Two Conundrums: Gavin Lux and Miguel Vargas

Posted By on March 16, 2024

There are perhaps no players who are are polarizing as Gavin Lux and Miguel Vargas. Everyone has an opinion it seems… and they vary wildly. Both are players who have defensive challenges and who have bats that could be special.

First of all, the Dodgers value Gavin Lux’s bat. I agree with that 100%. He could be a very special player. Gavin has always seen himself as a shortstop. The Dodgers let him try and prove it this Spring, but if I saw the fear in his eyes, they saw it sooner.

The Gavin Lux at SS experiment is over. PERIOD! Now, the only question is: Can he be the offensive force they believe? I believe in Gavin Lux’s bat the same as I do in Miguel Vargas’ bat. They are the same player… except that one is RH and the other is LH. Gavin struggled when he first came up, and so did Miggy… for different reasons.

I believe both of their bats will play up and progress is not linear. We have to give both players some time.

Sometimes that is all it takes. Can Gavin play 2B? I believe that he can… but we may see the YIPS flare up a few times… hopefully those are few and far between. It appears that LF is Vargas only position. Can he play there. Of course he can, but he will likely be at OKC (barring injury) for a lot of this year. His time will come. The Dodgers need Gavin Lux now and his fragile psyche needs to be healed. I his mind he needs to accept that 2B is his new position and there is a lot less pressure to make the throws. Gavin needs to put this on his bathroom mirror and believe it:

“Bloom where you are planted” is credited to Saint Francies de Sales who lived in the late 1500s and early 1600s. This quote brings to mind a picture of a beautiful bloom, but what it implies is a situation that is difficult that requires grit, surrender, and gratitude. Easy to say – hard to do. Gavin must have the GRIT to work through this. He has to SURRENDER to the fact that he is not a shortstop (at least not in this life) and he needs to feel GRATITUDE that he is a damn good MLB Player.

What do I see for Gavin Lux? I see a player who can hit .300, OPS .850 and jack 20 big flys. I see the same for Migual Vargas, but we might have to wait for that. Gavin Lux is two years older than Miguel. Both have had their struggles. Struggles will make you bitter or better. You have to choose.

I am confident that Mookie Betts can play a solid (maybe spectacular) shortstop for two to three years. Let’s get by this one first.

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This article has 31 Comments

  1. I personally wish we would stop talking and commenting on Lux and Vargas. Let both situations play out. Both could be with the Dodgers at the end of 2024 or both or one could be traded. Their performances will dictate their ultimate fate.

    1. Well, for better or worse, they are both important to this team’s success, and I have high hopes for both. So far, the acquisition of Teoscar looks to be a great move, and I think Kike and CT3 are poised for good years. James Outman looks to be ready to take a step forward and Max has shown a lot of promise with the bat and in the field. So, a lot of the Dodger’s success rests on Gavin Lux and maybe Miguel Vargas. I like stories of where players overcome adversity.

      1. Oh, and Jason Heyward looks ready to take up where he left off last year. If Lux ad Vargas both step up, this is likely the best Dodger team… EVER!

        1. Yes, Lux needs to just be the best second baseman he can be.
          Imagine that Mookie struggles at SS and so the Dodgers decide they want to move him to 2B. But there’s Lux, hitting to a .850 OPS and playing great D.
          Would the Dodgers move Mookie back to RF?
          Perhaps. The point is that Lux needs to make it hard for even a superstar like Mookie to take the 2B job from him.
          As for Miguelito, a lot depends on how he plays in OKC. If there’s an injury, will Vargas be the first-man-up from the minors? Or will it be Andy Pages or Trey Sweeney?

          1. That could be an excellent time to sale high on Lux and pursue a young controllable shortstop. Conversely, moving Betts back to the outfield could be another option, as you state. The Dodgers are in a better position when Lux is performing well.

    3. He can’t do it, he can’t stop writing about Lux, he has an obsessive-convulsive disorder that is stronger than him. Every day is the same, he can’t stop doing it, he has turned this great site into groundhog day.
      He closed this site because of Outman, Vargas and Lux, he insulted people who did not agree with him, those people returned the insults and expelled them, he got so upset that he closed this site and this time it was for good but then he got the baseball bug and decided to participate in Jeff’s site but he found it boring because there he couldn’t call anyone an idiot or an fool, plus there were people on that site who didn’t receive him well, especially because in the past he had insulted and expelled them, so he decided to open this site again, those are the facts !!!

