It was the last game before the All-Star break, and Kenta Maeda was trying to bounce back from his last outing, which was one of his worst of the year. The Dodgers were up 2 games to 1 in a four-game series against the Padres, and it was a glorious Sunday afternoon at Chavez Ravine.
In addition to all of that, Scott was at the game, bringing LADR good luck to the boys. Here’s how the game went.
1st inning
Dodgers
Howie Kendrick led off the first Dodgers’ ups of the day with a double into left field.
Corey Seager followed that up with a single that brought Kendrick home with the first run. 1-0
2nd inning Dodgers 1-0
Padres
Maeda gave up one hit, but that was it. He had 4 Ks through 2 innings.
Dodgers
Howie Kendrick’s single knocked in Scott Van Slyke to make it 2-0
5th inning Dodgers 2-0
Padres
Maeda gave up a home run to the Padres’ catcher, Derek Norris. 2-1
Dodgers
Adrian Gonzalez home run! 3-1
6th inning Dodgers 3-1
Padres
Maeda struck out the side. Through six innings Maeda had 12 Ks, but he was starting to look like the LA afternoon sun was taking its toll on him while striking out the last Padre of the inning.
7th inning Dodgers 2-0
Padres
Maeda to the mound! It had been so long since a Dodgers starting pitcher had pitched in the seventh, a well-deserved ovation accompanied Maeda to the bump.
After seven, Maeda’s line was 2 hits, 1 run, 0 walks, 13 Ks and 96 pitches.
8th inning Dodgers 3-1
Joe Blanton in.
1,2,3 – Job done.
9th inning Dodgers 3-1
Kenley Jansen vs Padres
Travis Jankowski: single
Melvin Upton Jr.: walk
Will Meyers: K
Matt Kemp: (0 for 3) K
Yangervis Solarte: F9
Dodgers win! 3-1
Today’s win featured plenty of personal and team bright spots.
Maeda’s breaking ball was working extremely well today. It was fooling batters so much, that Maeda piled up far more swings and misses than foul balls. Maeda struck out two batters in four of the first five innings, one in the remaining inning, and punched out the side in the sixth. No starting pitcher had completed the seventh inning since Clayton Kershaw, on May 20.
Kenta’s 13 strike outs are a career high for him. His previous high was 10.
The Dodgers end the first half leading the majors with 862 strike outs.
Howie Kendrick excelled in the lead off spot today. He had three hits, including a a double. He crossed the plate with the Dodgers’ first run of the day, and knocked in the second.
Adrian Gonzalez gave the home crowd a thrill with his first home run since June 11, and his first at home since May 14.
The Dodgers go into the break 11 games over .500, at 51-40
Scott’s good luck mojo helped bring a win!
Kenta Maeda (W 8-6) went 7 innings with 2 hits, 1 run, 0 walks, 13 Ks, 1 HR. ERA 2.95
Doubles: Howie Kendrick
Home run: Adrian Gonzalez
Team with RISP: 2 for 8
Oscar Martinez
I was born in the shadow of Dodger Stadium and immediately drenched in Dodger Blue. Chavez Ravine is my baseball cathedral, Vin Scully was the golden voice of summer all my life, and Tommy Lasorda remains the greatest Dodgers manager ever. My favorite things are coffee, beer, and the Dodgers beating the Giants. I also blog about my baseball card hobby at All Trade Bait, All the Time.
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It’s not exactly half the season, but we will pretend it is for all practical purposes.
The Dodgers will finish the first half with the 4th best record in the NL – either 5.5 or 6.5 games back of the Giants. They have done this with a rookie manager who is growing with the team and with the most player days lost to the DL of any team.
Baseball is a game of streaks. Maybe the second half luck changes (AND BELIEVE ME -IT’S LUCK!) and the averages even out.
Maybe there will be a trade, but I am not sure it is needed. Like Nomar said, “at the end of the year, most players will be near where their career averages are.”
It that is true and if the injury bug turns our way, this could be quite a ride!
Yasmani was 2-4 and caught another good game. He’s nearing the Mendoza line.
FYI, if you want to look at career OPS, Grandal is at .758 which is HIGHER than Russell Martin, Yadier Molina, Kurt Suzuki, Carlos Ruiz, Ramon Hernandez, Matt Wieters, Salvadore Perez and the same level as Matt Montero (Lucroy is only .21 points ahead of him). I’m just saying. I’d trade him for Posey, but not too many others, because he’s just 27. He’s also #1 in the MLB in range factor (look it up). He’s 7th in Fielding %. He’s not perfect, but he is ours and we could do worse.
I’m watching the Futures Game – I wish Yoan Moncada were a Dodger!
Actually above since he is now at ,212
I am not sure just how much Mendoza weighed.
I just checked. 5’11” 187 pounds.
Nice to see Adrian go deep…been a while
Michael
I agree! I was kind of getting worried, because Agone hadn’t looked like a was trying to hit with power.
Since Agone took those two days off, he has hit in the most runs for the Dodgers.
Even though he has only hit one HR since.
The Cubs have only won two more games, then the Dodgers now.
Cubbies are reeling. But they will turn it around. Too good not to.
Michael
I hope your having a good time, while you are at your sister’s house.
Thank you, I am. We went to the new Independence Day movie this afternoon. I missed the bottom of the 9th, but Kenley got out of it. I am heading out to Chatsworth tomorrow where a friend of mine is playing at the Cowboy Palace. They have a talent contest this Monday, so I will get in it for shitz and giggles. Have been in it before and won…no big deal, first place is 50 bucks….This weekend we are going out to RC to see the Quakes.
By the way, I won the talent contest….got 50 bucks….sweet…
MJ, your comment on the last thread about how the guys in the bay area shorten their swings just to get a small hit is spot on, and the difference here. We are still relying waaaay to much on the “chick’s dig the long ball”.
How’s many years has it been now? I honestly think the “chick’s dig the long ball” is ingrained in the Dodgers philosophy.
