Rants & Raves

  • A comparison was drawn between Jeff Shaw and Kenley Jansen and I would say that is appropriate. Kenley certainly isn’t as good as he once was, but he’s not as bad as many of you think.
  • It was suggested that Corey Seager should sit… and the odds of that are slim and none. He’s not 100% back, but he’s leading the league in doubles and he’s not going to get better on the bench.
  • With Alex Verdugo’s setback, it is indeed possible he is not on the playoff roster, however, I understand it is not his oblique, but rather the lower back. He had it for a few days earlier in the season.
  • This is the most number of games Will Smith has caught – ever! So, I am sure he is tired. I still believe Smith is a .240-.250 hitter with some pop. There are some rumbling undertones that some of the Dodger pitchers are not comfortable with him (Ryu and Kershaw) as a catcher and thus some of the pitching issues are being placed on that. It’s not that they don’t like him… it’s just the level of familiarity. It’s not a lock that he makes the playoff roster… although it is very likely.
  • Kolarek is looking like a lock for the Lefty Specialist
  • Caleb Ferguson and Chicken Strip are settling in nicely. Actually, looking VERY GOOD!
  • The playoff pitching staff is shaping up nicely.
  • I’m still in Rancho and plan to go to the game Friday Night if I can score some tickets.
  • PCL Home Runs are up 59% this year, so you have to discount some of the numbers put up by the hitters.
  • I’m pressed for time so come on with your rants… or raves.

DC’s 10th Inning

Ogden Raptors 1 – Orem Owlz (LAA) 3

Jeronimo Castro started for the Raptors and surrendered 3 runs in 3.2 innings pitched. He walked 2 and struck out 6. Relievers Franklin De La Paz, Hunter Speer, Nelfri Contreras and Mark Mixon combined for 5.1 scoreless innings.

The Raptors bats took the night off. The lone blow for the first 8 innings was an Andy Pages home run in the first inning. Ogden made some noise in the bottom of the 9th when Jorbit Vivas was HBP and Andy Pages singled with one out but that was it. They had but 3 hits and struck out 16 times.

Great Lakes Loons 6 – Lake County Captains  (Cleveland) 4

The Loons took a 1-0 lead in the best of three series and return to Dow Diamond for the next two games  of the series. Robinson Ortiz starts for the Loons on Thursday.

The pitching wasn’t especially great on Wednesday but good enough to get the job done. Ryan Pepiot started and had 2 perfect innings before walking the first two hitters in the third inning. He was replaced by Justin Bruihl who gave up one run in 2.2 innings on 3 hits while striking out 2. Justin Hagenman gave them a needed 3.1 innings while giving up 2 runs on 3 hits. Red hot Aaron  Ochsenbein struck out 3 in the bottom of the 9th inning.

Justin Yurchak started the game off well with a home run in the top of the first inning and was followed in the third inning by a James Outman solo shot. Both hitters have been especially productive down the stretch. Jair Carmargo and Leonel Valera each had 3 hits.

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes  0 –  Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego) 2

The Quakes came up empty 2-0 in the first game of their best of five series. Twenty-year-old right-hander Geraldo Carrillo started for the Quakes and tossed the first 5 scoreless innings on 3 hits with 3 strikeouts. He appeared he ran out of gas a bit in the 6th inning giving up a single, a walk and a double to the first 3 batters he faced. Before the inning ended the Storm had pushed 2 runs across. Carrillo came out for the 7th and pitched a perfect inning. Melvin Jimenez took over in the 8th inning and pitched a scoreless inning sending the Quakes to the top of the 9th inning down by 2 runs.

The Quake bats were also missing in action. On the night they had but 3 hits and struck out 14 times.

This series continues on the road for the Quakes on Thursday with John Rooney taking the hill.

Tulsa Drillers 1 –  Arkansas Travelers (Seattle) 2

The Drillers dropped the first game of the five-game set 2-1. Jo Jo Gray started for Tulsa and pitched 5 scoreless innings on 4 hits while walking one and striking out 6. Ryan Moseley followed with a scoreless 6th inning but quickly gave up 2 singles to start the 7th. Nolan Long came on with none out to try to hold a 1-0 lead but a run scored after a sacrifice bunt and a ground out. A second Travelers run scored in the 8th when a lead off walk came around to score on an Omar Estevez error.

