Tuesday, the Dodgers return to the scene of the crime, as they take on the Houston ASStericks in Trash Can Banging Stadium. Clayton Kershaw goes against hired mercenary, Zack Greinke. I hope they beat him like a rented mule. This should be retribution. If there is baseball justice, all the ASStericks will collide behind 2B on a popup and have to be taken to a local hospital or funeral homes. But, I digress from my fantasy! Fly your damn flag… you bunch of cheaters… but I am not bitter… of course I’m not!
At the very least, Pantone 294 will show up with several busloads of Dodger fans and be beating on portable trash cans throughout the game. As I said, hopefully, the Dodgers beat the Asstricks like rented mules. I am sure Pantone 294 has something “special” planned. Alex Soto… what do you have up your sleeves? Here’s their story…
It was particularly satisfying to sweep the Giants in San Francisco. Julio Urias looked like Cy Young for the first five innings and my only question is whether he lost focus or ran out of gas… or both? Whatever it was, he lost it quickly, which necessitated Doc using the rookies in the bullpen. I mean, what better time to use them than in a blowout. Some fans lost their minds because the bullpen (particularly Edwin Uceta) gave up 3 runs. OMG! The sky is falling. Edwin does need to learn how to pitch on the fringes because his stuff is not good enough to dwell in the middle of the plate. Let’s not forget: The Dodgers still have 8 pitchers in the IL, so they are challenged until some come back.
I am worried about Jimmy Nelson who has experienced “forearm tightness” – that generally never ends well and he was pitching great for the team. Maybe I am jumping to conclusions – that is an Olympic Sport… right? We shall wait and see. Gonsolin looked great yesterday and will have one more start, so he will likely be back when I predicted: June 3 or 4th. Alexander will go on assignment soon we have no clue when the others will be back. Gonsolin and Alexander will help immensely. Uceta is gaining experience, but he ain’t ready and I am not sure he will ever be anything more than the last man in the pen. Still, you need those guys. Phil Bickford is of the same ilk. Dennis Santana has a lot of upside because of his fantastic movement. He just needs to harness it… and he does at times. He got into a jam being wild and got out of it yesterday. He has a bright future.
I suppose Uceta will go down Tuesday and Mitch White will be recalled. Remember, this is Mitch’s first year as a reliever – he is just getting accustomed to it, but his stuff plays up BIG TIME! If (BIF IF) the bullpen is not fixed by July, the Andrew Friedman has the pieces to get another arm or three. Stay tuned. However, all the Kenley Jansen bashers are strangely silent! 😉
The Dodgers are ranked #4 in MLB Power Ratings:
“At this point, we can safely assume the Dodgers’ early-season malaise has come to a close. Los Angeles has won 11 of 12, which is almost enough to erase the sting of losing 15 of 20 prior to this stretch. And while we’re no longer pontificating that this team could win the most games in baseball history, it’s notable that they’re on pace for 100 wins — even with all that losing earlier this month.“
Jesus Vargas
Bluto asked about Jesus Vargas, who has been in 4 games for Great Lakes. He has a 2.51 ERA and a 0.63 WHIP and has seemingly been in the Dodgers system all his life. Actually, he has been in the system since 2015 when he was 16 years old. He was signed as an international free agent in December 2014, and has a career ERA of 3.15 and a WHIP of 1.11. This is his second tour of duty at GL, In 2018, he was there as a 19-year-old. He missed 2019 with injury and 2020 because of COVID-19. This is the first we have seen him in two years. He was a scrawny kid when he signed, and he is still slim but is now 6′ 2″ tall. He looks like he throws in the mid-’90s and has late movement, but that is just from watching him once on MiLBTV. Maybe DC has some inside “scoop” on him.
Here’s the only video I can find of him (from 2018):
Dodgers Minor League Report
What follows is a “copy and paste” from MiLB.com (it’s a lot easier):
OKLAHOMA CITY DODGERS BOXSCORE
Game Summary: The Oklahoma City Dodgers hit four home runs and totaled nine extra-base hits en route to scoring 10 runs, but it wasn’t enough to prevent a furious comeback by Albuquerque, as the Isotopes stormed back to win, 11-10, Sunday afternoon. The Dodgers (4-12) built a 10-1 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh inning before the Isotopes (5-11) scored six run in the bottom of the seventh, aided by two OKC errors and two other defensive miscues. The Isotopes tied the game in the eighth inning with three more runs, and then won in the bottom of the ninth when Brian Serven led off the inning with a walk-off home run for his second homer of the day. Rangel Ravelo hit two homers for the Dodgers and Cody Bellinger went deep in his first at-bat during the second game of his rehab assignment.
