5 Point Offseason Plan

Posted By on October 28, 2022

Here’s the offseason plan that the Dodgers should do to return to glory…

  1. Get a new Bench Coach
  2. Change the Hitting Philosophy
  3. Player Personnel – 2 Key Moves
  4. Batting Order – Back to Old School
  5. Innings Eater – Workhorse Starter

Other than the epic failure of getting embarrassed by little brother this past season, there’ a ton to like about this team.  They generally field very well, especially in the outfield.  The pitching is amazing, especially since it seems that Mark Prior and his gang can take a journeyman pitcher like Tyler Anderson and turn him into a legitimate middle to top-of-the-rotation stud.  They didn’t do too bad with Andrew Heaney either, even if they couldn’t solve the home run puzzle.  The hitting is mostly great, but we can see that they had an Achilles heel and it was exposed in the postseason.

It’s a knee-jerk reaction to say blow it up, one that I initially had after suffering the crushing blow.  Start with the VP of Baseball Operations, Manager, and Coaching Staff sans Prior and the gang, and work your way down to under-performing players, starting with Bellinger, JT and CT3.  Throw the baby out with the bathwater dammit!  I’ve come to my senses since then.  Maybe that’s why there’s a cooling-off period after the World Series before transactions start to occur.

There will be some changes to the roster, that’s a given.  There are free agents that will need to be replaced and older players that need to hang them up.  Then we have some young players on the verge of roster spots and players under contract returning from injuries to plan for.  This is true of every team, but the Dodgers need to do a little more in the change department.  After all, doing the same thing and expecting different results is the universally excepted definition of insanity. 

With that said, here’s my proposal for making the Dodgers World Series bound next season.  I’ll go with reasonable suggestions here as I’m facing the reality that Doc, AF and Stan Kasten aren’t going anywhere.  And I’m not quite yet ready to do a deep dive into the roster and finances.  So, here goes…

Bench Coach

Let’s face it.  Doc’s weakest attribute as the manager of this franchise is his ability to make good decisions as the game unfolds.  It seems to happen every year in the postseason and has been discussed, written about, and criticized ad nauseum.  Yes, I actually get sick to my stomach reliving his past moves and it’s time to get Doc some help with his greatest shortcoming. 

Bob Geren could be the source of the problem.  He came up as a coach under the Billy Beane Athletics and even the A’s couldn’t stand him as manager.  He managed the lowly A’s for 4.5 seasons with a losing record in each of them, except for the team that finished with a 500 record in 2010 and was eventually replaced by Bob Melvin in 2011.  It took Melvin little time turning the A’s around by leading the club to 94 wins the very next season. 

Geren has a reputation for being very good with advanced analytics.  This could explain some of the curious, yet predictable moves that we’ve seen in the past.  It’s time for Doc to get some help reading the game.  Possible Replacements include well regarded John Shoemaker and Travis Barbary, both of whom are managing in the Dodger’s minor league system.  Chase Utley and Justin Turner are other options I would consider as heady baseball players that might give Doc some insight in reading what they see on the field.

Hitting Philosophy

Too many K’s, too much hitting into the shift.  Boring classic American League style of offense, get on base and wait for the big one.  This is probably the most frustrating thing with the Dodgers.  They have a team full of fast, athletic players and yet they do nothing to exploit the offense with these tools.  Brant Brown and his gang of launch angle enthusiasts might be the source of the problem and there are some tell-tale signs that they are.

Brant Brown was promoted to hitting strategist prior to the 2019 season.  Since then, we’ve seen Mookie Betts arrive and after a very successful 2020 season, Mookie’s stats have nosedived.  During Brant’s reign, we’ve heard reports of players picking the brain of the great Albert Pujols for hitting advice and more reports this year with players going to Freddie Freeman for the same.  Gavin Lux credited his resurgence this year to working with his old coach and Uncle Augie Schmidt for his newfound success at the plate.  Why aren’t we hearing about Brant making hitters better?  Why haven’t we seen anyone come in and do better under his tutelage like we see on the pitching side under Mark Prior?

Brant’s hitting strategy is clearly failing us.  We’ve seen Betts come over and get worse.  Trea Turner was arguable worse in his second season with the team.  Albert Pujols clearly had much better results this year, after he returned to the Cardinals.  He couldn’t fix Gallo, Trayce disappeared, Belli is a shell of his former self and Smith’s best year was his first two partial seasons with the club.  It seems like everyone is taking a slow ride downward with more exposure to Brant’s hitting philosophy. 

Key Moves

Of course, some change is going to happen.  Trea Turner may or may not be coming back and JT failed to show up for 2 postseasons in a row now.  He’s the classic year-too-early or year-too-late scenario.  I love JT, but all good things eventually must come to an end.  I would love to see JT promoted to a coaching position or something in the front office to remain a Dodger.  He deserves that for his postseason records alone.  But, I certainly don’t want to see him on the field any longer.  There just aren’t enough DH spots to go around and they just extended Max Muncy, so he isn’t going anywhere.

Max is one of those three true outcome types.  A classic number 5 hitter.  He doesn’t make enough consistent contact to be a cleanup hitter and doesn’t have enough glove to really warrant a spot in the field.  He’s got a ton of power and get’s on base, so it isn’t all bad, but I hate seeing him in the field unless it’s to give 2B or 3B a breather.

I’m not ready to give up on Belli yet.  Another full offseason, a new hitting coach, or the pressure of having James Outman breathe down his neck or a combination of all of the above might be enough to return him to enough of a hitter to warrant keeping his job as a run saving machine in center field.  Add the fact that there just isn’t a lot of good options outside of Brandon Nimmo and I think it isn’t much of a risk to try again for one more season.  Another year removed from injuries and a low bar offensively for a 7-9 hitter makes me think twice about releasing him.   I don’t really care about his salary, especially considering how much money they spend on broken pitchers that spend more time on the 60-day IL than they do on the active roster.

I’m in 100% agreement with Mark that Vargas’ time is now.  He didn’t have a great first callup in totality, but he’s done nothing but hit in the minors and he did it in a very steady fashion.

2018 (18) years old RK-A 330 BA

2019 (19) A-A+ 308 BA

2020 – The lost season

2021 – A+-AA 319 BA

2022 – AAA 304 BA

Every single year, he hit 300+ and never got very close to 100 K’s.  He’s exactly the type of hitter that this team needs in the lineup on a daily basis.  But, he isn’t the big right handed power bat that the lineup desperately needs.

If the Dodgers make one free agent splash this year, they need that big right handed bat to put in the cleanup spot right between Freddie and Max.  Or, better yet…

Old School Batting Order

100 years of baseball history told us to put your fastest player with on base skills up top.  A contact hitter second, best all-around hitter 3rd, best power who can also hit 4th.  High on base with power 5th and fill out 6-8 with next three best hitters and put some speed at the very bottom as a “second leadoff hitter” if you will. 

