To me, that applies to a whole lot more than baseball. Lot’s of people could apply this in their everyday lives… but I digress. Last year’s season was a sprint in 60 games and the Dodgers broke out of the gate and never looked back and at the end of 60 games they had 8 more wins than this team. Of course, they had about 25% of the injuries this team has experienced. Also, there is that dreaded “World Series Hangover.”
In this case, it is real. For the last eight years the Dodgers have finished at the top of the pack and should have won two (not just one) World Series, so they were really primed last year. After winning it in 2020, the urgency is lessened somewhat and the fact of the matter is that you cannot play 2021 like you did 2020. No one can sustain the intensity that long. At this juncture, you don’t want to push these guys that hard… and I am not just talking about pushing them physically. I am talking about pushing them mentally. As the finish line can be seen in the distance, then you light the fire. This team is so good that can play as bad as they have and still be within three games of the best record in the NL. They will “cruise” up until that stretch drive. Some say, “You can’t just flip the switch.” I think you can when you are this good!
This team is better than the 2020 team. I believe that and while you might say “I’ll believe it when I see it“, I see it because I believe it.
What I See
- I see Gavin Lux struggling at the bat. While playing a solid SS, he is hitting .200 the past 15 games. I had lost confidence in Lux, but started to regain some of it back and now it is slipping away again. This year he is hitting .265 against RHP, but just .178 against LHP. All of his HR are against RHP. I see a platoon player and when Corey Seager comes back, he should never get an AB against a LHP. CT3 and Gavin have to platoon at 2B.
- I see AJ Pollock getting his timing back and he is a guy who will put up solid numbers day in and day out, against LHP or RHP pitching. I was not a fan of the signing, but I have come to appreciate AJ’s play very much.
- I see Cody Bellinger struggling to get his timing back and I am confident that he will. Contrary to what many think, Cody is very coachable and is a smart guy. He is driven to be the best and he will be back with a vengeance – it just takes time to get your game legs and timing back. He is an intense guy and sometimes tries too hard, but I have complete confidence that he will play at an MVP Level soon.
- I see Joe Kelly learning how to pitch again. It’s quite likely the cyst in his shoulder has been impeding his pitching since he signed with the Dodgers and has impacted his mechanics. I see a guy struggling with his release point and learning how to pitch again. I am not as confident about Kelly as I am Bellinger, but I am hopeful.
- I see Nate Jones as being a solid weapon out of the bullpen. With his funky delivery and velocity, I think there is a lot of potential here. Many of you saw that he gave up 2 HR last night. I saw a lot of potential.
- I see Striker Buehler developing into the Dodgers’ Ace. Many of you wanted to anoint him the Ace for the past two years, but it has to be earned and he is earning it. He is also learning to pitch to contact an that he does not have to strike out everyone. Maybe he is the Co-Ace as Trevor Bauer is pretty good too. The “spin-rate” issue has yet to play out and I am not jumping to conclusions.
- I see a Dodger bullpen that has been decimated by injuries, but that will be a strength in the last third of the season. The bullpen gets better today as the “Catman” returns which should take the pressure off the pen. Hopefully, he can go at least 4 innings and I will be watching his velocity.
I got over it. This team is in a very good spot and no one should panic. However, the biggest thing that I see is the impact that Albert Pujols is making on this team. He probably had a bad attitude playing with the Angels who have no hope of going anywhere, but home. It appears he is the guy who is picking up his teammates and pushing them to greater things. Now we know why Andrew Friedman signed Albert, but he is more than a cheerleader. While no longer a superstar, he is quietly OPS’ing .809 as a Dodger. I also see Yoshi Tsutsugo going BYE-BYE. The experiment is over – you blew up the lab, Andrew!
Dodgers MiLB REport
- OKC BOXSCORE – OKC is on a roll as they won 9-6 bringing their record to 13-17. Reks was 3-5. Ruiz was 1-3 with 2 BB and 2 RBI. Raley was 1-2 with 2 walks and 2 RBI including a triple. Souza and Peters also homered. Nunez was ricked for 4 hits and 3 runs in 2.1 IP. Bruihl got the win with 2 scoreless IP, striking out 4 and Quackenbush got his 5th save and is unscored upon in 11 appearances.
- TULSA BOXSCORE – The Drillers beat the Wichita Wind Surge 8-3. Jeren Kendall remains red hot, hitting 2 HR’s. Donovan Casey was 2-4 with his 2nd HR. Mike Busch retired and hit #3 and was 1-4. Aaron Ochsenbein closed out the game with a scoreless inning. His ERA sits at 2.04.
