The Los Angeles Dodgers captured their eleventh National League West title in the last twelve years with a 7-2 victory over their division rivals in the San Diego Padres.

It is also the twelfth year in a row that they have made the playoffs, by far the longest streak among current teams and only third behind the Atlanta Braves from 1991 to 2005 and the New York Yankees from 1995 to 2007 in the history of the Major League Baseball.

As it stands, the Boys in Blue currently have a record of 95-64, which gives them the most wins in the MLB this season. However, it will be their first campaign not to reach 100 wins since 2018 (excluding the shortened 2020 season).

Already in play-off mode

It came down to the Boys in Blue on Thursday evening, who have already clinched a play-off spot. It was a much closer race than they are used to compared to recent years, with both the Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks nipping at their heels in the race for the division title.

A highly anticipated matchup between the Dodgers and Padres – separated by just three games to start the series – was exactly the playoff atmosphere expected with just a week until October officially begins baseball.

Tuesday night’s game saw their lead shrink as San Diego, after a night of three RBIs from Jake Cronenworth and a dominant performance on the mound from Michael King, made an unlikely triple play to secure the 4-2 victory. Wednesday’s game was also a nail-biter, but the Dodgers could handle that come back from behind to outscore the Padres 4-3 and step closer to another NL West title.

Thursday was a little different, with both teams going scoreless for four innings. However, in the fifth, the Padres drove in the first run of the game and scored again on a sacrifice fly in the sixth.

Trailing by two, catcher Will Smith opened the floodgates with a two-run homer to center field in the bottom of the seventh. With momentum, the Dodgers took the lead away from the Padres by driving in three more runs before returning to the dugout.

LA extended their lead and never looked back in the bottom of the eighth inning with a two-run homer from outfielder Andy Pages.

How did they get here?

This season was just another season in what has been a dominant series over the past decade. In addition to their NL West titles, they have had several players earn major awards, a list that will inevitably include baseball titles. very first 50-50 club member in Shohei Ohtani the end of the season comes.

It was all but confirmed that the Dodgers would storm to an early division lead to start the year, which they did, but they’ve met stiff competition from their division rivals all season, pushing them to within the narrow margin of victory on Thursday.

Somehow they strengthened what was already an incredible lineup when they signed Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani to his 10-year, $700 million contract this offseason. They also inked a fellow Japanese star pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto And traded for proven star Tyler Glasnow of the Rays, adding to their deep starting rotation.

However, injuries played a major factor in the campaign, with every starting pitcher ending up on the injured list at some point, an issue that continues to plague the team as October looms. Currently, they have key players like Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May, Glasnow, Tony Gonsolin, and River Ryan still on the IL, with no expectations of them pitching in the playoffs.

However, it all seems normal for the Dodgers, who have continued to thrive while wading through a slew of injured players. They were able to bring in a number of MLB-ready minor leaguers throughout the year and use them in any way they could to stake their claim as NL West champions. A string of similar seasons has seen them consistently earn their spot in October, while fielding a slew of different players than they started the year with.

They have fought their way to the World Series three times in recent years, winning once against the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020. Since then, however, their playoff run has been inexplicably disappointing, with back-to-back eliminations in the first round of the National League Division Series, most recently to the Diamondbacks, who stunned them with a three-game sweep en route to their own world championship. Series mooring.

Despite significant roster turnover since their title, with key figures like Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager and Justin Turner ending up at different teams, they have still been able to continue their long run of success with free agent signings, trades and a deep minor. league system that continues to produce star players every year.

What’s next?

The Boys in Blue have three games left to wrap up the season as they head to Denver to take on the Colorado Rockies. They then have a bye in the first round while they wait for their first opponent of the postseason, who will play each other in the wild-card round.

If the season were to end today, they would be waiting to face the Padres or the New York Mets after playing a best-of-three series to see who advances to the NLDS.