Dodgers Clinch 14th Straight Playoff Berth, Tie Braves' MLB Record. Their $69 Million Closer Might Not Make the Roster

The Los Angeles Dodgers clinched a playoff berth Monday night with a 4-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati, according to the Associated Press. It's their 14th consecutive postseason trip, tying the 1991-2005 Atlanta Braves for the longest streak in MLB history, according to USA Today.

For a club chasing a third straight World Series title, reaching October was never the goal. The NY Post described the clinch as almost businesslike: routine high-fives on the field, no champagne, no dogpile. The bigger prizes are still open: the NL West title, which the Dodgers (91-59) could lock up this week with their magic number down to three, and a top-two NL seed that would buy them a bye through the best-of-three wild card round.

Tarik Skubal did his part Monday. The two-time AL Cy Young winner, acquired from Detroit at the trade deadline, threw seven shutout innings, allowed three hits and struck out nine, according to the Associated Press. It was his fifth straight win with the Dodgers and dropped his ERA to 2.52 since the trade, according to USA Today. Kyle Tucker and Teoscar Hernández homered, and all three of L.A.'s hits went for runs.

The bigger story is the bullpen, not the banner

Behind the clinch is a bullpen problem the Dodgers thought they'd already fixed. Edgardo Henriquez, the hardest thrower in the relief corps, landed on the 15-day injured list Monday with lower back discomfort, ending his regular season, according to the LA Times.

That leaves Edwin Díaz. The three-time All-Star signed a three-year, $69 million contract last offseason specifically to shore up a bullpen that blew games in 2025, according to the New York Times. Instead, Díaz has a 11.85 ERA and 2.56 WHIP across 16 major league appearances this year, has blown four saves in 11 attempts, and has been charged with 18 runs in 13 2/3 innings, according to MLB Trade Rumors.

He missed three months after arthroscopic elbow surgery, returned, struggled, and went back on the IL with what the team called neck inflammation. His rehab assignment at Triple-A Oklahoma City, meant to be a tune-up before rejoining the club in Cincinnati, has instead gotten worse. In his outing Sunday against Houston's Triple-A affiliate, Díaz retired just two of eight batters, walked three, hit another, and allowed five runs, according to the New York Times and TheScore. Across four rehab outings over eight days, he's walked or hit eight of 21 batters faced.

Manager Dave Roberts didn't sugarcoat it Monday. "He needs to pitch better," Roberts said, according to TheScore. "I think the world of him. The baseball card looks great. But it's like, where we're at, there's got to be something for us to be able to hang our hat on."

Roberts said he expects Díaz to make the postseason roster, but hedged hard: "My bet is that he will be. But there's got to be some kind of evidence or something for us to sort of bet on," he said, according to the LA Times and MLB Trade Rumors. Díaz gets one more rehab outing Wednesday before the club has to decide.

A pattern repeating itself

This is the second straight October the Dodgers have had to bench a big-money closer. Tanner Scott, signed for four years and $72 million, didn't appear in a single playoff game last postseason despite a 4.74 ERA and a league-worst 10 blown saves in the regular season, according to the New York Times. Scott has pitched better this year and remains Roberts' primary option in save situations, with Alex Vesia, Evan Phillips, Brock Stewart, Jack Dreyer and Blake Treinen rounding out the late-inning mix, according to the LA Times.

Freddie Freeman missed his third game in a week Monday with a right knee issue, and Miguel Rojas played through shoulder soreness after aggravating it Sunday, according to the NY Post. Shohei Ohtani, Andy Pages and Dalton Rushing remain on the injured list, with Ohtani ruled out from pitching for the rest of the season, according to USA Today.

The Triple-A regular season ends Sunday, giving Díaz one more real test before the Dodgers set their October roster. Whether the $69 million reliever pitches in the playoffs at all now hinges on a single outing at Oklahoma City on Wednesday.