Dodgers can become the best and most celebrated team in MLB history

Dodgers’ Potential for Awards This Season

In Phoenix, Dave Roberts has been vocal this winter, claiming that the Dodgers might just become the best team in baseball history.

Listening to him over the first two weeks of spring training, it seems he believes they also have a strong shot at individual accolades this year.

Roberts has mentioned several times that he thinks one of his players could be in the running for major awards. For instance, he’s named Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani as contenders for the Cy Young Award. Recently, he also included Tyler Glasnow, asserting that if Glasnow stays healthy, he can compete with “the best pitchers in the National League.”

Blake Snell, despite having a shoulder injury limiting him in camp, is a two-time Cy Young winner. Meanwhile, pitcher Aki Sasaki has expressed his ambition to be the first Japanese pitcher to earn that same honor.

Ohtani is actually favored to win the National League MVP award this preseason, and that makes sense. With two MVPs each from the Dodgers and Angels under his belt, he carries a strong track record.

However, Roberts points out that Ohtani won’t be alone in the competition. He believes that Mookie Betts will certainly be in the mix for MVP this year. Likewise, rookie Kyle Tucker has potential as a strong candidate.

Roberts emphasizes, “So if you have talent, you should expect it. I expect a lot from myself, and everyone should push themselves too—never get too comfortable, and strive for greatness. With the talent we have, both as a team and individually, a lot is expected.”

The last time the Dodgers secured both the MVP and Cy Young awards was in 2014 when Clayton Kershaw won both. The previous instance of two different players winning these awards was back in 1988 with Kirk Gibson and Orel Hershiser.

The 2013 Tigers are the most recent example of two players from the same team winning these major awards, with Miguel Cabrera taking the MVP and Max Scherzer winning the Cy Young.

This year, the Dodgers might follow suit, especially given the number of strong candidates they seem to have—potentially mirroring the Braves’ performance in 2023 when three of their players ranked in the top seven for MVP voting.

Historically, three teams have had players finish 1-2-3 in MVP voting: first, the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1941. They didn’t win the World Series, though, losing to the Yankees.

Interestingly, the Dodgers were the last team to have a player finish in the top three for MVP voting in 1966. Frank Robinson led that season, with Brooks Robinson and Boog Powell following him.

Some championship teams weren’t known for a plethora of MVP candidates. Take the Giants from 2010 to 2014—they never had more than one player in the top 10 MVP standings. The Yankees also only had multiple top finishes once in their successful run from 1998 to 2000.

On the other hand, the 1927 Yankees, often hailed as one of the greatest teams, had just one MVP candidate—Lou Gehrig. Babe Ruth, who had an incredible season, didn’t win the award again due to the rules of the time.

It’s not entirely common for teams to have multiple pitchers rank highly in Cy Young voting either. While some teams have had two pitchers recognized at once, having three in the top five is quite rare.

Mark Pryor, the Dodgers’ pitching coach, chuckled when asked about his team’s Cy Young candidates. He acknowledged the need for some perspective but admitted it’s amazing to be around such talent every day.