I liked that headline, but I am joking… partially!
I hate to keep saying this (no, I really don’t), but there was no way that Andrew Friedman and Josh Byrnes were going into the season with Gavin Lux at SS and Miguel Vargas at 3B. The conventional wisdom was that Lux was going to be the SS. Muncy was at 2B, and Vargas was at 3B. I said that I would rather see Jacob Amaya at SS than Lux, but I am thrilled with trading Jacob Amaya for Miguel Rojas, who will hold down the #9 spot in the batting order. Amaya may (I said “may”) ultimately become a better SS than Rojas, but if Vargas, Busch, and Outman make the team, the Dodgers do not need another rookie. They need a vet at SS! Miguel is a defense-first SS who has a career Fielding Average of .980 with a career BA of .260 and an OB% of .314. He is definitely a #9 hitter, and this is a perfect landing place for him THIS year.
Right about now, I am going to put the odds that Gavin Lux plays 2B at 50/50. I think the Dodgers are considering Lux in the outfield, and of course, some of you are going to say, “You are wrong! Hell No! No Way! He’s going to play 2B – pure and simple.” Well, I am going to say this once: “I have been telling you for years that Lux was no SS, and some of you wanted to argue about it, but it turns out I was right, and you were wrong! End of story!”
Now, there is a lot to be decided:
- How does Max Muncy look? Is he healthy? Is he trimmer? Quicker? How does he look at 2B?
- How does Miguel Vargas hit? How does he play 3B?
- How does James Outman look in CF… or LF?
- How does Mike Busch look in the spring?
Gavin Lux could end up at 2B or maybe the outfield. Miguel Vargas could be at 3B, or LF, and Max Muncy could be at 3B or 2B. This is what I know (barring injury). What I know is that Andrew Friedman pulled a rabbit out of his hat with Miguel Vargas. He doesn’t walk, and he doesn’t strike out. He puts the ball into play and he will bat 9th. Hitting 9th and eliminating the shift should maximize his ability.
Chris Taylor is expected to be traded unless Andrew Friedman pulls another Rabbit out of his hat and gets the Twins to pony up a few million for Trevor Bauer by throwing in some prospects. Time is short. It has to happen soon. The Dodgers are going to be under the Luxury Tax – BOOK IT!
To those of you who think James Outman will be a great centerfielder, based on his small sampling, I say, “Maybe, Maybe not!” We have not seen enough of him to make a rational determination., and if you say that Gavin Lux cannot play OF based on his small sampling, I say the same thing! Lux will need to learn to play the outfield. Craig Biggio learned to move from C to 2B to CF. Gavin Lux is a gifted athlete who does not have a great arm, but it’s a good arm, and it’s enough for CF.
I see James Outman as a 4th Outfielder. Here’s my 2023 lineup:
- Lux CF
- Betts RF
- Freeman 1B
- Martinez DH
- Muncy 2B
- Smith C
- Vargas 3B
- Busch LF
- Rojas SS
Bench: Outman, Thompson, Barnes, Heyward, Dugger, Vivas, Leonard, Rushing, Hernandez – Pick ’em! Taylor may get traded!
Gavin Lux will likely hit .300 with a .385 OB% if he has nothing in his head about the Yips. He might hit 20 HR at leadoff. Maximize his offensive value and speed.
Rojas had a bad year in 2022, but he is a big bounce-back candidate, as he was injured most of last season. Miguel Rojas is an elite defensive shortstop who is a two-time Gold Glove finalist — including last season, when he ranked in the 98th percentile of outs above average, per Statcast — as well as a respected clubhouse leader. I suppose it’s possible that he could platoon with Lux, but I think Lux needs to play every day, and that will likely be in the outfield!
Rojas gives the Dodgers another year to find a SS. Don’t doubt what I am saying… right about now; my record is better than yours!
What happens when a blind squirrel runs into a broken clock?
“Don’t doubt what I am saying… right about now, my record is better than yours!”
We’re still waiting for Alex Verdugo to turn into the next Tony Gwynn.
“…as well as a respected clubhouse leader.”
I think this is a big part of it. The Dodgers are already risking a little bit by going with two rookies in the lineup. Amaya might turn into a decent MLB shortstop someday, but today the Dodgers need a proven commodity and a veteran presence in the clubhouse – especially with JT gone – instead of another unproven rookie.
Hard to justify Lux there at SS sandwiched in between a rookie Vargas at 3rd and a suspect Muncy at 2nd, especially now that the shift is gone and he can’t cheat. The Dodgers need some stability in that infield. The infield defense still is a major question mark, but it’s better.
Not sure where that puts Lux. If he’s not a SS, he’s not a CF. Doesn’t have the pop for LF.
The actual quote was “Tony Gwynn-esque.”
He has not performed to that level and I can’t make excuses even though he hates Boston.
