“Get It Out of the Grandstand!”

On a night when no other Dodgers drove in any runs, Max Muncy and Joey Gallo, the true “Live by the HR, Die By the Strikeout Guys,” went yard three times and drove in all six Dodger runs. They didn’t have to get the Home Runs out of the ocean as Max did to Baumgarner, but they did have to get them in the grandstand. Don’t you dare say the Dodgers can’t win with Cody, Max, and Gallo all in the lineup! They did it before, and they have done it again.

Don’t forget that Joey Gallo is a Gold Glove outfielder. With Betts in RF, Bellinger in CF, and Gallo in LF, lots of runs are saved. Juan Toribio wrote, “The top four in the Dodgers’ order get all the attention, and deservingly so. Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, and Freddie Freeman are three of the best players in the world. Will Smith is arguably the best hitting catcher in the Majors.” That’s true, and then when you have a healthy Gavin Lux and Re-Juvinated Justin Turner in the lineup, maybe you can play three “Three True Outcomes” Players. You can disagree all you want: SCOREBOARD!

The Stats say you can. The fact that the Dodgers have the best offense in baseball says you can. If Andrew Friedman says you can, I am down with it. Last night the “Strikeout Guys” Won the Game Single-Handedly! Case closed! We have all seen a lot of crazy stuff in this game… who knows?

Craig Kimbrel came in and did his job: No strikeouts, but he threw 13 pitches, and ten were for strikes. I pronounce that I am hopeful, but he scares me more than Kenley Jansen – I have seen this movie for years…back to 2018 with the Red Sox. He can be very good… or very bad. Fortunately, the Dodgers do have the arms to compensate for it. I remain hopeful.

Rants & Raves

• I would go to war with Tyler Anderson. This is a classic case of “past performance does not indicate future results.” At 32 years old, Tyler Anderson was 43-41 with a 4.24 ERA, with a 1.24 WHIP (not bad). He had allowed fewer hits than Inning Pitched, and he did not walk a lot of batters, but he had really never learned how to “pitch.” The Dodgers taught him that, and he just improved a little bit and maximized his strengths while minimizing his weaknesses. I trust him as the #4 in the playoff rotation. I think he will do us proud. 14-3 with a 2.73 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. He is a solid pitcher.
• Danny Duffy and Tommy Kahnle both pitched for OKC last night – Duffy went .2 innings and allowed 2 H, 3 ER, and 1 BB while striking out 2. Kahnle fared much better, as he threw one perfect inning: six pitches with five being strikes. Don’t place too much emphasis on the results – focus on the health after the game.
• Diego Cartaya seems to be running on fumes, as he looks tired. Over the winter, he might need to add 10-12 pounds of muscle. He has plenty of places to put it. Still, at barely 21, he has 22-HR and is OPS’ing .901.
• As crazy as it seems, Dalton Rushing, who is also 21, is pushing him. Rushing went 2-3 last night and is hitting .426/.542 OBP/1.306 OPS with 7 HR and 26 RBI in 94 ABs. He has also walked 19 times!
• 19-year-old Yenier Fernandez is hitting .297/.386 OBP/.822 OPS at RC. The catching seems to be in good hands – no pun intended!
• Gavin Stone may have been shut down for the year. He hasn’t pitched since August 31st… or not! He has thrown twice the innings they allowed to Bobby Miller last year!
• I watched the Joe Maddon Video that someone put up, and while I could present a cogent argument for either side of the case, I feel that Joe is a dinosaur who likes to be the smartest guy in the room… and sometimes he is. Sometimes he is not! He might be bitter about the later, but baseball has/is/and will continue to change.