Eight Championships and Counting

                                                     Number eight was oh so sweet. There is no feeling in this world like beating the Yankees in the World Series. That probably comes from the fact that for oh so long, the Yankees owned the Dodgers in the fall classic. From the first time they met in 1941, something always seemed to happen that derailed the Dodgers hopes. Starting with Owens passed ball in 41. By the time 1955 rolled around, the Dodgers were 9-20 against the Yankees in World Series play. Of the Dodgers eight series wins, four have now come against New York. 

                                                     Overall, the Dodgers are 4-8 against the Yankees in the World Series. Their other wins have come against the Twins, A’s, White Sox and Rays. They lost two to the Red Sox, one to Cleveland, one to Oakland, one to Baltimore and one to Houston. 8-14 in World Series play. Dodger fans right now are pretty amped up about this team. Back-to-back would ease a lot of angst over the last few seasons. They have dominated the West Division of the NL. Chances are, that will not change this year. 

                                                    But the team is getting older. And that for some should be a concern. All of their big stars are 30 or older, the bench players are all over 30 also. Kike is 33, Barnes is 35, Taylor is 34 and Miggy is 36. Pages is the youngest position player at 24 and the only position player on the team under 30. The Dodgers are going to need an infusion of youth either by trade or by bringing up some of their prized talent, and they need to do it soon. Muncy has one year plus a team option for 10 million. He is 34. If he has another Muncy like 35 long balls and an OPS over .800, my guess is that his option will be picked up. 

                                                 Smith will no doubt need to be given plenty of rest during the season. Is Barnes the back-up all year, or do we see Rushing at some point?  Many here do not see Mookie as being the full time SS at all. Most want him to move back to RF or second base. Well, he isn’t going to right unless something drastic happens. That is Teo’s home now, at least for this year with Conforto in left. So, is Freeland close to being a major league ready SS? Lots of questions. 

                                                  I expect the Dodgers will get some stiff competition for the division, but their depth is going to be a difference maker. Especially if their contenders suffer a loss to injury from any of their major stars. Just look how LA survived the loss of Betts and Muncy for an extended period of time. They lost Freeman for about two full weeks during the season. Their subs did the job. All five pitchers who were starters at the beginning of the year spent time on the IL. Only Yamamoto was active during the playoff run. 

                                                 What can we expect as the Dodgers begin to defend their title? One would be a potent offense. I see nothing that would say otherwise. Adding a healthy Max Muncy, and Will Smith returning to form could be huge. Conforto is a better option than Heyward or Kiermaier. Hopefully his defense is more than adequate. I still have some reservations about the bench with no lefty available to PH unless all the RH hitters are already in the game. And has been discussed, the lack of a true center fielder. I do not think Kim or Edman fit the bill of pure centerfielders. 

                                                  But the depth of this team should be more than able to plug holes and give AF the ability to pursue a trade if need be. Health is their main enemy. If any of the big three on offense go down, the team will have to find a way to cover that lost offense. The pitching is deep. Plenty of good arms will be available by June or July. I think they win the west easily. How healthy they are going into the playoffs will dictate how deep they go.