Now the nerds took over the sport and we see the likes of power hitters Schwarber, Ohtani and our own Mookie Betts batting first.  Even Ray Charles can see there’s a lot of wasted RBI with all those solo shots. Could it be the nerds are wrong?  Here’s a little secret I would like to share with you about computers as an IT professional of over 20 years.  It’s known as “Crap in, crap out”.  The output you get from the computer is only as good as the data you put into it and rules (algorithm) you use to produce the output.  Like religion, the computer isn’t infallible because like the word of God, humans are involved as the middleman to deliver those words.  Anything can happen during the translation.

With that said, in the age of analytics, RBI totals are way down.  2022 had just 13 players reach the 100 RBI plateau.  Sure, it fluctuates from year to year and external factors like steroids and juiced balls have a lot to do with it.  But, if the nerds were actually adding value, how would you explain such a measly total in the current season when analytics rule all aspects of baseball?

Let’s put together a lineup with a more traditional approach, only with current players under team control.

Lux 2B or SS L – He meets the definition of a traditional leadoff hitter.  He’s got speed and get’s on base.  Even at a higher clip than Mookie Betts this past season.  Allow him to run as much as he wants and he’ll probably look a lot like Davey Lopes in his early years before the man power developed.

Vargas 3B R – He hit 300+ each year in the minors without ever striking out 100 times.  He’s also been known to go the other way, which is advantageous with a runner at first or second.

Freddie 1B L – Tons of hits and a good amount of power.  A prototypical old-school 3-hitter.

Betts RF R – Led the team in homers and can mash the ball over the fence.  Time to transition him from table setter to RBI Machine with plenty of protection before and after him in the lineup.

Mad Max DH L – Plenty of pop for a 5 hitter and gets on base a lot.

Will Smith C R – He has the next-best power for a right-handed hitter on the team and doesn’t strike out as much as Max.  I think he fits perfectly in the 6 hole.

Bellinger CF L– Let’s just pretend he’ll improve upon last year, like he improved last year upon the year before.  He’ll K a lot, but he’ll hit his fair share of doubles and homers.  You can do a lot worse if Belli can be just a little bit better.

Now, all you need to do is figure out a left fielder and another middle infielder to slot in at 8 and 9. 

Internal Candidates

Michael Busch 2B/LF  L– He hit .274/.365/.516/.881 splitting time at AA and AAA this year with 444 AAA ABs out of 552.  He had 38 Doubles and 32 homers to go along with 118 Runs and 108 RBI in 142 games.  He struck out 167 times against 74 walks. 

Jacob Amaya SS  R He hit .261/.369/.427/.795 in 294 AAA ABs and 476 total.  He’s not the run producer that Busch is, but his on base skills are solid walking 81 times against just 112 K’s.  He’s got some pop with 20 Doubles and 17 homers.  He had just 85 runs and 71 RBI, a solid hitter with a propensity for contact.

Jason Martin OF L Can handle all three outfield spots and he’s got some good pop for a player of his stature.  At just 5’ 9”, he still managed to put up 32 homers and 25 doubles at age 26, a ripe age for a prospect.  But, at least he delivered in a big way playing entirely at AAA this past season slashing .285/.374/.564/.938.  He could be Andrew Toles all over again.  Yes, he’s another lefty hitter and yes he had 135 K’s.

James Outman OF L He’s a human highlight reel in CF.  He dives, leaps and climbs fences.  He can stick in CF based on his glove-work alone.  He had a “caveman” swing when the Dodgers signed him and has since transformed his swing into a legitimate weapon.  As a result, he’s having success at the highest level of the minors and his cup of coffee wasn’t half bad either.  Like Martin, he’s old for a prospect, just about a half a year younger than his AAA teammate.  And yes, he’s also left-handed. And yes, he K’s to the tune of 152 times against 70 walks.  He split time at AA and AAA with most of it in Tulsa.  But, he produced at the plate with 31 doubles and 31 homers and a robust slash line of .294/.393/.586/.978.

Eddie Rios 3B/1B L We all know Eddie by now.  He’s got prodigious power with a home run rate with the best of them.  The best we can hope for is Max Muncy with more doubles and a slightly better glove.  He had shoulder surgery and had just 92 ABs before injuring his hammy, never to be heard from again.  He put up solid stats in AAA in an injury filled recover year.  Yes, he bats Lefty and yes, he K’s too much 66 times in 189 ABs at AAA this year.  His slash line was solid, but not as good as past seasons.  .259/.339/.492/.832.  Eddie’s getting old, 29 years next year.  For reference, Cody will play his age 27 season in 2023.

Chris Taylor Everything but catcher R.  Chris just put up his worst season, since his first season with the Dodgers checking in at .221/.304/.373/.677.  He’ll be 32 next year and I sure hope to see a turnaround to get him closer to his career line of .256/.332/.433/.765.  I’d much rather that he return to a utility role than as an everyday positon player.  But, he certainly could handle a full time gig in a pinch.  He stuck out a whopping 160 times in just 402 AB’s this year.  For reference, Belli had less in more ABs.

The Verdict

We have the personnel right now to field a competitive team next season while also having a lot of money coming off the books at the same time.  It would seem a waste to not spend it.   

Andrew Friedman said there’s talent at upper levels, some will be ready when the season starts and some will serve as depth.  Some foreshadowing occurred this past season with Outman and Vargas both getting a cup of coffee.  It’s pretty risky relying on prospects to fill holes on the big league roster even for the highest-regarded prospects. 

Vargas is probably ready to take over a spot right now, so I threw him out there at 3B, his best position, to take over for JT, but Left Field is certainly an option.  Is he going to produce the .278/.350/.438/.788 that JT put together?  I would think there’s as good a shot for Vargas put up those numbers, maybe a better chance than a 38 YO JT would.  I think it’s time to pass that baton to Vargas unless you can sign that righty cleanup hitter who also plays better defense.  Hi Nolan!

I’m betting that Belli is on the upswing and Outman will be a legitimate fallback plan if he isn’t especially after seeing that link that STB posted.  CF will be one of the hardest places to find value with the upside and defense that Belli brings.  Nimmo is probably the only option that would make sense.  I wouldn’t want to risk cutting Belli and striking out with Nimmo. Spend the money elseware to improve the team.

You certainly could start the season with Martin, Outman and CT3 competing for playing time in LF.  All of them will provide very good defense and hopefully, one of the bats will step up.  However, the lineup is getting very left-handed and strikeout prone with Belli/Martin/CT3/Outman taking 2 outfield spots.  CT3 is better suited to be a utility player than an everyday left fielder in my opinion.  He’ll also serve as insurance against injuries of if the kids don’t work out.

