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Here s Johnny!

The next few hours are going to be crazier than Jack Nicholson in The Shining and none of us have any clue what will go down. Yesterday, I said that I doubted that Andrew Friedman will trade any of the Top 10 prospects, to which AC said he was OK with #10 (Mitchell White). I d agree with that. Other than DJ Peters (#13), I would trade any other prospects after

By Mark Timmons2 min readJump to 258 comments

The next few hours are going to be crazier than Jack Nicholson in The Shining and none of us have any clue what will go down. Yesterday, I said that I doubted that Andrew Friedman will trade any of the Top 10 prospects, to which AC said he was OK with #10 (Mitchell White). I’d agree with that. Other than DJ Peters (#13), I would trade any other prospects after #9.

Will Smith was doing well at AAA, but remember, he is about 3 years older than Keibert Ruiz, whose upside is massive. At 21 years-old he has amassed more walks than strikeouts this year. How often do you see 21 year-olds do that? The last one I could find was 21 year-old Tony Gwynn who had 28 strikeouts and 28 BB at A and AA, not ever AAA. I called Alex Verdugo Tony Gwynn-esque and you can see how well he has done (forget his current slump – it happens to everyone). Kaybear has elite bat-to-ball skills. I would not trade him or any of the TOP NINE, and I do not think Friedman will either.

Many were quick to trade Ruiz and Gonsolin, but you also saw Tony’s potential last night at Coors Field. He has great command of his fastball and slider and while he has a curve, he doesn’t control it as well. He also has a change, but in the bullpen, all he needs is that fastball and slider. He can be elite THIS YEAR in the pen. I could also see Dustin May in the bullpen THIS YEAR. He has excellent control at age 21 and only needs to use two pitches.

If Friedman swings a deal for a Daniel Hudson or Shane Greene or Amir Garrett, for lessor prospects, then I am fine. There is no guarantee that a Felipe Vasquez will get us a Championship. I have said it all year and will continue to say it.

I still think something strange will happen to, like Joc traded and Castellanos and Greene coming to the Dodgers…. Who knows?

By the way, Negron and White played a nice role last night. Can Ryu handle Coors? No, not the beer… the Stadium!

Discussion (258)

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  1. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    Damn, Nats got Elias. There’s a lefty off the table.

  2. Always CompeteJuly 31, 2019

    Daniel Hudson from Toronto to Nats for MiLB 23-year-old RHP Kyle Johnston (Nats #27 prospect). Think Gerardo Carrillo or Andre Jackson.

  3. CassidyJuly 31, 2019

    Well I guess JOC isn’t getting traded. He’s batting leadoff today

  4. BumsrapJuly 31, 2019

    A couple of pre-seasons ago I saw Peters go back on a fly ball in right field and was convinced he was a very good outfielder. The other day he made a Mike Trout type catch above the center field fence. He is supposed to have a strong arm but I saw a lot of tail on one of his throws that i didn’t like. He could very well be a Dale Murphy type center fielder.

  5. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    I love how Puig, always in the middle of a brawl, controversy and Bauer, throw the ball over center field, twitter troll, were traded for each other.

  6. Singing The BlueJuly 31, 2019

    The Pirates are playing this perfectly. First the announce they aren’t trading Vazquez. Then, as the deadline gets closer (last couple of days) they start listening to offers still indicating they would have to be totally overwhelmed. As others have mentioned above, they have no need for a premier reliever until they have a better team so now they need to turn Vazquez into some very good players/prospects.

    They’ll now hem and haw for the next little bit and then take the best offer, having known all along that they would ultimately trade him. They need to thread the needle carefully here because at some point one or more of the teams with better offers may have to jump off and deal their prospects for an offer they know will be accepted.

    Lots of cat and mouse here. I’m guessing we’ll know where Vazquez is going by 11:30 Pacific time.

