Is everyone aware that the Angels are just one of only two MLB Teams that do not have Announcers who travel with the team? Terry Smith and Mark Langston, the announcers for the Orange County Angels, call the game from Anaheim by watching the Bally Sports West video feeds. Before this season, Angels owner Arte Moreno told reporters at spring training that Smith and Langston, who work for the team-owned radio station, KLAA 830, would continue to call road games from Anaheim, because the “economics” don’t change the experience. They’ve called games remotely even when the Angels played in Petco Park in San Diego and at Dodger Stadium. Yet, Arte Moreno thought he could re-sign Shohei Ohtani. HA!
Who is the other team whose announcers do not travel with them? Well, it happens to be the other team that thought they were going to sign Shohei Ohtani: the Toronto Blue Jays and I have heard that their cheapskate ways were a factor in not signing him. People can smell “tightwads and knuckleheads.” It’s not the Pittsburgh Pirates, it’s not the Tampa Bay Rays, it’s not the Kansas City Royals – it’s the Freaking Angels and Blue Jays who have some exciting players on their teams. Maybe this gives some understanding into why they have been so wildly unsuccessful.
It does cost several hundred thougand dollars a year (maybe over a million dollars) to transport two announcers, let alone the technicians and sideline reporters, but the Dodgers likely spend several million on announcers, reporters and technicians traveling with the team each year. On a side note, my oldest son (who is a profressional “steadycam” operator) is talking to MLB about using steady cam technology in drones that fly inside the stadium for more spectacular shots.
By the way, the movie he shot in 2019 in the Dominican in now allegedly out. I have not seen it yet – not sure where you can see it. Here’s the trailer:
However, I digress. My point was that teams like the Angels and Jays think they are saving money while they are actually limiting the fans experience. If you are cheap in marketing your product, your fan experience is limited. As maddening as the Dodgers are on disclosing injuries, they are a model for MLB teams in marketing their players and the fan experience.
By my way of thinking, it makes no sense (from a baseball standpoint) to spend a Billion Dollars on two players, like the Dodgers did with Ohtani and Yamamoto. However, it may make perfect sense if it opens up whole new opportunities for millions or billions of new fans.
Arte Moreno (owner of the Angels) and Rogers Communications (owners of the Blue Jays) are Tightwads, Cheapskates and Knuckleheads. Some other MLB teams also fall into that category, including the Marlins and Pirates. Sometimes the richer an owner gets the dumjber they become. You have to spend money to make money and many are just content to hoard what they get without spending. Thank goodness the Dodgers do not fall into that category.
There has never been better time in history to be a Dodger fan. Many of us have been frustrated with the Gavin Lux situation, but I believe that Andrew Friedman will fix it (if necessary). Yesterday, Dodgfan summed up how I feel about Gavin Lux:
If you have been around the game long enough like many of you have, is that body language that screams “don’t hit it over here.”
If know what to look for you can definitely spot that right away.
Gavin Lux is screaming “Don’t hit the ball to me.” Even at 2B. I can see the fear in his eyes. Can he beat it? Let’s hope so. I do believe that Mookie will be fine at SS. Actually, I think he loves it there.
Dodger Notes & News
- Chris Okey is set to go to OKC, but he will be at the ready if Barnes or Smith go down (and Smith is currently dealing with back tightness). I have heard that Will has become a beast in the weight room and he visibly bigger… especially his arms.
- The next games are Monday, March 18th at 3 AM PDT/6AM EDT and the same on Tuesday March 20th from Seoul South Korea.
- On Saturday, there will be a Spring Breakout Game between the Dodgers and Angels Prospects (4:10 PDT/7:10 EDT). Several sites are streaming it. I could do it too, but not enough time right now.
Top Baseball Starting Rotations
Today, The Athletic had a great piece on the TOP Rotations in basdreball.
Here’s their take:
Dodgers Team News
Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts Has Egg Thrown at Him by Bystander at Korean Airport
Noah Camras
Chan Ho Park will throw ceremonial first pitch opening day
By Eric Stephen
It doesn’t appear that the egg hit Roberts or impacted him in any way.
Must have been Lux who threw it!
ouch
Perfecto!
