When I coached youth baseball and at the high school level, travel baseball and specialized training weren’t as readily available as is it is today. We had materials and videos written by Tom House, including the “Winning Pitcher”, “Power Baseball”(written with Coop De Renne) and of course Nolan Ryan’s “Pitcher’s Bible”. For hitters, you had Charlie Lau’s “The Art of Hitting .300″ and“A Hitting Clinic: The Walt Hriniak Way”. Of…
The Dodgers Other Clayton
There will only ever be one Clayton Kershaw but the Dodgers did sign another Clayton on January 17. They had previously selected left-hander Clayton Andrews in the 40th round of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft but he didn’t sign. He did so with the Brewers in 2018. The new Clayton on the block is 24-year-old infielder Clayton Daniel. He was acquired from the Cubs in a trade for right-hander Casey…
Holding On To Prospects…Chess or Checkers?
One of the problems the Dodgers have of going “big game hunting” is that in order to get someone special, one needs to give up someone special. More than most teams, the Dodgers are very reluctant to give up their top prospects. Is it any surprise that teams are requiring Gavin Lux or Dustin May for an elite difference making pitcher (or Lindor or Mookie)? There is a big gap…
“The Dodgers Only Care About Winning the NL West”
Every time I hear that it makes me wonder if the person who said it was repeatedly dropped on their head as a child. What other possible explanation could there be? Maybe insanity? Let’s just say that the fans who say that Guggenheim & Company are just “greedy bastards” – only concerned with profits are right. That’s all the more reason the greedy bastards would want to win. What? Why?…
Gavin Lux – Next Dodger Star?
In 2016, a rookie was called up at the end of the season and in 95 AB’s he hit .179 with a .263 OB% while striking out 45% of the time. Obviously, he was a ZERO, ZILCH, NADA. Nothing to see here… move on. Many people were unimpressed. “He needs to spend another season at AAA.” This kid was 24 years old and only hit .179? He was obviously way…
Dodgers Fifth Round Selection – Jack Little
Right-hander Jack Little was selected by the Dodgers in the fifth round of the 2019 First-Year Player Draft out of Stanford University. His three-year teammate at Stanford, outfielder Brandon Wulff, was also selected by the Dodgers in the 17th round. Although the Dodgers picked Little with starting in mind, he had been a reliever exclusively at Stanford with a total of 53 relief appearances in his three-year career with the…
The ASStericks Cheating Scandal
ASStericks! 2Demeter2 came up with that and I give him his props for that… actually I am jealous that he thought of it before me. Henceforth (or is it Hinchforth) they are no longer the Astros, but rather… the ASStericks. Here’s is what 2Demeter2 has to say about the cheaters: 2Demeter2 Having just completed reading Commissioner Rob Manfred’s 9-page report regarding this matter… there were many things that made my…
Conventional Wisdom Says…
It’s been said that baseball is one of the most “conservative” of all major sports. Baseball players, managers, coaches, executives, and owners typically succumb to the notion that once a particular idea or system gains broad acceptance, it is almost impossible to change. As one author stated: “Baseball’s ‘Conventional Wisdom’ is, at times, venerated as inviolable dogma akin to Holy Scripture. Woe be unto the those unto ye heretics who…
Keeping An Eye on Relief and the IFL
One thing that I have come to realize is that when AF and the other Dodger baseball FO personnel determine that there is a weakness in their organization, they address it head on. Most everyone has come to realize that the current Dodgers have a significant weakness in their bullpen, and they went full on in last year’s draft. I know DC is working his way through the recently drafted…
Cabin Fever Causes Insanity
Many bloggers and national sportswriters are suffering from severe cases of cabin fever which is akin to “seasonal affective Dodger disorder (SADD).” In case you don’t know what that is, here is an overview on SADD: Seasonal affective Dodger disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that’s related to the fictional failure of the Dodger front office to acquire all of the top free agents so that the already “stacked…