As I have talked about the Dodger Rookies, especially James Outman, it became apparent that whenever I said anything that was perceived to be negative about James Outman, I was attacked like I was a Wannabee by the Queen Bees in Mean Girls. I thought this was really strange until I realized the attackers were only the “Mean Girls” because they did not understand that I was not attacking their favorite player – I was just stating facts.
The fact of the matter is that James Outman is the favorite player of several fans on this board… and that is OK. I don’t operate that way… at least not for quite some time. There was a time when Clayton Kershaw was my favorite player, and while I still see him as a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer, I have no problem saying that he is a choke artist in the playoffs. It doesn’t mean I don’t like him – it just is a fact… and I stated it! Many of you have a favorite player, and evidently, many of you have chosen James Outman.
I have no problem with that. Having a favorite player was something that was important to me as I was learning about baseball. I was sometimes mad that Walter Alston did not always let my favorite player (Ron Fairly) hit against LHP, but the fact remained that he simply did not hit LHP the way he did RHP. He didn’t in the beginning, and he didn’t in the end.
Some fans say, “Well, let him learn how to hit LHP.” That sounds like a great idea, but it’s very naive! I am sure there are some LH hitters who started out not being able to hit LHP and became proficient at it later – I just can’t find them. Maybe someone can give me some examples. The fact of the matter is that if a LH Batter can’t hit LH Pitchers in the minors and when they come up to the majors, they are (Most likely) not ever going to hit them.
Ken Griffey Jr. had 7,816 plate appearances against righties. He hit .291/.382/.554 with 993 walks to 1,133 strikeouts (0.876 BB:K ratio) and averaged 1 HR in 5.6% of his PA. Compare those numbers against lefties in 3,488 plate appearances where he hit just .269/.341/.503 with 319 walks to 646 strikeouts (0.493 BB:K ratio) and average 1 HR in 5.3% of his PA. While the power largely remained, Griffey struggled with maintaining his batting average and ability to get on base by drawing a walk against LHP. Junior played 21 seasons, and while he did have a few good seasons against LHP, overall, he struggled against them… however, not to the point where he needed to be platooned. He did not need to be platooned because he maintained his power against Lefties.
For the record, I like James Outman. Before he came up to the majors, I said that he was likely a 4th or 5th outfielder. Some of you have reacted to that as if I slapped your wife! Being a 4th or 5th outfielder is pretty dang good. I could have never done that, and I was regarded as a pretty good baseball player. James Outman has exceeded my expectations. He is a hustler. He is teachable, and he plays the game the right way. By all indications, he is a solid citizen and a great guy! I am proud that he is a Dodger! But, I believe he will struggle against LHP forever. If he does, I was pretty close to right about him being a 4th or 5th outfielder… actually, I think he is a platoon player and will play against RH Pitchers, who comprise 79% of all MLB pitchers. Maybe there are certain lefties he can hit, so I think we will see James Outman in CF at least 80 to 85% of the time. That’s kind of like how I saw Ron Fairly.
So, the point of this is you should not get all “Butt Hurt” if I say James Outman is a platoon player. Also, don’t brand yourself as a moron and ascribe something different to what I say. Miguel Vargas is not my favorite player, but I do believe his “hit tool” is special. His footwork has been criticized in the past, which means that 3B or even 2B may not be his best position. He has played 37 games in LF in his career, and I have seen over 20 of them. I think LF is his ideal position. If he is a weak defensive player (and I don’t believe he is), then LF is his best position.
I think the Dodgers want to keep the pressure off of him this year. After he broke his fingers last year, he developed some bad habits and was guilty of pressing. It was the only time in his career that he struggled. His bat has played well at every level, and there is no reason to think it won’t at the next level. However, I find some of you seem to be rooting against him… mocking him and calling him names. Shame on You! You are not fans; you are bullies, just like the bullies who picked on this curly-haired, tall, skinny farm kid at recess and lost some teeth over it. I have and will continue to hit bullies in the mouth.
I hope James Outman becomes an All-Star. God knows I love his hustle and desire, and I hope Miguel Vargas does the same, not because he is my favorite player, but because it would be great for the Dodgers… and he has the ability. The player Vargas reminds me of the most is Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. He was a so-so, 1B, 2B, and SS, and in his first year in LF he was not all that, but he is a professional hitter. He actually improved through repetition and better positioning and is regarded as a solid left fielder now.
