Game 5 in the NLDS—as all hilariously engaging things do—came to an end. Bryce Harper’s swing and miss sends an exhausted and thoroughly tested Chicago Cubs out west to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers who have presumably been resting and working on their respective tans for the last few days.
It will be the Chicago Cubs taking on the L.A. Dodgers in a grudge match from last year when the Cubbies bested the other boys in blue to wash away their own respective World Series doldrums.
A lot of the same faces adorn each dugout to be sure. However, there are a lot of reasons to think this series ends differently than it had last year.
You can see a full schedule here. (All Times ET. * denotes if necessary.)
| Date and Time | Pitchers | Channel |
| Game 1: Saturday, Oct. 14 at 8:00 p.m. | Cubs TBD vs. Clayton Kershaw | TBS |
| Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 15 at 7:30 p.m. | Cubs TBD vs. Rich Hill | TBS |
| Game 3: Tuesday, Oct. 17 at 9:00 p.m. | Yu Darvish vs. Kyle Hendricks | TBS |
| Game 4: Wednesday, Oct. 18 at 9:00 p.m. | Alex Wood vs. Jake Arrieta | TBS |
| *Game 5: Thursday, Oct. 19 at 8:00 p.m. | Dodgers TBD vs. Cubs TBD | TBS |
| *Game 6: Saturday, Oct. 21 at 4:00 p.m. | Cubs TBD vs. Dodgers TBD | TBS |
| *Game 7: Sunday, Oct. 22 at 7:30 p.m. | Cubs TBD vs. Dodgers TBD | TBS |
Tale of the Tape
| Stat (MLB Rank) | Cubs (Rank) | Dodgers (Rank) |
| AVG | .255 (16) | .249 (22) |
| ERA | 3.95 (7) | 3.38 (2) |
| RUNS | 822 (4) | 770 (12) |
| OPS | .775 (6) | .771 (8) |
| WHIP | 1.28 (9) | 1.15 (1) |
| Relief ERA | 3.80 (6) | 3.38 (4) |
Head-to-Head Stats
| Stat | Cubs | Dodgers |
| W-L | 2-4 | 4-2 |
| OPS | .575 | .680 |
| ERA | 3.53 | 1.71 |
| AVG | .191 | .207 |
| WHIP | 1.294 | 1.063 |
Chicago Cubs
If the Dodgers were the darlings of the league before the All-Star break, the Cubs absolutely dominated the second half of the season.
The defending champs limped to the break with a severe World Series hangover, finishing with a 43-45 record and .744 OPS.
The club was completely rejuvenated after the mid-season classic and went on a 49-25 tear while seeing its OPS rise to .811
Now the two fought a hard six games during the season, even slugging out a weird one on May 28 that saw both Jon Lester and Clayton Kershaw get battered around the yard.
The Cubs match up extremely well with the Dodgers and also boast a solid starting rotation and bevy of arms in relief.
The NLDS did offer some cause for concern. Wade Davis, who was resplendent in Game 5, was still asked to get seven outs and throw nearly 50 pitches. While a former starter, it remains to be seen how throwing almost half a game will work on his arm.
Carl Edwards Jr. had the kind of NLDS that causes the same kind of indigestion suffered after eating at the concession stand.
The reliever was utilized throughout the series and came away with a nice, meaty 23.14 ERA to show for it.
In Game 5 alone he threw all of five pitches, gave up a run and was pulled for his effort. It would be understandable if he comes into the LCS a bit shaky.
The Cubs’ bats weren’t exactly moving Chicago toward baseball euphoria either. Against the Nationals, Jon Jay, Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo combined to go 11-for-51 for a combined .220 batting average.
The Cubs face a rotation as filthy as the Nationals’ starting this weekend.
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers went from picture perfect to the kind of wreck you slow down to stare at on the side of the road with an abysmal September.
It managed to put things together and reprise its role as best in baseball against the Diamondbacks with a sweep of its NL West rivals in the NLDS.
There are some issues to worry about if you are L.A., namely what you will get from Kershaw who once again showed his October alter ego. He gave up four home runs in the series opener against Arizona.
Corey Seager looked better at the plate in the series but still seems to lack some of his pop as he continues to play in the aftermath of a nagging elbow injury.
The good news is Austin Barnes has stepped up in a big way at catcher, going 4-for-8 with a home run in the LDS.
Justin Turner continues to be a star with the glove and the bat and Yasiel Puig may just tongue wag his way into every bag he takes in the upcoming series.
L.A. also boasts a strong bullpen with Brandon Morrow and Kenley Jansen, and it just got deeper with Kenta Maeda proving his slider can devastate in relief.
Then there is the fact that the Dodgers now have a solid four starters to rely on, which means it doesn’t have to throw Kershaw out there on short rest.
Prediction: Dodgers win in 6
An exhausted Cubs roster comes to L.A. and drops the first two games to a well-rested Kershaw and either a resurgent Rich Hill or beguiling Yu Darvish.
These are two phenomenal teams that will give fans an entertaining race to the pennant. But it’s not the coin flip it may have been a week ago. L.A. enters Saturday with reinvigorated pitchers and an offense that is taking pitches and producing runs the way it had at the beginning of the season.
This year another World Series drought ends. This time it’s the boys in blue from the west coast that punch their long-held ticket and a shot at October glory.
