As usual, the sharks are circling the USS Dodger as they have been since the Andrew Friedman Era started. They are hoping, wishing and praying that the hull has cracks in it and sinks so that they can devour the man for whom they have developed an irrational hatred. The sad part is that the sharks are Dodger fans and Andrew Friedman has done nothing but make the team better.
As teams sustain years of winning, their farm systems decline every year and eventually the team becomes a bottom dweller… except the Dodgers. As the MLB team has gotten better (two straight World Series and picked for a third straight by many), the farm system has also gotten better. That is simply something astounding. I am sorry to confuse some of you with the facts… maybe you prefer I stick to your fantasy?
Putting a team on the field capable of getting to the World Series is quite an accomplishment. Once there, it falls upon the manager and players to win it. Losing two World Series in a row is on Doc and the players – If you are good enough to get there, you are good enough to win. Fans say “Well the Red Sox were clearly the better team.” The Oakland A’s were clearly the best team in 1988 and that didn’t help, did it? The Dodgers were the best team in 2017 and didn’t win. Maybe the best team is not the team with the best players. Maybe the best team is the team that plays together the best!
Maybe that sheds some light on why certain players were unceremoniously traded for two highly touted prospects that have helped elevate the Dodgers farm system again. Evidently, the Dodger brass, including Dave Roberts, did not think they could win with that bunch, When Wood is moping because he’s not starting, Puig is moping because he doesn’t play against lefties (simply because he can’t hit them) and Kemp is moping because he doesn’t play due to being a worse defender than JD Martinez, you are not a winning team.
Andrew Friedman knows that he will be forever judged by the sharks circling the USS Dodger based upon winning one or more World Series, not by coming close every year. He made the Farmer Trade because he feels he has a better chance of doing it without those players. He sees the big picture and yes, there are questions about this team. Right now, Joc Pederson would seem to be the starting left fielder. He may have a platoon partner if he shows he still can’t hit LHP.
But, we also have to acknowledge that Joc is slow afoot and slow to throw in the outfield. Verdugo is so much better defensively it isn’t even funny. Alex is going to have to earn his PT. It won’t happen overnight, but it can happen… it’s on Alex. He is showing flashes and his defense, arm and base-running have been outstanding. I still think the Dodgers may need another RH bat. Nick Castellanos is still on their radar and the Dodgers have the pieces to add him if needed.
Max Muncy has had a hand problem and is now resting. A bad couple of weeks related to injury does not mean “regression.” He was hitting well earlier. This is Spring Training where some people make “Jumping to Conclusions” an Olympic Sport! Patience, Grasshoppers! As situated currently, this is a 95 win team, but Joc and /or Muncy could be be traded to balance out the lineup. The Dodgers have a good record this Spring, despite clearly trying to develop players, and not trying to win (like Sunday). That’s what Spring Training is for. I am frankly amazed and amused at the negativity being spewed by some Dodger fans with the irrational hatred of Friedman.
Rants & Raves
- Just when you are ready to give up on CT3 – BANG!
- Remember when everyone was whining because Martin and Barnes were the Dodgers catchers? Me neither.
- Caleb Ferguson’s line did not look good, but they are still treating him as a starter and he ain’t that guy! Bullpen is where he should be. He came into a bases-loaded situation and closed the door and pitched another good inning before melting down.
- Cody Bellinger going other way with a hit to LF is something you will see a lot of this year. He has been working on that all Spring.
- Stetson Allie is tantalizing, isn’t he? If he gets that control down, he will be up at some point.
- I guess Rich Hill may be the guy who starts Opening Day. With his blister problems in the rear view mirror, I can see him approaching 180 innings.
- It’s just Spring Training, but they ring the bell in 10 more days – you are going to see Corey Seager this week!
Discussion (82)
Disagree, not disagreeable
I will admit to wanting AJ Ellis to manage the Dodgers but Doc is the manager and he has scoreboard on his side.
