So, Roki Sasaki has chosen the Dodgers.

You can admit it: You¡¯re not surprised. Heck, you probably even rolled your eyes a little bit when you learned about it. Of course the Dodgers got Sasaki, you grumbled, they get everybody.

And I certainly can¡¯t blame you for feeling that way. The defending World Series champs already had signed Blake Snell, Hyeseong Kim and Michael Conforto this offseason, while re-signing Teoscar Hern¨¢ndez and Blake Treinen. Oh, and they¡¯re getting Shohei Ohtani back in the rotation. The Dodgers are on such a roll right now that it can seem like they can just pick and choose whatever player they want.

Because of this, it can also feel like, well, the Dodgers are somehow shoo-ins to win the World Series again -- as if it is now somehow inevitable. Heck, why play the season? But here¡¯s the thing: While the Dodgers are certainly the favorites in 2025 -- especially after signing Sasaki -- they are not, in fact, likely to actually become the first repeat champs since the 1998-2000 Yankees. If you have the option of predicting the Dodgers or ¡°the field,¡± the answer is obviously -- overwhelmingly obviously -- ¡°the field.¡±

I¡¯ll just come out and say it: Not only is the repeat far from assured, it¡¯s highly unlikely to happen at all. So take heart, fans of other contenders. This is far from over, no matter how it might feel right now. Here are five reasons why.

1. They still might not have enough pitching

Yes, the Dodgers just added another star starting pitcher to a rotation that already had plenty. Check out the current crop of options: Snell, Sasaki, Ohtani, Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Bobby Miller, Landon Knack. And that doesn¡¯t even include Clayton Kershaw, who is still presumed to be re-signing at some point. That¡¯s a lot of guys!

But here¡¯s the thing: Is there anyone in that rotation you feel comfortable predicting is going to throw, say, 140 innings? They¡¯re all speculative plays, to varying degrees. Snell has only thrown that many innings twice in his career (his two Cy Young Award seasons). Ohtani (who is of course coming off his second Tommy John surgery) has done it once. No one else, including Glasnow and Sasaki, has done it even once. Gonsolin and May are coming back from major injuries, and Miller¡¯s regressed badly in his second season.

Some of these guys, maybe a lot of these guys, are injury risks, even more so than most pitchers. The Dodgers have invested a ton in their rotation, but it¡¯s still not a reliable group, with no real record of durability from any of them. And let¡¯s not forget what has derailed many a Dodgers postseason (including, almost, last year¡¯s): Running out of pitching. The 2025 roster will have a ton of good pitchers, but nothing resembling an innings eater. Will enough of them be healthy and effective in October?

2. There are worthy challengers aplenty out there

The Dodgers¡¯ NL West run over the last decade has been deeply impressive, but it should be said that they¡¯ve only had the best record in baseball twice during this run: In 2017 and 2022. The rest of the league isn¡¯t just sitting idly by, is what we¡¯re saying here.

The Mets just added Juan Soto; the Phillies are stacked with veteran players who want a title desperately; the Braves were crushed by injuries and were still good in 2024, which was only a small step backward from 2023, when they were the best team in baseball. Also, the Diamondbacks signed Corbin Burnes, and the Padres, down the stretch last year, might have been the best team in the National League.

The Dodgers can add all the talent they want, but there are some formidable opponents in the NL, to say the least. L.A. will have to earn its way back to the World Series.

3. The lineup is getting kind of old

Kim felt like a pile-on move for the Dodgers, adding another utility guy on a team that has plenty. But it also was a dose of youth for a rather old group of position players. Every single Dodgers position player who is likely to be on the team¡¯s Opening Day roster -- save for Kim (26) and Andy Pages (24) -- will be in his 30s by Memorial Day. Freddie Freeman is going to be 36 by the time this year ends. Max Muncy will turn 35, and Mookie Betts 33. Even Ohtani is already 30, and Will Smith will be soon.

And the Dodgers are asking a lot of these guys. As admirable and impressive as it is that Betts is willing and able to continue switching positions -- now back to shortstop again -- this is probably not the best way to keep your franchise MVP healthy and stable. As for Ohtani, he¡¯s going to be pitching and hitting again this year. You¡¯re probably going to have to give him a lot more than the three days off he got in 2024.

The Dodgers¡¯ lineup looks stacked. But as the aforementioned 2024 Braves showed, a wave of injuries can change things in a hurry.

4. Even last year¡¯s team was flawed

All right, fine, they won 98 games. They were plenty good. But that was their lowest win percentage since 2018, and, yeah, over the season¡¯s last month, it sure looked like the Padres were the better team. Remember, the Dodgers ran out of pitching several times in 2024; they were just fortunate to have Walker Buehler rediscover himself late.

And even with that, the Padres almost beat them in the NLDS. (It took two solo homers off Yu Darvish and a brilliant Dodgers bullpen performance to stave them off.) The Dodgers won the World Series last year, which means when we look back at last season now, that title seems inevitable. But in the moment, it was far from it. Put it this way, if the Padres win that Game 5, one measly game, the offseason conversation about the Dodgers isn¡¯t that they¡¯re inevitable: It¡¯s that they just can¡¯t win the big one. Again.

5. It¡¯s baseball

Seriously, let¡¯s not forget what the baseball postseason is. It¡¯s not a crapshoot, exactly, but it is far more random than we tend to pretend it is. Sure, the Dodgers and Yankees, the two best, star-laden teams, went to the World Series last year, but that¡¯s not usually how it works. Heck, we¡¯re only one year removed from Rangers-Diamondbacks!

Great teams lose in the postseason all the time. That¡¯s why the postseason is so fun! There is no assurance, at all, that even if the Dodgers dominate the regular season (which is far from a certainty), they¡¯re any more likely to win the World Series than they would be if they just slipped in by a thin margin.

You know who knows this better than anyone? The Dodgers! They¡¯ve been the team in baseball for a decade now, and they only have two titles, one of which was during the Covid season. There¡¯s a reason no team has repeated in 25 years. There are more playoff rounds, and thus more ways to trip up, than any previous dynastic team has had to deal with.

The Dodgers may have the best team on paper right now. They may even have the best team during the regular season. But that guarantees you nothing in October. I know other fanbases are frustrated with the Dodgers getting everybody. But in October, it might not mean a thing. Rest assured: By signing Roki Sasaki, the Dodgers have not guaranteed themselves anything. That is, after all, baseball.