But my win-loss percentage is still pretty good.
I like it I was saying the same thing just don’t like Busch in LF. Maybe Heyward if he is like Kemp was in spring training that one year. Kemo made the all-star team.. Then they have Thompson or Outman out there some games. If they trade Taylor? And also some prospects. Could they get an established outfielder. Say like from the D- Backs. I hear they have like six outfielders. Just haven’t followed the Twins. And don’t know who they have as outfielders.
The only one I would want is Byron Buxton. Pure center fielder. But he is injury prone.
I think Lux can be a very good player. Just put him in CF and let him play. I think you just might find that he is a Centerfielder.
I disagree. He has the speed to play there, I just do not believe he is comfortable in the outfield. When I have seen him out there, he looks lost.
Is Rojas really going to be the Dodgers shortstop? You would think but then there’s this;
Rojas, 34 next month, adds a glove-first utility option to the mix in L.A. Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times writes the club plans to bounce the nine-year MLB veteran around the infield in a multi-positional capacity.
Wait just a darn minute there. Mark hasn’t authorized using Rojas all over the place.
He’s the starting shortstop. Somebody tell Andrew.
Mark may want to wait for the Dodgers to explain this move before ruling out Lux as a SS.
Rojas adds depth, but it makes zero sense to exceed the luxury tax just to swap Amaya for Rojas. He is a below average hitter and could barely start for the Marlins, much less a World Series contender. Rojas is a good insurance policy if Lux can’t handle SS, but I highly doubt Rojas is expected to be an everyday player. Maybe they platoon Rojas and Lux at SS, and Lux moves to 2B against lefties. Or maybe Rojas is used as a late inning defensive replacement.
But this is a baffling move as it stands now. If the Dodgers were fine exceeding $233 million in payroll, then they should have actively pursued a legitimate SS like Turner, Boegaerts or Swanson. Or a budget free agent option like Iglesias or Andrus.
Usually Friedman finds a solution and no way this is the last domino. Either dump salary to get under the CBT threshold or spend more to improve the team.
Wrong Roger. Since 2019 he has been their primary SS. Playing over 120 games there three of the last four seasons. He was a gold glove contender last season, and that was playing with a bad wrist, from which he had cartlidge removed this winter. His career average is .260. That is not below league average. He doesn’t have much power, but it sure looks like he has not lost any range. His defensive runs saved was excellent. It doesn’t baffle me at all. He is a solid vet and an excellent clubhouse guy. I doubt they trade Taylor or Muncy. As for dumping salary, they are the only two that make sense. If they can find a taker for Bauer, they are still going to have to eat a large portion of his salary.
Rojas has only been an above average offensive player for one year in his career. Last year he was at the bottom of the pike of league SS for total WAR.
Yep he was, but he was playing with a bad wrist too. He is a solid vet and gives them excellent defense.
Yes, excellent defense. I agree with that, but he’s been a below average offensive player for his entire career. I suppose if he can hit like he did in 2021 before injury and give a wRC+ of 95 (100 being league average) I’d take it.
That is what they are counting on.
Interesting development but tempered by the fact that although he’s just had wrist surgery, he needs further work on it, which is a red flag for me.
Not sure Ive seen a player yet who returns to their best form in the season after surgery – always seems to take time, and we only have him for one year.
I’m reserving judgement on this one…
His wrist is fine, They removed cartilidge from it after the season. He should be ready to go by spring training. The wrist affected his hitting some, but not his fielding. Solid addition and a good guy in the clubhouse. If it were surgery for a busted wrist or something like that, then I would be worried. Removing cartilidge is not that big of a deal.
I do not like this trade. For once it puts us over the luxury cap and second we did it for a marginable player.
Now if the plan really is to get under the cap the Dodgers will have to make another move to shed salary. Whose it gonna be ? CT3? Then you moved Amaya and CT3 for Rojas.
And the idea of putting Lux in CF ? Well, not very happy about that too. Lux is a great athlete, right, but he has about ZERO experience in the outfield. Overall the Dodgers defense beside Freeman, Smith and Betts looks suspect already.
A very strange offseason so far for the Dodgers and right now I do not see this team winning more than 85 games unless the pitching is absolutely lights out and at least one of the kids comes threw in a big way.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lux is a good, fast athlete…. but remember how ragged he looked when they tried him in CF and LF?
Bad jumps, bad reads and bad routes–including one into the wall. The veterans, you may recall, razzed the youngster by putting up a police-style body outline on the wall.
A learning experience!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qroE0Mne7XI
Has Lux been working out this off-season at CF? Did AF tell him, “Don’t tell anybody, but I’m joking about you playing SS. Go get some outfield reps.” I don’t think so.
Sure, a position shift is possible. But does anyone seriously think Lux could out-field Trayce, Outman and Taylor? They are all good defenders–and probably have better arms than Lux too. Why make a trade to strengthen infield defense only to have it weaken the OF defense?