Pederson is not slow. Martin is slow. It’s hilarious that Seager is never mentioned as slow considering that he plays a position that is typically played by one of the fastest players on a team and he is slower than Pederson.
Glad to see the Dodgers saving Kershaw from himself. If they could only convince him to have surgery. Corey Seager only needs three MLB level Spring games to get ready for the season? Probably better off starting with Kike at 2B and CT3 at SS. It’s been a rough Spring? Don’t look now, but the Dodgers lead the Cactus league in run differential. 3rd in baseball. Probably skewed a bit with all those stud pitchers we have, but I’ll take it as a good sign. The offense will probably come around in May. Hopefully this group will scratch out a few runs a game and win with pitching like the 88 team.
I liked the Bellinger Shawn Green comp and the Muncy for leadoff idea.
I also like the in-house promotions. I mean, why hire from outside when next year’s GM will probably want his own guys? 😉
Roberts is a turd. Too many pitching changes, always lying about the players and their health status, horrible post-game interviews, bad driver!
I took a day off.. all the buzz yesterday was Puig getting 2 hr’s. I told them all he’d break their hearts.
Everyone pretty covered theirs and my trip..
What sticks in my mind was Hill’s outing and Verdugo’s sweet stroke.
Oh and ya, JT diving into the stands gave me heatburn. I was here a year ago when he went down. Rest him a little Doc..he’s ready for God’s sake.
In case you missed this, from Dodger Insider:
Sixteen months after being promoted to director of player development, Brandon Gomes has been promoted to Dodger vice president and assistant general manager.
The Dodgers made the announcement on Sunday, as well as naming Will Rhymes the new director of player development, Alex Slater as director of baseball operations and Duncan Webb as director of baseball resources.
Gomes has been with the Dodgers since 2016 after a five-year playing career, in which he went 11–12 with a 4.20 ERA in 173 career games with Tampa Bay. He was named director of player development on Dec. 1, 2017 following the departure of Gabe Kapler to Philadelphia.
Rhymes joined the Dodgers in 2016 serving as a pro scout for two seasons before becoming the assistant farm director in 2018. Prior to joining the staff, he played three seasons in the Major Leagues from 2010–12 as an infielder with Detroit and Tampa Bay.
Slater has been part of the Dodgers front office since 2014, the same offseason in which Andrew Friedman was named president of baseball operations. Slater has been in Major League Baseball for 11 seasons, serving as a baseball operations assistant in the professional scouting department of the San Diego Padres from 2009–2014.
Webb joined the Dodgers in 2015 as the coordinator of international player development and served in various roles the last four seasons in the Campo Las Palmas complex in the Dominican Republic. The Massachusetts native originally began his professional career in 2006 serving as a baseball operations intern for the Boston Red Sox before becoming their assistant farm director from 2013–14.
I am getting in on this late again. Mark, I agree with you that losing two World Series in a row falls on doc and the players. Even last year the series was not as lopsided as it appeared. The Sox wanted it more and Cora expected much more from his players. But, when you baby everybody all year like doc does you can’t just turn that on in the series.
AF doesn’t think he can win with those players. Puig has done pretty well in the playoffs. It’s early but he has hit a couple home runs off lefties this spring. He used to hit lefties I don’t know what happened. As far as trading him. He probably was a clubhouse distraction, weren’t going to resign him anyway, 2 good prospects, cheaper to sign pollock with the bonus of pollock balancing the lineup. If bellinger can stay in rf I think it helps him and he is going to become a plus plus player. He reminds me a bit of Shawn green. Bellinger has great tools.
What happened to joc speed? He used to be a 20-30 base stealer. He may be our slowest player. He seems overweight to me. Joc is a serviceable or better left fielder, better than average power, good obp, apparently a good attitude. When they brought puig up I remember pat corrales saying joc was the best minor leaguer la had. He takes some brutal swings against lefties. He is a good solid player who will get expensive in a year or 2.
