Robert James “Rick” Monday was born in Batesville Arkansas on November 20th, 1945. Sometime during his youth, his family relocated to Santa Monica, California. Rick then attended Santa Monica High School. He earned All-League honors and after graduation had to decide whether to play pro-ball, or accept a baseball scholarship.
He was offered a 20,000-dollar signing bonus from Tommy Lasorda, who at that time was a scout for the Dodgers. But he decided to take the scholarship to ASU after coach, Bobby Winkle’s, himself a Arkansas native, used those roots to convince Monday’s mom that he would take care of her son.
He joined an ASU team that included future big leaguers, Sal Bando and Duffy Dyer. Reggie Jackson was allowed to practice with the team but not play due to the rule about freshman players not playing. In his sophomore year he hit .359 with 34 extra base hits to earn All-American honors. He led the Sun Devils to the 1965 College World Series Championship over Ohio State.
He was the # 1 selection by the Oakland A’s in the first ever Major League First-Year player draft. The top pick as a 19-year-old, Monday signed with the A’s for a 104,000-dollar bonus on June 15th, 1965. He started his minor league career at Lewiston, Idaho, with the Class-A team there. In 72 games he hit .271/13/44. After the season, he and teammate, Dave Duncan, entered boot camp with the Marine Corps and began serving active duty as a Marine reservist for six months prior to spring training in 1966.
Monday moved to Mobile, Alabama, the A’s AA team in the Southern League. He played in 127 games, hitting .267 with 23 homers and 72 driven in. He and 5 other teammates, including, Sal Bando and Rene Lachmann, were called up to the KC A’s in September. He got into 17 games and hit .098.
But after playing in the AFL that winter, he went to camp with the big club and made KC’s roster for 1967. He hit .251 with 14 homers and 58 RBIs. That winter, Charlie Finley moved his A’s to Oakland. Monday hit only 8 homers there the first season. His BA climbed to .274. He also made his first All-Star team.
Rick would continue to be a solid player for the A’s through 1971 when they won their first as AL West Champs. He was traded to the Cubs that winter for Ken Holtzman. His first season in Chicago, he appeared in 138 games, mostly as the Cubs center fielder. He hit .249 with 11 homers and 42 runs batted in.
Things got better in 73, His batting average climbed to .267, he had 26 homers and drove in 56. 74 was even better. His avg climbed to .294, a career high, he drove in 58 and hit 20 homers. The Cubs though were going nowhere.
His offense dropped some in 75. He played in 136 games, His OPS was over .800 but his power numbers dropped and so did most of his other offensive stats. He looked forward to a much better year in 1976. And he would have his best at age 30. His numbers for 1976 would be the best of his career. He hit .272, which is higher than his career average, but he had 32 homers and 77 RBI’s, both career highs. He was 18th in the MVP votes.
But what stood out that season was a day at Dodger Stadium in April when two protesters ran out onto the field and prepared to burn an American flag. Monday had been tossing a ball with left fielder, Jose Cardenal before the incident. After Ken Crosby threw a pitch that Sizemore popped out on, Monday dashed over from center and grabbed the flag to thunderous cheers from the Dodger Stadium crowd. He ran to the Dodger dugout and handed the flag to Doug Rau.
When he came up to hit in the 5th inning, he got a standing ovation from the crowd and the Dodger Stadium scoreboard in left field flashed, Rick Monday, you made a great play. He got a congratulatory call from President Gerald Ford and was invited to the White House. Lost in all that was the fact that the game went extra innings, 10 to be exact. Cey’s single knocked in the winning run. It was the second win in what would become a 12-game winning streak.
Monday would later say, if you are going to burn a flag, don’t do it in front of me. Monday had served for six years in the Marine Corps reserve. As a veteran, I feel the same way myself. Rick would receive in 2008 a flag that was flown over Valley Forge National Park in honor of his saving the flag in the bicentennial year of 1976.
That winter, Monday was traded to the Dodgers along with Mike Garman, for Jeff Albert, Ivan DeJesus and Bill Buckner. One of the more outstanding achievements of his career was Monday’s dominance over Tom Seaver. Monday had 11 career homers against Seaver and was 30-86 against him.
His first season in LA he played in 118 games. His offensive stats were below average for him. He hit only .230 with 15 homers and 48 RBI’s. He was somewhat better in 78 with a .254 19, 57 line. He had also not really hit well in either the 77 or 78 World Series. It is doubtful that he knew that he would only play more than 100 games one more time in the rest of his career.
He was injured in 1979 and played in only 12 games. He came back in 1980 and played in 96. In 1981, he was mainly used as a reserve outfielder. Ken Landreaux had taken over in center. Monday got into 66 games, hitting .315, his highest ever, he had 11 homers and 25 driven in. He was used exclusively as a reserve in the playoffs. Then came game 5 in Montreal. It was played on a Monday afternoon due to an earlier rainout.
