Editorials

2019 Dodgers Clutch Gene Could Carry Them to World Series Title

This 2019 Dodgers club is special. The 2017 season felt like this too, but came to a crashing halt in Game 7 of the World Series with crushed dreams and forced revelations of 1988. 2018 did not have quite the same aura around it, but it still resulted in a National League pennant. This year, however, is said to be the most special of any team the Dodgers have fielded since the well-documented 1988 underdogs.

https://twitter.com/DanJPreciado/status/1158169125232840709?s=20



This is the year and this is why:

Clutch. The Dodgers are more clutch than ever before. The Dodgers have been seemingly afraid of timely hitting in past postseasons with fans consistently taking note of their lack of production with runners in scoring position. Not converting when it matters most, a bullpen that didn’t perform up to expectations, and stars faltering are all solid reasons for the recent evasion of a World Series title.

Clutch is something that is integral to any winning team. It is that unquantifiable ‘magic’ that a team like the 2019 Dodgers possesses that is sometimes the difference between going home in tears and hoisting a trophy in front of the City of Angels. The Dodgers have fallen short, yes, but this year is simply…different.

As Rick Krajewski provides the stat above, it is important to note the context of what is being stated. The Dodgers lead the league in runs batted in with two outs. Down to their final chance in a given inning, they consistently battle their way to success rather than laying down and dying as they seemingly did in the past.

A main reason for this too, is that the Dodgers have no holes in their lineup. The eight position players that Dave Roberts tosses out on any given night seem to perform. It doesn’t matter who it is. A new savior and a new hero every single night. It could be Kristopher Negron, an older player who was written off early on in his career as a AAAA player or Matt Beaty, someone who is out to prove prospect evaluators wrong. Of course you have the typical heroics of superstars Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy with the veteran leadership of Justin Turner, but the depth and clutch gene of this team is out of this world.

The 2019 Dodgers are a special team with the production and heroics to make you a believer. In 2017, it was the production that was missing in the World Series. In 2018, it was both.

This year, though, the Dodgers are firing on all cylinders like a well-oiled machine and they will not be stopped. This may be the year we are able to put 1988 behind us and quiet the doubters.

As Dave Roberts emphatically said:

“I don’t think any team is a barometer for us. We set the bar.”

Yes, they set the bar. This team is special. I know it, you know it, and all of baseball knows that the Dodgers are a force to be reckoned with now and in the future.

31 years is too long. Let’s end it.

Daniel Preciado

My name is Daniel Preciado and I am 19 years old. I am a sophomore Sport Analytics major and Cognitive Science and Economics dual minor at Syracuse University. When I am not in New York, I live in Whittier, California --- not too far from Chavez Ravine. I am pretty old-school for being an analytics guy and I will always embrace debate. Also, Chase Utley did absolutely nothing wrong.

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