About a month ago, many pundits and fans of the Los Angeles Dodgers thought that the loss of the divisional lead was imminent and certain. Both the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks were surging, and the Dodgers seemed to be just treading water while half the team was injured.
As of August 30, the Dodgers have maintained their lead in the NL West, and regained a bunch of their players from the IL.
Going into the series with the DBacks, the Dodgers are 4.0 games ahead of Arizona, and 5.0 ahead of the Padres. The Dodgers could be anywhere from eight games ahead of AZ to tied with AZ at the end of this four game series.
The Padres are 5-5 in their last 10, while AZ has gone 7-3. But the Dodgers have gone 8-2, including most recently, taking two of three from the Baltimore Orioles. They are the first team in the major leagues to reach 80 wins.
The team won those games without Freddie Freeman being in the lineup any of those days, as he deals with an injured finger. He will be back in the lineup for the Arizona series.
The Diamondbacks lead the season series 7-6, so the Dodgers taking three of four would be more beneficial should it come to a tie in the division.
The Diamondbacks and Padres are still in the top two spots in the NL Wildcard, and there’s a good chance the Dodgers would have to play one in the first round of the playoffs.
Pitching matchups for the series will be Friday, Clayton Kershaw vs Zac Gallen; Saturday, Gavin Stone vs Merrill Kelly; Sunday, TBD vs Brandon Pfaddt; and Monday, Jack Flaherty vs Eduardo Rodriguez.
Sunday is September 1, when the rosters expand. Justin Wrobleski and Ben Casparius are the two 40-man starters who are rested, and either could be in line to start that day.
Looking over the rest of the schedule, the Dodgers play the Cleveland Guardians, Atlanta Braves and San Diego Padres , but the rest of the schedule is relatively easy and winnable. Arizona has a little bit of a tougher schedule, having to play Houston, Milwaukee twice, and the Padres, among others. Both teams have to play in Colorado which comes with its own set of worries.
The Dodgers just need to stay healthy down the stretch, and they should be ok. That for them has been incredibly difficult for them this season, however. Hopefully they continue to find their stride and hit the playoffs in high gear.