Stop the Insanity!

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1. It was good to see Belli looking better at the plate during this series but it does raise questions about why that didn’t happen last year under Dodger hitting coaches….

   1. Well, I hope he does well… except when he plays the Dodgers, but I would not conclude anything this early in the season.

      1. They are in Chicago for four games later this week. And then they do not play them again until next season. Offense has been horrible the last couple of days. Mookie got two hits yesterday, but neither of them was hit very hard. He does not look like Mookie yet. Muncy went the other way after three hot games. The offense that faces lefty’s is really bad. Barnes is one for the season. Smith cannot get back soon enough. I think they should have just went ahead and promoted Feduccia instead of signing Wynn.

2. Our lineup will look a lot better when Will Smith returns from his concussion. Freddie Freeman got 1 hit the entire weekend as the Cubs were pitching around him giving him nothing to actually hit. The ump didn’t help the situation in his last at bat to end the game. The Dodgers have to sign Will to a contract extension this year.

   1. Julio will go to FA, but they need to sign him too. Signing Julio and Will means no Shoei!

      1. I prefer keeping our homegrown players.

      2. There’s no way Julio comes back. It will be just like Seager and someone will outbid us.

         1. I don’t think he wants to come back.

            1. Give me a break and what makes you “think” this???

            2. I happen to know someone who is close to Julio and know for a fact that he does not want to leave.

            3. He might want to. I just don’t think Boras will let him if he can get more $$$ elsewhere.

3. I expect Outman and Vargas to have some growing pains, but Mookie and JDM have not been impressive to say the least.

   59 ABs, 16 hits, 6 RBI, 9 BB, 8 K’s and 1 HR w/ .271 BA, .389 OBP, .390 SLG, .779 OPS and 112 OPS+—-Justin Turner
   61 ABs, 15 hits, 9 RBI, 3 BB, 23 K’s and 1 HR w/ .246 BA, .294 OBP, .475 SLG, .770 OPS and 101 OPS+–JD Martinez

   If things don’t improve much you have to wonder if JT would have given the Dodgers a home team discount and signed for one year at $10 million to be our DH?

   1. No, I’ll give you 22 Million reasons why.

      Give it time. I think JDM will outperform him. JD has done a complete overhaul. It won’t happen overnight.

   2. As the weather gets warmer, JD will too. He is a notoriously slow starter. Turner is 39 years old. He won’t keep up that pace all year.

      1. If I recall correctly, JT sucked the first half of last year. The second half , he turned things around & excelled. So if I recall correctly then he could very well continue that for the balance of the year.

4. I would rather have Julio and Will than Shoei. 2 is better than 1.

   1. We are the Dodgers, we can have all 3…..

      1. This

   2. Yes, it’s still very early and all that. But it’s our prerogative as fans to cheer and boo and do some second-guessing. Also to stubbornly exalt one prospect over another. (Does anyone really doubt whether Mark roots harder for Vargas than for Outman?)
      It’s true that Mookie and JDM have not been impressive–but especially the latter.. But both have a long track record of success–though JDM’s is so long that it’s reasonable to wonder if he’s heading into that “over the hill” stage. He legged out those triples, but there is still no sign of him ever playing LF.
      Freddie started great but just had a 4K day and still has only one HR, which means he’s on a pace to hit 16. Max started slow but now has six HR–a near 60 HR pace! His OPS is up to .880, trailing only Smith and Outman among the starters.
      I was surprised to see Mookie’s OPS at .864–not bad at all, but we have reason to hope for better. Also surprised to see Freddie’s down at .810, in part because he has only one five extra-base hits so far.
      Anyway, we can dismiss all of these concerns about the offense because it’s so early in the season.
      On the other hand, I don’t it’s too early to worry about how the Dodgers are defending stolen bases.

      1. It’s pretty funny when Mark complains that we are all basing judgements on a small sample size….
         And then relys on even smaller sample sizes to make a point.
         Consider:
         …..Well, I have news for you Eric. It’s not just the bottom of the lineup. It’s the top and middle too, and your boy James Outman is right there with the rest of the problems. While he has shown in 2022 and 2023 that he is an exceptionally fast starter, he also shows that he slows down after the first few games.. by a lot!
         After a fast start this season, he is now hitting .233 in the last 15 games, and in the last 7 games, he is hitting .174! One has to conclude that James Outman is a fast starter and streaky.

