Austin Barnes is not the Problem

Muncy has been limited in baseball related activities since last week. But yesterday he was seen taking ground balls at third. He is not however swinging a bat. Maybe a couple weeks away from that. Kershaw said yesterday he feels great, and even more, he feels good the day after he throws. He threw to live hitters the other day. The team flies to Pittsburgh today and will see Pirate phenom Paul Skenes on Wednesday. Mookie hit his 52nd career leadoff homer yesterday. He is now one behind Craig Biggio.

I think that Miggy Ro stat that you showed is a great indication that getting SOMETHING from the bottom of the order makes all the difference!

There is a reason Barnes caught most of the games in the 20 WS…..

Dodgers Minor League Standings 6/3/24

OKC BASEBALL CLUB 2nd place 32-22 2.0 GB

TULSA DRILLERS 3rd place 25-26 5.0 GB

GREAT LAKES LOONS 2nd place 27-24 3.0 GB

RANCHO CUCAMONGA QUAKES 2nd place 23-26 3.0 GB

ARIZONA COMPLEX LEAGUE DODGERS 1st place14-7 2.5 GA

DOMINICAN SUMMER LEAGUE DODGERS BAUTISTA Season Opener Today

DOMINICAN SUMMER LEAGUE DODGERS MEGA Season Opener Today

Barnes isolated is not the problem. But we have too many other “Barnes” on the roster. Too many easy outs in the lineup .

Good to see Cartaya at least doing a little better than at the beginning of the season.

Still only plays 3-4 games a week. Tough to get into a rythm . I heard he has back problems which is making it hard to catch every day but why they do not use him more at DH ?

DePaula two more hits yesterday. Average is climbing slowly but steadily. Maybe he will get a call to GL later in the year.

Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The record with Barnes in the lineup has very little to do with Barnes. His stats are his stats. He can’t hit and can’t throw. Yesterday he was watchable as he contributed. He contributes in game calling, preparation, and giving Will Smith breaks. As backup catchers go he is probably average or better. The Dodgers have done a much better job against lefties this year.

As far as Freeman obviously he has been an exceptional player over his career. He has gotten off to a slow start particularly against lefties(235). Idk where u got the bat speed number. Everything I can find he is at 22percent in bat speed, his hard hit and exit rate are below 50percent among all players. However u measure it Freddie is off to a slow start for him.

Alex Vesia is looking like the Vesia of old. Since the grand slam he gave up in Cincy he has been lights out. When he gets ahead of the count… Banda has been awesome. So happy for Gavin Stone. After what he went through last year. This is one tough young man with great stuff. Michael Grove settling in nicely in his role. If used correctly(kudos doc) he is an asset.

We are still struggling offensively. The top 3 have been in a funk. Yesterday was good for 2 of them. Heyward is starting to contribute. Rojas is having a fine year. I sill think the offense is the area to focus on. A big if (healthy)but with Treinen, Hudson, Phillips the pen and starters can matchup with any playoff team. About Vargas , I think they are nursing him along due to his defensive maturity.

From Dylan Hernandez.

“Equally, if not more, troublesome is the bottom of the lineup, which has made the Dodgers overly reliant on the Big Four of Betts, Freeman, Shohei Ohtani and Will Smith.

The combined batting averages of the Dodgers’ No. 6, 7, 8 and 9 hitters was a combined .204 entering the series finale against the Rockies, which ranked fourth-worst in baseball.

Chris Taylor is batting .108, Kike Hernandez .198 and Gavin Lux .209.”

He’s right. This is not an October formula for success.

Bill Plunkett mentions Bobby back up soon….

Unless Bobby just kills it Friday in OKC, from what we saw Saturday, he may have a few more at that AAA level. Was rather surprised to hear he was pitching for the Quakes, so of course had to go and yes, playing in front of 47,000 is different than 2,600… but three innings and the placement of pitches seemed off. The energy should be better in OKC, and Outman seems to be on a tear wanting to get back on the team so something that Miller might be able to feed off of as well. That in combination with the fact that we really are not in a rush to bring anyone back at the moment leaves me to believe he’s got a little more time before he gets back into the rotation.

I think management is working the plan that they put together last year after getting blown out by the Diamondbacks. The goal is not to win 100+ games, the goal is to do a deeeeeep run and I think they’re working the plan that they devised last year.

Austin Barnes is good at what he does, and what he does is call a great game. He is also adept at framing. His offense is mediocre to bad. But he has had his days. Last year LA had two 1-0 wins, Barnes knocked in the winning run in both. One was an 8th inning homer. Barnes was the primary catcher in 2017 when Grandal faded so bad at the end. He hit .289 with 8 homers and 38 driven in, by far his best offensive season. He then played in 15 of the post season games, including all seven of the World Series. Where Will Smith has it all over him on defense, is Will’s newfound ability to throw out runners. Barnes has caught only 2 of 18 base stealers. Smith, who leads the league in caught stealing pct, has caught 15 out of 32. 47%. For comparison, Campanella caught 57% of runners in his career.

