Every year, the Dodgers go through tough stretches, and many fans lose their minds and spew forth vomit about the Dodgers. It happens like this every year. Then I come back and try to explain that baseball is a game of streaks and adjustments to which some dumbasses always reply, “Well, you just love Friedman.” Well, maybe you should, too. The Dodgers have been the best team in baseball over the last 10 years… by a wide margin. They have won two World Series (should have been three, but for the cheating Asstericks).
However, every time the Dodgers go through a losing streak or encounter some problems, many fans jump on the bandwagon and head to Crazytown. They did it last year, and they are doing it this year, and… SECRETLY DOWN DEEP, these morons believe they are smarter than Andrew Friedman. If left alone, they would offer advice to a brain surgeon on how to perform brain surgery. I have run them off by the dozens. They are insane, pathetic little men (maybe they are dominated by their wives and this gives them an outlet to feel like they know something… but they don’t know Jack!).
Least we forget, here’s how improbable the Texas Rangers’ 2023 and the Dodgers’ 2024 World Series wins were—especially in light of their season records and injuries:
2023 Texas Rangers: An Unexpected Rise
Record & Regular Season
- The Rangers entered the postseason as the fifth seed (Wild Card), having finished behind the Astros in the AL West despite having identical records; the Astros held the tiebreaker.
- Remarkably, this came just two seasons after a 102-loss campaign, which underscores the improbability of their 2023 title journey.
Injuries & Comebacks
- Injuries to key pitchers plagued them: Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi, and Jon Gray all missed significant time.
- Despite those losses, they supplemented their roster by adding Aroldis Chapman, Chris Stratton, Jordan Montgomery, and Max Scherzer.
- Manager Bruce Bochy emphasized the team’s resilience—“What their bodies lacked… they made up for with an attitude”
Postseason Performance
- The Rangers were outhit overall by the Diamondbacks 47–38, yet out-homered them 8–3, with MVP Corey Seager belting three of those homers.
- They set records: Homer streak in 16 straight postseason games, plus a stunning 11–0 road record in the playoffs.
- The clincher was a 5–0 victory in Game 5—their first World Series title in franchise history, achieved through sheer grit and timely offense.
Bottom line: A Wild Card team battered by injuries, yet fueled by offensive power and mental toughness. Their title run stands as one of the most improbable in recent memory.
2024 Los Angeles Dodgers: Dominance Amid Adversity
Record & Expectations
- The Dodgers still secured the best win-loss record in MLB in 2024 and won the NL West, even though they fell short of 100 wins for the first full season since 2018.
- This was all despite a star-studded off-season—including landing Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow—highlighting how championship expectations were high, yet not guaranteed.
Injury Toll
- Their injuries were staggering: players missed a combined 2,158 days, the most ever for a World Series champion in the past decade.
- Multiple starters and relievers—including Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Clayton Kershaw, and others—were on the injured list starting from Spring Training.
- By October, only three traditional starting pitchers remained healthy: Jack Flaherty, Yamamoto, and Walker Buehler.
- Yet the Dodgers overcame this by leaning on mid-season additions like Flaherty and Tommy Edman, plus invaluable performances by players like Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman (who played through a severe ankle sprain and broken rib cartilage).
World Series Victory
- The Dodgers secured the 2024 World Series over the Yankees in five games—cementing their depth and adaptability amid heavy injury challenges.
- Game 2 saw Ohtani leave with a shoulder injury, but the team held strong behind Yamamoto’s stellar pitching and a barrage of homers (Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, Edman).
Bottom line: A team built for dominance, yet derailed by injuries. Their championship was a testament to roster depth, strategic midseason moves, and player heroes.
Baseball is a game of streaks and adjustments. Sometimes overly talented teams have a difficult time getting up for lesser opponents. It’s just human nature! The Dodgers are still in first place by 2 1/2 games, with four weeks of the season left to go. I think Michael Conforto should be gone, but for some reason, they have kept him. I am not going to pretend that I know more than Andrew Friedman. I am just going to enjoy the ride. This team is deep, players are coming back, and they are a hot street away from running the table on anyone in baseball.