They still are far behind the NL leader in homers. Their biggest problem is not trying to homer, it is a lack of clutch base hits, and hitting with runners in scoring position. And if you check, it is the kids leading the team in dingers……Joc is probably more guilty of swinging for the fences than most.
Michael
That is true, but once the Dodgers started hitting HRs, I believe it was in May sometime, they had had the most HRs, in the West, or National league, from that date on.
I remember Vinny, or someone else, stating that fact.
Yes they have. But that really means little. The heavy air in LA makes hitting HR’s in April very hard, and they normally do not hit many at night until the weather warms. There have been exceptions like Cey hitting 10 in April one year, and Adrian 3 in last years opener. But for the most part that has not been the case. The big bopper teams led the league a few times. But since they moved to LA the Dodgers have never had a player lead the league in HR’s, and only twice has a Dodger led the league in hitting, and it was the same guy twice……Tommy Davis back to back. I do not worry about that stuff, since there are no real pure HR hitters on this team. They have guys with power, but a pure HR guy? Nope. Even Adrian is not one of those. Last one they really had was Manny.
But didn’t the Dodgers hit the most HRs, in the west or the national league last year?
Yes they did. But over the 3 year period including 2013-14 and 15 they averaged less than 1 HR a game, and were second lowest to Atlanta. Last year most of their homers were hit in the first half. Joc had 20 at the break, and only 6 after, Grandal only hit 2. But normally this has not been a home run hitting team. They might have 2 guys hit over 20, and a couple of times 30, but they have not had the thump they had in the 90’s.
Slotim
Even Posey and Pence do this, is they would be considered to be, players with power.
I use to think it was luck with the Giants, but it isn’t luck.
It is actually there team way.
I think in the broadcast yesterday in the game the Giants played, the broadcasters, said that the Giants had the lowest strike outs, I believe in there division.
After seeing all of those strike outs, in that really long game, it really showed one of the Dodger’s biggest weaknesses, not being able to make contact, and put the ball in play.
Look at the two players, that didn’t strike out much.
Agone didn’t strike out at all, in that long game, and Utley might have struck out once, but he also got those six hits.
Both of these players, try to shorten there swing with two strikes, and especially when runners are in scoring position.
Turner who we consider a good hitter, couldn’t make contact, a few times in that game.
The fact that the Giants do make that contact, and have almost everyone on there team doing this, has been part of the reason, that they have done well in tournament play, to win the series.
This is how they attack good pitching.
And that is why the Cubs didn’t do nothing against the Mets last year, in the play offs.
Because they have those swing and miss power hitters, and those type of hitters, have trouble hitting good pitching, especially in a short series.
The Cardinal hitters, did that type of contact hitting, against Kershaw in the post season.
And that is how they were able to hit Kershaw.
Remember how many times some of the Cardinals, fouled off pitches against Kershaw, in the games, they hit him.
This is why Joc gets me frustraded, because he doesn’t even shorten his swing, with two strikes, with runners in scoring position.
He did do this a little in the first month, but he got away from doing that.
This is why I question some of the saber stats, that rank some players, higher because they hit HRs, but they don’t take away from these type of hitters, for striking out a lot, and not being able to hit at a decent average, or put the ball in play.
Some at one time, wanted Joc and Trayce hitting at the top of the order, because they high ops’s.
But those two were not the best hitters on the team, like there ops seemed to say.
They both have trouble with making contact, and putting the ball in play, and that is why they don’t have decent batting averages.
And most of Joc’s and Trayce’s HRs, are solo HRs.
Good news, Bumgarner came up short in his quest for a no-no. Bad news, Giants still won….
I have seen progress the past two years in the team being able to come from behind or get big hits. Two years ago, I think they lost every game they were behind after the 7th inning. It has gotten better although they have a ways to go. They ended the first half on a high note – let’s see if those batting averages can even out the second half. I’m not convinced that JOC will be OK this year. Andrew Toles could be the wild card.
Mark
I think the difference is Roberts.
“They have a ways to go.”
Something on which we agree.
The dodgers are finishing his half with the exact number of wins as last year, 50 and one more loss this year. Last year they were up 4.5 games and this year they’re behind 6.5.
Will he team be good enough to keep this pace? It’s nice that this team that’s been hurt by the injury bug is make a push for it. The key as most of you know will be beating up in teams were suppose to but more importantly in head to head match ups with the Giants we have to win the series or there goes the division.
Adrian finally got one out I think his back is feeling better and he can now adjust his swing. I expect Adrian to get hot next half.
I think bumgarner is due for an injury. I’m not wishing it on hm I just have a gut feeling. BTW I really dislike the guy. He’s a real DB, and I don’t mean dback.
Puig lovers start saying your goodbyes to him because he will be gone soon.
Gonzo
Agone has hit really well, since he came back, from having those two days off.
Imagine what this break could do for Agone, and the rest of the team, especially the bullpen.
Actually they are 51-40….one more win.
Well it’s time for me to admit I didn’t see some things correctly. We are in second, where I thought we’d be, but further behind than I figured because I didn’t see the giants as best in baseball.
What I had wrong was how bad our offense would be and how well this pitching staff would perform. Offensively we are 19th in runs, 26th in avg., 19th WRISP and 22nd in OPS. Those are not the numbers of a second place club. In pitching we are 4th in ERA and 2nd in the all important BAA stat. How did this staff of no names, cast offs and broken arms pull that off? Must be Honeycutt.
I have no idea what to expect for the last 71 games. My gut tells me the same thing it did early – not our year. But, I’ll hang around to see it how it plays out.
Scott, please go to this WordPress website:
and add this software to your site which will allow us to post pictures.
http://www.wpbeginner.com/plugins/how-to-allow-users-to-upload-images-with-comments-in-wordpress/
Here’s another reason for hope:
Last year, Chris Hatcher had a 6.38 ERA the first half of the season and a 1.31 ERA the second half.