In the 9th inning, against Montreal’s ace, Steve Rogers, Monday connected for a two-out homer that would give the Dodgers a 2-1 win, and the pennant. He would go 3-13 in the World Series, but no matter, LA came back and beat the Yankees in six games. Guererro, Yeager and Cey were co-MVP’s of the World Series.
After the season, Monday, Yeager, Ruess and Jay Johnstone were talk show guest stars on many different shows including the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson where they would sing, We Are the Champions, all while being horribly off key. The recording was sold during the 1982 season at all of the souvenir stands at Dodger Stadium. There was also a recording available of Ron Cey singing, Playing the Third Base Bag. Neither made the Top Ten list.
Monday played 100 games for the last time in 1982. He would play 99 the following year. In 1984 he appeared in only 31 games at age 38 and called it a career. Monday’s career line is .264/.361/.443. He had 241 homers, 775 driven in and 1619 hits. He was an All-Star twice.
Not long after he retired, Rick became a broadcaster for the Dodgers. First he did the pregame show and calling play-by-play on cable TV. For four years, 89-92, he moved south and called Padre games alongside Jerry Coleman replacing outgoing Dave Campbell. He also was the sports anchor at KTTV for a time in the 80’s. He served as a color commentator for CBS for the College World Championship game in 1988.
In 1993, he rejoined the Dodgers after Don Drysdale suffered a sudden heart attack and died in his hotel room in Montreal. He has filled the analyst role on radio broadcasts along with Charlie Steiner for several seasons now. He also fills in on TV now and then and does most of the spring TV broadcasts with Tim Neverett.
Monday is a fixture in the Dodger broadcast family, and a true Dodger legend for a couple of brilliant moments caught in time.
Heading out to California tomorrow. Be a couple of days before I can post again.
Have a safe trip! Loved the 2 hours and eight minute game last night against the Angels. Makes it tolerable from the East Coast in Connecticut to watch the Dodgers when they are on the West Coast at night.
Thanks Andrew. Not driving this time, so I will get there a lot quicker. I will probably take in at least one game while I am there. Probably go down and see the Quakes play too.
Excellent, as always, Bear!
Thank you, I appreciate it.
I met Monday briefly when he was playing. I think it was ’83 or ’84.
When I heard his voice, it was clear that he’d become a broadcaster. …
Pretty nice tuneup today. Great outing for Kershaw and the relievers too. HRs from Muncy, Taylor and Outman offer reasons for hope.
I met and talked with him at Camelback after a game in 2009. He is a pleasant person to talk baseball with. Very approachable. I went to Universal Studios years ago with my wife and kids. We were eating lunch and this guy sits down at the next table with a friend. I looked at this dude and suddenly I realized it was Rollie Fingers. The handlebar mustache was unmistakable. I think it is cool when guys like that feel comfortable enough in their own celebrity to be out with the common folk.
Safe travels Bear. Eric will miss you. I didn’t realize Monday came back when Drysdale passed away.
Thanks Cassidy, I do not really worry about Eric. He has his own opinions and that is cool. We just do not see eye to eye very often. Few fans do.
And looks like our CFer had a much better spring than than the Angels CFer. Glad we’re not stuck with him! Nice write up on Monday, Bear. Always liked Rick.
I think Trout will be just fine. All he is doing is getting ready.
A lot is known about Monday, but I had no idea he was in the Marine Reserves, which by the way wasn’t really considered the Marine Corps by many. He would have been there right before I was. Those who signed up as reservists took a lot of sh*t from drill instructors. They were called Candy Ass Marines. Why join the Marines if you’re not willing to fight?
Anyway, with the exception of that one home run, I’m not really a Monday fan. Not crazy about his mic work, but he’s better than Orel.
60’s. Draft. Military obligation. How come Gleason was the only pro ballplayer sent to war? A lot of guys, like myself, who enlisted, never saw Nam. And I volunteered to go. Had his reserve unit been called up, I am pretty sure he would have fought.
“Had his reserve unit been called up” … uh, no. Marine Reserve units didn’t fight in Vietnam. Monday was playing pro ball at 19. He made the A’s squad at 20.
I know, but they just as easily could have been. Same with Army reserve and National Guard. Gleason was advised, badly I think, to wait and get drafted which he was. Had he gone into the reserves or National Guard, he probably would have never went to Nam. What is more puzzling is the fact that he was not granted a hardship discharge. He was his mother’s sole support.
Agree that Monday is not much as an analyst. But he sure has a voice.
He’s better than Orel. At least in my opinion. He and Shriner work well together. Charlie makes a lot of mistakes, kind of reminds me of Doggett that way, but he loves the game and it shows on his broadcasts. I still like Nomar in the booth as the analyst much more.
Badger,not to be critical, but just wondering if you had a promising baseball career would’ve you join the Marines?
