Dodgers vs. Giants results: Cody Bellinger's clutch hit sends Dodgers to second straight NLCS

Edward Sutelan

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Dodgers vs. Giants results: Cody Bellinger's clutch hit sends Dodgers to second straight NLCS image

It had been a brutal season for Cody Bellinger. But there’s nothing quite like the postseason to help get over those struggles.

With the Dodgers and Giants tied in the top of the ninth, Bellinger grounded a base hit up the middle off Giants closer Camilo Doval to score Justin Turner and put the Dodgers ahead 2-1, which held up as the final score.

Bellinger, who had a career-low .542 OPS in 2021, came into the matchup 2 for 42 in the regular season against San Francisco and had gone just 3 for 14 in his previous postseason at-bats against them this year.

MORE: 2021 MLB playoff schedule

This duel of 100-plus-win NL West rivals delivered on the excitement. Logan Webb dazzled again for the Giants, allowing just one run on four hits and one walk while striking out seven over seven innings. The Dodgers, who turned to an opener strategy, didn’t allow a run until the bottom of the sixth as six pitchers combined to allow six hits and no walks, with 13 strikeouts.

The Dodgers opened the scoring in the top of the sixth. Mookie Betts tallied his third hit of the game (he finished 4 for 4) and swiped second to give Corey Seager a runner in scoring position. Seager delivered, dropping a double into left field to put Los Angeles up 1-0.

MLB POSTSEASON: Full schedule, TV channels, scores

San Francisco struck right back in the bottom of the frame. Left fielder Darin Ruf launched a 452-foot homer to center field off Julio Urias to tie the game 1-1.

After Bellinger’s hit, midseason acquisition Max Scherzer delivered a scoreless ninth to shut down the Giants and advance the Dodgers to the NLCS, where they will face the Braves. Game 1 is scheduled for 8:07 p.m. ET in Atlanta on Saturday.

MORE: Shirtless Scherzer steals show after Dodgers' wild-card game win

Sporting News tracked live scoring updates and highlights from Dodgers vs. Giants in the 2021 MLB postseason. Follow for complete results from Game 5 of the NLDS.

Dodgers vs. Giants score

Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 F
Dodgers 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2
Giants 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1

Dodgers vs. Giants live updates, highlights from 2021 NLDS Game 5

12:35 a.m.:  Flores is called out on an appealed strike three and the Dodgers will advance to the NLCS.

12:33 a.m.:  Wade is called out on strike three. Two away.

12:30 a.m.:  LaMonte Wade Jr. comes in to pinch hit in the bottom of the ninth.

12:29 a.m.:  Bryant reaches first as Justin Turner has a hard time handling his grounder over to third.

12:29 a.m.:  Crawford lines one to left and is retired for the first out.

12:25 a.m. End Top Ninth:  Flores races over to first base to beat Beaty to the bag on a groundout to the right side. Scherzer will try to close out the Giants' 2021 season.

12:22 a.m.:  Bellinger tries to draw a throw from Posey, but he'll just take second. Two runners now in scoring position for Beaty.

12:20 a.m.:  Taylor tries to bunt, but Flores gets under it to catch it for the second out. Matt Beaty will come off the bench to pinch hit.

12:19 a.m.:  Scherzer is warming up in the bullpen.

12:17 a.m.:  Doval is lifted for Kevin Gausman.

12:16 a.m. Dodgers scoring play:  Bellinger delivers with a hit he's likely been waiting for this whole season. He singles through the middle to score Turner and move Lux up to third. Dodgers still cooking with runners on the corners.  Dodgers take a 2-1 lead.

12:12 a.m.:  Lux singles through the right side. Two aboard for the Dodgers with one away.

12:09 a.m.:  That'll hurt. Justin Turner is drilled with a 100 mph fastball to give Los Angeles a baserunner with one out. Lux due up.

12:08 a.m.:  Smith grounds out for the first out of the inning.

12:04 a.m. End of Eighth:  Jansen gets Posey swinging. On to the ninth.

12:00 a.m.:  Ruf goes down swinging. Two away.

11:57 p.m.:  Solano lines one to left, but Justin Turner grabs it for the first out.

11:55 p.m.:  It will be Jansen vs. Solano to start the bottom of the eighth.

11:52 p.m. End Top Eighth:  One pitch, one out. Doval gets Trea Turner to fly out to right and strand the runners.

11:48 p.m.:  Seager comes up empty on a slider as Rogers picks up the huge strikeout. Camilo Doval is coming in to face Trea Turner with two away.

11:44 p.m.:  This time to center, but the outcome still the same: single by Betts. He's got four hits tonight as the Dodgers now have runners on first and second with only one away.

11:41 p.m.:  The Dodgers will have a one-out baserunner as Flores can't hang on to the diving grab and Pollock is able to reach with a single.

