7-3 Start Thanks to Relief Corps

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1. Post-game presser:

   Clayton Kershaw – “It was fun to be back out there. I missed it.” He said that his back got better fairly quickly. He felt a lot of relief and thankfulness for the outing. When asked about the changes for the increased velo, CK gave a lot of credit to his health and strengthening during the offseason. No mention of Driveline like KJ had done. Overall, CK said he was thankful for playing baseball again.

   Dave Roberts – Mookie hurt his finger on a swing. It swelled up very quickly and significantly. They did do x-rays and they were negative. He is day to day. When Doc was asked about whether Driveline should be given credit for the uptick in CK and KJ, he responded a tentative maybe, but gave his staff the bulk of the credit. His staff worked with both pitchers on their body and positioning and mechanics. With respect to Corey, he had a good day. Today was recovery and treatment. Best case scenario, Corey will DH tomorrow. He is also listed as day to day.

   Cody Bellinger – He has scrapped his “new swing” and is back to how he hit last year. He feels good at the plate. He just needs to get his timing back. He feels comfortable with where he is at. Like Kershaw, Belli is excited to be playing baseball.

2. Indeed, AC, I think Kelly is the weak link in the BP. Except for very brief stretches last season, he has not shown any command of his stuff. He might be the wildest pitcher I’ve ever seen. I can’t recall anyone wilder, more dramatically challenged, than him. The only redeeming quality is his velocity, but I still maintain that this was a bad decision by AF to acquire him. Our new acquisitions look to be far more disciplined and promising than Kelly.

   My allusion to Realmuto and his acquistion, is meant only to highlight the glaring need for a 2 way catcher on the team. We were hoping Martin would supply that last season, but he’s in his declining years. Barnes is a proven liability offensively, and he is not very good at throwing out base stealers. Smith still has to prove himself worthy of starting unless the team truly doesn’t care about offensive production. If that is the case, why speak of Ruiz in future terms? He has not demonstrated a significantly better offensive production in the minors, as Smith has, so he still remains a kind of work in progress. Smith should get most of the work until AF decides either that he can live with Smith and his weak bat or he auditions Ruiz THIS season. If Ruiz can prove he can hit, out future catcher will be found. If not, he or Smith will be trade bait. They held him out of all trade talks and he was one of the more popular players that teams wanted. I see no reason to really keep him and Barnes. Time to make the decision? Probably not, because the team is winning in spite of this weakness, and indeed it is a weakness. They let Grandal walk who was miles ahead of any of our catchers offensively. They just don’t like to pay someone when they’ve got cheaper options waiting in the wings. I’m not complaining about Grandal not being signed again. Just that they have not addressed this issue properly yet.

   The Dodgers main interest in the last few years has been to lower their payroll significantly. This has significant effects on the makeup of the team. When you’ve got max players like Mookie and CK on your roster, and upcoming negotiations for Seager, Belli, etc., who will be asking for a lot, will the Dodgers be able to maintain a lower payroll and not pay luxury taxes, or will they pull out their checkbook and spend? The question comes to mind, ‘how much profit is sufficient for a company like Guggenheimer who have other business interests that generate revenues to make from their baseball venture? Baseball is not just a business. Teams want to win and winning generates more revenue. If they want to squeeze all of the profits they can out of the Dodgers, there will be some tough decisions made in the next couple of years. But I think they can afford to make less and still sign some top tier studs unless this pandemic has impacted their operations dramatically and they must scale back their spending. Maybe someone in the know can respond to this question.

   Lux, it seems, is in a precarious position. By many accounts, a promising rising star, but we have not really seen that from him in his time with our team. Transitioning from minors to majors is the last and final test of a talented minor leaguer. And, with our utility team of Kike and CT3, with McKinstry in the wings, all able to play and probably start at 2B and the outfield, how is Lux going to crack the lineup except through an injury? He was also mentioned in trade talks last season, with teams insisting he must be included in any trade talks. I can understand AF’s reluctance with the performance that Lux turned in last season in the minors, but look how the situation has unfolded this season. He is the man out. He didn’t meet expectations last season when they called him up and he flubbed his chances this season with not being focused and ready to play. I’m not writing him off, just pointing this out.

   I am not as optimistic about our rotation as it stands presently as AC is. Certainly we have arms that can go, but I don’t see the kind of dominant pitching that I’ve come to see in Dodger starters in the past. CK proved last night that he is still our ace, but our aceness ends there. The rest of the staff still need to prove that they can be dominant. Stripling, our most successful SP, so far, 2-0, has never been a dominant pitcher and has always declined somewhat in his starter role in the past. I’m happy to see him start, but he still has to prove himself durable in his effectiveness. The trio of young arms, May, Gonsolin, and Urias, have lots of potential but no one looks at them as proven starters, even the FO didn’t have May and Gonsolin penciled in at the start of the season. But if we are talking about a WS calibre rotation, we don’t have it, yet. We let 3 of our starters go. Why? MONEY!!!

