Are the Dodgers Ruining Andrew Freidman?
In 2008, Andrew Friedman took the Tampa Bay Rays to the World Series with a $51,000,000 Dollar Payroll. They didn’t win. The $112,000,000 Dollar Phillies did, but it was remarkable that the Rays made it that far on so little money spent. In 2021, the Dodgers did not even get to…
In 2008, Andrew Friedman took the Tampa Bay Rays to the World Series with a $51,000,000 Dollar Payroll. They didn’t win. The $112,000,000 Dollar Phillies did, but it was remarkable that the Rays made it that far on so little money spent. In 2021, the Dodgers did not even get to the World Series and their payroll was $262,000,000 Dollars. That’s more than 5X what AF paid in 2008. Of course, inflation has set in, but not quite that much. Of course, most fans don’t care because it ain’t their money; and they want to win at any cost. Most Dodger fans were overjoyed when the Dodgers traded for Manny “I beat a 64-year-old traveling secretary up” Ramirez.
Yes, Manny electrified LA – who can forget Mannywood? But, Manny Ramirez was not a nice person. In fact, he was a scumbag. I said then, and I say it now, “I’d rather lose without him than win with him.” It is just my opinion, but I do not believe in “win at all costs“. Fortunately, Andrew Friedman has assembled a team of high-character individuals. I like that… a lot. I know that some will point to Trevor Bauer, and if you do, make sure you have a great argument that does not suck… because I doubt you do. I have a rebuttal, but I’ll stop for now.
This is a team built with character, experience, maturity, and respect, but did the Dodgers “do a deal with the Devil” in order to get here? Before I try and answer that, I am going to go all the way back to when I was in the 6th Grade. At my school, 6th grade was part of the Middle School and I was a six-foot-tall gangly country kid. Whenever we played games at recess or in physical education, during summer breaks or on weekends, the 8th-Graders always picked the teams, and they always “stacked” them so that the biggest 8th graders were on one team against the smaller, younger 6th or 7th graders. There are two things they never calculated: (1) How much I hate to lose and ; (2) How much I hate bullies!
It didn’t take long, but pretty soon, they started picking me first. The thing was: I don’t like to play with bullies. I’d rather beat them! The same thing happened when I was a Freshman in high school. I was 6′ 4″ 210 pounds and could dunk a basketball with either hand. I could also hit a baseball out of sight and throw the ball out of the stadium. It didn’t take long for the Seniors to start picking me early (a Bully move to beat the Freshman), but the thing was, I did not like to play with Bullies. I loved to beat them. Several of them came after me once in the shower, but I was tipped off and had a baseball bat with me. After taking the first one out the others left me alone. Did I mention that I hate bullies? It’s a weakness of mine. I cannot tolerate bullies who try and beat weaker people.
I learned to play every sport by playing against older guys. Because I was always big for my age, I had to get “schooled” in sports by the bullies, but I soon learned how to hold my own, and eventually dominate the bullies. In basketball, if they fouled me, I fouled them harder… they soon decided they didn’t like paying that price. In baseball, I knocked out 3 catchers by bulldozing them… and that was just in high school. I hate bullies.
That’s why it feels like a “bully move” when you can outspend anyone by 2 or 3 times just so you can win because of your big pile of cash. In some respects, the Dodgers are like bullies – outspending everyone else and trying to tilt the tables so that they can beat teams with “weaker” pocketbooks. At least, that is how I feel sometimes. I like a level playing field. It certainly does not feel level… right about now.
It’s one thing to sign ’em cheap and stack ’em deep, but money can’t buy what you need. The Beatles said it so concisely:
Sometimes the Baseball Gods simply won’t allow it. Case-in-Point: When was the last time anyone argued about who the best player in baseball might be. Two or three years ago, it was Mookie or Mike Trout? Now it’s just Mike… and maybe Juan Soto. Mookie ain’t even in the discussion. Is Mookie injured? Maybe, but I don’t think so! I have watched him closely. Mookie will be 30 years old this year. When the Dodgers traded for him, I said that I did not think he would age well. Mookie is a small guy – his game is speed and coiled-up power.
From age 22 to 28, Mookie was great (except for one year when he battled injuries). But, even then he was still 6th in the MVP Voting. Mookie is now in his 9th year. The Dodgers traded Alex Verdugo, who is 5 years younger for Mookie. Alex Verdugo is not Mookie, but neither is Mookie! Starting in 2024 through 2032, the Dodgers owe Mookie something between $30 and $35 million every year. The Dodgers have Mookie for 10 more years after 2022 and owe him $319 Million. Tell me that is not going to end badly.
Of course, many of you will try and justify it by saying, “Yes but we won a World Series because of Mookie.” I say that the Dodgers won a World Series with Mookie. He was a part of a team that won it. Baseball is a team game. You are free to believe that the Mookie Betts trade helped the Dodgers win the World Series, but Alex Verdugo was his equal in statistics… a lot cheaper too. Would the Dodgers have won without the trade – you can have an opinion, but you can never KNOW!