This year his first half ERA is a minuscule 5.02. Maybe he does what he did last year the second half?
I went back and looked at his splits and it is that way every year – he always does much better in the second half!
I also see the Giants hitting a bad spell like the Cubs.
People complain about “Depth” but with more days lost to the DL than any team in baseball, there has to be some depth somewhere.
I read that Wood and Anderson should be back in August. Kershaw looked smooth in his bullpen yesterday.
The Dodgers record as we enter the ASB is 51-40. Last year the team was 51-39. One would think with the amount of complaining that the team was in an epic free fall and collapse relative to last year. Then again, I first stumbled on this site a year ago and it was mostly the same complaining. The subject matter changes from week to week, but people still find a reason to complain.
“FAZ did NOTHING to fix that dumpster fire of a bullpen during the offseason! Joe freaking Blanton?!!”
Well, now with half the season over, we now know that’s not true. The Dodgers are first in the majors in relief ERA, and if you don’t subscribe to that antiquated stat, they are 3rd in the majors in WAR. http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=rel&lg=all&qual=0&type=8&season=2016&month=0&season1=2016&ind=0&team=0,ts&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&sort=18,d
This is in spite of some pretty epic collapses early in the year. I would think that if you remove Hatcher from the overall equation, the Dodgers have about 2-3 more wins, and are 4 1/2 games back of the Gints.
Speaking of Hatcher, it is true that the Dodgers bullpen has been bad with respect to Win Probability, which is a reflection of the effectiveness in higher leverage situations, which is what our eyeballs more or less witnessed earlier in the year. The good news, though, is that Win Probability and the Clutch stat are not really predictive. It’s more a matter of luck…and not playing Hatcher in close games.
http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=rel&lg=all&qual=0&type=3&season=2016&month=0&season1=2016&ind=0&team=0,ts&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&sort=13,d
The bullpen is pretty good, actually. It could be better, still. Maybe we get some help coming up from the minors. Maybe we get a guy in trade, though I don’t know how necessary that is, and the FO is not going to give up prospects to get Andrew Miller. BTW, whatever happened to Yimi?
“Ok fine! The bullpen is not as bad as I though it was going to be. Still, with the starting pitching not being able to get past 6 innings, the bullpen is going to melt down. Stupid FAZ!”
Ok, maybe. Then again, the Royals pretty much won the World Series based on this kind of model. They have Edinson Volquez for heaven’s sake….and he wasn’t too bad actually because he didn’t have to go three times through the order. They were successful in large part because of a stellar relief core. That’s what they were built around.
“Well, the team wouldn’t have to rely on the relievers so much if FAZ didn’t sign all of these injury prone starters. FAZ should have known they would’ve gotten injured”
This is another canard. The evidence for this argument comes down to two players the FO signed: Anderson and McCarthy. We can eliminate Anderson. He was signed to a one year deal last year for 10 million, which is really nothing. He had a long injury history, and the Dodgers took a flyer on him for only one year based on his possible upside. He was actually very good when he was healthy back with the As, so the risk/reward was pretty good – worth taking a chance on at least. And remember, he was meant to be at the back of the rotation. ….”But why did the Dodgers sign him for 15 million!!?” …Sigh….It was a qualifying offer. I think the Dodgers expected him to try to sign for a multi-year deal with someone else and were perfectly content to let him sign somewhere else. Anderson took a chance on himself. He took the risk. Remember…it’s a one year deal. The Dodgers aren’t on the hook for multiple years. I don’t think the Anderson signing is a good argument, so it really comes down to one single signing to support this pervasive and endlessly repeated argument.
“McCarthy never did anything in his career. ….except be injured. Another dumb signing and an example of FAZ signing injury prone reclamation projects.”
McCarthy had an up and down career up till his time with the Yankees. Yeah, he had shoulder issues…for a long time. You don’t think the Dodgers checked into this before they signed him? They did. The scans showed his shoulder was actually structurally sound. Good news. The stats also showed his pitching peripherals were improving – his velocity was higher than it had ever been, his strikeout ratio was the highest in his career….. His performance was trending in the right direction. The stat guys loved him. He was relatively low cost with the chance for high upside.
“But of course he got injured. He was an injury risk.”
He injured his elbow. His shoulder is fine.
“But FAZ should have known that, with his increasing velocity, it would have put more strain on his elbow. They should have known his elbow would blow out.”
Stop it.
McCarthy, in the grand scheme of things, is still not a bad sign. If the team gets 2 1/2 years of 3.5 ERA, he’ll still be worth it. That’s Smardija level or better performance at less than half the price without the 5 or 6 year commitment. You want to talk about risk? Ok…Isn’t signing a 32 year old pitcher to a 6 year contract for north of 200 million risky? Uh…I’d say it’s an incredible risk. My gripe with this FO is that Cueto is pitching for the Gints. Do you know one of the reasons he wasn’t signed? …there were concerns about his elbow and injury risk. Signing ANY player is a risk. To expect some sort of performance guarantee is folly.
“But the Dodgers didn’t do anything in the offseason to improve the team!”
Like what?
“They should have signed Greinke AND Cueto AND Price AND Heyward….AND Chapman…”
*facepalm* You can’t be critical if you reside in a fantasy world. I actually read that argument here. Yeah…sure…a billion dollar payroll in perpetuity. No problem. Let’s do it. ….sigh…..
All in all, I’ll take the Dodgers current record, which is kind of an accomplishment when you consider the team leads the league in days on the disabled list, and the hitting underperformance, which is now starting to trend in the right direction, and the early season relief core dumpster fire. Like Mark said, winning has a lot do do with luck – with everything coming together at the right time. There’s a pretty high likelihood that the team hits better, the starting pitching improves, the bullpen solidifies and the team gets hot. It might not be enough to overtake the Gints, and the Dodgers might not match up talent wise to the Cubs, but in the playoffs, anything can happen.
