The LA Dodgers have inspired the anger of baseball fans around the league. Their absurd All-Star roster is staggering on paper. They seem to land every big free agent and grab every top end trade piece at the deadline. They deferred the vast majority of Shohei Ohtani’s salary, which rubbed many fans the wrong way. This was especially true when the presence of Ohtani inspired his countrymen to also join the Dodgers. Not only do the Dodgers land top free agents like Kyle Tucker, they also are fielding the hard carry stars of Japan. The perception of the Dodgers having unlimited depth also vexes the baseball fan. Consider the fact that a few years ago their pitching staff was led by Tony Goslin, Dustin May, Walker Buhler, and Clayton Kershaw. Many teams would consider two pitchers like this to be the linchpin of their team. These vibrant young flamethrowers all had their careers derailed by injuries. The Dodgers shrugged this off like it was nothing. The Dodgers have what you might call “deep depth” at pitching.
The Dodgers staff is truly the stuff of nightmares. It is no exaggeration to say the Dodgers have multiple top end aces. Their staff is anchored by defending World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto is everything Boston Red Sox fans hoped Daisuke Matsuzaka would be. Dice-K was good and had his moments. But in his 8 MLB seasons, Dice-K only had an ERA+ over 100 twice. 100 is always average, higher is always better. Yamamoto has a 167 ERA+. His countryman, Roki Sasaki, is an inconsistent, emotional flamethrower. He is probably better suited to a bullpen role. He happily accepted this going into the playoffs. Sasaki does not have the stamina to start 34 games and throw gas. The Dodgers incredible depth renders that a moot point. Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are two of the nastiest pitchers in the league. When you look strictly at peak rank and strikeout stuff, these two stand at the absolute top of the mountain. Both of these players have struggled with injuries over their careers. Both players benefitted from not being pushed during the regular season. They understand they do not need to pitch every 5th day for their team to win. They simply need to be at 100% during the playoffs. That is the most galling part of the Dodgers dominance. They are infallible and untouchable from a depth perspective. They have a cadre of All-Stars. They have a great farm system. They are well coached. The Dodgers traded for the best pitcher in the league this season. They got defending Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.
The Dodgers even managed to get the best pitchers from bad teams that need to retain their talent. Lefty Kris Bubic was stellar for the Kansas City Royals last season. He is a Dodger now. They also got the best closer in the NL in Edwin Diaz, a player famous for his meltdowns and trumpet intros. They have former top tier close Blake Treinen, a right-wing guy known for his brutal two-seamer/slider combo. Treinen is out for the playoffs with a shoulder injury. Diaz has been hurt for nearly his entire Dodgers tenure. Neither of these factors worry Dodgers fans at all. They are simply too deep. Do not forget Shohei Ohtani pitches, despite shutting it down after 85 elite innings this season. The Dodgers have the vibe of a team that does not need to try that hard or use their best strategies to win over 100 games. They are not just elite, they are nonchalantly elite and win effortlessly. Kyle Tucker struggled all season as a new Dodger. Tucker spent most of his career protecting Houston Astros superstar Yordan Alvarez. Alvarez desperately missed him all season as he was pitched around and the flawed Astros limped into the division title the Texas Rangers bent over backwards to avoid collecting. Tucker struggled all season. Did it matter? Not even a little. The usual cast of Dodgers still peppers the lineup: Shohei, beefcake Max Muncy, Andy Pages, consistent Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, sparkplug Kiké Hernandez, slugger Teoscar Hernandez and Mets killer Tommy Edman.
The Dodgers are a juggernaut. They are so hated that if they win it all, idiot fans will be easily manipulated into supporting a salary cap. A hard salary cap is what the 1994 season was lost over. It is the hard line the players will never give in on. The easily manipulated casual fan, who is blacked out of their teams games, think the league needs to step in and do something. The league does need to do something. It needs to do something about loser owners like Pirates Bob Nutting, who consistently does NOT spend money despite making a killing every year. The problem with MLB is all the owners who make money hand over fist, raise ticket prices, raise concession prices, raise parking prices, and blackouts that prevent fans from watching the game. The problem is NOT the Dodgers, who actually want to win and spend money. This should be the standard. The problem is the other LOSER owners who cry poor after passing the buck. The problem is owners spend money for two seasons then cut payroll when no title is reached.
This World Series will affect the future of the game more than any other. This includes the 2017 World Series that saw the Astros use an illegal camera, technological relay system, and a trashcan to cheat the Dodgers out of the World Series. Rob Manfred did less and little about this. If the Dodgers win this year, dumb fans will line up en masse to support game damaging changes like the salary cap. The changes that actually matter are blackouts and ad spam being ended. The Dodgers should not be punished because they actually want to spend money and win. Owners that pass the buck and lie are the problem. Avaricious ad spam on every surface is the problem. Fans paying $150 up front for “every single game” and getting to watch less than 70% of the games are the problem.
The Brewers are a stellar team. They play defense well. They pitch well. They are accountable and hit for contact. They are led by the nastiest phenom pitcher in baseball: Jacob “THE MIZ” Misiorowski. The kid flamethrower is so nasty he could not even be recreated in a video game. MLB The Show will not let you create a player that throws 105 with a 92 MPH curveball. He is simply incredible. They boast a potent lineup too. The Brewers will ride fundamentals and pitching to a seven game series win.
The Rays demolished the New York Yankees in the ALDS. They hit for contact, play elite defense, and have a plethora of underrated bullpen arms. They are similar to the Brewers in this respect. They are led by Junior Caminero. They will ride great pitching to beat the Cleveland Guardians. The Guardians are led by third baseman Jose Ramirez. They have young plucky pitching. The Rays will win in six games.
The Brewers will defeat the Rays in 7 games.
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