67 posts
If you ain’t failing… you ain’t trying! Well, Andrew Friedman has failed a lot! It all started with Brett Anderson, Scott Kazmir, and Brandon McCarthy. Maybe they weren’t an absolute failure – maybe they were a “bridge,” but most people view it as a failure. He tried… Good on…
According to numerous MLB sources who are all pretty credible, the Dodgers wanted to re-sign Kenley Janson. However, some fans want to believe otherwise. I will be the first to tell you that every report from an “insider” is suspect and not to be taken to the bank, but when I…
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…
Spring Training stats can be so deceiving: Last week Garrett Cleavinger was the flavor of the week, an almost certain lock to make the team. Sunday, maybe not so much. Last week, it appeared that Dennis Santana had pitched his way off the opening roster. Sunday, he sort of, kind of, maybe, redeemed himself. But then again, “it’s spring and the statistics don t matter!”
We have all been talking about the Dodgers depth for some time now. The national media has touted that this is the deepest organization in baseball. One announcer said that if you split to team up into two teams that they would still be formidable. So, let s play a little Fantasy Baseball. I thought it might be fun to break up the Dodgers into two teams and see how each
It s quite possible that a monkey throwing darts at random reliever names may outperform the deepest pocket GM s in the game when it comes to picking relievers.
Since my wife and I started US Systems in our garage 18 years ago, we have never both been able to be gone for more than 4 or 5 days due to the demands of it. However, in the past two years, we have hired 5 vice-presidents in Sales, Finance, Marketing, Engineering, and Operations from the corporate world. This is the first time we have been able to be gone
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
Earlier in the week, I read an article from Dodgers Nation on the perceived struggles the Dodgers seem to have with signing elite free agents. There is no real answer, but a lot of potential scenarios. And then there was a comment during the week, “If the Dodgers do nothing much at all, is that good, are we glad that they chose not to try to improve the team, while
Well, I was going to continue with my analysis of the NL West competition, but I thought that I would comment on the this past week and what the future may hold. Most Dodger fans got caught up in all of the Bryce Harper sweepstakes (including me), but as many of us said at the beginning of the Hot Stove League, a long term deal for Bryce Harper is not
Per JT on the Suits: We trust them, said the third baseman and team leader. The front office has done a great job. They build a 40-man roster, not a 25-man roster, and that s the biggest difference between the Dodgers and other teams. I have been saying that for 4 years running. AF is a master at building the 40-man roster to play in a 162-game season. The Dodgers should
So many Dodger fans and Dodger Bloggers and Dodger Journalists are saying that the Dodgers are cheap and ran like the Tampa Bay Rays because they won t go out and trade bushels of top prospects for Kluber or Realmuto or that they won t sign Bryce Harper to a 14 year/$420 million dollar contract. Look, there is no dumbass vaccine and I am convinced that fans who want that are mentally
Now that the Dodgers are in the NLDS, I thought I would take a look back to see how they got here. While I never gave up hope, I absolutely had my doubts. I had concerns about how the team was structured, and in game management. It became apparent that the primary focus for the front office was to get below and stay below the competitive balance tax threshold. If
It was actually an encouraging game for the Dodgers as a team. CT3 got on base on 4 of his plate appearances. Plus he actually got a stolen base. Puig had a 3 hit night. The Dodgers actually got a sac fly. After the third inning they stopped chasing Corbin’s slider and worked him to where he was gone after 5. Baez is proving to be a good low leverage
Secret Weapon #1 This is a series that will focus on several weapons the Dodgers have that could make a world of difference to them in 2018. Today, we will discuss secret weapon #1. This series will run several days I can t tell you how many there are because you can t know (yet) how many secret weapons the Dodgers have. When the Dodgers traded Adrian Gonzalez, Scott Kazmir, Brandon
I frequently hear this: This is the same Dodger Team as Last Year. The Dodgers are standing pat. I guess some people think that if they say it enough, it will become true. If that s the case, keep repeating over-and-over that you are Brad Pitt. Poof, it will happen! READ THIS SLOWLY: This is not the SAME team as last year. Is it better? I don t know . MAYBE. Maybe not,
By now it s old news that the Dodgers were named the Organization of the Year in 2017 by Baseball America. If we go back in time to when Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi took over the Dodgers three years ago, the Farm System was ranked number 14 in all of baseball by Baseball America. In one short year, FAZ elevated that ranking to #3 and in 2016, they were ranked