It’s been over a week since my shoulder replacement surgery, and I’m still struggling with the Dragon software. Most of the time, it doesn’t understand what I’m saying. However, I’m still working on training it, so here we are. I was reading the new issue of Baseball America, and the Milwaukee Brewers are ranked number one in farm systems, the Pirates are second, the Detroit Tigers are third, the Minnesota Twins are fourth, the Boston Red Sox are fifth, the Seattle Mariners are sixth, and the Los Angeles Dodgers are seventh. The San Diego Padres are 30th, so their future doesn’t look bright. They went all-in this year, and it doesn’t look like they’re going to do well after losing Jason Adam, one of their best relief pitchers. The Dodgers are still getting players back. We’ll see what happens, but I like our chances. So does Vegas.
Some people are picking Kyle Schwaber to win the MVP. I think there are two chances: slim and none… he’s more than one war difference behind. I think the season could end right now for Ohtani, and he still would win, but I’ve been wrong before.
In the latest issue of Baseball America, it lists the best tools in the Arizona complex league, and it is interesting to note that Chase Harlan, third base, and Emil Morales at shortstop are listed in the top 10.
We might not win 90 games.
I’ll take that bet
All true or mostly true. But let’s admit, there’s no way we win the world series with an outfield of Conforto, Pages, Teo.
Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote a song about last night’s game. It’s called That Smell.
It smelled all the way down here in Panama.
I hear there are no street signs there.
There are a few. Even in the rural pueblo where we live. But there are more intersections without street signs than there are with. And that includes Panama City. Waze and Google maps are your friends here. The country is actually very easy to get around in as long as you have GPS and one of those two.
Also, almost everyone here uses WhatsApp almost exclusively to communicate.
I had a client there. He said no phone or mail service. But if you call a Dr. They come to your home
There is absolutely phone service almost everywhere. Though very little 5G. But connectivity is actually pretty widespread. It’s just that people don’t usually use phone numbers. They use WhatsApp. So they’re using the data on their phone plan. There is also widespread fiber internet along with starlink is very good here and less than half the price of the US. Otherwise you wouldn’t be able to communicate. And yes many veterinarians and doctors will do house calls here. And there is theoretically mail service but it is extremely unreliable. For instance, my US mail gets sent to a mailboxes etc in Miami which then forwards it to one here. And it cost me about $2 to $3 per letter to pick it up. We get very little mail. Except in the city, you don’t really have a real address anyway. More like, the blue house across the street from XYZ. It’s a great place to hide out! 🙂
Wait, I’ve heard Panama is the Singapore of the Western Hemisphere. Lots of wealth and opulence.
Meh, Not sure where you heard it but you heard wrong. Actually overall compared to the US, it’s a fairly poor country. Although Panama City is definitely the most modern city in all of Central America. Outside the city in rural areas like where we live, the only money is expat money. Right on the beaches there are plenty of million dollar homes. That’s not us though, we’re just living a nice modest existence. We actually try to avoid rich expats, they’re mostly a-holes. Most expat sites now list Panama as the number one place in the world to retire, especially for Americans.
Maybe it was Panama City, and thus a mistake to compare a city to a country.
Thanks for the info.
It used to be that some of of the Dodger games I muted with the voices of Jessica Mendez , Eric Karros and Stephen Nelson, now the recent Dodger games are unwatchable with their shitty play. I really don’t know that when Muncy and Edman return off the IL, that things will be much different. It’s an aging team that is boring to watch.AF and BG will have their work cut out for them in the offseason to get more athletic and younger ,much younger.