         Well, Q.E.D.!
         Actually, no one needs to conclude that Outman is “streaky” from this sample size. Way too early for that. One thing that is clear looking over the past five years is that Outman has improved his performance year over year. He is coachable and improves. The Dodger brass saw that even if some prospect rankers apparently did not and even now insist that Busch, also 25 years old, is the better prospect.
         Also, let’s not forget that Outman’s most recent hit came in the clutch–a 9th inning single that was followed by Vargas’s double and Peralta’s heroics. Actually, they were all heroes.
         So from a situational perspective, that single in the 9th was A VERY BIG HIT, more valuable than a HR in a blowout, or an inconsequential hit early in a game. A statistical analysis can make every single seem equal. But they are not.
         And while Outman didn’t get a hit today–and Vargas did!–Outman still got a walk (and Vargas didn’t for a change). No big deal, but the rap on Outman has been that he strikes out too much (which is the rap on many players.)
         Roberts has praised Outman for his plate discipline–for being selective, taking more pitches. Outman now has 10 walks against 16 strikeouts–a much better ratio than Max (9/23) and JDM (3/23). Yikes, that’s more than 7 Ks for every BB. We can’t blame all this on bad umpires.
         Still, we still haven’t quite completed 10% of the season…. And I’m pretty sure that Max and JDM won’t finish with 230 Ks each.

         1. Thank you Duke Not Snider. As you know I was talking about the whole season so far when I gave those slash lines. A bigger sample than the last few days. Thank you again.

5. If Bellinger keeps it up all year, we can sign him to a $200 million contract next year. I kinda doubt it he will, but, it’s possible his shoulder is finally healed.

   Martinez .246? It’s actually worse. He was given a hit on an error by Swanson. Homer scoring. He’s actually hitting .230.

   Unless used in trade for a bonafide Major League player, none of those minor leaguers mentioned are going to help win a Division title.

   Yeah we’re +18. We are also .500, which at this time in this Division is actually competitive. But it would appear we may have difficulty against better pitching. Maybe we’re a summer club.

6. 16 games or 10% of the season in the books and the Dodgers are at .500.
   I expected them to be between 88 -92 wins and so far I see no reason to change my outlook. MOF so far the schedule (on paper) was not diffcult.

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

7. A few years back the Dodgers were average at best and then won something like 32 of 40 games and didn’t look back. They could do it again or will it be the Padres this time.

   Mark, what the hell is your thing with Eric all about. Geeze, give it a rest.

   Dodger defense is still not a strength.

   1. HOPEFULLY, today does that!

      Anyone who thinks I root for Vargas over Outman is delusional.

      I do not root for any player at the expense of another one.

      For the record, I like underdog players who have to work hard to get where they are, and Outman fits that to a tee for me.

      It pisses me off when ignoramuses try and tell me what I think, but that is what ignoramuses do.

      1. Fwiw, I don’t think you ROOT for Vargas more than Outman…..rather, you believe Vargas is much better….even saying he may be ROY.

         Disclaimer: maybe you haven’t said “MUCH” better….maybe you’ve just said “better”…….nevertheless, you do gush over Vargas and don’t gush over Outman. I can understand why Eric has his feelings hurt over the latter. (Big grin)

   2. IT WILL BE THE PARDES. DODGERS WILL PROABLY FINISH SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 3RD AND 4TH.

   3. Bumsrap

      For me it was the hyping up Vargas as the next Babe Ruth and dismissing Outman as a 4th or 5th outfielder. A HUGE gap between the two.

8. The consistent inconsistency is consistently driving me inssne!

   1. For once I totally agree with you.

      1. Uh oh! You see, my insanity isn’t my fault!

9. Losing Lux for the season had a huge impact on this team, I think he was poised to really contribute offensively. Losing Smith for just a week shows how he is now indispensable to the Dodgers aspirations.

