ARLINGTON, Texas -- The settings change, the circumstances evolve, and yet it always seems to come down to Clayton Kershaw getting stretched a little too far, a promising bullpen failing to pick him up, a high-powered offense coming up small, a well-oiled machine breaking down at the worst possible time.
The backdrop for the Los Angeles Dodgers' latest collapse was Game 4 of the 2020 National League Championship Series, played under howling winds at a neutral stadium that was only a quarter full. It was, more specifically, Thursday's bottom of the sixth, when the Atlanta Braves' high-powered offense suddenly came to life and the star-studded Dodgers collectively unraveled.