Realistically, Busch and Amaya and possibly even Outman could all use more time in AAA, serving as depth for the upcoming season.  Amaya has a huge reputation for being a very good to great defender at SS.  If he can get on base and make a lot of contact, it might be worth it to have him take over at SS while improving the overall infield defense.  But, I don’t think it’s prudent to start the season with a Shortstop that hasn’t proven he can hit enough to stick much longer in the minors and expect it all to change at the MLB level.

It’s really hard to ignore Busch’s Runs, RBI, Doubles and Homers at second base, but 167 K’s shows that he might not be quite ready.  In fact, Amaya and Busch will serve the Dodgers well as minor league depth this upcoming season.  It sure looks like Outman, Martin and Vargas are closest to take the next step forward and with two of them being left-handed hitting outfielders, the Dodgers would do well to sign or trade for a right handed bat, preferably one with some pop that doesn’t strike out a ton.  That could be Trea Turner or Nolan Aranado.  I might be more willing to deal with 150+ K’s if was attached to 62 homers.

Innings Eater

We really could have used an innings eater need this past season.  Having a reliable arm that can rest a tired bullpen is a valuable commodity especially when you run into a short start or a bullpen game.  Taxing the bullpen could hurt you for a series or longer in the regular season, but it can kill you in the postseason as we just witnessed. This is precisely why we signed Trevor Bauer in the first place. 

None of the Dodgers pitchers was of the workhorse variety this year.  Tyler Anderson was best with 178.2 innings in 28 starts.  Very close to a 200 IP workload had he made 31-33 starts like most top-of-the-rotation arms.  It’s curious why he could only pitch 5 innings in a 2 hit-shutout game. 

Going into the offseason, the Dodgers have close to a full rotation.  A lot of that hinges on Trevor Bauer, whether he opts into his contract and whether he has to serve any more time in purgatory.  After Trevor we still have a good staff to start the season with…

Clayton Kershaw will most likely be back, be good in the regular season, and go on the IL 2-3 times.  He’ll provide time for some minor leaguers to earn MLB experience while covering his IL stints.  I see this as an advantage because he’ll provide opportunities for the rookies without having to rely on them, win a lot of regular season games, and be a solid number 4 in the posteason.

Julio Urias is entering what could be his final season with the Dodgers.  I really love this kid.  We watched him grow from a kid to a young man that’s been in the Cy Young conversation the last two seasons.  While he may not be an innings eater, he’s very close to one and very effective while he’s on the bump, limiting runs and picking up wins. 

Dustin May will undoubtedly find his way next year.  He was on the verge of really breaking out when his elbow failed him.  Together with Julio, they’re a young two-headed monster at the top of the rotation.  Just don’t count on him to toss 200 innings as a 25-year-old coming off Tommy John surgery.

Tony Gonsolin was great this year until he fizzled out after more than doubling his innings-pitched output from any year in career so far.  He did get to 130, but how much more can we expect from a guy that seems to land on the IL every year?  It’s a safe bet he won’t come near 200 next season.  It’s a much safer bet that he’ll wind up on the IL at some point.  I love Tony when he’s healthy, I just don’t trust him to be healthy, especially for an entire season.

Danny Duffy, believe it or not, is under team control for next season due to the club option that we hold for the soon to be 34 year old.  He hasn’t pitched in a year and half, but he was pretty damn good the last time he pitched in 2021.  He’ll be the next project for Mark Prior and his gang.

The good news is this is a very good offseason for starting pitchers if you’re looking to fix a former very good starting pitcher.  Maybe Prior and company can work their magic with Taijuan Walker, Michael Wacha, Jameson Taillon, Noah Syndergaard, Zach Eflin or Nathan Eovaldi.  Or, maybe just bring back Anderson or continue working on the Heaney experiment.  Unfortunately, only Anderson looks like he could be an innings eater out of that bunch.

The Plan

You’re going to hear this all off-season from me.  Make a right-handed masher as the very top priority and either retain Trevor Bauer or find another guy that has a good chance to be a quality innings eater.

So, go ahead and offer arbitration to Belli and give the QO to Kershaw.  Fill out the rest of the bench with Barnes, CT3, Rios, Outman or Martin and possibly even bring back Alberto on that 2 Million dollar option.  Phillips should graduate to closer, so don’t go spending money on one and by God, don’t even think about bringing Kenley back!  Jimmy Nelson has a club option and Treinen, Vesia, Ferguson, V-Gone and Hudson will all be back as well.  There’s plenty of “leverage guys” to choose from so, don’t get cute and make Doc manage a “closer by committee” situation.  We don’t want another game 4.   

The core of this team is still very formidable and there isn’t a lot that needs to be addressed.  Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.  The lineup with Nolan Arenado would look awesome. 

Lux SS L

Betts RF R

Freeman 1B L

Arenado 3B R

Muncy DH L

Smith C R

Bellinger CF L

Vargas 2B R

Outman LF L

If Vargas fails at second base, you can put him in LF, move Outman to right, and let Mookie handle second.

The “Let the Kids Play” lineup looks pretty damn good too.  But, you can see the problem as the lineup turns over.

Lux SS L

Vargas 3B R

Freeman 1B L

Betts RF R

Muncy DH L

Smith C R

Bellinger CF L

Outman LF L

Busch 2B L

4 Lefties in a row in the lineup and a Catcher as one of three righties looks really bad against left-handed pitching.  No doubt, Doc and the gang will go to platoons as the solution taking away AB’s from developing players and giving them to the likes of Alberto and CT3.  This is not my preferred method to develop left-handed hitters.

The dearth of offensively productive center fielders is almost as bad as available right-handed power.  Nolan would be a fool not to explore free agency.  If not, hopefully we’ll see a good old-fashioned trade this offseason if we’re willing to package Busch and an arm or two in order to get that bat we need. 

This article has 51 Comments

  1. RBI down, strikeouts up. Any connection?
    As for the Dodgers, Betts, 85 RBI, Turner 100 RBI, Freeman 100 RBI. Was the top of the order the problem? Could we use players who make more contact, without a doubt. Not sure the top 3 are the issue.
    As an aside, I would think the brain trust would have simulated enough realizations to determine the best outcomes with respect to scoring. What’s missing is making changes in short series where you see players struggling. Aaron Boone did this with his batting order. Didn’t work but he did try to shake things up.

  2. As an aside, I would think the brain trust would have simulated enough realizations to determine the best outcomes with respect to scoring. What’s missing is making changes in short series where you see players struggling.

    So, your position is to let the simulator pick the lineup, but throw it out the window in a short series based on a sample size of a game or two? Seems contrary to me.

    As an aside, the computer told the Dodgers to bat Mookie, Freeman, Turner at the beginning of the season. It wasn’t working. Then, the humans came in and made the decision to bat Mookie, Turner, Freeman and the offense took off. So much for the simulations.

    Strikeouts up with the age of analytics, any connection?

    1. Not contrary. It gets back to whether you make changes in a short series or fully trust the process. Is it good to keep the process going when your forth place hitter has driven from SD to be there for the birth of his child and then helicopter him in before game time? Or should they have tweaked the lineup? Like benching Bellinger in the latter games of the SD series.

