The Los Angeles Dodgers’ pitching woes throughout much of the 2024 MLB playoffs have not been made better by the recent play of their rookie talent Landon Knack, which is a cause for concern for the franchise moving forward.
The Dodgers’ pitching has prevented them from taking a convincing lead in their playoff series
The Dodgers have not put their foot on the necks of their opponents in either of their two playoff series so far. Los Angeles allowed the San Diego Padres to take a 2-1 lead in their National League Division Series before storming back to win in five games.
They now find themselves in an identical situation in the NLCS with the series knotted up at 1-1 headed back to New York. The Dodgers played a bullpen game in Game 4 of the NLDS and the experiment paid off. Their relievers held the Padres scoreless in a dominant 8-0 win, but when they hit the playback button in Game 2 of the NLCS, L.A. was not nearly as successful.
Dodgers’ Landon Knack had a very forgettable NLCS Game 2 vs. Mets
Knack, who tossed a scoreless ninth inning in Game 4 against the Padres, looked like a completely different player in Game 2 against the Mets. He conceded five earned runs in two innings of work. That kind of blunder set the Dodgers back considerably and allowed the Mets to jump out to an early 6-0 lead in the second inning that effectively ended the Dodgers’ night before it could even begin.
With two on and one out after he allowed Starling Marte to single to left field and walked Jesse Winker right after, the 27-year-old let Tyrone Taylor connect on an RBI double to left field and then intentionally walked Francisco Lindor with two on and two out. That set the stage for Mark Vientos to smack a 391-foot grand slam home run to center field before Knack stopped the bleeding by striking out Brandon Nimmo to close the inning.
History almost repeated itself in the third inning, where the Tennessee native allowed the Mets to load the bases again after garnering two outs from his first three batters faced before Francisco Alvarez flew out to center to save Los Angeles from giving Way another four-run onslaught.
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Knack may be in danger of losing playing time for the rest of the playoffs
Knack’s struggles date back to the close of the 2024 regular season campaign. He ended the 162-game slate going 1-3 with a subpar 5.14 ERA, though his five strikeouts per game were encouraging. He could’ve been L.A.’s fourth starter in the postseason, but he has not given Dodgers manager Dave Roberts enough confidence to roll with him in that capacity.
Knack’s performance against the Mets likely won’t change Roberts’ mind as the stakes will only get higher from here. The Dodgers will need him to overcome his struggles and produce as a reliever or he could endanger his spot in their rotation.
