Despite falling behind in the 2021 NLCS by a 2-0 margin, the Los Angeles Dodgers had a chance to even the series against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night.
L.A. used a gusty Game 3 victory to trim its deficit in the series to 2-1, and the team simply needed to find a way to earn a win in Game 4 in order to even things up.
Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
The Braves walked away with a massive victory in Game 4 to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the series.
Julio Urias was L.A.’s Game 4 starter, and he failed to deliver.
It marked his second disappointing performance of the series.
Urias’ Game 4 Outing At A Glance
Many folks viewed Game 4 as a must-win situation for Los Angeles.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts put a lot of faith in Urias by giving him the ball in such a big spot.
The decision didn’t work out.
The lefty actually has a solid postseason track record, but he didn’t look like himself in Game 4.
Over five innings of work, he got shelled for five runs on eight hits.
He gave up a whopping three home runs, and that seemed to zap the Dodgers’ energy early on.
Back-to-back! ¡Adam Duvall! pic.twitter.com/om1TTNMWlG
— El Extrabase ⚾️ (@ElExtrabase) October 21, 2021
Urias’ final line looked like this: 5 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 3 HR.
He ultimately got tagged with the loss in this one, giving him just his third career postseason loss in 22 outings.
Urias’ NLCS At A Glance
Game 4 wasn’t Urias’ debut in the 2021 NLCS — he also pitched in Game 2.
The 25-year-old came out of the bullpen in his first appearance of the NLCS, and the results weren’t very pretty.
He got charged with a blown save in Game 2 after allowing two runs on three hits over one inning of work.
The Braves tied the game against Urias in the eighth inning of that one, then they eventually celebrated a walk-off win later in the night.
Atlanta took a 2-0 series lead in that game, and that was when the Dodgers likely realized that they were in for a tough NLCS.
Overall, Urias has a 10.50 ERA in the series.
Is There Still Time For Urias Turn Things Around In The 2021 Postseason?
The Dodgers’ 2021 title hopes are on life support.
The team is facing a 3-1 deficit in the NLCS and is going to have to win three straight games in order to survive the Braves.
#Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and players Julio Urías and AJ Pollock offer their thoughts on what went wrong in #NLCS Game 4 vs. Braves pic.twitter.com/NfuLba5p1Y
— L.A. Times Sports (@latimessports) October 21, 2021
But if given the chance, could Urias turn things around in these playoffs?
It’s certainly possible.
First off, it’s not crazy to think that we could see the southpaw again in this series.
He isn’t likely to start another game, but we could very well see him out of the bullpen in Game 6 or 7 of this NLCS if Roberts is willing to give him another chance (and if the series gets that far).
Urias has actually had a lot of success in the past pitching as a reliever in the postseason.
Now, on another note, if the Dodgers find a way to advance to the World Series, then we will almost certainly see Urias again — perhaps even in a starting capacity.
That would present him with a legit chance to redeem himself for his poor NLCS.
Again, he’s typically a good playoff performer — he has a career 3.66 ERA and 3.97 FIP in the postseason.
Urias undoubtedly wants another chance to turn things around in the 2021 playoffs, but only time will tell if he will get the opportunity.
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