I told you a few days ago that there would be peaks and valleys. That was not some genius idea I had… that’s just baseball. One day, no one can beat you… a week later, everyone can beat you. It happens, it’s maddening, fans hate it, but it is just reality. I don’t get caught up in the “the game.” I look at the big picture and in the BIG PICTURE, the Dodgers are fine.
Evidently Ryu’s injury is not serious and he will be back soon as will Hill and Kershaw. It is a fluid situation as they work back from an assortment of injuries. Russ Martin will likely be back after the minimum time is up as well. Injuries are all part of it. The Yankees had 11 players on the IL the last I checked.
Of greater concern to me is Chris Taylor, who is off to a horrible start. He is 3 for 30 and while he has been working overtime with the hitting staff, he has very little to show. Joc Pederson looked much better last night, but CT3 is critical to the Dodgers’ plans. He needs to get untracked, as do JT and Corey Seager. The key word is DON’T PANIC. There will be problems, injuries, slumps and things we have not considered. That’s why the Depth of the system is so important.
The year before Fernando burst upon the scene, no one had an idea what he would become. The Dodgers have so many options in the minors that I am pretty certain someone will step up and surprise us this season… maybe more than one.
Sorry for the short post, but I am in Denver and have just a short window of time. Today, it’s time for Striker to right the ship!
Minor League Report by AC
OKC Dodgers 7 – Omaha Storm Chasers 5 (Royals)
On a very cold night in Nebraska, OKC put up 6 runs in the 2nd inning and held on for a 7-5 win. The game was called at the top of the 8th due to lightning and rain. Leadoff hitter Daniel Castro led a Dodger 13 hit attack with 3 hits. Matt Beaty was on base three times with a walk and two doubles in the #2 slot. Other multi hit games belonged to Edwin Rios with 2 hits including his 2nd double, Cameron Perkins, and Ezequiel Carrera had two hits including his first double and 2 RBI’s.
Brock Stewart started for OKC with 2.1 IP, allowing 2 runs (1 earned), 3 hits, 2 walks, and registered 2 strikeouts. Layne Somsen finished off the third without any further damage but could not find the plate to begin the 4th. After walking the bases full to start the 4th, Kevin Quackenbush came on and allowed all three inherited base runners to score, to tighten a one time 6-0 lead to 5-5. Quackenbush finished the 4th and 5th before Zach McAllister relieved for the third time in 7 games and pitched another two scoreless innings and recorded his first save. Zach has not yet been scored on this season.
The Dodgers and Storm Chasers wrap up a three-game series tonight with Daniel Corcino drawing the starting assignment. The Dodgers next travel to Iowa where they take on the Cubs in a 4-game series.
Tulsa Drillers 12 – Springfield Cardinals 6
After falling behind in the top of the first inning 1-0, the Drillers scored 4 in the bottom half of the first and continued to pound the ball until they scored 12 runs by the 6th inning. The Drillers had their season high in hits at 16, with three by Logan Landon, including a double, and three singles by Cristian Santana. Omar Estevez continued his hot start to 2019 with 2 more hits including his 4th double and 1st HR. Cody Thomas had two hits including his 2nd triple and 1st HR and three RBI’s, while Jared Walker added two hits. Estevez, Walker and Josh Thole had 2 RBI games. Every starter had at least one hit, including pitcher Dustin May who had a 2 out RBI single. The offense went 6-16 wRISP.
Dustin May started and was not nearly as successful as was his 1st outing. May lasted 4.0 innings allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 4 hits, 1 walk, and 3 strikeouts. He did allow a solo HR by 2b Irving Lopez. RHRP Louis Head followed May and pitched 2.0 innings surrendering 1 run on 3 hits, and 3 strikeouts. 33-year-old RHRP Luis Vazquez pitched the final three innings to record his first save. Vazquez allowed a single run on a solo HR by Kramer Robertson. He allowed 1 additional hit but did record 3 strikeouts.
The Drillers travel to Arkansas to embark on a four-game series. Yadi Alvarez draws the start in the first game of the series.
