So many times, we read things that are written where the writer’s only objective is to try and prove some point. As an example (and I am not going to be labor this point), I read a piece in the Washington Post called The zombie CVS, a late-capitalism horror story. It starts out by saying:
There is almost nothing left to steal at the CVS in Columbia Heights, and that gives you an idea of which items have actual value.
Blank CDs, for example — the thieves don’t even bother with them. The greeting card section has been left alone. The good magazines like Vogue and GQ and Sports Illustrated are gone, but there are still a few copies of Traditional Home, some special issues of Life devoted to Willie Nelson, and a Woman’s World that declares: “Bye bye, jiggly fat!” No soft drinks, but three gallon-sized jugs of Arizona green tea are still on the shelves on one recent visit.
Everything else that remains in the store in Northwest D.C., which is not much, is under plexiglass: Dawn dish soap, L’Oreal shampoo, MiraLax, a handful of Clairol root touch-up hair dye kits, flu season combo packs of DayQuil and NyQuil. The diapers are behind the counter. The Cetaphil and Neutrogena face washes are under lock and key.
Other shelves, stretching entire aisles, are totally empty.
Then, it goes on to get you to subscribe to the writer’s Socialist worldview, that the shoplifting and lawlessness in not really the problem. The problem is capitalism. Now, this could trigger a whole discussion, but I am going to stop right there because that is not what this is about. This is about pushing a narrative to a certain conclusion where there may be more than one conclusion in the first place. Moszt of what we read and write is based upon opinion.
Here’s my opinion. Yesterday was a very eventful day for several Dodger players:
Josue DePaula – The 19-Year-old sweet-swinging prospect blasted a home run. He’s headed to Great Lakes, most likely and I hope to see him early in the season in person.
Andy Pages – Whom I have likened to a “RH Kyle Schwarber but who can play defense” hit a 3-run bomb. Pages is making a case to be Jason Heyward’s caddy with 2 HR, a double and a triple and 8 RBI’s this Spring while hitting .462 with a 1.214 OPS, but it may serve him better to play at least a few weeks at OKC. It shall be interesting to see it play out. The Dodgers would have to make room for him by getting rid of Rojas, Taylor or Kike. I don’t see that happening and absent injury, Pages will start at AAA. Still, he has been exactly what we used to think he was: A RH Hitter with Light Tower Power!
James Outman – He is hitting .429 and has a 1.485 OPS so his position is solid. Doc has said that he will not “platoon” him, but he has also said that Kike will play CF against certain LHP. He also crushed his 2nd HR, and was 3-3 with another double, however his 6 strikeouts in 14 ABs are a concern, as are Pages 5 in 13 ABs.
Gavin Lux – He showed what he can do with the bat as he went 3-4. Lux’s bat is not the question and neither is his glove. His problem is that he is prone to episodes of the yips… wildness on throws. I still see it in his eyes. Call me crazy and many of you feel I just have it in for Gavin Lux. I want him on the team… but where? Not SS. He is not a Championship caliber SS and Miguel Rojas is not the answer either.
Miguel Vargas – It seems that most Dodger fans have given up on Miguel Vargas and you can’t find his HR on Twitter. That’s a mistake. Miguiel did look very bad in his previous 13 ABs. I also think it is best for him to start at OKC. He needs reps. He had the two broken fingers last season which most likely created some bad habits and then it was rumored that the Dodgers tried to re-make his swing (I cannot confirm or deny that), but his swings yesterday looked like they did in the past. He crushed a HR and hit a screaming line drive to LF for a double. I have read some really silly comments about his ability being overvalued or that he is just a slap hitter on some other sites and here. Progress is not always linear and some players have tourtered paths to MLB. His defense has rightfully been questioned, but his hitting skills have never questioned by sane people. 😉 I have said that he is a player who will get you 25 HR while hitting .280-.290 and stand by that. This is a WordPress Blog and the only Video I have is from MLB which is not supported on WordPress. Here’s the link, if you want to see it.
https://www.mlb.com/gameday/dodgers-vs-brewers/2024/03/02/748138/final/video
- I have also been impressed with Brendon Davis; bat speed and quickness in a small sample this Spring. He looks different this time around.
- Gavin Stone starts today and will try and go 2-3 innings. With Sheehan out and likely to start the season on the IL, Stone is in the running for the #5 Spot.
- Kody Hoeses‘ bat looks much quicker… but it’s a small sampling.
Opening Day Roster
I am just going to list the position players as the pitching staff is very much up in the air with about 25 pitchers vying for 13 spots. The position player are pretty well set… barring injury or trade:
- Barnes
- Smith
- Freeman
- Betts
- Lux
- Rojas
- Muncy
- T. Hernandez
- E. Hernandez
- Outman
- Heyward
- Ohtani
- Taylor
I still think there will be a trade, but as it stands Vargas, Pages, Gauthier, Ramos are all slated for OKC. Drew Avans and Ryan Ward could use a trade right about now… both could be 4th or 5th outfielders on some teams.
DePaula has such a sweet swing. That HR was off of a LHP to the opposite field.
Kid is exiting to watch.
Vargas badly needed those 3 hits with hard contact.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Fabian Ardaya
@FabianArdaya
Dodgers pitching prospect Nick Frasso had a cleanup procedure on his hip labrum. Was already rehabbing from labrum surgery on his right shoulder.
Pitching this season is unlikely, though there’s a chance he’s able to appear in games in the Arizona Fall League.
