Reviewing the Deadline

Posted By on August 23, 2022

Mark’s going to be busy this week, so I’m going to try to fill a couple of days with posts while he’s out.  It’s not going to be easy for me as I’m starting a six months Cyber Security program tonight, so I’m going to have a little less time going forward.  Hopefully, OldBear and Evan will help fill the void to give our daily readers something to read and comment on.

Here Goes…

Luis Castillo

Leading up to the deadline, we all had opinions on how to improve the team.  For the most part, I was in on Castillo, not because we necessarily needed a pitcher in the here and now, but because he’s an elite pitcher, and it seems we’ve been in on trade rumors for him for a couple of years now.  I thought at the time that he would arguably be an improvement over someone already on the staff and would provide relief to our bullpen by pitching more innings than pitchers that we currently have. He’s a hard-throwing righty that would help balance a lefty-heavy rotation and would provide insurance for pitchers that will get injured, fail to come back from an injury like Walker Buehler, or regress as the season went on.

Juan Soto

Another guy we really didn’t need but would improve the team with somewhat of a question mark in LF at the time of speculation.  He’s an elite player, and Andrew says he’s always going to do due diligence on elite players. He’s no doubt a great player, and at the time, I wanted him and for the Dodgers to make a big splash. In the end, the Padres were willing to give up a lot more than we were.

Ian Happ

Ian Happ is a guy I really wanted to solidify Left Field.  I identified him before Juan Soto became available, and he’s also someone that can be used at other positions if needed. On defense, he plays all three outfield positions and has played everywhere in the infield besides shortstop.  On offense, he’s a switch hitter that kills lefties and more than holds his own against righties.  He also has some pop and can steal and run the bases.

The Eric Effect

I argued against David Robertson and Andrew Chafin.  Both are soft tossers for the most part.  Chafin relies on a slider, and Robertson relies on a cutter.  Both had very good stats, according to Eric.  He doesn’t often tell you what stats, but we can assume that means OPS and not having noticeable splits.  That seems to be his DaVinci code. Personally, I don’t think OPS is all that great for comparing pitchers. I still think ERA does a better job conveying a pitcher’s contribution than OPS against. You can find plenty of pitchers that have a lower ERA and higher OPS than a counterpart, and the main job of a pitcher is to prevent runs. As an example, if you give up a double and nothing else in an inning, you wind up with a 1.0 WHIP, a 0.00 ERA, a 250 Average against, and a .750 OPS against. The first number says “Good Job,” the second number says “Elite,” the third number says “Meh,” and the fourth number says “You suck.” If you’re a reliever, you accomplished your task. You got your three outs and didn’t give up a run.

I honestly felt that neither pitcher that Eric suggested would be a huge upgrade or even make an impact on the team, and I thought the live arms have a higher upside. I also thought there was a reasonable amount of risk with both of them.  Robertson is old and undersized and wasn’t very good the last couple of seasons. I thought he might be due to fall back to earth some, and I was also concerned about his blown saves.  Chafin’s been a solid middle reliever lefty for most of his career and is the poster boy for inconsistency. He’s never on a team that’s competing for the playoffs. In fact, Chafin has a total of one inning pitched in the postseason across four games.  How does that even happen?  Not the kind of guy I wanted to spend prospect capital to acquire. He’s basically an older Justin Bruihl without the split gap.

What Happened

Well, Eric was right in that the Dodgers did go after some bullpen help.  He was wrong about who that was going to be.  I didn’t think the Dodgers needed help in the pen at the deadline with all the pitchers due to come back.  But apparently, the cost for Chris Martin was too cheap for Andrew to pass up when he traded the future DFA (Zach McKinstry for 1+ years of Chris Martin. This amounts to getting him for free. Oddly enough (Not Really), Chris Martin has been better than either of Eric’s guys.

The Results

We all know that Castillo wound up with Seattle, and Soto wound up with the Padres.  The Cubs held onto Ian Happ (I’m Devastated!), the Tigers held onto Chafin, and the Phillies sacrificed the future to get a chance at a Wild Card spot.

