That is evidently Andrew Friedman’s new bullpen strategy and I happen to think it is a stroke of genius. We all know that bullpens are fickle and it is hard to predict with a great degree of certainty whether a pitcher who was great in 2021 will even be average a year later. Injuries happen and pitchers are bad one year and great the next. Now, it is not always completely like that, but suffice it to say that “Bullpens are hard to build.” Some fans have stated that Andrew Friedman does not value bullpen pitchers highly. I have to disagree with that. He values them exactly what they’re worth, which is generally not a lot.
He signed Kenley Jansen to a 5-year High Dollar Deal and while it was not a spectacular signing, it was pretty good. I doubt that he ever does that again, however! The thing is: you can scout, study film, pour-over analytics, and the like, but sometimes the TOP TWO METHODS for building a bullpen are
(1) A Wild-Ass Guess; and
(2) Dumb Blind Luck.
Of course, I say that “tongue-in-cheek”… but only slightly. You can have seasons where everyone is healthy and seasons where no one is healthy. You can have seasons where it seems like no one can get an out and then seasons where everyone can get an out. So, Andrew’s new mantra with regards to building a bullpen must be” “Sign ’em Cheap and Stack ’em Deep.“ Badger asked me if that was my line yesterday and I had to admit that I plagiarized it from Ray Skillman:
Look at the arms that Andrew Friedman has to pick from:
- Bickford – Waivers
- Bruhl – Amateur Free Agent
- Cleavinger – Trade
- Duffy – Trade
- Ferguson – 2014 Draft
- Gonzalez – Amateur Free Agent 2012
- Graterol – Trade
- Grove – Draft (2016)
- Hudson – Free Agent
- Jackson – Draft (2017)
- Kahnle – Free Agent
- Nelson – Free Agent
- Phillips – Waiver Pickup
- May – Draft (2016)
- Nunez – Amateur Free Agent
- Treinen – Free Agent
- Vesia – Trade
- Kimbrel – Trade
- Anderson – Free Agent
- White – Draft (2016)
- Price – Trade
Currently, Kahnle, Ferguson, Nelson, Duffy, Treinen, and Nunez are all on the IL. Some are out for the season and some are out for a few days to a few weeks. Tell me with a straight face that if they continue to progress and injuries warranted that Bobby Miller, Ryan Pepiot, Landon Knack, it another pitcher recently drafted could not make the team THIS year… at least for a couple of weeks. I guess I would have to add Andrew Heaney as well, who is currently on the IL. That brings the total bullpen arms to at least 26… and I am not even mentioning Jordon Leasure (more about him later).
The injury bug has already set in, but we also know that Kahnle, Duffy, May, Ferguson, and Victor Gonzalez will also be ready soon (or at least most of them will be ready). There is always something that doesn’t go according to plan. Andrew has for sure “Signed ’em Cheap and Stacked ’em Deep!” It evidently is working because, in all of MLB, the Dodgers are #1 in Bullpen ERA at 2.05 (the Giants are #1 at 1.78). For the record, I think that Frahan is a believer in the “Stack ’em Deep Club.” In fact, he may be the founder…
The Dodgers are #1 in Starter ERA @2.39. Why does everyone say they need another starter… especially with Bauer’s situation still up in the air? The Dodgers are also # 1 Team ERA at 2.24 to the Giants 2.48.
Tyler Anderson has been solid for the Dodgers. He pitched well enough to win last night and he is 2nd on the team in innings pitched (behind Catman who has 13) at 12.2. Overall, the pitching is great and as Buehler, Kershaw, and Urias round into shape, it will be a big strength.
The Mookie Betts Show
The Dodgers are a great team, but last night was one of those nights (again) where the Dodger’s $300 Million dollar man was in a position to win the game a couple of times… and I am not saying HR (that would have been nice), but just with a base hit! For the past couple of seasons, Mookie looks like a good player, but not a guy who earns $29 Million! I am not dissing Mookie, I am just reporting what my eyes see. I have not seen a superstar there… and that is what the Dodgers paid for. I also know that it takes time to get where you need to be. Witness: Bellinger, JT, Max, and Will. I am not throwing the baby out with the bathwater! Note to self: “Progress is not linear!”
