Dodgers Team News

Dodgers Insider Says Padres Aren’t a Threat to LA in the Playoffs

Dodgers Insider David Vassegh joined the guys on AM570 this week to talk about the Dodgers.

As the team finishes their final regular season series of the year against the Padres, Vassegh was asked if San Diego posed a threat to the Dodgers in the playoffs.



The Padres haven’t yet locked up a playoff spot, but if they’re able to finish as the fifth seed, they would have a chance to face the Dodgers in the NLDS following their Wild Card Series against the runner-up in the NL East.

While Vassegh didn’t think the Padres would be a threat to the Dodgers, he does think they’re built to pull off the upset in the Wild Card best-of-three format.

“I do believe the Padres are a threat in the Wild Card series because they have three really good starting pitchers in Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove,” Vassegh said.

If the Padres complete that upset, Vassegh doesn’t think they’d have another one in them when they face the Dodgers in the slightly longer series.

“If they advance to play the Dodgers in a best-of-five series, I still believe the Dodgers have the psychological advantage over the Padres,” Vassegh said. “[The Padres] just get way too over-amped, super emotional for these games against the Dodgers. And could you imagine a playoff series again like we saw in 2020? They would just want it too much.”

The Padres have built themselves for the postseason with three top-of-the-line starters. But if they’re all forced to go in the Wild Card series, they would be pitching on short rest against the fully loaded Dodgers.

And to Vassegh’s point, the Padres just haven’t been able to get out of the younger brother mindset when playing the Dodgers. And Vassegh doesn’t think 2022 is the year that’s going to change.

Noah Camras

Noah is an Editor for Dodgers Nation. He graduated from USC in 2022 with a B.A. in Journalism and minor in Sports Media Studies. He's been a Dodger fan his whole life, and his all-time favorite Dodgers are Matt Kemp and Russell Martin.

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