266 posts
Well, let the bidding begin. A number of publications have put out their top 50 Free Agents list. MLBTR is one of my favorites to follow. They are no better with their prognostications than are any other publication. They run contests every year, and many of the readers have…
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
There has been a lot of discussion as to what is the best way to develop a team; a team for sustained contending. Most LAD fans believe that AF builds his team for success from within. Others believe organizations can build a winning team by trading prospects for young controllable MLB stars. Others believe they need to sign affordable free agents. Most believe you need a bit of all the
This is the time of year when we hear that teams will be listening on potential trades for Player A. However, most of the time those proclamations are simply rhetorical. The Brewers have said they are willing to listen to offers for Josh Hader. The Rays will be listening on offers for Blake Snell. The Reds will be listening on offers for Sonny Gray. The Cubs are listening on offers
As Mark is prone to do, he has laid down the gauntlet. If you don’t bow down to Doc and AF you need a STUPID tattoo? I have supported both gentleman for the most part, but while I would have difficulty blaming AF too much (because of lack of insider knowledge), certainly Doc has opened himself up to scrutiny. Let’s start with AF. The Dodgers lost 2 healthy mid-rotation starting
I had the pleasure of participating in the Dodgers Monday, May 18, Zoom Party. To the best of my memory, the following is what transpired. Attendees (as pictured below): Joe Davis Alanna Rizzo Andre Ethier Austin Barnes JT Doc Alex Wood Clayton Kershaw David Price Cody Bellinger Dieter Ruhle for pre-Zoom and 7th inning stretch Later joined by Jo Koy (stand-up comic) – I have no idea who he is
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
Puppies . . . who doesn’t love them? Part of the charm of puppies is training them and teaching them to help them along the way in their growth to dogs. “Raising a puppy is not necessarily easy, but it’s an adventure that s full of rewards as you develop a deep bond with your pup that will last throughout his life. A lot of patience and a little extra effort
Rich Hill won the 2019 Tony Conigliaro Award, becoming the first Dodger to do so. The award has been given out every year since 1990 to a Major Leaguer who has overcome adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination, and courage that were trademarks of Tony Conigliaro. Rich Hill is a worthy recipient and I hope he will accept a reasonable one-year incentive-laden deal. Rich Hill exemplifies what power the
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
Of course, I would like for the Dodgers to sign Anthony Rendon, Gerrit Cole, and Stephen Strasburg while trading for a bonified closer and a set-up man. .. and while I am at it, I want to look like Brad Pitt and be as smart as Jeff Bezos. Oh, and I want Bezos money too. The odds of all that happening for the Dodgers is about as likely I look
Enjoying a Veterans Day weekend in Atascadero, CA celebrating my youngest grand daughter’s first birthday. Frankly, my thoughts are filled with her and not so much Dodger baseball. Trade proposals have been flying around this blog with renewed fervor over the past few weeks. I admit those discussions have a certain excitement to them, much like anticipating that new toy you want for Christmas, all the while knowing that most
So the past few days we have seen all sorts of made-up, fantasy league baseball trades . most of which have no basis in reality. Bluto may have had the best idea: CWS getsJoc Pederson (from Dodgers)George Valera (from Indians)Civale (from Indians) CLEVE gets:Seager (from Dodgers)Maeda (from Dodgers)Kopech (from CWS)James Beard (from CWS) LAD gets:Lindor (from Indians)Kluber (from Indians)Bummer (from CWS)Konor Pilkington (from CWS)Rocchio (from Indians) That was creative in getting
Many loyal Dodger fans believe the Dodgers ownership group is cheap and not interested in winning, and only interested in counting profits. Never mind that the Dodgers have spent more on player personnel contracts over the last five years than any other team. They have also spent lavishly on player development and re-focusing on their MiLB programs. I think we can all agree that the contract costs were not all
Yes, people think that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, but sometimes, it s crabgrass or Astroturf. People have traveled the world looking for something that was already right under their chin at home. Conventional wisdom demands that the Dodgers add a RH Power Bat, a Frontline Starter, and a Lockdown Reliever. The conventional wisdom demands that Andrew Friedman not look at the waiver wire or
Yesterday s article from 2D2 inspired the reincarnation of an article I have been toying with for a bit. I am not adverse to Doc or a big advocate. He is a good communicator and his team loves him. But he is not the best in-game manager, and the mistakes he does make (as every manager does) gets blown up because of when they happen. Game 2 of the 2017 WS
I am planning a series of blogs on each aspect of the Dodger team. Today we are going to talk about starting pitching. As it currently stands, Rich Hill and Hyun-jin Ryu are free agents. I would let Ryu walk unless he agreed to a 2-year deal under $38 million. Rich Hill is welcome back on an incentive-laden deal that would put him in the bullpen. Bottom Line: Neither will
The Arizona Fall League started nearly a month ago and Tonight they will have their All-Star Game and the Dodgers will be represented by one player, namely Brett de Geus, who has blossomed into an excellent prospect since signing for $75,000 as a 33rd-rounder from Cabrillo (Calif.) JC in 2017, developing a 93-98 mph fastball with running action, a hard slider and a power curveball. He excelled in his full-season
Let me preface this with I really don t pin this EPIC FAIL on Dave Roberts. I think the players did not execute and you may disagree That s fine! However, to lose two World Series in a row and then get bounced in the NLDS after you have dominated the season, may is certainly grounds for dismissal. If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem .
