More Ragging on Doc

Posted By on September 4, 2018

Alex Wood didn’t have his best stuff last night, but he pitched well enough to win against anyone except maybe Jacob deGrom, but only two things went wrong:

  1. Certain players choking with RISP AGAIN; and
  2. Total game mismanagement by Doc Roberts.

I like Meada in the pen… but only Doc thinks he’s a closer.  I think Roberts used the bullpen backwards. Maeda should have pitched in the 6th and 7th.  I would not put him in a high leverage situation… at least now.  He has no experience closing and it’s just a different type of pressure.  I would have used Rosscup as a LH specialist and Alexander and Floro late.  Baez and Madson too.  Why is Roberts under the illusion Maeda can close?  

Also, his game management with runners on 1B and 3B in the 8th and no outs:  Grandal is in one of his funks.  Doc should have pinch hit for him. Here I am second-guessing, which I detest, but what else can you do when he makes boneheaded moves?  While he’s at it, Grandal should sit about 5 games just to clear his head and restore his body.  

Next, came Yasiel Puig, the Dodger most adept at hitting into double plays and so he did!  I thought at the time Puig should have been pinch hit for, but hey, that’s just me.  That’s second-guessing.  Jacob deGrom is having his best year and will likely win the Cy Young, so getting shut down by him is not unusual, but the Dodgers made his work, got him out of the game and failed to capitalize.  Doc didn’t adjust, even with all the resources FAZ gave him.

Hasn’t Alex Verdugo shown he can hit leadoff?  Let’s run out a different look tonight.  We know Turner, Machado and Bellinger can adjust and hit – why not put a guy who can get on base ahead of them?

  1. Verdugo  CF
  2. Turner  3B
  3. Machado  SS
  4. Bellinger  1B
  5. Muncy 2B
  6. Toles  LF
  7. Puig  RF (reverse splits)
  8. Barnes C

The Dodgers aren’t going to win every game, but they need to take the series.  It would help to have a manager who didn’t resemble a hammer!

This article has 103 Comments

  1. Agree with the Grandal comment. He needs to sit now. Couldn’t catch a break last night, Manny’s ground rule double and Cody’s replay single. If that ball bounces off the fence rather than bouncing over the Dodgers win and I still don’t understand why the umpires didn’t put Cody at second.

    They’ve got to win the next two games against the Mets, a team we’re supposed to beat if we have any wiggle room before heading to Colorado where KJ most likely won’t play.

    1. If Verdugo was put on 3rd then I don’t get how Bellinger could be put on first. Verdugo was going back to 1st when the ball hit the line.

  2. Doc does so many things wrong it is easy to second guess him. Verdugo should of been up a long time ago and he should lead off. I said this before and will say it again, Doc is too nice. He surely knows Grandal is not hitting right now. However, he cannot pull the trigger and pinch hit for him. That is why Toles and Verdugo never came up in August. He would of had to eliminate Joc and Taylor. This is what I think. The players all like Doc, but I am not sure they respect him. There is a difference. I taught school and was a HS Principal. Kids liked the teacher who was easy on them. However, the ones they respected were the teachers who made them work and had good discipline.

  3. No more Pederson batting lead-off. Verdugo, Muncy, or Toles would be more productive in that spot.

  5. dustin nosler has lux and gonsolin as his minor league players of the year. runners up were verdugo/joe & may/uceta. kremer might have received notice as well.

