114 posts
You are not going to hear this said out loud and I am not going to reveal my sources (so you can take this for whatever you think it is worth), but there is growing sentiment within the Dodgers organization that Diego Cartaya might need to change positions. This is especially…
I started working on this piece with the intention of showing that the 2023 rule changes are significant to the game, and this season will show major changes that baseball has seldom seen. That morphed into a look at baseball history and the rule changes that have occurred over…
First of all, the keyword is “ Don’t Panic. ” OK, it’s two words, but you get my drift. In both games against the Padres, the Dodgers have played like a team that has had a number of off days and is not sharp, and does not feel a sense of urgency. Actually, here are the four…
Tonight’s game against the Giants could likely prove to be one of the most important… if not THE MOST IMPORTANT START of the season for a Dodger pitcher. Why? Simply because in his last start, Mitch White gave up ten Hits and six Earned Runs, raising his ERA from 3.38 to 4.20…
Let me start off by saying that I really don’t like to throw out trade proposals or enjoy reading them. Usually, people want to trade for an All-Star by giving up the bottom feeders of the prospect lists or a slumping pro. With that said, let’s go ahead and take a stab at it……
I know some of you are saying, “Please not another Dave Roberts post” I understand. But if you have ideas, write a post and get it to Mark and he will gladly post it. I was going to respond yesterday to Mark’s reference to Bill Shaiken’s article and some of the comments, but…
With Mark on the 10-day inactive list to attend to family business in Las Vegas (ever notice how these trips are never to Des Moines, Iowa or Wichita, Kansas?), Jeff (AC) was desperate for some assistance on the LADT writers roster. With his options limited, he had to resort to adding someone from the alternate training site, and had no choice but to call on me, the Zack Reks/Edwin Uceta
Earlier in the week, there was a little difference in opinion with respect to the Billy McKinney acquisition. I continue to read how porous LAD’s defense is, and with a gimpy Mookie Betts who may need late-inning defensive help to get him off his hip, a slowing AJ Pollock, questionable defense of Matt Beaty, and the need for CT3 to spend more time in the infield, AF went out and
Not so long ago, the Dodgers signed Albert Pujols. At the time I thought, why? Pujols is way past his prime, and over his contract with the Angels came nowhere near being the player he was in St. Louis. Now a few weeks later, I see an invigorated Pujols being a factor in games he plays. He has 5 HR s, as many as he had with the Angels, and 1
October 27, 2020 After that unforgettable strikeout of Willy Adames by Julio Urias Almost four months to the day, the Dodgers are going to be taking the field in an actual baseball game, even if it is only a ST game. The Dodgers are starting 32 year old LHP, Mike Kickham. Kickham signed a MiLB contract on January 27. Lat year Kickham last year pitched for Boston, and pitched in
Welcome to Super Bowl Sunday. I am a much bigger fan of college football, and since my Packers are out of it, the lure of the Super Bowl does not hold a huge interest for me. I will undoubtedly watch the game, and I have a lot of family in KC so I will have some allegiance to them. I am not against Tom Brady as much as many I
There has been a lot of talk by MLB fans in general how the Padres may have caught the Dodgers. On the East coast, most in NY and Atlanta believe they have better 26-man rosters. Dodger fans of course take offense at such a charge. None of the four teams are finished completing their rosters, but I thought I would take a more in depth look at a Dodgers/Padres comp,
A little less than a year before the birth of our son Andrew, Harry Chapin put the finishing touches to a song that emanated from a poem penned by his wife. The song was Cat’s in the Cradle. As I did not grow from a happy childhood, the song did not initially appeal to me. But as my career was taking off, and Andy was about two, the song began
Well that was an interesting and very long game. Dodgers won 5-1, and despite appearances (it could be called an ugly win) they, nevertheless, won in dominating fashion. There were lots of walks. Padres pitchers, threw 165 pitches in 8 innings, as they walked 10 Dodgers batters, and added a hit by pitch for good measure. Walker Buehler started for the Dodgers and almost immediately started to make Dodgers fans
It took 50 games, but the Dodgers are the first team to qualify for the playoffs. They marched into San Diego with a precarious 2.5 game lead and not playing very well at all. Game 1 in SD was a match up of probably the team’s two Aces, Clayton Kershaw vs. Dinelson Lamet. The Dodgers broke on top first with a walk, double and ground out to score a run.
