The End is Near(er)
Yesterday, I was supposed to have carpal tunnel and elbow surgery. The Doctor and the hospital showed such a high level of incompetence that I punted. I was all in… until I saw their lack of preparation and understanding, and I walked away. I did get my back procedure approved…
Yesterday, I was supposed to have carpal tunnel and elbow surgery. The Doctor and the hospital showed such a high level of incompetence that I punted. I was all in… until I saw their lack of preparation and understanding, and I walked away. I did get my back procedure approved, and after that is my right shoulder surgery (labrum, rotator cuff, and maybe TJ). Then it’s the carpal tunnel. But that was not the biggest event of the day. Yesterday afternoon, I met with our US Water Systems Team and advised them that I would be transitioning to a new role, focusing on consulting and advising them. They are up 27% this year, and I am sure I could only screw that up, so I am focusing on my new job: author of The Mountainmover, which will finally (after 30 years) be released in May or June of 2026.
This is a book that has to be written… and I am finally going to write it. I have 100+ pages of outline and notes, and I just enlisted a Professor (“and recovering attorney”) at Georgetown University, who has produced 279 (and counting) national book award winners since 2020, to be my editor. I am going to be working on this for five to six hours a day and doing a little for US Water Systems, which means that this blog may get neglected. I am keeping it open, and you can do what you do. I just don’t have time for both, but we will see how this goes.
The White Sox are an embarrassment to all of baseball.
Down on the Farm
- Emil Morales remains Red Hot!
- DePaula’s BA has dropped to .268.
- Hope is at .299
- Sirota is still at .317 – he has walked 7 times in his last two games. They don’t want to pitch to him.
- Quintero is at .318 in RC.
- Hainline is back at RC.
- Sheehan was bombed in 2.1 innings last night.
- Tulsa is beyond bad!
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Discussion (88)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Conforto delivers a HR. Each good play extends his runway.
Maybe it just took him half the season to warm up….
May needed a breather against an AAAA team.
I’ve always liked Riley, but I highly doubt they’ll let him go since there aren’t many third basemen of that caliber.
No matter what happens in the rest of the game, thanks May for not making me say “another’s May game again!”
I love watching May pitch.
Muncy is out for six weeks (at least), and then Max is always a slow starter, so can the Dodgers always count on him? I don’t think so.
Go big or go home: Atlanta has tanked their season. Marcel Ozuna is old and a free agent. Albies can also be a free agent. So is Iglesias.
The Braves are in a disarray, and AF has a relationship with AA. The Braves need to rebuild. Put together a package around DePaula, Hope, and others for Austin Riley!
BANG!
So Max goes on the IL with a bone bruise–and it’s Esteury Ruiz who gets called up instead of Outman or Freeland.
Interesting decision.
Ruiz is certainly deserving. He’s hitting about .290 as a Comet with a .394 OBP. He’s stolen 38 bases in 44 tries. He is an ML veteran who stole 67 bases for the A’s in ’23.
While Outman would provide a lot more power and superior defense, Ruiz has better on-base skills and is much less likely to strike out. On defensive, he’s probably limited to LF. He profiles as a great “second lead-off option” and should be a quality pinch hitter and pinch runner.
I hope Ruiz gets a chance to prove that he might be better than Conforto. While the $17-million man has had some nice moments lately, Ruiz could provide a bigger spark. If he does, it would reduce whatever incentive the Dodgers have to shop for an outfielder.
I will be shocked if Max plays again this year, but I would love to be proven wrong.
I do have an excellent alternative, but it will be costly!
But, I have and idea! I’ll wait until I find out for sure about Max.
P.S. It’s not Freaking Bregman… and Will Smith will never play 3B.
07/03/25 Los Angeles Dodgers placed 3B Max Muncy on the 10-day injured list.
07/03/25 Los Angeles Dodgers recalled LF Esteury Ruiz from Oklahoma City Comets.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have claimed infielder CJ Alexander from the New York Yankees, the team announced. To make room on the roster, outfielder Steward Berroa was designated for assignment.
10:10 PM ET
White Sox (28-58)
Dodgers (55-32)
SP Aaron Civale R
1-4 4.74 ERA
SP Dustin May R
4-5 4.68 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
CF Andy Pages R
LF M. Conforto L
2B Tommy Edman S
C D. Rushing L
3B Miguel Rojas R
72° Wind 10 mph Out
Mookie 97 OPS+
Max Muncy MRI; While initial reports suggested a sprain, the MRI revealed a more significant injury, potentially impacting his availability for the team. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the team is awaiting official results before determining the extent of the injury and whether Muncy will be placed on the injured list.