    1. Can’t argue with either choice.
      –
      I used to think TG would be a reliver, but he has the strengh in his small fram to sustain 95+ MPH. He could be a SP candidate for LA mid-2019!
      –
      Lux could use a year at AAA…
      –
      If these guys blow this season, here’s my Wish List:
      1. Fire Doc
      2. Sign Machado (at a reasonable price)
      3. Trade Puig, Alvarez, Pederson, Maeda and Wood – lot of value there – just get prospects
      4. Let Dozier, Ryu and Grandal Walk
      5. Get Realmuto
      6. Extend Clayton 2 more years
      –
      2019 Lineup:
      1. Verdugo RF
      2. Seager 2B
      3. Machado SS
      4. Bellinger 1B
      5. Turner 3B
      6. Muncy DH
      7. Realmuto C
      8. Kemp/Toles – Platoon LF
      9. Taylor CF (he’s fine at #9)
      –
      Subs: Kike, Barnes, Farmer
      –
      Starting Pitchers:
      1. Kershaw
      2. Buehler
      3. Hill
      4. Urias
      5. Gosolin/Santana/ Ferguson

  6. There is absolutely no acceptable explanation for how Roberts managed the game last night. I have no objection to Alex Wood being removed after 5.0, although I do think he could have pitched another. But to waste Baez, Rosscup, and Floro in the 6th just made zero sense. The roster only has 10 relievers available, which is only 2 more than normally carried during the season. Of those 10, it appears that 2 are not being counted on at all…Fields and Venditte. Ferguson and Jansen were not pitching last night, so there were really 6 available. Therefore, to waste 3 in one inning showcased hammer mentality.
    .
    With the addition of Rocky Gale as a catcher, there were 3 catchers who could have replaced Grandal if he were PH for in the 7th.
    .
    Grandal since August 1, .148/.278/.358/.636
    Grandal since August 20, .121/.286/.212/.498
    Grandal since August 24 (last 10 games) .080/.250/.200/.450
    And this is who you want batting with the game on the line with three other catchers on the bench? If you are going to produce metrics for use, how do you miss this one? With all due respect to Mark, this is much more than a funk.
    .
    Second guessing? Okay let’s play “what if” and look at what might have happened. I agree with Mark that Maeda should have pitched the 6th and maybe the 7th. If any batter other than Grandal came up in the 7th, the chances increase significantly that the Dodgers would have scored a run to take the lead. That would leave RELIEVERS available to finish up, including the only late inning high leverage reliever other than Jansen on the roster, Ryan Madson. What other manager would have played the game out as Doc did? If there was a book on how to lose last night’s game, Doc wrote it.
    .
    With Vargas going tonight, are we going to see another all RHH lineup? Verdugo against LHP at AAA this year batted .396/.442/.542/.984. Should he get a start? Belli is hitting LHP better than Puig and CT3, and very comparable to Kike’. Belli should be in CF and Verdugo in RF. I would think that Freese is the logical starter against Vargas at 1B, with his batting line against Vargas of .583/.615/1.167/1.782 (2 HR – 12 AB).

    1. I tend to defend the Manager. I did it with Mattingly and I have done it with Roberts. BUT, AC just made it clear how bad Doc was last night.

  7. I liked the players that started last night and where they played defensively. Muncy with the exception of one easy play made solid plays at second. Dozier and Taylor are not hitting well enough to keep Muncy from playing second. Muncy could well return the favor and let his bat put Dozier back to a starter.
    .
    I would give Verdugo another week of play before putting him in the lead off spot but I would keep him in CF. Like most here have said, I think the Dodgers are better when they mix lefty and righty hitters in the lineup and stay away from all lefty or all righty lineups.
    .
    Beginning next week, I want this lineup everyday regardless of the pitcher and do it for a week.
    .
    CF Verdugo
    3B Turner
    SS Machado
    1B Bellinger
    LF Pederson
    RF Hernandez
    2B Muncy
    C Barnes and his ability to get walks

    2. I thought Puig should have played on Sunday against the righty with reverse splits and sat last night vs a guy with extreme heat, but he had hit 2 HR’s off of Degrom so I guess that’s why he played and not Kemp who is a good fastball hitter by the stats. Grandal should hit 8th, but at least he finally got dropped to 7th.

