If I were to write AF, the following is probably what I would say. Mind you, I pull no punches, and I am pretty blunt. Don’t get me wrong, I think Freidman took a rebuilding organization and infused it with even more talent. And he did that while drafting low. But he has also had the luxury of pretty much-unlimited resources at his disposal. You cannot argue too much with success. And the Dodgers have been consistent winners of their division, at least. I also recognize that the playoffs are a whole different animal altogether. I also realize that a couple of times, he has made below-the-radar moves that have been very successful, and he has a few times traded for big stars with varying degrees of success. I do not think that he is the genius many think he is, but his baseball acumen is pretty solid. He does seem to have the idea set in his head, though, that the Dodger way of doing things can fix players who have plus skills but mediocre results. It has worked sometimes and not so much others. But I call him a spin doctor because, to me, at least, he dances around the issues a little too much. I cannot remember him just coming out and laying it on the line. Maybe he has, but I do not remember it. So here goes.
Andrew Freidman: President of Baseball Operations
Dodger Stadium, 1000 Vin Scully Avenue
Los Angeles California 90012
Mr. Freidman,
As a Dodger fan of more than 65 years, and somewhat peeved after the speedy exit from the playoffs of my team, I am writing to you to express my discontent and ire with the way the team was handled in said series. We expected much more from the so-called best team in baseball, and certainly the best team in Dodger history. Lesser Dodger teams have won Championships. Maybe you are doing it the wrong way. Come in as the underdog instead of the top dog, and you might win the whole thing.
Even as a fan, I spotted holes in your lineup all year. We kept waiting for Muncy and Bellinger to improve. Too many weak links at the bottom of the order, and it came back to bite you against San Diego. Max had a nice surge there for a while but never did get his BA up over .200 to stay. Since when is hitting under .200 a good thing? And all the strikeouts, please, that is not baseball; that is just poor coaching. 451 strikeouts between Bellinger, Muncy, and Taylor. Unacceptable. That is 451 wasted at-bats. I gave Max a little break because he was coming off of an injury, the same break I gave Cody last year. But Cody is well over a year removed from his surgery, and he still can’t hit.
Too many left-handed pitchers in your starting rotation. No balance at all. Gonsolin was the only consistent RH you had after Buehler went down. Your deadline trades were less than inspiring. Martin proved to be reliable, but I never could and never will understand trading for a whiff machine like Joey Gallo. I think it is somewhat arrogant to think your coaches, who espouse the all-or-nothing approach to hitting, could turn around a career .199 hitter. He struck out 57 times in 44 games. Yep, they were a lot of help. What you should have done was have every hitter sit down with Freddie Freeman and talk about hitting for about 10 hours. He does it the right way. He doesn’t try to hit everything out of the park, and would it really kill those guys to learn how to hit the ball the other way? Especially when the opposition is giving you the entire line. How about bunting classes???
Baseball, by the numbers, is not the way it should be played. All the analytics in the world do not tell you a dang thing about a player’s desire or makeup. Many fans I know questioned the coachability of Bellinger. All the reports said he was working with the coaches. If he was, your coaches are very bad at their job because, from what I witnessed night after night, he chased the same stuff all year, and not once did he hit a high heater in the zone hard; more often than not, he missed it by a lot. Now with the shift going away, Cody will probably be good for maybe 25 more hits this year. Since that was close to the number of times, I saw him pull one right into the shift.
And finally, while I think you do a very decent job of building a team and even managing a gem find now and then, I think your press conference was a dodge. You kept referring to RISP as the problem. Well, there was a lot of that during the season too. And the idea of going on cruise control after they clinched, well, it showed because the team that showed up in San Diego was flat and uninspired. You left their heart and soul, Alberto, off of the roster, and then his replacement never got into a game. That right there is a waste of resources.
And be a man, take responsibility for the massive failure this team had, and don’t blame it on some stat. You built the roster, Roberts used what you gave him, and it all went down the toilet in spectacular fashion. A team cannot just flip a switch, and it seemed to me that you and the powers that be thought you could. Now we have to sit through another long winter because management failed to read the room correctly. You underestimated your competition, and you got beat. Signed, A very Disappointed Fan.
I have a couple of observations:
#1. I listen to what comes out of Andrew Friedman’s mouth, but I watch his actions because he is NEVER going to give anyone an edge in knowing what he really thinks or means, and if he gets a little defensive, it is because you have asked a question that is getting close to the truth (like when he was asked if Roberts really makes the decisions). I don’t particularly like it, but in today’s game of statistics and analytics, he does not want to give an inch to his opponents. (By the way, if you really believe Doc makes all his own decisions, I have a bridge…). Now, maybe Andrew will loosen up and let Doc make more decisions in the future…
#2. “ Come in as the underdog instead of the top dog, and you might win the whole thing.” How can you do that when you lead all of baseball in runs, BA, hitting with RISP, ERA, and Run Differential? If he had gone out and gotten Luis Castillo or another arm, would that have helped? Maybe if Castillo could hit.
