1965, World Series time. The Dodgers had just lost games 1&2 in Minnesota. Both of their aces had lost. Drysdale, who started game one because Sandy Koufax refused to pitch on Yom Kippur, had been beaten 8-2 by the powerful Twins. Koufax was then beaten, 5-1 in game two. The flight back to Los Angeles was filled with tension. Claude Osteen, who was scheduled to pitch game three, was sitting with his wife on the charter flight back to LA. He teammates would come down the aisle and tell him, you’ll get em! By the end of the flight, he was a nervous wreck.
Claude Wilson Osteen was born on August 9, 1939, in Carney Springs Tennessee. His parents were Claude and Pauline. His father owned a country store and pitched for an amateur team. His store sponsored a team on which 7 of Claudes cousins played. Watching his father pitch, Claude developed a curve that helped his county team, the Woodman Choppers, win a championship and the right to play in a tournament in North Carolina.
Because of the rough economics of the times, the family moved to Cincinnati in his freshman year in high school in 1954. Claude moved back to Tennessee citing the difficulties for him living in a urban area. Desiring to play the game in a serious way with attentive coaching and the proper facilities, he moved back to Cincinnati and enrolled at Reading High School in a northern suburb of the city.
He then amassed one of the best pitching careers in Ohio history, going 23-1, including 16-0 as a senior with a 0.13 ERA and 221 strikeouts in 103.2 innings for a state championship team. Because of his excellent season, he signed a contract with the Reds, turning down offers from at least ten other teams, and he joined the Reds immediately. Claude’s coach, Don Mohr, was a scout for the Dodgers and wanted him to sign with them. But the Dodgers did not guarantee a major league roster spot, the Reds did. He joined the team right out of high school. He said at the time that he had the confidence he could win in the majors and wanted a chance to prove it. 
Osteen made his MLB debut on July 6th, 1957, against the Cardinals. He pitched 2/3rds of an inning allowing 2 hits and a run. neither factored into the decision. He had another one inning relief appearance the next day and was sent down to Nashville. There he appeared in 7 games over the next month, 2 of which were starts and he was recalled to the Reds in September. He had a 1-1 record at Nashville and no record in the majors.
He spent all of 1958 and 59 in the Reds farm system. He pitched well for Wenatchee in the NW Class-B league. Posting a 14-4 record with a 3.04 ERA. At AAA Seattle he was 5-4 with a 3.08 ERA. In 59 he spent the entire year with Seattle going 8-12 with a very good 2.98 ERA. He had 2 appearances in relief at the end of the year with the Reds.
Because all of his options, 3, had been used, he spent the entire 1960 season with the Reds. He was pretty much the forgotten man in the bullpen and made just 20 appearances all year. He had an ERA above 5 and was 0-1. His first MLB decision was a loss to the Giants in a spot start. He gave up 7 runs in 1.2 innings. Fred Hutchinson, the Reds manager, knew the kids potential since he had managed him in Seattle.
He went to AAA Indianapolis in 1961, he had a 15-11 record with a 3.53 ERA. Being sent down at the beginning of that season had effectively ended his career in Cincinnati, and he was eligible for the 61 drafts by the new NL teams. So the Reds traded him to the Senators, hoping to capitalize on his good year. Dave Sisler, a pitcher and the son of Hall of Famer, George Sisler, was sent to the Reds in November to finish the deal. Claude pitched in 3 games for the Senators, all starts. He was 1-1. He later said the trade was one of the best things that could have happened to him. It gave him a chance to start in a place where there was no pressure. 
The Senators, an expansion team, were the worst team in the AL. They lost 307 games between 1962-64. Because of this, Osteen got a real chance to develop as a starter, and eventually he became a coveted one. After losing his first 5 games in 1962, he settled down and pitched .500 ball the rest of the way. He finished with an 8-13 record and a 3.65 ERA which was very respectful.
His pitching coach said he was the best pitcher on the staff. His 1963 season started off bad, he lost his first four games and his starting spot in the rotation. He did not get his first victory until mid-June. He said he really did not know how to pitch at that point. Meaning he did not have a game plan of any sort, he just relied on his talent. Obviously, that was not enough to get big leaguers out. But against the Yankees, the reigning champs, he threw a 1-hit shutout that day. He credited his catcher that day, Hobie Landrith, with guiding him through that game. He was obviously very nervous, but the game was a pivotable point in his career.
