What you need to know about the MLB playoffs: Mets to NLCS, Dodgers force Game 5

By Sam Blum, Grant Brisbee, Kaitlyn McGrath and Jen McCaffrey

The New York Mets' magic continued as a grand slam from Francisco Lindor helped them impress the Philadelphia Phillies and punch their ticket to the NLCS. The Mets await the winner of the Los Angeles Dodgers-San Diego Padres series, which enters the decisive Game 5 after an 8-0 defeat by the Dodgers. Meanwhile, in the American League, both the Yankees and Tigers took the lead in their series. Let's move around the horn and look ahead to what's next on Thursday.

For the first time in nine years, the New York Mets are returning to the National League Championship Series. Francisco Lindor's sixth-inning grand slam sent Citi Field into pandemic mode as the Mets secured their first postseason series at the ballpark since it opened in 2009 with a 4-1 victory over the Phillies. The Phillies, meanwhile, fell short of their postseason hopes for a third straight year.

Cover: Francisco Lindor

Lindor's casual confidence as he skated around the bases seconds after launching perhaps the biggest home run of his career showed it all. Nine days earlier, his ninth-inning home run on the final day of the season against Atlanta sent the Mets into the postseason, and an even bigger hit on Wednesday helped them advance. Entering the evening, Lindor had gone just 3 of 13 in the series, but rose to the occasion in a crucial moment after the Mets had squandered two bases-loading situations earlier. When closer Carlos Estévez came in to face him, Lindor drove a 99 mph fastball over the middle of the plate 398 feet to center for the game-winning hit.

Stock down: Phillies offense

It might be easy to blame Estévez for giving up the grand slam, but in reality, the Phillies' offensive drought for much of the series is to blame. Aside from Sunday's seven-run outburst, the Phillies scored just five runs in their other three games in the series. In the series, the team hit .186 overall and the bottom of the rankings had to struggle, especially with Alec Bohm (1:10), JT Realmuto (0:11) and Brandon Marsh (1:13) combining to go 2 of 37 to go.

Required reading

The AL Central belonged to Cleveland all season long. The Tigers were an afterthought. Until they weren't anymore. Now, after Wednesday's 3-0 win, the Tigers are one win away from advancing to the ALCS in a season that saw their playoff odds drop to 0.2 percent in mid-August. The Tigers managed five hits and three runs and six pitchers combined for their second straight shutout. The Tigs remain dismal.

Stock up: Pitching Chaos

Yes, everyone knows Tarik Skubal, the AL Triple Crown holder and surefire Cy Young Award winner. But it seems like everyone else on Detroit's pitching staff is pretty good too. Manager AJ Hinch has opted for a mix-and-match this offseason and achieved perhaps surprising success. On Wednesday, six pitchers combined for the win, allowing just two walks and six singles. The Guardians haven't scored a run in 20 innings.

Downstairs: Jose Ramirez

It might be a little harsh to judge someone after three games, but that's the nature of a five-game series. The Guardians are not known as a versatile offensive team. They need Ramirez to be their running producer. So far he is just 1 of 9 with two intentional walks. He's not the only one struggling, but his flaws are more visible.

The Guardians desperately need José Ramirez to get to the top. (Photo: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)

Required reading

The good mood at Kauffman Stadium, which was hosting postseason baseball for the first time in nine years, wasn't enough to calm the Yankees, who beat the Royals 3-2. Yankees DH Giancarlo Stanton contributed in many ways, leading his team to a 2-1 series lead and to the precipice of the ALCS. To mount a comeback, the Royals now face the difficult task of winning two games in a row, including Thursday against Yankees star Gerrit Cole. If Kansas City were to force a Game 5, it would be played in loud Yankee Stadium.

Add: Giancarlo Stanton

The Yankees had been waiting for a decisive moment from one of their stars, and Stanton finally came through. The 34-year-old scored New York's first hit with an RBI double in the fourth inning and tied the game at 2-2 with a game-winning solo home run in the eighth inning. It was the Yankees' first postseason home run in the eighth or later game since Raúl Ibañez in Game 3 of the 2012 ALDS. Stanton finished the game 3-5 and… (checks notes)… stole a base in the sixth inning.

Downstairs: Bobby Witt Jr. and Aaron Judge

So much for the battle between the two best AL MVP candidates. Judge, the projected MVP winner, and Witt, the projected runner-up, played no role in this series, silencing an important pre-match discussion point. Judge is 1 for 11 with five strikeouts and three walks. On Wednesday, Witt finally broke his oh-fer streak with a single in the eighth inning, but the Royals shortstop is now just 1-for-13 with a walk and no runs scored. It's Witt's first postseason breakthrough, but for Judge, the strange downward trend from last October continues. Judge has now won 7 of 51 in his last 13 playoff games.

Required reading

The Dodgers kept their season alive, jumping on Dylan Cease early and beating the San Diego bullpen, winning 8-0 and forcing Game 5. Mookie Betts hit his third ball over the fence in the first inning in a row (albeit his first second home run). and he added a two-out RBI single in the second inning. Shohei Ohtani added his own two-out RBI and Will Smith and Gavin Lux hit booming home runs. The Dodgers' bullpen play worked beautifully, shutting out the Padres and setting up one final game at Dodger Stadium.

Stocking up: Mookie Betts

Betts went hitless in all three games of last season's NLDS, and his career postseason numbers are significantly less impressive than his regular-season numbers. A story was just about to petrify. Instead, he hit first-inning home runs in consecutive games, and the only reason he didn't have a first-inning home run in Game 1 was a notable play by Jurickson Profar. Betts added a two-out RBI in the second inning and enters Game 5 with a postseason OPS over 1.000. He didn't have to prove anything, but he does it anyway.

Reduce supply: Use your starting pitcher for a three-day rest period

Stop it. Don't do it. Stop. If you think you have good reasons, you don't. There have been success stories over the last 15 seasons, but there were even scarier stories in October when it came to three days of rest. The Padres didn't use “Cease” for short breaks because they felt frivolous and arrogant; They did it because Joe Musgrove is out for the season. Still, the choice remained between a short-rest pause and a fully rested Martín Pérez, and if the Padres can't get through Game 5, they'll have the rest of their lives wondering what's behind the other door.

On deck for Thursday

Tigers guard. 6:08 p.m. ET, TNT

The Tigers lead the series 2-1
CLE Tanner Bibee (12-8, 3.47) vs. DET (tbc)

Player to Watch: Tanner Bibee

It will be Bibee's sixth start of the season against the Tigers. Four in the regular season, where he posted a 4.50 ERA, and another in Game 1. He will operate on four days of rest. It will be a familiar duel, but with unusual stakes for the Guardians.

Yankees at the Royals. 8:08 p.m. ET, TBS

The Yankees lead the series 2-1
NYY Gerrit Cole (8-5, 3.41 ERA) vs. KC Michael Wacha (13-8, 3.35 ERA)

The Royals have the unenviable task of facing Gerrit Cole in a win-or-go-home game. (Photo: Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Player to Watch: Gerrit Cole

Historically, Cole has performed solidly in the postseason with a 3.05 ERA in 18 career starts, but the New Yorker was mediocre in the series opener, allowing four runs on seven hits over five innings with four strikeouts. His mediocre performance was largely an afterthought as the Yankees won the game. But Game 4 is a chance for Cole to make a fresh run in this series with a chance to close it out and send the Yankees to the ALCS.

(Top photo of the Mets celebrating: Elsa / Getty Images)