A 100-win season. A commanding 5-3 score in NLDS Game 1. Yet, according to Yankees legend Derek Jeter, the Los Angeles Dodgers may still face hurdles in their way to secure a three-peat.

The Dodgers have already paid a steep price for their pursuit.

Shohei Ohtani was rushed onto the NLDS roster, while Blake Treinen (right shoulder injury), Gavin Stone (right shoulder surgery and subsequent inflammation), and Ben Casparius (right shoulder inflammation and arm fatigue) saw their seasons end prematurely. But with the Braves standing between them and the next round, Jeter believes the Dodgers are carrying another burden. One that cannot be fixed in the bullpen or the training room. As the pressure of making history grows, the weight of a three-peat could become their biggest obstacle yet.

“What makes it challenging is from a fatigue standpoint, not just physically, but also mentally,” Jeter said via Fox Sports: MLB.

“Physically, we’ve seen the Dodgers break down a little bit. They’re dealing with a lot of injuries. But, mentally, playing that extra month every season, it takes a toll after some time. You got to stay hungry. You got to guard against being satisfied. This year, the National League is tough.”

So far, only two MLB franchises have achieved a three-peat in baseball history.

The New York Yankees have done it three times, and the A’s have done it once. The Yankees last did it between 1998 and 2000 when Jeter was part of their roster. Hence, he knows best about what it takes to achieve a three-peat record.

While the 1998 team operated like an unstoppable machine, securing a 114-win season, it came down to 87 wins in 2000. The Yankees nearly missed the postseason entirely after suffering a historic collapse.

They lost 15 of their final 18 regular-season games, entering October on a miserable 7-game losing streak where they were outscored 68–15.

Pitching icon David Cone struggled immensely, posting a disastrous 4–14 record and a 6.91 ERA. That’s what it takes to secure a three-peat record.

Per Jeter, the Dodgers are no different, and their long injury list is the evidence.

With more than seven elite names in the IL, the Dodgers’ roster was overexposed. Other than the already mentioned names, the other names out of the roster for now are:

• Will Klein is out with right elbow discomfort and will possibly return in October.
• Jake Cousins is recovering from TJ surgery and won’t return before 2027.
• Eric Lauer is out with left elbow inflammation, and won’t return till 2027.
• Brusdar Graterol is recovering from right shoulder surgery and lower back surgery. His return is yet to be decided.

Ohtani, who is far from his usual dominance on both ends of the ball, has paused his pitching and has yet to get into his best on the plate. A 30-HR by the NLDS is not what defines Ohtani. So, fatigue is real, and so is the mental toll.

Every time the Dodgers entered the field since Opening Day, they carried an extra burden of securing a three-peat.

“The emotion, the stress, the ups and downs throughout the course of a game,” Max Muncy noted.

“You just can’t get that any other way than playing a game. So to me, that’s always going to be the hardest thing to replicate.”

However, amid the noise, Jeter still believes that it is the Dodgers who could secure the three-peat.

“Having said that, if there is a team that can do it, it’s this Los Angeles Dodgers team,” Jeter added.

For the Dodgers, contingency plans always work.

For reference, Ohtani may be misfiring, but Kyle Tucker entered Game 1 and answered all the criticisms around his form with a 2-run bomb.

So, while fatigue is real, the Dodgers have the antidote ready.