The Final Pieces
There has been a lot of conjecture as to who might get traded and who the Dodgers might target in a trade. Frequently the target is bullpen help and a RH power hitter. There are lots of relievers the Dodgers may target: Greene of the Tigers, Vasquez of the Pirates, Leclerc of the Rangers and many others. Most Dodger fans are focused on the bullpen as that seems to be
There has been a lot of conjecture as to who might get traded and who the Dodgers might target in a trade. Frequently the target is bullpen help and a RH power hitter. There are lots of relievers the Dodgers may target: Greene of the Tigers, Vasquez of the Pirates, Leclerc of the Rangers and many others.
Most Dodger fans are focused on the bullpen as that seems to be the Dodgers biggest need. I agree that it SEEMS that way, but I think the Dodgers need to hit their way out of this thing. Pitching is important but sometimes the best thing is a good (and balanced) offense. That leads me to Jose Abreu. We have talked about him before and will likely keep talking about him. I happen to think he might be the missing link for the Dodgers.
The White Sox are not a contender this year, but they should be next year, so they will want some player(s) who will able to contribute in the next 2+ years. I’ll leave the details of who gets traded to Andrew Friedman, but the Dodgers have a plethora of players who would fit the bill for a half-year “rent-a-player.” I suspect Reks, Rios or Beaty might be in the deal.
That trade would move Max Muncy to 2B and here’s what the lineup might look like:
- Verdugo CF (it’s inevitable he ends up here)
- Seager SS
- Turner 3B
- Bellinger RF
- Abreu 1B
- Muncy 2B (Wow! His bat at #6?)
- Pederson/Hernandez (or Taylor) LF (The Perfect Platoon?)
- Bartin C
That extra RH bat might just be what the Doctor ordered… unless Kike and CT3 get extra hot. Then they might not need it.+
Dodger Notes
- Runners on 2nd and 3rd, no outs… and the Pirates won’t run on flyballs to Verdugo and Bellinger? Why? They both have cannons!
- Ryu hit 93 MPH a couple of times last night. 93! Ninety-three! To add insult to injury, opponents are batting 2 for 34 against Ryu with RISP.
- CT3 with Back-to-Back Multi-Hit Games. Who says he can’t hit?
- Corey Seager is trending the right direction. Give it time, but he will be BACK soon!
- It does seem more-and-more likely that CT3 and Kike might not both be needed and that Pollock or Toles could be a factor. I hate to see it, but one or the other could go.
- When was the last time Joc Pederson had two hits in a game and one wasn’t a home run?
- MVP and Gold Glove RF’er Cody Bellinger moving to 1B? I think not… EVER! Well maybe in 10 years… and I LOVE Cody at 1B! He is the best RF’er in baseball. PK, he’s the best 1B too.
- Did you see the play where Julio caught a ground ball between his legs? The dude is an incredible athlete.
- As much as Scott Alexander is maligned, his ERA sits at 2.93.
- Today, I am off to the races. You may have never heard of it, but we have this “little” race here in Indy, called the Indy 500 where there might be 5000,000 people in attendance (most like 300,000 to 400,000) – it’s just unreal to see all those people. It’s also unreal that they allow you to bring in a case of beer per person. I only bring 12 – just because I am concerned with proper hydration.
- Have you seen Josh Bell’s dad? You don’t want to mess with him. Photo below.
http://www.uswatersystems.com
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Discussion (71)
Disagree, not disagreeable
I think we need to go BOLD. Washington sucks. See how much Max Scherzer will cost. Get the Verlander this year because we didn’t get the Verlander 2 years ago.
It’s not about the individual no matter how good you are it’s about the team. And when Pollock comes back the team is better off with Bellinger at first, Muncy at second and an outfield of Pollock, Verdugo and Joc/Kiki- who can still hit lefties. I wouldn’t trade for Abreau unless we got him on the cheap, he’s definitely on the downside of his career and has that Puljos body type and injury prone. I’d rather go after Castellanos and Greene from Detroit, who will be more expensive but fill both needs. Get it done AF!