The Gavin Lux Show
Gavin Lux did have one clean throw, last night and he also hit the ball well, but his proclivity to throw low, high, or wide to 1B is apparent. His bat seems to be fine, even though he has dipped recently to .250. He does not show that “deer in the headlights look” that I saw last season. Maybe he just needs to move to SS now. I say that in jest… but also halfway thinking “Let’s get something for Trea before he goes to the West Coast.” Would Friedman be bold enough to trade an All-Star SS Mid-Season? Turner is a Florida boy and I predict he will end up there… or close!
The Jessica Mendoza Show
Jessica is a very savvy baseball mind. I do value her takes and she is not prone to the corn that Karros and Hershiser put out. With full disclosure, I say that I am used to men being in that position, so I get that. Her laugh sometimes grates on me, but not so much. Overall, I think I like her, but it might take some time. Change is hard! Pretty soon, they are going to let them vote (OK, that’s just a joke – don’t tell my wife!). Jessica is solid!
The Clayton Kershaw Show
Coming this afternoon. Let’s go, Clayton!
The Minor League Show
- OKC was sacked by Sac-Town 12-1 – There is nothing to see here. Move on, folks!
- Tulsa beat Springfield 16-8 – Look at this: Outman 4-6 with his 4th HR; Busch 2-6 with his 6th HR; Amaya 5-5 with 2 HR and 5 RBI; Cody Hoese 2-5; Mann 2-3. What a beatdown!
- Great Lakes beat Lake County 1-0 – Jordon Leasure pitched the last two innings for the save. He walked 0. Gave up 0 hits and struck out 5!
- Rancho Cucamonga beat the Nuts 11-9 – Ramos was 4-4 (.333; 1.226); Cartaya was 1-4; Diaz was 2-5 with 4 RBI and hit 5th HR; Luis Daiz was 2-5 with a Grand Slam, and Luis Rodriguez was 2-3 with 2 BB
Website Problems
Vladimir Putin had his hackers attack our site yesterday, but I had my buddy Joe, send some switchblade drones in a counterattack. We are back up and running and that is a much more interesting explanation than what actually happened. I did have someone call me and want to buy LA Dodger Talk. I won’t say who, but they said “Are you interested in selling?” I said sure, “If you are willing to pay more than it is worth.” They asked what it was worth and asked them back. They said “$3,500.00.” I said, “Yeah, that’s probably right, but since you would have to pay more than it is worth, I want $35,000.” CLICK – Go Figure!
Well, I knew it was going to be a low scoring game when I saw how the strike zone was going to be called in the first inning. It was a nice comeback that fell just short. It seems that AF found a couple of pearls in Anderson and Heaney, or Prior and company are really good at fine tuning pitchers.
Badger posted about DRS yesterday. DRS confirmed that Trea Turner isn’t a great defensive shortstop? He’s going to get to more than his fair share of balls, but he’s going to botch more than his fair share of plays along the way. He has two errors early on so his DRS is going to be bad as a reflection of those errors, but he’ll never be Ozzie Smith. It’s pretty easy to see that Muncy is the worst defender right now. JT is losing a step, but knows how to make the plays that are hit within his range. Somehow, I don’t see Gavin’s throws as badly as Mark does. Maybe I just want him to succeed, my brain doesn’t pay attention unless there’s an error. So far, there aren’t any.
Yesterday was record store day so I picked up my son and went to a couple of record stores! I wound up splurging a little and picked up 6 records. I got a Janis Joplin record of early and rare recordings, Gary Numan Telekon, Billy Idol – self titled and his Money Money EP, Lords of the New Church and Johnny Thunders – So Alive. We went back to my house and watched the game with no volume and were spinning records. I didn’t have to listen to Mendoza unless I went into the gar-office for a smoke. When I did, I found her as off-putting as Orel. I like Nomar the best as Joe’s partner in the booth. But, Jessica certainly isn’t as bad as that lady that was on Apple+ last Friday. Jessica does a nice job of pointing out the obvious and she seems to get quite excited, giddy even.