RC Quakes 8 – Visalia Rawhide 4 (DBacks)
The Quakes wrapped up their inaugural 7 game road trip with the 5th win, and have started the season with a 5-2 record. Down 2-1 in the 9th, Marcus Chiu walked and came around to score on three wild pitches to tie the game at 2 apiece. Entering the 10th inning, Jeren Kendall started at 2nd base and went to 3rd on a single by Jeter Downs. Downs moved up to 2nd on defensive indifference. Connor Wong walked to load the bases. Donovan Casey hit into a 6-4 force out with Kendall scoring, and Downs moving to 3rd. Casey stole 2nd before Marcus Chiu got a run scoring single (Downs) with Casey stopping at 3rd. Carlos Rincon followed with a run-scoring single of his own with Chiu stopping at 2nd. Chiu scored on an OF error, and Devin Mann completed the onslaught with his 2nd HR. In the bottom of the 10th for 6 runs and an 8-2 lead.
Ryan Moseley started the 10th with a runner starting at 2nd base, and after two singles and a ground out, the Rawhide scored two to make the score 8-4. After a walk put runners at first and second, manager Mark Kertenian went to his new closer, Jordan Sheffield. Sheff walked the first batter to load the bases and brought the tieing run to the plate. Sheff then struck out Anfernee Grier to win the game and notch his 2nd save in three games.
On Thursday, the Quakes will send lefty Bryan Warzek (0-0) to the mound against the Lancaster JetHawks (Rockies) and Garrett Schilling (0-0) in the home opener.
Great Lakes Loons 9 – Iowa Cubs 4
The Loons won for the third time in four games with a 9 run 9 hit victory. Catcher Hunter Feduccia led the offensive attack with a 3 hit night including 2 doubles (4 on the season). Dillon Paulson had 2 hits including his 3rd double. Romer Cuadrado hit his 2nd double of the season. Feduccia had 3 RBIs while Paulson added 2. The Loons went 5-14 wRISP.
Andre Jackson started his second game and pitched a solid 4.0 innings, allowing one run on 5 hits, 1 walk, and struck out 5 batters. Jose Martinez followed Jackson but a tough outing allowing 3 runs on 5 hits and 1 walk in 1.2 IP. Joel Inoa followed and restored order for the next 2.1 innings issuing 2 walks and 1 strikeout. Jasiel Avino finished the game but not without a scare. He allowed 2 hits and 1 walk, but no runs finish off the game in a non-save situation.
The Loons wrap up their 4 game series and 6 game home stand with the Cubs tonight.
You win 60, you lose 60 and the rest is up to the team.
I never panic as I am too old for that now. But I envy teams that play with consistency. That is, play well win or lose. Make the other teams feel like any win is the hardest win they have ever had to earn.
We all know that pitchers don’t do well in Colorado because the ball travels well, the outfield is huge, and pitches don’t break/move as much. Maybe it is difficult for hitters to adjust to regular ball movement after 4 games in Colorado.
Pederson 2019 58% hard hit; 18% BABIP = Doing better than his average would indicate.
Never, never, never give up.
Minor League Report for April 10 has been included above.
Looks like our Minor League teams did well. Thanks for the report AC. Is Ryan Moseley still on your radar and is he doing ok?
His last outing wasn’t too good. But yes he is still someone I am monitoring.
I want to be wrong on CT3 but he had an entire off season and a ST to close the hole in his swing and can’t seem to make the adjustment. He is who we see every night striking out an alarming 30+% rate. I love what he did in 2017, I love his versatility and I love his grinder attitude, but this is a results based business and when you don’t perform the FO has to find someone who will.
Can Doc continue putting him into the lineup every night with the hope that he’ll suddenly “find it?” Good things happen when the ball is put in play, but nothing good can happen when you K leaving runners stranded, fail to advance runners into scoring position or score on a sac fly. Right now CT3 is an “automatic” strikeout it seems and his crap is running thin from my perspective.
Good guy?…………absolutely. A ML hitter at the present?………..questionable.
