In the immortal words of Mr. Cub himself, the great Ernie Banks is known for saying “Let’s play two!” Ernie Banks played for the sheer joy of it! He always had a smile on his face and played the game like a little boy. Ernie Banks has been gone since January of 2015, but you can still feel his presence above and around Wrigley Field… especially during doubleheaders.
What the Future Holds
The more I think about it and read sound bites and consider the totality of the circumstances, the more logical it is that the LA Dodgers will not sign Trea Turner. In fact, I would not be shocked if they declined to offer him a contract. We have been through those reasons, and they still make the most sense. The Dodgers already have a major league-quality defensive shortstop on their roster who has a high baseball IQ in Jacob Amaya.
I, for one, questioned his hitting, but progress is not linear, and while he has shown flashes of his hit tool in the past, this year Jacob has it on display. I am beginning to believe he can play in the major leagues and be a solid hitter. I have watched him a lot this season.
As I write this, Miguel Vargas is hitting .298 as the third-youngest player in AAA. He has a shot at making the Show THIS season, depending upon what happens with JT and/or Max Muncy. I will be the first to tell you that Vargas is not a finished product as a 3B. But he is a willing learner, and I believe he will grow into a solid defensive 3B. Footwork can be learned and improved upon. He is not a slow runner, so while it may take a year or two, I think his defense will tick up. He already shows why he is a natural-born hitter. It may take a year or two for his “manpower” to arrive, but he already knows how to work a bat.
When I look at Mike Busch, I can’t help but see a LH Jeff Kent. Hopefully, he can field a little better than that, but I can also see him in LF.
How about this lineup in 2023?
- Betts LF
- Lux 2B
- Freeman 1B
- Smith C
- Bellinger CF
- Vargas 3B
- Busch LF
- Muncy DH
- Amaya SS
I know, you are thinking THREE ROOKIES? Well, it might only be two if one of the three gets the call after the All-Star Break in 2022. Don’t forget, there is still CT3! However, the Dodgers are poised to win it all this year too, so let’s see how this plays out.
Dodgers News & Notes
- Kevin Pillar went 4-4 last night (with 2 HR 7th) and is hitting .329 with a 1.105 OPS. He could get a
“look-see” I suppose… especially if someone gets hurt. - Ryan Pepiot went 4.2 innings last night and gave up 4 H and 2 ER. He did not have good control and walked 3 while striking out 7. His ERA still sits at 2.05.
- The battle of the Varlands did not turn out in favor of Gus as he went to 0-3, giving up 8 hits and 6 runs in 3 IP. Mike Busch supplied all the offense with his 9th HR, a 2-Runs blast!
- Jacob Amaya was 1-3 (.306/1.137 OPS).
- The Drillers also lost game 2 of their doubleheader 10-0, as Amaya got one of only four hits. Clayton Beeter took the loss, but he went 4 innings, allowing 3 hits and 1 ER. He walked two and struck out eight!
- At Great Lakes, Eddys Leonard continues his hitting, going 2-4. Valera was 2-4 with 3 RBI and his 4th HR.
- Cole Percival went 5 innings, allowing 4 hits and 1 run. He walked 2 and struck out 3. His ERA sits at 2.18.
- At Rancho Cucamonga, 19-year-old Jeremy Rosario went 5 perfect innings and struck out 6. That is quite an accomplishment in the Inland Empire.
- Damon Keith continues to look like a man among boys as he was 3-4 and is hitting .388. He has to be GReat Lakes Bound!
Depending on what our needs are come trade deadline, and how they are doing, I feel that Lux and/ or Muncy will be part of this year’ blockbuster deal. Not based on anything. But hey, that’s our job as fans to make wild predictions!!
Kershaw starts Game 1 at 4:10 PDT
Anderson starts Game 2 at 10:40 PDT
Mostly sunny but in the 40’s and 50’s.
Clayton does not like it like that, right there!
