The Los Angeles Dodgers have been red hot, and are currently leading 2-1 over the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Team holds a 16 game lead and that lead could grow to 17 if they win again. The Dodgers will be the first team to win their 80th game. The real question is how many records can this team beat?
Team records up for graves
If the team wins tonight, the Dodgers have a legitimate shot to break their record for team wins that is dated back to 1953. The squad back in the 1950s won 105 games. In that same season, the Dodgers had a .682 winning percentage.
As of now, the Dodgers have a .712 winning percentage.
With the rotation of Clayton Kershaw, Alex Wood, and the new Yu Darvish leading the way, the team could win 25 games in the next month and a half. In their last ten games, the team is 9-1. After the Diamondbacks, the team has an easy schedule of the San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, and Detroit Tigers.
On pace for 113 games
Back on July 20, Sports Illustrated published an article comparing the Dodgers to some of the greatest regular season teams in the MLB. At that time, the team was on an 11 game winning streak and was on pace to win 113 games. The 113 games would be a record for most wins in the National League. The National League was created in 1962.
If the Dodgers were to win 113 games, it would be the most by a National League team as the Chicago Cubs won 116 games back in 1906.
Some of the best runs in history
These teams that Jay Jaffe wrote about went on some of the greatest runs in regular season history. The Dodgers rarely lose anymore, but the same goes for some of these teams he compares the Dodgers to.
There was the 1984 Detroit Tigers that won 104 games and included a 35-5 run in a stretch of 40 games. The 1998 new york yankees won 114 games and went on a 46 -10 record in a stretch of 56 games. The 1975 Cincinnati Reds won 108 games and went on a stretch of 34 wins and eight losses.
Then there were the 2001 Seattle Mariners that won 116 games and peaked with a 51-13 record.
The 2004 St. Louis Cardinals won 105 games while going 46-12 at one point. The 1988 Oakland Athletics won 104 games and went 32-8 in 40 games. The 1963 New York Yankees went 27-9 in their best stretch on route to win 104 games.
The Dodgers are running away with the division, but the scary part of their season is that they have not finished peaking. The team has been pegged to win the World Series in August, having odds from Las Vegas as 1:4. It's going to be a fun ride to finish watching this team.
