Friday, August 28, 2026

Copyrighted by Sarah Morris, 2026

Heading into Atlanta, everyone hoped the Dodgers would bury the Atlanta Braves for the second bye in the National League.

The Dodgers got swept. Each game was decided by one run. Whereas the Braves played complete baseball, the Dodgers didn’t play fundamentally sound baseball.

Although they have a game lead for the second bye in the National League, they won’t get it unless they improve their play quickly.

If you are like Mookie Betts, who cares whether the Dodgers play the National League Wild Card round? After all, they swept the Cincinnati Reds in 2025 en route to their second consecutive World Championship.

This season is not like the 2025 season. The Dodgers will play either the Chicago Cubs or the Philadelphia Phillies, much better teams than the Reds in the 2025 season.

Also, the Dodgers played good baseball during September 2025, and no one is confident that they can do it this season.

Certainly, they are capable of outperforming the 2025 Dodgers, even though they just lost Roki Sasaki, who has been brilliant after the All-Star break, to a bad blister issue.

Will they?

No one knows.

For the entire season, the offense has been inconsistent. The players don’t take good situational at-bats. They don’t move runners over with fewer than two outs. They don’t shorten up with two strikes, ensuring the best chance to make contact. Their power comes and goes.

The loss of Andy Pages is devastating even though Alek Thomas has performed beyond expectations. When he has started a game since Pages has been out, he has driven in a run with a timely hit. The rest of the lineup hasn’t been able to get a timely hit if their lives depended on it.

The Dodgers are like we need Will Smith back. After missing almost three months with an irritated disc in his neck, Smith is expected to be activated on September 1^st. However, Ben Rortvedt and Hunter Feduccia have been delivering timely hits. Before going on the IL, Smith underperformed offensively with a .249 batting average, six home runs, and 23 RBI.

Of course, pitching has deteriorated since Smith has been out. He gives the pitchers a stabilizing influence behind the plate. The Dodgers haven’t had a veteran receiver since he has been out. Dalton Rushing, Rortvedt, Feduccia, Chuckie Robinson, and Eliézer Alfonzo have been trying to do an adequate job while learning the league and the pitching staff.

Before the All-Star break, the Dodgers have been a fantastic defensive team. Since then, they have committed errors. Dave Roberts said they need to focus.

The Dodgers have played about 500 games since the beginning of the 2025 season. Most teams play about 192 games a season, including spring training, but the Dodgers have gone deep into the postseason for the last two years.  The players are physically and mentally exhausted. They are trying not to make excuses. Everyone is businesslike.

The Dodgers need to play better, plain and simple. Getting swept by the Braves is understandable and embarrassing.