Yeah, the bases are four inches closer, and the number of throws to 1B is limited, but no legitimate power hitter in baseball has ever done what Shohei Ohtani has done in terms of stealing bases. NOBODY! … and almost nobody is doing what he has done this year, in terms of stealing bases and ALSO hitting home runs! He’s not perfect, but to criticize his game says more about you than him! Of course, he’s not perfect. I THINK (Maybe) HE IS A HUMAN, but damn, is he good. Last night, he beat the first baseman to the bag through sheer hustle. Show me any other power hitter who does that. YOU CAN’T! Actually, Shohei’s sliding form is as good as any player I have ever seen.
Shohei Ohtani is the best player in the National League and the Dodgers’ best player ever! His teammates know it, and any baseball fan who has not been sleeping under a rock knows it. Why should he lead off? Well, duh, he is fast and steals bases, and who would not want to have him come up to bat as many times as possible in any given game. Hitting leadoff gives you more at-bats. The Dodgers have the luxury of batting him leadoff. The Yankees don’t have that luxury with Aaron Judge… that and Judge is not the threat to steal that Ohtani is. This is simple math… but 5 out of 4 people struggle with math! Doooohhhh!
Lots of fans are speculating what the team will look like next year. I think this is because they don’t realize that the Dodgers are still the odd-on-favorites to win it all this year. They simply don’t understand that. But… since we are talking about it, what do I think? I think that next season, Mookie Betts will play 2B, and Gavin Lux will either be traded or will learn to play the outfield. Most likely, he will be traded. Many Dodger fans have also dissed Willy Adames, who is a Gold Glove SS, a great team leader, and has 32 HR and 109 RBI this year. Only a moron would not consider him to be a solid addition to the team. He does have reverse splits and has his whole career. He hits RHP better than LHP. He has a .859 OPS against RHP while struggling at .595 against LHP. The good thing is that he only has 139 AB’s against the lefties! His glove and leadership keep him in there against LHP.
I like Alex Freeland, but he likely won’t be ready at the start of 2025. Max Muncy will be the 3B next year. Book it! The outfield is where the change will be evident. I think there is a very good chance Teoscar is resigned to play LF next year:
- Ohtani DH
- Betts 2B
- Freeman 1B
- Hernandez RF
- Muncy 3B
- Adames SS
- Outman/Pages LF
- Smith C
- Edman CF
It’s not a given that the Dodgers will sign Adames, but a 6-year/$180 Million deal seems about right. However, right about now, the Dodgers have a World Series to win. The prognosis is good for Anthony Banda’s return in the last week of the season, and maybe the layoff will help him. He was a workhorse. Someone said they would not want someone like that on their team because he was selfish to punch a wall. I’ll take a guy like that who cares any day! Clayton Kershaw is making steady progress and will likely pitch near the end of the season. Tony Gonsolin continues to march to the Dodgers postseason bullpen.
All the Dodgers need are three solid to good starters and a bullpen at the ready. It’s not hard to imagine Flaherty, Yamamoto, and Buehler (or even Knack) as playoff starters with Kershaw, Gonsolin, Banda, Vesia, Treinen, Kopech, Phillips, Graterol, and Kelly on the playoff roster. Fans have been losing their shit calling for the trainers, pitching coaches, and front office to be fired! It ain’t happening… Play on. Tonight is Walker Buehlers’ defining moment! Make it a good one, Striker!
I do want to apologize for saying mean things sometimes… now if only the morons would apologize for being morons… Read a book!
X-Cites
Houston Mitchell’s Newsletter
Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and there are only nine games left in the regular season for the Dodgers. Then, we go through our own version of “Knott’s Scary Farm.” The Dodgers clinched a postseason spot with Thursday’s win over the Marlins.
In case you were vacationing on Neptune and missed it, Shohei Ohtani had a monster game on Thursday, going six for six with three homers, two steals and 10 RBIs. That made him the first person in MLB history with 50 homers and 50 stolen bases in a season.
