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 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 9^th.  Connor Joe singled to open the inning and Drew Jackson followed with a single.  After both Joe and Jackson were balked to 3^rd and 2^nd, 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 2^nd 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 9^th for his 6^th 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 9^th to break the shutout.  Carlos Rincon and Frew Avans each had 2 hit nights.  Zach McKinstry hit his 4^th 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 2^nd inning, Niko Hulsizer hit his 5^th double.  After a walk, Hulsizer went to 3^rd on a double play ground out, and stole home for the first score of the game.  In the 3^rd, Connor Wong doubled (15) and scored on a Jeren Kendall single.  In the 4^th, Jeter Downs singled, stole 2^nd 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 6^th round draft choice pitched a perfect 9^th.  The Raptors scored their 18 runs in 5 of their first 6 innings.  10^th 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 1^st HR and 3^rd double, while Ward hit his 1^st triple, Brandon Wulff his 1^st double, and Jimmy Titus his 3^rd 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 1^st 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 4^th double.  Edwin Mateo and Wladimir Chalo each had 2 hits.

AZL Dodgers Mota 8 – AZL Angels 4

3^rd round draft pick Ryan Pepiot started his first professional game and the 4^th 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.  13^th round draft choice Jacob Cantleberry pitched in his 4^th game and went 1.2 innings and gave up his 1^st hit in 5.0 innings.  He has also allowed 1 walk with 6 Ks. Carlos Alejo finished up for his 3^rd save.

Diego Cartaya got his hitting stroke back, at least for this game, going 2-5 with his 4^th 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 9^th, 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 6^th, after a Jose Ramos walk, and a Harold Restituyo single moved Ramos to 3^rd, 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 8^th and 9^th to close out the victory.  The Shoemakers used 4 singles and a Marlon Cairo was the offense for the Shoemakers.