Manea and Kershaw today on a warm day game. Let’s hope that Kersh can keep it in the park. If either pitcher is on, it’s going to be a long day for the opposition. Both pitchers are capable of shutting down the best offenses. Hopefully we use some discipline at the plate, speed and a couple of timely hits generate some offense.
JT and Muncy are rally killers right now. It’s pretty horrible having them back to back in the 4 and 5 holes. I can’t help but wonder if Rios and Vargas would do a better job.
Nothing is more frustrating than seeing Belli, Muncy and Lux crush pull a ball, only to have the rover in short right field make the play. I can’t wait for the shift to be banned. These three will see their batting averages and overall production soar as a result.
There’s just something inherently satisfying about vinyl. It’s like looking at film versus digital.
Why do people forget about the job Kevin Kennedy did as a Dodger analyst? He was probably my favorite.
I had my buddy over recently and we compared a stream of the same song on Spotify vs Vinyl and it wasn’t even close. Atom Tan by The Clash. Vinyl was so much more detailed.
I agree about film as well. It was such a pleasure going to the theatre and watching Hateful Eight on film. QT also did some showings of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood on film at select theaters. I would love to see more movies released that way.
Record store day was fun. It’s cool to see new artists release on vinyl. I’m not a big fan of Taylor Swift, but it seems she’s pretty committed as I saw a few of her records while I was thumbing through stacks. Turntable manufacturers are releasing more decks with autoplay and auto-return features which is pretty cool. Dual came out with a new fully automatic model this year. I have a Thorens and love it. I have Wharfedale Linton’s 75th anniversary speakers and a Marantz SR5015 with a Bellari phono stage. It sounds great together and is loud enough to drive you out of the room! Kinda like cars, I may not use the power very often, but I want it there just in case I need to.
I wouldn’t give you $350 for this site. Only because I’m too lazy to run it and would only f it up. For better of for worse, in sickness and insanity, you’re the guy mover. If it isn’t Jeff, and it looks like it won’t be, it’s you. Let’s face it, there’s nobody that can agitate a crowd into conversation better than you.
I’m not at all worried about the bullpen. It’s the starting pitching that has me a bit concerned.
I’ve never felt this team was put together with any sense of Defensive Runs Saved. This lineup is about scoring runs. When it comes together it’s a thing of beauty. When it belches, like yesterday, just hold your nose move on.
Agree about the ump BP. We just have to live with 85% accuracy until they decide it’s time to do something about it.
Betts. He ain’t right. I don’t know if if it’s hip related, but something is wrong. Same with Muncy. How long until they are right? No way of knowing.
Bellinger. Hit and miss. It might be that way for a very long time.
Justin. Wake up dude.
Trea Turner. He’s a 5+ WAR player that sometimes looks distracted. We would miss him, but I too can see him leaving. Trade him? I don’t know about that. I don’t think so, but, it’s possible I guess.
We’re favored today because of course we are. We are favored every day. 6.5 runs. I’ll take the over. Dodgers 6-3.
Bellinger maybe hit or miss but you had to like the approach against Rogers in the 9th inning.
Betts, Muncy and Turner are barely hitting their weight right now. Muncy(injury), Turner(age?) might need some more time to get going. Betts? Who knows what’s the problem. He struck out 4 times yesterday but the again, Freeman didn’t do much either. The good thing is with 1/3 of the lineup not really producing the Dodgers are 10-4.
The Jessica Mendoza Show. Talks too much. Would love for Joe to work alone. Grab somebody and put them in the booth on blow out games as needed.
Joe Davis seems to be too exuberant sometimes.
The Giants have a good cleanup hitter–so far. Ranks 4th in MLB for average exit velocity.
Statcast says Lux is hitting the ball hard.
I loved trading for Manny Ramirez. Still, the Dodgers shouldn’t trade with Boston.
Enjoy it while it lasts, Bum. I’ve heard this song before. I’m not sure why everyone likes to look backwards so much. His 3 AB’s against lefties is telling.
