Category: Dodgers
3 reasons why: Dodgers will win the World Series
As the 2016 season approaches, I will be taking a look at the 10 teams with the best odds of winning the World Series and examining three reasons why each team may ultimately hoist the trophy. Today’s team:
Dodgers (14/1 odds to win World Series): The Dodgers have won the National League West each of the past three seasons. It’s not getting to the playoffs that’s the problem – it’s winning once October comes around. The Dodgers did not have the best off-season and fans in Los Angeles are certainly frustrated, but all hope is not lost. The club didn’t make big splashes – the type of moves fans loves, even though they don’t always work out – but the Dodgers are still very solid and a projection of 91 wins, per FanGraphs, is nothing to scoff at.
Clayton Kershaw: Clayton Kershaw’s postseason struggles have been well documented, but in the regular season, there is no one better. Over the last five seasons, Kershaw has thrown 198 or more innings with an ERA of 2.53 or better. Of course, Kershaw is probably the only part of the rotation Dodgers fans aren’t worried about. The loss of Zack Greinke hurts, but if everyone stays fairly healthy, the Dodgers should have enough pitching to be playing meaningful games late in the season.
Young talent up the middle: After hitting .337 in 27 games for the Dodgers last season, 21-year old Corey Seager was recently named the top prospect in all of baseball. Although it’s unlikely he hits that well again, he’s certainly proven that he belongs in the Major Leagues. Seager has immense talent and a full season of him in the lineup could do wonders to the Dodgers offense. Of course, Seager isn’t alone. Joc Pederson exploded in the first half last season before struggling in the second half. The 23-year old hit .230 with 20 homers prior to the All-Star break, then hit just .178 with six blasts in the second half. However growing pains are part of the process and likely taught Pederson a bit about what it takes to persevere through a grueling 162-game schedule. With the youth of Seager and Pederson, couple with the veteran leadership of Chase Utley and Howie Kendrick, the middle of the Dodgers defense is in pretty good shape.
Veteran leadership: Players like Seager and Pederson can provide youthful energy, but veteran leadership is important to any postseason run. Chase Utley knows what it takes to win a ring and both Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez have plenty of experience as well. Resigning Howie Kendrick was also a big move for this category as Kendrick will undoubtedly help out the clubhouse.
AFL Opening Day: Mesa Solar Sox at Glendale Desert Dogs 10/13/15
The 2015 Arizona Fall League is officially underway and in addition to the articles I will be writing for mlb.com and mlbpipeline.com, I’m going to be adding some additional tidbits to the blog. These will be trends/players/plays that stood out, but that didn’t make it into any articles for one reason or another. This will also be a spot where I answer questions sent to me that I don’t get to on Twitter.
Notable Performances:
– Chad Pinder, Athletics No. 7 prospect, hit a pair of homers and finished 3-for-5 with four RBIs. Oakland’s organizational hitting prospect of the year and the Texas League Player of the year hit 15 homers this season and neither of his homers were cheapies. Wednesday was a strong start to the Arizona Fall League for Pinder as he hit the ball hard all afternoon.
– Dodgers No. 24 prospect Kyle Farmer didn’t show a lot of power during the year, so it was a bit surprising to see him pop one over the 380’ sign in left-center. Farmer also had a walk-off single. You can read more about him here.
Best Play:
– Renato Nunez, the sixth ranked prospect in the A’s organization, is still developing as a defender, but showed some flash in the second inning. Nunez, playing third, dove to his left and made a great stop on a hard-hit ground ball, but then rushed and made an errant throw across the diamond.
Nunez redeemed himself a bit in the fifth as he had to back up to field a big hop behind the bag and made the long throw with ease.
Worth Mentioning:
– Phillies 16th ranked prospect Andrew Knapp was named Philadelphia’s organizational hitting prospect of the year and showed why with a booming double off the left-center field wall.
– Brian Holmes, selected in the 13th round of the 2012 Draft by the Astros, isn’t on the club’s top-prospect list, but flashed some potential in his two innings of work. The left-hander struck out 115 batters in 101.1 innings this year so he has strikeout stuff, but struggled a bit with command in his two scoreless innings Tuesday.
– Phillies top prospect J.P. Crawford went 1-for-4 and wasn’t all that impressive at the plate, but made a few athletics plays defensively. Pretty easy to see what all the hype is about.
– Corey Black, the No. 18 prospect in the Cubs organization had 101 strikeouts in 86 innings of AA this season so it’s obvious he has the stuff necessary to put hitters away. Black threw one inning Wednesday and struck out a pair.
Betting Odds for the 2015 Baseball Season
With Spring Training just about to begin, it’s that time of year where every fan base believes their team has a shot to win the World Series.
While some teams are more likely to win it then others, anything can happen and that’s what makes sports so enjoyable.