Despite some good games, including a 5-hit shutout of Boston, he finished with a 9-14 record and a 3.35 ERA in 212 innings. He had a strong spring training in 64, but he lost his first two starts. After he won his first game, a 10-inning complete game shutout over the Kansas City A’s, manager Gil Hodges said, ” Osteen is ready to arrive as one of the games top pitchers if we can give him some defense and a little batting, he could win 15 games for us.” Prophetic. Osteen went 15-13 with a 3.33 ERA in 257 innings pitched.
Citing the needed hitting, the Senators traded the “untouchable” Osteen and SS John Kennedy to the Dodgers for Frank Howard, 3B, Ken McMullen, LHP, Pete Richert and RHP Phil Ortega. They were blasted in the press and by the fans, but the trade served them well, Howard became a huge star in DC. The trade worked out pretty well for the Dodgers too. Osteen immediately stepped into the # 3 slot in the rotation behind Koufax and Drysdale, and it would immediately pay huge dividends in the post season. McMullen would be DC’s starting third baseman for the next 5 seasons, and Richert was their #1 starter in 65-66.
Osteen at Dodger Stadium
Osteen’s career would be defined by his 9 years in LA. He was 25 when he arrived at spring training in Vero Beach for the 1965 season. He was elated at the trade, but apprehensive about whether he was good enough to pitch alongside Koufax and Drysdale. He was promptly nicknamed Gomer by teammate, SS Dick Trecewski because of his resemblance to Jim Nabors, star of the TV show, Gomer Pyle. But his personality was the exact opposite of TV’s Gomer, Claude was a pretty serious person.
What Osteen noticed in spring training was the totally different attitude of the players. At Vero, there was talk of winning a pennant and a World Series. Not just surviving the season. The Dodgers were four games behind the Giants on September 20th, one the 28th, they took over the lead behind the 7.1 innings of pressure packed 1 run baseball that Osteen pitched. They eventually won the game in 12 innings against the Reds, 2-1. They were a light hitting team, .245 with only 78 homers on the season, but they led NL with a 2.81 ERA.
Koufax won 26, Drysdale 23, and Osteen won 15. Podres won 7 and Perranoski had 18 saves and Bob Miller 9. Koufax refused to pitch the opening game since it fell on Yom Kippur, the Jewish high holy day. Drysdale started game one against the AL champion Twins and got hammered in Minnesota. Dodgers lost, 8-2 to Mudcat Grant. Koufax took the mound in game 2 and he also lost, 5-1 to Jim”Kitty”Kaat, the teams flew back to LA with the Dodgers in a 2-0 hole.
Claude took the ball for game 3 in LA, he shut down the high-powered Twins in a 4-0 complete game shutout. He struck out just 2 hitters, but only allowed 5 hits. Drysdale won game 4, 7-2, and Koufax pitched a complete game shutout in game 5, 7-0 and the teams headed back to Minneapolis with LA up 3 games to 2. Osteen faced off with Grant this time, and the Dodgers dropped a 5-1 game. Alston then named Koufax to pitch game 7 even though it was Drysdale’s spot in the rotation. The thinking was Big D was more suited to come out of the pen if Sandy got in trouble. As it turned out, he wasn’t needed. Koufax pitched his second complete games shutout, 2-0 and the Dodgers were World Champions for the third time in LA history.
1966 turned out to be another close pennant race. Osteen, Koufax, Drysdale and rookie Don Sutton, all started at least 35 games. Koufax won 27 and another Cy Young, Drysdale was below .500 at 13-16, Claude won 17 games, and the kid, Sutton won 12. They finished a game and a half in front of the Giants. They would face the young up and coming Baltimore Orioles. It was not a pretty series for LA. After scoring 2 runs in the opening loss, they were shut-out the rest of the series. They did not score a run after the third inning in game 1. Osteen lost game three, 1-0. It would be his last postseason appearance in his career. Despite his 1-2 postseason record, his ERA in the postseason, all World Series games was 0.86. 
