LAD Wins, All Four affiliates lose - and it wasn't Pretty
Jeff did the MiLB Report, which follows... This is Mark.
They say good things come to those who wait...
Wait! Who says that? Well, we waited for seven games for a win that was way ugly, but as Al Davis used to say: "Just Win, Baby!" So, the Dodgers have a one-game winning streak. Big Whoop! It feels like they have been cursed... but we shall see. I have a couple of things to discuss, and then Jeff has his MiLB Report.
ONE: I have watched Noah Miller a lot at OKC, and he is truly a defensive wizard! He gets to balls deep in the hole (even on the outfield grass) and in one "cat-quick" move, is right back on his feet throwing with an arm that is not so much of a cannon but rather a quick-release buggy whip. He gets his throws away quickly, compactly, and accurately.
It's his hitting that is in question. He's a switch hitter, and at 23 years old, he is as close to the Show as he will ever be. I just think he should give up switch-hitting! Before last night's game, his batting average against RHP was .284. He had a .352 OB% to go with an .825 OPS. Compare that to Hyeseong Kim's paltry .678 OPS. However, against LHP, he is hitting .198 with a .266 OB% and .554 OPS. He should discontinue hitting right-handed. Alex Freeland is of that ilk as well.
Freeland can play a good SS, but Miller is a Wizard at the position. Mookie is going to be a problem... going forward. I have not seen a player lose it as quickly as Mookie. He is pathetic - there's no other way to put it. His OPS is .678... and the Dodgers have him for six more years and owe him $167 million. When I said that his contract would "age badly," I did not think it would be this bad!
TWO: I have known Tony Jackson, the former LA Daily News Beatwriter, ESPN reporter, and contributor to LADT for many years. This photo was the first time we met. Tony was sitting in the golf cart as Tommy signed a baseball for my son, who was five at the time (he is now 27).
Several years ago, when Tony left ESPN, he was burned out on baseball, and he went into Real Estate for a few years. We have kept in touch, and Tony still is a source of great inside information... some of which we can't talk about. ;) At any rate, I met up with Tony in Spring Training, and he was in a new job as a 911 dispatcher for the city of Phoenix. Well, that didn't work out, and when I was in London, I saw a post on Substack by Tony (Anthony) Jackson. I was compelled to read it.
He has written several Substack Posts, including "I thought I would die in a press box" and his initial one: "Welcome! Let's see if I can still do this!" Trust me, he can! Tony and I had discussed expanding LADT as I still own URLs such as NY Yankee Talk and every other MLB derivative. But, US Water Systems was blowing up, and I could not lose focus on that. Without further ado, here's a part of Tony's first Substack post (I was one of his first subscribers):
... then, my daughter-in-law posed that question.
“I like to do anything I can do at a high level,” I said. “Anything I can be good at.”
“What was the last thing you were good at?”
“In my entire life,” I said, “I think I’ve only been confident in my abilities when it comes to two things. One is driving. When I get behind the wheel, I believe I am the best driver on the freeway. Other than that, the only thing I’ve ever been good at is writing. And I haven’t done that for a living in about 14 years.”
The rest of the conversation is kind of a blur. The seed had been planted. I retreated into my silent thoughts, sudden realizations that should have hit me many years ago, but were only doing so in this moment. Since walking away from my sportswriting career in 2012, when it was pretty much on life support anyway, the only writing I had done was eulogies at three family funerals (my cousins always asked me to). I had long since given up on ever returning to journalism, my vocation for almost two decades, mostly because I didn’t want to. But the thought of a writing career outside of journalism was something I had never considered.
By the time we pulled into their driveway about 10 minutes later, I had already decided to create this account, mostly so I could link to it in job applications and give employers some strong work samples. By the time I got into my car three days later and headed back home to Phoenix, the account had been created and my plans for it were being formulated.
This is my first, introductory post.
If you have been a Los Angeles Dodgers fan for more than 15 or so years, you might remember me. Even if you don’t, you probably read my work in the Los Angeles Daily News, or maybe at ESPNLosAngeles.com back when it actually produced content. If you were a Cincinnati Reds fan way back at the turn of the century, you might have read my coverage in the old Cincinnati Post before I headed west.
And if you have never heard of me, that’s fine too. If you’re reading these words, you have at least stumbled in here accidentally, so I’m hoping you’ll enjoy it enough to return often. I hope this account develops a following, but that would be a bonus, because that isn’t its primary purpose.
