May second, 2021. The Dodgers were playing the last game of a four-game set in Milwaukee. The Dodgers had lost the previous three games to the Brewers. The day before, they lost in 11 innings, 6-5. They were 1-6 in their last seven games. They were a half-game out of first place, but they desperately needed a win. Julio Urias got the start against Alec Bettinger. A rookie. The Dodgers…
Once again, Bruce Bochy demonstrated why he is a genius. Bochy’s strategy was this: After his starter gave up five runs in 4.2 IP, he told the bullpen not to give up any runs the rest of the way. No one else on the planet would have thought of something so ingenious. Then, in the 11th inning, he whispered into Adolis Garcia’s ear. “If you hit a Home Run, that…
At one time, Kolten Wong was a very good second baseman. While never an All-Star, as a LH hitter, he has a career .742 OPS against RHP. He is exclusively a second baseman and plays Gold Glove defense at the position. He likely has no future in 2024 with the Dodgers, but he could have a future in October for them! In 2021, Eddie Rosario, who was a journeyman, was…
As Dodgers fans, we are not used to losing. Julio Urias failed to pitch like the Ace he was, which he did most of the month. Max Muncy and Dave Roberts got booted! If you are going to lose, you might as well go out in a blaze of glory! This was just one game. Move along… nothing to see here, folks. It’s time for a bullpen game, folks. Caleb…
That’s our agenda today, boys and girls! Tony Gonsolin So, now we know for sure that an “elbow injury” is likely going to keep Tony Gonsolin out for the remainder of the season. That’s all we know – there’s a whole lot more to know but at this juncture that Dodgers and/or Tony Gonsolin ain’t sayin’. That’s typical, not only for the Dodgers but also for many other teams as…
Julio Urias pitched about like I thought he would play in his first game back from the IL. He was rusty and gave up a lot of soft contact in the first inning. The Royals got just one extra-base hit, but Julio was not sharp. That was to be expected. He was using all his pitches but did not have command of them – kind of like what you would…
A year ago, on his way to becoming the Dodgers Minor League Pitcher of the Year, Gavin Stone went from Great Lakes – A Ball, to Tulsa – AA Ball, to OKC – AAA Ball.. all in one season and put up a 1.48 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. He struck out 168 batters in 121 innings. He was on his way to the Show… or so it seemed. Meanwhile,…
Pitching changes, lineups, and strategy decisions are subjective… VERY subjective. Additionally, second guessers are seldom wrong. I rarely question tactical decisions because I know that there are frequently underlying reasons. I think I was dead on in what I said about Caleb Ferguson, and I think you will find out about it soon enough. The beat writers report what the team gives them; sometimes, they are told not to publish…
It sounds like the Dodgers might get The Knack soon. Great, I used to love the Knack. They had several great songs, like this one: What? It’s not “The Knack?” Is it Landon Knack? Oh, him… who knew? My bad! Well, actually… I have an opinion on this, and I think that just like Michael Grove, Landon Knack should bypass AAA and go directly to Chavez Ravine! He’s so much…
For the record, it was discussed yesterday whether Clayton Kershaw was a #1, #2, or #3. I think the answer is d. Neither – Clayton is a #2.5. There. That’s my final statement on it. How many aces have 33 starts anymore? Only 31 pitchers in MLB had more than 31 starts last season. So there is that! Of those 31 pitchers who had ERA’s below 3.00, there are only…