- Start with a hungry team who fell just short and age it a year;
- Stir in a few new players;
- Blend in growing maturity;
- Add a dash of experience;
- Simmer with lots of competition;
- In a side pan, simmer Turner Ward’s system until gelled;
- Allow the creation to rest periodically;
- Boil in a large pan of determination;
- Slowly combine growing manager experience; and
- Broil away all vestiges of injury.
Cook for 162 games and serve it over the next 19 games – serves millions.
Rants & Raves
- So Corey Seager claims he did not have his “A Swing” last year and is working to re-gain it. How scary is that for other teams?
- Bellinger, Seager and Urias are now all represented by the Devil himself – Scott Boras!
- Andre Either is allegedly 100% healthy.
- Dodgers Digest believes A-Gon will pay 135-140 games this year. That sounds just about right. I know he’s an iron man, good guy, great citizen, wonderful teammate. He’s also 35 and has been in decline for 4 years. Rest him and maybe he can be more effective, but I do worry that this is the year he really drops off…
- Today might be the day that Paul George of the Indiana Pagers is traded to either the Lakers or Celtics. We expected him to be Jordan but he’s really Pippen – maybe Johnson can do some Magic on him.
Today’s Music
Today’s Thought
Discussion (29)
Disagree, not disagreeable
The real test for peaceful relations would be the return of Badger. All anybody needs to do in here is let others be who they want to be and only try to control the only person anybody can control–themselves.
In a word NO. He has crossed the line.
Oh Mark and Watford, you guys know I didn’t go anywhere 🙂 and I love you both. Appreciate the kind words guys.
I am out of hibernation officially, great to have LADodgerTalk back, I was very excited when Mark made that move. Love the Report and read daily but after years and years (since way early 2000’s?) of posting on “The Talk”, here always felt like home, on top of Mark making me buy him oysters and beers. MJ, I know Mark personally, the opinions, emotions and divide were at an all time high last year at this time over at the report, but please know it was not personal to Mark or anyone else.
I will have a more positive approach this season, as some know, I did not like last years team but was pleasantly surprised. I went to all the playoff games in Washington and was shocked, I did not see that coming.
Roberts grew on me big time, Seager is a stud and boy, if Puig can turn it on, game changer. Really pulling for him, he could seriously change everything.
Pitching however, I hope this is the season we make a move for an arm at the deadline, Kershaw and Hill, 1 and 2 again in the playoffs will make truths burr larger than life itself. I am still skeptical of FAZ but not a hater, I said last offseason the contracts were a burden for them, I just did not buy into the hype of us having a contending team, I was wrong. Honestly, as we have gotten to know some younger players and resigning Turner and Jansen, it actually feels like more of a team now, much more than last year at this time to me anyway.
With money coming off the books soon and a bunch of prospects, I sincerely hope we can make a BIG move, but we have months to worry about that. We know we can almost get there, we just need a piece or two to solidify it, I hope it happens.
I am all in, glad to be back boys, go Dodgers!
I knew that the threat of a beat down would bring you back! 😉
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Welcome Home!
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It’s good to have you back!
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I know there might have been stuff said by all of us. Let’s bury the hatchet (not in someone’s head) and give it a fresh start!
Truth,
BTW, I’ll be in Orlando the end of March and am in need of oysters and beer!
Good to be back and consider the hatchet buried! I am working all the time in Orlando now so sounds great, just get me dates when you can and I’ll be there, oysters and beers in tow
Truth
The truth is I think I was mistaken, about you.
I was thinking about another person, so I apologize.
Good to hear you are doing well!
I’m sorry again!
I know of whom you speak. No comment necessary.
Not a problem MJ! Hope you are doing well too, enjoy your commentary, always have
http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles/dodger-report/post/_/id/22446/already-baseballs-best-dodgers-clayton-kershaw-continues-to-evolve
If he can master a changeup, he will be devastating. The changeup is the best pitch – PERIOD!
Nice read. Kershaw still has 2 new wrinkles he could choose to add – a different arm slot (that he throws with more velocity than when he is over the top) and the changeup. Maybe he can use one or both to get over the top and dominate in the playoffs like he always does in the regular season.
While I think it was great that the Dodgers were able to re-sign Jansen/Turner/Hill/Utley, the chances of LAD retaining Seager/Urias/Bellinger for the long term are not as likely if they produce as we hope they do. The only Scott Boras represented player that I can remember who did not go to FA is Stephen Strasburg, which kind of gives one pause to question, just how healthy is his arm? Yes, I know he does have that hateful opt out clause, but still…
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Hopefully Kershaw will remain the big contract with LA, and Jansen will hit FA status the same year Seager hits FA. So there should be room, depending on whether FAZ goes after a Machado or Harper after 2018. I do not see it, but it is possible. IMO, the three players should be prioritized by how replaceable they may be considered. To me, discussions should start this year with Seager (hugely unlikely), because he is the most irreplaceable of the three. Bellinger will be at least two years behind Seager, so we will need to see how he develops to determine where he will fit into the equation. There is another business reason as to why Urias may start the year in Extended ST. The less MLB service time he accumulates, the more likely he will become a FA the year after Seager. I would project Seager to hit FA in 2022. Urias 2023, and Bellinger 2024.
