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A final month surge gave the Dodgers their sixth consecutive National League West title, and their September was so robust that it spilled over into October.
The Dodgers secured the division because they went 14-4 against the NL West in September, including 8-1 against the Rockies and pre-elimination Diamondbacks.
The offense scored nearly six runs per game in the final month and the four planned postseason starters posted a 2.71 ERA with a 4.93 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
At 19-9, September(/October) was the Dodgers’ best month of 2018.
Batter of September
The Dodgers offense came to play in the final month, with eight regulars posting an OPS of at least .900. With so many worthy candidates to choose from, our final monthly award goes to Max Muncy in a squeaker over Yasiel Puig. Muncy led the team in RBI and walks during the month while hitting five home runs, giving him 35 on the season. Puig slammed eight home runs, including a franchise record-tying five in a two-game stretch.
Pitcher of September
Walker Buehler closed out strong with a 1.62 ERA in the final month, including pitching into the seventh in the tiebreaker game without allowing a run. “Right now, he’s our best,” manager Dave Roberts said of the stellar rookie. Buehler narrowly beat out Hyun-jin Ryu, who finished off his stellar season with a 1.50 ERA in his five September starts, with 30 strikeouts and three walks. He’ll have to settle for the consolation of a Game 1 NLDS start.
NL West September standings
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | RS | RA | Rdiff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | RS | RA | Rdiff |
| Dodgers | 19 | 9 | 0.679 | ---- | 166 | 98 | +68 |
| Rockies | 19 | 10 | 0.655 | ½ | 156 | 100 | +56 |
| Padres | 12 | 13 | 0.480 | 5½ | 93 | 118 | -25 |
| Diamondbacks | 8 | 19 | 0.296 | 10½ | 98 | 134 | -36 |
| Giants | 5 | 21 | 0.192 | 13 | 69 | 126 | -57 |
Record: 19-9
166 runs scored (5.93 per game)
98 runs allowed (3.50 per game)
.724 pythagorean winning percentage (20-8)
Final NL West standings
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | RS | RA | Rdiff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | RS | RA | Rdiff |
| Dodgers | 92 | 71 | 0.564 | ---- | 804 | 610 | +194 |
| Rockies | 91 | 72 | 0.558 | 1 | 780 | 745 | +35 |
| Diamondbacks | 82 | 80 | 0.506 | 9½ | 693 | 644 | +49 |
| Giants | 73 | 89 | 0.451 | 18½ | 603 | 699 | -96 |
| Padres | 66 | 96 | 0.407 | 25½ | 617 | 767 | -150 |
Record: 92-71
804 runs scored (4.93 per game)
610 runs allowed (3.74 per game)
.624 pythagorean winning percentage (102-61)
The Dodgers started the month in second place in the West, a game behind Arizona and a half-game ahead of Colorado. They finished atop the division, a tiebreaker win separating them from the Rockies.
Game of the month
The game of September wasn’t even in September, though it all gets lumped in just the same. Facing their first tiebreaker game since 1980, the Dodgers returned home and got a fantastic start from Walker Buehler, who was asked afterward if he knew he was going to win that game. “I’m not going to say yes, but yes,” he said.
Cody Bellinger and Max Muncy each hit two-run home runs, adding to the Dodgers’ franchise record total for the season of 235.
Situational stats
Pinch hitting: Dodgers pinch hitters for in September were 16-for-84 with two doubles, two home runs, a triple and nine walks, hitting .190/.284/.310.
Runners in scoring position: The Dodgers for the month with RISP hit .287/.369/.496. They ranked seventh in MLB in September with 285 plate appearances in those situations.
Bases loaded: The Dodgers in September were 6-for-25 (.240) with a double with the bases loaded, driving in 11 runs.
September months in review: Aug. 27-Sep. 2 | Sep. 3-9 | Sep. 10-16 | Sep. 17-23 | Sep. 24-Oct. 1
The month ahead
Playoffs! The Dodgers will start things by playing the Braves in the NLDS, beginning Thursday at Dodger Stadium.