I might be in the minority here, but I don’t think the Dodgers need to trade for anyone. But, if they do, Jose Abreu is certainly the best choice I could think of. He makes $16M, same as Machado made last year, and he’s probably a better overall hitter and plays the position that we will need to address next season, as Freese will probably retire, especially if we win a WS.
I think Muncy has proved that he can play 1B all by his lonesome self. No platoon needed so Abreu becomes redundant. 2B should go to Gavin Lux who seems to be making the case in the minors. To my dismay, Kike is playing himself off the team or into a strictly utility role, substituting and filling in for the injured or tired. Every year, he has slumped big time. It’s enough.
BP? I said a few days ago, that Urias is our bridge to the closer and yesterday he did just that. Maybe he’ll be a starter someday, but I don’t think that day will be this season or even the next unless we lose 1 or2 of our incumbents. For me, Stripling is not that guy. I wouldn’t mind seeing a trade happen. The rest of the BP will work itself out and is stronger than people think. A good offense and starting rotation will make the BP rest more and look better than it has. Dodgers are loaded and Joc is not going to be traded. You can bet on it.
Everyone has been talking about how much the starting pitching has contributed to our success this year and of course the hitting has also been very good, but we don’t talk about the defense as often. Here’s a link to an article by Bill James. A very interesting read.
Open on www.billjamesonline.comhttps://www.billjamesonline.com/the_dodgers_dominant_defense/AC – really enjoyed your piece yesterday – very humbling to read.
My oldest son is a very good cricketer, and for 4 years was on the books of one of our county teams, but unfortunately has been released, although he still loves the game.
I can imagine how much time and energy your entire family put into his development. You are all part of it.
I lost my father at 53, the same age that I am now, 30 years ago.
If you are in a position to retire, do it soon and enjoy every day.
Glad you are ok.
Keep up the great work on here please.
Minor League Report by DC
Player of the Day – Edwin Uceta
Great Lakes Loons 7 – Fort Wayne TinCaps 6 (San Diego)
Zach Willeman started for the Loons and was dominant for three innings. He gave up one run in the fourth inning and three in the fifth before being lifted with two outs in the inning. Jasiel Alvino replaced Willeman and stranded the two runners he inherited. Alvino gave up one run in his 1.1 innings pitched.
Guillermo Zuniga, in his new roll, pitched the last three innings for the Loons. He is now not really a piggyback starter but more so a long reliever. The difference is that instead of pitching every five days he will pitch multiple innings every three-four days. He gave up one run in the ninth inning on two hits but on the night went 2.2 innings on two hits, one run with five strikeouts. He left with a runner on first and was replaced by Nathan Witt who needed just three pitches to pick up the save. Witt now has retired nine of 13 first batters he has faced in pressure situations.
Offensively, the Loons missed a five run inning but did chalk up four in the second inning on a Romer Cuadrado two-run double, a balk and a Miguel Vargas single. Vargas struck again in the bottom of the fourth inning with another single driving in Cuadrado. In the fifth they tacked on two more runs on a Cuadrado sacrifice fly and a Hunter Feduccia single. Vargas and Cuadrado each had two hits. Miguel Vargas ranks second in the league with a .325 batting average and fourth in hits with 51, four behind the league leader. His .426 OBP leads the league as he has walked more often than he has struck out.
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 4 – Lancaster JetHawks 3 (Colorado)
Edwin Uceta got the call for the Quakes and didn’t disappoint. He went 6.1 innings on six hits, two runs, one walk and seven strikeouts. The first run was a solo home run and the second scored on a routine fly ball to center field that the Quakes couldn’t find and it fell for a run scoring double. He left with a runner on third base and one out in the bottom of the seventh inning. Wes Helsabeck came in to try to prevent the JetHawks from tying the score at three and did so with a strikeout and a ground ball back to the pitcher. With a two-run lead in the bottom of the eighth, Connor Strain and Logan Salow combined to help Lancaster score a run on two hit batters, a single, a steal and a walk. Salow kept things interesting in the bottom of the ninth inning yielding a lead-off double followed by a wild pitch putting the tying run on third with none out. He closed out the inning with two ground ball outs and a strikeout.