I would have never made that trade and I don’t think Friedman would have either, but I think he was pressured by Kasten and Walter to do it (“We have the money – Go for it!”). It’s done and I am not going to cry in my beer very long, but deals like this are frequently boat anchors. I do not think that Mookie will be a bad player (at least I hope not), but I do not see him as being a TOP 15 Outfielder anymore. Mookie may have some decent seasons again, but he will never be that 2018 MVP that they traded for – No way! No how! I hope to the Big Dodger in the Sky that I am wrong, and I still root hard for Mookie. Mookie happens to be a class act! I am just being realistic…
Dodger Notes and News
- OK, now do you believe me when I say Striker Buehler is fine? 9 IP, 3 H, 0 BB, 10 K’s – HIs ERA now sits at 2.55. The Ace of the Staff is alive an well and maybe the Dodgers knew what they were doing in ramping pitchers up slowly. A 12-4 start ain’t bad!
- Let’s see if the Catman do the same.
- Do I even need to mention the power rankings? I didn’t think so. There is no question…
- I am happy to see the success Joc is having right now. Joc is a good dude and he’s at home. It just needs to stop when they play LA. Also, I doubt that it continues, but if so… carry on, Joc!
- Max Muncy is starting to “Flash his Lumber.” The onslaught is coming.
- Around the League: The Mets are off to a good start, but I see a crash and burn coming. They simply are not that good and Robinson Cano (whom they owe a Billion Dollars) is hitting .182.
As Your Stomach Turns
In a preview of what Trever Bauer will unleash against Rob Manfred and MLB, he file suit in Federal Court against the woman who accused him of sexual assault. In it he claimed that the woman “fabricated allegations of sexual assault against him, pursued bogus criminal and civil actions against him, made false and malicious statements about him, and generated a media blitz based on her lies.” The suit alleges that the woman “wanted to destroy Mr. Bauer’s reputation and baseball career, garner attention for herself, and extract millions of dollars” from him.
Bringing a suit in Federal Court is usually considered more serious, as fewer lawyers are certified (or whatever they call it) to practice in the Federal System. Of course, the morons at many of the other blogs will bring in their shoddy attorneys to refute this, just like last week when someone who said they were an attorney wrote a disjointed and rambling piece about Bauer. Maybe Trevor will sue that b_____d too. If Trevor did what that woman accused him then he should burn in hell, but if she is lying, she should! To me, her case unraveled a long time ago and MLB is likely to get slpped with a Lawsuit if the time is extended again. It’s to for this to end! The Village Idiot who runs MLB needs to just shut up and re-instate Bauer… NOW!
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Discussion (81)
Disagree, not disagreeable
There is NO WAY we win in 20 with Verdugo instead of Mookie! Just his defensive play alone was a series changer with Atlanta! As one “brilliant” sage once said, patience grasshopper! Ya’ll will be eating your words by the end of the year!
OK, I think the pitch limit is more about analytics than actual pitch limits. By the time a starter is ready for his third time through the order, he has lost a little on his fastball and his slider or curve may not have as much “bite.” Analytics help hitters to know exactly what to do when that happens. Teams may say it is “pitch count” but I think scouting and analytics have precipitated this.
It is impossible to directly figure causes and effects when there are so many variables, as in a baseball season, or thirty years of them. But we do know that the Dodgers won one World Championship in a full season from 1966-1988. Then they did not win one World Championship in any season, from 1989-2019. Then they won one in a very short season in 2020.
The Tampa Bay Rays did not win any World Championships when Friedman was General Manager. This was most likely due to the fact that the Rays did not have the payroll to go after the kind of proven star players who would get them over the top.
You do not absolutely need one of those, though it is almost essential,. And two is even better. Fine, we do not want to try to buy our way to titles, but the Yankees and Red Sox have. So I was very tired and upset at what it looked to me was the Dodgers ownerships, from O’Malley, to Fox, to McCourt, to the first years of Guggenheim, seeming to balk at paying the really big contracts which it took to land superstars. Sure, grow your own, but 53 years of mostly doing that got us not too much. Thirty-one years of no titles at all, and from 1989- 2017, no pennants.
Going after Mookie was essential, even if the Dodgers and probably everyone else may have missed a medical condition. That does happen. Betts was crucial in us wining the title in 2020, and we’ll see what he contributes this year. I was very happy to land Scherzer and Turner last year, and exhilarated to get Freeman this year, who is the kind of player that we have wanted for decades; it is only a shame that he is not in his 20’s now. And I liked getting Bauer, and I would not blame anyone for that, either.
At least right now, the Dodgers ownership and management is competing for titles, not bailing out of the bidding. This is what they should do. They make more money than any franchise in baseball except perhaps the Yankees. The should not let other franchises outbid them. Imagine if we did not sign Freeman, we would not win a title this year. I hope we replace Trea Turner with a really good shortstop. I don’t expect an all-star at every position, but I want our team to have as much or more talent as anyone else, just like the Lakers did for many years, and the Rams did last year.