Juan Soto

Since coming over to the Padres, Soto has been very good but very short of the Ted Williams comp that he was supposed to be.  The Padres are two games under 500 since he joined the team. He’s not exactly pushing them over the top at this point.

Luis Castillo

With the Mariners, he’s 1-1 since the trade, while the M’s have won 3 of 4 of the games he started.  A very good deal for the Mariners to add an Ace that’s averaged about 6.5 innings per start with an ERA just above 3.00.  Not bad, but not Max Scherzer last year either. I think the price was much steeper than Scherzer since we got Trea Turner, the real gem in the deal.

Ian Happ

Ian didn’t get traded.  Instead, the Cubs chose to retain his services, and he’ll probably get a qualifying offer/draft pick compensation, or they’ll try to retain his services this offseason.  Since the deadline, he’s got a very nice slash line of 292/333/569/903 with four bombs and six doubles.  That would have been a very nice pickup that wouldn’t require a platoon.  I’ll call this a swing and miss from AF as he’s been slightly better than Juan Soto since the deadline and would give the same or better production than the Gallo/Trace platoon that we have in his place without so many K’s.

David Robertson

David wound up getting traded to the Phillies for Ben Brown, who is now their number 7 prospect. Since the trade, Robertson has been very good/excellent for the most part pitching to a 2.08 ERA.  But he does have a loss and a blown save in the process.  File this one under an expensive potential improvement for a problem that didn’t exist. Kimbrel has the same net results with worse stats. But, it wouldn’t have an effect on the win or loss column.

Andrew Chafin

Chafin didn’t get traded.  It’s hard to figure out why unless the Tigers think they’ll turn the corner next year and feel like Chafin will be a valuable piece for them.  Other than that, he might have been dangled out there and not received an acceptable offer.  Honestly, Andrew Chafin, in my mind, was the least useful out of any potential trade target.  Do we need another lefty like we need a hole in our heads?  Since the deadline, he’s been a bust.  He has no record, no saves, no holds, nothing but giving up runs in each game of a recent 3-game stretch from Aug 13 to 17.  File this under dodged a bullet.

To Be Fair…

I want to be fair here.  David Robertson has been better than Kimbrel since the trade deadline.  So, I’ll nod my head to Eric on that “according to the stats,” he looks better.  But, what I kept saying to Eric, is it depends on what stats…

Craig Kimbrel

During the same period, Kimbrel has been worse than David Robertson in terms of ERA.  But, look at the results.  He’s 0-1 with three saves and one blown in 8 games.  Does that sound familiar?  Robertson is also 0-1 with three saves and one blown in 8 games.  The difference is that the Phillies needed Roberson; we didn’t.  And we certainly didn’t need to send over a power pitcher that is currently the Phillies’ number 7 prospect. The funny thing is Kimbrel has been our worst reliever since the deadline, not counting Cleavinger, who’s no longer with us. But he’s been better than Chafin since the trade deadline.

For Reference

Here are our outfielders for the last 30 days.  You can make an argument that the Gallo / Thompson platoon is doing a better job than Soto or Happ.

Here are our Starting Pitchers for the last 30 days.  Castillo would have possibly helped by pitching in the place of Pepiot.  But, now that May is back, it would have made little sense to acquire Castillo.  We just didn’t need another starting pitcher, and May, Anderson, Gonsolin, Heaney, Urias, and May have all been better than Castillo.  Most likely, Kershaw will also be better.  But Castillo would have been under control for next year as well.  I still think we’re better off by not trading for him, it’s hard to tell right now, but the cost was steep as the Mariners gave up two shortstop prospects and two right-handed pitching prospects.  I just can’t see how it would have made sense to trade that many prospects based on the results so far and the pitching that’s still due to come back.

Here are our Relief Pitchers for the last 30 days.  Cleavinger and Reyes are gone, Kimbrel might be improving, and Jake Reed is in the minors and is available for several more years of control.  Sorry Eric, but the verdict is in.  We didn’t need either of “Your Guys.”  We have seven guys that I said might be better.  Turns out I was right.  Plus, there are more guys on their way back from the IL.

