The San Diego Padres were finally able to break the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ recent domination in the NL West and the playoffs.
Yes, the Dodgers won 111 games and finished 22 games ahead of the Padres in the NL West standings.
Yes, the Dodgers won 14 of the 19 games between them in 2022.
However, the games that really count were won by the Friars in a shocking way.
Led by amazing bullpen play and some opportunistic hitting, the Padres won three games in a row after losing the first one to overcome the Dodgers and advance to the National League Championship Series against the Philadelphia Phillies.
“It has to be said: The 2022 Dodgers are the biggest failure in the history of baseball. 111 wins, Best run differential since 1939, Biggest wins differential in playoff matchup (22) since 1906, 1-0 series lead, followed by 3 straight losses. Didn’t even make it to the NLCS,” Dodgers insider Blake Harris tweeted.
It has to be said
The 2022 Dodgers are the biggest failure in the history of baseball
111 wins
Best run differential since 1939
Biggest wins differential in playoff matchup (22) since 1906
1-0 series lead, followed by 3 straight losses
Didn’t even make it to the NLCS
— Blake Harris (@BlakeHarrisTBLA) October 16, 2022
The Dodgers losing gave us 1906 vibes, when the Chicago Cubs lost the World Series to the Chicago White Sox after winning a record 116 games in the regular season.
The Dodgers Were MLB’s Elite Team Until September
The Dodgers were the best team in baseball for six months, from April to September.
We had warned, however, that October games were a different animal.
The Dodgers were no match for the Padres’ incredible pitching staff, from the starter to the bridge guys to closer Josh Hader, who recovered his best form at the right time.
In this specific case, winning 111 games didn’t help them that much in October since they went 1-1 in games at home and lost both on the road against San Diego.
Home-field advantage didn’t help them, and they were beat by a solid, hot team.
The Dodgers may be the biggest failure in MLB’s history, as Harris says.
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