Generally, LA Dodger Talk does not cover each game play-by-play… at least during the regular season. The reason why is that after a few games you have no idea how a team will hit, field, pitch, or how bad or good the bullpen will be. Oh, many fans think they know, but it is just their own necrotic (hopefully not psychotic) thinking. I can’t stop you from going insane after last night’s loss, but this is just a “thing”… not “everything.” Some of you are “glass half full fans” and more are “glass half empty fans.” Some people get a cold and think it’s a cold. Some people get a cold and think it is cancer. I guess it depends upon your perspective.
I choose to deal with reality and right about now, the reality is that the Dodgers suck. However, I do not believe that is the story of the season. Just like the 2019 World Champion Washington Nationals, who really, really sucked early in the season, the Dodgers are still very much in this thing. They are not doing what most of us predicted or hoped, but unless you are new to this sport, you know that is nothing to worry about… at this juncture Still, most of you will!
Before the Chicago series, many Dodger fans wanted Max Muncy benched or moved to the number eight position. WHAT? That was insanity. At that time, there were 780 players in MLB, and Max Muncy had the 10th best on-base percentage. Let that sink in. He was better than the 770 other players in MLB in OB%. He was TOP .01% at getting on base. They are not pitching to him, so what do you want him to do, swing at balls? Come on man! Now, I might move him up to #2 and move Seager down to #4, but you sure as hell do not bench him and you don’t hit a guy with a .420 OB% at #8! That is insane!
Well, Max Muncy has started to come around. It’s just a few steps but it is a positive step. Stop the insanity! Actually, the Dodgers did lose the game last night and were swept by the Cubs, but I saw some really good things. Let me start with the fact that I think Garrett Cleavinger can be a real bullpen stud. Yeah, I know he blew a save and lost the game, but he was very close to winning and his stuff plays up at the MLB level. Building a bullpen can be painful. He is learning! I see a lot of potential in Garrett Cleavinger. This is a process….
What Else?
- I saw Gavin Lux start to hit with more confidence and he went 2-5. I am starting to get some more hopeful confidence in him. ‘
- I saw will Smith and Max Muncy also get two hits each. They are both getting more zoned in.
- I saw V-Gon, Dennis Santana, and Blake Treinen pitch their asses off. They are all solid to spectacular of late.
- I saw Kenley Jansen get squeezed on four pitches by the umpire. Still, he is solid… if not the 2017 Kenley. Kenley is here for the year… even if he is not the closer. I am sure AF has feelers out there.
- Still, the Dodgers did not lose because of the bullpen. They lost because they failed to hit.
What I saw was a team struggling and the team leader went 0-6. A few short weeks ago, there were arguments as to who the best player in baseball was: Mike Trout or Mookie Betts? Right about now, Mike Trout is hitting .398 while Mookie is mired at .240. Do you think those stats will remain the same? I would bet that they will be a lot closer by the end of the year.
Look, stuff like this happens. I can’t explain why…. Well, actually, yes, I can: This is baseball… where anything can and will happen. I have seen it for 58 years, some of you have seen it longer. I may be a slow learner (and you may be slower), but I have learned that “knee-jerk reactions” are seldom connected to reality. I have learned that it does not matter how your start – its how you end-up. I have learned that this too shall pass. I have learned that the cream rises to the top. I have learned not to go insane over imagined endings. I hope you can find some peace in there too.
Misc. News
- It was evidently good news that the Bazooka does not have any structural damage. Still no timeline on his return.
- Joe Kelly is close to coming back..
- I watched the Tulsa Drillers play the Amarillo Sod Poodles (their very name sends waves of fear through my body) last night and was quite impressed with mike Busch, Cody Hoses, Hunter Feduccia, who all had two hits. Both of Hoese’s hits were opposite-field where he just went with the pitch, while Busch doubled and hit a mammoth blast to CF. He drove in 3 runs and Romer Cuadrado also had a 3-run blast. Note Robertson locked down the last inning. Jacob Amaya looks ready to be an MLB SS. He is the General out there and looks the part. Ryan Noda and Carlos Rincon also hit homeruns. This team is loaded. The Drillers won 8-2. BOX
- Rancho won 12-6 BOX
- GL lost 4-0 on just two hits. BOX
- OKC Did not play.