Of Note:
-The Dodgers reached double digits in the run column for the second time in three games and set season highs with 13 hits, nine extra-base hits and four home runs. The team notched five doubles to set a new season high.
-Pitcher Tony Gonsolin made his first start of his rehab assignment and completed three scoreless, efficient innings. He retired nine of 10 batters faced overall, allowing one hit with three strikeouts. Gonsolin threw 38 pitches (30 strikes) in his first game action of 2021.
-Cody Bellinger returned to the lineup to play in the second game of his rehab assignment. He started in center field and went 1-for-4 with a solo homer, playing seven innings in the field. Bellinger connected on a home run to right-center field in his first at-bat.
-Zach McKinstry played in the third game of his rehab assignment and started in right field, also playing seven innings. McKinstry doubled to right-center field in the first inning for his first hit since joining OKC and finished Sunday 1-for-4.
-For the second straight game, the Dodgers scored five runs in one inning. On Sunday it was in the fourth inning, featuring back-to-back homers by Luke Raley and Rangel Ravelo, and a two-run single by Omar Estévez.
-Ravelo hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning and hit a solo homer in his next at-bat in the fifth inning. It was the second multi-homer game of the series by a Dodger, joining Keibert Ruiz. It also marked just the second career multi-homer game for Ravelo, coming in his 927th career game. His previous multi-homer game was July 24, 2018 at Salt Lake while playing for Memphis.
-The Isotopes scored six runs in the bottom of the seventh, tied for the highest-scoring inning by an opponent this series. The Isotopes collected five hits, but the Dodgers committed two key errors and also committed two other defensive misplays, leading to two of the five hits. As a result, only one of the six runs was earned against the OKC pitching staff. The Dodgers committed a season-high three errors throughout the game.
What’s Next: The Dodgers will look to regroup as they meet the Isotopes at at 7:35 p.m. Central time Tuesday. Live radio coverage of each OKC Dodgers game begins 15 minutes before first pitch on AM 1340 “The Game,” 1340thegame.com and through the free iHeartRadio or MiLB First Pitch apps. All OKC Dodgers games are also available streamed live on MiLB.TV with a subscription.
On a rainy Sunday afternoon at ONEOK Field, hits and runs were again difficult to come by for the Tulsa Drillers. The Drillers were held without a hit through the first six innings, and to just one overall, and lost the final game of their series with Wichita 3-0. The result gave the two teams a split of their six-game series.
In the six games against the Wind Surge, Tulsa totaled just 24 hits and hit just a combined .139 as a team. Sunday’s game marked the first time this season that the Drillers were shut out.
Wichita took advantage of a wild pitch to score the game’s first run in the top of the third inning. After a base hit and a walk put runners at first and second with one out, Tulsa starting pitcher Michael Grove skipped a pitch to the backstop to advance the runners. Ernie De La Trinidad took advantage by delivering a sacrifice fly that put the Wind Surge in front 1-0.
The lead swelled to 3-0 in the fifth. The first two batters of the inning reached safely with a base hit and a walk off Tulsa reliever Justin Hagenman. Both runners advanced into scoring position on a fly out to deep left field. Trinidad singled home one of the runners, and Jermaine Palacios doubled home the second with a drive into the left field corner.
The Drillers first hit did not come until there was one out in the seventh when Kody Hoese lined a single into left field.
Wichita starting pitcher Austin Schulfer was outstanding, allowing just one hit in 6.2 innings. He walked one and struck out six while cutting his season ERA nearly in half, from 11.00 down to 6.32.
THE HIGHLIGHTS
*The start of the game was delayed for 28 minutes to allow rain showers to move through the downtown Tulsa area.
*Grove had his best outing of the season, giving up just the one run in 3.2 innings. He struck out a season high seven batters and lowered his season ERA by over three runs.
