LOS ANGELES – Nine years ago, when the Dodgers faced the Mets in the 2015 NLDS, in the crowd at Dodger Stadium was a lifelong Dodgers fan who didn’t know it yet but would one day play October baseball for his hometown team.

That fan’s name was Jack Flaherty.

The biggest question for the Dodgers heading into the NLCS – just as it was going into this postseason – was whether their starters could pitch well enough to give them a chance? And for Game 1 of the NLCS, Flaherty, who attended Harvard Westlake High School just 30 minutes away from Dodger Stadium, got the ball for LA in hopes of emulating Yoshinobu Yamamoto and keeping the NLDS momentum going.

“You can’t put it all into words, but the most important thing was you came out here and set the tone,” Flaherty said afterward. “But to be here and have some family in the stands and see some of them beforehand, it makes you relax a little bit.”

Not only did Flaherty set the tone on Sunday, but he also delivered his best start of the season in the Dodgers’ 9-0 victory over the Mets, posting a two-hit shutout to give LA a 1-0 lead in the series concerned.

“This is definitely a childhood dream for him,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “You research a guy and you just feel like he can handle this market, can pitch in a playoff game, can start a playoff game, so that wouldn’t be a surprise to us. … The moment just doesn’t get too big for Jack.

The Dodgers right-hander came out of Game 1 of the NLCS with a different feel than he did in his NLDS Game 2 start against the Padres. Flaherty powered through at-bats against San Diego, but against the Mets he got into a rhythm early and retired the first nine batters he faced.

On a night when he had very little traffic on the bases, the inning that could have changed the rhythm of the game came in the fourth. New York finally got something going with the league leader when Francisco Lindor led off with a walk. But Flaherty found a way out of trouble by striking out the next batter, Mark Vientos.

Two batters later, Pete Alonso walked to put pressure on the inning, but Flaherty was unfazed, as was the rest of the evening. He set up a lazy catch from Starling Marte to end the threat.

“I felt like I figured out some things the last few days, just working through things,” Flaherty said after the game. “I felt like my stuff was fine against San Diego. But even in that game I was able to score a couple of clean sheets, put a couple of zeros together, and then we just had to clean some things up. … The warm-up before the game felt good, felt good yesterday. It just comes down to execution.”

The Dodgers’ most important trade deadline acquisition didn’t score a hit for the Mets until the fifth inning, when he allowed singles to Jesse Winker and Jose Iglesias to start the frame. But thanks to some terrible baserunning from Winker, New York squandered their golden two-on-zero opportunity without scoring.

Flaherty then retired the last eight batters he faced and left the game after seven shutout innings, having allowed only two hits, walked two and struckout six. The Dodgers, who have struggled with the height of their starters, got their longest outing by a starting pitcher since Flaherty hit 7 1/3 on September 8.

“He gave us seven shutouts (innings), set the tone,” catcher Will Smith said afterwards. “We needed that. He really went a step further.”

“He got ahead with his fastball, and the slider and slow curveball kept us off balance,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He tried to get us to chase him, which we did through command the first time. He was just going.”

The Dodgers’ pitching seemed like their Achilles heel in the postseason, but it has been their biggest strength since Game 3 of the NLDS. The Dodgers tied the major league postseason record by throwing 33 consecutive scoreless innings from Game 3 against the Padres through Game 1 against the Mets, tying the 1966 Baltimore Orioles in the World Series.

And they’ve done it without names like Tyler Glasnow, Gavin Stone or Clayton Kershaw taking baseball.

After Yamamoto’s start in Game 5 of the NLDS put a cap on the Dodgers’ win against the Padres, Flaherty’s dominance in Game 1 sent a clear message for LA in this NLCS.

“I think we’re getting Jack at the perfect time as far as him being an experienced player,” Roberts said. “He has been through a lot – highs and lows – and has found his way back.”

Not to mention during the Dodgers’ dominant night on the mound, they also got a huge return from their offense. LA’s lineup exploded for nine runs on nine hits – without the help of the long ball.

But the Dodgers’ offense was the known commodity in October. If this team continues to produce strong performances from both the starters and the bullpen, LA could transform into an unstoppable force at the best possible time.

“We have work to do,” Flaherty said after the game. “It’s Game 1. It’s a really good team there. We will enjoy tonight, but tomorrow we have a quick turnaround. I’m going to enjoy watching these guys go out and compete and watching whoever comes out of the bullpen or whoever gets the ball and seeing this lineup go to work.