Dodgers tie post-season record of 33 straight scoreless innings, rout Mets in NLCS opener

After spending the first seven years of his big league career back East, Jack Flaherty came home. He joined a winning team in the Los Angeles Dodgers and helped make a bit of playoff history.

Flaherty combined on a three-hitter and Los Angeles Dodgers pitchers tied the post-season record of 33 consecutive scoreless innings by routing the visiting New York Mets 9-0 Sunday night in the NL Championship Series opener.

"I saw some family out there when I was warming up and I had gone to games here with them before, so it just kind of lets you relax a little bit," he said. "Felt I tried to do too much the last couple times out in some big games. Just allowed me to be myself and just go out and pitch and trust my stuff and trust the guys behind me."

Los Angeles knocked out a wild Kodai Senga in the second inning, built a six-run lead by the fourth and matched the scoreless record set by Baltimore Orioles pitchers over the first four games of the 1966 World Series against the Dodgers.

Backed by chants of "MVP! MVP!" Shohei Ohtani was two for four with a walk while scoring two runs and driving in another.

Shohei Ohtani rips an RBI double for his second hit of the game! <a href="https://t.co/tolSr8fHLn">pic.twitter.com/tolSr8fHLn</a>

Mookie Betts added a three-run double in the eighth in the largest shutout victory margin in Dodgers post-season history, also the Mets' most one-sided post-season shutout defeat.

"Our energy all started with Jack," Betts said. "Jack really gave it to us today."

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Monday afternoon.

Flaherty allowed two hits over seven innings in the Dodgers' first scoreless post-season start of seven-plus innings since Clayton Kershaw's eight innings in the 2020 NL Wild Card Series.