Kyle Schwarber playing for the Philadelphia Phillies, CCed by Liscense 2.0
If you are not scared of the Los Angeles Dodgers being repeat World Series champions, you should be. They are all but done winning. Shohei Ohtani is off another MVP season and he did not even step foot on the mound. Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernandez, Michael Kopech, Tyler Glasnow, and the rest of the team are having a ton of fun out there and I expect that to continue. After all, what is more fun than winning another World Series? The answer is nothing. With the additions of highly touted prospect Roki Sasaki along with, Tanner Scott, Blake Snell, Kirby Yates, Hyeseong Kim, Michael Conforto, and an extension with Tommy Edman, along with a multitude of prospects waiting to get a chance in the show, I see no chance of the Dodgers slowing down anytime soon.
What makes the Dodgers so good?
Batting
Runs per game: 5.20 (2nd out of 30)
AVG: .258 (4th out of 30)
OBP: .335 (2nd out of 30)
SLG: .446 (1st out of 30)
Pitching
Runs allowed per game: 4.23 (13th out of 30)
ERA: 3.90 (13th out of 30)
Hits per 9 innings: 7.9 (7th out of 30)
Strikeouts per 9: 8.7 (12th out of 30)
HR allowed: 198 (25th out of 30)
Even with their starting rotation never being consistent throughout the whole season, the Dodgers ranked in the top half of the league in the pitching statistics above last year for everything but home runs allowed. All that means is when pitchers miss their spots, opposing hitters don’t miss their chance to capitalize very often. With a multitude of pitching free agents coming in like Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki, plus Shohei Ohtani and the rest of the pitching staff getting healthy, that problem should be fixed. I would imagine opposing teams will have an even tougher time scoring runs against this team.
When a pitcher on the opposing team gets no support from the bats, they are going to be in deep trouble. In all the statistics listed above related to batting, the Dodgers ranked top 5 in all of them last year. They keep the pressure on the pitching staff of opposing teams for all 9 innings, and as evident in the World Series against the Yankees, no lead is safe. Retaining Teoscar Hernandez and extending Tommy Edman will add a big spark to the offense. Ohtani, Freeman, Betts, and Muncy already have shown the capability to take over games by themselves, and I would expect no different from them this upcoming season.
I do believe this team is beatable, but the right situation, and the right team has to show up to beat them, and I will not lie, it may take more than 9 innings in a game to win. Injuries happen on every team and even with injuries this upcoming season I would not guarantee that the Dodgers lose. However, no team has won the World Series at least twice in a row since the New York Yankees did it three times from 1998 to 2000. To win back to back takes a lot of discipline, hard work, and the correct mindset.
My Top 3 Candidates to Beat Them in the Playoffs
Honorable Mentions : Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, New York Yankees
We have not seen free agency end or the trade deadline happen this year. I think these teams have a chance to conquer the superteam the Dodgers have created if they either add one more piece during the season or during this free agency period and/or keep all of their core players healthy and play like the All-Stars that most of them are.
Baltimore Orioles
Batting
Runs per game: 4.85 (4th out of 30)
AVG: .250 (7th out of 30)
OBP: .315 (11th out of 30)
SLG: .435 (3rd out of 30)
Pitching
Runs allowed per game: 4.31 (16th out of 30)
ERA: 3.94 (14th out of 30)
Hits per 9 innings: 8.1 (11th out of 30)
Strikeouts per 9: 8.6 (13th out of 30)
HR allowed: 175 (11th out of 30)
The Orioles have had one of the best farm systems for the past couple of years and they are currently prospering because of this. Gunnar Henderson, Heston Kjerstad, Jackson Holliday, Adley Rutschman, Colton Cowser, Jordan Westburg and top 3rd base prospect Coby Mayo were all drafted by the Orioles in recent years. We have already seen Henderson and Rutschman make the All-Star game and many people believe that Holliday is not too far off. With all of those players having 20+ HR a season potential and the way that they have already taken the league by storm, it is no shock that the offense ranked where it did last year. Having the 3rd best SLG in the MLB proves how scary of a line up they have. With the addition of Tyler O’Neill, who had a breakout season nobody was expecting, as well as Gary Sanchez, who is expected to catch behind Rutschman, this offense is going to explode this year. I would expect these younger players to be a lot more comfortable at the plate and more disciplined. This should increase the OBP and I would expect them to crack the top 10 in the league for the 2025 season.
The Orioles also made strides in the pitching department last year and those continued into the offseason. They picked up Trevor Rodgers and Zach Eflin at the trade deadline last season and got a couple more arms in the offseason including Charlie Morton, Andrew Kittredge, and Tomoyuki Sugano. While replacing Corbin Burnes is a big ask, and a huge loss for the Orioles, Sugano just came off of an amazing season in the NPB, and Kittredge is coming off a season where he had a 2.80 ERA. I expect when their starting rotation gets fully healthy, they will have a better starting rotation than people expect. Grayson Rodriguez and Cade Povich finally have some experience under their belts and are going to build off of it. If both of them can go further into their starts and take strain off of the bullpen, I think both will pitch 140 innings at least. With the postseason experience the Orioles have gained over the past two seasons, I would expect them to have a deep run in the playoffs.
