The Joc Pederson Era Needs to End
Let me start this off by saying that I believe Chris Taylor is a better Centerfielder than Joc Pederson RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW! Joc is much slower than Chris and maybe he runs better routes, but he is in no way an elite CF. Chris has had little outfield experience but has become a very good LF and lets not forget the first catch he ever made in CF. Joc
Let me start this off by saying that I believe Chris Taylor is a better Centerfielder than Joc Pederson RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW! Joc is much slower than Chris and maybe he runs better routes, but he is in no way an “elite” CF. Chris has had little outfield experience but has become a very good LF and lets’ not forget the first catch he ever made in CF. Joc seems to be always fighting a “slump.” As fans, we are always hoping he gets better. But, I think he is who we thought he was, and we should let him get away!
Look, this is a very good team, but any team can get better. If Joc had 40 HR and a .220 batting average, I could dig it, but he has just 11 HR, is a poor baserunner and looses concentration frequently in the field and to top it all off, he is not smart or savvy! Send him to OKC like SVS and move on. Chris Taylor needs to be the everyday CF. Send Joc to OKC and call up Henry Ramos.
I don’t know how he will do, but the Dodgers may have another Chris Taylor on their hands with Henry Ramos… but I think Ramos is worth a shot. He is a 25 year-old switch hitter who, in 121 AB’s, is hitting .406 with a .460 PB% and 1.104 OPS. The dude is knocking on the door (actually he is kicking the door in) and Joc is not showing anything. Doc is loyal to his guys, but the time has come to move on. Send Joc back to OKC and let him work on his swing, just like Chris Taylor, Yasiel Puig and Henry Ramos.
Maybe Joc can do what Yasiel did when he was demoted last year. I hope so… but I am not holding my breath. We don’t need two all-or-nothing players in the lineup everyday (Joc and Yasmani) and Joc is the odd-man-out because of Grandal’s defensive value. I thought this would be a breakout year for Grandal. His BA is better but his power numbers are down and his OB% has declined. Still, there is a lot of time left.
Rants and Raves
- Yadier Alvarez’ line last night: 5 IP/2 H/3 ER/6 BB/3 K – his AA ERA is 3.57. He might need better control….. ‘ya think?
- Is anyone still looking for regression in Chris Taylor?
- The Natural just keeps taking what they give him.
- If the ump refused to move last night for Utley, them he is dead wrong and should be suspended. That’s just dumb!
- After Ryu struggled through 5 last night, the pen held fast. Watson is good as a middle guy, not a high leverage guy.
- Chris Freakin’ Hatcher? Hopefully knows something we don’t!
- Great story about Dennis Santana
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Discussion (73)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Mark, I’m beginning to think you’re right about Joc. Even with my limited gray matter I could figure out that it’s not a good idea to keep hitting ground balls into the shift. I would think that by now Joc would have figured out that by cutting down on his swing, and trying to hit the ball up the middle, would result in hits all over the field, depending on how he was pitched. But what do I know? Maybe Joc is just a misunderstood genius.
I don’t know anything about Dennis Santana, but reading that piece from TBLA reminds me about Drew Jackson. I remember that when he was acquired from Seattle during the spring, I read that he had a very powerful arm. Having looked at his underwhelming minor league hitting stats, I have wondered whether or not the Dodgers have considered converting him to a pitcher. He’s still young at 24, and it would appear that he probably has the aptitude to make a change given that he’s a Stanford graduate. Anybody know if he’s being considered as a candidate for a change, since it doesn’t appear that even with his power, that he’ll ever be much of a hitting prospect.
I have no comment about Henry Ramos, since other than numbers I don’t have a clue as to what kind of prospect he is, nor anything about his readiness to compete at the MLB level at this time.
Regarding the Hatcher move, and the demotion of Kyle Farmer, I couldn’t really understand the reasoning behind it. Maybe it’s just temporary to provide some additional pitching before rosters are expanded in September. I liked the idea of carrying a third catcher who also has the flexibility to play the infield, especially since Farmer showed poise at the plate at bat after at bat. I like having the option of using one of the catchers off the bench to hit without having to worry about one of them getting hurt late in a game. But maybe it’s temporary, and that the Dodgers have the intention of carrying a third catcher during the playoffs. Or maybe Hatcher has undergone a transformation that none of us is aware of. Since I trust FAZ, I have to believe that there is something perfectly plausible in their thinking.
I don’t know what Agon will offer in the final month+, but with their commanding lead in the standings, and home field advantage in every playoff series, including the WS, virtually assured, the Dodgers have room to experiment. If anything, should the Dodgers manage to get to the WS, Agon, if he is performing well with the bat would be a really good choice to DH in the AL park. And even in NL parks, a lively Agon bat would be welcome, assuming he can play adequate defense at 1B with Bellinger shifting to LF and Taylor to CF. The only thing that I worry about is Agon clogging the bases with his sloth-like speed (although, “speed” is a misnomer).
Does Pederson have options remaining?
Dodgers looking good from here in Portugal.
I’m glad Ant & Dec got a mention Bums.
One other thing about Farmer being sent down. It’s possible that the Dodgers want him to get regular playing time over the next few weeks, rather than spending his time mostly on the Dodgers bench. Might as well keep himself sharp. I still think he could be a valuable piece in the postseason.
Wow, I just logged on and saw some long post with nearly 5000 words by Bluto.
Dude. WTF was that?? Meanwhile (and more importantly), if we go 26-19 the rest of the way, we set the all time NL wins record