did so with an average of 15.8 wins per month and a 95-67 (.586) final regular- that team was Nationals first base coachDavey Lopes, who played for LAD from 1972-1981, season record, the second-best mark in the NL (Cubs: 103-58, .640) and tied with the Texas was a four-time All-Star and a Gold Glover, and his 418 stolen bases rank second all-time Rangers for the second-best record in Major League Baseball...Since 2012, Washington’s in Dodgers history...Hall-of-Fame voice of the Dodgers, Vin Scully, began his broadcasting three division titles are tied for the second-most in MLB behind the Los Angeles Dodgers (5). career at WTOP radio in D.C....Dodgers President and CEO Stan Kasten served as the Na- • The 2016 Nationals made themselves comfortable in first place, where they resided for 179 tionals President for five seasons, from 2006-10...Nationals OF Jayson Werth hit .247 with days this season (152 of 162 game days)...Washington took over sole possession of first 23 homers and 90 RBI in 191 games with the Dodgers from 2004-05...Nationals 1B/OF Clint place on May 29 and did not relinquish it for the remainder of the season. Robinson appeared in nine games for LAD in 2014, going 3-for-9 (.333) with one walk and two RBI...OF Chris Heisey appeared in 33 games for the Dodgers in 2015, going 10-for-55 DIVISION CHAMPS! (.182) with two doubles, two HR and nine RBI. The Nationals clinched the 2016 National League East title on September 24 at PNC Park... After a win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Nationals watched the conclusion of the New York THE REGULAR-SEASON SERIES Mets’ loss to the Philadelphia Phillies before popping the champagne. The Dodgers hold the edge in the all-time series since baseball returned to the District in 2005, • No team in baseball won more games against its own division than the Nationals, who went 44-27...The Nationals took the 2014 season series from LA, 4-2, but fell in the 2015 version, 51-25 against their fellow NL East foes...Washington’s 51 intra-divisional wins are the most 2-4, and in the 2016 series, 1-5. for any team in club history (2005-present), and their .671 winning percentage vs. the NL East is nearly 80 points higher than any other Nationals iteration (2014: .592). 2016 / REGULAR SEASON BY THE NUMBERS • The NL East crown is the sixth division title Nationals Manager Dusty Baker has led his 2016 W-L .......................................................................................1-5 (1-2 in D.C., 0-3 in L.A.) clubs to, joining the 1997 & 2000 Giants, 2003 Cubs, 2010 & 2012 Reds. Streak ........................................................................................................................... LOST 1 • Baker joined Billy Martin and former Nationals skipper Davey Johnson as the only man- Aggregate Score / 2016 ................................................................... Nationals 21, Dodgers 26 agers in MLB history to lead four different clubs to the Postseason. Home Runs Hit / 2016 .......................................................................... Nationals 8, Dodgers 8 D.C. POSTSEASON HISTORY ALL-TIME REGULAR-SEASON SERIES / BY THE NUMBERS In securing the 2016 NL East Crown, the Nationals earned the sixth postseason berth in 83 W-L / Nationals (2005-present) ........................................................................................27-44 seasons of Major League Baseball in the nation’s capital (2016, 2014, 2012, 1933, 1925, W-L / Home (2005-present) ..............................................................................................18-18 1924)...The Nationals claimed the NL East title in 2014 and 2012, while the AL Nationals/Sen- W-L / Nationals Park (2008-present) ................................................................................13-14 ators won the World Championship in 1924 and claimed American League flags in 1933 and W-L / Away (2005-present) .................................................................................................9-26 1925...This year’s division title is the franchise’s (WSH/MON) third in 47 NL seasons (2012, W-L / Franchise (Expos/Nationals) ...............................................................................194-271 