It’s a remarkable feat, one he made look relatively easy considering he also is rehabbing from elbow surgery while trying to return as a pitcher. He leads the NL in homers (51) and RBIs (120) and is second in the majors in those categories behind Aaron Judge (53, 136). Ohtani is also fifth in the NL in batting average (.294), but it would take a massive collapse by Luis Arráez, hitting .320, for Ohtani to win the Triple Crown. He is second in the NL (and the majors) with 51 steals, behind the 64 by Elly De La Cruz.
Yes, I could attempt to pour some cold water over it by pointing out it is a bit easier to steal bases now, with the larger bags, the penalty on too many throws to first, etc. But that’s like going to view the Sistine Chapel ceiling and complaining that there was a small crack on one edge.
Ohtani also set the Dodgers record for home runs in a season, surpassing the 49 hit by Shawn Green in 2001.
Is it the greatest offensive season in Dodgers history? Ranked by OPS+, which allows us to compare players across eras (think of it this way, a guy hitting .290 when the league batting average is .250 is having a better year than a guy who hit .290 when the league batting average was .285), it is third since the advent of the live ball era in 1920:
1997 Mike Piazza, 185 OPS+ (.362/.431/.638, 32 doubles, 1 triple, 40 homers, 124 RBIs, 5 steals)
1985 Pedro Guerrero, 182 OPS+ (.320/.422/.577, 22 doubles, 2 triples, 33 homers, 87 RBIs, 12 steals)
2024 Ohtani, 179 OPS+ (.294/.376/.629, 34 doubles, 7 triples, 51 homers, 120 RBIs, 51 steals)
Of course, OPS+ doesn’t factor in steals. I’d say this is the greatest offensive season in Dodgers history.
The other thing to look at is whether Thursday was the greatest offensive day in MLB history. Do the players who hit four home runs in a game outshine a guy who had a single, two doubles, three homers, 10 RBIs and two stolen bases?
First, of all the players who have three-homer games, none have had the other numbers Ohtani had Thursday. So, it’s the greatest three-homer day in MLB history. Let’s see how the four-homer players did:
Lou Gehrig, 1932 Yankees, 4 for 6, 4 homers, 6 RBIs, 16 total bases
Chuck Klein, 1936 Phillies, 4 for 5, 4 homers, 6 RBIs, 16 TBs
Pat Seerey, 1948 White Sox, 4 for 6, 4 homers, 7 RBIs, 16 TBs
Gil Hodges, 1950 Dodgers, 5 for 6, 1 single, 4 homers, 9 RBIs, 17 TBs
Joe Adcock, 1954 Braves, 5 for 5, 1 double, 4 homers, 9 RBIs, 18 TBs
Rocky Colavito, 1959 Indians, 4 for 4, 4 homers, 6 RBIs, 16 TBs
Willie Mays, 1961 Giants, 4 for 5, 4 homers, 8 RBIs, 16 TBs
Mike Schmidt, 1976 Phillies, 5 for 6, 1 single, 4 homers, 8 RBIs, 17 TBs
Bob Horner, 1986 Braves, 4 for 5, 4 homers, 6 RBIs, 16 TBs
Mark Whiten, 1993 Cardinals, 4 for 5, 4 homers, 12 RBIs, 16 TBs
Mike Cameron, 2002 Mariners, 4 for 5, 4 homers, 4 RBIs, 16 TBs
Green, 2002 Dodgers, 6 for 6, 1 single, 1 double, 4 homers, 7 RBIs, 19 TBs
Carlos Delgado, 2003 Blue Jays, 4 for 4, 4 homers, 6 RBIs, 16 TBs
Josh Hamilton, 2012 Rangers, 5 for 5, 1 double, 4 homers, 8 RBIs, 18 TBs
Scooter Gennett, 2017 Reds, 5 for 5, 1 single, 4 homers, 10 RBIs, 17 TBs
J.D. Martinez, 2017 Diamondbacks, 4 for 5, 4 homers, 6 RBIs, 16 TBs
None of the above had a stolen base in their four-homer game.