Monday was raised by a single mother. He also had a scholarship to go to college. So I don’t think there’s much chance of him getting drafted, and having to serve in Vietnam, or getting drafted at all. I think what he did by serving In the reserves was admirable
Well, I kinda did just that. I had opportunities to play baseball out of high school. It’s a long story, I won’t bore you with it.
This is not anything I want to discuss in depth here. No Marine reserve units were called for combat. They weren’t needed and everyone knew it. I have no real idea what Monday’s story is other than he went to boot camp and served 6 months to satisfy an ROTC commitment. He was never in danger of going anywhere.
My point was he probably wouldn’t have gotten drafted anyway whether he served in the reserves or not. We’ll never know that.
Thank you for your service Badger
Via Chad M. and the great DD:
MLB: Farm Director Will Rhymes talked about some Dodgers prospects, including Josue De Paula…
“Josue has one of the best young swings you’ll ever see and his hitting ability and discipline are off the charts,” Rhymes said. “It’s such a special hit tool. He has rare, rare qualities and the power will come once he fills out.”
…Nick Nastrini…
“Nick threw 64 percent fastballs last year, which is pretty high, so working on his secondary pitches has been a focus,” Rhymes said. “When we got him, he was using a slower, bigger slider and we ticked it up to 85 mph last year and now it’s in the upper 80s. He’s also throwing some good changeups and has improved his physical routine after spending all offseason here.”
…and Landon Knack.
“This guy can roll out of bed and dot all his pitches,” Rhymes said. “He’s healthy now, had a great offseason, changed his nutrition program. He’s such a historically great strike-thrower but he was a little off mechanically last year and his stuff went a little backwards. He’s in a good place now to bounce back and be in the mix for depth for the big league club.”
But perhaps the most surprising report was on River Ryan.
“River is a tremendous athlete and he has taken another step this spring,” Rhymes said. “He pitched at 97-99 mph and got up to 101 yesterday with a very high quality fastball. He’s messing with slider grips and he can dial it up to the upper 80s with more movement or throw a cutter up to 93. His curveball is very good and we’re trying to encourage him to use it more, and he has pretty good feel for his changeup too.”
If you had to check the quoted velocity to make sure you read it correctly, then you aren’t alone. To say that his stuff is ticking up is an understatement
Ryan could be Stone in a couple years.
Position player roster was set before spring training started except 1 spot. The powers that be were eyeballing Heyward (28 of his 47 at bats came when he batted first) because Thompson was on the bubble. Then Lux went down and it didn’t matter, both made the team.
New Yorkers should find plenty to like about Volpe, the Bombers’ first-round selection (30th overall) in the 2019 MLB Draft. At age 21, Volpe will be the Yankees opening day starter at short.
Dodgers drafted Kody Hoese at 25 in 2019.
Sure is fun reading about these prospects, especially De Paula and Ryan. The Dodgers pitching pipeline seems very healthy. (It’s also why I think the Dodgers may not make a big offer to keep Julio., especially if they decide to invest in Ohtani.)
I’m hoping that De Paula turns into one of these prodigies that can’t be denied at a young age, like this 20-year-old Jordan Walker who made the Cards’ roster. To me, De Paula and Rushing are the most exciting young batting prospects in the system.
MLB.com projects this lineup for Opening Day…
Mookie Betts, RF
Freddie Freeman, 1B
Will Smith, C
Max Muncy, 3B
J.D. Martinez, DH
David Peralta, LF
Miguel Vargas, 2B
James Outman, CF
Miguel Rojas, SS
SP: Julio Urías, LHP
CL: Evan Phillips, RHP
No real surprise, but I like seeing the rookies back-to-back. Outman’s K risk would be sandwiched between the high-contact Miguels.
Outman has more power than Vargas, I wouldn’t be surprised if they were flipped. I figured the rest would line up that way.
Peralta is LH, Vargas is RH. It makes sense to try and go L-R-L when Possible. This is a balanced lineup. Why stack two LH hitters together?
That looks like the lineup against a righty pitcher at the early going of the season. Regardless of L-R-L tendencies of Roberts’ lineups, I expect Muncy and Martinez being flipped against lefties and Taylor and Thompson replacing Peralta and Outman.
The Dodgers might be just fine with a 2023 rotation of May, Kershaw, Gonsolin, Syndergaard, Pepiot, and Stone. They could trade Urias instead of again getting nothing when Seager and Turner left as free agents. San Diego would love Urias and are still “irked” at Tatis. They want to extend Soto. They have moved Cronenworth to first base but is a second baseman.
Stone might be up towards September, but I think they want to build his innings first and that is going to take some time.
Mark
Doc loves L-R-L so you may be right. But I already answered your question. Because Outman has more power than Vargas.
But Vagas is a better contact hitter and doesn’t have the swing and miss like Outman does. He’s perfect sandwiched between the Miggy’s.
I buy it.
