The Will Smith Era is Upon Us
I like Austin Barnes. Let me start with that. When Andrew Friedman acquired him, I was elated. In his first full season (102 games) he hit.289 with a .408 OB% and OPS ed .895. Pretty incredible! However, he hit .205 last year and is hitting .207 this year. In parts of 5 MLB seasons, here is what his BA/OB%/OPS is: 2015: .207/.361/.637 2016: .156/.270/.458 2017: .289/.408/.895 2018: .205/.329/.619 2019: .207/.302/.646 I
I like Austin Barnes. Let me start with that. When Andrew Friedman acquired him, I was elated. In his first full season (102 games) he hit.289 with a .408 OB% and OPS’ed .895. Pretty incredible! However, he hit .205 last year and is hitting .207 this year. In parts of 5 MLB seasons, here is what his BA/OB%/OPS is:
- 2015: .207/.361/.637
- 2016: .156/.270/.458
- 2017: .289/.408/.895
- 2018: .205/.329/.619
- 2019: .207/.302/.646
I really hate to say it, but 2017 was the outlier. Based upon that, I have to conclude that Austin Barnes cannot hit. That can be a dangerous assumption and a slippery slope, however. One only has to look as far as the 2018 World Champions who had Christian Vazquez as their main catcher. He hit .207 with a .257 OB% and OPS’ed .540. His career parallels Austin Barnes in that in 2017 he hit .290/.330/.735, but then plummeted in 2018.
This year, he is hitting .299 with 14 HR which is more HR than he hit in his first 4 years. Christian Vazquez has reached his potential after flashes in the past and big failure in 2018. Vazquez is a good catcher. Austin Barnes is a good catcher. You can never underestimate the value of a catcher upon the pitching staff. However, the fact of the matter is that Austin Barnes has hit .167 over the past 30 days, and .207 for the year.
The odd man out here might be Russ Martin because Austin Barnes can be a great backup catcher to the new Dodgers’ starting catcher, Will Smith. Russ Martin needs to go on the DL to rest his back and we need to see what Will Smith has for an extended period. He’s a rookie, but he’s 24 and it’s time. Lou Gehrig got his opportunity when Wally Pipp went down. Cody Bellinger got his opportunity when A-Gon went down (for the last time). It’s time for Will Smith to get his. By the way, Smith hit 2 more HR last night and is still OPS’ing over 1.000. It’s time!
Maybe Barnes has some value, Maybe some team, like Pittsburgh could try and re-claim Austin (Cervelli is no longer a catcher). Maybe Austin could be a small part of a package for Filipe Vasquez. I have changed my mind and I am ready to trade Ruiz, even though we may regret it later. How about trading Ruiz, Barnes, Pederson, Stripling, Carrillo, and Rios for Vasquez and Chris Archer? What?
Now, for a little outta-the-box thinking: The Dodgers next turn Archer into a high-leverage reliever. He has been an under-achiever all his career as a starter. Time for a new career path. The Pirates might actually be better THIS year with this trade… to say nothing of the future. Joc is a loss, but Beaty can platoon with Freese at 1B. This is a bold move, but bold moves can sometimes pay off. I hate losing Ruiz, but this could be a game-changer. This is an idea-starter. Unconventional to say the least and you might expect “unconventional” from Andrew Friedman.
Oh… last night’s game? What game? Move on… there is nothing to see here, folks. The team is in a slump. I told you that it would happen and here it is. Don’t lose your minds and start thinking this team is somehow woefully lacking. It’s the same team it was 6 weeks ago. Slumps happen to every team, every season, sometimes several times. It’s more expected when you have three starters back from the DL. Freese and Pollock looked more comfortable than Seager, who is more of a “rhythm player.” He has to get the “feel” back.
