If you think that Kike Hernandez is “just another poor hitting utility player” you may suffer from the same malady Kike did the first half of last season: LACK OF VISION. Kike hit .191 in the first half of 2024, and during that time, he had a conversation with Martin Maldonado. “He told me that he and a couple of his teammates needed glasses, and they didn’t really know through…
This time last year, Baseball America ranked the Dodgers Prospects like this: Of those Top 30, 16 are gone, either graduating, being traded, waived, or just dropped out of the Top 30. That means that 16 new prospects are ranked in the Top 30. That’s a lot! Here are the 2025 Top 30 Dodger Prospects (the ones in BOLD are new) Don’t assume that the ones who just dropped out…
I realize that in your tenure as President of Dodger baseball, the LA Dodgers have the best winning percentage of any MLB team and that the organization is the envy of all other teams. In short, the Dodgers are the model organization. I understand that and am even amazed at the fact that even though the Dodgers draft near the bottom every year, the farm system is one of the…
There are thirteen pitchers who love Austin Barnes. He is an “on-the-field-pitching coach.” He is not going anywhere, so get that out of your mind. Hunter Feduccia, who happens to be LH, may or may not be a better hitter, and maybe his arm is slightly better, but he is no Austin Barnes insofar as a receiver. Unless Barnes is injured, he is not going anywhere (did I mention that…
I know that many of you hate platoons, but I am down with that. You want to see the best players in there every day (or at least, your idea of the best players). The problem is this: the best hitter against many left-handed pitchers is not a left-handed hitter. Sabermetrics and analytics now run baseball, and if you don’t think that is true, you probably believe in the Tooth…
Of course, that is a generalization that is not always true, but it is true enough of the time that I am concerned. Last night, the Dodgers scored 11 runs on 20 hits. Betts and Smith had 4 hits each, while Ohtani and Pages had 3 each. Muncy and Lux had two each. It was quite an offensive explosion, but I question why. Why is it frequently feast or famine?…
As we speak, Mookie Betts is listed as the Dodger’s starting shortstop, but against tough LHP he slides over to 2B, as Gavin Lux is deemed a liability against lefties and Miguel Rojas plays SS. Miguel still plays SS at a very high level and he does hit LHP better than RHP as a rule. This year, he is OPS’ing .818 against LHP and 1.000 against RHP, but obviously, that…
I took a lot of flack last season because of James Outman. Much of it came from Eric, who disappeared this year when the going got tough for James. Eric evidently can dish it out, but he can’t take it! I sometimes think he loves James Outman more than the Dodgers. He also seems to hate Miguel Vargas, but many of you do because you hate it when I am…
If Mookie Betts hits .520 this year, the Dodgers will have no worries. Actually, the TOP SIX of the Dodgers batting order are delivering at a rate that is scary. It’s the BOTTOM THREE that are also scary: Now, I did not make those numbers up, so don’t be hating on me. It is a concern, but it is early and there will be no knee-jerk reactions. I expected a…
Everyone thinks that Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, and Freddie Freeman are the key to the Dodgers’ offensive success in 2024. I beg to differ. Of course, the Dodgers need the three former MVPs to step up and do what they do, but there are a few other players who could also be the linchpins of their success, namely Teoscar Hernandez, Jason Heyward, James Outman, Gavin Lux, and Will Smith. Teoscar…