The Quakes opened the scoring in the fourth inning on a solo home run by Donovan Casey and a double by Starling Heredia bringing in Connor Wong. In the top of the seventh they took the lead back on a Jeter Downs single, two steals and a run on a sacrifice fly by Devin Mann. An important insurance run that was needed came across in the eighth on singles by Nick Yarnell and Eric Peterson followed by a Starling Heredia double. Heredia had three hits in the game while Yarnell and Wong had two.
Tulsa Drillers 5 – Northwest Arkansas Naturals 1 (Kansas City)
Right-hander Michael Bowden started for the Drillers and got locked in a pitching battle with Naturals
Arnaldo Hernandez. Through four innings they were tied at one. However, in the fifth inning the Drillers broke through with four runs on a two-run home run by Chris Parmalee and a two-run single by Zach McKinstry. The Drillers had only seven hits with Zach McKinstry and Logan Landon both having two.
Andre Scrubb relieved Bowden who pitched five innings on four hits, one run, two walks and five strikeouts. Scrubb continued his strong season pitching 1.2 innings while giving up a lone hit, walking one and striking out three. He was followed by Shea Spitzbarth who retired all four batters he faced. Jordan Sheffield came on in the top of the ninth and also retired the three hitters he faced. Scrubb has a 1.47 ERA in his last 18.1 innings pitched with 21 strikeouts and eight walks.
OKC Dodgers 4 – Omaha Storm Chasers 2 (Kansas City)
Left-hander Rob Zastryzny made his ninth start of the season for the Dodgers pitching five innings while giving up eight hits, two runs, four walks and striking out six. Justin Grimm pitched a scoreless sixth inning .Jaime Schultz came on in the bottom of the seventh inning and pitched a clean inning with two strikeouts. One inning at a time with Kevin Quackenbush pitching the eighth inning. JT Chargois
retired the side in the ninth to pick up the save.
The Dodgers scored their first run in the third inning on a bases loaded walk and two in the fifth on a Shane Peterson two-run home run. They added a fourth run in the top of the eighth inning on a Cameron Perkins single, a Drew Jackson single and Daniel Castro sacrifice fly. Zach Reks and Cameron Perkins had two hits for the Dodgers.
DODGERS ACTIVATE RHP KENTA MAEDA
OF KYLE GARLICK OPTIONED TO TRIPLE-A
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers today activated right-handed pitcher Kenta Maeda from the 10-day injured list and optioned outfielder Kyle Garlick to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Maeda, 31, has been sidelined since May 16 with a left adductor contusion and will make the start today against the Pirates. In his last start prior to landing on the injured list, Maeda went a season-best 6.2 scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts against the Padres. On the season, he is 5-2 with 3.51 ERA (20 ER/51.1 IP) with 52 strikeouts against 20 walks. Maeda is in his fourth season with the Dodgers and is a combined 42-29 with a 3.77 ERA in 109 games (86 starts).
Garlick, 27, appeared two games in his second stint with the Dodgers, going 0-for-2 against the Pirates. He has played in three games since he had his contract selected on May 17th. In five minor league seasons, he has recorded a .283 (431-for-1525) batting average with 78 homers and 244 RBI.
First of all, I totally agree that Abreu would be a great add, but by the time you trade for Abreu at the deadline, Pollock should be back. What do you do with AJ?
Do you bring back Abreu on the long term deal he’ll be seeking? Or, are you even more left handed next year with Rios / Beaty / Muncy back at first with Lux at 2B?
Do you sell off Joc and Kike? I don’t see them playing much with the Verdugo, Belli, Pollock outfield.
Have fun at the race today! Stay hydrated! Is your 12 pack of beer made from US Water Systems water?
SWEEP TODAY!!!
Where would Pollock fit in your lineup when he comes back?