Timing is Everything

Elbow discomofort !

Well, maybe those of us who said something was wrong with WB medically might have been not so far off.

Fingers crossed he does not need TJ. But more often than not elbow discomfort is the precursor to TJ.

Too bad Bobby Miller has shown no progress at Tulsa after he looked so promising in ST vs the Angels.

Go hit hard yesterday again at Tulsa.

Hopefully WB comes back soon along with Dustin May. Dodgers pitching staff is showing more and more cracks lately.

Could it be Stone times soon ?

Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If I understand it correctly, the new contract has tighted rules to how often a team can send players back and forth from the majors to minors.

With Buhler now likely to take break, my first assumption is that Mitch White would be summoned back. Or do the new rules make it more likely that someone else would get the call?

Last season White was on a yo-yo between LA and OKC. I wonder if a guy like him hopes to get traded to a franchise where he’d get more of a chance…. like maybe White + ??? + ??? for Montas

Oh, just saw the news about Buhler’s elbow….

Perhaps a blessing in disguise. Hope he rests up and gets well…. and maybe the quest for reinforcements will kick up a gear.

Maybe Ferris needs a day off… heh heh.

If his troubles continue==remember, he was supposed to be the ace we’d turn to in the playoffs, not our No. 5 pitcher–then someone like Frankie Montas looks more and more attractive.

Right now, Montas’ ERA is at 3.06, about a run better than Buhler’s. His WHIP is at 1.00 and the BAA is at .211. Really solid numbers on a crappy team. Plus, Montas was really good last year.

To me he qualifies as “proven” and a playoff-caliber starter.

No, the Dodgers don’t need him, but in addition to Buhler’s struggles, I’m concerned about (presumed) fragility of Kershaw and Heaney. I’m not against seeing what more Pepiot, Grove, Miller, Knack and Stone may have to offer–but I’d package at least one those guys (Grove and/or Knack, maybe) in deal for Montas. If I’m not mistaken, Montas is under contract for next season too, which would increase the asking price.

In other news, Mookie seems to have suddenly cooled off. That won’t last.

Another Meh outing for Buehler. His fastball is getting crushed. Joc burns them again. I hate losing to the Giants

Well at least we now have 2 pitchers worse than Buehler!

I hate to say this but I’ve been looking at the Dodgers career pitching stats and most of the bullpen has their flaws that other managers can expose just like Kapler just did with Justin Bruihl.

Now who was talking about Lux’s natural power?

But then what do I do with my Joc jersey?

Could use Kike’s bat. Stripling’s arm. Kenley’s cutter.

Teams move on. Fans should too.

PS: But Joc and Kike were super fun!

Boy could we use Joc’s .900+ OPS in our lineup. Plus he could give Freddie a break now and then at first base!

It sucks that Mitch White got sent down because I like his career stats.

Speaking of stats I finally found minor league OPS against stats for pitchers. The only Dodger pitching prospect that stands out with good career OPS against stats is Bobby Miller.

Gavin Stone has only emerged this year. Prior to this year not as good but decent. But he would be my second favorite pitching prospect behind Bobby Miller.

Cross your fingers Buehler got himself a clean inning He even got a swing and miss on his 4seamer

Who would’ve thunk it Turner the burner

10:15 PM ET

Dodgers (37-20)

Giants (30-26)

SP Walker Buehler R

6-2 3.84 ERA 61IP 52K

Confirmed Lineup

RF Mookie Betts R

1B F. Freeman L

SS Trea Turner R

3B Max Muncy L

C Will Smith R

DH J. Turner R

CF C. Bellinger L

LF Chris Taylor R

2B Gavin Lux L

Clear-day

0% Rain

66° Wind 12 mph Out

Bobby Miller on the mound for AA Tulsa tonight

Craig Kimbrel’s reasons for being on the Paternity list are not clear and we do not deserve or need to know if it is a private matter… and it evidently is private. I am not speculating or anything except to say that maybe he needs our thoughts and prayers as a member of the Dodger Family!

I would say that tonight is the most important start of Walker Buehler’s career!

I only watched the last couple inning of yesterdays game.

