The Los Angeles Dodgers have clinched the National League West title.
With a 7-2 victory over the Padres on Thursday night, they secured their 11th division title in 12 seasons. This win also grants them a bye past the Wild Card Series, thanks to a better record than the Brewers. The only time they didn’t win the West in this span, they still managed to rack up 106 wins and reach the NLCS. It’s an impressive streak of regular-season dominance.
This season wasn’t without its challenges. Despite holding a nine-game lead in late June and maintaining a seven-and-a-half game lead in July, both the Diamondbacks and Padres made strong pushes. By late August, their lead had shrunk to three games before expanding again to six games as September approached. Even then, after Monday night’s game at Dodger Stadium, their lead was down to two games. But with back-to-back wins, they closed out the division race.
Dodgers’ Season Overview:
Interestingly enough, this is their first full season since 2018 where they won’t hit 100 wins—a testament to the hurdles they’ve faced. Injuries plagued their rotation: only two pitchers managed over 20 starts, and none exceeded 25 starts.
Despite these setbacks, they’ve thrived thanks to organizational depth and a powerful offense led by three MVPs. Shohei Ohtani is poised for an MVP award after achieving MLB’s first-ever 50-50 season (50 homers and 50 steals). Teoscar Hernández has been another standout acquisition with his stellar offensive performance. Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman have also been key contributors when healthy.
Fans might think that just making it to playoffs isn’t enough anymore for this team.
The Dodgers’ high standards mean merely reaching postseason play won’t satisfy anyone; deeper runs are expected now. They won the NL pennant in both 2017 and 2018 and took home the World Series trophy in 2020 but have struggled recently with a disappointing 1-6 playoff record over the last two seasons. Anything short of reaching at least the NLCS—or even winning it all—might be seen as falling short of expectations by some fans.
For now though? They’ve done what needed doing during regular play—they’re once again top dogs out West!
What do you think about their chances this postseason?
