I Miss Justin Turner
After last season, I believed that Justin Turner should have retired. Last season, he struggled at bat and in the field. He came on in the second half, but it looked to me that he was ‘losing it.” He hit only 13 HR, and at age 38, I felt that it was time to retire. JT felt…
After last season, I believed that Justin Turner should have retired. Last season, he struggled at bat and in the field. He came on in the second half, but it looked to me that he was ‘losing it.” He hit only 13 HR, and at age 38, I felt that it was time to retire. JT felt differently! As I write this, Justin Turner (aka/Red Turn 2) is batting .290 with 21 HR and 84 RBI, along with a .848 OPS for the Boston Red Sox. Yes, I was wrong! Here’s the Million Dollar Question: Did Andrew Friedman make the wrong move in letting Justin Turner walk?
Would I like to have Justin Turner back as the DH for the Dodgers? Damn right!
But Andrew Friedman did the right thing. I think that Andrew offered JT $10 Million to return as the Dodgers DH at about the same time he offered JD Martinez the same thing. JDM was three years younger, and his best friend was Robert Van Socyoc (Dodgers hitting coach). JDM was also a close friend of Mookie Betts. JDM jumped at the offer while JT was shopping. The decision was made!
It turns out that JD Martinez pulled the trigger and signed the $10 million dollar deal with the Dodgers first. Justin Turner was trying to get the best deal for him and his family… and he ended up getting it. The Red Sox guaranteed JT a one-year contract with a player option for 2024 with a cool $21.7 Million guaranteed. This is real money, guys!
How many of you make a million dollars a year? I don’t! So, to get $21.7 Million dollars guaranteed versus $10 Million is a big deal! I understood that Andrew Friedman was trying to stay under the Luxury Tax Threshold, and I also understood that JT needed to maximize his lifetime earnings. Baseball is not just a game. It’s a business, and JT got $21.7 Million guaranteed over JDM over two years. JT did the right thing! On the other hand, if JDM stays healthy ( he is currently on the IL), he is not chopped liver. He has put up 25 HR and 78 RBI in a limited time because of two IL stints.
I wish we had JT, but JDM has been great. I hope he stays healthy – he is a game-changer, and he is a great player as well as a great teammate. But, Damn, I miss JT. The business part of baseball just sucks! However, that is the modern-day reality of baseball.
Dodger News & Notes
- Gavin Stone threw 80 pitches in his six innings and looked much more serviceable than he did in the past. It was encouraging. His fastball and changeup are top-notch, but until he develops a solid curve or slider, he is destined for the bullpen. I would not be afraid of him in the bullpen.
- James Outman is hitting .250 – I would love to see his OPS get over .800… and I think he will.
- Max Muncy is up to .200. Wow!
- Mookie and Freddie are still insane, but they are going to need JDM back sooner rather than later.
- On Dave Roberts and injuries: Of Course, he is not going to tell you the truth. Nor should he.
- Jonny D was 2-3 yesterday at OKC with a double and 2 RBIs.
- Nick Frasso pitched six shutout innings for OKC, allowing two hits and striking put four with one walk!
- Shelby Miller and Ken Giles both pitched an inning, allowing one hit and striking out two each.
- I would like to see Hunter Fedducia get a shot in September.
- Austin Barnes is up to .164 and is hitting .283 in his last 15 games.
- Ben Casparius went five shutout innings for Tulsa, allowing three hits and striking out three. He did walk two.
- Bobby Miller vs. Zac Gallen tonight back at home.
More from Dodger Talk
Dodgers Food Trailer
I did this interview a couple of weeks ago with Chef Mike, who runs the Dodgers Food Trailer for the Great Lakes Loons. They are there for every home and road regular season and playoff game. They prepare three meals a day for approximately 50 people (players and coaches). Since games end late most evenings, they do not prepare breakfast. Many of their hotels have a complimentary breakfast anyway. However,…
Meet LAD 2026 Draft Picks 1-12
3 picks were High School players (2 SS and 1 OF). There was a college OF, college catcher, college SS, and 10 college pitchers. Of all the talk for a need for a catcher, the only catcher the Dodgers selected was Luke Bard, son of LAD bullpen coach Josh Bard. Bard was a 4th year senior from Houston Christian University. He is not a prospect, so the Dodgers are still…
Interview with Paul Beachy – Team Bus Driver For The Great Lakes Loons (LA Dodgers Minor League Team)
It’s been a few days since I did this interview. We have evidently been working my son-in-law (the video guy) like a rented mule at US Water Systems. However, I am taking him to London with me in a few days, so maybe Watford will buy him a pint as a tip, but he’s a dang Red Sox fan, so there is that! I thought that it would be interesting…
Thanks for Your Service: Chris Taylor
I was going to do this post when Chris announced he was retiring, then he changed his mind, but since the chances of him ever playing for the Dodgers again are slim and non-existent, I will go ahead with this post. He unretired, went on the IL, then decided to call it quits on May 24th. Taylor was born in Virginia Beach VA on August 29th, 1990. He attended Great…
Discussion (61)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Typical Scott Boras. Player does well, blame the prior down year on an injury poorly dealt with by the prior team…..player does poorly after signing, spin it and say he’s still recovering from the injury but the numbers show he’s getting better and his strength is returning and it showed late in the year. Agent speak and Boras is the master.
I don’t buy it. The Dodgers have the latest in medical technology at their disposal, the preeminent surgeon for sports injuries as the team doctor, the best in business for injury rehab but yet we’re to believe the team played Bellinger with a 35% strength deficiency in his shoulder. Bellinger underwent shoulder surgery in November 2020 and was expected to have a ten-week recovery time. At the time it was said he would be ready for ST in 2021.
Two back-to-back horrible offensive seasons resulting from a strength deficiency? Not buying it entirely. He just had two bad seasons and the Dodgers didn’t see value in offering him arbitration to the tune of $17 million. I’m certain the Dodgers did testing, scanned his shoulder, availed Bellinger to the entire array of medical diagnostics , coached him continuously and came to the conclusion he wasn’t the same player and performance didn’t equal expense.
If the Dodgers medical and rehab team can get Buehler back after two TJ’s, get Treinen back to throwing 94 MPH after his shoulder surgery, get Julio back after a shoulder repair my money is on them and Boras is simply doing his agent stuff………….and he does it damn well!
I prefer Fangraphs WAR over Baseball-Reference.
JT has a 2.0 WAR and JDM has a 1.4 WAR.
Mookie and Freddie are #1 and #2 with 7.2 and 6.7 respectively.
JT has about 130 more ABs than JDM or their WAR’s would be pretty comparable.