- GL BOXSCORE – The Loons lost to the Dayton Dragons 8-7 as Miguel Vargas continues to rake. He was 2-5 with his 6th HR. Valera was 1-3 with his 7th HR. Carson Taylor drove in 3 runs with a double and Ching also doubled and was 2-4.
- RC BOXSCORE – The Quakes absolutely destroyed the Lake Elsinore Storm by two touchdowns and went for two on one of the extra points, 15-4! 20-year-old Jorbit Vivas went 6-6, scoring 3 runs and driving in 4. Cartaya was 1-5 with 2 RBI. Deluca tripled and Leonard, DeJesus and Vivas also homered
Discussion (29)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Catman was rusty. His control was way off. Nomar kept saying he should trust his stuff, but it just was not there last night. Pirates hit some rockets and still ended up losing. Dodger offense non existent again. Game is early this morning on Youtube.
Dodgers, with an unintended BP game, move past Padres and now 2 games behind the Giants. Justin Turner and the bullpen team up for the victory.
Two games back… So if Pujols’ blast had just tipped of off Tauchman’s glove, there’d a tie for first.
I’ve harbored a mix of respect and loathing for the Giants for a long time. I remember listening to the radio report of Marichal attacking Roseboro! I loved the World Book Encyclopedia and the year in review edition featured that famous picture of Marichal poised to bring the bat down, as Sandy ran in to help. I stared at that picture many times….
But I liked Marichal’s repentance and Roseboro’s forgiveness and how they became friends–and Marichal serve as one of his pallbearers.
So I must salute ex-Dodger Farhan Zaidi & Company for making the Giants good again. Did not see this coming.
As for Belli, he’ll get one of those long runways…
Yep I’m proudly a fan of Kenley Jansen as I’ve always been. To me what’s been given goes a ways further back than just last week and Kenley’s earned his bones for respect.
Cassidy I used your strategy of trashing the bullpen and the cream rose to the top. We r going to have to thoroughly trash the offense I guess to get them to produce. Consider it done. Very good win tonight we gain a game and take over second spot I believe. Gonsolin was the playoff Gonsolin terrible. He has got to improve command. He pitched really good last year but would just lose it and b no where near the zone. But a good win tonight now offense get it together!
A win is a win and ‘ll gladly take it, but this offense is terribly inconsistent. Two runs scored both the result of solo HR’s. No manufacturing of runs, stolen bases, sacrifice, two out rally etc. Too reliant on the long ball. Where’s Mookie?
Once again that mighty Dodger offense bailing out our no good, crappy bullpen! Lux and Bellinger are both pull ground out machines! With the shift that will get you a one way ticket to the Mendoza line. Oh and by the way Kenley can’t go more than one inning or back to back nights.
Mookies gotta Quit hanging his head, his body language has got to be hurting the teams morale
Just another day making a no nothing lefty look like an ace! I’m whining again so let’s see if that stirs them up!
Get Over it, should be played right after our national anthem
I think this is officially a bullpen game.
It looks like there will be rain until 9 pm their time. Another hour and a half. Bummer.
Mark, who is the nude woman in the ad?
Giants lose 4-3 to Texas in 11. A chance to pick up some ground with a win tonight.
Tonight’s winning lineup:
RF Mookie
2b Chris
3b Justin
1b Albert
CF Cody
LF AJ
C Will
SS Gavin
P Catman
News from Internet:
The under-rated Dustin Nosler has his first dedicated draft piece up:
http://dodgersdigest.com/2021/06/07/2021-mlb-draft-dodgers-big-board-1-0/
Baseball America’s Updated top 100
https://www.baseballamerica.com/rankings/2021-top-100-prospects/
Keibert Ruiz, Josiah Gray, Michael Busch & Cartaya all still on it with slight movement.
Diego Cartaya also made their hot sheet:
https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/hot-sheet-baseballs-20-hottest-prospects-from-the-past-week-6721/
And he made a FanGraphs prospect report
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/daily-prospect-notes-6-7-21/
One of the newest additions to the Top 100, Cartaya spent Sunday night showing everybody exactly why he’s deserving of a spot on that list. Against Modesto, Cartaya swatted a pair of home runs. These weren’t wall-scrapers, either. According to the Quakes’ Twitter account, Cartaya’s blasts went a combined 902 feet. The first one was a mammoth shot, checking in at 461 feet. With the help of the top mathematicians at the world’s elite universities, Baseball America has figured out that the second blast must have traveled 441 feet. The home runs were his fourth and fifth of the season, which he’s hit in just 31 at-bats. (JN)
And he made a FanGraphs prospect report
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/daily-prospect-notes-6-7-21/
he’s a near lock to be on the Top 100 list at some point in the next six months because his attributes (power, impact arm strength, field general) are all very impressive for a teenager.