Robertson is a good pitcher, but we just didn’t / still don’t need him. By the stats, Chris Martin was clearly worse than Roberson, but AF’s team found something in him they were willing to gamble on and won big time (So Far). This goes to show that stats are important, but they aren’t everything.

This article has 82 Comments

  1. Dont look now but Kenley has taken over the league lead in saves now. His ERA just a tad over 3.00.
    He has been lights out for some time now. Never thought I would say it but I wish we would have him and not Kimbrel.

    Julio pitched well yesterday , deserved a better fate. Bickford probably has signed off on his demotion.
    He is the weak link in the pen no doubt about it. With Treinen and Kersh probably back by next week he will get sent down next.
    Will get interesting who will get sent down too when another spot is needed ,

    Huge pitching matchup today.

    Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    1. Braves are, as a team, rounding into form.

      Last night reminds me that, despite clearly being the best team, the Dodgers have a decidedly uphill trek to win the World Series.

      But they are great. Fun to watch and very well built.

      PS: are you taking one of the Google IT security courses?

    2. I think I’d rather have Phillips than either of them at this point. Funny, I still have nightmares of last year’s back to back blown saves against the Giants after being snubbed for the All-Star game. As bad as Kimbrel has been this year, my memory of his previous dominant seasons convince me that something might click, like the beginning of last year. Now, I’m beginning to accept reality.

      1. I like Phillips but Treinen could be an option if he is effective when he comes back in September.

      1. Guys, I might be wrong but I think B&P was actually giving a nod to Eric and his very good record of identifying Bullpen talent, especially by naming him at the top one of the paragraphs. Think of it as an olive branch.

        Really enjoyed the piece though B and nice to see how those potential signings are doing.

        Looking at the bigger picture, not giving up a haul for Soto means we are in a much better position for years to come.

        We still out hit the Brewers last night….

      2. Kinda like what you did?

        I don’t see it as calling them out. I see it as talking about issues Eric raised and I have not heard him complain.

    2. lol – Sorry, I thought you’ve been around longer. I’ve been called out in many past posts by those who wrote before me. I thought twice about mentioning Eric in the article, but I did want to acknowledge that we both missed on a couple. My way of giving partial credit.

    3. nonicnamebumfan

      Thank you and I’ll never forget the kind words from you when I was coming out of the deep depression and thank you again for those kind words. I need to also mention Watford Dodger when talking about the kind words.

      It’s OK though.

  3. Thanks to all the contributing writers (Mark, Bear, B & P, Evan and any others I missed) for taking time to compile these daily posts while managing your day to day lives and jobs and doing this without any compensation. It is much appreciated and the topics are always well thought out and provoke readers to feel compelled for their own opinions and discussion.

    1. I echo that sentiment. LADT brings a ton of enjoyment to me.I wrote ,sold ads,and had my own small softball paper for 2 years.I was having so many migraines I had to stop.It is a lot of work.The ads just covered my expenses,my paper was free.I loved writing .

  4. BP –

    Thanks for your interesting and thorough analysis of the how the Dodger moves and non-moves at the trade deadline worked out. Now I know why I consider you my “source” for Dodger front office evaluation of baseball personnel matters.

    As an old school guy, I have been slow to embrace (or understand) today’s data-driven baseball world. Your article helped me get a better appreciation of it. However, I am glad to hear that you still consider ERA the most important pitching measure as I do.

    I don’t expect to convert to a baseball metrics driven assessment of players because I still really like the eye-test. But, going forward I will be more open-minded to listening in hopes that it enhances my enjoyment of the game.

    Thanks for ALL of your insights on my favorite game for the last 70+ years.