3:05 PM ET vs Rockies at Glendale
Rockies (7-3)
Dodgers (8-2-1)
SP Austin Gomber L
0-0 .00 ERA
SP Gavin Stone R
1-0 3.38 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
2B Mookie Betts R
DH S. Ohtani L
1B F. Freeman L
C Will Smith R
3B Max Muncy L
LF T. Hernandez R
RF J. Heyward L
SS Gavin Lux L
CF Andy Pages R
68° Wind 10 mph Out
Off day tomorrow,no game scheduled
James Outman – “Doc has said that he will not “platoon” him, but he has also said that Kike will play CF against certain LHP.”
Everyone needs a day off here and there (maybe Freeman is the exception). So let’s say Outman is given 5 days off (I’m just using a random number) throughout the season. Isn’t it smart, at this point in time (it could change), to sit him against LHP those 5 games? That’s not a platoon and I don’t know why you’re reading into Doc’s statement. But I digress.
“Andy Pages – Whom I have likened to a “RH Kyle Schwarber but who can play defense” hit a 3-run bomb. Pages is making a case to be Jason Heyward’s caddy”
That’s what I said yesterday. And:
“The Dodgers would have to make room for him by getting rid of Rojas, Taylor or Kike.”
That’s also what I said yesterday, but I said specifically Rojas.
“Gavin Lux. I want him on the team… but where? Not SS. He is not a Championship caliber SS and Miguel Rojas is not the answer either.”
I agree with you about Rojas, that’s for sure. I’ve always thought moving Betts to SS and putting Lux at 2B would be the backup plan. A matter of fact, you and I were agreeing on that in the offseason.
Does anyone know what’s going on with Sheehan?
Feb. 29: RHP Emmet Sheehan questionable for Opening Day
Manager Dave Roberts said Sheehan’s availability for the two-game series against the Padres in Seoul, South Korea will probably be affected by the fact that he hasn’t faced live hitters this spring due to lingering general body soreness. His status for the domestic Opening Day is also in question.
Sheehan’s late start to the year is due to shoulder soreness, which is always concerning. It likely makes the fifth starter spot Gavin Stone‘s for the taking, as the Dodgers will surely be cautious with Sheehan.
Emmet Sheehan said he is scheduled to resume throwing this past Saturday. Was shut down for about a week after developing shoulder soreness following a couple bullpen sessions. #Dodgers
Thank you Andrew Vincent Forte. All I ever heard was general soreness and I was wondering what that meant. It’s shoulder soreness. Thank you.
You’re welcome Eric
I appreciate your level of effort with the postings. You make an effort almost daily and the new commentary keeps the juices flowing! Time will settle many details but in the meantime, it’s fun to read the ideas and banter. Happy to see you back in the saddle. Thank you and cheers!
Yes, thank you Mark! I’ve looked forward to your daily posts for years and miss you when you’re gone. I don’t always agree but I look forward to your analysis.
Thank you, Eric2. I appreciate that you appreciate it.
What do you men you don’t always agree with me? What’s wrong with you?
Just Kidding 😉
River Ryan battled shoulder fatigue toward the end of his 2023 campaign after throwing a career-high 104.1 innings between Double-A Tulsa and Triple-A Oklahoma City.
The Dodgers are exercising caution with Ryan and have decided that he will not pitch in a Cactus League game this spring, via Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
You NEVER have enough ptching.
Good point. Pitching injuries are inevitable. The Dodgers have a starting rotation with high end talent, but unproven durability in the MLB. Yamamoto looks fantastic but still needs to adapt to the MLB and a 5 man rotation. Glasnow looked great on Friday but never pitched more than 120 innings in MLB. Paxton has great talent, but is injury prone and even his contract was adjusted to reflect medical concerns. Miller has elite stuff and a great rookie year, but still needs to work on his command and had 124 IP last year. Stone battled ineffectiveness and injuries last year and is a question mark if in the rotation. Hopefully he throws well today.
The Dodgers do have depth and luckily they have Buehler and Kershaw expected to join the staff during the season. And Sheehan, Yarbrough, and May as potential starting options as well. The starting rotation looked extremely solid last year in spring training with Urias, Kershaw, May, Gonsolin, Noah, Pepiot, and Miller, but they quickly ran out of starting pitching. As you say, You can never have enough pitching.
Nice day all around, but it is still just spring training. So many times, we have seen a player tear up spring pitching and then go in the tank when the season starts. It doesn’t matter what we think of Lux as a SS, what matters is what the powers that be think. Right now, he has the support of the bosses. That could change. If it does, then you will probably see a trade, or a position shift. His bat to ball skills are still excellent. Like I said yesterday, it really doesn’t matter what Vargas does this spring, he needs reps and the only place he is going to get those is at AAA. No one in a position of power really gives a rat’s rear end about Rojas’s bat. Might interest you to know that Miggy’s career BA is 10 points higher than Adames. No, he doesn’t have his power, but his glovework at SS is superior to Adames. They do not need his power on this team. sign in not fixed yet Mark. No biggie.
Lamet is scheduled to be one of the pitchers following Stone today.
Jeff just posted that Cartaya is out with a back problem. This is not the first time that has occurred. Could be chronic. He is destined for AA with Rushing, who all of a sudden has forgotten that you need to actually hit the ball.
The famous Dodger prayer of Pedro Guerrero.
‘Many times in the field I prayed to God they wouldn’t hit the ball to me,’ he said. ‘Then I prayed to God they wouldn’t hit the ball to Steve Sax.(Gavin Lux)
Yep. I hope we are wrong !
The Dodgers have optioned RHPs Landon Knack, Ricky Vanasco and Nick Frasso, catchers Hunter Feduccia and Diego Cartaya and OF Andy Pages, and re-assigned LHP Stephen Gonsalves, RHPs Jesse Hahn, Michael Petersen and Eduardo Salazar and OF Travis Swaggerty to minor league camp.
River Ryan too.