*It was Jackie Robinson Day at ONEOK Field and every Driller wore jersey number 42, Robinson’s number with Brooklyn Dodgers. The jerseys featured the Dodgers’ design with a blue Drillers, script logo over a red numeral.
*In the six game series with the Wind Surge, the Drillers total only 24 hits and had a .139 team batting average. Ten of the 24 hits came in the first game of the series.
UP NEXT
The Drillers will open a 12-game road trip on Tuesday in Little Rock. The trip will include six games against the Arkansas Travelers, followed by six games at Northwest Arkansas.
Tulsa at Arkansas on Tuesday, May 25, 7:10 PM at Dickey-Stephens Park. Tulsa RHP Gus Varland (0-1, 4.76 ERA) versus Arkansas RHP Alejandro Requena (1-0, 6.75 ERA).
The Great Lakes Loons (8-10) slipped on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Dow Diamond to the Lake County Captains (11-7), ending a three-game win streak with a 4-3 final. The Loons erased a 4-0 deficit in the bottom of the eighth with two runs and moved the tying run to third in the ninth before dropping the series finale to Lake County. Great Lakes and Lake County both took three games from each other, a series that began with back-to-back Loons losses. Winning three in a row, GL entered Sunday aiming to take their second straight series, but fell short.
Miguel Vargas and Leonel Valera, both 2019 returners, led the Great Lakes attack with 2-for-4 performances. Ryan Ward put the Loons on the scoreboard in the bottom of the 8th with a two-RBI double to cut the deficit to two. The on-base streak is now 13 consecutive games for both Valera and Vargas. An Andy Pages single in the fourth carries his on-base streak to 15 games, anchored by a seven-game hitting streak.
Cleveland’s fifth-round draft pick in 2020 Mason Hickman (W, 1-1) made his third start, striking out seven batters in five scoreless innings. Jared Janczak earned his first save of the year, stranding the tying run in the bottom of the ninth. Scheduled for one inning, Dodgers’ 2020 second-rounder Clayton Beeter (L, 0-1) left the bases loaded with one out in the first for Alec Gamboa. The Captains only scored one in the first, but never gave up the lead. Gamboa lasted 3 2/3 innings, allowing a run on two hits while striking out three. Great Lakes used six total pitchers in the losing effort.
Offensively, Great Lakes ended 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position in Sunday’s loss. The Loons made it three straight errorless games on Sunday, but struck out thirteen times for the second time this week. Captains’ first baseman Joe Naranjo ended 2-for-3 with a walk, scoring two with a two-out double in the fifth off Great Lakes’ righty Austin Drury.
A six-game trip to Lansing now awaits the Loons, beginning on Tuesday, May 25. Lansing and Great Lakes entered Sunday tied for second in the East Division, behind a first-place tie with Dayton and Lake County. Lansing leads the East in batting average (.242), team ERA (3.04), and strikeouts (189), while surrendering the fewest walks (53).
The Loons will return to a 100%-capacity Dow Diamond on June 1 to face fellow East Division foe, West Michigan. Great Lakes’ first showdown against the Whitecaps came in the second week of the season when the Loons took four of six from the ‘Caps at LMCU Ballpark. Fans can look forward to the first trip to Dow Diamond for baseball’s first overall draft pick in the 2020 MLB Draft in Spencer Torkelson. Home night games in June, as well as through the rest of the season at Dow Diamond, will begin at 7:05 p.m. EDT.
RANCHO CUCAMONGA QUAKES BOXSCORE
The Quakes continued to click at a high level on Saturday night, as they dropped the Storm for a fourth time in five games, defeating Lake Elsinore by a final of 9-3 at The Diamond in Lake Elsinore.
Jorbit Vivas and Sauryn Lao each had two hits and combined for three RBIs, while Jacob Cantleberry and a slew of Rancho relievers held the Storm to just one hit over the final five innings of Saturday’s game.
Cantleberry (3-0) allowed just one hit over 2.2 innings in earning the win in relief.
Tied at 3-3 in the fifth, the Quakes exploded for four runs against Storm reliever Miguel Rondon (1-1). Alex De Jesus had the go-ahead hit, an RBI double, putting Rancho up 4-3. Vivas followed with his second run-scoring hit of the night, singling home De Jesus to make it 5-3. Three batters later, Eddys Leonard recorded the back-breaker, a two-run single to make it 7-3.
