It s Time For Some Unfinished Business
A couple of days ago, Ken Gurnick wrote this: Corey Seager’s elbow blew out, and the Dodgers found a way. The entire starting rotation went on the disabled list, and they found a way. Kenley Jansen’s heart raced, and they found a way. They even found a way to overcome a nine-game deficit in the National League West. And on Saturday, the Dodgers found their way back to the World
A couple of days ago, Ken Gurnick wrote this:
Corey Seager’s elbow blew out, and the Dodgers found a way. The entire starting rotation went on the disabled list, and they found a way. Kenley Jansen’s heart raced, and they found a way. They even found a way to overcome a nine-game deficit in the National League West. And on Saturday, the Dodgers found their way back to the World Series.
However, they did not come this far to JUST come this far.
They are here to take home the World Series Trophy. This was the year of massive struggle for the Dodgers. On August 22, they were in 3rd place in the NL West after struggling all seaon. Since that date, they are 32-14! At the start of the season, Walker Buehler was just a rookie who had put up a terrible ERA in a “cup of coffee” September. Matt Kemp was not a lock to make the team, in fact, many thought he would be traded or cut. Max Muncy was a minor leaguer who was “organizational depth.” El Gasolino was… well, el Gasolino. Dylan Floro was nowhere, Caleb Ferguson was a prospect and Julio Urias was recovering from surgery.
Alex Wood and Kenta Maeda were starters and Ryan Madson was an “over-the-hill” reliever. David Freese, Brian Dozier and Manny Machado were starters on various other teams. The “World Series Hangover” lingered all season and was finally exorcised when the Dodgers beat the Brewers to officially win the NLCS again.
These guys did not come this far to only come this far.
They have unfinished businesss and a unyielding resolve to take what was almost theirs last year. They won’t stop fighting, they will not fail. They believe, they know… to a man… that this is their moment. But, the Red Sox have two of the Top 5 hitters in baseball. It doesn’t matter! The Red Sox won 104 games. It doesn’t matter! The Red Sox are hot. It doesn’t matter! The Boys in Blue are writing this script.
On a cold Sunday afternoon, Clayton Kershaw was in the Fenway Bullpen. He has never pitched there, but he knows he might have to pitch there two or three times in the next seven games. He won’t be surprised by the cold. He wants to make sure he is ready. He’s not the pitcher he was 5 or 6 years ago. It’s doesn’t matter! This is his time. He knows it could be the last time. He is going to deliver. He knows it. When you “know” something, it must come into being.
The Red Sox are favored. It doesn’t matter! Matt Kemp was exposed in the second half of the season. It doesn’t matter! This is his first World Series, and what an improbale route he took to get here. Manny Machado was the SS for one of the worst teams in baseball and now he’s in the World Series! Who would have thought the Dodgers would get back to the World Series without Corey Seager. The Astros couldn’t make it with a gimpy Carlos Corerra.
Yasmani Grandal was the goat of the Brewers series and I do not mean GOAT. It doesn’t matter! He could be the MVP of the Series. Stranger things have happened. This is a team that overcame the hangover and stayed together through thick and thin to get to the pinnacle. But the Red Sox have Chris Sale. It doesn’t matter! When the game is on the line… when their backs are to the wall, these guys deliver. But, the Red Sox hit twice as good as the Dodgers with RISP. It doesn’t matter!
This is going to be an incredible series between two storied franchises. Never mind what the oddsmakers say. It doesn’t matter! These guys are here for one thing only – to win. There as starts, journeymen, role players and opportunists, but to a man, they are all Junkyard Dogs! Yasiel Puig guaranteed a Dodger victory and so do I. The only thing in doubt is “How many games will it take?” I say 5!
DODGERS ANNOUNCE WORLD SERIES ROSTER
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers today announced their 25-man roster for the 2018 World Series, which begins tonight vs. the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. First pitch is scheduled for 8:09 p.m. ET.
The Dodgers will carry 12 pitchers and 13 position players. The roster is as follows:
Pitchers (12) Position Players (13)
LHP Scott Alexander C/IF Austin Barnes
RHP Pedro Baéz 1B/OF Cody Bellinger (L)
RHP Walker Buehler 2B Brian Dozier
RHP Dylan Floro IF David Freese
LHP Rich Hill C Yasmani Grandal (S)
RHP Kenley Jansen IF/OF Kiké Hernández
LHP Clayton Kershaw OF Matt Kemp
RHP Ryan Madson IF Manny Machado
RHP Kenta Maeda IF Max Muncy (L)
LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu OF Joc Pederson (L)
LHP Julio Urías OF Yasiel Puig
LHP Alex Wood OF/IF Chris Taylor
3B Justin Turner
The World Series continues tomorrow night with Game 2 at 8:09 p.m. ET at Fenway Park.