#3 – Yes, AF does seem to think he can “fix” players. Well, not himself, but the Dodger “fixers” – and they are pretty successful, but Gallo, as tantalizing as he was/is was a bust! Maybe they can fix CT3, but I thought it was a mistake to re-sign him and said so at the time. Max Muncy was not the problem in the playoffs. He hit .286 with a .375 OP% and .945 OPS. Why they let him play all season puzzles me.
#4. I doubt that the Dodgers will give Friedman “unlimited resources” next year. According to AP News, “The Dodgers have a record $310.6 million payroll and will pay an all-time high $47 million luxury tax. That isn’t going to continue and now we have a few weeks until we allegedly find out about Trevor Bauer.
#5 – I agree with bunting classes, especially after eliminating the shift, which might seem contradictory.
A lot of money will come off the dodgers books .
Kimbrel, Kershaw, both Turners (yes, I think it is time for JT to hand it up), Price, Bellinger plus likely the Bauer contract just to name a few of the big contracts the Dodgers can slash of those alleged 310.6 million.
Some of those dollars will be spent again on other players (or the same, maybe T.Turner ) but we should see a lower payroll next season even if we bring in 1-2 big name free agents.
If I had my say I would do anything possible to pray away Arenado from the Cards and sign deGrom. Fill out the other spots with some of our own kids who appear to be ready. Vargas, Outman, Busch, Miller, Stone, Pepiot just to name a few.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yep, there’s a ton of money coming off the books. We can easily afford to sign two top free agents. Arenado and Judge are at the tippy top of my list. We have several holes to fill.
The positions we don’t have to worry about…
C Will Smith
1B Freddie
2B or SS Lux
RF Mookie
DH Muncy
LF or 3B Vargas. It wouldn’t surprise me if he winds up at second base.
If you want to save 17M I would imagine there’s a chance at giving Outman a shot in CF
The come in as an underdog and maybe you will win was more in reference to Dodger teams who were not the favorites coming in and won it all anyway. 59-63-65-81-88. Those teams were facing much better teams.
Mark,
How is anything I’ve said about Friedman worse than this article? Alot of this article is the same things I’ve been echoing about Friedman for a while.
I’ve never understood why you are such a Friedman shill. Probably because millionaires defend millionaires? Friedman makes like 10 million dollars a year he doesn’t need you to defend him.
I am sick of you marginalizing me and insulting my blog. Putting labels on me and my site even though you were the one who helped me in the beginning all those years ago. Even though most of the posters from my site were also posters over here. It’s a shame the newer posters don’t know the real history of our blogs. Your history of hositlity towards anybody that says something that you don’t like..
But the older ones like Bear and Patch do.
You could have fostered and supported both communities and been a good leader, but you couldn’t do that. Noooooo you just had to be an egomaniac. You had to have it all. You run a multi-million dollar company but had to disparage a struggling blogger. You are a pathetic coward. You are a blowhard. Youve already won but continue to insult me and kick me when I am down. Would you also like to come down here and piss in my cornflakes?
And that’s always been your problem, EGO. Your ego is bigger than this site.
Remember when you retired and took down your blog several times and your decade long fueds with posters like Badger? I always defended you and have never written a bad word about you or this site over at mine.
You don’t have to ban me as this will be my last post here. But I DARE you to keep this post up. If you delete this post then you, me and all the posters over here will know what a coward you are.
Go f*ck yourself Mark. Because you may be rich and now have all the page views compared to my little site, but the one thing you will never be able to do is silence me. My site will go on long after you are gone.
Get bent.
Scott,
I did not kick you off, but I am going to leave your post up to let people see for themselves how pathetic you are.
What you write is worse because you always write it… ad nauseum. If my site is successful, it’s not about money. It’s about content. I don’t spend any money, and I don’t monetize it.
You have a short memory…
Mark,
“What you write is worse because you always write it, ad nauseum”
Do you know how stupid that sounds?
You don’t spend any money, you’re just a millionaire who puts down people who are less fortunate than you and steps on their throats. A redeeming quality.
“kill the rich”
Chill out, Scott.
I don’t think you’re a bad dude, but that defending millionaires comment you just levied at Mark is something you also once levied at me. It’s annoying and factually incorrect – and a little too political for a baseball blog. Why am I supposed to hate people because they’re wealthy? I neither hate nor love rich people. It’s irrelevant.
I read Mark’s exchange with you yesterday, and my initial inclination was that it was a little harsh to threaten to ban you, but at the same time, if that’s all you want to talk about and constantly complain about Friedman with consistently bad takes, it gets tedious. He’s not going anywhere and your arguments are kinda flimsy – at best. Dude, get some better/new material. Don’t suck and you’ll be fine.
