With Tarik Skubal on the mound and Kyle Tucker going deep, the Dodgers clinched their 14th consecutive playoff berth on Monday, beating the Reds 4-1 to tie the 1991-2005 Braves for the longest active postseason streak in MLB history.
It came a day after our latest MLB Power Rankings had them locked in a battle with Milwaukee for the top spot in the sport, and they did it with Shohei Ohtani, their two-way superstar, on the 15-day IL with biceps inflammation and no return timetable, and without Roki Sasaki, sidelined by a finger blister with no timetable of his own. Los Angeles is 91-59, nine games clear of the Padres in the NL West.
Dodgers rotation is carrying the load
Even with Ohtani and Sasaki out, the Dodgers rotation is the best of the current top National League contenders. Dodgers starting pitchers are carrying a 3.51 ERA, ahead of Milwaukee's 3.63, Atlanta's 3.72, Philadelphia's 3.79, San Diego's 4.37 and the Cubs' 4.39. The WHIP tells the same story: Los Angeles starters post a 1.10 mark, again the best of the six, with a 3.80 FIP that trails only Milwaukee and Philadelphia for best in the group.
A beat-up bullpen absorbing losses everywhere
The relief corps is a different picture, and the injury report explains why. Edwin Díaz is working back from neck inflammation on a rehab assignment as of Sept. 6. Brusdar Graterol is questionable for the rest of the season following back surgery. Will Klein is questionable for the year with elbow discomfort. Ben Casparius has no return timetable for a shoulder injury dating back to April. Jake Cousins, still working back from Tommy John surgery, only resumed a rehab assignment on Sept. 2.
It's a long way from where things stood in early June, when this bullpen was ranked the best in baseball. Against the current backdrop, the bullpen's 3.96 ERA ranks fifth of these six contenders, ahead of only Philadelphia's 4.32, and its 1.28 WHIP is tied for worst in the group. The Dodgers' pen getting by on volume and matchups more than results right now.
Dodgers lineup can't stay healthy, either
The lineup has its own holes. Andy Pages fractured his left hand on Aug. 21 and was expected to miss four to five weeks. Dalton Rushing is questionable for the rest of the season with elbow discomfort that put him on the IL on Sept. 4. And Ohtani, beyond his pitching value, is also the star designated hitter and he is out indefinitely.
It couldn't really come at a worse moment, as the Dodgers need length in the lineup for October. Questions for the Dodgers abound, especially when a mid-August piece on Ohtani's mound return raised similar questions. Was pushing him back onto the mound worth it given everything else the roster was already dealing with? A month later, the answer turned out to be that they didn't need him to.
Dodgers still have a top-ranked lineup
Despite the absences, the offense still grades out near the top of this group across the board. Los Angeles ranks second among the six NL contenders in wRC+ (109.3, behind only the Cubs' 114.8), second in OPS (.758, behind the Cubs' .770), second in slugging (.422, behind the Cubs' .430), and third in both wRC (749.3) and on-base percentage (.337). It's a lineup that doesn't lean on one category. Every rate stat sits at or near the top of the field. This is partly why the losses at the margins haven't sunk the team.
Stat | Rank among NL Playoff teams |
|---|---|
wRC+ | 2nd |
OPS | 2nd |
SLG | 2nd |
OBP | 3rd |
Run differential reflects the same thing. Los Angeles sits at +170, second among these six NL contenders behind only Milwaukee's +195, and comfortably ahead of the Cubs (+138), Atlanta (+116), Philadelphia (+31) and San Diego (+22).
Defense
Defense adds one more piece of a complete picture. By defensive runs saved, Los Angeles ranks third among these six contenders at 42, behind the Cubs' outlier 112 and Atlanta's 51, but just ahead of Milwaukee (41) and comfortably ahead of San Diego (30) and Philadelphia, whose -43 is by far the worst mark in the group.
Outs above average tells a similar story: the Dodgers' 16 ties Atlanta for second in the field, behind only the Cubs' 65. It's not the standout part of the roster, but it's solidly above average, and it's one less thing for the pitching staff to worry about.
The bottom line
Put together, this is a team that clinched its 14th straight playoff spot while missing its most famous player in two different ways, on the mound and at the plate, and while patching together a bullpen that's been the one real soft spot on the roster. The rotation and the offense are both top of the class among current NL contenders. Whether the bullpen holds up is the real question in October, not whether Ohtani makes it back in time.
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