- Today is an off day, but maybe it’s time to change things up a little. You know the definition of insanity. Let’s get Ruiz and Smith in the lineup together.
- With all the horrible play… the Dodgers are still right there and if they get hot, they can be in 1st place by Sunday.
- The Padres are for real. The Giants are not.
Discussion (52)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Indeed, the Dodgers are 1½ games out of first place. As of Thursday, Baseball Prospectus and Fangraphs still project the Dodgers to win the NL West, with Baseball Prospectus projecting a 99-win season and Fangraphs a 95-win season. (Both projections have the San Francisco Giants, currently in first place, finishing the season with a losing record.)
Are there actual rules for going on the IL or can a team just claim a player is hurt and he Magically Is? Rios was butt-hurt no doubt was basically just shitty. So he’s Injured? Nothing on Alexander until they need to activate Kelly. So guys get moved out and it effects their options with the club unless they go on the IL? Is that how this game works?
We should pick up Albert Pujols after he clears wavers. Big right handed bat, hitting .193. He wouldn’t have to move cities. One year left on his BIG contract. Only problem is he is not hurt, otherwise he fits right in. 🙂
I appreciate Mark’s glass-half-full spirit…
In addition to Smith’s hits, he had the deep sac fly that was maybe a millimeter of bat angle away from being a grand slam. Still, it scored a run and advanced two runners.
Also half-full: Even with May’s injury, the SPs have been doing their job. Kershaw had a bad day, of course, but stuff happens. And the RPs really haven’t been that bad. Placing a runner on second base in extra-innings makes the reliever’s job much more difficult. The Dodgers need to beat teams earlier.
On the glass-half-empty side, we find the bats and gloves. The absence of Belli and McKinstry hurts, but every team deals with injuries. No batters matter more than Betts and Seager in the 1-2 spots, so it’s a terrible time for them to get cold. Patience is required. Nice to see Muncy, Smith and Lux starting to come around.
The gloves bother me most. A lot more lowlights than highlights.
Del Crandall passed away today. Former catcher who managed the Brewers and the Mariners and also worked for the Dodgers for a while. RIP
DODGERS ACTIVATE RHP JOE KELLY
LHP SCOTT ALEXANDER PLACED ON IL
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers activated right-handed pitcher Joe Kelly from the injured list and placed left-handed pitcher Scott Alexander on the injured list with left shoulder inflammation, retroactive to May 3.
Kelly, 32, returns after missing the first 32 games of the season. Last season, he appeared in 12 games with the Dodgers, going 0-0 with three holds and a 1.80 ERA (2 ER/10.0 IP). In two seasons with the Dodgers, he is a combined 5-4 with a 4.11 ERA (28 ER/61.1 IP) and 71 strikeouts. He is entering his 10th season in the Major Leagues and is a combined 48-29 with a 3.89 ERA (297 ER/686.2 IP) and 569 strikeouts. The Corona, CA native was originally drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the third round of the 2009 First Year Player Draft out of UC Riverside.
Alexander, 31, has pitched in 13 games for the Dodgers this season, posting an 0-2 mark with a 2.31 ERA (3 ER/11.2 IP). He has limited hitters to a .163 batting average against while left-handed hitters are batting .120 (3-for-25) against the Northern California native. In parts of seven Major League seasons, he is a combined 12-9 with a 3.13 ERA (70 ER/201.1 IP) and 157 strikeouts. He was acquired by the Dodgers on January 4, 2018 in a three-team trade with the Kansas City Royals and Chicago White Sox.
Corey seager is a streak hitter who is good to great when he is one a streak. When he is not on a streak he is pretty much a negative. He swings at the first pitch over and over. He hits into double plays and generally is an easy out. He doesn’t have speed so he can’t get a leg hit. He doesn’t c pitches so he doesn’t walk. He is a defensive liability getting worse. He can’t move and he seemingly back hands every ball. He will get hot again but his defense will continue to be subpar. He had a great post season last year after mostly failure. He is good but will not be worth what it will take to re-sign him.
