The Dave Roberts Saga Continues
I may not always be the sharpest knife in the drawer but I tend to stay with things until I figure them out and I think I have finally figured out why so many fans have an irrational hatred of Dave Roberts. It took me a while to identfy it and maybe you have not yet identified it either. However, once you understand what I am about to say, I
I may not always be the “sharpest knife in the drawer” but I tend to stay with things until I figure them out and I think I have finally figured out why so many fans have an irrational hatred of Dave Roberts. It took me a while to identfy it and maybe you have not yet identified it either. However, once you understand what I am about to say, I think you will at least feel a little differently about Doc.
It appears to me that a big issue many of you have with Dave Roberts is that he will make a move and not explain why. For example, over the last week, Dave has sat Justin Turner, Trea Turner, Max Muncy, Chris Taylor, and others without explanation. Now, many managers when asked will say, “well, so-and-so has a little calf strain so we are going to let him rest tonight.” You don’t get anything like that from Dave Roberts… but that is not on him. That is how Andrew Friedman and the Dodgers’ Front Office operate. It was months before we found out that Mookie Betts was having hip problems and it even then it took a while to find out the entent of the problems.
It was many months after Joe Kelly had shoulder surgery until we found out. Right or wrong, Andrew Friedman seeks every advantage in this Grand Game of Baseball. Believe it or not, there are pitchers who, if they knew Mookie had a bad hip, would try and drill him in that hip. At the very least, they may figure out that with his hip he can’t hit a low and inside pitch (that’s just and example) and feed him a steady diet of low and inside breaking balls.
Andrew Friedman wants to maintain a very high level of secrecy about injuries and player movement and I suspect that it is communicated to each and every employee that “loose lips sink ships.” By the way, that phrase meant “beware of unguarded talk”. The phrase originated on propaganda posters during World War II. The phrase was created by the War Advertising Council and used on posters by the United States Office of War Information. Just a little tidbit.
Many of Dave Roberts moves are made without explanation, but rest assured that he had his reasons whether it be a planned rest day, concealing an injury or the result of the “Notebook from the War Room.” That is the mountain of information compiled by the Dodger analytic department each series and each game relating to the proclivities of the other team. Andrew Friedman believes in playing the odds. If statistics say that eight times out of ten, a player will do a certain thing if you do a certain thing, he provides Dave Roberts the information and 80% of the time it works. If it doesn’t work the other 20% of the time, some fans think Roberts is an idiot.
If jumping to conclusions were an Olympic Sport, many of you would be Gold Medalists. I think a lot of moves that you criticize from Dave Roberts are moves that come from higher up. Dave Roberts is not a puppet, but he is given information and told to execute managements’ plan, just like any other manager. Some of you will disagree with me, but I even believe that in 2019, when Roberts brought in Clayton Kershaw to pitch in relief against the Nats with disastrous results, there was a statistical basis for that.
Kevin Cash made what many of us believe were blunders in last years’ World Series, but I also think he was using statistics… which are not always right, but they are wonderful when they are. The Rays knew what he was doing. He was singing out of their hymmbook, even if the results weren’t what they wanted. It happens whether you are managing by statistics or “by your gut.”
So the next time, Dave Roberts sits a player, instead of saying “what a stupid idiot” maybe there is reason – a reason you are nor privy to. Otherwise, the idiot may be the one staring back at you in the mirror. “Loose lips sink ships.” I am one of the few fans who rarely second guess. Don’t take offense, but to me, it takes a really shallow thinker to second guess because you know the result but do not know what your result would have been. You criticize a lineup and they lose, you were right… but were you? YOU CRITICIZE A LINEUP AND THEY WIN. What were you?
Why do so many fans second guess Doc resting players? Bluto summed it up very sincinctly: “The Dodgers don’t need to win games. They need to position themselves to best win the World Series. Obviously, you’d think not playing in the Wild Card game would help. But so would having healthy, rested players and knowing who can cover 3rd in case of injury. So too would all players having confidence and mechanical issues addresses. To name but a few other key criteria.”
Gabe Kapler is your current Flavor of the Week. You always have those. I am not taking anything away from Gabe (I happen to like him), but you have to “forget” a lot to choose him over Doc. I mean you have to have total amnesia! I also write this in view of the silly piece in Dodgers Nation on Dave Roberts. I rank that piece right up there with my 7-year-old granddaughters’ writing. You can “Cherry pick” facts and they did a wonderful job of nothing. You can do the exact same thing with any manager: pick things that didn’t work and castigate them for it. That’s Chicken Bleep!
Rants & Raves
- I have always liked Mitch White and his stuff. I just did not think he could stay healthy, and I am still not sure, but I do think his future is in the bullpen. THINK: A RH Andrew Miller. He has elite stuff… maybe enough to close. For the present time, however, it looks like he will stay in the rotation.