Stats
September batting
| Player | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | HBP | SH | SF | PA | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | BABIP | Player |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | HBP | SH | SF | PA | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | BABIP | Player |
| Freese | 39 | 9 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 47 | 0.385 | 0.489 | 0.641 | 1.130 | 0.619 | Freese |
| Puig | 65 | 12 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 0.292 | 0.361 | 0.692 | 1.053 | 0.239 | Puig |
| Taylor | 58 | 16 | 20 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 67 | 0.345 | 0.433 | 0.586 | 1.019 | 0.486 | Taylor |
| Muncy | 68 | 17 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 85 | 0.294 | 0.435 | 0.574 | 1.009 | 0.375 | Muncy |
| Hernandez | 72 | 17 | 25 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 85 | 0.347 | 0.440 | 0.528 | 0.968 | 0.383 | Hernandez |
| Pederson | 67 | 12 | 18 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 73 | 0.269 | 0.329 | 0.612 | 0.941 | 0.324 | Pederson |
| Turner | 102 | 19 | 32 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 120 | 0.314 | 0.408 | 0.520 | 0.928 | 0.349 | Turner |
| Kemp | 56 | 7 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 0.339 | 0.351 | 0.571 | 0.922 | 0.410 | Kemp |
| Bellinger | 80 | 10 | 21 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 92 | 0.263 | 0.359 | 0.463 | 0.821 | 0.304 | Bellinger |
| Grandal | 71 | 7 | 18 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 85 | 0.254 | 0.365 | 0.451 | 0.815 | 0.333 | Grandal |
| Machado | 109 | 15 | 30 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 118 | 0.275 | 0.322 | 0.477 | 0.799 | 0.283 | Machado |
| Dozier | 46 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 53 | 0.087 | 0.189 | 0.217 | 0.406 | 0.094 | Dozier |
| Starters | 833 | 145 | 241 | 54 | 7 | 43 | 142 | 9 | 3 | 108 | 205 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 954 | 0.289 | 0.375 | 0.526 | 0.900 | 0.336 | Starters |
| Farmer | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0.200 | 0.333 | 0.600 | 0.933 | 0.333 | Farmer |
| Barnes | 25 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0.240 | 0.269 | 0.600 | 0.869 | 0.231 | Barnes |
| Verdugo | 27 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0.222 | 0.300 | 0.259 | 0.559 | 0.300 | Verdugo |
| Toles | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0.143 | 0.250 | 0.143 | 0.393 | 0.333 | Toles |
| Utley | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0.000 | 0.182 | 0.000 | 0.182 | 0.000 | Utley |
| Gale | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | Gale |
| Locastro | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ----- | ------ | ------ | ------ | ------ | Locastro |
| Bench | 84 | 17 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 29 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 94 | 0.167 | 0.255 | 0.310 | 0.565 | 0.212 | Bench |
| Pitchers | 54 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 61 | 0.204 | 0.271 | 0.222 | 0.493 | 0.333 | Pitchers |
| Offense | 971 | 166 | 266 | 56 | 8 | 46 | 155 | 15 | 4 | 121 | 255 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 1109 | 0.274 | 0.359 | 0.490 | 0.849 | 0.326 | Offense |
September pitching
| Pitcher | G | GS | W | L | Sv | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | IBB | SO | HBP | ERA | WHIP | FIP | Pitcher |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitcher | G | GS | W | L | Sv | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | IBB | SO | HBP | ERA | WHIP | FIP | Pitcher |
| Ryu | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 30.0 | 30 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 1.50 | 1.100 | 2.80 | Ryu | |
| Buehler | 6 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 39.0 | 18 | 9 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 45 | 2 | 1.62 | 0.769 | 2.64 | Buehler | |
| Kershaw | 6 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 37.0 | 35 | 18 | 16 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 31 | 0 | 3.89 | 1.189 | 4.36 | Kershaw | |
| Hill | 5 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 30.0 | 19 | 13 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 37 | 0 | 3.90 | 0.800 | 3.40 | Hill | |
| Stripling | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 11.7 | 15 | 9 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 6.94 | 1.714 | 6.37 | Stripling | |
| Wood | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8.7 | 13 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 7.27 | 1.962 | 4.01 | Wood | |
| Starters | 28 | 28 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 156.3 | 130 | 66 | 57 | 21 | 38 | 1 | 167 | 3 | 3.28 | 1.075 | 3.58 | Starters |
| Venditte | 8 | 0 | 0 | 7.7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0.00 | 0.522 | 3.46 | Venditte | ||
| Urias | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.250 | -0.30 | Urias | ||
| Chargois | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.000 | -0.80 | Chargois | ||
| Cingrani | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | 6.000 | 12.20 | Cingrani | ||
| Stripling | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 3.000 | 3.20 | Stripling | ||
| Baez | 11 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0.90 | 0.900 | 4.00 | Baez | ||
| Fields | 8 | 0 | 0 | 6.7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1.35 | 1.050 | 2.60 | Fields | ||
| Floro | 8 | 1 | 0 | 5.0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1.80 | 2.000 | 2.60 | Floro | ||
| Rosscup | 9 | 0 | 0 | 4.7 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1.93 | 1.071 | 0.84 | Rosscup | ||
| Jansen | 13 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 12.3 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 2.92 | 0.811 | 4.90 | Jansen | |
| Ferguson | 8 | 2 | 0 | 7.0 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 3.86 | 1.429 | 7.20 | Ferguson | ||
| Maeda | 13 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 11.3 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 3.97 | 1.059 | 3.46 | Maeda | |
| Alexander | 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6.7 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 4.05 | 1.500 | 3.95 | Alexander | |
| Wood | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3.7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4.91 | 0.818 | 2.65 | Wood | ||
| Madson | 9 | 0 | 0 | 8.3 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 6.48 | 1.320 | 2.00 | Madson | ||
| Garcia | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6.75 | 1.500 | 2.45 | Garcia | ||
| Axford | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27.00 | 12.000 | 3.20 | Axford | ||
| Relievers | 118 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 90.7 | 77 | 32 | 29 | 11 | 24 | 3 | 103 | 7 | 2.88 | 1.114 | 3.43 | Relievers |
| Totals | 146 | 28 | 19 | 9 | 7 | 247.0 | 207 | 98 | 86 | 32 | 62 | 4 | 270 | 10 | 3.13 | 1.089 | 3.52 | Totals |