In 2023, the Dodgers had a 8-5 record against the Arizona Diamondbacks, and we all remember how that season ended. As of right now, the Dodgers have a 4-5 record against that bunch from Arizona. The Dodgers have four more games with the D-Bags August 30, 31 and September 1 and 2. Clearly, the regular season means very little, which is why it feels like this team is sleepwalking and I fail to comprehend why Andrew Friedman called up Nick “I Don’t Miss Many Bats” Ramirez. Maybe it’s the same reason he thought Gavin Lux could play SS and Miguel Vargas cannot hit. Friedman and Gomes are obviously throwing games right about now and should be investigated by the DOJ. That is a joke, son!
The Padres are playing much better, and so are the Diamondbacks, while the Dodgers are on cruise control. Yesterday, JP Feyereisen was outrighted, and Matt Gage was added to the 40-man Roster. In 2021 and 2022, Feyereisen was one of the best relievers in baseball but struggled with his control after coming back. Bye, JP – we hardly knew ya’. You win some – you lose some. Matt Gage will likely get the call at some point… maybe today. He has pitched 20 innings at OKC and has struck out 27 with a 2.66 ERA.
At OKC, LHP Alex Gamboa started his 4th game of the season and registered his longest outing… ever: 6 IP. He allowed 2 Hits, No Runs, Did not Walk anyone, and Struck Out 4. Kyle Hurt faced two batters, striking them both out. Kevin Gowdy remains solid. James Outman did not play on account of a LHP starting. Jason Heyward allegedly has a knee problem. It was enough for him to leave the game last night. If Luis Robert, Jr. does come to LA, then Teoscar can move to RF if Heyward goes on the IL. You could do worse than have a platoon of Outman and Vargas in LF… but that won’t happen. Vargas is probably part of the Robert, Jr. trade.
If Robert Jr. can stay healthy, I am sure he can be an asset. Never judge a player by how he plays on a crappy team going nowhere. At any rate, in the next month, the Dodgers have the following players who will likely be back or called up:
- Clayton Kershaw (probably around August 1)
- Walker Buehler
- Yoshi Yamamoto
- Joe Kelly
- Kyle Hurt
- Michael Grove
- Matt Gage
- Bazooka (probably late August)
I guess you can never have enough pitching, but I don’t think pitching is a huge need. Yes, some of those pitchers may not make it all the way back… but some will. So, we wait.
Discussion (36)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Eric, you have been taking your smart pills. Good post!
Vargas , 2 hits. you sit tomorrow! Will. 3 homers. you sit tomorrow! Just kidding about Will. Vargas? betcha he sits today! …… Why is when Freddie and Will hit , Ohtani goes ofer? Just seems like it to me! ……. Glasnow was sharp except 1 inning. He’s ok. ……. Bullpen much better last night! …….. Paxton today. He can’t afford a repeat performance like last one!! ….. Lux another ofer! It’s time! ……. If Im Doc , give pages the day off, put James in center, AND Vargas play left!!! But I’m not Doc! Sorry Miguel. I tried!
If the Dodgers will just give Vargas a teensy-weensy runway, they might just see him take off!
I love Freddie Freeman, and Hernandez caps the rally with a run scoring double. They aren’t dead yet.
Ouch. Starting pitching in fteefall!
peak? we’re talking peak? (iverson). this team needs to get better! not peak!
this team needs major upgrades ! offensively for sure!
Sorry but not buying that the Dodgers are slow playing the season or have not gone to the whip yet. This roster, due to injuries and off season construction, is not that of a very good team. They are 22-18 in their last 40 games and 13-13 vs. the Giants, Padres, and Diamondbacks this season. That is a pretty good sample size. In fact it is over 50% of the games they will play vs. those teams this year. Not panicking, just agree with Bear. There are some holes on this team that have to be addressed and not all of them will be fixed by the return of Betts, Muncy, and Yamamoto. But, the Dodgers have a lot of resources and a deep farm system. An outfield bat and a starting pitcher seem to be the two most pressing needs. Maybe another experienced bat with some positional flexibility to lengthen their bench would help. We will know soon how the Dodgers see this team. Given the disappointment that AF expressed after last year I think they will be more aggressive than normal.
Vargas has a lot of experience at 3B, but a Mid-Season Switch may not be wise, but you never know.