I actually think Vargas will be better than Gurriel, Jr. as Lourdes struggles at times with advanced pitching. I know that my writing about Vargas makes some of you irritated or mad. I know that you want to see him fail, but understand that I am not in the least bothered by your childish imaginings. This blog is about the Dodgers, and I don’t have any cheese for your whine! I want to see the Dodgers succeed, and while the path is not clear for either Michael Busch or Miguel Vargas, it is clearer for Vargas. Vargas will see time in LF, 3B, 2B, and 1B this year. Busch could also play those positions… but how much remains to be seen. Max Muncy will be 34 next year. He is signed for 2024 and 2025. It makes sense to keep Busch on the roster as he may be the next 3B… or not. I would not trade him yet.
The fact of the matter is that the Dodgers currently have two MLB-Ready Players in Vargas and Busch, who have a lot of value. I hear names like Rhys Hoskins being thrown about, but how stupid would it be if Vargas or Busch put up better numbers than Hoskins? Andrew Friedman knows what he is doing, and if you think otherwise, you have never watched the video that Dodgerpatch posted yesterday by a Padres Fan. If you haven’t watched it, I recommend that you do, or maybe you just want to stay dumber than hell!
Some of the things that certain posters say or want to do, show me that they have no clue what the Dodgers and Andrew Friedman are doing and how special it really is. I suggest that you educate yourselves and get a “checkup from the neck up!”
Dodgers Depth Chart from Fangraphs
Dodger Fans are seldom satisfied unless Andrew Friedman puts an All-Star at every position, but that is not financially sustainable. Yes, you can trade for a Betts, sign a Freeman, sign an Ohtani and Yamamoto, but to sustain it, the farm has to deliver, and as I always preach, “Progress is not Linear.” I know everyone wants Cease or Bieber (I think his arm is toast), but I just heard that the White Sox GM wanted four of Baltimore’s Top 10 Prospects for Cease. Baltimore is a team that might be inclined to do that because they are in a win-now mode. In a few years, they will have to tank and play it all over again. AF and the Dodgers don’t play it like that… nor should they. When you say that AF is cheap, picks up castoffs at the bone pile and shops at Dollar General, you might as well tattoo “Dumbass” on your forehead.
I think this is a superteam, and if AF needs any spare parts, he will get them at the right time. Maybe now, maybe Spring Training, and maybe at the Trade Deadline. It would be nice to have another LHP (like Ryu, at the right price), but I think many of you underestimate the value of a swingman like Yarbrough, who can pitch every 5th or 6th day to break up certain RH Pitchers… and Kershaw will likely be back by August!
In conclusion, quit taking anything I say that you perceive as negative as a slap against James Outman. I don’t have favorite players – I like all the Dodgers, and I want to see them in the best position to succeed. If you are truly a fan, that should be your desire as well. Go Dodgers!
Discussion (17)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Not saying I do…
Depends on the player. Some speak their minds no matter what. Bauer never took the company line. Several others never have either. Ted Williams solved the problem by refusing to speak to the press. By the way, Bull Durham is pure fiction. Never saw JT dance around questions either. Duke Snider was totally honest in an interview and after, Brooklyn fans actually booed him. Why? He said Dodger fans were the absolute worst. He also said he only played the game for the money. And I am far from being naive.
Why keep talking about Outman, Vargas and Busch? Maybe they won’t even be on the team at the start of the season, wouldn’t it be better to wait at least for the all-star game? And then something more real will be known. I respect their opinions, don’t take my words the wrong way, but they are just young kids, prospects, who are still learning and are already being mentioned as if they were veterans. Better to talk and criticize Freeman, Betts, Kershaw and company, who have failed in the playoffs, and I do not include Roberts, because he is not on the mound or in the bullpen or in the field.
The Athletic rated every MLB team’s offseason and said this:
Key takeaways: The Dodgers have already clinched the best offseason of all 30 teams. They signed the best overall free agent (Ohtani) and the best overall free-agent starter (Yamamoto). They traded for (and extended) Glasnow, the most impactful starter dealt this winter. They improved around the edges, re-signing Heyward and acquiring Margot in the Glasnow trade to give Heyward a platoon partner in right field. I also liked the decision to bring back Kelly because of the depth he provides their bullpen but more importantly the edge he brings to the clubhouse. Don’t be surprised if the Dodgers add even more pitching before spring training.
But the pitching they add will not be Cease, Bieber or Burnes… maybe Brasier and Ryu…
loved Tony! i agree best hitter i ever saw. but JR . was the best all around i saw . i’m a tad bit younger than you Bear, so i didn’t see as much asyou of mays and mantle. can’t have a discussion about greatest ever without Roberto Clemente.
sorry , spell check abandoned me on my last post! JR. was the best player i’ve seen in my opinion over the last 40 years!
loved corey! ove mookie! love freddie!ken griffey jr. was always my favorite non dodger . still believe he’s thhe best player of the season last 30 years . no peds, or any negative findings ever! bonds cheated and griffey didn’t plain and simple. aass rod cheated for years and griffey didn’t. if jr. HAD cheated he would probably have been healthy and hit well over 700 homers. clayton and garvey my 2 favorite. but so many others are so special. AND, joe kelly should retire a dodger!