And I remember hanging out on your blog. I think you told me I wasn’t welcome … told me to “stay in my lane.” Whatev. I’m not offended, but your blog died because all it became was non-stop bitching and moaning, not just you, but a group of idiots who wrote like they were about 12. Who was they guy who called Grandal “Gran Mal.? – stuff like that. It was just juvenile and stupid. And it was just nasty – some of the stuff some of those idiots would consistently accuse Mark of is the worst you could ever accuse anyone of, and you know what I’m talking about – and honestly, you let it fester.
The reason your site died is because you were unwilling to boot out the riff raff, the stupid people with stupid takes, and they took over and killed it.
I’d rather you stick around, but if posts like the one you made above are all you bring to the table, then I won’t shed a tear.
Look at the comments on Dodgers Digest. Is that what you want? No thanks.
Patch,
Come on, 90% of the commenters that were at my site are from this place. My site has never gotten the page views that this site probably gets.
Those people that your talking about “the rif raff” “group of idiots” or whatever you call them were from this community. People like Hawkeye, and Idahoal, the truth hurts, and Bumsrap, and all those people just to name a few (not calling them idiots, just naming people) , you included were from here. You make it sound like I had fostered these posters and juvenile behaviors. There were a few new people over there, but almost all were from this site.
I understand that the political comments and other comments at one time got a little out of hand, and perhaps I should have stepped in and did more than I did. But you have to understand something, I am not rich. I don’t run million dollar companies and have people working for me. I don’t have an assistant, or a web developer, or an administrator working for me. I was at work when every post was getting like 200 comments per day. Some got political. I didn’t have the time to moderate all those comments.
As for my “anti-Friedman” opinions, none of those are anything worse than what’s been said over here. Look at the post on this page. Maybe I’m a little harsher? sure, but these people (Friedman) are millionaires. I believe that we should be able to be critical and praise them and challenge them at the same time. It’s an honest take. if you disagree with it, that’s ok. Friedman has been the topic at this blog over the last few days has it not? Why is what I’m saying any different than anyone else? I’m syaying the same thing a lot of other posters here are sayinig, but you don’t like my delivery?
Mark has continously insulted, degraded marginalized me and my blog for the last few years now. The fact that he is rich, and makes a note to step on other people less fortunate than him is a disgusting trait wouldn’t you agree? I don’t like to be bullied and will not back down from a fight. I have no beef with you, I don’t remember exactly what I said to you, as it was several years ago, but I do remember telling you to stay in your lane. I do apologize for that. I admit that I have a short fuse at times.
All I ask is for him to stop insulting me and my blog. I feel it’s unnecessary. Especially considering as he liks to point out all the time, it gets such little page views in comparison to this site.
Scott,
For the record, I do not talk about your blog.
I do not read your blog.
I have nothing bad to say about you.
I have nothing good to say about you.
I leave you alone.
You leave me alone.
I did not threaten to ban you. I just asked you to turn out the light when you leave.
I’ve popped in here pretty regularly – nearly every day – for the past several years since drifting away from your site and I’ve maybe seen Mark even acknowledge your existence twice. Once was when you popped in here and asked if you could post, to which his response was, “sure. If you don’t act like a savage,” and the other was when he commented on that guy you had on your site that would post the YouTube videos. He was cringe.
Mark hasn’t continuously insulted you or your blog. Did he comment on your really bad take the other day? Yes. Your take was really bad.
I’m not talking about the posters from your site that are now here. I’m talking about maybe 3-4 exceptional idiots – I don’t remember their names …truebluthruandthru … Mexivin … the juvenile idiots …the ones who used the phrase Pedro Phile. They were trash. They made your site unreadable.
Scott comes across very rationally!
Just like his anti-Friedman silliness.
I like Scott’s blog, wish there were more people there. But this post has no value or purpose.
Patch
Ok lolz you are welcome to your opinion. My “bad take” according to you was the take of a bunch of posters here. A bunch of posters here had negative comments about Friedman. When I say it I’m singled out for some reason. Re-read the Article here and some of the responses. Everything I’ve said about Friedman is the truth.
You can’t make fun of me for saying the same things that other posters are saying about Friedman’s strategies and game management. Others have echoed the same.
I believe the truth hurts originated from this site. Correct?
I feel compelled to chime in here.
What drew me to this site is Mark gives a really fresh take usually without holding back words. He tells it like he sees it. Sure, he’s missed the mark many times as all of us do. But, you can feel the passion for the team through his words. He does it in his spare time while running his company.
His story is one of a Great American tradition. He spent some time figuring out how life works on his own. He built a business with his bare hands and with hard work, he’s living the American dream. An example for us all.
This isn’t luck or fortune, this is having the balls to assume the risk and having the confidence to leave it all on the table. I applaud him for that. He runs his site without annoying ads, instead maybe getting a business write-off for the one banner he uses as advertising for his business. This site is a gift to all of us.
I just can’t understand why people would bash an entrepreneur for doing well. He’s contributing to society and is reaping the rewards for his efforts. That should be commended, not ridiculed. Calling a person a Millionaire as a derogatory term is silly at best. Please don’t go down that road again, especially when you’re saying it about someone that created a place for all to share.