Rancho added two more in the seventh, as Marco Hernandez singled home a run while another scored on an error, giving the Quakes a commanding 9-3 advantage.
With the win, the Quakes (8-8) are back to .500 and take over first place in the South Division from the Storm (8-9), who have lost nine of their last 12, after starting the year with five straight wins.
Sunday’s series-finale begins at 4:05pm and features Quakes’ right-hander Robbie Peto (0-1) taking on Storm lefty Noel Vela (0-1).
The game can be heard live on Sunda afternoon, with the pregame show starting at 6:20pm with Mike Lindskog. To listen live, visit our website at rcquakes.com and click the Listen Live button, open the iheart radio app and find the RC Quakes Radio channel or on the tune-in radio app, by searching keyword Quakes. Have Amazon Alexa or a Google Home, you can use voice command to get the Quakes too, by enabling the Alexa and Google Skills for both iHeart Radio and Tune-In Radio.
Next Tuesday, the Quakes return to LoanMart Field, as they host the Stockton Ports in the opening game of a six-game home stand. First pitch is set for 6:30pm and limited tickets are available for at rcquakes.com. We hope to see you at LoanMart Field very soon!
Great series sweep in SF. Just what the doctor ordered. Great game by Lux in the field and at the plate. So good to see him come around and be the player we hoped he would be. Julio looked great too , just the one mistake on the homer. But that happens.
Uceta should be sent down, kid is not ready for the big league. Lets hope Nelson is not seriously injured. Would be the next huge blow to the pen.
Padres just wont cool down.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!
I don’t have any scoop on Jesus Vargas. He reminds me of Victor Gonzalez although he is a right-hander. He has been around for a long time but is still just 22. Like Victor he soldiers on and is pitching quite well. The big thing is he has a good K/BB ratio – 10/1 this year and 145/36 over his career.
He was part of the Dodgers instructional league contingent in November so he has not gone totally unnoticed.
David Hood wrote this about Vargas in May of 2019. Chance for + FB, tight SL, solid command, upside.
Dodgers should not use Bauer in the 2 game Houston series. His pitch count was 126 against SF. A bullpen game should be in order for the second game in Houston. Using Bauer against SF in the upcoming series is more important and a two game plus swing in the standings if we win his game.Revenge is sweet,but not at the expense of a possible win against SF
Andrew, I wouldn’t want to be the messenger to confront Trevor with this theory!!!
Sweeping the Gigantes just doesn’t get get old for me…I remember my Pop taking me to Candlestick once and that was all folks… A rat hole of a stadium for sure…
And then there were the the Astericks…. Lets make an impression on them… How you ask, we’ll just wait n see!!!
The mash unit expands with Mookie and Nelson’s arm woes… I’ll stick with my mantra, “better now then in Aug/Sept”!!
I was unfortunate enough to go to Candlestick once as well. It was in the middle of summer, but somehow was dark, dingey and cold with fog, mist and trash swirling the infield due to the wind. What a horrible place.
I hate the thought of another bullpen game and I agree with AVF that I would rather see it happend against the cheaters than against the Giants. All wins count the same in the standings, so it shouldn’t matter. But, I would love to see them bury the Giants next weekend for a 4 game sweep for Memorial Day weekend.
It’s a sad situation that we go from too many starters to fit into a rotation to a MASH unit filled with pitchers. It makes me a little suspicious of Nelson’s “injury” thinking it could be a phantom DL stint to get him built up as a starter.
Gavix Lux is sure coming along. I maintained during the offseason that Lux would not be traded as he is Corey Seager insurance in case Corey decides to leave. If you compare their stat lines right now, they are almost identical in each category except Seager has a lot more walks. Lux is a smooth fielder and Seager is generally a steady fielder with a rocket for an arm. With our top hitting prospect a second baseman, it seems more than ever that Corey will need eventually to move to 3rd base. The Corey injury is a blessing in disguise as his overall stats will be down which will push his price tag downward in free agency. It makes sense that he comes back and plays shortstop until JT’s contract expires. By that time Busch will be ready to take over at 2B, moving Lux to SS and Seager to 3B. Alternatively (say it ain’t so), we can let him walk and move Busch up a little early, commit to Muncy and hope Hoese will steady 3rd base for the upcoming years.
