The Dodgers And Their Fans Are Geared Up For A Three-peat. Why The Quest Will Fall Short

The truth of this Dodgers play was precocious recovered successful a spot wherever each sports truths are clipped and tapered and styled into reality.

The barbershop.

Of course, nan barbershop, wherever shot talk is existent talk, and wherever nan expectations astir nan Dodgers upcoming quest for a three-peat precocious smothered maine for illustration a basking towel to nan head.

I was sitting successful nan chair successful mid-shave erstwhile a bald man barged into nan shop searching not for a cut, but a promise.

“Say it!” he shouted to maine from conscionable wrong nan door. “Say what everybody astir present believes!”

What, that LeBron James is not a existent Laker?

“No, opportunity it astir nan Dodgers!” said nan man, and he was serious. “Say that they person the champion squad successful history and they’re going to triumph different championship! Say it, because that’s what everybody thinks!”

The shop quieted, chairs swiveled, and abruptly everyone was looking astatine me, astatine which constituent I said nan 1 connection I’ve ne'er written successful immoderate of nan past twelve aliases truthful Dodger preview columns.

“No.”

“No?” nan man replied.

“No, I don’t deliberation nan Dodgers are going to triumph a 3rd consecutive World Series championship.”

The man was intelligibly taken aback, immoderate of nan different patrons chuckling successful surprise, nan Dodger beat of this municipality intelligibly resonating successful a wholly different fashion.

For nan first clip successful forever, nan ever-doubting Dodger federation is convinced this squad is destined for a title.

It’s not for illustration it utilized to be, backmost successful nan bad aged days of crumbles and collapses. For nan erstwhile respective years, Dodger fans person spent each outpouring pondering ways this awesome squad would rustle it. The playoff defeats by San Diego and Arizona burned into memories, and moreover aft nan Dodgers won it successful 2024, their instrumentality guidelines invented scenarios successful which they could not perchance repetition it.

But now that they person repeated it? Now that their roster has moreover gotten much stacked than nan erstwhile 2 seasons? The municipality is each in. The municipality expects more. The municipality is not only believing successful a three-peat, they are counting connected it.

As this barbershop bystander made clear, for nan first time, only a prediction of different title would beryllium acceptable.

Sorry, but, um, no.

After each these years of picking nan Dodgers to win, I’m formally picking them to lose. I don’t cognize precisely how, aliases precisely when, but it conscionable feels for illustration somebody, astatine immoderate point, is going to yet extremity this run.

Dodgers head Dave Roberts hasn’t been connected nan losing extremity successful nan postseason since nan squad was swept by nan Arizona Diamondbacks successful nan 2023 National League Division Series, above.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

I cognize this full mentation sounds crazy. Who’s amended than them? Who’s moreover adjacent to them? That brilliant Andrew Friedman has seemingly perfectly and tightly sewn together different title team.

But agelong that cloth complete six months and look adjacent astatine its stitching and there’s capable mini holes to yet rustle nan full point apart.

Despite mounds of grounds to nan contrary, I conscionable can’t bring myself to judge they person each nan ingredients to go conscionable nan 3rd franchise successful shot history to three-peat.

“They’re not going to triumph again?” nan man shouted arsenic he spun connected his heels and marched retired of nan barbershop. “How tin you opportunity that?”

Plenty of reasons, actually.

Start pinch age.

This is abruptly an older team. They’re seasoned, they’re savvy, but they’re progressively vulnerable. Too overmuch property tin sound you level pinch injuries and fatigue. Hangovers are a young person’s game. Hangovers are hellhole connected nan aged timers.

Did you cognize a twelve of nan Dodgers cardinal players are successful their 30s? It happened truthful quickly, right? Freddie Freeman is 36, Max Muncy is 35, Mookie Betts and Teoscar Hernández are 33, and cipher is getting immoderate younger.

Case successful point: For nan first clip ever, this outpouring Freeman acknowledged that against his wishes, nan Dodgers whitethorn not let him to play each inning of each game. That’s 1 tiny, immense example.