All of this is coming from a guy that’s had his differences with Mark, well mostly other writers on this site, in the past. I’ve even been banned. In fact, I’m pretty sure my old moniker is still in jail, like Guantanamo, never to be seen again. No grudges, we even had a beer at a Quakes game this season.
Sometimes the grass isn’t greener. I loved AC when he wrote on this site and DC (RIP) as well. But, what did running their own site accomplish? They have three people that comment over there and to tell you the truth, I think they wrote better for this site. So, now they have a nice little bubble echo chamber instead of a community of people that can discuss their differences. Hurray for them! No, thanks for me. I used to read every one of AC’s posts, now their site is buried at the very end of my dodgers bookmark list, just above DD and your site.
Take it my opinion for what it’s worth. Just another guy in between the keyboard and a chair. But, realize this. At the end of the day, we all have one thing in common, our love for the Dodgers. No need to get this shitty.
Good luck with your site.
Bulldog,
He is an american hero! NOT. I do respect Mark for running a successful company though. I wish I had those skills, but I do not. I give a fresh take as well and call things as I see them. I have written for a long time too. I’m using the term millionaire as a way of describing to people the difference between him and I. Sometimes people that are super successful become detatched from others who are struggling. I do not trash others who are less fortunate. I’ll give you an example, it would be like driving down to skid row and kicking one of the people sleeping on the sidewalk and telling them my box is so much smaller than their box.
I’ve always liked Mark, but somewhere along the way he started bullying and insulting me. You may not know the history, but I used to write over here for him years ago. At the time he was gracious and supportive. He told me he was going to retire and I would be able to run this site while he focused on his company. It ended up being me starting my site, and he retired and pulled this site offline for a while. a while later some other posters started posting nasty things about him. I tried to delete them all, but was unable to keep up with the hundreds of comments per day. I’m guessing that’s when it all started.
We should all be able to collaberate and support each other. Let me tell you something. I have been writing about the Dodgers for a long time now. So has Mark. I’ve spoken with writers of other clubs. I’ve even done articles with them when the Dodgers were visiting their stadiums during the season. The one thing I noticed is that none of them ever fought with each other. disagreed? perhaps, but all of them were united. we’re all Dodger fans here and nobody should be ostracized because they have a different perspective.
Scott, it isn’t. It is what I feel I would write to AF if I were to write him. One thing Mark never does is limit what we can write about. I am no great AF lover, and I believe he has made some good and some bad moves. SImply my opinion, I also doubt he feels the team needs as much as a kick start in the coaching ranks and front office approach as we do.
Bear,
Your posts are well written and always thoughtful.
I just feel I’m being singled out by a few people over here for having the same opinions about Friedman. I’m guessing its my delivery that is the issue for some. If I am harsher than most its because I don’t see much accountability from him or willing to adjust. I start thinking about all of the championships lost it makes me frustrated.
I share in your assessment though. I feel he’s made as many good moves as bad moves. His strength is finding those discarded players and turning them into productive regulars like Muncy, Taylor, etc.
I’m hoping for a little bit of change next season. I want to see the Dodgers win in October.
As does every single poster on this blog. We all share the same frustration. I put some of the blame on the players, and some on the front office. Once on the field, it is up to the players to perform. I think my biggest bitch is the fact that we had so many 3 true outcome hitters, and they always seemed to come to bat in the most crucial situations. Dodgers had a plus run differential of over 300. No other team was even close, but, they did terribly in one run games and sucked in extra innings. They lost 5 of 6 to the lowly ass Pirates of all teams, and let the Rockies take three at the end of the year while they were on cruise control. You play those games like they mean something, they win 119 games.
Nice write up, but fried isn’t going to give straight answers to anyone! He knows he can pick and choose all the reclamation projects he wants and if they work out fine, if not so be it. Never understood gallo move at all! Kiki was never a great player but he sure filled a big role, playing all over and supplying power and base running , plus great in the dugout. Joc supplied some serious pop off the bench, and popular in the dugout. I know money wise it made sense to let them walk, but replace them with Alberto /gallo type s , doesn’t work. Brandon drury would have been a major upgrade. We’re not Tampa! We can afford good players for the bench, they don’t all have to be waiver players! Love dusty baker, but can’t stand the thought of bregman, altuve getting another ring., but I think they win it all. Go Phillies!
Oh I know AF will never give straight answers. That is why I call him the spin doctor. He spins his own yarns.
Interesting.
There are always holes in line-ups and obviously the Dodgers had them. There were too many rally killing hitters, who ended up striking out with runners in scoring position. Chris Taylor, Max Muncy and Cody Bellinger come to mind. I totally agree on wasted at bats. But the Dodgers scored lots of runs during this season so it wasn’t something to focus on.
Maybe the Dodgers were a little too arrogant. They were good, real good. How many teams win 111 games? None of the teams still in the playoffs.