I am not as much of a fan of young prospects as many are. I did follow them more closely in the ’80’s and ’90’s, and there were a few big rewards, and then all sorts of players who disappointed, but we kept around for years. I found the ’90’s to be a miserable era for the Dodgers fans, outside of following Piazza. I remember people calling the Dodgers shows after the game, and continually asking about players in the minors, as a substitute for the fact that we were not one of the best teams in baseball.
I love the fact that we now have a team which can score four or five runs even when the lineup is not clicking. I don’t know how we will do as far as a title this year, with the playoffs being diluted to where any middling team could get hot and win. But I enjoy where we are much more than where we had been. And I hope we do not soon go back to letting other franchises get the big stars in the offseason, while we nibble around for under-the-radar types, often with recurrent arm injuries. So I do not think anyone is “ruining” Andrew Friedman, who for one reason or bad luck or another, never won a world title until the year he was allowed to acquire Mookie Betts.
……”But through his first month with Pederson in his lineup, Kapler has focused on something else. He said Pederson’s personality in the dugout is different from what he expected.”
“It’s very calm. Very calm. Very stoic, very focused,” Kapler said. “I’ve known Joc for a really long time but I haven’t really seen him in the dugout for a really long time, so this is, it’s really pleasant. He’s really locked in throughout the game, not too high, not too low. “
There seems to be many more blue shirts than red shirts in that blimp hanger in Phoenix.
You can say what you want about Lux, but I say YIPS!
It is still in his head big time. Just switch Taylor and Lux positions.
Give him one less thing to think about!
Gavin Lux reminds me of Steve Sax. It’s better get him out of the infield. And some here wants to give him shortstop next year, go figure.
I really don’t get all this Betts nonsense. Go see the 1971 World Series and see Roberto Clemente. Maybe you will see what maybe AF think will Betts will look a little bit alike when he is 37.
I really can’t see signing Trea Turner either. Maybe Jacob Amaya is the SS next year. If he can hit .220 the Dodgers could live with that!
2023
1. Betts – RF
2. Lux LF
3. Freeman 1B
4. Smith C
5. Muncy 3B
6. Taylor 2B
7. Vargas/Rios 3B
8. DH
9. Amaya SS
Amaya IS a SS! I just don’t know how much he will hit, although he is hitting .326 this year at AA (1.143 OPS). He will be 24 next year. Maybe its his time.
The Dodgers have hit into FIVE double plays in this game.
So I am predicting it will go to the 10th, at least, with the placed runner getting tagged out at 3rd on another double play.
When does the greatest lineup in baseball history step up and live up to its bswar
Mark, I am Boricua and Roberto lived about 5 miles from were I was raised. I am not saying in any way Mookie will be like Roberto. My point is if a player have some of tools Roberto had, baserunning, arm, power, hitting, and the chance of staying athletic deep in the 30s can be Mookie. And that and I state again, maybe is the reason AF gave Mookie that long contract . I will add that Roberto had some serious neck issues throughout his career l, but never had a long stint in the DL.
Tough game to lose when you only give up 4 hits but 5 runs.
And hit into 5 double plays. A lot of bad luck hitting, but you let any major league team hang around and you can lose.
The Lux error was very costly and makes you wonder about his ability to stay in the infield.
I am a big fan of Gavin, but he has had the throwing yips since he has been in the majors.
It is a long season and plenty of time to work out issues, but the Dodgers show signs of finding ways to lose close games. Very similar to recent years with inability to create runs, poor clutch hitting, terrible base running, and refusal to bunt or advance runners. Just like last year, the Giants play a more aggressive brand of baseball and find ways to win close games. I dislike Kapler, but his approach of bunting, stealing, and adding on runs no matter what the score make them a better team. The talent level of the Giants the last 2 years is not even close to the Dodgers, yet they have stayed slightly in front of Dodgers. Last year the Giants were 31-17 in one run games and 10-9 in extra innings. The Dodgers were 24-24 in one run games, and 6-13 in extra innings.
Aside from the Lux play, another key play to me was Freeman hitting into a DP in the second inning. The Dodgers led off with back to back singles and Davies was almost done with 50 pitches in less than 2 innings. After Betts flew out the Dodgers had Taylor at third and Lux at first and one out. Instead of stealing or hit-run with Lux, Freeman grounded into inning ending DP. The Dodgers did not score the rest of the game.
The Dodgers have the best roster in baseball, and should win the division and make playoffs comfortably. But the playoffs will always come down to execution and winning close games. If you are unwilling to bunt, steal, or hit the other way in the regular season games, you will struggle to execute in the postseason. The Dodgers are talented enough to dominate with starting pitching, bullpen and home runs. But they will vastly improve their chances if they utilize their athleticism and small ball approach as well.