  8. 3 years ago, Seager was called up, and did so well (granted he replaced Rollins who was horrendous) that we went with him as the starter in the playoffs.
    I don’t see why we can’t do the same with Verdugo. Can anyone tell me they’re more comfortable with Joc or CT3 out there in CF and at bat vs. Verdugo? Give the kid the leadoff job for the next 2 weeks and see if he can handle it. We already know what CT3 and Joc can do. I’d be willing to roll the dice on improving the CF production. Kemp/Joc can platoon in LF (with Kemp playing most games), Puig can stay in right, although he’s in his funk as well. But Verdugo deserves every opportunity to run with this. If we can trust him to face deGrom, we can trust him to face every other pitcher in MLB.
    I look forward to what he can do in 3 days in Colorado. 5 doubles in 3 games????

  9. I wrote about “The Hammer” last night, great nickname for Robert’s. Less angry today but still resolute in the fact we will not win anything with this guy at the helm. Unfortunately, I think there is about a 25% chance he gets fired if we don’t make the playoffs. I think a more likely scenario is Turner Ward gets fired and Robert’s gets lame duck manager status for one more year.

    I know the old adage is that manager’s don’t effect too many outcomes over a long baseball season, and maybe that is true. I do, however, believe manager’s can really shape how players perform in their pursuit of positive outcomes. The Hammer seems to fail daily with lineup construction and with in game management. I realize that is an exaggeration but I have 2nd guessed the Hammer in wins all year and to me that says it all. Maybe Mark is right and The Hammer thinks he is smarter then everyone in the room. I just fail to understand, last night was a tipping point, agree completely with AC in the fact there are no reasonable explanations for The Hammer’s moves besides things like ego, ignorance or idiocy. Would love to hear FAZ’s assessment of The Hammer to this point, polygraphs included.

    And Go Dodgers!!

        1. Mark – that song reminds me so much of the year that I spent in LA, living in Venice Beach, and heading up to Chavez Ravine, or watching each night on the TV.
          That was the year that my love affair with Baseball began, although I saw 2 games In 88 while on
          Holiday.
          MC Hammer’s other hit of that year, “You Can’t Touch This,” became the Reds anthem for the 90 World Series.

          –
          Young, free & single
          Good memories.

  10. Grandal did the only thing he wasn’t supposed to do, strike out. A ground ball, double-play, fly ball would have scored a run. I would sit him tonight as a result. Same thing with Puig. Anything other than a double play ball would have helped the team. Even a strike out would have at least given us one more chance to score. Again, sit tonight as a result. Kike should never hit behind Machado, there’s no reason to give Machado anything to hit. How about putting the guy with the best RISP in the spot behind Machado, especially since everyone except Doc can see Kemp is heating up. And no, Muncy should not play second base. He has bricks for hands. You can hide him at first only and even that is sketchy. He needs to be traded in the off-season. He’s the lineup going forward against lefties and righties… Put in Kike for Puig tonight because he screwed up by hitting into that double play. Taylor and Kike both proved that they aren’t everyday players. They can try again next year. Freeze can spell Turner from time to time and Bellinger against a tough lefty. Stop platooning everyone!!! Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? Fire Roberts now and make Utley player manager for the rest of the year. Manager only in the post season. We just need someone that doesn’t over manage.

    Verdugo CF L
    Turner 3B R
    Machado SS R
    Kemp LF R
    Bellinger 1B L
    Dozier 2B R
    Grandal C L
    Puig RF R

      1. So, why was it OK when I posted it about Donnie Ballgame. The racism is in your heads. If it wasn’t racist then how is it now? That’s hypocritical!

  13. Yeah, take that pic down. And since I’ve met you and I think know you a bit, I won’t think anything more of it once it’s down, and we can discuss our frustrating team again.

    1. So, explain why no one complained when I did the same with Mattingly?
      –
      I’ll take it down if some can explain a logical reason why.

        1. Yes, evidently I am too stupid to understand why it’s OK with Mattingly, who is mostly white and and not OK with Dave Roberts who is half black and half Japanese?

