LOS ANGELES — If money alone propelled teams to the World Series, the Los Angeles Dodgers would have been here a lot more often. They have spent billions on salaries since their last pennant, in 1988, and topped the majors in payroll for each of the last four seasons.
Yet most winning teams need more than highly paid stars; they also need luck. Some World Series standouts of this decade, like Chris Carpenter, David Ortiz and Jake Arrieta, were rejected by their prior teams for little or nothing in return. In Game 1 on Tuesday, the Dodgers’ lucky breaks powered their 3-1 victory over the Houston Astros at Dodger Stadium.