UPDATE ABOVE
Also, another great article in The Athletic on Mookie Betts wanting the challenge of playing SS:
https://theathletic.com/5342662/2024/03/14/padres-mlb-best-rotations-dylan-cease/?campaign=5888993&source=dailyemail&userId=147501
The Angels also have a history of mistreating their minor league players. The only good thing Moreno ever did was cutting beer prices when he first bought the team and it’s been all downhill since then!
From the Dodger official website:
The Dodgers announced the 31-man roster for their trip to South Korea. All 31 players will be allowed to play in the two exhibition games against Team Korea and the Kiwoom Heroes, but the Dodgers will have to cut it down to 26 for the two games against the Padres.
Here’s the full traveling roster:
Catchers (3): Austin Barnes, Hunter Feduccia, Will Smith
Infielders (6): Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Kiké Hernández, Gavin Lux, Max Muncy, Miguel Rojas
Outfielders (5): Teoscar Hernández, Jason Heyward, James Outman, Chris Taylor, Miguel Vargas
Designated Hitter (1): Shohei Ohtani
Starters (7): Tyler Glasnow, Michael Grove, Kyle Hurt, Landon Knack, Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Relievers (9): Ryan Brasier, J.P. Feyereisen, Daniel Hudson, Joe Kelly, Evan Phillips, Blake Treinen, Gus Varland, Alex Vesia, Ryan Yarbrough
The Dodgers at one time had the All-Time knucklehead running the team, Frank McCourt, who spent money he didn’t have. They also had bad ownership when FOX ran the team. Nothing more than a toy for Ruben Murdock. Guggenheim is in this to make money and increase their investments value. And it is working. In other news, it is still snowing here, over a foot already and it is COLD.
Is Ruben Murdock a nom de plume for Rupert Murdoch?
Yep, he always seemed like a Rube to me! To tell you the truth, I had a giant brain fart and just forgot his name. Wilson signs a MLB deal with the Reds.
I’m confused by the note about Okey. He’s not on the 40, is he?
Why should he be ready to go in front of Feduccia (or Cartaya) who are on the 40?
Okey is not on the 40 man roster and has two options remaining.
I think if there is a significant injury Okey will get a lot of consideration:
1. The staff likes him; and
2. Even though it is a small sampling, he has looked very good at the plate under the coaching of RVS.
The coaches love him, and maybe he’s just a late bloomer. Cartaya won’t get promoted due to his back and bat issues right now and Feduccia is in danger of being released.
You think they would release Feduccia?
Feel like an anti-Friedman move, if I’ve ever heard one.
The guy values catchers more than anything save, possibly, under-valued arm-talent pitchers
Friedman has never had this many catching options before…
Maybe he can trade Feduccia, but he is a journeyman at best… probably worse!
release barnes and keep oakey!! do it now ! please ! don’t wait any longer! i’m kidding ! although it might not be a bad idea! gosh i miss dustin may! imiss a healthy catman too! we may never know how good Dustin could be due to injuries. closer? not a bad idea if he’s healthy .and receptive to the idea. . bueler, kershaw, catman, may, sheehan! pretty damn good rotation in waiting!
No way Code Red becomes a closer. He has nasty stuff, but he really does not have a put-away pitch. Jack Oakey spelled his name with an a. Our Okey does not. I would not mind Barnes being gone. Just tired of watching him flail away at balls he cannot hit.
100% agree.
Closer?
What are you smoking?
I don’t get the whole Dustin-as-closer sentiment. Is it because he is just too amped up all the time to be a starter? I wrote a post about this yesterday. Yeah, he throws hard and has that nasty two-seamer, but it actually doesn’t generate a lot of swing and miss. He’s got good stuff – the spin rate on his curve is exceptional – but closers just blow people away. For him to be successful, he’s gonna have to learn how to use all of his pitches and sequence. He has to be smarter. He’s one of my favorite Dodgers, but he needs to learn how to gain more control of his emotions – and not pitch exclusively on emotion – and learn how to pitch.
My friends who are Angel fans have all but given up. Hard to blame them. But I wouldn’t call Arte a cheapskate. It’s not that he hasn’t spent money, it what he chooses to spend money on.
