LOS ANGELES – While we wait to see the order of Dodgers relievers used in Sunday night’s bullpen game, and whether Freddie Freeman’s sprained right ankle will allow him to start at first base, let’s take a look at a couple of stories related to this NLCS against the Mets.

Will Smith was hit on the glove during a flyout in Game 5, so he pinch-hit in the seventh inning on Friday. Smith has just three hits in 19 at-bats in the NLCS, and five hits in 35 at-bats this postseason. But he’s not the only one. Jay Jaffe of FanGraphs wrote in October about Major League catchers who were collectively struggling at the plate.

Mookie Betts is no longer slumping, having four multi-hit games in his last eight, and going 12-for-34 (1.215 OPS) with four home runs, three doubles and 11 RBI since his 0-for-22 postseason skid. He spoke with Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register about his process, including the hundreds of swings you’ve surely heard about on recent game broadcasts.

The Athletic’s Jayson Stark dug into the strangeness of the NLCS so far, with so many lopsided final scores, with various facts and figures.

Finally, a great line from Chelsea Janes in the Washington Post after the Mets won Game 5 at home to stay alive: “The New York Mets of 2024 are never more alive than when they are almost dead.”

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