Watching Barnes receive the ball especially on pitches at the bottom of the zone then watching the opponent is night and day. Barnes catches the ball with his fingers up making it easy for the umpire to give the pitcher the low strike. The catcher for Colorado yesterday would catch the ball with his fingers down and the mitt would drop when would receive the pitch, often the mitt would be near the ground. This makes it difficult for the umpire to call that pitch a strike. Same with pitches near the plate on the sides or up, Barnes keeps as much of the glove in the strike zone as possible and still catches the ball. Will Smith is an all star, one of the top or close to the top catchers in MLB, but Barnes despite his shortcomings in part of his game is a valuable presence on the team. I appreciate Mark and getting the Dodgers record when Barnes is catching. makes a person wonder what the pitchers strikeouts to walks are when Barnes is catching versus the MLB average. If I were king for a day, I would have Smith grab a fielders glove and see if he can play third base in a couple of years. Joe Torre did it, Yogi went to left field, etc. We have some great catching prospects coming and Smith is a player with a long contract with the Dodgers. But I won’t ever be a king for the day.

I have always felt Will Smith would move to 3B at some point and have said that for years.

2027

1B – Liranzo

2B – Betts

SS – Freeland

3B – Smith

LF – Vargas

CF – Ohtani

RF – Pages

C – Cartaya/Rushing

DH – Freeman

It isn’t always the superstars that can win a WS. Pena, Soler, Pierce and Zobrist are MVP examples. We need some help from the bottom as well. Otherwise we’re playing six innings verses 9

it was nice to see Austin Barnes get a couple of knock yesterday. Good for him he needed that and the Dodgers needed that. …. Gavin Stone looks sharp yesterday! Some big decisions coming soon to a dodger stadium near you! With Clayton coming back, Miller coming back, what the heck do you do with James Paxton ? Just can’t sling him to the side, and I don’t think he’s a bullpen piece. On to pittsburgh!! Tough pitching first two games for the pirates. I still don’t like Vargas starting a game and not getting to finish it!! I get defensive change, but let him finish what he started!! After all, every body says it’s early!!

When Miguel Vargas came up in 2023 and exceeded his Rookie Status while hitting below .200, no ranking services even discussed him for 2024. “He’s no longer a rookie; we don’t cover that!”

Gavin Stone tanked in 2023 as well and while I was always high on Gavin Stone, even I faltered and said that maybe he was more suited for the bullpen. Well, I was wrong! Gavin Stone adapted and came back with a Vengeance! I believe he could be in the Rookie-of-the-Year discussion.

Could James Paxton be flipped at the trade deadline?

I still believe that Miguel Vargas has elite bat-to-ball skills, and I have not faltered in believing he will be a star (not a superstar). No one really understands why the Dodgers are slow-playing him, and that really does not help his trade value. Maybe they believe slow and deliberate is best for him, but I have no clue.

The great Keith Law had a chat:

Punk in Drublic: any updates to the profiles of Owen Cassie, Thayron Liranzo, or Cam Collier based on their 2024 season?

Keith Law: I think all 3 have been pretty much as expected so far, other than Liranzo hitting a little worse on BIP. Was hoping Caissie would cut down on the K’s with the benefit of ABS in AAA.

Chris: What kind of trade package would you be comfortable sending over for Luis Robert? Vs what would you be asking for if you were the white Sox?

Keith Law: They should ask for the Juan Soto deal (the first one, with Wood and Gore and Abrams). He’s got three years left after this one, including two club options, and that is worth a TON – he’s under control but you have the choice to walk away if something goes wrong.

Dr. Bob: People complain about the Dodgers pricing other teams out of competition. I understand that contracts like they gave to Ohtani and Yamamoto might not fit their budgets, but they could spend much less money to build scouting and player development systems like L.A. has. That’s how they get players like Andy Pages and Teoscar Hernandez.

Keith Law: That so few teams have maintained scouting, development, and R&D staffs like the Dodgers is baffling to me. We can all joke about Dodgers Devil Magic, but jesus it’s right there in front of you. They employ more people in those departments, and they have those departments working together as well as any organization in baseball. It’s not a secret. If you made me a GM or President of BB Ops, I would copy them. Like, print the org chart, change the names, rock and roll.

Justin: If you’re the White Sox, do you trade Robert, Fedde, Crochet, etc?

Keith Law: Yes. Anything that’s not nailed down.

Baseball America looks at the top DSL prospects ($$$):

Emil Morales, SS, Dodgers

Morales signed primarily because of his offensive upside and he has backed up the Dodgers’ belief in his bat so far with the way he has hit and hit for power in preseason games.