Corey Seager was my favorite Dodger…..I have not found a replacement yet. Joe Kelly might be claiming that honor though….might….
Here is another thing that suggests that I don’t have a problem with Vargas and for that matter Busch (I will admit I do like Busch better than Vargas). The only outfielders that I’ve wanted AF to get this offseason is Jung Hoo Lee and Hoskins (Yeah I know, no longer can play LF, a liability, blah blah blah, whatever, it doesn’t matter in this discussion).
Why those guys and not Vargas or Busch? It’s that those guys are impact players and a trade wasn’t/isn’t needed to get them because they were/are free agents.
When I here suggestions about getting these guys below (no offense to anyone who’ve suggested these guys for LF) I say let Vargas or Busch play LF, if these guys are the alternatives.
Michael A. Taylor career .239/.294/.389/.683
Adam Duvall career .232/.291/.472/.763
How hard would it be for Vargas and Busch to match or come close to those numbers this year, especially Taylor? Not hard is the answer.
I could go into a long discussion about the Outman/Mark thing but I’ll only say 2 things.
1) Vargas is your boy and EVERYONE knows it.
2) In the offseason last year you touted Vargas like crazy and called others that didn’t conform to you, morons and all those other similar words you use. While at the same time dismissing Outman and calling others that were positive about Outman, morons and those other similar words you use. Maybe that’s how this all got started, ya think? After saying all of that, I like Mark.
Mike Schmidt hit .196 his first full year in Philly. Trout hit .220 in 40 games with the Angels his first shot. But his first full year, he hit .326.
Sometimes, these guys are full of something smelly, but sometimes, they are not. Hyperbole aside, this is interesting:
Okay, Miguel Vargas has an exceptional hit tool. Friedman said it, so did Gomes and Roberts. So did Jerry Hairston and he pointed out what happened after the injury and how it led him to a hitting funk. But the skills are still there. Even Clayton Kershaw raved about Vargas ability to become a really good MLB hitter.
So now it’s settled, right?
Not every hitter starts strong. Remember, even Mike Trout had a terrible start. It was his second season when the talent burst through. And Vargas did start the season with an injury. Now I’m not saying Vargas is Trout, but everyone seems to agree that his hitting skills are exceptional. The only question remaining is where does he play.
Friedman recently said that Busch is major league ready and will be given every opportunity to to start the season in LA. Where does he play or will he be traded?
Rumors persist the Dodgers are in on Hader. Doesn’t sound quite right, but who knows? The rumor mill keeps saying the Dodgers are in on Teoscar Hernandez. Maybe there is something to all this or it’s a classic Friedman misdirection. But if true, what would that mean for Vargas and Busch. Either you believe in your young players and play them or you trade them. I would think signing Hernandez would take more than a one year commitment.
In order to sustain, the Dodgers need the young players and their affordable salaries to make it. We’ll see. The Dodgers are a long way from finishing their roster for 2024 or so it would seem. You could argue both Vargas and Busch have earned their shots.
Hey, I’ve always liked Outman. Kind of a throwback, works hard to get better. Just a really good competitor with high intensity.
The market seems to be dragging with teams looking for deals, then again the holidays just ended. Of course, as with many of his free agents, Scott Boras is content to ride it out.
Good explanation, Mark.
I have not had a favorite player in years. I do tend to like some players more than others. I mean I just loved Yasmani Grandal……..not. My last real favorite was Piazza and FOX screwed that up. I decided then and there no to have one. Chances of them being traded or going somewhere else in free agency were just too high. I learned to appreciate them while they were Dodgers rather than get attached. Of course, I am a lot older now and you have so many other things going on in life. That is why I appreciate the fact that Kersh has kept coming back even when he could have probably got a boatload of money to leave. I would not blame him if he left to pitch in his hometown, but like Seager, he would just look like he did not belong in that Texas uni. As for Outman. I love the way he plays, which is all out all the time. That kid always hustles. He is basically Joc Pederson with better fielding skills. And he is much faster. Hard to believe Joc has been in the league for 10 years now. He has an OPS over .800 against RHP and has hit .242 against them. 172 of his 186 homers have come off of RHP. For some reason, he quit stealing bases in the majors. He stole 30 twice in the minors. He has 22 total in the bigs. Outman stole 16 last season alone. Now it is more than true that Outman does not show great power against LHP. Neither has Pederson. But so far, the big difference is that Outman has an OBP against LHP of .359. Which is .001 higher than against RHP. Joc’s is under .300. The thing is, as Mark stated, even someone as great as Ken Griffey Jr. did not do well against lefties. One of the Dodgers best hitting lefties in the last several years, Adrian Gonzalez, hit .270 against LHP< but he only had 67 homers off of them in over 2200 at bats. Ruth on the other hand, hit 219 in 2400 at bats. The great Tony Gwynn, not a home run hitter, batted .325 against lefties. Ruth matched that. Ted Williams hit .318 off of lefties. Ty Cobb hit ,337 against them.