      Yes the simulations had a different batting order then how things ended up for the latter part of the season. Why was that? I would suspect the process showed one thing but after enough data it needed to be changed because they weren’t seeing the results they should have seen. So the decision to make changes where the players involved felt most comfortable. Again intangibles that need to be addressed.

      Strikeouts up in age of analytics? Yes. Why is that? With shifts/power pitches it’s hard to score runs. Hence, the shift to the 3 true outcomes scenario. Scoring runs wasn’t a problem for the Dodgers during the regular season even with several 3 true outcome players in the lineup.

      The issue is not whether analytics is bad. It’s thinking that using long term statistics will be fully reflected in a short time frame. Remember, the Dodgers were favored in the SD series 60-40. So 6 out of 10 times following the process would have worked and 4 out of ten times the Dodgers were expected to fail. How can you account for that in a given series; be it by making tweets to the lineup if something seems amiss or doing things like bunting, stealing etc. when results are showing you waiting for home runs may not be working out.

  4. Once again Trayce Thompson is a forgotten man….
    He’s still under contract, and at worse seems like a 4th outfielder. If he cuts down his Ks, he’d be in the mix with Outman to replace Belli. Hell, he replaced Belli in the postseason anyway.
    I’m a bit leery of Vargas based on his first 50 PAs. The fact that he rarely walked–just twice, and the second was in his last AB–suggests that he was pressing. His K/BB ratio was lousy. I get the hype, but there are many guys who dominated the minors and failed in the majors. The Angels’ Brandon Wood was a can’t-miss guy who missed.
    Clearly the Dodgers brass and some folks here think Vargas is much better than Outman. In 2022, however, Outman had the better numbers combining his stints in Tulsa, OKC and LA. Plus, he’s a much better fielder.
    One reason for the excitement about Vargas is his youth. He’s 22, while Outman is 25. Somebody somewhere once said progress isn’t linear. Just as some phenoms flame out, some guys are late bloomers., including Aaron Judge.
    I’d much rather have Arenado than Trea Turner…. but will he come?
    Judge would be the more exciting move. But Arenado might be the better baseball move, because of the defensive edge. He and Mookie were both selected for Fielding Bible honors as the best defenders at their position.
    But I’d settle for Judge.
    And Ohtani too.

  5. Excellent article. After a cooling off period, I realize that the Dodgers still have a very good roster and major changes are not needed for a 111 win team. But the Astros had the best team in baseball this year, and their postseason run is proving it. Dodgers are not in a position to lose their best players without replacement.
    In B&P proposals, it is just assumed that they can lose their SS/best RH hitter and just plug Lux in. I like Lux, but he is unproven as a MLB SS, and the decline in his power numbers are alarming. He hit 28 HR in 2019 as a 20 yr old, and hasn’t hit more than 8 in the last 3 seasons, and only 6 HR last season. His minor league power has not yet translated to the MLB.
    The free agent market has 4 very good RH shortstops this year in Turner, Bogaerts, Swanson, and Correa. And a few trade candidates in Anderson and Adames. I would exclude Correa from consideration, and Turner would be my first choice to bring back. But if not Turner, then Bogaerts or Swanson should be signed. Both had great years in 2022, and have won WS before. And they each played with the two best players on the Dodger roster previously.
    The Dodgers should not start the season with huge question marks in CF and SS, the 2 most important position players.
    I would also be inclined to bring back Bellinger, although preferably at either a reduced salary or with a club option year attached. There would still be opportunity for young players like Vargas, Busch, Thompson, and Outman to compete for starting positions at 3B, LF, CF and DH. But the Dodgers would start spring training with less question marks and a team capable of winning the division again.

  6. Fantastic article P&B. Being this early in the offseason a lot will probably change between now and spring training, but it’s still interesting to get your take on what you would like to see happen in 2023.

    It would be nice of AF would complete his signings and /or trades before the end of this year. With the current situation I’m going to lean on bringing up some of the prospects and give them a real opportunity to shine. I get a little concerned with so many of the experts touting the Dodgers minor league system and then having the top prospects fail in the majors. Other than maybe Vargas I’m not expecting all to become stars. Hopefully, many can become solid everyday players or pitchers that are available on a consistent basis. Many were initially disappointed in Gavin Lux after his incredible stats in his minor league career. I was OK with his play and the team moving him into playing the OF surely didn’t help with his development. Put him at 2B and leave him there. Not every player has to be able to play all over the field. I feel Lux’s biggest issue is the mental part of the game. So leaving him at 2B and hit him in the same spot in the order might be a calming and simple environment for him to thrive. When he was hitting ninth for most of the year he was productive. For 2023 I too would like him to hit leadoff and agree that Mookie needs to move down to the fourth spot.

    The FA I would like to see signed would be Brandon Drury. He’s a right handed bat with some power and some position flexibility. Other than Judge I don’t see any other RH hitters that would fit with the team right now. Drury could be an everyday 3B for now. That would put Vargas in LF. CT3 should be relegated to a utility role only. It’s painful to watch him hit. How a major league hitter can swing and miss so often is amazing to me. It’s not just the K’s but all the empty swings on the way to the strikeout. I don’t see a role for Busch right now and another year in AAA to work on reducing the strikeouts might be in order. Or, maybe he can be part of a trade for a SP or RH power bat. If TT isn’t resigned then Amaya should be given a chance to start at SS. If we can live with swing and miss offensive output of Bellinger, Muncy, Taylor, Thompson, and Gallo then why can’t the team withstand the potential weak hitting SS with a plus defense talent? Wasn’t that acceptable with Bellinger and Gallo? Sure, they can’t hit, but that GG defense makes up for it.

    I’ve thinking about how the playoff system is set up and how it makes to terribly too long of a season almost irrelevant. I know none of what I’m going to propose will never happen being that all is dictated by money. To me the regular season is completely too long to then turnaround and allow 12 teams to play for the championship. I know that baseball is a game that values statistics and its records more than any other sport. But, if they are going to allow so many teams to play in the postseason then the regular season should be shortened. I would like to see the schedule trimmed down to about 120-130 games. Start the season in the first week of April and have the World Series be done by the middle of October. Playing the WS in November shouldn’t happen, especially when an East coast team is involved. It’s called the Fall Classic for a reason. I know it’s Fall until mid December, but I don’t think games should be cancelled because of snow. Baseball is a summer sport. It would be nice if the season ended closer to summer. Just sayin’.

