Giants pitcher hypes up Dodgers (for some reason) heading into 2024 season

The Dodgers/Giants rivalry is longstanding and storied, even if it's seemingly becoming more and more lopsided this offseason as the Dodgers pick up superstars and the Giants keep losing out on those same superstars. The Dodgers have been consistent, perennial postseason contenders since 2004, while the Giants have had flashes of greatness (and two more World Series wins) since then, but have failed to make the playoffs as often.

The rivalry is over 100 years old at this point and has swapped coasts, but players on both teams are still aware of the history of animosity between them, with some actively fanning those flames. This offseason, the narrative has even turned to the cities themselves, with new Dodgers acquisitions citing living in LA as a motivating factor in signing with the team and a Bay Area native (who, granted, has never played for the Giants) calling San Francisco a "bad city."

Praise between the two parties is rare, but Giants pitcher Ross Stripling seemed just as amazed by the Dodgers' achievements this offseason as anyone else. In an appearance on Foul Territory, Stripling said of LA's new additions, "props to [the Dodgers] for making it happen."

Giants pitcher Ross Stripling hypes up Dodgers heading into 2024 season

Stripling also said the Dodgers are "going full-on villain mode" this offseason, which the Dodgers and their fans should take nothing but delight in. With Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Teoscar Hernández added to the roster on top of Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and Walker Buehler (expecting a comeback in April/May), the Dodgers are expected to terrorize not only the NL West and the Giants but MLB as a whole.

The Giants, on the other hand, only have a few signings under their belt, with KBO star Jung Hoo Lee and reliever-to-starter Jordan Hicks headlining. The Giants' swings and misses at Ohtani and Yamamoto, and Shōta Imanaga were just the latest additions to their now-infamous list of players they lost out on.

All petty discussions about which city is better aside, the Dodgers just have a proven track record of winning over the past decade, and the Giants don't. If even the Giants' staff is intimidated by the team's offseason improvements, that doesn't bode well for San Francisco and should be music to the Dodgers' ears.