Mark your starting times are incorrect for today’s twin bill:
Game 1 is 1: 05 PM ET 10:05AM PT
Game 2 is 7:08 PM ET 4:08 PMPT
I woke up with dyslexia. Yeah, that’s the ticket!
First Game:
SPClayton Kershaw L
3-0 2.35 ERA 30K
Confirmed Lineup
RF Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
SS Trea Turner R
3B J. Turner R
DH Max Muncy L
LF Chris Taylor R
CF C. Bellinger L
C A. Barnes R
2B Gavin Lux L
Clear-day
0% Rain
52° Wind 11 mph In
I’m looking forward to the games today and meeting up with Watford and OldBear…
My Place Bar & Grill
5452 Commercial Drive
Huntington Beach, CA
Opens at 9AM – I’ll be there by 10AM. I’ll be wearing the mesh back Spring Training cap that PhilJones recommended. 😉
Wow, the D-Backs beat the Rockies and jumped over 500! Everyone in the West is over 500 now. Yes, the mighty (Why can’t they just be good) Giants lost their 5th in row and the Padres are separating themselves from the rest of the pack.
I’m beginning to believe in Amaya. I’ve always hoped he would work out. I have an affinity for local kids. He’s destined to be a fan favorite when he arrives. Overall, his minor league numbers have been underwhelming, but there’s some signs that he might be better than what his overall numbers indicate. In 2019, he slashed .260/.369/.391/.760 combined at A and A+ and had 41 extra base hits. The eye opening number that season was the 81 walks he drew as a 20 year old. This indicates that he has a great eye at the plate. Perhaps he just needed to mature a little to tap into the strength to turn some of those liners into gappers and flyballs into big flies.
Busch and Vargas look like the real deal. Both look like polished hitters. Busch is a much better second baseman that people are giving him credit for. Put it this way, he’s better than Muncy at the keystone. Vargas on the other hand, really needs to improve his defense at 3B to stick at the position.
OK, now hear this LADT’s Official Position is that we will not be providing any bail money for the event at My Place.
Don’t call us – We’ll call you!
We’ll be fine unless Badger shows up.
If he shows up, your asses are out!
David, are you trying one up Bumsrap for most ridiculous trade predictions? Are we trading them to the Giants for Joc and Woody?
Speaking of trades, lucky for the Padres they couldn’t find any takers for Eric Hosmer.
Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make.
I’ll trade Muncy but not Lux. David has passed me for the creative trade lead.
B&P, I still will offer Bellinger and Muncy for Buxton. If the Dodgers need to add prospects then I do that as well.
I will go one step farther than Mark regarding Trea. Not only will he not be resigned he will be traded later this year.
Well, I would be shocked if the Dodgers don’t offer Trea Turner.
He’s the number three hitter and the team RBI leader.
Not sure what the shortstop market will be next year, but I’m thinking Corey Seager money won’t be on the table. I suppose it all depends on financial flexibility, but Bauer is off the books and even with that money committed, the Dodgers still offered Seager an eight year, $250 million package in the spring.
If Turner ends up with another good to exceptional year, that may seal the deal. The Giants could be in play for Turner to take over for Crawford. That would probably add motivation to the Dodgers, although it’s against Farhan Zaidi’s philosophy to tie up too much money into one player. He emphasized that in an interview last spring.
Maybe all this depends on whether they believe Gavin Lux can handle the position. But Turner certainly brings excitement to the field and his speed can be a game changer.
Pedro Moira’s new book, “The Rise of the Dodgers in a League on the Brink —- How to beat a Broken Game” is a pretty good read.
Why do the Giants win more games than their lineups would suggest? Maybe it is their hitting philosophy. There is a good article on Joc that came out yesterday that provides stats about him swinging at first and second pitches. His walk rate is down as is the number of pitches he sees per at bat. Something Muncy should be doing.
https://www.mlb.com/giants/news/joc-pederson-breaking-out-for-giants
Take a peek at the exit velocity leaderboards through Thursday’s action. Some familiar names make the top five, but Pederson is right there with them.
