Dodgers Star Thinks Padres Win 2024 World Series If They Beat LA in NLDS

Oct 28, 2024; New York, New York, USA; The Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate with pitcher Michael Kopech (45) after defeating the New York Yankees in game three of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images | Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images

When the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres met in the National League Division Series last year, they were arguably the best two teams in baseball.

It's also fair to say that whichever team won the series would have gone on to win the World Series. It was the Dodgers who managed to win both and one of their stars believes the Padres would have been the last team standing if they had won the NLDS.

“That series against the Padres,” Dodgers reliever Michael Kopech told USA TODAY Sports, “was the most intense series ever. They were so good. If we had lost to them, I’m convinced they would have been the ones to win the World Series.”

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The series was tough, but the Padres are confident that they will meet the Dodgers in the postseason again — but the National League West got better overall this offseason. The Dodgers picked up several free agents, the Padres added Nick Pivetta, the San Francisco Giants signed Willy Adames and Justin Verlander, and the Arizona Diamondbacks struck a deal with Corbin Burnes.

“Our division now is by far the best division in baseball," Manny Machado said. “Hands down. We’ve got four teams who could make the playoffs.

“The Dodgers are [bleeping] good, man. But we’re excited to take them down. There’s nothing better than having a championship team in your division that you can knock off."

The Dodgers are aware of the giant bullseye on their backs. They also don't want to be in a similar position as last year with their backs against the wall in the first postseason series, one loss away from elimination.

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However, the Padres are okay with flying under the radar. Their pitching staff doesn't feature nine potential starters or five closers. They're not expected to win 103 games, nor are they projected to reach 93 victories again.

“But no one was picking us to do what we did last year either," Bogaerts said. “We were one of the best two teams in baseball at the end of the season."

The Dodgers and Padres met once during spring training and won't see each other again until June when the Dodgers travel to San Diego for a three-game series on June 9.

For more Dodgers news, head over to Dodgers on SI.