MLB executives dreaming of a Dodgers-Yankees World Series? Not ‘gonna happen. Padres advance to NLCS.
I contemplated penning an alarmist piece shortly after choking on a falafel burger while watching the recap of the September 23 home game. Moments later, though, I figured it was probably too early to jump to conclusions, so I bit my tongue—or, really, kept my fingertips away from the keyboard. But now it’s too late, and it’s all over for the Blue Crew.
Even in a less-than-ideal world, the Dodgers could have and—I’d venture a show of overconfidence—should have bagged at least three of the past six World Series, including this year. But instead, the franchise has turned into a record-smashing regular-season behemoth almost totally unfit for any postseason consistency.
I mean, the fans have long grown used to over 600 seasons, and with a luminous roster, why wouldn’t they? But who cares about that half-year’s worth of heroics when the team succumbs to anything that resembles pressure? Once the script play logic is out the window, the Dodgers all but crumble. Not many will be sitting in awe over the mind-boggling stats and Clayton Kershaw’s multiple Cy Youngs or 2,697 career strikeouts as he posts a 5.40 ERA at a time when it really, really matters. In a home game, mind you.
When a .685 team struggles to lumber out of an already five-runs-allowed seventh inning with so many fruitless swings, no one in their right mind is thinking of their dominant winning streaks of two months back.
Paradoxically, with a peerless constellation of talent both in the batting order and the bullpen, we are left with a sour impression of a roster lacking pinch hitters and clutch pitchers. The only kind of postseason consistency the Dodger squad has repeatedly flaunted over the past couple of years is one of failing to deliver and convert their massive accolades when the chips are on the line.
And yes, the alarm bells were not just set off but already tolling loud after that spineless blowout loss to the Cardinals when the Red Birds blanked the Blue Crew on a balmy Los Angeles afternoon by a score of 11-0. After all, one is inclined to think it is not the number in the “W” column that matters most but the quality of losing in a defeat.
The only time the Dodgers did perform up to the expectations was the rough-and-tumble 2020 COVID-shortened season when they peaked in games 73 through 78, which, under normal circumstances, would have been precisely that stage of a regular season where they are at their best. But hopefully, we won’t be rocked by similar pandemics in the coming years, so with no proper rejigger, the Dodgers are likely to keep missing out on the title year in and year out.
Congrats to the Padres, and good luck with their best-of-seven against the Phillies. Both teams have a richly deserved matchup.
Courtesy New York Times
