Dodgers’ 104 wins mean little without Series title
LOS ANGELES — When the Dodgers clinched the first of their five consecutive NL West titles in Phoenix four years ago, they infamously celebrated by jumping into the Chase Field pool, angering a few Diamondbacks and their fans.
But Paul Goldschmidt says anybody looking for long-simmering hard feelings from that drama in the NL Division Series is all wet.
“I don’t think anyone cared then, and nobody cares now,” the veteran Diamondbacks first baseman said. “When you win, you get to celebrate, and that’s awesome. That was my feeling back then. Those guys beat us. They won the division. Now they’ve done it five years in a row.”
Indeed, that pool party is a distant memory for the current players in this rivalry, which finally got an October chapter in Game 1 on Friday night. The Diamondbacks spent most of the season pursuing the Dodgers in the NL West standings, meeting 19 times and forging a mutual respect that outweighs any enmity.
The D’backs did a little celebrating of their own Wednesday after their 11-8 victory over the Rockies in the wild-card game. Both teams agree the Diamondbacks head into this bestof-five series with more momentum than the 104win Dodgers, who finished with the best record in baseball even after meandering through a late 1-16 skid.
Before Clayton Kershaw took the mound against Taijuan Walker in Game 1, the Dodgers were spreading the word that everybody knew their regularseason achievements were meaningless for a team that has not reached the World Series since 1988.
Here are more storylines about these clubs’ first postseason meeting:
Kershaw gets another chance to fashion a signature postseason performance. The three-time Cy Young Award winner was 4-7 with a 4.55 ERA in 18 career postseason games, but the left-hander went 2-1 last year and pitched memorably in relief while the Dodgers reached the NLCS. Manager Dave Roberts has repeatedly said he doesn’t intend to use Kershaw in relief this October.
The Diamondbacks were one of just two teams to win their season series against the Dodgers, going 11-8, including wins in the final six meetings during the Dodgers’ late slump. “There’s familiarity, but I think there’s hopefully a lot of respect,” Goldschmidt said. “I know we respect them.”
Dodgers slugger Cody Bellinger made his postseason debut after setting an NL rookie record with 39 homers in the regular season. Bellinger grew up in the Phoenix area, and he went just 7-for-39 with one homer against the Diamondbacks. Goldschmidt remains the Diamondbacks’ best bat with a 120RBI season, but David Peralta and Jake Lamb made big contributions to a lineup that scored 42 more runs than the Dodgers in the regular season.
D’backs ace Zack Greinke likely won’t pitch against his former team until Game 3 after getting the start in the wild-card game. Greinke left the Dodgers two years ago for a $206.5 million deal in Arizona.