Connor Wong gave the Drillers a 1-0 lead with a home run in the 5th inning. They had 7 hits on the night with Christian Santana and Donovan Casey each having 2.

The series resumes  in North Little Rock on Thursday. Leo Crawford starts for Tulsa.

This article has 45 Comments

  1. You can’t say the playoff bullpen is shaping up nicely when you don’t have a reliable closer. Losing late inning leads is a killer in a short series. Look at 17. I just don’t trust Jansen at all at this point!

  2. Yeah, I’m not so sure that our playoff pitching pitching staff is shaping so nicely when our closer has lost it and our Cy Young candidate has looked horrid the last month.

    I didn’t watch last night’s game, but just checking from the box score and seeing 4bb makes me think Ryu still hasn’t gotten it back.

    Hopefully Strip and Ferguson are ready to go multiple innings in multiple games in October!

    3 strikeouts for Lux: welcome to the big leagues!! Now go out this weekend and take it out on sf.

    NFL starts tonight. Go Bears!

  3. Seager is not leading the league in doubles, Blackmon is. Last night, he made a fantastic play on a ground ball hit to his left that completely turned him around and threw to 1B right on the money for the out. It was beautiful to watch.

    Will Smith has caught a bit of Barnesitis. I remember when Barnes was on fire then went into a nose dive where he crashed and burned. It’s a good thing Martin has caught fire, lately. I don’t foresee any change at C.

    The pitching staff to me has real problems, both in the BP and the rotation. The starters look worn down and haven’t stopped teams from scoring. The only thing that has held is the bats. And, don’t forget we just played the Rockies whose pitching is in total shambles. Our BP seems to settle down then disintegrate again. Last night, the BP held. It’s just one game and nothing to get excited about. Ryu looks shot. CK is hanging pitches. Buehler just got lit up for 6 runs. Maeda is a mess. My boy Gonsolin is holding up and being tested with more than 4 innings of work. Urias looks like he will have to step in to the rotation. Stripling is not a starter. May is looking dusted and done for the season. Braves gave us trouble. Yankees gave us trouble. Dbacks gave us trouble. All winning teams. Luckily, the rest of the season is a cakewalk with only the Mets that are slightly better than .500.

    No doubt we are playoff bound, but I can see a real possibility of being upset in one of these series. NL East teams are playing well, both pitching and hitting. We are not. We hit HR’s and we slump. That’s against poor teams. We haven’t proved much against the better clubs and the best clubs are in the AL.

    1. Yeah and in 88 you probably thought we had no chance vs the Mets as they killed us during the season…..

    2. Pretty sure the only team you listed that has a winning record against us this year is the Yankees. You forgot about the Rays regarding your cakewalk.

      I seem to remember the Braves pooping their pants against us last year. I think they’re more worried than you are.

  4. I am going to ask a question I have asked before. What causes a pitcher to los control and not throw as many strikes, walk 4 batters and leave before 5 innings have been completed? I am worried about Ryu. Fatigue, mental or physical? Your thoughts. Bullpen good last night and Joc was awesome.

    1. Typically it’s a mechanical issue. A pitcher’s mechanics can be affected by tiredness or injury. More often than not the loss of mechanics affects the release point which causes the pitcher to lose command and control.

      1. I commented to my wife during the game that Ryu’s mechanics did not look the same after he rolled his right (landing foot) ankle and then sat while the Dodgers hit. Thereafter it appeared that he was avoiding his normal landing — hard to describe other than his pitching motion just looked awkward which is uncharacteristic of Ryu.

  5. I’m not sure if there is really anything there about Smith and the pitchers. Kershaw had been on record that he loves throwing to Smith. The balls that have been hit off Kershaw have been right in the center of the strike zone. Ryu’s change-up hasn’t been sharp. I’ve said it before, pitchers aren’t as sharp in 6 man rotations. Either skip a start or stay at 5. Smith is in a slump right now, but he’s also had some bad luck. Arenado robbed him last night. He’s had a few hard balls just go foul. Let’s see how the kid handles it. There is zero chance that he isn’t on the playoff roster. He could get some additional rest though. Plus there are plenty of off days in September for the Dodgers.

    1. Thanks for some common sense in a sea of nonsense today. I can’t wait for the post season to start.

  6. 2 great articles in The Athletic this morning – one about Ryu’s troubles and the other about Rich Hill. Both are worth your time.

