Friedman & Gomes Have Eyes
Many Dodger fans are very adept at perceiving the obvious immediately. They see that Michael Conforto cannot jump out of a boat and hit water, so they express this sentiment ad nauseam. Everyone can see the obvious, and Andrew Friedman and Brandon Gomes have their eyes on this…

Many Dodger fans are very adept at perceiving the obvious immediately. They see that Michael Conforto cannot jump out of a boat and hit water, so they express this sentiment ad nauseam. Everyone can see the obvious, and Andrew Friedman and Brandon Gomes have their eyes on this situation. You should also know that Jeffrey Kingston, Alex Slater, Billy Gasparino, David Finley, Ismael Cruz, Galen Carr, Brandon McDaniel, Will Rhymes, and other highly experienced baseball minds like Ron Roenicke, Chase Utley, and Joel Peralta are likely involved.
I am sure they are kicking the tires all over the league, but as I have said before, Ward, Ruiz, Outman, or any other internal solution is likely worse than the present player in LF. Some of you want change just for the sake of change, and that is never good! Realistically, the Dodgers do not have an LF’er in the system that is better than what they presently have.
- Ryan Ward hit another Grand Slam last night, but no one really thinks he can play in LA. MAYBE!
- James Outman is hitting .125 in his last 15 games and is striking at at nearly a 40% clip. NO!
- Esteury Ruiz is hitting .278 and can run down any hit ball… he just might not catch it. HARD NO!
- Dalton Rushing has played a total of 10 innings this year in LF. DEFINITE NO!
Kike Hernandez can play LF against LHP. The Dodgers need a LH hitter who can catch the ball and hit RHP. All they need is a platoon player who can hit 100 points higher than Conforto. Gomes and Friedman see that. Ray Charles sees that. A player who would look good in LF (but at what cost?) would be Kyle Stowers of the Marlins. He is a LH hitter who has reverse splits. His offensive ceiling makes him a compelling asset in left field. The combination of plus power, strong contact quality, and solid approach at the plate gives him real upside. Defensively, he’s reliable, with notably good arm strength and range metrics. While not a Gold Glover, he performs well enough not to drag down the position. The only question is “What is the cost?” It would be high, but the Dodgers have the capital to overpay.
In the meantime, I am still watching Alex Freeland…
X-CITES
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Discussion (97)
Disagree, not disagreeable
yeah the bench guys need ab’s, but kike could average 5 at bats per game and still hit .210. NOW the playoffs? yes he needs to play!.. with the speed kim has and tommy ain’t no snail, if ohtani would be a little more patient at the plate, 8,9,and 1 in the lineup would be a nightmare for opposing catchers!!
E. Gagné was a mediocre starting pitcher with a great arm, then developed into a elite reliever.
It’s time to try B. Miller and J. Wroblesky as relievers, both touch 100 MPH.
Check out JW’s stats as a reliever this year, they’re very good !!!
i guess hate might not be the best choice for the aaaaasssssstros! hate should be reserved for someone who has done something to hurt a loved one or someone who stole your life savings. Maybe there’s a different type of “hate” when it comes to sports. hate the yankees? hate the cowboys? hate the padres? giants? yeah Mark, hate is consuming. as humans i don’t hate bregman,correa, etc. but as cheaters, i don’t like them in the slightest way. Didn’t like Bonds, but recognize his greatness. at one time i thoroughly enjoyed watching clemens pitch. Mcgwire? yeah, saw him hit 3 homers in his record season against the dodgers in st. louis. Sosa? a complete fraud. Arod. despicable human being. But they’re all wealthy and could give a rats -ss about me or my opinion. Bottom line, cheaters seem to prosper in our beautiful game. But we don’t have to like it!
Hate is tantamount to drinking poison and thinking the person you hate is going to die.
The opposite of love is not hate… It’s indifference.
If you hate something, it controls you. It owns you.
If you hate something, get over it; otherwise, it will consume you…in more ways than one.
Eduardo Quintero didn’t get a hit last night…because he didn’t play.
The Best !!!
once altuve is gone, my hate for the astros will fade away slowly. Bregman, springer, correa, hinch, cora? may they all have no success for the rest of their careers! Amen brother john!
emmit was fantastic last night! JW was just as impressive! if both can somehow stay healthy, they can provide a 1-2 punch that can give that overworked bullpen a break! Kudos to Doc for having faith in JW! If only Dustin May was pitching like those 2 did last night! ….. now i don’t want to criticize Doc, but i didn’t like him removing Kim for kike last night. i believe the kid has earned the right to stay in against lefties. especially since kike is like 1 for his last 25.(i could be wrong). let him play! …. Agree. a sweep would be so sweet! and padre fans don’t even come at us with the “ look how many injuries “. excuse . ….. Machado will be a first ballot hall of fame player. he is also a great candidate for the all butthole hall of fame! Tatis? always will have that “ped” shadow over him. couldn’t happen to a nicer guy! … Hopefully yamamoto gets back on track tonight. lets slow down on the cy young talk for a while. he’s had a couple of stinkers lately. …. Keep hearing good reports on Snell and Glasnow! look out every other team in baseball! the dodger train is gaining steam!
Late to the party on this comment. Hate is to strong of a word but I will dislike the Houston Astros for eternity. It’s my issue that I need to deal with.
After 40 home dates,the Dodgers attendance is 2,026,238 with an average of 50,653 per game. They are in excellent shape to surpass the four million mark.
Ohtani is scheduled to make his next start as a pitcher Sunday against the Nationals in Los Angeles.
