In late April, an interesting article was published. The article is about the top 10 front offices in the MLB. I really like reading that article. And in the article, the Dodgers front office ranks the first as receiving the most points in the poll.
The article is certainly worth reading. After reading the article, I just began to think about a question. Andrew Friedman was named the President of Baseball Operations for the Dodgers in the fall of 2014. Since he took the office, how good has he led the team?
Looking back at the last 9 seasons, under Andrew Friedman’s leadership, the Dodgers have clinched a playoff berth each season. Interestingly, the Dodgers only finished 2nd in the NL West once. The team won 8 NL West titles, 3 NL Pennants. The most important thing is that the Dodgers became the 2020 World Series Champions. From 2015 to 2023, the Dodgers won 845 games, the most among 30 MLB teams. Moreover, there were 5 times that the team won 100+ games in a single season.
In addition, the Astros are the other team that won 800+ games over the last 9 seasons. From 2015 to 2023, there was only one season that the Astros didn’t play October baseball. Furthermore, there were 4 times that the Astros finished the season with 100+ wins. And they won the World Series title in 2017 and 2022.
Meanwhile, don’t forget Brian Cashman, who has led the Yankees’ baseball operations since 1998. Under his leadership, the Yankees won the World Series title 4 times. From 2015 to 2023, the Yankees only failed to play October baseball twice. Additionally, the Yankees had 2 seasons that got at least 100 wins.
Now, let’s look at the Guardians. Over the last 9 seasons, the Guardians won 744 games and they clinched a postseason berth 5 times and won the AL Central title 4 times. In particular, they won the AL pennant in 2016.
In the meantime, the Tampa Bay Rays are always an interesting team to watch. Over the last 9 seasons, only 4 teams won more games than the Rays did. Furthermore, the team made the playoffs for 5 consecutive seasons and they won the AL pennant in 2020.
Finally, the Cubs-Cardinals rivalry is one of the most interesting rivalries in sports. Over the last 9 seasons, there was little difference in wins between these 2 teams. The Cubs won 733 games and the Cardinals won 732 games. Interestingly, these 2 teams each clinched a postseason spot 5 times from 2015 to 2023. The major difference is probably that the Cubs won the World Series in 2016, ending the 108-year drought. Furthermore, 4 other teams each won 700+ games from 2015 to 2023.
When we look at the number of wins over the last 9 seasons, there’s little doubt that the Dodgers have been playing very well. Since Andrew Friedman joined the Dodgers, the team has become one of the most dangerous teams in the majors. And it’s very hard to ignore how many efforts the front office has made over the last 9 years. By far this season, the Dodgers have a record of 35 wins and 22 losses. It seems that they are still playing well in 2024. But, it’s always worthwhile to see how good it will be at the end of the regular season. And, the most important thing, to win a World Series title, what moves will the front office have to make during the regular season?
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