The Braves worked out Wednesday evening at Dodger Stadium, their final preparation before the National League Division Series opens Thursday.
A consensus underdog, the inexperienced Braves must take three of five games to advance past the defending NL champions. The teams last met in the 2013 postseason, the Braves' most recent appearance, with the Dodgers winning in four.
“I think we match up well against anybody as long as we're playing baseball the way we’re capable of playing,” outfielder Nick Markakis said. “We got speed. We got defense. We got pitching. Bullpen has been great. And our hitting. We can go up there and swing the bats, sparked by the top of our lineup with those young guys up there, which is good to see. We do our thing and go out there. It shouldn't matter who’s on the field. We just gotta stay confident in ourselves and play baseball.”
The Dodgers have a significant experience advantage over the Braves. Manager Brian Snitker acknowledged such matters in these moments, but he delivered a message to his team that it’s still the same game they’ve (successfully) played for the last half year.
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"I just don't want them to do anything different than what they've done, because what they've done is good enough, you know, just to play with that emotion and aggression and the energy that they've been doing," he said. "And I've been here in playoff scenarios before, and there's not going to be any shortage of those guys getting amped up and being ready to go. Just let it fly.
"I mean they've been doing that all year. They've had a really good time playing baseball. It's a really neat group for me to be around in that respect, how they like to work and they prepare very well. And then when they go out, just to let it fly and not be careful."
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