Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
There’s not even any point in talking about this game, really. Alex Wood wasn’t good. Coors Field is always a nightmare. Hard to talk seriously about a series that didn’t include Clayton Kershaw or Zack Greinke, I think.
I just want to ask this question: what is momentum? Set aside the endless studies about whether it matters — invariably, it does not — and focus on how to define it. That is, when does it start? There’s still seven games left in the season, don’t forget. I imagine if the Dodgers win five or more of them, and don’t forget that even a single win in San Francisco ends the race and makes every game after it even less meaningful, no one will care at all about what just happened in Denver and against Arizona.
I’m not necessarily saying it wouldn’t be a problem if the Dodgers back into the title and end the season winning something like three of their last 12 games, because, yeah, that’d point to larger issues. I’m just saying that since “momentum” is a pretty invented thing, you can define it how you want. Some will think that they’ve already “lost momentum” no matter what happens. Others will think the team is “red-hot” if they do well this upcoming week. Yet others are quietly thrilled because they’d be happier seeing a clinch party in San Francisco rather than Denver.
Me? Well, there’s still 12 days until the NLDS starts, and that’s a long time. There’s a certain something to be said for playing well enough over the first five-and-a-half months to allow yourself the luxury of stalling out like this. None of this matters all that much right now. There’s an expiration date on that, though, and each day in San Francisco they don’t finish this off just opens the door a little more to panic. I think that’s what I want more than anything: For this conversation to be over.
