What Went Wrong: Another Historic Season Wasted

In my story about the San Francisco Giants' NLDS loss last year, I mentioned that they joined a club that no team wants to be in. The Giants won 107 games in 2021, which is a franchise record, but all that season got them was an NLDS exit by their longtime rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the defeat, the Giants were part of a collection of sports franchises who achieved historic regular seasons, only to come short when it counted. In the NHL, of course, the 2018-19 Tampa Bay Lightning had the misfortune of blowing a 62-win season by getting swept out of the first round. In the NBA, the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors won a record 73 wins, led 3-1 in the NBA Finals, but lost the final three games. The NFL has seen a number of 13-3, 14-2, and yes, even 15-1 teams fail to even reach the Super Bowl. As for MLB, we remember the 2001 Seattle Mariners for winning 116 games, tying a league record, only to fail to win the pennant.

But at least that Mariners team got to the LCS, and the team only blew one historic season. The Dodgers, on the other hand, did it twice. 2019 saw them win a franchise record 109 games, and after losing back-to-back World Series (though we know what really happened in 2017), it seemed like a championship was inevitable...until it wasn't. The Dodgers were defeated in the NLDS by, of all teams, the Washington Nationals; a team who, until that year, hadn't won an official postseason series in their entire existence. They would make up for it by winning the World Series in 2020, and while 2021 saw them tie the franchise record yet come up two wins short of returning to the Fall Classic, this year saw the Dodgers break their wins record. 111 wins in 2022. That's more than the 1909 Pirates and yes, the 1927 "Murderers Row" Yankees. It's tied with the 1954 Cleveland Indians, and only the 1998 Yankees, 1906 Cubs, and the aforementioned 2001 Mariners.

However, there is one thing. All of those other teams were Final Four teams or better. The 2022 Dodgers? Not so much.

Why is Mookie Betts still a Dodger? Seriously, if you Google the word "overpaid," expect to see this photo above. It's been, what, four years and the Boston Red Sox are still laughing at the Dodgers for being tricked into taking this overrated player. The Dodgers, despite breaking their franchise wins record by five games, actually managed to win one fewer postseason game than they did three years prior. They took Game One against the San Diego Padres, but that was all. What followed was the Blue Crew's bats suddenly developing frostbite despite being in one of the warmest cities in North America. And no surprise, Mookie Betts was one of them. 2-for-14 (.143) and one RBI in the entire series. But at least he'll be laughing all the way to the bank with all of that undeserved money he got.

The Dodgers hit a grand total of four home runs; Trea Turner had two while Freddie Freeman and Max Muncy had one each, but there was someone missing from the Dodgers' lineups in this series.

You know, before 2020 happened, I was very critical of Dave Roberts as the Dodgers manager. As a Yankees fan, I should hate him. After all, the Red Sox's 2004 ALCS comeback actually started with, of all things, a Dave Roberts stolen base. Ironically, though, I actually find that epic. What made me totally dislike him was how he blew the World Series not once, but twice, and of course, 2018 was the straw the broke the camel's back for me. No Yankees fan should be subjected to watching the Red Sox celebrate a World Championship, yet Roberts' ineptitude made that happen. I was actually happy for him when the Dodgers won in 2020, because I thought he finally learned from his errors and would be competent. Yet this year has seen him double down on the stupidity, which includes what I'm about to say: Why, oh why, would you NOT use Cody Bellinger?! Benching Cody Bellinger is the equivalent of the Yankees benching Aaron Judge! That decision is one of a number of things that led to the Dodgers' downfall, and it's a shame.

The Final Four is three-quarters finished, as the NLCS is all set. The Padres are in the NLCS for the first time since 1998, which also saw them win the pennant and end up swept by the Yankees. They will face the Phillies, and they will have home field in NLCS, which starts on October 18. As for the Dodgers, well, they need to figure things out. Haters of that team are continuing to put asterisks on that 2020 championship, saying that they only won because the season was shortened by the pandemic. If this team, under that current lineup and regime, continues to fall short of their immensely heavy expectations, then even the loyal Dodger fans will see 2020 as a fluke and an absolute gift handed to them due to that year's circumstances.

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