  7. HawkeyedodgerJuly 31, 2019

    LA Thinking Men posted the Dodgers are still talking with Tigers and Mets about their relievers. The only formal offer was made to the Pirates who haven’t spoken since. They’re expected to talk at 10:15 LA time.

  8. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    “If the Dodgers win the division for the 7th straight time and lose the WS again, Great, they’re the Buffalo Bills! – Harold Reynolds.

  9. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    3 more hours, when’s the $hit gonna start flying?

  10. CassidyJuly 31, 2019

    Don’t care what anyone says about Belli in right our overall team defense is best when he’s at first and Verdugo in center!

  11. Brooklyn DodgerJuly 31, 2019

    As long as Verdugo is around, the Dodgers have a ready made replacement for Bellinger in RF. And they have multiple candidates (both minor and major league) for LF.

    I actually don’t agree that RF is more important than 1B. I have always considered 1B to be the anchor of the infield. A gold glove caliber first baseman is an invaluable asset. Yes, you can always find someone to plug in at 1B, but as we’ve seen with Joc, that’s not always a no brainer. Muncy is at the very least, adequate at 1B. But there are things that Belly can do that Muncy could never dream of doing.

  12. Mark TimmonsJuly 31, 2019

    DODGERS ACTIVATE RHP DYLAN FLORO

    RHP TONY GONSOLIN OPTIONED TO TRIPLE-A OKLAHOMA CITY

    LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers announced that they have activated right-handed pitcher Dylan Floro from the 10-day injured list and optioned right-handed pitcher Tony Gonsolin to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

    Floro, 28, returns from the injured list after missing 10 games with neck inflammation. The former Cal State Fullerton Titan is 4-3 with a 4.11 ERA (16 ER/35.0 IP) and 30 strikeouts in 37 games this season. The righty made one rehab appearance with High-A Rancho Cucamonga, tossing 1.0 inning with two hits and one strikeout on Friday night. In 66 games since joining the Dodgers, Floro is 7-4 with a 3.02 ERA (21 ER/62.2 IP) and 61 strikeouts.

    Gonsolin, 25, has appeared in two games in two stints for the Dodgers, recording his first career save last night after tossing 4.0 innings of one-run baseball with three strikeouts against the Colorado Rockies. He has accumulated 8.0 innings, allowing seven runs (five earned) with six strikeouts for the Dodgers. With Triple-A Oklahoma City, he has made 12 starts, posting a 1-4 record with a 4.95 ERA (20 ER/36.1 IP) and 41 strikeouts.

  13. CassidyJuly 31, 2019

    I’d do Ruiz and Gray and some other pieces for Vazquez in a heartbeat. It’s never gonna be more favorable for Dodgers to get to WS than this year and he gives us a great chance to finish the job against Astros or Yanks!

  14. Brooklyn DodgerJuly 31, 2019

    How much does the fact that Dodgers currently have a good young catcher in Smith and the 17 year old Diego Cartaya in their future pipeline, influence their decision on whether or not to include Ruiz in a deal?

  15. BumsrapJuly 31, 2019

    Cey, Russell, Lopes, Garvey to Hoase, Seager, Lux, Bellinger

    Peters will join that infield in the outfield.

    Smith and one of the 4 other awesome catching prospects joins that team at catcher.

    Just need two outfielders to round out that future team and I am not sure Verdugo is one of them. And, no, Joc isn’t either.

  16. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    Rosenthal says Vazquez in play.

    Gammons says Lux will be the captain some day, he’s not going anywhere.

    Dodgers are focused on Vazquez.

  17. IdahoalJuly 31, 2019

    I really do not think Vazquez is coming. I think putting two closers in the bull pen is not going to work. Jansen will be pissed off and players will choose sides. We may get someone less than Vazquez and that will be fine with me.

    I am not worried about Verdugo. He has hit some pretty good balls right at people. He is a rookie, and Joc is not. Joc throughout his history has been hot and cold. To often after the all star game he cools off.