Well we’ll
Why not .
“Miguel Vargas was taking ground balls at 3B because Max Muncy’s recovery is going slower than they expected. They wanted to see how he looks there, and it’s a possibility he starts there down the line”
Outman and Varland have been recalled.
Nick Ramirez optioned.
JHey to IL.
We do know that Robert Jr. and Crochet are on the market. We do not know who else will be on the market come the trade deadline. The Blue Jays may or may not be sellers. Sometime between July 20-25, we will know.
Miggy Ro will lead us to a world series backing up Mookie and Bo. Who are better in October. I put my money on Luis and Bo. Who do you think will be better in October ,Bear gimme some names.
Book em
Ohtani. DH
Freeman 1B
Betts. 2B
Smith. C
Teoscar. LF
Bichette SS
Robert. CF
Max. 3B
Pages. RF
Look at that bottom 3
Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic is reporting that Wrobleski will be called up to start on Sunday.
Wow! Slow down guys. Enjoy the season. The Dodgers, with out a doubt, have more than enough to win it all. Let Milwaukee have a better record than us, and we play the 3rd wild card. Sounds good to me. I think that is the strategy of the F.O. They don’t want to peak right now.
Robert and Bichette!
Book em
I think the bottom line is this. AF has acquired a lot of waiver wire players. over the years. some have flourished, some have flopped. right now we have at least 3 that are of no value to the team. Mookie is missed so much. Max, when hot is invaluable. If the dodgers don’t upgrade this roster, they will go home early again. every team in the west except colorado is hitting better than the dodgers. no excuse for. this! Austin Barnes is a nice guy. He’s a .200 hitter with no arm. i find it hard to believe they bring him back next season. like Bear said, Taylor is untradeable. kiki is toast. Biggio? never should have been here. Heyward? might be done. Sit back and watch. AF, do something big, PLEASE!
10:10 PM ET
Brewers (52-36)
Dodgers (53-35)
SP Aaron Civale R
2-6 5.07 ERA
SP Tyler Glasnow R
8-5 3.23 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
C Will Smith R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
CF Andy Pages R
SS Miguel Rojas R
LF M. Vargas R
2B Gavin Lux L
3B Chris Taylor R
85° Wind 7 mph Out
Dodgers battling Brewers for 2nd best record in the NL for division winners which is alloted a bye in the 1st round of the playoffs.
no need to apologize NJ. i don’t believe the front office will ever do that to the fans. He would be boooed unmercifully! And well deserved i might add!! That would be the ultimate insult to One Clayton Kershaw! So, HELL NO!
Buehler has resumed throwing and appears to be fully recovered from the right hip inflammation that resulted in his placement on the 15-day injured list June 19, but manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday that the right-hander is without a clear timeline for a return, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
“Buehler hasn’t been with the Dodgers this week following the team’s return from its road trip, as Roberts noted that the right-hander is conducted his throwing program “offsite.” More specifically, Ardaya relays that Buehler has been throwing both at the Dodgers’ spring facility in Arizona and at a private facility in Florida. While the fact that Buehler isn’t being shut down from activity can be taken as a positive sign, he’s seemingly unlikely to return from the IL until after the All-Star break. The Dodgers may be keen on giving Buehler an extended break while he had struggled to bounce back from the second Tommy John surgery of his career before landing on the shelf. In his eight starts since being cleared to make his 2024 Dodgers debut in early May, Buehler has posted a 5.84 ERA, 1.51 WHIP and 31:10 K:BB in 37 innings”.
Outman at dodger stadium, waiting on heyward results. per dave roberts
There , Bear said it! they are not good right now! Doesn’t mean they won’t be good in a couple weeks or months. Can’t get rid of all the weak links, but at least 3 needs to go! Throw them in a bag,(5of them), shake it up and the first 3 out gotta go!! lol. Here we are again!! we’re all pouting and sad! i’m sorry but the last 2 nights have been excruciating! Being totally outplayed, out pitched. No way to blame Doc for this, he plays who he has. Milwaukee tonight. Hope Glasnow is ok!!
Here’s my prediction,
We get a couple of tomato cans to replace some of the current tomato cans .
Maybe Dejong and or Pham, who I actually like. No to Robert’s.