Now Ohtani: 6 for 6, 1 single, 2 doubles, 3 homers, 10 RBIs, 2 steals, 17 TBs
Is a single, two doubles, three homers, two steals and 10 RBIs better than a person who hit “only” four homers or four homers and a single and nothing else (with fewer RBIs?). I say yes.
That leaves us with Adcock, Green and Hamilton. Did they have a better game than Ohtani? The best candidate is Green, who also had six hits and more total bases than Ohtani, but fewer RBIs and steals.
I believe it was the greatest offensive day in MLB history.
I’m interested in what you think. Did Ohtani just have the greatest offensive game in MLB history? Click here to vote.
What others are saying
Ohtani: “Just happy, relieved and very respectful to the peers and everybody that came before that played this sport of baseball,” he said through interpreter Will Ireton. “If I’m being honest, it was something I wanted to get over as soon as possible.”
Dave Roberts: “This game has been around for a long time. And to do something that’s never been done — he’s one of one.”
Miguel Rojas: “I almost cried, to be honest with you. It was a lot of emotions, because of everything that happens behind the scenes that we got to witness every single day.”
Betts: “I think he was just feeling good, feeling sexy and just knew, like, ‘I’m about to do this today.’ I mean, he could’ve had four homers today. I’m at a loss for words.”
Marlins manager (and former Dodger) Skip Schumaker, caught on camera in the dugout discussing whether to intentionally walk Ohtani to stop him from piling up his numbers: “F— that. I’ve got way too much respect for the guy.” And after the game to reporters: “That’s a bad move baseball-wise, karma-wise, baseball gods-wise. You go after him and see if you can get him out.”
Shawn Green: “If you’re gonna lose a record, you want it to be to a great player, and he’s the greatest player who has ever lived. And the fact that he did it in such historic fashion may be even better. To get to 50-50, that’s not a Dodgers thing, that’s an unprecedented Major League Baseball milestone. There aren’t enough adjectives to describe how amazing he’s been throughout his career, but especially this first season with the Dodgers, with all the pressure coming over. It’s really mind-boggling what he’s been able to do.”
Your questions answered
Now I am ceding the stage (stop clapping) to our Dodgers beat writer, Jack Harris, who will answer a few questions. These are the questions I get asked most often by readers, so it’s good to get an outlook from someone with the team almost every day.
Q. The postseason is about to begin and the main question is of course the rotation. It seems to me that Jack Flaherty is solid, despite the occasional shaky outing. But how would you classify Landon Knack, Yoshinobu Yamamato and Walker Buehler, and will they be able to get more than four innings out of Yamamoto?
Harris: Flaherty and Yamamoto will definitely anchor the rotation. And yes, Yamamoto should be built up to around five to six innings by the start of the playoffs.
After that, there are bigger questions. Buehler has been better lately, but still has a 5.54 ERA on the season. Knack has been solid, with a 3.39 ERA, but has completed six innings twice this year.
Clayton Kershaw could factor into the picture, as well, if he returns from his toe injury.
Q. How realistic is it to expect to see Kershaw pitch this postseason?
Harris: It’s not a guarantee, but is looking likelier by the day. His 80-plus-pitch bullpen session this week was a hugely encouraging sign. And because Kershaw has been able to keep his arm in shape in recent weeks (he has played catch on most days), he will still be built up once his toe heals.
The question, of course, is whether the toe will heal in time for the playoffs. Roberts has been careful not to get his hopes up. But at this point, I’d probably be more surprised if we don’t see Kershaw on the mound again this year.
Q. How realistic is it to expect to see Ohtani pitch this postseason?
Harris: It’s still very much a long shot, and might require Ohtani to advocate for it himself — something he has not done yet.
I do see the appeal in keeping Ohtani as a viable pitching option, even if it’s just for a handful of innings here or there (if the Dodgers make a deep run with this starting rotation, they’ll need every inning they can get).
But there are still serious risks to consider. And if Ohtani isn’t up for it himself — he said he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to handle it physically — I imagine it will be a non-starter.