I see a few possibilities here…
–Rojas owns the SS job and the fate of Lux will be sorted out, mostly likely with a move back to 2B but possibly–eventually–in a trade.
–The SS depth chart is now Lux, Rojas, Taylor, because the Dodgers tend to emphasize offense over defense. Lux’s bat was excellent in early 2022… until it wasn’t. Rojas could be a late-inning defensive replacement.
–An SS platoon? Lux bats left, Rojas right. Neither have reverse splits. Unlikely, but possible.
–Lux moves back to 2B is the cleanest solution, but it triggers some dominoes, with Max shifting back to 3B, possibly sharing the job with Vargas, or Vargas shifting to left, perhaps in a platoon with Trayce. (I still like McCutchen’s, but I think Rojas has probably filled out the roster.)
Having Vargas in a platoon may not be ideal–less of that runway–but I think this might be the best option. His bat-to-ball skills would mitigate Trayce’s Ks, enhancing the production from LF.
So…..
Betts RF (name a better leadoff hitter. Rickey Henderson doesn’t count)
Freeman 1B (the Dodgers’ best hitter–an on-base and doubles machine)
JD Martinez DH (but will he outslug JT?)
Muncy 3B
Smith C
Lux 2B
Trayce/Vargas LF
Outman CF
Rojas SS (fa gold-glove candidate SS! …Finally!)
Bench: Barnes, Taylor, Heyward…. Yonny Hernandez?
Another potential outcome: Lux gets traded, perhaps in midseason.
The more I think about it, the more I like it…
Rojas really does solidify the infield. He, Freddie and Will are all top-shelf defenders who can help cover for the not-so-hot stuff we can expect from 2B and 3B. (I still pine for Matt Chapman.) Without Rojas, we’d have three question marks in the infield. (And doesn’t Lux represent a defensive upgrade at 2B over Max or Vargas? I assume so.)
When I look at my projected lineup, I see 25+ HR potential from every position but SS and 2B. And 30+ potential from RF, DH and 3B.
I don’t see Outman as a 4th outfielder at all. He’s a rookie who has earned that runway to prove himself. Trayce, a journeyman, seems more like a 4th OF type to me–but his breakout is real and Heyward is the 4th OF on this team.
I’m bullish on Outman, the Rodney Dangerfield of prospects. He’ll strike out a lot, but he has improved year after year. He’s excellent on defense, and his OPS in 2022–despite the strikeouts– was better than Vargas and Busch. If Outman delivers a league-average performance, that would be a big upgrade over what Belli, Gallo and Taylor produced last year.
If he flops, he flops. But he’s earned the chance.
Martinez outslugged JT last year. So outslugging him this season should be a lock.
To me, this just solidifies the Dodgers commitment to Lux. There will be no competition with Jacob Amaya in Spring Training. They just brought in a veteran defensive wiz that can offer tutelage to Lux to make him even better on the defensive side of the ball and to give him a day off against left-handers to keep him fresh.
I still don’t like this deal if it takes them over the cap. But, maybe they have a trade in place to free up some of that sunk Bauer money? I pray.
If the Dodgers weren’t going to go ahead with Lux, they wouldn’t have let Seager and Trea walk. It’s a simple as that. Read the writing on the wall. Rojas is a depth piece and the Dodgers obviously concluded that Amaya won’t hit enough to be a big leaguer. It also shows they aren’t comfortable with CT3 at SS.
KISS. Keep It Simple Stupid. Stop moving everybody around to satisfy your fantasy. Outman and Trayce will platoon in CF and CT3 will be the primary Left Fielder and Heyward will most likely make the team. With Outman in CF and CT3 in LF, the bench would be Heyward, Rojas, Thompson and Barnes. Done! If Pages, Deluca or Busch pulls a Belli this Spring, they can stash Heyward in the minors for the time being like they did with Pillar last season.
AF architected this team to make a runway for guys like Outman, Vargas and Busch. You aren’t going to block them now by giving Rojas a starting spot and moving an infielder into a crowded outfield mix. That goes against everything they did this offseason.
That’s silly. Here’s what The Athletic says:
Adding Rojas at the shortstop position allows the Dodgers to keep Lux at second base — where he put together his best big league performance as an everyday player last season — and frees Chris Taylor up to bounce between second base and the outfield, another area of need for the Dodgers.
Rojas will also get to add another chapter to his time in Los Angeles, which included a sterling defensive stab in the seventh inning of Clayton Kershaw’s 2014 no-hitter and his inclusion in the first major trade of Andrew Friedman’s tenure as Dodgers president of baseball operations — he, along with Dee Strange-Gordon and Dan Haren went to Miami for a return that netted the Dodgers left-hander Andrew Heaney, reliever Chris Hatcher as well as two core members of the 2020 World Series-winning club, Enrique Hernández and Austin Barnes. — Fabian Ardaya
Lux to the OF is my idea and maybe Lux stays at 2B, but barring disaster, he will not play SS!