The Dodgers on pace to win about 91…92 games. There was another Dodger team that won 92 games. I’ll let you guess which one that was. Just sayin’
One more thing…there are a couple people that I’ve observed here….three if you include Badger’s subtleties….that have called for Timmons to get axed. That’s not going to happen. Those that are advocating this, and are critical of him because he “insults” people are, in my observation, the posters doing the most insulting. And I’m sorry, at the risk of name calling, if you actually tell everyone how much you weigh or how much you used to weigh with the implication that you can beat Mark up over an internet disagreement about baseball, well that’s just douchebaggery. Just silly.
Welcome back Dodger patch!
We could also only be, four and a half games back, from the Giants, if Kenley would have saved that one game against the Giants, when Agone hit a HR, to put the Dodgers ahead.
If the Dodgers get two years of 3.5 ERA from McCarthy I’ll buy drinks. He’s not that good. I felt they should’ve signed Greinke OR Cueto, or anybody who could legitimately be called a #2 starter. Didn’t agree with counting on guys coming back from the DL on schedule or prospects on pitch counts/innings limits. I must say I didn’t expect the heart of the order to be almost useless for over a month, but maybe they will continue to turn it around in the second half.
I guess my gripe is that a lot of people seemed to think that 90 wins would be good enough. Apparently the Giants didn’t. There’s still a chance to catch them but a lot will have to go right.
Wood and Anderson back. Is that a good thing?
Badger
I wouldn’t worry about Anderson.
It is a great thing……….if you love .500 pitchers. Anderson can eat innings, but at what cost? Wood is an enigma. Pitches great then lousy……I want an ace.
Michael
I meant that I don’t know how long Anderson can stay on the field, because he is so injury prone, because he isn’t much of an athlete.
Good luck tonight, I hope you win!
Thanks, will do my best to rock the house!
I did win…50 bucks, first place..
Read a story on yard barker about do’s and don’ts for the Dodgers as to trades. Do trade for Lucroy, the catching needs an upgrade and there is no guarantee that Grandal will stay hot. Lucroy is a steady proven hitter. Remember, this is not me talking it is another web site. Do not trade for Miller or Chapman. The cost in prospects would be too much. Thought that was pretty interesting. Also read another where Ken Rosenthal says the Dodgers are shopping Puig…….hmmmm……………it did say that if Puig was traded it would only be for major league ready talent…of course all that came from an un named source…
Its been awhile since I commented here. Scott’s posts chased me away. I didn’t want to be a part of a blog that was sourpuss in nature and attracted sourpuss comments. For example, I would have been fine if Scott had said he was angered and disappointed that Greinke would not be back with the Dodgers and that he would not enjoy the team as much without Greinke. Instead he chose to call FAZ stupid among other negative words.
The more Scott was negative, the more negative the comments became. I would have preferred for Scott to make those negative thoughts as comments within his posts.
The upcoming presidential election has exposed our inner feelings. Both Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud concurred on this fundamental picture of the human psyche: that each of us carries within us a whole other world, shadowy and fantastic, to be sure, but teemingly alive with inner figures, melodramas, grievances and fears, that are constantly exerting their influence over our every word and deed.
Can we all suck it up in here and let each other be whomever they want to be in here? We all know that if we say something nice to somebody, that somebody will change the way they respond to us. It might not be immediate, but it will happen if we give it some time and if we continue to say something supportive. Or, we can immediately fire back and by doing so, add another log to the fire.
When Walter O’Malley died, he left the Dodgers to a family and not to just Peter. That family was aging and preferred to divide $350,000,000 obtained from the sale of the Dodgers instead of living off the positive cash flow from operations. Peter recognized that a family owned franchise could not compete with large corporations and sold the Dodgers to Fox.
Other teams complained that Fox would buy wins and destroy competition. Fox not only didn’t invest, they sold the franchise back to a family. When Gugs bought the franchise, they splurged and wound up with the highest payroll in the history of MLB. The League probably told Gugs to “be careful” to not continue with that kind of spending and Gugs also realized that it was in the best interest of the League and the Dodgers to build stability into the franchise.
The fans came back and season sales expanded. But, the Dodgers traded away or didn’t re-sign popular players nor did they sign free agents or trade for elite players that might get fans really excited. The proof that Dodgers fans are waiting for something to happen is the lack of all star voting.
I personally won’t be that into the Dodgers until Pederson returns. I am looking forward to Bellinger being on the team. The Dodgers need to get fans excited again about the team. Puig is supposedly on the trading block. It might be best if he stays from a team strength perspective, but if Puig can help bring a player to the Dodgers that gets the fans excited, that might be what the fans and the team needs to go into the post all star games with excitement.
How’s that for a rant? I hope oldbrooklynfan and socalbum return here. Maybe if we stop bickering, they will. I enjoy Badger’s wit and Mark’s shoot from the hip cowboy comments, just not their attacks on each other. Same goes for Mark and Norris, and yes Badger, Mark is the common thread there but it takes two to tango.
Bum
Nice to hear from you!
Your right everyone has a dark side.
And what we don’t like about others, might be something that we don’t like in ourselves, so we displace that on others, instead of ourselves.
Joc has a shoulder seperation, not a dislocated shoulder, take a look at Dodger com. again.
And that is a good thing!
And what a rant my Bum!
…..”And what we don’t like about others, might be something that we don’t like in ourselves, so we displace that on others, instead of ourselves.” MJ
That is very true MJ.
Bums
I don’t think Scott is the cause of this.
Because Mark and Badger, were doing this dance, before this blog, so I don’t see how you can blame that on Scott.
I also don’t understand why some of the people who like Mark, like what Faz has done, have left either.
I personally like to see different point of views.
If everyone thought the same way, it would be boring.
Also we also learn more with different point of views.
And I bet most peope here, are more like people are, when it comes to politics.
Most people are not extremely to the left or right, they are more to the middle, and lean left to right, about specific issues.
I guess some people take things to personally, at times.
