The Los Angeles Dodgers are chasing an insane three-peat this postseason, aiming to be the first team since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees to pull off three straight titles. But for a team coming off another 100-win season and arguably the most talented squad in the playoffs, there are still a ton of questions swirling around Chavez Ravine, and some of them are pretty wild. Game 1 of the NLDS kicks off this Saturday, and honestly, the path for L.A. hasn’t looked entirely straightforward. There have been moments when these Dodgers have seemed, well, a bit rickety, despite all that talent.
NLDS Matchup: Braves Bring The Heat After Handing LA a Regular Season Beatdown
First up, the Dodgers are facing the NL East champion Atlanta Braves in the NLDS. The Braves just took down the Philadelphia Phillies in a three-game wild-card series, so they’re hot. This isn’t just any opponent either. The Dodgers went a dismal 1-5 against Atlanta in the regular season, getting absolutely outscored 26-15. That’s a serious red flag, isn’t it? The winner of this best-of-five series moves on to face whoever comes out on top between the Milwaukee Brewers and the San Diego Padres. The schedule for this series is locked and loaded:
- Game 1: Saturday, Oct. 3, 4 p.m. ET (Fox) in L.A.
- Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 4, 8 p.m. ET (FS1) in L.A.
- Game 3: Tuesday, Oct. 6, 6 p.m. ET (FS1) in Atlanta
- Game 4*: Wednesday, Oct. 7, 6 p.m. ET (FS1) in Atlanta
- Game 5*: Friday, Oct. 9, 8 p.m. ET (Fox) in L.A.
*If necessary
Lineup Shuffles and a Shocking Ohtani Move
The Dodgers spent the regular season shuffling their lineup based on whether they faced a righty or lefty on the mound, and that’s not stopping for the postseason. Against right-handed pitchers, you’ll likely see Shohei Ohtani at DH, Mookie Betts at SS, and Freddie Freeman at 1B, followed by Will Smith at C, Kyle Tucker in RF, Teoscar Hernández in LF, Max Muncy at 3B, Andy Pages in CF, and Tommy Edman at 2B. That’s a pretty standard, terrifying lineup. But here’s the kicker for left-handers: Mookie Betts is expected to lead off at SS, followed by Shohei Ohtani at DH. Wait, what?! Ohtani has *never* hit anywhere but leadoff in his MLB postseason career, but lately he’s been hitting second against lefties. That’s a massive shift for arguably the biggest star in the game, and it tells you everything about how L.A. is trying to maximize offense. The rest of the lefty lineup includes Freddie Freeman at 1B, Will Smith at C, Teoscar Hernández in LF, Kyle Tucker in RF, Andy Pages in CF, Max Muncy at 3B, and Tommy Edman at 2B. Both lineups are designed to alternate left and right all the way down to switch-hitter Edman, though L.A. could still throw a curveball and go a totally different route.
Rotation Settled, Team Form Still A Head Scratcher
On the pitching side, things are pretty locked in, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tarik Skubal, Blake Snell, and Tyler Glasnow making up their four-man rotation. The order they’ll trot those arms out is still a mystery, but after what Yamamoto did last year, you can bet they’ll be trying to get him max innings. So, how’s the season gone for this team? Well, by any other team’s standards, it’s been great: a 100-win season and a playoff berth. But by Dodgers’ standards, there are definitely some strange dynamics at play. They’re good, really good, but with all that talent, they probably should’ve been even better.
Game 1 against Atlanta on Saturday is going to set the tone for this whole NLDS. Can the Dodgers get past a team that already had their number in the regular season, or will those “rickety” moments come back to haunt their three-peat dreams? We’re about to find out!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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