If Outman gets about 400 plate appearances, would you say it’s reasonable that he hits between .230-.250, has 15-20 home runs and about 30 doubles, while keeping his K% to 25%? I think so. Vargas hits .265/15HR/35 doubles.
If both of them can do that and Muncy and JDM can return at least part way to their historical mean, then that looks like a pretty good lineup. If they don’t, then that’s an issue.
In a fantasy scenario, both Outman and Vargas get locked in a battle for ROY.
I have no idea about Peralta. If can get close to Joc Peterson numbers then he’s a good platoon hole filler.
I actually think the bullpen is going to be a strength. Ferguson looks really good. His fastball is overpowering. In the second half Daniel Hudson and Nelson will be rounding into peak form.
I’m not sure how I feel about not having a dedicated closer. On the one hand, it keeps Doc from doing stupid Doc stuff like validating Einstein’s definition of insanity by inserting Kimbrel every single night only to see him blow it once again. On the other hand, it enables Doc to do stupid Doc stuff and get too cute with his bullpen management and needlessly complicate things because he can.
Removing the Stupid Doc Stuff variable, I think not having a dedicated closer just makes better baseball sense. I’ve said this before, but I’ll repeat myself, but I think the Save is the single most useless and counterproductive stat in baseball. It’s created an entire market of overpaid prima donna relievers who dictate strategy by having to pitch the 9th inning regardless of the degree of leverage of that moment. Your most dependable shut down reliever needs to pitching to the opposition’s top of the order in the most high leverage moment in the 7th-8th inning, not the bottom of the order in the 9th. But prima donna relievers don’t get saves by pitching in the 7th, which means their market value declines, which means their agents complain, which means they sulk and seethe and become ineffective because they aren’t in the right head space.
Kimbrel was bad, but he wasn’t in there every night. He still managed to save 22 games and won 6. His ERA in the second half was actually better than it was in the first half by almost a full run. Some of his blown saves were simply bad luck. Just like all closers. But whether they have a set closer or not, it won’t keep Roberts from occasionally inserting the wrong guy into the game. Easy solution though, just beat the crap out of everybody so Roberts doesn’t have to worry about that stuff.
Stupid wins.
Amazing huh.
Agree about Saves. Holds are just as important and those guys don’t get near the love.
One of the biggest mistakes fans make is to evaluate young players based on their most recent seasons. Progress is not linear.
A lot of fans wrote off Andre Jackson after a bad season in 2022. He may now be a key piece of the bullpen.
Ryan Pepiot’s mechanics were out of whack last year, but he is much improved this year.
Landon Knack has changed his lifestyle – food wise and is rededicated.
I am high on Dalton Rushing, but Diego Cartaya is a generational talent.
Most Dodger fans do not think Vargas bring the power Busch and Outman do… forgetting that he is 3 years younger. I see Vargas being the biggest slugger.
There is a lot to be decided especially between CT3, Heyward and Thompson. Give that a good 30 to 45 days and there could be some different ideas.
Two notes:
This same baseball person told me this:
1. River Ryan will pitch in the majors next year; and
2. Josue De Paula will be on the team in 2025.
Not my words…
“Most Dodger fans do not think Vargas bring the power Busch and Outman do… forgetting that he is 3 years younger. I see Vargas being the biggest slugger.”
Not this year.
I’m high on Dalton Rushing too.
Outman is the Dodgers starting CF. Pretty good for a 4th or FIFTH outfielder.
They are all different. Busch has the most game power, Outman the best raw power, Vargas the best hit tool with potential for future power growth.
Because Outman is such a high-variance prospect, I’d rank them as follows in terms of future power output:
1. Busch [assuming he sticks somewhere]
2. Vargas
3. Outman
If you asks me who will hit the HRs over a career, I’d take Vargas in a heartbeat.
Agree. Not from Missouri, but I still have the show me mentality. Until any of these kids produce at the major league level, they are just prospects. That goes for any of them. Look at some of the guys who were in the rookie of the year running last season. I had never heard of any of them. Harris II in Atlanta, the Rodriguez kid in Seattle. The Astros won the World Series with a rookie playing shortstop. Anything can happen and usually does.
I think Outman still has a lot of swing and miss. ML pitchers will find those holes and hit them with regularity. He will need to plug them. Might take a while. I still believe he will stick.
Stay tuned. It’s early!
Sometimes they grow into their bodies and Vargas is still growing. I think he is one of those guys who is going to get better over the next couple of years. But as with all rookies, you have to wait and see how they handle real major league pitching day to day. I saw good things from Busch, Outman, Vargas, and some of the lower level kids too.
Bruce Avans could probably make some other teams’ roster as a 4th outfielder. He flashed the leather last night and has had some solid hits in spring, but no one talks much about him. Nice of Roberts to put Phil Nevin’s son in the game last night replacing Freddie.