My first objective is to find out if I can still do this, but at the risk of sounding arrogant, I’m pretty sure I can. My second, as stated above, is to generate something I can show to a potential employer who is looking for someone to write something, someone who has a way with language and a penchant for capturing emotion, that of both the subject and the reader.
Oh, and by the way, I’m also a pretty good interviewer.
I recommend you check it out. His second post was The Craziest Trade Deadline Ever (at Least for Me).
Godspeed Tony!
Minor league report by Jeff Dominique
Salt Lake City Bees (LAA) 14 - OKC Comets 13
This was a very short outing for RHSP Emmet Sheehan, but no reason given. Staked to a 3-0 lead in the 1st inning, he walked the 1st batter but got the next two. He gave up a run scoring double and was pulled. RHRP Jerming Rosario relieved Sheehan and gave up a run scoring single before getting the last out. I was not watching, so I have no information on the reason.
In the top of the 1st, OKC put up 3 runs. SS Alex Freeland led off with a double (3). DH Zach Ehrhard walked. Freeland scored on LF Ryan Ward’s RBI single, with Ehrhard moving to 3rd. Ward was picked off at 1B. RF James Tibbs III walked, and CF Alek Thomas singled to score Ehrhard and moving JT III to 3rd. 2B Hyeseong Kim hit a SF fly to give OKC their 3 runs.
View post by @OKC_comets on X
View post by @OKC_comets on X
LHP Jackson Ferris entered the 2nd to relieve Rosario. A single, BB, and 2 doubles scored 3 for SLC and a 5-3 lead for the Bees.
In the OKC 3rd, Ehrhard led off with a BB and scored on Thomas’ triple (2). Kim drew a BB and 1B Ryan Fitzgerald was HBP. C Eliezer Alfonzo stroked a 2-run single with Fitzgerald taking 3rd. Alfonzo stole 2nd, and both runners scored on single from SS Noah Miller and a 8-5 lead.
View post by @HyeseongKimMuse on X
OKC got another run in the 4th when Ehrhard walked, stole 2nd, and scored on Thomas’ RBI single.
Ferris allowed a run on two singles and a GIDP in the 4th, and 2 in the 5th on a 2-run HR. The lead was down to 9-8.
OKC got two more in the 6th. Ward and JT III singled. Thomas doubled to score Ward and move JT III to 3rd. JT III scored on Fitzgerald’s SF for an 11-8 lead.
View post by @OKC_comets on X
But Ferris and José Rodríguez gave up 5 in the bottom of the 6th, the last three on a 3-run HR off Rodríguez giving SLC a 13-11 lead.
In the 7th, a double and 2 singles off Rodríguez scored another.
In the 8th inning, OKC scored a pair. Ward led off with a BB, and JT III singled. Both runners moved up on a Thomas groundout. Kim had a RBI single with JT III to 3rd. Fitzgerald and Alfonzo had back-to-back walks for a run.
RHRP Nick Robertson retired the side in order in the 8th.
OKC did not score in the 9th and lost.
· Ryan Ward – 3-5, 1 BB, 2 runs, 1 RBI
· James Tibbs III – 2-5, 1 BB, 3 runs
· Alek Thomas – 4-6, 1 run, 4 RBI, double (14), triple (2)
· Eliezer Alfonzo – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run, 3 RBI, double (16)
This loss snapped a 9 game win streak. The Comets last loss was July 28 vs. Las Vegas.
Corpus Christie Hooks (Houston) 3 - Tulsa Drillers 1
LHSP Luke Fox was back on the mound in AA for the first time since April 19. He allowed 1 hit, but it was a 1 out HR in the 3rd.
View post by @TulsaDrillers on X
The Drillers lone run came in the 3rd. DH Jake Gelof led off with a BB and moved to 3rd on a single by SS Elijah Hainline. Gelof scored on a SF from C Nelson Quiroz.
LHRP Myles Caba relieved Fox. He got two quick outs, but a BB and double scored the go ahead run.
With RHP Aidan Foeller on the mound, he gave up a single, a SB, and two WP for the Hooks third run.
The Drillers had 4 hits, and the Hooks had 3, but two of the three were a double and HR.
Hainline was the only Tulsa batter with 2 hits.
