Second base has been an enigma for the Dodgers for the last two decades. The concern does predate AF, but he has not found the remedy for the position. The opening day 2B for LAD during the AF era has been Kike’ (2 years), Logan Forsythe (2 years), Chase Utley and Howie Kendrick 1 year each. The best bWAR during the AF era was Kike’ last year at 2.2. It…
Sorry for the delay in getting this posted. I already had my article queued up and ready for publish before last night’s come from behind walk off win. Zac Gallen is going to be a superstar in this game and he just shut the Dodgers down. But the 2020 Dodgers are relentless and have no quit. I think that is a tribute to Mookie, just as 1988 was a tribute…
It was suggested that what the Dodgers need is a dominant closer and a dominant setup man. No mention as to who those players should be. But they better not allow a base runner as that is what is expected for Dodger relief pitchers. Below is the pitching line for the top closers (in terms of # of saves) in MLB for 2020. I dare say that if LAD fans…
Halfway through the year and some things are clear, while others, not so much. The Dodgers are clearly the class of the NL if not all of MLB. The Dodgers are 3.5 games better than the Cubs and 4.0 games better than the Padres. If the season were to end today, the three division champions would be: Dodgers Cubs Braves 2nd Place Teams would be: Padres Cardinals Marlins Current Wild…
I am old school. Never have claimed to be anything but. Baseball has been a part of my life, a big part, for over 60 years. LA was a minor league city until the Dodgers moved here in 1958. We played the game anywhere we could, usually on our school playground. Some played little league, others did not. I never really had any coaching until I played little league. Then…
As was discussed quite a bit earlier in the week, the Dodgers have a very prolific MiLB system even as far down the draft they have been picking from because of the continued success of the ML team. That is true when also taking into consideration a few of the early draft pick busts they currently have. 2015: 1 – Walker Buehler – Starting rotation 1b – Kyle Funkhouser –…
On October 14th, 2014, the Dodgers announced the hiring of Andrew Friedman. Former Tampa Bay GM and Vice President of baseball operations as President of baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers. His contract was for 5 years and 35 million dollars. Friedman was born in Houston Texas and attended Tulane University on a baseball scholarship. His college career was derailed by a couple of injuries. He earned a B.A….
A few days ago I posted an article on young right-hander Geraldo Carrillo whom I had included in a group of players who seemed to be unlikely candidates to make it to the Dodgers. I mentioned Caleb Ferguson, Zach McKinstry and Victor Gonzalez. Another player came to mind that I neglected to mention that has proven it can be done. Also, since the minor league season is in hiding until…
Except for one bad pitch, the Dodgers have been outstanding on this current road trip. They are currently 5-1 on the trip, with three to go in SD. I am not sure that home and away mean that much in 2020, except do like the last AB for a potential comeback. But there certainly is no fan reaction to build momentum upon. The team is currently 7-3, and on pace…
We are only four games into the season, and the sniping at Doc is already in full gear. Not just from LADT commenters, but throughout the Dodgers blogosphere. Every manager makes horrible decisions throughout the season, and sometimes they actually make some good calls. Of course, nobody likes to comment on those. Now maybe some of these decisions are not Doc’s alone. It seems to be a team philosophy to…