  5. I’m amazed how 1 simple loss can affect my mood or rather ruin my high or even bring me back to earth. The usual hot streaks the Dodgers gift their fans are outstanding but so many times for all my life they’ve often followed great hot runs with cold slumps. So I’m a spoiled fan wanting my team to be superhuman and as a team collectively to run on all cylinders. There is no such thing as superhuman and there is no normal and I’ll have to be happy with simple outstanding. Which is a bummer but I can get used to it. So Dodgers, make my bummer short and win this series in our yard and show why HFA is so damned important even though it isn’t. I’m sure glad Dodgers are my team as I’d have to hang myself with any other.

    1. lol – You summed this up perfectly. We all know how difficult this simple game is. A historic team wins 7 of 10 and we’re depressed by a 1 game losing streak. 😉

  6. B&P, you never miss an opportunity to continually try prove your analysis of how to judge pitching with Eric’s in order to validate your method as being right. Both have your opinions on the subject. Neither of you are right or wrong. They are opinions. You contribute a large volume and some excellent information on a daily basis. The article above is a good example. But, personally, I’m tired of you and Eric’s never ending, months long, discourse on this ERA vs OPS nonsense. Naturally, you are free to write what you want and carry on this tirade with Eric. But, I won’t be reading either of your posts in the future. Just sayin’.

    1. Tune in tomorrow for a multi-paragraph harangue on why FIP is a useless metric.

      To be fair, coming up with content ideas for a blog is hard – it really is. Here’s a writing prompt:

      ERA is limited as a metric to evaluate pitchers because it includes events that are outside the pitcher’s control – namely the defense. FIP attempts to assess a pitcher’s performance by eliminating the influence of fielding in recording outs and, rather, assigns measurable values to the things that a pitcher can directly control.

      Then again, writing an entire blog post calling someone out and trying to prove your are right and the other guy is wrong seems in poor form. Not that there wasn’t some informative stuff in there. I liked the Happ insight.

      1. Yes, but which stat is a truer measure of the actual result, a win or a loss in a game?

        Was the entire blog post about calling out Eric? I thought it was less than half, possibly a quarter. I tried to cover the players that were most talked about at the deadline.

  7. Great recap of trade deadline, B&P!
    Thanks for your contributions to the site.
    Always interesting, even when I don’t agree with you.

  8. Scherzer’s stuff was nasty yesterday. Almost too much break on the cutter/slider. Talking heads said one of them broke “…4 .5 feet…”. Damn.

    Yankees hung in on him tho. Judge’s oppo field dinger case in point. Away heater he went to right and let the bat do the work. Judge is ballin’ out.

      1. If Both scherzer and deGrom stay healthy the Mets Are the (my) favorites in every playoff series , even against us
        Too. Bad WB is lost for the season
        Speaking of: hopefully his surgery today goes well

        Go Dodgers!

          1. Yeah, Mets bats don’t impress me. They have to ‘manufacture’ runs beyond Lindor & Alonzo.
            Against a staff like we got – good luck pulling that off.

            Scherzer’s arm is always a question now. Carrasco down & will they stretch Scherzer like we did last year? Flame me but I thought Max was cooked at end.

            Brewers look tougher than Mets now.

          2. Me too. DeGrom is already having ” rest” and his next start have been skipped.
            Max yesterday lost giving 4 runs in 6+ innings and we still are in August. Doc is purposely babying our starters. The only exemption was Pepiot and it was a confidence builder knowing beforehand that was the last inning he will gonna pitch in MLB this year. He don’t want to happen the same thing that happened last year. Another example is using PBickford last night.

            The only team I respect and looking closely are the Champs and we are ready for them.

            Go Dodgers!

    2. Judge hits a ton of balls out to right field. I loved that Mike Piazza did it regularly.

    1. Kimbrel is “rough” says it all. Throw the metrics out for me – playoff time Kimbrel will have a seat.

      Doc is loyal – Jansen’s epic playoff struggles made me crazy. I hope we don’t get that again with Kimbrel.

      No matter how nasty your stuff is, when you’ve been around a long time the hitters know what time is it.

      1. In 57 playoff games Jansen has a 2.13 ERA and 0.80 WHIP. He’s definitely had some issues in theWS but overall in playoffs he’s been dominant.

