In a few weeks, traffic in Los Angeles may get a lot worse.

Even the economic recession won’t keep cars off the roads, or should I say freeways, if the Dodgers and Angels play each other in the World Series.

Aside from the sheer craze that will engulf a city guaranteed a world championship, the stories surrounding each team throughout the season would make a Freeway Series one of the best in recent memory.

First, you have to credit the Angels for playing a truly incredible season. After Nick Adenhart’s tragic death in the first week of the season, the Halos rallied together to put together a 97-win season, good for second best in the majors.

Not only did they have to overcome the obstacle of a devastating distraction in the clubhouse, but they did so without much help from their so-called superstars, outfielders Vladimir Guerrero and Torii Hunter. Instead, their young talent began to perform, with first basemen Kendry Morales having a monster year with 34 home runs and 108 RBIs.

Up the I-5 freeway, the Dodgers had an equally impressive season and did it for most of the time without (or with a very ineffective) Manny Ramirez. After signing his two year, $45 million contract, El Maniaco ended the season batting .290 with only 19 home runs and 63 RBIs — not exactly what the Dodgers expected from the same dude who almost hit .400 with 17 home runs in about two months in L.A. last year.

Although the two teams’ top players struggled throughout the season, the division series changed everything.

Manny hit .308 in the NLDS, Vlad hit .333 in the ALDS, and while pretty much everybody, including myself, picked the Dodgers and Angels to lose in the first round, they did quite the opposite, sweeping — and shocking — their respective opponents, the Cardinals and the Red Sox.

What’s compelling about the possibility of a Freeway Series is simply the fact of how similar these two teams are. And while the Los Angeles rivalry isn’t much of a storied series, there is still as sense of pride that goes into each series between the two squads.

Since the Dodgers and Angels started playing in interleague play in 1997, only one Angels squad was able to win the season series in consecutive years while the Dodgers have never done it. For the past two years, the teams split the season series 3-3.

But what might be the most interesting part of the possibility of a Freeway Series is the makeup of the entire team, not just the players.

Some might say the Angels are more like the Dodgers than the Dodgers are. Make sense? Well, along with manager Mike Scioscia, the Angels have four other coaches who used to play on the Dodgers at some point during the 1980s. Like the Dodgers 1988 World Series champions, Scioscia and the Angels pride themselves with their small-ball approach, manufacturing runs and backing it up with a superior rotation and bullpen.

On the other hand, the Dodgers had two players — Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp — who each hit 20 home runs for the first time since 2006, when J.D. Drew and Nomar Garciaparra accomplished the feat.

And then there’s that whole name thing.

When Arte Moreno first proposed the Angels should change their name from the Anaheim Angels to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, more than one city erupted.

First, the city of Anaheim was upset with Moreno for backstabbing the city after it supported the team through a series of serious and much-need renovations of Angel Stadium.

And Los Angeles? Well aside from the fact Anaheim is not actually a part of Los Angeles — or even in the same county for that matter — the misleading nature of the name-change gave the Dodgers and their fans even more reason to be angered over the consistent success Moreno’s franchise.

Mind you, this is not the same Angels team that won it all in 2002. We’re not talking about Troy Glaus, Tim Salmon and Darin Erstad. The rally monkey doesn’t really work anymore (except yesterday), and let’s just say a lot of the talent on Anaheim’s roster isn’t exactly home-grown.

For both clubs, a Freeway Series would mean much more than playing any other team. For the Dodgers, beating the Angels would solidify their place as Los Angeles’ true team, disproving any crazy ideas that Anaheim is taking over baseball in L.A.

As for the Angels, beating the Dodgers would not only make them the best team in Southern California, but it would be a devastating blow to a Dodgers franchise that finally seems to have found the right formula to win in the postseason.

Either way, it should be fun. Let’s just hope people find a way through rush hour traffic to make it to the games on time. Right now, that’s Los Angeles’ biggest nightmare and happiest dream.

Jonah is a junior majoring in journalism and Hebrew and Semitic studies. Have your own thoughts on the possibility of a Freeway Series? Send your thoughts to [email protected].