At his best he’s probably a great utility player and emergency spot starter or long-term sub for an injured regular. It looks like he is capable of being exposed offensively if played too often. I love the guy and he was my 2017 MVP, but I’m ready for the platoon experiment to end. The problem is we can’t really trade for a RH platoon LF right now. The time to have done that was the offseason.
I’m not giving up on him but it’s looking like to time to start actively decreasing his at-bats.
BlackMirror99
As you know, you just never know, but he does not look right, right now.
I think Verdugo is more then capable of taking the platoon of lefties.
And you just never know what Verdugo would do with that.
And I know you like Verdugo a lot too.
But also remember Roberts is very patient with any of his players, and he will give Taylor a fair chance.
And it is ok not to give up, because it is still relatively early.
MJ–I noticed Muncy was playing 2b again today and that got me thinking. What if we’re considering the option of playing Muncy at 2b more so that Bellinger can move to 1b, Verdugo can play RF, and–most importantly in this scenario–Keekay can play LF with a LHP on the mound? I’ll take your answer off the air 😉
BlackMirror99
Even with this bad day for Muncy, it could probably still happen.
It is a long season, so hang in there, I know how you feel.
Day game after a night game on get away day
Pederson LF
Turner 3B
Seager SS
Pollock CF
Muncy 2B
Freese 1B
Hernandez RF
Gale C
Beuhler P
Love the minor league wrap-ups. “On a very cold night in Nebraska” is Capote-esque 🙂
Looks like Kershaw will be pitching Monday against the Reds.
Saturday should be a spot start
Sunday likely Stripling
Monday Kershaw
Tuesday Maeda (6 day rest)
Wednesday Beuhler (6 day rest)
Thursday Urias (^ day rest)
AC,
Sorry about not getting that up. I got your e-mail as I was driving through the snow to the Denver Convention Center.
No problem. I figured as much. Maybe not the snow, but driving.
I just saw a photo of Cody Thomas. Is there a little of Cody Bellinger in there? Or am I only dreaming . . .
I mentioned CT to Mark a few weeks ago. I hope this guy becomes our next Cody. Wouldn’t that be great.
I also got an e-mail from someone who shall remain nameless that some other person was posting that their comments were not welcome on this blog. Let me make this as clear as possible: No one has to have the same opinion I do. Disagreement is welcome. AC does not like the job Friedman has done with the bullpen and he thinks the Dodgers should have gotten another starter like Corey Kluber. I don’t agree, but that’s what it’s all about.
Where I have a problem is when someone lists a dozen things wrong with the Dodgers. When you list every player as a problem and lament practically every move and every player, you are probably going to be labeled delusional or a moron. The Dodgers, like every team, have issues. The bullpen has been a problem. You may think it will stay a problem… and you may be right… or not! You may think that CT3 should be cut. Again, you may be right. You may think Kelly is a big bust and will stay that way.I have no problem with that.
You can think that Doc is a bad manager and you are entitled to your opinion. I may think it’s silly if you really believe everything bad that happens is his fault, but it’s your privilege to do that. You can think it was dumb to offer Ryu the QO… and you may ultimately be right… or not. I can respect that.
What I have a problem with is the whole “woe is me” attitude. I have a problem if you think “EVERYTHING” is wrong with the Dodgers. HELLO! The Dodgers are odds-on favorites, along with the Yankees, Red Sox and Astros to make the World Series… again. They have a very good team. So, if you roll out a long laundry list of all the problems: Turner, Muncy, Seager, Kershaw, Pederson, Jansen, Kelly, Baez, Martin, Barnes, et al… I think it is really myopic. It defies logic and reality, but it’s a free country and you are welcome to post what you want as long as it doesn’t defame others and of course, no religion or politics are allowed. I had a first time poster last week who tried to post a long diatribe on the LGBT night at Dodger Stadium. I can’t allow that.
Complain all you want about aspects of the Dodgers, complain about the moron who runs this site, but if you think everything is wrong, you are sorely misinformed and you will likely be eating crow for the third year in a row. Peace out!
