Well... Somebody had to get to 30 wins first, and at this point, the Los Angeles Dodgers seem to be a team of destiny in 2012. They were destined for new ownership and landed the "dream team". And coming off of their hot finish in 2011, it looked as if the Dodgers were destined to get off to a much stronger start in Don Mattingly's sophomore season as manager. But 30-13 (best record in MLB) and a 7 game division lead (biggest in MLB)? I'm not sure anybody saw this coming. And for the very select (and/or crazy) few who predicted the Dodgers would be the class of Major League Baseball through the first 43 games of 2012, none of them would have predicted the Dodgers would be doing so with out the help of one of the league's best all around players.
The Dodgers were off to a hot first month, and as the calendar turned to the month of May, they began to face some adversity and attrition. Opening day starters Juan Rivera, Matt Kemp, and Juan Uribe were all on the disabled list when the defending world champs came to Dodger Stadium last weekend. Don Mattingly started to write lineup cards that looked so bad, I was forced to coin the phrase "Kemp-ocalypse". Even one of the Dodgers most reliable players in 2B Mark Ellis experienced a freak injury that almost cost him his leg (literally). The thought was that the Dodgers would HAVE to regress with the call ups of Van Slyke, Sands, Hererra, DeJesus, and Sellers combined with the miniature benchings of James Loney and Dee Gordon . But in the last week, all six have made considerable (even heroic) contributions to the club's current 6-game winning streak. Between Scott Van Slyke's 7th inning 3-run home run at Dodger stadium on Sunday to complete the sweep of the Cardinals, and Tuesday night's 2RBI double by Ivan DeJesus while trailing a run with 2 outs in the 9th inning in Arizona, the Dodgers continue to get help from various lesser known players on a daily basis.
Los Angeles has a chance to complete their second consecutive series sweep and what would be their 6th of the season. The idea of this ball club getting one of the league's best everyday players back in CF (Kemp in a week), and one of the league's best utility players in back on the bench (Hairston in a few days), makes it hard to believe that the Dodgers can't build upon their lead in the standings before the All-Star break. Somebody had to get to 30 wins first, and with the four biggest payrolls in the sport (Angels, Phillies, Yankees, Red Sox) struggling just to stay in contention, it only makes sense that a team full of triple-A regulars would help an injury riddled club storm to 17 games over .500. Everyday someone else is taking their turn being the hero. The 2012 season was set up to be a season of destiny.... so far, so good. OH, soooo good.
Showing posts with label Albert pujols. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Albert pujols. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Thursday, May 10, 2012
TDB: Odds and Ends
The Dodgers wrapped up their first 2012 series with the San Francisco Giants last night by pulling away from Tim Lincecum and Company. Tony Gwynn Jr.'s pinch hit triple cleared the bases and made the chances of the Dodgers losing another low scoring, 2-1 type game disappear. Not to often are you going to see the Dodgers beat a two-time Cy Young winner when their own starter has thrown 85 pitches through 4 innings. But last night was the exception to the rule, as the clutch pinch hit, combined with Jamey Wright's solid 2 innings of relief shut down the Giants offense. Which allowed manager Don Mattingly to avoid digging deep into his bullpen.
Speaking of Mattingly... Only a few hours after I was tearing his decisions from Tuesday night apart on my podcast, he looked like a pure genius by having TGJr. bat in Chad Billingsley's spot in the bottom of the fourth. The game was heading in the direction of a loss as the Dodgers righthander had been fighting his stuff from the jump, and Timmy was dealing. So when the bases were loaded with one out in the 4th, Donny obviously felt it could potentially be his team's only chance to jump all over the Giants. Mattingly took his shot, and Chad was not thrilled. After he was called back from the on-deck circle, he immediately smacked his bat on the ground of the dugout before sitting down and cooling his jets. Fortunately for Chad he was off the hook of a loss after the pinch hit. Unfortunately for Chad he had not reached the five inning minimum to be in line for the win. Considering how badly he was missing locations, he can call it a wash.
So its the day off for 'Dem Bums (20-11) but The Dodger Blog never takes a day off, whether it be by blog, podcast, facebook, or twitter. So with that being said, lets dive into whats going around the Dodger Town:
Speaking of Mattingly... Only a few hours after I was tearing his decisions from Tuesday night apart on my podcast, he looked like a pure genius by having TGJr. bat in Chad Billingsley's spot in the bottom of the fourth. The game was heading in the direction of a loss as the Dodgers righthander had been fighting his stuff from the jump, and Timmy was dealing. So when the bases were loaded with one out in the 4th, Donny obviously felt it could potentially be his team's only chance to jump all over the Giants. Mattingly took his shot, and Chad was not thrilled. After he was called back from the on-deck circle, he immediately smacked his bat on the ground of the dugout before sitting down and cooling his jets. Fortunately for Chad he was off the hook of a loss after the pinch hit. Unfortunately for Chad he had not reached the five inning minimum to be in line for the win. Considering how badly he was missing locations, he can call it a wash.
