The photo is Justin Turner saying “It’s been nice knowing you, Joc.” In case you have been living under a rock, Joc Pederson is very polarizing to fans. People love him or hate him. With his new swing, he has cut down his strikeouts as well as most of his his power. He will not hit HR with that swing. No way, Jose! He’s an OK outfielder, not a centerfielder…
Some people will say “Wow. The Dodgers have only won one of their last two games and they are six games under .500. OMG! The sky is falling. The world is ending. The Dodgers suck!” I say: “The Dodgers have won five out of their last six games and are now only 4.5 games behind the first place Rockies.” I can’t tell you how to feel. I just know that…
Well, I have to admit that I was wondering if it really would, but it seemed like the Dodgers were cursed. Everything they did went wrong. Roberts couldn’t manage. The hitters couldn’t hit and the pitchers couldn’t pitch. Players were dropping like flies and the ones who weren’t seemed useless. I knew it would happen. I knew the Dodgers would break out… but my confidence was starting to get shaken. …
Hindsight is 20/20 and many times we can only figure out what happened… after it happens. What was wrong with the Dodgers and why they sucked so bad in 2018 is now easy for me to understand. You might disagree, but if you do, I would challenge you to come up with a better explanation than the one I am about to give you. Here goes: The Dodgers were close,…
Kenley Jansen and Scott Alexander appear to be “fixed.” That bodes well for the bullpen, but I would still like to see more help there. Of course, I have always made no bones about wanting Raisel Iglesias. Let’s take it a step farther. Cody Bellinger is a great 1B, but what if the Dodgers had another 1B who could play the position as well and also hit? I have no…
Thomas Paine wrote sixteen pamphlets entitled The American Crisis which summoned up the American revolution in the winter of 1778 as the Continental Army froze at Valley Forge: “THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman….
In order understand what a complete, unmitigated disaster this 2018 Dodger team is, it helps to look at who their best players have been so far this year. Unquestionably the two players who have carried the Dodgers to what little success they have had in 2018 are Matt Kemp and Yasmani Grandal. What is ironic is that most Dodger fans wanted Grandal gone and Kemp was not even supposed to…
Can the Dodgers Win The World Series? Well, stranger things have happened but to me it seems highly unlikely. In fact, I think it’s close to impossible. So, do the Dodgers just play as hard as they can and go as far as they can? That sounds easy, but when your stated goal is World Series or Bust before the season, it might be pretty hard to really get yourself…
I was a reading a piece the other day about how some basketball teams are built to win in the regular season, but not the playoffs. Case-in-point: the Toronto Raptors, led by Kyle Lowry, Demar DeRozan and Serge Ibaka. They shine in the regular season but cannot advance in the playoffs. Love or hate LeBron James, he steps up in the clutch. Of course Dodger Fans remember Kirk Gibson’s Home…
When the Giants won the World Series three out of five years, does anyone remember what happened in between? What is of interest to me is that after winning the World Series in 2012, in 2013 the Giants were ten games under .500 the next year – 10 GAMES! Then, the very next year, they won the World Series again. Just because some moron says the Dodgers don’t have depth,…