Hernández's bold words capture the Dodgers' fearless attitude, energizing fans after securing a spot in the NLCS.
The Los Angeles Dodgers secured their spot in the NLCS on Friday night with a 2-0 victory over the San Diego Padres.
When Kike Hernandez was asked what made this year’s team different from the ones that previously fell short in the playoffs, he gave a straightforward—yet somewhat mysterious—answer.
In response to the question: “What is different about this particular team?”
Hernández asked: “Are we live?”
Rosenthal replied: “We’re live.”
Hernández then said: “The fact that we don’t give a fuck.”
It’s still unclear whether Kike Hernandez was referring to the Dodgers ignoring outside criticism about their past playoff failures, playing with more freedom, or perhaps a mix of both.
Mookie Betts, the star outfielder, had a more measured take on the Dodgers’ performance. After the win, he spoke about the team’s resilience.
“We went through a lot of injuries and a lot of ups and downs,” he shared during the Fox Sports broadcast. “But we fight and we keep going. We got champagne on us right now.”
“What’s crazy is that all season, everyone says, ‘The Dodgers are winning the World Series,’ then we get to this series and now we’re the underdogs,” Betts continued. “Somehow we’re the underdogs. That’s what makes it fun though, and when you’re on top, everyone’s coming after you. Like I said, that’s what makes it fun, makes it tough for sure. But it’s what we signed up for.”
Next up, the Dodgers will face the scrappy New York Mets, who clawed their way into the playoffs with clutch hitting. But if Hernández’s mindset is anything to go by, the Dodgers aren’t too concerned about their opponents.
Three-time batting champion Luis Arraez, along with Fernando Tatis Jr., Jurickson Profar, and Manny Machado, managed just one hit in 14 at-bats during Game 5. Los Angeles pitchers retired the final 19 San Diego batters.
San Diego’s offense went silent in the last 24 innings of the series, dropping the final two games after holding a 2-1 lead heading home.
In a historic matchup, Japanese-born pitchers Yamamoto and Darvish started against each other for the first time in a major league playoff game. Yamamoto, only 26, became the fifth rookie in Dodgers history to start a winner-take-all game.
Yamamoto then passed the ball to the Dodgers’ dependable bullpen, which had been their backbone during the regular season when injuries plagued their starters. Evan Phillips secured five outs, striking out Profar and Machado in the seventh, while Alex Vesia fanned rookie Jackson Merrill to end the inning.
READ MORE: Dodgers Set Yu Darvish vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto for Game 5 Showdown vs. Padres
Image Credit: © Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
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