by Cary Osborne
It’s the defending World Series champion playing at home on one side. And it’s the final team in the Major League postseason on the other side.
There is no way the Dodgers are looking at it that way when they host the Cincinnati Reds in the Wild Card Series beginning on Tuesday.
The Dodgers know they have work cut out for them.
“I think a way to combat that is we have to not take them lightly because it’s a really good ballclub, and they played their way into the postseason,” said manager Dave Roberts. “Also you’re playing a team that essentially feels like they have nothing to lose.”
The Dodgers are doing everything to ensure that they are at their best for the series — meaning getting guys healthy, weighing every single option for a roster spot and starting the series with a potential buzzsaw on the mound in Blake Snell.
Snell allowed one earned run over his last three starts this season (0.47 ERA), with 28 strikeouts in 19 innings. The first-year Dodger and two-time Cy Young Award winner is starting in the postseason for the first time since 2022 when he was with the Padres.
“The reason why I came here was to pitch in October and to really challenge myself personally and see how good I am,” Snell said. “To face the best when the stakes are the highest — that’s what I always wanted.”
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The Reds are going with right-hander Hunter Greene to start Game 1. Greene, from the Santa Clarita Valley, had a 2.64 ERA in five September starts — included in that was a one-hit shutout of the Cubs on Sept. 18.
Roberts confirmed that Yoshinobu Yamamoto will start Game 2. And if there is a Game 3, Shohei Ohtani will probably be the starter, Roberts said.
The day before the series, the Dodgers were giving looks to players coming into this series with questionable health.
Third baseman Max Muncy, dealing with lower body issues, and catcher Will Smith, with a hairline fracture in his right hand, went through workouts and hit on Monday.
Muncy, who didn’t appear in the Dodgers’ final four regular season games, said he’ll be ready to go on Tuesday.
“The weekend was a good chance to give the body a reset and work on a couple of things, and that’s where we’re at,” Muncy said. “There’ve been a lot of issues going on from when I came back (from an oblique strain on Sept. 8). A lot of hit by pitches, a lot of lingering effects from those, and just trying to get things cleared out and get things cleared out mentally.”
Roberts said that there’s a chance the Dodgers would carry three catchers on the roster to have Smith available at some point during this series. Roberts said Tommy Edman, who has been bothered by a right ankle issue at different points this season, will be good to go for this series.
Roberts said he also expected Roki Sasaki to make the Wild Card roster. Sasaki excelled in two one-inning relief appearances after returning to the Major League club last Wednesday.
Clayton Kershaw won’t be on the roster but is a possibility down the road in the postseason.
But they have to get past the first obstacle in that road.
The Dodgers ended the season 15–5 in their last 20 games after two disappointing walk-off losses in Baltimore. They come into the postseason with momentum.
“We’re locked in and focused on this series,” Roberts said. “But I do think that being at home, not having to travel, it’s important for us to strike early and not let these guys hang around and gain confidence. I’ve talked about edge and keeping our edge and not giving these guys any opportunity of life.”
2025 Postseason: Dodgers intent on keeping their edge was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.