    This playoff system is obviously continue in the future. How about having the pennant winning teams that get a bye no having to wait so long to play their first game. The wild card teams are there to be rewarded for finishing in second or third place in their divisions. In reality they shouldn’t be in a playoff. They play average at best during the first half of the season, get hot toward the end of the season and then in the playoffs. And get rewarded. If they get into the playoff they shouldn’t then be treated like a team that won 111 games or even 100 games. Depth is usually a weakness for a wild card team. So, the wild card team should have to overcome that depth issue during the palyoffs. The first round should start the next day after the season ends. All games should be played in the home teams ballpark for five straight days if necessary. No travel or time to reset the rotation. The next series should be played with the first three games at the top seeded team’s park. Then two games at the other team’s park and then back for the final two games at the division winning team’s ballpark (if necessary). There is no huge advantage for the division winners right now other than home field. They have unwanted time off waiting for the wild card winners to emerge. Look what happen this year all the top teams except, of course, the Astros. Eliminated. That’s good for baseball? The wild card teams should have to totally overcome a brutal schedule to justify their opportunity to win a World Series. With the current system we have has given us the cheating Astros and a team that finished in third place in their division. THIRD fricken’ place!!! Again, is this good for baseball?
    Phils vs Astros…NO. Astros vs. Dodgers? Hell yes!!

    The Dodgers and Astros were no doubt the best teams in their respective leagues after playing a long season in 2022. With the drama that was created by the cheating motherfer’s that were the 2017 Houston Astros what an incredible World Series it would have been if had been given the opportunity to happen. But, no! Because of three games when the Dodger hitters couldn’t hit a baseball (not the pitching, not DR, not the front office) a team that the Dodgers dominated during the season gets to move on in the flawed postseason setup. Some say it creates drama. It gives an underachiever a chance to move on. To play six months, finish 22 games ahead of that team, and dominate them in head to head play and get eliminated because your team stops hitting for three frickin’ games in a playoff. To play 162 games with a .685 winning percentage and end up no chance to win a WS. I say bullshit! This is another example of Boob Manfred and the owners having no appreciation for the integrity of the game of baseball. Like most everything else, it’s about the money. To hell with the game, the players, and more important the fans who make it all possible. Sorry for the rant, but damn.
    Carry on.

    2. Awesome post tedraymond. Your playoff changes make great sense. That’s why it will never happen..

  7. Not sure I get number one. Okay, if you change the bench coach, does that mean the Dodgers win 112 games?

    First I think you have to determine what the problem is … the Dodgers won more games than any team in baseball, but couldn’t get it across the finish line in the playoffs.

    Why? What happened?

    They didn’t hit with runners in scoring position. They struck out way too much. That’s obvious. Mookie Betts didn’t hit. The bottom of the line-up failed to deliver. What does any of that have to do with the bench coach?

    Now, I agree with most of your points.

    I noted a a few times that the Dodgers needed to win in 2022. But I honestly didn’t expect them to win the World Series. Just a sense, I suppose. There just seemed to be something missing. They were the best team in baseball during the regular season and no other team was even close. But were they built to win the playoffs? Apparently not.

    Now, I’ve read that maybe the Dodgers should have signed Bryce Harper. I really liked Harper. But the best comment I saw was we should have signed Harper and traded for Betts. Can’t have enough high paid all-stars, right?

    But moving forward, lots of decisions. I’m guessing they keep Cody Bellinger. Part of the reason is the end of the shift. The other is they are afraid he suddenly regains his hitting skills and it would be a bad look letting him walk.

    Miguel Vargas will get a chance to play every day and maybe his bat delivers what the Dodgers were missing.

    Who plays short? No idea. There is something going on with Aaron Judge in New York. Maybe he’s tired of the Yankee scene and hearing the boos at the end of the season. They actually booed Judge. So maybe there is a chance and Mookie moves to second.

    No idea what happens with Trevor Bauer, but the Dodgers need to move on. It would be a total circus if somehow he returns. Bring back Anderson, maybe go after the Japanese hurler. Gonsolin, May, Urias, Kershaw and the young pitchers in the minors will solve any rotation issues. Can’t have enough starting pitching.

    They need to work on hitting philosophy and promote more contact with runners on base.

    I’m guessing JT returns.

    Excellent write-up today, BP.

  8. BP –

    Another comprehensive article – lots to think about! My question is….with the shift being banned next year, is there an expectation that MLB teams will go back to the offensive approaches of the past which traditionalists prefer? I personally think it is a more exciting brand of baseball than the three outcome offensive approach used by teams today. Is there any indication that the Dodgers will be one of the teams making this shift? If so, how might that impact next year’s roster?

    1. My gut feeling is they won’t change much. But, they did go hard after Freeman last year, maybe that’s a sign?

  9. Yep – enough time has passed for me to enter the fray once again.

    Firstly, I have read every single article and comment over the past fortnight as I’ve tried to heal from another massive anti climax, so a big thank you to you, B, Michael, Evan and of course Mark for keeping us engaged with your peerless writing.

    I’ve also read all the comments, the angry, the frustrated, the “I told you so”, the “taking a back seat” and the ambivalent.
    You know what? I found myself agreeing with every single one of them. It’s certainly a full range of emotions that we go through, and there are many reasons why we ultimately “failed’ in 22. Others disagree, but to me 111 wins is nice, but it’s all about winning the WS. Everything else is failure.

    Secondly, upon reflection, things that I got very wrong. I thought we’d be lucky to get a full season out of Mookie and his bum hip. How wrong I was. I don’t think it was mentioned once in the whole season, and was certainly good enough for him to bowl on!
    My other big strike out was with Kimbrel’s addition, which I predicted and believed would make a big difference. He did even make the post season.

    On the other hand things that i suspected to be the case, turned out to be just that.
    Our sentiments towards Clayton cloud the bigger picture, and have done for a number of years now. Time to move on.

    Doc. Over management when none needed. Let Anderson start game 2 at home. He’d been our second best Pitcher all season after Julio so put him in there and let him give us a 2 game lead, thus guaranteeing at least a game 5 at home with Julio dealing. Instead Clayton didn’t rise to the occasion once again.

    Why oh why start Gonsolin in pivotal game 3 when he’d done nothing for weeks and his Post Season figures are something for Halloween. This should have been Clayton’s start.

    In game 4 with Anderson in cruise control, why take him out??? Utterly ridiculous. And predictable.

    However, if you don’t take your opportunities, you don’t win. Our hitting with RISP was woeful.

    We weren’t far away. Again. Will Smith didn’t produce, and Mookie was average when we needed them to stand up to be counted.

    I read Phil’s comments before the post season and found myself in the same place – rather apprehensive. He was uncannily right with his Crystal Ball of course, which really gets to the crux of my disappointment. I could see this coming.

    I wasn’t convinced by the 111 wins. Something was missing. I was admonished for applauding the play and FU attitude of Machado. Evidently it’s not the Dodger Way.

    So, much like you B, it hurt again of course, but wasn’t unexpected. Personally I like to see someone else at the wheel now. We’ve seen the same story playing out too often. We are the 90s Braves reborn. Give someone else a chance.