  2. good morning dodger fans! i have to admit mark, i rarely even think of Vargas anymore. i too believe he can be a good major league player. but maybe not in LA. if mookie plays a good , maybe not excellent SS i think lux will handle 2nd ok. Max looks slimmer and hopefully he plays well at 3rd. the last thing the pitching needs is the baseball flying all over the field. outfield defense should be vey good. will smith is rated 2nd best catcher in baseball behind reucthman(can’t spell it!) freddie is as good ss it gets at first! chris taylor and rojas can play some excellent infield defense. kiki can run it down in the outfield.(don’t let him near SS)! barnes is barnes. it wasn’t my idea to maybe make Dustin a closer. i was just commenting on the possibility. but bear , with the right secondary pitch he might be good. i read the astros were hot on Blake Snell, but didn’t see that the dodgers were being a sleeper in the snell sweepstakes. i know you can never have enough starting pitching, but does this make any sense? or could this just be playing keep away from other nl west teams. very good pitcher, but lots of walks also. remember how the yankees used to play keep away with players they actually didn’t need or even want? or maybe Walker is further away than being reported, who knows. i do feel Glasnow is an absolute stud. Bobby Miller may be as well. yamamoto will be just fine, just have to catch the ball behind him. James Paxton has really good stuff if he can post every 5-6 days. Gavin looks great! if walker comes back strong as ever, some tough but intriguing options to consider. hey Bear , how about when Clayton and Dustin come back they piggyback together? wouldn’t that be something? 4 for clayton and 4 for Dustin! just pondering!!

    1. Good for Bauer.

      There’s so much cynism in the current environment that I’m hesitant to venture.

      But so many people are for rehabilitation instead of incarceration, but that doesn’t seem to extend to Bauer.

      I’m not sure why Mark is so dogmatic about Lux not returning to SS, I fear it’s total performance.

      I can easily see him ending up there again.

      1. I have never wavered in my belief that Lux is not a Shortstop, and most of that is based upon his long-standing inability to consistently make accurate throws. I do like his bat.

      2. Victim of cancel culture? Has the court of public opinion rendered a premature guilty verdict?

        Perhaps, the notion that innocent until proven guilty is not progressive enough for some.

        1. Not cancel culture, he legitimately was suspended.

          But should he permanently be in exile? Not IMO.

          1. I’m unsure whether the 2nd lawsuit has been settled, but given what we learned during the initial case, is it unreasonable to question whether TB should have been suspended in the first place?

            Did Dodger brass cave to the demands of a cancel culture?

            After all, evidently the Dodgers determined TB was guilty in their suspension determination; hence, why I inferred a guilty until proven innocent posture.

          2. This is a silly take on nearly every level taken. Congratulations on that!

            Lawsuit results are irrelevant. It’s very unreasonable to question the commish’s and/or arbitrator’s decision, considering both had access to all the evidence and we have access to almost none.

            Bauer got the longest suspension ever and it was upheld. That’s not caving to anything. That’s following the rule of law.

            You last sentence is barely understandable. think you feel the Dodgers suspended Bauer, then you feel he was considered guilty until proven innocent, which flies in the face of how the Player’s Union didn’t contest his suspension AND he was paid until Manfred rendered his.

    2. I’ve got a soft spot/sympathy for guys that have been treated like shit by women. In this case, the woman just about ruined his life and there should be a special place reserved for her in you know where. I’m rooting for Bauer like I’ve never rooted for anyone.

      Just my 2 cents.

      1. Totality agree with ya, Eric. TB got railroaded but good by not only that psycho woman but by Manfred and the court of public opinion. Facts be damned and obviously being blacked balled by MLB /Manfred. Didn’t agree with Dodger’s decision to release him but understood the PR angle and lack of courage to appease the haters. MLB record suspension imposed but that still wasn’t enough!! Hopefully, he’ll be able to parlay his money from Guggenheim into a lifetime of financial independence. Good luck, TB!

  4. “Airport police said they detained a South Korean man who allegedly hurled an egg near Dodgers manager Dave Roberts at the airport. Police said they were trying to determine the motive for his action, but his family told investigators the man in his mid-20s has a history of mental illness”.

  5. Dodgers added Hudson to the 40-man roster, designated Lipcius for assignment and optioned Miguel Vargas to AAA.

  6. Is anyone able to get the Angels – Dodgers game? It’s supposed to be on ESPN+, but it’s not!

      1. Kendall George is the fastest dude in baseball.

        Man ,I can’t wait to watch him grow!

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