Wonderful piece on the art of pitch sequencing and spin mirroring:
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/on-pitch-sequences-and-spin-mirroring/
And JP Hoornstra wrote about him at the OC Register:
https://www.ocregister.com/2021/06/07/diego-cartaya-looks-like-a-real-catch-for-dodgers/
FanGraphs interview BOBBY MILLER
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/dodgers-2020-first-rounder-bobby-miller-talks-pitching/
Travis Sawchik wrote about pitching with Spider Tack! very fun article
https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2180019
Ben Clemens was asked and answered a very tough question:
Q: Who you got? Prime Kershaw or prime DeGrom?
Ben Clemens: Depends on what you m ean by prime, I’ll take deGrom if we can pick a single year, but Kershaw’s long run of it is wiiiiiild
ALERT! Kevin Goldstein had a chat. Which is a great event in itself, but in that chat he was asked about this board’s favorite AAAA OF Ravelo!:
Q: At catcher, the Dodgers have Will Smith (arguably top 5 in baseball, 4.5 years of team control left), Austin Barnes (strong defensively and good rapport with pitchers, 1.5 years left), and 2 top~100 ish prospects in Keibert Ruiz (improved swing, hitting well at triple a so far) and Diego Cartaya (mashing at single a, still a teenager). What would you do if you were them, and what do you/the industry think they’ll do?
Kevin Goldstein: It’s always wrong to assume you have too many players at one position. Just let it ride for now.
Q: The Dodgers’ Rangel Ravelo has a ridiculous .412 BA with a 208 wRC+ in AAA. Any chance he becomes an impact MLB player, given he’s already 29 years old?
Kevin Goldstein: No. More of a up and down bat piece.
Q: On a scale of 1-10 for size of the jump to the next level, with AAA to MLB being a 10, what is A to A+, A+ to AA, and AA to AAA?
Kevin Goldstein: Fun question. 3; 8; 4
Prospect corner:
Jeren Kendall, 4th homer of the season. During his current 7 game hitting streak, he’s slashing .417/.462/.792. He’s still striking out too much, but he’s a bit less rotational, so the barrel is in the zone longer. One of the biggest issues with him was pitch recognition, which is very difficult to teach. That still comes and goes, but he’s more on time this year than he was in the past. He’s still far off, and over-aged but it’s something.
Did you miss this from the beyond stupid, Rep Gohmert:
Rep. Louie Gohmert asks if the National Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management can do anything ‘to change the course of the moon’s orbit or the Earth’s orbit around the sun’ to combat climate change during a House Natural Resources Committee hearing
19 Year-0ld Prospect Carlos Duran, the youngest pitcher on Rancho’s roster, now is 23/2 (k/bb) over his last three starts/11 innings
Super-helium prospect Leonel Valera just hit his 7th homer of the season. As a refreshed the question with him has been bat to ball.
First 8 games: struck out 48.6% of the time,
Last 22 games, 25.2%, this is starting to look like he’s figured something out.
@Great Lakes, Carson Taylor, the Dodgers’ 2020 fourth rounder, was slashing .087/.267/.130 after an 0-4 on May 15th.
Since then, .345/.487/.517 with 8BB and 3K
Pro debut for RH Landon Knack has come to a close. He was a 2nd round pick.
2.0 innings (10 batters) 3 hits (Torkelson, Dingler, Bunt) 1 run (reached on K, WP) 3 strikeouts Excited to see more of his fastball this year. FB hit 95, slider had bite.
Here is John Rooney:
https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1401563633474170888/pu/vid/1280×720/j1Z0X12Ig5arid–.mp4?tag=12
7 Ks from his 4 scoreless, his second consecutive dominant start. Over his last 8.2 innings, he’s given up 3 hits, walked 3, given up 0 runs, and struck out 16
Matt Wisler DFA’d by the Giants this morning. I watched him pitch in the late innings of the Giants comeback win over the Rangers. He had been in 21 games with a 6.05 ERA. He has a 1-2 record. But I think the ERA is deceptive of how good he can be. His Whip is 1.29 and he has struck out 26 in 19.1 innings and walked 6. Most of the damage against him came in his first 6 games of the season. Since then he has been much more efficient, including a clean outing against the Dodgers striking out 4. Not saying they should go after him if he clears waivers, just saying sometimes the stats get skewed because of a bad outing. Hello Joe Kelly.