As baseball aficionados we all know who should play, who should play where, what the best batting lineup should be, how to “correct” batting stances, etc. We are all more knowledgeable than the Presidents of Baseball Operations, or the managers, or the pitching coaches, or the hitting coaches. We have all played the game, some at advanced levels. But to my knowledge, nobody on this site has ever climbed the
On October 14th, 2014, the Dodgers announced the hiring of Andrew Friedman. Former Tampa Bay GM and Vice President of baseball operations as President of baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers. His contract was for 5 years and 35 million dollars. Friedman was born in Houston Texas and attended Tulane University on a baseball scholarship. His college career was derailed by a couple of injuries. He earned a B.A .
I’m writing this on Friday morning, basking in the joy of the Dodgers 11-2 thumping of the Padres and thought I would share some random thoughts from my recliner: ● Until last night’s game, this year’s Dodgers just haven’t been as fun for me to watch as teams in the past. In “summer camp” it looked as if though they would be invincible. Once the season started though, and even
First observation, this is a much different game for the Dodgers without Mookie Betts. They are still talented enough to win, but he sure does make it much easier. Seager and Betts seem to have been carrying the team on this trip, and the spark just seems to have gone out without Mookie. The pitching matchup for Tuesday night was the one expected for Monday. Two of the brightest MLB
Is there in fact collusion going on in MLB? With all of this backlash on the various trades, it is becoming more clear to me that if the MLBPA did not have Tony Clark as the union president, the union would clean the clock of MLB and it’s own lightweight, Rob Manfred. Boston is not hurting in revenue or operating income, and can certainly afford the salaries and resultant luxury
I was in the middle of a meeting with our outside CPA s discussing tax strategies last night when a colleague busted in and told me the Dodgers just traded for Mookie and Price. That is all he knew at the time. Unsure who went in the deal. He just knew that I wanted the Dodgers to get Mookie. My meeting broke up shortly thereafter and I went back to my
I know that many are afraid of a Betts/Price trade because of the financial concerns for David Price, and I can understand that. So I went back and looked at the Nick Punto trade (I know Mark’s favorite subject); a previous time when the Dodgers assumed a huge financial obligation for a perceived benefit. I pulled the below article: https://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2018/3/29/17104518/gonzalez-beckett-crawford-red-sox-dodgers-trade-retrospective One of the lines that caught my eye was when
It is time for a little Devil’s Advocacy. I have been an unapologetic fan of Andrew Friedman and what he has accomplished, and just as critical as to what he has NOT accomplished. I was critical when AF did not beat out the Astros offer for Gerrit Cole before the 2018 season. The Astros traded a #5 SP in Joe Musgrove, a decent but unceremonious 3B, Colin Moran, a RHRP
Bill Veeck, Charlie Finley, George Steinbrenner were examples of owners that were bigger than life and wanted nothing more than to win (and put on a show). Walter O’Malley was cut from the same cloth. Peter was more of a pragmatic businessman who knew he could not spend to stay in the game, and got out. None of those early owners would let MLB tell them how to spend their
BRAVES AND THE PEN: Braves have now signed 3 pitchers who will serve as late inning high leverage relievers. On Monday they signed Chris Martin to a two year $14MM contract after signing Will Smith to a three year $40MM deal. Earlier this month, they signed Darren O’Day to a one year $2.25MM contract. They also have Mark Melancon in the final year of his four year $62MM contract. Thus
I do not think any Dodger fan can possibly disagree about the disappointment over the last three years. I use three, because realistically that has been the span where the Dodgers were in a position to win it all. Certainly Doc has had a problem of thinking too much in the playoffs. It was never more evident as it was in Game 5 of the NLDS. But the players have
As we are getting ready to see who the Dodgers first opponent will be in the post season, it is extremely difficult for me to consume any negativity ascribed to the Dodgers after this season. No conditional statements…they were great. The best team in LA Dodgers history. I say LA Dodgers because the 1953 team that 105, did so with 8 less games. I still read from some how bad
1. Dodgerpatch indicated that I was taking the criticism of Austin Barnes too personally. Not true. I would never take criticism alone personally. What I take personally is the name calling. A week ago I stated that Barnes had option(s) remaining and that he should be considered to be optioned to OKC, and bring up Will Smith to get better acclimated to the pitchers. When the name calling started, I
When MT posted his Remember When post, it got me to thinking about trades. I have been obnoxiously opinionated in my zeal for at least one lock down late inning reliever and would prefer two. But I also know that there are NO GUARANTEES. The Darvish and Machado trades did not result in a WS championship, and they were good trades for the Dodgers. If the Dodgers got both Felipe
Mark and I don’t always agree on everything Blue, although I think we are pretty consistent from a Macro view. But when it comes to the bullpen, Mark and I just do not see eye to eye. I have been a relief pitcher wonk since 1959 and Larry Sherry. Clem Labine would have been my favorite Dodger in the mid 50’s. I am not going to go through the history
