Dodgers Rise to Success with Two Consecutive World Series Championships
Dodgers Ranked as MLB’s Second Most Cursed Team, Study Reveals
In a sport where statistics dominate, baseball also thrives on rituals and superstitions. Players avoid mentioning a no-hitter, refrain from stepping on foul lines, and cling to lucky socks. Yet, despite these practices, some teams appear plagued by misfortune. A recent study by Casino.ca has identified the Los Angeles Dodgers as one of the most cursed teams in Major League Baseball.
Analyzing seven seasons of data from 2017 to 2024, researchers examined various mishaps, ranging from blown leads to playoff heartbreaks. The findings echoed sentiments familiar to Dodgers fans: the team ranked as the second most cursed, achieving a “curse score” of 20, notably higher than the league average of 13. Only the Pittsburgh Pirates ranked above them.
Key Misfortunes for the Dodgers
The study highlighted three primary categories of the Dodgers’ misfortunes:
Blown Leads (6 instances): The Dodgers lost games where they held leads of five or more runs. Notable examples include an April 2021 game against the Padres, where a 7-1 lead dissolved into an 8-7 loss after extra innings, and a 2024 game against the Tigers, where a 9-4 advantage slipped away in the ninth inning.
Playoff Heartbreak (5 instances): The team has faced considerable challenges in October, including a scandal-tainted World Series loss to the Astros in 2017 and defeats to the Boston Red Sox in 2018 and the Washington Nationals in the 2019 NLDS. The Dodgers also dealt with injuries in the 2021 NLCS and unexpected early exits against the Padres in 2022 and Diamondbacks in 2023.
Controversial Calls and Bizarre Plays (6 total): Missed calls and bizarre occurrences have further contributed to the team’s struggles. Though atypical, these moments have often shifted the momentum away from the Dodgers.
A Continued Cycle of Heartbreak
Despite the recent rankings reflecting a trend of bad luck, the Dodgers have consistently excelled in the regular season, consistently racking up over 100 wins and claiming 12 of the last 13 NL West titles. However, this level of success only intensifies the sting of their postseason failures.
The victory in 2020, during a pandemic-shortened season, felt bittersweet to many fans. While the Dodgers redeemed themselves with back-to-back World Series titles in 2024 and 2025, the specter of their past heartbreaks can’t be easily dismissed.
In 2024, after facing elimination against the Padres, the Dodgers rallied to advance to the World Series, where they claimed their first full-season crown since 1988. The following year, they confronted the Toronto Blue Jays in a dramatic seven-game showdown, ultimately emerging champions once again, with a game-winning home run from Will Smith sealing the victory.
Assessing the Curse
The findings from Casino.ca do not suggest that the Dodgers are eternally cursed; instead, they highlight a troubling trend in high-stakes scenarios. Instances of blown leads, controversial calls, and critical injuries have frequently plagued the team when it matters most.
For Dodgers fans, the implications are clear. The interplay between skill and superstition remains a defining characteristic of the sport. The “curse” narrative, resonating with the history of other franchises like the Red Sox and Cubs, continues to loom large. As Los Angeles fans brace for each October, they are reminded that the postseason bears not just the promise of triumph but also the weight of past sorrows.