Avg. Exit Velocity, 2022
Min 40 PAs
Giancarlo Stanton: 97.4 mph
Aaron Judge: 96.8 mph
Byron Buxton: 96.1 mph
Yordan Alvarez: 95.9 mph
Joc Pederson: 95.3 mph
He’s doing it by getting to pitchers before they get to him. Prior to this season, Pederson swung at just 44.3% of pitches against him. Now, he’s swinging at 54.6 percent of pitches thrown to him, by far a career high. He’s also swinging at 44.6% of first pitches against him, which is 13.8 percentage points higher than his next highest single-season first pitch swing rate.
The Giant’s 8th and 9th inning magic appears to have disappeared this year.
Or maybe they go after Boegarts?
He makes Seager look like a Gold Glover. I can’t see it… especially if they have a clue Amaya might hit enough.
Amaya has 1290 minor league at bats, none above AA and has hit .257 with them, including .216 in a full year last year. When Bogaerts was Amaya’s age he was hitting .300 in Boston. He’s turned himself into a + dWAR defender. Amaya or Bogaerts next year, if given the choice, is a class no brainer.
The Dodgers will never have 3 rookies in the lineup at the same time.
Plus he could probably be moved to 3rd base we’re gonna need one of those.
Good point.
I would sure like to see Rios claim that position. I would also prefer we extend Turner, but I agree it’s likely an East Coast team will grab him.
Dodgers To Select Robbie Erlin
By Anthony Franco | May 7, 2022 at 10:41am CDT
The Dodgers are planning to select left-hander Robbie Erlin onto the big league roster, the team informed reporters (including Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times). They won’t need to make a corresponding move. Erlin will serve as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader against the Cubs, and they already have a pair of vacancies on the 40-man roster.
Erlin is back in the big leagues for the first time since 2020. A former division rival, the 2009 third-round pick spent the 2013-19 seasons as a swing option for the Padres. A quality strike-thrower, he didn’t miss many bats but he rarely handed out free passes or served up home runs. Erlin posted a cumulative 4.57 ERA in that time, but he missed most of 2016 and all of the 2017 season because of Tommy John surgery.
Los Angeles lost star reliever Blake Treinen to the injured list a couple weeks ago, and his recovery from shoulder soreness isn’t going as hoped. Manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register) the righty is headed for an MRI early next week as he continues to deal with discomfort.
I guess they had better see what he can do. Erlin has never really had a good season, but he is LH and throws strikes.
Thank you Cubs! For being so boneheaded up to now on both offense and defense. Go blue!
That was dumber than a bag of hammers.
Can we please get a pic of the cool kids hanging out today and watching this frustrating game?
I really wanted to buy Wat a pint too, damn!
Mark, can you please text me Bear’s email info so I can forward him the tickets.
Just read that Pillar hit a couple more HRs, bringing his average up to .329.. Plus, he’s walked 13 times against 8 Ks…
So the veteran is looking like the righthanded bat the Dodgers could use.
Another reason to think so: When Pillar was signed, he said he chose the Dodgers because he believed it was the best organization for him to actually raise his game. Seems that the coaching and work ethic are getting results. (He probably had a better chance of staying in The Show with a lesser club.)
If JT and Max continue to struggle, I can imagine a lineup with Piller in LF and Taylor or Alberto at 3B. A righty-heavy lineup could use all three, with Taylor shifting to 2B. B
Rios has also been struggling , but then he really has never, ever gotten one of those “runways”…. Still, Pillar might make more sense than Rios now.
JT looks terrible right about now. Hoping he can turn it around but I agree Pillar is inching his way closer to a big league call up.
Well, he just answered your prayers in the short term here.
Nice! Another pretty double play.
I take it back JT with a 2 RBI double. Lets go!
It sounds like Blake Treinen is out for a while.
