AC s Notes on Mookie s Night

Mookie has a 4-4 night with 3 HRs and 5 RBIs, and a HBP.  His OPS is now sitting at 1.074.  Anyone watching the game realizes that Mookie’s 3 HR night ties him with Johnny Mize and Sammy Sosa for the most 3 HR games in a career.  I am going to go out on a limb and say that before his career is over, he will have that record all by his lonesome.

There is no doubt that Mookie is special, and that he makes the team better. But for me, what is most unfortunate, is that the LA fans cannot watch him at the stadium in his first year in a Dodger uniform, and give him the accolades he so richly deserves.  Dodger Stadium would have shook for a 6.0+ on the Richter Scale for Mookie tonight.  He is going to be fun to watch for the next dozen or so years.

At the time of Corey Seager’s surgeries in 2018, I wrote that while JT is the heart and soul of the Dodgers, Corey was the glue.  The team seems to play better and more cohesively when he is in the lineup.  I do not believe that it was a coincidence that without Corey Seager for most of the year, the 2018 team tied for their worst record during their 7+ year run since 2012, with a regular season Won-Loss of 91-71 (same as 2016).   I also do not consider it a coincidence that they played mostly like excrement since he went down with back discomfort.  Doc has found an elixir and it is Mookie in leadoff and Seager at #2.  That is no surprise to many of us here at LADT, and we did not have to have special meetings with the players or management to make that observation.

I also believe that those two bunts in Wednesday’s game, was a little magic potion for the team.  At least for a little bit.  The team will go into a funk again before the season is over.  But now they know that they can win with the bunt as well as the HR.

I thought and wrote that Cody’s oppo double in Wednesday’s game was his best AB of the season.  He continued to attack with his first two AB’s in last nights game.  Just bad luck, but he crushed both balls.  Joc and Max still have work to do.  Max had a couple of awful called strikes that were not close.  The same thing was happening to Cody.  When things go bad, there are just no silver linings.  Max now has 24 K’s in 90 PA.

But guess who has woken up…that favorite whipping boy…Austin Barnes.  Two multi hit games in three, and he went 5-9 in the series. He is now hitting .226/.273/.355/.628.  His .628 OPS is better than Cody’s and Joc’s, and just south of Muncy’s .640.  No, I do not believe he should be anything more than a backup catcher, but he is a good backup catcher.

The other star on Thursday was Julio Urias, who just turned 24 on Wednesday.  The difference last night…he went after the batters.  He was pounding the strike zone.  Zero walks for the first time this year.  He threw 86 pitches, and could have finished the 7^th, but he did not need to.  Dennis Santana needed some more work, and he came in and did a great job.  The 2.2 scoreless innings from the Santana, Jake McGee, and Dylan Floro, gives the bullpen 20.2 consecutive scoreless innings.  I think it is fair to say that AF has addressed the bullpen in a big way for this year.  Dylan Floro looks almost unhittable thus far.  He has appeared in 9 of the 20 games, and pitched 8.1 innings.  He has allowed 0 runs, 4 hits, 1 BB, and 6 K.  He has a 0.6 WHIP.

I also believe that Urias went to school on Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin.  He saw how successful both of them were by being aggressive and attacking the hitters.  He needs to carry that attitude forward into his next start.  It has been my belief that it wasn’t for lack of command that Urias had increased pitch counts, but trying to be too perfect and nibbling.  I thought he needed to trust his stuff which everyone believes is top shelf.  Last night he became a pitcher.  He did not let the HR’s bother him.  He continued to fill up the strike zone.  I also believe that he was nibbling instead of lack of command, because Doc even intimated that the difference in Urias last night was how aggressive he was with the fastball and throwing it for strikes.  Hopefully, something clicked for him.

Doc also said that Gonsolin will get another start.  I am a Ross Stripling fan, but right now he is back to #6 SP behind Kershaw, Buehler, Urias, May, and Gonsolin. Maybe they stay with the six man rotation for the balance of 2020.

A little personal note.  Today will be my last post for the next several days.  As most everyone here knows, we lost our son Kristopher last year.  Monday marks the one-year anniversary of his passing, and I just do not feel all that chummy or creative.  This has been a bad year for me and my family, however LADT and the people who continue to contribute have been a blessing taking my mind away from the negativity.  I have asked our other outstanding writers to find another article in them, and I will get them published.  I will still be watching the games, but unless I want to joke with Mark, I do not see me contributing much over the next several days.  I will also continue to monitor the comments, so continue to play nice.

GO BLUE!!

Kris, this is for you.  Love you, Mom and Dad!!