Corey might struggle for a while, but he has to be integrated back into the lineup. That could be a little bit painful, but the Dodgers need him at the SS position if they want to win a Championship. While we are talking about Seager, I an incredulous to hear fans talk about moving him to 2B or 3B. Why? He’s one of the best SS in baseball. Period! He’s still young and he’s an MVP candidate when healthy. With a core of Bellinger, Seager, Muncy, and Verdugo being LH, Pollock, Pederson, Freese, Taylor, and Kike are very important RH bats. CT3 has got his mojo back and Doc is trying to get Kike to find his.
We knew that Cody wasn’t going to hit .400 this year, but in his last 30 games, he is hitting .262 with a .378 OB% and slugging .598. The other teams are not pitching to him as much, but what that means to me is that he is fixing to get hot again as he has more teammates to protect him. Baseball is a game of hot and cold, streaks and slumps. Don’t lose your minds over a couple of losses. They may get swept in Boston or break out. It really doesn’t matter in the big picture.
Tonight, it’s Chicken Strip verses Chris Sale. Ross has the better ERA… go figure!
MINOR LEAGUE REPORT BY AC
Outstanding pitching outings by a pair of top 30 prospects. Josiah Gray started for RC and went 7.0 shutout 1 hit innings, while John Rooney went 6.0 shutout 2 hit innings. Both pitchers need to be considered for promotion.
Overall a good night for the Dodgers affiliates…9 games and 8 wins.
OKC Dodgers 6 – Memphis Redbirds 3 (Cardinals)
The Dodgers were down 3-2 going into the 9th. Connor Joe singled to open the inning and Drew Jackson followed with a single. After both Joe and Jackson were balked to 3rd and 2nd, and a ground out, Gavin Lux clutched up and singled in both runners to take the lead. Lux’s single was followed by Will Smith’s 2nd HR on the game (16) for two insurance runs.
Newly acquired Casey Sadler started and went three innings allowing 2 runs. Brock Stewart relieved and went 5.0 innings allowing one run, and got the win. Kevin Quackenbush pitched a scoreless 9th for his 6th save.
The Dodgers had 13 hits, including 6 with 2 each…Gavin Lux, Will Smith, Matt Beaty, DJ Peters, Kyle Garlick, and Connor Joe.
Tulsa Drillers 1 – NW Arkansas 3 (KC)
Justin DeFratus pitched a 10 hit no walk complete game in the loss. The Drillers scored a run in the 9th to break the shutout. Carlos Rincon and Frew Avans each had 2 hit nights. Zach McKinstry hit his 4th triple.
RC Quakes 4 – San Jose Giants 0
In the second shutout on the evening, Josiah Gray started and went an exceptional 7.0 scoreless 1 hit innings. Wes Helsabeck and Max Gamboa each pitched an inning to keep the shutout and victory.
In the 2nd inning, Niko Hulsizer hit his 5th double. After a walk, Hulsizer went to 3rd on a double play ground out, and stole home for the first score of the game. In the 3rd, Connor Wong doubled (15) and scored on a Jeren Kendall single. In the 4th, Jeter Downs singled, stole 2nd and went to third on the throwing error by catcher Joey Bart. Deacon Liput walked and was forced out on a fielder’s choice by Marcus Chiu. Chiu scored on a triple by Brayan Morales (6).
Great Lakes 7 – Cedar Rapids Kernels 0 (Twins)
John Rooney started and pitched a great 6.0 shutout innings. He allowed 2 hits. Guillermo Zuniga and Jasiel Alvino finished the final three shutout innings to complete the victory. The offense was supplied by a pair of 3 run HRs by Jacob Amaya (6) and Hunter Feduccia (3), and a solo HR by James Outman (6).
