After last night’s stellar outing by the much-maligned Dodger bullpen, their Bullpen ERA dropped to 4.00, which is now the 9th best in all of baseball, just behind the often-praised bullpen of the New York Yankees. If you just consider the National League, the Dodgers are now ranked #4, just behind San Francisco, St. Louis and Atlanta. Without making ANY changes, I can see the Dodgers taking the #1 spot by the end of the season (in the NL). Actually, I am willing to bet that they will be in the TOP THREE in all of MLB in bullpen ERA by the end of the year.
So, while we would all like to see the bullpen get even better, the fact of the matter is this: All teams and MOST closers are having issues right about now. I know that the Dodgers under Robert Van Socyoc are really focusing on their hitting against relievers. They are focused more than ever on location, hitting in certain zones only, pitch recognition with Virtual Reality headsets, and many other nuances. Relief pitching will likely never dominate the way it used to as hitters have a better idea of what is coming and what their strengths are.
Of course, if a pitcher executes his pitch, there is a much smaller likelihood that any hitter can hit it. However, I was listening to a “round table discussion” about pitchers executing their pitches. The consensus seems to be that if a pitcher executes his pitch (location, spin rate, deception, arm slot, release point) 2 out of 10 times, he is average, 3 out of 10 times, he is good and 4 out of 10 times, he is great! That still leaves hitter a lot of pitches to exploit.
Some of you need to immediately start searching for your minds, because you have lost them over this bullpen. Like I mentioned, it’s not perfect and of course, it can get better, but it’s a common problem throughout MLB. The Mets went out and got the best closer of 2018, but in 2019, they lead MLB is Blown Saves! The Nats spent big on the bullpen in the off-season and they are dead last in Reliever ERA. Colorado’s high-paid bullpen is a disaster and the Cubs who spent big on Craig Kimbrel are still waiting for his 6.75 ERA to come down.
Andrew Friedman is working his contacts, searching for ways to improve the bullpen. I am sure he feels the same as I do: “The Bullpen can never be too good!” But he also is not going to overpay. I still think Will Smith is the Dodgers best bet and I would also bet that Andrew and Farhan have a “handshake agreement” that the Dodgers can have the last chance to strike a deal if the Giants decide to trade him. I think they will be sellers, but I also believe it will be at the deadline. I think it is likely there will be a flurry of trade activity the last 24 hours before the deadline. It might be a Wild Ride.
Remember this: It seldom comes down to ONE PLAYER being the difference maker! This is a team game and the Dodgers success and failure will hinge on who steps up when the game is on the line.
Rants and Raves
- Dave Roberts was very stern in what he said to Kenley Jansen who stayed in the game when he should have came out. Basically, Doc said “I’m honest with you, you have to be honest with me and I am disappointed you weren’t.”
- Quick! Cody Bellinger leads the Dodgers with 77 RBI, Max Muncy is 2nd with 65. Who’s 3rd? Not J.T., not Joc, not Alex. It’s the guy so many fans want traded, DFA’ed or strung-up: Kike Hernandez has 47 in a lot fewer AB’s. Speaking of Kike, he is starting to feel more comfortable in the batters box. In the last 30 games he is hitting .250 with a .347 OB%. In the last 15, it’s .283 with a .377 OB% and in the past 7 games, he is hitting .318 with a .464 OB%. So, when you say, “He can’t hit” I say you have no clue. This has been a public service announcement.
- Max Muncy is not a guy who can move all over the diamond. He’s not as good at 3B, so in my opinion, when JT is out of the lineup, Kike should play 3B. Max will adapt, if you leave him there, but he is above average at 2B and 1B. Matt Beaty has played 3B in the minors 154 games. I wonder is he ids an option next year? J.T. may go to 1B next year.
- Today’s game is on YouTube… Early!
MT’s Minor League Lowdown
OKC -0 Gavin Lux hit 2 more HR and drove in all 5 runs as the Dodgers lost 7-5 to the Cubs.
Tulsa – McKinstry went 3-3 and the Drillers won 7-6 with only 2 extra base hits. Sheffield got his 5th save.
More to come…
Well, the pen is trending the right way thanks to Urias being awesome, Alexander being on the DL and Kelly not sucking anymore. But, Jansen is the worst he’s ever been and just about everyone in-between, sans Baez is a roller coaster ride. The law of averages suggests they will not continue on and become the top bullpen without changes, but I like what you’re smoking! They’re opening a weed cafe in WeHo. Maybe it’ll be open for your next trip.
With a better pen, we would also have a better rotation because Urias would be in it. Jansen isn’t a nightmare, but he is more like a delirium dream.