i’m sure every fan base goes through a case of “panic” periodically. i’m not panicking, just frustrated! the dodgers have been leaving runners stranded at a blistering pace for a while now! bases loaded and nothing? of course we’re not as smart as AF! But we do see the lack of urgency with this team. Sure Doc will make the occasional “we got to be better “. speech “” from time to time, doesn’t seem to be helping. No one can control injuries. But can’t some of this be attributed to the hitting approach? Pages swung at a ball 2 feet off the plate last night. it would have been ball 4 and tied the game. Shouldn’t someone say something? Freeland can’t seem to distinguish a ball from a pitch right down the middle. Conforto? he can’t! Kike? ain’t that time of the season yet. Dalton? i would love to see him play more! i know , where? I believe he’s a potential allstar in the future! Teo? troubling. …. Now i do believe they will be much better when healthy. i do believe that the Loa Angeles Dodgers can repeat! i don’t expect them to win the division by 12 games every year. i do expect them to play fundamentally sound baseball. i was one who begged for Teo to resign! i still believe he can help win another title. i also believe he needs to play left field! Andy Pages has the ability and the cannon of an arm to be a top 3 right fielder in baseball. Everyone needs to chill on Mookie going back to the outfield. ain’t happening! Wouldn’t have an everyday ss then! … The starting staff is almost at full strength. the bullpen? i’m not going to lie, i’m concerned. yates cannot and should not be trusted in high leverage situations. Trienan is not bulletproof either. Scott? the ability is there, but mentally he’s a question mark. Kopech? so much raw ability. will he harness it? Casparius, Dryer, wrobleski, Banda? they have been more than expected. but a 1 run lead in the ninth who gets the ball? My oh my wouldn’t it be something if there was someway to give the ball to ohtani in the ninth? … So no, i don’t know more than AF! I’m not a big league manager like Dave Roberts! And YES i get pissed about games like last night! why shouldn’t we? But tonight at 6:40 EST i”ll be watching! Paul Skeenes and the minor league pirates. (just kidding lol). One last thing. the owner (s) of the pirates should be ashamed of themselves! With the pitching they have, and have traded away, there’s no reason to be a last place team in that division! They should be embarrassed !
I am sure someone said something to both Pages and Freeland.
I also wonder if Roberts’ laid back style (which was a major asset last year) has drawbacks this year.
The key is making the playoffs, there is so much variance in the postseason you don’t even need the team to be playing at max capacity. You need weird things, like Brent Honeywell, or Yankee fielding falling apart….
Or you could just play a lot better… that would work…
Short of winning the World Series, how do fans define a successful season?
How do fans define a successful season?
For the Dodgers, I think it’s WS or bust. Winning is great, but getting there has to count as a success. The Dodgers should win the West. But it will be a real gauntlet to the WS.
For many teams, progress is a success. If a last-place team becomes a .500 team, aren’t congratulations in order?
Really? I mean I understand it’s a personal answer, but….
Even with (nearly every) statistic showing that winning or making the World Series isn’t indicative of team quality?
To me it’s making the playoffs and being fun to watch. Maybe it’s progressing a round in the playoffs. That seems to be a better bar height.
Sadly, this year is only half-successful so far.
Well said Mark.
No one in the NL is playing LIGHTS out. And even if they were, come October its a whole new ball game.
I got confidence in these guys, when the lights are the brightest we will shine.
What team wants to see this rotation lined up in a playoff series???
Game 1: Snell
Game 2: Yamamoto
Game3: Ohtani
Game 4: Kershaw
Game 5: Glasnow
Shuffle those cards however you want, that matches up with ANYONE. Does it mean we will win, NO, but it gives us a damn good shot and in the postseason, thats all you can ask for…
Best is yet to come…
The pitching is looking up, especially the starters.
But the offense and defense are maddeningly inconsistent. And Roberts seems awfully slow to make adjustments.
Why hasn’t Kim started any games since his return? We’ve seen Conforto and Freeland out there, but Kim has come off the bench.
Getting Max back should provide a serious boost to the offense. Edman will solidify the defense.
I assume that Freeland and Justin Dean will be optioned to OKC.
I trusted AF’s alleged genius on the Conforto signing, but yikes… Not only were there several other free agent outfielders on the market–including Bader, Pham and Laureano–but Conforto’s contract effectively blocked in-house options such as Outman and Ryan Ward.
Can Ward, who is 27, hit big-league pitching? We’ll never know if he isn’t given the chance.
He sure has done the job in OKC, with a .950 OPS, 32 HRs and 115 RBI in 129 games. Somebody around here will say, “Oh, but Ward wasn’t taken in the Rule 5 draft, so he’s clearly just a minor leaguer.” But
All considered, I’d have rather seen either Outman and Ward (or both) scuffling for the major-league minimum than Conforto scuffling for $17 million. And if the OF was still a problem at midseason, maybe AF could have swung that deal for Steven Kwan.