   1. Don’t forget Buehler!

   2. Ah. The return of the inane “money” post.

      Is there nothing better than fan’s opining on how much a business should earn, or how much they should spend, how they should operate? Why is it we never see this in other business sectors?

      It was so nice having a respite from this, but we all knew that nice period had to end.

3. ” know that it frustrates a lot of fans who enjoy bat to ball skills and producing runs, but this team is built on power, and has been for the last several years.” Absolutely, and that’s been my biggest sigh of relief thru the first few weeks of the new season. They had me wondering a little following the SF and Houston series because it seemed a lot of healthy looking shots were falling shorter than we’re accustomed to. Feeling better after leaving Arizona with pretty much all the usual suspects getting in on the act. Personally, it’s not the most enjoyable way to watch baseball, but we’re fully invested in it, so gotta go with the flow. I’m just encouraged with what Seager and Betts have been doing. Between them and Turner, I better like our chances of being multi-dimensional in the post season than we’ve been in the past.

   On a side note, for the first time this year, I caught Verdugo against the Yankees battling a 3-2 count for what seemed 15 pitches. Fun to watch and a little sad I can’t see him do it in a Dodgers uniform, but the Mookie consolation prize is proving very rewarding. It’s a little strange watching a Dodgers player work the bases so frequently and aggressively, but it’s great to watch. It’s a new wrinkle for our team that I think might make a difference this post season.

4. … and yet, overspending has never been the path to success. The Yankees have tried it. The Dodgers tried it. I totally disagree that “the Dodger’s main interest in the last few years has been to lower their payroll significantly. “ I think their main interest is to spend money wisely in player development. AF is not afraid to spend money. He signed lots of International Free Agents and that did not work out, He signed Joe Kelly to a fairly large contract. He signed Treinen to a $10 million dollar deal. He signed Betts to a record deal.

   The Dodgers are not afraid to go over the Luxury Tax Threshold, but the fact of the matter is that it is better to put your money in player development than it is to just pay insane market prices for players. The Dodgers likely have the largest player development staff and have first-class facilities for them. They spend millions, probably tens of millions more than most other teams, and the results are apparent.

   We saw a resurrected Clayton Kershaw who looked like the Ace he used to be. In another couple of games, Striker Buehler will be built up to 7 innings as will Julio Urias. Dustin May and Gonsolin can hold down one spot and Ross Stripling has a career 3.49 ERA (1.18 WHIP). Name a rotation better than what the Dodgers have THIS year. The Dodgers are 7-3 and the pitching is the absolute best in baseball. There is no questioning that. They lead MLB with a 1.84 ERA. Cleveland is at 2.35, almost a half run behind them. The Nats have a good rotation, but Strasburg has some injury issues and I do not believe their depth can match the Dodgers. I like what we have… including our catchers. Realmuto is not a leader of a pitching staff. You will get better offense at the expense of an increased ERA. No way, Jose!

   1. AF was mandated to get below luxury tax for a few years. I’m not sure if that mandate is still in place with the signing of Mookie. But to deny this was not the case would be false, Mark. You don’t have to keep convincing us that AF is a big spender. That’s not the point. My point is how much are they willing to go over that luxury line to keep the players they are going to have to negotiate new contracts for in the next couple of years. Future stars like Belli and Corey are going to command star dollars. AF has been a genius at mining the farm for the talent but it’s nigh impossible to keep that going for long periods of time without ponying up a lot more than they have. Maybe this year was the year that they pulled out the stops. We’ll see how far ownership will go before they put the breaks on spending.

      You cite spending on Treinen and Kelly, but we also let Grandal, Ryu, & Hill walk. They had more money to spend because of that, not because they are willing to spend. They had to spend and they still are a profitable franchise unless I’m missing something. Hands on owners like the Warriors have always want to win and they spend. They know that more bucks await them in victory and they are also fans that are devoted to their team. It’s a joy to see this. It’s personal.

      1. Everyone in baseball is getting below the Luxury Threshold because it is not a good utilization of funds and the teams that have done it really got no benefit. I doubt that any team goes much over the LTT because it is just throwing money away. It’s much wiser to spend it on player development and I think it is completely sustainable. AF just signed Betts to a contract you said he would never sign. You have to do that occasionally… for the right player. Seager and Belli will command big $$$.

         I loved Rich Hill, but letting him walk was the right choice. The same with Ryu. It was more about age and health and having youngsters at the ready than it was about money. I was Grandal’s biggest champion and while he is one of the Top Catchers in baseball, his playoff performances and the fact the Dodgers had Barnes, Smith and Ruiz made the decision easy.

         The Dodgers spend money where they get the best returns and it’s not on Salary alone. If they had kept Grandal, Hill and Ryu, they would not have likely been able to sign Betts and get Price too.

         1. I never said to spend on salary alone. They can actually do both if they want to. When did I say Betts would never sign? Letting Grandal walk had nothing to do with them signing anyone. All it did was leave a hole at C which they thought they could plug with the farm hands. So far, it hasn’t resolved itself and I don’t know why you just don’t accept that. Rarely, do teams only build from the farm. At some point, you import the talent because it is already packaged just the way you want like Betts. I don’t buy letting Ryu walk because of age or health. It is about money. Believe what you want. I’m through with this conversation.