10. On these disappointing days of defeat I sometimes find solace in the minors.
    Pages is off to a great start in Tulsa. Perhaps he’ll be the fast riser this season, moving up from Tulsa to OKC to The Show. Outman did that last season. But if Pages winds up with a debut like Outman’s, I bet he won’t get quickly sent down. The brass should know better now.
    Jorbit Vivas is also off to a good start. He’s a contact guy who has been walking more than he Ks. He has played mostly 2B but also 3B. I wonder how his defense at 3B compares to Busch. The brass obviously thinks highly of Vivas ; he’s been on the 40-man roster for a while.
    The Angels just promoted their 2022 first round pick, SS Zack Neto, from Double A to the majors. I doubt the Dodgers would ever be so bold with a hitter. Grove was promoted from Tulsa because they needed a spot starter and he was on schedule. Worked out well. If the circumstances are right, perhaps Pages could hop past OKC.

    1. Dodgers are, I believe, amongst the most aggressive in terms of promoting prospects.

       1. Smith is probably the toughest guy to replace on this team, in part because Cartaya seems to be at least a year away.
          No disrespect meant for Austin Wynns. Or the other Austin too.
          You have to wonder what Hunter Feduccia was thinking when he heard that Smith’s spot on the roster would be taken by a guy recently DFA’d from the Giants. Another example of why I hope, for their own sake, that some of these prospects get traded to teams that can provide them better opportunities to shine.

          1. Why would the team promote Feduccia, start his clock so he could sit on the bench for less than a week?

             Was this a real concern/topic to raise?

             1. Some people’s entire reason for being here is to try and discredit AF or DR, so they bend the facts to fit their opinions.

             2. You think a Feduccia is that highly-rated a prospect that this is about manipulating his service time so they have him under team control a little longer?

             3. No, he isn’t, but why start his time at all when he is only needed for a few days? Feduccia did remarkably well this Spring, but was left unprotected in Rule 5. There’s nop reason to put him on the roster now…especially when other moves may have to be made.

             4. I think Patch (how are you?) that starting the clock on any prospect lowers that prospect’s value.

             5. Why start his clock? Are you kidding?

                patch is right. Feduccia is 26 in June. He’s not a prospect anymore, he’s the catcher at AAA. If there is no intention of bringing him up why tf is he at AAA? Is it because we’re so deep in catching prospects there’s no room at AA? Then trade them or him.

             6. I mean, the clock timing thing is a possibility, but isn’t the simple answer that there was a journeyman veteran catcher with MLB experience available who could fill in, call a good game, play some good defense, maybe get a key hit or two?

                Think Crash Davis from Bull Durham. Wouldn’t you want him filling in versus a AAA rookie with no MLB experience and some possibly suspect defense (from the small sample I saw of him in Spring training)?

                The service time thing is kind of thinking about 4D chess when, really, the Dodgers just need a serviceable veteran catcher for a week.

       2. I would guess that the Rays are at the Top in regards to promoting players.

11. Mark, feeling a little like Rodney Dangerfield today?

    1. Not at all. I do not let fools define me.

       1. Hondo – you don’t like Mark’s articles and yet here you are, getting fully involved and commenting on said annoying articles.

          You are now part of the LADT community and if you hang around a while, you will see why this place has lasted so long.

          Mark has an incredible way of drawing you in with clever writing, but he has also has an unparalleled understanding of most things Dodgers. Watch things play out – he is correct more often than not.

          There are many other unbelievably knowledgeable Baseball Posters here – I’ve learned so much over the past 13 years.

          Dont take everything Mark says too seriously, you’ll enjoy it more!

          Ps

          A Wise Man said not to underestimate the D’Backs……

          1. Dbacks will run and Dodger pitchers are slow to the plate. I would not bet against the Dbacks in a tight game.

             1. Unless they experience injuries (they are not deep), they will be a force to be reckoned with. I actually fear them more than the Clowns in SD!

             2. “I actually fear them more than the Clowns in SD!“

                I don’t.

12. Mark you were hyping up Vargas as the next Babe Ruth and dismissing Outman as a 4th or 5th outfielder. A HUGE gap between the two. I don’t believe there is that gap at all. And I believed and still do that Outman is more ready right now than Vargas.

