Even though the Los Angeles Dodgers had the second-best record in the entire MLB, there was still a very good chance they could’ve missed the playoffs. But Chris Taylor saved his team from that unfortunate fate by hitting a walk-off two-run homer in their wild-card elimination game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night.
League rules state that the leaders of each division advance to the playoffs. After that, the top two wild card teams face off in an elimination game. The only flaw with this rule is that some divisions are much stronger than others. So this season, for instance, the only team in the league with a better record than the Dodgers were the San Francisco Giants (by a mere two games)—and they share a division with the Dodgers.
So in a shocking twist of fate, Los Angeles found themselves inches away from the potential end of their season, even though their record was substantially better than most teams in the league.
And what a nailbiter it was. The Cardinals wasted no time putting points on the board, going up 1-0 in the top of the first inning. The score remained that way until the bottom of the fourth, when Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner belted one out of the park for a solo shot, making it 1-1.
Over the next four innings, both teams were on their toes quite a bit, with countless runners finding themselves in scoring position—but none of them actually scoring due to some clutch pitching and fielding.
When the ninth inning came around, the drama was at an all-time high. St. Louis second baseman Tommy Edman was able to put himself in scoring position, but he too didn’t cross the plate due to excellent clutch pitching by the Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen.
The bottom of the ninth was the kind of thing all aspiring athletes dream about. Dodger left fielder Chris Taylor, a fan favorite, found himself at the plate with two outs and one man on. Taylor proceeded to hit the ball out of the park, ending the elimination game in heart-wrenching fashion and helping Los Angeles defeat St. Louis 3-1.
