Everybody hits or nobody hits! They score 12 runs of just 1 or 2. The Dodgers are like piranhas smelling blood in the water. They go into a hitting frenzy, or they lounge on floaties. I’m not saying they are not trying… I am saying they aren’t doing! The big difference is that the Dodgers strike out an average of 9.88 times per game, while the Jays strike out just 6.75 times per game. Add in the fact that they don’t have Teo in the field, and that tells you all you need to know as to who leads in the series.
This falls squarely on the Big Six:
- Mookie Betts
- Shohei Ohtani
- Freddie Freeman
- Max Muncy
- Teoscar Hernandez
- Will Smith
The Jays have one or two of those types of players, but the Bluebloods are getting outplayed by the Junkyard Dogs. If it doesn’t change, we will have a new World Series Champion. It’s that simple. It’s the same old story:
Toronto wants it more.
What does that mean?
How do you quantify want?
Means nothing.
They played better in 4 and 5, we can play better in 6 and 7….
One at a time….
I agree.
The Dodgers are defending champs, so they are looking for a repeat. Why wouldn’t Toronto be hungrier?
Further, the Dodgers, the most hyped team in the sport, are dealing with greater pressure to succeed.
If the Blue Jays prevail, many people will say the mighty Dodgers failed.
If the Dodgers win, then the gritty Blue Jays just fell short.
I see one silver lining in this unfolding narrative…
If the Dodgers can now travel to Toronto and win two games, they will have demonstrated their mettle and championship will be all the sweeter.
But man…. they really have to play better.
That said, props to Yesavage for an epic game. My friend Marla is bragging about how her son’s “team” in the Jays’ braintrust had identified him at Eastern Carolina. Brilliant draft pick.
Now can Yamamoto come through three times in row?
Stick with these guys.
Yama in 6 and anything can happen in a game 7…..
Let´s go Dodgers
I’ll kvetch about this…
The Dodgers were so determined to slow-play the season in preparation for the playoffs that they failed to win the home-field advantage.
The Blue Jays had exactly one more win than the Dodgers.
Also worth remembering: In ’24, the front office added three players at midseason who played key roles down the stretch: Edman, Flaherty, Kopech. Definite upgrades.
This season the additions were RP Brock Stewart, now injured, and Alex Call.
Flaherty was 8-16, era 4.64 with the Tigers this year.
So what?
Flaherty was vital to the Dodgers’ championship run last season. Including his five appearances in the post-season, he had 10 wins and 5 losses with the Dodgers. He earned his ring.
The front office realized they needed another starter, and they dealt prospects Trey Sweeney and Thayron Liranzo to get Flaherty.
My biggest complaint during the mid-season market this season, unlike ’24, is that the Dodgers failed to acquire an impact player–in particular, an impact reliever. Last season, Flahery, Edman and Kopech all played key roles.
Loyal readers know Mason Miller was #1 on my shopping list.
But do you know who else might have fit? Louis Varland, who was acquired from the Twins by the Jays, and has been a workhorse for Toronto ever since. Did AF have a strong interest in Varland? Don’t know. But the Jays certainly did. AF wound up flipping James Outman for Brock Stewart, who was having a good season and is now, alas, injured.
Since it’s come down to the Dodgers and the Blue Jays, we can lament two facts:
— the Dodgers failed to rack up another win or two during the season to secure the home-field advantage.
— the Blue Jays made a handsome offer of two highly-regarded prospects to land Varland and Ty France from the Twins. The Blue Jays took a big swing that paid off, while the Dodgers’ front office played “small ball” in acquiring Call and Stewart.
It’s worth remembering that at the trade deadline, the Dodgers’ bullpen was a clear area of need, largely due to the struggles of Scott, Yates and Treinen. Back then, a Sasaki resurgence seemed like a long shot. We now know that Treinen remains a weak bridge between the starter and closer. Of course we wish Vesia well during his family’s struggles, but he is certainly missed, with his absence placing more pressure on Banda.
Now we can just place our trust in Yamamoto leading the Dodgers to a Game 7….
Clarification: the Dodgers won 10 of the 15 games Flaherty pitched in, according to my source. Not clear how often he was credite with the W or L.
basically it all comes down to approach at the plate. adjust and go forward. these guys have the pedigree. they have not adjusted. When does Will Smith miss pitches like that last night? the kid was devastating last night. but with these guys we have, a couple of hits and 12 k’s? tough night. they have the ability to win the next 2 games. Just have to hit. I know, easier said than done. i’m sure hoping for the real dodgers to show up friday! Props to Vladdy! he might be the best hitter in baseball! He’s become a damn good first baseman too! Losing to this team won’t be embarrassing i believe. But it sure will be disappointing! 2games left. no reason they can’t win both!
Why would losing to the Jayseven be thought of as “embarrassing”? I will tell you why – Because the Dodger fans and Media all looked at the Jays with disdain before the series. They completely ignored all the numbers the Jays put up and the records they have been breaking. And also note the Jays are doing this without Bichette (who has now come into the lineup at 50%) and without Springer (who has been hurt the last part of the season and then got beaned in the knee to add to it). The Jays have a full lineup that can single and double you to death while boasting gold glove defense. The Dodgers are clearly way ahead on paper , and PAYROLL ($400 million vs $240 million), but they don’t have the killer instinct that the Jays have. Great series so far – but Jays are already winners whether they close it out or not.
