The Los Angeles Dodgers are headed back to the World Series.
With a 10-5 win over the New York Mets in Game 6 on Sunday night, L.A. will go to its fourth World Series in eight seasons, and its first since winning it all in 2020.
It didn’t seem like a great start for the Dodgers when opener Michael Kopech threw 25 pitches and gave up a run in the first, but Los Angeles’ pitching didn’t have to be elite, it just had to be better than New York’s. And it was — thanks to all seven of the Dodgers’ pitchers in this bullpen game.
The Mets struck first thanks to some heads-up base running, an infield single by Pete Alonso and a Dodgers throwing error, but their lead didn’t last long, with the Dodgers offense attacking starter Sean Manaea early. The lefty threw 34 pitches (21 strikes) in the first, giving up a two-run double to Tommy Edman.
Manaea only made it one more inning, and it was an uphill battle from there as Mets pitching continued to struggle against the Dodgers’ relentless offense. Edman continued his NLCS dominance in the third with a two-run homer, and Will Smith joined the party with a two-run bomb of his own just three batters later. Shohei Ohtani tacked on a run with an RBI single in the sixth, and RBIs from Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernández and Enrique Hernández in the eighth.
The Dodgers will face the New York Yankees, who dispatched the Cleveland Guardians in five games in the ALCS, in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday at 7 p.m. ET. It’s been 43 years since the last Dodgers-Yankees World Series, which the Dodgers won 4-2.