Padres fans' 'Beat LA' chants prove Dodgers must be ready for a gauntlet

The Braves really should've done us the favor of disposing of the Padres in the Wild Card round, but through San Diego's two-game sweep this week, it never really looked like Atlanta stood a chance. The Braves were shut out in Game 1, and then failed to mount enough of a comeback in Game 2 that would've forced a tiebreaker. That moves the Padres onto the NLDS to face the Dodger, which keeps a rivalry that's been burning all year long going strong.

As the Padres were celebrating on the field at Petco, the Friars faithful started chanting "Beat LA" at the top of their lungs.

Let's not forget that the Dodgers have a .551 record against the Padres since the latter club was founded in 1969, and for a very long time (despite brief flashes of greatness), the Padres were the heel of the NL West. Padres fans have a lot of gall for a fanbase that's never seen their team win the World Series, while the Dodgers have done it six times since their move to LA, three during the Padres' lifetime.

However, we're not blind to the facts — the Padres are definitely amped coming out of the Wild Card, and in a lot of ways, they do just seem like a more complete team than the Dodgers right now. But we are practically begging these Dodgers: please get your act together and beat these guys. If you don't, Padres fans might literally never be quiet again.

Padres' fans "Beat LA" chants should light a fire under the Dodgers' seats going into the NLDS

The biggest issue here is going to be pitching. In September, Padres starting pitching had the fourth lowest ERA in the majors at 2.69, and the Dodgers had the worst in baseball at 5.80. San Diego's bullpen had the fifth-best ERA, LA the 11th-best. The Padres' rotation only has three starters as it is — Dylan Cease, Michael King, and Yu Darvish (Joe Musgrove was pulled from his latest start with an injury) — and they're all still more reliable than the Dodgers' four.

Offensively, the Dodgers are coming off of an incredibly embarrassing showing in the 2023 NLDS, with Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman going a collective 1-for-21 at the plate. LA's lineup is top-heavy, we all know this, but if that's the case and two of the biggest bats in the lineup disappear again, that could spell a quick end to this year's postseason run. Shohei Ohtani can only do so much by himself and, thanks to six years with the Angels, is still untested in the postseason.

The margin for error here is basically nonexistent. The Dodgers will either dig deep and find it within themselves to get through this series, or they're going to have to deal with another year of getting flamed for crashing out of the playoffs.