It's Not the Time to Fight!

Who could script all this? This is a Crazy, Amazing, Iconic, Maddening, Awesome Game. The Giants are showing no sign of letting up or falling down in this Magical Season. Their starting staff is decimated and their relievers are a mess, but they just keep winning. Last night their starting pitcher was paid by the Dodgers to start for the Giants and despite being out of baseball for about 20 years, he did not give up an ER in 4 innings. Does anyone here want Scott Kazmir back? Of course not, but he’s part of the juggernaut that is the Giants.

I believe that it is time for the Dodgers to concede the battle… so that they can win the war! What I mean by that is I believe it is time to concede the division to the Giants and gear up to win the playoffs. Sun Tsu said this in The Art of War:

He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.

Is the goal to win the NL West… or the World Series? I would say that the latter is the goal. Forget the consecutive NL West Championships. Let’s get laser-focused on the ultimate goal: The World Series! Max Scherzer may be fine (although I would pitch him 5 or 6 innings in his next two starts). Clayton Kershaw probably needs to build his pitch count, but it appears that Julio Urias and Walker Buehler are running out of gas.

They need some rest in order to get revitalized for the playoffs. It might be wise to let them rest seven or eight days and then have one final “tune-up” before the end of the season. Stack the rotation so that if there is a Wild Card Game, Max Scherzer is the starter. It’s time to rest… not fight. Get AJ Pollock, Justin Turner, Chris Taylor, Max Muncy, Cody Bellinger, Corey Seagar, Mookie Betts, and the Catchers healthy. The Dodgers are already in the playoffs. They should gear up for the playoffs… not the NL West Championship.

STAND DOWN!

If they keep trying to win the division… and God knows they have tried – they have the best record in baseball over the last 30 to 40 games – they may flame out early in the playoffs. Phil Bickford and Alex Vesia are also gassed. They have pitched a lot. Give them some rest. Let’s forget the NL West Championship and focus on the World Series. Rest the players who need to rest and keep everyone else sharp. Then come back with your guns blazing!

Yes, that is easier said than done. Sometimes when you pull it back, you can never get it back, but right about now, the Dodgers have some pitchers who need some R & R. Right about now, the focus should be on the ultimate goal, not something you think would be really cool to accomplish. That is a slippery slope, but it is something I would absolutely do right about now.

I know that it is difficult to pitch in Colorado, but I can also see that some pitchers are tired. They call it Dead Arm Syndrome. Urias and Buehler have pitched more innings than they ever have in a season. The same is true with Vesia and Bickford, and even Treinen could benefit from some rest. It’s time to win the war… not the battle!

Pack it in! Live to fight another day.

The Giants are in the midst of a magical season. No one thought they could even finish .500 and they will win over 100 games. It’s the Baseball Gods I tell you! Maybe this run will carry them to a World Series win (I threw up in my mouth as I wrote that), but if the Dodgers re-group for the final battles, maybe they can steal the Giants magic… and make no mistake about it: it is magic… smoke and mirrors. I would not be surprised to see them play below .500 next year. But, here we are and it is what it is.

There’s nothing to be ashamed of – there have been a lot of injuries and the Bauer Debacle, but there are no excuses. Play Ball! The Dodgers will win over 100 games and not win the division. Someone should look up the last time that happened. Get a little R & R, boys, and then let’s get ready for the Real Battles!

Finally, I have noticed that Trea Turner makes some really avoidable knuckleheaded plays. Mookie and JT need to speak with him privately and tell him to stop acting like he is “too cool for school – Don’t worry what it looks like – just do it!”

Waterloo