It’s a little too soon to feel bubbly
The Dodgers are the champions of the National League West.
Similar words were written in these pages in each of the previous four years. Never did they feel as underwhelming as they do now.
Ordinarily, the securing of a division title is a festive occasion. The accomplishment is deserving of a celebration, worthy of every drop of champagne sprayed on the clubhouse ceiling.
What the Dodgers experienced Friday night was considerably more anticlimactic.
In the aftermath of a division-clinching 4-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants, the overwhelming emotion that surged through the stands at Dodger Stadium wasn’t euphoria. It was relief.
Relief the Dodgers didn’t blow what was once a 21game division lead. Relief they won’t have to play in the wild-card play-in game. Relief they will have a place in an NL division series.
When closer Kenley Jansen struck out Ryder Jones to seal the victory, the fans stood and applauded. But the crowd didn’t roar and the stadium didn’t shake. The on-field celebration by the players was also tempered.
“It’s different,” manager Dave Roberts said before the game.
That’s because division championships are more than opportunities to reflect on the previous six months. They are chances to imagine what is possible in October.
But who wants to look ahead now?
The Dodgers have been downright awful over the last four weeks. They entered Friday night with only six victories in their previous 26 games.
The start of their recent three-city trip offered the promise of relief. They won two of three games in San Francisco. They did the same in Washington.
They looked as if they had moved past their recent 1-16 stretch, which included a franchise-record 11-game losing streak. They hadn’t.
The Dodgers lost the first three games of a four-game series to the Philadelphia Phillies, a rebuilding franchise at the bottom of baseball’s worst division.
A month ago, the Dodgers were the best team in baseball, within striking distance of the season record for wins. And now?
With Corey Seager injured, the offense is nowhere near as dangerous as it was early in the season. The bullpen looks particularly vulnerable.
“Everybody got cold at the same time,” Jansen said.
What makes the situation particularly disconcerting is that Roberts and his players have absolutely no explanation for what has happened.
“I can’t really put a finger on it,” Roberts said.
Roberts acknowledged this is a problem. He wants his team to be playing well when the regular season ends.
“You still want to go in feeling good about yourself because there’s a psychological component that goes into not winning baseball games —and also, on the flip side, winning baseball games,” he said.
There was an instant Friday when the Dodgers looked as if they might have broken out of their monthlong slumber. It was in the second inning, when rookie Cody Bellinger sent an offering from Giants starter Jeff Samardzija over the right-field wall for a threerun home run that moved the Dodgers in front 4-1.
As Bellinger rounded the bases, the stadium sounded like it did back in the good old days. Loud music blared over the sound system. The fans cheered.
The home run turned out to be the high point of the night, not the relaunch of a once-potent offense. The Dodgers didn’t score another run.
Even the usually reliable Jansen looked human on this night, as he served up a ninth-inning home run to Pablo Sandoval that reduced the Dodgers’ advantage to 4-2.
The Dodgers have eight more regular-season games to capture some semblance of momentum.
And if that fails, well, they can always fall back on the inexplicable. Their division series will start five days after the end of the regular season. Maybe the short break will allow them to miraculously revert back to their midseason form.
“The regular season and the postseason, there’s no parallel, really,” Roberts said.
He can only hope.