After 1966, the years 1967-69 were called the lean years. Indeed, they were. Koufax retired after the 66 season, as did Jim Gillam. Drysdale would have to retire early because of a rotator cuff injury in 1969. Tommy Davis and Maury Wills were traded as were Roseboro, and Perranoski. Osteen was basically the Ace of the staff those three years. He won 17 in 67, 12 in 68 and had his first 20-win season in 1969. All the while his ERA stayed very respectable.
With an influx of young talent, the team began to turn things around. They finished 4th in 1969, 8 games off of the pace. The next 4 years, 70-73 they would finish second in the NL West. Osteen won 16-14-20 -16 over those 4 seasons. His ERA over those four seasons was around 3.50.
But his time in LA was at an end. On December 6th, he and a minor league pitcher, David Culpepper were traded to the Houston Astros for Jimmy Wynn. Wynn would be a pivotable player in the Dodgers 1974 run for the pennant and World Series. Some of us have forgotten though that as a 10-year veteran, Osteen had to approve the trade.
He joined a young Astros team, they had some good young pitchers, Larry Dierker, Dan Wilson and Dave Roberts. By mid-July, Claude had 9 wins and was on his way to his usual 17 or so. With the Stros out of contention, something changed in August. He felt like something was in the works, he had not pitched in 17 days, when that happens, he said, you know something is up. He was traded to the Cardinals who were locked in a tight race with the Pirates on August 15th.
It was exciting for him because he was in a tight pennant race. He was used mostly in relief, pitching in 22.2 innings in 8 games. He had an 0-2 record with the Red Birds and finished 9-11 with a 3.80 ERA. The Cardinals finished a game behind as they lost the crown on the last day of the season. After a very weak spring in 1975, he was released by the Cardinals and he then signed with the White Sox as a free agent.
He was excited to be pitching for Chuck Tanner. His pitching coach was Johnny Sain. The Sox had assembled several veterans on the staff, Osteen, Jim Kaat and Wilbur Wood, all lefties. The trio would win 43 of the teams 75 wins. But Osteen won only 7 and lost 16. He admitted that sometimes he lost the feel of the baseball. On cold days he would have a lot of trouble with his grip and he could not feel the seams of the ball.
He was released by the Sox five days before the 1976 season began. He decided it was time to retire. His career record was 196-195. The Dodgers lean years, and the seasons with the Senators, Reds, Cardinals and White Sox, no doubt contributed to the record being just over .500. But in a 14-year period, 1962-75, he suffered no major arm injuries and averaged 34 starts and 242 innings a year. His career ERA was 3.30.
He moved on to the next phase of his life. He began his coaching career with a Phillies affiliate, Reading, in the Class-AA Eastern League. He figured he would be offered the AAA position with the Phillies, but he was totally surprised when the Cardinals offered him the major league job. He served under Vern Rapp for two years and then Ken Boyer for 2 more before becoming the pitching coach for the Phillies in 1982.
He would coach the Phillies staff for 7 years, starting under manager, Pat Corrales. Paul Owens took over as manager in 1984. John Felske took the job in 1985. While Osteen was the coach, 3 Phillies won the Cy Young award, Steve Carlton, 1982, John Denny, 83, he also coached Denny with the Cardinals, and reliever Steve Bedrosian, 1987. After Lee Elia was named manager for 1988, Osteen was let go.
He accepted a position with the Dodgers Class-A affiliate in San Antonio in 1989. From 90-92, he was the pitching coach at AAA Albuquerque. He then went to the Rangers for two years, 93-94. He was the Dodgers pitching coach from 1999-2000. He then retired. He was lured back by the Arizona Diamondbacks to serve as a scout and consultant and to work with their pitchers with their AA team in El Paso. He did that until 2009, and he retired again.
His philosophy as a coach was to look for flaws in a pitcher’s mechanics. Claude was a four-pitch pitcher, but his type of pitcher would be overlooked today. He did not have a blazing fastball, but relied on a slider, sinking fastball, curve and a changeup. The way scouts look at pitchers today, guys like Osteen, Tommy John, Tom Glavine and Randy Jones, would probably not even get a chance.