Bummer for Treinen but we really only need him ready for October
I’m starting to believe Trea Turner is being hated around here. For me Amaya will be along with a Pitcher (Periot??) The ones traded for our urgent need which is 3rd base. Just remember next season shifting is over and the Center line philosophy will again rise like the Phoenix. We got Cody, Will & Austin, and Lux is working his ass off to be a legit 2B.
I am very skeptical of Minor League A players. For 5 years now, it was thought Lux was going to be the SS. Remember Joel Guzman?
Amaya is no Fernando Tatis, Guerrero. Those guys have been hitting the ball since they were in Pampers. Now that combine with very good defense, then those guys you can say when they were at A level, I want that guy be my starting SS.
I am not sure Tatis will be a SS for long.
I don’t hate Turner. He is a very good player, but I believe he wants to play on the East Coast.
Bum’s idea of trading him is supported by the fact the Dodgers will get no draft compensation. I could see Friedman trading him by the All-Star Break… maybe with no SS involved.
I am sure that has crossed Friedman’s mind!
It might cross AF’s mind, but I think he’d quickly banish that thought if Trea is playing well. Both the Dodgers and Trea benefit if he helps the team win the Series.
If Trea decides to go back East, perhaps the Dodger braintrust could pivot to gold glover Arenado, who I believe can option out after this season. Sort of like how they turned to Freddie after Seager left. All considered, the Dodger organization seem deeper at SS than 3B.
Winning a ring might make Trea want to stay. It might help if he’s gets so hot that the fans start chanting M-V-P…
Tatis and Vlad Jr are generational talents. Players of their caliber aren’t available in almost any scenario.
I don’t think anybody believes Amaya will be anywhere near that level. However, we don’t need him to be. Every team needs the Chris Taylors of the world. Solid contributors that come at a reasonable price. The way I look at it; Trea Turner will likely cost $30-$35m per season with a 10+ year commitment. With that price I’d rather take our chances with what we have (Lux, Vargas, Amaya, Busch) filling that lost production. If they don’t, AF knows how to make moves. And given how much payroll we are likely to shed next year I don’t see AF trading any significant talent. I think he was spend instead.
Agree…. AF’s pattern has been to trade talented prospects for established stars, but not a key player like Trea Turner. The financial engineering deals have served this purpose, as the big Cincy deal helped get Jeter Downs for Betts deal and Josiah Gray for the Scherzer/Trea deal.
Given all the rumors, it seems that Lux was deemed pretty much untouchable. What prospects now might be untouchable? I think Cartaya might be the only one, maybe Miller too.
That old trade of Dee Gordon sure worked out well. Barnes is still on the team and Kike served honorably for years.
I agree. Cartaya might be the only obvious “untouchable”. Vargas is close.
What I know about AF is that when he has financial flexibility (as it pertains to the Luxury tax) he will use that up before he uses minor league talent. If an amazing deal comes up, all bets are off. But in a normal scenario (as far as I read him) he will use the financial flexibility to find value where other teams need that flexibility (for whatever reason). For instance, why trade a chip when you can get a solid #3 or #4 starter for the playoffs by eating a 1 1/2 year bad salary the other team wants to dump. That’s why Betts isn’t playing in another city. Because we could eat a lot of Price’s salary. That got the deal done.
I can see AF making a move where we get some solid pieces for the playoffs simply because we have payroll flexibility (especially now that the Bauer issue is “kind of” resolved).
We won’t sign Trea. Anymore than we were going to sign Seager (and I love Seager). Flexibility and nimbleness is vastly underrated. Especially when you’re the best gambler in the casino.
I have faith in AF
Second Game 7:40ET 4:40PT
SPTyler Anderson L
2-0 2.55 ERA 15K
Confirmed Lineup
RF Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
SS Trea Turner R
C Will Smith R
3B Max Muncy L
DH J. Turner R
CF C. Bellinger L
LF Chris Taylor R
2B H. Alberto R
Clear-day
0% Rain
52° Wind 9 mph In
Bobby Miller pitching for AA Tulsa tonight.