A moot point because there is NO WAY IN HELL Andrew doesn’t improve the pen. It’s the biggest chink in the armour and it would be gross negligence not to improve the only flaw on an otherwise complete roster.
I’m gonna give Max a break on that bad throw. A more experienced third baseman would let the SS get that ball and he not very experienced at 3B. But, the master plan is to probably have Max focus on third once JT moves on because Lux is killing it and will wind up at 2B at some point.
No breaks for Muncy at 3B. If I were arranging the infield for next season, it would be:
3B-Seager
SS-Lux
2B-Muncy
1B-JT & Freese, assuming that Freese wants another WS after this season.
JT seems to be waning at 3B but his bat is absolutely needed. 1B is his if he agrees. If Beatty can play 3B, and the FO wants him to start, are we going to displace Seager or Muncy? I think not. Seager can nail 3B. His arm is strong. He is long, lean, and agile. I would venture to say that 2B & SS are interchangeable with a period of adjustment. If lux is as good as they say he is, he should be a lock. Plenty of opportunity for Kike and Taylor to support the infield. It would be great if Joc drew a serious offer for his services via trade. We would miss him but I think we could use a different kind of talent on the team, preferably pitching talent. Freese can also help out at 3B this year.
Muncy 1B
Lux 2B
Turner 2B
Seager SS
I tend to agree with MT and AC on that Seager stays at SS until he shows he can’t. He’s the best defender out of the choices we have and he’s a natural SS. Lux moves from short to 2B, as he has better range and is more athletic than Max and his defense mostly questions his arm. 2B would be a shorter throw minimizing his only defensive deficiency and puts the range of two shortstops up the middle where most plays are made. Muncy goes back to his best position which is 1st base and Turner stays where he’s comfortable at 3rd. The following year, you can move Max to Third (after another year and a half of preparing for the move) and backfill 1st base, or develop/trade for/free agent a third baseman.
On average Shortstops and Second Baseman get twice as many chances on defense than a 3rd basemen gets. That’s why you keep your best defenders up the middle.
BTW – I’ve thought about Seager at 3B as well because of his injuries. Lux would be my choice for SS if Corey’s health forces that move. I’m going on the assumption that Corey is healthy.
Lux has made a million throwing errors in the minors. He isn’t moving Seager(and his agent) off of short.
The Mets didn’t sign their 2019 11th round draft pick, a college senior. So the Dodgers jumped in and signed him as a FA. I wonder if that’s a sneaky good move, or is it just adding depth and then seeing if this guy becomes something? 11th rounder isn’t that shabby..
Lux is absolutely destroying things in OKC. The article linked below states that in the new midseason top 100: May is 9, Lux 11, Ruiz 13, and Will Smith 67. Gray is up to 110, and Gonsolin and Downs are near the top 125 range. That does give us some big time ammo to go shopping in the next 13 days!
https://www.dodgersnation.com/top-la-dodgers-prospects-move-up-in-mid-season-rankings-amongst-prospect-gurus/2019/07/17/
I think it is safe to assume Friedman is contemplating a lineup for the years 2020 through 2025.
During that period HIll, Kershaw, Ryu, Turner will be mostly gone. The rotation could be Buehler, Urias, May, and either two from White, Gonsolin, Grove, Gray or Friedman will find players he would rather have and start making trades that could bring in rotation pitchers instead of bullpen pitchers, and do it sooner than later.
Kody Hoese, Lux, Seager, and Bellinger will be in the infield but Pederson, Muncy, Freese, Hernandez, Taylor, Beaty won’t be, at least not as starters.
Verdugo may be the only current player still in the outfield.
Smith and Ruiz would be the catchers.
You may totally disagree with this but before the Dodgers trade prospects for a relief pitcher, the 2020 – 2025 lineup has to be considered.
I think Bellinger stays in RF. He loves it there.
Do you really think the Dodgers are going to let Ryu walk, Bums? Seems unlikely to me. Kershaw will also sign for a reduced amount. I agree on Hill, and probably JT later towards 2003/4. It is still doubtful if more than 1 farm boy takes a spot in the rotation for next year if Ryu stays and Kershaw bears down and continues to pitch decently. Perhaps one or more of your minor league talents will crack the pen.
You are going to take Muncy out of the lineup? No way that this happens.
Dodgers will not be giving the farm away to refurbish the BP.
We should be in the WS for the next 3 years, at least.
Jeff, Ryu might play one of those 5 years or again, he might not be back next year. I think Muncy will be traded before the beginning of 2020.
Mark, it might be easier to obtain a young first baseman than a young outfielder. Verdugo’s best position is RF.
