The drama shifts from Los Angeles to New York City.
People were up in arms over Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Chase Utley's slide fracturing the fibula of New York Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada, and that commotion will heighten if Utley appears in Game 3 of the National League Division Series.
Will the Mets starter Matt Harvey and the rest of the team keep their cool if Utley stands up to bat?
How will the Citi Field faithful react if he steps out of the dugout?
The drama. The excitement. This is playoff baseball and things are only going to get better as Harvey squares off opposite Dodgers southpaw Brett Anderson on Monday.
Here are three things to know for Game 3 of the NLDS:
THE X-FACTOR IS RED
With Adrian Gonzalez in the lineup it's tough to claim the title of the team's best hitter, but Justin Turner is continuing to show he's an offensive force for L.A.
The 30-year-old, who seems to draw more attention for his beard than his skills, has a .500/.500/.875 hitting line with four hits and seven total bases in the series thus far.
Turner also quietly put up the best numbers of his career in the regular season, hitting .294/.370/.491 with 16 home runs and 60 RBIs in 126 games.
He could continue to be a factor as the series rolls on, offering Gonzalez some much-needed protection in the team's lineup against the Mets' formidable rotation.
THE EMOTIONAL WILMER FLORES
It's been a year of ups and downs for Wilmer Flores, whose emotional meltdown upon learning he was traded in July before finding out he wasn't, became a massive story line in baseball after the 24-year-old hit a walk-off home run two nights after the episode.
Flores also dealt with heavy emotions regarding his ailing grandfather, yet he still managed to put up the best numbers of his career, hitting .263/.295/.408 with 16 home runs and 59 RBIs.
With Tejada out of action, Flores will get the starting nod at shortstop, providing yet another possible dramatic point in the series, especially if he contributes something big for his club in the wake of his intense season.
THE HEAT IS ON
The Dodgers enjoyed limited success against fireballers in Game 1 and 2.
Jacob deGrom owned Los Angeles in the series opener, striking out 13 on his way to a five-hit shutout over seven innings of work. The 27-year-old almost exclusively sat down hitters with a two-seam and four-seam fastball mix, with the occasional slider to mess up timing.
Noah Syndergaard followed deGrom with a similar platter of heat that the Dodgers couldn't catch up with. "Thor" and his 100 miles-per-hour fastball dominated hitters over six innings of work before things unraveled en route to a Mets loss.
New York will send a third power pitcher in Harvey to the hill in Game 3 and unless the Dodgers can make some adjustments, the 26-year-old may post similar results as deGrom and Syndergaard.