Old pal Darin Ruf was DFA’s by the Mets. Ruf was a Dodger for all of about 2 minutes. They got him from the Phillies when they traded Sweeney. He then went to Japan and turned his career around. His tenure with the Mets last year after the trade from the Giants was a disaster. He was worse than Gallo if you can imagine that. He has been nursing a bad wrist. Someone will pick him up later on. When healthy, he has a lot of power. Giants definitely won that trade, JD Davis is a huge part of their offense. Rotation for opening series against the D-Backs, Urias, May, Kershaw and Thor. Good chance to start the year, 4-0.
D’backs are going to be better than a lot of people think.
I would say the odds we win all 4 can’t be described as “good”. I’ll be happy with 3.
Same here, but it has been a while since they opened with a sweep, so just for shits and giggles, I would like to see one.
I’ve always been curious about the Monday flag saving incident. It was before my time, and it has gone down in baseball lore, but I always curious about the father/son duo who attempted to set the flag on fire. Who where they? What were they protesting? There is not a lot about them after the incident. What ever happened to them? The son was 11 at the time, so it’s likely he’s still alive.
Patch: The guys’ name was William Thomas. He was fined $60 and spent a few days in jail, then disappeared. He was an unemployed native American and rumor has it he was either protesting the abuse of native Americans or his wife being sent to a mental institution against her will. I don’t believe there was any confirmation of either. That’s all I remember.
Interesting.
That’s what I read – that his wife was in a mental institution in Missouri or something. It’s all pretty vague, though.
Although I did come across something that suggested he was related to Louis Sockalexis, who was professional baseball’s first Native American player. So, maybe he had a connection to baseball which made him choose a baseball game to protest.
Here to me is a strange part, no reporter ever interviewed him. No investigation of his claims about his wife’s institutionalization was ever instigated. After the incident, they just vanished from the view of everyone. All these years later though, Monday is still pretty irate about the whole thing.
Yeah, I know. It’s like he just vanished.
I was always fascinated by figures who were notable at some moment in history, but then vanish. I always wonder, “what ever happened to so-and-so? .. and I’ll do a search.”
Do we really want to make someone famous for something negative or apply a scarlet letter for a single stupid act that was pretty inert. I’m glad his name has been forgotten.
No one said or even suggested anything about applying a scarlet letter. Why do you even think that? Honestly, that’s just a weird place to reflexively go when people are just simply curious about the guy’s backstory and whatever became of him.
Maybe Louis Sockalexis can be a story for Bear to write sometime.
I definitely agree with Bums that AF should very strongly consider trading Urias at the deadline if he can get an overpay and if Dodgers pitching performs as hoped.
So, if the Dodgers are in playoff contention with aspirations to win the WS at the ASB, and Urias is the ace of the staff and is in large measure responsible for the fact that they are playoff contenders with aspirations to win the WS, you’re going to trade away your best pitcher for prospects? In the middle of the season? When the team is s potential favorite to win the WS, or in a battle to win the division?
That’s stupid.
They would not do it unless they were totally out of the race. They will offer him a QO and if he signs with another team, they get a draft choice. They have one for Turner leaving this year and we will find out who they pick with that choice come June.
Yeah. My point. I don’t think anyone expects the Dodgers to be out of the race, and if you’re already expecting the Dodgers to be out of the race at the ASB before the first game of the season – to where you’re entertaining the notion of trading Urias – then you got a pretty pessimistic outlook (and I’m referring to Bums and Ray here, not you).
We get so caught up being armchair GMs and fantasizing about the return we get on our hare brained trade ideas that we lose sight of the fact that the whole point is to win the WS.
True idiots flock together, especially here.
Idiots group together everywhere. And sorry, but there are some pretty smart baseball people on this site. Everyone is opinionated, and that is to be expected when one is a baseball fan. Cannot tell you how many spirited arguments I have had with Giants fans who swear that the Giants have been better than the Dodgers since they both moved west.
Marc is right. Idiots are everywhere. It’s kind of the ticket you need to comment on this blog!
I wasn’t talking about waiting for the trade deadline. I am playing with the idea of obtaining Tatis from the Padres ASAP. I am also saying that the Dodgers don’t need Urias in the rotation to win because it takes at least 3 and probably 4 starters to win a WS and if Kershaw, May, Stone, Gonsolin, Pepiot can’t dominate then Urias is wasted.
This all started with Mark trading for Ohtani, Trout, and Rendon. I was just adding more scifi for the fun of it.
Oh, I stand corrected then. That trade idea is a LOT better. (insert eyeroll)
This season needs to start ASAP.
I think I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to nominate Brian Perkins for The LADT Self-awareness Award of 2023 for his comment that “(being an idiot) is kind of the ticket you need to comment on this blog.” Well done, Brian!
Patch, I always enjoy and nearly always agree with your comments but not on this. That’s ok. Two things to note:
1. I wrote that AF should “consider” trading Urias. If Urias is pitching so well that he is the indispensable component you describe then yes, it would be stupid to trade him unless the Dodgers have four or five other starters with ERA’s below 3. If they do it would be stupid not to consider it, depending on the return.
