The cream is rising to top the top. The Catman is back, albeit, quite rusty, but his velocity was fine. Phil Bickford is settling in as a nice piece in the bullpen. Cody Bellinger is trying to regain his stroke as is AJ Pollock, after stints on the DL. Zach McKinstry is back and making an impact. But maybe the biggest news is that Mookie Betts is coming out of…
I believe Urias will keep up his outstanding work and take lessons from his pounding by the Giants. Buehler to me is an enigma. He has some of the best stuff in the league, yet he has only 4 decisions. But I expect that to change. All in all, the team has underperformed according to the fans. I think with all the changes in the roster, the lack of the DH, injuries to very key players, and the underperformance of their catalyst, Mookie, the team has performed about as one would expect missing so many key pieces.
There is a lot to unpack about last night’s game, but to blame Dave Roberts for putting in his closer in the 10th inning is just plain silly. If Blake Treinen did his job, Kenley would not have been needed in the 10th. Before last night’s game, Kenley Jansen had given up 1 run and 2 hits in his 11 appearances in May! Even after last night’s debacle, his ERA…
The minor league season is three weeks old and there have been some surprises. Admittedly, with the season so young it is not surprising that there are surprises. The pitchers started off with a bit of a head start that is not unusual. The hitters are now starting to hit their stride and put up some numbers. For example, Andy Pages (pronounced Paw-hayes) with the Loons has struck out 21…
I am of the opinion that most of us know nothing about building a bullpen. Garret Cleavinger was a pitcher most of you wanted to go bye-bye. He has had up and downs, but I see his stuff plays up to major league hitters. Last night, he pitches a 1-2-3 inning in the eighth, including two strikeouts. He is learning to trust his stuff… and that is how a bullpen…
If you don’t laugh about it, you would probably cry, so I choose to laugh about the Dodgers woes. Some day, we will look back and say “Remember when we thought they were done?” During this 4-14 losing streak, the Dodgers have only have three problems: They can’t pitch; They can’t hit; and They can’t field. Last night, the fielding was OK, so the only problems were that they could…
Today is the day that pitchers and catchers are due to report to Camelback Ranch for the Dodgers. Tomorrow is the first day of workouts. Full squad reports February 22, with the first full squad workout scheduled for February 23. The Dodgers play their first spring training game on Sunday, February 28 against the Oakland A’s at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, Arizona. There will be some rules in effect that…
Dodger fans are no different than other teams’ fans. They read what team personnel say about their prospects and build them up to be can’t miss. I like to watch them play, see videos, and read from objective baseball pundits. Baseball America is that kind of publication. In short scouting reports, they tell the fan all they want to hear. But in chats, the pundits can be more objective. Kyle…
Sign DJ LeMahieu? That would cost the Dodgers a draft pick. Remember when, after losing Mark Teixeira to free agency and the Yankees, the Angels were awarded the 25th pick of the draft as compensation. And who did they use that pick on? None other than Mike Trout. Or look at it another way: Signing Mark Teixeira cost the Yankees Mike Trout.
There is always the debate as to whether prospects are meant to be held onto so as to build from within, or should they be used as prospect capital to acquire existing MLB stars. Of course, these trades need to be made at the peak of the prospect trade value in order to maximize the return. The Dodgers have had a perennial top 10 farm club since AF signed on…