This is an example of Josue De Paula in LF. You have to take the bad with the good.
View post by @dodgerslite on X
Dayton Dragons (Reds) 8 - Great Lakes 5
After a scoreless 1st inning by both teams, Great Lakes jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the 2nd, thanks to pair of 2 run HR.
In the 2nd with one out, 1B Jose Meza singled and scored on a 2-run HR (6) by LF Samuel Munoz. C Victor Rodrigues singled and reached 3rd when 2B Mairo Martinus reached 2nd on a fielding error. Rodrigues scored when CF Eduardo Quintero hit a SF. SS Emil Morales crushed his 16th HR with Great Lakes and his 22nd of the year.
View post by @MLBPipeline on X
Dayton would have nothing of it. With RHSP Isaac Ayon on the bump, he allowed a 2-run HR and a 3-run HR. The 3-run HR came from 2B Eric Becker. If that name sounds familiar, he was the overall consensus pick for the Dodgers from many of the mock draft groupies.
The game was delayed after GL went out in order in the top of the 3rd due to lightning.
When play resumed, Ayon gave up a solo HR on the first pitch in the 3rd inning. Ayon went back out in the 4th. He gave up a one out single and RHRP Alex Makarewich relieved him. The runner stole 2nd and scored on a double. The runner went to 3rd on a WP and scored when the catcher threw it away.
Over the last 6 innings, GL managed 2 hits to go with their 8 K.
· Emil Morales – 2-4, 1 run, 2 RBI, double (13), HR (16)
· Jaron Elkins – 2-4
· Samuel Munoz – 1-4. 1 run, HR (6)
Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego) 5 - Ontario Tower Buzzers 1
Once the Tower Buzzers lost, that was all four LAD affiliates losing this night.
RHP Jack O’Connor started and pitched a scoreless first three innings. In the 4th, the Storm picked up 2 on a BB, single, and 2-run triple.
RHRP Joel Cruz entered the 5th. The first 4 batters reached on a BB, 2 singles, and double. The 3rd run scored on a SF, giving Lake Elsinore a 5-0 lead.
Ontario’s lone run came in the 6th. LF Ching-Hsien Ko singled. DH Oswaldo Osorio walked and both runners moved up on SS Caleb Johnson’s infield single. Ko scored on a SF.
One highlight was 10th round draft pick RHRP Devin Bell making his professional debut. He pitched a clean 1.0 inning with a K. He threw 13 pitches, 7 for strikes.
Ko was the lone Ontario batter with 2 hits, and 3B Joendry Vargas had a double (28) for the lone XBH.
View post by @Yankees on X
Discussion (70)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Another tough loss: I’m going against baseball convention. Hitting has changed as the pitchers now throw any pitch at any count., much more than in the past. There is close to no such thing as “a fastball count” anymore. Hitter’s have a fear of getting jammed by a fastball. It looks bad. The conventional wisdom is to look fastball and adjust. I would suggest a change of approach. I think the game plan changes with a guy like Eddie Rodriquez, who ia changeup dominant. Consider, before 2 strikes just sit ting - change up. You’re going to see it, so sit on it. Spit on that fastball until you have to swing at it or he changes his mix. Don't get beat on the changeup over and over, especially chasing it.. Sit on the change, don’t chase and let it eat. I think Wrobleski is spent. Not only does he look it but some analysis’s would use “The 30 innings rule” to make that case. Tom Verducci is one who postulates that a young pitcher (25 and younger - Wrobleski is 26) will risk injury or a decline in performance if he pitches 30 innings of more from the previous season total. Let’s look at Wrobleski’s season pitch totals: College - 53.2 innings in 2 seasons MiLB: 2022 - 36.2 (including Fall Ball) 2023 - 102.1 (A+ at Great Lakes) 2024 - 132 (95.2 in AA & AAA and 36.1 in MLB) 2025 - 118.1 (AAA and MLB) 2026 - 121 and counting The 30 inning theory would suggest that Justin is about 30 innings away from being maxed out and possibly already is as his 2026 innings have all come in 4 short months. I can’t say that I buy into Verducci’s theory lock-stock-and barrel. I see other variables and have some other thoughts but my eyes tell me wrobleski could use a hammy tweak and a brief stay on the IL to get back into form. We used to have a nickname for guys who lacked power and still hit a ton of fly balls in hopes one would leave the park. The nickname was “240 Gordy”. Tons of 240” fly balls. Home runs in an elevator shaft. Mookie Betts is currently “240 Gordy”. Gawd we hit into too many double plays. While sometimes it’s bad luck sometimes unavoidable with 2 strikes. My favorite, most knowledgeable college coach I was ever around, Ed Cheff, would go absolutely Ape-Shit if a batter hit into a double play, early in counts, especially on the first pitch, if the pitch was below waist high. If you hit a double play ground ball on a splitter or breaking ball , thigh high or below, your ass would end up the size of the Holland Tunnel. That might be a message for RVS and the hitting guys to pass along to especially our veteran players who seem to have missed that memo. The sun will come up tomorrow and it’s time to Play Better.
