Home runs are flying out of the park at a record pace. Hitting coach Turner Ward has his sluggers listening to every word that drips off his Southern drawl.
But it's the pitching that will carry them into late October.
Look at the last five games:On Tuesday, Kenta Maeda held the Angels to four hits over seven innings and struck out six in a 4-0 victory.
On Wednesday, Hyun-Jin Ryu tossed 5.2 innings, scattered seven hits, struck out eight and gave up just two runs in a 3-2 loss to the Angels.
On Thursday, the Dodgers sent Clayton Kershaw to the mound and he was masterful, giving up just three hits and one run while striking out 12 over seven innings in a 6-2 win.
Friday, Alex Wood went to the hill, gave up only one run on two hits over six innings and struck out eight batters in a 10-4 win over San Diego.
Last night, Rich Hill went seven strong innings, struck out 11 and shut out the Padres over seven innings in an 8-0 shutout.
This kind of pitching hearkens back to the days of Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, when the Dodgers were stingy with runs.
The difference now is that the LA offense is potent, featuring the National League batting average leader in Justin Turner (.388), the home run leader in Cody Bellinger (24) and a lineup chock full of hot sticks.
Look at Chris Taylor. The fourth-year player acquired from Seattle last year had one career home run coming into the season and has hammered 10 dingers this year in limited playing time, four of them grand slams.
Like I said, it's good to be a Dodgers' fan these days.
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