Wouldn't 120 wins in the 1.9780 trillion capitalist rotation be possible? LAD's Most Winning Challenge Media in History

Jan 03, 2025

Blake Snell, who signed with the LA Dodgers, is an ace who can win 20 games if he is healthy. Snell posed with President Andrew Friedman (right) and General Manager Brandon Gomes at the joining ceremony on the 4th of last month (Korea time). AP Yonhap News

LA Dodgers Yoshinobu Yamamoto. EPA Yonhap News

Tyler Glasnow. AP Yonhap News

The reason why the LA Dodgers are considered the strongest candidate this season is that their record as World Series champions last year has not been shaken much this offseason. Rather, it is expected that the starting rotation, which was considered the most vulnerable part, will be further strengthened and the performance will be higher than last year.

The Dodgers acquired Blake Snell, one of the FA left-hander ace, for five years and $182 million. It can never be said that it was brought to an efficient market price, but about $66 million was set as a deferred payment, reducing the immediate burden.

Snell gave up his player option and came to the market after a satisfactory performance after signing a one-plus-one-year, $62 million contract with the San Francisco Giants last year. He was jagged due to injuries in the first half of last year, but he threw 80 ⅓ innings in 14 games since returning in July, continuing his good pitching with a 1.23 ERA, 114 strikeouts, and a 0.124 hit rate, regaining his strength as a Cy Young Award winner. Not only the Dodgers, but most of the big market clubs, including the original teams San Francisco, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, and Baltimore Orioles, reportedly put offers.

Snell pitched like a Cy Young Award winner twice in San Francisco in the second half of last year. AP Yonhap News

Snell is expected to be the starting pitcher for the opening game against the Chicago Cubs in Japan in March. The Dodgers' rotation, which made Snell a real ace, is considered the best in the world. If Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto do not have the same injury issues as last year, they are as good as Snell as the ace, and Shohei Ohtani, who is scheduled to resume his pitching career after the end of April, is also likely to show off his preoperative pitching.

Emmett Sheehan, who showed his potential last year as a fifth starting candidate, and Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May, who will return from Tommy John Surgery, are also the starting candidates to satisfy expectations. With this starting strength, he is no inferior to the Arizona Diamondbacks, who took Corbin Burns, or the Philadelphia Phillies, who took him last year 'Starting Kingdom'.

In addition, the Dodgers are also working hard to recruit another Japanese pitcher, Roki Sasaki. If you hold him in your arms, you can operate the six-person rotation you are planning stably.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Dodgers' lineup boasts its strongest explosive power this year because it succeeded in catching FA Theoscar Hernandez.

For this reason, local media expect the Dodgers to challenge the record for the most wins in a season this year. On the 2nd (Korea Standard Time), MLB.com said in an article titled 'One prediction for each team in 2025' that `LA will challenge the record for the most wins in a season.'

Shohei Otani continued pitching rehabilitation while achieving 50-50 last season. AP Yonhap News

The media is 'Juss will be stronger this year. If Ohtani resumes pitching this season, he will secure a first-line issuance along with Yamamoto, Glasnow and Snell. The rotation is the strongest in the Major League and has three big guns (Otani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman) who continue their Hall of Fame batting skills in the top batting line, so they have a chance to break the record of 116 wins in a single season in the Major League history.

The record for most wins in a season is 116 by the Chicago Cubs in 1906 and the Seattle Mariners in 2001, respectively. The Cubs recorded 116-36 and Seattle 116-46 in that season, making history.

If you look at the live ball era since 1920, Seattle has the most wins in 2001. At the time, Seattle's stable starting rotation was the driving force behind its historic record. Five key starters, including ace Freddie Garcia (18-6, 3.05), Aaron Cillie (15-5, 3.60), Jamie Moyer (20-6, 3.43), Paul Abbott (17-4, 4.25), and John Hallama (10-7, 4.73) combined for 80 wins.

If it's a rotation that leads to Snell, Yamamoto, Glasnow, and Ohtani, and if it's healthy, it's expected to be 117 wins. The total ransom of these four people alone amounts to $1.343.5 billion (about 1.978 trillion won).

Then, what is the Dodgers' record for most wins in a season. It's a very close past. With 111 wins in 2022, the club set a record for the most wins in a season. The Dodgers have won more than 100 games in five of the seven seasons except for 2020, which is a shortened season after 2017. Last year, they lacked two wins from 100 wins, but the two leagues combined to become the most winning team.