The series shifts to Los Angeles later this week, with Games 3 (5:09 PT), 4 (5:09 PT) and 5 (5:09 PT, if necessary) at Dodger Stadium. Games 6 and 7 (if necessary) would be played in Boston on Tuesday, October 30 and Wednesday, October 31 at Fenway Park.
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 (156)
Disagree, not disagreeable
No predictions, just play smart baseball and take advantage of the opportunities when they come.
Roster Update Above
–
Maybe some surprises!
LA IN FOUR!
Interesting article from The Athletic regarding each home plate umpire that may be used during the series:
Open on theathletic.comhttps://theathletic.com/607094/2018/10/23/the-man-behind-the-mask-will-play-a-key-role-in-each-game-of-the-fall-classic/Wow! I cannot wait for tonight’s game. I too, will be among Red Sox fans in my family. But they’re “in-laws” so they don’t really count (haha). This has been a year of uncertainty for sure. But, Mark, I agree with you’re assessment of the entire team being “junkyard dogs.” When a player goes cold… its “next man up,” and someone gets the big hit, or makes a game saving play, or pitches “lights out.” I hope it is an exciting series, it has the possibility to be a blow-out by either team, or it could well go seven games.
I get a different vibe this year as compared to last year’s team. I will never be convinced that the Astros were better than the Dodgers, just as most are still convinced that the 1988 Dodgers were not better than the Mets or A’s. But who has the WS Trophy? In a short series, any team can get hot and win 4 games. Why not the 2018 Dodgers? I say yes!!
.
I agree that JDM and Mookie Betts will be tough to control through the entirety series, but I am not as “fearful(?)” of Benintendi, Devers, JBJ, Bogaerts, Kinsler/Holt, Pearce/Moreland, Vasquez/Leon/Swihhart. I do not think they will all be shut down, but I do believe the Dodgers have the pitching to minimize the damage.
.
Chris Sale’s velo is down. But then again so is Kershaw’s. Sale pitched the least number of innings (158) since 2011. And yet he still had 237 K’s. That is nearly 11 K’s/9 innings against a team that just loves to swing at anything in the same hemisphere. I still like the Dodgers vs Sale and Price in Boston. I am not saying they will win both, but I do like their chances.
.
CT3 will be struck out a lot, but I also expect he will continue to get timely hitting. Yasiel Puig seems to be playing at another level right now, and his confidence could not be higher. While I do not believe he will be a Dodger next Spring, I do think that Manny Machado is going to take the team on his back and absorb all of the vitriol he is sure to get. But that just allows the other players to just play, and Manny seems to thrive on that venom. I think he is going to give the rest of MLB a lasting memory of his value going into FA both offensively and defensively. Cody is maturing right before our eyes, and if he is not successful in the WS, it will not be because the stage is too big as it was last year for him. Kemp, Freese, and Dozier will be steady veterans who should be calming influences on the team. Muncy and Kike’ seem to be playing way too tight right now.
.
Clayton seems to be in a totally different mindset. I think he realizes that his time as being an Ace on a WS team is dwindling, but he still has that role, and I think he wants to make sure this year is special. I am not as sure that Buehler, the future Ace, will not still have his jitters. He has shown that when the pressure of the situation gets tighter, so does his grip on the baseball. He has a tendency to rely on his fastball, with a tendency to overthrow it. I think it is a great decision to have him pitch in LA and not Boston. Boston is one very very very TOUGH place to pitch. The fans can be brutal. I might have scheduled Rich Hill in Game 2, but Ryu should not be rattled.
.
The Dodgers bullpen will again be the difference in this series.
.
I honestly do not know what to expect from Grandal, but just as Joc went off last year in the WS, it is conceivable that Grandal can go off this year. But I still think Barnes will be behind the plate tonight to start.
.
All in all, I cannot wait for this series to start. I still cannot get an answer from my son who he will be rooting for. He said he will know how he is leaning when the games start. But while my wife will not root against the Dodgers, she is pulling for the Red Sox, because as she told our son, “it is because they brought you to the ML and they PAID YOU!” As for me, I am a die-hard Dodger fan, and while I will always have a special place in my heart for Boston, it will not be a factor for me when they play the Dodgers.
Predictions are meaningless but I’ll say LA in seven. Should be a fantastic series and Game 1 will set the tone. Thanks for this blog, Mark. It’s been a fun ride. Let’s finish the job. Four wins to glory.