Rack him! As Mark said earlier, this is a top five Dodger blog so there’s a responsibility here to bring intelligent commentary and follow some basic guidelines for human interaction. It’s not that hard to be nice to each other. A great rule of thumb here is: disagree with the idea not the individual. And if you’re frustrated with the discussion, bring up a new one. 🙂
Mark
You did the right thing, because that sounds like someone more with an agenda, then anyone else.
I would like to chime in as well. When Mark first asked me if I wanted to write for the blog, I was at first hesitant, but it was something I needed in my life at the time. By the way Mark, my wife thanks you for letting me write for this site. Mark told me, that I could write on any baseball related subject and he would not edit, and that has remained intact since my first post. Mark and I disagree on several levels, and I often kid that I now know that I am a moron for having any criticism. But that is all that it is…kidding.
Mark. I will write for the Blog 🙂
If you ever need someone to fill in, let me know.
Mark, I replied to AC instead of you. I am always free to write something for the blog 🙂
Not sure of what the daily subject might be, but it would be entertaining.
I’m not sure how CT3 is critical to the Dodger’s plans.
Sure, it complicates things that he’s on the MLB roster, but the team is not obligated to play him as much as they do, and there are other options, because the Dodgers are, if anything, flexible. If Joc can’t play LF, then Verdugo and Kike stays at 2nd.
It would be great if CT3 could return to his 2017 form, but that seems unlikely right about now.
If he could re-gain his 2018 form, that would be acceptable.
He’s not close now.
Taylor and Muncy and Turner were older players that became Major Leaguers as a Dodger. Turner stayed a Major Leaguer; Taylor had one great year and has since slid some; Muncy needs to show us what he is going to do this year.
I have mixed feelings about bench players. Its great if they can fill in for long periods of time in case of injury but it is also great if they are Mota types that are happy with a pinch hitting role and occasional start. It’s a happier clubhouse if bench players accept their role and a deeper more flexible team if bench players platoon.
Our bench is a strength and has been a strength throughout the Friedman regime. To think we are doing is with only 4 guys is amazing. I grew up with a crazy thing called a 10 man pitching staff. That left room for 7 reserves. Crazy . . .
Verdugo is more then capable of taking some of the starts against lefties.
That is if Taylor isn’t able to get himself right, but that will be up to Roberts, and the management, not anyone here.
MJ, I am hurt. I have a direct line to Doc’s office and he accepts my calls.
AC
You know I respect you a lot, so I wasn’t talking about any one person here, especially you.
I was just trying to get Mark’s back, because I know he is the ultimate optimist.
And he has been more right then wrong, in the last few years.
But I understand your point now, it was more about the way Taylor looked, then anything else.
And I have a direct line to Mary Hart and she can relay my opinions to Doc when he gives the lineups to the umpires.
AC
It always makes me laugh, when Mark calls any of us morons, or all of us.
Because I know he only means it in a playful way.
It is nothing personal.
And he has no problem referring to himself, as a moron, at times too.
AC, Reminds me of that great line by Chico Ruiz: Bench me or trade me!
Did anyone see Walker’s bomb??? Sweet…
And then there was his 4th. inn. pitching… Ouch..
P.S.I’ve formally benched my ‘play Verdugo’ mantra…
We got a barn burner today.. Let the baseball gods give us a W and get the the hell outta the STL…
Big Dodger in the Sky–help.
Peter
I was wondering why Verdugo didn’t get his last two at bats last night.
And I was also surprised he was not in the starting line up today, although I know we have to get this win today, so I understand.
Peter
Now that you formally benched this, let’s see where it goes.
I have to take issue with Mark, looks like today his name really is Walker.
With the current bull pen usage I can see why Doc has him working it out without help as only 3 innings so far. Hopefully he can get us another inning without more damage. Glad the bats seem to be picking him up.
SoCalGrinch
This game is certainly not going to be good for either pitchers, era.
I was going to say the same thing: Walker! Walker! Walker!
Schultz up, Chargois down.
https://www.mlb.com/dodgers/news/jaime-schultz-called-up-jt-chargois-optioned
I root for Stewart and Schultz. AC now has me rooting for Fergusson as well.