“Ohtani will begin his time as a two-way player with the Dodgers with a two-start pitching week, but just like when he made his mound debut in Monday’s win over the Padres, the right-hander is expected to serve as an opener this Sunday. After tossing one inning and 28 pitches Monday, Ohtani could push up to the 2-to-3-inning range and toss around 40 pitches against the Nationals, though the Dodgers haven’t provided official word on what his workload might look like. According to Matthew Moreno of DodgerBlue.com, manager Dave Roberts did note that Ben Casparius would “most likely” pitch behind Ohtani again, after Casparius previously earned the win Monday while covering 3.2 innings out of the bullpen. The Dodgers’ goal is for Ohtani to gradually get stretched out enough to handle a typical starter’s workload without needing to be followed by a bulk reliever, though it will probably take him at least a couple more outings for him to get there”.
Great at bat by Rushing when he hung in there and walked. He wears a shin guard on his right foot. Fouled off two pitches on that foot and both missed the protector. Ouch!
Nice win!!!
Most entertaining and enjoyable game of the season. Really good to beat them again. Be great to get a sweep.
The pitching, obviously, has been about as good as one could have asked thus far. 7 innings, 0 walks, 8 K’s. 3 hits and a run.
Nearly flawless piggybacking to this point (jinxes don’t exist, just regression).
For a flawless (IMO) piggybacking game, though, Sheehan would have started the 5th. He’d faced 15 hitters to that point. He could have gotten through 5 while not facing any hitter twice. Then Wrobo finishes off the last 4 innings.
Or, Sheehan gives up a base runner or two. Then you go to the arm barn to 1) eliminate the threat 2) let Wrobo start an inning. Then, again, you let Wrobo finish the game.
I understand why they played it like this. Watching out for Sheehan’s arm. Not wanting to warm a reliever if they don’t need them. Wanting Sheehan to come off the field with confidence. Etc
But perfectly piggybacked games are a thing of (subjective) aesthetic beauty.
I really need to quit work and life for that matter. I’m always late here unless a new LADT post shows up before work, which is usually 5-6 am PST.
Enjoying the baseball being played here the last few series with LAD against NL West foes. Yeah, I’d say Pages deserves a nod for the Mid-Summer Classic. Enjoying all of baseball, really; interesting game between NYM/ATL yesterday…Mets let one get away. Big Dumper Cal Raleigh still mashing (what a nickname, LMFAO). And the Angels…quite the scrappy bunch despite the Moreno shyt show…
Which leads me to wondering and I’d be impressed even amongst the knowledgeable folks here at LADT if anyone knew this: has a team below .500 ever had road sweeps of the previous season’s World Series participants…which LAA could do if it wins tonight. I’d call Elias but this random and obscure fact would probably bring Steve Hirdt to the phone himself just so he could tell me to “fuck off”…
Shoutouts to the Stanley Cup Champs Florida Panthers; those CATS are relentless; and OpenAI ChatGpt….gettin’ a lotta run here at LADT lately….
Here’s from MLB Trade Rumors about Keibert Ruiz:
“Things have subsequently deteriorated, with Ruiz hitting .241/.286/.374 since. He showed more power in 2023-24, but in 2025 Ruiz has just two homers, a .252/.286/.322 batting line (71 wRC+) and dramatically worse defensive grades. Dating back to Opening Day 2023, Ruiz has -18 Defensive Runs Saved and a -36 Fielding Run Value from Statcast. He led the league in stolen bases allowed in 2023 and is doing so again in 2025 — although he also leads the NL in total runners thrown out this year (in part because teams seem so willing to run on him).”
I’m glad he’s not a Dodger now.
10:10 PM ET
Padres (39-33)
Dodgers (45-29)
SP Stephen Kolek R
3-2 3.50 ERA
SP Emmet Sheehan
0-0 0.00 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
3B Max Muncy L
LF Andy Pages R
2B Tommy Edman S
CF Hyeseong Kim L
C D. Rushing L
80° Wind 8 mph Out
Wrobleski expected to relieve tonight
Ward is most likely a AAAA player. Can we say with any confidence that Conforto is better than that? I don’t think Conforto would anything at AAA either.
Mark Prior was on the Starkville podcast. It’s not the best, but they touch on injuries for pitchers and Otani.
Open on podcasts.apple.comhttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-windup-a-show-about-baseball/id1558220009?i=1000713402372It’s probably a better use of your time than contemplating the human condition and its impact on the ability of markets to set value, but who am I to judge?
If one could discount pitching, I’m not convinced that the position players at Great Lakes aren’t better, right now, than the players at Tulsa. I’m impatient, I realize the Dodgers and their system doesn’t do this but I wish they would move their upper players up quicker and cut bait with players that aren’t getting done. Quintero needs to be challenged but the Great Lakes outfield is five deep with potential MLB players. Though I complain too much, I have complete confidence in our front office. It’s fun being a fan and having a site to vent. Mark I really appreciate you and your work on this site. If we ever meet, dinner is on me.
Dodger owner Mark Walter is buying the Buss family’s 2/3 majority ownership of the Lakers for 10 billion.
Bobby Miller’s line in Oklahoma City’s 15-1 win this afternoon with the magic number reduced to 2 to win the first half division:
5IP 5H 1R 0ER 2BB 7K 5.17ERA 101 pitches 61 strikes ( progress}
Welcome Back Emmet!!!
06/18/25 Los Angeles Dodgers activated RHP Emmet Sheehan from the 60-day injured list.
06/18/25 Los Angeles Dodgers optioned RHP Matt Sauer to Oklahoma City Comets.
Kim’s BABIP is .462