Move Over Houston Astros, Latest World Series Title Makes Los Angeles Dodgers MLB’s True Dynasty.
The Los Angeles Dodgers won their eighth World Series championship Wednesday by taking down the New York Yankees in five games.
It’s the Dodgers second title in the past five seasons, which should give them bragging rights as MLB’s reigning dynasty. Sorry, Houston.
The Houston Astros, who have won two titles since 2017, have reached the postseason the past eight seasons, including seven consecutive trips to the American League Championship Series until they were swept by the Detroit Tigers in the AL Wild Card round this season.
Although the Astros beat the Dodgers in seven games in the 2017 World Series, Houston’s title was famously marred their sign-stealing cheating scandal, which led to manager A.J. Hinch being fired and the Astros organization being the target of derision across the league to this day.
The Dodgers have reached the postseason the past 12 seasons, reaching the National League Championship Series seven times. Since 2017, the Dodgers have won 100 or more games in five seasons. The Astros have four seasons with 100 or more wins in the span.YOUR 2024 #WORLDSERIES CHAMPIONS: THE LOS ANGELES @DODGERS! #CHAMPS pic.twitter.com/vM0EmzOfR4.
— MLB (@MLB) October 31, 2024
The Dodgers have won at least 92 games in each of the past eight seasons, not counting the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. The Astros won 88 games and 90 games the past two seasons.
The scariest thing for the rest of the league? The Dodgers appear poised to challenge for the title for years to come with Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman in their primes.
Overall, of course, the Dodgers have won more than Astros, even if you only count Dodgers titles since 1962, the first season for the Astros franchise.
Since 1962, the Dodgers have won six of their eight titles and have played in 12. The Astros in that time, have won two and played in five, all since 2005.
MLB Rumors: Juan Soto deferred money, Astros Bregman disadvantage, Counsell’s familiar move.
Now that the champagne has been popped and the parade has been held, it’s time to start shifting our attention from the postseason to Hot Stove season. And what a winter this promises to be, with Juan Soto highlighting a star-studded free-agent class and plenty of teams with money to burn. Here’s a quick lap around the rumor mill, with all the latest on Soto’s potential contract structure, the Houston Astros’ pursuit of Alex Bregman and Craig Counsell putting one over on the Milwaukee Brewers one more time.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.
How much deferred money could a Juan Soto deal include?
Where Juan Soto will sign is the biggest question of this offseason, with the Yankees, Dodgers, Mets, Phillies and more looking to secure the outfielder’s services. But what might an eventual Soto contract look like?
Recent reports suggest that Soto and his agent, Scott Boras, have now set their sights on at least matching the $700 million given to Shohei Ohtani last winter. Of course, that deal was made possible by a whopping $680 million in deferred money, drastically reducing the actual value of the contract. Boras is unlikely to agree to such a team-friendly structure, but if he wants to get his client into the Ohtani stratosphere, he’ll have to compromise at least somewhat: A recent Spotrac estimate suggests that Soto can match Ohtani’s career earnings with a 12-year, $660 million deal, of which some $215 million would be deferred.
It’s clear at this point that the original $500-600 million estimates made at the start of this season have been blown right past. But Ohtani’s deal was something of a black swan event, and something in between $600 and $700 million feels like the best bet at this point.
Can Astros sell Alex Bregman on long-term success?
The Houston Astros are facing something of a Catch-22 this offseason. The team’s clearest path to contention in 2025 is to bring back pending free agent Alex Bregman, especially considering the dearth of other third-base options on the market this winter. But the only way Bregman re-signs is if he feels like Houston is set to contend both next year and into the future.
“That’s something I want to do for my whole career is win,” Bregman told The Athletic in September. “That’s what I value the most coming up is winning.”
Can the Astros successfully convince Bregman that Houston is the place to make that happen? This is a crossroads offseason, with both Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez entering their final seasons of team control. The team still hopes to sign one or both to a long-term deal, but owner Jim Crane has been reticent to hand out that kind of contract in the past. And while dealing Tucker and/or Valdez would be a boon to what is generally regarded as among the worst farm systems in baseball, it’ll inevitably mean a step back in the short-term that Bregman almost certainly doesn’t want to take.
Craig Counsell poaches another Brewers coach
After bolting for the Chicago Cubs last October, Craig Counsell found himself a bit behind the 8-ball, unable to assemble his ideal coaching staff based on how late in the cycle it already was. This offseason represents an opportunity to reset, so perhaps it’s no surprise that Counsell is going back to the source: The former Brewers skipper has convinced Milwaukee first-base coach Quintin Berry to come to the North Side, where he’ll serve as third-base coach.
