The Los Angeles Dodgers have clinched their 14th consecutive trip to Major League Baseball's postseason, tying a record for consecutive playoff appearances.
The team secured their spot with a 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday night. This marks the fifth consecutive National League West title for the Dodgers and their 13th in the last 14 seasons.
Los Angeles now joins Milwaukee and Tampa Bay as teams that have secured playoff berths this season. They are currently the second seed in the NL, 2 1/2 games ahead of Atlanta and trailing Milwaukee by 2 games for the top seed. A first-round bye could be particularly beneficial for the Dodgers, who are managing injuries to key players like Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani.
"It’s hard to say it ever feels routine, but it is the expectation here," third baseman Max Muncy said. "I always laugh whenever we clinch a postseason spot, we just do a nice little toast. The guys that haven’t been here, they kind of see that and they expect a little bit more. That happens when you clinch the division."
The Dodgers' streak ties the Atlanta Braves' postseason run from 1991 through 2005. During that span, the Braves made five World Series appearances, winning one in 1995. Muncy noted that the Dodgers have achieved three titles and five World Series trips during their current run.
Manager Dave Roberts emphasized that while reaching the postseason has become an expectation, the team has not yet reached its full potential. "We go through a lot of players every year, and guys find a way to step up, and so that’s the thing I’m probably most proud of, is the consistency of winning over the long term," Roberts said. "Any team, any organization can win in a given year where things line up, but to do it every single year when you’re expected to do this says something about the entire organization."