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On this fine Sunday, we are reminded that this is the calm before the storm which is going to be, potentially, seven straight days of baseball versus arguably the best team in all of baseball in the Los Angeles Dodgers. The winner is likely to be the favorite to win the World Series, so one could be excused from having some nervousness for this one.
While there are plenty of narratives about the Braves finally finding postseason success, the Dodgers have a lot to prove as well. As Demetrius wrote yesterday, LA has their own postseason demons to exorcise and given how well they have performed this year, they look to be as scary an opponent as ever.
For the Braves, this NLCS is a return to familiar grounds for the organization that routinely made deep runs in the postseason before the dry spell starting in 2001. More than that, though, it is a chance to redeem themselves against a historically very tough opponent for them to vanquish in the Dodgers. There is, of course, the infamous Craig Kimbrel game which still tilts Braves fans to this day as well as the 2018 series where, other than a very memorable grand slam from Ronald Acuna Jr., the Braves were simply overmatched. As the always great Ivan noted, this is a chance for the Braves to have the historical pendulum swing back their way and even the score against LA.
So enjoy this off day everyone. We will have preview content popping up on the site leading all the way up to game time on Monday, but very soon we are going to see if this Braves squad can take yet another leap forward.
More Braves News
Braves-Dodgers NLCS positional breakdown
While we will have our own positional breakdowns going up on the site, Mike Petriello put up a great positional comparison for the Braves and Dodgers that you should also read. He ends up picking the Dodgers in seven games, but the Braves definitely seem to have some advantages they could exploit.
MLB News
Astros vs. Rays: Who’s tops at each position?
While looking ahead to a possible World Series match-up is a recipe for disaster if you are Braves fan, there is also going to be a couple of really good ballclubs from the American League playing each other in the Astros and Rays. Anthony Castrovince does his own positional comparisons for that series. Spoilers - it appears that the Rays could be headed for the World Series.