The lead off hitter, Mookie Betts, is notoriously streaky. When he’s hot, he helps generate a lot of offense. When he’s not, others have to key the offense. Trea Turner and Freddie Freeman were good at that with nearly 400 hits between them. Will Smith was a pretty good four hitter, then Justin Turner came on with Muncy rediscovering his swing. Gavin Lux was producing big before he got injured. Then Justin was slowed by a September injury.
Should the Dodgers spend much time analyzing all this? Probably not, best to focus on 2023.
They have some time to form a good view of where do we go from here. Andrew Friedman is a very smart guy. He has a great staff. They will no doubt kick around what went wrong. But I’m not sure that pulling levers will make the Dodgers better.
But how do you move forward? Hard to say the Dodgers aren’t doing a lot of things right. They won 111 games.
What gets teams to the World Series. Teams get hot, players step up and then there is luck. Perhaps there is fire. Like the 1988 team. Underdogs often possess that. Then there are teams that are simply better than everyone else, like the Yankees when they had a dominant run years ago.
While I hate to say this, it’s probably time to move on from Bellinger. I agree with Jerry Hairston. Maybe the Dodgers roll the dice and try to negotiate a lesser dollar amount and see what happens.
Not sure how they replace Trea Turner’s bat, but I’m guessing Gavin Lux plays short next year.
Most big contracts don’t turn out well.
So where should the Dodgers go from here?
Well, promote the idea that starting pitchers should look to go seven innings. Sometimes I feel the Dodgers overuse their bullpen and at some point you pay a price.
Find contact hitters, move away from the big swing and miss guys. Wasted at bats and all.
Again, they need to focus on pitching. Maybe bring back Anderson.
Miquel Vargas is probably ready to step and play, probably a couple of other prospects too. Certainly two or three pitching prospects will help.
I would bring Justin Turner back.
But a team that wins 111 games isn’t going to tear up the plan and toss it into the trash. More likely to tweak a little here and there. There are no clear answers to any of this.
Excellent write-up today.
The strike outs are a huge problem everywhere in the game. I was looking at free shortstops recently and saw that Danby Swanson had 182 K’s! WTF? That was eye popping! Are all those K’s really worth a few more bombs? I want to see the math!
The other thing that really stands out, besides all of the K’s is that only 12 players had over 100 RBI this year. There were 23 in 1977, 28 in 87, 35 in 97 (I miss steroid baseball), 33 in 2007, 24 in 2017.
This hitting philosophy does NOT produce better results and neither does messing with the ball. Stop screwing with the ball. Get rid of the humidifiers and get some offense back into the game.
When I was coaching I had some great hitting videos and the one thing I remember was this guy looking at batting average and he had the stats for Line Drives, Fly Balls and Grounders. Batting average on groundballs was in the high 100’s, fly balls were better, but not great, in the low 200’s. Line drives where solidly in the 400’s!
So, why are we seeing all these guys constantly swinging for the fences? Smart Phones and Analytics?
It’s called Launch Angle from what I have read.
Bear: In 1959 the Dodgers and White Sox had the same record 88/68 and in the shortened season of 1981, the Dodgers were 63/47 and the Yankees were 59/48. Both years, we were not facing superior teams.
Wrong, the Sox were 94-60. Dodgers had more power, Sox had better pitching. Of course, that is on paper. The 81 Yankees played 3 less games, and outhomered LA> Their pitching staff also had a lower ERA than LA. They may have been pretty even on paper, but the Yanks went into the series as favorites simply because they had many hold overs from the 77-78 Champs. It is all perception, but the Dodgers were not the favorites in either series.
Corbin Burnes
I get it everyone down on bellinger, I for one hope he stays a dodger There’s talk about him changing teams starting a new era New scenery We’ll help him We need to change our hitting instructors on the dodgers. I’m saying this only if he takes less in 2023.
I am not down on Bellinger, just extremely frustrated with his lack of production and his seeming stubbornness against changing his approach at the plate. His batting stance screams for change simply because his swing is too long and induces a lot of swing and miss. I love the guy, always have, but like Joc, he could be so much better than he is. I gave him a one year grace period because of his shoulder surgery. He improved his BA 50 points this year, but that was not enough for him to even make it out of the cellar.
Rangers get Bochy….have to think this makes Texas much more desirable for Clayton.
I don’t think the manager makes that much difference to CK. It will be based simply on if he wants to play, and then if he wants to be close to family, or if he wants his HOF plaque to say he played his entire career with one team. Bochy has a sub .500 career record as a manager.