  7. Wow, we have a bunch of knee jerks today. Why is everyone so negative after winning 4 in a row? Do we need and no hitter and 4 jacks every game to keep everyone happy and positive? Let’s put this into perspective.

    It’s a long ass season and it’s very hot and muggy in LA right now. Balls will fly and the starters will get tired. It’s that time of the season and it’s pretty hard to be 100% engaged with an 18 game division lead.

    Kelly and Ferguson were disasters early on. It took a little while, but they’re fixed. You can say the same to some extent about Kolarek. What makes you think that the starters can’t turn it around?

    I don’t understand at all how we have “Real Problems” with a pitching staff that leads the league in ERA, Runs, ER, and WHIP and other categories. The starters are struggling a little now, and the bullpen is stepping up. Maybe we get lucky and their both in lock step once the post season starts.

    Jansen has 20 games left to figure things out. If he doesn’t, we at least have options. Baez picked up a save to preserve a 1 run game against a hot DBags team. No small feat and very encouraging. Kelly has been un-hittable. Sadler, Kolarek, Ferguson have all been very good, if not great in recent games. There’s so many options, it’s really kinda ridiculous how much quality is in the pen right now, and everyone is laser focused on the one guy that’s struggling.

    How about this instead of all the negativity?

    Wow, Joc is on fire right now and we have 3 games against the Turds up north and they’re throwing all righties. How many more homers is he gonna hit?

    We just won 4 in a row and swept our whipping boys, the Rockies. Just what the doctor ordered.

    The only really hot bat right now is Joc and he’s carried us for a couple of days now. I think the best baseball to be played is just around the corner.

    Speaking of those losers up North, nice job holding your expiring contracts at the deadline. You’ve got to feel real good about yourselves. Can’t wait for the games this weekend. It’ll be fun clinching the division against the hated ones while they’re present in the visitors clubhouse.

  8. I don’t recall Jeff Shaw ever having a clean inning. Always seemed like a runner on second or third when he got the last out. Tommy Lasorda in his short time as GM, thought Shaw would be a difference maker, he wasn’t. The trade of Paul Konerko was painful. Interesting how times changed. Dodgers wouldn’t Trade Lux for Vasquez, a far better relief pitcher than Shaw. The current comparison between Shaw and Jansen is probably valid. Hoping Kenley figures it out or trouble looms.

  9. Not being negative about the whole pitching staff, just worried about Ryu and hope he is not hurt. SoCalBum had a very good point so maybe it was physical. Very glad to see our magic number is 4 and happy to see the winning streak. Go Dodgers.

    1. lol, I wasn’t talking about you, DBMom. And I really can’t recall you coming off as being negative. It was mostly the comment about the pitching staff having real problems. How the freak does the best pitching staff in baseball have real problems? Unbelievable!

  10. I know it is fashionable for some to complain about Kenley Jansen. It’s easy for many. He is no longer elite, and we can all agree on that, but he is not that bad. Some don’t trust him. You do not have to trust him because AF and Doc do. He is a ML closer that needs to continue to be put in those spots to find what will eventually work for him. With an 18 game lead, and a magic number of 4, the Dodgers can afford the risk of game loss due to blown save. But what if KJ finds “it” between now and the playoffs? He certainly is not going to find “it” by sitting on the bench.

    I know many of you do not agree because the home field advantage is soooooo important. While it is certainly preferable, it is nowhere near critical. The home field did not help the Dodgers in Game 7 of the 2017 WS and it did not help the Brewers in Game 7 of the 2018 NLCS. Wild card teams with no home field in any playoffs have gone on to win the WS. So if the Dodgers lose the home field because KJ blows a few more save opportunities, but finds “it” by the playoffs, the Dodgers can certainly win on the road. If he doesn’t find it, then management knows they are going to need other solutions. Who knows, maybe Joe Kelly or Pedro Baez or Ross Stripling or Kenta Maeda or Caleb Ferguson will go on to replicate the 1959 Larry Sherry this October. Or maybe KJ will be just fine. It’s not like anyone can do anything about it now anyway.

