Red Sox WS champ shares major reason why Phillies are biggest threat to Dodgers in NL

World Series champion Ryan Dempster believes the Philadelphia Phillies could be the biggest contenders to the LA Dodgers in the National League. Dempster stated that Philly's mix of depth on the mound and ability to produce runs will hold them in good stead as they look to give the reigning champions a run for their money.

The Phillies have snagged the NL East lead from the grip of their rivals, the New York Mets. Philadelphia boasts a 32-18 record that includes seven straight wins.

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"I'm going to say [they're the biggest threat] due to their rotation," Dempster said on "Intentional Talk." Just because their starting rotation [featuring] Aaron Nola hasn't even had a good run yet so far. But Zack Wheeler, we all know he's a bona fide ace. [Also] what they're able to get with Jesus Luzardo, Ranger Suarez, and Christopher Sanchez — they're so deep."

Dempster expressed his confidence that the Philly brass's proactive approach to things and the injury concerns for the Dodgers, particularly on the mound, might just be enough for Philadelphia to be in contention for the pennant.

"Dave Dombrowski isn't going to wait around. He's obviously already on the phone and I guarantee you [he's] trying to patch up what happened to Alvarado. You look at the Dodgers alone, how many starting pitchers did they start the season with? They started nine [but it] turns out they're gonna need 30, because they keep having guys go down to injury."

Phillies sweep Rockies, claim NL East lead

The Philadelphia Phillies completed a four-game sweep against the Colorado Rockies on the road and now possess the lead in the NL East after the Mets stumbled in their series against the Red Sox.

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Ranger Suarez played a starring role in the final contest of the four-game set as the Phillies shut down the Colorado offense for a 2-0 win.

Suarez notched his third win in four starts after giving up six hits and three walks with six strikeouts in a no-run, 6.2-inning outing. Bryce Harper and Max Kepler's RBI doubles lifted the Phillies' offense in the low-scoring contest. The team will now travel to Sacramento to face the Athletics, who are in the middle of a nine-game losing streak.

About the author

Daniel Santiago is a journalist who has been reporting on baseball at Sportskeeda since 2022. He was drawn towards the sport after the underlying statistics and the analysis surrounding it grabbed his attention.

Daniel particularly enjoys furnishing reports about historic events in baseball and analyzing the game through a statistic-based outlook, based on Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference. This is in line with how he enjoyed watching baseball as a pastime. As a writer, he is very particular about cross-checking from reputable sources and doing his due diligence.

He became a lifelong Hideki Matsui fan after his exploits in the 2009 World Series for the New York Yankees. Among the current generation, Daniel's favorites include Shohei Ohtani and Jung Hoo Lee. Daniel is a huge follower of Asian baseball and both Ohtani and Lee have been in the top echelon of their respective leagues during their time with the NPB and KBO.

His favorite moment as a baseball fan was the final at-bat of the 2023 World Baseball Classic between Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. He believes there aren't many words to fittingly describe the intensity of the moment.

As an avid sports fan, Daniel watches other sports and Esports when not writing about baseball.

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Edited by Daniel Santiago