It seems that with the Dodgers, hitting is a group sport. They all hit or nobody hits. They lose 5-1 or win 11-3. Well, Mookie still is not hitting after going 0-6. At what point do we become concerned. As I have often said, “Mookies contract will not age well.” Hopefully, the decline has not started.
- Kyle Tucker looks like a guy whose job Sirota and/or DePaula could steal.
- It’s too bad Santiago Espinal has his bags packed.
- Will Hyeseong Kim ever be more than he is? I have my doubts.
- Roki Sasaki started badly, but righted the ship… soemwhat! It’s a process and painful to watch. I hope it is rewarding.
- The Dodgers are still 3rd in MLB with a 32-20 record and a half game ahead of the Padres in the NL West.
- Is Buster Posey out of his league… or mind?
- What a bullpen – best I have ever seen (so far)… and there’s a bunch more coming!
- Now, they could just learn to hit…
Mark Timmons Minor League Report
OKC Lost to Reno 2-1
- JT3 had 2 hits and the rest of the team had 3. Yawn!
Tulsa lost 5-3
- DePaula had 2 hits as did Vetran, but the rest of the team was pretty quiet.
- DePaula did steal him 14th base – he is no track for 35 or 40. Not bad for a guy whose footwork was questioned a couple years ago!
Great Lakes Lost 11-4
- Detect a trend?
- There’s not much to say here.
The Tower Buzzers were Smoked by the 66’ers 17-3
- Chase Harlan remains hot and is begging for a promotion. He was 3-5.
- The Buzzers had 13 hits and 4 wlks but put up only 3 runs because had only one extra base hit.
- Jesus Tiller went 3.1 innings and fgave up 10 hits and 9 runs!
The ACL Dodgers were Pounded 12-2 by the ACL Reds
- Some days you just don’t show up. They are still mopping up the blood.
- Jeff will be back next week – he is better at this than I am.
All five minor league farm teams lost! They will play TAPS at the start of the Indianapolis 500 today in honor of their memory. Of course the Indy 500 is today and even if you hate racing, this is a spectacle to behold.
If they stuck with Conforto all year, why would anyone doubt that Mookie will continue to play, and probably bat 2nd, as long as he is healthy? As for aging poorly, as long as he continues to go for ‘slug’and not adapt to slowing down—well we’ll see how it goes. In the end they can just eat his contract and be thankful we had him when it counted
What’s wrong with Mookie Betts?
18 G 71AB 10 R 12H 2 2B 0 3B 4HR 9RBI 6BB 9SO 0SB 2CS .169BA .244OBP .366SLG .610 OPS
Are these numbers of a player in decline and should NOT be batting second or just a small sample. No protection right now for Ohtani.
Right now, I feel they are a small sample…
I agree with MT that it is a small sample size. About 10% so far of a full season. But, he needs to be dropped down in the order and stay there if he can’t turn things around. Hopefully, he gets his timing and approach corrected. Then he can return to the #2 spot. Is he really fully recovered from his oblique injury? Because it’s not just his offense, but the defense is regressed as well.
A lineup that could be considered:
Ohtani
Pages (their best hitter this season, more ABs, protection for Ohtani)
Freeman
Smith
Tucker
Hernandez
Betts
3B Rojas, Espinal
Kim
I hope it’s “Great minds think alike.” And not that many of us are delusional. But I was thinking the exact same thing. Mookie needs to be moved in the lineup, downward! Some have suggested this is the best we can expect from Kim, but .270avg., great defense, speed on the basepaths, is something at this point Mookie can only aspire to. Actually recently Kim has driven in runs when it really counted. I’m happy the team went down early last night and came back, but as Mark noted it’s either 11 runs or 1. Some would say, look that’s an average of 6 runs a game, but the reality is that’s 1 win, 1 loss. Today they face a high ERA pitcher. At times they make guys like this look like Sandy Koufax, let’s hope not. Go Dodgers and let’s hope that the .160 hitter is moved down until he proves he deserves that second spot.
