The 2021 National League Championship Series was the best-of-seven series in Major League Baseball (MLB) between the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers, for the National League pennant and the right to play in the 2021 World Series. The Braves defeated the Dodgers in six games to advance to their first World Series since 1999.
The series was played in a 2–3–2 format, with the Braves hosting the first two and last two (if necessary) games played as the higher seeded team.. TBS televised all games in the United States.
The Braves would go on to defeat the American League champion Houston Astros in the World Series, 4 games to 2, to secure their first world championship since 1995.
Background
The Atlanta Braves qualified for the postseason as the National League East division leader. It was their fourth straight NL East championship, having won it every year since 2018. The Braves had the worst record out of all postseason teams, at 88–73, and they were the only postseason team with a win total under 90. In the National League Division Series, they beat the favored Milwaukee Brewers in four games. This was the Braves' 13th National League Championship Series (NLCS) appearance; however, they had not won an NLCS since 1999.
The Los Angeles Dodgers qualified for the postseason as a wild card entrant, after they failed to win the National League West for the first time since 2012. In the National League Wild Card Game, they defeated the St. Louis Cardinals on a two-run walk-off home run from Chris Taylor. In the National League Division Series, the Dodgers defeated their rivals, the San Francisco Giants, in five games. This was the Dodgers' fifth appearance in the NLCS in six seasons, sixth in nine seasons, and 15th overall. While the Dodgers had a better record than Atlanta during the regular season, the Braves held home-field advantage in the NLCS due to the Braves NL East division crown.
This was the fifth postseason matchup between the Dodgers and Braves. The previous meetings were the 1996 NLDS (won by the Braves), 2013 NLDS, 2018 NLDS, and 2020 NLCS (the latter three won by the Dodgers). The two teams also met in the 1959 National League tie-breaker series, considered regular season games, with the Dodgers winning that series, two games to none, to advance to the 1959 World Series. The Braves and Dodgers also shared the same division (NL West) for 24 years (1969–1993), where they finished in the top two positions in the division in 1982, 1983, and 1991, all of which came down to the final week of the season.
This was the sixth time that teams met in a re-match in the NLCS in consecutive years, following the Cubs-Dodgers in 2016–2017, Dodgers-Phillies in 2008–2009, Astros-Cardinals in 2004–2005, Braves-Pirates in 1991–1992, and the Dodgers-Phillies again in 1977–1978.
The Braves and Dodgers played six games during the regular season, with the Dodgers winning the season series, 4–2.
Summary
Game summaries
Note that both teams had a player named "Will Smith"—a pitcher for Atlanta and a catcher for Los Angeles.
Game 1
Max Fried started for Atlanta, while Corey Knebel acted as an opener for Los Angeles. Atlanta took a 1–0 lead in the bottom of the first, as Eddie Rosario singled, stole second, advanced to third on a ground out, and scored on a wild pitch. The Dodgers tied the game in the top of the second; A. J. Pollock hit a two-out double and scored on a single by Chris Taylor. The teams traded solo home runs in the fourth inning—Will Smith for Los Angeles and Austin Riley for Atlanta—leaving the score tied, 2–2. Fried left after six innings, having allowed eight hits while striking out five batters. A two-out threat by the Dodgers in the top of the ninth was ended when Taylor was tagged out after being caught in a rundown between second and third. In the bottom of the ninth, Ozzie Albies hit a one-out bloop single off of Blake Treinen, stole second, and then scored on a Riley single to left, giving Atlanta a 1–0 lead in the series.