Muncy isn’t a free agent until 2023. He will be on the team for the foreseeable future. I don’t think they’re looking to trade a guy that OPS’s 900+ that can play 3 infield positions.
Just not true.
With the Dodgers making it to the World Series two years in a row and coming up short, I don’t think they want to be the modern day Buffalo Bills. They may not even make it back to the World Series this year because it’s never a sure thing. I agree with 59, AF has to find a way to strengthen the bullpen before the trading deadline. I don’t believe he wants the LA fans turning on him for not doing anything because he won’t over pay to get a championship or at least give the Dodgers their best chance at getting a championship. What do we think was wrong with Muncy’s hand last night? When he swung and missed it looked painful. Lastly, Kenley threw Roberts under the bus after his melt down and Dave didn’t seem to like that at all. I like his response that he is honest with his players and expects that in return. If he felt he couldn’t continue, he needed to let Dave know. If Kelly continues to improve and Kenley continues to decline, we could see a role change. The game is on YouTube today. Go Blue
From my POV, Kenley has been traded already. We just don’t know to who or who we got back in return. All the signs are there for his demise. He’s serviceable but not dominant any longer.
Gotta think one of our young catchers gets traded at deadline. It will be interesting who AF values more
Nice job of cherry-picking whatever stats makes an argument look palatable. ERA is a meaningless stat for relief pitchers. A reliever comes in with runners on base and allows those runners to score, and who gets the earned runs scored against? The pitcher who left the inherited runners, not the reliever. Let’s take a look at a couple of more meaningful relief pitcher stats.
Inherited Runners Scored (IRS) – LAD 41% of inherited runners have scored. Only the Nationals at 44% are worse, with Baltimore also at 41%. So 27 teams have a better inherited runners scored % than the Dodgers, and that is acceptable? Specifically the Dodger relief pitchers have inherited 107 runners which is 2nd least to Houston’s 88. That would seem to indicate that the Dodgers starting pitchers are doing their job.
Blown Saves – The Dodgers have blown 17 save opportunities. That places them 7th most blown saves. Save % – The Dodgers have saved 61.36% of their save opportunities, good for 19th best.
Holds – The Dodgers have 40 holds, good for 19th best.
Recap of true relief pitching stats:
IRS – Dodgers tied for 2nd worst
Blown Saves – Dodgers 7th most
Save % – Dodgers 19th best
Holds – Dodgers 19th best
If you look at all 4 of those stats, they would not be in the top third of MLB bullpens.
Individually:
Baez – 22 IR, 7 IRS, 0 Saves, 4 Blown Saves, 16 Holds
Floro – 22 IR, 8 IRS, 0 Saves, 3 Blown Saves, 4 Holds
Alexander – 18 IR, 10 IRS, 6 Holds
Jansen – 14 IR, 5 IRS, 23 Saves, 4 Blown Saves
Kelly – 7 IR, 3 IRS, 1 Save, 3 Blown Saves, 4 Holds
Chargois – 7 IR, 5 IRS
Garcia – 7 IR, 2 IRS, 0 Saves, 2 Blown Saves
Ferguson – 3 IR, 2 IRS, 3 Holds
Rosscup – 3 IR, 2 IRS
Santana – 2 IR, 0 IRS
Urias – 1 IR, 0 IRS, 3 Saves, 1 Blown Save, 3 Holds
Stewart – 1 IR, 0 IRS
Stripling – 3 Holds
So you think that Floro, Alexander, and Shaggy have been good for the bullpen? It is obvious that Baez and Garcia are best utilized in the 6th and 7th inning. They are not quality setup relievers, never have been. Kelly is getting better and may be a potential 8th inning reliever. So the Dodgers have a closer whose best years are seemingly behind him, no consistent setup guy, and a few decent middle relievers, and that is a good bullpen?
You said, “Some of you need to immediately start searching for your minds, because you have lost them over this bullpen.” I have searched for my mind and it did not take but a nanosecond to understand that this bullpen is not very good. I do not care how bad the Mets or Nationals or even the Cubs are. I only care that the ONE glaring weakness the Dodgers have is the bullpen, and they have the player capital to attempt to fix it.
As great of an organization as the Dodgers seemingly have, are you going to tell us that the Dodgers cannot replace one or two of Omar Estevez, Jeter Downs, Devin Mann, Jacob Amaya, or Tony Gonsolin, Mitchell White, Caleb Ferguson, Dennis Santana, Michael Grove, Edwin Uceta, Gerardo Carrillo, Robinson Ortiz, Jordan Sheffield, Marshall Kasowski? They all can’t play for the Dodgers, so pick the ones who are untouchable (realistically), and dangle the others. You do not need to give up 5 of them to get quality relievers. My untouchables would be Gavin Lux, Dustin May, Will Smith, Josiah Gray, and right now Keibert Ruiz until we know the severity of Will Smith’s injury.