Q. It seems that even if every starter performs their best, the bullpen is going to be severely taxed this postseason. The fear is they will have to give a postseason game away to preserve their bullpen arms. Is that a realistic fear?
Harris: I don’t think the Dodgers will be “giving away” playoff games, as we sometimes see happen in the regular season. But an over-reliance on the bullpen would indeed create problems.
The more relievers have to pitch in a series, the more likely they are to wear down. Also, especially in a best-of-seven format, it gives opponents the ability to see them multiple times and makes adjustments.
Q. I got a lot of questions about Tyler Glasnow and how he just up and vanished between games in the Atlanta series. People took that as a sign he was unhappy with the team. Your thoughts?
Harris: To me, this was a story that got blown out of proportion on social media. Here’s what happened:
On Saturday, Roberts announced before the game that Glasnow would likely miss the rest of the season. After the game, Glasnow declined to talk to reporters (as he walked out of the clubhouse, he said he’d be right back, but never returned). The next day, his locker was cleaned out, a sign he was no longer with the team on the trip. So, Roberts was asked where he went.
The manager then gave this quote: “I know he flew out. I don’t know where he flew to. But he’s not with the team, no.”
I see why people might have read into that, but as someone who was sitting in on this scrum, there was no indication Roberts was upset with Glasnow, or that Glasnow was upset with the team.
Players who suffer serious injuries often step away from the team for some period of time — something Roberts expounded on the following day:
“Obviously he’s very disappointed and frustrated,” Roberts said. “I supported the fact that he needed to be away and that’s OK.”
Plus, Roberts clarified that Glasnow’s absence was “certainly excused,” and that he deflected in his answer the day prior because “I just don’t feel it needed to be public information where he’s going.”
Glasnow is expected to be back around the team during the upcoming homestand.
Q. Do the Dodgers secretly wish they had held on to James Paxton or Ryan Yarbrough?
Harris: I don’t think Yarbrough would have changed the equation much. I’m not even sure he would have been a lock for the postseason roster, given his ERA was starting to get near to 4.00 and he had a career-high walk rate.
Paxton, meanwhile, got hurt shortly after he was traded to the Red Sox, out since Aug. 11 with a calf strain.
There are several pitching-related moves I’m sure the Dodgers are regretting right now, but these probably aren’t among them.
Q. Is Dave Roberts’ job in jeopardy if the Dodgers don’t reach the World Series?
Harris: Not necessarily. If this team doesn’t win the pennant, it will almost certainly be because of the injuries to their pitching staff, a problem he as manager has little control over. I’d be very surprised if Roberts is outright fired for an early elimination.
Where things could get complicated, however, is in potential negotiations over a contract extension; talks that will likely take place this offseason ahead of Roberts’ final year under contract.
If the team flames out early again, it could put a strain on those discussions. But, again, it’s hard to say how all of that will play out.
The postseason race
A look at how the teams stack up. The division winner plus the next three teams with the better record advance to the postseason:
Division leaders
1. Philadelphia, 91-62
2. Dodgers, 91-62
3. Milwaukee, 88-65
The Phillies hold the tiebreaker advantage over the Dodgers, while the Dodgers hold the advantage over the Brewers. Strangely, the Dodgers and Brewers have clinched a postseason spot, while the Phillies have not (but probably will today).
Wild-card standings
San Diego, 87-66
N.Y. Mets, 85-68
Arizona, 85-68
Atlanta, 83-70, 2 GB
Chicago, 78-75, 7 GB
St. Louis, 77-76, 8 GB
If the season ended today, the Dodgers and Phillies would get first-round byes. Milwaukee would host the Arizona in one best-of-three wild-card round, with the winner advancing to play the Dodgers in the best-of-five division series. San Diego would play host to the Mets, with the winner advancing to play the Phillies.
If the Dodgers slip out of the top two and have to play in the wild-card round, then their postseason will begin Tuesday, Oct. 1. If they remain in the top two, then their postseason begins Saturday, Oct. 5.
Results: Who is your favorite current Dodger?