Arte is like a restaurant owner I’ve known for years. He owns three places. He will drop all kinds of money on bling. Driving around in $100k cars, sporting $50,000 watches. Showing off the 25 year old arm candy with obvious surgery enhanced attributes. But when you look behind the fancy looking store front and guilted crown molding in his dinning room there is a roof leak in the kitchen, mold in the walk in cooler and he’s gone through 3 managers and 2 chefs in the past 6 months. Yet, he can’t figure out why his Yelp reviews suck and his business has been down.
Arte will spend on massive contracts. Maybe not Ohtani massive, but his history of handing out mega deals is impressive. As much for the amount of money as for the level to which they blew up in his face. He likes shiny players he can show off. But when it comes down to the things nobody sees but are vital to putting out a consistently good product; he won’t spend the money.
He’s worse than a cheapskate.
And one of his big acquisitions, Anthony Rendon, only considers baseball as a job. If you are not passionate about what you do, don’t do it anymore. Dodgers dodged a huge bullet not signing that guy.
H. U. G. E.
Yeah, this is a very good post, and I think the word is “incompetent.” I think he made his initial fortune in billboards? That’s hardly a type of far flung business model that requires competence at all levels of a very complex organization. Same thing with McCourt. He made his money in parking lots. Neither are strategic thinkers when it comes to baseball, and they’re also low character people – at least McCourt is – and that is an obvious hindrance to a huge organization that is based on people. It requires integrity and leadership.
Many moons ago I worked at a wine shop. Same thing. The owner was a pompous blowhard. Had an idea. Put it in action. Did well as a result of some initial hard work and luck, but his own character flaws made the entire environment dysfunctional … and the business suffered. Sometimes that’s the curse of small businesses. Because they’re small, they’re too dependent and vulnerable to the culture established by the owner. The Angels are a small business.
Honestly, Angel stadium is a pretty decent place to watch a game, and the surrounding area in Anaheim has some nice restaurants and brew pubs. Anaheim used to be more industrial and gritty and not really a place to visit, but between the development around Disneyland, the convention center and Angels stadium and the Honda Center where the Ducks play, it’s a little bit more of a destination these days.
There are lots of loyal Angels fans in OC. 2002 was actually a fun year. The Rally Monkey was a fantastic mascot. If they would just put some money into developing a somewhat competent organization that would make it to the playoffs every now and then with a cool, laid back, OC vibe, they’d be immensely successful. Moreno, if he doesn’t sell the team, which he should, should just hire a crack GM and just get the hell out of the way cuz he’s an idiot.
He won’t pay the broadcasters to travel, but I hope Arte enjoys writing that check to Anthony Rendon until *checks notes* 2027. LOL! Dope!
BANG!
He’s a Knucklehead!
Rosenthal on the Betts move to SS ($$$$)
https://theathletic.com/5342560/2024/03/15/mookie-betts-dodgers-shortstop/?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=twhq&source=twitterhq
“…
So, why are the Dodgers doing this, even if the decision, in the classic description by manager Dave Roberts, is only “permanent for now”? Because the team believes strongly in Gavin Lux’s bat, and wants to see if his throwing will improve moving from short to second. Because making Miguel Rojas the primary shortstop for a second straight season might be too much to ask of him at 35. And mostly, because Betts is confident he can play the position at a high level
…”
Rams Arnold to retire. Guy was a force on defense. The Rams will be hard pressed to replace him. Still having to sign in every time I post Mark. Is that normal now??????
yes Bear! lots of unknowns surrounding the infield . but after 3-4 years of watching barnes continually whiff around 75% of the time, it’s time to give someone else a shot.
I don’t think there are any unknowns at all. We all know what Muncy is. He can make really good plays one minute and blow an easy one the next. Lux is a decent second baseman. He is still getting his legs under him after missing more than a year. Why everyone gets their panties in a bunch after 10 spring games is beyond me. Give the kid a chance to get back into the groove. His bat plays up. Mookie at short is going to be adequate and give enough good defense when he is there. Will he miss some? Sure, he will, all fielders do. But I remember people going bat shit nuts about the defense that Corey Seager played. Move him to third. Doesn’t have the range to play SS. Trea Turner was no defensive whiz over there either. Don’t forget, Turner’s error in game 2 of the playoffs in 22, led to the go-ahead run for San Diego. Turner made 16 errors at short in 22. Last year with the Phillies, he made 23. Seager has only played four seasons in his career where he played in more than 130 games. In 22, Lux played 102 games at second, 93 of them were starts and he only made 9 errors in 337 chances. That is not bad.
