Baseball fans are a unique group. Every February, somewhere in Arizona or Florida, a perfectly rational adult watches a 32 year old utility infielder line a double off a pitcher who will be selling insurance by July… and immediately declares, with the confidence of a Supreme Court justice, “He has to make the team.” Spring Training turns baseball fans into gold prospectors panning a river of box scores. They swirl…
Well, spring training is underway. Dodger pitchers have looked great in the first four games, allowing just 4 earned runs. They have scored 34 runs in the four games without hitting a home run, which is also pretty impressive considering the power potential of the team. And the pitchers have allowed just one homer. Of course, at 6-3, they now have a couple of home runs. Their opponents in the…
NOTE: I had a Dodger fan send me this today. He said that he likes his anonymity. He calls himself an “Anonymous, long-time reader and friend of LADT” and uses the moniker Bill Kreuger, who appeared in one game for the Dodgers in 1988. Here is what he wants to say: I didn’t intend to write about Max Muncy, but I wanted to write about the Dodgers, and the subject…
It was a fun week with the family in Arizona. We went to two games at Camelback Ranch and went to the Aquarium as well as frequenting some amazing restaurants. My sons’ kids are 2 and 5 so, this is a special time. I met Paul Vu, a longtime LaDodgerTalk.com reader who doesn’t “comment much, but I read it every day and agree with you 99% of the time.” He…
Most fans do not read too much into the Dodgers’ pickup of Jack Suwinski on waivers from the Pirates, but he could actually make the Opening Day roster (with a good spring) as he is out of Minor League options. He may actually have an outside chance at breaking camp with Los Angeles due to his ability to play center field. He hit 26 HR in 2023, but like James Outman,…
I always try not to draw any conclusions from just one game, but I do have eyes, and here are a few things worth considering:
Opening Day against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium on March 26 is approaching sooner than later. Except for 2B, which ultimately seems to belong to Tommy Edman, who will start the season on the IL, all the positions are set… barring injury… and there will be injuries. Won’t there? Breakout candidate: Christian Zazueta is a RHP who is 6′ 3″ and very skinny. He came to the Dodgers in…
Partly truth and partly fiction. That’s Kike Hernandez. Kris Kristopherson (God Rest His Soul) summed him up in his song, The Pilgrim: Kike Hernandez is one of a kind! If the Dodgers are a Swiss watch, Kiké is the tiny gear that never makes the marketing brochure but keeps the whole thing ticking. In October, the temperature drops, and so do batting averages. Kiké’s does not. He’s built a reputation…
I love the game of baseball. Have since I first picked up a bat at the age of 7. That was 70 years ago, and oh how the game has changed. I like to think that I saw the game when it was still in its purest form. No DH, starters went 9. Strikeouts were a bad thing, and players BA, and pitchers win totals mattered. They were the standard…
