2023, according to many, it is supposed to be a transitional year. In some ways, it has been. In others, not so much. Nothing has played out as expected. The only starting pitcher who was a starter out of spring training left standing, well leaning a little, is Clayton Kershaw. Syndergaard, traded, Urias, placed on admin leave, Gonsolin, injured and out until 25, Pepiot, injured and just returned. Grove injured…
“In a year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened!” All Dodger fans know that was the best line from Vin Scully’s storied career, as we know that 1988 was nothing short of a miracle. But baseball is like that, and momentum is a tangible, fungible thing. Just about anything can happen, and Underdogs sometimes win. As the Dodgers go into Seattle, they are without a starting rotation,…
I have always said how much I love history. US history has always been a favorite subject. Right up there with that is the history of the Dodgers. I thought I would look back at some players we all might have forgotten. They were Dodgers at some point in time, they might have only stayed a season, or maybe a couple. But they are right there on the all-time roster….
I was somewhat surprised that Kyle Hurt was added to the roster, but there is no denying that he has the profile of a reliever… and maybe a “lockdown reliever.” I just did not expect to see him this year. I do not think Kyle will ever be a starter because his curve and slider are way below average, and his control is very erratic. However, his fastball moves with…
There is no way to sugarcoat this, so I will just say it: “Andrew Friedman failed the Dodgers by not having starters stacked at least twelve deep.” At the start of the season, the Dodgers had Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May, Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin, and Noah Syndergaard. Syndergaard was the guy that many (me included) thought would benefit from the Dodgers’ “Magic Fairy Dust” used to resurrect pitchers’ careers. It…
Here we go again! Sandy Koufax pitched 57 Post-Season Innings, while Clayton has pitched 194 iPost-Season innings to date (notice that I left the door cracked open for more). That is a lot more exposure; Sandy’s ERA was 0.95, while Clayton’s is 4.22. Clayton won 13 games in the playoffs while losing 12. Sandy won four while losing three. Somehow some belive that Koufax won 40 World Series games. However,…
… at least he is THIS year. Next year, he will have to contend with Walker Buehler for that role, assuming that Striker can come back strong from his Tommy John Surgery. Bobby Miller is having an excellent rookie season, but in all likelihood, it may be better than the statistics indicate. While Clayton Kershaw was younger, he pitched 108 innings as a rookie and allowed 109 hits; he walked…
It seems like a large number of Dodger fans do not like the platoons. They want to see a lineup that rolls out there every day and is the same. What they fail to realize is that is part of what has made the Dodgers one of the best teams in baseball over the last ten years. Some of you have wanted Jason Heyward to start every game in RF…
It is happening. Slowly for sure, but it is happening. At the beginning of this season the Dodgers had five veteran starting pitchers. Kershaw, Urias, Gonsolin, Syndergaard and May. May obviously the kid in the bunch but entering his 4th season in the majors Many of their back-up players are and were veterans. Some vets they signed in the offseason looked like they would be making the team. Peralta and…
When Andrew Friedman said this was a “transition year,” he wasn’t kidding. The Dodgers rotation at the beginning of the season looked like this: Urias, Gonsolin, Kershaw, May, and Syndergaard. All but Kershaw are gone, and he is not even a shadow of himself. Lance Lynn looked like a stud pickup at the trade deadline, but it was evidently “smoke and mirrors” as the league figured out what the Dodgers…