11:39 p.m.:  A.J. Pollock bats in the frame, ending Treinen's night out of the bullpen. With only Kenley Jansen up in the bullpen, it looks like the Dodgers will turn to their closer in the bottom of the eighth.

11:38 p.m.:  Tyler Rogers starts the eighth for San Francisco, and Taylor flies out to center on the first pitch he sees.

11:35 p.m. End of Seventh:  Treinen gets Dickerson swinging to end the seventh.

11:33 p.m.:  Alex Dickerson comes in to pinch hit. Webb's night is done with one run allowed on four hits and one walk across seven innings. He struck out seven.

11:33 p.m.:  Two away in the bottom of the seventh as Longoria goes down swinging on a full count.

11:30 p.m.:  Final line on Urias' night: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R (1 ER), 5 K, 0 BB and 1 HR

11:30 p.m.:  Urias is done as Blake Treinen is called on for the Dodgers. He's immediately greeted by a hard liner from Flores that's right to Taylor in left for the first out.

11:27 p.m. End Top Seventh:  Webb sets the side down in order in the seventh. Bellinger comes up empty on a slider to strike out and end the inning.

11:23 p.m.:  Lux grounds one sharply to first, but Flores fields it and steps on the bag himself.

11:20 p.m.:  Solano snags the liner from Justin Turner for the first out.

11:16 p.m. End of Sixth:  Slater grounds into a forceout with Seager fielding the ball and flipping it to Trea Turner at second for the third out. On to the seventh in a tie game at 1-1.

11:12 p.m.:  Bryant lines a base hit between third and short. San Francisco has a two-out baserunner.

11:09 p.m.:  Crawford swings at the first pitch he sees and flies out to right for the second out.

11:09 p.m.:  Posey caught looking at a breaking ball that hooked over the plate for strike three.

11:06 p.m. Giants scoring play:  Ruf hits that one to a place no one can catch it. After two hard hit balls his first two ABs, he sends one over the fence 452 feet with an exit velocity of 110.1 mph to tie the game.  Giants tie the game at 1-1.

11:00 p.m. End Top Sixth:  Smith flies out to left, but the Dodgers have taken the lead with only four frames to go for the Giants.

10:59 p.m.:  Trea Turner strikes out swinging at a pitch down below the zone. Two down for Smith.

10:55 p.m. Dodgers scoring play:  Seager goes the opposite way and sends a double into left to score Betts.  Dodgers take a 1-0 lead.

10:54 p.m.:  Betts swipes second base to give Seager a chance to bat with a runner in scoring position.

10:53 p.m.:  Heard this one before? Betts drops in a single to left.

10:52 p.m.:  Fourth comebacker of the night back to Webb. This one off the bat of Urias. Webb takes it himself to tag Urias out for the first out.

10:46 p.m. End of Fifth:  The Giants are set down on strikes as Urias gets Solano swinging to end the inning.

10:46 p.m.:  Webb goes down swinging. Back to the top of the order for San Francisco.

10:44 p.m.:  Longoria is caught looking at a strike on the upper-inside corner.

10:39 p.m. End Top Fifth:  Taylor swings and misses at a fastball on the upper-inside corner for strike three.

10:36 p.m.:  Bellinger sends one back to Webb, who records the out.

10:33 p.m.:  Lux is caught looking for Webb's fourth strikeout of the evening.

10:28 p.m. End of Fourth:  Flores pops out to second to end the inning. Scoreless through four in San Francisco.

10:24 p.m.:  Slater bounces one up the middle and is thrown out for the second out. Crawford advances to third.

10:23 p.m.:  Wild pitch allows Crawford to move up to second.

10:21 p.m.:  After a questionable strike two call, Bryant swings and misses on a full-count breaking ball for strike three. One away as Austin Slater comes in for Yastrzemski.

10:17 p.m.:  Crawford slices one against the shift that just gets past Seager on the left side of the infield for a leadoff single.

10:15 p.m.:  The Dodgers are making plenty of arms available in this one. Walker Buehler might be the only arm not an option to pitch in Game 5.

10:13 p.m. End Top Fourth:  Great play by Flores to keep his toe on the bag at first on a wide throw by Webb helps the Giants record the third out and escape potential danger.

10:11 p.m.:  Smith lays off the slider and takes the walk on a full count to put runners on first and second for Justin Turner.

10:08 p.m.:  Another slow roller, this one fielded by Webb, who throws Trea Turner out to keep Betts at second, now with two away.

10:06 p.m.:  Seager dribbles one up the line that moves Betts up to second, but Flores will tag Seager for the first out.

10:05 p.m.:  Betts picks up his second single of the day, again a liner to left.

10:01 p.m. End of Third:  Posey again follows Ruf out to right, but this one is catchable for Betts. 