We write here because we love baseball and the Dodgers. I hope what I write generates thought and discussion. Now, no one has to agree with what I say and I respect that. Hell all of us who write here don’t agree with each other most of the time. But that is what is so great about baseball. I respect Mark, Evan, BP and I respect Scott who runs LADR. I have posted on many blogs, including Jeff’s new one. I get solid info from all of them. I also learn from each and every poster on all of those sites. I do not have enough time to read everything, but I read what I can and try to get the best info I can. Am I wrong? Sometimes badly. Like the other day when on my post I misidentified Jim Davenport as having been a Dodger when in reality it was his former teammate, Daryl Spencer. I try to write articles that are 1. informative 2. thought provoking 2. bringing Dodger history to life. I hope I succeed in doing that most of the time. I am not professional writer, just a fan who really cares about his team. That is why I wrote this post. I was and still am disappointed in the way it all played out. My feelings have been echoed by many other fans. If you think what we have wrote about AF and Roberts is bad, you should see how both are getting shredded elsewhere. Roberts gets more negative press on Twitter than anyone I can ever remember. Well, I will be heading back home to Colorado next week. Going to stop off in Arizona and see an old friend, and then some of my family members. We all love the Dodgers, let us all just a little bit try to be nice to each other. I know it is hard, but as I get so much older, I just detest conflict and arguing.
I like these lines, even though they are dripping with sarcasm, because they highlight how much of a crapshoot the playoffs are:
We expected much more from the so-called best team in baseball, and certainly the best team in Dodger history. Lesser Dodger teams have won Championships. Maybe you are doing it the wrong way. Come in as the underdog instead of the top dog, and you might win the whole thing.
Exactly.
Well, I never thought I’d be a Yankee fan. I guess I’m into self-abuse as I age. And a Phillies fan, of course. The best part of the Playoffs so far is watching Buzzie Altuve go 0 for 22.
* So we’ve all expressed our thoughts on what’s wrong. So what needs to be done to fix it? Let’s look look at a few solutions.
What is the Dodger way? We are pretty arrogant about who we are, and for good reason. But this was a very disappointing exit and it is time to reevaluate. I would take a look at our organizational philosophy. How we play the game. How we use data, how the game is managed and personnell needs. All of it.
From listening to AF’s presser, he indicated everything will be looked at. I don’t believe that, because deep down, I don’t think he thinks much is broken. We draw about 3 million, sell all the Jerseys and hats, Dodger Dogs and have a nice bit of TV revenue. So what’s the panic?
* Here are some things I’d like to see.
Personnel moves – Saying goodbye is hard. A year too early is better than a year too late. I wouldn’t stay with Bellinger at any price. It’s time to move on. I’m not sure what happens with Muncy? Maybe he is the DH and plays some third, but we need to look at Rios or a new face and an upgrade there, defensively. Do Muncy and JT split time there and DH again next year. Haven’t we seen this act before? Pick one but the other needs to go.
I favor signing TT still but not at the price he will likely demand. Enter Amaya.
CT3 needs to get packaged up in some deal and strike out elsewhere. With the DH and no double switches, the Swiss-Army-Knife player like CT is less needed. Give me everyday guys with no big splits demanding platooning.
Obviously, gone with Bellinger and CT3 is Gallo and Thompson. I’m starting over in the outfield beside Mookie. We have a a strong minor league system and we pride ourselves on player development – A Dodger Way. Well it’s time to see the fruits of that system. The youngsters either get jobs in our lineup or are used as trade pieces. I’d like to see more players who are trained to run more, bunt more, contact more, play better defense – rethink Dodger Baseball.
* Is the 3 outcome, lift and separate approach to hitting and emphasized in the Dodger Way, going to remain? Watching the pitching and lack of hitting and runs scored in the playoffs, will that approach be replaced with more contact guys? I’d like to see that.
I think we need a contact guy or 2. A Brett Butler or healthy Nick Madrigal come to mind. Perhaps a switch hitter who plays everyday. A guy or 2 who can bunt for a base hit, sacrifice, steal bases, run and hit. A guy who looks like a traditional lead off hitter back in the day. Mookie leads off and he isn’t that guy. Maybe his approach needs a look but a contact hitter or 2 would make things happen somewhere in the line up.
* I don’t offer which pitchers stay and go, right yet, but our pitching philosophy in general, needs a look. Put Starting Pitching back in the game. Evaluate shrinking innings to starting pitching. The trend of 4 inning starts with 85 pitches as a quality start comes with over reliance on the bullpen. It can catch up to you. The reverse might be true for some teams. Total bullpen games may be the future but to me that’s not the Dodger Way. We have arms and develop arms.
I would empathize 6 man rotation for at least until the All-Star break and maybe longer. No matter what, there would be 6 starters. Stop guys on the shuttle to OKC. Leave em in the show, including spots 5 and 6 for those guys to be a part of the Big Club, unless they are hurt or shitty. Each starter pitches every 6th day and is expected to get stretched out to go 7 innings. If I’m a pitcher I would hate to be expected to go only 5 innings and 85 pitches and hit the shower. And pitching decisions based more on what the hitters are tell the Skipper and Pitching Coach and less on a computer predicting the guy is going to ineffective in the near future.
* So how much data and information needs to be collected? How big of an analytical staff is needed. How many computers are needed? What can the pencil necks provide that isn’t already out there? Does a staff of metrics guys need to tell me that in the 4th inning with 1 out and a runner on 2nd, that this pitcher will throw a changeup 55% of the time? That might be great filler for the tv folks but nothing to the players. More is not better.