    What I wrote yesterday was about the Dodgers not scoring much runs this whole season and I gave the biggest sample size there is right now, not a small sample.

    1. Chapter and Verse?

       You are so full of it; if they gave you an enema, they could bury you in a shoebox.

       You are free to have your own opinion, as am I.

       Here is my report on Vargas:

       Miguel Vargas – He is a stone-cold hitter with opposite-field power. The only question is where he plays. If you leave him at 3B, he will be above average with time. LF is a possibility. 1B is ideal, but there is this Freeman Guy. (ETA Now)

       and Outman:

       James Outman – People see a shiny object and think he’s an All-Star. I see him as a 4th outfielder type. Solid, but not a regular. He could possibly fill in as a platoon in CF. We should see him in 2023.

       How am I “dissing him?” And so what if I was? Is he your little brother?

       These are opinions. Why do you allow me to have such control over how you feel?

       … and no where did I say anything close to that he was the next Babe Ruth.

       At the end of this long season, we shall see who is right!

    2. I’ve always thought of Outman as a 2nd to 4th outfielder and I’ve always gone with 3rd outfielder until I see something else. Right about now on this current Dodger team he’s a 2nd outfielder and if the Dodgers go out and get a borderline superstar or superstar outfielder, Outman will be a 3rd outfielder unless he shows he’s a 4th outfielder. But a 5th outfielder is ASININE.

       1. 

          1. You always go to your favorite thing, belittling others when you’ve been exposed and lost an argument. But that’s alright. I like you a lot besides that.

             1. Oh, I lost? OK, you win!

                Feel better?

             2. The articles at this site (except for Old Bear) seems like they were written by some little kid in his mom’s basement. The attacks are juvenile.
                Go Outman! Go Dodgers!
                Note to Dodgers FO: Effective immediately, please release every player you signed this off-season. What were you thinking?! As you do this, please keep in mind, the owners are not pitifully poor and this is not the small market you were used to prior to being employed by the Dodgers.

13. The Dodgers need both Vargas and Outman to do well.

    Grove could be a stud when he pitches without strep throat. Syndergaard could get squeezed by Grove, Pepiot, and Gonsolin. I hope Stone gets his mojo back real soon.

    Tatis owns AAA baseball.

    1. We might not see Pepiot for quite awhile.
       Oblique injuries often take a long time to work themselves out.

       Eric and Mark, I usually wait to read here until I have a fair amount of time because there are so many comments to go through. For the past couple of days it’s been a lot easier because the two of you have just repeated the same insults towards one another that you started with two weeks ago. I can now just skip over both of your comments.

       If you insist on belittling each other, at least come up with something original every couple of days instead of continuously repeating yourselves. Really boring.

       1. Why come back then?

14. OK GUYS ,LETS PLAY NICE! I REALLY LIKE VARGAS. I REALLY LIKE OUTMAN TOO. IM NOT SURE ONE OR BOTH OF THEM PROVIDE THE AMOUNT OF OFFENSE THIS TEAM NEEDS THIS YEAR! PAGES STARTING OFF LIKE A KEG OF DYNAMITE! BRING HIM UP? NO, IT WONT HAPPEN NOW. HARD TO SAY UMPIRE COST DODGERS THE WIN YESTERDAY, BUT IT DAMN SURE DID NOT HELP! TOP MIDDLE BOTTOM, NOBODY GOT IT DONE OVER THE WEEKEND! THE VARGAS ERROR WAS THE BALL GAME PLAIN AND SIMPLE. JULIO WAS NOT THE SAME AFTER THAT. EVEREYONE CHILL FOR A FEW DAYS. IF THE HITTING DOESNT IMPROVE THEN WE WORRY! TAYLOR 5 HITS, 4 OF THEM HR, WHATS THAT TELL YOU? TRACE THOMPSON NOT RUNNING AFTER 3RD STRIKE PROBALY INEXCUSABLE. FREDDIE 0 FER EVER WITH RUNNERS IN SCORING POSITION, JD NOT LOOKING JD LIKE, MOOKIE NOT DRIVING THE BALL, WII ON THE SHELF, BARNES IS BARNES WHATEVER. MAYBE IF HEYWARD PLAYED 3-4 GAMES IN A ROW? COULDNT HURT! LOSING WAY TOO MANY HOME GAMES!