I don’t think Scott means anything personally about anyone here, when he is reflecting on what a lot of the Dodger fan base, feel about the new front office.
Now if he tried to sensor anybody’s thoughts, that were not the same as his, or make a personal attack on one particular person, I would understand if someone got upset.
But really, this is one of the only blogs, that different point of views, are welcome.
Most of of the other Dodger blogs, support the front office, and the Dodgers, with almost every move they make.
And in some of these blogs, they seem to put the front office on a higher pedestal, then the actually players.
I agree with you Bum about personal attacks.
I don’t like to see anyone make these personal attacks with each other.
And Bum, what we like or admire in others, we might just have that same thing, with in our self too.
A dialog includes differing points of view. I like differing opinions and differing perspectives. That is how we learn if we are open to new thoughts. I wasn’t trying to say otherwise.
Many of us commented on the old Dodger Thought blog. There were many differing opinions. I argued with it host, Jon Wiseman, many times. But his posts never indicated that he thought he was wiser than Dodger ownership.
The person at the top always sets the tone of an organization whether it is a blog or a business. I haven’t liked the tone Scott had been setting. That tone flowed downhill. It always does.
Glad to see you back, Fred. Can’t go along with your campaign to turn the site into Pollyanna Or Nothing. If people can’t say what they feel, then there’s no point to come here to say anything at all. And Scott most of all has the right to say what he wants. It would be nice if people conducted themselves like Gentlemen (and Ladies) and maintain respect for other posters, and for those with the overgrown egos to try not to rise too far aboves us common people. There are far more aspects to being a fan than to simply propose trades that will never happen, but that is innocent enough and should offend no one.
Wondering, as far as Scott, most of all, having the right to say what he wants, I fully agree. I just won’t participate under his posts if I am ashamed of being a part of a blog that claims someone as, let’s say incompetent, if he disagrees with them.
I am not saying this site should be a Pollyanna site. That is an attempt to position me in a place that helps make your argument.
If you are indicating that I or Mark propose trades all the time, that would be false. We do from time to time but rarely compared to other comments we make. Sometimes trades are suggested as a way of saying we are tired of some of the players on the team without saying they are lousy.
If proposing trades is a bad thing, then I too am guilty. My life sort of wandered of the Politically Correct Path a long time ago. I’m not running for any office and have nothing worth being sued for, so when I see a public person (like FAZ) making dumb mistakes, I have no hesitancy in saying so. Any professional baseball player is subject to trade at any time in my book. I would really hate to trade Seager or Kershaw but any other player can be had for the right return. That is a very, very small return in some cases.
Bum,
I think you have it all wrong about me and this blog. I am neither negative nor positive. I am a realist. I never said friedman and zaidi wwre stupid, I said the decision they made was stupid. Big difference. I tell it like it is. Im sorry that you are so repulsed by realities. I feel like lying to everyone here would be a disservice.
But if you would like to bury your head and pretend that friedman has never made an incompetent decision or that the giants are not 6.5 games ahead of the dodgers with the best record in mlb then go ahead. Enjoy your delusions bum.
The dodgers have a good team this year, but the giants and a couple other teams are a littlw bit better. The dodgers can get better but it would involve tweaking the current roster and improving the rotation.
Anyways, im not negative and don’t take the internet so seriously. Welcome back!
There you go again Scott. First you deny saying FAZ is stupid then you say this in the same breath:
But if you would like to bury your head and pretend that friedman has never made an incompetent decision or that the giants are not 6.5 games ahead of the dodgers with the best record in mlb then go ahead. Enjoy your delusions bum.
Incompetent decisions? Delusionsort?
I think FAZ has missed opportunities but some of those opportunities turned out to be ones that were better missed. Too early to judge.
I am just ignoring his stuff now, makes for peace, he does make valid points, so I will give him that. I just do not agree with him all the time. Glad to see you back.
Nice post, Bum. I’m pretty much with you on the tone of the blog and why I’d had enough. It just got frustrating and a lot of energy to expend…..and a lot of time…to preach from some soap box.
It’s a given that I will treat you the way you treat me.
Yes, that is a given, and as such I apologize for anything I might have said that offended you, but not for my opinions which I retain the right to have……have a great day..
I was looking at the rotation that Roberts set for the second half, and it doesn’t look that great, but I am willing to be suprised, in a good way.
But we have to play the National’s at there place, and the Cardinals, at there park too, so the rotation is going to tested.
I think the Cardinals, have the best offense, in the National League, but they also have not been able to play good defense, or win at home, so we have a chance.
And actually Kazmir pitched well against the Cardinals at home, but we all know that he isn’t consistent.
Kazmir is the one guy in the starting rotation, that needs to pitch deeper into games.
Because he is not coming back from an injury, and he hasn’t pitch further into games, only because he allows one inning, to get out of hand, almost every time he pitches.
And Kazmir does this by pitching behind to hitters, and walking hitters, usually right before the best hitter, on the other team, is about to come up to bat.
Like I have said, he pitches defensively, and the pitcher’s position is an offensive position.
All of the things, that Kazmir does, are preventable.
And he can fix these things himself, by he hasn’t yet.
I have long been an advocate of trading Puig, but now I am not so sure. He is generally a defensive force and while he may never be the hitter we thought, he is a lot like Jason Heyward: Strong defensively and on the bases (generally). I look at Heyward and think he should be a lot better than he is (.243 BA/.668 OPS/4 HR/28 RBI) and I feel the same way about Puig. Actually, Puig is better than Heyward, IMHO.
Cleveland needs an outfielder/hitter. Boston needs starting pitching. How about a combination of Puig, Kazmir, Wood, Stripling and Frias for Jackie Bradley, Jr. and Carlos Carrasco?
That assumes that Ethier can make it back.
Lineup:
1. Bradley CF
2. Utley 2B
3. Seager SS
4. Turner 3B
5. Gonzo 1B
6. Grandal C
7. Thompson RF
8. Kendrick LF
Mark
I like Betts the most.
