Dodgers News: Despite 'Tempered' Expectations from Media, LA Skipper Expects Championship
The Dodgers had a lackluster offseason in many respects, while the Padres had a loud winter, the Giants improved their team, and the Diamondbacks are expecting their outstanding farm system to start paying dividends. Add it all up, and many in the industry expect LA's hold on the National League West — which they've won nine of the last ten years — to be at risk.
That doesn't bother Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts, though, as Bob Nightengale reports in USA Today.
The Dodgers, for the first time in a decade, ... may no longer be the overwhelming favorites to win the division.
“I don’t mind it. I think that the smartest people in the room know that you don’t win a postseason in the winter. So, a lot of teams are getting a lot of [attention], which is great, but I know our guys believe we still have a good ballclub.’’
Roberts doesn’t plan to come out and boldly predict the Dodgers will win the World Series like a year ago, but if you ask him, he still believes they’ll be the last ones standing.
“I think the expectations might be more tempered in the media or the industry, but I don’t think the players or anyone else in the organization doesn’t expect us to be the champions.’’
If there's one thing the Dodgers have learned and re-learned over the past decade, it's that the baseball season (and postseason) isn't played on paper. The Dodgers are also likely higher on their offseason than others are, with good early reports on Noah Syndergaard and high expectations for rookie Miguel Vargas. Over this 10-year stretch of success, LA has rarely played in the deep end of the free-agent market. They signed Freddie Freeman last year when he dropped to their price point, but for the most part, their teams haven't been built through high-end free agency.
You could ask 100 experts who won the offseason, and none of them would say the Dodgers. But Los Angeles isn't interested in winning the offseason, and the winner of the offseason rarely turns into the winner in October.