2. An overpay may bring many years of excellent play from the players acquired, in exchange for half a year of Urias (possibly to be replaced by a starter having an equally great year) and one non first round draft choice. That return on the overpay may result in more than one WS championship. Maybe a risk worth taking, all things considered. But no overpay, no trade. MHO.
Ok, I suppose if the Dodgers have an absolute embarrassment of riches as far as their starting rotation goes, it’s feasible, but that’s not going to happen, and Urias will still be an ace lefty.
But still, if Urias is an important cog in playoff bound team, you don’t sell him off.
Playoff contenders don’t sell unless you’re a cheap small market team like the Brewers selling Hader.
Don’t listen to Bumrap’s trade proposals. He’s a bad influence.
Another way to say not to pay attention to my trade proposals is to take them in the spirit of how they are made. I don’t come here to critique the Dodgers, Frieman, or Roberts. I come here and comment for the fun. My trade proposals drive some people crazy and I get a kick out of it.
I would take my comment in the spirit in which it was intended – a joke.
Patch, you used all of your imagination and maybe even some conspiracy theory in that reply. Talking about putting words in someone’s mouth!!! You went overboard.
It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to envision the Dodgers in contention for a division title and a playoff berth at the ASB, and it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to foresee that Urias is going to be a really important part of the success of this ballclub.
You don’t need to be a conspiracy theorist to understand that a contending team doesn’t sell off its best players in the middle of the season. Contending teams buy, rebuilding teams that are out of it sell.
I prefer Tatis at shortstop and a rotation of Kershaw, May, Gonsolin, Stone, Syndergaard, Pepiot and maybe Miller later in the year.
It sounds like you prefer Rojas at short and a rotation that includes Urias.
If the alternative to a staff with Urias is a staff with two unproven rookies, one with zero major league experience, one pitcher at the tail end of his career who can’t stay off the IL, another pitcher who had to be shut down last year to the dreaded “forearm tightness,’ (which means he’s a 100 pitch outing away from Tommy John) and another guy who can’t throw strikes, and the last guy whose fastball has lost 5 ticks – then, yeah. I prefer Urias.
I’ve been in my off-season program; following all the posts and ideas all winter which covered all things Dodger most thoroughly. I’m not much of a wanna-be GM so I had little to add.
Is it appropriate what ask what happened to B&P? The only thing I saw was he wouldn’t be posting anymore.
I have watched 15 live spring training games here in Arizona and have some comments and thoughts.
* The new speed up rules are awesome. The game is just more crisp and enjoyable. I’m no MLB fan but they got this one right. No hitters stepping our for Velcro management, no practice swings, no late time outs. The pitchers have adjusted without the gamesmanship. No repeated catcher visits. I saw a 9 Inning tie in 2:06. Never saw a 3 hour game. A 20 run, 21 hit affair was under 3 hours.
* I thought the WBC games noticeably dragged on without the new rules. You could easily notice all the unnecessary time wasters that drag a game out.
* One thing think we will see, as I have seen this spring, is the catchers having a much more active role in holding runners. With 2 disengagement rule, we will see a big increase of catcher back-picks at 1st.
* It is vital that the pitch clock is consistent and enforced. I saw it in A+ ball and they have some local stadium employee run the clock. Sometimes the clock started late. Sometimes it turned off well before the pitcher started his motion. Now with an MLB employee running the clock, there is much better consistency.
Another addition that I don’t think they had in MiLB, was the notification to the home plate umpire when the clock has expired. That umpire has so much to watch that there’s no way to keep an eye on an expiring clock. Now they have a vibrating wristband or a vibrating device somewhere (maybe down his pants) to alert the violation. I love the new speed of the game.
* I’m not convinced the new rules will promote the steal during the season as we’ve seen in ST. I hope it does but I don’t think organizations like the Dodgers refuse to steal because it isn’t successful. It’s their philosophy to not risk an out or an injury. Better wait for 3 run homers. Just like the bunt.
* While the Dodgers refuse to run, our pitchers generally don’t hold runners well and Smith and Barney have runners tapping in the starting blocks and no shot. I’d like to see that change this season along with the emphasis on contact.
* Camelback was cashless again as usual, but there were no vendors selling concessions in the stands. Seemed odd.
* Spring training ticket prices were ridiculous. The sliding price scale and the weekend games with many LA visitors, called for big increases. I saw games where a ticket on the berm in the outfield at Camelback was $45 and $50 bucks. 50 bucks to sit on the grass is ridiculous.
* I’m certainly aware that Spring Training is not the regular season. But it is not useless. So please spare me any comments about my observations being useless because Spring Training doesn’t matter.
* Vargas will be fine. I’m impressed with his early work at 2nd and he will be fine. He will be at 3rd someday but for now we keep his Bat in the lineup. I had to laugh that he got 4 walks during the time he was banned from swinging.
