Sean Newcomb is left-handed and almost no-hit the Dodgers once this year. The other time the Dodgers faced him, they lit him up. Which Newcomb will they face today? Maybe it’s not which pitcher they face… maybe it’s what approach the hitters take and you will see a different approach because there will be different hitters tonight. Most likely this will be the lineup: C – Grandal (You don’t take…
Now that the Dodgers are in the NLDS, I thought I would take a look back to see how they got here. While I never gave up hope, I absolutely had my doubts. I had concerns about how the team was structured, and in game management. It became apparent that the primary focus for the front office was to get below and stay below the competitive balance tax threshold. If…
Now that the regular season is through, we can begin to speculate as to what will make up the NLDS roster. It really shouldn’t be that difficult for 23 of the 25 players, but those last two will surely draw some scrutiny. IMO the givens: Starting Pitching (4): Clayton Kershaw Hyun-jin Ryu Walker Buehler Rich Hill Bullpen (8): Kenley Jansen Kenta Maeda Alex Wood Pedro Baez Scott Alexander…
The Magic Number is down to 5. The Rockies do not look like they are going away, so the Dodgers are going to need to win this race. I am more than fine with that. On a night that showcased another of those all RHH lineups against a very good LHSP, the players came through when they needed to. The team scored 7 runs with only one solo HR, so…
I like contrarians. They keep us thinking. Sometimes we end up supporting a player more vociferously than may be called for. Think Bums and Joc, Mark and Grandal, MJ and Toles, and of course me and Wood. Most of us have been frustrated with how this season has unfolded and have made some disparaging comments regarding FAZ or Doc, or players such as Joc, Wood, Puig, Dozier, CT3, and lately…
That phrase was popularized in the United States by Mark Twain (among others), who attributed it to the British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. It seems that there is a stat for everything and we all have our own opinions. I voiced my displeasure with Dave Roberts not playing Yasmani Grandal last night after his breakout game against the Reds on Wednesday. Many other Dodger fans voiced the same displeasure over…
Most of you probably don’t believe it, because the Dodger bullpen has been awful many times during this season, but it went from awful to deplorable when Daniel Hudson, Ross Stripling and Kenley Jansen went down. Of course, Kenley was the biggest loss and there’s no way to replace him. That will likely come to an end tonight as if Kenley is approved by his Doctors to play again. In…
I like Caleb Ferguson and Dylan Floro a lot, but Caleb is just learning how to handle the pen and Floro is just learning how to handle his improved stuff. Dylan used to have pedestrian stuff and now he has very good “stuff” but next he has to learn to utilize it. A pennant race is a bad time. It all goes back to the hitting… or lack thereof! An…
Yesterday Mark made a good argument as to why the Dodgers might want to stand pat. Today I would like to make an argument as to why the Dodgers should consider another move or two. I understand the thought that with how the Dodgers are built right now they can compete and win the NL West. I understand why many believe the team should stay as is and let the team…
MLB Pipeline came out with their top 100 MLB prospects, and a new Top 30 for each team. The MLB Pipeline prospect list is put together by Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo, two excellent minor league and amateur talent evaluators. Padres – 4 Top 25; 1 top 26-50; 2 top 51 to 75; 1 top 76 to 100 – – – Top 100 = 8 Braves – 2 Top…