The Dodgers and Braves Have Struggled Over the Last Two Postseasons and There's a Connection That Could Explain Everything
File this one under grasping at straws, perhaps. It could be something, it could be nothing, but the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves have struggled to win games over the last two postseasons.
Yes, we can point to both teams sitting idle for five days while the Wild Card teams they eventually face build momentum with series wins to even get to the NLDS. But this isn't about the layoff. This is about the brain trust at the top running both organizations.
President of Baseball Operations (POBO) for Los Angeles, Andrew Friedman, and POBO for Atlanta, Alex Anthopoulous.
Anthopoulous has been a successful front office decision maker over his career. He spent more than a decade with the Toronto Blue Jays, rising all the way to becoming the General Manager in his time there. But he was fired after the 2015 season after the club fell to the eventual World Series champion Kansas City Royals in the ALCS.
He quickly latched on with the Dodgers, becoming the Vice President under Andrew Friedman and one of his top lieutenants in the organization. The duo gravitated to one another seemingly sharing similar philosophies on how to run an organization.
Anthopolous spent the 2016-2017 seasons in LA before leaving to become the top decision maker for the Braves on November 13, 2017.
Since then, both clubs have shared similar paths.
They've been at the top of the National League in wins and in division titles but have struggled to find consistent postseason success -- particularly over the last two seasons.
Both Friedman and Anthopoulos have built teams that went on to win one World Series title (LAD 2020, ATL 2021), but what people are focusing on more now is the failures. Atlanta has been upset by the Wild Card Philadelphia Phillies two years in a row. And the Dodgers have been bounced by NL West division rivals in consecutive seasons.
The media narrative that has ensued following the shocking dismissal of both organizations has been what the hell is wrong with these teams?
In 2022 and 2023 combined, the Dodgers and Braves have 416 regular season wins between them with just three total wins in the playoffs.
Is there something fundamentally wrong with how these clubs approach the postseason? And is it coming from the top?
"I've learned the regular season and the postseason are completely different," was what Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos told a reporter after his club sent the Braves home early from the playoffs. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on MLB Network radio, "I would love to have one clear answer so we can remedy it," in reference to LA's struggles.
For the Dodgers, the San Diego Padres seemed hungrier in 2022, whatever that means. This October, the Diamondbacks just outplayed LA in "every facet of the game," as Roberts said following the Game 3 loss.
The Dodgers and Braves have seemingly forgotten to flip the switch to October mode in each of the last two years. The even-keel mentality of both clubs is a proven success in the regular season -- a mentality that starts at the top with Friedman and Anthopoulos. But it sends you to Cancun early in October.
Is that the problem? That's tough to say. But it certainly seems like it's a problem.