I think he will be a strong candidate for Rookie of the Year.
Speaking of ROY, remember when the Dodgers had a hold on the award? A Dodger won 5 straight 92 to 96, 2016 & 2017. None since. Now there seems to be a preference for veterans and few rookies allowed to start break into the lineup, so no ROY. I’m all in on a youth movement.
* Rojas will be fine as an everyday SS and will hit enough. I hated trading Amaya who I think will be a special player down the road. But I get it. I have laughter at all the puckered panties over SS and suggestions for trades. Rojas is fine.
* Muncy has looked better at the plate and will be adequate at 3rd if he hits like he can.
* I know JD Martinez is a slow starter but at times this spring it has looked like he’s swinging under water. I think he’s lost a lot. JT had a nice spring for Boston and maybe we kept the wrong DH. We’ll see.
* I’m in the camp that thinks Mookie is a very good player. But not a superstar now. Freddie Freeman is.
* Boy this organization is loaded with quality catchers. Now if the would just get them on their feet and not on a knee. I’ve seen way too many ole backhands instead of blockers as catchers on a knee can’t shift and block.
* Thor has looked better than his stats. I like 94. His secondary command has been poor causing predictable fastballs in fastball counts. The excuse that he suffered from a wet ball last Tuesday is incorrect. I sat through the small drizzle early that let up. The fresh baseballs and the light temporary rain had no effect on gripping the ball. Wow is he a stud. I knew he was large but damn……
* I love the bullpen arms and all of our talented arms, but the starting rotation could be a house of cards.
Urias will be a stud again
I hope we get 20 starts from CK
I fear Gonsulin’s arm is fragile and subject to a breakdown. Maybe the DL will help.
Thor needs to come up big.
Pepiot, to start, but Grove and Stone, who have looked inconstant, will need big club innings.
* I’m not interested in watching the outfield “try out camp” continue into the games that matter, with a new lineup every day with Outman, CT3, Peralta, Thompson and Heyward all vying for PT in center and left. I would rather see a youth movement:
* I have no use for Heyward. Never have, actually. He will continue to be shitty and will take up at bats away from Outman, I fear.
I’m better with Peralta as a veteran platoon outfielder.
Thompson, with his splits makes platooning interesting and he strikes out too much.
CT3 is a utility guy, who can’t hit. A strikeout machine. He misses center cut fastballs and has to be very frustrated. He’s making 15 million a year.
* The Dodgers sort of unceremoniously let Hanser Alberto walk by failing to pick up his 2 million options. Nobody noticed. Last week, I saw him make 2 spectacular defensive plays at 3rd for the White Sox. He also hit .459 this spring. He could be a nice addition in a utility roll with the White Sox for 1.6 million a year. Good value, Plus he’s a great clubhouse guy. I wish him well.
* I have seen way too many catchers forced to backhand and ole pitches because a knee is on the ground. I hate that and don’t get it. It exposes the inner thigh and limits shifting and blocking the ball.
* To me, this is a great time to re-tool with the youngsters and get under the tax by year end. I see this possible as I see 85 to 90 wins from this group.
Great to see you back, Phil. This site is definitely better when you’re participating.
“Pepiot, to start, but Grove and Stone, who have looked inconstant, will need big club innings.”
Not sure what you meant to say here. Yes, Grove was inconsistent (or inconstant), even Pepiot a little bit, but I thought Stone was pretty much right on all spring. Or did you mean to say incontinent, which is a whole other problem that they probably won’t have to deal with until they get to our age.
Don’t be a stranger now that the season is upon us. You have a lot of fans here.
That said, your above comments were pretty much useless because Spring Training……………………………… 🙂
You’re an excellent closer STB. Funny……… You get what you pay for.
Good to hear from you Phil. I think Martinez will outperform JT as the DH. He is a notorious slow starter by his own admission. JT only played 10 games this spring due to getting hit in the face. Thor stated he had trouble gripping the ball after that drizzly game. Dodger pitchers do not hold runners very well except for CK and Urias. CK is going to be healthy this year. 20-25 starts. The pen looks great and I agree about the way most catchers set up. Barnes has probably the best form in the organization.
Thanks for your thoughts Phil. Tho I don’t see Amaya as a special player. I’m hoping Busch has a great start at OKC and plays his way into left field if Peralta falters. Just don”t see Heyward doing much of anything and if Thompson doesn’t hit lefties then not much of a future either.
Give them a chance before banishing them to the trash heap. They both could surprise you. If Thompson can put up numbers even close to what he did last year, that is a huge plus. Heyward had his moments in spring. Probably wished he had hit a little better. But his new batting style is a work in progress and unlike some former players, he works with the batting coaches and actually listens. Peralta is going to be better than he was last year when he was nursing an injury. He will mainly play against RHP and he does pretty well against those guys. He is also a solid left fielder. Putting Busch out there is an iffy proposition. Never having played there.