  14. OK, I’ll take it down first and await a logical explanation.
    –
    I don’t think there is one.

    1. logical explanation in a nutshell is white people were never called monkey, ape, etc as derogatory, demeaning ways to dehumanize them and to equate them with animals.

      Black folks have been, and it’s a very serious issue with them. I don’t think you meant offense when you posted it about Doc, but you need to accept this truth. It’s a huge deal to the race that’s been degraded in such ways for so long.

      1. OK, I’ll buy that but they need to stop degrading themselves and using the N word. I have never used it and don’t think anyone should. I hate it when people disrespect themselves.

          1. I’ve had female friends call themselves “bitch” and “cunt” in front of me. You can bet your butt I am not claiming i get to do the same!

        2. Mark I will agree with you on one thing here. Jackie Robinson and MLK didn’t go through what they went through to call each other the N-word even if it is an attempt to disarm the word.

      2. Wait! Is there an implication that we (all races)are not animals. Although I never saw any humans in the animal crackers in my soup we are animals and not much different than the OTHER apes. We didn’t evolve from apes, we are an evolving ape.

  15. Toles hit as well in AAA as Verdugo. He was the starting LF last year until he got hurt. He has to be better than Joc, Puig and Taylor. They have not produced all year. Why does Doc think they will produce now in crunch time. If I remember correctly, both Toles and Verdugo hit lefties.
    –
    I usually defend managers. Doc is making it real hard to defend him. He does not have the courage to make tough decisions.
    –
    Right now I may try Locastro at second. Rotate Muncey and Freese at first. Put Bellinger in center. Rotate Kemp, Toles and Verdugo in RF and LF. Catcher-flip a coin. I know this will never happen with Doc managing.

  16. I like Mark’s line up against righties, except Verdugo in center, because he doesn’t have good defensive metrics. in center.

    Toles has much better defensive metrics in center, and Toles has much more speed, to cover center, too.

    But like I have said many times, Verdugo is very adept at getting on base, and because of that, I think he would be an outstanding lead off hitter, for this team.

    So I agree with Mark, Verdugo would be a very good, in the lead off position.

    But tonight we are facing a leftie, like AC said, but this leftie tonight, doesn’t have very good numbers, against both righties and lefties, although righties are doing a little better.

    And just like I insist that Muncy should start against every leftie we face, I believe the same about Verdugo, especially with this team’s weakness, against lefties!

    Because Verdugo has reverse splits, much like Muncy does, although they both have pretty decent numbers, against righties.

    Like AC pointed out, Verdugo is hitting lefties 396, and his OPS is 984.

    And Toles doesn’t have good numbers against lefties this year, but he did have decent numbers against lefties last year, but not at Verdugo’s level.

    I think the fact that Toles missed most of last year, and spent most of his time off, rehabilitating his knee, may be the reason his numbers are not as good against lefties, this year.

    Because he had no time to really work on his hitting during the time he was off, and he only got in the cage and started working on his hitting, a few weeks before spring training, because he had to wait, until he was cleared, medically.

    And he also missed almost two months, at the beginning of this season, because of his hammy issue.

    Although Verdugo has much better numbers against lefties, then Toles this year, Toles has better numbers against righties, then Verdugo does.

    Verdugo is hitting 304 against righties, and his OPS is 816.

    Toles is hitting righties 333, and his OPS against righties, is 862.

    And as much as Verdugo is adept at getting on base, Toles is adept at getting key hits, when runners are in scoring position, unlike Verdugo.

    Because Verdugo’s numbers goes down quite a bit, in these high leverage situations.

    Verdugo is hitting 296 in these situations, and his OPS is just 706.

    And Toles is hitting 375, and his OPS is in the 1000s, in these situations.

    So both of these two players are talented in different ways, that could really help this team.

    Because Verdugo excels against lefties, and Toles excels in high leverage, situations.

    And those are two of the biggest weaknesses, this team has.

    And both of these players make consistent contact more often, then not, and that would also help this team too.

