By Mallory Mattingly
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Treinen gave all the glory to God after he secured the clutch strikeout to give the Dodgers the win in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series.
According to MLB.com, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts pulled Treinen from the bullpen to secure the final out. Treinen walked the first batter to load the bases, but he then struck out the next batter to give the Dodgers a 2-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.
“Grateful,” Treinen said of his feelings after the game. “Our guys have been playing great baseball. Playoffs are tough. Pitching’s tough. Our bats are doing a great job grinding out whatever arms are in there. Our starters have been amazing. So just doing my job to finish the game.”
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Later in the locker room, the athlete was asked, “What kind of just was going through your head as you went onto that mound and looking to get out of this one?”
“Well, prayer first. You know, it’s just Roki [Sasaki] has been so great for us and to have an opportunity to pick him up. Just thanking God for the opportunity and trusting the talent He’s given me in a stage like that,” Treinen declared.
“And then just, you know, trying to execute. That team’s very well prepared. I feel like I made some really good pitches against Wilson Contreras’ brother, William Giny, and he had a great at-bat and thankfully got him to swing,” the pitcher added. “So yeah, it’s a great win. Snowell threw amazing. Our offense did a great job grinding out some at-bats and pushing across the runs that we needed. So, just a good team win.”
Treinen explained that the hardest part of going against the Brewers is that they’re always “well prepared.”
“They know what they’re good at, and they don’t come outside of that lane,” he said. “So, just trying to keep them off balance because they’re not a team that really strikes out much. I think Blake did such a great job of just pitching so differently, and his strengths right now are just amazing. His feel for the zone kept them off balance, and then being a righty late after they’ve seen a lefty all day I think probably helped. But they’re just, from top to bottom, one of the most complete teams.”
Treinen praised God during the Dodgers’ national championship run last year, too, saying, “I gotta give a shout out to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for this moment, man. It’s a lot of hard work, what I’ve gone through…This moment is such a blessing.”
Treinen recorded a clutch save to help the Dodgers advance to a 1-0 lead in the NLCS series, something he gives God the glory for.
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