Dodgers clinch 2024 National League West title

LOS ANGELES — When the Dodgers left Camelback Ranch in March and boarded a long flight to Seoul, South Korea, they laid all of their plans out in front of them.

Their biggest goal, of course, is to win the World Series. That’s the expectation the Dodgers always have on them, but especially after spending more than $1 billion in contracts this winter. But before they could embark on that journey, the Dodgers’ first goal was to win the National League West.

With a 7-2 win over the Padres on Thursday at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers continued one of the most dominant runs in Major League history, securing their 11th NL West title in 12 seasons.

“They all feel sweet, but I’ll tell you, man, with what we’ve gone through this year, this feels a tick sweeter,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “I’m just so proud of these guys, the way that we’ve fought the adversity, stuck together and found a way to win this division again. It was hard-fought; we earned it.”

Coming into the season, the Dodgers carried more expectations — both external and internal — than any other team in the Majors. That’s what comes with signing Shohei Ohtani, arguably the best player in baseball, to the biggest contract in American sports over the winter, pairing him with superstars Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman.

But even with a star-studded roster, the Dodgers weren’t immune to the adversity that comes with playing a 162-game marathon. In fact, the Dodgers had to navigate through more injuries than most teams, particularly with their starting pitchers. All five hurlers that opened the season in the rotation were placed on the injured list at least once or were traded.

“You had a lot of guys step up and a lot of guys go down,” said Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw, who is currently on the injured list and won’t be available for the National League Division Series. “So you got to give a lot of credit to the guys that were there from April to September. They really carried us, gave everybody time to get healthy and come back. And, you know, we don’t have everybody we want. But I definitely think we have enough to do something special.”

On the offensive side, the Dodgers went months without Betts and Max Muncy. Freeman had to step away from the team for two weeks as he dealt with a family matter, and he also left Thursday’s game with a sprained right ankle, continuing the bad injury luck this season.

Through all that, however, the Dodgers — even though it got close at the end — never wavered.

“For us to go out there and keep grinding, fighting,” Freeman said. “I mean, we do have the best record [in the Majors] — I know we fought really hard, but when you take a step back, we’ve had a really, really good year.”

As was the case all season long, Thursday’s win didn’t come easy for the Dodgers. But yet again, they found a way.

After getting dominated for six innings by Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove, the Dodgers waited for their opportunity. Muncy drew a leadoff walk in the seventh and Will Smith, one of the players locked up to a long-term deal before the season, hit a game-tying two-run blast.

Four batters later, Ohtani hit a go-ahead RBI single. Betts then followed with the dagger, a two-run single to cap off the five-run frame.

“I’m really happy,” Ohtani, who went through his first champagne celebration in the Majors, said through interpreter Will Ireton. “Today, I came to the stadium really wanting to clinch, and I’m happy we did that today. This series was something special. It was something that stood out for me over the year. Obviously, to be able to clinch it is the reason I am here [with the Dodgers].”

Their path to a title was different than it has been in past seasons. The Dodgers didn’t enjoy a double-digit lead atop the division down the stretch. This one came down to the wire in arguably the best division in baseball. But in the end, the more things change, the more they stay the same: The NL West still runs through Los Angeles.

“It would’ve been easy for us to make excuses,” Roberts said. “You lose three, four, five, six, seven starters. Write the season off. But not one person in this clubhouse did that. We never once made any excuses. We continued to stick together, to fight and now, we got a ticket to the dance. Anything can happen.”