Ogden Raptors 18 – Idaho Falls Chukars 1 (KC)
And yet the Raptors went off again. This time 18 runs and 19 hits. Kevin Malisheski started and pitched 5.0 shutout innings surrendering 3 hits and 4 walks. Drew Finley yielded 4 walks and the sole Chukars run. Edward Cuello pitched a scoreless 2.0 innings and 6th round draft choice pitched a perfect 9th. The Raptors scored their 18 runs in 5 of their first 6 innings. 10th round draft choice Zac Ching had his first professional 4-hit game. Marco Hernandez had three hits, while Justin Yurchak, Andrew Shaps, Ryan Ward, and Jimmy Titus had 2 hits each. Shaps hit his 1st HR and 3rd double, while Ward hit his 1st triple, Brandon Wulff his 1st double, and Jimmy Titus his 3rd double.
AZL Dodgers Lasorda 13 – AZL Reds 3
Joan Valdez started and went the first 3.0 innings, surrendering all three runs. 3 Lasorda pitchers followed and pitched a spotless 6.0 innings to seal the victory. The Lasordas scored in each of the 1st 5 innings including 4 HRs. Aldrich De Jongh (1), Meaux Landry (2), Yunior Garcia (3), and Julio Carrion (2) supplied the thunder. Rolando Lebron had three hits including 2 doubles (4) and Aldo Espinoza had 2 hits including his 4th double. Edwin Mateo and Wladimir Chalo each had 2 hits.
AZL Dodgers Mota 8 – AZL Angels 4
3rd round draft pick Ryan Pepiot started his first professional game and the 4th game of the season. He pitched 2 scoreless innings. He has now pitched 5.0 scoreless innings in his 4 games, yielding 2 hits, 4 walks, with 10 Ks. Jeffry Abreu followed with 4 and surrendered all 4 runs but got the win. 13th round draft choice Jacob Cantleberry pitched in his 4th game and went 1.2 innings and gave up his 1st hit in 5.0 innings. He has also allowed 1 walk with 6 Ks. Carlos Alejo finished up for his 3rd save.
Diego Cartaya got his hitting stroke back, at least for this game, going 2-5 with his 4th double. Justin Washington (1), Luis Diaz (3), and Imanol Vargas (8) each had doubles on the night.
DSL Dodgers Bautista 2 – DSL Rays (1) 1
4 Bautista pitchers took the hill and went 8.0 shutout innings before allowing a run in the 9th, but held on for the win. Rafael Tua went 4.0 innings to get the win. Luis Yan had a run scoring single in the 4th. In the 6th, after a Jose Ramos walk, and a Harold Restituyo single moved Ramos to 3rd, Ramos scored on a sac fly.
DSL Dodgers Shoemaker 3 – DSL Cubs (1) 2
The Shoemakers got off to a 3-0 lead and held on for the 3-2 win. Benony Robles started and went 4.2 IP, followed by Juan De La Cruz and his 2.1 scoreless innings. Horacio Andujar allowed single runs in the 8th and 9th to close out the victory. The Shoemakers used 4 singles and a Marlon Cairo was the offense for the Shoemakers.
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Discussion (95)
Disagree, not disagreeable
From my seat in the bleachers, the FO will not ‘think’ out of the box. They are a conservative group, not a splashy one. They value loyalty, team commitment, and bringing players along at a pace that most of us probably think is too slow. Verdugo is a prime example of this. But they also don’t like to give up on players that they deem as starters. It’s not easy to get removed as an incumbent from this team. And not easy to get promoted to the team through excellent play. The FO has a very acute vision of how it wants this team to look. Many of us probably think of it as a bit narrow, and it may be. No FO is perfect and all of them are prone to mistakes. It’s how many mistakes you make that will determine where you will land at season’s end. This FO hasn’t made many, but it certainly has some holes and is not the sacred cow as in Mark’s vision.
I agree with most of the posters here that Barnes is not our first choice as starter, and maybe not even on this team. I’ve never thought much of him as a starting catcher and will not be sorry to see him replaced by Smith.