So 24 games into the season, the Dodgers’ team ERA is the best by far the best in the MLB at 2.12. That’s nearly a half-run better than the Mets at 2.60 and no other team below 3.00.
They’ve done it despite injuries to the surprising Heaney and the not-surprising Treinen.
And now the offense seems to be heating up.
There is no glaring weakness in this team. . . but I still like to fantasize about possible deals.
The Reds are really hurting. Only 4 wins.
So what kind of package could be offered to bring Hunter Green home to LA?
I’ll take a shot at this Duke.
The Loons.
The Reds won’t move him. He’s their ace in making.
I had a great time hanging with DodgerPatch, Watford and Old Bear today. OldBear is such a historian, a walking trivia book. Watford is so personable and this is the second time I was a able to meet Patch and it was a pleasure that he was able to stop by on his way back from his morning bike ride. He’s a monster on two wheels.
It got a little confusing discussing chips, fries and crisps, but it didn’t take long to pick it up. What a pleasure to watch Kershaw take care of business like it was a day at the office. The waitress took a couple of pictures and Bear’s planning to post them as early as tomorrow. Watford got to try his first Michelada, a breakfast drink and we all fun putting faces to names, er, handles. Of course we all talked a bunch of shit on everyone else who wasn’t there.
Cheers Mates! Hope we all get to do it again.
Mark, thanks for providing the best online Dodgers community on the web! See you at Rancho in June.
Had a ball with the guys. My Place is a bit off the beaten path but once I found it, it was great. Watford. Patch and B&P are all great guys. We had people looking at us funny with all the Dodger history going around.
Hey Watford, I sent the pics to Mark.
Well, we did not have to bail them out. They evidently behaved.
From L to R: Dodgerpatch, Bulldogs & Penguins, Watford Dodger, and The Old Bear himself!
I may post a few more tomorrow.
Very Nice!
Mark, should have the next profile ready by tomorrow afternoon. The next story after that will take a while.
The big guy in the background in the black shirt had some words of wisdom. “You can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning.” 😉
I made Patch take off his Giants hat for the pic.
Ha! Ha! Ha! … don’t knock my beloved Gnats!.
I just got home. Had to truck it back home on the damn bike after three IPAs … 68 miles total.
Glad I took a detour and stopped by. It was a pleasure to eat, drink and chat about baseball in person with folks I usually know through their keyboards.
Watford is probably still contemplating that existential question about how a restaurant rings up a tip after you’ve already paid and closed out your tab.
It’s magic. Don’t worry about it.
Fun day.
Patch – just read that to my pals and they are cracking up.
Still can’t get our heads round it lol
That’s awesomeness right there.
J Cobb
Thanks for the heads up
We bought tickets first
BTW
The Big A ain’t a patch on Dodger Stadium
Guys – what a pleasure to meet you all earlier.
Loved the venue and spending time chatting baseball and life.
Don’t be fooled, B&P and Patch are Pussy Cats and Michael is exactly what you would imagine – a very knowledgeable and likeable man.
Getting to see a Dodger’s win was the icing on the cake.
Looking good in good in this one too – 4-1 up currently.
Looks like a picture of John Slattery on set with a group of extras.
We did stun the crowd with our Dodger knowledge. Besides Craig Shipley, the first Aussie, there was a player named Bart Shirley who played for a brief time with LA. That is why I called Shipley Bart at first.
Very cool guys! Nice to put some faces to the names!
That may have been the best I’ve ever seen Graterol look
Bobby – shame you and Badger couldn’t make it.
Next time mate – or when you’re over in the UK.
Thank you so very much Watford for explaining my 50 year old conundrum for me. It is such a relief to finally know what “sticky wicket ” means!
Not bad for a bowler with a bad hip!
Not bad at all. B&P and I were both wearing Kershaw jerseys, me road greys and BP the home whites. My LA cap has Kersh’s signature stitched into the side along with his number.