LOS ANGELES — Sean Manaea may have put the Mets in a good position Monday just by the manner in which he handled the Dodgers’ leadoff hitter.
Shohei Ohtani went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts against the Mets left-hander, certainly a key — but not everything — in containing this scary Dodgers lineup.
“He’s just one of the guys in the lineup and I was trying to do my job and put up zeroes,” Manaea said after the Mets’ 7-3 victory in Game 2 of the NLCS at Dodger Stadium. “[Ohtani] is very talented and I was just trying to get on to the next guy.”
Manaea allowed two earned runs on two hits and four walks over five innings. Max Muncy homered against him in the fifth before Manaea’s walk to Mookie Betts in the sixth led to the Dodgers’ second run.
“[Manaea] was not only getting ahead, but staying on the attack,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “A perfect example was the way he went after Ohtani the first couple of at-bats. I thought everything was working.”
Brandon Nimmo’s barking left foot is receiving daily treatment, but for now it’s not enough of an issue to remove him from the Mets’ lineup.
The outfielder has been dealing with plantar fasciitis since May and aggravated the injury during the NLDS against the Phillies, according to Mendoza. On Sunday, Nimmo was removed for a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning with the Mets trailing by nine runs.
Mendoza said the injury bothers Nimmo the most when he slows down from jogging, but running full-speed isn’t a problem.
“He is going to have to continue to get treatment,” Mendoza said. “He is going to have to continue to take medicine and go day by day.”
Mendoza officially named Luis Severino as the Mets’ starting pitcher for Game 3 on Wednesday. The right-hander departed before the first pitch to fly back early to New York. The Dodgers will counter with Walker Buehler.
Francisco Lindor’s leadoff homer was the sixth in franchise history by a Mets player in the postseason. Curtis Granderson was the last Mets player to lead off with a homer in the postseason, in Game 5 of the 2015 World Series. Jose Reyes, Lenny Dykstra, Wayne Garrett and Tommie Agee are the other players on the list.
