Mets vs. Dodgers Game 6 prediction: NLCS odds, picks, best bets
Pete Alonso did his part to ensure the Amazin’s wouldn’t go quietly into the night.The Mets slugger set the mark from the start by crushing a Jack Flaherty slider to center field, giving his team a 3-0 lead in the first inning of Game 5 of the NLCS.
Five more runs would follow in the third inning in an eventual 12-6 Mets victory, sending the series back to Los Angeles.With the Mets still facing elimination, they’ll send arguably their best pitcher, Sean Manaea, to the mound for Game 6 on Sunday night.Manaea won his start in Game 2, while the Dodgers opted to use an opener due to multiple injuries in their starting rotation. Given that Los Angeles has yet to name a starter, the Mets could take advantage of a similar matchup in Game 6 at Dodger Stadium. Manaea spent the first eight years of his career on the West Coast, playing for the Athletics, Padres and Giants.
Thus, he has plenty of experience going up against this potent Dodgers lineup year after year.Like so many other teams, the Dodgers put their best hitters at the top of the order, which means opposing pitchers face their biggest test right from the start when they take the mound.Shohei Ohtani bats leadoff for the Dodgers, followed by Mookie Betts.Manaea has managed to keep Ohtani at bay, limiting him to two hits in 10 at-bats with four strikeouts and one RBI.
His handedness as a southpaw certainly helps to cause problems for the Dodgers’ slugger.Looking back at some of the swings he took in Game 2, the MVP frontrunner clearly looked unsure of himself.Manaea will be the third straight left-handed starter Los Angeles will have faced in the NLCS.
That could be key as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is already considering benching Freddie Freeman, one of his best left-handed hitters.Although Freeman has just one hit in his last 15 at-bats, the former MVP winner is still a threat to wreck a game whenever he steps into the batter’s box.While we can only speculate who the Dodgers will send to the moun...