On Oct. 1, 2018, the Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers played Game 163 at Chavez Ravine to determine which team would win the National League West.

My, how much has changed since that fateful game won by the Dodgers.

Since the start of the 2019 regular season, the Dodgers have posted a 612-337 (.645) record and won two World Series. In that same span, the Rockies have gone 377-570 (.398) while barreling into their third consecutive season with more than 100 losses.

As the Dodgers roll into Coors Field to open a three-game series Tuesday, 29.5 games separate the two teams in the NL West. That number perfectly illustrates the chasm that currently exists on many levels between the franchises.

Rockies fans know the emotions these comparisons can bring out all too well as anger and frustration over the direction of the franchise has reached a fever pitch this season.

What happened in the last six-plus seasons that has driven the Dodgers and Rockies in opposite directions? Here are three of the biggest reasons why the franchises have gone north and south in the standings:

Television revenue

The Dodgers have signed star players to massive contracts in recent seasons, including the 10-year, $700 million deal signed by two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani prior to the 2024 campaign. One of the key points of the deal was that $680 million of it was deferred to be paid out during the 2034 to 2043 seasons.

That was part of more than $1 billion the Dodgers have in deferred payments to eight different players as part of their current roster. Los Angeles is reaping the benefits of players performing now while being able to pay them down the road.

How can the Dodgers do this? Among other revenue streams, Los Angeles has an average of $334 million income being generated each season thanks to its television broadcast agreement with Time Warner Cable. Signed in early 2014, the deal was for $8.35 billion.

Colorado’s television revenue, on the other hand, has decreased since AT&T SportsNet ceased operations and stopped carrying Rockies games after the 2023 season. While no numbers are public, the Rockies are currently operating under “a significant cut,” per team officials, with their own television package and streaming platform for the last two seasons.

More revenue allows the Dodgers to pursue more opportunities. It’s as simple as that.

Finding free agents

Playing fewer than eight miles from the iconic Hollywood sign, the Dodgers have long had their own feel of glitz and glamour. Add to that 11 division titles over the last 12 years, plus the financial flexibility to pursue any player, and it’s easy to see why free agents are interested in playing for the Dodgers.

On the flip side, Colorado has not won a division title since coming into Major League Baseball in 1993. Pitchers understand their earned runs averages may be inflated because they throw at a mile high, and all players will battle the physical toll inherent with traveling back and forth between elevation and sea level.

“Playing here as a visitor for seven years with Chicago, no one really talked about playing at elevation and what it was like,” Kris Bryant said in 2022 when working to recover from plantar fasciitis. “When I played for San Francisco, they understood more because they played here three times a year. The older guys made me aware it was much harder to sleep here. It’s no joke. It definitely is.

“It’s been a whole new learning experience playing here. I definitely have learned a lot in terms of recovery and keeping up with yourself here at elevation.”

That learning, however, hasn’t helped keep Bryant healthy and on the field. Since signing his seven-year, $182 million guaranteed deal before the 2022 season, Bryant has played in only 170 games.

Drafting and developing

When Bill Schmidt took over as Colorado’s general manager after the 2021 season, he told reporters the Rockies were “a scouting, draft and develop organization, and that’s not going to change.”

While that philosophy may be at Colorado’s core, it hasn’t paid off for the Rockies.

Looking at FanGraphs version of Wins Above Replacement (WAR) by Rockies draft picks over the last 10 seasons who have made it to the big leagues, Colorado was last among all MLB teams during that time at a combined 9.8 heading into 2025. The Dodgers, meanwhile, were tied with the Baltimore Orioles for fourth at 76.5.

Los Angeles has been able to supplement the signing of high-priced and high-producing free agents (Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, etc.) with its own draft classes (Clayton Kershaw, Will Smith, Dustin May, etc.) to build its current roster. It’s been a formula that has produced multiple championships.

While Colorado’s past draft classes haven’t panned out, there is hope for what is to come with players such as Jordan Beck, Brenton Doyle and Hunter Goodman.

It’s that hope that Colorado clings to as it looks for ways to get back into the same universe as the Dodgers, just like 2018.