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When healthy, Clayton Kershaw was the best pitcher in the National League this season. Max Scherzer very well could take home the leagues Cy Young honors this season. Who has the edge in their NLDS Game 1 showdown?Go inside the numbers and matchups that will decide Game 1, and then vote for which team will win at the bottom of the page.Inside the pitching matchupWhen?Kershaw is on the mound:?Very few runs are scored! In 21 starts, he allowed 31 runs. He walked just 11 batters, and one of those was intentional. He struck out 172 batters in 149 innings and batters hit just .184 against him. He missed two-plus months with a herniated disk in his back and some believe he was so good outside of that missed time that he deserves Cy Young consideration. He pitched well after his return, allowing just two earned runs his final four starts.Kershaw continues to evolve a bit as a pitcher. He now throws his slider more than ever, 33 percent of the time, as his fastball rate has dropped from 62 percent in his first Cy Young season in 2012 to 50.6 percent. What makes that pitch so tough is that unlike a lot of sliders, its actually in the zone much of the time, making it a pitch he can throw in any count, not just as a two-strike sit-em-down offering. Batters hit .138/.152/.191 against it.If theres hope for the Nationals, its that Kershaw wasnt as dominant away from Dodger Stadium. He had a 2.31 ERA on the road, where he also allowed seven of his eight home runs. He completely shut down left-handed batters (.138, no home runs in 138 at-bats), so dont expect Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy to do much damage. After losing four straight postseason starts, Kershaw had two good starts against the Mets last year, although -- lets admit it -- he has yet to have that Bumgarner-type outing in 10 career playoff starts. Note also that he hasnt gone more than 91 pitches since his return (and exceeded 110 just three times all season). -- David SchoenfieldWhen?Scherzer is on the mound: Scherzer ended up leading the NL in wins, innings, starts, strikeouts, strikeout-to-walk ratio (Kershaw didnt pitch enough innings to qualify) and home runs allowed, with 31, although his rate dropped significantly in the second half. Scherzers pure stuff is absolutely electric -- as we saw in that record-tying 20-strikeout game -- playing off a four-seam fastball which averaged 94.3 mph. Because he gets good armside run with the pitch, it generates more swing-and-misses than most four-seamers. Only Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello had a higher swing-and-miss rate with the fastball.Scherzer also throws a curveball and changeup, but its the slider that makes him unhittable at times. Only Jose Fernandez generated a higher miss rate with his slider among qualified starters -- both were over 49 percent. Batters hit just .146 against it.Scherzer did have a big platoon split which may play into the lefty-heavy Dodgers lineup. Lefties hit .242/.315/.445 against him compared to .156/.189/.288 against righties. His changeup isnt the same wipeout pitch against lefties as the slider is against righties. It will be interesting to see if he changes his pattern a bit and throws more sliders and fewer changeups. Scherzer can also get into trouble when hes behind in the count and simply tries to throw his fastball past hitters. Because he pitches up in the zone with his four-seamer, hes a fly ball pitcher with the fastball, explaining some of his home run issues. -- SchoenfieldPlayer in the spotlightDaniel?Murphy: He hit seven home runs in last years postseason for the Mets (all in the NLDS and NLCS), led the NL in slugging percentage and OPS (beating out Joey Votto when extending to four decimal points) but batted just once in the final 11 games as he battled a strained buttocks. The Nationals say hes ready to go. -- SchoenfieldWhat will decide tonights gameLook for Kershaws best pitch to help him dominate a team thats particularly susceptible to it. Kershaw held batters to a .192 average on his curveball this season, which ranked third among pitchers with 300 or more curves thrown, and he held batters to just a 2 percent hard-hit rate, baseballs best mark. Nationals hitters posted a .565 OPS versus curveballs this season, which ranked 22nd in MLB.?