The Los Angeles Dodgers vs. New York Yankees World Series will be the clash of baseball’s biggest giants since the last time these teams met in the World Series (hard to believe, in 1981). It’s also against the New York Yankees. He is the clear favorite to win the Dodgers, is a -122 favorite on FanDuel, and has a +420 bet to win the Fall Classic in six games.
The Dodgers led the majors with 98 wins this season and showed off their tremendous depth when they defeated the New York Mets for six straight games in the National League Championship Series.
Los Angeles scored 46 points (the most ever by a National League team in a postseason series) against the Mets. But while Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts were the usual superhumans, the National League’s MVP was 5-foot-10 utility man Tommy Edman. He had 11 RBIs, nine fewer than in the regular season, and helped the Dodgers win both games. Freddie Freeman, who batted .167 while battling a sprained right ankle, remained limping.
Also, the Dodgers were deep in the bullpen, allowing manager Dave Roberts to suffer lopsided punt losses in Games 2 and 5, resulting in high-leverage relief pitchers wearing duct tape and paper. He is now able to pitch as often as possible behind a rotation that has been pieced together with clips. .
And that razor-thin rotation is why the Yankees, who have much deeper starting pitching depth, are able to win this World Series — especially since seasoned ace Gerrit Cole will play in Game 1 on Friday. If we win.
Since 2013, only Clayton Kershaw and Justin Verlander have pitched more innings in the playoffs than Cole, who has a 2.98 ERA in 120 2/3 innings pitched. Cole hasn’t been his Hall of Fame self since returning from a right elbow injury that cost him the first three-and-a-half months of the season.
However, his 3.40 ERA in 111 1/3 innings (including playoffs) was better than the Dodgers’ trio of Jack Flaherty, Walker Buehler, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (none of whom pitched more than 90 innings with the club). Provides an excellent record of recent reliability. (Flaherty finished 162 innings in Los Angeles vs. the Detroit Tigers).
If Cole pitches well, there will be more pressure on the Dodgers’ starting trio and less room for error for Roberts as he operates out of the bullpen.
Flaherty, who is likely to be Los Angeles’ Game 1 starter, has a 4.91 ERA in 40 1/3 postseason innings, including a 7.04 ERA in three starts this month. It is recorded. he He threw a gem against the Mets in the NLCS opener.However, his seven scoreless innings included eight outs on balls hit harder than 95 mph. Yamamoto and Buehler were limited to 165 1/3 innings in the regular season due to shoulder and elbow injuries, but averaged 4 1/3 innings and posted a 5.48 ERA in five starts in October. .
Friday’s strong performance also put pressure on the Yankees’ less-proven postseason rest (Carlos Rodon, Clark Schmidt, Luis Gil) and the bullpen, which posted a 2.56 ERA in the ALDS and ALCS. It may also be possible to reduce the
Rodon, who is expected to be the starter for Game 2, has done better at home (3.98 ERA in 124 1/3 innings) than on the road (5.36 ERA in 129 1/3 innings) in two seasons with the Yankees. ) was much better. However, when he took the mound with a 1-0 series lead, he played a calmer version of Rodon, a bitter and calm man who boasted a postseason ERA of 5.82 and admitted to being too emotional in Game 2 of the American League. New York will have a better chance of getting it. In the series against the Kansas City Royals, they gave up four runs in 3 2/3 innings and lost 4-2.
Schmidt and Gill, who are scheduled to start Games 3 and 4 at Yankee Stadium, started three postseason games and did not pitch in the fifth inning, but had an ERA of 4.05. Cole’s strong start in Game 1 and his likely availability if Game 5 is needed means manager Aaron Boone can rely heavily on the Bronx’s bullpen, and the Yankees The chances of the team ultimately winning the championship for the first time since 2009 are much higher.