- Justin Bruihl – does he have a future in MLB? He’s a soft tosser and kinda reminds me of Eric Stults. I like the guy, but he is going to always be on the fringes. Of course, that’s much better than me.
- Someone posted that Kenley Jansen has given up 20 runs in 30 IP with Will Smith and 0 runs in 17 IP with Austin Barnes. I did not look it up, but maybe it’s true. If so, write that down and remember it. As Jeff said yesterday: “Catching is important, and the Dodgers should have enough offense to mask Barnes’ offense. In the WS, I would expect to see Barnes catch more and Smith DH. That is what happened quite often last year in the playoffs with the universal DH.“
- The Dodgers are now #3 in Bullpen ERA in all of MLB. NUMBER THREE. Do you remember losing your minds on this issues for weeks and months at a time? The Dodgers bullpen has blown 24 saves. The Giants bullpen has blown 23 saves, including one last night!
- Since the All-Star Break, the Dodgers have 2.85 Team ERA. The Giants are at 3.49… and fading fast! The cream is rising to the top.
- Max Muncy is in the MVP Discussion.
- Trevor Bauer Report: I think that the upcoming ruling on the Restraining Order by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dianna Gould-Saltman will be decided by whether she follows the law or follows the court of public opinion which seems to be the direction it is heading. That’s all I have to ay about it.
- Dodgers New Top 10 Prospects: #1 Diega Cartaya; #2 Ryan Pepiot; #3 Mike Busch; #4 Bobby Miller; #5 Andy Pages; #6 Miguel Vargas; #7 Andre Jackson; #8 Landon Knack; #9 Clayton Beeter; #10 Wilman Diaz. The full list is HERE .
- Michael Grove FINALLY pitched 3 shutout innings, striking out 4 and walking 1 while allowing 1 hit. That took his ERA down to 8.56. The Dodgers must see something…
- Miguel Vargas is now hitting .318 at Tulsa. Will they promote him to OKC THIS YEAR is my question?
The Dodgers are Charging so Fast that the Giants Tried to Take Away Their Credit Cards!
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Discussion (163)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Dodger players against Walker have hit 5 HR’s in the past, Bellinger, Muncy, Pujols, Seager and Smith have taken him deep in the past. Best avg against is Pujols .400 in 5 AB’s. Seager and Smith the only others over .300 against him. He is 3-2 lifetime against LA. No starter named yet for tonights game.
Doc has the right 8 guys in there today considering Betts is injured:
T Turner
Muncy
J Turner
Seager
Smith
Pollock
Taylor
Bellinger
Knebel
Speaking of fun, Gavin Stone debuts with the Loons tonight.
Per Washington Post; MLB official said that Bauer’s leave had been extended again, to Aug. 27, under an agreement with the players’ union.
The Giants next 13 games, just before they play the Dodgers, are all against contending teams. Oak 3. Mets 3 Braves 3 and Milwaukee 4 then the Dodgers for their last 3 games this season.
Jack Morris, the Hall of Famer, suspended by the Tigers and Bally Sports for making some racial remarks about Ohtani. He apologized but MLB is getting pretty POed about this stuff.
Not Dodger related, but did anyone see Ohtani yesterday? HOLY COW! I caught the end.
8ip, 6 hits, one run, 90 pitches 69 for strikes, started out with a 92-93fb & by the end it was 98 and his sinker was unhittable. Oh yeah, plus he hit his 40th dinger. Then today they come back from 8 down & he goes 2-3. Always like to see local boys doing well, except against us.
cheers
pb+
I think the Dodgers should trade Bauer straight-up for Ohtani. If AF does not get this done it will prove that Roberts is a poor manager.
08/19/21 Los Angeles Dodgers activated LHP Victor Gonzalez.
08/19/21 Los Angeles Dodgers optioned RHP Mitch White to Oklahoma City Dodgers.
Is there really anyone that “hates” Dave Roberts?
I don’t even hate Altuve, Springer, or Bregman. I don’t know them.
I can’t speak for everyone else, but I just think he is a poor field manager. Who cares that he has great people skills? So does my neighbor.
I think stating that Roberts is a poor manager has really nothing to do with controlling the flow of information about a particular player. I have never really cared about that personally but I guess some people do?
Sounds a bit like a strawman argument to me.
So many terrible decisions over the years that I can name but again, going back to leaving Kershaw to pitch after the first homer against the Nats? Totally and completely unarguable that was a terrible call. Watching Jansen or Kelly load the bases time and again and usually without anyone warming up?
Nobody that I know has a Dave Roberts voodoo doll but he is not a good game manager. Never had been but maybe there is hope
On the Bauer hearing:
The hearing this week was simply for the purpose of continuing the restraining order. It was not an evidentiary hearing as to innocence or guilt. Many allegations were made and Bauer did not testify to admit or disprove them. He did not need to. It was a moot point.
