A few weeks ago, I predicted that other teams would raid the Dodgers front office in an effort to emulate the Dodgers’ success. I listed possible candidates, but never mentioned the first Dodger employee who would be hired away from the organization, and even though you may not know a lot about him, the Dodgers lost a very important part of their organization. Jeremy Zoll, whom many of you have never heard of, was hired by the Minnesota Twins to be their Director of Minor League Operations. Zoll was with the Dodgers for three seasons and left as Assistant Director of Player Development. He was essentially Gabe Kapler’s right-hand man.
It will be a shame if the Dodgers lose Kapler too – he is a hot commodity. Lots of teams would love to have him. Jeremy Zoll is young and while he tried to play baseball, he saw very quickly that his talent was in coaching and player development, not actually playing. After four years of high school and four years of Division III baseball, wearing the “tools of ignorance,” Jeremy’s baseball career was over. By all accounts, he is a bright, effusive individual with high energy. He very well may be a GM someday!
This won’t be the last personnel loss, which is why you continually build your core… hire and train… hire and train. Godspeed, Jeremy!
Right about now we are treading water, waiting to see who the Dodgers play in the NLCS. In September, the Dodgers were Dogs, Bums, Heathens, and the Scum of the Earth. The Indians pole-vaulted the Dodgers as the best team in baseball. They were the flavor of the month. Corey Kluber was the re-incarnation of Cy Young and they had Andrew Miller, who could walk on water. They were anointed as the next World Champions and even though they had less wins than the Dodgers, they were placed as #1 in the MLB Power Poll.
When the Dodgers lost 16 out of 17 games, I yawned and said “so what?” While the Indians were winning 30 out of 26 games (I was never good in math), I said “so what?” Now, the Indians are gone as the Spankees beat them like Rented Mules. So much for the mainstream media. So much for expert opinions. So, much for the morons who make a living writing stupid stuff!
So, the Astros now play the Yankees for the ALCS and we… we wait to see who the Dodgers play on Saturday… the Cubs or the Nats. Whoever, whatever, like AC, I don’t care. Bring ’em on! These are Destiny’s Dodgers. We are due… actually overdue.
Discussion (35)
Disagree, not disagreeable
And so it is. I love this matchup. Yes, the Cubs are resilient but we have the bullpen to take them down. Perfect time to face them, the first game sets the tone. All I can say is pull Kersh after 6. We got this!
We’ll see Kersh vs Lackey or Tanner Roark on Saturday
Unless this game goes 17 innings in which case we’ll see Kerry Wood or Jeff Reardon
Sounds like Lackey, but Quintana didn’t throw many pitches.
This game couldn’t go much better for the Dodgers. I’m rooting for extra innings.
Max Scherzer has just been savaged by the Cubs!
And that is why we have 4 quality starters. Just say no to pitching tired and on short rest.
This is interesting. According to the the Washington Post, starting in 2016 the Dodgers, among other sports teams, stopped staying at Trump hotels.
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/pro-sports-teams-were-once-reliable-patrons-of-trumps-hotels-not-anymore/2017/10/11/113ceb8a-a47c-11e7-ade1-76d061d56efa_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-more-top-stories_no-name%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.f579a98d2435
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Not too far from the end of the article you will see this:
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“In some cases, pro teams continued to frequent Trump hotels but individual players stayed away. The Los Angeles Dodgers, for instance, returned to Trump’s Chicago hotel in May 2016 on a road trip to play the Cubs. But Adrian Gonzalez, a Mexican American first baseman, chose to stay elsewhere.
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“You can draw your own conclusions” about why, Gonzalez told the Los Angeles Times. “They’re probably right.”
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“The team soon followed suit. When the Dodgers returned to Chicago for the playoffs that year, they stayed at a new hotel.”
“The decision to stay elsewhere was not a political one,” said Dodgers spokesman Joe Jareck.
My decision to not stay in a Trump hotel is not a political one either. I have three reasons:
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1. They cost too much;
2. He is a blow-hard bombastic lunatic; and
3. He is a moron.
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Take those things away and I would stay!
Funny, I was in Chicago in June 2015 for work (I timed it where the Dodgers were in Chicago for 4 games as well).
One evening I went to the 16th floor rooftop of the Trump tower to have a drink, and on the way down, I met several of the Dodgers (Ethier, Charlie Steiner among them), who were returning from a day Wrigley game. Then I realized that the trump tower was the team hotel. It was a month or two later when candidate trump made his “Mexico is sending us their rapists, etc” comments. Agone told the team he would not stay at the hotel ever again, and many players and other teams followed suit.
Aside from my feelings of Trump, the building is awesome to look at (I’m also a huge skyscraper afficianado).
Adrian Gonzalez can pound sand. He plays for Mexico rather than the USA in the WBC. If you’re an American you should play for America! I don’t care where your parents are from.
