14 posts
Abbreviated Spring Time Random Thoughts by 2Demeter2 (aka/Rowan) I was hoping to finish my article on Alanna Rizzo this week, but I have been down and out with the flu and a cold for the past 4 days, feeling rather punkish. So that article will have to wait for another day. On the other hand, one of the “benefits” of being down and out was that I got to
So many of us have been looking at FA possibilities and trade possibilities that most have not paid any attention to the first date that will impact the 2020 Dodgers roster. The 40 man roster needs to be set by November 20, 2019 with all Rule 5 eligible prospects protected. The actual Rule 5 draft will take place on Thursday, December 12, 2019. That gives AF and his staff less
I’m very grateful to Mark T. for covering for me yesterday. I spent the last 4 days in Las Vegas at a Trial Lawyers Conference, attended by approximately 3,500 attorneys. Some people might think that being surrounded by this many attorneys is as close as you can possibly get to hell on earth but, alas, it’s my profession and I survived unscathed. As Willie Nelson sang in “Me and Paul”
On a number of occasions Mark has advised that the game is evolving and we should get used to it. It is difficult to argue with either point. The game has evolved out of necessity to offer a sense of fairness in competition and to, as they say, level the playing field with a standard set of enforceable rules. Actually, if you Google it, there are ample sources following the
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
Landry is one of those guys who keeps us a bit off base with his name, which is Simon Meaux Landry. From all reports it seems he goes by Meaux, as in “Mo”. He was selected by the Dodgers in the 22nd round of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft out of Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Mississippi. He grew up in Ponchatoula, Louisiana and attended high school in his
The Great Lakes Loons of the Class-A Midwest League really presented a “Tale of Two Cities” scenario during the 2018 season. In the the first half of the season they posted a 24-44 won-loss record, the lowest in the Midwest League and perhaps challenging for the lowest in all of Class-A ball. During the second half they put together a record of 36-33 with a blistering 27-10 stretch starting during the
The plight of the Dodgers has many Dodger fans concerned about them playing in the post season. More specifically, not playing in the post season. I tend to think they will make it but don’t lose any sleep over it at night. I have lived through all of the Dodger WS championships and do pine for another. Although I am in good health and questionably sound of mind (it has
Left-hander John Rooney made his third appearance of the 2018 season on Monday night, the first in the Class A Midwest League. Rooney was a bit surprisingly selected by the Dodgers in the third round of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft. The 6’5”/235-pound native of Melrose, New York attended Hoosie Valley High School in Schaghticoke where he posted a 35-0 win-loss record. That is not a typo. Following graduation he
A few years ago I attempted to predict the Great Lakes Loons opening day roster. It proved to be a very difficult assignment as there are so many variables at play. First, it seems impossible to know which young players may have suffered spring training injuries, perhaps minor, or experienced other delays but it does mean they are not on the opening day 25-man roster as expected. A second variable
MLB Pipeline recently came out with its updated Top 30 rankings for Dodger minor league prospects. One addition to the list, albeit at No. 27, is outfielder Romer Cuadrado who played the full 2017 season as a 19-year-old with the Ogden Raptors of the rookie level Pioneer League. Actually, he turned 20 on September 12 just five days before the Ogden squad won their first league championship. MLB Pipeline is
The New MLB Pipeline Dodger Top 30 prospeccts have been published. Jim Callis is a premier minor league talent evaluator. He is not the typical sabermetrics talent evaluator. He uses the eye test as well. If he has not seen the player live, he has studied hours of tape. Some people prefer Eric Logenhagen of Fangraphs or Baseball America’s Kyle Glaser, but I am partial to Jim Callis. The
Last Monday when the Dodgers acquired Yu Darvish, Tony Watson, and Tony Cingrani, the Dodgers traded four players from their top 30 prospect list; Willie Calhoun, Brendon Davis, AJ Alexy, and Oneil Cruz. That opened the door for four new members of the Dodgers top 30. Jacob Rhame returned to the top 30 and #is now listed at #28. Three new members of the top 30 are: #27 Cristian Santana
DRAFT UPDATE The 2017 MLB Draft is in the books, and the signing deadline has come and now gone. The Dodgers had 40 draft picks, and signed 33. Each of the first 13 picks signed, and 19 of the first 20 signed. 8 signed from picks 21-30, and 6 signed from picks 31-40. For comparison purposes, the Dodgers drafted 42 in 2015 and 2016, and signed 36 and 33 respectively.