10:00 p.m.:  Ruf scorches another one to right center, and Lux snags this one for the second out. Two batted balls over 370 feet for Ruf, both over 98 mph and both with an expected batting average above .500. Both outs.

9:59 p.m.:  Solano flies out to center for the first out of the inning.

9:58 p.m.:  This season, Solano has a .822 OPS against left-handed pitchers compared to .705 against righties.

9:57 p.m.:  Now Urias has entered the game. His entry chases La Stella from second as the right-handed hitting Donovan Solano comes in to lead off the inning.

9:54 p.m. End Top Third:  Steven Souza Jr. chases a slider out of the zone, and he's set down on strikes.

9:53 p.m.:  Chris Taylor gives one a ride out to left, but it's caught by Ruf near the warning track. 

9:50 p.m.:  Webb catches Cody Bellinger looking with a fastball on the high, inside corner for strike three.

9:46 p.m. End of Second:  Graterol gets Webb to chase the breaking ball for the final out of the inning.

9:44 p.m.:  Longoria pops it up to first base for the second out of the inning.

9:43 p.m.:  The pitch from Graterol: 101.4 mph. The hit by Flores: 68.5 mph off the bat.

9:42 p.m.:  Another soft hit for the Giants as Wilmer Flores lifts a looper into left field for a base hit. Runners on first and second now for Evan Longoria.

9:39 p.m.:  Mike Yastrzemski pops out to catcher Will Smith in four territory for the first out of the inning.

9:38 p.m.:  Kris Bryant breaks his bat on a 100.3 mph pitch and beats the throw from Justin Turner to first.

9:32 p.m. End Top Second:  Gavin Lux is caught looking at strike three on the high, outside corner for the third out.

9:31 p.m.:  Justin Turner sends a slow roller out to Crawford, who is able to make the strong throw to set him down. That ball had an exit velocity of 47.9 mph.

9:30 p.m.:  The Dodgers look like they'll be handing the ball off to the hard-throwing Brusdar Graterol in the bottom half of the frame.

9:29 p.m.:  Will Smith grounds out to open the second inning.

9:24 p.m. End of First:  Brandon Crawford chases a curveball out of the zone for strike three to strand Posey at second.

9:19 p.m.:  The difference a wall makes: Ruf's flyout to right traveled 377 feet. The double by Posey went 372, but his was closer to the foul line than center.

9:19 p.m.:  This ball is not caught out in right as Buster Posey doubles off the top of the right field wall. 

9:18 p.m.:  La Stella flies out for the first out and Ruf nearly sends one out, but he too flys out to right field. 

9:14 p.m.:  The Dodgers might have sent only three batters to the plate, but each of the three batted balls by Los Angeles hitters came off the bat at 97 mph or faster. In fact, the two outs were both over 100 mph.

9:13 p.m. End Top First:  Trea Turner bounces into an unassisted 4-3 double play as Tommy La Stella fields the grounder up the middle, steps on the bag for one and throws on to first to nab the speedy Turner. Giants will bat in the bottom half.

9:12 p.m.:  Corey Seager lines it to left, but right at the left fielder, Darin Ruf, who catches it for the first out of the inning.

9:10 p.m.:  Mookie Betts starts this game up with a line drive base hit into left for a single. 

9:08 p.m.:  Game 5 of the NLDS between the Giants and Dodgers is underway. First pitch from Logan Webb is low for a ball.

8:49 p.m.:  Dave Roberts shared his reaction to the idea of the Dodgers starting Knebel instead of Urias. He had previously said it was an organizational decision, and that he had just one vote.

8:30 p.m.:  Corey Knebel has started once against the Giants earlier this season. Back on Sept. 3, he pitched two scoreless innings of two-hit baseball with two strikeouts. It wound up being a bullpen game with the Giants ultimately winning 3-2.

8:15 p.m.:  Here are the starting lineups for the two teams tonight.

Dodgers vs. Giants start time

  • First pitch: 9:07 p.m. ET | 6:07 p.m. PT

First pitch for Dodgers vs. Giants is scheduled for 9:07 p.m. ET on Thursday, Oct. 7.

Julio Urias will throw for the Dodgers, while Logan Webb is expected to take the bump for the Giants in the decisive Game 5. 

How to watch MLB playoff games

  • TV channel:  TBS
  • Live stream:  TBS App

TBS continues its coverage of the NL side of the MLB postseason with Game 5 airing on the network on Thursday.

TBS will also play home to the NLCS, though times for the series are dependent on who emerges from Game 5.

In Canada, all postseason games are available on Sportsnet and SN1.

MLB playoff schedule 2021

National League

Wild card

Date Game Result
Wednesday, Oct. 6 Cardinals @ Dodgers 3-1, LA

Division Series

TBS will handle the broadcast for all NLDS games in both series.