We’re going to need a bigger mop.
El Gasolino has returned
And Muncy brought the matches.
Garcia’s turn.
Bullpen sucks cant hit good pitching
Looks like Murphy decided to visit the Dodgers. Maybe this is necessary to get the hot streak going.
So I love my Dodgers and have faith but this is ridiculous, this team needs some pitching every year there pitching chokes and it’s getting tiring. The front office needs to find help NOW. I know there’s 2 great pitchers out there that need some work so if I were the Dodgers I would break the bank and go get them. Cant see them go down like this to the frickin cardinals, REALLY!!!!
Do you even watch baseball? The dodgers literally have one of the best (if not the best) pitching staff in baseball pretty much every year.
Dodger hitters look like they were out of sync due to playing in Denver (both the way the ball travels and also the physical toll).
Dodger pitchers did not look like they were ready coming out of Spring Training. Starters didn’t get enough innings and relievers also don’t look sharp. I’ve always felt that this was by design as the Dodgers would rather sacrifice April in order to save their energy for an extra month at the end – in October. Dave Roberts certainly is playing hitters who are slumping (e.g., CT3) and calling on relief pitchers who cannot hold leads (e.g., Baez). If we give Roberts the benefit of the doubt, he is doing this because he is trying to get these players going as he wants to have everyone contributing to the campaign.
The Dodgers have reached the world series two years in a row. They’ve had slow starts the last couple seasons. So, as maddening as this is for fans to watch, we just have to sit tight and trust that the Dodgers will (yet again) hit their stride in May and June and finish out the season strong. Based on the last couple seasons, if we finish above .500 in April, we should be in good shape.
This series is a dumpster fire. Just image how we would all feel if this was the first series of the season and we were 0-4.
As Knights said, everyone looks out of sync. The team getting into St. Louis at 4 AM after the Sunday night game certainly didn’t help . Wonder how much more is going on.
LOL dumpster fire indeed
Mark, no matter how hard you try, PANIC inevitably rears it’s ugly head for some people who live only in the moment. What have you done for me lately?
The take on this game would be completely different if that bum Buehler 🙂 had not had a bad day today.
Ferris has not looked so hot this year. Perhaps he needs to start singing and dancing
Typical St. Louis trip. We always have problems with these guys. Hey, let’s take our lumps, learn from it, and get on back to Dodger Stadium this weekend against the Brew crew. It’s still too early to burn down the bullpen, and as far as getting help, Vasseghe was saying on Dodger talk that there is a reason Kimbrel and Kuechel aren’t signed yet. They want multi-year contracts, not one year deals. Plus, Kimbrel is an Alpha Dog, no way he will be Kenleys set up guy, or he would have signed by now. Another thing Vasseghe mentioned, which is very true. If either of those two signed today with any team, they would be at least a couple of weeks away from pitching in the majors, as they haven’t been built up yet to major league hitters. Good point. I also agree with Mark and a few other guys on this site, let the season play out a bit and see who comes up from the minors and kicks ass in the bullpen. We have a lot of arms, we just need to sift through and see who steps up. Still too early to jump off tall buildings, guys, still too early…
Must be the St. Louis humidity. I don’t get it either, but the Cards have always been a thorn. Jack Clark is one of the most hated Cardinal. Puff Niedenfuer will never be in my Baseball Card collection.
BP use is on Doc, BP construction is on the FO. Baez, Garcia are NOT ML quality pitchers and that’s on Friedman. Kelly looks hittable and that’s on Friedman. In short, the BP is garbage and I have little confidence they will turn it around.
Where’s JT’s power and Corey has just 1 HR and that was opening day.
Just a train wreck in St. Louis. When we can hit, we can’t pitch.
St. Louis driving the Train and the Dodgers on a Tricycle.
Bad pitching and bad fielding. But on a positive note the offense was better today. I would hope that when we score 7 runs we will win more games than we lose.
I haven’t like the Cardinals ever since they broke Hanley’s ribs (Kelly I’m looking at you) – although the way their fans treated Freeze was admirable.