I do not nit pick. We can sit here and lament Kelly giving up a run when they had a 5 run lead and say how lousy he is. But he did his job. He kept the team at bat from scoring a lot of runs. Jones gave up two solo jacks, he also got 2 important outs. Had he walked someone prior to either of those shots, it would have been a whole different game. To Jansen’s credit, he threw 3 pitches, game over. The offense went 3-7 with runners in scoring position, and only left 6 runners on. Big difference from some other games was that they only drew 1 walk. Mookie smoked a couple of balls and that is a good sign plus his hit went to right center field. Belli’s hit was also opposite field. Good signs. Muncy broke a 0-14 slide. But he will be held out of today’s game. Sounds like Albert will get the nod at 1st. 7 more shut out innings from Basher Buehler who also got 2 hits. I saw him giving pointers to Albert in the dugout. The Pirates are a very bad team with a few very talented players. Their best pitcher got beat last night. So I like the chances for a sweep. 4 innings out of the Catman and we should be good. I will not miss Tsutsugo at all. Personally, I think he should have just been DFA’d. He has brought nothing to the table.
DODGERS ACTIVATE RHP TONY GONSOLIN
IF/OF Yoshi Tsutsugo placed on IL
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers activated right-handed pitcher Tony Gonsolin from the 60-day injured list and placed infielder/outfielder Yoshi Tsutsugo on the 10-day injured list with a right calf strain. In order to make room on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers transferred Scott Alexander to the 60-day injured list.
Gonsolin, 26, missed 60 games with right shoulder inflammation. He made three rehab starts for the Oklahoma City Dodgers, allowing four runs on six hits in 10.1 innings. He struck out nine and allowed three walks. Last season, he went 2-2 with a 2.31 ERA (12 ER/46.2 IP) and 46 strikeouts in nine games (eight starts) for the Dodgers. The Vallejo, CA native has been with the Dodgers parts of two seasons and is 6-4 with a 2.60 ERA (25 ERA/86.2 IP) and 83 strikeouts in 20 games (14 starts). He was originally drafted by the Dodgers in the ninth round of the 2016 First Year Player Draft by the Dodgers out of Saint Mary’s College.
Tsutsugo, 29, went 3-for-25 with two RBI in 12 games for the Dodgers. In his Major League career, he has played in 89 games, batting .155 (47-for-260) with nine doubles, eight homers and 31 RBI. Prior to coming to the United States, he was a five-time All-Star (2015-19) in the Nippon Professional Baseball League and was three-time Central League Best of Nine Award recipient (2015-17). In 10 seasons in the NPB, he hit a combined .285 (977-for-3426) with 205 homers and 613 RBI.
Dodgers News: Tony Gonsolin Officially Activated to Start, Scott Alexander to the 60-Day IL
The return of the Cat Man!
by Brook Smith
06/09/2021, 10:20 AM
Just some thoughts this morning after a nice win making us 2 and 2 on this trip.
* The Dodgers team wide approach to not expand the zone, to work counts and run up pitch counts also makes us vulnerable when the umpire has a strike zone as big as the great outdoors. The obvious adjustment is to hit earlier in the AB. Don’t take those center-cut fastballs for strike one. Try to avoid getting to 2 strikes and being at the mercy of the ump. Those are areas where hitting coaches come in.
* I like Nate Jones. I have since I saw him years ago in the minors. I like his funky actions and I like dart throwers. He came out in the 9th and did what you want a pitcher to do with a 5-1 lead. He threw strikes, challenged hitters with his fastball and didn’t walk anybody. That’s the good news. The bad news is his stuff had no life. His 96 mph fastball, last night, was center cut and straight as a string. His breaking ball just spins with no depth. Remember, solo home runs won’t beat you but they will get you pulled from the game.
* I watched Carlos Rodon of the White Sox load up his renowned slider yesterday. He went to the bill and threw his best slider of the night. I noticed the tight visible dot of a dime slider, clearly on TV. It looked funny. I played it back in super slow motion and the tight dime in the spin was actually a good size chunk of something brown. I suspect “selective loading” is destined to be the practice when MLB cracks down on the substance rule. Like Niekro used to do, you Load when you need a big pitch, not every pitch.