It's early. But.... RUH-ROH
Here we go again... Will this be the start of a new 7-game losing streak? It’s not fair; the Dodgers suffer, bleed, and cry just to score a single run, and now, once again, they have to score 3...
Gutsy performance by Dreyer last night. Cool under pressure and a great DP to end the game. Not impressed with Vesia lately. Too many base on balls and not enough strikes. I was impressed that Diaz buckled down like he did and did not allow the winning run to score. But my main gripe still stands, too many double plays, too many empty at bats and the worst situational hitting I have seen in years. Too many guys swinging at pitches they cannot drive, too many swings at really bad first pitches, and not moving the free runner over is just bad baseball.
Dodgers reached 70 wins last night. In 2024, they reached 70 wins with 49 losses In 2025, they reached 70 wins with 53 losses In 2026, they reached 70 wins with 47 losses. I didn't lose any sleep over 7 game losing streak, nor did I party after winning 1 in a row. It's all going as it should on the way to October.
Emil Morales is the goods.
Going on 5 weeks of offensive sludge. We can’t even hit low 90’s mid fastballs. Slump or subsistence? HR’s are way down for season. Our pitching will have to be lights out to get to the finish line this year
Looks like a change in venue for Tyler Glasnow. Glasnow is in Salt Lake City to face Yusei Kikuchi and the Angles AAA affiliate. RHP Marlon Nieves is now scheduled to get the start for Ontario.
Rats
I swear I hope I’m wrong, but I doubt it; I don’t see how this game can be won. It was a 3-run deficit, and now it’s at least 4—and with Wrobo pitching... He’s done; his All-Star season is over. It’s not that I lack faith, I’m just being realistic... Oops, now it’s up to at least 5! They couldn't score that many runs even in a week.
For Gods sake Wrobleski looks like garbage. It’s the small things with the inability to get the DP in the first inning with the next batter hitting a HR to Throwing the ball away when they’re giving you an out on a sac bunt. The league has indeed caught up with Wrobo and he needs to become a pitcher and less a thrower. Inside, outside up and down instead of 95 MPH fastballs down the middle.
Warning: This is a positive fanboy homer take on Andrew Friedman. Who would have thought! AF gathers information from 100's of brilliant Dodger employees, disseminates it all and using his vast baseball knowledge makes decisions. Some controversial, some not. But the one tool he cannot use is hindsight. Only sportswriters and fans get to use that. He can only use foresight, which can sometimes produce a dud. At least he goes out on a limb, pulls the trigger and makes big moves. To put the best possible team on the field every year, to win a championship for the fans. Unlike most owners and GMs. So Diaz and Tucker haven't payed dividends yet. So what. It would be so hard to root for another team where the GM sits on his hands. Thank You Andrew! Bay the way. Most important stat is OPS. Dodgers lead baseball with 768. Book em
Padres signed Austin Hays to a major league contract.
