In Game 5 at Dodger Stadium, the Nationals and Dodgers went into extra innings with everything on the line. Joe Kelly took the mound for his second inning of relief, even though he hadn’t pitched multiple innings since August. With two men on and the bullpen ready, manager Dave Roberts left Kelly in, passing on proven options like Jansen or specialist Adam Kolarek. Instead of bringing in Kolarek to face Juan Soto, who he’d handled well all series, the Dodgers chose to walk Soto intentionally and load the bases for Howie Kendrick.
Kendrick had struggled all series, with multiple defensive blunders and poor baserunning, but he made up for it in a huge way. On the second pitch he saw from Kelly, Kendrick crushed a grand slam, flipping a tense tie game into a Nationals blowout. His reaction was low-key but vintage—no bat flip, just a “get off me” shout to first base. The dugout exploded. There were high-fives, helmet rips, and hugs, with Gerardo Parra adding his own awkward celebratory energy.
Kelly stayed in for one more batter and gave up another hit before Roberts finally pulled him. By then, it was too late. The Nationals rode the grand slam to a stunning win, and the Dodgers were left wondering why their bullpen never saw the mound when it mattered most.