Betts hasn’t had a hit this series but was 5 for 12 against SD. His exit velocity this year is at its highest since 2023. He’s not going anywhere.
As for Sasaki, he’s still a work in progress but has out pitched Wrobleski the last 2 games. In May he has an ERA of 3.52:
May 23 at Milwaukee Brewers: W, 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 87 pitches. Settled in well after a 35-pitch first inning, relying heavily on the slider.
May 17 at Los Angeles Angels: W, 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 8 K, 91 pitches. Set a career-high in strikeouts and pitched into the seventh inning for the first time in his Major League career.
May 11 vs. San Francisco Giants: ND, 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 5 K, 91 pitches.
May 2 at St. Louis Cardinals: L, 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 104 pitches. Bounced back from a rocky third inning to post his second career quality start.
I see progress… It’s just painful at times.
The Japanese are known for their strong work ethic, and that is one reason Sasaki will succeed. Also he is still young and adapting to the American culture. Patience!
The work ethic return concurrently with lamenting Slug% and thinking food prices are caused by payroll.
All the bad takes!
Is the Hormuz situation affecting people’s mental sobriety?
Looking at values on his Savant page a few things stand out. Yeah his exit velocity is good but his bat speed is poor. Makes no sense. Also his batting run value is poor, his base running value is poor, (sprint speed at the 28th percentile) and his fielding value is poor. That kinda covers it. Mookie Betts’ overall value a third of the way through the season, at age 33, is, well, poor.
That said there is plenty of time to get together. Will he? I’ll say yes.
Great reference Badger! More Baseball Savant!
What’s interesting in that Betts has never been known for his bat speed. It’s always been at or below the league average.
This year’s bat speed is 97% that of 2023, his other key metrics, and those that speak to where his performance generates, are also very much in line:
barrel rate
exit velocity
launch angle
The two things that seem to be off are hit-distribution and fast swing rate, the latter an interesting metric I’m going to delve into (even with my non-Asian (Canadian!) work ethic.
Statcast defines a “fast swing” as one that reaches a swing speed of 75 MPH. A player’s “fast-swing rate” is simply showing the percentage of all of his swings that did reach 75 MPH. In the first month of 2024, 23% of all swings qualified as a ‘fast swing.’
For hit distribution everything is center and left. He’s always, obviously, been hitting it more there, but there’s nothing to the opposite field. I wonder if this also signals bat speed isn’t an issue? I have no clue.
Baseball Savant page:
https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/mookie-betts-605141?stats=statcast-r-bat_tracking-mlb
Kyle Tucker is earning waaaay tooooo muuuuch for anybody to steal his job.
Tucker’s contract is, as the modern expression goes, too big to fail. It’s not just the $240 million that’s invested, but the ego of AF and BG and every other executive or owner who thought this contract was a good idea.
We fans tend to shrug at the excessive contracts and say, “It’s not my money.”
But then we pay waaay tooo muuuch for tickets and concessions at Dodger Stadium.
Honestly, I expect Tucker to play like a star…. but he is getting paid a lot more than Judge or Bobby Witt or any other position player. He is getting superduperstar money. The only guy getting a higher AAV is 4-time MVP who plays TWO positions.
As for Mookie, it’s early. Mookie has only played 18 games, while some teammates have played more than 50. He’s coming back from injury and his track record suggests he’ll improve. I much less worried about Mookie than Tucker.
Is Mookie’s age starting to show?
Certainly seems so when he tries to steal bases.
If Sasaki´s four seam fastball would still be at 100 mph + as it as in Japan he would be a lot of further in his development. Not much room for error when only sitting 97-98 with not much movement.
He himself recently said he is desperately looking for more velo
“If Sasaki´s four seam fastball would still be at 100 mph + as it as in Japan he would be a lot of further in his development.”
