Sports has seen its fair share of guarantees in the past. Messier’s Game 6 guarantee against the Devils. Namath’s guarantee before Super Bowl III. But rarely have we seen a player or coach guarantee a championship before the season has even begun.
Well, Los Angeles Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts didn’t shy away from publicly declaring his prediction on the Dan Patrick Show this week. “We are winning the World Series in 2022… We’re winning the World Series this year, put it on record,” said the former MLB player turned bench boss.
Providing opponents with bulletin board material before the season even starts is a bold move, but also reflects the confidence Roberts has in his team. With a star studded lineup, bolstered by the acquisition of World Series champion and former NL MVP Freddie Freeman, LA certainly has the firepower to be able to back up their manager’s gutsy proclamation.
With an Opening Day lineup that could see the Dodgers trot out Will Smith, Freddie Freeman, Chris Taylor, Justin Turner, Trea Turner, AJ Pollock, Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger, and Max Muncy, offense shouldn’t be an issue for Roberts’ ballclub. Health however could be the determining factor in how far Los Angeles is ultimately able to go in 2022 and beyond.
Max Muncy is currently dealing with elbow issues. Cody Bellinger only suited up for 95 games in 2021, and struggled through the worst offensive year of his young career. And Clayton Kershaw is now 34 years old and has seen his ERA & WHIP creep up fairly steadily since his last Cy Young award in 2014.
The Dodgers also have question marks around Andrew Heaney who struggled mightily down the stretch in 2021, and finished with an inflated 5.83 ERA, who will be making his LA debut this year. And there’s no telling what to expect out of former ace Trevor Bauer who was shut down last season due to off field court cases and disturbing allegations against him.
The club will also feature a new closer this year in either Blake Treinen, or Daniel Hudson after seeing longtime 9th inning presence Kenley Jensen sign with Atlanta in the offseason.
All in all you’ve got to love the faith Roberts has in his team, but winning a World Series title is no guarantee even if you’ve got one of the largest team payrolls of all time. Just ask the Yankees and the Mets.
Los Angeles has been to the playoffs in 9 consecutive seasons, yet only has one banner to show for it. So for all the talk about how the Dodgers have an absolutely stacked lineup in 2022, at the end of the day they’ll only go as far as the health of their rotation can take them.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: Arturo Pardavilla III. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.