The Los Angeles Dodgers’ push to win a third straight World Series ended officially Thursday, swept by the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Championship Series.Their chances were never the same, however, as early as June.The Dodgers started June 11 the way they began the season — as a heavy favorite to become the first franchise since the 1998-00 New York Yankees to claim three consecutive championships.
Their active roster, the most expensive in the sport, included two former World Series MVPs, one Cy Young winner, and a second would be added a few weeks later at the trade deadline.The linchpin was superstar Shohei Ohtani, the four-time MVP whose pitching and hitting feats were unparalleled in modern baseball history, and had helped the club win titles in each of his first two seasons in Los Angeles.
That version of Ohtani was on display June 11 in Pittsburgh.He started the day with a minuscule 1.06 ERA in 11 appearances on the mound.
Against the Pirates, he proceeded to hit a solo homer and get on base in all four plate appearances.Then, in the seventh inning, Ohtani exited with what the team called knee inflammation.
The injury appeared innocuous.It was instead the first in a series of lingering knee and bicep injuries that diminished Ohtani and eventually derailed the Dodgers juggernaut (total payroll cost: $339 million) until they couldn’t keep up with Milwaukee ($146 million), which clinched its sweep with Thursday’s 6-4 win in Los Angeles.After exiting the June 11 game in Pittsburgh, Ohtani pitched only three more times and had an ERA of 4.50 before being shut down as a pitcher July 3.
Dodgers starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani pitches in Los Angeles on June 17, 2026.Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Imagn Images via Reuters ConnectThe Dodgers’ postseason disappointment could not be explained alone by Ohtani’s decline over the season’s back half.The Dodgers’ bullpen and vaunted starters also showed vulnerabilities throughout the summer.
Yet when t...