What was that?
I’ve never seen Wacha pitch that badly, and yet we can’t win despite scoring 7 runs away from home.
So many things went wrong.
Two bases loaded HBP on the same non hitting batsman!
Oh well, at least it’s early….
I was going to write this earlier, remember this is essentially Corey’s spring training.
And here are Corey’s numbers against righties before today’s game, and he had a couple more hits today.
286/375/464/839.
And his numbers when runners are in scoring position, are even better.
After almost missing an entire year of baseball, and not being able to work out like he normally would in the off season, I think these are pretty good numbers.
He is just getting his timing down, and getting his plate discipline down too.
The power will come, you don’t want Corey to pick up any bad habits, trying to yank balls out.
And once it gets a little warmer the HRs will come from both Corey and Turner then.
Remember these two hitters, are hitters first, and the power will come as they warm up.
MJ, Corey and Turner are not our problems. Both are hitting and getting on base. Power is not our problem. We are #3 in the whole league for HR’s and hits. We are also the slowest club in the league. 1 SB! We are one of the worst clubs for throwing out base stealers. Our catchers do not have good arms.
But, the main problem is pitching. We give up too many hits, too many runs, and too many HR’s. Pitching, pitching, pitching. No other major problem than this except perhaps the FO’s reluctance to recognize this. Doesn’t matter what Doc does with the rotation and BP, it’s the players, the insufficiency and the injuries to the pitchers that we employ. I used to think it was the pitching that got us where we were. But that has changed with the demise of CK, Ryu, and others. Power has made up for our pitching deficiencies and that was on full display against St. Louis last game. Most of us are dead wrong in our assessment of the pitching staff, yours truly included. Not one addition to the starting rotation has worked since Maeda was added from Japan and that doesn’t really work either. Every mistake, Kazmir, Darvish, etc., etc., is on the FO, not Doc’s usage, although that could improve too. It’s an illusion to think our pitching staff is good enough to win a WS. It’s always been the Power that has gotten us close, not the pitching. Perhaps the FO will finally get it and get off their asses and spend some money to bring the talent. The Warriors got Igoudala and Bogut via trade and FA. It made a huge difference and then they won their first Championship. Then they got Durant via FA and won two more! The FO has failed this team year after year teasing us with the farm hands and seeing them go down to injury, ala Urias, and picking up the walking wounded for cheap. It hasn’t worked and it won’t. You need healthy pitchers with upside or proven vets that are ironmen. Kershaw and Hill are on the decline. Ryu cannot stay healthy. Buehler is on the cusp. Maeda and Strip have little upside as starters. Urias needs more time. If we don’t promote the kids on the farm, how do you win a hand like this?
Last year the power came late, and we still ended up with 235 HRs. I don’t think the Dodgers started hitting HRs until May or June last year.
Roger, I pointed out in a post earlier in this thread, last year the Dodgers got swept in a 3 game series at Dodger Stadium the first time they played the Cards last year, and then returned the favor by sweeping the Cards later in the season in a 4 game series in St. Louis.. so yes, the Cards are always difficult to beat, but the Dodgers can take them. And we did beat them in the playoffs in 2009, and would have definitely beat them again in 2013 had Hanley not been hit.
If they remain healthy, I expect good things out of Turner and Seager. It always looks worse than it is when a hitter gets off to a slow start, as opposed to going into a slump after a fast start.
I’ll be on your borrough tonight.
Is a team ever as good as it looks when they are winning or as bad as they look when they are losing?
The Dodgers are going to lose between 52 and 62 regular season games.
My preseason prediction was 66 losses.
well they just dropped 4 in a row to the Cards. That leaves 56 remaining. Why do the Cardinals always give us so much trouble? And don’t get me started on Taylor. My word, Gavin Lux sounds good right now.
Hard to be lucky without good pitching.
And the Strikeouts were back in force. Especially with Taylor in the lineup. But the truth is the once the Pitching gets is head out of its butt, things should get better. Plus, I keep saying, this team is FRAGILE. They are made of crystal. Look but don’t touch or they break. Geez they are always, always hurt.