2014), although the 1981 (30-23, .566 post-ASB) and 1994 Montreal Expos (74-40, .649) fin- ished atop the NL East in seasons affected by labor stoppages...The Nationals hope to snap 2016 REGULAR SEASON AGAINST THE DODGERS D.C.’s 83-year World Series drought (1933) and its 92-year MLB World Championship wait. DATE RESULT WIN-LOSS-SV TOG DATE RESULT WIN-LOSS-SV TOG 6/20@ L, 1-4 Kershaw-Petit-Jansen 2:50 7/19DC L, 4-8 Kazmir-Lopez-None 3:14 6/21@ L, 2-3 Coleman-Roark-Jansen 2:44 7/20DC W, 8-1 Gonzalez-Norris-None 2:57 POSTSEASON PROS 6/22@ L, 3-4 Hatcher-Kelley-None 3:35 7/21DC L, 3-6 Liberatore-Strasburg-Jansen 3:35 The 2016 Nationals have several members of their roster who are no strangers to the Post- season -- and multiple who are also no strangers to Postseason success: NLDS ROSTER • 2B Daniel Murphy: The 2015 National League Championship Series MVP, Murphy almost PITCHERS (11) CATCHERS (2) INFIELDERS (7) OUTFIELDERS (5) single-handedly led the New York Mets to the World Series last season...In 15 career Post- RHP Shawn Kelley C Jose Lobaton INF Stephen Drew OF Bryce Harper season games, Murphy has hit .328 (20-for-61) with two doubles, seven home runs, 11 RHP Reynaldo Lopez C Pedro Severino INF Wilmer Difo OF Chris Heisey RBI, seven walks, 13 runs scored, and a .705 slugging percentage...Murphy’s otherworldly RHP Mark Melancon INF Danny Espinosa OF Michael A. Taylor 2015 Postseason included a Major League record six consecutive games with a home run. RHP Tanner Roark INF Daniel Murphy OF Trea Turner • LF Jayson Werth: The elder statesman of the 2016 Nationals, Werth has played in 54 RHP Joe Ross INF Anthony Rendon OF Jayson Werth career playoff games spanning eight different seasons...In helping lead the Philadelphia RHP Max Scherzer 1B/OF Clint Robinson Phillies to back-to-back World Series appearances (including the 2008 title) in 2008-2009, RHP Blake Treinen 1B Ryan Zimmerman LHP Gio Gonzalez Werth hit .292 with seven doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 18 walks, 17 RBI and 22 LHP Marc Rzepczynski runs scored...Werth’s career in Washington is not without its own Postseason highlights, LHP Oliver Perez though, as his iconic walk-off home run in Game 4 of the 2012 NLDS is one of the most LHP Sammy Solis celebrated moments in Nationals history...On the whole, Werth’s 14 career Postseason home runs rank fifth-most among all active Major Leaguers. MIKE RIZZO • RF Bryce Harper and 3B Anthony Rendon: Two of the youngest members of the Na- The architect of the Washington Nationals, President of Baseball Operations and General tionals’ 2014 NLDS roster (vs. SFG), Harper and Rendon were unfazed by the spotlight Manager Mike Rizzo has overseen the organization’s swift ascension into a perennial con- in Washington’s last foray into Postseason baseball...Against the Giants, Rendon went tender...The first hire made by the Lerner Family after assuming control of the franchise in July 7-for-19 (.368) in four NLDS games, walking once and driving in a run, while Harper hit .294 of 2006, Rizzo set out to build the Nationals into a playoff team by first addressing the Nation- (5-for-17) with one double, three home runs, two walks and four RBI. als’ farm system -- building it into a powerhouse feeder system for the big league team -- and CAREER POSTSEASON STATISTICS / NATIONALS then keyed the organization’s transition to success at the Major League level...Through the PLAYER G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG OBP SLG Difo 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 MLB First-Year Player Draft, deft trades, and key free-agent signings, Rizzo turned the former Drew 29 105 10 22 3 2 3 9 5 33 .210 .243 .362 Espinosa 8 22 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 11 .045 .125 .045 100-loss team into one with five consecutive winning seasons and three division titles, and Harper 10 45 7 9 3 1 4 6 2 12 .200 .234 .578 that success is borne out in the numbers: Since 2012 only one team in baseball has collected Heisey 7 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 .000 .000 .000 Lobaton 5 7 1 2 0 0 1 1 0 2 .286 .286 .714 more MLB victories than Washington’s 458 (St.