    It is also amazing to me that some are calling for Corey Seager to be benched. Everyone is entitled to their views and without ridicule. However I also have the right to call the thought of benching a 25 year old 2 X Louisville Slugger award winner, 2 time AS SS, and trying to recover from two significant surgeries from a year ago baseless. Corey Seager is a proven hitter/SS and at 25 is not over the hill. What ails him cannot be fixed by sitting. He needs to play. Plus he is one behind Charlie Blackmon in doubles for the NL lead, so it is not like he is sucking. That is what happens when you use one metric, OPS, as the only true measure of a player’s impact. The same people who are now calling for CT3 to take over SS for Seager were undoubtedly calling for CT3 to be DFA earlier in the year. CT3 was able to play his way out of his slump. That is how ML players do it. Are the Dodgers better with Corey Seager or CT3 at SS? IMO there is no question as to the answer…Corey Seager.

    With all the perceived flaws in the LAD, somehow some way they are still the best team in the NL, and only one half game behind NYY for the best in ML. The Dodgers have 20 games left, and only 5 of them are teams with a winning percentage greater than .500; 3 against the Mets and two against the Rays. The Giants are not able to start one LHSP this weekend. There are those that want to believe that the Dodgers cannot beat the Nats in a 5 game series, or the Braves in a 7 game series, or the Yankees/Astros in a 7 game series. I disagree, but then again that is why they play the games. I am not going to be overly concerned because KJ blows a save, or Yimi gives up another HR, or Corey Seager strikes out, or any of the new kids start to get throat constrictions because of the impending playoffs. I am not going to worry about who makes the playoff roster, as I have nowhere near the amount of information that AF and staff do. I am also not going to be overly confident because Ross Stripling and Caleb Ferguson, two of my favorite players, continue to pitch well. I am going to simply enjoy the next 20 games, win or lose.

  11. Dr. removed my catheter yesterday…Hallelujah and can I hear a Thank You Jesus!!!
    Having to have a catheter to walk around with is well like reading Jeff’s posts ad nauseam…
    Dodger Mom you keep the faith… Hitters can go thru a lil slump, but a 3 for 5 under your belt…
    Every 5th day a SP is put under microscope… It might be be mechanics, health, fatigue etc. etc.
    We just forget the last start and do it all over again.. (plus 2 games off coming up helps also
    Life is good, and it’s surely good to be Dodger fan…..
    AC great to read you again…

    1. Welcome back from catheter imprisonment peterj. Hope your recovery is speedy and you are back on your feet solidly soon. It is good to be a Dodger fan, I agree.

    2. Good news Peterj! I had to wear a catheter for about 5 months once. Miserable experience! Continued speedy and full recovery!

      I wonder how many other players that lead the league i doubles are called upon by fans to be benched? Corey Seager is good folks! Let him play.

      Allana Rizzo is interviewed in the latest “Big Swing” Podcast. Makes for a good listen. She and Ross Stripling have some interesting observations on the bullpen and Kenley Jansen

    3. Glad to hear you’re making progress. Nothing should ever have to go “in” that little “out only” door.

  12. Good to see Baez closing games. Ever since Jansen started to have problems this season I’ve been waiting for Dave Roberts to make the move to have Baez close games.

    Good to see 1 of my favorite Dodgers Joc Pederson hitting home runs like crazy.

    Hopefully soon the newest Dodger Gavin Lux will get it going.

  13. It’s those losses to a very competitive Atlanta, the Yankees, and a pretty hot Arizona that worry me. And it’s not just the losses, it’s the fact that other teams are getting hot and the Dodgers are kinda losing their edge a little. At least it seems that way to me. I mean yeah it’s a long season….for all the teams. So as always, we’ll see what happens.

  14. It’s rather hard to predict what this Dodgers team will do in the playoffs. Now, some may well suggest that it is always hard to do that, but I think that most of the time the playoff results are reasonably predictable. Boston was the best team last year, and they won the title The year before, the Dodgers had the best record, and the Astros were close. Occasionally you do see a surprise, like the year SF and KC rode great wild card game victories and top bullpens to play for the title. Mostly, when the Dodgers face a presumably better team in the playoffs like the Cubs three years ago, or the Cardinals the year before that, we lose to them. 1988 is a stirring exception, often brought up, but notable for its unusual nature. Usually, the better teams win, even in short series.