            1. Jeff,

               You also criticized AF for signing guys like Hill and then you criticize him for not signing him. Which is it?

               The common denominator is that you shape the facts to fit your narrative.

5. BTW, Thank you Arte Moreno for being an egotistical jerk! We kept Joc and Chicken Strip!

   Enjoy your season, you Wannabe!

   1. Yep, He is a real tool. Those two could have really helped the Lamgels.

6. My opinion
   Kershaw looked good last night but resurrected and the Ace he used to be, I’ll hold judgement for a few more starts.
   With runners on second and third and with 2 outs Roberts puts Escobar ( batting 1.33 ) on first with the walk setting up an out at any base which I understand but with Walker due up why not pitch to the batter hitting 1.33 instead of by passing him to pitch to Walker who is hitting 2.96, if Walker and Escobar had been in reverse batting order and Roberts walked Walker to get at Escobar, even if Escobar gets the hit I’m behind Roberts 100%.

7. Just been catching up on all the posts from the past couple of days after a rather messy weekend, when after months of Lockdown, I certainly let the brakes off. Feeling it today, but was good to have some fun.

   Have got to say that the way LADT is working now, with different writers pitching in (sorry), is excellent and getting better and better.

   Michael’s post was outstanding.
   It took me back to a different time, and a better place, much like Harold’s.

   Have to say that both Jeff and Rob are very fair in their analysis of all things Blue.

   Looking forward to the Padres series as this will be a decent test, then the league leading Rockies.

   Good to have Baseball back even if different without the crowd atmosphere – just hoping that Covid doesn’t spoil things.

8. I haven’ seen Chris Paddock pitch yet, but today’s Buehler/Paddock machup might be really fun to watch

   Let Will Smith play! Enough of this Realmuto crap. And even more enough of trading Bellinger for him.

9. Interesting, thought provoking post this morning Jeff

   Kelly is paid a lot of money and has the stuff of a closer. I have a feeling the problem is in his head. Can Prior get through to him? We wait to see. I have hope.

   It would appear that we really don’t need offense from our catchers. It would be nice, but when the other 8 guys in this juggernaut hit we can beat anybody, and beat them by a liberal margin. Yeah, I said liberal. It’s a positive image. Both Smith and Barnes projections are believable and it’s my opinion we should look for them to manifest. I’ve posted them before, no need to regurgitate, which means… ah, you know what it means.

   “the starters will not have to go 8 or 9.”

   7 innings feels like a complete game these days. My take on starters is simply this: throw strikes, average 15 pitches per inning and be strong for 100 pitches. I don’t think that’s asking too much. Pitchers for decades could start 40 games throw 150 pitches each time out. Ok, today’s pitchers are throwing their arms to the backstop …..so they can’t throw 90 anymore? Spin it, spot it and let your fielders make plays behind you. We currently have several starters capable of going 5 and keeping us in the game. Hopefully they build up to 6-7 innings by September. Our bullpen is deep. We have an abundance of riches, from the 30 to the 40 to the exchequer that bankrolls this operation. We’ve played meh ball so far and are on pace for 42 wins. (I got 40 AC). I hope you all realize how lucky we are to have THIS team and to be allowed to watch it during a pandemic.

   We are blessed. For the moment anyway. Enjoy it while we can.

   We’re favored (duh) -136, 71/2 runs. We win 5 1/2 to 2.

10. I’m a bit worried about Mookie’s hand/finger injury. X-rays were negative indicating no fracture, but if it is a finger tendon it can be quite painful and linger for some time. Hoping it’s just a sprain, but Doc has a history of downplaying injuries only to hear a couple days later in his presser when he announces someone is going under the knife.

    I’ll anxiously await an update today and hope it is nothing serous.

11. Not sure what is actually overspending when it comes to baseball today. Guessing there will be major changes in the luxury tax going forward. Can’t imagine the union allowing that to remain in the current form.

    No question Artie Moreno saved the Dodgers from making a really bad deal. Never understood why the Dodgers wanted to make it in the first place other than dumping Joc’s salary and opening up an outfield slot.

    Keyshaw was really good yesterday and he was hitting 93, something he didn’t do last year.

    The more I see Mookie Betts play, the more impressed I am. He can just beat you in so many different ways.