What’s happening to this year’s crop of free agents? This is December 27, and out of the top 50 MLB TradeRumors free agent predictions, only 19 have signed new contracts, and one decided not to opt out (Masahiro Tanaka). Of the 30 unsigned players, none of the top 11 have signed new contracts (excluding Tanaka not opting out), and 15 of the top 20 are still unsigned. Of the
Well this has been some Hot Stove League for the Dodgers thus far, right? The Winter Meetings went just about as most expected…the current 40 man roster is the same as before the meetings started. I don t count Koehler because he was post Winter Meetings, and the signing is still pending physical. I never thought Stanton was an option, but it was fun to fantasize. My only disappointment is that
Just because other teams make dope-fiend moves, doesn t mean the Dodger have to. Look, they have been paying the luxury tax for too long and have paid about $300 million in penalties. It started with foolish, long-term deals to Kemp and Ethier and then came THE TRADE (Beckett, Gonzalez and Crawdad). The Dodgers owe Kemp $5.5 million over the next two year, but after next season, most of the obligations
OK, I ll put down my crack pipe, if you put down yours. Stanton and Ohtani were crack! Just say no to drugs! This Team Is Still Pretty Special. The won 104 games and just missed winning the World Series by that much. Let s start with this: The Dodgers are set at a number of positions with some high quality players, most of whom are young enough to improve even more .
By the time Brandon Morrow got to the big leagues in 2017, the Dodgers were ready for someone to set-up Kenley Jansen on the back of the bullpen. Brandon Morrow filled that bill and while I would love to have him back, there are two problems: (1) He was healthy last year, but he has generally never been that healthy at any time in his career; and (2) some other
I continue to read that Dodger Ownership/Management wants to get under the luxury tax threshold THIS year. That is certainly a laudable goal, and under normal circumstances I can see why that should always be the goal. But is 2018 the year to draw the line? Sometimes you need to spend money to make money. In home building, finishes are upgraded to get buyers to sign. Buyers are visual…bling
Yes, some GM s have made dope fiend moves in the past the recent past, but they eventually figure it out (or get fired), which is why I think the Free Agent Signing Market has been non-existent so far. The signings of Cueto, Samardzija, Price, Greinke and may others to idiotic, dope-fiend contracts has not been the pathway to success for major league teams. Houston won the World Series this year
Anyone who really believes they know what the Master Plan is could be delusional. One thing I have learned is that one never knows in what direction FAZ goes. Did anyone truly believe that FAZ would have signed all three 2016 FA? Most did not even think Hill was a consideration, and that FAZ would only sign one of Jansen and Turner. I thought that Turner would come back (LA
Lest we forget, the Dodgers were so close, so very close to winning the World Series last year and they were (for the most part) a very young team. The CF, SS and 1B were all under 24. The RF was 26 and the catcher was 27. Next year, they will be even younger after Chase Utley, Andre Ethier and Adrian Gonzalez are gone, but that’s not to say they
This year’s MLB Winter Meetings will be held December 10-14 in Ontario, Florida. On the final day of the MLB’s Winter Meetings, the annual Rule 5 draft takes place. Players eligible for selection must meet the following criteria: Not on the MLB team’s 40 man roster. 5th Year after signing initial contract is signed at 18 or younger, or; 4th year after signing initial contract is signed at 19 or
OK, that headline brands me as crazy, right? Well, that s old news! Everyone knows that Gioncarlo Stanton is going to cost almost $30 million a year right? Maybe over the life of the contract, but next year, he might be FREE. Here s a really important fact: The Dodgers don t need to do anything, but if they do, it should be significant and it should reduce payroll. I think the Dodgers can
Many have posited (including me) that the depth the Dodgers have generated were critical in their march to 104 wins. I have also written that the depth needs to be pruned at times so that the organization will continue to grow by clearing the way for new prospects or ML 25 man roster help. That is why I had no problem with sending Jharel Cotton, Grant Holmes, and Frankie Montas
One of the positives about getting to the WS and extending it to 7 games, is that there is only 5 weeks before the Winter Meetings in Orlando. We are going to have to pack in a lot of thought and suggestions about the restructuring of a 104 win team into a WS champion. We are all so much smarter than Friedman and Zaidi sitting in front of a computer