    1. Geez this place is really the island of misfit toys. There must be every single TBLA reject, troll or banned commenter on the internet here. There’s a reason this place is about last on any serious list of Dodger blogs.

       No wonder Jeff D. left.

       1. Brian,

          Maybe you are slow, but that’s OK. If we are so bad, why come here?

          I’ll bet that when you go to a restaurant and have an awful meal, you are just dying to go back and have another one and tell them how bad their food is, right?

          BTW, where do you troll from?

       2. “Misfit toys”……I resemble that!

15. PRESS RELEASE

    DODGERS RECALL JUSTIN BRUIHL

    LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers recalled left-handed pitcher Justin Bruihl and optioned right-handed pitcher Andre Jackson.

    Bruihl, 25, is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA (0 ER/6.0 IP) over five appearances with Triple-A Oklahoma City this season. He has nine strikeouts while allowing three base runners (two hits and one walk). In 45 games (two starts) for the Dodgers, he is 1-1 with a 3.40 ERA (16 ER/42.1 IP) and 24 strikeouts while limiting left-handed hitters to a .195 (17-for-87) batting average against with 14 strikeouts. The southpaw was originally signed as non-drafted free agent on July 15, 2017 after finishing his collegiate career at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

    Jackson, 26, appeared in four games for the Dodgers, allowing eight runs in 8.1 innings with seven strikeouts and a save. In his career, he is 0-1 with a 3.94 ERA (13 ER/29.1 IP) and 26 strikeouts in 11 games for the Dodgers. He was drafted by the Dodgers in the 12th round of the 2017 First Year Player Draft out of the University of Utah.

    1. Don’t bring him back up unless he gets a haircut. Not only did he get pounded, he looked ridiculous doing it with that Bozo hairdoo.

       1. He must like it!

       2. He’s not the only “Bozo”. But the other one is a much better pitcher. I don’t care if either even puts on the nose as long as the era is 3.0

16. Outman is not in the lineup against a LHP. Don’t tell Eric, because that would make him at least a 4th outfielder.

    1. Yawn

17. The articles at this site (except for Old Bear) seems like they were written by some little kid in his mom’s basement. The attacks are juvenile.
    Go Outman! Go Dodgers!
    Note to Dodgers FO: Effective immediately, please release every player you signed this off-season. What were you thinking?! As you do this, please keep in mind, the owners are not pitifully poor and this is not the small market you were used to prior to being employed by the Dodgers.

    1. I feel young and re-rejuvenated working here in my mom’s basement.

       Oh, wait… was this one juvenile too?

       1. Lol…uh, er, yes!

18. 10:10 PM ET

    Mets (10-6)
    Dodgers (8-8)

    SP David Peterson L
    0-2 4.91 ERA 14.2IP 16K
    SP Dustin May R
    1-1 1.47 ERA 18.1IP 12K

    Confirmed Lineup
    RF Mookie Betts R
    1B F. Freeman L
    DH J. Martinez R
    LF Chris Taylor R
    3B Max Muncy L
    2B M. Vargas R
    CF T. Thompson R
    SS Miguel Rojas R
    C Austin Wynns R

    Partly-cloudy-day
    0% Rain
    59° Wind 14 mph Out

    NO Dodger minor league games scheduled today

    1. CT3 batting 4th! I like it! May as well have Caleb Ferguson leading off at SS while we at it

    2. Ugh, 3 thru 9 are poor hitters. And why does Roberts keep doing the platoon thing when it has failed miserably this year? He is unable to strategize and relies solely on the numbers he is provided. Kind of like paint by numbers.

19. I don’t know exactly what’s going on with the discussion here the last few days, but it’s weird. It hasn’t exactly been a high level discussion with insightful observations, if I may put it charitably.

    Eric. Mark considered Outman a 4th or 5th outfielder. You don’t agree. Why is this dragging on non-stop for days?

    Let it go. … not that Mark hasn’t been egging this all on, too.

    Remember the going outside and touching some grass suggestion I made to you a while back?