12. Fun game to watch. CK pitched well, and got out of trouble the one time he had multiple runners. Cody scraped his new stance and went back to the old and immediately felt comfortable. Well, he should have never switched in the first place. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Sound advice. Kelly is having his troubles, that is for sure. But the wildest pitcher ever? Not even close Jefe. I recall a guy named Duren who would routinely throw his first warmup to the backstop just to scare the crap out of hitters. Kelly has shown flashes while a Dodger, he has also had some scary moments. But he is getting paid less than Treinen per year. It seemed like Betts jammed his finger on the swing. It did not look like he had pulled a tendon. Jammed fingers swell up pretty fast and are painful for a few days. There was a mandate from ownership to get under the threshold. It was even printed in the Times I think. But salaries are only part of what they spend. This team spends a lot of money on player development. And except for some hiccups with their Cuban signings, they do well in the International market. I have decided I really dislike the cutouts. They are to say the least, tacky. But Will Smith did something pretty cool. His homer into the pavillion took the head off of one of those cutouts, so he got in touch with the person who bought it and sent him the bat he used to de-decapitate his cutout. Pretty cool of Smitty. As for the catchers, the only ones who are concerned are the fans. Doc and AF seem to be ok with what they are getting. With a little luck, Smith would be hitting over .300. He has one of the highest hard hit rates in the league. Barnes, not so much. He has struck out at almost a 50% rate. It might be time for a little Ruiz.

    1. Ryne Duran was fun. His BB9 was 6 but his H9 was 6.8 and he struck out 9.6/9. He was effectively wild. Hard guy to stand in there against.

       “With a little luck“ Smith might end up hitting .250 for the year. It’s his slugging % that will keep his OPS up. He’s adequate. I still have hope for Ruiz or Cartaya as the catcher of the future. Cartaya is projected to be ready in ‘23 and by then we will know what caliber Major League players Smith and Ruiz are. Until then I’m not concerned about offensive output from that position. Blind squirrels. And yes, it might be time for a little Ruiz. And where is our ROY candidate these days? If he expects to be in the running for that he’s gonna need more at bats than he has. ROY? Yeah, sure. Good Lux with that.

       1. Duren wore those thick glasses. Made him look even more menacing. His 59 Yankee card is the best one of him I ever had. The glasses had a slight tint to them, so it seemed like you could not see his eyes. Fans were spoiled a little by the power of Grandal. Last year the Dodgers got 26 homers out of the catchers position from their trio. I am sure they expect more offense out of Smith, but Barnes is in there for his defense. So, live with it guys, it is not changing anytime soon. Gale is on the roster simply for emergency’s.

    2. I don’t recall Duren, Bear. IMO, I don’t recall a wilder pitcher than Kelly. And, he is consistent in his wildness. 🙂

13. My post from yesterday included:
    “I have gone from a Joe Kelly advocate last year to someone who only wants to see him in meaningless situations, if at all. He has such a live arm and that riding fastball can eat up a right hand batter. I saw him as valuable piece as a set up guy or closer. So this winter he supposedly made improvements to help his command. Really? He’s worse. A 98 mph guy that can only command that breaking ball. (But 15 straight?) He’s a head case that I can do without.”
    With our current staff, if the roster is reduced to 28 (which I doubt will happen), Joe Kelly would be the first guy on the “see you later” list. Mark Prior has no chance of fixing this guy.
    Random Thoughts:
    * Kelly is clueless but far from the wildest ever. Ryne Duran was mentioned but his strikeout to walk ration was about 2 to 1. The legendary, career minor leaguer, Steve Dalkowski was the wildest I ever saw. Even warming up, his 100mph fastball broke boards in the bullpen. In his career, he had 1324 K’s and 1236 walks. Almost 1 to 1.
    * I am looking forward to the Paddock – Buehler match up big time.
    * I sadly watched Otani yesterday before he was pulled in the 2nd. Maddon left him out there for 40 pitches while struggling in the inning. Now he’s had another MRI. Even with his big fastballs, he refuses to want to throw it. That splitter is hard on arms and he may be facing a 2nd TJ. His future is not going to be on the bump.
    * I hope, as we all do, that Mookie can play soon. I don’t want to lose to the Padres. I have learned to dislike them more than any opponent. And the reason is Manny Machado, who I think is an overrated “showboat”. I can’t tell you how happy we didn’t sign him and got Betts instead.
    * I think our starters ARE WS caliber.
    * I don’t think Lux adds anything to this team, this year. He’ll get his time when some players move on. Please, we don’t need that “try-out” camp mentality again with this short season by trying to get him in the lineup.
    * Barnes would hit better if he actually swung the bat. He takes too many hittable pitches. The Dodgers won’t be the first team to win it all with defensive minded catchers.
    * It was way cool to see CK so happy after his outing yesterday.
    3 things lead to maximizing a pitcher’s consistency; balance, posture and alignment. CK’s alignment to the catcher’s mitt was so good. As Orel reported “that leads to staying behind the baseball”. Driveline is great at stressing that stuff.
    Big games starting tonight!

    1. They all are big games this year. After SD they go home and face the Gnats again. Different team now. Longoria and Belt are back. Colorado comes in after that. You can bet Matt Kemp would love to do something to help the Rocks win. Especially in LA. Padres are reeling a little. They got outplayed in Colorado and have lost one of their major players. when Hosmer went down.

    2. Some people thought our starters were WS calibre last season. We didn’t get through to the WS, though. Every year, it seems that some posters are positive that the rotation will do it. I liked last year’s rotation and I was certain they would re-sign Ryu who had a very good year. Hill was too fragile to sign again and he would have blocked some of the young guns from getting their starts. CK is the only pitcher we have who has all the signs of Ace backing him up.