    This year, it is problematical. The team we had in May looked unbeatable, with actually five starters humming along. Right now, no starter is looking great, though Buehler has mostly been very good, and Kershaw consistently pitches six innings or so, giving up two to four runs. Ryu is a big concern. Who is the fourth starter? And Maeda is struggling as a starter and in relief. As to the bullpen, it could go either way. It’s hard for me to imagine that Jansen suddenly gets “it” back. Every time he looks better, he follows it with a blown save or a difficult inning. We have a few others now who have been looking good, but will it continue? Offensively, we really aren’t hitting that well, but Muncy is out, so we should be good when he returns. I would not count on Pederson to continue smoking, because he is a streak hitter, as Hernandez is. Put it all together, and we should win the NL playoffs, but Atlanta looks dangerous to me, they are playing great ball. As to the championship, the AL has beaten us twice in a row, so we would have to put everything together to beat NY or Houston. It’s possible, but less than even money. We have to just play the cards we have, with the cardplayer who is responsible for playing them, at this point. This could be the season where things break our way in crucial moments. We need that to happen. I would like to see us have the kind of team in at least some of the seasons, which is clearly the best in baseball, so we only need to play to our usual level to win it all.

  15. so with 20 games to go
    * maybe we will see some more defined roles in the every day lineups. Unlike other teams fighting for a spot the Dodgers don’t need extensive rest down the stretch. Doc’s been able to keep guys rested throughout the season. I kinda like the 1) Joe/Pollock 2) Seager 3) Turner 4) Belli start to the lineup and go from there.
    * Last night Orel thought Ryu had it figured out until he didn’t. He doesn’t look healthy to me. Pushes too many pitches. Being the nibbler that he is, command is everything and he doesn’t have it. I thought he needed rest but now I’m not sure. I hope it’s nothing physical.
    * a couple weeks ago the playoff bullpen looked more clear to me than it does now. With more appearances lately, a few guys who I thought we on the bubble or worse are making a case for themselves. Kolarek has given up nothing as the loogy in 14 (very short) appearances. I would have thought no way but how do you keep him off with a 0 era? I would have thought Garcia and Floro were gone, but maybe not, and Fergy has to make it. I’m actually trusting these guys recently along with Stripling, more than May (who I see as out), Sadler and Maeda. And I want to see Kelly pitch more. His workload is down the last 7 games. (I know we’re winning) I’m sure they have more matchup information than I do going forward but the 13 man bullpen gets more confusing to me, the more I see.
    * I’m sure Ryu wasn’t the most happy guy in the 5th but the LEAST you can do is back up a base when your getting lit. It takes NO talent to hustle and that stuff comes back to haunt you as it did to May a few games back when Turner whiffed the short hop from the outfield that went into the dugout. 99 times out of 100 it won’t matter UNTIL IT DOES. Plus the relay folks really don’t need a pitcher standing 15 feet in front of the catcher screwing things up.
    * I too was happy to see Doc quietly slide Baez into the 9th inning last night as a little precursor as to what may be needed down the road.
    * For those of you who are apparently watching a different game, please get off Seager’s ass. He’s fine and THE shortstop. Leave him alone.
    * I think I remember the prediction that Smith was a .215 to .230 hitter when he was called up. Now he’s up to .240 to .250 prediction despite being in a mini-slump. I like his swing a lot and never saw him at .215.
    * so getting home field is “no where critical” but preferable. I’m not particularly interested in the history of the home field advantage in the playoffs. I’m concerned about this Dodger team. What I do see with my eyes is a team that is 55 and 18 at home. That’s 55 and 18. And 37 and 32 on the road. I think playing on a warm Oct / Nov afternoon in LA is more than preferable and maybe even critical versus playing on a chilly fall evening in Yankee Stadium with their fans. We have the 20 games to get this done and the talent to make this happen. I hope going for home field is a major goal down the stretch while we prepare for the post season.

  16. Sorry guys, but whoever says Maeda is struggling in relief should just quit watching the team right now, because you have no clue what you’re talking about. Let me clarify, or spell it out for you. I’ll go slow so you can follow…

    Maeda has pitched in relief exactly two times this year. The first time, he pitched a 1,2,3 8th inning with 2 ks. The only other time, he came in the game in the 6th inning with a 4 run lead and pitched another 1,2,3 inning. By the time the inning was over, he had a 8 run lead. In the 7th inning, he comes back with another 1,2,3 inning including K’s from Story and Valaika hitting for Arranado. Let me repeat that last part, Valaika hitting for Arranado – that will tell you right there that the game is already over. He comes back out for the 8th, this time with a TEN (10) RUN LEAD!!!