  10. Brew crew are going to be a challenge again tonight. Corbin Burnes is one of the best pitchers over the last few years.
    This season 9-5 with 2.48 era and 187 strikeouts. Definitely a pitchers duel with Catman going for us. I’m going to the game tonight sitting way out by the 3rd base fair pole!
    Go Dodgers!

  11. We might well have to go through the Braves, Mets and Houston to get a title. That’s a tough road. The Mets would get the Cards or Brewers first round. I think the top seed should get the team with the worst record regardless if their a division champ or not.

  12. Good stuff BP. By the way, I have your back and two are in the cue. Today is my sister’s birthday. So, I will be calling her when she gets off of work. Also heading back out there to help my brother get to his out-patient physical therapy sessions. So, I will be in Cali for a large part of the playoffs before I head back home to Colorado. I commend Eric for marching to the beat of his own drummer. Some guys use stats, I use the eye test. I do not need ERA or FIP or any of those other stats to tell me if a guy is stinking the joint up. All I need is to watch him in action. Bickford is pitching his way right off of the roster. With Treinen back by the end of the month most likely, he is outa here! Jansen has been better this season than he has been over the last several years. But most posters here, and on almost every blog I have read wanted him gone. Now they are moaning because Kimbrel has been for the most part, a heart attack waiting to happen. Jansen gets more opportunities simply because he is playing for a team that does not consistently score a high total of runs. Therefore, more close games. Kimbrel is not going to close exclusively anymore according to Roberts. The Dodgers have a team option for 2024 on Muncy that has incentives. It can also be worth up to 13 million like his 23 deal is. The Dodger pen is one of it’s strongest assets right now. I also think Trea Turner needs a day or two off. So does Freddie. Trea has not driven in a run in 11 days. Longest stretch of the year, and he is the team leader with 83 ribbies. You need that guy driving in runs. Mookie hit two shots to the warning track last night that probably would have left the yard in a day game. Going to be a good one tonight with Catman and Burnes going.

  14. * I’m trying to type and read with one eye today. I had cataract surgery this morning and one eye is taped shut. I hope it worked and I hope when I type shut-out it doesn’t say shit-out.
    * I continue to be impressed with Brewer’s pitching. This Dodger team seems to hit LHP better then some other teams we’ve had but Lauer is tough on us. Strzelecki and the rest of the back end are all pretty good.
    * Urias was great except for the one mistake to Urias, as was the rest of the pen. Urias got such good run support last season I guess things really do even out. Good game until the 9th when we got “Bickfordized”. Doc wasn’t going to waste any other pitchers in the 9th.
    * Graterol looked refreshed. He physically looks good and he added life on some of his heaters. Nice to see him w/ easy 100 with movement and missing bats which he hadn’t been doing that well.
    * Poor Chris Taylor currently has a hole in his bat. I need to see more Trayce Thompson against RHP.. I want to see if his BA of .324 versus righties is sustainable. He seems to continue to face LHP where he’s hitting .180. Again, the dilemma in left. Gallo, CT3 and Thompson can’t hit LHP. I hope this doesn’t move Lux back out there with Muncy or Alberto to 2nd. By the way, AJ Pollock, who never caught on with Dodger fans, is hitting .271 vs LHP. Just thought I’d mention that.
    *I saw a play yesterday in the Mets – Yankees game that I’ve never seen or thought of before. Scherzer was pitching (and took a loss. He’s such an A-Hole) with no outs and Yankees on 1st and 3rd. The runner at 3rd tagged and scored on a shallow outfield fly, the throw home was barely late. Rizzo stayed at 1st. After the play it became obvious that the Mets thought the runner at 3rd left early. So Scherzer planned to toe the rubber, putting the ball in play, stepping off and appealing at 3rd. Before he could do that, Rizzo, at first, took off toward 2nd. Scherzer stepped off and threw him out easily between 1st and 2nd.
    Here’s the genius; the play to 2nd takes away any possible appeal at 3rd. So the play was to quickly give up an out to protect the run. That’s brilliant!
    But inevitably it didn’t work. After a lengthy delay it was ruled that Scherzer never actually put the ball in play or actually the umpire never signaled the ball in play. . So Rizzo was placed back at 1st, Scherzer put the ball in play, appealed at 3rd and the ruling was the runner did not leave early and the run counted. It smelled to me like the umpires were covering their asses. I’m still curious how it was still a dead ball with Scherzer in the bump. The ump was apparently sleeping.
    I love plays like that and if I still coached, it would be in my bag of tricks. I’d just make sure the runner at 1st knows before he breaks that play has to be resumed before he breaks. Apparently Buck Showalter had successfully run this play before, giving up an out to insure a run. Aaron Boone was trying to give him a taste of his own medicine.
    * We need to eat some more Wheaties today to get some of those warning track fly balls out of the park. Did anybody check the baseballs?
    Safe Travels Bear.

