Favorites for NLDS: Los Angeles Dodgers v Washington Nationals

Justin Turner and the Los Angeles Dodgers
Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals will start the NLDS on Friday, Oct. 7th, at 2:38pm PT. Both sides will headline with two of the best starting pitchers in the league. For the Dodgers, ace Clayton Kershaw and for the Nationals, Max Scherzer. This game will pretty much set the tone for the rest of the NLDS. Just like the NLWS, this game will be decided on the mound. Obviously, these two pitchers could go for CGs and possibly shutouts. Unlike the NLWC, these two teams have exceptional offenses and could break up the opposing pitcher quite quickly. For the Dodgers, Corey Seager, Justin Turner, and Adrian Gonzalez will headline for the hitters, but there are a number of other players that can contribute for the team. On the other side, the Nats have runner up NL batting title winner, Daniel Murphy, former MVP, Bryce Harper, and of course, Wilson Ramos running the show on the offensive side. Again, just like the Dodgers, the Nats have a string of other players that can contribute just as much as these players. The Dodgers definitely have the disadvantage offensively, but with regards to pitching, they probably will have the upper hand.

The Dodgers probably have one of the best starting rotations going into the postseason with Clayton Kershaw, Rich Hill, Kenta Maeda, and Julio Urias as an option. Clayton Kershaw and Rich Hill both have ERAs under 2.20 and WHIPs equal to or lower than 1.000. The Dodgers could potentially win both of the first two games solely because of these two players. Kenta Maeda and Julio Urias are two exceptional players, but are not in the same category as Clayton Kershaw and Rich Hill. Count on Kenta Maeda and Julio Urias to maybe not have a shutout or CG, but to be equal with whoever the Nats will put out in Game 3 and possibly Game 4. On the Nats side of starting pitchers, they will start Max Scherzer in Game 1, Tanner Roark in Game 2, and Gio Gonzalez in Game 3. The Nats still have a great starting rotation, but will be missing their former ace, Stephen Strasburg who went down with an injury earlier in the year. I think pitching wise, the Dodgers have the clear advantage with Kershaw and Hill taking the mound for Games 1 & 2.

The relief pitching are pretty equal when it comes down to the splits, but the Dodgers seem to have a lot more depth in that position. The Nats have a great number of relief pitchers including Oliver Perez, Mark Melancon, and Shawn Kelley. The Nats are going to need to have a solid bullpen going into these games because unlike other teams, the Dodgers have been able to escape late deficits in the 7th. 8th, and 9th innings with winning runs in the past few months. I think the biggest problem that the Nats will face will be the Dodgers depth, whether it be on the mound or in the hitter’s box. The Dodgers had a record number of players on the DL this year and that allowed for a number of other players to step up and that is exactly what they did. Even when the Nats get through with Seager, Gonzalez, and Turner, they are still going to need to get past Andrew Toles. The Dodgers, on the other hand, will need to hold off star hitters like Daniel Murphy and Bryce Harper in particular. Murphy is a threat every time he steps up to hit and we have seen what Harper can do. Even though this year has been somewhat of a down year for Harper, that can all change quite quickly once the NLDS starts.

For the Nationals to win, they are going to need solid pitching from the start of the game to the end of the game. They should not count on their offense carrying them over the hump. The second thing that they will need to do is to consider every hitter as a threat that could potentially end their World Series hopes. This includes: pitchers, rookies, veterans, and of course, players that no one has heard about. For the Dodgers to win, they will need to stop Harper and Murphy any way possible, including walks. Murphy and Harper are too good to allow them to get series ending runs. Secondly, the Dodgers need their offense to stay consistent and have their regular players hit consistently, including players like Joc Pederson, Howie Kendrick, and Chase Utley.

In the end, I believe that the Dodgers are favorites because they simply have superior pitching and this will carry them to the NLCS. The Dodgers also beat the Nationals five out of the six times that they played each other this season. The only time that the Dodgers had lost was when Bud Norris was pitching, and Bud Norris isn’t on the playoff roster.

Final Prediction of NLDS: Dodgers in 5 games