The only time any negative sentiment crept into Dodger Stadium on Friday night was when manager Dave Roberts removed Clayton Kershaw from the game.
Kershaw delivered one of the best postseason performances of his career, going eight innings of two-hit shutout ball in Game 2 of the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves. Kershaw was cruising and had only thrown 85 pitches, so Roberts sent him out for the top of the 9th inning (after already letting him bat in the bottom of the 7th).
When Atlanta countered with a right-handed hitting pinch-hitter, Roberts came out and pulled Kershaw in favor of closer Kenley Jansen. That’s when the fans in Los Angeles booed Roberts.
And now, before the inning began, Dave Roberts has pulled Clayton Kershaw, to boos from the crowd. Roberts got the Braves to use a right-handed pinch-hitter. Jansen is in the game.
— Pedro Moura (@pedromoura) October 6, 2018
The fans had a few good reasons to boo. One, Kershaw was not laboring and seemingly could have easily closed out the game. Two, Jansen has been shaky, and they didn’t want to see him ruin Kershaw’s masterpiece.
Jansen gave up a hit but closed out the game for the save in a 3-0 win. The Dodgers now lead the series 2-0 and seem to be in better shape than any other NL team after getting two incredible starts to take any pressure off their bullpens.