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I know the Nats have several Boras clients, including Scherzer and Strasburg, so it is possible that the Dodgers can sign all three, but the big one for the Dodgers is Kershaw who is not a Boras client. Can the Dodgers afford to sign and keep Kershaw/Seager/Urias/Bellinger and stay under the luxury tax? The one positive is that there is a lot of time to worry about it, and a lot can happen between now and then…Boras or not.
I expect Friedman to try and lock up the three amigos to long-term deals like he did Longoria.
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I heard on MLB Radio that the Nats have 9 Boras’ clients.
It’s impossible to be fiscally responsible and have any Bora$ free agents. Pretty much none of Bora$’s free agent clients work out for the team. Smart GM’s shouldn’t even answer his calls. If I was FAZ I would trade his clients 2 years before free agency to get maximum return in prospects.
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The only “team friendly” contract he did was when Jered Weaver ordered him to get the best contract he could from the Angels because he didn’t want to go back east, and the Angels still regretted the last 2 years of that deal.
Scott Boras is really a nice man to deal with – he’s just misunderstood! 😉
“Dodgers Digest believes A-Gon will pay 135-140 games this year. ”
I’m hoping he plays his usual 156 games, but I agree, I only want 135-140 of those to be in the regular season
I agree with everyone who felt like throwing up after finding out Scott Boras now represents this year’s #1 prospect, in addition to their two top prospects from last year – Urias and Seager. Boras has brought us no end of frustration in the past, and now it looks like he’s cornered the market on the cream of our talent pipeline… oh joy.
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I like this group because people like to think outside the box. How about this idea – just like the Lakers are hiring Kobe’s agent to be GM (because who better to leverage contract loopholes and negotiate with NBA superstars?) How about the Dodgers hire Scott Boras to be a GM? Kasten has 4 GM’s already, what’s one more? If nothing else, having Boras on the Dodgers will finally keep him from being a PITA. Definitely a long shot, but could be a fun discussion 😉
Good one, Knights, but I don’t think Bora$ could handle the pay cut!
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I have been saying all along Seager will only be a Dodger 4 more years because of Bora$. FAZ will never give in to his contract demands. His client’s contracts hamstring organizations for years. I would trade Urias for Tyler Glasnow today in part because of Bora$.
Boras would certainly require way more pay than even the Dodgers GM’s are being paid. But if the Dodgers take Boras out, how much could they potentially save in player salary? And the money you pay Boras doesn’t count against the luxury tax whereas the money you pay his clients would.
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Boras probably make$200 Million a year. Maybe that’s a little steep…
Tru dat.
Morning
Like the recipe above, but think that the key to this particular feast, is to add some more ingredients as necessary at the half way point (Trade Deadline), to make sure that it finally hits the spot.
Those culinary wizards from Chicago added a certain A Chapman last year to ensure the offering had every chance of being palatable. This is where our current Chefs have fallen down in recent times.
Bon Appetite
Maybe that key addition at mid-season will be Lou Johnson. The Dodgers have quite a few Sweet Lous in their organization.
They tried last year and it nearly worked. They had to build the farm so that there was a surplus to deal from. There was no surplus in 2015. There is a surplus now even though we traded 3 pitchers last year. The Cubs started dealing after they reached that surplus point.
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The thing is, the Dodgers reached that surplus point without blowing the team up and I find that incredible!
Good point – can’t wait for this season to get going.
Would be really good tohear from Truth Mark.
Enjoyed his input. Think he was the target of some aggressive posting because of his scepticsism towards FAZ.
If you are reading pal, then please get back on board in this new incarnation.
He was a good friend but got a burr up his butt and painted himself into a corner.
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It was really out of character.
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I don’t quite get it. We have gotten together a few times for beers. FAZ has really been polarizing and many fans have been dead set against them… much to their consternation.
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The real truth is that he was a little guy who was afraid I was going to put the beat down on…
There-If he’s reading that will bring him out! 😉
Mark
He seems to only show up, when you are the topic, and that is a turn off.
Yep Bum, made me throw up a lil in the back of my throat…
Hot damn it’s Dodger baseball in 2 days… Be still oh heart of mine!!!
Worst news of the day: Bellinger, Seager and Urias are now all represented by the Devil himself – Scott Boras!