    Doesn’t seem very healthy, IMO

    1. I don’t know what you mean about the grass.

20. Can any of you name a Tampa Bay Ray? How can that team look so good and high-five going around the dugout into the game. Watch the Dodger their manager sets there with a blank stare on his face. The players aren’t up watching the game. There like oh no biggie we will win this. There’s no fire in this team and that comes from your manager. They better do something fast and bringing guys up from AAA ain’t the answer.

    1. I agree. We need a change of manager for things to change in the clubhouse and dugout. We all know Roberts is not a real manager. And don’t give me that “But our record under him is awesome” crap. The great teams he has had won despite his meddling. Anyone could have managed these Dodgers teams to the same records and a real manager would have won more games.

       1. “We all know Roberts is not a real manager“

          Well, not all of us.

       2. You are delusional if you think anyone can manage these Dodgers to 100 wins per year.

21. Wow!

    “Anyone could have managed these Dodgers teams to the same records and a real manager would have won more games.”

    Do you have anything at all to support that?

22. Bauer spring training debut.

    https://youtu.be/GndTbjbzdTY

    1. Finding some gear. What a dream that glove dept is. Never seen anything like that place. Very cool.

       Rachel sightings!!

       https://youtu.be/vL0vSQNAQwI

23. Does Wynns know what team he’s playing for? Driving in runners in scoring position. He won’t last long hitting like that!

24. To anyone wondering why the Dodgers signed Austin Wynns over calling up Hunter Feduccia, I say: “Well, now you know!” I told you yesterday that he could hit a little bit.

    1. 3 runs in one game. We might even outscore the Kings tonight! I wonder if Wynns can play CF when Smith comes back? That would make Outman the 5th outfielder. And now neither Bozo can get anybody out. We need a team barber!

    2. “I told you yesterday that he could hit a little bit.”

       So can Feduccia.

25. May sure isn’t missing many bats

    1. Dodgers pulling out the trick play on defense

26. And now this Wynns guy is throwing out runners trying to steal. What is AF thinking signing a guy like this!

27. Joe Davis commented that was Freddie’s first two home run game as a dodger.
    I could swear that Freddie had two home runs in a game last year
    Anybody know off hand?

    1. No he did not. He hit only 21 all year.

28. I’m pretty ambivalent when it comes to Doc but I gotta give credit where credits due, in his trusting in Muncy

29. Given the fact that he throws consistently at or near triple digits, I would like to read some sort of explanation as to why Dustin May was relying so heavily on his breaking pitches tonight.

30. #4 Outman continues to impress (small sample size). JD continues to struggle. Steady Freddy quickly back to all-star form. Muncy healthy, confident and crushing it. Smitty needs to clear the cobwebs and get back behind the plate pronto . Doc needs to spend more time with his grandkids.

31. Sure glad Doc had CT3 batting cleanup today!
    Nobody saw that coming, so iI was a genius move which will surely restore Taylor’s confidence and get him back into All-Star form. Never mind that he went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts. That’s irrelevant. The fact that he lowered his batting average to .125 only means he is due to break out of his slump. Ray Charles can see that.
    The fact that Outman came in as a sub and doubled , raising his OPS to 1.031, is also irrelevant. Small sample size, people. He’s a flash in the pan and needs to get back to the bench to make sure Taylor get his mojo back..
    CT3 just needs a few more weeks in the cleanup spot.
    Go Dodgers!

    1. That’s what I call a *Doc Head scratcher” . On this blog we are not allowed to criticize Doc, but we CAN scratch our heads when he does something totally illogical, like batting a .150 hitter (now .125) cleanup.