One of the many female artists (and trust there were many) on whom I had a boyhood crush, was the great country-western singer, Skeeter Davis. I loved her name, I mean how could you not love the name Skeeter? After reading some of the comments on Saturday and Sunday, I was reminded of her and her biggest hit song “The End of the World”, which goes in part(with apologies to
So, here the Dodgers sit on a pile of 105 wins. That is the most games they have ever won well actually they tied the franchise record with the win over the Giants yesterday. It s simple: they win today and the bar is raised to 106 wins. Win-wise, they are the best Dodger team ever. Some moron on another blog full of them predicted the Dodgers would win less than
When Andrew Friedman signed Rich Hill to a 3 year / $48 Million dollar deal. he was lambasted by many Dodger fans for continuing down the path of signing Scott Kazmir, Brett Anderson, and Brandon McCarthy: Another injury-prone pitcher. Blister boy! Well, here we are at the end of that deal and Rich Hill has indeed spent some quality time on the IL, but if Friedman has it to do
The State of the Bullpen… and Dodger Pitching In the month of September of teams that are likely candidates to play the Dodgers in the 2019 Fall Classic, here is how they compare in bullpen ERA since September 1st: Dodgers 3.28 Astros 3.47 Yankees 3.81 HR per 9 Innings Dodgers .95 Astros 1.52 Yankees 1.59 BABIP Batting Average Balls in-Play Dodgers .242
We may not know what we think we know and don t know what we don t know and I hope we know that we don t know. Confused? I know We know Justin Turner can walk we don t know if he can run. We will find out today. It seems that they are just being cautious and if this were the postseason he would be playing. We know that Dick Mountain
1. Kenley Jansen is Fixed False. With his 8th Blown Save last night, he again demonstrated that he was lacking command and in order to get a strike, he throws some very hittable pitches. I was against the re-signing of Kenley Jansen and this is why. Big contracts to relief pitchers seldom pan out, but here we are and the Dodgers have to make do with what they have and
To lose a game without learning something is a sad state of affairs. Yes, the Dodgers lost last night game, but they learned a few things in the process: If you can t jump out of a boat and hit water, you probably won t win (OK, OK, we already knew that); Hyun-jin Ryu has gone from being left off the playoff roster (in some of your minds) back to Cy Young
Well, it s always been serious, but with two weeks left in the season, it s Playoff Tune-up Time which is very serious. It s likely that Rich Hill and Alex Verdugo will not be ready for the NLDS or maybe the NLCS and the World Series. David Freese and Justin Turner are banged up and we have no clue how healthy they will be. This is the hand the Dodgers have to
So, if you listen to the Herm Edwards, you would always play to win the game. Well, that might be true in a 16 game football season, but I am going to suggest that while you don t ever play to lose, in a baseball season that is 10 times longer than a football season, there are reasons you don t always play to win the game. “Sometimes we need to lose
“What we do see depends mainly on what we look for. In the same field the farmer will notice the crop, the geologists the fossils, botanists the flowers, artists the colouring, sportmen the cover for the game. Though we may all look at the same things, it does not all follow that we should see them.” ― John Lubbock, The Beauties of Nature and the Wonders of the World We Live
