Now That the trade deadline is behind us...
The Dodgers must have figured that getting Tarik Skubal put them in the WS. Many fans felt so. The Dodgers optioned Emmet Sheehan and certainly knew that was coming yesterday.
With Sheehan being optioned, the Dodgers are down to 5 SP of their 6-man rotation: Justin Wrobleski, Tarik Skubal, Eric Lauer, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki. Justin Wrobleski is looking more like the guy who has reached his limit in early August. He has pitched 118 innings so far in 2026, after 118.1 in all of 2025 (both MLB and MiLB) and 132.0 IP in all of 2024 (both MLB and MiLB). How much does he have left?
Wrobleski is the first Dodger ever to give up 4 HR in back-to-back games. How much better of a choice is he over Sheehan right now?
It would appear that the Dodgers are simply counting on the return to health from Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and Shohei Ohtani. There is nobody else. Since the 2-way player is just a DH now, the team only has 13 pitchers available. The bullpen is a hot mess. And yet AF/BG chose not to address the bullpen. Instead, they chose to trade for LHP, Kris Bubic, who has been injured most of the year because of a left shoulder injury. The Dodgers have not been all that forthright with injury claims this year, so why should we be comfortable with the Dodgers saying they expect him back? Shoulder injuries are difficult to come back from. Ask Hyun-jin Ryu Julio Urías and Gavin Stone. I know, Bubic will be different.
Which LAD reliever does anyone have confidence in? Edwin Díaz, Jack Dreyer, Edgardo Henriquez, Jonathan Hernández, Kyle Hurt, Evan Phillips, Tanner Scott, and Alex Vesia. And yet Seth Halvorsen sits in OKC.
But no worries, the Dodgers now have 4 backup catchers, and have retained 65 of their 66 OF prospects. They did trade Jack Suwinski, but they still have Alex Call, Ryan Ward, Alek Thomas, and Ryan Fitzgerald. Will they bring up JDP to replace Suwinski? Will they bring up Charles Davalan to replace JDP in AA? If that happens, who might replace Davalan in Great Lakes?
How is this team going to get younger? Just how old is Mookie looking? Kiké? Miggy Ro? Will Max and Freddie continue to defy thier age, or will they too slow down? Will Tucker ever get hot? How will Smith come back? How hurt is Dalton Rushing? Should Wrobo be optioned to minimize his IP over the next several weeks?
The base running is absolutely atrocious, and it has cost multiple runs.
The team is not functioning like the best team in MLB right now, but as I said yesterday, they were not playing good baseball at the same time frame last year. Will it turn around like it did last year?
I choose to be an optimist. While I think the questions are fair, I choose not to dwell on the negatives. I believe that all three injured SP will come back and be productive. Yes, including Tyler Glasnow. I believe that Wrobo will get enough rest and re-find himself and become a major relief factor in the playoffs. I believe that Sheehan will find something in OKC that will turn his season around. I do not know if Doc will trust him in the playoffs, but I do think he will make a compelling argument. I believe that Halvorsen will make his way to LAD and prove to be another successful reclamation project.
While others have put too much emphasis on getting the best overall record and having home field advantage throughout, I remember last year. They were a WC team and did not have home field advantage in any of the NLDS, NLCS, and WS. Maybe it will take them a month to work it all out and get all of their players back healthy, but once everyone is back, the holes should be filled. Worry about getting the team healthy and ready for the playoffs. If they do, the talent will take over, like the last two years.
Regardless, the next several weeks are going to be inundated with frustrations. It is going to be a wild ride, so I am going to sit back and enjoy it. But I will also feel compelled to ask the questions.
Discussion (132)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Many of the takes here have a recency bias. The Dodgers have had a top 3 defense in MLB. They have not looked good lately but as expressed by Eric Karros, defense also slumps sometimes.
The bad defense, baserunning, and the walks and HRs given up by the staff (especially the 'pen) are really sloppy and bad baseball. But this is the same team that has been the best in baseball most of the season. They go through a summer slump almost every year. Anyone remember the 11 game losing streak in 2017?
The talent is still the talent and the ship will right itself. My main concern right now is the bullpen. Not enough consistent strike throwers. Even Vesia has walked 25 in 38 IP. But for the postseason they will keep their 14 best arms and some starters will end up throwing significant innings out of the 'pen.
I've noticed something about the dodgers during this incredible thirteen year run: The Dodgers offense seems to disappear at Dodger stadium during playoff games and world series. Anyone notice this? This is their major achilles tendon. Remember last years WS? Even they won ws, while at home the Dodgers offense took a nosedive. If they are to threepeat they must solve this problem.
Lets take a little step back from the l;edge here.
Before this 4 game stretch, they won series in Philly, In NYY, in NYM and home vs Seattle.
The last 4 games sucked. Its the Dog days happens every year and we'll come out on the other end.
Dont Jump!
Skubal day!!!
Boring baseball by a bored team. 14 game lead down to 10. How low will it go? Hopefully they’ve set a wake-up call for Labor Day.
Tucker has to make that catch. Poorly done!
I absolutely hate this batting order. I know Will Smith being out and Tucker not performing has made it tough but Mookie needs to be down in the lineup. Edman needs to be hitting 2nd. I think I would go Ohtani Edman Freddie Muncy Teo or Pages Tucker Teo or Pages Mookie Catcher
Per Alex Freedman Bobby Miller and Gavin Stone have reported to OKC. Miller will start on Wednesday and Stone will start on Thursday.
