by Mark Langill
The Dodgers will play their sixth winner-take-all Game 5 of a National League Division Series on Friday. Los Angeles is 3–2 in past games, the last clinching win was a 2–1 decision in Game 5 at San Francisco in 2021.
The Dodgers are 1–2 in a NLDS Game 5 at Dodger Stadium, and looking for their first Game 5 victory at home in 43 years when an extra round of the postseason was added due to unique circumstances.
Here is a look at the Dodgers in their previous five Game 5 showdowns:
1981: Dodgers 4, Astros 0 — The 1981 season also proved to be one of the most challenging and exciting playoffs in Dodger history as the Dodgers overcame a 0–2 deficit in the first-ever NLDS to beat Houston, the first of three comebacks that included the Montreal Expos (down 1–2 in NL Championship Series) and New York Yankees (down 0–2 in World Series).
The 1981 NL Division Series was a rematch of the 1980 NL West tiebreaker when a Game 163 was necessary after the teams finished the regular season with identical 92–70 records. Houston beat Los Angeles, 7–1, at Dodger Stadium for its first-ever postseason berth.
Instead of the current 2–2–1 scheduling format, the Dodgers played the first two games at the 1981 Division Series at Houston’s Astrodome with the final three — if necessary — in Los Angeles.
In the series opener, 20-year-old rookie pitcher Fernando Valenzuela matched Houston’s Nolan Ryan, and the game was tied 1–1 after eight innings. In the bottom of the ninth, Kiko Garcia singled off rookie reliever Dave Stewart and Alan Ashby hit a walk-off home run for a 3–1 victory.
In Game 2, Reuss pitched nine scoreless innings, but Los Angeles couldn’t break through against starter Joe Niekro and relievers Dave Smith and Joe Sambito.
In the bottom of the 11th inning, the Astros greeted Stewart with singles from Phil Garner and Tony Scott to put runners on first and third. Reliever Terry Forster retired Jose Cruz on a flyout to shallow left. Reliever Tom Niedenfuer intentionally walked Cesar Cedeno to load the bases. Art Howe struck out for the second out, but Denny Walling hit a game-winning single for a 1–0 victory.
Although trailing 0–2 in the series, the Dodgers had seen this storyline before. The Dodgers entered the final weekend of the 1980 series against Houston trailing by three games with three home games remaining. The Dodgers swept the weekend by scores of 3–2, 2–1 and 4–3 to force the playoff.
A weekend sweep a year later would give the Dodgers the division title. Hooton beat the Astros, 6–1, in Game 3 and Valenzuela outdueled veteran Vern Ruhle, 2–1, in Game 4.
The Game 5 matchup would be Ryan, who pitched his fifth career no-hitter in the final week of the regular season against the Dodgers, against Reuss, in the prime of a 22-year Major League career in which he won 46 games with the Dodgers between 1980 and 1982.
The game was scoreless until the Dodgers broke through during a three-run sixth inning on RBI singles by Rick Monday and Mike Scioscia, along with an unearned run after an error by Walling at first base. The Dodgers made it 4–0 in the seventh when Steve Garvey tripled off reliever Frank LaCorte.
Reuss. who was 10-4 with a 2.30 ERA in 22 starts during the regular season, pitched a five-hit complete game. He walked three and struck out four.
2015: Mets 3, Dodgers 2 —This was the first time the Dodgers dropped a winner-take-all postseason game at Dodger Stadium. New York’s Jacob deGrom outdueled Zack Greinke for six innings and Mets relievers Noah Syndergaard and Jeurys Familia combined for three hitless innings.
Daniel Murphy hit a go-ahead home run in the sixth inning off Greinke. In the fourth inning, Murphy hit a leadoff single. When Lucas Duda walked, Murphy jogged to second and dashed to third when he noticed the base wasn’t covered. Murphy’s daring play paid off when he scored on a sacrifice fly to tie the game.
2016: Dodgers 4, Nationals 3 — After the teams split two games each in Washington and Los Angeles, the teams returned to Nationals Park for Game 5. Los Angeles trailed 1–0 entering the seventh inning.
Joc Pederson chased Washington starter Max Scherzer with a leadoff home run. The Dodgers added three more runs in the inning for a 4–1 lead. Chris Heisey’s two-run home run in the seventh cut the lead to 4–3.
In the ninth inning, Dodger closer Kenley Jansen issued a pair of one-out walks to Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth. Clayton Kershaw replaced Jansen and retired the next two batters for the save. It’s the only save of Kershaw’s career.
2019: Nationals 7, Dodgers 3 (10 innings) — The Dodgers’ bid for a third consecutive National League pennant ended at Dodger Stadium as Washington rallied from a 3–1 deficit in the seventh inning. Dodger starter Walker Buehler allowed one run on four hits in 6 2/3 innings. The Nationals tied the game with consecutive home runs by Anthony Rendon and Juan Soto off Kershaw in relief to open the eighth inning. In the 10th inning, Howie Kendrick hit a grand slam off reliever Joe Kelly.
2021: Dodgers 2, Giants 1 — This was the first postseason meeting of a historic rivalry beginning in New York in the 1880s. During the 2021 regular season, the Giants (107–55) won the Division while Los Angeles (106–56) settled for the Wild Card.
The Dodgers got their revenge from the regular season with a dramatic win in a bullpen game at San Francisco in which they used six Dodger pitchers. The Dodgers scored the go-ahead run in the ninth inning on Cody Bellinger’s RBI single.
Scherzer, who went 7–0 with a 1.98 ERA in 11 starts after being acquired from Washington at the July 31 trading deadline, pitched the ninth inning for the save. With two out and a runner on first base, Wilmer Flores was called out on a check swing to end the game.
A history of Dodger Division Series Game 5s was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.