That was a nice sweep of the hated Giants in their own stadium. P&G has pointed out already the the Giants are playing over their heads. They’ve relied on journeymen starting pitching punching above their weight, and their relief core actually hasn’t been very good. On paper, and in terms of the peripherals, there’s nothing really exceptional about the Giants.
Speaking of not very good relief corps, the Dodgers relief corps is not very good. Sorry, it’s not. Not now, anyway.
It’s still middling around 14th in baseball in FIP – almost perfectly average. Meanwhile, the Padres are near the top at 5th, Boston is 4th, the Yankees are 3rd. I don’t care too much about Miami and the Mets because they aren’t rivals and aren’t going anywhere, but the Pads, Red Sox and Yankees are teams that the Dodgers will be facing in the playoffs or WS. Do the Dodgers match up well with them? Nope.
Yes, I understand there have been injuries, and in a perfect world, the Dodgers wouldn’t be pitching Edwin Uceta, Santana, Vesia and are calling up Mitch White again. I’m not calling them garbage. I’m sure they’re all good people and are working hard – and they actually have potential.
They’re not helping the team. They’re pitching for the team. That’s the reality.
In a perfect, injury free and performance potential maximizing world, the Dodgers relief corps is really good, maybe even historic.
Better hope Nelson doesn’t need another Tommy John, and I think there’s more going on with Graterol then we know.
And I’m still not impressed with the Pujols signing. I think the only time I saw him hit a pitch in the air the other way was his one home run. It seems like every time he’s been to the plate he’s hit a grounder to the shortstop side. Actually his first base hit as a Dodger was because the shortstop shifted to cover third. No wonder he leads baseball in double plays, that, and with that 80 year-old running speed.
And I get having a veteran presence in the clubhouse has a benefit, but simply because a player is old does not suddenly transform a guy into Pat Morita from the Karate Kid, dispensing life changing wisdom.
Dodgers eventually will need 2-3 arms out of Graterol, Nelson, Kahnle, Knebel, Ferguson back for the stretch run and hopefully the playoffs. Ferguson being a long shot and I agree that there is something more serious with Bazooka then the Dodgers let out.
If they do not get back their own guys from the IL AF will have to make a move or two at the deadline to bring in help for the pen.
Glad that Catman did very well yesterday at OKC and appears to fill that Nr. 5 starter spot. Those regular bullpen games really take a toll on the entire relief corps.
Dodgers should be very careful with CK, TB, JU and WB. Can not afford to lose another of our starters.Padres are doing much too well for us to let up.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Padres will hit a stretch soon…
The pitching at OKC and the hitting at Tulsa is a little scary right now
One issue with the “move Seager to 3b and give Michael Busch the 2b job” scenario is we’d have an all leftie hitting infield, and Belly in CF.
Not that it’s the worst thing in the world, but it is a thing.
I don’t see an issue with 5 lefties and 3 righties in the lineup since there are more right handed pitchers than southpaws.
The one “Seager issue” I see is that Corey will not sign a long term contract here if we won’t let him stay at shortstop for most of it. He views himself as a shortstop and that’s where he wants to play. Some team will let him do just that and be happy to pay him . Yanks and Giants come to mind and I’m sure there are others.
I love sweeping the Giants. Only thing better would be going 19-0 against them one year. Heading back to Colorado on Thursday. Probably will not get there until sometime Saturday since I am stopping in Arizona and seeing my grand daughter. Now just take two from the Asterisks. Works for me.
Drive safe Bear. We all miss our weekly history lesson from the Professor!
Thanks Cassidy. I will.
Nice to sweep those Giants. Starting pitching again exceptional.
* Muncy’s swing is so good right now.