    I would go with AC’s suggestion in the outfield tonight, against the Met’s leftie.

    But like I said, this leftie is not doing well, with hitters in general this year, whether they are righties or lefties, but righties have a little better numbers.

    1. With Muncy, I wouldn’t bat him fourth like Roberts did last night, because Muncy won’t get many good pitches to hit, hitting fourth, not to mention, all that extra pressure.

  17. We basically need to take today and tomorrow and keep this momentum. You want to take 2-3 vs anybody at home, but especially vs a crappy team

  18. I have an idea. Let’s splice the genes of Max Muncy and Enrique Hernandez. We would take Muncy’s bat and approach at the plate while combining those with Hernandez’s defense and positional versatility. We’d have to get a new jersey and name for him/it: maybe MunKi?

      1. About Degrom last night, I think Buehler might not only be as good as Degrom one day, I think he is going to surpass Degrom.

        Because he seems to be getting it much sooner, than most young pitchers.

        1. very similar builds, motion, and stuff. I thought Buehler would be like Greinke but with a bit faster fastball. Either way, glad we took him!

        2. I like that name!

          It is ok because Muncy has a very different life experience, then other ethnicities, that are not white, like Bobby said.

          I know you didn’t mean the other at all, but it is just best to use caution, so no one takes something, the wrong way.

  21. MT, yeah I thought the same thing when I read comments from MJ, wow how’d he get away with that one.
    Maybe Muncy likes to call himself that too. It is cool.

  22. you need to get a run home. let’s say bases loaded one out. who do you want up? here’s my list:

    1. turner–no brainer
    2. muncy–seems capable of turning his focus up in big spots [anecdotal]
    3. machado–should be #2 but he still may overswing at times
    4. kemp–problematic that nobody jumps out here; taylor was in top 5 last year
    5. dozier–we need him to get his great hair mojo back
    6. keekay–he’s prone to look bad but he does have a plan
    7. tie] joc/taylor/puig/grandal–all are flawed

    just from looking at this list, it explains a little of why our RISP numbers are so bad this year. we don’t have an abundance of players we really trust up in big spots.
    *
    last year barnes was a guy i liked seeing up at the plate. this year he is as lost as lost can be i must say. toles earnes an “incomplete” and freese might’ve been signed for exactly this purpose. it’s too early for me to rank him.
    *
    also, since pinch-hitting is really hard, i’ll probably say utley might one of best options in a one-off at-bat. at least he knows how to lean into one.

    1. of course i forgot bellinger. as much as i love the guy, i’d probably put him just outside the top 5.

  23. What does Verdugo have to do in order to warrant consecutive starts? Hit the ball all game yeaterday, three of those at bats off the best pitcher in baseball. He also hit .396 against lefties in aaa this year, but Taylor is back in there because of Robert’s blind loyalty thus creating three automatic outs at the bottom of the lineup this evening.

    Hopefully Hammer will get lucky and Taylor and Barnes will go back to back in the 3rd inning tonight. Go Dodgers

    1. Yup… a lot of us have been bitching about this all season long. It’s absolutely infuriating… particularly with Verdugo this year but in general when the team ends up sitting some of the hottest hitters in favor of guys that have been in a year long slump.
      –
      I’m slowly moving into the camp that believes the starting lineup decision are mostly out of Dave’s hands. I think those decisions come from the FO… Dave is given what some have called a script… which kind of makes the early game decisions for him.
      –
      I think you can definitely blame Roberts for the terrible in game decision making in the middle and later parts of each game. And that includes everything from the mishandling of the bullpen, terrible decisions of when to and when not to pinch hit for certain guys at key moments in the game (not pinch hitting for Grandal in yesterdays game is only the most recent example), and not playing small ball or promoting / enforcing situational hitting enough (although this did change a little when Kenley went on the DL and Dave was feeling a little more heat)

  24. Adam, you’re preaching to the choir here… All I ask for this year is when Verdugo or Toles camepeterj up, give em a good look. 10-14 days against lh or rh…
    Guess we’ll never know … Maybe one or both will win a starting job in S.T. and never look back…

  25. Puig to serve suspension tonight and tomorrow night. So for those two nights at least, I guess we can expect Verdugo in RF, no matter where he hits in the order.