What do I expect? Not much. AF values the bullpen as much as Mark, which means it is necessary but not critical. There are no guarantees in Baseball. Even if AF were to go out and get Vasquez, Yates, and Hand, that would not guarantee the Dodgers a WS Championship, but I would feel a whole lot better. I just hope this time AF looks for better quality than Axford, Rosscup, and Madson.
AC, all it takes is 1 earned run to lose a game. And that stat will not appear to be a glaring weakness. I agree with your take. I like Mark’s positive orientation, but he tends to rationalize and exaggerate almost anything to make his case.
The FO must already know who the catcher of the future will be. You can’t have 3 catcher prospects and expect to retain or not promote all of them. This seems to be the area that we can use to get BP help. If they want Barnes to be the eventual backup, they’ve got to let go of one of their prospects.
Agree completely. In this case MT is the one who needs to search his mind.
AC, thank you for continuing to be the voice of reason.
I wrote about the Dodgers bullpen and their inherited runners percentage yesterday after Mark wrote almost the same thing as today so I guess Mark thinks all he has to do is write something often enough and the mindless morons that he thinks we are will just believe it, also his stats about Hernandez and his rbi´s are just as misleading.
Thanks for another very good article.
AC,
An inordinate percentage of the IRS and BS occurred early in the season. At that juncture, the Dodgers were among the worst in baseball. As Kelly has gotten better and better and Yimi and Peter have settled in, there is a lot less stress on the entire pen. Floro is looking better, Ferguson is back and the “trickle-down effect” is helping them collectively. If Alexander comes back, he should never come in with runners on. As a ground ball specialist, it is best he start an inning clean.
What if they keep Urias on the pen the rest of the year… and use him a little more than they have? Rich Hill is throwing again. As I have repeatedly said, I would love to have more bullpen pieces, but I still believe they will be even better by season-end.
If they keep Urias in the pen and utilize him more, then they defeated the two goals for him when they started the season.
1) Protect his health
2) Starter in the playoffs
After bringing him up with kid gloves, then jerking him around whenever an injury occurred, they should really consider sticking to the plan this time to avoid looking like total morons with him.
If they choose to be total morons and keep him in the pen, and use him more, then they better get a Starting pitcher that’s better than injured Hill, Maeda and Stripling.
It seems to me they should be able to get a closer(lefty please) and a lefty middle reliever easier than getting a starter who’s on par with Julio. If they had a second closer, you can easily take Kenley out the next time he stubs his toe.
Post Season Bullpen
CL – Jansen
8th – Either Smith, Vazquez, Hand, Greene, Giles, Colome in that order get 1
Kelly
Another Lefty
Baez
Garcia
Maeda
Stripling
If Rich Hill is healthy, he takes Stripling’s spot
No to – Shaggy, Ferguson, Floro, Alexander or any other misfit toys that exist today. Some of these guys will get their shot again next year and/or provide depth for injuries
Rotation
Ryu
Bueller
Kershaw
Urias
PS MT, you are now AKA “Cherry Picker”
I find the relevant stats conversation really interesting. IRS is questionable to me, does it account for errors? Is a runner on 3rd evaluated at the same level as a runner on 2nd?
You inherit a runner on 3rd with no outs. Is it fair to say that runner should never score?
Then someone on Twitter started using DRS, but I’ve always thought of that more as a defensive metric.
WHIP is also questionable due to the small appearance size.
WPA is fun, but it’s not a predictive stat.
What about FIP and FIP+
The voice of reason. Great job AC
A bit off topic but I have often wondered why JT has a smudge on the back of his jersey. Why?
The smudge on the back of JT’s jersey is from the pine resin that JT uses on his bat when he rests it on the shoulder.
It is pine tar from his bat. He raises the handle (in warmups) and the barrel hits the back of his jersey.
You beat me to it Jeff
John Rooney and Guillermo Zuniga promoted to Quakes from Loons.
Aaron Ochensenhein promoted from Raptors to Loons. Ryan Pepiot promoted to Loons from AZL Dodgers Mota.
Dodger game Free on YouTube now.
AC, I agree 100% on everything you said about the bullpen. I have long thought it was unfair to charge the pitcher turning over the game with runners on base to a reliever who allows the runs to score. I wondered if the reliever shouldn’t at least share the earned runs charged to the eras of the pitchers, maybe a 50 50 split.