I would have loved and used pitching labs and hitting labs, I’m all in on that. The pitchers have a technical advantage now. Hitting has never been harder. But is more data in-game data actually helpful?
We all know the benefits of information on positioning and tendencies. To help a player defensively he gets a little card in his hat; 3 steps over and 2 steps back. A Pre-game a scouting meeting and report on the pitcher, is good. The pitcher and catcher gets advanced scouting on the hitters. So why do need more data? How much more information is actually useful for a player? If it can’t be digested by players, many of whom barely graduated from high school, then it isn’t useful. Some of the best players I played with were likely special need students. They didn’t overthink shit. See ball, hit ball. A little, very digestible info and they were good to go.
The pendulum is still swing to the analytics side and I hope that ends and it begins to swing back to the center. That puts the eye test and humanity back in the game. I hope it happens before all the players become robots.
I have more, but no today.
I totally agree and here is another thing. Almost every time I watch a game on TV, I see the camera panning in the dugout after at bats and you see players on Ipads looking at their last at bat. Ok, gathering information. I have seen Bellinger doing this many many times. And the next at bat against the very same pitcher he swings and misses at the same damn pitch. So to me, that stuff is useless unless it helps.
Yup.
Most here are ready to wave good-bye to Bellinger and I’ve come to feel that way myself. But Andrew is the one who will ultimately make that choice and I wonder if these two things might actually save Belli’s job for one more year:
1) Cutting back the shift will certainly help him as much as anyone since he pretty much pulls everything
2) The limit of 2 throws to first base per at bat will lead to a lot more stolen bases and Belli is one of our fastest runners and better base stealers.
I still expect to see him non-tendered, but if it’s a very close call, these two factors might save him.
Further to the above point, we need to factor in good base stealers when we look at adding players because, as mentioned above, stolen bases are likely to increase dramatically.
Adding contact hitters – I’d like to see us sign Michael Brantley on a one or two year deal. Doesn’t strike out, high on base guy, great in the clubhouse and can still play a little left field when required. Otherwise, DH him.
STB, I’m uncertain that a reduced number of pick off attempts will increase steal attempts. That, along with an oven mitt like Bryce Harper’s that’s the size of a pickle ball racket and the bases being closer, I think it may have little effect. The success rate for steals is very good all ready. Teams don’t want to risk getting thrown and give up the 2 run homer opportunity. The risk – reward isn’t favorable for many organizations despite a high success rate. The same mentality prevails about giving up an out with a sac bunt.
It takes a change and commitment by the organization to make that a bigger part of the offense.
It’ll be interesting to see how that plays out. I’m guessing stolen bases go up by a minimum of 20%, probably more, with teams which have been among the top in stolen bases before the rule change.
I agree that teams don’t like to risk being thrown out, but once the runner can get the pitcher to throw over twice, he can increase his lead dramatically and vastly increase his odds of success. Of course, the runner trying to get the pitcher to throw over early in the count by taking a good lead could also lead to more successful pickoffs. We shall see.
This somehow implies there is an irrefutable, intractable “Dodger’s Way”
I’d put up there that the “Dodgers Way” has changed as the game has. It’s no longer, just giving a key position to Amaya because he’s home-grown. It’s no longer preferencing home grown players just because they are such. It’s DEFINITELY not about contact hitters like Brett Butler anymore.
Campanis once wrote a book, the Dodger way to play baseball. I had it and read it until it fell apart. Problem is, that brand of baseball is no longer played.
Exactly.
Nor is the type of baseball played in the Generation after that, Lasorda’s.
Phil, I always enjoy your input. Ever think of writing a main article or two? What are your thoughts about all of the focus on velocity and your point about 7 inning starters? Kershaw and Anderson did pretty well with less velocity.
Yanks look flat, Phillies are fired up and want to win badly. Loved seeing Profar get tossed after cussing out the ump in the 9th. Phils defense made a few gaffs, but they got to Musgrove.
Phil –
Great post! I agree with everything you said. I am a 70+ year baseball fan but I learn something new almost every time I read one of your posts. Keep up the good work!
The Athletic’s baseball podcast talks about the Dodgers recent dominance and lack of WS titles:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-athletic-baseball-show-a-show-about-mlb/id1558220009?i=1000583469488
Where to find Scott’s web for LADR,A little help please.
Dodgerfan, see link below.
http://ladodgerreport.com
Bear: My apologies for stating the wrong 1959 White Sox record. These old eyes read it wrong. Thanks for the clarification.
No biggie, I misread stuff all the time. Dodgers and Braves finished the season with the same mark, that is why they had a 3-game playoff scheduled.