I don’t see Muncy repeating but who could. The league knows him better and a solid year would be about all you could expect. Look at bellinger and Taylor who struggled after a fantastic year. Barnes should be better it would be hard to be worse. Barnes has always been a solid hitter until last year. Martin, I would be surprised if he didn’t spend half his time on the injured list. If healthy he could be a good role player.
2018 HR Totals–Will Each Player Hit More [+] or Fewer [-] or Same [=]?
Muncy–35 [-]
Bellinger–25 [+]
Joc–25 [-]
Pollock– 21 [=]
Hernandez– 21 [+]
Taylor– 17 [-]
Turner– 14 [+]
Barnes– 4 [+]
Campy,
1. Save the pic as a JPEG to your desktop;
2. If you don’t have it on your computer, e-mail it to yourself.
3. Go to tinyurl.com and follow the instructions…
… or e-mail to me.
A couple of items from a chat with Dave Roberts. Kershaw is coming along. I saw him throwing in practice and he looked good the same when he was doing long toss. Doc said,though, that he won’t be ready for opening day,but wouldn’t comment on who would start. Hill is a good guess.
I asked him about any difference in the way he related to the front office this year. He didn’t answer directly but did say that a lot of people don’t like change and resist relying on all of the new information that is available to teams today. He didn’t seem to be referring to people in the FO but fans and perhaps writers. He said he was sad to see Fared (sp) go to the giants anthat he was a good friend.
Saw Kelly, Kershaw, Urias and Maeda all throwing on the practice mounds at the same time. They all looked fast and K threw without holding back. Kelly has a motion that makes one wonder where he gets his velocity. I have a couple of pics but don’t know how to post them here. More later, Strip against the Rangers tonight
My wife and I just got back from watching the minor leaguers. IT is a beautiful complex. I saw Charlie Hough working with a pitcher.
I also saw J D Peters in the batting cage. He is big.
I saw probably 10 catchers or more working on framing. They had a pitching machine and every pitch was just below the knees. They were bring the pitch up into the strike zone. They did it for 2 hours.
I saw pitchers taking ground balls and throwing to all bases and covering first.
On another field I saw infielders taking infield practice.
They had two games starting at 11:30. That is when we left.. Since it is a night game, the major league players do not come out until 2:00.
We are going to a game on Tuesday and Friday. It was cool enough in the morning and all had a light shirt over their numbers. I really did not know who was who, except you cannot miss Peters.
If Pollock doesn’t bat lead-off, it’s more about what he can do in the middle of the lineup than what he can’t do atop it.
Regular season begins 2:35 a.m. PST Wednesday morning in Japan. Weird . . .
That’s when I’ll start looking at stats.
I thought in yesterday’s game when the anouncer said that Turner had scored the most runs on this team up to now, that was a telling sign.
Because Turner are second hitter, has scored 5 more runs then Joc our lead off hitter.
Joc has scored 7 runs, but 3 of those 7 runs came from Joc’s 3 HRs.
Turner has scored 12 Runs, and he has only hit 1 HR, but Turner has also had 10 less at bats then Joc too.
The idea is to have someone on base, or even better, have someone in scoring position, when Turner comes up to bat.
And Joc in the lead off position last year, had the lowest OBP of his career, so that is not a strength like it once was for Joc, when he is hitting in the lead off position.
Also remember the lead off hitter, doesn’t necessarily lead off the rest of the game.
And because of that, you might be surprised how often the lead off hitter comes up, when runners are on base, or in scoring position.
Joc came up with runners in scoring position last year 83 times, and Joc was only able to get a hit in these situations, 18 times.
And remember the lead off hitter is going to get more at bats, then anyone on the team.
Why are we giving a career 240 something hitter more at bats, then anyone else on the team?
This just doesn’t make sense even with Joc’s power, because 19 of Joc’s 25 HRs came, when there was not a single runner, on base.
And Joc does not look like he is really adjusting in spring training this year either.