Other favorites…
Kike – 589 OPS
K-Bear – 535 OPS
Verdugo – 866 OPS
Pederson – 910 OPS
None of these folks will finish above 800.
Why am I the only one talking about Connor Joe? 1.032 OPS hitting lefties and righties and is actually hitting better on the road than in Coors. The one that got away?
Seags 638 OPS
Yesterday against lefties, he had a single and a 113 mph one hopper to second for an out. Is that sample size telling too?
I don’t look back so much as I like to see players I like try to stick it to their naysayers.
He is leading off today so he an be better than the Dodgers leadoff and cleanup hitters–in April.
Verdugo and Pederson might.
I have mixed feelings about Mendoza. She is baseball smart, but yeah, she talks too much and her laugh is always a few seconds too long. Annoying.
Good point about the team being 10-4 with so many in the lineup sucking begonias.
Lux should have them start finding outfield grass soon. You can see he’s trusting his hands more. I still don’t like how he flips the ball in the infield. Throw the ball overhand dammit. Some guys can sidearm it. Not you
Both have a lifetime OPS <800. 6 and 9 years of experience, but maybe?
Yep. Maybe.
SPClayton Kershaw L
2-0 3.00 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
RF Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
SS Trea Turner R
DH J. Turner R
3B Max Muncy L
LF Chris Taylor R
CF C. Bellinger L
2B H. Alberto R
C A. Barnes R
Clear-day
0% Rain
78° Wind 10 mph L-R
* We had so many opportunities early to get to Darvish and didn’t. How many times do you see a good pitcher wiggle off the hook, settle in, and shut you down? Tyler Anderson deserved better fate.
* I like Jessica Mendoza, although maybe not everyday. I kind of like changing up the analysts. Jess knows the game well enough for TV. Her best work was with Aaron Boone and worst with A-Rod, who preferred to give lectures. She committed ESPN suicide with her ridiculous criticism of Max Fried for exposing the Astro’s cheating scheme. But she and Joe pair up fine enough for me.
* I’m personally not critiquing every Lux throw for signs of the yips. I haven’t seen any yippy throws that cause me concern. Leave him be and let this go away. He doesn’t need to think about it. It’s never a good idea to stand over a wedge shot and think about “don’t shank this!”
* Marty Foster is a poor balls and strikes umpire. He expands the outside corner to righties and than he doesn’t. Very inconsistent on pitches “in the river”. Call em there or don’t but don’t pull a rabbit out of your hat. Can’t trust the guy.
* I seem to again be criticizing home plate umpires but there are some really poor balls and strike performances. I can’t wait for the ABS. In the meantime, as I have said too often, I think the little box on the screen should be eliminated. It is visual evidence that the umpire doesn’t have available that documents every “missed “call. The difference is we see that umpires strike zone, that day. As long as it’s consistent, players adjust to that. They know which umps call pitches off the plate, and where. It’s their zone. It’s not the rule book zone no matter how much we’d like it to be. So now we compare that umpire’s zone to the imaginary, superimposed zone on the screen that just creates controversy and criticism. Without ABS, I prefer we all guess along with the umpire and do away with the box on the screen.
* Mookie takes way to many hittable fastballs. (aside from the first pitch of the game.) He is constantly hitting in disadvantage counts after taking c**k shots.
* I liked the risk of CT3 tagging and trying to go tp 3rd lsat night. It failed but I like aggressive base running and last night it just didn’t work.
* I like the strategy presented by the Ghost Runner but few teams employ any. Last night Mevin did as the home team, by bunting the runner to 3rd. As the visiting team in that situation, I would intentionally walk the next 2 hitters, regardless of who they are, and play for a one ground ball at double play. I don’t like playing the infield in and trying to get 2 batters out.
Fair enough. By the same token, I totally dislike the CT3 base running in the 10th.
I really liked Jessica Mendoza. Hey I live In Puerto Rico, that’s eastern time and this last two games, I saw the whole game. When Eric Karros is the color guy, seems like he is some shades of gray; I always fall asleep.
That’s an excellent point the runner at 3B is the only one that matters.
