Why the Dodgers are so good, and the Angels are so bad

Drive about 30 miles down the 5 Freeway and you can visit two Major League Baseball teams.One is building a dynasty.The other is building resentment.As of Sunday, the Los Angeles Dodgers are 82-55, leading the National League West and trying to win their third straight World Series.They won it all in 2024.

Then they did it again in 2025.The 52-85 Angels?Their last postseason appearance was in 2014.Barack Obama was president.The first Apple Watch wasn’t yet on sale.

Ohtani was still playing in Japan.It has been that long.The standings only begin to explain how far apart these franchises have become.Start with the Dodgers roster.Shohei Ohtani.Mookie Betts.

Freddie Freeman.Kyle Tucker.

Will Smith.Teoscar Hernández.

Max Muncy.Andy Pages.

Tommy Edman.Enough star power for almost anybody.Not the Dodgers.Their pitching staff features Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the reigning World Series MVP; two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell; Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki; and newly acquired two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.Listing Dodgers starts sounding less like a roster than the finalists for every major award in baseball.And then there are the Angels.California's top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.

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Never miss a story They have Mike Trout.That is not a knock on Trout.It is an indictment of the Angels.They did not fail because they lacked a superstar.

At his peak, Trout was the best player in baseball, one of the greatest of his generation.For six seasons, the Angels paired him with another generational player: Ohtani.Two extraordinary talents.

Zero postseason appearances together.Then Ohtani left Anaheim, drove north and signed with the Dodgers.He has won the World Series in both seasons since.Sometimes the punchline writes itself.Baseball is still a team sport.One superstar cannot make up ...