I had no idea La Russa intentionally walked Trea with TWO STRIKES to get to Muncy.

What a moment for Max. I hope he builds on that.

Great job Mitch, you just pitched one of the best of your career. Now, go to OKC.

Los Angeles Dodgers

@Dodgers

The Dodgers reinstated RHP Craig Kimbrel from the paternity list and optioned RHP Mitch White.

When they said Gavin looked like a deer in the lamps and blah blah blah I said I’ll say it again just put him 2b and 9th in the line up and let him play last he’ll be fine this year he just has to stabilize, gain confidence and become a major league player, when he gets into a hot streak resist the temptation and don’t move him in the lineup, leave him ninth in the batting order, next year will be another story and It can be the first or the second.

Trea Turner, in April my eyes told me that Trea wasn’t playing defense at the usual level so I went to B-R

and indeed the information said that he was playing negative defense, so I read an interview of Doc where he said that Trea was playing with pain and that he had offered to rest but Trea did not accept and said that he wanted to play every day.

In May and to this day my eyes told me that Trea was playing tremendous defense, making difficult plays making them seem routine, then last night I remembered and went to B-R again and indeed found that his defense had improved a lot, now he is in 0.0 so he has reversed the negative defense and from now on he will start to put up a positive defense, that tells me that Trea is already healthy and is playing 100%, you can see that with the glove and with the bat, remember that in April was hitting up to .250, he is a great player and one of my favorites in MLB, Trea and Gavin will make history in the next few years with the Dodgers.

Muncy has been a damn good hitter for several years. And not just a hitter, but an on-base machine. The biggest slump of his career coincides with his return from a serious injury. Impossible to know if he’s really turned the corner now. But he is an emotional competitor so thank you, Tony LaRussa, for getting him fired up.

Lux leading off?

Seems like you’re trying to fix something that ain’t broke.

Mookie is the best leadoff hitter in the game right now. (Who is better?) He gets on base, he’s a great baserunner and he’s clutch. Trea is faster–and perhaps Lux and Belli too– but I doubt any can match Mookie’s uncanny instincts. (Lux has made some real baserunning blunders this year.) It’s great that Lux has been hot and lifted his BA and OBP, but until we have an actual track record of success Lux seems fine late in the order, as kind of the “second leadoff man.”

To Lux’s credit, he seems to have cured his biggest problem: The stats now show that he’s hitting both righthanded and lefthanded pitching. (The OPS is .730 vs. southpaws and .739 vs. northpaws.) Last season, Lux was often benched in favor of Pujols against lefties. Assuming this trend holds, this lifts Lux into a true everyday player.

And he could well be the everyday SS next season if Trea chooses to leave.

Clearly, the biggest problem on offense for the major’s highest-scoring team has been Max’s slump. The lineup would be ridiculous if Max and Belli hit anything close to their capabilities. Justin Turner’s decline, I think, was to be expected.

It’s only one game so I wouldn’t proclaim Max “fixed” just yet. But what I really liked was that he went oppo on both the double snd the homer. That to me is the best sign! And I predict that we will see Lux’s OPS rise as his natural power begins to show itself.

David Vassegh

@THEREAL_DV

Dave Roberts said Clayton Kershaw might pitch on Saturday instead of Sunday. #Dodgers #Giants

NEWS FROM INTERNET

The Great Jay Jaffe goes deep into Tony Gonsolin:

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/tony-gonsolin-is-the-latest-dodgers-starter-to-dominate-hitters/

Keep in mind, Dodgers 2019 18th round pick Jeff Belge. Whilst not a popular prospect name, he is now in after finishing a rehab assignment at Camelback. In his first appearance for the Loons, tossing 1.1 scoreless innings, striking out 3. Reliever with what looks to be that backspinny FB. Even though he’s a SIRP, he’s a favorite of someone I follow on Twitter.

Baseball America looks at 25 intriguing players in the Dominican League. ($$$)

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/25-pitching-prospects-to-watch-in-the-dominican-summer-league/

Accimias Morales, RHP, Dodgers “…stands out for size (6’4”, 190) and starer traits…. Sound delivery and advanced pitchability.

