The Los Angeles Dodgers are everything baseball fans thought they would be: a complete powerhouse from top to bottom. Despite absences from numerous key players, they have shown to be a clear cut above the rest of the field, scoring the most runs per game and allowing the fewest per game.
Walker Beuhler has been out since early June and will not return this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Clayton Kershaw is not even up to 100 innings pitched yet this season due to numerous injuries. Still, the Dodgers have overcome absences from two of their most important starters by getting All-Star-caliber seasons from Tony Gonsolin, Tyler Anderson and Julio Urias, who now leads the National League in ERA at 2.29.
On offense, the Dodgers are blessed with both high-end talent and depth. Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman are both among the top hitters in the game. Trea Turner, Will Smith, Justin Turner and Gavin Lux have all been very good. Even reclamation projects like Trayce Thompson and Joey Gallo are paying off.
The Dodgers won 106 games in 2019 and 2021, the most in any season in franchise history. Can this year's squad reach 107 victories and set a new franchise record? Here are three reasons why they can.
3. The remaining schedule isn't very strong
Every game is a winnable game for the best team in baseball. The Dodgers, though, are aided by a very easy schedule to close out the season. They don't have any more series against the other teams with a top-five record and play some of the worst teams in the league often.
According to Tankathon, their remaining strength of schedule is in the middle of the pack. Their toughest remaining opponent is the St. Louis Cardinals, who they only play thrice more. The Dodgers will face the Arizona Diamondbacks soon, though they will be challenged by Zac Gallen, who is in the midst of a historic streak of shutout innings. Overall, the Dodgers play the Dbacks eight more times this season. They face the Colorado Rockies six more times and the rival San Francisco Giants three more times.
The Dodgers need just 13 more wins in 26 more games to break the record. With only a few decent teams as their biggest threats, it shouldn't be hard for them to make history.
2. Their offense is borderline unstoppable
The Dodgers' lineup is the stuff of legends. They have a myriad of stars that can uplift them on any given night and the depth to help them when they need it.
The Dodgers are represented well on the leaderboards. Betts is in the midst of a chase for the NL home run crown, with his 33 dingers coming just 3 short of the leader (Kyle Schwarber). Freeman's 172 hits and 44 doubles lead all major-league hitters and he has the fourth-highest on-base percentage in baseball. Trea Turner's 23 stolen bases (on 26 attempts) is a top-10 mark in MLB. Even Lux shows up on the leaderboard with his seven triples tying for the most in baseball.
As a team, they are the sole leaders in both on-base and slugging percentage while trying with the Toronto Blue Jays in batting average. Their 5.39 runs per game make them the only team above five. A big reason why is that they hit ground balls less often than every other team (37.5 percent of the time) while hitting fly balls more often than any other team (31.3 percent of the time). Their 21.7 strikeout percentage is a bit below league average while their percentage of home runs and walks are both top five.
The Dodgers' offense has been great even with Max Muncy having a massive down year. He finally started to turn around in August, the first month he posted an OPS of above .700 this season. Cody Bellinger remains disappointing and unproductive, though not as much as last season. Chris Taylor's positional versatility remains valuable but he has not been that good at the plate either. So, the potential is there for this unit to be even more unfair.
1. Their pitching is outstanding
What makes the Dodgers so scary is that hitting may not even be the side of the ball they're the best at. An argument could be made that their pitching is their strength since their key players have missed so much time. The key guys they have put on the mound feature a collection of players that no one would have guessed would be good enough to be a top unit, let alone the very best.
Gonsolin has pitched magnificently when healthy, earning an All-Star bid and some heavy consideration to be an early Cy Young Award pick. Anderson played for four teams in three years before becoming an All-Star in LA. Urias padded his case as one of the biggest All-Star snubs. Kershaw has, of course, been effective when he is able to go. Andrew Heaney and Mitch White have been solid as well. The Dodgers' starters have a collective ERA under three, which no other team can claim.
The bullpen has plenty of options, too, even with the recent injury to Brusdar Graterol. Evan Philips has been great and Alex Vesia, Yency Almonte and Caleb Ferguson have been solid. Craig Kimbrel has been the closer but it should soon be Philips' role.
At full strength, the Dodgers' pitching would be absurdly dominant. Even when it isn't, the unit has been unbelievable all season. Whether that is subject to change in the playoffs remains to be seen but, at the very least, LA has plenty of talent to reach a new franchise wins record.
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