New York Mets
Batting
Runs per game: 4.74 (7th out of 30)
AVG: .246 (12th out of 30)
OBP: .319 (9th out of 30)
SLG: .415 (9th out of 30)
Pitching
Runs allowed per game: 4.30 (15th out of 30)
ERA: 3.96 (15th out of 30)
Hits per 9 innings: 7.7 (2nd out of 30)
Strikeouts per 9: 9.1 4th out of 30)
HR allowed: 165 (5th out of 30)
The Mets headlined free agency by signing Juan Soto. They gave him a 15 year, $765 million dollar contract. Their offense is going to get an even bigger boost, not to mention Mark Vientos silently breaking out towards the end of the season. They also still have Brett Baty, who has been underwhelming, but there is still hope he can turn it around. Luisangel Acuna and Ronny Mauricio, who both have amazing pop at the plate and play defense well, are coming in the wings as well. They also retained Jesse Winker and traded for Jose Siri. While the Siri trade may seem insignificant, he can cover a lot of ground and has great power when he is not being overly aggressive at the plate. The Mets ranked in the top 10 in all the stats listed above not including batting average, but with these additions they will all surely go up. The Mets have proven veterans like Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo, along with youngster Francisco Alverez. Throwing in the massive addition of Juan Soto, this team has been crafted to be one of the most elite offenses in the league for years to come, and I would expect them to do so. They will be able to compete with the Dodgers offensively.
On the pitching side, they made crucial free agent moves. With the additions of Clay Holmes, Frankie Montas, Griffin Canning, and A.J Minter, they have boosted their starting rotation and their bullpen. I would expect Edwin Diaz to get back to his 2022 form and reclaim his elite closer status. With these additions, I would expect the bullpen woes to simmer down from what we saw a year ago, and they should climb towards the top 10 in ERA in the upcoming season. Their pitching has to be more consistent if they want to crush the Dodgers’ hopes of repeating as World Series champs. I would expect them to make moves during the season, and possibly call up their current #1 prospect Brandon Sproat if they need pitching reinforcements. Sproat looked promising in his first full year of professional baseball, going 7-4 with a 3.40 ERA in 24 games across 3 levels of the Mets minor league system. He should start the year in Triple-A to get some more innings under his belt and get the call up in the middle of the season depending on injuries. Do not be surprised if he gets the call before the All-Star break so he can get prepared to pitch in the playoffs. The hefty spending in the offseason will all be worth it if the Mets pcan make a deep run in October and make it to play in November.
Philadelphia Phillies
Batting
Runs per game: 4.84 (5th out of 30)
AVG: .257 (5th out of 30)
OBP: .325 (5th out of 30)
SLG: .425 (5th out of 30)
Pitching
Runs allowed per game: 4.14 (12th out of 30)
ERA: 3.85 (11th out of 30)
Hits per 9 innings: 8.4 (22nd out of 30)
Strikeouts per 9: 8.9 (9th out of 30)
HR allowed: 181 (15th out of 30)
The Phillies have been making deep runs into October for the past couple years. Their sole offensive addition was Max Kepler and I do not expect him to cause a gigantic difference in the team statistics. If they are able to replicate the statistics that they had last year that ranked 5th in the league, I would expect them to have a great year. Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Nick Castellanos, J.T. Realmuto, and Alec Bohm all need to have All-Star caliber seasons this upcoming year in order to have a chance to beat the Dodgers come October. I would also look for Justin Crawford to have an impact late in the season and get the call to the show sometime after the All-Star break. Last year he was impeccable posting a .313 AVG, 9 HR, 61 RBI’s, and 42 SB, and he did that in 110 games last year across 2 levels. Depending on how he looks in spring training he could start in Double-A or Triple-A. Whichever level he starts at will give more indication on the Phillies’ plans to call him up. His impact on the lineup could prove crucial late in the season, where he could provide fresh legs on the base path and in the outfield.
The Phillies starting rotation has become one of the best in the business this offseason with the acquisition of Jesus Luzardo. Combine that with Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and Cristopher Sanchez, who has lowered his ERA every year he has been in the league, along with prospects Mick Abel and Andrew Painter, who both have great potential. Painter has been a prospect highly spoken about since he was drafted. The Phillies have been waiting for him to be healthy coming off Tommy John surgery late in the 2023 season. If he can bounce back from that I see no reason why he does not get called up to reinforce an already stacked starting rotation for the Phillies. With Orion Kerkering coming on strong, Matt Strahm, Jose Alvarado, and newly signed Jordan Romano and Joe Ross, all have playoff experience in their own right. The bullpen being full of veteran arms will come in handy if they face the Dodgers, because they know what to expect. I would expect to see the pitchers for the Phillies pull their weight more than they did last year, where the offense saved them more than once. If these pitchers can pull it together, I see no reason why the Phillies cannot give the Dodgers a run for their money late into October.
The Dodgers are not unbeatable, but pretty darn close. They have spent a ton of money over the past two offseasons and if they do not come away with more World Series wins, that money will have proved to not have bought them all that much. The ownership of the Dodgers has set them up to be competitive for the next 5-7 years, if not more. Teams need to be able to compete with that. The Orioles, Mets, and Phillies have the best chance to do so, but do not be surprised if one of my honorable mentions can give the Dodgers a run for their money as well.
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