Because he has only gotten one hit when runners were on base in spring training up to now, and that was his double in the game against the Padres, this last week.
I think we need to have our 4 best hitters, hitting at the top of the line up, like they once did.
Because the lead off hitter does come up to bat more often then we would think, when runners are on base, or in scoring position.
We not only need our lead off hitter to get on base in front of our 3 best hitters, it would also be good to have our lead off hitter to be able to handle the bat, in these situations too
And if they have speed that would be a plus too, but almost every player in our line up can hit one out, so we have plenty of power, throughout the line up.
I got back from Arizona yesterday afternoon. What a trip! Traffic most of the way there, I arrived at my hotel at 9:30PM to find that it was under construction. No lobby, no pool, no restaurant or lounge. A lot of false advertising on Expedia. I had to cancel my second night and switch hotels.
We met up with my cousin and brother for breakfast on Saturday morning in Downtown Phoenix. The place was called Matt’s and it was very good. Everything organic / cage free, made onsite. Small menu, but everything was top notch. We got to the park at around 11AM and I went straight to the back fields where I got to see just about the entire pitching staff warm up and play catch. So many live arms. Julio, Allie and May really stand out above everyone else. Allie is a huge dude. He looks like he should have had shoulder pads and a helmet. Probably could be a linebacker. May throws heat effortlessly. He was throwing from the furthest distance in warmups. Garcia looked impressive. Really wide shoulders and seems to throw effortlessly as well. Yasiel Sierra was there, right in the middle of the action with the major leaguers and top prospects. Still very tall and lanky. Kershaw was throwing on flat ground from a windup will everyone else. He looked the same as he always does. I broke away when they started pitching batting practice and started wandering to the other fields when Dave Roberts almost ran over me driving in his golf cart. I yelled “Watch it, Doc!” Shaking my head I stumbled across a bullpen session with Walker Bueller throwing to Russell Martin. I was expecting to see some elite heat and hear the glove pop. I didn’t see or hear that. He also didn’t have the best control. Seems like he’s still shaking off cobwebs or not really feeling it that day. Maybe Martin was using his quiet glove. Nothing else going on, on the other fields.
We wandered into the stadium around noon, grabbed a beer and walked around until we found our seats down the left field line towards the corner. This is a good vantage point for seeing players walk onto the field. I sat down and stretched out and felt a burning sensation on the inside of my arm on by bicep. I thought that the hot seat back burned my arm until the I saw the yellow jacket fly off! The first aid station is behind home plate by security. They did a nice job inspecting the sting and game me ibuprofen, benadryl and some ice packs and told me not to drink any more beer after taking the benadryl.
I proceeded to watch the game from other people’s seats in the shade with my wife and daughter. Tony Gonsolin started a little shaky, but got out of his trouble in the first. The wind was blowing in, so not too much scoring in the game. Tony was sitting 90-92 mostly, so he might be close to a dead arm phase. He still looks nasty and the ball seems to come out behind his ear. His release is a little funky. Alexander looks great. He’s throwing hard and everything tails downward. Jansen was sitting 90-93 and looks close to top form. Kelly was consistently around 96 and no one could touch him. Baez also had an easy inning, but I was in RF and couldn’t see the MHP reading on the scoreboard. I left feeling a little dizzy / drowsy in the 8th from the benadryl beer cocktail.
Me and my wife and daughter did split a Dodger Dodger dog while we where there. Even the Dodger Dog was off. No grill marks and a weirdly long yellow bun. I ran into a fan that said that commented that he had his first ever Dodger Dog. I told him he didn’t because the bun is wrong. His buddy agreed.
I tried to make a reservation at Don and Charlies in the second inning. When I called they were all booked and weren’t accepting walk-ins because of a large party renting out the main room. We went to RigaTonys instead. Great salad, Calamari was about a 7 on a 1-10 scale. Mussles were the large green kind, I prefer the milder small black mussels, another 7. The baked RigaTony was an 8 and the Angel Hair Cacio e Pepe “Sicilanized” was a 10! Simple pasta dish of Olive Oil, Garlic, Black Pepper and Parmesan – Sicilianized adds Hot Pepper, Anchovy, Capers. This is something like I make at home. I might just make it tonight it was soooo good.