Once Dodgers got that ‘z’ it appeared they got away from the mission and started fielding experimental spring training tryouts at least to some degree. I didn’t like the feeling that gave me but told myself not to fear and they know better than me. My fear was it could set the team on the wrong path for the post season. I can’t claim my feelings were right or wrong but now it’s substantiated there might of been something to my fears. At any rate, the post season Dodgers didn’t appear to be on any mission and showed little passion to rally a win. I love Mookie as a Dodgers. He shows how it’s done and influences a rally on both ends. But Mookie didn’t show up this post season. I see that as the biggest reason why it all came crashing down. Nobody took the baton in place. Don’t know why that happened or didn’t happen, but there’s all the things that everybody has said and everybody is right. B&P brings some interesting points about Doc that can’t be disputed other than Doc that’s what got the Dodgers to the Dance in high style. Maybe we lost because we were supposed to win. Maybe were not supposed to get used to winning and there is such things as baseball gods. How do we get rid of wildcards and divisions now that they’ve been introduced. So many things ruining the game that’ll abuse any passion any player has for his career other than the wealth it can bring. Again that’s probably what’s ruining it most. Sorry for the rambling but my disappointment crept in where I started to post something far different than this nonsense.
Phillies manager pulls his starter after 5 innings. Eflin comes in, puts runners on first and third and then gets Bell to hit into an inning-ending double play. Melvin leaves Musgrove in for the sixth inning. He gets two quick outs then back to back doubles to break the tie and the Phillies go on to win. So is the Phillies manager a genius for pulling his pitcher after 5 innings and/or is Melvin a bum and a horrible manager For leaving his pitcher in for the sixth inning?
Easy to choose in retrospect but not so easy in real time. Give Doc some slack.
You are comparing Phillies situation to the Dodgers and they are different circumstances.
Tyler Anderson had a shutout vs Suarez had given up 2 runs. Anderson has been a starter his career while Suarez was mostly reliever before this year. Suarez last start was 3.1 innings.
Dodgers had just had a bullpen game the day before and were playing an elimination game with another game the next day.
Phillies are 1-1 with a day off yesterday. Dodgers brought in 3 relievers who had pitched the prior day which was unusual for them and were ineffective.
Phillies had a rested bullpen.
Yes it is easy to second guess Roberts. And the players are much much more responsible for the loss than Dave Roberts.
But the manager needs to also be accountable for his decisions. Especially now that AF has reiterated that Roberts makes all in game decisions.
I’m not comparing this to the Dodgers game because each game is different. Just pointing out the vagaries of baseball. One more hit and Thompson would have been a bum. One more out and Melvin would have been a genius. Sometimes you’re the windshield and sometimes you’re the bug.
When I look back on this season, and how it ended with such a pathetic whimper, I think the AF-led brain trust did a great job at the start and a terrible job at the end.
The year before, as we all recall, the Dodgers went into the playoffs relying on marginal veterans like McKinney and Andy Burns to fill out a roster weakened by Muncy’s injury and more.
So AF stocked OKC with MLB veterans like Kevin Pillar and Jake Lamb. When Edwin Rios got injured (again), Lamb proved an able replacement. Pillar also was called up but suffered a season-ending injury. This help create an opportunity for Outman, who despite a spectacular debut with bat and glove, was denied the chance to show whether he really belonged. Later on, when Mookie was hurt, AF targeted Trayce Thompson, who exceeded expectations and, in the end, was trusted more than any outfielder not named Mookie.
Why didn’t Outman get more of a chance to prove himself? Of course his bat would cool off a bit–but it didn’t much back at OKC. Why was he denied the proverbial “runway”? Giving him a real chance would have infused the team with more youthful energy.
And perhaps AF wouldn’t have rolled the dice on Gallo.
I’ve criticized AF for failing to bring in a true impact player at the midseason trade market, the way the Pads brought in Drury and Hader, or the Yankees brought in Bader, or the Mariners brought in Castillo. In past seasons AF had previously brought in the likes of Machado, Darvish, Scherzer and Trea. This season, other front offices made the big impact deals.
But perhaps the bigger problem was the failure to give prospects like Outman a real chance.
Just a reminder: In just four games of play, Outman had a ridiculous 1.409 OPS, including an on-base percentage of .589. He struck out 7 times in 13 ABs, and had two walks. Sure, a small sample–but an impressive one. And nothing about his play in the field diminished his reputation as one of the best gloves in the system.
But as season wound down, with the Dodgers gambling on Gallo, the decision was made to bring up the righthanded-hitting Vargas.
Vargas got four times as much runway–and finished with the lowest OPS on the final roster at .455, with an OBP of only .200. When Vargas walked in his last plate appearance, it was only the second BB of his ML career.
Maybe Vargas will wind up being a great Dodger.
But the fact that both Vargas and Gallo were on the postseason roster shows that AF really made some big bad personnel decisions this season.
I heartily agree. I think leaving Alberto off was a slap in the face to a guy who was the teams rah rah player. He kept things loose on the bench and he actually had some timely hits, but he did not hit lefty’s as well as he had in the past, as for Gallo, he was a wasted roster spot as was Vargas and May.