39 posts
This is a re-run of an article I posted on TBLA back on July 28, 2015. It provides a glimpse of Matt Beaty as a pre-MLB player. Great Lakes Loons third baseman Matt Beaty is enjoying his first season of professional baseball simply doing what he loves to do. Beaty was born in…
A while back someone suggested that my column perhaps should be called, MiLB Matter with Dodger Chatter. I think it might have been Bluto. So under his advisement going forward, it shall be called, MiLB Matters with Dodger Chatter. Matters refers not only to the “stuff” going on…
Just a bit about the week that was knowing that there are only two more weeks of the weeks that were in the 2021 season. Oh my! MiLB Players of the Month for August It is no small feat to be selected as the MiLB Player of the Month in their division as there are many good…
No not Mark Timmons, nor Mark Prior, nor Mark Fidrych, or Mark McGwire The Mark to whom I refer is right-hander Mark Washington of the Tulsa Drillers, perhaps soon to be of the OKC Dodgers. He was born in Glen Mills, attended high school at Episcopal Academy in Merion, and attended university at Lehigh University. All three locations are in his home state of Pennsylvania. He was selected by the
I had started a series of posts re: June is Busting Out All Over. June is still busting out but all of a sudden more difficult to follow. For whatever reason, the game logs and splits for minor league players are no longer available at MiLB.com . One day they were there, the next day gone. I have written to Jeff Lantz, Senior Director of Communications for Minor League Baseball,
Who will go down next? That seems to be a broken record for this season. Hopefully, everyone gets healthy for the stretch run. Tonight, Trevor Bauer goes against the D-Bags in AZ. The Dodgers are 3rd in team ERA within .06 of the Padres and .10 of the Mets. They are still #2 in starter ERA behind the Mets, but deGrom keeps breaking down (he s older than Clayton) and it
It was great to have AC’s minor league article on Tuesday. When he produces a column it is like MLB. That is, Minor League Buffett. So much to digest. In his smorgasbord he did mention some young players I have been following. Today I am going to just highlight a few hitters who seem to be busting out in June after a bit of a slow May. Today it is
Casey was selected by the Dodgers in the 20th round of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out of Boston College. Going into the draft he was ranked No. 128 by MLB.com suggesting he would be selected in the first ten rounds. The Dodgers might just have executed another steal in acquiring the 6’2”/190-pound right-handed hitter and versatile outfielder as late in the draft as they did. The native of Stratford,
A couple of weeks ago Jeff asked if I would do a brief write-up on two Dodger prospects Nick Robertson and James Outman. I had previously profiled Robertson so that one was easy with an update. Today I took a look at Outman and found there was not a lot of detail available on him. I do remember him quite well in his time with the Great Lakes Loons
The Dodgers 2019 draft was perhaps an unusual one in that they targeted college relief pitchers. I don’t think the plan is to transform them into starters but more so to continue their present path. Relief pitching is the fastest way to MLB unless one is a budding superstar and relief pitchers most certainly are in demand. Why not develop your own and in due course have a stable of
First, a look back at baseball in Ogden which has maintained a small town atmosphere. The Ogden Raptors are the Dodgers’ Rookie League team in the Pioneer league. The Raptors are an advanced rookie team that became affiliated with the Dodgers in 2003. Prior to that, the Ogden team was an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. Ogden, with a population of about 83,000, claims to be the oldest settlement in
On Monday outfielder Cody Thomas made a bit of a splash with the Dodgers after entering the game in the sixth inning to replace Cody Bellinger, although he moved to right field. All Thomas did was drive the first pitch he saw to the opposite field for a home run and then rob Blake Rutherford of a home run with a catch that would be Bellinger-like. Granted it is an
The Dodgers 2019 draft was perhaps an unusual one in that they targeted college relief pitchers. I don t think the plan is to transform them into starters but more so to continue their present path. Relief pitching is the fastest way to MLB unless one is a budding superstar and relief pitchers most certainly are in demand. Why not develop your own and in due course have a stable of
One of the many definitions of an iconoclast is someone who strongly opposes generally accepted beliefs and traditions. Some people think inside the box. Others think outside the box. I prefer to think there is no box. I am an iconoclast. I readily admit it and even embrace it. While the entire Dodger Fandom was attacking Andrew Freidman (pick a day any day), I was embracing his tactics. I still
Left-hander Jacob Cantleberry was selected by the Dodgers in the 13th round of the 2019 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Missouri. He was born in Greenwood, Indiana and attended Center Grove High School in his home town before heading off to San Jacinto-North Community College, located just outside of Houston, Texas. In two seasons with the Gators he posted a 23 4 record through 32 appearances,