Two nights ago Kim arrived late having delayed flights and missed connections. Not sure why he didn’t play last night but it’s possible Roberts wanted him to get a little time to get over jet lag. If he’s not in the lineup tonight I’ll have to wonder what’s going on.
Oh, that’s right.
I did read that Kim spent about 15 hours delayed in an airport. Thx for the reminder.
He should be fine now.
This team needs a spark.
Just noticed that SI.com carried a story about Ward on July 22, titled “This Minor League Player Is Probably the Best Prospect You Know Nothing About.”
An excerpt:
The first baseman/outfielder hit his 26th home run on Saturday , crushing a ball 457 feet for the Triple-A Oklahoma City Comets – the top affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Entering the game against the Sacramento River Cats (San Francisco Giants affiliate) on Sunday, Ward led the Pacific Coast League not only in homers but in hits (112), RBIs (87) and slugging percentage (.607). He was second in runs (74) and sixth in batting average (.313).
New York Yankees prospect Spencer Jones hit two homers Sunday for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to tie Ward for the minor league-lead in home runs.
Earlier this week, he was named Pacific Coast League player of the week for July 7-13. In six games against Sugar Land (Houston Astros affiliate), he was 9-for-21 (.429) and walked six times, hit one homer, drove in six runs and scored four times.
And he’s had some highlight-reel performances this season, including a walk-off, inside-the-park home run on May. 1.
So why haven’t the Dodgers called up Ward? The team’s eighth-round of the 2019 MLB Draft, Ward is now 27 and in his third season in Oklahoma City and has yet to make his MLB debut.
He’s stuck behind Freddie Freeman at first base and a loaded Los Angeles outfield. And when the Dodgers needed to reach into Triple-A earlier this season for help in the outfield, they took James Outman, who has major league experience, plus offers speed that Ward doesn’t.
Freeman was removed from the Dodgers’ game against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday with what the team called a left-wrist contusion. Should Freeman require a stay on the injured list, would that trigger a call to the majors for Ward?
If not, Ward could be a chip for the Dodgers at the trade deadline. It’s hard to believe there isn’t a team that wouldn’t take a chance on a player with these career minor league stats heading into the game Sunday: 625 games, 655 hits, 432 runs, 125 doubles, 24 triples, 140 home runs and 471 RBIs with a slash line of .266/.341/.507/.848.
Dodgers’ followers certainly are rooting for him. One account on X, @DodgersDaily, recently posted this, in part, about Ward: “Dude is a masher, but the Dodgers are loaded, so opportunity is very hard to find many times, and certainly has been for him. But, this dude deserves his chance, some way, somehow.”
A chip at the trade deadline? Apparently not.
I think Ward becomes a free agent at the end of the season. I hope he finds his way to the majors–and absolutely tortures Dodger pitching.
This dude has had many “chances”
Anyone could have traded for Ward, nobody did.
Anyone could have claimed Ward in a Rule V draft, nobody did.
Gracias, Mark, for pointing out that Baseball America grades the Dodgers farm system as seventh best in the game.
Not bad, but also not close to the No. 1 ranking granted by the scribes at MLB. com.
So whom should we trust?
My sense is that the nerds at Baseball America take this stuff more seriously, while the scribes at MLB.com offer a more impressionistic assessment,
At any rate, the disparity underscores the highly subjective nature of these ratings exercises. It’s even more subjective on individual players, as when we were led to believe that top prospect Gavin Lux might be an all-star caliber SS. (I don’t mean to bash Gavin but the ratings fetish.)
Anyway, the Dodgers seem to have a lot of exciting prospects on the way. Or should we call them suspects? At any rate, there’s so much, I think, that AF shouldn’t be so shy when big talents are on the market.
If the way that the Dodgers have been playing recently was a short term issue it would be easier to write it off as a bad streak or a slump. But the Dodgers’ offense has been inconsistent at best since the middle of May. And the bullpen has been bad for quite a while. None of the off-season bullpen acquisitions have been successful, nor have the offensive personnel.
Since 7/1 they are 25-29. It’s not a short-term deal – it’s been months. And it’s all too often that they just aren’t playing fundamentally sound baseball. Yesterday they load the bases twice, once with no outs, and score zero runs. Too many baserunning errors, too many fielding blunders, too many bullpen implosions.