    This is apparently where I need to pause and explain things real slow so some of you can understand. He came in with a 4 run lead and pitched 2 scoreless innings already and now he has a 10 run lead. His job right now is to pepper the strike zone and not show anyone anything. Just get outs, not prevent runs.

    Back to the 8th. Double, groundout, groundout, groundout. A run scores. Big freaking deal. No one on the team tried to prevent that run from scoring.

    Surprisingly, he comes back out for the 9th with a nine run lead after already pitching 3 innings of relief. Now pause for a minute and think back to when you can remember ANYONE PITCHING 4 INNINGS OF RELIEF IN THE SAME GAME!!!

    With a NINE (9) RUN LEAD and THREE (3) OUTS TO GO, after already pitching THREE (3) INNINGS OF RELIEF, he give up a couple of homers. BIG FREAKING DEAL.

    If you think that’s struggling, there’s no hope for you. You don’t understand baseball.

  17. 59, I’ll go,slow so you can figure it out. Look at the last 4-5 outings for Ryu and Jansen. There’s reason to be concerned. That’s struggling. It’s been a great and exciting past 6 seasons but the real prize has eluded us and these 2 guys are crucial for us to finally win a championship. We probably will have to beat Washington, Atlanta and then Houston orbYankees. They are all playing really well right now and we will need our best players to be at their best to make it through that gauntlet. Jansen is no knee jerk. It’s been over a year since he’s been very good. It’s a big concern!

    1. Okay Einstein. If Kenley hasn’t been very good for over a year, how the freak are we in first place, a half game behind best record if he’s so freaking important? Let that sink in for a while.

      While the teams you mentioned have been playing well, it’s not like they’ve be playing that much better than us.
      Last 10
      Dodgers 6-4
      Atl 8-2
      Wash 7-3
      Hou 7-3
      NYY 8-2

      Now, consider the open try-out that we’re having and the fact that Muncy didn’t play for 7 of those 10 games, two of which we lost by 1 run.

      Of the last 6 games we lost, guess how many late inning leads we blew? If you geussed 1, then you’re right. But, by the way you’re talking, you probably didn’t guess 1. That game was blown in the 7th by Sadler who’s been pretty fantastic all year.

      Ryu is a concern, but it isn’t the end of the world either. Here’s 12 pitchers with an ERA under 4 for the last 30 days… 6 of them can start. This doesn’t include Ryu, Jansen or Hill, who’s about to come back from the DL.

       Floro, D 0.00
       Kolarek, A 0.00
       Stripling, R 0.00
       Ferguson, C 2.19
       Urias, J 2.25
       Gonsolin, T 2.57
       Garcia, Y 2.84
       Kelly, J 2.89
       Kershaw, C 3.38
       Maeda, K 3.38
       Buehler, W 3.54
       Baez, P 3.75
       Sadler, C 4.00

      And lastly, you wanted me to look at the last 4-5 outings for Jansen and Ryu.
      Jansen gave up 1 run in three of them and nothing in the other two. Our record? 4-1
      Ryu’s last 5 were really bad, actually just the last 4. The 5th was a 7 inning shutout. Then he gave up 4, 7, 7, 3. So, I guess he’s on his way to recovery.

      The point is, we can win without Jansen and Ryu probably isn’t going to be this bad for much longer. Now put down the crack pipe and calm the f*** down.

      1. Um,

        I think these two (Cassidy and 59inarow) may need a nice walk in the sunshine.

        Head down to the ocean.

        Enjoy life.

  18. People have to learn to disagree without being a**holes around here. No more of this “I’ll go slow” stuff please.

    Just because the Dodgers are good doesn’t mean that they are perfect. And flaws will be exploited more by the superior competition that the team will face in the post-season.

    All season long, I have felt that the starting pitching was superior to virtually all other teams’. Kershaw has had a bad outing but the trends have generally been good. Ryu’s recent struggles have been well-publicized. Buehler has not pitched well consistently as of late. There is no obvious 4th starter candidate for the post-season if Hill is unable to do the job (and don’t say May, Urias or Gonsolin. Urias isn’t stretched out and neither May nor Gonsolin is experienced enough for the job.) The Dodgers could face teams like the Nationals who have 3 top starters and if Ryu isn’t right it will create a problem. They have 3 weeks to figure this out.

