Are the Dodgers unbeatable? Here's how they're unlocking their best selves when it matters most

LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers didn't conscionable autumn abbreviated of lofty expectations during the regular season. For a ample chunk of it, they were fundamentally mediocre. They began with a 23-10 grounds and ended, after a well-timed gathering by their manager, with 15 wins successful a agelong of 20 games. But successful between, from May 4 to Sept. 7, the Dodgers were 56-54, a specified 2 games supra .500 successful a 110-game sample. Their rotation was hurt, their bullpen was a mess, their lineup was inconsistent, and until the precise end, they displayed scant signs of a squad equipped to support a championship.

Now they're a juggernaut.

The Dodgers person steamrolled done this postseason, winning 7 of 8 and going 4-0 distant from home. They breezed past the Cincinnati Reds successful the wild-card round, outscoring them 18-9, past faced a Philadelphia Phillies squad wide considered the astir talented successful this playoff tract and dispatched it successful 4 games. They person since taken power of the National League Championship Series with back-to-back roadworthy wins implicit the No. 1-seeded Milwaukee Brewers.

Barring the unforeseen -- teams that person won the archetypal 2 roadworthy games successful a best-of-seven format person prevailed successful that bid 25 of 28 times -- the Dodgers volition go the archetypal nine since the 2009 Phillies to instrumentality to the World Series a twelvemonth aft winning it. Six much wins and the Dodgers volition go baseball's archetypal repetition champions successful a 4th century. Nothing is guaranteed, but that they're adjacent successful this presumption -- with Shohei Ohtani slumping offensively, nary less -- is singular erstwhile considering caller circumstances.

The Dodgers were connected a 91-win gait arsenic they approached the last week of the regular season. Had that remained the lawsuit and had they not ended it connected a five-game winning streak, they would've tied for the lowest full-season wins full since Andrew Friedman took implicit shot operations astatine the extremity of the 2014 season. In different words, the squad galore believed mightiness situation the wins grounds was making a lawsuit arsenic the franchise's worst successful a decade. Friedman acknowledged that world then, but countered by expressing his content that this mightiness beryllium the champion roster helium has ever taken into October.

That has borne out, and determination are 4 main reasons why.

The starting pitching has been dominant

The Dodgers' rotation hasn't conscionable been dominant, really -- it has been historic. Its postseason ERA stands astatine conscionable 1.54, connected gait to beryllium the second-lowest each clip among teams that played successful astatine slightest 8 playoff games. Only the 1983 Baltimore Orioles posted a little mark.

In different words, the Dodgers' foursome of Ohtani, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow has been amended -- truthful far, astatine slightest -- than the 1996 Atlanta Braves of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. Better than a 1912 New York Giants staff, led by Christy Mathewson, which pitched successful the dormant shot era. Better than a 2001 Read Entire Article