The temporary restraining order was dismissed and will not be extended. The Judge did not have to comment but did and that is surely telling.
Allegations have been made. Nothing has been proven and that is where everything stands.
The Police have been investigating for 3 months and MLB for 7 weeks. Today’s hearing was a big win for Bauer and drastically hurt the woman’s case… and ultimately, it may have killed the criminal case.
1. I am not a Bauer fan.
2. I do not believe it is ever acceptable to hit a woman… under any circumstances!
3. This is not like any sexual assault case on record in MLB history, and can’t be compared as such.
1. Sadly, I don’t like Bauer nearly as much as I did before this happened.
2. I do not believe it is ever acceptable to slap-ass Scherzer… under any circumstances! He made that perfectly clear, she did not.
3. This isn’t even a sexual assault case and shouldn’t be treated as such.
It’s shameful that this women screwed so many other people by screwing Bauer, Tatis and Clevenger looking for a payday.
The train Treinen, a train is coming over you at 98 MPH
That’s how to close a ninth inning! Thank you AF for resigning Treinen when we all thought you overpaid! Cmon Eric even you have to be impressed with this bullpen now.
There are several circumstances I can imagine to hit a women.
Saying it is not acceptable under any circumstances is not thought through.
It sounds more like sentiment than reason.
If a women was coming after your wife or grandchildren with a butcher knife and your only means of stopping her was to hit her, I imagine you would hit her.
Bullpen did a great job. Offense did enough to get the win, and the Mets are fading fast. Personally my friends, I do not want to see Trevor Bauer in a Dodger uni again. That is just my opinion. In my eyes, he just is not the kind of person I want on my team.
According to Mookie Betts, he is almost ready to return and feels better than he has all season. He had another cortisone shot and it has been successful in taking the pain he was feeling away. He says he is close to returning.
I get it, that’s what Mark probably meant, a situation like Bauer was in. Although what he said was
“ under any circumstances “.
And regarding the Bauer
situation, none us were there and so far no reliable or credible witnesses have testified. Neither Bauer nor the woman are reliable. We seem to want him in jail (otherwise it is a judgement on our society) or to never play in the MLB again, at least not as a Dodger.
Would anyone like him to get a fair trial, not a trial by public opinion or by bloggers who don’t have the facts much like they don’t have all the facts influencing Dave Roberts’ in game decisions before jumping to conclusions.
You or none of us may like Trevor Bauer much anymore, but for the sake of every man and every woman he should get a fair trial, in a court of law before being convicted and declared guilty. That would be best for society.
Nice win by the bullpen. Sets us up nicely starting pitching wise with Buehler, Scherzer and Price against the Mets and Urias, Buehler, and Scherzer against the Pads in the next series with a day off Monday. Hopefully Mookie is back sometime in the Pad series and Lux returns to Oklahoma City for more at bats and work at 3rd base.
Dodgers have now whittled the Giants lead to 2 1/2 games….
And soon the Giants and Padres will duking it out over several games. This is probably a make-or-break series (actually a pair of series) for the Padres.
I prefer to be an armchair GM or manager to an armchair prosecutor or defense counsel.
Fresh observations:
— Let’s at least have Treinen share the closer’s role. And Bickford has earned his workhorse role. Glad to see VGon back. Vesia continues to impress.
–Very glad AF ignored my advice to make a big deadline deal that included Mitch White. He could be the fifth starter in 2022.
–McKinney’s OF skills give him an edge over Lux–especially if Lux keeps botching opportunities. (What will the bench look like when Mookie comes back?)
–As the Youtube baseball dude Fuzzy put it, DJ Peters nearly made “the catch of year” for the Rangers. He was playing CF running full speed to the fence, leaped and gloved the ball–but lost it as his torso smashed high against the fence. The highlight was impressive even though he couldn’t hang on to the ball. Rooting for that guy.
–Oh, some people here are such homers that they diss the Giants’ Brandon Crawford and his new two-year contract. That guy is to the Giants as Justin Turner is to the Dodgers: a reliable heart-and-soul guy. He’s won 3 gold gloves and 3 rings—and now he’s having the best offensive season of his career. He had a poor 60-game season, but now he’s playing so well that SF fans are saluting him with “MVP” chants. So maybe he’s sort of a hybrid of JT and Muncy.
Just looked at the ESPN power rankings. Wow, we win 7 in a row and fall to second behind the Midgets.
Says a lot about the division and the Midgets.
This will go down the wire .
I hope MLB reinstates TB next week. After the judge denied the woman and looking at the reasons she gave there is no way MLB should suspend TB longer than he already has technically been with all thos extended leaves.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!