Webster’s dictionary definition of “relief”. Is “to free from a burden, to give aid or help.” I just do not think that is being done all the time which makes the era stat erratic.
Jeff & Campy: Thanks
About every other day I’m going to say again “Joe Kelly is the key to the Dodger bullpen”. If he continues to do what he is doing he can be the bridge guy or the closer if Kenley falters or needs rest. He is absolutely filthy when he’s right. I’d love to acquire a pen leftie but trade or no trade, he is a major difference maker.
Let’s say you are right, and I am not disagreeing with you. Let’s go back to 2017 when we had that bridge in Brandon Morrow and the dominant Kenley Jansen. Those two were gassed by the time they got to the WS because the rest of the bullpen was mediocre at best. Kenley is no where near the 2017 version of Kenley, and I am not certain that Kelly can be as effective as Morrow was down the stretch. Maybe he can, but who else is going to help. Do you really think that Alexander, Floro, Shaggy, and Sadler are quality bullpen arms? Would you really feel comfortable with giving any of those 4 the lead with runners on? Baez and Garcia are best (and are good) at 6th and 7th inning, but not in late inning high leverage situations. The bullpen is acceptable right now because they have a huge lead and Urias is there. But what if Julio is needed as the #4 starter in the playoffs?
A reliever is supposed to stop the other team from scoring runs late in the game. This bullpen has not done that with any kind of consistency.
Urias could be a weapon in the pen… and I think he could pitch an inning every other day… with an occasional 3 day layoff.
The bullpen is mediocre at best. In fact in used to be you didn’t have a setup to get to the closer. Now arguably you don’t have either one. I cringe every time the bullpen is called on. Garcia is a homerun waiting to happen, floro can’t get lefties out, Baez is a 6th 7th inning guy, Kelly totally inconsistent you don’t mention him without saying if first, Alexander can’t get anybody out, Ferguson may come around but hasn’t yet, and those are our best ones.
If Kelly did start becoming consistent they are never going to have him close in certain situations because of loyalty yuck! Urias is our best reliever at this point. We still have a long way to go but if the bullpen doesn’t change it could be a short playoff season. One really good reliever who performs up to the hype would go a long way.
I said this the other day.
I do think the team will acquire a high-value, high-leverage reliever.
But if the team hits like they did against the Red Sox last post-season, it isn’t going to mean bupkes.
BINGO!
We have a winner.
Flogging a dead horse here. RVS was brought in to improve that area of the game and in the not so early going, it seems to be working. If you can add a big bat somewhere, I’m all for it!
But, that doesn’t change the fact that our BIGGEST NEED is bullpen help.
Did you just say what I said after saying I was flogging a dead horse?
If so, I again state that I do agree they need to hit well and acquire a reliever.
From what I’ve observed about how Dave Roberts manages in the post season, the Dodgers need to get another high leverage reliever – this would be true whether our bullpen was performing or not. Roberts plays the matchups so much, he tends to be more trigger happy with pitching changes. In 2017, the bullpen was pretty good, but they seemed fatigued during the WS due to heavy use in the post season.
I just watched Muncy drop a pop fly (leading eventually to a run for the phillies). Yesterday, he missed a ground ball at 3rd that went underneath his glove. Maybe it’s time he find another glove…
I think Muncy needs to play 1 position. Leave him at 2B.
However you view the statistics, we need help in the pen. Can it come from within the organization? Certainly. Will it come from outside the organization? More than likely. My guess is that Urias may be back in the rotation by September. If not, he will be helpful. I’m also guessing that Kenley won’t be the primary closer by September (hope I’m wrong), but if regression continues, they’ll rely on him less and less as the year goes on. My dark horses for situational help in the pen are JT Chargois and Caleb F. I think they’ll be better than they are now, but not necessarily 7th or 8th inning guys, unless we have a big lead. I agree that Baez and Yimi need to pitch in non-stress situations. That all said, I do think we’ll add a reliever. Not one of the big three (Smith, Hand, Vasquez), probably more along the Roenis Elias lines.
As I said yesterday Elias is a project but one I would rather have than Diekman. I would welcome Watson back.
I wouldn’t mind Watson either. Caleb has come right out and shown that my prediction about him, may not come true.
Wow, when Seager got injured Taylor produced. Now Taylor got injured and it’s looking like Hernandez might produce.
This offense is incredible.
And then when Beaty is called upon he produces.
Well I surrender Mark! Now if you can get Barnes to hit then I say sell your business and run for President!