NL west is weak. The dbacks are not afraid of the Dodgers. The padres are not afraid of the Dodgers. The Rockies have played the Dodgers tough this season. The Giants? A hot bed of gnat poop! The recent home stand was not pretty. The road trip started off UGLY last night. But no need for worry! Or is there? While Jeff makes a valid point about Wrobleski being not much better than Emmit, big difference is Wrobleski has been good, very good up until last 2 games. Emmit has not. Lauer has been a savior! But do they trust him in the playoffs? Yamamoto gives up three runs in 8 innings and is the losing pitcher, no run support! Snell can’t get back fast enough! Glasnow is the wildcard. If he’s completely healthy, that top 4 is going to be filthy. The next issue. That bullpen. We can’t expect Tanner Scottvto get out of that mess that Henriquez created last night without some damage. He almost did it, but couldn’t quite make the big pitch on a full count. Henriquez is scary ! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, good scary and bad scary! Bases on balls are killing the Dodgers! All that being said, plenty of time to get right. Come playoff time I trust Diaz, Scott, Vesia, and Phillips. Wrobleski can be a great weapon just like last year. Dryer? Who knows. Henriquez? I’m not sold on him at all. But every year it’s something different with the pitching. I don’t see Emmit as an option unless he can figure out some things. Sasaki? Could be the key to another championship. If he’s completely healthy goes to the pen, I feel better about him than Henriquez, dryer, or even Lauer. Hold on !
Very disappointed they didn’t make a deal to help the offense. Call, Kike, Rojas, Tucker, and yes even Mookie, can sometimes frustrate the living hell out of us. Dalton down, Will Smith down, and the receiving corps is in a bad way. But again, all is not lost. While I’m not a subscriber to the theory that they can turn it on when ready, I do believe they will be ok. After 2 straight championships, and 3 in 5 years, they deserve that respect. Doc just might have to manage a little harder this time around!
Tyler Glasnow is scheduled to make a minor league rehab start today Tuesday,August 4,2026 for Class A Ontario in the Inland Empire.
Blake Snell is scheduled to pitch today Tuesday, August 4, 2026, in a minor league rehab assignment. Rehab Assignment DetailsDate: Tuesday, August 4, 2026 AAA Oklahoma City Target Workload: 5 innings and approximately 75 pitches Purpose: Final build-up from the injured list (left elbow surgery recovery) before rejoining the Los Angeles Dodgers active roster, potentially as early as the following week's homestand starting August 10.
“But I will also feel compelled to ask the questions.“
As will I.
Maybe Wrobleski just needs some time off. Maybe both Snell and Glasnow will be good at least for September and October, but August could very easily look like July did, and if so the better teams will close the gap.
It’s not just the pitching, which has been awful, it’s how this team plays baseball. Watching younger, faster, better defensive teams the last several days has showed the difference between teams that play energetic baseball and the we’ll turn it on when we have to Dodgers. Yes, they have done it this way in the past, and maybe they will do it again this year, but watching the Dodgers lately has me turning the channel to something more interesting.
Dodger fans do not panic at the Dodger record for this month. In 2025 their August record was 15-13 (.536) and the Padres got within 3 games of their lead. They will pull it together down the stretch.
Excuse me. I meant 1977 world series.
Did anyone get my message yesterday? I said that I've been a Dodger fan since the 2977 world series. Not too often someone becomes a fan of a team that LOST the world series! That's me!
Lose 5th in a row and second straight series but will not lose any ground to the D-Backs since the Padres are cleaning their clock tonight 8-0 in the 7th. They also fall 1.5 games back of Milwaukee for the best record in baseball. Brewers won their 70th and have lost 2 less than LA. Rushing diagnosed with a partial UCL tear in his elbow. 6–8-week recovery time. Shut down from throwing. Smith not back until late August at the earliest. Lauer vs Imanaga tomorrow afternoon. Off day Thursday and then 3 in Phoenix with Az. The last time they play them this year. They are 5-5 against AZ this year. 3-3 at LA, 2-2 in Az. Imanaga is 7-9 with an ERA just below 4.
Per Jack Harris Roberts said Rushing has a small tear in his UCL he will stay on a hitting progression but will be shut down from throwing for several weeks
Keep your chins up. Our 'Stopper' goes tomorrow
Shitfuck
The Mets owned the Dodgers in 1988.
How did that work out?
The Cubs are a great August team.
It all happens in October!
Nothing wrong with this Dodger offense. Everything’s fine. At the deadline we just needed to trade for a pitcher that only throws shutouts! Great to have Diaz back. Trying to outdo Tucker as biggest free agent flop!
More of the same.
I'm sure others here noticed that the Brewers picked up old friend Dustin May... And of course the Pads picked up Robbie Ray and Casey Mize.
I caught an interesting Foolish Baseball report on YouTube. The nerdy, funny guy who runs it did a data-heavy analysis that led him to conclude that "The Brewers Are a Fraud" because their offense beats up on weak pitching--hitting as a group like Bryce Harper--but fails against good pitching. Roughly a .200 drop in OPS, if I recall correctly. But what I also noticed is that his research showed that Cubs were fairly indifferent to the quality of the pitching. They were at or near the top against both. So the Cubs' offense is real. And now they've added Gausman and Holmes to the rotation....And tonight, as I write this, they are beating the Skubal-led Dodgers.
Dodgers lead the league in GIDP with 96. Mookie absolutely sucks with 1 for his last 20 AB. He needs to sit tomorrows game and we need some timely offense right now.
The Cubs are sending a message tonight....