Yes, you all figured that the Los Angeles Dodgers would be a first place team this year, but I bet you didn't think it'd take until July for them to get there.
This is a very different Dodgers team, one that's had to rely on a lot of unconventional wisdom, rather than resting on the laurels of Kershaw, Bellinger and Puig. For a while, they kinda had to wait for the pitching staff to get back off the DL for any positive progress to happen, and now that Kershaw, Hill and Maeda are all back, things are looking up again. Yes, it'll look better once Walker Buehler returns as well, but I'm just happy they've got a five-man rotation again, and that Ross Stripling has stepped up BIG TIME as the defacto ace in the absence of Kershaw...and now that Kershaw's back, he's still pitching well.
Unconventional heroes in this Dodgers team. Max Muncy has taken California by storm, and will be repping LA in the Home Run Derby. Chris Taylor, who is somehow leading the team in strikeouts (and need I remind you, THIS TEAM HAS MATT KEMP ON IT), is still an offensive standout, and a flexible defensive piece. Andrew Toles is FINALLY being relied upon in the majors again, and is proving his place in the lineup in the absence of Yasiel Puig, and the ineptitude of Hernandez. Cody Bellinger, while feeling the sophomore slump, is still a sturdy offensive piece. Joc Pederson is having a quiet comeback off the bench, and Chase Utley is intending on finishing his career admirably, as a mentor and occasional standout at second.
Is this team at the point it was last year? Hell no. But they're still a game ahead of the Diamondbacks, the momentum is on their side, and they're going into the break in the best of spirits. So that's not the worst thing.
Coming Tomorrow- He's been playing for the same team for ten years, has gained legend status, and...might be traded in a few weeks?
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