    Going forward of course I’d love to see Nolan come home, I just don’t see it now.
    I throw the money at Trea. He’s Elite.

    I let Clayton walk, and I definitely don’t pay Bellinger for that production.
    I sign Andrew Benintendi and work an Outfield of him, Mookie and Trayce, with CT3 in reserve.

    Much depends on Bauer’s situation but I offer Anderson a 3 year deal regardless.

    Frustration is what I’m feeling. If we could’ve got past the Padres we’d have beaten Phillie., and we’d be looking forward to game 1 tonight.

    Another huge opposition gone to waste.

  12. Another great post, B&P. Give up your day job and just do this every day. Whether I agree with you or not, your stuff always leads to good discussion here.

    Some thoughts:
    * Maybe we need to take AF at his word, that he doesn’t think major changes are necessary and, therefore, won’t be making many.

    *This team won 111 games, then had a 3 game losing streak in the playoffs where they couldn’t do much of anything right. Every single team in MLB had a streak of that length or longer during the year. It represented 1.8% of the games we played in 2022. It came at the worst possible time, but would we have even had a second thought about it if it had happened in May or July or August? Small sample size folks. It doesn’t mean we need to break everything down and start all over again. And we don’t get to make that decision anyway.

    * McCullough is supposedly a finalist for the KC manager’s job. If he leaves, I hope we bring in a base running expert as the first base coach because things will definitely be different next year with the limitations on how often pitchers can throw to first. We’ll need to build on the great base stealing we did this year and make sure we take even more advantage of our speed. I still spend every off season hoping Utley returns as a coach, but if not him, maybe Jimmy Rollins would be interested.

    *We could definitely use another righty power bat in the lineup, but Arenado is not leaving St. Louis. I vote no on Judge. Too many years and likely lack of production at the end of the contract (see Albert Pujols and the Angels).

    * Last but not least, Jon Heyman is reporting that AF would definitely like to bring back Trea but isn’t certain that will happen. His plan 1A is……………………………………………..Correa. The front office apparently doesn’t feel the way the Dodger fans do and loves what he brings to the table. Unlike most of you here, I wouldn’t have a huge problem with it. I’ve let go of 2017. Too many other things to be angry about these days. Of course, Heyman is not the most accurate of reporters, but he does get some things right. No mention of sources on this one.

    1. STB,

      Cut out the logic. That makes too much sense! I agree with everything you said.

      What’s wrong with you?

  13. Singing The Blue,
    I’ve been checking in less on this site lately, just waiting for the Series to start and prepping for returning to Az for the winter. I’ve said my piece about what I think needs to happen this winter. I agree with many ideas including B&P todays. So we’ll see.
    I did see your request in my opinion and I had a look at Tieran Alexander’s swing analysis of Bellinger. Who is Tieran Alexander anyway? I didn’t have the opportunity to look at his comparisons frame by frame but I have broken down Belli’s swing on my TV frame by frame 100 times. But not these specific, hand selected videos.
    So what do I think? To start with, before I discuss his findings about Belli becoming a front foot hitter with his weight transfer being his issue, and leading to an “unstable bat path” with his back leg having X degrees of increased flex, I want to disagree with initial premise. The one where he blames Cody’s difficulties on the hairline crack to his tibia. Bellinger’s hitting spiral started way before that.
    Here’s a little history:
    Some blamed Belli’s difficulties started with his dislocated right shoulder he suffered in game seven of the NLCS in 2020, doing a shoulder bump with Kike after hitting a home run. Actually his shoulder was injured well before that by diving for balls at first base. That’s why he moved to the outfield full-time. Tieran Alexander doesn’t pinpoint that as the start of his problems as some people do. I don’t either. Alexander offers that Bellinger’s exit velocity dropped dramatically after he fractured of his left tibia on April 6, Alexander claims “That was when everything fell apart for Bellinger, as that one injury that sidelined him for nearly two months also ruined his mechanics”. Alexander postulated that the pain made Belli change his swing. Alexander cherry picked video to support his claims, comparing 2019 to 2022.
    A little History here:
    Bellinger, originally much weaker while batting then fielding, became a power hitter after making a change to his batting stance during the 2014–15 offseason. Working with Shawn Wooten and Damon Mashore, Bellinger incorporated a small hand and wrist movement into his “load phase”, which prepared him to make strong contact with the ball. In response to concerns that he was “standing too tall and straight-legged” in the batter’s box during the 2018 season, making it difficult to build momentum, Bellinger made a number of other changes during the 2018–19 offseason.

    In the first 82 games of 2019, Belli was unconscious. He hit .346 / 1137, with 27 dingers and striking out only 17% of AB’s. The remainder of the 2019 season, he hit .259 / .921 and his strike out rate increased to 22%. He still had MVP stats for the season and finished up at .305 / 1035 with 47 dingers. But the 2nd half of 2019 was the beginning of his downward spiral, in my opinion. in the 2019, 5 game post season, Bellinger hit .211 / .549 with 0 homers.

    2020 WS Championship

    Bellinger had a slow start in 2020, going 5-for-36 in his first eight games. Unlike in previous years, Bellinger was making weak contact with pitches, leading to a large number of groundouts. This was well before his tibia fracture in 2021 where Alexander started measuring reduced exit velocity. His numbers for the whole season saw a drop-off from the previous year: in 56 games of the shortened season. Bellinger hit only .239 /.789 with 12 homers. In the post season of 18 games, Belli hit .212 / .770 with 0 homers and a 33% K rate.

    Bellinger’s drops in batting average was explained by his constant experimentation with his swing, which prevented him from locking into pitches the way he had the season prior. Despite injuring his shoulder on Oct. 18, during the NLCS, Bellinger continued to play in the World Series, and he celebrated his Game 1 home run by foot-tapping his teammates rather than high-fiving them. Bellinger underwent surgery for the affected shoulder in November 2020.

    2021 – He suffered another injury on April 6 after colliding with Oakland Athletics pitcher Reymin Guduan. Bellinger had suffered a hairline fracture in his left fibula. This is when Tieren Alexander reports Bellinger’s swing changes began and he started to struggle. And that is total bullshit. By July 23, Bellinger was batting under .200. At the end of the month, Roberts made the decision to relegate Bellinger to a platoon role in the outfield, starting A. J. Pollock, Mookie Betts, or Chris Taylor against left-handed pitchers. Injuries to Pollock and Taylor, however, forced the Dodgers to renege on that platoon system shortly after its introduction. Bellinger suffered his third major injury of the season in September, when a collision with teammate Gavin Lux, resulted in a fractured rib. By the time of the collision, Bellinger had already missed 46 games that season with his fractured fibula, and an additional seven with hamstring tightness.

    Bellinger finished the regular 2021 season batting a career-low .165, with ten home runs and 36 RBIs in 315 at bats. Injuries certainly impacted his season, including a fractured rib on Sept. 13th. In the post season’s 12 games, however, he had his best career post season numbers hitting .353 /.907 w/ 33% K rate, despite the injuries.