Buns, what you said reminds me of something I’ve said in the past. And that is that you’re never as good as you are when you’re at your best, and never as bad as you are when you’re at your worst.
Mark, I lived most of my life in Brooklyn, and when I was a kid I lived within walking distance of Ebbets Field. And although I get back to Brooklyn pretty often, I haven’t lived there since 2006. Currently live in Rockville Centre on Long Island.
Henceforth you are Long Island Dodger
Yesterday scientists and astronomers produced a photograph of a Black Hole.
What they said was “We have seen what we thought was unseeable”. How many years since Galileo looked at the stars, the amount of work put in since, by these people to get to this point. Today it is taken for granted this enormous achievement.
Wow, this series was a $hit$how! Doc is still an idiot. The pen is overworked and the bats went cold. Play the hot hand and stop cooling guys. Seager needs to drink some milk. That dude looks frail. The rotation is also a mess. No one stepped up and Muncy is clearly inferior with the glove to Kike and Taylor. The Cardinals got a lot of breaks and we hit a ton of balls at people. This was just a bad and unlucky and injury filled series. With a little luck we could have won one of two of these games, but the baseball gods were not smiling down on us.
There was a lot of debate as to Joc not starting against lefties. He sat basically 5 days in a row and came back cold. I’m not sure his replacement did anything. So again, is it better to cool Joc, or to get him some ABs against a lefty when our opponents stack them against us to avoid derailing him?
Same thing with Verdugo, should have kept him in there when he was hot. Right now, Taylor needs to earn his playing time.
Doc can not manage a pitching staff to save his life and most of it is his own doing by not building up his pitchers in Spring Training, but a lot of it is just stupidity. His propensity to bring in a lefty to walk a lefty, 4 pitchers in one inning with a big lead. Giving shaky guys multiple innings after a single clean inning. I feel like throwing up just reliving it.
But, the sky is not falling. The rotation will get healthier and pitch deeper eventually. Hopefully he doesn’t break these relievers before then. AC, you are right. We needed another reliever.
This is a very good team that had a bad series. Doc, try this. Leave your starting pitchers in the game if they’re doing well. That way you don’t have to keep them in when they’re sucking. Also, try to stick with a few simple rules for the bullpen.
You don’t have a loogy, stop treating them like it.
Stop bringing in a guy for just 1 batter, even if he walks the first guy.
Try to bring in relievers at the start of the inning, you don’t have to pull guys for 1 walk.
Refrain from making mid inning pitching changes whenever possible.
Stop trying to get one more out out of a guy after he just got you three.
Floro and Ferguson are your most dependable guys use of them in the eighth.
So, Muncy and Seager were both hurt in today’s game. And I was scared someone was gonna get injured at Coors! This is a hiccup, good thing we came out of the gate hot.
How bad is Marcel Ozuna defensively?
Infirmary ward: Seager, Mucny, Ryu, Martin all in the same series. Did I miss anyone?
St Louis is our daddy.
The Dodgers like to be spanked hard and have red marks left on their butt cheeks
Ok guys, before we run Doc out of town for being a crappy manager(still ahead of Alston and Tommy for winning games in his first 3 seasons) and Freidman for constructing this Titanic sinking ship of a team(No other Dodger GM has had the success in their first 3 or 4 years as he has), don’t forget, the Cardinals, Brewers, Phils, Nats, Cubs, are using us as a measuring stick at where they are as far being competitive for the NL pennant this year. We have a big ass target on our backs, every time we start a series we get that teams best shot, some even saving their best pitchers for us. We are not as bad as what happened in the Cards sweep. This too shall pass. Also, with all our pissing and moaning about the sweep, we are not giving St. Louis the proper respect. These guys are a legitimate contender this year, great young pitching and a tough lineup, especially with Goldshmidt. Give them their props, let’s reload for the Brewers. The beauty of baseball is that tomorrow is another game, another chance to make it all good,
Fangraphs really hates the Albies extension. I personally don’t give a shit.