Here’s a guy who has come up with what he feels is a new and better way of predicting future offensive performance. For you stat nerds, you’ll find this very interesting.
For those of you like Bear, it may put you to sleep.
I found it interesting that his system rates Yelich higher than most (Bradley will be happy to see that).
It also likes Trayce better than most (Trayce will be happy to see that).
His numbers also indicate the Dodgers are better off than most pundits predict.
https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2023/03/27/introducing-hobbs-a-new-way-to-evaluate-mlb-hitting-performance/70050248007/
It takes a true idiot to put others down and prop themselves up like their better somehow
All checked in for my flight tomorrow out of the Springs. Adios Colorado, Hola California. Learning Spanish and German.
English please
Si Senor. Zack McKinstry traded to the Tigers for a minor league pitcher by the Cubs, Voit re-signed by the Brewers. Huira released, Mazara and Cordero released by the Orioles. Auf Weidersein!
i got it, i’m gone
Great article Bear!
I appreciate the great historical info and the time and effort you put into your stories.
Rick Monday was my favorite MLB player as a youngster growing up in NorCal.
I still enjoy him as an announcer. (Maybe I am one of the few who like his announcing!)
Rick has many great stories from his playing days. He played with so many great teammates from ASU, A’s, Cubs and the Dodgers. He tells a story about Lasorda being the 3B coach on a scout team he was on in high school. Tommy tried to keep other teams from noticing Monday. When Rick hit a HR, Tommy was so mad that he refused to shake his hand rounding third. Monday said he never understood why Lasorda was so mad until years later when he was with the Dodgers.
Thanks for the good memories, Bear!
You are more than welcome. I enjoyed the research.
9:07 PM ET vs Angels (away)
Noah Syndergaard R
1-2 4.61ERA 13.1IP 11K
Tyler Anderson L
1-0 0.00ERA 8IP 4K
Confirmed Lineup
RF Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
C Will Smith R
DH J. Martinez R
3B Max Muncy L
LF Chris Taylor R
CF T. Thompson R
2B M. Vargas R
SS Miguel Rojas R
Partly-cloudy-day
0% Rain
72° Wind 5 mph L-R
Is it too late to resign Anderson and not Syndergaard?
Yep Thor is cheaper. Way too early to say it is a bad signing. Two former Dodgers informed they had made rosters today, Jake Lamb with the Angels and Gus Varland with the Brewers.
Knee Jerk!
Yes, it is a long season and Noah may outpitch Tyler Anderson this year.
But I wanted AF to bring back Anderson as soon as season ended.
Both are making $13 million per year. Thor for one year and Tyler for 3 years.
I didn’t understand why Friedman wouldn’t match Angels offer of $39 million for 3 years, when he gave him QO of $19.5 million for one year. And Anderson would have opted for the Dodgers if the offer was even close. Another case where if AF had aggressively made extension offer, they could have locked him up at end of the year, before free agency. Anderson was so good for the Dodgers last year, that it seemed like a great pairing.
And if you wanted Thor as well, that could have added depth.
But hopefully, Thor puts it together once the season starts.
I’ll give you several reasons why AF did not match it:
Miller
Stone
Pepiot
Ryan
Sheehan
Frasso
et al
It’s sorta funny how we evaluate future performance from our backpage viewpoints. Rarely comes a player who can excel wherever he is placed like the Babe or Otani and then stars who just find their true callings after getting so far to wear a uniform. In Little League pitchers could usually hit as well. From the players I knew who became professional MLB only one played the same position all the way through. I think Juan Uribe missed his true calling as a relief pitcher and left handed Kenly Jansen was teased into throwing right handed and all the guys who should of but didn’t chase that dream. I knew or know several guys that woulda made the grade had they kept that path and looking at them now says they really missed the boat. Usually a girlfriend that is not around any longer or the job that they didn’t stick with.
That is where my evaluating what I see inside up and comers is based and stats and scouts are only today and not tomorrow. I’m high on Outman probably more than Outman is. I’m not saying super star but I am saying career. That ball is in his court.
Some nice Dodger alumni news:
Catcher Connor Wong, one of the lesser names in the Mookie deal, made Red Sox OD roster as the primary backup.
Also, I think the Rule 5 guys we lost–Noda, Varland and whats-his-name, another pitcher–have made their new rosters. (Frankly, I think the Rule 5 concept should be expanded to give more guys stuck in the minors in the big-market clubs a chance to break through in the smaller markets. It would be good for the players and good for competitive balance.)
Always happy when the Dodger alumni succeed. A little extra polish for the Dodgers’ reputation….
As for today’s news, Tyler Anderson outpitched Thor. I’m still optimistic that Syndergaard will be good (not great) this season. But I’m also thinking Gavin Stone is probably a better pitcher.
As kept Noda despite the fact that he struck out 25 times this spring. They have to keep him on the roster or IL all year or offer him back to the Dodgers.