14. Woke up this morning with a sore throat reminding me just how easy it can be to connect to an unwanted virus. With the many precautions the world has been taking it’s my guess this covid-19 virus is somewhat more aggressive than the so-called common cold as being contagious. I have to admit I let my guard down Saturday to attend a dear friend’s ‘celebration of life’ and took the passed bottle a few times. I’m not thinking that I contacted covid there but the sore throat told me how simple it is to overlook the seriousness of it’s threat. For me I’m sure it’d be a death sentence as my superman days are long in the past. So now I’ll keep my guard up and will not forget and please all, do the same.

15. Good morning Quas and stay safe. I think many of us get a sniffle, a headache, a sore throat, etc and worry to ourselves, oh no I may have the virus, at least I do. But it passes as I hope your sore throat does too.

    I am thrilled with the Dodger’s start of the 2020 season. In all aspects, I see good results or a positive future with the players, some doing better than others right now. But our weak links, if there are any glaring ones, will improve in my opinion. As also a Caleb Ferguson fan, when he was first brought up, I am very happy he has done so well.

    AC, again, I never get tired of saying this, but good write-up. All of our writers are great and we are lucky to have such a talented group of them, posters included.

    1. Thank you so very much DBM. I’m not really worried but I do take it as a reminder that this covid thing is a most serious issue and I best not get too relaxed again. The only change from my usual lining pattern is when I rarely do leave my apartment.
       I now finally have SportsNetLA. Anyone else have the SportzTV? Supposedly I’m able to choose from about 6000 channels to stream from. I haven’t yet learned how to navigate it though.

16. Anyone hear of the lineup posted yet. Thanks.

    1. Not yet, usually a little more than an hour before game time.

17. A great article about the Dodgers in The Athletic today by Molly Knight. Writing about Betts she said “He injured his middle finger Sunday — perhaps gesturing to Red Sox management for trading him away?” Classic.

18. I can’t believe you’re still harping on that” one bad pitch” Treinen made. I criticized Roberts for intentionally walking to 133 better to load the bases, which put unnecessary extra pressure on Treinen, and oh my God it was as if it was sacrilegious to criticize Roberts because “what manager hasn’t made mistakes.?” Treinen is going to be an asset to the Dodgers.

    1. I like Doc, but he’s not above criticism. The intentional walk was dumb. Sometimes I swear all he looks at is righty-lefty whether it be pitching or hitting. Just let Betts hit leadoff like he should and get Seager in the two-hole the way he’s swinging the bat. As for the catcher thing, Smith should catch 70% of the games. Let him develop. He’s going to draw walks and hit bombs while giving excellent defense. I can live Barnes the other 30% until Ruiz is ready. However, Doc hasn’t pinch hit for Barnes and Kike a couple times that was plain dumb.
       ~
       Teams have about 30 players at their home base, right? When teams like the Cardinals and Marlins wind up positive over selfish activities why can’t MLB just tell them to use the rest of their 60 players? Am I missing something? Sorry, but your current team must sit out until they’re positive. Now gets some players on the field. Marlins hanging out in a nightclub and the Cardinals hanging out in a casino. I don’t care if their teams get their asses kicked playing their scrubs. Especially the Cardinals.

19. Count me out on the argument that catchers just need to be good defensively. That’s the old way of thinking. I don’t like automatic outs, never have never will. I hated the old way of thinking that the center fielder and shortstop just need to be good defensively. Remember when Doc played for the Dodgers in center field and Izturis played shortstop, I hated them and their automatic outs.

    We know what we have in Austin Barnes so why not let Will Smith catch 80% or more of the time. Lets see what Will Smith can do when given time to get in a groove. Last season he was given time and put up a productive .253/.337/.571/.907 line. I don’t have any reason to believe he can’t do that again IF GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY.

    The lineup is already out.
    Pederson RF
    Muncy 2B
    Turner 3B
    Bellinger CF
    Pollock LF
    Seager DH
    Taylor SS
    Beaty 1B
    Smith C

    Considering Bett’s injury and being careful with Seager I like these 9 guys. Especially like Beaty and Smith getting starts. We got too many good productive guys on the team to waste 2B on either Taylor or Hernandez, I say keep Muncy at 2B PERMANENTLY. Open 1B up for Beaty.

    1. Smith and Barnes are hitting about the same (.112 and .125). They both have started 5 games. In games Barnes has started they are giving up a little over a run a game. With Smith, they are giving up a little over 2 runs a game, but both are excellent.

       I think the team is alternating them, so as to keep them rested. You may feel that Barnes is an easy out, but he has a lifetime .340 OBP.% Barnes’ biggest plus is his defense. He rates extremely well in defensive metrics and framing and is highly dependable. By all accounts, pitchers love throwing to him.

       Both catchers are being given a chance. You have to bloom where you are planted and seize the day. The Dodgers are giving both a chance, but if one does not step up, they may find themselves back at USC and Ruiz may get a shot.