Moderately interesting FROM Longenhagen FOR conspiracy theorists:
Fangraphs reader: How likely is it that the Astros had the Dodgers sign Yordan Alvarez to get around international restrictions so they could trade for him 6 weeks later?
Eric A Longenhagen: there are people in baseball who believe this is what happened, but peole say all kinds of stuff about Houston and not all of it is true. Also, if this is what happened, I’m fine with it. As long as the player knew he’d eventually be an Astro and wasn’t being lied to when signing with LAD
Other stuff:
Neal H: Who says no: Felipe Vazquez for Gavin Lux, Will Smith and Josiah Gray?
Eric A Longenhagen: LAD
G: Better long term C prospect in a dynasty league; Jansen or Will Smith?
Eric A Longenhagen: Smith. Positional versatility and more power
Mike: Hey Eric I saw the tweet from FG prospects ranking farm systems post-draft. Is that big bump (from 9 to 3) for the Dodgers related primarily to the breakouts of Lux and May, or is there other stuff going on at lower levels driving that surge?
Eric A Longenhagen: We’ve been high on those guys for a while now, it’s more a combo of teams in front of them having graduates. Also Gray De Jesus and Cartaya moving up
Fascinating. Very interesting. Wonder what we got in return for helping Hou.
And great to see Kike step up!!
Fields.
duh. im an idiot.
perhaps i chose to forget we made that deal?
News and notes
• Roberts said he expects Kenley Jansen (right ankle) to be available Thursday in the bullpen. Jansen did not pitch Wednesday after taking a 98 mph comebacker off his right ankle in Tuesday’s loss, but Roberts said the closer’s ankle was “significantly better” Wednesday after receiving treatment.
• Catcher Will Smith, the Dodgers’ No. 4 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, left Wednesday’s game with Triple-A Oklahoma City after getting hit on the right hand after he appeared to be crossed up on a pitch.
“He’s fine,” Roberts said. “It was more just precautionary.”
• The Dodgers recalled left-hander Caleb Ferguson from Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to Thursday’s game to provide a fresh arm in the bullpen after using five relievers following Wednesday’s lengthy rain delay. Casey Sadler, who tossed two-thirds of an inning immediately following the 2-hour, 37-minute delay, was optioned to Oklahoma City to make room on the active roster.
Paul Casella is a reporter/editor for MLB.com based in Philadelphia. Follow him on Twitter @paul_casella.
I love how Dave Roberts is able to give day-after injury updates on top prospects.
Beatty on fire! Hope Doc finds a way to keep him in the lineup for upcoming games.
I know Ferguson has ridiculous stats in AAA, but he seems to just lose it when he’s in the bigs.
At this rate, is him being a reliever even working anymore? Is it better that he just stay back in AAA and convert back to being a starter?
Meanwhile, Lux is 4-4 today so far with another HR. My goodness!
He did just throw the other day and was probably given short notice to get on a plane to Philly. Let’s wait until he next outing. He came up big for the Dodgers last year.
His ERA is now over 6. He’s been bad all year.
True but he was battling an injury early in the year. I’m not arguing that he isn’t the same guy as last year. There’s just no better option for another lefty in the pen at the moment so they can afford a little longer leashe with him right now.
If the bullpen didn’t back up Mark today, Kike’ surely did.
As for whether or not Ferguson is ready, the Dodgers probably didn’t have a choice about bringing him up today. As far as I know, there aren’t any other lefthanders down on the farm who are MLB ready, unless I’m overlooking anyone.
I’ll take Beaty over Joc at 1st base every day of the weak and I like Joc. Beaty is daring them to send him down again.
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Honestly even if we “cherry pick “ stats for this pen. Being 9th in ERA in a league full of bad bull pens isn’t good enough for this Los Angeles Dodgers team. Has bull penning caught up with MLB this year?
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While I wasn’t too happy about the You Tube broadcast I’ve enjoyed the presentation. What is being shown between innings is enjoyable compared to a normal broadcast. The third guy in the booth is unnecessary as usual and you can tell the crew hasn’t worked together but the presentation has been good.
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The transfer rule call today was horrible BTW
Wow Mark, I don’t think our bullpen agrees with your assessment of it being a good bullpen. So much for Kelly ready to be a shut down guy.
Ferguson is not a reliever! Send him down to be a starter and develop a third pitch. Do we ever need a left handed reliever!
Picked a bad day to be a savant; it appears as if the soon to be vaunted Dodger BP has once again failed.
Bullpen and defense costly again. I think the Dodgers had about 5 outs at the wall too. It would have been nice had Barnes got his bunt down and the umps wouldn’t have bailed out the Phillies with that transfer call.
