The Los Angeles Dodgers never found sustained offensive consistency in 2026, and their recurring problems eventually ended their season in October.

Over eight postseason games, Los Angeles produced a .195/.267/.323 slash line with nine home runs, 22 RBIs and 25 runs scored.

The lineup repeatedly failed with runners in scoring position, generated insufficient power and reached base through walks less frequently than usual.

Those weaknesses had already surfaced during July and August. The Dodgers appeared to correct them in September while facing weaker opposition, only for the same issues to return when the stakes were highest.

According to Dodger Blue, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said Los Angeles spent the latter portion of the season attempting to identify the cause.

Friedman compared the process to a constantly changing problem because one concern would disappear before another emerged.

Some trends represented statistical noise, while others exposed legitimate flaws. He believes the Dodgers must separate the two and determine which problems can realistically be corrected.

Los Angeles will devote considerable offseason attention to that evaluation. Friedman acknowledged the difficulty of hitting against pitchers who continually adjust and benefit from rules that often favor run prevention.

The Dodgers must develop better methods of countering those advantages and creating runs.

Friedman believes improvement is possible. He noted that the organization would seek progress even after an excellent offensive season, but the inconsistency of 2026 makes identifying actionable changes more urgent.

“We’ll spend a lot of time really focusing on that in the offseason," Friedman said. "Hitting is really hard, and pitchers make adjustments. In a lot of ways, a lot of the rules are designed for the run prevention side to have a real advantage. And so, so much of our focus has been: how do we try to combat that on the run creation side?

“I think there are ways that we can get better. And even if we were coming off a consistent great year, our mindset would be, how do we get better?" Friedman continued, "But we’ll definitely spend a lot of time trying to wrap our arms around it and figuring out what is actionable and what things we can improve going forward.”

Similar concerns followed the Dodgers during the 2025 postseason. They nevertheless defeated the Toronto Blue Jays in the World Series that year because their pitching staff and timely home runs compensated for the lineup’s uneven production.

Los Angeles had MLB’s oldest position-player group this season, creating several possible explanations. The hitters may be declining, experiencing fatigue late in the year or simply encountering baseball’s randomness at the worst possible time.

Many fans and analysts consider age the leading explanation. Dodgers hitters struggled badly against fastballs in October, potentially reflecting the roster’s lack of elite collective bat speed.

Aging would present a serious problem because Los Angeles cannot realistically become substantially younger during one offseason.

Will Smith, Freddie Freeman, Tommy Edman, Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, Teoscar Hernández and Shohei Ohtani are all in their 30s and remain under contract through at least 2027.

Friedman accepts that age may have some relationship to the decline but rejects using it as a universal explanation, noting that several older players finished strongly.

“I mean, there have been some guys who are older who have finished really strong,” Friedman explained. “So I don’t think it’s as easy as to paint it with that broad of a stroke.”

The Dodgers also have limited opportunities for external upgrades. Second base provides the clearest opening, with Edman potentially shifting into a utility role.

Josue De Paula appears positioned to replace Hernández as the starting left fielder, potentially improving the offense.

Beyond those changes, Los Angeles needs a healthy Ohtani and stronger production from Smith, Freeman, Betts and Muncy. Without those internal rebounds, the Dodgers could encounter the same offensive problems in 2027.