Betts, Boston may have the last laugh. Verdugo May become a better offensive player. He looks aging to me. He doesn’t look like he can hit. To say he is injured is ridiculous. If you get a hang nail the Dodgers il u for 10 days. Somebody who is being paid what he is will not be playing injured. When he played against us in the World Series he was one of Boston’s easier outs. Early in the series he did nothing. His average in past years says he can hit but he is not clutch and I think we could very well regret his contract before it is up. A great player is Trout. He brings it every year. The number 2 player is definitely not Betts.
The bullpen is awful and Roberts handling makes it worse. Clevenger, u got to be kidding me. He should not be on the roster and wouldn’t be if not for injuries. But yet he is the go to guy for Roberts over and over. He is 0-3 and should never had a chance to lose that many. Thanks Roberts. I believe the bullpen game hurt the starters as much as anything. Do we have any starter that can pitch a game without giving up a homer? Not in the last several starts.
I don’t believe we can keep playing this bad but other than Detroit we are currently playing worse than any mlb team. There is certainly a fine line between good, bad, and best. Our strength thus far have been the starting rotation. After the “bullpen game” May is out due to injury, kershaw terrible, Bauer off, buehler good but not efficient, Urias the lone star. Our offense is bad, defense bad, bullpen bad, manager bad. We will not play this bad all year but this team has a long way to go to resemble last years team. I am not panicking I am just pointing out what everybody else can c. When u r great u r applauded when u r not u accept the facts.
what is it with strikeouts this year? and sure, IT COULD level out. there has never been a year with more strikeouts then hits, but already this year there are over 1000 more so’s than hits. wassup with that? could be A LOT of combined reasons, but to me watching every game and every pitch this year, i think the main culprit is the umps. i have NEVER seen such horrible ball/strike calling ever. yeah, hard for the pitcher too, but how is a batter supposed to know when to swing when there does not seem to be a defined zone? they feel THEY HAVE to swing at stuff that feels out of the zone with the umping we currently have.
cannot have roboumps too soon for me.
Well, what’s done is done. The Dodgers have got to start winning. Urias is starting Friday’s game . Hopefully, he can get the team winning against the Angels. Saturday presents a problem. I wonder if they’re considering a start for Kershaw on short rest since he only threw 39 pitches Tuesday. It might be a better idea than giving Uceta or another inexperienced pitcher a start. Then we would have Bauer ready to start Sunday. Does that sound reasonable? Meanwhile, I’ll hope for the Giants to win their series vs. the Padres.
No doubt Rizzo was sitting on Cleavenger’s pitch.
* Duffy’s steal of 2nd in the 11th not only put the winning run in scoring position but it allowed Duffy to signal the outside location, a possibly pitch type to Rizzo. Duffy clearly tugged on his right sleeve after Smith’s signals. Rizzo knew the outside location. Duffy’s signal may have indicated fastball as well or Rizzo knew an outside pitch would likely be a fastball. Either way, Rizzo was sitting on it. Cleavenger hit the spot and Rizzo didn’t miss it.
* Nothing illegal here. Just alert baseball
.* For my money Smith generally slides inside or outside too early to set the target anyway. Any runner at 2nd can easily signal location to the hitter. Smith needs to wait to slide in or out or have the pitcher throw to shinguards or shoulders instead of the glove sometimes.
* I never would have thought we would be hoping for a resurgence by the additions of Zach McKinstry (17 MLB games) and Joe Kelly.
* Bear has reported that he hates the extra innings rule and since we’re 1 and 5 in extras, I doubt many like it. Not me. I like the instant suspense and strategy that the ghost-runner creates. Also if these games went more than 11 innings, who wouid pitch, Dino Ebel?
Albert Pujols is being released by the Angels today. End of an era.
MLB’s Mounting Injury Problem
By Steve Adams | May 6, 2021 at 10:56am CDT
We’ve seen plenty of fans and readers comment early in the 2021 season that it feels as though injuries are up from previous years, and that is indeed the case, as Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic breaks down in an excellent look at the increased IL stints of the non-Covid variety. IL placements are up 15 percent overall compared to the first month of the 2019 season, Rosenthal reports, with a 22 percent uptick among pitchers. Specifically, soft-tissue injuries such as hamstring, quadriceps and oblique injuries have nearly doubled in frequency, while arm and elbow injuries are up by a much slighter margin of 19 percent.
Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns, Pirates GM Ben Cherington and Marlins pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. all discuss the issue with Rosenthal, offering opinions on everything ranging from the root of some injuries to the level of club-to-club variance in treating injuries, managing player workload and other health-related matters. For anyone who’s been alarmed at the number of injuries that seem to be spanning throughout the league, it’s a must-read piece with insight straight from key team decision-makers who are faced with these challenges everyday.
1 – It’s true that guys are injured but as I pointed out the other day, the Dodgers have had fewer guys on the IL than either the Padres or Giants.
2 – It’s true that guys are injured but that doesn’t excuse guys who aren’t from playing badly.
3 – I suspect that Mookie has been playing hurt since his back injury but of course the Dodgers don’t talk about that.
4 – Last night was the season in a microcosm – the Dodgers had 3 R on 6 H in regulation – not enough to win; the bullpen blew 3 different 1 run leads; the Dodgers are 1 – 9 in 1 run games and 1 – 6 in extra innings; Seager had another late error to cost them a lead.
5 – Garrett Cleavinger has an 0 -3 W – L record. If the Dodgers were OK, Cleavinger would not even be on the 26 man roster, let alone be pitching with the game on the line. In 5 games he has pitched 4 innings and given up 7 H and 3 BB, a WHIP of 2.5!
6 – Either the ‘pen is really that bad or Roberts just isn’t putting guys in a position to be successful.
7 – Jansen throwing 88 last night pitching on consecutive days.
If the Dodgers are 4 – 13 in their last 17 games then they are not playing well period.
So how do they fix this? Too many problems for the return of 1 or 2 guys to solve everything.
I notice that many of us (myself included) are commenting that we will be better once Bellinger and ZMac come back.
OK, we have a fairly lengthy track record for Belli and yes, it makes sense to say he’ll be a big help when he returns, but boy are we placing high expectations on McKinstry, a rookie utility player with fewer than 65 at bats in his MLB career. I’m a huge fan of his but I’m certainly not going to lay my expectations of pulling out of this mess at his feet. I think that’s a bit much to ask of the guy.
A very solid post Mark.
Having been here a while now, I’ve learned to trust your judgment over the longer term. You’re right more often than not.
Knebel is a huge loss to the Pen. I really like Treinen. He’s a gamer.
May is also a huge loss, but is offset by having Bauer this time.
I would guess that AF is prowling for some Relief help.
Hind sight is 20/20 on Muncy Mark. Muncy was taking pitches right down the middle as most of the Dodgers. You cannot have your 4 th place hitters doing that. He is there to drive in runs. Muncy looked to me Like he wanted to walk. That is why I suggested he bat 8th until he started swinging at good pitches.
The team needs to wake up. They are going to face the best each team has this year. We need to bring our “A” game for every game. Even though we have injuries, we have enough talent to win it all.
I think Kershaw is being protected at the expense of other players. Why was Kershaw taken out after one inning? That game became another bull pen game. Further destroying our bull pen.
Necrotic or neurotic? I hope my thinking isn’t necrotic. I ain’t dead yet. Now neurotic, maybe.
The eyeballs tell me Muncy is going up to the plate looking to walk. He’s not getting hits. He’s lost the magic he had in 2018 and 2019. His Cindarella story is over. His bat’s slow. He’s done. Bench him.
In 2019 he hit .251 with a 15.3% BB rate, a 25.3% K rate and a wRC+ of 134. He had 35 home runs in what would be considered an excellent offensive season.
This year he’s only hitting .221, but his BB rate is much higher at 22.7%, his K% is lower at 24.25, his wRC+ is 139, and the difference in average is partially due to bad luck.
His current BABIP, or batting average for all balls in play is .271. The league average is around .300, and his average for 2018 and 2019 is .291. So, if the balls that he has hit this year that were outs would have counted for hits at a normal rate he’d be hitting .252, which is about what he hit in 2019, when we considered him “good” versus terrible now.
I’ve been noticing that, for some time now, Betts just seems to be popping up lots of balls . I don’t know if maybe he just needs to tweak the swing plane a little or what, but it’s noticeable.
