In a game that started so positively for the Dodgers, quickly morphed into what we have come to expect…a lot of strikeouts, inability to create runs, and questionable player changes during the game. But it was all a prelude to what may go down as the THE GAME to take the team to a WS Championship. I always like it when the leadoff hitter gets on base. After a…
In a game where the two best hitters struck out 7 out of 10 plate appearances, this was a very hard game to watch much less write about. Unfortunately for the good guys, JT’s strikeouts were much more problematic than Christian Yelich’s. The Blue put up a good fight late, but Game 1 goes to Craig Counsell in his chess match against Dave Roberts. It appears that Counsell played Roberts…
With the Yankees being TKO’ed by the Red Sox, the slate is set. The Red Sox play the Astros while the Dodgers play the Brewers. Many Dodger fans didn’t think the Dodgers would be one of the last four teams standing…. but here they are! Think about this: The Dodgers are one of the TOP FOUR TEAMS IN BASEBALL! I think that the Dodgers will be one of the last…
I don’t know how to react to last night’s game. There was so much bad that happened and a lot of good. It is easy to concentrate on the 2-out walk to the pitcher followed by a grand slam HR. However, Buehler followed that by retiring the next 10 batters, including 4 strikeouts. It is entirely plausible that without that walk to Newcomb, the Dodgers shutout the Braves for third…
Sean Newcomb is left-handed and almost no-hit the Dodgers once this year. The other time the Dodgers faced him, they lit him up. Which Newcomb will they face today? Maybe it’s not which pitcher they face… maybe it’s what approach the hitters take and you will see a different approach because there will be different hitters tonight. Most likely this will be the lineup: C – Grandal (You don’t take…
Now that the Dodgers are in the NLDS, I thought I would take a look back to see how they got here. While I never gave up hope, I absolutely had my doubts. I had concerns about how the team was structured, and in game management. It became apparent that the primary focus for the front office was to get below and stay below the competitive balance tax threshold. If…
Actually, the Dodgers don’t have a 3K play-off plan, at least that I know of, although they would take it if it happened. Perhaps I should say when it happens. We have all heard of 3M and 3D as well as 3R which is a recycling motto – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Some of us will remember another 3R. For those too young, the 3 R’s referred to reading ‘riting and ‘rithmetic …
Now that the regular season is through, we can begin to speculate as to what will make up the NLDS roster. It really shouldn’t be that difficult for 23 of the 25 players, but those last two will surely draw some scrutiny. IMO the givens: Starting Pitching (4): Clayton Kershaw Hyun-jin Ryu Walker Buehler Rich Hill Bullpen (8): Kenley Jansen Kenta Maeda Alex Wood Pedro Baez Scott Alexander…
We should know the answer by later in the afternoon (EDT). The Dodgers will play: At the Brewers in the Wild Card game; At the Cubs in the Wild Card game; Verses the Rockies in Game 163; or Verses the Braves in Game 1 of the NLDS. It could take me until this evening to explain it all, so we will just wait and see what happens, but the best…
The Magic Number is down to 5. The Rockies do not look like they are going away, so the Dodgers are going to need to win this race. I am more than fine with that. On a night that showcased another of those all RHH lineups against a very good LHSP, the players came through when they needed to. The team scored 7 runs with only one solo HR, so…