Don t Worry About a Thing

Cause every little thing is gonna’ be alright.

Rise up this morning, smiled with the rising sun
Three little birds, by my doorstep
Singing sweet songs, of melodies pure and sure
Saying, “This is my message to you”

Bob Marley taught me that!

The Negative Nellies are simply beside themselves as the Dodgers have bolted from the pack to the best record in baseball. Andrew Friedman bashers are crawling back into their holes and hiding from the sun.

Andrew Friedman’s moves, motives and methods have always been questioned by certain fans and the naysayers have posted en mass about the Dodger’s deficiencies. It’s only one game, but even Wild Man Kelly looked good! If he gets his act together, they will have to hibernate until November.

I love it when they not only don’t know what to say, but can’t say anything. Well, they do say “Let’s see if they can keep it up.” Translation, “I am really miserable and if the Dodgers keep this up it will spoil my mood!” Get back in your holes!

Last night was another nice win. The Dodgers Ace did not have his ace stuff but as Ace’s are prone to do, he kept them in the game and ate up some innings.

Alex Verdugo

After almost 100 AB’s, A.B. (that’s his initials and what a better set of initials for a guy who was born to hit?), is hitting .344 with a .380 OB% and a .956 OPS. I have called him Tony Gwynn-esque to the consternation of some you who are now munching on crow. I am going to go one step further and predict that he will win multiple batting titles (that’s more than one). He’s now a fixture in the lineup and his enthusiasm is contagious. The only question about him was his attitude and work ethic… and that has been asked and answered.

Max Muncy

Many thought that 2018 was an aberration and that Mad Max would regress. He is now showing out and showing off. His defense has been wrongly maligned and he is solid at 1B and 2B. I believe that if you left him at 3B, he would do well there as well. Max is an athlete and he has an excellent batting eye.

Enrique Hernandez

I would not trade Kike for DJ LeMahieu and that’s not because I don’t think DJ isn’t a great player – he is. However, Kike along with his brothers in arms (Alex, Corey, Cody and JT) are the heart and soul of the Dodgers. Maybe CT3 is part of that group too. These guys are hungry for a championship… and they deserve to get there together. Kike has thunder in his bat and has a knack of getting the big hit. I still think the best is yet to come from him.

The Dodgers have 25 wins and are on pace for 104 wins after many picked them to get off to a slow start. The Dodger Brass were roundly criticized for not having the team ready. Don’t even say anything – there’s no need. The bashers have been continually wrong since Friedman came to town and they will keep being wrong because they are irrational. I have learned to deal with it.

Things are very exciting right about now and it is fun watching these guys develop on the major league level and in the minors. Speaking of the minors, here’s my cue:

Minor League Report

Oklahoma City Dodgers – The OKC Dodgers are now 10-22, as they lost 13 -6 to the Nashville Sounds, but there were a few bright spots. Kyle Garlick hit two more HR; Will Smith broke out of his slump and went 3-4 (he’s back up to .244, but was headed to .200 before last night); and Castro was 2-5. Brock Stewart gave up 8 hits and 7 ER in 3.2 innings. He is a train wreck, as is Stetson Allie who gave up 4 ER and 3 BB in 0.1 innings pitched. Allie’s ERA sits at a cool 19.29! Yikes!

Tulsa Drillers – The Drillers drilled the Corpus Christi Hooks by coming from behind with 4 runs in the bottom of the 7th to win 8-5. Gavin Lux (.307 BA/.958 OPS) hit his 8th HR and Zach Reks hit his 7th to go along with 5 RBI. Reks is hitting .326 with a .422 OB% and a .987 OPS. Reks can rake! Santana went 2-4 and his BA is at .340. He has cut down his long swing and is a nice work in progress. He could be the next Dodger 3B. Andre Scrubb pitched 2 innings and (3-0 1.10 ERA) got the win and Marshall Kasowski (2.38 ERA) got the save, also pitching 2 innings and striking out 4. Tulsa’s record sits at 18-12.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes – RC moved to 21-12 with a 6-4 win over the Inland Empire Puffers as Berman, Chiu, and Rincon all homered. Starling Heredia appears to be clueless as he is hitting .182 and had 2 more strikeouts last night. He is striking out 48% of the time. It’s not looking good for him. Gerardo Carrillo went 4 innings and allowed 1 Hit to go with no ER, Sheffield got his 6th save with 1.2 innings pitched. His ERA sits at 1.84. He’s a candidate to move up.

Great Lakes Loons – The Loons moved to 19-13 with a win over Kane County Cougars by the score of 10-6. Outman, Paulson Baldwin and Huisizer all homered as the Loons put up 13 hits.