Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers take on Kyle Hendricks, Chicago Cubs in NLCS Game 2

Somewhat surprisingly, the Los Angeles Dodgers have opted to bat Clayton Kershaw 9th in their lineup for Game 2 of the National League Championship Series.  Considering he's done everything else possible for them of late, I somewhat expected him to hit cleanup on top of getting what feels like his twelfth appearance on the mound of this postseason.

All kidding aside, the Dodgers are rolling the dice again with the best pitcher on the planet, hoping that bringing him back just days after using him as the closer in Game 5 of the NLDS will help them avoid an 0-2 deficit against the juggernaut Chicago Cubs.  It's probably the prudent move, though Kershaw will have to hope his excellent career postseason peripherals finally pair with a bit of luck to post a great overall line - he's just 3-6 with a 4.79 ERA in 77 career playoff innings despite owning a stellar 11.2 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in that span.

The Cubs will counter with yet another starter who had a sparkling 2016 season, as Kyle Hendricks will get his chance to toe the rubber.  He's fresh off a 16-8, 0.98 WHIP, 2.13 ERA breakout campaign, and he'll look to piggyback off the big Miguel Montero grand slam from Game 1 to put the Cubs in a commanding 2-0 lead in the series.

First pitch is set for just after 8 PM ET, and we'll be yapping about it here.