Too late to eliminate the box. We fans would scream to the networks. Don’t forget baseball is a tv show.
The strike zone is well defined in the book. But that definition is clearly interpreted differently by every umpire. I don’t like umps having a say in outcomes. History is littered with bad calls and I do mean littered. Some of those calls seemingly will live forever. The technology exists to fix that. Take out the trash. It’s crazy that people watching the game at home have a more accurate strike zone than the umpire calling the game. Fix it.
Sure, load ‘em up if there’s a runner on third. It might depend some on who you are bringing to the plate though.
I don’t like the infield in. Half way is good enough for me. I’d consider holding the guy on too. The runner on third can get a great lead if the third baseman is deep. Keep him close, then move a step into the half way position on the pitch.
Phil you’re a coach. Have you ever heard a explanation of what’s a strike on a check swing? I did a lot of umpiring when I was in college. I was given a clear interpretation by a former AA umpire that trained me. To this day I’ve never heard anyone other than me talk about it. No broadcaster, no player coach, no color guy, and no umpire.
Badger, I agree fans would scream to high heaven if the superimposed strike zone disappeared from the TV screen. I might, as well. But my point is in fairness to the umpire. To your point, I agree it’s crazy that people watching at home have a more accurate zone than the ump calling the game. My point exactly.
I’m 110% in on the ABS. I’ve seen it in use and it works. I was 5 innings in during a fall ball game before I noticed it was in use. The technology is there. Use it.
In the extra frame, I’m walking the hitter to set up first and 3rd for sure, regardless of the hitter. If they steal 2nd , I walk em loaded. Any way to set up a potential DP with one ground ball. Holding the runner at 3rd closer to the base is an excellent call to discourage the squeeze.
Check swings might be as individually interpreted as the strike zone, Badger. Lots of speculation but no explanation. You hear “intent to hit the ball” (I’ve never been able to clearly determine anyone’s intent), breaking the wrists. To me it’s more simple – if the barrel crosses the front of the plate, it’s a swing.
I also hate the strike call on a batter who is spinning out of the path of an inside pitch and it’s called a swing. That’s one that I feel there was no intent. Just survival.
Good conversations.
Exactly. If the bat goes through the strike zone it’s a strike. That’s easy to see for either line ump. Intent is impossible to interpret.
“* I liked the risk of CT3 tagging and trying to go tp 3rd lsat night. It failed but I like aggressive base running and last night it just didn’t work.”
I would generally agree with you in principle, but he was out by 10 feet. It wasn’t a high percentage move.
I agree.
If a good throw is going to get you, don’t go.
Bobby Miller pitching for AA Tulsa today.
W L ERA IP BB K AVG WHIP
0 0 1.93 4.2 1 7 .176 0.86
Mark agree 100% with your bullpen assessment. You can never have enough pitchers. I’m looking forward to Carson Fulmer joining the roster.
Your aphorism is missing a key component of how the Dodgers are able to assemble a good relief corps. Getting ’em cheap doesn’t mean they’re getting a bunch of mediocrities. The Dodgers are getting good performances out of the guys they get cheap. That’s the thing that’s important.
The Dodgers are pretty good at identifying, not just talent that they can acquire, but unrealized or undervalued talent they can rehabilitate and improve. It’s a good strategy overall because it’s cheaper than spending big bucks on names with reputations, especially for relief pitchers, who are the most volatile commodities in baseball. The Rockies paid 27 million for Jake McGee and got burned. You don’t buy expensive relievers, except for guys like maybe Kenley.
That said, the Dodgers would probably like to to redo the trades for the middling relief pitchers that sent Yordan Alvarez to Houston and Oneil Cruz to Pittsburgh.
Very good points. They seem to be tweaking relievers and getting great results. Bickford, Phillips, Vesia, Cleavinger is a pretty strong list in a one year period.
Yordan is purely a DH and Cruz is a DH in the making. He’s a pretty bad shortstop with the glove putting up errors at a frightening pace. Even with a DH, the Dodgers may not be interesting is using an all bat no glove guy.