Agree! That transfer call was BS, he never had it in his glove. Barnes needs more protein and gym time.
Alright, not a horrible road trip as we finish on the right side of 500. It should have been a sweep with a couple of better bullpen pieces. I’m sure the Phillies are feeling a lot better about themselves splitting at home against the best team in baseball.
Now we get to go back home to beat down the Marlins and Angels and enjoy a couple of off days in the schedule before we hit the DC / Denver road trip closing out July for our last roadie to CO this year.
Trades coming! Matt Beaty is doing his best trade bait impression. We’re going to see him a lot in the coming years playing 3rd base for the Giants. Farhan loves him!
Speaking of trade bait. Why do you think Stripling is in the rotation instead of Urias?
M.T. as POTUS??? Hmmm, would his red baseball cap be emblazoned with M.A.W.G.A ???
O.K. I’ll go back to Ireland…
Go back to where you came from… 😉
I would too, but when I ran my family tree, I discovered my ancestors swung from it!
Not saying that Farhan doesn’t love Beaty. Not saying we won’t trade him to SF. But Longoria’s contract has about 150 years remaining and he’s going to be their third baseman. Luckily for Farhan, Beaty can play first or left also. I’d rather move Joc to SF and keep Beaty. He’s not nearly as streaky and he’s a very good pinch hitter. I don’t have the stats to back it up, but my feeling is that Joc is not a good pinch hitter.
I forgot about Longoria, Belt is their first basement for a few more years. Beaty can stand out there in left field, but I wouldn’t call it “playing” left field.
From Pedro Moura:
Max Muncy said Héctor Neris screamed “Fuck you!” toward the Dodgers’ dugout after the last out. “He’s blown about eight saves against us over the last two years,” Muncy said. “I guess he was finally excited he got one.”
The Dodgers did not appreciate Héctor Neris staring into their dugout after securing the save. Dave Roberts brought up Neris’ suspension and suggested he look into his own dugout instead. “To look in our dugout and to taunt in any way, I think it’s unacceptable,” Roberts said.
Get DeGrom or Grienke. The Dodgers are willing to take on payroll. Most likely won’t cost our top 5 prospects because of the big money contract and it also helps the starting rotation in the future.
Leave Urias in the pen this year.
Try to get Giles without trading any of our top 5 prospects.
Move Kershaw to the #4 starter in the playoffs. With a starting rotation of Ryu, Buehler, DeGrom/Grienke, Kershaw not necessarily in that order besides Kershaw 4th, and an awesome offense we have, you won’t need much of a bullpen.
Bullpen in the playoffs 7th, 8th, 9th innings. You play your best every game in the playoffs.
Jansen
Urias
Baez
Giles
Game over we win.
You trust Giles more than I do. He’s got Jim Johnson written all over him
I agree
If anything, the sloppy play lately might serve to make the Dodgers more aware of the things they need to work on.
Is Hector Neris our new villain? (see link below) Too bad we don’t play the Phillies anymore this year. What are the chances that the Dodgers pull off a deadline deal for Neris? 🙂
And kudos to Max Muncy for his reply.
https://bleacherreport.com/los-angeles-dodgers
Except for Urias, who isn’t a traditional bullpen piece, there is nobody consistently good. That means if you need 2-3-4 innings of relief somebody is bound to screw up and today it was Ferguson! Got to believe AF will come through with a big deadline addition. It would be a shame to see this bullpen take us down in the playoffs! We have all the other pieces!
Taking on Greinke’s contract would be insanity, even if the D-Backs gave him to us for nothing, and threw in an extra player or two.
I wouldn’t surrender our top prospects even if the Mets ate a big part of deGrom’s contract. The more I think of it, the more I’m opposed to surrendering multiple top young players for a single piece that may or may not make the difference this year. Justin Turner may be good for another year or two, but it won’t be long before we have a vacancy at 3B. And the same can be said for our rotation. Ultimately the best path to a world championship is a fertile farm system that supplies fresh talent year in and year out. In fact, after watching some video the other day of Gavin Lux, I am convinced that he should remain virtually untouchable.
And don’t think players like deGrom don’t come with risks. Below are deGrom’s salaries for the years to come. The second column is for age. So deGrom, who is a former TJ patient, will be 32 next year, and will be making huge dollars through at least 2023. (team has option for 2024).
2020 32 New York Mets $25,000,000
2021 33 New York Mets $35,500,000
2022 34 New York Mets $35,500,000 may opt out after 2022 season
2023 35 New York Mets $32,500,000
2024 36 New York Mets *$32,500,000 $32.5M Team Opt
When you consider that the Dodgers are going to have to start paying Seager, Buehler, etc. in the coming years, I’m not sure adding deGrom makes much sense. And even if the Dodgers gave the Mets a kings ransom (not likely, or advisable) for deGrom, it’s highly unlikely that the cheap Mets would eat enough of his contract to make it worth while.
