Jumping to Conclusions

So, as Andrew Friedman moves into his sixth year as President of Baseball Operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers many of you expect him to change his methods and do something drastically different… like trade for (pick one):

• Aaron Judge
• Nolan Arenado
• Mike Trout
• Glyber Torres
• Francisco Lindor

Or…maybe you expect him to sign that Top Free Agent like (pick one):

• Liam Hendriks
• Trevor Bauer
• Marcell Ozuna
• DJ LeMahieu
• Nelson Cruz
• James Paxton

FLASH: None of that will happen. I am not going to say anything bad about that, except maybe you should lay off…

We Have No Clue

What I mean by that is fans look at something a player does and jump, or leap… or jet-propel to a conclusion they have no idea about. Let’s Factcheck some examples:

Clayton Kershaw

Two years before Clayton Kershaw became a free agent, many fans speculated he would want to go back to Texas, that he didn’t like Roberts or Friedman and that the Dodgers would not pay him what he wanted. That was due to _____________________________ (you fill in the blanks) the fact that he wanted out of LA! FACTCHECK: FALSE! AF signed Clayton for what he wanted.

Justin Turner & Kenley Jansen

It was speculated that they would not be able to sign Turner and Jansen and that both would demand contracts over $100 Million. FACTCHECK: FALSE! AF signed both to very team favorable contracts.

Mookie Betts

Just about everyone predicted the Dodgers would not sign Betts and that the Yankees or Red Sox would end up with him. FACTCHECK: FALSE! AF Signed him

Corey Seager

They said he was injury-prone, too impatient, at bat, could not play SS and would have to move to 3B. FACTCHECK: FALSE! All of it! World Series MVP to boot!

Cody Bellinger

Bellinger was ROY and the fans said his swing was too long. He fell off in his sophomore year and the fans said “I told you so” and wanted to trade him for Torres or some such nonsense. Then he won the MVP and fans wondered if he could keep it up. When he struggled in 2020, fans said “I told you so” (again) and said he was selfish, uncoachable, had a low IQ and you name it! Fans and commentators watched Bellinger and continually criticized his continuing to tinker with batting stances. FACTCHECK: FALSE! Cody is still one of the top players in baseball and the continual tinkering with his stance was related to his shoulder issue, for which he has had surgery.

Get to the Point!

The point is: We do not know what is going on with a player. You did not know if Clayton wanted to go back to Texas, if Corey wants to play near his home, if JT and Kenley would sign or if Mookie would like LA. You can only see a limited version of the player. You don’t know what happened to Gavin Lux last year. You don’t know whose grandparent were sick, who had COVID, whose girlfriend dumped him, who is concealing an injury, who is having trouble dealing with the pandemic, but we all want to jump to conclusions… without any evidence. We have no idea… most of the tiem as to what is going on in their private lives.

We all want to wrap things in nice little neat boxes:

• He’s a good guy
• He’s selfish
• He’s not clutch
• He’s s baller – he hustles
• He doesn’t want to play here
• He’s not hustling
• He’s not ready

Andrew Toles is s classic case in point. He was out of baseball, working at a grocery store when Andrew Friedman gave him a second chance. In less than a season, he went from A ball, to AA ball, to AAA ball and to the majors. He was talented and exciting… until he just disappeared. The Dodgers put him on the suspended list and many fans said,”He had his chance – cut him.” They had no idea he was severely mentally ill, We have no idea what demons he has to battle, but this is a classic case of where we all need to realize that this great game of baseball is played by humans who sometimes mess up, trip up, or even break.

They break bones, shoulders, legs, psyches and even their brains. We don’t know what battles they are are fighting, so we should never be dismissive of their efforts. I have never been a Joc Pederson fan, but I feel like he got a raw deal when fans blamed him for not hustling and other things when obviously there were issues with his wife’s pregnancy. These baseball heroes of ours are just people like us. They have problems in their lives that they have to deal with and sometimes it carries over to the field.

Be kind… and maybe say a prayer for Andrew Toles.

Fans in the Stands

I still maintain that as the COVID-19 vaccines get rolled out, in December, that by May or June, 70% of the population will be vaccinated which is the point of where they consider it “herd immunity.”

I was curious, so I went back and looked at the number of COVID-19 cases on April 15, 2020 compared to now. On April 15th there were 30,033 cases in the US. On November 22, 2020 there were 141,641. Now let’s compared death rates. On April 15, there were 2,752. On November 22, there were 834 deaths. Let those numbers sink in! Yes, the disease is bad and it is spreading, but deaths are way, way, way down. That is because (in part) in the beginning of the pandemic, if your blood oxygen level went below 90%, they put you on a ventilator, which in 75% of the time was a death sentence.

They learned that was not the way to go. They have since developed other treatment regimens and practices that have cut the death rate dramatically. The virus also seems to be mutating and is not as virulent… and, we are poised for the vaccine which will be ready shortly. This pandemic is going to be in the rear view mirror by June and I predict you will see “butts in seats”… maybe at 50% in the beginning. But there is hope!

This is a Public Service Announcement brought to you by a Badass who beat COVID-19 Twice. 😉 Can you tell I’m back to 100%?

Dodger News

• Mike Busch has gotten rave reviews over his play in the Instructional League. He is a LH hitter and while, not a defensive wizard at 2B, he may not have to be. Some people think he might be the starting 2B for the Dodger in 2020. In his prospect report, it ends with this: “He could provide exceptional offense for second base if he can stay there, and he’ll definitely hit enough to profile at less challenging positions if needed.“
• Here’s a report from the Dominican about Edwin Uceta: “He’s only appeared in one game for Estrellas Orientales, but both Uceta and the Dodgers are likely pleased with the 22-year-old’s performance. The right-hander, whom the Dodgers added to their 40-man roster on Friday, yielded two hits, but also struck out five over three scoreless innings. Signed for $10,000 back in 2016, Uceta went 11-2 with a 2.77 ERA and 141 strikeouts over 123 1/3 innings in 2019.”
• The Stove is currently COLD!

The Dodgers are not in Dire Straits