After Blake Snell went down for a few days, some fans complained that the Dodgers did not have enough pitching. I beg to differ. Landon Knack had a bad game when he was called up, so that means he can never pitch… right? Well, he didn’t pitch great last night. We shall see… There are lots of teams that could want him. He could be traded, as could Bobby Miller, who allegedly will pitch tomorrow. Teams are desperate for starting pitchers, and the Dodgers are loaded.
Snell will return in the next couple of weeks to be added to a rotation of Yamamoto, Sasaki, Glasnow, and May. Tony Gonsolin should be back around the first of May (he pitched four innings at OKC last night), and then Old Man Kershaw can come off the IL on May 17. Oh, and they might be saving Ohtani until after the All-Star Break. Emmet Sheehan should also return at that time as well. The Dodgers will be sellers of pitching.
Utility Players
Some Dodger fans want to see Kike Hernandez, Chris Taylor, Austin Barnes and even Max Muncy, Andy Pages, and/or Miguel Rojas gone. In their places, they want Hank Aaron, Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, and Mike Trout. Yeah… that’s not going to happen. I would be surprised if any of the six aforementioned players are not on the roster at the end of the season… unless it is injury-induced.
I am a massive fan of Alex Freeland, but unless there is an injury, I think he will be at OKC all year. Next year, I expect Mookie to move to 2B and Alex to be the starting SS. Every year, Max Muncy goes through a tough stretch where he can’t jump out of a boat and hit water, the fans (on cue) all go crazy, and then he comes back and ends up with 35 home runs! I also expect Max to be a Dodger in 2026. He will, however, likely platoon with a RH hitter like Kike or Miggy Ro… or maybe Will Smith (Bluto will be all over that). With Dalton rushing up to the big club (see what I did there?), I think it’s a good idea to play Will at 3B in the future—just my opinion.
Trades Anyone?
Will the Dodgers be active in the Deadline Trade Market? Well, Andrew Friedman said he doesn’t want to be a buyer at the deadline, but he did not say that he wouldn’t be a seller. Players who could be traded include Landon Knack, Bobby Miller, Tony Gonsolin (who has 2.5 years of control left), Hunter Feduccia, and Ryan Ward (not a huge value). James Outman has little to no value, but Andy Pages could be part of a deal for the right player.
I keep hearing about Luis Robert, Jr. This guy has regressed big time once he got paid. In my opinion, this could reflect a character issue. I can’t see the Dodgers making that kind of trade, and especially without seeing what Kim can do in The Show!
Callups and Moveups?
- Kendall George looks visibly bigger and stronger, and that could pay off down the road. He’s about the size of Mookie Betts.
- Josue DePaula is struggling (a little) at GL while Zyhir Hope is raking! I expect Hope to move to Tulsa by Mid-Season. He is playing CF at Great Lakes, but that doesn’t mean he can play it up three levels.
- Luke Fox looks way lost at GL. He may move back to RC.
- Hyeseong Kim will undoubtedly get called up, but it might be in late May or June.
- LH Ben Harris is pitching very well at OKC in relief and has 10 Ks in 7 IP (1.09 WHIP). Watch him!
Discussion (18)
Disagree, not disagreeable
National League West currently has three teams playing over 700 ball, four over 600. No other division has more than one team playing 600 ball and none have any playing 700 ball.
I was hoping that Bobby Miller would prove he’s a keeper.
Instead he’s looking more like trade fodder with a decreasing value. Oh well… Luis Robert Jr’s trade value has been decreasing too…
I like the idea of Will Smith eventually shifting to 3B–but only if Rushing or ??? can equal or exceed his defense behind the plate.
This is one of the reasons I’ve suggested that Rushing should be taking some infield at 3B. We know he is proficient at 1B, and we know he has a strong arm…so why not? If Rushing can be a first-rate ML catcher like Smith, terrific. But the Dodgers shouldn’t have a second-rate catcher. A second-rate defensive 3B is tolerable.
Max is 34. Will is 30. The Dodgers will be replacing Max before they replace Will.
Freddie is 35. He’s been dealing with some injuries–but I think he’ll outlast Max.
Mookie, at 32, is looking good at SS.
I look forward to Kim getting called up. I hope he can get on base enough at the bottom of the order. Have a decent .OBP and play good defense. I don’t need much more than that this year.
It is apparent that right now this is not a good defensive team despite Mookie’s improvement. Muncy, Conforto, and Teo are avg to below avg defensively. Pages is a corner outfielder. I never realized how slow Conforto was as a runner. I trust Friedman to figure it out.
Good for CT3. I think a lot of us forget how good he’s been and how many big moments he’s had as a Dodger. Most of their careers I would take Taylor over Kike. He may or may not finish this season as a Dodger but I appreciate what he’s done for the Dodgers.