However, the odds of every team hoisting a trophy in late October are not all equal, which makes those surprise runs by teams no one saw coming all the more enjoyable to witness. But how do we know who the favorites and underdogs are? Well…
Bovada.com – a gambling website – has released its odds to win the AL, NL and World Series.
Bovada gives the Angels and Red Sox the best odds to win the AL, but the best odds to win the World Series are given to the Nationals and Dodgers.
Here’s a look at every team’s odds to win the World Series:
Washington Nationals 13/2
Los Angeles Dodgers 17/2
Boston Red Sox 10/1
Chicago Cubs 10/1
Los Angeles Angels 12/1
St. Louis Cardinals 12/1
San Diego Padres 14/1
Chicago White Sox 16/1
Detroit Tigers 16/1
San Francisco Giants 16/1
Seattle Mariners 16/1
Toronto Blue Jays 22/1
Oakland Athletics 25/1
Baltimore Orioles 28/1
New York Mets 28/1
New York Yankees 28/1
Cleveland Indians 33/1
Kansas City Royals 33/1
Miami Marlins 33/1
Pittsburgh Pirates 33/1
Houston Astros 50/1
Texas Rangers 50/1
Atlanta Braves 66/1
Cincinnati Reds 66/1
Milwaukee Brewers 66/1
Tampa Bay Rays 66/1
Arizona Diamondbacks 100/1
Minnesota Twins 100/1
Colorado Rockies 150/1
Philadelphia Phillies 150/1
Odds to win NL:
Nationals 13/4
Dodgers 19/4
Cubs 6/1
Padres 13/2
Cardinals 13/2
Giants 8/1
Mets 14/1
Pirates 14/1
Marlins 16/1
Braves 28/1
Reds 28/1
Brewers 33/1
Diamondbacks 50/1
Rockies 75/1
Phillies 75/1
Odds to win the AL:
Red Sox 11/2
Angels 11/2
White Sox 7/1
Mariners 7/1
Tigers 15/2
Blue Jays 10/1
Yankees 12/1
A’s 12/1
Orioles 14/1
Indians 14/1
Rangers 22/1
Astros 28/1
Rays 33/1
Twins 50/1
Quick Thoughts:
– I wonder when the last time the Mets and Yankees began the season with the same odds to win it all.
– Five of the top seven teams are in the NL, but three of bottom four are in NL as well.
– A World Series between the Angels and Dodgers isn’t too far fetched.
– In Bovada’s view, the NL appears to be top heavy, with the AL being the more balanced league. This is also reflected in the odds to win each league.
– The Cubs off season moves have certainly grabbed everyone’s attention.
– Not a ton of confidence in the Giants going back-to-back.
Magic Numbers, World Series Favorites, MVP Odds And More
From your basic statistics such as batting average and ERA to more advanced sabermetrics like UZR and BABIP, baseball is a sport littered with numbers.
Baseball fans typically like numbers, so here are some numbers to keep your eyes on for the remainder of the season:
Playoff Clinch Scenarios:
*The Angels can clinch a playoff berth September 10th, the earliest of any team in the Majors.
*The Orioles and Nationals could clinch their divisions (AL and NL East) on September 12th, the earliest of any team.
Magic Numbers To Win Division:
*Orioles magic number is 19
*Royals magic number is 26 (25 to clinch playoff berth)
*Angels magic number is 22 (17 to clinch playoff berth)
*Nationals magic number is 19
*Cardinals magic number is 25 (23 to clinch playoff berth)
*Dodgers magic number is 23 (20 to clinch playoff berth)
Wild Cards:
*A’s magic number to clinch a playoff berth is 21 (22 for the first Wild Card spot)
*Tigers magic number is 25 to clinch a playoff berth
*Giants magic number is 22 to clinch a playoff berth and 24 to host the Wild Card game.
*The Brewers magic number is 24.
Pennant Odds: According to Bovada Sportsbook (http://sports.bovada.lv/)
AL
*Angels – 5/2
*A’s – 7/2
*Orioles and Tigers – 4/1
*Royals – 7/1
*Mariners – 12/1
NL
*Dodgers – 2/1
*Nationals – 5/2
*Cardinals – 5/1
*Brewers and Giants – 7/1
*Braves – 14/1
World Series Odds:
*Angels – 5/1
*Dodgers – 11/2
*Nationals – 6/1
*Orioles and A’s – 7/1
*Tigers – 8/1
AL Cy Young:
*Felix Hernandez -300
*Chris Sale +300
*Max Scherzer +500
AL MVP:
*Mike Trout -200
*Robinson Cano +500
*Jose Abreu +550
NL MVP:
*Clayton Kershaw -150
*Giancarlo Stanton +120
*Andrew McCutchen +1000
There are no odds listed for the NL Cy Young award which is one way of saying congratulations to Clayton Kershaw.
Dbacks Can Play Spoiler, Impact October
The Arizona Diamondbacks aren’t going to be playing baseball in October, but have a chance to impact who is.