We narrowed the list of favorite current Dodgers from 41 to 10 in the first round of voting. In the second round, we narrow it down to your top four. After 21,512 ballots:
Mookie Betts, named on 90.2% of ballots
Freddie Freeman, 72.9%
Shohei Ohtani, 66.2%
Clayton Kershaw, 54%
Others receiving votes:
Teoscar Hernández, 34.9%
Will Smith, 23.4%
Kiké Hernández, 19.2%
Miguel Rojas, 18.1%
Max Muncy, 14%
Gavin Lux, 7.2%
Now, to continue our quest to find the favorite current Dodgers, we reduce the ballot to the top two, and ask you to vote for one.
Random thoughts
—It feels weird that the Dodgers aren’t playing the Giants the last week of the season. In fact, they haven’t played them since July. It would be more exciting to have six games with the Giants in the last week and a half instead of six games with the Rockies. Baseball: marketing geniuses.
—Flaherty gets most of the notice, but Tommy Edman was a great trade deadline pickup.
—Since July 20, Chris Taylor is hitting .271/.340/.333 and former Dodger Jason Heyward is hitting .228/.273/.402. The problem for Taylor is he was in such a giant hole (hitting .108 at the end of May) that his batting average had no chance to recover.
—The Dodgers waited all of about five minutes before they sent out an email touting how you could buy Ohtani 50-50 merchandise. How about letting everyone enjoy the moment for a while before you cash in?
—Does anyone else get creeped out when the Dodgers are trying to rally for runs or stop a team from scoring and the “Forest Lawn” advertisement starts flashing around Dodger Stadium? Bad karma.
—Wouldn’t it be great to hear Vin Scully in the booth just one more time?
Up next
Friday: Colorado (*Kyle Freeland, 5-7, 4.89 ERA) at Dodgers (TBD), 7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, 1020 KTNQ
Saturday: Colorado (Cal Quantrill, 8-10, 4.68 ERA) at Dodgers (Walker Buehler, 1-5, 5.54 ERA), 6:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, 1020 KTNQ
Sunday: Colorado (Antonio Senzatela, 0-0, 6.00 ERA) at Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 6-2, 2.63 ERA), 1:10 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, 1020 KTNQ
*-left-handed
The hustle to first was something to behold. Who goes all out to reach the base, beat the play? A few, but not many. Who has the speed to do that? Not many. Who can hit 52 homers and steal 52 bases? Shohei Ohtani and no one else.
Mark: I have rarely disagreed with you but I will on yesterday’s post. When I read it, I said to myself that Ohtani is probably not the best hitter in the game, but with his pitching ability, he is the best player in the game.
No one could argue that Judge is the best hitter in the game. However, after last night’s HR, I looked at the stats and saw that Ohtani was only 1 HR behind Judge. While I still think the nod for best hitter goes to Judge, I do believe it is closer than I thought.
What I will say is we are not only blessed to be Dodger fans, but incredibly blessed to be able to watch Shohei for 162.
On another topic. I do go to Jeff’s site occasionally and just shake my head. Thank you for cleaning up your great site.
While I can see the argument for moving Betts back to 2B, part of it would be to accommodate Pages in RF. Trading Lux doesn’t help us on its own and it doesn’t address the hole at SS.
Edman is the wildcard as we have one crucial year of his services and he could be in CF or SS. A rotation with him, Pages & Rojas could work too, and that doesn’t even include Outman, who I think will be traded.
Assuming no Teo, we could have an OF of Pages/Rushing in LF, Edman/Pages in CF & Betts in RF. One last year of Taylor being the everything man on the bench.
I like Freeland a lot and signing Adames could impact him. Could Adames move to 3B later if needed?
Yes!
Trading Lux could help a lot, especially if you get a decent return. But moving him could make sense if it frees up a roster spot for a player with more potential.
If the plan is to move Mookie to 2B, then Lux is the odd man out–a benchwarmer who could pinch-hit against righties.
Where would Lux play if not 2B?