       Smith shared time last year and in fewer AB’s in May, June and July (than this month) hit good. He broke out in August, but died in September and October. He continued on in Spring Training, hitting .174. Barnes hit .280 in ST with a .419 OB%.

       I would say Barnes has earned an opportunity to play 50% of the time. If Will Smith wants more playing time, I suggest he starts hitting… and he will get it.

20. I don’t know if Im sold on Beaty over Rios. I like Rios’s bat more. But both guys over Taylor and Kike against righties

    1. I do not agree with playing Beaty over Rios, but Doc makes guys REALLY earn it.

       It’s a small sampling, but Rios is averaging a HR ever 9.6 AB’s.

       His power plays every day.

    2. I like Ríos a lot. To your point, you like Beaty and Ríos over Kike and CT3. With Seager at DH, CT3 has to play short. He was once an every day SS until he hit 200 with the Mariners and does a nice job there as a back up.

       1. He is a great shortstop, I think.

21. I guess Beaty could have played LF today instead of Pollock and Rios at 1B, I’d be good with that.

    I just really think Beaty, Smith and Rios should get the opportunity to show us what they got. We’ve seen Barnes, Hernandez and Taylor (I do like Taylor though) and there’s got to be better.

    1. Pollock has the hottest bat on the team next to Seager, and sitting him 3 games while SD pitches RH makes no sense. Kike and Taylor play because they are both excellent defensively Judging a player after 10 games is a little harsh. Both are streaky. Kike has more power, but Taylor brings a lot to the table. Rios will get his shots. Maybe at this point in time because he has made only 1 start, he wanted to use Beaty, and he earned another shot with his homer the other day.

    2. I just really think Beaty, Smith and Rios should get the opportunity to show us what they got. Finish the statement…offensively. Defense is obviously not a priority for you. The entire facet of the game is important to me. I value defense. I value speed. I value the ability to manufacture runs. The Dodgers do not highly value base stealing speed or the ability to manufacture runs. They are a team built on power, pitching, and defense. I have grown to accept that, even if I disagree with it.

       Matt Beaty is a professional hitter. A good hitter, but that is his position. He even jokes when asked what his best position is,…the batter’s box. I love Matt Beaty, but he is behind Edwin Rios on the depth chart because of Rios’ power. I do not believe the 26 man, 28 man, or 30 man roster have to be comprised of All Stars at every position. There is room for a Kike’ Hernandez, CT3, Edwin Rios, Matt Beaty, Joc/AJ. They all have a role. Even Austin Barnes has a role. I would prefer that Smith get more of an opportunity, but when Clayton Kershaw is pitching, I want Barnes behind the plate, even if he goes 0-4, as he did yesterday. Dodgers still won (and I think that is the goal), and Kershaw gives Barnes credit for his work behind the plate, as well as understanding and calling a game. The Dodgers pitchers TRUST Austin Barnes. I am glad how a pitcher values a player is more important than what a fan thinks of his offensive skills.

       As I said, I value all of the tools of the members on the active roster. You brought up Dave Roberts below when he was with LAD. Automatic out??? In 2002/2003 he hit.264/.343/.337/.680. So if you value slugging, you are right, Doc did not score well. He also had 85 SB over those two years, with 91 BB against 90K. In 2004, until he was traded to Boston, he hit .253/.340/.356/.696. 33 SB, 28 BB, 31K. He was also a plus defensive OF with the Dodgers. If it were not for Dave Roberts and his base running ability, Boston would not have gone on to beat NYY in the ALCS and my son would not have a WS ring. There is more to a BASEBALL player than OPS.

       1. “If it were not for Dave Roberts and his base running ability, Boston would not have gone on to beat NYY in the ALCS”

          You don’t know that. A different player on the roster instead of Doc could have made a difference.

          You’re right defense is not a priority to me. If you can field your position you’re good to go with me. I never ever look at defensive stats.

          “I do not believe the 26 man, 28 man, or 30 man roster have to be comprised of All Stars at every position.”

          Is Beaty, Rios, Smith all stars? Jeff you need to stop putting words in other people’s mouths (you do that a lot, no offense I like you).

          “There is room for a Kike’ Hernandez, CT3, Edwin Rios, Matt Beaty, Joc/AJ. They all have a role. Even Austin Barnes has a role.”

          I didn’t say they don’t have a role on the team. My role for them vs your role is probably different.

          1. You don’t know that. A different player on the roster instead of Doc could have made a difference.

             Another player may have made that play, but Roberts DID make that play! Have you ever watched that play? Dave Roberts “willed” the tying run. The Red Sox were facing elimination in the bottom of the ninth inning, down four runs to three. Kevin Millar drew a walk from Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. Roberts, who had not played in ten days, came in to pinch run with Bill Mueller hitting. Rivera attempted to pick off Roberts three times before, on the first pitch to Mueller, Roberts stole second base, just beating the throw of Yankee catcher Jorge Posada. Following the steal, Mueller singled, Roberts scored from second, and the Sox went on to win the game in 12 innings, beginning their run of eight straight wins culminating in Boston’s first World Series title since 1918.

