4 teams other than the Braves and Phillies we should root against

4) NY Mets fans should root against the Dodgers

What do the Los Angeles Dodgers have to do with the MLB trade deadline? Not much when it comes to the Mets other than maybe a few bidding wars. But rooting against them will only put the pressure on their front office to go out and overpay for players we want. Our rooting interest against Los Angeles has a lot more to do with the bigger picture.

Cheering against the Dodgers is easy enough. They’re LA, after all. It’s the antithesis of New York sports. Players come to New York to be champions. They go to Los Angeles to star in movies—but also to become champions as many times as well.

Mets fans will care about what the Dodgers do because of possible playoff seeding. The two division winners with the best records get byes. More importantly, the team with the best record will have the edge in the NLCS with home-field advantage. It’s something the Mets will be striving for.

The San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants will have to do as much damage as they can against the frequent final boss of the National League, the Dodgers. The Mets do get to host them again later this year. When that series comes up, there’s a little extra incentive to win.