    1. Hey Phil:

      I saw both plays happen live in the games you mentioned. It worked earlier in the year for the Mets but not for the Yankees last night.

      Very tricky and I can see some type of rule change where the pitcher doesn’t have wait for play to resume, come set and step off the rubber to appeal allowing the other runners on base a loop hole to negate the appeal process.

      1. Zeke you are probably righf about a rule change or at least a clarification. They might tie in a rule change for that and at the same time clarify the process of taking signals from the catcher and when is the ball in play. I’m pretty sure the pitcher, by rule, had to be on the rubber, and the ball live, when the pitcher takes signals from the catcher. Now with the Pitch Com System in place, I swear I’ve seen pitchers verbalized the pitch call from the catcher before he’s on the rubber. And I’ve never seen a violation called for that.
        So there’s a gray area; is that legal or not? And therefore is the ball in play? Clear time outs are questionable a lot now days. Catchers toss dirt balls out of the game now days too without any time-out from the ump. If they do that with a runner on, is it an automatic assumed time out? It seems like a live ball heading to the dugout without an umpire’s time call, to me.
        It all makes from a gray area.
        By the way, I thought Corbin Burnes was the prima-donna third baseman on Major League?

    2. Thanks Phil. I will endeavor to do so. I had cataract surgery on both eyes three years ago. When the patch comes off, the first thing you are going to notice is how bright everything is. Now a couple things can happen over time after the surgery, it is normal, so do not worry too much about it. One, after maybe six months you might notice that things are not so clear. What can happen, and often does is that a film forms on the new lens they put in there. It is removed with laser surgery. Not painful at all. You just see white dots moving all over the place. Another thing that can happen, and has to me at least, is that you will get what they call floaties. Looks like very dim little black hairs on your eyes when you move them. No cure for that it seems. As long as they are not really dark, you can live with them. But that is down the road for you. Mine appeared about 2 months after the laser surgery was done at the Colorado Springs VA.

      1. Thanks Bear. Great information. I’m a rookie. I’m excited to see what I see when the patch comes off. I get the other eye done next week.

    3. Wow, how odd. I’m getting my cataracts removed in a week. Well at least my left eye. I don’t know when they’ll schedule for my right eye.

    4. Oh, that’s funny. Rizzo is a heads up ballplayer. I totally agree that the umps would pull that for cover. Thanks for sharing.

  15. Reported on MLBTR, Arte Moreno and his group are exploring selling the Angels. In 20 years of ownership, his team has not advanced past the ALCS. Part of the reason may be that the city of Anaheim backed out of the proposed sale of the Stadium and surrounding areas to the team because of a huge scandal involving city officials. This means there will be two teams out there for buyers to consider. The Nationals and the Angels. Team is expected to bring a 2.4-billion-dollar sales price.

    2. My phone started blowing up this morning when the Angels made the announcement. Reminded me when it was finally clear that McCourt was definitely out. I live 50 miles from Anaheim but I think I can hear chants of “Ding Dong the Witch is dead” from here.