Luciana Romero, RHP, Dodgers “Venezuelan RHP. FB started upper 80s, already in 90s. Projectable growth and feel.”

Ben Clemens had a chat:

Steven: I’m sure it’s been asked before, but do you think Buehler is just bad now? I try to be rational/optimistic but I’m terrified every start he makes now. Looking at his stats it really just seems like the four seamer that’s getting consistently hammered, but he hasn’t eliminated the pitch from his repertoire so is that just a non-option? As for Muncy, he’s definitely still injured and went on the IL/is doing rehab starts. I’m not concerned about him moving forward until he puts up bad numbers while healthy.

Ben Clemens: I’m worried about Buehler, and I have been for most of this year. I think his fastball is just not getting the shape and command that it used to. I agree with you that it really does seem to be just a four-seamer problem, but that used to be a really big part of his game, so it’s a tough thing to just trim back. I think the solution is just that he needs to pitch through it and rediscover his best fastball That’s a very unsatisfying solution, I know. And it’s not like he’s been terrible. But I think that it’s getting hard to watch him pitch and think ‘yeah that’s a dominant starter’, and it’s b/c of the fastball

Guest: What’s going on with Max Muncy? Has one of the weirdest slash lines you’ll see with .150/.327/.263 buoyed by a 20% BB rate. Obviously a .183 BABIP is impossible, but his batted ball quality is also way down

Ben Clemens: Still hurt, I’d guess?

Ben Clemens: I think if you’re going to allow teams to carry 14 pitchers, you should just not let position players pitch at all, but I’d prefer 13 or 12 man pitching staffs and letting position players pitch… I see why they have the rule, though… Otherwise you say ‘okay only 13 pitchers’ and the Dodgers say ‘hey have you heard of this hot new hitting prospect, Tyler Anderson?’

In case not noted elsewhere Maddux Bruns has been on the DL since June 1. Presumably or reportedly a shoulder issue.

On Wednesday, Michael Busch made his fourth start (two each in AA/AAA) of the year in left field. He hadn’t played there as a pro before this year, but did play 35 games there his junior year at UNC. To my unknowing eyes, this is the Dodgers doing their variability thing with him being able to spot or move to LF or 1B in addition to 2B

Baseball Prospectus says Walker B’s FB ‘ain’t right’ ($$$$$)

https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/75133/walker-buehlers-fastball-aint-right/

“That’s a huge dropoff in spin rate from April to September 2021, totallying over 300rpm. Which, anecdotally, is around the mark of how much raw spin rate you’d expect a pitcher to lose if they swore off the sticky stuff….. Part of the reason he was able to create that good FB ride, was his elite spin rate…”

I agree about it being a 2020’s move. In the 1970’s what they would do, if they didn’t want Trea to ‘beat you’, would be to throw three straight out of the strike zone to see if he would bite. If not then he gets the ‘unintentional-intentional walk

Story on MLBTR about the balls that are tacky already being tested in AA. So maybe next year. Went to see Top Gun Maverick yesterday so I missed the game. I did watch the highlights later. Nice to see Lux have a good game. Dugout looked really loose despite the troubles over the last week and a half. LaRussa getting hammered for walking Turner with 2 strikes.

If anyone has noticed or anyone cares Dellin Betances, former Yankee ,former Met has been added to the AAA Oklahoma City roster from the ACL team roster.

Mark, I hope you are correct in your estimated figure for Max’s final OPS. It means nothing but positive things for the Dodgers, the fans, and more important…you. Lol. I missed Max’s first two ABs so when he came up the third time and they mentioned he had struck out earlier I thought well that’s not good. Then he got a hit and then the HR and I thought “Timmons!” I was, of course, happy with his performance. But, as you said it’s only one game.

The Lux idea is kind of happening now, except he’s hitting ninth. I know Lux would get an extra AB each game, but why not leave well enough alone. But, with Lux leading off talk about speed at the top of the lineup. With Taylor and Bellinger eighth and ninth and if they can get on base ahead of Lux, Betts, Turner, and Freeman what a track meet that could be!