We often take a look at minor league players who have never been considered as can’t miss players. Some are very late round draft picks that creep up on the minor league ranks. DC and I have mentioned Zach McKinstry quite a bit this season. Zach was a 33rd round draft Pick (2016) out of that baseball hotbed Central Michigan University. He has continually charged up the organizational ladder and
A few weeks back there was a recommendation that we provide our opinion on the risers and fallers this year in the LAD Minor League system, and suggested that the AS break would be a good time. DC offered his input a week or so ago, and now I would like to provide my admittedly myopic (and shortsighted?) insight. I apologize for the length, but it is hard for me
The Raptors play in a short season rookie league. It is easy to forget the Pioneer League as players are so far from MLB and many are fresh out of a recent draft and the Arizona League. They have not yet really surfaced in the parent team minor league system so one has to do a bit of scuba diving below the surface to find them. But, there they are,
The Dodgers will go into the All-Star Break at least 30 games over .500. We would all be happier if it were 32 games above, but that depends upon whether the Dodger bats wake up or not. It would be great to see Chicken Strip pitch about 7 shutout innings! I still see him as a great trade chip, especially if he can have a good outing today. Teams need
The Ogden Raptors are the Dodgers Rookie League team in the Pioneer League. They are an advanced rookie team that became affiliated with the Dodgers in 2003. Prior to that, the Ogden team was an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. Ogden, with a population of about 83,000, claims to be the oldest settlement in Utah dating back to 1845 and has a long history with minor league baseball of over
The MLB draft has come and gone, and the draft talent evaluators have opined that the Dodgers had a top 5 draft. This year’s draft pool was not considered very good, but the Dodgers were able to draft for value and need. The Dodgers are getting good at finding value in the low order they pick from. They even picked up a top potential HS draft pick in SS/3B Brennan
Alex Verdugo (23) Happy Birthday Today Yesterday, Alex’s brother posted on LADT. Those guys out there do pay attention. What I have really like about Alex this year is that he has demonstrated a high level of energy and enthusiasm. He is very active in the dugout, not Puig-like, and has really hustled on the field and running the bases. Who wouldn’t like his K/BB ratio which is not
I expect at the start of the 2019 season many of us would have guessed that at this point in the season the top hitter for the OKC Dodgers would be Edwin Rios, Will Smith or perhaps Matt Beaty. Most of us might not have guessed Kyle Garlick. Right now Garlick is the team leader in hits (26), home runs (7), total bases (55), BA (.292), OBP (.394), SLG (.618)
Dodgers first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger has gained much attention from Dodger fans and the baseball world in general, and deservedly so. He has the making of a superstar. For those of us that follow the teams down on the farm, another Cody has been wending his way along after a late start to baseball. If he hasn’t been noticed before, he has gained some attention with a three-home run performance
Up until April 15 Niko Hulsizer was a name with which many, or most Dodgers fans were not familiar. He was selected by the Dodgers in the 18th round of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft as a junior out of Morehead State University in Morehead Kentucky. He has now burst upon the scene with his three-home run game against the South Bend Cubs on Monday evening. For some his outburst
Not much can be said about the Dodgers that has not already been said by someone on this blog. Much is informational, even more is well opinioned, and some is of a concern nature with the regular season not yet started. It is also difficult to sneak something on this board that someone has not already posted. So, here are a few swings and hopefully not all misses. Brandon Gomes:
Yesterday we discussed the Dodgers minor league managers for the full season teams. Today we are going to focus on the rookie league managers. Ogden Raptors Austin Chubb Chubb was born in Lake Mary, Florida and attended high school in his home town. Following his graduation, he attended State College of Florida in Bradenton, Florida playing for the Manatees for two years. He then transferred to Florida Southern University
We all follow the Dodgers minor league players with special interest as they move up the mountain towards MLB. It is a most difficult climb as the terrain is littered with land mines of various kinds. The task of the parent organization, in its own special interest and in the interest of the young men with whom they have been entrusted, is to smooth out the path up the mountain
I listened to the Kyle Glazer (BA) podcast on the state of the Dodger prospects a couple of times last week. Besides some excellent information on few of the Dodger prospects (Lux, Ruiz, Smith, May, Verdugo…), he had some commentary on the 2016 draft by LAD. Recognizing where the Dodgers drafted he was more than complimentary on the draft and stated that it may be one of the very best
I always have a fascination with young players who are selection in the last few rounds of the First-Year Player Draft. Often, they are “take a chance” picks for high school players who most likely will not sign. Two such players that may well have been steals had they signed with the Dodgers after being selected in the last three rounds of the 2018 draft opted to go to college .