* Nice to see Peters have some success. He struggles with fastball velo, as we’ve seen. Back in the Mays and Mantle era, hitters thought you got power from a stride into the ball instead of the the solid base and rotation emphasized today. As I watch Peters lift and load with his front foot, I want to scream “Get that foot Down”. His hands and swing starts simultaneously with his heel getting on the ground, while the ball is already on the way. I’d love to see him eliminate that left leg kick, even if just as a drill. Spread out and just lift the heel and set it down – Early!!! Just watch Nelson Cruz. He has the foot down prior to the pitch and does nothing but rotation into the ball. I’m not trying to make Peters into Cruz but that principle works. Don’t be striding into the pitch while it’s on the way to the plate. His lower body causes everything to be tardy.
* Walks will kill ya. I believe I’ve heard that somewhere. I get it. We have rookies thrust into roles over their pay grade right now. But the appearances by Uceta and Santana both started with walks (Santana 2). Between the two, it took 49 pitches to get 4 outs. It just makes me crazy for a relief pitcher to enter with a big lead, and walk guys. I have no patience for that.
I’d loved to see you turn Peters into Cruz!
Probably more “Cruz-like” Cassidy. I’m not that good!
A few observations:
1 – Lux sure has a quick bat. He’s made huge strides since being given a “runway”;
2 – An 11 – 0 lead is a perfect opportunity for Roberts to use the tail end of his bullpen – it’s just that those guys can’t really pitch at the big league level. Santana, Vesia, Uceta, Cleavinger, Bickford aren’t ready for prime time and may never be. The fact that a pitcher can throw hard or has good breaking stuff doesn’t mean that they can consistently get MLB hitters out.
3 – We haven’t heard anything about Alexander, Graterol or Knebel lately. If they aren’t coming back (or at least coming back soon) the Dodgers may have to look for reinforcements elsewhere.
4 – Jones looked good in his one appearance – such a strange delivery. If he can throw strikes the Dodgers may have captured lightening in a bottle. Just one appearance though
5 – They need Gonsolin back soon. Having 4 pitchers for a 5 man rotation really puts stress on the bullpen
6 – 1 through 4 the Dodgers have the best rotation in baseball – it’s not really even close. I would say 1 – 5 but May is out. Hopefully Gonsolin returns to form.
7 – Turner went 1 for 22 last week. He looks slow up there. Without Cody, Corey, Mookie and AJ, they really need Turner to be Turner. Right now the offense is Muncy, Lux and Smith and not much else.
8 – I would throw Peters nothing but 4 seam fastballs up in the Zone. He can’t hit the high pitch especially with velocity.
9 – Agree 100% with Dodgerpatch. Pujols has a slow bat and mostly hits grounders to the left side and he may be the slowest runner I’ve ever seen in baseball. If he does anything more than pinch hit and play a game a week, the Dodgers are in trouble.
10 – Tsutsugo is 2 for 14 with 7 Ks as a Dodger. I know he’s a project but they really don’t need that kind of performance in a pennant race. Better to work with him in the minors if possible. I know – they don’t have other choices right now.
11 – The fact that the Dodgers are doing as well as they are right now is kind of amazing. They need help quickly – hope that Bellinger, McKinstry and Gonsolin get there and get it done.
Graterol threw a 30-pitch bullpen over the weekend which supposedly went well. He’s scheduled for another one in Houston in the next couple of days. If that goes well, he’ll be ready for a rehab assignment. No info on how long that might last.
With Bellinger and ZMac both due back possibly by this weekend, Tsutsugo will have to prove himself in Houston or I would say he’ll be gone. Not sure if he can be optioned but if not, he would probably be dfa’d. Peters might actually be safe until Pollock returns because of his ability to play good outfield and hit right handed.
Albert may be the only guy that would get thrown out on a ground rule double! By a fan! How do the Rays do what they do? To lose what they did after 2020 and still lead a tough AL East at 30-19. It’s truly remarkable! What an organization!
IMHO Albert is done. His bat is slow and his feet are even slower.
Would have preferred the wild horse Puig over Albert.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Does Snell only pitch well against us? Otherwise he’s been kind of a bust for Pads
Had the same thought when I checked the stat sheets lately. 4.50 ERA for Snell so far.
But that won´t help us should we face him and the Padres in a playoff series.
Padres rotation looks as formidable as ours with Darwish and Musgrove leading the way.
This will be a dog fight down to the wire between them and us I fear. Not only for the division but the pennant.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cameron Gibbens & Gavin Stone