So all this back and forth about where Lux is going to play … if the whole premise of this trade is that the Dodgers can now move Lux to 2nd, where is Muncy supposed to go? I thought it was a foregone conclusion he goes to 2nd and Vargas starts at 3rd. Vargas is in LF now? Maybe Muncy platoons everywhere – 2nd, 3rd, DH?
You’re giving Roberts too many options. He’s going to be platooning everyone up the wazoo! He’s going to be platooning so GD much he’s going to lose track of who’s playing where. There’s gonna be two players in left field.
I have no knowledge or any inside information. It’s just that using the “eye-test”(not stats), Gavin Lux is not a Shortstop and while Jeff Dominique and I don’t agree on everything, this is something we have both agreed upon. I also think that it will take a couple of months for Lux to be completely comfortable in the outfield. Throughout high school and into my early 30s, I played SS exclusively before switching to 3B. Then, I started to have arm problems (I also pitched when I wasn’t playing the field and my rotator cuff was getting frayed pretty badly so I switched to 2B. Those of you who knew me years ago may find that funny because I am a guy about the size of Joey Gallo (well, I was until I lost 3” due to degenerative disc disease). I played at 2B for a year before moving to 1B exclusively. My point is that I played infield almost exclusively… except for one game when our centerfielder was injured and our manager said, “Timmons, you are my next fastest guy, you are playing CF.”
You talk about a deer in the headlights – I froze on so many balls right off the bat that the manager benched me after three innings. If a player has not played CF, under game conditions, boy it must take a long time to learn. I know how Gavin Lux felt when he played the outfield… briefly. Gavin Lux has only played 339 innings in the outfield and I am going to say two things about that:
1. He has an idea of what it is like and so his learning curve will be shorter than someone who has never played there; and
2. I do not think you can make a judgement as to his ability tp play OF after 339 innings!
I think he can play there (at a high level) if he is committed to it, but time will tell.
Now, Muncy could go to 3B and Lux could stay at 2B. I know that is a possibility. Vargas then moves to LF which makes Busch the odd man out and I think Mike Busch will surprise many of you. There’s a reason why Fangraphs has Busch at #3 and Outman at #26. So, I admit that this could be the lineup:
1. Lux 2B (who is a better leadoff hitter? – Lux over Betts IF Lux can hit like I think)
2. Betts RF
3. Freeman 1B
4. Martinez DH
5. Muncy 3B
6. Smith C
7. Vargas LF (maybe Busch in a Platoon)
8. Outman/Thompson CF
9. Rojas SS
I do not have high hopes for Trayce Thompson. Everyone makes a big deal of his reverse splits LAST YEAR, but for his career, he hits .228 against RHP and .210 for LHP. So, it’s not that big of a deal. What is the big deal is that he strikes out at an alarming clip, he’s 32 and has never hit as he did in 2022 (and that was just .256). We know he is a good guy, from Good Bloodlines, but he has never been a very good MLB player, and the odds are he reverts back to that. Jason Heyward is only a year older and I have hopes that the Dodgers can “Fix” him, but I do not think he is a CF’er.
So, it is going to be interesting to what happens this Spring. There are lots of opportunities and plenty of options. Now that SS is stabilized, let the game begin!
Good morning Mark. Wow. I’m actually questioning your partially serious declaration to never question you again. You provide to us with your serious, somewhat serious, and often outlandish statements on a weekly basis for us to comment on. And we appreciate and need your opinions on topics for us to comment on. For example:
” Well, I am going to say this once: “I have been telling you for years that Lux was no SS, and some of you wanted to argue about it, but it turns out I was right, and you were wrong! End of story!”
Well, I don’t think it’s the end of the story with the Lux at SS dilemma. He’s only started 50 games at SS for the Dodgers in the past two years. Was he Ozzie Smith? No he wasn’t. But scouts, analysts, and you have come to the conclusion that Lux can’t play the position for the Dodgers. You all may be right. But, for you to declare “I was right and you were wrong” before Lux has had even an reasonable chance to play there everyday is an opinion to be questioned. And I don’t remember anyone arguing about Lux being the only candidate to play everyday SS. Many expressed an opinion that he should at least be given a fair opportunity to claim the spot. Maybe Lux has been working hard to improve his footwork and throwing in the offseason. Or, maybe the Dodgers’ FO has told Lux to work on playing LF or CF for the 2023 season. We don’t know for sure. Oh sorry, other than you, we don’t know for sure. It would be nice for Lux to be able to play SS. It would allow Vargas to play 3B and Muncy to 2B regularly. That’s kind of scary defensively, but we don’t know that for a fact because it’s just a projection at this point. That’s one reason I’m looking forward to this season. That is, how is all this going to come together? It may take half the season to find out.