      It will be interesting to see what the Angels do in the off-season. Having Ohtani under contract for only one more year will make him the big wild card in a sale. Do the next owners pull a “ Guggenheim” and break the bank to make the Angels better now, rebuild simultaneously and convince Ohtani to stick around? Or do they want to trade him and rebuild the old fashion way?

      I know a team down the road that would make a solid offer for Ohtani this off-season. He wouldn’t even have to move.

      1. There is also speculation that new ownership whoever they are will remove Los Angeles from the Angels name. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim is a mouthful.

        1. Only way out for Halos is trade Ohtani & Trout for boatload of AAA prospects, sign 2-3 FA’s (pitchers) and, assuming Moreno’s gone, hand Pres of Baseball operations to top GM ( Ben Cherington) with ownership points in deal.

          Shoehei’s going to walk and Mikey T showing some wear/tear. Time’s a wasting.
          Moreno gone is best news those fans have had in 20 years.

  16. Dodgers right-hander Walker Buehler said on Instagram Tuesday that he needed to undergo Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career. The Dodgers had said earlier this month that Buehler would be having season-ending elbow surgery but had not specified it would be Tommy John.

    Buehler last had the procedure in 2015 after being drafted out of Vanderbilt with the 24th overall pick. The Dodgers knew he would require the surgery at the time and signed him for an under-slot $1.78 million. Buehler went on to make his Major League debut for Los Angeles in 2017.

  17. Well, it was TJ after all for Buehler. What a shame. Next season is looking like a total loss. We’ll have him for 2024 in his walk year.

        1. Its my fault. I might have jinxed him. First time I saw him pitch in Rancho (and only time, I think he moved up to AA after two starts) I remarked how much he reminded me of Tim Lincecum. I didn’t mean it in THAT way. Oof

  18. 10:10 PM ET

    Brewers (65-56)
    Dodgers (84-37)

    SP Corbin Burnes R
    9-5 2.48 ERA 148.2IP 187K 40BB
    SP Tony Gonsolin R
    15-1 2.12 ERA 123.1IP 113K 33BB

    Confirmed Lineup
    RF Mookie Betts R
    SS Trea Turner R
    1B F. Freeman L
    C Will Smith R
    3B Max Muncy L
    2B Gavin Lux L
    LF Joey Gallo L
    DH Chris Taylor R
    CF C. Bellinger L

    Clear-day
    0% Rain
    76° Wind 5 mph Out

    08/23/22 Los Angeles Dodgers signed free agent C Tony Wolters to a minor league contract.

    1. I am glad Tony Wolters came back. He is a good dude. He potentially could have a career with the Dodgers after he is done playing.

    2. You know when I dream of a DH, Big Poppi, Nelson Cruz, a Dave Parker body come to mind. Not CT3.

  19. Walker Buehler underwent complete Tommy John reconstruction, as well as a repair to his flexor tendon. Of course, he will not pitch in 2023. After the second UCL reconstruction, 65 percent of the pitchers returned to pitch at a major league level, but not at nearly the level they pitched at before. Although a second surgery may not be career-ending, it appears to be career-limiting by virtue of a decreased workload and pitching productivity.

    Nate Eovaldi has had two Tommy John Surgeries, and I would not call him an exceptional pitcher. Walker faces long odds, and even if he comes back it could be late 2024 or 2025. He may want to think about becoming a closer!

  20. I hear that Corbin Bernsen is starting for the Brewers tonight. I think the Dodgers can hit him.
    Corbin

    1. Way to steal my material, MT. I actually started last time we played the Brewers but everybody apparently missed it. Or they are adults. My question then was “Corbin Burnes pitching tonight. Wasn’t he the slick attorney in LA Law?