Say goodbye to Biggio and pick another between the rest.
Maybe we can loose 1-2 more tomato cans when Mookie comes back. And if Muncy comes back.
I do think they go strong for a starting pitcher, but I think it may be another tomato can.
I think we go in as a wild card. Show some junkyard dog and at least get past the 1st round.
The off-season- we replace RVS, with who don’t know. I’ll leave it to management.
Robert’s is given the 2025 season to win it all or he is gone. Will leave it to ownership to find a replacement.
Additions in 2025.
I thought Bregman was still under contract next yr, but as Bear mentioned he is a free agent after this year .
Still in playoff contention, Houston will probably keep him, but I really believe the Dodgers will strongly pursue him in the off-season if he doesn’t re-up with Houston before free agency.”
Sorry Dodgerdad.
While im at it ,
I believe they go hard for Buchette in a trade in the off season for SS it will be his last yr before FA .
I think Adames, who will be FA after this season will be the fallback plan for SS.
If healthy I believe they go for the young Japanese’s pitcher who is currently injured, if he gets posted .
Not sure of the name : Suzuki?
Go Dodgers !!
I’ll bet Wayne is a blast to hang out with. Loosen up man and be a positive in a world on edge.
that was quite a post!! at least no Bregman talk!
So the dodgers lose to tgediamondbacks and giats in a series why do both ofvthere lineups have consistency 1 thru 9 and we have 1 thru 6 good and other 7 8,9, strikeout stirkeout strikeout that’s a problem to fix and yiu don’t have better hitters on your AAA team. That’s crazy. Your the LA Didgers yiu sound have guys ready in AAA and AA ball who can play. And not have to wait until all these guys come back and still have these four guys that cant hit on the bench. Biggio hernandez lux Barnes Heyward replace these guys at deadline or now.
like that lineup Duke!! Eliminates almost all of the platoons!
But Muncy’s progress has been “slow, to be honest,” Roberts said.
“There’s still some soreness in the oblique,” Roberts said. “He has been swinging a little bit recently. I still think it’s a slow, slow process. So outside of giving a hard timeline, which I don’t think anyone knows, it’s going to be certainly well after the All-Star break, in my opinion.”
The Dbacks owned the Dodgers when it mattered last year too.
It does seem that the Dodgers are on cruise control now, kind of slow-playing the roster by using the IL designations, DFA-types (Biggio) and “churn” to OKC in hopes of having as many key players healthy as possible for the playoffs. ( This is my impression; I’d be interested if it could quantified. )
That said, losing an MVP-calier talent like Mookie at the top of the lineup was a big blow to an offense that was already missing Max in the middle. Can we assume that Mookie and Max will return at full performance?
The uncertainty has me hoping that AF will try to win the bidding for Luis Robert Jr. and Crochet, both potential superstars. Robert is more talented than Teo and five years younger, with a team-friendly contract for 3.5 seasons. Such a talent rarely becomes available in midseason. Is Robert truly injury-prone? Maybe, but better conditioning in the Dodgers system could help. I fully agree that his game would benefit from new surroundings, especially the better teammates and a chance for a championship.
It’s hard to know what the ChiSox would want in return, except that it would be plenty. Do they already have an heir apparent for CF? If not, I think they’d much prefer Pages or Outman (maybe both) to Vargas in a deal. Outman is a year older than Robert, so they may prefer Pages, who is more suited to RF than CF.
The prospect of a true blockbuster–say, Robert + DeJong + Crochet/Fedde–could easily send 7 or 8 players to Chicago. Unlikely, but plausible. The Sox are just a good fit for a deal. DeJong would be the only “rental” in this scenario.
Will the Lux era come to an end? I think so.
He simply hasn’t performed well enough on offense to justify playing Mookie at SS instead of 2B. Miguel Rojas, who is 9 years older than Lux, has thoroughly outplayed him. It puzzles me that some Dodger fans want to move Mookie back to the OF to be able to keep the lackluster Lux in the lineup.
After Mookie and Max return, the blockbuster-enhanced lineup could look something like this:
Shohei DH
Mookie 2B
Freddie 1B
Robert CF
Max 3B
Smith C
Teo LF
Heyward/ Pages/Taylor RF
Rojas/DeJong SS
Unlikely, but plausible.