I have to disagree with your above comment dodgertifosi. It’s his location of his pitches not necessarily the velocity. Throwing 100 MPH down the middle of the plate is still going to be hit hard by today’s MLB hitters. Also, it’s Sakaki’s need to add a pitch or two to help him become more efficient. Learning to pitch, not throw, will make Roki Sasaki become a successful MLB pitcher.
I’m encouraged with his progress so far. To have such a bad first inning which included a throwing error by Sasaki, then to finish his outing the way he did has to be a big positive for him and the coaching staff. I agree with the Dodger approach of having him learn in LA as opposed to OKC. It’s only the beginning of the season and he is making progress. With the Dodgers current record and need for starting pitching it allows Sasaki to learn quicker, with MLB coaching, and help the team win as well.
Movement is more important than velocity. So many are enamored with throwing 100 plus. Graterol could do that but could not put hitters away until he got a secondary pitch that moved. Greg Maddux’s fast ball could not break glass, but it moved.
I agree that movement is more important than velo.
But if you have no movement it is better to throw 100plus mpgh than “only” 97-98 mph. Margin of error gets worse with every mph less. And Sasaki himself said he is looking for more velo to increase his margin of error.
He probably knows best he will never have Maddux like movement or control.
“As of late May 2026, the league-wide MLB batting average is currently .241, which is on pace to be the lowest since the record-low of .237 set in 1968.The 1968 season, famously known as the “Year of the Pitcher,” was so dominated by arms that MLB lowered the pitcher’s mound from 15 inches to 10 inches for the 1969 season to boost offense. While 2026 averages have fluctuated slightly—hitting a low of .239 in early April before rising to the current .241—they remain significantly below historical norms”
Maybe they should lower the mound again or move it farther back to get more offense back in the game.
Speed kills – make it illegal to throw a pitch over 98 MPH. If it’s 99+, it’s a ball.
They’ve already reduced the strike zone to the size of a box of cornflakes. Give the hitters metal bats and the pitchers protective head gear. That will increase offense.
Right-handed pitchers Joel Ibarra, Domingo Geronimo and Edgar Leon were all released from the Dodgers organization.
Who? Leon Geronimo and Edgar Rice Domingo? Never heard of Leon but I think that Edgar feller might have written the Spanish translation of Tarzan.
Edgar Feller. Now there was a pitcher. Had a fastball quicker than a speeding motorcycle.
I never believed in any of those guys.
And that might crush them if they ever heard of you.
Seriously! The only way I’d know any of them is if they walked up to me at a party and said:
“Hello, I’m Edgar Leon”
Sunday Dodger Affiliates’ Schedule
10:05 a.m. PT: Great Lakes (Sterling Patick) vs. Wisconsin (Wande Torres)
11:05 a.m.: Tulsa (Patrick Copen) at Wichita (TBA)
12:05 p.m.: Oklahoma City (Cole Irvin) vs. Reno (Yu-Min Lin)
2:05 p.m.: Ontario (TBA) at Inland Empire (TBA)
2:10 PM ET
Dodgers (32-20)
Brewers (30-19)
SP Y. Yamamoto R
3-4 3.32 ERA
SP Brandon Sproat R
1-2 5.75 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF Kyle Tucker L
CF Andy Pages R
LF T. Hernandez R
C D. Rushing L
2B Hyeseong Kim L
3B Miguel Rojas R
In Domed Stadium
Well, let us hope the Dodgers don’t make a guy with a plus 5 era look like deGrom.
Will Mookie’s batting average catch up to his bowling average?
I’m with Tedraymond in thinking Mookie should be dropped from the #2spot in the lineup. Lots of empty at bats with RISP. I’m not sure why that’s such a big deal. Batting orders change all the time.
I feel for Espinal. He had a nice game with some excellent D. And he’s a deadman walking
Guys, if you get a chance, watch the Memorial Day concert on TV tonight. It is always a great event. Hosted by Gary Sinise.
Mods–Is there any way to ignore a commenter here?