Remember when Mark the Dodgers to move Lux to CF? That ain’t happening. If Lux moves to the OF, he’d be in LF, where his mediocre arm could be hidden. His arm also limits his potential as a UT guy; we’ve all seen stronger throws from Taylor and Edman, both of whom will be on the roster next season.
Look at this way: Would you rather have Lux doing his best in LF and taking up space on the roster–or instead a prospect like Rushing?
I am adding Houston Mitchell’s Newsletter above. It’s a worthy read!
You should sign up for it if you don’t already get it.
Baseball is without a doubt the best sport in the world! i never played in school because we didn’t have a program. i coached my sons from the age of 5, till 14. the memories are endless, the relationships are endless. My 10 year old grandson couldn’t wait to talk to me about ohtani! Now he’s a Freddie guy all day! wears number 5 and pitches and plays first base , left handed swing. My 2 year old grandson loves Mookie. He says Mookie will smoke that thing! Bottom line, baseball rules! Nobody’s talking about ohtani’s contract lately! Might be the steal of free agency, you think? … Now the dodgers need to sweep the Rockies this weekend! DONT let the padres come to dodger stadium with a chance to tie or take the lead in the nl west! …. looks like the Braves are about cooked. Not a slight against them, it’s amazing they have done as well as they have with all the injuries!
The Dodgers are making a small fortune off Ohtani’s contract in Japan, at the gate ,merchandise sales,advertisements etc. etc.Ohtani did quite well in signing for 700 million for ten years. A win,win for both sides. We as fans get to see a once in lifetime player.His contract deferrals allow the Dodgers to sign other free agents and keep the juggernaut going for many years to come.
I certainly could be wrong but it seems to me like we will look back at the 2020’s as a golden time in baseball. GO DODGERS!
Amen!
Mark you whiffed on this one. Ohtani is overwhelmingly the best player in baseball. If you would have said best hitter, we’d probably have a good debate. Shohei is a superstar hitter, a superstar pitcher and a superstar speedster. End of story.
I don’t have enough information, yet. So my take on next year will have to wait. Right now is the greatest time to be a Dodger fan!
Book em
Adames should eventually move to 3B as he ages. He has a great arm and the transition would be easy.
The question, assuming that the Dodgers acquire Adames, is whether Freeland or Jeondry Vargas or ??? would be an upgrade at SS. I’d say that Adames stays at SS as long as he’s the best man for the job.
But I think the prospect of Adamas is a big “if.”
But would AF really, as Mark suggests, go after both Adames and Teoscar? Getting both could be a $300 million for five years. My guess is that Sasaki, if he’s on the market, would be the priority. If money truly is no object, the Dodgers could land all three–and make it that much harder for their prospects to rise. Don’t we want to have room for Rushing?
Speaking of SS, I hope folks are noticing that Trey Sweeney is doing a terrific job for Detroit as the Tigers battle for the Wild Card. His OPS is .719 and he’s made some web gems in the field. That deal looks like a true win-win.
There are two glaring differences between Ohtani and Judge. Shohei steals more bags but walks less than Judge. Other than that, they’re numbers are fairly comparable. Judge’s higher OPS is mostly attributed to his higher BB%.
In terms of the best player currently in MLB, the numbers say Judge is that guy; however, there is a 24 year old SS in KC who is a close second to Judge in terms of WAR, who also notched the second 30-30 season of his young career.
In terms of Adames, my concern with him is the high K rate. A 6-year deal at $30M/year for a soon to be 30 year old who doesn’t walk much and is inclined to K at a high rate is bound to become a liability as he gets into the latter part of his contract. I believe a 4-year deal in the $25M range makes more sense. However, I dread the idea of having 3 high strikeout guys in the same lineup; e.g. Muncy, Teo and Adames.
Go Blue!
A strikeout is 1 Out.
Sometimes, if you don’t strike out, you hit into a double (or triple) play.
And… sometimes you move a runner.
I think it evens out. In fact, sabermetrics may indicate that a strikeout is beneficial.
An out is an out, though sometimes (SOMETIMES) you can move a runner.