Yes, he’s hit consistently since coming up, he’s right-handed, and he can play second base. I think we have enough left-hand hitting outfielders in the pipeline. Maybe when they bring up Moncada next year the Sox would be willing to make a deal, but they would want a haul.
Snider
He is also good on the bases.
He is an igniter, with power.
He even has a great baseball name.
Is that a 3 team trade and if so, who goes where?
Dodgers have Pederson and Toles in CF and don’t need a CF, even if Bradley were an improvement. Hopefully we are only a week away from knowing if Joc will return sooner or later.
Gray is struggling but apparently hasn’t lost velocity or spin rate. Mostly a command problem. I would like to see a Puig and Kazmir for Gray trade plus whatever those teams want to add to make the deal.
I like Toles in LF for his speed and potential obp. I like Taylor at second base next year. I don’t know how to take Kendrick out of the lineup though.
Bum
I am afraid that Billy Beane would pick the front office’s pocket.
Two words: Josh Donaldson.
Mark
I guess the Cubs did what they shouldn’t have done, when it comes to Heyward.
They got Heyward, and expected that they could get more power from him.
They have been trying to change his swing, or at bats, to try to get him to hit with more power.
I know he usually starts out slow, but he is usually hitting at a decent average by now.
Maybe this is because of the Cubs wanting to change his swing.
Heyward had that one good power season, he may never do that again.
That last paragraph I said about Heyward, sounds just like Puig.
But I guess we should give the Cubs a longer time, before we say that there work with Heyward’s swing, didn’t work.
Half year in review: pitching was better than I expected, overall. Hitting was worse. Both stats are just average when compared to the giants, who are playing out of their minds. If they continue, they will win 115 games. I’m hoping that Kendrick goes on a streak, and he can help carry the offense. Turner, too. I’m afraid AGon’s power is forever diminished. Still, he is the best hitter we have, and an anchor to the team. He’s still good for 20 hrs. This has never been a power team, so bunching hits and taking walks is necessary. We hit the road for 9 games after the break and must keep the pedal down. Not a bad first half, but when we play the hated ones again, a split will not do. Trade 66 to the A’s for anyone.
Bobbie 17
Can you imagine if Agone, Turner, and Kendrick, are hitting, along with Cory?
And if Grandal, and a couple of guys in the outfield, can put up decent numbers.
And Chase trying to steal every game he can, for this team.
Along with Roberts giving the team the energy they need, to keep on trying.
Even you think that manager Happy, as you call him, is helping this team, and giving this team, the will to win.
Good to be back in LA after 3 days in Cancun! Amazing that we have the 4th best record in the NL after a crazy first half. We’re sitting pretty for the wild card top spot. Nothing we can do about SF; if they win 115, then props to them. Hopefully they slow down ,and we can grab the division again.
Will be a next interesting couple weeks, as the trade rumors start flying! Do we wait for Ethier, who could be basically a deadline acquisition? Can Toles play? Will Joc have a nagging shoulder injury the rest of the year? Is Puig really back? Is Trayce just an average player who should bat 7th? Can we get the impact bat for LF? Or is Howie the best LF option we have?
Gona be a fun 2nd half! And thank God again for what our bullpen has done; hopefully they get some great rest the next few days (I’m sure 5 of them will subconsciously start warming up the next few days as that’s what they’re used to doing)
Welcome back Bobby!
Bobby
Colletti said that the pitchers, do pitch during the Allstar break, especially the relief pitchers, to stay sharp.
I still say getting Braun and LuCroy is the best way to catch the Giants(if they slow down). We immediately put two .300 hitters in the lineup and would put a stop to any weakness in our lineup.
Of course it would cost a lot but you have to give up quality to get quality in return.
We could start with a package of Grandal and Puig and go from there. I’m not sure what the Brewers needs are but perhaps Grandal and Puig, we take on Brauns full salary, Holmes(#3).Cotton(#9) and Heredia(#13) would be a starting point. If the Brewers are willing to pick up some of Braun’s salary then they choose some others lower in our top 30.
Just a thought.
They want to get rid of Braun’s salary and Lucroy, getting Grandal back would be an unexpected bonus, so I don’t give them three top pitching prospects, maybe one and someone else down the line.
I goes without saying that LuCroy would hsve to sign an extension(with a raise in salary) and I didn’t mention Wood or Anderson as they are on the DL and probably considered “damaged” goods. They may be interested in Baez and Frias at which point we could take back Holmes or Cotton.
Of course anything we say here is all conjecture but within 3 weeks (August 1st) we’ll all know for sure. If you look at our current top 30 specs, 20 of those players are either P or OF. There is no way we have the room for ALL of them to make it regardless of what their intended ETA is.
1. Utley/Kendrick
2. Seager
3. Braun
4. AGon
5. LuCroy
6. Turner
7. Joc
8. Thompson
Hey Bum.
I’m of the belief the posters make any blog interesting or not. I’m grateful for the work Scott does, and while I mostly agree with his takes, it’s the conversation that interests me. Baseball is one of the few topics I know and it’s because I’ve devoted a lot of time to it for as far back as memory serves.
I think it’s tone that would help. Mark and I have gone around for years but our real divide is not over baseball, it began over politics. No need to elaborate. I find it surprising that he hated Moneyball right up until he loved it. I still maintain there’s something to be measured with the numbers, but my issue was – I was genuinely pissed to see opportunity slip away like it did. Latos? Really? Are you f’n kidding me? But, getting away from what was, to what is, and what might be…….There are no guarantees that money will buy championships. The Yankees proved that. But what some may overlook is the fact that though the Yankees didn’t win every year, what they did was provide star power entertainment that launched their organizational value through the roof. The Dodgers should have the same star value, and currently they do not. Guys like Kemp, Manny, HanRam put butts in the seats. Nobody went to the head when those guys came up. That guy on the Dodgers now is a freakin rookie. The Dodgers, in my opinion, might be a Wild Card contestant but frankly I find them boring. This is LA, not Oakland and sure as hell not Tampa. I want star power out there. I don’t know where this going, but again, I don’t see it going very far this year. The gints are very good. And it looks like everybody they bring up knows how to play this game. If we are to compete with that model, we need to do better and do better top to bottom.