Doesn’t sound encouraging.
not any former aaaastro , just bregman, correa,altuve, and springer! kyle tucker is a former aaaaastro and i would love him on the dodgers! he didn’t lie,cheat, and smirk. Love the way you think John!
Ruiz called up
Mark, my respect for you is great but this is not an “if/then” issue. No gray area here. Those guys stole from the Dodgers, the Yankees, from all of baseball. They crushed Kershaw ‘s spirit. He thought he failed his team in the post season again when in reality his demise was because the batters knew the pitches . NO BERGMAN! They all should have gotten lifetime bans.
If I were Clayton Kershaw and the front office traded for Bergman, I would retire mid-season before I had to share a locker room with him.
hell , why not trade for correa, altuve, springer, fire Doc and hire hinch? Bregman does not deserve to ever wear the same uniform as Clayton Kershaw! PERIOD!!!! leave him in red sox purgatory! …. Tip of the cap to Dave Roberts for letting Clayton go back out and get that K in front of the LA Faithful! …. Good for mookie and freddie for the ninth inning rbi’s!!! … Prayers for Max! hopefully just a sprain. He will be sorely missed if he can’t play. If he can’t play? Kike is not the answer. Rojas is a much better hitter right now than kike. i’m sure the Nolan Arenado rumors will start up again soon if Max is down for a while. will be interesting. … Was Vesia trying to throw it through the backstop last night? looked like a wild man last night on the mound!……. Kudos to Stephen Nelson for getting better in the booth! Still sounds like a little too rehearsed, but much better than before. Please, don’t pair him with Jessica M!!! …. Finish the job today! Aaaaaasstros coming to town! tough series i would imagine. Altuve the lone cheater left on the stros. wear the collar please. not the buzzer!
I wonder if Max’s condition turns out to be season ending what our options are? There is a good 3rd baseman in Ari named Suarez but he is 33 and a pending FA. I am not sure who plays 3rd in AAA but I think it’s Hose. Any thoughts on what the Dodgers might do?
If we sign Bregman it will be a slap on the face to all our 2017 players and fans. I would lose a considerable amount of the great respect I have for our front office. Some things transcend standings.
Closest active pitcher to 3000, Chris Sale, who is 472 away and is going to be 37 next season, which is an option year for him with Atlanta. Right now, though, Sale is on the IL with a couple of fractured ribs. He had 114 Ks in 89 innings before he went down.
Wednesday scores
Oklahoma City 13, Las Vegas 7 (10 innings)
Tulsa 2, Wichita 1
Great Lakes 5, West Michigan 2
Visalia 9, Rancho Cucamonga 6
ACL Dodgers 2, ACL Giants 1
Thursday schedule
Great Lakes (Sean Linan) at West Michigan (Colin Fields), 4:05 PM PST
Wichita (Connor Prielipp) at Tulsa (Jackson Ferris), 4:30 PM PST
Visalia (Adonys Perez) at Rancho Cucamonga (Aidan Foeller), 5:45 PM PST
Oklahoma City (Tyler Glasnow) at Las Vegas (Ken Waldichuk), 6:05 PM PST
Great win!!! Very emotional evening! So happy for Clayton and his family that he could celebrate 3000 in front of the greatest fans on earth. NO letdown tonight.
Any chance that Doc puts Ohtani in to pitch an inning in the AS game and piss off everybody but Dodger fans? In your face! Ant thoughts, good or bad.
One more WS title and Kershaw can hang em up.
Such a nice comeback win on Kershaw’s big night… but Max’s injury is the pressing concern.
Freeland is a possibility to replace Max, but he is not on the 40-man roster. The brass might prefer to hold Freeland back just to delay his service time.
If the Dodgers prefer a veteran–as they had in the past by elevating Kolten Wong over some other options–they could opt for Nick Senzel.
Depending on the severity of Max’s injury, the Dodgers could look to the trade market. Possible target: The Angels’ Luis Rengifo, who they tried to get once before in that Joc-Stripling deal that Arte Moreno backed out of. For that matter, they could even bid for Arenado. Any other third basemen on the market?
The Dodgers also have the versatility to promote Outman, who is on the 40-man. Kike and Rojas have played 3B this season, and Edman and Kim are capable as well.
My no-Max, no-trade lineup….
Shohei DH
Mookie SS
Freddie 1B
Smith C
Pages LF
Teo RF
Outman CF
Kike/Edman 3B
Kim 2B