    2022 – We all know his season numbers and his post season benching while hitting .143 / .286, 57% K rate in 3 post season games.

    I think a case can be made that he has actually had a spectacular 1/2 season in 2019 and 1 good post season and otherwise is a mediocre to poor hitter. I had predicted long ago this swing would not hold up, and it hasn’t. His swing was never built for longevity. So, I’m not buying Alexanders start date for Bellinger’s hitting woes.

    Back to Alexander’s analysis, I think his analysis on Belli’s left foot early lift, his weight transfer and his disconnection between lower and upper and all the other micro analysis might have some merit. But they are all symptoms of bigger problems.

    So with all the minute analysis, how do you fix it? Squash-the-Bug drills and staying back? Hell, half the Hall of Fame hitters were front foot hitters: stride and glide guys. I go back to the simplest teachable stuff. As Cody’s timing is everything, he is habitually tardy now. Most of the stuff Alexander points out are Bellinger’s desperate attempt be on time. He has to rush to the baseball to be on time.

    Here’s my advice again to simplify his mechanics and eliminate problem areas like back foot lockout:

    * Get into a cage with a tee, a bat, 3 pairs of batting gloves and a million baseballs. Start with a tee and move to soft toss.
    From the ground up:
    * Feet – get off the plate.
    * Stride – step toward the pitcher. His 12 to 15 inch “bucket foot” causes him to open up his lower half and pulls him off the pitch, especially pitches away and up. This is what Alexander calls” disconnect” between his upper and lower half. Pitchers do it too. So practice striding toward the pitcher in balance. Balance is the key. When Alexander point out the rollover of his right foot that’s not necessarily a front foot hitter malady, it’s a balance issue.
    * Stance and posture – He can be as stiff legged and upright as he wants to pre-pitch. The issue is he doesn’t assume any kind of athletic posture and launch position, until the pitch is on the way home. He has about 3 tenths of a second to make all the posture changes and adjustments to hit. Why NOT start with flexed knees and a spine angle with some tilt so the posture change isn’t necessary? Look like a golfers address position.
    * Head movement – To me this is the major thing to FIX. With his upright stance, he makes a drastic move to get to launch position, very late. Again, while the pitch is on the way. Watch Belli’s head in slow motion and look where his head travels to and through contact. His head drops 12 to 18 inches. I seriously can find no one else in all of baseball who drops their head like that after the pitch has been released, to get into their launch position. So assume the posture I described, before the pitch is released that mimics where he wants to be at front foot strike. And stop the late head dip. It makes him tardy. I listened to Rick Monday criticize this very move during his 3 day stint in the booth with Joe Davis this summer. “You can’t hit with that much head movement”. Exactly what I’ve been saying.
    * Hands – Most players load their hands. Belli is too busy moving. Most everybody has a “trigger” to get into a launch position on time. Some use the high leg kick, some a knee buckle, some a small hitch with their hands. Bellinger hitches with his head, shoulders and hands. It’s a body trigger. He’s very bottom hand dominate, as well, with his top hand dipping along for the ride. I suggest he take the top hand to the baseball as a point of emphasis. This gets him to the pitch without the loop. An “altered bat path” as Alexander calls it.
    * Timing – I have never wavered from my statement that when Bellinger’s timing is right, he can hit. The problem is his swing is so hard to time. It’s a long, complicated swing with lots of moving parts, that hasn’t aged well, especially with injuries. A new, simplified version would be a lot easier to time and might save his sinking career. Since he is always tardy, he has to swing too hard to catch up to the pitch. And we all know what the problems are caused by swing from your ass every time.
    So, STB, you asked for my thoughts. There they are. Bellinger is a career .248 hitter and sinking when the MLB average is .243. For my $ this will be all moot, as I think he needs to move on to some new instructors and a new environment ,to try to save his career. His contract will demand 19 – 20 million and he simply isn’t worth it. Maybe he will suddenly fix shit but he hasn’t in 3 1/2 years, so what makes me believe he will now? I want to see a youth movement in the outfield with our homegrown guys getting the 1st shots. That makes Belli’s shaky future someone else’s problem and not the Dodger’s.

    1. Thanks a million for the feedback, Phil. Your comments seem very much on point and I agree that after 3+ years of struggle Cody would probably be best served in a new environment. No one is going to pay him 18-19 mil next year. If AF cuts him loose he should be happy with 10 mil. At some point maybe he’ll cross paths with someone he’ll listen to. That’s his only hope for resurrecting his career.

    2. Phil, a fantastic analysis, conclusion, and solution to Cody’s hitting issues. I was hoping you would have read this guy’s article and given us you opinion. As I have said in the past it’s a shame to see such a talented athlete waste his potential. And, the big question is how can this happen with all the resources available to him?

    1. I wonder what kind of golfer Cody is? Probably pretty good because there isn’t any oncoming pitch to time.

      Maybe he should quit MLB and become a pro golfer.

      1. STB, did you see the video of Belli and Mike Trout pounding drives with a raucous crowd watching at a Top Golf? Trout as expected, just muscled the thing but Bellinger has a really nice golf swing from the brief clip I saw. He looks like he’s played a bit. Much better than his baseball swing. Maybe he has a future on the Champions Tour. But I haven’t seen him hit 50 yard wedges or putt.

        Hey Mark, as my agent is 15% fair? I can’t believe you’d give me such a big cut.

        1. As a matter of fact, I did see that video.

          I’m guessing Belli’s average drive is about 300 yards.
          But his average putt is about 200 yards. Just can’t seem to cut down on his swing.

    2. I am acting as Phil’s agent… Just send us a blank check, and we will take it from there.

      Phil, your cut is 85%.

    3. Maybe Scott. I love coaching golf. When I had restaurants I got lots of the waitresses started in the game. Many still play today. I never got below a 4 handicap but I loved to play the game until my joints went south. With all the replacements, I hope to play again. Tip one – don’t dip you head. It makes you top the ball and causes poor contact. Sound familiar?

  15. tedraymond brought up the playoff system and I’d like to chime in. I know it won’t happen, but I’d like 2 divisions in each league. Then I’ll use only 1 league as an example and it goes the same for the other league. The 2 teams that win their division play the 2 teams that end up in 2nd place in each division. The team with the overall best record in the league plays the team with the worse record of the 2 second place teams and then the rest you can figure out.

    Now about the 2023 roster and what BulldogsandPenguins said.

    Martin has been given 4 shots in the majors, 2 of which large enough samples and has failed to produce. I see AAAA written all over him.

    Amaya should not even sniff Dodger stadium, a .256 minors career average and .754 OPS won’t translate into anything good at the big league level.

    Alberto is a one trick pony, only base hits against LHP with no walks and no power. Goodbye Alberto.

    I like Busch, but he needs another year in AAA.