It’s pity that Mike Trout plays for such a listless franchise. If that team could get to the playoffs he would be so fun to watch. If he has any weakness, you could argue his K% is high, but that’s the nature today’s game. BTW, Muncy’s K% is lower than Trout’s.
i have been saying muncy should be batting 2nd with his obp & lack of hitting for a few days now. and frankly, though i do not directly blame anyone, i thought at the end of the day the two “villains” were seager for his lame error, and sub-par fielding overall, and frankly betts. when you are a 30mil dude who is 0-5 on the day & you come up with bases loaded ….. you HAVE TO do SOMETHING.
cheers
Just having some different guys in there could change the whole mindset of the team. When will we see Bellinger and Mckinstry?
You know talking about Mookie, if he’s himself playing like he can play, Dodgers win that game last night.
I was one of those that wanted to set Muncie. But just for a couple games so he could get reset and get his head on straight and turn it around. Not like I wanted him gone or benched permanently.If there was somebody better that could take his place he’d already be in there. Anyway it looks like he’s coming out of it, good for him and good for the team. That’s one thing about Robert’s I do admire, he’s 100% loyal to his players, and in their most difficult times he’s supporting them.
For the last couple of years, this team made almost no mistakes in the field. Every time I watched other teams play, I would think to myself how sloppy the play was. Now we’re the sloppy team that makes horrendous errors seemingly every game. I just don’t see how this can continue. This will come around.
I agree with Mark about Mookie. He is absolutely sucking so far this year. Bad back and forearm could be the cause of this. Again, he’s not gonna suck all year. Same with Cleavinger. He sure looked good until he didn’t. Those first two out came pretty easy, then he gave it up and choked some more. It was pretty bad.
The worst part though was sucking the whole game in the batter’s box until extras rolled around. We are not going to win a lot of games like that.
It sure seems like the umpires are screwing us, especially behind the plate. But, the difference in the game was the non-call on the Buster Posey rule when Turner was blocked out of the plate. What’s the sense of having a rule and having instant replay if you still can’t get the call right? I never like the rule in the first place, let the catcher get smashed if he chooses to block the plate. But, if you have the rule, you have to enforce it. Contreras clearly had the entire plate covered with his leg before he caught the ball. There was no lane.
Oh well, another day of sloppy play, no luck, bad umping, bullpen choking, hitters struggling. I’m trying to remember if there were any baserunning mistakes, but those are hard to come by when you don’t have anyone on base.
Muncy came through last night, a homer and a hit. But, in the 15 GAMES PRIOR HE HAD A TOTAL OF 3 HITS! Geez, that’s bad. Hopefully he starts to roll. No, I don’t expect him to chase because he’s just getting walks, but he sure swung though a lot of pitches in the zone as well. Let me just say that again. 3 hits in 15 games!
Predictably, Doc gets Beaty in the lineup after he cools him off and pulls another hot player in the process.
We’re going to be alright. Shit happens. AF will figure it out. Patience! It’s only game and not worth getting sick over.
Ok, enough with the defense of the Dodgers more than a month long skid with the typical cliches like”things will turn around” and “its early in the season, no need to panic”. How many more 8th and 9th inning leads have to be lost before someone realizes there is a serious problem. Sometimes Managers actually have to manage. ! The Dodgers started 13-2, they are now 17-15. It’s officially time to panic. They are the WORST TEAM IN BASEBALL.! Time to stop blaming this disaster on Bellinger and Mckinstry injuries. And stop looking at the glass half full. If something is not done and done quickly, the season will be lost before the all star break. WAKE UP !
Not a fan of the 7 inning double headers.
Not a fan of the runner on 2nd in extra innings.
Both of these were fine for last year’s 60 game season.
Balls aren’t bouncing our way – Muncy’s double off the wall bounced right to CF and Relay to SS-Catcher was perfect.
Even though they lost last night seen some fight in them at least.
Umpires strike zone – Don’t want auto umps so have to live with it.
Mookie – 0-6 last night with 4 or 5 strikeouts and 6 Rbi’s on season!
Injuries
Need Bellinger and Mckinstry back will help lengthen lineup and be better defensively.
Seager – Slumping at bat in defensively.
As a fan just keep watching and cheering(Or bitching).
They don’t put money in my wallet or food on my table so no sense driving yourself insane and losing sleep or affecting your everyday life.