Hopefully Max breaks out at plate with one of his hot streaks. He’s looked close. Can’t afford to have him be a butcher at 3rd and hit sub .200. It will make people question not grabbing a certain third baseman who is dying to be a Dodger.
Pages producing
Miller still a head case.
Doc not too happy with Freddie trying to steal as base last night. They don’t want him to take any chances with that ankle.
1. Everyone’s opinion is welcome on LADT that is a given. Whether positive or negative.
2. Every player on every team is in an elite group of the best players in the world.
3. Which players deserve a call up over CT3? Remember all the great talent on the farm need consistent playing time and AB’S.
4. CT3 is the 26th man. And he is doing a credible job as that player.
5. If Knack is a Cy Young against teams below .500 damn he must be pretty darn good. He is definitely eating precious innings, how bad is that?
6. If you don’t believe any of this……………….Re; Andrew Friedman.
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Hey Bear,
Weird question:
Is truckstop.com legit?
As a potential data plate?
Evan Phillips making probably his last rehab outing today pitched 1 inning, 1hit allowed, no runs allowed,1K,15 ptches 10 strikes and got the save in first place Oklahoma City’s 3-1 win this afternoon. Luis Garcia with NO options remaining will probably be DFA to open up the roster spot for Phillips.
10:10 PM ET
Rockies (3-14)
Dodgers (13-6)
SP German Marquez R
0-2 4.60 ERA
SP Bobby Miller R
0-0 .00 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
LF M. Conforto L
2B Tommy Edman S
3B Max Muncy L
CF Andy Pages R
C A. Barnes R
60° Wind 10 mph Out
Teo is back,NO Smith
Landon knack is optioned to Oklahoma City to make room for today’s starter Bobby Miller.
Kershaw was dealing today. 3 innings, a couple of hits, no walks.
A couple of observations
1 – Mookie does look much better at SS this year
2 – Muncy looks horrible in the field. I agree with Mark that he will start hitting although the last couple of years he has regressed vs. LHP. But he, like Conforto, is a liability defensively
3 – The OF defense isn’t good unless Edman is in CF. Pages is a RF playing CF. His routes out there are scary. Conforto has never been a good defensive OF. Teo is average at best. They need a CF. Not Luis Robert though. One good year doesn’t make you a good player.
4 – Landon Knack – look at his numbers from last year. He pitched like Cy Young vs sub .500 teams and like Miguel Rojas vs good teams. I agree with Andrew Vincent Forte.
5 – The offense will start rolling. The aces will start pitching like aces. It’s still early. And they will make adjustments if necessary.
How bout our guy CT3 last night. Solid game from him down in the 8 hole….
Dont write him off just yet…..
Rooting for Bobby Miller to have a strong start. He looked like a budding ace in ’23–but then ’24 happened.
The Dodgers do have a lot starters, especially when we include the expected arrivals of Shohei, Gonsolin, Kershaw and Sheehan. Miller has a chance to wedge into a six-man rotation.
May and Yamamoto have been excellent. Sasaki is going through some growing pains. Glasnow makes me nervous. And Snell is making we wish that the Dodgers, not the Red Sox, had swung a blockbuster for Crochet… He’s been a beast.
Best thing about today’s win: Jack Dreyer. Among the pen’s lefties, he has outpitched Banda, Vesia and even Tanner Scott. Dreyer is pitching like he never wants to visit Oklahoma again….
Roberts says he wants Pages to have about 150 ABs worth of runway. So it may take an injury for Kim to be promoted sooner.
Heading toward midseason, the Dodgers will have a better sense of what they need and what might be on the market… perhaps both Robert and Arenado.
I always thought Robert Jr. would be a good fit in the outfield. I’m willing to bet that a change of scenery will impact his career in a positive way. But that being said, might as well stick Outman in center. As for Landon Knack, he is a solid innings eater. And they are important. I really hope Kim’s bat can play in the Bigs. And I also think Alex Freeland is the real deal…….but I still love Bo. Just not on the Madres.
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“LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers are inching closer to getting left-hander Clayton Kershaw back, as he’s set to take a big step in his recovery from multiple offseason surgeries.
Kershaw is scheduled to throw around two innings for Triple-A Oklahoma City in Wednesday’s game against the Tacoma Rainiers, the Mariners’ Triple-A club, at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark at 12:05 p.m. ET/9:05 a.m. PT”.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are calling up right-handed pitcher Bobby Miller to start Wednesday’s game against the Colorado Rockies, manager Dave Roberts announced Tuesday.
Knack will be optioned or Garcia will be DFA for assignment to open up the roster spot.I’m not a fan of either pitcher.