LACE EM UP Sports
Almost a Dynasty: The Los Angeles Dodgers Ep. 2
Heading into the 2013 MLB season, the Dodgers were poised to contend not only for the NLS division title, but for a World Series championship. Led by 24-year-old and three-time Cy Young award-winning pitcher and NL MVP, Clayton Kershaw. Despite the individual success, Kershaw had yet to lead his team to a postseason. But with a new regime at the home, new team acquisitions, and a starved fan base for success, Kershaw was ready to take his team to new heights. It was clear that how far the Dodgers went would be how far Clayton Kershaw would lead them. The Dodgers finished the 2013 regular season with a 92-70 record, claiming the NLS division championship. This set up a divisional round series match up against the Atlanta Braves, which was no problem for LA, as they would take care of business in the opening round three games to one. All roads led to a showdown with the St. Louis Cardinals and the NLCS. Kershaw would struggle in the two games he pitched this series, particularly in Game 6, as Kershaw would crumble in the third inning, allowing four runs, three singles, often exhausting 48 pitches in the inning, as the Dodgers would eventually fall in the series. 2014 would, on paper, be a bounce-back year for LA. Kershaw would notch a legendary no-hitter on June 18th against the Rockies. Back-to-back Cy Youngs, his third in the last four years, and Kershaw would be named National League MVP for the first time in his career. Only the 10th player in the history of baseball to achieve such honors for simultaneous awards. The team would win 94 games and again would take the NL West Crown. The only thing left for Kershaw and the Dodgers was to prove themselves in October. If the Dodgers wanted redemption for last season, it was at the palm of their hands, as they faced the St. Louis Cardinals in the divisional round of the 2014 MLB postseason. The Dodgers had a lot of momentum heading into Game 1 at Dodger Stadium. Kershaw would allow two solo shot home runs in the first and six innings, but had great control of the game through eight strikeouts, as the Dodgers would lead the game 6-2 heading into the seventh. All Kershaw had to do was get through one more inning, and likely the closures, such as Kenley Jensen, would have given the Dodgers a Game 1 win. Well, that's what he had to do. What happened next was complete and utter disaster for LA. Kershaw would allow three base hits in a row, then would allow two more hits to give runs to the Cardinals to decrease the deficit 6-4. With the bases still loaded and two outs in the bag, it was crucial Kershaw didn't allow anything else as he needed one more strike to end the inning. Unfortunately, the Cardinals hit a fly triple to the track, giving St. Louis the lead 7-6. By this point, Kershaw had given close to 100 pitches, and Dodgers manager Don Mattingly took him out and brought in reliever Pedro Baez. Baez walked a couple guys and then gave up a three run homer that would be curtains for LA. The Dodgers could never recover from their seventh inning choke job in Game 1, and would lose the series in four games. Despite the individual success from Clayton Kershaw, he certainly had demons to overcome in the postseason. Not only did he need to overcome them, but the Dodgers as a team needed to just as much. The expectations of the Dodgers changed from hoping to make the postseason to simply winning the World Series. To get this team to the next level, serious changes needed to be made. On October 14th, 2014, the Dodgers named former Tampa Bay Rays executive Andrew Friedman as President of Baseball Operations. Friedman was widely praised for his time with Tampa Bay as he was able to string six consecutive winning seasons together with the use of analytics and databases to help with coaching decisions. Landing Friedman was a huge get for the Dodgers front office, but it wouldn't be the only change. In November of 2014, the Dodgers named Farhan Zaidi, former GM of the Oakland A's and General Manager. Zaidi was named by Friedman as a GM because of his use with Saber Metrics, and was the direction Friedman wanted to go with the franchise. The roster had also changed quite a bit. Gone were fan favorites, Matt Kemp, Dee Gordon, Chad Billingsley, and Hanley Ramirez. And in were young upstarts such as Andrew Heaney, Kieke Hernandez, and brought up to the main roster. Was rookie shortstop Corey Seager and catcher Austin Barnes. Despite adding key additions to the front office and the roster, the Dodgers still couldn't get over the hump in 2015. The team went 92 and 70, clinching the NLS title again, setting up for a divisional round series against the New York Mets. Kershaw again would battle postseason demons in game one, as the Dodgers would lose three to one, and ultimately would lose the series in five games. Post-season demons were very much a real thing for this gifted but unsuccessful team. On October 22nd, 2015, the Dodgers announced that manager Don Mattingly would not return for the following season. And on November 23rd, the team announced that former Dodgers player Dave Roberts would become the manager. In a shocking and sentimental announcement, on January 16th, 2016, Dodgers Hall of Fame broadcaster Vince Coley announced that he would be retiring from the club after an astonishing 67 seasons with the team going back from their days in Brooklyn. Vince Coley's legacy is unmatched in the role of sports broadcasting and was a true treasure to have. The moniker was simple, Win for Vin. Corey Seager and Kenley Jensen were named all-stars for the first time in their careers. 3rd baseman Justin Turner hit a career-high 27 home runs and turned into a real locker room leader. Kershaw spent 74 days on the IR with an inflamed back but was ready to go once the postseason hit and was ready to give the Dodgers another shot at conquering their postseason demons. After a 91 win season, the Dodgers found themselves in a divisional round battle against the Washington Nationals. On the road, Kershaw and the Dodgers would get the win in game 1-4-3, but the next two games would go the way of the Nationals. Trailing the series two games to one, the Dodgers won a nail-biting game four, which would lead to a deciding game five in Washington, D.C. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made the decision to go with veteran Rich Hill against Nationals ace Max Scherger. The idea, letting the bullpen carry the game, including the postseason debut of 19-year-old pitching upstart Julio Yudias and gave the eighth inning to all-star closer Kenley Jensen and have Kershaw close the ninth. This was a gamble, the type of which not many managers would make, but Roberts had faith in his guys. He had faith Kershaw could seize the moment, changed the narrative in his career, and it went exactly to the script. Hill at the start, Blanton and Yudias in the bullpen, Jensen in the eighth, and King Kershaw closed out the ninth. Finally, his postseason moment. The Dodgers would win the series, but would eventually fall to the eventual champion Chicago Cubs in the NLCS, but what's most important to focus on is Clinton Kershaw finally being able to break through in the postseason. Fans were excited for 2017, they had hope. This team was ready.