On this point Badger I agree whole heartedly. This is Hollywood not Tampa. Star power has driven this team since they moved here. I remember when Hollywood Stars night generated real interest because the real stars would show up. Both in the stands and on the field. I am not saying FAZ is a meat head either, but some of their player acquisitions are just mind boggling and confusing. Especially to the fan who follows the game enough to sit down and study the players stats. I remember the stadium and how it felt when Manny, Hanley, Kemp, and Piazza would come to the plate in a clutch situation. Even Ethier a couple of years back generated that when he had all those walkoff hits. You trade Puig for a bunch of borderline players, and the fan’s will be pissed. There is one player left on the team from the Kemp trade……Grandal…….and he has been abysmal.
Good take. No offense to Scott and Oscar, but I never read their posts. It is the posters opinions I want to read.
Agree Badger. That star power thing was what I was alluding to in the paragraph inside my rant about the lack of all star voting by Dodger fans. I watched Kemp hit during the Padre visit and enjoyed him.
I miss the days of Kemp, Hanley, Gordon and Smith, Cey, Russel, Lopes, Baker and Piazza, Karros. Since I live in New Hampshire I tape the Dodgers and watch most of the games on tape with lots of fast forwarding. Not too many hitters that I want to watch their full at bats. I back it up when I see a ball in play.
I am in a hurry for a team that includes Pederson, Seager, Billinger, Verdugo, Kershaw, Urias, Stewart, Buhler, Holmes, and maybe Alvarez. I would enjoy Lucroy on the team. I can’t get behind Grandal. I like Puig but am tired of the drama that goes along with him.
I never want to see Braun in a Dodger uni, but that’s just me, besides, I think the Brewers would force the Dodgers to take him in any trade for Lucroy…….but the cost for those 2, who knows….
Braun isn’t cut of FAZ cloth. If he had only a couple years at $20mm, maybe, but his contract pays him to 37.
Grandal is a keeper because he is a better bargain. He’s in his prime years and he’s cheap. His blind squirrel power and occasional good few weeks will allow him to continue to put up between 1-2 WAR and they won’t have to pay him much. He’s arb eligible through his prime years and that has FAZilla written all over it.
Love the blind squirrel thing. I said the other day after he hit 3 dingers, squirrel finds acorn…..crowd goes nuts. I agree on that contract. If they wanted one of those they would have kept Kemp, who is a whole lot more popular, and would be a home grown guy. I also think people are banking too much on Andre’s impending return, and wanting to trade Puig is not a good idea in my book either, and my reasoning is that I doubt this FO would get equal value back…..
Welcome back Bumsrap and Dodgerpatch. I enjoyed your takes. We need you here!
Badger,
I “hated moneyball”? Wrong again, but what the Dodgers are doing is not Moneyball either. Feel free to be bored. I like what I am seeing – growth!
“Wrong again”.
Do you really want to start that? The last time we did that the wrongs I pointed out to you got me censored. Long list going back years.
You bad mouthed DePodesta, but loved McCourt. We went round and round about that for a long time.
I see the possibility for growth, and I’ve said as much numerous times. But what I saw at the deadline, and what I saw this past off season, was not a plan to “win now” like you’ve been championing. We are on pace for 91 wins, which is right about where I figured we could be, but I thought it would be done with hitting. I’d bet 500 this isn’t a World Series team, I’d bet another 500 this isn’t a 95 win team, but I know you wouldn’t do them if you lost so why bother?
If we get lucky we could win a Wild Card berth. If the Giants get a team case of mono we could win the West. But, as was said early and often, a lot of things need to go right for us. I’m not betting on it, and I doubt you are either.
I have said all along that I have not seen this FO exhibit a win now philosophy. What I have seen is a patchwork job to hold down the fort until the kids are ready. I see guys on here posting about wanting to see Bellinger, a kid who has been in AA ball for less than half a year. They want to push a 19 year old kid with huge upside into the rotation,, and he has never thrown more that 80 innings in a year. A lot have suggested trading the most talented OF on the team, and he is only 25. Those kids need seasoning. Some are close, others not so much. And although we have a bunch of pitchers under contract for 2 or more years, they are not really the kind of stud players the fans crave. But this is all part of the plan as we have come to hear. Whether it works or not is a huge question.
All of your lies have an element of truth, but they are still just that – LIES!
I can read between the lines, catch undertones, sort fact from posture. I don’t need the back and forth.
See Bum
You started another fight!
Fight would imply physical violence……….this is all hot air………not nearly as lethal
Okay, you need to clarify, you talking to Badger about lies, or me???? Just wondering….
Badger. He always attributes things I did not say to me.
Okay Mark, thank you for clearing that up…..
I really disliked DePodesta and McCourt and Fox.
So did I brother, so did I……never forgive FOX for trading Piazza……..
I don’t think it would be the worst thing in the world if the Dodgers signed/traded for a good young shortstop. Corey needs to go to third base next year at latest.
Unless the Dodgers get an Ozzie Smith, Seager will be at SS for years to come. That’s not just my take but also Cal Ripkins. When asked “Who does Corey Seager reminds you of?“, he said “ME”.
Turner most likely leaves next year. You want them to sign a FAZ type third baseman or move Seager?
If the dumb s___ had signed Desmond instead of Kendrick like I told them, they’d be in a great position now.
never listen to you eh? Me neither…….morons! LOL
They do have Segedin at OKC, not sure what his contract status is, but he is putting up decent numbers.
I don’t see that. Ripkin was an amazing defensive shortstop for a long time. Seager is a lot of things but I don’t think he is a 3.5 dWAR player, no matter where they put him.
