Three reasons the Los Angeles Dodgers will win the World Series.
Even before COVID-19 hit and baseball, and the world, was turned upsidedown the Los Angeles Dodgers were the ones to beat. But as we’ve seen in seasons past, being the sure-fire winners doesn’t always end in a World Series Championship. In fact, over the course of the last five seasons, the Dodgers have been one of the favorites to take the series, and every year they failed to take the honor.
Now, with just one more series left to secure yet another World Series appearance, Dodgers fans are allowing themselves to get excited again. Take a look at just three of the reasons we think the Los Angeles Dodgers will win the World Series this year … finally.
The Dodgers stiffest competition is already gone
One of the biggest challenges for the Dodgers was the San Diego Padres. The team, located just hours from each other, was the thorn in their side for many games and showed the kind of promise and talent that just might have brought them straight to a World Series Cinderella story win. That didn’t end up happening and the Dodgers proved to be too good for the team without their starting pitchers. On Thursday evening the Dodgers put the final nail in the Padres 2020 season by sweeping them three games to none. With the Padres out of the way so handily, it makes us wonder … is there any real competition left for the Dodgers?
The bullpen depth
A big reason, aside from the cheating Astros, the Dodgers have failed to secure the title in the past was due to their weak bullpen. There was only so much Clayton Kershaw could do on his own, and with his past postseason troubles its no wonder they had difficulty keeping the runs low. This season has already shown the strength in the bullpen (let’s not talk about Kenley Jenson though).
Dodgers bullpen coach Josh Bard spoke on the talent in pen in late August.
“That credit goes to those guys and obviously the player,” Bard said (h/t Dodgers Insider) “The whole driving down to the city park and throwing it against the net, it seems like that’d be an easy thing but after the third week of it when you’re an elite professional baseball player, sometimes that can get a little monotonous. Kudos to these guys that they kept competing, trying to stay ready. It speaks to the culture Dave built here.”
Clayton Kershaw and Mookie Betts
There could be no combinations quite so deadly in all of the MLB than Clayton Kershaw and Mookie Betts. The pair have already performed exceptionally in the postseason, as we stated before that’s a big deal for Kershaw. But if we can keep the opponent’s runs to a minimum, something Kershaw is great at, and we drum up runs for the Dodgers, something Betts is good at, we’re an unstoppable force.
The Los Angeles Dodgers will play the Atlanta Braves for a spot in the World Series on Monday. Follow along with FanSided MLB for all your postseason news, highlights and everything else your baseball-loving heart desires.