It’s hard to believe the Dodgers are still near the top in hitting and runs scored in MLB. And that the pitching is highly ranked considering all the injuries that have occurred. I think it is a reflection on the quality of MLB right now. The hitting is down everywhere. Hence, you would think the pitching would be outstanding which I don’t think it is league wide. Baseball seem to be out of sorts right now. We can all thank Boob Manfred for that.

Time to get on track Freddie Freeman. That double was a good start yesterday. Continue to make me terribly wrong Max Muncy. Loved LaRussa’s 1970’s managing moves as did Max. Enjoyed watching Grandal struggle both offensively and with the glove. Keep it going Will Smith. Continue to hope for more consistent contact from CT3 and Cody. Taylor seems to be either hitting out of his mind or can’t make contact to save his life.

I’m a Bill Mahar fan and watch him weekly. His “New Rules” segments have been very funny and spot on recently. I disagree with him on a few things and surely represents what was liberalism in the late 20th century.

Carry on.

As I said yesterday, it was a very fun game to watch. 11 runs with just one bomb! On 12 hits no less. It was very efficient in the scoring department. The strategy to take a lot of pitches from a pitcher who is historically wild worked well. Dylan Cease is nasty, but he has problems finding the plate and the Dodgers know how to punish guys like that.

It sure felt like Max Muncy was the missing link to a struggling lineup that made it long enough to be very scary again. He started the game by having a 9 pitch K in his first AB which lead to a 21 pitch first inning. That set the stage for a short outing from Cease which makes all the difference in the world.

Before the game, I did a little eye roll with Muncy starting at second base and Lux in LF. It’s not my favorite defensive alignment, but it was good enough to get the job done. I’m not a big fan of Muncy in the field. When he is, I prefer the plays 3rd base and think he should just trade off with JT at the hot corner most of the time.

I don’t mind Lux in LF. He’ll mess up a play from time to time, but he’s athletic enough to make some plays that others won’t. I think it’s a wash and that Lux will eventually be a great outfielder if needed.

Speaking of Lux, he’s starting to get his mojo back. When he first came up, he had the swag. Now, it’s a little more subdued. With confidence, that swag will propel him into a hitting machine like he was in the minors. I really do think Lux will eventually become what Trea currently is.

I did the math on Mark’s bold Muncy claim. If Max can OPS around 890 for the rest of the year, he’ll finish with that 800 OPS. I think that’s doable with a normal baseball. We’ll see what happens, but I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibilities.

Freddie Freeman has been in a bit of a slump lately. But, he sure snaps out of slumps in a hurry and I think we saw that yesterday. Look for Freddie to heat up, just as Mookie is starting to cool down.

The lineup that Mark posted as well as the lineup that Bums posted yesterday really isn’t far off from the current one on most days. Lux is essentially batting leadoff, he just has to wait for everyone else to hit first. Once the lineup turns over, he usually hits right in front of Mookie. The big difference is that both Mark and Bums lineup has the three rabbits in a row. I’ve said all year that Freddie should bat third and let Mookie and Trea bat before him. They don’t listen to me. Maybe now that Mark and Bums suggested it, they will.

Caleb Ferguson is quietly looking excellent through his recent 3 outings coming back from AAA purgatory. Vesia looks a little burned out. After getting into trouble, he sure settled in. He needs to bring that mindset to the start of the inning. I also like how Hudson battled back. He’s been a great pickup and is an ideal setup guy.

It’s unfortunate that so many pitchers go down so often on this staff. There’s so many good, live arms that can’t seem to stay healthy. I can only imagine what they’ll look like if they can manage having their best pitchers on the roster at the same time.

Next up, the hated ones! Always a fun weekend series. I’m blocking out my schedule entirely like I often do anyways. Buehler, Urias and Kershaw. It looks like Joc’s gonna get a couple of days off this weekend. Let’s see if Buehler can keep in the yard tonight. My new smoker is arriving today. Maybe some ribs will be on the menu for Saturday’s game.

When you watch the video of the angry Muncy giving hi fives to everyone. I see him not holding back with his ‘injured’ arm. So maybe a good sign that this is behind him