One of nan older players is 33-year-old Blake Snell, which leads to different imaginable problem, that being nan starting rotation.

Did you recognize that nan unit leader successful games started past year, down Yoshinobu Yamamoto, was that broken-down combatant Clayton Kershaw?

He’s retired, and nan rotation is arsenic tenuous arsenic ever. Snell is starting nan play connected nan injured list. Roki Sasaki has had a shaky spring. Tyler Glasnow still has ne'er sounded much than 134 innings. Yamamoto added other innings to an already battered limb by pitching for Japan successful nan World Baseball Classic.

That leaves Shohei Ohtani arsenic nan only starter pinch nary baggage, yet he continues to transportation nan weight of nan world connected his shoulders and, now that he’s nan ripe aged property of 31, 1 only hopes Superman tin proceed to fly.

How overmuch will property beryllium a facet for Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell, left, and right-hander Shohei Ohtani, right?

(Brynn Anderson / Associated Press)

Here’s guessing nan rotation will besides miss nan stableness erstwhile offered by Kershaw, and that could beryllium a problem, because here’s guessing nan bullpen could beryllium conscionable arsenic shaky.

Yes, they added nan champion free supplier reliever successful person Edwin Díaz, and nan fans will spell chaotic astatine nan first notes of Timmy Trumpet, but will nan Dodgers person capable mediate alleviation to get to him?

Tanner Scott is back. Blake Treinen is back. Potential chaos is back. The Dodgers will request much revelations for illustration Will Klein and Justin Wrobleski to survive.

Speaking of survival, catcher Will Smith has played successful 126 games aliases much 4 times successful nan past 5 years. Throw successful 50 postseason games during that clip and nan beingness toll connected this World Series leader has been enormous. One tin only dream that Dalton Rushing tin amended connected past year’s .204-hitting capacity capable to let Smith to return a break, because that becomes a large Dodger weakness if he doesn’t.

Rushing isn’t nan only young Dodger pinch thing to prove. After a beardown regular season, Andy Pages managed conscionable 4 hits successful 51 postseason at-bats, an mean which vanished beneath his season-saving drawback complete Kiké Hernández successful Game 7 of nan World Series. One hopes he has rediscovered his swing, because that’s a problem if he hasn’t.

Andy Pages’ drawback successful nan ninth inning of Game 7 of nan World Series will beryllium remembered forever, but tin he bounce backmost astatine nan sheet this season?

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Same pinch Betts. Last year’s struggles, which ended pinch a .138 mean successful nan World Series, person been blamed connected an early-season tummy ailment and all-season accommodation to shortstop. It’s unfair to uncertainty those reasons aliases his committedness to fixing it.

But it is adjacent to statement that he’s coming disconnected nan worst two-season OPS since early successful his profession and that he must go nan aged Mookie for his teammates to stay nan awesome Dodgers.

Yet moreover if each those mobility marks are positively answered, moreover if each perceived weakness becomes a existent strength, moreover if these Dodgers person nan champion regular play successful shot history arsenic truthful galore person predicted…

They’ll still request 1 point that seems intolerable to bargain aliases teach.

They’ll request nan benignant of unthinkable bully luck and awesome breaks that allowed them to triumph each of their past 2 titles.

Can immoderate squad beryllium that fortunate 3 years successful a row?

Even nan Dodgers admit that location were galore cardinal plays successful nan past 2 postseasons that could person gone nan different measurement and changed history forever. Seemingly each 1 of those breaks collapsed for nan Dodgers. How tin this support happening?

Is Aaron Judge going to driblet different alert ball? Will Gerrit Cole forget to screen first base again?

Will a Philadelphia Phillies reliever lose his mind again? Will nan Toronto Blue Jays melt nether pressure successful consecutive location games again? Will they person nan baserunning blunders, nan bullpen breakdowns, nan unspeakable at-bats?

Does Miguel Rojas person different occurrence successful him? For that matter, does Freddie Freeman?

Bottom line, tin immoderate squad create that galore breaks 3 years successful a row?

Los Angeles thinks nan Dodgers can, and should, and will.

Sorry, barbershop, but I deliberation not.