       1. It’s still early and all that… but perhaps the DH spot needs some tinkering.

          JD Martinez has been pretty meh, with an OPS of .724. He’s striking out way too much, leading the team with 24 while walking only 3 times. That’s the worst ratio on the team. His on-base percentage is .278.
          A deeper dive shows something odd.
          Although JDM hits righthanded, he is struggling against lefties, with an OPS of .375 in 19 ABs. Against northpaws, his OPS is a healthy .871 in 46 ABs.
          The Dodgers brass has fully promoted the idea that JDM is a full-time DH and would not be in a platoon. Maybe the reverse splits are an anomaly. But maybe not.
          So who should be getting more ABs against lefties so that JDM gets some needed rest?
          Oddly enough, the guy with the best OPS against lefties is that lucky rookie James Outman at 1.692, including a OBP of .692. Again, we’re dealing with a small sample size–just 12 plate appearances–but walked FIVE TIMES and just one walk in those PAs, and homered once.
          Remember: Martinez has had only 3 walks all season. Has he been out of the lineup yet even once? Nope, he hasn’t.
          But I don’t want Outman to DH because his defense is too valuable. He should be in CF or RF every damn day until he needs some rest.
          This might be odder: Perhaps the slumping Chris Taylor could spell JDM.
          He’s only had 15 plate appearances versus lefties—but three resulted in HRs. His OPS versus lefties is over 1.000.
          Still strikes out too much, but so does JDM.

          1. Thank you Duke Not Snider. Did you see the ball that Outman hit get stuck in the outfield wall. There’s probably a stat for this, but damn that ball must have been hit hard.

             You’re right Outman should be starting everyday.

             Rojas the one who puts the ball in play constantly is at .129

             1. Let’s face it the only ones that are hitting are Freeman, Smith, Outman, Betts, Muncy, Thompson. 6 out of 12 not including Barnes. They did score 6 runs today though thanks to Freeman and Muncy and that new guy.

                How’s Outman a 4th or 5th outfielder right about now when Taylor, Peralta, Heyward are all hitting under .200… Betts, Outman, Thompson are the 3 outfielders hitting the best.

       2. You can criticize Doc… just have a take!

32. If Taylor goes on the IL, Luke Williams is likely to be called up. He’s been playing SS and hitting well. Busch is just now learning 3B and hasn’t played ss.
    At any rate, the injury shows the imbalance of the Dodgers current roster in the aftermath of Lux’s injury Taylor is the only alternative to Rojas at SS. I seriously think Mookie could be the “emergency” SS. I guess Vargas or Muncy could try it, but that’s far from ideal .
    A team that values versatility just isn’t all that versatile right now.
    The Angels did a smart thing in getting Gio Urshela, who has played all over the diamond. Luke Williams could be the answer both short-term and long-term.

33. Taylor is dealing with a side issue. He might be heading for the IL> Smith is planning on traveling with the team on Wednesday when they fly to Chicago after the game. Wynns will most likely be cut loose when Smith is activated. He has zero minor league options left.

34. Just watched the game highlights and just a couple of observations. No, I’m not looking to get “called out” or “labeled” an idiot, but just a few observations….

    1. The Dodger BP is not the best in MLB, as proclaimed by some.
    2. JDM looks very old, with a slow bat.
    3. Rojas was acquired to be a utility guy and might have flourished in that role, but an everyday SS….not so much offensively.
    4. KT3 is an abject failure. He’ll pop one out once in awhile, but his AB’s are a black hole with a K the most likely outcome. After a 4 K performance FF comes back the next day and is the offensive star with 2 HRs. That’s a professional. Night after night we see the same KT3. He has no answer and is futile nearly everyday he’s in the line-up. Dodger coaches couldn’t fix Bellinger, not sure they can fix KT3. The bright side is after this year he has two years remaining on his contract at $15 million AAV. Could that $15 million used on KT3 been allocated toward re-signing Corey Seager.
    5. Excited for Peralta getting the game winning hit the other night but with Outman establishing himself as the bona fide ML player, could the $6 million spent on Peralta been used for some RP or a better offensive bat?
    6. Heyward will not end the season as a Dodger. I can see a DFA on the horizon.
    7. This team doesn’t have the SP and RP to go 42-8 and looks to be a .500 team.
    8. Who is the tall bespectacled gray haired guy in the dugout? Perhaps a new addition to the coaching staff (hitting) to replace Brant Brown. Listing of Dodger coaches does not include any new names but I’ve seen that guy on many dugout shots since opening day.

    It’s a long season and a lot can happen, but right now the team plays uninspired baseball with some serious flaws to the roster. Redundant players who do the same thing to underperforming clutch players. Frustrating indeed!

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