Dodgers News: Dodgers Not Buying Brewers “Underdog” Narrative
The Brewers can say they're the little engine that could, but the Dodgers aren't buying that
MILWAUKEE, WI—Entering the 2025 regular season, it was nearly a foregone conclusion that after winning the 2024 World Series over the New York Yankees and having an offseason for the ages, the Dodgers would roll through the league.
That was not the case.
The Dodgers, to their standard, struggled mightily throughout the second half of the regular season before rebounding in the final month, where the team secured yet another National League West title and their 13th straight postseason berth.
Yet, they did not secure a top seed in the National League, finishing behind the number two seed, the Philadelphia Phillies, and the number one-seeded Milwaukee Brewers.
This forced the Dodgers to play the best-of-three Wild Card round, their first time doing so in the new postseason format that was introduced during the 2022 season.
They took care of the Cincinnati Reds in two games, then dismantled the Phillies ’ lineup in the National League Division Series, winning the set in just four games.
That set up a date with the NL-leading Brewers, who, despite ranking in the bottom half of the league in payroll, finished with the best record in Major League Baseball.
Yet, the narrative being spun by my second-year manager, Pat Murphy, makes you think the Brewers were just a team that squeaked through the regular season.
Contrary to what many may think, the Brewers are powered by a pitching staff with the second-best team ERA and an offense that was third in runs scored, right behind the Dodgers.
And while Vegas doesn’t favor them in this series, in large part because they are playing the Dodgers, a team that has historically always been favored to win the World Series regardless of their success or talent, the Brew Crew are not an underdog in any scenario.
In the eyes of Brewers manager Pat Murphy, the Dodgers effectively are in a different stratosphere altogether.
“We’re not overconfident, that’s for sure. The Dodgers are a powerhouse, what can you say? You don’t see many commercials in the United States, Canada, Japan, anywhere across the world, that don’t have Dodgers in it. They have the star power and they’re great players,” Murphy said the day before Game 1.
Then on Monday, he surmised “most” players on the Dodgers roster couldn’t name eight active Brewers.
“They shouldn’t have to know the names, but these are some guys that hopefully they know their names by the time it’s over. You never know,” Murphy added.
The Dodgers Don’t View It That Way
With Murphy’s comments getting a massive amount of media attention, they’ve bled over into the Dodgers clubhouse and pregame media scrums, and it’s something the team is not buying into as they continue this best-of-seven NLCS.
“I can’t say like too much because they’re going to watch this,” Blake Snell stated in his presser before Game One on Sunday. “But, I mean, it’s a really good lineup. I’m not falling for the Average Joes. They’re not. They have the best record in the NL. They’re a really good team.”
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was optimistic about the Brewers at the start of the season and isn’t surprised that Murphy’s team has advanced this far.
Roberts thinks Murphy’s approach to messaging is simply a reflection of his management style.
“No, not a concern at all,” Roberts said of the Dodgers possibly getting duped by Murphy’s public messaging. “That’s just kind of how Murph is. He tries to get into the psyche, and he’s telling his team the opposite, in the clubhouse, behind closed doors. So we know the act.
“He’s going to have his guys prepared. But no, we’re prepared. We’re playing good baseball and we expect the same out of those guys. And all the talk isn’t going to really factor in once the game starts.”
Then you have Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman adding his thoughts on the situation between the two clubs.
“The Brewers are a really good team. Team speed, defense, they don’t chase, put the ball in play. They do a lot of things well,” he said. “And I think the depth of their roster really helps them withstand 162 games and also puts them in a position to be a really competitive team in October.”
As for the lack of regular-season success against the Brewers this season, Friedman said the Dodgers earned the result but also pointed to how much of a better spot his team is in since July.
“Going 0-6 in the regular season, we earned it, we deserved it. They pitched really well against us. We didn’t have our typical kind of approach and game plan,” Friedman said. “They got us off that a little bit, which is helpful to have lived through and seen.
“We also weren’t full. Muncy wasn’t in there, but again, they’re a really good team, a really good pitching staff. I think those six games and going through it and being able to postmortem and look at that, I think it will be helpful going forward.”
Game Two between the two teams is scheduled for tonight, with the “mighty” Dodgers narrowly maintaining a one-run lead in the 9th inning, despite the Brewers’ efforts to keep it close.
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