LA Loaded: Dodgers Lead Sliver Slugger Finalists with…

The Los Angeles Dodgers are one of two finalists for the 2024 Team Silver Slugger Award, competing against the Arizona Diamondbacks for their first accolade of this type.

The American League finalists for the 2024 Team Silver Slugger Award are the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees.

Team Silver Slugger recognition is a recent invention by MLB, with the inaugural award being presented last season. The Dodgers were also in contention in 2023, but lost out to the Atalanta Braves.

However, the field has shrunk significantly from what it was just a year ago, going from four finalists to now only two in each league.

The Dodgers were again one of the NL’s best offenses, ranking second in runs scored (842), RBI (815), walks (602) and on-base percentage (.335). But their ability to collect extra-base hits is where they really set themselves apart as an offense, leading MLB in slugging percentage (.446) and on-base plus slugging (.781).

Shohei Ohtani was the driving force behind the Dodgers’ slugging prowess with his 38 doubles, seven triples and 54 home runs. Teoscar Hernández was second on the team 32 doubles and 33 home runs. Mookie Betts contributed 24 doubles and 19 homers of his own, while Freddie Freeman rounded out the Dodgers’ top four with 35 two-baggers and 22 long balls.

The offensive season the Dodgers put together is even more impressive when the injuries to Betts and Max Muncy are factored in. Betts was having an MVP-caliber year at the plate before a left hand fracture on June 16 caused him to miss the next eight weeks of the season. At the time of his injury Betts was batting .304/.405/.488.

Meanwhile, Muncy spent most of the 2024 season rehabbing an injured oblique that refused to cooperate, limiting him to only 73 games. The absence of Betts and Muncy shortened the lineup and caused the Dodgers’ offense to look out of sorts at times.

Once both returned to full health, as well as trade deadline acquisition Tommy Edman, the Dodgers lineup dominated down the stretch and that continued into the postseason.

The Silver Slugger Team Award winners in the NL and AL will be revealed on MLB Network on Nov. 12, along with the individual player awards.

Dodgers named 2024 Silver Slugger Award finalists

Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, Teoscar Hernández, Shohei Ohtani, and Mookie Betts were all named as finalists for the 2024 Silver Slugger Award in the NL.