With the team’s 9-0 pounding of the Miami Marlins on Sunday, the Los Angeles Dodgers completed their 10th season series sweep. That mark is the best in the majors.
The Dodgers dominated the Marlins, outscoring them 21-7, and allowing just one earned run in the three games.
Of the 10 sweeps , eight of them have been three games, while the other ones were two. All but two of them have come at home.
The Dodgers tend to fare well against opponents out of their division. They swept division rivals, the Colorado Rockies in three games in April and June. But the San Diego Padres in May, and the Arizona Diamondbacks in July, were beaten in two games.
The Pirates are a favorite team for the Dodgers to face. They have swept them twice, once at home in April, and a month later on the road.
Best Team in Baseball?
In October when World Series odds were released for the 2019 season, the Dodgers, along with the New York Yankees, were the third pick at 8/1. The Boston Red Sox were the favorite at 6/1, followed by the Houston Astros at 7/1.
The odds actually dipped in January to 10/1. Then came back to 8/1 as the season began at the end of March. Los Angeles didn’t become the second choice of oddsmakers until May 1 at 5/1, closely behind the 9/2 Astros.
As July came, the Dodgers had the best record in baseball, and were 12 games up in the NL West. Their odds dropped to 3/1 and have stayed their since the All-Star Break.
Validating Favorite Status
The Dodgers took their best record in baseball the second week of July and went to Fenway for a rematch of last year’s World Series. The Red Sox had been slumping, and Los Angeles took advantage, winning two of the three games.
After the series Red sox manager Alex Cora pointed out what everyone else was thinking.
“This is the team that everybody knows is the best team in baseball,” Cora said of the Dodgers. “They are. If you look for motivation after the All-Star break, it’s right there. From day one until the All-Star break, what they’ve been doing is amazing.”
Striking Offense
The Dodgers have always been known for strong pitching, but this year the offense is destroying opposing pitchers. They are second in runs scored, and have had 12 games where they have scored 10 or more runs.
In Sunday’s 9-0 victory over Miami, Joc Pederson and Max Muncy had early two-run homers to give starting pitcher Walker Buehler a comfortable lead.
The team now has 27 homers and 77 runs in 10 games since the All-Star Break, the most in the majors.
But what impresses manager Dave Roberts is the defense the team is playing.
“People say why is our defense so good? Because we (bleeping) care about every pitch. That’s why.â€
Still the team has been to the World Series the last two years, and come up empty. Roberts has said he believes this team is more talented than the previous two. They are certainly playing like it.