Dodgers Predicted to Challenge Insane MLB History in 2025

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jan 3, 2025

Nov 1, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw (22) lifts the World Series Championship Trophy during the team celebration at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Dodgers are not just the defending World Series champions as the calendar flips to 2025, but they are also the favorite to win again.

MLB.com recently put together a list of expectations for each of the 30 Major League Baseball teams and each of the beat reporters made one bold prediction.

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Sonja Chen, who is the new beat writer of the Dodgers, has big plans for Los Angeles.

"The Dodgers won the World Series in 2024," Chen wrote. "They’re expecting to be even better in ‘25.

"After rehabbing last year, Shohei Ohtani will be ready to pitch at some point next season, giving the Dodgers another frontline starter to pair with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glansow, and big free-agent addition Blake Snell. That rotation projects to be one of the best in the Majors.

"When you pair that with the fact that the Dodgers still have three future Hall of Famers atop one of the best lineups in baseball, L.A. has a realistic chance to make a run at the MLB record of 116 wins. A lot has to go right, of course, but the talent will be there."

For 95 years, the Chicago Cubs' record of 116 wins was unmatched. Then, the 2001 Seattle Mariners came along.

The closest the Dodgers have come to matching the record was 111 wins in 2022. Before then, they had won 106 games in 2019 and 2021.

The Dodgers made history as the first franchise in MLB to achieve 106 wins in three consecutive full seasons. They also became only the seventh team to notch 110 victories in a single season and just the fifth to reach 111. With another NL West title in 2024, the Dodgers extended their playoff streak to 12 consecutive years, claiming the division crown 11 times during that impressive run.

Los Angeles could potentially add Japanese free agent starting pitcher Roki Sasaki and have yet to re-sign Clayton Kershaw. If the Dodgers do acquire Sasaki's signature, then the starting rotation could be even scarier and will be unmatched.

There's no reason to believe the Dodgers won't win another pennant or even the World Series, but they will have a lot of competition with the New York Mets, San Diego Padres, and Atlanta Braves in the National League.

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