      1. Since I do not believe that the lineups come from FAZ, all I can think of is that FAZ is giving Roberts enough rope to hang himself with. I cannot remember when this all RHH lineup worked. Maybe it does tonight because Vargas is really not very good. CT3 has not done anything this year to deserve the special consideration for lineup inclusion that he is getting.

  26. It was reported that the Dodgers attempted to get Beltre, but Adrian didn’t want to leave Texas. So, they settled on Freese. Too bad Beltre may have been just what that dugout needed.

    1. I saw that too and shed a few tears. When I started blogging in 1998, Adrian was listed as my Top Prospect followed by Paul Konerko. I’d like to say I was a genius, but every other publication thought the same thing. I did say one thing however, that no one else said: I said he would be a HOF’er!
      –
      Damn you, Paul DePo and Frank McCourt!

  27. Congratulations to JT for being nominated for the prestigious Roberto Clemente award . “The Roberto Clemente Award is the annual recognition of a player from each MLB Club who best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field.”
    .
    This is the second consecutive year that JT has been nominated by the Dodgers. Previous Dodger nominees who ended up being the MLB winners are Steve Garvey (1981), and Clayton Kershaw (2012).
    .
    There will be a ceremony tonight recognizing JT. The overall MLB winner will be announced during the WS.

    1. By the way, this was announced on the same day that JT was named NL Player of the month of August. For the month, Turner led all of baseball in batting average (.402), and on-base percentage (.491). He also had six home runs, drove in 22, and scored 20 times. and a stolen base across 25 games played to claim his first career NL Player of the Month Award.

  29. I’m late from working and coaching baseball but I just reiterate we lost the ballgame with first and third and he let Grandal hit. How about the hero the previous 2 nights Matt kemp. He is available and you bat Grandal. Should have been fired last night. If you can’t make that decision we will not win the World Series with him maybe in spite of him. Bellinger our fastest runner could have been put in motion but no Puig does what he does. Maeda struggles with lefties but a change up instead of a slider might have helped.

  31. A lot of us have mentioned the stupidity of the all right handed lineup vs a leftie pitcher. Before I whine more about it, does anyone know what our record, and our avg/slugging %, etc are when we play these all rightie lineups? Do the stats show that it actually works?
    Does this Mets pitcher tonight own lefties, but suck against righties? Do all of our lefties suck against him? I would hope we take that into consideration, instead of cluelessly just batting opposite batting hitters against a pitcher.

    Oh well, the frustrations of being a fan of this team!

    1. Bobby

      This starter tonight, hasn’t been good against both lefties and righties, although righties numbers, are a touch better.

    2. Bobby

      I have heard women call each other bitches, but every female I know, hates the C word!

      It is just the worse thing anyone can call a women.

      But like Hawkeye said, people that are called these certain names, refer to themselves in this way, to take away the power from anyone else, referring to them in this way.

      1. You know what’s funny, MJ: my friend’s wife is British. She called me a “twat” to which I’m like “WTF????” I asked her, ” do you know what that means??” She said in England, it means like idiot, or dummy.
        I had to explain to her that she ought not be calling people that here, as it means something a tad different.

        1. Bobby

          Do you remember when Samantha Bee called Trump’s daughter, a thankless cunt?

          Well Samantha Bee is from Canada, and in Canada and Britain, that word doesn’t have the same bad connotation, like in the US.

          It is always the power people put in words, that allows people, to give certain words power.

