3 keys to LA taking care of business vs. Mets, advancing to World Series

LOS ANGELES -- Despite failing to close out the National League Championship Series in Game 5 on Friday night at Citi Field, the Dodgers still have a golden opportunity to reach their second World Series in five seasons.

All the Dodgers need to do is win one of the next two games against the Mets. They’ll both be in front of their home crowd at Dodger Stadium.

Having home-field advantage, however, doesn’t guarantee anything. Los Angeles has dropped two games at home already this postseason. The club knows it’ll have to play its best baseball of the season in order to eliminate the Mets.

How do they get there? Let’s take a look at three key things the Dodgers need to do in order to wrap up the NLCS in Game 6, and at worst, in a decisive Game 7 on Monday.

1. Get to Manaea early
This is pretty obvious, but it’s the biggest key to a win. The Dodgers struggled against left-hander Sean Manaea in Game 2, scoring three runs (two earned) over five-plus innings. Manaea, however, suffered most of his struggles in the sixth inning after admittedly “hitting a wall” against the Dodgers’ offense. Los Angeles will hope that happens even earlier on Sunday.

Shohei Ohtani had some of the ugliest at-bats of his season against Manaea and he’ll look to make adjustments. Mookie Betts has been much better in the NLCS and would give the Dodgers a big boost if he can find a way to get on in his first at-bat.

Getting an early lead has been beneficial for the Dodgers all season long. It won’t be any different on Sunday.

2. Turn it over to the bullpen
Another reason getting to Manaea and taking an early lead is vital for the Dodgers is because they’re running a bullpen game in Game 6. If Los Angeles falls behind, it’s going to have to piece things together with its relief corps, balancing between going all-in for Game 6 or saving some of the club's high-leverage arms for Game 7.

If the Dodgers get ahead, however, manager Dave Roberts said he’s prepared to be even more aggressive with his best relievers. Blake Treinen, Michael Kopech and Evan Phillips are ready to pitch two innings if needed. Though, of course, that’ll only happen with a lead.

Given how the Dodgers’ bullpen has performed this October, there’s little doubt they would be able to shut the door on the Mets if given the opportunity.

3. Can the real Freeman and Hernández please stand up?
The Dodgers’ offense has been dominant throughout the postseason, especially in this series against the Mets. They’ve scored 36 runs through five games. But the offensive attack could be even better -- yes, really -- if they got Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernández performing better.

Freeman is battling a badly sprained right ankle and hasn’t looked like himself. Roberts said the team will consider sitting the star first baseman for Game 6, especially with Manaea on the mound. Freeman, on the other hand, will always lobby to be in the starting lineup. That decision will come Sunday morning.

If Freeman is in there, he’ll have to be better than his 3-for-18 (.167) performance up to this point in the NLCS. He’s still searching for his first extra-base hit of the postseason. Freeman said it’s “hard to say” if the ankle has affected his mechanics because he hasn’t felt right in quite some time.

Hernández’s struggles are a bit tougher to explain. The Dominican outfielder played a key role in the Dodgers’ NL Division Series win over the Padres, but he has really struggled against the Mets. Hernández is still looking for his first hit of the series (0-for-18 with nine strikeouts). Getting a timely hit in Game 6, however, would make everybody forget about his struggles.

“I think Teoscar is missing fastballs. That’s the No. 1 culprit,” Roberts said. “I think they’re just bullying him with the heater. So mid-line, top zone, I think Manaea is going to do the same thing tomorrow. I think [if] you can’t hit the fastball and move it forward, you just expose yourself up to cheat, to get to spin, and that’s the main thing.”