I knew that Seger was not a Gold Glove SS, but I never wanted to move him and thought anyone who did was an idiot. BTW, I took a lot of flack for that!
Trea Turner was not a great defensive SS, but his bat was good, and he made most plays.
Rojas was a great defensive SS, but he cannot hit.
I believe in Lux’s bat, but he is scared as shit when the ball is hit to him. Gavin cannot throw. He has the YIPS. It is in his head! It is not going away.
GAVIN LUX WILL NEVER BE A MLB SS!
NEVER!
I will be a MLB SS before he is.
“Why everyone gets their panties in a bunch after 10 spring games is beyond me.“
No offense Bear, but I don’t get the gaslighting comment. Why is this even debatable? Dodger brass stuck a fork on the Gavin Lux experiment at SS.
Let’s hope the kid can put his throwing problems behind him and manage to keep himself from becoming a liability at 2B.
I just don’t feel that anyone can judge how a player is going to play over a full season with only 11 spring games to go by. Ok, he has some throwing issues right now. But he has shown in the past, 22, that he could do a decent job playing second. No, he is probably never going to be a SS at this level. But he can play second. I think he needs a little more time to get his feet under him. Athletes who lose time to injury do not come back right away and perform at the level they were performing at before. I said that because all I have been reading most everywhere about Lux is negativity. My belief is that it is way too early to judge the kid, and that is exactly what is happening. Lux has played exactly 169 games at the major league level at second base. He has made 15 errors in 555 chances. Steve Sax made 92 errors at second in his first 4 years. He got a little bit better and made 30 combined his last two seasons. His bat kept him in the majors. Not his glove. Lux’s bat will keep him in the majors, and he will be a competent second baseman. Making a trade or any rash moves at this point is all knee jerk reaction to the situation. These things happen in sports, and fans are way too quick to judge. I also believe Mark is dead wrong about the kid not ever being able to get over his throwing problems. Best thing for him to do is relax, and just play the game.
We are not going to agree about things all the time. I had my serious doubts when they traded for Glasnow. I was really happy that they parted ways with Margot, just never saw him as a Dodgers type player. I believe Mookie will do fine at SS, and late in games, Rojas can come in and fill in more than adequately. Everyone is worried about Muncy’s glove too. Max is not your atypical third baseman. His best position is second base. But his range there is limited. He is 33 now, and I do not think he is athletic enough to cover second. I do not look at Lux as a SS. I look at him as a second baseman, he has more range than Muncy. Another thing Lux brings to the team is some speed. There are still a lot of stories circulating out there that the Dodgers still have a serious interest in trading for Adames. Most want his glove; some are attracted to his power bat. I see a guy who strikes out too much and is only a rental at this point in time. Adames does not have a lot of speed either. 30 total bags in his career and he has been caught 18 times. His career OPS is under .800. His power and defense made him a 3 WAR player. Maybe AF will make a move, one never can tell. But the other team has to want what you are willing to trade. Brewer’s roster is pretty set right now. Lux would have to be included in any deal for it to work.
Here is the crux of the Gavin Lux situation:
First of all, the Dodgers value Gavin Lux’s bat. I agree with that 100%. He could be a very special player. Gavin has always seen himself as a shortstop. The Dodgers let him try and prove it this Spring, but if I saw the fear in his eyes, they saw it sooner.
The Gavin Lux at SS experiment is over. PERIOD! Now, the only question is: Can he be the offensive force they believe? I believe in Gavin Lux’s bat the same as I do in Miguel Vargas’ bat. They are the same player… except that one is RH and the other is LH. Gavin struggled when he first came up, and so did Miggy… for different reasons.
I believe both of their bats will play up and progress is not linear. We have to give both players some time.
Patience, Grasshoppers!