The Battle for the National League seems clear cut but is there any chance for the underdogs?

By: Vicente Olivas Jr.

22 July 2020

Who can realistically beat the Dodgers? Only 2 teams come to mind. The Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals. If we’re being generous then maybe we can add in the New York Mets and the Chicago Cubs but that seems a little far fetched at the moment.

No we are not just mentioning the Washington Nationals just because they won it all last year. The front end of their rotation is what will make them contenders again this year. Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer have what it takes to carry this Nationals team to the World Series again.

How the Nationals Won By Going Against Norms

One thing that is to be admired about the Nationals is that they were not afraid of “overusing” their pitchers. Last year in the NLDS against the Dodgers, Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer accounted for 44% of the innings pitched. That is a pretty mind-blowing statistic since starting pitchers are expected to cover around 13% of innings pitched over the course of a season. The Nationals doubled the work load for their two star pitchers and it definitely worked in their favor.

If the Nationals were to implement a little bit of that over the course of this shortened season then you can realistically see them in the playoffs. And once they’re in the playoffs, you can bet that they are going to get every last ounce out of Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer.

Braves Best Hope Against Dodgers

The Braves, on the other hand, will be looking to size up the Dodgers with their bats. Their pitching is seen as above mediocre but they definitely rely more on power hitters. Hitters like Josh Donaldson, Ronald Acuna Jr., and Freddie Freeman are what gives the Braves hope. If those three hitters can sync up when the playoffs start then the Braves will be one tough team to beat.

Given that the Nationals most some key players over the off-season, we do expect the Braves to give the Dodgers more of a struggle.

Cubs Coming in as Dark Horses

The Chicago Cubs are a well rounded team but not deep enough to compete against the Dodgers. Looking down their roster and seeing the names Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Hendricks, Yu Darvish, and Javier Baez, you would think that they should be in the conversation for winning the title. And you’d be right if this was 4 years ago. For some reason this team just isn’t clicking the way it used to. They have the talent and the star power but they are lacking execution.

Mets Pitching Gives Them A Chance

The New York Mets, I would argue, are a good scrappy team who can pull together a run for the title if EVERYONE is clicking. They don’t have much depth but they have slugger Pete Alonso, who is sure to make a run for the Home Run title again considering he led the entire league last year with 53. The Mets also have Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard at the beginning of their rotation.

I really only see the National League being a 2 horse race, between the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers. I also think the Dodgers will come out victorious in that series. The Dodgers just seem to have the right pieces for them to solve the puzzle of finally bringing back the Commissioner’s Trophy to Los Angeles.