I dont’ have much to add to the many comments above. Many of the comments are humorous and that’s always good to remind us that nothing should prevent us from being happy in spite of a baseball game. Personally, I shut the game off when the Dodgers were ahead 7-5 and Baez was collapsing. I didn’t want to subject myself to the pain of what was to come and the poor way the Dodger pitching allowed the wins to slip away from them. Yes, it’s mostly the pitching.
Starters have been very poor and are beginning to show their weakness with injury and loss of command. Buehler looked terrible although his HR was a thing of beauty. We talk about the return of CK and Hill but both have long histories of injuries. Who here doesn’t think about that and the question of how long till the next injury? Yes, they have depth but they don’t have health and command. Strength in numbers doesn’t apply to this team. The pitching has been nothing short of a disaster. How can it be fixed?
The timetable for promotion from the minors might be accelerated but that is unlikely as Kershaw and Hill return, two injury prone players. Add Ryu into the mix and we have 3 out of 5 starters who are not reliable due to degenerating or injury prone bodies. I keep hearing fans say that we must get at least 5 innings out of our starters. We do but they also have been giving up at least 4 runs most games! For the last 3 years, only Buehler has made a valid bid to crack the starting rotation. This is not good enough considering how injury prone and inconsistent our starters really are. Maeda, Stripling, and Urias are not really starters. Urias because of the pitch limit and babying that has accompanied his career, so far. He’s got great potential, but forget about Maeda and Stripling. They are BP bound or should be and our current crop of relievers need to be sent down or traded away such as Baez, Garcia, and Kelly (never gonna happen). Forget Chagois, Stewart & Schultz. Keep Alexander, Floro, Ferguson, Santana and add Strip, Maeda, and Urias. Jansen is a given. Now we need to add 5 starters to make 13 for the roster.
Kershaw, Hill, Buehler, May and Gonsolin. Or, sign 2 FA’s that are hanging in limbo somewhere, or effect some trades. This FO is blind to trades. It like the Buddhists denying God, a philosophy. Yet we see trades working all the time. It has been a mainstay of baseball and professional sports forever. You don’t need to wait for September to know what you’ve got long before it arrives. This is one of the blind spots of this FO. They refuse to see the dire need to change and constantly upgrade the talent pool.
There is nothing really wrong with our offense. We hit, we homer, we field. We have a lot of depth and versatility. The power outage of Seager and Turner do not worry me as both are starting to hit again and get on base. Those guys do their job. Pederson is back on track but only against RHP. He is also very slow in LF. He is not sharp and reactive to well hit balls. He doesn’t have the skills to chase and evaluate power hits and his arm is not good enough to throw any runners out at the plate. 3 years is enough to see he is not progressing in the areas that the Dodgers really need. He is a very good backup, not a starter. They simply won’t give Verdugo the chance to show what he’s got. I’ve seen enough of Taylor to last a lifetime. We don’t need many fixes on the positional players. If we need a utility infielder, Castro would be a decent sub at SS and 2B. Stop endorsing Taylor and thinking of the past. There are other players that could fit Taylor’s role. Time for change.
Rocky Gale as the backup catcher? Oh no. No offense. Not even the possibility of it. What’s wrong with Thole? They used him enough in ST and he improved. Why is this FO so opposed to changing things up? They are so timid and fixed in their views of things. Time does not heal all things. This is a fairy tale.
Dodgers: Josiah Gray, RHP (No. 18) — 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K (Class A Great Lakes)
Gray was perfect in his second start for the Loons, retiring all 15 batters over five dominant frames. To go along with his five strikeouts, the 21-year-old also recorded six groundouts in the outing and threw 39 of his 52 pitches for strikes. Acquired in the offseason deal that sent Yasiel Puig and others to Cincinnati, he’s allowed just one earned run on three hits in 9 2/3 innings in his first two starts.
Slot him below May/Gonsolin/Santana/White in that next tier of Uceta/Carrillo/Grove.
Who knows if they will pan out but we got two top ten talent level prospects in the Reds trade.