Video here:

Keith Law also released his “in season” Top 50 prospects @TheAthletic ($$$$)

DePaula #16

Ryan #45

Rushing #50

old beat reporter Bill Plunkett takes a look at Maddux Bruns for BA ($$$$)

“It’s allowed him to access the zone with more consistency. So his pitches are presenting as strikes way more than they used to,” Brandon Gomes said. “His delivery is in a much better place.

“It’s never been a question of stuff. It’s always been about throwing the ball over the plate. He’s just in a really good place right now. I think he’s starting to understand how all of those things work together—that he doesn’t have to make things over-nasty, for lack of a better phrase.”

Since the Dodgers acquired Left handed reliever, Anthony Banda from #Guardians Banda hasn’t allowed a run in 6.2 IP.

Banda recently creditedConnor McGuiness as having a huge impact on him: “He really knows how to communicate, he understands the craft…He’s a definitely the most incredible pitching coaches I’ve been around.”

Jim Bowden, turning in Bob Nightengale on a daily basis predicts (heh) some needs that will drive trades:

This nonsensical take is:

Early trade deadline needs: The Dodgers will focus on upgrading the depth and quality of their bullpen while also looking to improve in the outfield.

Ben Clemens chat:

bringbackpologrounds: Dodgers shifting Betts to SS and the Yankees shifting Judge to CF reminds me of the Tigers shifting Cabrera to 3B in 2012. Do you think that experiment worked for the Tigers? How do you see it working for the Dodgers and Yankees down the road?

Ben Clemens: I do not think that one worked out for the Tigers, though I completely understand why they tried it. I think that these two are a bit different in that both Betts and Judge were plus defenders in right field, so it’s a matter of trying to move your good defender up to a tougher spot and see how they stick. Obviously RF->SS is wild, but the idea is just categorically different than taking a guy everyone thought was 1b only and throwing him at third. I think that for the Dodgers, they’ll slide Betts back to either second or right when their team construction ends up a bit more normal in a year or so and I think that the Yankees are going to end up parking Judge in a corner as he ages, it’s just easier on his body

SandyIsTheGreatest: Should the Dodgers trade Clayton Kershaw is he comes back and is healthy? They have enough pitching and Robert’s is doing his best work as manager.

Ben Clemens: Haha, this is a funny question but no…Like, in the real world they obviously aren’t, but in a perfect world where you can ignore that he’s Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers, well, then you can ignore that Dave Roberts has a mental block around managing Kershaw. They have enough pitching for now, but they easily might not in a month

Mock Drafts:

Baseball America Mock Draft ($$)

23. Dodgers — William Schmidt, RHP, Catholic HS, Baton Rouge, La.

ESPN Mock Draft ($$$$)

Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP/LHP, Mississippi State

Mayfield is tied here, as is Brecht, but Cijntje has been the college pitcher with the most helium over the past month…

Over at The Athletic the ludicrously fun Eno Sarris looks at 5 pitchers who have benefitted from a change in pitching arsenals:

($$$$)

HINT: It’s about vertical movement:

his five best games by fastball ride have come in the past 30 days, and that hitters are only slugging .282 on the pitch this month.

Jaffe Chat

WinTwin0410: Jay, I usually ask about the Hall of Fame, but I’d like to shake it up a bit here and ask you who in baseball history have been your favorite bit player or playersIE, a guy who did something unusual (hero in one game or for a short time, for example, or perhaps got started super late) but otherwise was not at all distinguished? (Random examples: Mickey Hatcher, Tom Lawless, Jim Morris, Billy Taylor, Rudy Pemberton, Todd Haney, John Paciorek, etc.)

Jay Jaffe: Oh, Mickey Hatcher is a favorite on that level. My first time listening to Vin Scully coincided with Hatcher’s first major league home run on Agusust 10, 1979, which helped to back Don Sutton’s 50th career shutout, and then of course he came up huge in the 1988 World Series for the Dodgers as well.

As the name of my original blog (b. 2001) attests, I have a soft spot for futility infielders, with Luis Sojo, Lenn Sakata, and Melvin Mora coming to mind. Also the truly craptacular catcher, Tony Suck. I could go on…

Smiling Politely: Jay, after seeing Buehler start twice, I’m puzzled why he isn’t still in AAA if he’s openly admitting he’s forgotten how to do things like cover 1st on a ground ball and clearly does not have consistency with his mechanics. Any thoughts?

Jay Jaffe: His rehab stint ran the maximum amount of time required without another IL placement, and since it’s hard to simulate the extra adrenaline that comes with being in the majors the Dodgers are giving him a look. Beyond that I believe he has enough service time that he can’t be optioned without his consent, and I don’t think the Dodgers are to that level of concern yet.