    I’m not as high on Vargas as most here are, I think he needs at least part of another year in AAA, if not a whole year. The position player prospect that is ready that I’m most high on is Outman. I’d like to see him given CF. I’m done with Bellinger and his big salary that can be used elsewhere.

    Outman is a 6-9 hitter in the order.

    Moving Betts down the lineup is something I’ve thought about and would be alright with depending on who we have. He’s a 1-4 hitter in the order.

    Lux is not a leadoff hitter to me. I want someone with a higher on base percentage and more pop, not a true home run hitter, but someone with some pop. Lux is a 6-9 hitter in the order.

    I guess Muncy is here to stay. I would like to move away from 3 true outcome players, but having 1 I guess wouldn’t hurt. He’s a 6-9 hitter in the order.

    I would like to keep J Turner. He makes a decent/good amount of contact and walks with some pop, still at his age. But he’s no longer a top/mid of the order hitter. 7-9 in the order fits him.

    I think the Dodgers should do what it takes to keep T Turner. He would be a good leadoff hitter, otherwise he’s a 1-3 hitter in the order.

    Add Smith. He’s a 4-5 hitter in the order.

    Add Freeman. He’s a 3-4 hitter in the order.

    That leaves 1 spot left for a RH power hitter. I’d like to replace Muncy as I said above, but oh well he’s here to stay.

    My final 5 in the order would be:
    5 Smith C
    6 Muncy 3B/DH
    7 Outman CF
    8 J Turner 3B/DH
    9 Lux 2B

    The top 4 would depend on the final spot to be filled. But most likely I wouldn’t mess with the best 1, 2, 3 punch in baseball we had this year. And if we don’t get that RH power bat and have to settle for Bellinger, then I would move everyone up a spot in the order with Bellinger number 9 in the order, and give Bellinger CF and move Outman to LF. But please let’s move on from Bellinger, unless he would agree to being a bench player, but I doubt that.

    The bench needs an overhaul. There’s Barnes of course. I guess Rios would work, I can’t ignore the big power he has. Then what? I’d like to move on from Taylor and all those strikeouts, since a utility guy is not really needed with the DH. 1-3 spots open depending on Rios and Bellinger if he agrees with being a bench player.

    The pitching was really good this year, even the bullpen for the most part.

    I don’t care for Duffy, who BulldogsandPenguins mentioned. He’s been average/worse than average/bad during his whole career, except his most recent year.

    I’m going to assume Bauer is gone, but who knows. I’ll just leave him out of here.

    The key free agents we have that I think Friedman should keep are Anderson, Kershaw, Martin, Kahnle.

    I would like to see Gavin Stone as a starter.

    I’ve always wondered what Prior and company could do with Syndergaard. Good mention Bulldogsand Penguins. I would love to see that happen. But where is the room for him as a starter, if Anderson and Kershaw stay and Gavin Stone is given a chance?

    Now lets look at the pitching staff if all those key free agents are kept and Syndergaard is added:

    Starters:
    Urias
    Syndergaard
    Gonsolin
    Kershaw
    Anderson
    May
    Stone

    7 starters for 5 spots, unless the Dodgers decide to go with 6. Gonsolin has the stats for a very good reliever, and as BulldogsandPenguins mentioned, Gonsolin has issues with a lot of innings and injuries from it.

    The bullpen if Martin and Kahnle stay:

    Phillips
    Treinen
    Martin
    Kahnle
    Almonte
    Vesia
    Hudson (Remember him? The Dodgers re-signed him)
    Gonsolin (Maybe)

    14 active pitchers total. 1 too many? That’s not including Ferguson, Graterol, Bickford, Gonzalez, all who I would like in AAA for depth only, with Pepiot and Miller (Miller added to the 40 man roster) also in AAA for depth. That is a stacked pitching staff including depth.

    Anyways, that’s my take on everything.

  16. Remember, except for the change in the Format this season, the Phillies would not even be here in the World Series.

    Can they win? Yes, they can!

    Will they?

  19. Robertson didn’t do that good in the 10th inning tonight but he got it done without allowing a run and struck out Alvarez. But he definitely played with fire.

    Most importantly the Phillies won and the Astros lost.

    Sometimes I believe the playoffs especially the World Series is fake like the powers that be wanna make it as exciting as possible you hardly ever see blowouts. At least it’s been that way recently.

    1. You are starting to catch on to the randomness of it all when all teams have so many resources. Luck and Momentum play a part…

  20. For you NFL guys, I had the pleasure of driving Rayshawn Jenkins, Safety for the Jags into London today, before their game with the Broncos at Wembley on Sunday.

    Very nice guy, humble. Not a Baseball fan unfortunately.

    Statement win for the Phillies.

  21. Justin Verlander is 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA in the World Series.

    Clayton Kershaw is 3-2 with a 4.46 ERA.

    Just sayin’…

    1. Wow, it’s surprising that Verlander’s failures in the WS are completely ignored by the media while Kershaw is described as a WS failure by them. Also, consider that one of those losses was in the 2017 WS where the Astros beat down on Kershaw like a empty trashcan. Oh, wait….

  22. Fun game last night. The Fighting Phils are on a roll.
    Not to belabor my Bellinger analysis yesterday, but there are some interesting similarities between Cody and Kyle Tucker. Same size and build for one. But watch Tucker’s stance. He has a Ted Williams stance with more knee flex and tilt from the waist. He keeps that posture from his initial stance to when the pitch is released. He doesn’t have to move late to get in his launch position. He does dip his head about 3 or 4 inches but not 12 to 18 inches, so it’s easier to be on time with less moving parts. Nice width to his feet, off the plate, picks the stride foot up and sets it down on time. And here’s a biggie, he steps toward the pitcher and not in the bucket, so his hips stay closed. He has great separation and balance. Nothing rushed and not having to swing from his ass. What a nice swing. He does things that I suggested that would help Bellinger.
    Okay, I’m done now.

  24. Well, the Nolan Arenado sweepstakes didn’t last past game 2 of the WS. He’s staying in St Louis.

    Disappointing.

  26. Made it home to Colorado this afternoon. Spent most of my first hour home sorting my mail Mostly junk, but I got my Dodger cap and my Freddie Freeman jersey. Arenado has opted into the rest of his contract as stated above. MLBTR has a story out that the Dodgers fallback option if Trea goes elsewhere is Carlos Correa. Say it ain’t so Andrew! He would probably be the first Dodger player ever BOOED at the introductions on opening day.

    1. Ya. Not sure I could stomach Correa in Blue. I could probably get over it. After a few months of dry heaving every time he came up to bat.

      1. Yes, would be really tough to see this cheater in a Dodgers uni. A constant reminder how they stole the 2017 title from us. I would rather see us get Bogaerts or keeping TT.
        Too bad Arenado did not opt out. With him at 3b we could have afforded to put Amaya and his GG at ss.

        Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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