On November 2, 2017, still reeling from a World Series loss, I wrote this: Kike Hernandez is looked at as a “super utilityman” because he can play anywhere… especially SS, but a lot of people are dismissive of his offense. Me? I think there is a possibility that he could be a huge offensive force in the future. Quit laughing and listen to this: Through age 25, JD Martinez was…
Will Corey Copping get a call to climb the hill at Dodger Stadium during the 2018 season? Now 24, the 6’1”/175-pound right-hander was selected by the Dodgers in the 31st round of the 2015 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Oklahoma. He was one of the first young Dodger pitchers to benefit from the Driveline Program. Copping said his fastball was clocked between 86 and 88 mph at…
Some Dodger fans were worried about Corey Seager’s elbow after last season when he missed the NLCS. Many felt that he needed surgery… but there was no surgery. Some fans even blamed FAZ for not forcing him to have surgery (yeah, that would work out well). However, yesterday Corey Seager saw his first action in the field and (according to him) made two throws without any issues. But, the truth…
It sounds funny to mention Grandal and Kemp in the same sentence because it was not that long ago that they were traded for each other. Yesterday, they were a version of the Bash Brothers as Yasmani Grandal takes back his starting job and Matt Kemp takes over in LF. If they both stay on this path of hitting, it could be a long season for anyone that doesn’t have…
I think it was DodgerRick who coined the moniker “El Gasolino” in reference to Pedro Baez. He has also been called “The Human Rain Delay” because an infielder can make a sandwich and drink a beer between pitches. I also call him “Dumb” because you can’t get major league hitters out with a fastball as your only pitch unless you can throw it 120 MPH! The offensive explosion caused by…
Kenta Maeda appears close to mastering a changeup, which could help him pitch deeper into games. We will see. Kenley Jansen did not make his appearance yesterday due to a tight hamstring. Hopefully it’s just tight and not pulled. The Dodgers have 18 players OPS’ing 1.000 or more. That’s sick! Kyle Farmer leads the way at 1.579. Toles and Verdugo have shown they belong although Verdugo wil likely go to…
A few years ago I attempted to predict the Great Lakes Loons opening day roster. It proved to be a very difficult assignment as there are so many variables at play. First, it seems impossible to know which young players may have suffered spring training injuries, perhaps minor, or experienced other delays but it does mean they are not on the opening day 25-man roster as expected. A second variable…
It’s probably too early to make roster predictions, but I am going to make one right about now: ANDREW TOLE HAS MADE THE TEAM… and not only that, he is going to be a big part of this team moving forward. Alex Verdugo looks ready too, but he will go down to OKC, at least for a while. It has been said that there will likely be only 12 position…
What is the value of each minor league player? That is, how important is each player? For me, the answer to the question is that none are more important than others. Sure, we like to see prospect lists with rankings but perhaps we should look at team rosters and draft lists, players that are signed as non-drafted free agents and minor league players signed after being released by other teams….
Spring training is well under way and the so-called meaningless games have once again become more than meaningful, especially for young players trying to make an impression on the many eyes watching them. And, making that all important favorable first impression is going well for a number of Dodger youngsters. Kyle Farmer, Will Smith, Keibert Ruiz, DJ Peters, Omar Estevez, Edwin Rios, Jake Peter, Alex Verdugo , among others, are…