They drafted 4 of them….
I can wait for Lux to take over at short.
He works out with AJ I heard or read.
What,, maybe 3 years away?
Several here have claimed that FAZ has a plan to win in two or three years, with a hold the fort now philosophy. Maybe but I can’t see any indication of that. If that bumper crop on the farm doesn’t develop right, I think FAZ will be just as loathe to spend money to fix it in 2019 as they are now. The money will still be rolling in for them, what incentive will there be to spend it just to make the lousey fans happy? Our Front Office just doesn’t have a winner’s DNA…
Interesting. Friedman was Executive of the Year a few years ago. Kasten has a history. So do the other GMs hanging around the exec lounge.
I see it like this – most of our geezer contracts will be evaporating in the next few years. We will have a stable of team controlled players by 2018. I haven’t bothered looking, but I know from that GM article I read our volleyball team of general managers are viewing 12 moves ahead, have looked at the free agent charts from now until at least 2022 and they have a plan for who it is they want – and it won’t be Brett Anderson types by then. These guys have the money to work with, they’re building the farm, and I believe when the time comes they will pull the trigger on a Kevin Durant type player, or two, and trade a handful of A pitchers for a couple of other soon to be free agents. I don’t think we’ve seen what it is these guys can do when they actually put the bus in gear. Win now? Maybe, if we get lucky. But wait til you see what we have in store for 2018 and beyond.
Yep, that’s how I see it. It’s vision like that allows me to calmly put with both Mark’s bullsh*t and what I’ve seen in the field for the last 20 months or so. Detachment. It’s what the Mystics have been telling us for centuries.
I don’t see them signing a Kevin Durant type player. Kevin Martin maybe.
How about Austin Martin? There’s a player you can drive to the finish line.
But, I get your point. It’s my position this can’t be accomplished without getting some real talent from outside the organization. If it’s only going to be marginal role players brought in, this is going to take a while.
And they have more GMs, then the Dodgers have players on the bench.
Mike Broadway and Kevin Jepsen just became free agents…..maybe FAZ will sign them…Cole Figueroa sent outright to OKC……guess no one wanted him……..funny, the one guy who’s name is not coming up is Kike Hernandez……..he should be of the DL after the break…..what do they do with him??
I don’t think they care much for Kiké. Seems like it anyway. Odd, because they traded for him. But they sent a loudly reverberating F YOU to him when they signed Howie. I wonder what Kiké’s trade value is. FAZ put a dent in it, that’s for sure.
I see Ethier mentioned frequently as filling out the outfield going forward. I like him, but it is very optimistic to think of him picking up where he left off last year. Next spring, he will be 35, and there’s not a lot of outfielders still starring at that age. With our expectations, it won’t do to load up the team with “good” players, when in fact “good players” block the road for championship-level players.
Ethier has been a platoon player since Farhandrew took over, so maybe his legs can keep him doing that until his contract expires. When is that you ask? 2018.
Lots of good comments here. I’m going to add my 2 cents worth.
No to Lucroy and Braun. No changes to the starting catcher mid-season – too difficult for the pitchers. No to Braun – he’s old, injury prone and a crummy defender.
I seriously doubt that the Braintrust will make a trade for an “impact player” if you interpret that to mean star. The Braintrust has been content to nibble around the margins. Last year’s impact players were Latos, Johnson and Wood. The real impact move was to bring Seager up from the minors.
This year’s impact moves may be more of the kids up from the minors. The Braintrust is loathe to to trade prospects – not just the Seagers and Uriases, but any prospect who has a chance to make a major league roster. They will all be stars, don’t you know, but prospects are the coin of the realm to make a good deadline deal.
The Dodgers need a #2 starter, an impact bat (preferably from the right), maybe a set-up reliever. I seriously doubt that a #2 starter is forthcoming so the Dodgers will, if they make the playoffs, have a rotation of Kershaw and the 4 Dwarves. Can’t you see facing, maybe the Cubs, with Kazmir as #3 against Hendricks, Hammels or Lackey? Me neither.
I generally agree with Badger and Norris that the Braintrust is targeting some future season and not 2016 with an all out plan to win. (That being said, I don’t think that this team is ever going to spend big $$$ on any premium free agent. All of the great Dodgers’ teams of the past 40 years traded for or signed start players to fill in the gaps left by the guys from the farm – remember Messersmith and Marhsall and Wynn; Hooton and Reuss and Baker and Reggie Smith; Gibson and Leary and Belcher?
Who here has confidence that the Braintrust will grab a big star to fill in the gaps and build a winner?
Not me.
I pretty much agree with all you have said. I do not expect Andrew to change his spots and do something totally out of character. I was surprised though that he told the media they were going after Elite players at the deadline, of course his definition of Elite and mine probably differ.
I thought Belcher was a rookie in 88, and Leary was a somewhat unheralded free agent when the Dodgers signed him for 88. You could almost consider the Leary signing as a “nibbling around the edges” kind of move, because the Dodgers recognized his upside when he ditched his curve for a split finger fastball.
fair enough – but Gibson? Smith and Baker? Wynn?
Sure, and I think the Dodgers will eventually sign some complementary free agents to fill in the gaps. It’s not as if the Dodgers under no circumstances will trade prospects for a major league ready upgrade, or offer big money for a free agent. The Chapman trade was already lined up, and they had big money on the table for Greinke, but the Chapman trade fell through for reasons already mentioned, and Greinke was just offered an unprecedented contract to play for the Deebs.
Hopefully the FO is a just a little chastened by the success of the Gints, and how they aggressively moved in the off season to improve their team. And I think you’ll see more spending, too, when the current expensive contracts of Crawford, Ethier, and Agon come off the books. If in a couple of years the FO still behaves like like they’re still in Tampa or Oakland and the team is still middling, then I will officially be a FAZophobe. I tend to think that Kasten or Walter would not allow that to happen, and there will be a “star”.