The Dbacks have 31 games left in the season and 14 of those games (45 percent) are against teams in the think of playoff races.
Arizona hosts the Los Angeles Dodgers for a brief two game series Tuesday and Wednesday and also travels to Los Angeles for a three-game series September 5-7.
In addition to the five games against the Dodgers, the Dbacks will play six games against the Giants – three in Arizona and three in San Francisco – and finish the season at home against the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Dodgers arrived at Chase Field on Tuesday with a five game lead in the National League West.
The Cardinals are a game and a half back in the NL Central and have a three game lead in the NL Wild Card.
The Giants are trailing the Dodgers in the NL West, but have a half game lead for the second NL Wild Card spot.
On September 1, MLB rosters expand from 25 to 40 players so teams will be calling up top prospects and giving them a shot to compete and learn a bit of what life is like at the Major League level.
Since Arizona is not in contention, it is likely they will giving players a look in order to determine how the roster will look in 2015 and the performance of those players – and the Dbacks as a whole – could have an impact on October.
So far this season the Dbacks are 4-10 against the Dodgers (0-2 in Australia, 2-4 at home and 2-4 on the road).
Arizona is also 5-8 against the Giants (3-3 in San Francisco and 2-5 in Arizona) and 0-3 against the Cardinals as they were swept in St. Louis earlier this season.
Five National League Storylines To Watch
Believe it or not August is halfway over and the baseball season is racing to a finish. There are plenty of players, story lines and themes expected to develop over the final six weeks of the season as teams make their final pushes toward playoff berths.
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but here are five things – in no particular order – worth watching in the National League as the season winds down.
The Cubs:
The Cubs aren’t making the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth a look. When the Cubs called up prized prospect Javier Baez they instantly made themselves an entertaining team to watch.
With Baez, Starlin Casto, Anthony Rizzo, Arismendy Alcantara, Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks the Cubs are full of young talent.
What makes the Cubs intriguing the rest of the way is the fact that expanded rosters are coming and the Cubs have even more talent in their farm system.
Depending on who the Cubs bring up in September, baseball fans – specifically Chicago fans – will get a glimpse of the future and see what those within the Cubs organization are so excited for the next few years.
The Brewers Pitching Staff:
The Brewers have a two game lead in the NL Central and an 85.2 percent chance of making the playoffs according to Baseball Prospectus, but losing a key member of the starting rotation is never easy.
Pitching is always important, but it seems this time of year the value of a strong staff is amplified. With Matt Garza on the DL (left rib cage strain) there has been a bit of extra pressure on the Brewers pitching staff to fill the void.
In the 11 games since Garza has been out, the Brewers have a team ERA of 2.78 so they are doing a good job of holding it together, but how long can that last?
The Brewers have been in first place for 143 days this season, but are only two games up on the Cardinals.
Cardinals Injuries (Molina, Wacha, Motte):
The Cardinals are two games back in the NL Central and have a game and a half lead in the NL Wild Card race, but how long can they keep it up?
St. Louis has been hit hard with injuries to key players this season and it makes some wonder how they’ve managed to stay afloat.
Michael Wacha has been on the DL since late June with a stress reaction in his right shoulder, Yadier Molina has been on the DL since early July after having thumb surgery and Jason Motte was recently sidelined with a lower back sprain.
While the injury news has been grim for the Cardinals this season, the good news is it looks like they are getting healthier.
Molina caught a bullpen session earlier this week and hopes to start swinging a bat next week while Wacha threw off flat ground this week and has a follow-up MRI set for Monday.
If all goes well, the Cardinals could get Wacha and Molina back in September which would obviously be a huge lift to the organization.
In the meantime, the team needs to continue to find ways to win games and hope there aren’t any setbacks.
The Giants:
The Giants are only a half game out of the Wild Card, but they’re lost six of their last seven games, are just 11-15 since the All-Star break and are falling fast.
San Francisco got off to a hot start this season, but but was sub-.500 in both June and July and are on track to do so again in August.
The Giants have won the World Series in two of the past four seasons so it would be foolish to count out a team with that sort of late-season experience, but lately they are not playing like a team poised for a deep October run.
Clayton Kershaw:
The Dodgers look to be on their way to a second straight NL West crown and if that turns out to be the case, it will be in large part thanks to Clayton Kershaw.
The Cy Young Award frontrunner is 14-2 with a 1.78 ERA this season and has won 11 straight decisions.
Kershaw is widely regarded as the best pitcher in baseball and although everyone knows how good he is, he’s on the list for one plain and simple reason.
Whenever he pitches, you should watch.
Regardless of how you feel about the Dodgers, watching Kershaw pitch is a great experience for any baseball fan.
Kershaw is truly one of those very special players that only comes around every so often and as the season winds down, it will be fun to watch him pitch on meaningful October nights.
Boor on Baseball 