I think your discussion is more about which type of out is preferable. But high strike out guys don’t put the ball in play as often and a typical league average on BABIP is .300. I would not sign both Teoscar and Adames. I probably err on the side of giving young players room to develop as major leaguers but I would sign Adames, move Betts to 2nd and open up at bats for Pages and Rushing in the corner spots. I agree with you regarding Lux. I think a trade is the best option. The ability to move Adames to third in a year or two to make room for Freeland seems reasonable, as well. Interesting discussion for the off season.
Glasnow doesn’t expect to need surgery on his sprained right elbow, but he’s been shut down from throwing for the foreseeable future, per MLB.com.
“Glasnow was diagnosed with a right elbow sprain Sept. 14 and was subsequently moved to the 60-day IL. Though the right-hander doesn’t think he’ll need surgery, his injured elbow will be subject to monitoring and imaging as he looks ahead to clearance to resume throwing. Glasnow’s injury isn’t expected to carry over into next season, but it’s highly unlikely he’ll pitch again in 2024 even if the Dodgers make a deep run into the postseason”.
Brandon Gomes was also asked about the likelihood of Ohtani taking the mound in an interview with MLB Network. He also shutdown the notion of the Dodgers star pitching for Los Angeles this season.
“That feels very unlikely right now,” Gomes said. “He’s just going through his throwing progression and it feels very good which is important, but at this point, I don’t see him pitching in the postseason. That’s not in the plans as of now.”
Sol far, Ohtani has not asked to pitch… but if he does ask, they will let him.
That’s my opinion…
My bad Mark. You did say Judge was #1 in 2024. Although it’s close.
I may not be wrong very often. But when I am I drink……
Book em
Some on here wanted this guy badly. He has tailed off horribly since the All Star break:
By Mark Polishuk | September 21, 2024 at 11:13am CDT
“In a surprising move, the Nationals optioned shortstop CJ Abrams to Triple-A Rochester, the Athletic’s Britt Ghiroli reports (via X). Infielder Trey Lipscomb is being called up in the corresponding move, as per The Washington Post’s Andrew Golden (X link).
Nationals manager Davey Martinez told reporters (including Golden and MASNsports.com’s Dan Kolko) that Abrams was optioned not for his play on the field, but rather “an internal issue” matter that Martinez didn’t discuss in further detail. Abrams will report not to Rochester for the last two games of the Triple-A season but will instead go to the Nats’ spring camp in Florida to work out. Martinez confirmed that Abrams wouldn’t appear in the majors again in 2024, but remains a big piece of the organization’s present and future”.
Character matters!
He was at a casino until 8 in the morning and then they had a1 pm day game against the Cubs
Saturday schedule
5:35 p.m. PT: Oklahoma City (Tony Gonsolin) at Salt Lake (John O’Reilly)
Justin Wrobleski is also slated to pitch on Saturday, piggybacking after Gonsolin.
Meanwhile, on that other site the M…….ns are talking about what Ohtani needs to do to get better.
On another note, sure sucks for me that six of the last nine games are against the Rockies so I’m blacked out.
9:10 PM ET
Rockies (59-95)
Dodgers (92-62)
SP Cal Quantrill R
8-10 4.68 ERA
SP Walker Buehler R
1-5 5.54 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
RF Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
LF T. Hernandez R
CF Tommy Edman S
3B Max Muncy L
2B Gavin Lux L
SS Miguel Rojas R
C H. Feduccia L
72° Wind 7 mph Out
Philly already lost today
#1 seed at stake tonight. Win and don’t let go. Playoffs start now.
I’m about done with Buehler now. Enough is enough
Almost glad to be listening on the radio instead of watching his debacle
And I don’t care how many he strikes out we can’t afford to be giving up early runs in the playoffs. It seems like his new MO. Shaky first couple and then he gets his shit together.
We don’t have anyone else. Knack, Gonsolin, Kershaw, Wrobleski . . .
Miller is toast this year.
Gonsolin and Kershaw could arrive in the nick of time!