Baseball America looks at the Dodgers INTL class ($$$)

This year’s big-ticket signing for the Dodgers was Emil Morales, a 17-year-old Dominican shortstop who got $1,897,500. He’s one of the most dangerous offensive threats in the 2024 international class. He continues to grow, now 6-foot-3, 190 pounds with a mix of contact and impact from the right side of the plate.

Sleeper Watch: Venezuelan center fielder Erny Orellana.

The most interesting question in among that excellent post from Bluto was the Ben Clemens chat regarding Kershaw’s return, and I have to say that I 100% agree with the underlying premise, namely that Roberts does not know how to manage CK, and goes all weak at the knees like a love sick teenager every time his name enters the conversation.

He suggests trading him (obviously well aware the Dodgers will never do that) but the point is that in Clemens opinion., it would be prudent to remove Kershaw’s name from conversation completely , especially as we have a plethora of Starters pitching well, to avoid Roberts once again over estimating CK’s pitching now versus 5 or 6 years ago.

I’ve been saying it for a number of years now, having Kershaw available for the Post Season only clouds the issue, especially with Roberts.

I know everyone loves him, as I do, but unfortunately he is not what he was and Roberts seems scared to have to offend him in any way.

Sorry to be brutally honest but it’s nice to see someone finally calling it like it is, albeit quite subtly.

Last year doesn’t count because Kersh was injured and we had no other good options. But you’re right, Kersh just hasn’t performed anywhere near his regular season self in October. But how often have we had 4 reliable starters in October. He has had to pitch on short rest in many series in October. What really irks me is that he was brilliant in game 1 against Houston in 17 and if not for the trash cans in game 5, he probably would have been MVP of the series. And true to who he is, Kersh has always owned up to his October failures. No excuses. And I’m rooting for him to have a final, successful October send off!

When Kershaw was in his prime the Dodgers tried to win the playoffs with 1 pitcher. Him and Grienke were together to make 2. Generally, he was over used as ownership went the cheap route using guys like Anderson, McCarthy etc last year we had no pitching and Kersh shouldn’t have been out there but really no good options.

This year should be different with much better options. My concern would be their love affair with Buehler. When Scherzer came over Buehler was game but had lost his best stuff. He was pitched in the biggest games but just didn’t have it. To me, it was obvious he wasn’t right then but the chess players saw different. Buehler wants the ball but he should not get it based on reputation. If he deserves it sure but right now he doesn’t. Thankfully Urias is not here to over pitch like they did in the Atlanta debacle.

Right now if the playoffs started today:

Glasnow

Yamamoto

Stone

Buehler

But I bet Stone and buehler would be switched. Kershaw coming back will provide an option. If he is healthy I could c them starting him in the playoffs deserving or not. Miller, idk to me he has the best stuff but his lack of swing and miss is puzzling.

Watford,

What manager would not have allowed Clayton to start in light of the fact that since he was re-activated on August 10th, he pitched 37 innings and allowed 9 Earned Runs. That’s a 2.18 ERA? 6 of them were solo HRs.

If Roberts hadn’t pitched him, and the Dodgers lost, he would have been crucified and because he pitched him, he is crucified. I know you are not Roberts Basher, but see how easy it is to criticize any move?

I think, given all the circumstances, every manager in baseball would have had to start Clayton.

Now, I thought he might only make it two or three innings…

MLB banned Padre’s infielder, Tucupita Marcano for life for betting on baseball. While a member of the Pirates, he placed over 380 bets on baseball. 25 of those on the Pirates while he was a member of the organization. Four other players received one-year bans. Andrew Saalfrank of the D-Backs is probably the only name you would recognize,

6:40 PM ET

Dodgers (38-23)

Pirates (27-32)

SP Tyler Glasnow R

6-3 3.04 ERA

SP Jared Jones R

3-5 3.55 ERA

Confirmed Lineup

SS Mookie Betts R

DH S. Ohtani L

1B F. Freeman L

C Will Smith R

LF T. Hernandez R

RF J. Heyward L

2B Gavin Lux L

3B Miguel Rojas R

CF Chris Taylor R

84° Wind 6 mph In

Good News:

Just checked the box score from the ACL from last night where the Dodgers won 9-5 and River Ryan is back rehabbing there. His line 2IP 0R 0ER 1BB 5K Also possible shortstop of the future Joendry Vargas number one signing in the 2023 International Draft hit his second homerun.

The way they’re treating Vargas is just plain wrong and pisses me off honestly. My eyes tell me the kid can hit better than the most of bottom of lineup yet they won’t give him a chance

Patience my brothers!!! Nobody knows what the hell is going on!! There must be a higher power guiding Doc’s decisions. We will know the answer soon enough! Although i am completely bumfuzzled as to why Taylor is starting!! But he’ll probably go 2 for 4 and make a couple outstanding catches!! Patience!!!