I don’t see the Dodgers expecting the 34 year old Rojas manning the SS spot fulltime this season. I always liked him and his versatility and was sorry when he was traded to Miami. I think the reason AF may have traded for Rojas is to increase the possibility of trading CT3 (+ a prospect) for get under the Luxury tax threshold. Or possibly including CT3 in a Bauer trade. Why else would they go over the $233M for a player like Rojas? Something must be in the works.
I think it was Bear who wanted Lux to play everyday at one position (2B or SS) so that he could keep his mind clear and reduce stress. This was something that concerned me about Lux when he arrived with the Dodgers was that he appeared not to be mentally prepared for MLB. I agree with Bear in that Lux shouldn’t be moved around to different positions whether it be SS, 2B, LF, CF. I hope they do the same with Vargas. Either 3B or LF. Pick a spot an leave him there. Apparently, he’s working hard at 3B in the offseason. I don’t think it would helpful to say to him at the start of spring training “never mind 3B, it’s now LF”. The game is hard enough for these young guys. We need their offensive talents to shine in 2023 and adding defensive question marks to their agenda might not be helpful.
Carry on.
The team would be over the threshold without this trade via the arbitration cases.
I read yesterday, but haven’t confirmed, that the date when teams are deemed “under” or “over” the threshold is at the END of the MLB season.
If this is true, it changes the dynamic entirely for me, in that there’s a lot more time to move Treinen, CT3 or other high-salary to create space.
Interesting. So AF can sort of kick the can down the road.
Also, all of these projections about whether the Dodgers are over or under the current CBT estimate the outcomes of arbitration for team controlled guys. Honestly hard to predict.
It is true.
So we have till the trade deadline
Should we be out of the pennant race at that time we might not only move some more salary , we might even be trading Urias who will be tough to resign with Boras being his agent. Getting some blue chip prospects and then go all in on the big name free agents and Sasaki.
No matter how you look at it this might be the most ingriguing season in a long time.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
We aint going to be out of the pennant race.
Everyone and their brother makes the MLB playoffs now and the 2023 Dodgers WILL make the playoffs.
I’m wondering if the Dodgers don’t care to dip below the CBT threshold. Here is the latest on the CBT under the new CBA…
https://www.mlb.com/glossary/transactions/competitive-balance-tax
Key Points…
You only get penalized in the draft if you are $40M over the CBT and there is no mention of International Bonus Pool penalties…
A club that exceeds the Competitive Balance Tax threshold is subject to an increasing tax rate depending on how many consecutive years it has done so.
First year: 20 percent tax on all overages
Second consecutive year: 30 percent
Third consecutive year or more: 50 percent
If a club dips below the luxury tax threshold for a season, the penalty level is reset. So, a club that exceeds the threshold for two straight seasons but then drops below that level would be back at 20 percent the next time it exceeds the threshold.
There’s also a surcharge threshold for clubs that exceed the base threshold by $20 million or more.
$20 million to $40 million: 12 percent surcharge
$40 million to $60 million: 42.5 percent surcharge for first year; 45 percent for each consecutive year after that
$60 million or more: 60 percent surcharge
Clubs that are $40 million or more above the threshold shall have their highest selection in the next Rule 4 Draft moved back 10 places unless the pick falls in the top six. In that case, the team will have its second-highest selection moved back 10 places instead.
Well, I definitely think they shouldn’t have to care about dropping beneath the threshold. They are awash in cashflow.
I also think they say that’s its not an imperative to drop below the threshold.
BUT
Actions speak louder than words and it sure seems like they care to.
Alex Eisert @FanGraphs wonders about the Rojas deal and what it may portend.
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/dodgers-seemingly-scrap-spending-plans-acquire-miguel-rojas/
The idea of moving Trienen rather than Taylor or Muncy seems to be gaining traction in the public space. Whatever that means or doesn’t mean.
Prospects would have to be attached
At first I thought this was a weird idea. Why would any team take on a player who can’t play this year, but whose contract runs out after this year, even with prospects attached? Then I read the details of his contract that stipulate a club option next year to make up for missing time.
Either way, it’ll cost prospects. What does the trade calculator say? What would the trade calculator say if he never plays? How do you trade for a player worth 0 WAR?
Rojas will play this season.
Talking about trading away Treinen
Bauer officially released and DiGiovanna has this sourced quote:
“The only guy who I know for sure would sign him is Al Davis,” one high-ranking major league executive said, referring to the renegade Oakland Raiders owner who relished his organization’s bad-boy image right up until his death in 2011.
Emphasis and wiggle room created by “for sure”.
Does this mean that we can now sign Bauer for the major league minimum!