So its the day off for 'Dem Bums (20-11) but The Dodger Blog never takes a day off, whether it be by blog, podcast, facebook, or twitter. So with that being said, lets dive into whats going around the Dodger Town:
- Scott Van Slyke made his Major League debut last night with an RBI, broken-bat single pinch hit in the late innings. I could give an entire diatribe about what Andy's son may or may not do for the Dodgers this season, but the reality is Mike Petriello over at the blog "Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness" already did so.
- Van Slyke is currently occupying Juan Rivera's spot on the roster while Rivera spends the time being on the disabled list with a strained or "sore" left hamstring. So far this season the "H-word" has been the fly in the ointment for the Dodgers' training staff. Iron man Matt Kemp, the owner of Major League Baseballs longest games played streak, missing a start last week in Chicago (he still looks a step slow as we speak), Jerry Hairston Jr. having the last few games off as he's trying to stay off the disabled list himself, and now Rivera is gone. The Dodgers are hoping that this hamstring fiasco follows the rule of bad things coming in three's, and that there won't be a fourth hammy issue before the end of may.
- The Dodger Blog got a little bit of a face lift today. Seeing as I'm in the plastic surgery capital of the country (Hollywood), it only seemed natural. Hopefully, the loyal few followers of TDB find the page a little easier on the eyes and the mouse pad. You no longer have to go constantly scrolling through past posts when looking for any previous pod casts. There's a little player just to your right hand side where you can find the latest audio from TDB.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Dodgers Happy to be Home, Rivalry Begins
After a week long, six-game road trip to Denver and Chicago, alot has changed. Matt Kemp is no longer blistering the baseball like he was in April (his average has finally dipped below .400). Clayton Kershaw can now say that he has allowed three home runs in a single game for the first time in his career (against Rockies). And the Dodgers infield depth has taken some pretty big hits (Uribe's Wrist, Hairston Jr's Hammy). But despite all of this less-than-stellar news, the Dodgers (18-10) still boast a 4-game lead in the standings and a new addition to the bench in the form of veteran Bobby Abreu. The 38 year old former All-Star was released in late April after he had expressed some dissatisfaction with the role on the Angels to which he had been relegated.
The reality is that Abreu's bat is still strong enough to contribute somewhere in major league baseball but the franchise that he has called home for the last 4+ seasons just signed Albert Pujols and clearly wanted more youth in the outfield. The Dodgers have picked up Bobby for the veterans minimum, while the Angels will be responsible for the rest of his previous contract (9 million this year). He arrives in Dodger Stadium for the first time as a member of the home team, completely aware and more importantly at peace with his new role as a bat off the bench or an outfielder available for a spot start once a week. It isn't the big splash that new ownership has made clear is coming, but it does add legitimate left handed power to a Dodgers bench that had none.
The Dodgers now play 18 of their next 23 games at home where they hold a 10-2 record on the season. 13 of their next 16 games will be played against inter-divisional foes. An opportunity that everyone has had circled on the calendar for some time now, as the first real chance for the Dodgers to separate themselves from the pack. They're happy to be off the road, but can't take their foot off the pedal as this next stretch of games could very well define the momentum of the entire 2012 season. As new ownership has their first official day in their offices at Dodgers stadium. The entire affair will be under the watchful eyes of Magic Johnson and Stan Kasten.
Here are a few pod casts. The first is a recap of yesterday's heartbreaking loss and treacherous road trip, while the other discusses the Dodgers and Giants rivalry that resumes this evening.
The reality is that Abreu's bat is still strong enough to contribute somewhere in major league baseball but the franchise that he has called home for the last 4+ seasons just signed Albert Pujols and clearly wanted more youth in the outfield. The Dodgers have picked up Bobby for the veterans minimum, while the Angels will be responsible for the rest of his previous contract (9 million this year). He arrives in Dodger Stadium for the first time as a member of the home team, completely aware and more importantly at peace with his new role as a bat off the bench or an outfielder available for a spot start once a week. It isn't the big splash that new ownership has made clear is coming, but it does add legitimate left handed power to a Dodgers bench that had none.
The Dodgers now play 18 of their next 23 games at home where they hold a 10-2 record on the season. 13 of their next 16 games will be played against inter-divisional foes. An opportunity that everyone has had circled on the calendar for some time now, as the first real chance for the Dodgers to separate themselves from the pack. They're happy to be off the road, but can't take their foot off the pedal as this next stretch of games could very well define the momentum of the entire 2012 season. As new ownership has their first official day in their offices at Dodgers stadium. The entire affair will be under the watchful eyes of Magic Johnson and Stan Kasten.
Here are a few pod casts. The first is a recap of yesterday's heartbreaking loss and treacherous road trip, while the other discusses the Dodgers and Giants rivalry that resumes this evening.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Will Ethier Contract Year Make Lasting Impact?
While the Dodgers' season still has 97% it's games left to play (yes I did the math), we have already begun to draw some pretty obvious conclusions. This team, for all of the new ownership's future presence is worth is pretty much the same team as last year. You can assume all you want about that this year having a fresh breath of air that might breed success and positivity. For that I will not disagree but unfortunately this still looks to be the team with a Cy Young pitcher and marginal run support. The MVP- type talents of Matt Kemp are now truly realized and the potential of Dee Gordon's raw athleticism at the leadoff/SS role is infinite. My biggest question coming into 2012 was which Andre Ethier would we come to expect and would he figure to be a key part of the franchise going forward?