      1. Can’t we get a picture of Corbin here from when he teamed up Charlie Sheen’s “Wild Thing”?
        LA Law seems a just bit outside to me.
        As for the deadline review…..
        –I was in on Castillo too, in part because May was still a question mark. But the Mariners paid a high price. (Given Max’s troubles, I thought a Castillo-Drury package seemed possible.) Seattle basically decided to go all-in to make the playoffs, and there was no reason for AF to go to extremes for Castillo or Soto or anyone. Meanwhile, AF essentially turned McKinstry and Beeter into Gallo and Martin. Looks pretty smart right now.
        –The Buhler news underscores that adage that there’s no such thing as too much pitching. We’ve now gone from hoping he might close out WS games to knowing he’s out for all of 2023. Part of the appeal of both Castillo and Montas is that they are under contract for 2023. The Yankees picked up Montas, and perhaps we can second-guess all this in October.
        –As others here have noted, Pepiot basically steps in for Mitch White, who may not have made the playoff roster for the Dodgers but is now a key player in Toronto. Waiting in the wings are prospects Miller, Stone and the fast-rising Nastrini. Let’s not forget Michael Grove, who has come back from injury and just had a best-ever 10K outing.
        Finally, I just learned that Arte Moreno is apparently putting the Angels up for sale. This should be interesting.

  25. Great interview with JT. The Dodgers just have so many quality guys. Just so easy to root for them!

  27. Three more Dodgers prospect promotions!

    From Rancho to Great Lakes

    Ronan Kopp
    Yunior Garcia

    From the ACL Dodgers to Rancho

    Justin Wrobleski

  29. It turns out that TG Catman is quite an artist. It took me long enough to concede that to be fact. Even as his 1st appearance were shutout innings I wasn’t sold. His worse outing was at the ATG and meaningless as far as records go. He really is painting a masterpiece of himself.

  31. The Dodgers quartet of outfielders – Mookie, Belli, Trayce and Gallo – are looking to be pretty formidable at this point. Their superb defense, clutch hitting, speed and athleticism may be the best I have ever seen on a LA Dodger team. Is there a better foursome in MLB?

    Also, with Gonsolin and Burnes playing together at St. Mary’s – a pitching factory?

  32. Fernando Tatis Jr. To Undergo Shoulder Surgery
    By Anthony Franco | August 23, 2022 at 4:38pm CDT

    Fernando Tatis Jr. announced this afternoon that he will undergo surgery on his left shoulder (relayed by Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune and Darnay Tripp of NBC 7 San Diego). The Padres star is already out for the rest of the 2022 season after MLB handed down an 80-game suspension this month once Tatis tested positive for the banned performance-enhancing drug Closetebol. The surgery, which will take place shortly, is not expected to sideline Tatis beyond the length of his suspension, relays via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com.

    It’s a somewhat surprising development, as there was no previous indication that surgery was again under consideration. Tatis twice landed on the IL with shoulder issues last season, missing the minimal ten days in April and another couple of weeks in August. In both instances, he suffered the injury on basic baseball activities — his first occurring on a swing, his second sliding into a base. Both injuries initially seemed to have the potential for extended absences, but Tatis returned in relatively short order each time.

    There was some speculation Tatis may need to go under the knife, but he declined to undergo surgery at the end of last season. His plans to play through any discomfort this year were twice dashed — first by an offseason fracture in his left wrist sustained in a motorcycle accident, then by the suspension. Tatis underwent wrist surgery this spring. Initially expected to return around June, his recovery nevertheless lingered into the late summer. He embarked on a minor league rehab assignment at the start of this month, but MLB announced the stunning news of his failed PED test after just four Double-A games.

    That suspension will carry over into the start of next season. Tatis will miss the final 48 regular season games of the 2022 campaign, leaving him with 32 more games to serve after this regular season. Any lost postseason contests (should San Diego qualify) will also count against the tally, but Tatis would miss a month or more of the 2023 campaign if the Friars don’t go on an extended playoff run this year. With the lengthy absence already in play, it seems Tatis and the organization decided the time was right for him to correct the shoulder woes.

  33. Enjoy this Dodgers team y’all. And enjoy this organization.

    I do hope we put a bow on this season and win the 22 World Series, but I have never been a WS or bust fan. I enjoy rooting for this team day in and day out.

    I do think we have the best team top to bottom, for me, if we hit in the playoffs with timely hitting we win it all.

    Cheers!!

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