You are right. That is pure fiction.
In the last 5 games we have committed 2 errors in each game, resulting in a total of 8 unearned runs. That doesn’t even count several plays that should have been made but weren’t, resulting in “earned runs” that shouldn’t have been.
Our bullpen is a mess, but our defense isn’t helping them at all. Versatility is a good thing, but I think it has its down side. When players have a position to play every day they get settled in and practice that position all the time. Some of our guys have to practice 2-3 positions and they can’t be as prepared as they should be.
Different subject– Just before Verdugo’s HR, Freese was called out on a pitch that was inside (I believe it was a 3-2 pitch) and if he were on it would have been tie game. I am more and more in favor of electronic pitch calling.
Just saw that Gavin Lux went 5 for 6 tonight with a HR and 3 RBIs. He was only batting .313 in AA so he got promoted to AAA and is batting .577 after 15 games. Unreal.
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As an addendum to the reliever concerns, below are the pitching stats for starters and relievers coming out of the break.
Starters (5) – 36.2 IP, 29 H, 16 R (11 E), 9 BB, 42, K, 2.7 ERA — Record 2-1
Maeda – 2 G, 7.2 IP, 3 Runs — 1 Loss
Strip – 2 G, 10 IP, 4 Runs (3 earned) – 1 Win
Ryu – 1 G, 7 IP, 2 Runs
Kershaw – 1 G, 6 IP, 1 Run — 1 Win
Buehler – 1 G, 6.0 IP, 6 Runs (2 earned)
Both Ryu and Strip lost wins because of blown saves.
Relievers (10) – 26.2 IP, 25 H, 18 R (16 E), 14 BB, 29 K, 5.4 ERA — Record 2-2, 1 S, 3 BS
Baez – 4 G, 4.1 IP, 5 Runs — 1 win and 1 Blown Save
Chargois – 3 G , 2.2 IP, 2 Runs
Rosscup – 2 G, 1.0 IP, 0 Runs
Kelly – 4 G, 3.1 IP, 2 Runs — 1 Save and 1 Blown Save
Urias – 2 G, 4.2 IP, 2 Runs (0 earned)
Garcia – 4 G, 3.1 IP, 0 Runs
Jansen – 2 G, 2.0 IP, 3 Runs — 1 Loss and 1 Blown Save
Floro – 3 G, 2.2 IP, 1 Run — 1 Win and 1 Loss
Sadler – 2 G, 2.2 IP, 1 Run
Ferguson – 1 G , 0.0 IP, 2 Runs
Garcia lost a win due to a blown save
As Hawkeye mentioned, Beaty is on fire and could be playing himself into the 1B position for next season. He seems to be a better all around player than Joc, hits in all situations, and has the power to stress opposing pitchers. He’s really made an impression with his clutch hitting and professionalism.
If there is a trade out there for Joc, I would do it if it brings a need back for the team. Otherwise, you don’t trade a 30HR player.
Ferguson is a band aid on a cut that doesn’t exist. This concern to put another LHR in the BP is blown out of proportion. Ferguson has been nothing but trouble sinice ST. He’s lost his command and probably a lot of his confidence. Why weaken the team with his presence? Not necessary.
Poor Joe Kelly, 1 step forward, 2 steps back. Red sox jinxed him. I think he needs exorcism somewhere else. Anyone can make a mistake including the FO.
Wouldn’t mind seeing Stripling on another team. Maybe some trade bait?
And I wouldn’t mind seeing Maeda on another team.
Yes, AC, I could also live with that.
I don’t see versatility as being a cause for the recent defensive lapses. If that were the case, those lapses would have shown up long ago. My best guess is that this is just a bad stretch. It’s a long season, and things like this happen. If it’s anything more fundamental, I’m certain that it will be addressed. Today Muncy dropped a popup that was totally weather related, and Bellinger’s error was just one of those things from a player who plays right field everyday.
I am totally in favor of an electronic strike zone because I have observed pitch after pitch outside the K-Zone on TV being called for strikes, both for and against the Dodgers. It’s possible that if Freese had got on that Verdugo would have hit a 2-run HR. However, a different situation may well have changed the outcome for Verdugo. There is no guarantee that in a different situation Verdugo would have seen exactly the same sequence of pitches, and maybe he, or the pitcher, would have treated his at bat differently. We’ll never know.