Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts sat back on the sofa in his office on Monday, looking the most relaxed he has in weeks.
He'll be leading the charge as the Dodgers try for a historic World Series three-peat starting Saturday. If the Dodgers succeed, they would be the first team in National League history to accomplish the feat. But that's not what's on Roberts' mind right now; he knows the danger of looking too far ahead once you're in October.
"It just makes life more difficult when you don't focus on the job," he said over Zoom. "And that's winning this next series."
Max Muncy echoed his skipper, adding that the team doesn't need to add any extra pressure. Instead, the Dodgers are focusing on staying sharp over the week off, coming in to workout
at Dodger Stadium, take batting practice, throwing bullpens and watching the wild card games together.
The bye helps the Dodgers get healthier, too; both Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman have been using the time to work on their mechanics at the plate while managing knee ailments (and a right bicep injury for Ohtani).
It also helps the team to lock in by just being around each other.
"Winning the World Series is hard enough as it is," Muncy said. "So for us, we're just trying to focus on what we have ahead of us without the added noise to it."
What lies ahead for the Dodgers in the NLDS is still unknown. As the No. 2 seed in the NL, they'll face either the Atlanta Braves or Philadelphia Phillies, who have battled through two chaotic games so far; the Braves jumped out to a 1-0 lead on Austin Riley's clutch three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth on Monday and led 3-1 late on Wednesday until back-to-back blasts from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper tied it up. Alec Bohm then went deep on a solo shot in the 10th to force a decisive Game 3 on Thursday.
That means the Dodgers won't know who they play until the last possible minute. Not that they necessarily care who occupies the dugout across from them, anyway.
"Either team, it doesn't really matter," Muncy said. "You're gonna have to play nothing but good teams from here on out. It's the postseason ... any team can go out and beat you. ... Whoever we play is whoever we play."
Here's a look at each of the Dodgers' possible NLDS opponents:
Atlanta Braves
The Dodgers and Braves dueled in both the 2020 and 2021 NLCS, but just four players remain from that 2021 Braves team that won the World Series: Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley, Dylan Lee and Ronald Acuña Jr. The Dodgers have had plenty of turnover, too.
The biggest knock on this Braves team has been the pitching depth. Chris Sale is continuing to beat Father Time and has a solid argument against Jacob Misiorowski for the Cy Young Award, but there's a dropoff in the rotation after him. Tyler Mahle has pitched well since being acquired at the trade deadline with a 1.99 ERA in nine starts. He threw seven innings of one-run ball in Game 2 against Philadelphia, but he was also the only starting pitcher that president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos traded for this summer when the consensus around league circles was that the Braves needed at least another arm.
Atlanta's battled through injuries for most of the season but much like the Dodgers, the Braves seem to be getting healthy at the right time.
Philadelphia Phillies
This would be a rematch of last year's NLDS, with home field advantage flipped to LA. The Dodgers are fully familiar with how dangerous the Phillies' lineup, headlined by Schwarber and Harper, can be; but they're just as familiar with how vulnerable the Phillies' bullpen is in October.
And the Phillies may have showed that volatility a little early with a 10-14 September record in which they didn't secure their playoff spot until the final game of the season despite their magic number being at one for the seven games before that. They avoided a historic collapse to close out the regular season and came back from what looked like sure elimination late in Game 2 on Wednesday, but how much longer can their bats keep covering for the bullpen? If it's anything like it was in 2025, the answer is not much.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who should Dodgers root for in NL wild card series? Breaking down Phillies, Braves matchups