Concerning Sheehan, the Athletic reported the following “Per source: This was a pre-planned abbreviated outing for Emmet Sheehan for workload purposes with the expectation of having a normal outing next time through the rotation,” Ardaya wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Tyler Glasnow is scheduled to make his second minor-league rehab start Rehab Assignment Date: Today, Sunday, August 9, 2026 Team: Single-A affiliate (Tower Buzzers) Workload Goal: Targeting 3 innings or 45 pitches
Today will be an interesting game to follow Wrobo. This is back-to-back starts going on 5 day’s rest. The last start against the Cubs did not go well. Apparently, management believes Justin can pitch well enough to go back out even though he will surpass last year’s total IP after the 2nd inning. He is already 14.0 innings beyond his MLB career total prior to this year. Was he hitting the proverbial wall, or tipping pitches, or just flat out pitching horribly? It would appear that Mark Prior, Connor McGuiness, Josh Bard, and Doc do not think he was hitting the wall, as he was moved up a day rather than going with an opener and bullpen game. Once Snell returns on Tuesday, the rotation will be back on a 6-man rotation. The pitching for the Brewers series looks like it will be Sasaki, Yamamoto, Wrobo, and Skubal. If the rotation holds, Skubal should start the third game in Detroit. It currently looks like Milwaukee is also on a 6-man rotation. Assuming that stands, the Brewers will pitch Drohan, Gasser, Misiorowski, and Henderson. They could skip Drohan or Gasser and move Harrison up a day, but I think they want to manage his innings through the rest of the season. That’s looking ahead. WIN TODAY, sweep KC, and then sweep the Brewers. Make it look like last year NLCS, where the Brewers hitters could not touch LAD pitching.
Is Nick Robertson for real? This year at Tulsa and OKC: 46 IP 20 H 56 K's 13 BB 0.78 ERA 0.72 WHIP His fastball hits 95, but his repertoire is what I question... STILL!
I was so pissed at my Directv feed last night. With 2 outs in the top of the 10th. The broadcast ended and asked if I wanted to Delete? Apparently, I ran out of time. So I had to see the results this morning. What a bummer as I was really enjoying the game. I love pitcher’s duels and this was a good one. Yamamoto wasn’t sharp but he just competes. Almost 21 pitches per inning but he finds a way to make big pitches to avoid runs. Brandon Pfaadt was great. He got ahead in counts and he just works the edges of the strike zone. He just didn’t make mistakes in the middle of the plate. He’s one of those guys that’s a frustrating OH-fer. You go 0 for 3 off the guy and never saw a pitch you wanted to hit. The theory is you will get a mistake every at bat and need to take advantage. Not so with this guy last night. I think he’s a guy where you look to hit on that get-ahead, first pitch and don’t let him work the edges. Nate Tomlinson was horseshit behind the dish. He defies the Challenge System because he misses so many pitch, all can’t be challenged. Yeah, I was surprised to see Díaz again. But that is so-Doc. He’s going to stay with a player and give him amazing rope. Gawd, the back-to-back triples he gave up to Perdomo and Carroll, were just meat. Both were four-seam, center cut, meat balls on a tee. Every MLB hitter should vaporize those pitches and both did. He found his slider enough to get out of the inning with only one run. Interestingly, Pages took 2 straight fastballs in the top of the 10th that were in the exact same center cut location of the 2 D-Back triples. Swing the friggin bat. Sorry I missed the finish, Looks like Ohtani got it done. We really needed that.
4:10 PM ET Dodgers (70-47) Diamondbacks (62-56) SP Justin Wrobleski L 11-3 3.31 ERA SP E. Rodriguez L 10-4 2.71 ERA Confirmed Lineup DH S. Ohtani L CF Andy Pages R 1B F. Freeman L 2B Tommy Edman S SS Mookie Betts R RF Kyle Tucker L LF T. Hernandez R 3B E. Hernandez R C Ben Rortvedt L In Domed Stadium LINE LAD -141 BIG WIN TODAY!
Fangraphs has been pretty open about how DePaula’s glove is a significant liability
Letter from Tommy John above.
Got to give Diaz props for manning up after the 2nd triple and getting us into extras. I have never seen much of him pitching and heard about his devastating slider but not the case since being a Dodger. Just a fat spinner is all I see.
Sunday Dodger Affiliates' Schedule 10:05 a.m. PT: Great Lakes (Tyler Gough) at Dayton (Ovis Portes) 3:05 p.m.: Tulsa (Patrick Copen) at Corpus Christi (James Hicks) 5:05 p.m.: Oklahoma City (Christian Romero) at Salt Lake (Yusei Kikuchi) 6:05 p.m.: Ontario (TBA) at Lake Elsinore (TBA)
I remember Tony's writing very well; he was/is a very good writer. Hopefully he posts here as well! When I saw Sheehan was out before 2IP, my first thought was injury. But if not injury, then maybe we're just getting him used to shorter outings to make him a reliever option come October.
Get ready for a two game winning streak as the Dodgers beat the Snakes in the desert today and crushes their hopes of winning the NL West. Bet it!!