Give me a break, no one downplayed the Jays….its the World Series for gods sake…
Yesavage is the Jays’ X factor.
In a single season, he rose from Single A ball to setting a World Series record in his latest start. Just phenomenal.
It does feel a little like the Gods of Baseball are smiling on Toronto. How often a team followed a last-place finish to the cusp of a World Series championship?
So much for “the Dodgers are ruining baseball”….
At some point you have to give it to the Jays. It’s not just the “Dodgers failing to execute”. It’s the Jays pitching and hitting better. They were the best team in the AL this year. Not knowing their game in advance is the result of Dodger’s fans hubris in their self belief that their team was Thanos.
If the Jays are executing their hitting and pitching better, isn’t the problem that the Dodgers are not?
What does the fans belief have to do with a game’s outcome?
I mean more specifically, very little credit is being given to the job the Jays are doing. I am hearing a lot of ‘fluke’ and ‘lucky’ comments. Snell’s post game interview was pretty revealing. Took very little blame, gave very little respect.
You mean this:
“They didn’t really get to me… Luck plays in baseball.”
Blake Snell says he got unlucky after allowing five earned runs in Game 5 of the World Series
Bluto,
Obviously the answer is ‘nothing’. And he was talking about the fans, not the games outcomes. But you knew that right?
I still can’t really tell what that post was about, but if it was about the fans only, then I guess I see that now? Shrug.
Do we have Jays Trolls over here???
Sure seems like it…
Let me chrip…series aint over…..
Sorry, let EM chirp….
Win tomorrow….
i didn’t say losing to the jays would be embarrassing! i said a disappointment. losing to anyone is disappointing! the dodgers have to play better than the jays two straight games to obtain their goal. impossible? no . but we can’t kid ourselves, the jays are a good team. And except for Spriinger, i like the team. please jays fans, don’t cry payroll, the jays wanted ohtani and yamamoto probably even more than the dodgers. yamamoto can’t hit tomorrow! he can limit the damage by the jays. please la dodgers offense, wake up!
I read where Roberts says the team has to change their approach at the plate. No problem 170+ games into the season and 1 day to practice
I definitely have not seen anyone advocate for changing an approach. Just for better results.
Bluto,
You decide, maybe I misread what Roberts said. Check out Dodger Nation site. It seems to me he said ‘we have to hit like the Jays’, not just ‘hit better’.
Why not just go to the source, Dave Roberts! You can listen to exactly what he says:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3PpbqqLBX0
Q: Doc, how how concerned are you about the offense? the last two games you guys are 10 for 61 which is .164 and you also 0 for six with runners in scoring position. How concerned are you about that?
A: Uh doesn’t feel great. Um you know you clearly see those guys finding ways to get hits, move the baseball forward. Um, and we’re not doing a good job of it… You still have to use the whole field and take what they give you.
Q: Dave, can you talk to players individually, especially about hitting things they might make an adjustment to?
A: Um, you know, the hitting guys talk to them. You know, I talked to him at times as far as kind of not getting into the mechanics, just more of trying to free them up to go out there and just compete and whatever it takes to free these guys up and not try to put too much pressure on themselves because everyone wants to perform. They’re all prepared. Um, but yeah, there there’s times I try to intervene and try to take a little bit of the anxiety out.
Ok. He said we are not moving guys a long. Like Jay’s. Just what I said
NO, He said hit the ball forward? Do you think that’s the Jays and not the Dodgers?
You think maybe the Dodgers approach all year has been to hit the ball sideways?
Come on.
Enough with the Doom and Gloom. We have won 2 games before and will again.
Its baseball for christ sakes….
If you are with me, reply below.
ALL IN
Our choosing to root for the Dodgers has no effect on the outcome of the game. I want them to win – but what I want doesn’t matter.
Dodger hitters need to stop taking the first pitch. If the pitch is over the plate, swing the bat!
The Dodgers are slumping as they did for much of the season. That will have to be explored during the off-season.
What frustrates me is that they badly out-executed their opponents last year. They did the same thing this year – until they faced the Blue Jays.
Teoscar Hernandez is a defensive disaster. He should not be playing RF.
The big issue is the bullpen. Friedman’s efforts to avoid paying for relievers at the deadline didn’t work, but he wouldn’t make the moves necessary to restock the ‘pen. Brock (Broke) Stewart for 4 games? So they have to rely on the likes of Hernandez, Klein, the corpse of Blake Treinen, Banda, etc. The Dodgers’ bullpen has a 4.54 ERA, a WHIP of 1.64, BAA of .266, and 30 walks in 49 innings.
George Shearing could see that this was going to happen. (He was a blind jazz pianist – I prefer jazz).
They have to hit better. The bullpen isn’t fixable on short notice and either is Teo’s glove. But these hitters have a track record in the post-season and have to do their jobs.
The best team does not always win for a variety of reasons.
No matter what. As others have said. It’s a great time to be a Dodger fan. How do Met, Yankee, SD fans feel today
28 other teams are jealous.
Not great. But not that bad, either.
The anti-Dodgers crowd is rooting for more schadenfreude ahead.
Worth repeating…looking forward to game 7
Everyone said at the start of the World Series that Toronto was the overwhelming favorite, and everyone believed it. It seems even the Dodgers players thought they would win just because they were the Dodgers. On one hand, I feel it’s fair that Toronto won.
Huh?