The starters, except for Ryu, give me some cause for concern. Buehler, Kershaw, and Maeda are getting creamed lately. Not a little bit, either. Since that Rockies game where Buehler got murdered, the team has not been the same. Too many runs given up. Poor RISPect, too many errors, and insufficient clutch hitting. It all seems to be hitting at once. When we win, it is usually by a small margin. Many low scoring games. Too many experiments with the players, although our margin of victory certainly allows for some of that, it can throw players out of rhythm.
I don’t see any game changing moves that this FO will make before the deadline. It seems to believe in the in-house team it has and I’m sure no one is going to offer us any bargains to make our bullpen better or our batters better against LHP. This is basically it. If they don’t win it all this season, I would expect them to make some big changes. I can’t see Hill returning with his fragility. Enough is enough. They are going to have to pay Ryu big bucks to retain him and they will still need another Ace even with Urias coming up to start. Stripling should be gone, Maeda sent to the BP or traded along with Jansen. A major re-do of the BP is not out of line.
I see them committed to Kike and Joc. They love the idea of versatility and utility. It’s hard to argue with that. Neither of them have a permanent position any longer. Freese will probably be gone next season leaving 1B up for grabs. Can Turner play a full season? It’s not looking like it. Perhaps he will be platooning next year with a protege. I don’t see Joc as our permanent 1Bman. Move Muncy there? Bring up Lux for platooning at 2B and 3B? So many options. Maybe Beaty breaks through for 1B.
Any bets that Pollock gets injured again this season?
The Dodgers have at least 2 catching prospects with extremely tall ceilings. Wouldn’t want to lock into Smith prematurely. He has looked very good for sure, but I wouldn’t want to get rid of the other 2 any time soon. One looks way too good and the other is way too young to know about. Maybe try to train them at other positions? I don’t know, I just hope the Dodgers can keep up the pace of the 1st half in the 2nd half. Pretty high bar.
This falls into the category of “You can’t make this stuff up:”
Last night, the Angels honored Tyler Skaggs by all wearing his #45. His mom threw out the first pitch, a strike right down the middle. Tylers birthday is today (7/13) so the Angels scored 7 runs in the first and ended up with 13, as two Angel pitchers NO-HIT the Mariners!
If you are looking at prospects to include in a trade for a relief pitcher, perhaps include Guillermo Zuniga. In last night’s Loons game there was a group of scouts all using their phones/cameras to catch Zuniga warming up.
I don’t want to jump on the “I hate Barnes” bandwagon but, I saw a picture of him on the LAT were he’s swinging and I can see that he’s totally out of it! His head is up not tracking the ball, and it appears his eyes are looking in the direction of the pitcher! If that’s how he bats, I could strike him out! Granted it was raining but wow, he’s a major league player. Yeah, he needs to go to OKC.
Bums,
I have also thought of Lux as the potential replacement for Turner at 3B, and no doubt that Turner could play some 1B. But if the Dodgers can find another alternative at short, then I think Seager could become a huge asset at 3B. And at some juncture, I could even imagine Seager at 1B.
And I’m starting a rumor that MLB is going to establish a rule that requires left handed pitchers to throw with their right hand when pitching to Joc, and that under this new rule, Joc will hit 80 HRs next year.
Barnes has simply become painful to watch. Smith may or may not be the long term answer, but at the very least he needs an extended opportunity to claim the starting job.
And it’s almost as painful to watch Kike’ Hernandez. I haven’t checked the stats, but does he even hit lefthanders anymore.
I don’t think moving Seager off of shortstop makes any sense for this year, but with signs that age may be catching up with Justin Turner, thinking about moving him to 3B long-term makes perfect sense to me. I actually think that he has the tools to be a gold glove caliber third baseman.
If Seager was moved to 3B, then the Dodgers would have to consider who to replace him with at short. Between now and next year, I’m confident that the Dodgers could figure out how to do it, be it internally or externally.
Starting pitching is also a concern, both long and short term. There are internal options, but I’m not sure how ready those options are. Trades are a possibility, but those have to be considered in the context of other trades for other needs. AF has his work cut out for him.
