The Star of the Show: Blake Snell’s Exorcism

 If there was ever a redemption narrative he needed — Snell delivered. In his postseason debut with the Dodgers, he twirled seven innings of sharp, confident pitching, surrendering just two runs. He tied a postseason career high with nine strikeouts.
The real magic, though? His changeup. He painted it at multiple speeds (from 82 to 87 mph), drawing 15 swing-and-misses — the most in his career in a start. That pitch alone turned the Reds’ hitters into spectators, watching bats swing at ghosts. ESPN
He threw his fastballs, he mixed things, and he built tension. That’s the performance you demand from your ace when October looms. Especially when October has a grudge against you.


The Bat Barrage: Power to End All Doubts

Let’s talk about offense. The kind that makes you leave the stadium buzzing.

  • Shohei Ohtani: What a way to remind us of his legend. He led off the game with a 117.7 mph line drive homer. And in the fourth, he launched a 454-foot blast — making history in the Statcast era as the first player to hit a 450+ ft and 115+ mph HR in the same playoff game. ESPN

  • Teoscar Hernandez: He got into Greene with a three-run bomb during the third inning, after walks to Freeman and Muncy. That was the dagger moment. ESPN

  • Tommy Edman: Right behind that, another homer off Greene, furthered the hit parade. ESPN

Five home runs. Multiple hitters with multi-hit nights. It was a collective eruption, not a solo flare.


The Drama: When the Pen Quivering

Now, as dominant as the first seven were, this game still flirted with turbulence. The Reds weren’t going down quietly. Down 10–2 after seven, they mounted pressure in the eighth. The Dodgers bullpen — Vesia, Henriquez, Dreyer — all felt the heat. They threw 59 pitches in that inning alone — the most ever in a postseason frame since at least 1988. ESPN

But the Dodgers survived. They stranded runners, escaped jams. And finally, Blake Treinen closed the ninth, letting the crowd exhale.

Because sometimes, in October, surviving is half the victory.

What This Means & What’s Next

A few takeaways:

  • Momentum is real: Game 1 winners in the wild card have gone on to win the series 18 of 20 times. That’s not fate, but it’s a psychological edge. ESPN

  • Belief isn’t manufactured—it’s earned: The Dodgers believe now because they just did. They showed their breaks, their failures, their resilience—all in one night.

  • Depth matters: When your ace dominates, your offense explodes, and your bullpen holds tight in the clutch — that’s the sum greater than parts.

Game 2 is tomorrow. The Reds will fight, the Dodgers will need to replicate. But tonight, they announced themselves. In six innings, in five home runs, in Snell’s changeups dancing across the zone, they achieved something rare: reminding the world that they’re still a juggernaut, even in the dark.

Stay tuned. Mack Clon’s watching.