  34. Peralta first now Bruce on that drop down side arm curve?

    Ok Robert’s let’s see if your all righty lineup works

  36. Dodgers 0 for against pitcher with ERA over 6. Hill getting lit up. Not a good start.
    –
    Arizona winning; Colorado losing so far.

  40. Am I dilutional? Have both of the Met HRs been hit by left handed hitters against the left handed throwing Rich Hill? And all while the left handed hitting Alex Verdugo sits on the the Dodgers bench.

  41. Roberts has to be overly perplexed and not understanding what is going on. How can their lefties actually hit LHP. Bruce and Conforto are LHH. Add to that, Nimmo, the 3rd LHH in the Mets lineup also has a hit. I can hear Doc now telling everyone who will listen, lefties cannot hit LHP. Why do you think I had an all RHH lineup.

  42. Usually Hill gives up at least one run before he pitches really good. Tonight he doesn’t seem to be kicking into that really good gear. I’m not so comfortable as most seem to be when Hill starts a game. Never have been.

  43. Just heard on the Mets broadcast that the catch made by Todd Frazier on the ball that Verdugo hit foul last night, was in fact, no catch at all. Apparently he didn’t make the catch but picked up a child’s ball that fell out of a bag that he fell on. He showed that ball in his glove to the umpire, and then quickly threw the evidence back into the stands.

  45. I guess the new team philosophy is to swing 3 and 0, does analytics now say that is correct? We swing 3 and 0 all the time, I am curious?

    1. Check swing dribbler on a 3-0 count with two runners on base. That’s pretty much an inexcusable offense.

  46. I may as well drop by here and say to hi to everyone since it’s a ghost town over at my site tonight.

    1. What did I tell everyone about the genius of this all right handed lineup!!!!!!

      5 runs already baby!!

      1. Bobby

        I guess all this second guessing, brings production from this all rightie line up.

        I guess we ought to tempt fate, much more often!

    2. Hey Scott, hope life is treating you good! For myself it’s looking well……can’t call it yet. Funny game tonight, huh?

      1. Hey Quasi, good to see you. I’m ok.

        Hey Rick, everyone has their own consensus I guess you could say. Some want Roberts canned. Others feel the Dodgers have a chance if they can just hit with RISP. Some believe in the club and some don’t think it’s their year. I think it’s possible they can get through the NL playoffs but unlikely they beat any of those powerhouse American League teams that are loaded.

        Surprised this all-righty lineup actually did something tonight, but the Mets are pretty bad. Either way, give credit where it’s due. I love the David Freese acquisition and have a post about him going up on my end. And hey he homered today. he’s been a super consistent player over the years.

    4. Yes! Finally a voice of reason. We’ve been calling the manager a dumbass and yelling at clouds during the last ten games (of which we’ve won eight). It’s been embarrassing really. People say a lot of things on the internet they would never say in person. But sometimes ignorance and cowardice align perfectly . . .

  47. When Taylor came up with 2nd and 3rd it occurred to me that that was an opportunity to send Verdugo up to pinch hit. No guarantee that he would have done anything, but sending him up to face the right-hander made sense to me. And then Verdugo could have gone to RF and Kemp to LF.

    1. I don’t know how Taylor missed strike 3. It looked like a fat pitch to hit. Sometimes it appears that he lunges at the ball. I don’t get hitting for Barnes there. If he’s going to pinch hit for Barnes he better be prepared to hit for Grandal.

  48. Agree completely Perfect spot for Verdugo.

    Just like in the 6th inning last night when Roberts used three pitcher unnecessarily, he did he same over managing tonight, Mets go to a lefty to face Joc who was pinch hitting against the Mets righty in the game. Robert’s immediately counters with Farmer, 1st at bat in the majors in three months. No one on, all things equal, despite his struggles against Lefties, should be Joc in that spot. You know why this is going to happen all month give him a look with a lead. Hammer does not cease to amaze me.

  49. That was nice to see from Machado. Hope it’s a harbinger of things to come.
    –
    Is this a new Dodger trend, getting hits with RISP?

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