We can’t. But anybody else can
TIC
Trevor Bauer is now a free agent as AF could not trade him. When asked who might take him, one executive said Al Davis is the only one I could think of
Some people here were very ADAMANT about the Dodgers would trade Bauer and that it would be STUPID to release him for nothing . The part they left out is that nobody would want him, much less give something up for him. I hope somebody picks him up but I am very skeptical.
I hope they don’t pick him up either. Let’s get on with the Lawsuits!
I said that the only way they could trade him was to include Diego Cartaya in the deal. I guess the Dodgers weren’t willing to do that.
If the dodgees are going to deal with the twins. Why not go after Byron Buxton and max Kepler. And say trade them for a Chris Taylor and trace Thompson and Lux and maybe a pitcher. They probable have an infielder that we could use too. So, you get yourself a legit center fielder and you put max Kepler and James Outman in Leftfield. And you still have Hayward as the Dodgers fourth outfielder. You have Muncy at second or third base. Vargas at third base. And Rojas at short stop. This could happen if the Twins want Bauer And there’s know where for Lux to play.
On which planet?
With this move I certainly don’t want to hear that the Dodgers are playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers. Absolutely stupid trade.
what if I told you they were playing 4-D chess while everyone else is playing Chinese Checkers??!?!?!?
JR,
No one here ever thought that Amaya would be anymore than a utilityman or at best, a journeyman.
Now, maybe they (we) are wrong. That’s the chance you take when you make a trade.
What the Dodgers did was to get at least 1 year of a TOP TIER shortstop for Amaya. I mean a TOP TIER SS who hit .265 with the Marlins and had a penchant for the clutch hit. He has a career BA of .290 with RISP and a .360 OB%.
I think it was a brilliant trade. Here’s the chance to defend your position. Explain to me how it was an “Absolutely Stupid Trade!”
The clock is ticking – It pisses me off when people say stuff they can’t back up. The clock is ticking! Tick, Tick…
I don’t like the idea of trading a good prospect with 6 years of control for an aging veteran with questionable offensive skills and only one year of control. Miami will probably not be playing Amaya in the bigs this year anyway and perhaps they insisted on him to complete the trade, but I would have offered another prospect or two in place if Amaya, hoping he could possibly be our SS in the future.
Sounds like a reasonable argument to me.
I look forward to Mark’s next “toldja!” when AF gets the Dodgers under the luxury tax. “BOOK IT!,” Mark says.
OK, consider that prediction booked.
Should we also book Lux in CF?
Packaging Bauer with prospects could work. There’s speculation that the Rangers or Twins could be interested. Any others?
Taylor is a (usually) good player and a good guy who is coming off a very bad year after getting a pretty hefty contract for a UT guy. Would a team take on Bauer + Taylor + prospects, enabling the Dodgers to get under the tax.
The machinations are interesting. If it helps the Dodgers land Ohtani, I’d be all for it.
But, maybe that is what it took. In fact, I am betting that’s exactly what it took.
It’s a reasonable argument in a vacuum.
I guess it tells us what they thought of Amaya. Not much
They thought enough to trade him for a TOP TIER SS.
I think Rojas will surprise you and hit much better than many think.
His batting average and OB% with RISP is outstanding.
Amaya is a blue-collar grinder who could have a long career that looks a lot like the guy he was traded for. Slick glove but a mediocre bat. Also high baseball IQ.
Not only does Rojas represent an immediate defensive upgrade, but he’s been a clubhouse leader. (I understand that he was nicknamed “El Capitan” as the longest-serving Marlin.)
It’s a “win now” move and also a short-term solution. I assume that AF is still interested in Adames.
I also wonder about MLB-ready SS prospects could be targeted. When the Dodgers got Jimmy Rollins, we knew Seager was waiting in the wings. But the Dodgers’ top SS prospects now like Rayne Doncon are still a few years away.
In this MLB Survey of executives:
https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-front-office-selections-best-farm-systems?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage
The Dodgers ranks:
Farm: 2nd
Draft: 1st
IFA: 1st (tied)
Pitcher Dev: 2nd
Hitter Dev: 1st
Sleeper Dev: 1st
That’s what kills me when people say “That was an absolutely stupid trade.” I don’t play well with morons.
I think you need to invite Scott Andes back. We need a diversity of opinions. 😉
Underrated post.
If you saw his recent vile, unhinged posts, you would know why!
Poor Scott. Just popped over to his site to see if there were any juicy “vile, unhinged posts.” I was disappointed. It was just dumb. He hasn’t posted in a month and had only one comment.
Hey all I was saying was. What you said dodgers could trade Bauer and Taylor with twins so. I said get Buxton at least he is a center field and maybe we do trade Lux sounds like the Dodgers don’t have a position for him. And wouldn’t you get good players if your trading with a team.
Mute point at this time there Bradley since Bauer has been officially released.
