In Game 1 of the National League Championship Series between the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday night, one defining story was ill-advised baserunning, with the Dodgers’ Chris Taylor thrown out after trying to go first to third on a single to right field. In Game 2 Sunday night, a defining story was aggressive baserunning (and coaching) that paid off for the Braves. Atlanta entered the inning down 4-2, but scored two runs there to tie the game, and both of those came thanks to aggressive baserunning. First, Eddie Rosario advanced from first to second on a fly to left:
Rosario then scored on an Ozzie Albies single, thanks to a risky send from third-base coach Ron Washington and a beautiful slide:
Here’s a better look at that slide (also seen at top):
And, not long after that, Albies came home on another aggressive Washington send following a hit from Austin Riley, with a good slide there helping make it so catcher Will Smith couldn’t field the ball successfully:
If any of these plays had gone slightly differently, the Braves would have been pilloried for risky baserunning. But they pulled it off here, and tied the game as a result.
[@TalkinBaseball on Twitter; photo from @SBNation on Twitter]