Date Game Result TV channel
Friday, Oct. 8 Dodgers @ Giants, Game 1 4-0, SF TBS
Friday, Oct. 8 Braves @ Brewers, Game 1 2-1, MIL TBS
Saturday, Oct. 9 Dodgers @ Giants, Game 2 9-2, LA TBS
Saturday, Oct. 9 Braves @ Brewers, Game 2 3-0, ATL TBS
Monday, Oct. 11 Giants @ Dodgers, Game 3 1-0, SF TBS
Monday, Oct. 11 Brewers @ Braves, Game 3 3-0, ATL TBS
Tuesday, Oct. 12 Giants @ Dodgers, Game 4 7-2, LA TBS
Tuesday, Oct. 12 Brewers @ Braves, Game 4 5-4, ATL TBS
Thursday, Oct. 14 Dodgers @ Giants, Game 5 TBD TBS

Championship Series

TBS will continue its National League playoff coverage with coverage of every NLCS game.

The Braves secured their spot in the NLCS, and depending on who takes the Dodgers vs. Giants series, they could either start on the road or at home.

Date Game Start time TV channel
Saturday, Oct. 16 TBD @ TBD, Game 1 TBD TBS
Sunday, Oct. 17 TBD @ TBD, Game 2 TBD TBS
Tuesday, Oct. 19 TBD @ TBD, Game 3 TBD TBS
Wednesday, Oct. 20 TBD @ TBD, Game 4 TBD TBS
Thursday, Oct. 21 TBD @ TBD, Game 5* TBD TBS
Saturday, Oct. 23 TBD @ TBD, Game 6* TBD TBS
Sunday, Oct. 24 TBD @ TBD, Game 7* TBD TBS

*If necessary

American League

Wild card

Date Game Result
Tuesday, Oct. 5 Yankees @ Red Sox 6-2, BOS

Division Series

MLB Network and FS1 will carry all the ALDS games, until potential Game 5s, which would be broadcast exclusively on FS1.

Date Game Result TV channel
Thursday, Oct. 7 Red Sox @ Rays, Game 1 5-0, TB MLB Network/FS1
Thursday, Oct. 7 White Sox @ Astros, Game 1 9-4, HOU MLB Network/FS1
Friday, Oct. 8 Red Sox @ Rays, Game 2 14-6, TB MLB Network/FS1
Friday, Oct. 8 White Sox @ Astros, Game 2 12-6, HOU MLB Network/FS1
Sunday, Oct. 10 Rays @ Red Sox, Game 3 6-4, BOS MLB Network/FS1
Sunday, Oct. 10 Astros @ White Sox, Game 3 12-6, CHI MLB Network/FS1
Monday, Oct. 11 Rays @ Red Sox, Game 4 6-5, BOS MLB Network/FS1
Monday, Oct. 11 Astros @ White Sox, Game 4 10-1, HOU MLB Network/FS1

Championship Series

FOX and FS1 will split coverage of the ALCS.

The Red Sox and Astros kick off the ALCS on Friday, Oct. 15. It's the Astros' fifth-straight appearance in the ALCS.

Date Game Start time TV channel
Friday, Oct. 15 Red Sox @ Astros, Game 1 8:07 p.m. FOX
Saturday, Oct. 16 Red Sox @ Astros, Game 2 TBD FOX
Monday, Oct. 18 Astros @ Red Sox, Game 3 TBD FOX/FS1
Tuesday, Oct. 19 Astros @ Red Sox, Game 4 TBD FS1
Wednesday, Oct. 20 Astros @ Red Sox, Game 5* TBD FS1
Friday, Oct. 22 Red Sox @ Astros, Game 6* TBD FS1
Saturday, Oct. 23 Red Sox @ Astros, Game 7* TBD FOX/FS1

*If necessary

World Series schedule

Every World Series game will be on FOX.

Date Game Start time TV channel
Tuesday, Oct. 26 TBD @ TBD, Game 1 TBD FOX
Wednesday, Oct. 27 TBD @ TBD, Game 2 TBD FOX
Friday, Oct. 29 TBD @ TBD, Game 3 TBD FOX
Saturday, Oct. 30 TBD @ TBD, Game 4 TBD FOX
Sunday, Oct. 31 TBD @ TBD, Game 5* TBD FOX
Tuesday, Nov. 2 TBD @ TBD, Game 6* TBD FOX
Wednesday, Nov. 3 TBD @ TBD, Game 7* TBD FOX

*If necessary

Edward Sutelan

Edward Sutelan Photo

Edward Sutelan joined The Sporting News in 2021 after covering high school sports for PennLive. Edward graduated from The Ohio State University in 2019, where he gained experience covering the baseball, football and basketball teams. Edward also spent time working for The Columbus Dispatch and Cape Cod Times.