Will Smith is smashing the door down! 19 bombs in 218 ABs!!! What’s the freaking delay? We need a righty bat? He’s in Oklahoma. Barnes still has an option left? Time for a nice little Oklahoma vacation. Maybe Martin’s back needs a flareup. Maybe Martin needs to take over the bulk of the catching to force that flareup.
Barnes will be an adequate backup going forward until Conner Wong develops further. He’s worth holding onto.
Baez is supposed to be one of the guys we can trust? Yikes! This pen needs some help.
Maeda is a solid number 5 starter / reliever in the post season. I have no problem with his performance overall and I think he’s a valuable member of this team.
Team’s have slumps. Call this one a first half hangover after dominating all season. Hell, if we had a lock down pen, we would be on pace for 120 wins. The sky is NOT falling Chicken Little!
18 days for AF to work some magic. Ruiz, Barnes, Pederson, Stripling, Carrillo, and Rios for Vasquez and Chris Archer? Why isn’t Stewart in this deal? How about squeezing Kike in there, in order to keep Doc from sitting CT3?
Can we trade Stewart and Doc to the Red Sox for Cora?
I agree that it is time for Will D. Smith to get recalled and claim the starting catcher position. He needs time to become fully acclimated with ALL of the pitchers, including the relievers (whoever they may be). Barnes does have options, and maybe it is best that he goes back down to OKC to see if he can find it before season’s end. Martin is a more than capable back up catcher, and might be an even better mentor to Smith at the ML level. Seeing Barnes struggle as bad as he is right now is why AF is not going to trade Ruiz. I think AF foresaw a Smith/Ruiz tandem behind the dish.
I am going to pass on Chris Archer. This is not the year to experiment and bring in a starter and convert him to a reliever. Maybe next winter, but not this year. The team needs an elite reliever for this year. Vazquez would fill that void, but I still cannot see Pittsburgh trading him.
4 game skid, yep I know, but as Bruce Springsteen would say ” The Boys are Back in Town”… Seager, Freese and A.J. once again solidifies our lineup… Having Freese and A.J around the younger guys is a bonus… Lets get this one today and go from there…
Split on the road and win at home…
I said it yesterday ! Barnes and Kike batting back to back is basically 2 outs. At least Kike can hit home runs and has more offense potential but Barnes just cant hit and strikes out in 3 pitches. He cant hit ML Pitching consistently and should not be the starting catcher anymore ! Send him back to AAA to work on hitting and bring Smith up and let him start the rest of the way. Barnes might be familiar with staff but he is not great on defense either. He cant throw anyone on the bases. Start Taylor and Martin this last 2 games .
The villains in WS 2017: Darvish, Jansen, Kershaw.
The villains in WS 2018: Madson, Jansen; Kershaw.
The Dodgers have to put Kershaw, in October, in only one game per series, and this out of respect, for his career, in no way should start two games in a series. He is our No.4.
Mark, it’s good to see you coming around to my thinking, well almost. I look forward to cheering Smith on and hope he will be the Dodger catcher for a long time. I have always liked Archer and would love for him to be a Dodger. The Pirates would like to have Ruiz, might want to lose Archer’s salary, and might want to get a good reliever or two back if they trade Vasquez so they can continue to compete for a wildcard.
It’s time to bring up Smith and demote Barnes if he has options. If not DFA or trade him. We need another right handed starter. Kershaw at best is a number three or four starter.We know his track record in the playoffs. Maeda can not be trusted because of the long ball and is best suited for the bullpen. We are also vulnerable against left handed pitching.We need a quality right handed bat as we are too left handed. We can’t have Kiki in the everyday lineup but as a platoon player. His role is for late defensive purposes or pitch hitting. A true bench payer. Also if we get another starter, we can leave Urias in the bullpen this season and make him a starter next year. The present roster is constructed for competing in the weak National League,not against the American League power house teams. Andrew F.,are you listening? You have alot of work to do before July 31. Don’t let us down.