  18. BobbyJuly 31, 2019

    I would take Amir Garrett as well. If he’s suspended 10 games, who cares. If we can play Joc at 1b because of our huge lead, we can let Garrett rest his arm for a week or 2.

  19. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    Lot’s of good stuff on MLB.com right now. Thor is off the block. They’re really high on Lux. “if you watch him play, the way he looks and the way he moves you can tell he’s going to be a star for the next 10 years, no way you trade him for a bullpen piece.”

    Coming up, Gammons says help to the Dodgers pen is on the way.

  20. 59inarowJuly 31, 2019

    Prediction: Vazquez to Dodgers for Ruiz and Gray, but look for this trade to expand to include additional pieces going each way.

  21. WilliamJuly 31, 2019

    It’s so hard to evaluate players who have just come up from the minors. I can’t say that I know what Gonsolin or Sadler, or certainly any of the ones who have not yet come up, would do in a career. I do know that Dodgers ans are apt to overreact on the positive side to a very new player. Maybe fans of all clubs do that, but I know it has happened here for decades. Somebody comes up, pitches well for a game or two, or gets a few hits, and people are thrilled. We cannot trade them! Mostly, we do not, and mostly these players either fizzle out, or regress to a more ordinary level. How many relief pitchers have we tried in the last three seasons or so, who ended up becoming almost useless? Put another way, which relievers have we brought up in that period who became valuable additions? I could say none, or maybe Baez, if we stretch it. Which starters have recently come up from our minors to star here? Buehler, that’s it. So maybe we are overrating our minor league pitching talent?

    At this point, I am about ready to shrug and say, just keep all the prospects, see how it turns out. The Dodgers seem so risk-averse, or maybe it is spending-averse, that why urge them to go against their grain? I would love to get Vazquez, but as usual, they seem to be finding reasons not to do it, because maybe they would trade away someone who will turn out to be good! So shuffle around with some more minor league trades, hope that none of our main rivals obtain any really good players, and see what happens in the playoffs. And if we lose again, at least we will have all the prospects to look forward to? Now, the way I see it, we do not need two starting catchers, so pick the best one, and trade the other one. As to Gavin Lux, I will defer to the experts on talent, but I hope he has the makings of a perennial All-Star, for us to absolutely refuse to consider him in a trade. I would take an experienced and star reliever for a few years, over a second baseman, unless the latter were an almost can’t-miss player, who could hit at least .290 with power, and field very well. Anything less, well, you can obtain that in the free agent market, unless of course you are averse to looking there.

  22. Watford DodgerJuly 31, 2019

    What Bobby said.

  23. BlutoJuly 31, 2019

    Rancho’s Andre Jackson, potential trade chip, has 103.2 IP of 2.95 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, and 123 K l. His repertoire showcases a FB that touches 98 and put away CB and

    Developing change.

    Another potential name for today from RC is SP Gerardo Carrillo, Dodgers #23 prospect, headlines his arsenal with a 92-96 FB that touches 98. He is also working up a CB, SL, and CH.

  24. JeffJuly 31, 2019

    Amir Garrett is one crazy dude. Did anyone see him charge into that group of Reds without any thought for his own safety? He is the answer for anyone who throws pitches at Turner. This guy will have your back come hell or high water. Puig is a choir boy next to him. A lost boy.

    Great deal Cleveland got in spite of Puig.

    Again, no reason to wait till next year to bring Gonsolin, May, and Lux into eye of the storm. We got needs, they got the goods. Prove me wrong. Strap ’em on, FO and let’s get this party started.

  25. norcaldodgerfanJuly 31, 2019

    I suspect by the close of the trading deadline the Dodgers will have acquired one of Greene, Iglesias, Kela or Vasquez. I would also not be surprised to see Joc included in a deal as well. I wonder if we’ll see a blockbuster involving Syndergard or Bumgarner.

    I just hope we can get better without having to give up Ruiz, May, Peters, Lux or Gonsolin, but to get Vasquez one of the five may have to go.

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