I couldn’t care less about Amaya and I couldn’t care less about Rojas. But I hope Rojas is going to be on the bench and not starting. If he’s platooned with Lux there’s not much gain offensively than Lux starting everyday and Lux is growing unlike Rojas. I don’t know, that’s my take on the trade. I hope he doesn’t turn out to be another Hanser Alberto who I was right about from day 1 he signed and took alot of crap here from some people, the usual suspects, during the season about Hanser Alberto.
Cannot really argue with you there Eric. Alberto did not do what they expected of him. Up until his one year with the team, he raked against lefty’s. But we got some great entertainment with his 10 relief appearances. And he was undoubtedly the most enthusiastic bench player I have seen in years. Always leading the cheers from the bench. One good thing is that although he did not perform to the level expected, he never really hurt the team. As for Rojas, I think you might be underestimating his ability’s a little. But we shall see. They did not trade Amaya for him just so he could ride the bench and be a utility player.
Eric,
I have a feeling you play Fantasy Baseball which really puts no value on Runs Saved and Top Tier Defender. Maybe you should be running the Dodgers…
That’s true about me Mark. I don’t get upset about defense unless someone clearly sucks defensively and I don’t think it makes much difference between an adequate or good defender vs a great defender. That’s just me, I don’t like taking away some offense to gain some defense.
I do not think they reduced their offense at all. Amaya was a maybe, Rojas can play the game. Now, where he fits in is the question that remains to be answered but adding a quality defender like Rojas is always a plus. Remember, Trea’s error led to the runs that beat the Dodgers in game two when they could have went up 2-0 in the playoffs.
I don’t know, maybe I’m wrong, but I think Rojas and Barnes are going to battle for the worst hitter on the team and Barnes doesn’t play much.
Possibly Eric, but over his career Rojas has been a much better hitter than Barnes, and he also has been a regular for most of the last four seasons. Hard to hit if you are not playing, but Barnes has done ok. Taylor had a lower average than Rojas last year, and both battled injuries.
Wow this is fun, Bradley mentions trading for Buxton, a very good player with an injury history worse than Kemp’s. When he chooses his outfield, he makes no mention of the best player on the team, Mookie Betts. Haters dislike the trade of an unproven prospect for a sure-fire gold glove SS. I think some of y’all forgot to eat your brain food. Bauer is gone, there should be no further mention of him whatsoever on a Dodger blog. I have serious doubts that any MLB team would sign him and like Mark, I think MLB is going to get slapped with a huge lawsuit. But Bauer still deserves the right to pursue a career in baseball. Might he pitch in Japan or Korea? Would they consider that?? Probably not. I have no idea what the 26 man is going to look like when they break camp and come back to LA. No one here does either. The only people who know what their overall plan is are not talking about it. SO gang, sit back and enjoy the ride. About the CBT, this would be the third year they have exceeded the limit, so they would get the highest penalty. But they have time before that to cut salary if they can. And maybe they are not really worried about it at all, maybe it is just the fans. They get a huge reset next season with a lot of salary coming off of the books.
I want to mention Bauer. I think he’s pertinent. We need to have a daily Bauer discussion.
Not to the Dodgers he isn’t. Been there, done that. Story over.
Lol. I mean , we gonna talk about Lux? BORING! Lux at shortstop? Lux in CF, Lux at Second …zzzzzz.
Exactly! Bauer’s sex life is way more interesting.
You sir are a degenerate! LOL
The Dodgers will be under the Luxury Tax. Write that down. It will cost them some prospects, but it will be worth it in the future. I don’t know why everyone doesn’t understand that you don’t BUY championships. No Way, No How!
I believe Freidman has a plan, and only he, ownership and his closest advisors know what it is. Everything said he or on any other blog is pure guesswork.
The plan is unfolding and it is becoming pretty clear.
1. The Dodgers want to reset the Luxury Tax Penalty.
2. Whether that happens may depend upon how things look at the All-Star Break.
3. Taylor or Treinen or Buehler could be traded (along with prospects) to get under the Cap. Yes, Buehler.
4. There are a lot of moving parts and there are only four positions that are certain: C – Smith, 1B – Freeman, Rojas SS, and Betts RF. Everything else is up in the air. I love it!
Do pitchers make it back after two Tommy John’s? I would definitely consider trading him at this point.
Hung-Chi Kuo did. Not a normal thing I would think.
The odds are not as good as coming back from one.
I wonder if they consider raising the threshold for the luxury tax because of inflation. I mean damn, EVERYTHING is going up. Ok, maybe houses are going down.
No, the President told us it was transitory!