Any respect I had for Gonzo is gone!
I’m sure he’ll be devastated.
We have control over Cingrani for 2-3 years, don’t we? I used to bitch about Honeycutt when Mattingly was the manager. I have to eat crow. Look what he has done for Darvish. Look what he has done for Cingrani. Changing Darvish ‘s arm slot and his pitch selection right before the play offs takes some courage. I believe they have so much stats on these guys they figure out quickly what works and what does not work. I heard from a friend of mine who lives in the Phoenix area that the Dodgers take the best care of their farm kids. Good to hear.
Since we don’t play today or tomorrow, and I’m thinking about 2018:
I think the thing I”m most excite about (call me nuts) is projecting how good and dominant Tony Cingrani will be next season! He’s way better than when we got him, and now I can only imagine how good he’ll be all of next year
Ditto!
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Wilson will likely walk, but Cingrani was a real deal.
The Dodgers have three other lefty relievers besides Cingrani that they have control over; Liberatore, Dayton, and Avilan (arbitration). I agree Watson will not be back with the Dodgers.
I’m thinking about 2019:
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1. Taylor CF
2. Seager SS
3. Machado 2B
4. Bellinger 1B
5. Turner 3B
6. Ruiz C
7. Puig RF
8. Verdugo LF
I get this feeling Friedman will have no trouble filling any gaps created by non players leaving. I would worry more about replacing players leaving. Like Darvish. Also Urias, since odds are not great he’ll come back soon and be what we hoped he’d be. Kershaw maybe looking at back surgery…that’s almost never good.
Urias will likely miss all of 2018, but I expect him to come back strong in 2019. I still see great thinks for him.
I’m not sure if this would be considered ‘a huge Dodger loss’. Having Roberts leave to go manage the Giants would be a huge loss. As would Guggenheim selling the team back to McCourt or Kershaw’s arm falling off. Losing Zoll is more like, “Oh, well.”
This organization has done a tremendous shop in turning around the minor league system. Yeah, having any guy who was an instrumental part of that leave hurts a bit, but it will be more of a blow if Zaidi or Kapler leave. I think those guys will be courted hard by some other teams. Remember Billy Beane was all, “Ah, come on, man!!” when Friedman poached him from the As.
As it stands TODAY, it’s not a huge loss, but like you said, Zaidi and Kapler will be courted and money(and more power) talks. If you lose either one, losing Zoll will be a HUGE blow. Zoll is a rising star that Friedman got “before he was that guy.”
I heard the Red Sox may have Kaplar on there list of candidates, to be there new manager.
I think Kapler and Gerean are in everyone’s list
Red Sox will be Alex Cora, Varitek or Ausmus.
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I think.
I don’t think Zaidi goes anywhere unless he gets a gig like Friedman’s.
That is exactly what I am afraid of, but AJ can slide over into that seat.
Not Dayton – Stewart plus a few others.
This explains it –
http://m.dodgers.mlb.com/news/article/258278328/dave-roberts-mulling-dodgers-nlcs-roster/?topicId=27118384
One other comment. I thought I saw Ryu and Joc in the dugout. If you are not on the team can you be in the dugout? Maybe it was my imagination.
The Dodgers have them in the dugout. The entire 40-man roster is not there, but several are. including Pederson. I did not see Ryu but he is still in play for a roster spot.
It’s the Taxi Squad – AGon is in it too.
There is another squad of players that had been sent to AZ to keep “Warm”.
Beuhler, Font, Dayton and a few others are there, working out, just in case.
Hoping for a Cubs win tonight – would rather face them if possible.
Grandal will start half of the games. I still think Grandal will have a decent series. Barnes is my favorite catcher. I think Stripling stays as the long relief man. Maeda could play that role. However, he has become an important part of the back end of the bull pen. Baez is the one who could go or stay as needed. I just cannot imagine Locastro on the team.
I think the roster is going to look a bit different largely depending on Avilan’s sim games. I think Avilan replaces either Baez or Stripling and it is possible that another position player will replace the other. Bill Plunket put an article out for Baseball America that says Locastro is still in play for the NLCS. Doc said the final spot came down to Baez or Locastro for NLDS. Also, if Barnes is now the starter it weakens the Dodgers bench from the right side. Locastro is RH hitter, but it could open the door for Segedin too. It really depends on how much they feel the need to carry a long reliever(Stripling).
Regarding my last point in the previous post, what makes anyone think that players are all that the Dodgers scout?
Cleveland losing to the Yankees proves the point that the playoffs are a crapshoot. Didn’t help that Encarnacion was hurt.
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Sure hope you’re right, and that these are truly Destiny’s Dodgers.
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Cubs? Nationals? I have no preference. Just rooting for the Dodgers.
Not worried about the Dodgers losing management talent. I suspect that they’re stockpiling talent there as well. And what’s to stop the Dodgers from raiding the talent of other teams?