The Los Angeles Dodgers have ruled the National League West for years, having captured the division title in 9 of the past 10 seasons. Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts has full respect for the competition, but there is no lack of confidence as the team prepares for the 2023 season.
Roberts believes the Dodgers will face challenges because National League West has several formidable teams, most notably the San Diego Padres.
“(San Diego’s) talented,” Roberts said. “I think Arizona’s gotten better. I think San Francisco is going to be a lot better than they were last year. I don’t know. The division changes every year. Whether the Padres are really good or not I don’t think it changes how we go about it.”
It's the kind of assessment that a manager may make for public consumption, but the Dodgers are sure to be motivated to get back on top after their 2022 season came to an end when they were defeated by the Padres in the National League Division Series.
The Dodgers are coming off a season in which they dominated in the regular season, winning 111 games. That total came a year after they won 106 games in 2021.
However, projections from prognosticators indicate that their battle with the competition will likely be quite a bit tougher this season. FanGraphs has the Dodgers winning 88 games in 2023, while PECOTA has them winning 96 games.
Dave Roberts is unconcerned with outside projections. “I don’t mind it. Our thoughts about ourselves hasn’t changed. I think our guys do a good job of not really caring or thinking too much about prognosticators or predictors. We’re going to win a lot of games.”
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