Oh, you’re absolutely right about those guys being DHs and not really having a place in the Dodgers organization. Calhoun was probably the highest rated prospect among these three and he was shipped off for Darvish. So far he hasn’t done a whole lot in Texas, so there isn’t as much seller’s remorse.
Still, watching Alvarez mash while the Dodgers got a half a year of …*checks notes*… Josh Fields is a little hard to swallow.
The Rockies keep winning. Gnats won again, too. It would actually be a fun race to have four teams all competing for 1rst in the NL West. I would enjoy it if the Rockies wound up with a better record than the Pods.
Looks like Jeremy Riggs behind the dish today. Be ready to swing.
Bobby Miller’s ugly pitching line for AA Tulsa today:
3IP 7H 5R 5ER 0BB 1K 1HR ERA 7.04 P62 STR 39 (not ready for primetime)
One bright spot Busch with his 7th HR
17 career minor league games. As good as our top pitching prospects are, they just don’t have much experience. They all need to bake a little longer.
39 strikes out of 62 pitches? Minor league ump probably can’t see the ball. He’s probably working on an off speed pitch, I wouldn’t put too much into it.
Wait! What!? I thought Bobby Miller was ready to step in to the starting rotation NOW? I thought he is an automatic ace. I thought he was the next Cy Young. In fact, I thought, by the time his career is done, they won’t even call that pitching award the Cy Young Award anymore. They’ll call it the Bobby Miller.
Does this mean we have to slightly temper our enthusiasm for prospects?
Say it ain’t so!
He, looks that in that list was missing Reyes Moronta!
Reyes Montaya has quite the tummy
That button above his belt looks reinforced with 200 pound test line. You could land a tuna with it. In fact, I think it did.
Big Sexy 2.0: More to Love!
Regarding pitches that are low and away and a little out of the strike zone, it seems like the ump would call it a strike if the ball started in the strike zone and moved out of it and called it a ball if it started wide of the plate and didn’t move enough to get in the strike zone. Same location but consistently different calls. It was all about the path of the ball.
I think if Taylor was tagging up early and waiting to get a good jump then he might have been able to get to third. But that wasn’t the case. He was retreating to second an had to turn and go. Harder to tag up on a fly to left and get to third that way. Therefore, he shouldn’t have tried, IMHO.
Kershaw good again. Belli too. Freeman just average but it was his average which is better than average average, sanguine in fact.
10-2 is such a lopsided score it is almost sanguinary.
Another waaay to early look at the stats:
Kersh is tied with 3 other guys at 3-0. One of those guys is named Scherzer.
Kersh has the league’s second best WHIP at .54, mostly because he has issued ZERO walks in 17 innings. (The Pirates’ Dillon Peters, a reliever, is also 3-0 with at .48 WHIP because he’s only given up 1 hit in 10 innings.)
Anyway, I’ll rate Kersh as the most encouraging sign for the Dodgers now, followed by Belli’s resurgence. I hope Heaney gets back soon and eclipses both.
Down on the farm, SS Jacob Amaya is looking pretty darn good too down in Tulsa. I root for him in part because he’s local–I think from West Covina–and I believe his grandpa played in the Dodgers organization back in the day. By some accounts he has the best glove among all the Dodger infield prospects. Now that he’s starting to hit it looks like he might have a real shot, perhaps as early as next season.
Just an extra note of thanks to Mark for adding the feature that allows us to look up the box scores from the minors. It’s fun to come across the occasional nuggets .
As for “stacking them deep” theme, it looks like Rule 5 guys DuPlantier and Fulmer are doing OK in OKC. Both have ML experience so we’ll probably see them in due course if they keep it up.
In Great Lakes, 40-man roster selections Leonard and Vivas are off to poor starts, both below the Mendoza line. Best news in Loons’ defeat was that USC product Kyle Hurt ( who I think was acquired with Vesia in the Florio deal) pitched 3 strong innings, with 5 Ks.
And the big kid Ronan Kopp of the Quakes–6-7, 250–struck out a couple more in one inning. Sixteen Ks in 8.1 innings so far for Kopp.