It has been a while since the last article, and since then, our Los Angeles Dodgers have taken the lead in first place, holding a one-game advantage over the rival San Francisco Giants. Tonight’s game will decide the winner of this series against the Giants, and not only that, but it will also determine if LA goes up two games on the Giants or ends up tied for first before they face the Padres, who are currently sitting three games back.
Playing .500 baseball over their last ten games, while the Giants have gone 8-2 in that period. The Padres have only been 3-7 over their last ten games, so when they visit Chavez Ravine Monday, they should be looking to make up some ground. I am not one to worry, as if the worst stretch this team has for the rest of the season is playing .500 baseball, then the Dodgers will be just fine. Baseball has a way of humbling even the best teams, and during this stretch, the Dodgers have the chance to put some separation between themselves and the competition.
Shohei Ohtani continues to amaze us with his hitting, and it seems that he will soon be dazzling us on the mound as well. The lineup for this team, strangely enough, has not hit its stride yet, so during the dog days of summer, the Dodgers should be playing better baseball down the stretch. Pitching is always the key to winning at this level, and when the pitching is stable, your odds of winning are pretty good. I know that over the last ten years, the Dodgers have done their fair share of winning, so we can get lost in that fact and let the littlest slide get us upset. I know I am guilty of it, and I want the Dodgers to go 162-0 every single year, which is, of course, just not possible. On a side note, though, can you imagine winning every single game you play during a season? That would be a record that would never be broken.
I expect Dustin May to be firing on all cylinders tonight and keep the Giants’ offense at a minimum, so the boys in blue can maintain a two-game lead over the Giants. Everyone before the season started was saying the Dodgers would run away with this division, and that may still be the case as the season progresses. However, I think everyone knew the NL West would be a challenge, and who wins the division will have earned their spot in the postseason. The trade deadline is still a little ways off, and it’s impossible to predict what the Dodgers will do when that time comes, so the team we’re seeing now may be a bit different by August.
As the heat begins to crank up and summer truly begins, this is the best time for a baseball fan because at this point, you have a pretty good grip on what your team is going to be for this season. Sure, there have been some crazy second-half finishes that have shocked the baseball world, and teams that have had big leads seem to have lost them and their playoff spot in the process. Baseball is such a fun game because anything can happen during a season, depending on who gets hot at the right moment. This season, the Dodgers have been tested and have had some pretty intense division battles with their NL West foes. Being the reigning champion is always going to place a target on your back. These types of battles will not only help the Dodgers’ resilience now but will definitely help during the postseason, where the volume of the game turns up to 10. When your team is losing, it’s never a fun experience, but we all have to remember the bigger picture: there’s always tomorrow. Sooner rather than later, our Dodgers are going to go on a pretty epic run, and the standings should reflect that later on in the season. Let’s enjoy this time for what it is: we get to watch Dodger baseball. Watching the team compete at the highest level is always special. Let’s keep believing, and by October, I truly believe that the Dodgers will be competing to go back-to-back with the Commissioner’s Trophy.
