The Dodgers are clearly in no hurry to flex their muscles. Wednesday night, they were still sleepwalking... well, except for Andy Pages, Kyle Tucker, and Teoscar. It's obvious that Freddie is still battling an injury and Shohei is recovering, but this is what happens when you have won two Championships in a row. You think it's easy, and it's not. When the playoffs start, you will likely see a different team.

Thursday night, they looked listless again. OK, I am sure someone will tell me, no... "Don't trust your lying eyes." Yes, my eyes don't lie... but your heart might. Will they be able to flip the switch? I still think so, but we have to wait and see. It is not a given. As you may or may not know, "switch flipping" is not an exact science.

Friday Night, it was more of the same. 2-0 against a bunch of AAAA pitchers. I truly believe they can "flip the switch" in the playoffs, but that might be seeing with my heart and not my eyes. The good news is that Will Smith, Andy Pages, and Teoscar Hernandez look healthy, and the pitching was superb! If you are going to pitch like that, you don't need 5 runs! 14 Strikeouts and 0 BB. That is some dandy pitching... albeit to AAAA players.

Which brings me to another issue:

Can The Dodgers Trust Josue De Paula’s Outfield Defense?

BaseballAmerica just did a deep dive in JDP's defense and, "according to them, it's worse than I think." Here's an excerpt from the article:

Scouts from multiple organizations said that De Paula projects as a 30-grade defender on the 20-to-80 scouting scale. It’s not an athleticism problem, as, while not a speedster, he’s shown fringe-average speed in his brief MLB stint. His reads and routes, however, can be shaky. He’s not very rangy, either, but that would put him on even footing with Hernandez and Tucker.

The main problem for De Paula is that he’s yet to show he can be a reliable fielder on the balls he does actually get to. He struggles to catch the ball or even to pick it up when it’s slowly rolling. He has shown a knack this year for turning easy outs into hits.

They tend not to think so and present case-by-case, play-by-play reasons why. So... maybe he's not a lock, but to me, he makes more sense than Rushing.

Emmet Sheehan is on the mound tonight for the aaa championship

I will have that game on (MLB Network) tonight as the Dodgers play this afternoon.

I asked AI this question:

Who is the MVP this season for the Chicago White Sox?

The response:

For the 2026 Chicago White Sox, Miguel Vargas is the clear team MVP to me.

Through September 24, Vargas is hitting .251/.362/.482 with an .844 OPS, along with 33 HR, 31 doubles, 88 RBI, 101 runs and 20 stolen bases in 154 games. He also has a 135 OPS+ and roughly 5.3 WAR.

That is a pretty remarkable season, especially considering where his career stood when the Dodgers traded him. He's become a genuine middle-of-the-order force rather than merely a useful regular.

The strongest alternatives are probably Munetaka Murakami, with 32 HR and an .809 OPS, and Chase Meidroth, who has hit .268 with a .343 OBP while playing regularly up the middle. But Vargas has substantially more offensive value than either.

And there's a fun historical nugget: Vargas became only the third White Sox player ever with 30+ homers and 20+ steals in a season, and the first of those to also have 20+ doubles and 100+ runs.

So my White Sox MVP ballot would start: Vargas, comfortably.

For Dodger fans, that trade has developed a rather sharp little set of teeth.

I mention this simply because I was convinced that MiggyVargas would become a very good MLB player ("maybe not a superstar... but a very good player... maybe an All-Star"). I took a lot of heat and was mocked as many fans touted James Outman, whom I was convinced was an imposter. Retribution! I have had my share of swings and misses:

Misses: Andy LaRoche, Keibert Ruiz, Alex Verdugo

Hits: Adrian Beltre, Clayton Kershaw (well Duhhh), Corey Seager, Cody Bellinger, James Outman, Miggy Vargas

BTW, this is only the 4th time in baseball history that both Chicago teams have made the playoffs.

Stuff

• As you may know, I live in Indiana, and, interestingly, it ranks No. 1 nationally in the percentage of students leaving high school with college credit. Indiana Public Broadcasting described that as about twice the national average. Just an interesting FACT from the Heartland.

• As you may also know, my wife opened up a Restaurant and a Bar this year. The restaurant has been a resounding success... the Bar? Not yet... simply because she does not want it to be a "Sports Bar." However, that's what the clientele want... She will (hopefully) figure it out. Here's a piece they recently did on the restaurant:

LOLAS TABLE