It was a very quick trip. Driving day on Friday, I left at 2 and got a lot of traffic. Next time, I’ll leave at 11 or noon to avoid traffic. I didn’t get to the hotel until around 9:30PM. Out the door by 8:30 AM on Saturday, breakfast, ballpark by 11. I would plan on getting to the park at 10 to watch position players work out. I would skip breakfast to eat more ballpark junk or save up for dinner. Make reservations the week before if you want to get into a specific restaurant. There were youth baseball tournaments, youth soccer, college softball and NCAA tournament this weekend so everything was super packed. The Dodgers games was a sellout on Saturday and Sunday. Got out of there early on Sunday and took our time on the way home. Tons of wildflowers and swarms of butterflies. It was a fun trip even with the Hotel snafu, Wasp Bite and unable to get into my favorite restaurant. And don’t even get me started on the horrible drivers on the way home. Sheesh! Almost died a couple of times!
I would highly recommend going during the week. Way less busy throughout the entire city.
I said before players reported there were no available spots for Dodger position players. With Doc saying Cory will be the starting SS on OD we are debating Brad Miller for a final spot over Verdugo or CT3? Please. I predicted only the final spot in the rotation and last spot or 2 in the BP would be in play and that is still true, even with Kersh and Buehler behind everyone. I will probably not agree with the final calls but the Team is loaded and with the easy opening schedule should get off to a decent start this year too. Let’s wait and see how they do, it’s way too early for gloom and doom. I see rainbows and unicorns with my blue colored glasses!
I get the feeling Mark that you really like Castellanos. But you mentioned Kemp’s defensive shortcomings in left field and according to everything I’ve read Castellanos has a good bat and is defensively challenged. What am I missing?
in response to dodgerpatch. Great post, however saying that the puig return was market value, might actually be selling AF short. I believe that trade was an absolute steal. Jeter Downs is the real deal. His plate discipine is beyond his years. he hit 13 hr and stole 37 at Aball last year, He’s a guy the dodgers wanted to draft but cin got to him before they could. I think the dodgers actually got away with one in that deal. of course it all remains to be seen.
Opening Day Roster Prediction [as of 3/18]:
C–Barnes
1B–Muncy
2B–Hernandez
SS–Seager
3B–Turner
LF–Joc
CF–Pollock
RF–Bellinger
BC–Martin
BIF–Freese
*BOF–Verdugo
BU–Taylor
SP–Hill
SP–Buehler
SP–Ryu
SP–Maeda
**SP–Stripling
RP–Jansen
RP–Kelly
RP–Baez
RP–Alexander
RP–Urias
RP–Garcia
RP–Floro
***RP–Chargois
*Unless we can’t rework Miller’s contract and keep him in AAA; [Miller could also replace Muncy in case of injury]
**Due to Kershaw starting season on DL; when CK returns, Stripling goes to pen
***Not real sure about this pick; wouldn’t be surprised to see someone else here
Stuff from around:
Santa’s Reindeer: You guys listed Josiah Gray and Michael Grove as potential top 100 guys on next year’s list. What’s the biggest thing you guys are looking for from each/both of them this year that would move them up?
Eric A Longenhagen: Gray would be development of a third impact pitch, Grove is a blind dart throw based on LA’s track record with injured college arms.
Jarrod (OK):
I think you were the first guy I saw that dubbed Zach Willeman as a potential break out.. seems like the rest of the industry is starting to slowly get on board. What type of pitcher do you think he becomes? #3/#4 starter, dominant RP? Or chance for more.. thanks for chatting!