Rockies are signing Dakota Hudson and Jacob Stallings. Six teams in the bidding for Ryan Brasier. Red Sox shopping Yoshida and Jansen. Yardbarker reports that if he is posted, the Dodgers will be all in on Sasaki. White Sox signed Chad Kuhl and the Brewers signed Austin Nola. Mets might be interested in trading C, Navarez. Left-handed hitting catcher.
Duke asked a question at the end of yesterday’s stream which I did not get a chance to answer. On June 21, 2019, the Dodgers got a walk off 4-2 win over the Rockies when Matt Beaty hit a 2 out two run homer off of Jaro Diaz in the bottom of the 9th inning. It gave Walker Buehler his 8th win of the year. The next night, Alex Verdugo hit a solo shot in the bottom of the 11th inning off of Jesus Tinoco. It was his second homer of the game. Side note, Beaty drove in two runs in this game. On Sunday afternoon, Will Smith hit a pinch hit three run homer with two outs in the bottom of the 9th for the Dodgers third straight walk off win over the Rockies. He hit it off of Scott Oberg. So yes, your recollection was right on the money. Kelly got the win on Verdugo’s shot and Jansen got the win with Smith’s. Dodgers record after the sweep, 54-25.
Oh, come on, Mark! We all have our favorites. We all have our biases. The prevailing theme we here, the audience, tend to pick up – because you post articles about it on a near daily basis and argue about it on a near daily basis – is that you overrate Vargas and underrate Outman.
There’s nothing wrong with having favorites or biases. We all have them.
It’s not even that I disagree with you about Outman and lefties. There was a statistical trend last year (and in the minors) where he lacked home run power against lefties. His average was about the same, and his double power was pretty close, but he just didn’t hit homers.
This could be a real issue. He could regress in general, strike out a bunch, and look lost at the plate against lefties. That’s a real possibility. It happened to Joc. I just find it preposterous that you’re taking a guy who put up 4.4 WAR (the same as Fernando Tatis Jr.) last year and you’re already demoting him to platoon only 4th outfielder before the season even starts. How ’bout we just, I dunno, start the season and let him play first before we write him off?
I think it would be fantastic if Vargas could hit around .280, with 20 home runs and 35 doubles, and puts up a 120 – 130 wRC+ while not embarrassing himself in left, but for someone who prides himself on being a Missouri style “show me” type of guy, you’re sure willing to give an automatic runway …with a red carpet … to a player who honestly hasn’t shown anything yet, and you’re a bit in the minority among the scouting reports as to his ceiling as a prospect.
But I’m rooting for Miguelito. I really don’t want the Dodgers to go out and get a left fielder. No Rhys Hopkins, Eric! Duvall would actually be a good fit, and if I were the GM and shopping, I’d definitely kick the tires on him, but it would be better if Vargas could grow into that position. If the Dodgers do go out and get a new left fielder, that means both Vargas and Busch are probably trade bait because there’s no roster space and no position for them, and I don’t want to trade away home grown talent and see them go all Yordan Alvarez for someone else.
I think my favorite prospect is Maddux Bruns. I got into a bit of a lengthy argument with Jeff Dominique when the Dodgers drafted him. He wanted a safer choice, some guy with a ceiling as a 4th or 5th starter without the risk of Bruns. I was intrigued when I read that, as a high schooler, he touched 98 as a lefty starter, had an 80+ MPH 12-6 power curve and a nasty slider. His problem then, and now, was that he sometimes can’t hit the side of a barn. For the low draft position the Dodgers were in, I thought he was a classic AF pick – bit of a risk, but really high ceiling. If he can tone down the walks I think Snell is a good comp, and he could be a #1-#2.
i guess we have. a roster of 4th and 5th outfielders. I guess AF knows what he’s doing. i guess doc will manage his platoon outfield to the best of his ability. i guess either vargas or busch will be traded. i guess i’m glad that’s not my decision. i guess that neither should be sent back to the minors. i guess Clayton comes back in august. i guess we’re stuck with barnes at least for one more season. i guess the giants are loading up with lefties to try and compete! i guess mark is a pretty smart guy most all of the time. i guess ol bear is a dodger history genius! and i guess the dodgers win 100 games again. after the regular season is over, i have no guess!