Relax everyone, this was a series in July….
We aren’t playing our best ball right now and that’s ok.
Any team in the NL west would switch places with us in a heartbeat….
It may be cruise control, but it also feels like the Dodgers don’t have the pieces to win in the playoffs — specifically solid outfielders and starting pitching. I think last year’s loss to the D-bags was a good example of how platooning past-their-prime, roll-players does not work.
In the 3-game series , the platooning of Kike/Taylor/Outman/Heyward/Peralta had 5 hits in 32 at bats (.156). My opinion is that platooning works over the course of a long season, but not in the playoffs. In Kike and Taylor, the Dodgers had two big-moment players who were handicapped by restricted playing time. I’m guessing the Dodgers felt obligated to play Heyward and Peralta, too bad they went 1-12.
To win in the playoffs, you need two SP’s who can hold the other team to 2-runs over 5/6 innings. You also need a solid #3 who can keep you in the game while your offense scores vs. the other team’s #3. The bullpen is critical too- I think this is our team’s strength. It’s hard to feel great about Glasnow and Yamamoto as our #1 and #2. If we don’t acquire an ace, I feel like we’ll be asking Stone to be a #2 due to injuries. I think either Miller or Buehler can be the #3, but they both need to work on their sliders and off-speed pitches to keep hitters off balance.
Other teams will be ultra aggressive, like the Phillies and Padres. The Pads have playoff caliber pitching (Musgrove, Darvish, Cease), their own Big-3 hitters (Arraez, Tatis, Machado), a vet having a career year (Profar) and an outstanding rookie (Merrill).
I hope Mookie’s hand heals quickly, we acquire a pitcher, and the Dodgers put our best 8-players on the field to start each game in the playoffs!
Only 26 days till August and all will be well!
Teams with speed just run all over us. Christian Walker is out of his mind, only took 5 HR’s in the series before they walked him intentionally. Lead in the division is shrinking by the day with a long hard July schedule ahead of us.
Win the first game of the series in dramatic fashion and get our lunch money taken, knees scraped and the shit beat right out of us next 2 games.
On to Milwaukee who is another scrappy team. Be lucky to win this series either.
I said it couple weeks ago that the division title for the Dodgers is not a gimme. 6.5 games up is a nice cushion but the upcoming schedule is brutal.
Would not surprise me if the Padres and D-backs make a serious run at us.
And with 6 silent bats on the roster (Barnes, Lux, Heyward, Biggio, Kike, CT) and one hot bat that is not played regularly (Vargas) the pitching staff will be really under pressure to keep us in games. And that pitching staff has looked horrible too in the last 2 series.
Dodgers front office better have a great trade deadline this year. You just can not go into postseason play with 6 dead bats on your roster.and not play a .300 hiter (Vargas) regularly. Just can not do it.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
morning Mark! I understand your logic the dodgers are on cruise control. But the bottom of the lineup is bad! Mookie and max of course helps. BUT, kiki, heyward, taylor, biggio and to an extent barnes, that’s not good. it’s not panicking, but do they want to see the d-backs in the playoffs? i don’t think so. i thought vargas looked fine , they won’t play him . So how do they get real value for him this way? Are theey afraid he might actually get the job done? …. Taylor had a. magnificent at bat last night!! 10 pitches i believe. What does kiki do? weakass grounder 1st pitch. don’t care what Sweeney is hitting in the minors, cut biggio and get him up here. ….. Been watching baseball for over 60 years and never seen nothing like what Walker is doing to the dodgers!! He thinks he’s Reggie Jackson!! …. Had a chance against Gallen, just blew it . Ohtani swinging out of his shoes. Freddie not looking like Freddie. Man do they miss Will Smith up there in the middle of the lineup. …. Right now they should go get Robert JR. if they don’t the phillies will! So he comes to LA and hits .240. Big improvement over everyone except Teo!!! Bring Sweeney up or bring Dejong(spellcheck please) along with Robert JR. I’m beginning to feel the Lux. era is about to come to an end. Hate it, but sometimes it’s for the best. Sorry for the long winded post. Kinda know dodgers aren’t nearly as bad 6 weeks from now as they seem to be at this time. just make the move now, don’t get beat by another GM!
Right now waiting is painful to watch