The Los Angeles Dodgers not only were heavy favorites to win a seventh consecutive National League West title but also to reach the 2019 World Series. Doing so would mean a third consecutive trip to the Fall Classic as they look to end the franchise’s championship drought.
Much like in 2017, the Dodgers created immediate separation within the NL West and have boasted the best record for much of the season. They are well on their way to clinching another division championship and are identified by most as the class of the NL.
If the Dodgers are to be denied a World Series, conventional wisdom is it would likely come at the hands of the Houston Astros or New York Yankees.
However, one evaluator doesn’t consider the Astros, Dodgers or Yankees as the best team, instead giving that title to the Washington Nationals, but by the same token would pick the New York Mets to reach the 2019 World Series, per Mike Puma of the New York Post:
A National League talent evaluator: "The Nationals have a better team on the field than just about any club in the game, but saying that if I had to put my money on a team to go to the World Series in the National League, I would put it on the Mets."
— Mike Puma (@NYPost_Mets) August 8, 2019
The Mets puzzled the league by acquiring Marcus Stroman and then declining to sell at the July 31 trade deadline. Their decision appears to have paid off as the Mets have won 14 of their last 15 games and enter Saturday on a seven-game winning streak.
Their weekend series started against none other than the Nationals, who held a half-game lead over the Mets in the Wild Card standings. Washington suffered a walk-off loss and trails the Atlanta Braves in the NL Central by 6.5 games.
The Dodgers took four of seven games from the Nationals this season, and are 3-1 thus far against the Mets. The two teams will meet again for a three-game series at Citi Field from Sept. 13-15.
As it stands, the most-likely postseason matchup with the Nationals or Mets would need to come by way of either club winning the Wild Card Game. They would then face the Dodgers in the NL Division Series, with Game 1 at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 3.