--?ESPN Stats & InfoChoosing sides: Who will win?Scherzer is a big-game pitcher. Dont believe me? Just ask the Tigers, who fanned 20 times earlier this season against their former teammate in a game he was totally jacked up for. As for Kershaw, hes not a big-game pitcher. Just ask pretty much anyone who has ever faced him in the postseason. Nats gets a curly W in the opener. -- Eddie MatzIt will be Clayton Kershaw with a fresh arm and loads of motivation going for the Dodgers in Game 1 on Friday. But the Dodgers made their chops this season on the back of a surprise bullpen and a rejuvenated offense, and that is what ultimately will win them the opener late, in what figures to be a classic pitchers duel between Kershaw and Scherzer. -- Doug PadillaWhere the series standsThe Nationals were favored to beat the Giants two years ago in the division series, but dropped the first two games at home and lost in four. With some of their injury issues, it seems more people are picking the Dodgers. Their best bet it to have Scherzer outpitch Kershaw, not just in the opener, but perhaps later in the series if they match up again. ?--?Schoenfield Authentic NFL Jerseys . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic . Louis Cardinals. Victorino is batting sixth and playing right field after missing two games because of back tightness. http://www.cheapnfljerseyschinateam.com/ . Inter president Erick Thohir says in a club statement on Wednesday that Vidic is "one of the worlds best defenders and his qualities, international pedigree, and charisma will be an asset. Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping .S. -- Nikolaj Ehlers registered a hat trick for the third straight game and Jonathan Drouin had a goal and five assists as the Halifax Mooseheads hammered the host Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 10-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Wholesale NFL Jerseys China . -- Kyrie Irvings last-minute 3-pointer helped seal another victory for Cleveland -- and the Cavaliers longest winning streak since LeBron James left. Our experts weigh in on four of the biggest questions in NASCAR.Turn 1: Which Chase bubble driver is feeling the most pressure following Pocono?Ricky Craven, ESPN NASCAR analyst: Chase Elliott has had a miserable month and a half, made a few mistakes, and his interviews suggest he is putting too much pressure on himself. Its healthy to be self-deprecating at times, but the young man seems too much on edge, his judgment behind the wheel a few times the past month indicates to me he is trying too hard to do too much. Long term, this guy is a big winner in our sport. Short term, he needs to discover his limits and operate within them.Ryan McGee, ESPN.com: Greg Biffle had really gotten it going in July with three straight top-10s, his first top-10s of the season. But he wrecked at Indy and then finished 25th at Pocono, a track where weve seen him save seasons in the past. Hes not good at Watkins Glen, so were going to be looking at a Hail Mary situation for him at Bristol, Michigan and Darlington. Im not sure that team has a Hail Mary in them.John Oreovicz, ESPN.com: The driver who is putting himself under the most pressure seems to be Chase Elliott. He came close to winning a couple of times, and since then, it looks like hes been pressing, which has led to mistakes and misjudgments. It will be interesting to see whether he can regroup and regain his early season form in the races leading up to the Chase.Bob Pockrass, ESPN.com: Kyle Larson. It appeared that if he kept running fairly well, he should be good for the final Chase spot. Now with Chris Buescher winning, he could end up fighting teammate Jamie McMurray for that final position. And if a driver outside the top 14 wins at Watkins Glen, hell probably need a win to make the Chase.Turn 2: Weve heard a lot about Chase Elliott and Ryan Blaney. Whats the outlook for Chris Buescher?Craven: Chris is half a step behind these two, primarily because of the equipment he is in. With that said, Buescher has done more with less than perhaps any other in our sport. Ive always been impressed with his methodical/logic-based approach to driving a race car. It earned him an Xfinity Series title in NASCAR last year ... perhaps it could in Sprint Cup one day if he could land in cars as capable as the 21 and 24.McGee: His talent is unmistakable, but, all due respect to Front Row Motorsports, he needs a better ride. It feels like we might have some unexpected Silly Season moving and shaking coming. I wouldnt be surprised if he gets some top-shelf numbers popping up in his caller ID.Oreovicz: He knows how to finish races, and that skill, when coupled with the right crew chief and strategist, can win races. For the short term, Bueschers outlook is heavily dependent upon whether Roush Fenway Racing can return to being a front-running team. If RFR picks up its game, Buescher is a safe pair of hands for the teams future.Pockrass: Same as it was before Pocono. He will be in a Roush Fenway car by 2018 as Greg Biffles deal ends after 2017 and if no reason exists to keep that relationship going. Trevor Baynes improvement this year -- he currently sits as the top