             I assume that you have never seen it or you would not have said what you said, and I suspect that Jeff had a better view of it since his son, Andy was part of that Red Sox Championship team. I will chalk that up to ignorance and it’s OK to be ignorant. You can learn…

             Stupid is a bit different. This is stupid:

             You’re right defense is not a priority to me. If you can field your position you’re good to go with me. I never ever look at defensive stats.

             You might want to re-think that last one.

             1. Stupid is calling a fellow dodger fan stupid. LOL just saying.

22. Astros just signed Chase De Jong. No word yet if he goes to Houston or the secondary site.

    I am looking forward to see what Jo Adell can do with LAA. MLB debut should come tomorrow. He is one OF prospect I am really looking forward to watching.

23. Smith vs. Barnes – I have no problem giving them somewhat equal playing time but as someone mentioned above, you need to let a guy stay in the lineup for a few consecutive days so he can get into some kind of rhythm.

    Mark you say they are being alternated so they can be well rested. These aren’t two 40 year olds at the end of a 20 year career. I think they would be fine if each of them played three or four days in a row. If by doing that, one or the other got hot, he would get the majority of playing time with the other one inserted into the lineup to give him rest once or twice a week.

    Any word on Mookie’s injury? Hopefully the swelling has gone down somewhat today and we see him in the lineup soon.

    1. He is day to day Blue. Other than that there has been no news. Maybe there will be some news on the telecast.

24. Ahhh, a Joc HR to lead off the game. Feels like old times!!

25. Joc has not been playing a lot, but when given a shot at leading off tonight, he is making Doc take notice and maybe keep him there. Joc wasn’t given time to get his timing or rhythm. Will Smith needs to take note. If he wants to play more, HIT MORE! I am re-thinking the lineup. Maybe Joc needs to be there. He just made me a believer!

26. That was an awesome throw by Will Smith to nail the runner!

27. Eric,

    Again, learn to read. I did not call you stupid. I said that what you said was stupid… and it is. Do you want me to explain why? I also gave you the opportunity to walk it back. We all misspeak!

    1. I didn’t mean anything bad towards you. It’s all good.

       I admit I’m not following what you’re saying. Defense is not a priority to me I’m not gonna change that stance.

28. Beaty made a great defensive play…

29. Sorry Jeff but if Rios, Beaty or Smith we’re as bad defensively as Barnes is offensively they’d have to put a glove on one of their feet. There just Isn’t any place on a championship level club for a bat as Barnes’s.

    1. In 707 AB’s Austin Barnes has a .226 BA and a .340 OB%.

       In 170 AB’s Will Smith has a .241 BA and a .330 OB%.

       If there isn’t any place on a championship team for Barnes, Smith is not far behind.

       There is not much difference except that Smith has more power and he just made his case better with a 2 RBI double.

30. And stat cast likes Smith better than Barnes at pitch framing. And Barnes has a below average arm. I think Kersh can survive throwing to Smith

    1. He’s pitched just fine to Smith in the past.

       1. Like in the playoffs last year against the Nats?

31. And that’s why Smith plays over Barnes ALL day long!!!!

    1. I call BS. Read what I just wrote.

       Smith also just got picked off!

32. Like I (and others) have said since Smith came up last year, just let the kid play! Give him the job, bat him 8th (or 9th now), and let him play!

    We have so many itchy finger managers on this board who can’t stand young players not hitting .350 as soon as they come up. Yet we praise late bloomers like CT3, JT, etc.

    Let the kid play, and stop whining about Ruiz and Cartaya 3 years down the road.

    1. and as I type this praise he gets picked off 3rd haha.

       NOT a smart move, especially by a catcher

33. Look, if Smith keeps hitting like that, then he is the man, but until tonight, he has not shown it.

34. Get Buehler outta there!

35. Remember who was catching when the Nats beat the Dodgers like rented mules last season in the playoffs.

    Did you conveniently forget that?

    1. Yea that was Smith’s fault! He may have got picked off but the only way Barnes gets to third is if he joins the grounds crew. Bottom line his bat is possibly the worst in baseball and his defense is overrated. Doesn’t belong!

36. 1 – I don’t get the dispute over Austin Barnes. This is his 6th season in which he has seen time in MLB. In 3 full seasons he has 1 good one but in the last 2 seasons he has .205/.619 BA/OPS and .203/.633. He has a weak arm – he’s a plus framer. He is a backup and nothing more at this point. Smith might be a major league quality starter or he might not be, but there is no way to find out unless he plays. He has more pop and a better arm than Barnes and it makes sense to see if is the real deal or not. In any event, Smith is in no way going to be worse than Barnes but might well be better.

    2. – I don’t get the argument that defense doesn’t matter. If the way to win is to score more than the other guy, you can prevent runs and you don’t have to score as many to win. The Dodgers were 1st in defensive runs saved last year. This has to do with several things including positioning and shifting, but the Dodgers have plus defenders at several positions. My guess is if you can’t field you won’t play regularly on this team unles you are a full time DH and the NL adopts the DH permanently.

