LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 05: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates a three run home run during the second inning against the San Diego Padres in Game One of the Division Series at Dodger Stadium on October 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
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Sorry to throw a knockdown pitch against popular belief, but here’s the deal regarding the 2025 World Series: The reason the Los Angeles Dodgers will handle the Toronto Blue Jays with relative ease to win it all for the third time in six years won’t involve money as much as the other stuff.
No question the Dodgers’ $321 million payroll is more than twice the amount for those involving 15 of Major League Baseball’s 30 teams.
But the Dodgers throwing all that loot at the elite of the elite wasn’t the primary reason they reached their latest World Series after they spent the playoffs slaying the streaking Cincinnati Reds, the powerful Philadelphia Phillies and the Milwaukee Brewers with the game’s best record during the regular season.
The Dodgers are heading for the ultimate champagne shower by Halloween or certainly the day after if there is a Game 7, mostly because of this: They have splendid players who form a wonderful team.
It’s simple.
And the money thing?
Um.
Ever hear of the New York Mets?
According to USA Today, the Mets began the season with the highest MLB payroll at $323 million, and they didn’t make the playoffs. The paper also listed three other teams (the Atlanta Braves, the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers) who missed the postseason despite top 10 payrolls.
In contrast, USA Today had the Reds, the Milwaukee Brewers and the Cleveland Indians ranked 22nd, 23rd and 25th respectively, and they all made the playoffs.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 16: Mookie Betts #50 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts after throwing to first base to get Andrew Vaughn #28 of the Milwaukee Brewers out at first in the ninth inning of game three of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on October 16, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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But back to the Dodgers. Except for uneven relief pitching beyond closer Roki Sasaki, nobody in MLB has surpassed their ability to do just about everything since mid-September. They went from imploding despite marquee players such as Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and some guy named Shohei Ohtani to riding the arms of pitchers such as Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow. Those starters finally got healthy and began throwing out of their minds.
All of that is a sizzling combination for the Dodgers that shows no signs of cooling after the World Series begins Friday night in Toronto.
The Dodgers won nine of their last 11 regular season games before they soared into the World Series with just one postseason loss. Through their focus and consistency come autumn, they resemble the likes of Jackie Robinson, Pee Wee Reese, Sandy Koufax, Steve Garvey, Tommy Lasorda and other legendary figures of Dodger lore, but I hear what you’re saying.
You’re not wrong.
In addition to Dodger Blue, this is also about American Green, as in dollar bills, and lots of them around Chavez Ravine in southern California.
Take Ohtani, for instance. He signed a 10-year contract with the Dodgers before the 2024 season for $700 million, and they probably got a steal. He’s baseball’s most dynamic player.
He hits, and he pitches, and he does both at an extraordinary rate. Along the way this year to would should be his third consecutive league Most Valuable Player Award (and his fourth overall), he destroyed the Brewers during a National League Championship game last week with three homers when he wasn’t on the mound using his right arm for 10 strikeouts in six shutout innings.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 17: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates in the clubhouse after defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 5-1in game four of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on October 17, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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Let’s move to Snell, a two-time Cy Young winner who signed a five-year deal with the Dodgers before this season for $182 million. He was among the slew of the aching pitchers in their rotation. He made only 11 starts during the regular season due to shoulder immflammation, but he has been a terror in the postseason with a 0.86 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 21 innings.
Now let’s jump to Betts, a perennial All-Star, who signed a 12-year contract worth $365 million with the D0dgers before the 2021 season.
Not coincidentally, nine months after Betts left the Boston Red Sox for the Dodgers, his new team won its first World Series in 32 years. Four seasons later, the Dodgers won another one with Betts.
At 33, Betts slipped a bit this regular season as one of baseball’s premier stars. But he showed his versatility during spring training in agreeing to make the transition for the Dodgers from second base (after playing the outfield) to shortstop, and he has been clutch in the field and at the plate during the playoffs.
The point is, Ohtani, Blake, Betts and the rest won’t stand in a soup line anytime soon, but they’ve also joined teammates in playing at extraordinarly high levels when the Dodgers have needed them the most during the preseason.
See. It really is simple.