Was the Andre Ethier who ran a hitting streak to 30 games at the beginning of last season only dissapear into the dog days of summer with nagging injuries the guy we were to expect to roaming around RF in Chavez Ravine? Or would we ever again see the guy who came to be known as Mr. Clutch, while littering the 08-09 seasons with countless game winning hits and walk-off home runs? The recent signings of both Prince Fielder with the Detroit Lions and Albert Pujols with the Angels had to resonate with Ethier as he was preparing to come into spring camp. The market value for a left handed power hitter was set pretty high with those contracts and all the while he was watching his outfield mate, Matt Kemp, sign the largest contract in franchise history. With plenty of prime years remaining Ethier had to see all this offseason activity and be thinking the proverbial "What about me?".
As the questions surrounding his health were cleared up this spring, it seemed as if Andre was in perfect position to get himself back to the peak form that Dodger fans enjoyed in years past. He also seemed primed to put himself back in the spotlight for one last major contract. After 5 games Ethier's numbers are huge, and Kemp is telling the media he'd prefer that Ethier get a contract extension sooner than later. My intuition is that Ethier continues on his torrid pace with the bat throughout the first half of the season, the new ownership will make their first order of business giving him a large contract somewhere in the rance of 6 years and 120 million. That would lock him up through the rest of his prime and have his contract expire the same year as Matt Kemp's. If this franchise plans on turning a new leaf and making big free agent splashes in the next few years, the big money free agents are going to want to see some sort of foundation built. Pujols signed with the Angels because he was the "next piece" on already well constructed team, and same with Fielder to the tigers.
My speculation is that baseball is starting to go the way of the NBA, where big name free agents want to be the "right fit" on a team that is ready to compete for a world title. We all watched Jason Werth take the biggest money possible with the Washington Nationals and I'm not sure we'll ever hear from him again. Don't get me wrong, there's NOTHING wrong with making that kind of money, but guys like Ethier (and the type of free agents Dodger fans hope LA will start to go after) hit the age of 30 and start to think about their legacy. He's off to a hot start, and for all we know that might that be all it is, "a good first 5 games." Or we could see Matt Kemp getting his biggest MVP competition from within his own clubhouse. If it's anything closer to the latter, look for Ethier to give his agent permission to talk Kemp-like numbers with the new head honchos. Maybe then big name free agents might start throwing the Dodgers on their wishlist because they feel something special might be brewing.
Was the Andre Ethier who ran a hitting streak to 30 games at the beginning of last season only dissapear into the dog days of summer with nagging injuries the guy we were to expect to roaming around RF in Chavez Ravine? Or would we ever again see the guy who came to be known as Mr. Clutch, while littering the 08-09 seasons with countless game winning hits and walk-off home runs? The recent signings of both Prince Fielder with the Detroit Lions and Albert Pujols with the Angels had to resonate with Ethier as he was preparing to come into spring camp. The market value for a left handed power hitter was set pretty high with those contracts and all the while he was watching his outfield mate, Matt Kemp, sign the largest contract in franchise history. With plenty of prime years remaining Ethier had to see all this offseason activity and be thinking the proverbial "What about me?".
As the questions surrounding his health were cleared up this spring, it seemed as if Andre was in perfect position to get himself back to the peak form that Dodger fans enjoyed in years past. He also seemed primed to put himself back in the spotlight for one last major contract. After 5 games Ethier's numbers are huge, and Kemp is telling the media he'd prefer that Ethier get a contract extension sooner than later. My intuition is that Ethier continues on his torrid pace with the bat throughout the first half of the season, the new ownership will make their first order of business giving him a large contract somewhere in the rance of 6 years and 120 million. That would lock him up through the rest of his prime and have his contract expire the same year as Matt Kemp's. If this franchise plans on turning a new leaf and making big free agent splashes in the next few years, the big money free agents are going to want to see some sort of foundation built. Pujols signed with the Angels because he was the "next piece" on already well constructed team, and same with Fielder to the tigers.
My speculation is that baseball is starting to go the way of the NBA, where big name free agents want to be the "right fit" on a team that is ready to compete for a world title. We all watched Jason Werth take the biggest money possible with the Washington Nationals and I'm not sure we'll ever hear from him again. Don't get me wrong, there's NOTHING wrong with making that kind of money, but guys like Ethier (and the type of free agents Dodger fans hope LA will start to go after) hit the age of 30 and start to think about their legacy. He's off to a hot start, and for all we know that might that be all it is, "a good first 5 games." Or we could see Matt Kemp getting his biggest MVP competition from within his own clubhouse. If it's anything closer to the latter, look for Ethier to give his agent permission to talk Kemp-like numbers with the new head honchos. Maybe then big name free agents might start throwing the Dodgers on their wishlist because they feel something special might be brewing.
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