Dodgers: Too Early to Think About the NLDS?

With little over a month left in the 2017 regular season, the Los Angeles Dodgers seem to be cruising to a fifth straight NL West title. No team has caused large amounts of trouble for this year’s club, but as it is commonly known, the postseason is a very different time.

From a fair perspective, anything can happen from now until the end of the season. However, the Dodgers haven’t exactly played bad baseball all year. It just might be time to break down the key players from potential playoff opponents.

As it stands right now, the Dodgers – who are most likely to finish with the best record in the National League (and MLB) – would face off against the winner of the one game Wild-Card contest. The Wild-Card race (featuring the top five teams in contention) includes two NL West teams; the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies.

They both hold down the number one and two spots, respectively. Beyond the strong West Division, the Milwaukee Brewers are only separated by three and a half games from the Colorado Rockies. The Miami Marlins have also been putting pressure on a late-season push and have been slugging their way through the second half. Led by Giancarlo Stanton’s power surge, the Marlins are currently a full game back of the Brew Crew. Finally, the featured-five includes the forever relentless’ St. Louis Cardinals; currently sitting six games back of the Rockies, and holding a .500 record.

All five teams who are in the postseason hunt have given the Dodgers some difficulty in past seasons; some even this year. When it comes to figuring these teams out though, Los Angeles seems to prevail – keeping in-mind that their most recent series loss (to the Brewers) was their first series loss since early June. The Diamondbacks, Rockies, Brewers, Marlins, and Cardinals have all been playing good second-half baseball, and it is expected that they will carry that into a tight race to the finish line in October.

Arizona Diamondbacks (P, Zack Greinke; 1B, Paul Goldschmidt) 

Greinke: Dodger fans know all too well about the talent and ability of Zack Greinke. The 33-year-old veteran has carried the Diamondbacks through a successful year, after bouncing back from a disappointing 2016 season on both his performance and team performance. Greinke has logged some postseason experience throughout his career; most recently has been with the Dodgers. Zack is still a feared pitcher because of his ability to control a game by mixing his pitches effectively and locating them with top-notch precision.

Goldschmidt: It seems like every time the Dodgers square-off against the Diamondbacks, Paul Goldschmidt has an unfair advantage. Over the past three seasons (51 games, and counting) against Los Angeles, Goldschmidt has batted an impressive .286, with 13 home runs, and 41 runs batted in (stats per Baseball-Reference). The calm swagger of Goldschmidt has always caused trouble for Dodger pitching and hitters, for that matter. As a sign of respect to the two-time Gold Glove and Silver Slugger award winner, not many balls get by America’s First Baseman at the plate or in the field.

Colorado Rockies (P, Greg Holland; 3B, Nolan Arenado)

Holland: A closer with a current ERA above 4.00, and pitching in his first full season since undergoing Tommy John Surgery; should Holland really be in this discussion? The answer should be ‘yes.’ Not only does Holland have World Series experience – having been to the Fall Classic in 2014 with the Kansas City Royals – but his ERA does not speak for what he has meant to the 2017 Colorado Rockies. The ‘Mile High’-powered offense in Colorado has been producing at a high rate since the start of the year. By signing Greg Holland in the past offseason, the Rockies have had a luxury that has rarely been figured out by them before; a closer who is legitimate. The experience of Holland has led him to pitch (not surprisingly) well this season with Colorado. Being able to turn to a quality bullpen arm is something that Colorado has needed and finally, has for that moment that they take the lead. Holland would be a man to do a heavy scouting report on if you are Los Angeles.

Arenado: Realistically, not much needs to be said about Nolan Arenado facing the Dodgers, or any team for that matter. He is an MVP candidate every year and unfortunately happens to be on an NL West team that is NOT named the Los Angeles Dodgers. So far, through 12 games against the Dodgers in 2017, Arenado has posted a .304 batting average, also carrying four home runs and ten runs batted in (stats per Baseball-Reference). Those numbers alone are enough to scare any Dodger fan. Not to mention, he also has Clayton Kershaw’s number – when it comes to the one-on-one matchup. Arenado’s career numbers against the Dodgers’ ace: .311, two home runs, four runs batted in, and 14 total hits; through 47 career plate appearances.

Milwaukee Brewers (P, Corey Knebel; 3B, Travis Shaw)

Knebel: Another Closer? Corey Knebel has essentially been to the Brewers, what Greg Holland has been for the Rockies. A legitimate closer. Knebel might not strike you as a household name, but he has been extremely dominant throughout 2017 and deserves a lot of credit for the success of the Milwaukee Brewers this year. Knebel has been nothing short of a staple in the Brewers’ bullpen and has made success a status quo throughout the year.    

Shaw: Travis Shaw is having a huge breakout year for the Brew Crew. Shaw is tied for the team lead in Home Runs with Eric Thames with 27 homers on the season, but Shaw leads the team with 83 RBI. He has a respectable slash line (.284/.357/.540) and leads the team with a 4.0 WAR rating. Shaw has been the most consistent player for Milwaukee and is a key reason to why they’re making noise this season in the Wild Card race.

The Brewers are right on the cusp of making the players for the first time since 2011. If the Brewers can make the playoffs and come out victorious during the NL Wild Card game, we could see both of these players as key performance come October.

St. Louis Cardinals (P, Carlos Martinez; C, Yadier Molina)

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Martinez: It may not be eye-popping, but Carlos Martinez has been posting a pretty nice second half up until now. An ERA under 4.00 is always a positive and currently holding a 4-1 win/loss record, shows that St. Louis’s man is doing his job. His first and second half stats may not be particularly amazing under the label of being ‘Ace’ of the Red Birds, but still, nothing that should cause complaints. The positive cards that Martinez brings to the table are youth, determination to win, and experience. By appearing in the World Series before, Martinez has handled himself well, ever since. He is a confident, young man who truly believes that on his night to throw; he can shut down the best offenses that the game has witnessed.

Molina: Yadi is a true vet and arguably the game’s best catcher, year-in, and year-out. More than likely to have his name in Cooperstown one day, this veteran backstop always brings the excitement to Cardinal fans. He is a catcher that can control a game on both sides of the plate and be as clutch as the best to ever do it. Age is definitely picking up the pace for the veteran Molina, but it is merely just a number to him. The Cardinals have always been able to rely on him for Gold Glove defense and a steady bat at the plate, which makes him scary if he rolls into October. Any type of run game goes out the window with Yadi behind the dish, and he is never afraid to come up big when a situation at the plate presents itself.

Next: LA Should Trade for Verlander

Assuming that the Los Angeles Dodgers can maintain their success and fly into the NLDS, they will not see any easy opponent. Of the players highlighted, there are still many other threats that the contending teams possess. However, these players, specifically have done damage to the Dodgers over some time and could pose as key players to shut down come October.