Kyle Glaser: If he can really hold 94-96 with two plus breaking balls, that’s a front of the rotation starter. He did that in short bursts last year. Seeing if he can maintain that over a full season with control is another challenge. But what he showed had Dodgers personnel reminiscing of what happened with Walker Buehler post-TJ. It was that sick. Now we’ll see if he can hold it.
JaKob (Dallas, TX):
Is Dennis Santanna going to get another chance this year? It seems like a bunch of injuries are going to have to happen for him to start.. Can you give me your opinion on him and your thoughts on him being a potential trade chip? Would he be starting in other rotations around the league. Thanks Kyle.
Kyle Glaser: He will, especially when you know Kershaw and Hill are going to go down at some point. I like him a lot (have since the Cal League when it was clear he was better than Alvarez and it wasn’t close). The fastball and slider combo are great, if the changeup continues to come along he can be one of those No. 4 starters who is a little wild but gets a lot of whiffs. As far as other rotations around the league, heck, he’d be the Rangers second-best SP right now. As long as he comes back healthy, he’ll be able to help the Dodgers in a lot of ways. Starting, relieving, trade chip for significant contributor. He’s legit.
Pablo (New York):
Does Clint Frazier need out of New York, like yesterday? And can the same be said for Alex Verdugo in LA.
Kyle Glaser: Frazier you can at least see the potential avenue to playing time with Gardner a free agent after this season. I get why they’re holding onto him. Frazier, Hicks, Judge and Stanton as the OF/DH rotation beginning in 2020 can work. Verdugo though, I’m not convinced he’s better than any of the Dodgers’ other options, and he comes with a whole lot of baggage. Going somewhere else with less OF depth would be beneficial to his career. I’m not sure he ever gets to his potential with the Dodgers
TP: Any good reasons why Texas wouldn’t just let Willie Calhoun play everyday?
Keith Law: Where?
DF: Re. the Reds. If they are out of it in July, do you see a chance to recoup similar value to what they gave up with Puig, Wood, etc.?
Keith Law: Zero chance.
Love this blog and the amount of quality food for thought on the Dodgers. I am so thankful to have such a good decision maker like AF leading our team. Keep up the great content
Mark
It seems you are still reacting to what some others are saying about AF at another blog we all know. Why even bother to comment on what goes on there? It has nothing to do with how this board operates and how most of the posters contribute their comments here. I was a bit surprised yesterday by the comments of one poster here regarding Carlos. It’s the most reactive comment that I’ve seen here, but I am not a long time poster here and don’t really know the history. I do know that the past is in the past and the more I pay attention to the present, the less I care about the past as well as the future. Just something to think about or not think about, depending on your pov.
One of the big reasons the Dodgers lost to Boston last year was because Pederson, Muncy, and Bellinger spent too much time on the bench due to the number of innings lefties pitched.
Verdugo is growing on me.
Pederson is having a much better spring than people realize. He ranks high in runs, RBIs, Home runs, doubles, and OPS and almost all of that has come in the last 6 games he has played. Contrary to what some might say, Pederson is a very good defensive left fielder.
Pollock was added to this team mostly to shore up hitting against lefties but his all around play and attitude will be just as important.
Bellinger got his big chance earlier than anticipated because of an injury to Gonzales. Like in the case with Lou Gehrig, once in, he stayed in. That might be the case with Verdugo.
AF is an asset manager. The assets he works with is baseball skills organized into an organization that wins ballgames, both in the short term and long term. He’ll trade value from a position of strength to shore up a position of weakness.
To respond a little more thoughtfully to that rant by Carlos, and in general to the belief by many that Puig and Co. were traded for nothing, you have to understand that what AF got in return was the maximum value. The market dictates the value, not wishful thinking or personal attachment. The Dodgers had no desire to re sign him, so best to get what you can for him rather than get nothing.
Peraza is a decent enough player, but he’s not an exceptional player and there’s no place for him in a Dodgers starting lineup that has WS aspirations.
AF will whiff on a few moves, but if you understand the reasoning behind the calculated risks from as asset management perspective, then it makes sense.