37. I guess I should clarify something. If I really need to clarify this. Barnes is a fine BACK UP catcher. You know, someone to give Smith a day off here and there when Smith needs that day off here and there.

    1. I am not sure of that – Barnes has not been great the past two years. Just to be clear: I hope Smith is “all that” but he needs to show it… and he hasn’t. Tonight is a good start. I hope Smith is an All-Star!

       1. How will you find out if Smith is the real deal if he doesn’t play regularly?

          You really think that Barnes will be something other than what he has shown for the past 2+ seasons? Based on what?

          Do you think that the Dodgers will be worse if Smith plays more than Barnes?

          1. I think it is a progression. He was awesome for a while last year and then he was really bad. Barnes is consistent in that what you see is what you get and pitchers like him. The job is Smith’s for the taking. I hope he gets it. Barnes may end up back at USC and Kaybear may take his place. That would be better situation.

38. This team has a completely different feel without Betts.

    Another base running blunder. That play was a good one but the coach should have seen it coming.

    Another opposing starter goes farther than ours.

    This Padres team appears ready. They’ve been building this for a few years now. As we used to say in softball – you gotta score with them to play with him. Maybe sounded better on a softball field.

    Defense has always been important to me. I don’t understand thinking to the contrary.

    Graterol throws too many balls. With stuff like just that pound the strike zone.

    1. All true!

    2. I must say that I’ve been impressed with Joc’s fielding and his play in RF. His arm is better than I had realized. Of course, he’s not Mookie, but he adequately provides the defense we need and we love his leadoff homers! It would be great to get a ring this year because the chances of Joc remaining with the team next year might be low.

39. I don’t know what the fascination Doc has with wild man Kelly. But Doc got lucky there.

40. So far, this is no runaway season for the Dodgers. Tomorrow will be the 20% mark of games played for this shortened season and the Dodgers have competition. They certainly have the club to remain with the pack, but do they have the stuff to separate themselves from the pack on the field, not on paper? As a fan, we say yes, but this has nothing to do with how the games workout.

    With a key injury or slump to the batters, the chemistry changes. With pitching mistakes, games unravel. We just saw it with Buehler and Graterol, 2 pitchers most have confidence in. Just a bit of wavering is often enough to lose a game and in this season, the pressure is on from the getgo. The machine is not yet oiled properly. I would love to see a winning streak of at least 4-5 games to pick this team up and propel them in the right direction. Yankees won 7 in a row. CWS won 5, Cubs won 4. Nothing shows you domination like winning streaks. Those who think this rotation are WS calibre will need proof of this during the season. Without sustained winning streaks, distinction will be elusive. I can only hope the rotation will come together and that the batters will step up when the pitching falters.

41. 6 for 32 with 10 Ks. Buehler with an ERA over 5.

    We need Buehler to be better and go longer and we need Betts. This isn’t yesterday’s Padres. They have a different look. An intense look. We didn’t match that intensity.

    It often feels like this team is playing like there is still plenty of time. And, actually there is. We are good enough to win many games with this attitude, but can we win many enough? Probably. But we do need everybody playing to their ability level to do it. 5 of the 10 who played tonight have an OPS at or below .705 and yet we still have ML lead in run differential. I find that impressive. How do we do that? Well, pitching is how. We lead the league in ERA, though it went up tonight. We are third in runs scored behind SD and Atlanta.

    1. Two high scoring games against the poor Dbacks gave us that good looking stat. To me, it’s still a false positive.

42. And that friends and neighbors is why I hate the shift. Had Muncy been playing straight up, that bleeder would have never gotten into the outfield and Machado would have been at third instead of scoring a run. Game would have been tied on Cody’s blast. But Buehler had control problems all night. He was missing more than he was hitting. He was behind in the count and it cost him. But another pet peeve is trying to pull every thing when they are giving you the entire left side of the infield. For Pete’s sake, bunt once in a while. Move a man over. Take a pitch the other way. This is where all that saber metric crap galls the hell out of me. And another thing, why in the hell do they take pitches right down Broadway instead of swinging at them???? Yes, these are not last years Padres. Their a much better team and they have some really decent players. Can’t put this one on Doc. Betts finger was still swollen. And he is day to day.

43. 1 game back. Some kid named Lumet pitching tomorrow. Never heard of him. May will need to go a little further in this start. Strip, who I trust more than anyone so far, goes on Wednesday. Setting up for Kersh to open the SF series. Then the 1st place Rockies arrive. Me, I move Seager into the top 4 in the order. He is far and away their best hitter right now. He is even crushing his outs. Turner after a slight resurgence in Az, is not hitting the ball well at all. When the meat of your order goes 1-16, with 7 K’s, you are not scoring much. Too many men left on base, too little clutch hitting. And where pray tell was Rios during all of this”? Safely on the bench twiddling his thumbs.

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