Dodgers: Has the Offense Lived Up to Expectations in 2020?
Postseason baseball is less than two weeks away, meaning that the time for predictions has come to an end. There are no more guarantees that slumps will end or that players will change old habits. Instead, all we have to go off of are the expectations that we had prior to the season and the actual numbers that the Dodgers have put up.
It’s safe to say that many expected this 2020 team to be good offensively, but have they lived up to those expectations? According to 92% of those that responded to our Twitter poll, the answer was yes.
How would you grade the offense of the #Dodgers so far in 2020? #DNPoll
— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) September 17, 2020
The 2020 Dodgers have put up some monster numbers on the offensive end this season, including homerun and run differential records that would be impressive in any year. Having said that though, is this possibly their best offensive year ever? To give some perspective, let’s take a look at how their team numbers in some key areas hold up against the 2019 Dodgers, the consensus best Dodger team in recent history.
2019 Dodgers through 52 Games
- 34-18 Record
- .256 Team Batting Average
- 79 Home Runs
- 274 Runs Scored
- 19 Stolen Bases
- .797 OPS
2020 Dodgers through 52 Games
- 37-15 Record
- .257 Batting Average
- 98 Home Runs
- 303 Runs Scored
- 26 Stolen Bases
- .814 OPS
Side by side, there’s no doubt that this year’s squad has been more impressive and has shown some serious firepower. More impressively, they’ve managed to do it with many key players struggling to get it going including Cody Bellinger, Max Muncy, Gavin Lux, and Joc Pederson. All three were key pieces for last year’s squad and have been largely unreliable for the majority of 2020. Instead, the Dodgers have relied on a more balanced offensive attack with a two-headed monster leading the way in Mookie Betts and Corey Seager.
Last night’s 15-6 route of Colorado did offer hope that the Dodgers’ lefties were starting to find a rhythm at the plate just in time for October.
Muncy, Bellinger, Lux today are a combined 4-for-7 with six RBI. Good sign for the Dodgers, who are looking to get the lefties going before the playoffs.
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) September 19, 2020
By the end of the night, the trio ended up going 6-14 with 6 RBI, 2 HR, and 1 walk. This was exactly the type of game that they all needed to boost their confidence and give them a rhythm again.
Final Thoughts
It’s a shame that we won’t get to see what this team would have done in a 162 game season. Even with their struggling batters, the Dodgers offense as a whole has most definitely lived up to the hype. At their current pace, they almost certainly would have broken the 106 win record that they set last year and quite possibly a few other records along the way.
Understandably, the designated hitter plays a role in the added numbers in 2020. Dodger DHs have combined to hit .286 with 7 home runs and 34 RBI in 52 games.
The newly expanded postseason begins on September 30th for the National League, giving us just under two more weeks of regular-season baseball. If the Dodgers can get the same production from their lefties that they got last night, this offense could absolutely explode come October and lead the way towards LA’s first title since the improbable 1988.
NEXT: The Greatest Regular Season Game in History?
Here’s a short list of guys to be happy for even if you pointed out their shortcomings or failures last year (some more colorfully than others):
Pollack is probably the come back player of the year.
Taylor has upped his game, and is looking like he did when he first came to the Dodgers.
Seager was disparaged after not immediately returning to his pre-TJ surgery MVP candidate form, now he is exceeding it.
Smith started out on fire last year, but fizzled badly as the season went on. Now he is batting over 300.
Barnes has struggled for years around the 200 BA mark. Now (thanks to Betts) he is batting 270.
Ferguson was having a career year until the elbow injury. It’s a real shame he’ll need TJ surgery. But he’s young.
Floro has upped his game.
Kolarek has proven he can pitch to anyone, RHB or LHB.
The jury’s still out on Joe Kelley. He hasn’t allowed a run yet, but he hasn’t thrown many innings either. Control is still an issue. But he was really lame last year, so anything is an improvement.
May and Gonsolin were good last year. This year they have been outstanding.
Kershaw has added velocity and movement, and is using the curve better.
Bellinger has been a far cry from MVP this year, but is showing signs of life that may come into play in the postseason. He could have a bigger impact on Dodger fortunes this year by finally being a factor in the postseason rather than being an MVP who falls asleep in the postseason like last year.
The Dodgers are starting to show some life these last few games. As I said before I hoped JT would light a fire under their pants and it seemed like that was exactly what happened. His return put some pep back into the team. Just about everyone is improving, let’s hope they keep performing well.
If you had said in March that Bellinger, Muncy, Pedersen and Lux would be flirting with the Mendoza Line this season, it would have been hard to see the team dominating like it has. But with so many other folks stepping up, that’s happened. The extension for Taylor is looking particularly wise. Now we need to lock up Turner for a couple of DH years and then ponder Seager next year. If his 2021 is as good as 2020, he’s gonna be expensive, but his glove will transfer well to 3B. As usual, they will face tougher pitchers in the post season, but one of these years, they have to come through, right?
This year.
Good morning. If Dodgers can do a bit better offensively it’s their ABs against the curve balls and off speed pitches. But can anyone imagine just how good this offense could be if Roberts doesn’t shuffle the linep and batting order on a daily basis like does?
I would rather have the more experienced Joc and Beatty activated in the playoffs than Lux and McKinstry.
Uh come on guys. How can you compare last year and this year? Take this years dh numbers out and insert last yearx pitchers offensive numbers. Gosh thats a shock. No comparison. And we’ve only played one team above 500 this year. While the nl west division has been an embarrassing division the whole decade, ( thus 7 straight), this years division is barely triple a worthy.
Please. Both the Dodgers and Padres are excellent teams – the 2 best in the NL – and the Giants are 1/2 game out of the wildcard at .500. Perhaps the rest of the division has records that reflect playing these teams.
The Rockies and Giants had above .500 records until they played the Dodgers and the Astros are above .500 as well.
The NL west has placed 2 teams in the playoffs for 7 of the last 10 years and, sadly, the Giants have won the whole thing 3 times.
The Dodgers winning forever in a weak division is a lazy tired weak narrative.
The team does not concern me, it is Roberts and the front office that is broken. Yesterday’s loss is my example. Mookie sitting out another game, Gonsolin pitching his heart out and nobody has anything to say? Maybe the rumor that baseball is rigged are true. As a manager, I always put the best team on the field. My 1983 men’s team went 28 and 0 in a very tough United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) league.The Dodgers should be over 40 wins right now and shooting for 50! But the FO YES MAN (Roberts) is holding the team back or down. What in the world is wrong with winning every game? Nothing!