I’d rather have Mike Trout if your talking about getting anybody. That would shock the league. He doesn’t have to pay center field put he could he could also play Leftfield or DH. That would be a trade like hell ya. The middle of the Dodgers batting order with Trout in it. And play Outman in center field and Vargas everyday. That’s when you play rookies and surrounded them by veterans. Oh well, that’s what the off season is for. Us hoping to get that player. Which then other teams go oh no way they got him!
Don’t let these know it all’s buffalo you Bradley. Keep posting . Some of them DO know everything about baseball, but they still get sh*t wrong sometimes.
I get plenty wrong, but I also get a lot right!
I can’t resist. Which is greater between plenty and a lot? I’m still trying to get used to the metric system and have fallen behind with these new units of measurement you are using here Mark.
About 4.
It’s all there to see. I guess the main thing is that I have always said the Dodgers could win every year since AF got here, and I was right. It’s just now damn hard to win it all with the revised Playoff Alignment.
Never claimed to know it all. Just usually base what I say on the experience I have had watching this team operate over the last 60 plus years. I get more wrong than I do right. But since I am nothing more than a fan, that should be expected.
Mike Trout? Yeah, that would be awesome. A couple of problems with that. First, he would cost the Dodgers a ton of talent. Probably at least 3 top ten prospects or more plus one or two MLB ready pitchers. Second, I seriously doubt that the Angels, who are for sale right now, would trade one of their biggest assets before the sale went down. Third, I also seriously doubt new ownership, who would take a HUGE PR hit by trading him, would even consider such a move since it would seriously reduce the offense of the team, and they have to contend with the fact that they will probably have to deal with Ohtani leaving in free agency next year.
It’s the off-season. You wish for trades like that a six player swap kind. The ones to change a whole lineup from a pretender to a contender. Shoot two years ago we should have gotten Arenaldo to play third base. That would have been good. We could have him Freeman and Betts now. But know they signed Turner. And old Red got old fast.
&*%#^&*) &%%$#$^%&* &&$%&^$
Should have and could have been two different things. First, I doubt the Rockies would feel comfortable dealing a star like that to a team in their own division. I can tell you since I live in Colorado, that the fan backlash from them even trading him was huge. Especially since they had no real replacement in place, and the pieces they received back did nothing to placate their fans. That plus the fact that since he left, they have been pretty bad, has infuriated the fans even more. Then losing Story after 2021, made it that much worse. The Dodgers were already a contender and perhaps the best team in the league when that trade went down. Yeah, they kept Turner. Might have been the wrong move to make, but they felt a loyalty to the incumbent. They also paid him a lot less than what Arenado was getting at the time. They would have assumed a very large contract with an opt-out at the end of the 21 season. Arenado chose not to opt out and the Cardinals assumed the rest of the deal. One huge point is the fact that while dumping his contract, the Rockies paid the Cardinals 50 million dollars to offset part of his salary. I do not think they would have done the same for the extremely rich Dodgers.
I wonder if AF even called the Rockies. Doubtful the Rocks would’ve traded him to the hated Dodgers, but he was seemingly a perfect fit – local boy (there’s a street nearby in Lake Forest named after him), grew up a Dodger fan, stud offensively and defensively. The one that got away.
He probably did contact them. But like I said, no way the Rocks were dealing him in the division. The fallout as it was, turned out pretty bad. Their attendance has suffered a lot.
I am not in the habit of predicting. I rarely get it right. I try to understand how Freidman has worked since he came here and figure out his trends. Problem there, he has none. He has made moves that make me scratch my head, then he makes on that makes perfect sense. I think to him the deal for Rojas makes perfect sense since he probably feels uncomfortable playing Lux full time at SS. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall during the discussions that took place prior to the Dodgers trading Amaya.
Lisa Marie Pressley has left the house.
R.I.P. Lisa Marie!
An age has ended!
I knew she was ill. RIP. She was 54 years old.
Her Wiki page didn’t mention a history of drug abuse or hard living. 54 is young. I’m almost 54. Cardiac arrest?
Betcha this will spur another round of vaxx talk.
I have had more than half a dozen friends die within a month after the Vaxx. The media is trying to shut this up, but it is a thing. If the Vaxx prevented transmission, then that would be one thing… but it doesn’t!
I talked about this a long time ago and was roundly criticized for my opinion. Now, most of what I said has come true. It is a sad debacle.I have had the COVID four times. I am almost 70 and I will never take the Vaxx. It’s an emotional argument and the other side gets angry when you dissent. I also will not criticize anyone who does.
She was for a time addicted to opioids. She wrote about that in the forward to a book ” The United States of Opioids” : A Prescription for Liberating a Nation in Pain. That was published in 2019. She became addicted to opioids after the birth of her twins when painkillers were prescribed. It was according to her, a full blown addiction. She was married four times and had four children, her son, who was 27 at the time committed suicide in 2021.. Her husbands included Michael Jackson and Nicolas Cage. Her marriage to Jackson lasted two years. She was married to Cage for only 4 months.