There are thirteen pitchers who love Austin Barnes. He is an “on-the-field-pitching coach.” He is not going anywhere, so get that out of your mind. Hunter Feduccia, who happens to be LH, may or may not be a better hitter, and maybe his arm is slightly better, but he is no Austin Barnes insofar as a receiver. Unless Barnes is injured, he is not going anywhere (did I mention that…
All Gave Some – Some Gave All
On Memorial Day, we all need to pause and be thankful for the United States Military Personnel who died while serving the United States. It’s also a time we can thank the living survivors of foreign wars. Freedom is not free, and we should never take it for granted. Thank You for your service! I don’t usually do this, but I am going to put in a plug for Tunnel…
It’s Time For a Change… or Two!
Yesterday was the first game of the year that I did not watch an inning, but I did go back and watch the condensed debacle. It was about as bad as the Pacers-Celtics game I went to last night. My son-in-law is a a Celtics fan, so it made things even worse. He is also a Red Sox fan and is envious of the fact that the Dodgers are good…
“The Dodgers Are Not Constructed for the Playoffs”
I have to confess that when I hear this, I don’t just chuckle; I erupt into crazed laughter. I mean, how do you construct a team for the playoffs? Maybe you just need to commission someone to make a cyborg for all nine positions? Many fans who read here have been around for fifty, sixty, or seventy years, and most are conditioned to the way it used to be. Or…
Some Days The Bear Gets You…
No, not that Bear… the proverbial bear! I guess you are going to lose one-third of the games. It’s baseball… and sometimes it is maddening. The bottom of the lineup continues to be a problem. Vargas got a nice hit but now has to demonstrate that he can keep it up. Lux was 2-4 and is now at .203, but Teoscar is in a slump, having hit .219 in his…
He has to Earn it!
Last year, the Dodgers anointed Miguel Vargas as the Dodgers’ second-baseman and gave him the job… no questions asked. It went horribly wrong! He ended up back at OKC in June. Two broken fingers, a damaged psyche, and a bruised spirit later, he is back, and this time, he is going to have to obtain a job with the big club the old-fashioned way. He has to earn it! This…
Anthony Banda: Diamond in the Rough
At first glance, you may have yawned when the Dodgers Front Office acquired Anthony Banda from the Cleveland Indians… I mean Guardians. He is a 6′ 2″ 221 pound LHP who has a career record of 8-6 with a 5.64 ERA in 120 innings pitched over parts of eight seasons… YAWN! However, with the advent of PITCHf/x tracking, we can see what Mr. Banda brings to the game, and if…
Some time ago, an unnamed fan said that “Michael Grove is nothing more than a trade chip.” Without belaboring the point, that was a serious lapse of judgment on his part. Michael got roughed up pretty good at the beginning of the season, but after the 10th of April, he has been nails. Only Ryan Yarbrough has more innings pitched out of the bullpen than Michael Grove. Look at his…
Rants & Raves
Every now and then, it is all about random stuff: Ambidextrous Freak Jason Gay in the Wall Street Journal has a piece entitled: This Amazing Pitcher Throws 95 MPH Right-Handed—and 93 MPH Left-Handed -Ambidextrous ace Jurrangelo Cijntje is no gimmick—he is a legit major-league prospect helping Mississippi State try to return to the College World Series His unearthly gift must be seen to be believed: a right-handed college pitcher, confident…
Red Wave
Elly De La Cruz has stolen 30 bases in 35 attempts, so it seems logical to keep him off the bases… right? Nah, that’s too easy – let’s have him get on base all five at-bats! Tyler Glasnow will have an occasional bad game. That was one last night. The hitters either show up en masse or they are no-shows. Chris Taylor got an “excuse me” hit on an 81…