    Pedro Moura in The Athletic said this about Ryu:
    “Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker once noted that each of Ryu’s pitches, save for the curveball, appeared to emerge out of the same tiny tunnel on their way to him. (Ryu is far from the only pitcher aiming to achieve that. Tunneling has been en vogue for several seasons now.)

    The trait made his changeup particularly hard to hit, as it came floating in resembling a fastball until it was too late to adjust. Ryu would throw fastballs high for strikes, then sneak in changeups a little lower, or cutters unmanageably in to right-handed hitters. That’s how he succeeded. He has failed by leaving the changeup too high, to the point that it seems clear what it is as it approaches.”

    And “No matter the failures of these four starts, he continues to figure into their postseason plans — if not quite as obviously as before.

    Two months ago, Ryu was Roberts’ “no-brainer” choice to start the All-Star Game. He entered the break the owner of a 1.73 ERA, then lowered that mark in each of his next five starts. Now he is another veteran pitcher in worrisome form. He has not fallen to Kenley Jansen’s level, no, but those two may represent the Dodgers’ biggest postseason concerns.”

    The bullpen is a problem and has been one all season long. They allow inherited runners to score. Garcia has given up more HR than any reliever in MLB. (15) (He has done this in 56 appearances, 57 innings.) Jansen has given up 9 in 53 appearances, 53 innings. So once every 6 appearances, the guy who is supposed to close out a tight game gives up a bomb. Joe Kelly and Caleb Ferguson have the highest WHIPs on the team (around 1.4 for both). This isn’t suddenly going to get better.

    And Jansen has absolutely been a problem which has gotten worse. He has a negative bWAR. His ERA is .85 higher than last year – 9 HRs, He has 7 blown saves in 35 opportunities (17%) which isn’t what you need in the post-season. And his worst months have been July and August so he has pitched worse as the season has gone on. His WHIP has been over 1.3 in both months, and OPS against in August was .864 so opposing hitters were like Turner or Pederson against him in August. Rose-colored glasses won’t fix this, but something had better fix it or October will be pretty short for the Dodgers this season.

    The reason that the Dodgers have gotten away with this is the excellence of the starting pitching, but if the starters aren’t going so well…this is the reason that they have to fix the recent problem with the starters.

    Offensive players can be streaky. Muncy needs to come back; Joc and JT have to stay hot. Bellinger needs to get hot again and they have to keep getting contributions up and down the lineup. The Astros and Yankees will (assuming the Dodgers make it back to the Series).

    I have much more confidence in the offense this year. Last night was a great example – they scored on Joc’s HRs but also put up a crooked number in the 3rd with a good rally (which they didn’t do much last year).

    So yeah – the Dodgers are still very good but the question is will they reach for the brass ring this year?

  19. I’m just a Dodger fan, but why all the snarky back and forth from so many? I don’t need this crap to enjoy the game tonight or the 1st night of Football. Peace out my fellow Dodger brothers and sisters!

    1. seriously. I had to skim some of the essays in here because it got so negative.

      More importantly, are you ready for some football????

      1. I’m watching it, right here in Rancho. Just got finished… maybe two hours in the AM and we are done!

      2. Poor guy. Take some deep breaths. I don’t see the negativity you do. I see some concerns. Is that negative? I don’t wear rose colored glasses and when players are struggling, they are struggling until they are not. When Barnes wasn’t producing, was it unreasonable to mention it and think about replacing him? Is that what you call negative?

        This is not directed towards you, Bobby, as I know you are not really a defensive poster, but there are some hear that don’t want to hear or see anything that might be construed as ‘criticism’ or ‘problematic’. This is totally unrealistic on a public forum and in life.

    2. I actually think it’s only a couple of guys being snarky, insulting, rude and needing to be right. Questioning others intelligence by “talking slowly” and salutations like “Einstein” are really unnecessary. Hey if you don’t agree with me you’re smoking crack, lack patience, don’t know the game or having knee jerk reactions. It would be nice to share thoughts and insights and opinions like adults. Good post Dodgerrick.

  20. Thx drick. Well said! My point is having the best record isn’t the goal. Winning the WS is! And without a reliable closer makes it that much harder. I’m grateful to Kenley. He’s had a great career and been a great Dodger but if he continues like this what do you do come playoff time?

  21. OK, let’s cut out the “crackback” blocks – Play nice.

    Don’t make me come over there and BLOCK.

Comments are closed.