Last year, the Dodgers won because they played really well in these areas – the Yankees beat themselves over and over again. This year, the Dodgers are sloppy and don’t take advantage of their opportunities.
My observations don’t mean my head is up my ass Mark. If so, then it means that Dodgers’ commentators who also say that they don’t look like a championship team, like Joe Davis, Orel Hersheiser, et al, must have the same anatomic abnormalities.
I think its normal to have concerns. And just because we won 10 years in arow, doesn’t mean we will snap out of it this year. All we can look at is TODAY. And today’s team wouldn’t win anything. So unlike last year our starting pitching looks strong. But everything else is in the crapper. One month to go
Agree this team can’t win. But this team is not the one that we will be going into the playoffs with. If we get Tommy and Max back healthy by the middle of the month I will take our chances. We need Tommy in center, Max at third, Kim at second and Conforto on the bench. Our offense needs the speed and contact that Edmond and Kim can bring. Let that lineup play for a couple of weeks and we will be ready.
I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH YOUR WELL-ARTICULATED BRIEFS, COUNSELOR!
6:40 PM ET
Dodgers (78-61)
Pirates (63-77)
SP Blake Snell L
3-3 2.41 ERA
SP Paul Skenes R
9-9 2.05 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
LF M. Conforto L
CF Andy Pages R
2B Hyeseong Kim L
3B Miguel Rojas R
C D. Rushing L
49% Rain
65° Wind 8 mph Out
The Los Angeles Dodgers are likely going to bring up a catcher to Pittsburgh in case Will Smith goes on the injured list with a right hand contusion, according to manager Dave Roberts.Roberts’ remarks indicate the Dodgers will likely bring up a minor league catcher as part of the taxi squad for the time being. One likely candidate is Ben Rortvedt, who the Dodgers acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays at the trade deadline.
“Roki Sasaki Unlikely to Return to Dodgers This Season as Struggles Continue”.
I was going to mention something earlier, but I had to get my 8-day surgery checkup today. I am doing amazingly well. They told me again that the ball and socket replacement was the largest stock one. Anything larger would have been custom. Translation: “You have big bones.”
Anyway, what I was going to mention was that some fans are still pining for Ryan Ward or James (gasp) Outman. Of course, they are likely the same ones who thought Hunter Feduccia was a savior.
BTW, Feduccia is hitting .137 with a .246 OB% and a .442 OPS in the 2nd half.
James “Out”man is hitting .143 with a .236 OB% and a .461 OPS in the 2nd half.
Just for shits and giggles (and because they gave me so much flack) Miguel Vargas in the second half- .283 BA/.369 OB%, .841 OPS. I think I told you so. But, progress is not linear!
Anyone could have had Ryan Ward for nothing. No one took him. Nuff said!
The Dodgers announced that they have selected the contract of catcher Ben Rortvedt, a move that was previously reported. In corresponding moves, they optioned infielder Alex Freeland and designated right-hander Alexis Díaz for assignment.
BTW, I am out of the sling for a few hours a day and back on the keyboard!
Congrats Mark. I’m glad it’s going well. My knee replacement is going well too. I have had 3 doctors who have told me I need a shoulder replacement but I am reluctant to have it. Your outcome gives me reasons to be optimistic if I do. I am getting my other knee done next year.
I was told that the shoulder is the most difficult.
That was a lie (for me). I went off pain meds after 3 days. I am so glad I did it.
Just took this:
Dodgers so bitten by arm problems, even their bloggers feelin’ the pinch!
Get well soon, Timmons….
Pinch is an appropriate description of how I feel. 😉
If they can’t hit Ramirez after Skenes, then they can’t ever hit! 😉
wonder what Doc and rvs were talking about? hitting i guess! or lack there of
Weirdest PH sub I can remember. A dude who cannot hit his way out of a wet paper bag?
Okay Doc
Ladies and Gentlemen , I give you the Los Angeles Doormats. 17 innings of shutout ball by the Pirates. Still, this team will improve. It can’t be much worse than this. It’s going to take a lot of players getting their mojo back at the same time tho.