Roush Fenway driver in points -- makes an argument to sponsor Advocare and Roush Fenway that he deserves a contract extension, regardless of what Buescher does. If Advocare doesnt renew, then Bueschers win could boost his chances of Roush Fenway landing sponsorship for him in the No. 6 car.Turn 3: Whats your take on the later start times next year in Sprint Cup, many of them at 3 p.m.?Craven: I applaud any move that helps recapture growth, or at least interrupts declining trends. One has to assume a lot of effort went into making these decisions ... right???McGee: I was working at NASCAR when the meetings took place about the later start times the last time around. The reason it was started was to grab West Coast viewers and the occasional primetime crossover. It was ultimately abandoned because fans had a hard time tracking when races were going to start. So, well see because itt feels like its all over the place again.dddddddddddd The 10 Chase races hit five different starting times and only start at the same time back-to-back twice. But I do like the idea that in the fall Sunday races will start in the middle of NFL games instead of starting head-to-head at 1 p.m. ET. Thats never a fight NASCAR will win.Oreovicz: I dont care for later race starts because I think they are not friendly to fans or participants. If a 3-1/2-hour race green flags at 3:40 p.m., not too many people are going to make it back to their homes that night unless they are flying private. An extra night on the road costs time and money. My guess is that late start times will adversely affect attendance, so I hope that NASCAR and the television networks are happy with whatever they perceive they are getting from them.Pockrass: When the move to consistent start times was announced in 2009, then-Fox Sports Chairman David Hill said: Its become clear to us that traditional, early Sunday afternoon, start times are favored by NASCAR fans who both attend races and watch on television. Whats changed since NASCAR scrapped later starting times? Fox says: A lot of things that were true about television seven years ago are not necessarily true today. Our interpretation of all the current available data is that we are better served by having some races start later in the day when more people are watching TV. Call me skeptical that the data now is more prophetic than a decade ago. One thing NASCAR must do: It must encourage drivers and teams to do everything they can to connect with fans in attendance.Turn 4: If Dale Earnhardt Jr. cant return after Bristol, should Jeff Gordon continue in the seat?Craven: Only if his heart is in it. Im troubled by Dale Earnhardt Jr. having the final few innings of his career interrupted by injury. Im becoming at least a little concerned that Jeff is filling in because he is such a loyal soldier, so to speak. I do not want to see Jeff put himself in a compromising position. But if he is enthusiastic toward this situation, then he is the absolute perfect man for the job!McGee: I wrote a column about this that Im still catching flak for, but I still feel the same. I think it is so admirable that Gordon has filled in and none of us should have ever expected anything less from him during an incredibly difficult time for the entire organization. And having the winningest road-course racer of all time at Watkins Glen feels like a no-brainer. But every week that ticks by is another week that the 88 team moves away from making the Chase and every week Gordon is in the car feels like another week of crossing fingers and hoping nothing goes wrong. His seat belt came undone at Pocono. I love seeing Gordon out there. But I think theres always been a time when the practical thing to do is put a kid in that car. I think thats now.Oreovicz: Hes in for the next two races, but if Junior doesnt make it back soon after that, its time for Hendrick to start thinking about the future instead of the past. Whether he comes back next month or next year, the end of Earnhardts career is in sight. Grooming young talent in the form of Gordon and Jimmie Johnson has worked for Hendrick in the past, and with Johnson also older than 40 and underachieving Kasey Kahne not much younger, its time for HMS to start building for the future. Problem is, most of the upcoming young talent is contracted to Toyota.Pockrass: No. He has done enough to help the team and also have ideas for the direction Hendrick Motorsports should go to improve performance. The team should have put in Justin Allgaier at Bristol -- the guy had a top-10 there last year in an HScott Motorsports car. Give other drivers a shot and use the car as a test car the rest of the way. Even if that means losing a spot in the owners championship, what can be learned could help win the actual one. ' ' '