5 Bold Predictions for the Dodgers 2024 Season
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ 2024 season is officially here (for the second time).
After opening their regular season in Korea with a 1-1 split against the San Diego Padres, the Dodgers are back in Los Angeles and ready to re-kick off their 2024 campaign.
The team spent nearly $1.4 billion this offseason, and they’re now laser-focused on winning a World Series title. However, they have a long way to go before they have to start thinking about October.
So for now, with the season officially underway across MLB, here are five bold predictions for the Dodgers’ 2024 season (with a few bonus ones).
Let’s jump right in.
1. Yoshinobu Yamamoto Will Pitch Into the 9th Inning This Season
I wanted to have some fun with my first bold prediction, and say that the Dodgers’ $325 million pitcher will find a way to go deep into at least one game this year.
The Dodgers under Dave Roberts have been notorious for pulling their starters early — even during the most dominant of performances — and it would make sense for the Dodgers to exercise extra caution in Yamamoto’s first year of a 12-year deal.
However, he’s shown the ability to go deep into games — his last start in the NPB in Game 6 of the Japan Series was a complete game, 14-strikeout, 138-pitch performance — and he’ll have a special performance this year that takes him into the 9th inning of a game… maybe he’ll even finish it, but I don’t want to get too bold here.
2. Gavin Lux Will Hit .300 This Season
Time to get a little bolder, and I’m going with a breakout offensive season for the Dodgers’ second baseman.
Lux has been in the headlines way more than he would have wanted this spring, but the torn ACL is behind him, the shortstop issues are behind him and he can now focus on getting on base for the potent top of the Dodgers’ lineup.
Lux hit .276 in 129 games in 2022, but he was hitting .297 in 110 games before he went down with a neck injury.
Expect Lux to do his job all year long, and get on base at a high-rate, eclipsing the .300 mark for the first time in his career.
Bonus bold prediction: Lux hits double-digit home runs this season. His career-high is seven in 2021 and he hit six in 2022. He’s going to surpass 10 this year.
3. Shohei Ohtani Hits 50 Home Runs
The Dodgers shelled out $700 million to lure Ohtani to Los Angeles, and that was with the knowledge that he wouldn’t be pitching in 2024 as he recovers from a torn UCL.
Since Ohtani isn’t pitching, he’ll want to go above and beyond on offense — and that’s exactly what I’m predicting.
Ohtani’s career-high for home runs in a season is 46, which he accomplished in 155 games in 2021.
However, in 135 games last year, he had 44 home runs, which led the American League.
Expect Ohtani to pass the 50 threshold this season, and lead the Dodgers in home runs in his first season in Los Angeles.
Bonus Bold Prediction: Ohtani sets a career-high in stolen bases, surpassing 30 for the first time in his career. He had 26 stolen bases in 2021.
4. Tyler Glasnow Will Throw Career-High in Innings, Lead Team in ERA and Finish Top 3 Cy Young
I pulled out all the stops for my fourth bold prediction here.
First, expect Glasnow to shatter his career-high in innings pitched, which is 120. That’s the least bold of the predictions.
Second, expect him to lead the team in ERA, which is definitely bolder considering the star power in the Dodgers’ rotation and the fact that he had a 3.53 ERA in 2023.
But Glasnow will be dominant in his first of five years in Los Angeles, and have an ERA well under 3.00.
Finally, between the career-high in innings, the low ERA and the expected high strikeout numbers (he had a 12.2 K/9 in 2023), Glasnow is going to put it all together en route to a top three finish in the National League Cy Young award race.
He’s going to cement himself as the ace of the Dodgers and a premier pitcher in MLB.
5. Freddie Freeman Finally Wins a Batting Title
The Dodgers’ first baseman has somehow never won a batting title in his illustrious 15-year career. That changes in year 16.
Freeman hit .331 in 2023, but unfortunately had to compete with Luis Arráez, who hit .354 in Miami.
In 2022, Freeman hit .325, falling percentage points shy of beating out Jeff McNeil, who hit .326 and sat out the last game of the season.
Freeman hit as high as .341 in 2020, but Juan Soto won the batting title with the Washington Nationals hitting .351.
This year, Freeman will continue to swing the bat well, and finally get a batting title, hitting over .330 for the second straight season.
Photo Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