* Speaking of loading, Lindsey Adler has another good article on foreign substance use today in the Athletic. It touches on a couple of areas of particular interest to me.
When Mike Shildt got tossed by Joe West, here’s the quote “Shildt’s frustration over Gallegos’ hat being confiscated didn’t stem from the umpiring crew. It didn’t stem from his ejection. It had everything to do with Major League Baseball deciding when to police the game, and when not to.”
Second MLB might reconsider the punishment for offenders. “Umpires won’t enforce (the rule) because of the 10 day suspension,” according to West. You better have the goods when you start suspending Aces for 10 day stretches.
This deal is just going to get stickier and stickier, pun intended.
Kelly has never been consistently good. His career stats bear that out, cyst or no cyst.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/k/kellyjo05.shtml
I loved Bellinger in the 1st half of 2019. He hasn’t shown himself to be that player since. I would love it if he can – but no one knows.
The Dodgers are a 93 win team as I said yesterday – until they aren’t. They can play better but they haven’t. What bothers me is the “turn it on and off” assumption that some here have made. If true, they have the wrong players and manager.
The Dodgers should have motivation to succeed. I thought that is what Dave Roberts is supposed to be able to do – most seem agree that he’s not a great field general, but he’s supposed to be a communicator, motivator, etc. If he can’t get them to give it their best, then what’s he there for?
Mark – you talk about a “World Series Hangover” like it’s something that was inevitable.
Good management would make sure that didn’t happen.
Bellinger never a great hitter. You have to be kidding. I already gave you his stats from 17. In 19 the MVP had an OPS of 1.035 and an OPS+ of 169. That’s beyond a great hitter! Trout like numbers. It’s other worldly! Let’s be real here.
I believe the World Series “hangover” has some merit. But Mark, if this team is better they will overcome all the excuses because that is what makes them better or not. I believe they will because the strength of our system will prevail. We have a hard nosed rotation and some really ballers in the field. When our bullpen gets right we will be our best.
In regards to lux. He appears to be headed for platoon status but it is too early to say.
Pollock: same thing if healthy solid and better than that against lefties. 50-50 if he makes it through the season. Needs to turn his playoff woes around.
Bellinger: great player who can beat u with glove, power, and speed. Not a great hitter and never has been. He will settle in the 270-80 ave with power. His ops probably dips below 900 but still a top 10 player who can keep the line moving.
Joe Kelly: he is who he is. And that is not very good. Every time he comes in is an adventure. He should never be in a game later than the 6th inning. But all continue to hope that for a playoff his stuff matches his mouth. Doubtful
Buehler has been ace for awhile. His lack of strikeouts is a ?
Nate Jones: better than Kelly not exactly an endorsement
Well Belli did have a a rookie of the year season in 17 with a .933 OPS and a 143 OPS+. So greatness is somewhere within him if only he can consistently deliver it.
IMHO both Kelly and Jones will not be on the Dodgers roster down the stretch or playoffs (if they make it).
Both guys are not reliable enough. They can and will fall apart too often . We have seen it numerous times with Kelly over 2.5 years now (with or without the cyst) and there is a reason Jones is a journeyman at best.
I hope Knebel and Graterol eventually will get healthy and take those two spots. I still hold out some hope for a Kahnle return late in the season. That would be a huge boost for this pen.
Walker IMHO is the ace for two years now. Look at all the big games he won or kept the Dodgers in it , especially playoff games. MOF I think that has lessened the stress on Clayton which led to some of his best postseason games ever since.
As things look regarding to Belli: Right now I would keep Cory over Cody in a heartbeat if it someday comes down to that choice. I worry that Codys MVP season was a flash in the pan. Just like Puigs first year in the majors too. Codys swing is vulnerable and he has shown no adjustment in some time now.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!
I agree with Cassidy, I think Belli is what we see. We will need help from other players.
I hope you’re right about Belli Mark. This will be a telling year for him.
I have serious concerns Bellinger will ever regain his MVP form. Love the kid but his rather very quick rise to superstar status has been followed by some very pedestrian numbers. Good……not great. I wish he would make an adjustment and improve his hit tool to improve his swing and miss rate.
Love the long ball, but an occasional and situational base hit would be valuable as well. Just my opinion. His glove is elite and his speed could turn a single or BB into scoring position with a stolen base or advancement on a passed ball.