New York Mets' NLCS Opponent Set After Dodgers Eliminate Padres

The New York Mets' National League Championship Series opponent has been revealed.

Aug 28, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Enrique Hernandez (8) is met by second baseman Gavin Lux (9) after scoring a run against the Baltimore Orioles at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

It's about to be a very blue National League Championship Series.

With a 2-0 win over the San Diego Padres in a winner-take-all showdown in the Division Series on Friday night, the Los Angeles Dodgers are moving onto the NLCS to face the New York Mets, having bested their division rivals 3-2 in the best-of-five set.

Solo shots from Enrique Hernandez and Teoscar Hernandez in the second and seventh innings respectively provided all the offense the Dodgers needed while Yoshinobu Yamamoto (W, 1-0) threw five shutout innings. Four relievers were perfect in four frames behind him.

Los Angeles returns to the NLCS for the seventh time in the past dozen seasons and for the first time since 2021. They're also the first top-ranked NL team to reach the LCS round after a full season since the 2018 Milwaukee Brewers.

The first pitch between the Mets and Dodgers will be staged on Sunday night at Dodger Stadium (8:15 p.m. ET, Fox). This will be the fourth postseason meeting between New York and Los Angeles' NL squads, as the Dodgers stand as the Mets' most common foe on the bracket.

Though the Dodgers defeated the Mets in a seven-game thriller in the 1988 NLCS, Queens has prevailed in two of the first three get-togethers, both wins coming in the NLDS in 2006 and 2015.

New York and Los Angeles got its annual cross-coast battle out of the way early with the Dodgers winning four of the six meetings staged in the spring. Each side prevailed in enemy territory: the Mets won two of three at Chavez Ravine in April before the Dodgers swept a trio at Citi Field in May.