After retirement, Osteen lived with his wife Jackie in Arlington Texas. Claude had five children from his first marriage, David, Brian, Erick, Jennifer and Gavin. Gavin and David pitched in the minors, and both reached AAA. Claude just turned 83. David pitched in the Cardinals system from 1986-91. He had a 54-30 career minor league record. Gavin pitched in the minors from 1989-2002. He was originally drafted by the A’s. He pitched in Oaklands system, Baltimore’s, one year at Albuquerque with the Dodgers, 1999, a year in the Pirates system, and then his last 4 seasons in independent ball. He finished with a 64-58 career record.
Game 1: Dodgers-Marlins
The Dodgers dropped this one, 11-9. Bad starting pitching from Bobby Miller and the inability of an overworked bullpen to shut down the worst team in the NL. Marlins are a free-swinging bunch, and they did not miss often. Once again Miller was done in by a lack of command. His pitch count was way out of whack after the first inning and it is no surprise he was gone after the second inning. Miller has the worst ERA of any starter in the majors, it is now 8.58.
The Dodgers rode Ohtani’s 48th homer with Feduccia board and after Betts made the second out, Freeman and Teo singled. Muncy then doubled to left center to score both and tie the game. But Grove gave up the lead in the bottom of the third on a homer by Lopez. Rojas tied it with his own homer in the top of the 4th. Grove allowed back-to-back doubles and Miami went ahead 6-5. Vesia relieved and gave up a triple allowing the 7th run.
Betts tripled and Freeman hit a sac fly for the 6th Dodger run. The Dodgers got 2 on with 2 outs in the top of the 6th and then Ohtani struck out for the 3rd time. Miami scored 2 more in the bottom of the 6th on 3 hits. 9-6 Miami.
Freeman walked in the top of the 7th. With 2 outs he went to second on a wild pitch. Muncy then singled him home and it was 9-7. It stayed that way until the bottom of the 8th when Hudson gave up a 2-run homer to Burger and Miami led 11-7. In the top of the 9th, Ohtani grounded out and then Betts singled. Freeman flew out and then Teo singled. Muncy doubled down the right field line scoring Betts and Teo. Edman then struck out and the game was over.
I would not pitch Miller again this season. He should be sent down and Wrobleski should take his place. There is also a chance that Gonsolin will be available. He could at least be an opener. This is a series the Dodgers need to win. To score 9 runs and lose, well, that is just unacceptable.
Guys I published this early because for the next several days I will be having to use my laptop to write. My hard drive on my desktop got fried when the power was off.
Great article on Osteen.
Thank you
Really hurts to score 9 runs and lose. Miller was not good but the bullpen was worse.
Dodgers get help, Astros beat SD and the D-Backs lose to the Rockies.3.5 up with 11 to play.
Good post Bear on Osteen and your post game analysis. Gonsolin looks more and more enticing. Maybe you and I will have a shot before this is all over.
This was a particularly disappointing loss for me. This is just not a game the Dodgers should lose, especially given their situation.
Orel harped on the Dodgers lack of energy early in the game. I’m wondering what the players are supposed to be doing in the first 2 innings while Miller is giving up 7 hits and 4 runs? How are the players supposed to show “energy”; shake Pom-Poms, chatter it up, run in place? It wasn’t an energy problem, it was a Miller and Lux problem.
I figured out Miller’s problem. His pants are so tight they’re pinching his balls and giving him headaches. He’s certainly giving me a headache.
No first pitch strikes. No fastball command. No nothing. He actually got help from the umpire, for no reason. He never established anything.
I actually feel sorry for the guy. He obviously gives a shit and is trying, maybe too hard. It’s sad to watch. But he’s done. I don’t want to see him piss away any more games.
Honorable mention goes to Grove who can’t land the pitch he has to; his slider. He tripped over the gas-can for a 3 spot. 7 runs and 10 hits for these two.
Lux was awful. He’s like 2 for 24 lately, and basically gave up 4 outs on defense and 0 for 3 at bat. He failed to turn 3 double-plays that were very “turnable” if he didn’t play second like his feet are in cement. At least 2 of the 3 opportunities should have been automatic.
He’s had the same problem his whole career at 2nd. He just fails to turn double plays by a whisker. The reason, as I’ve mentioned many times before, is he has a lousy turn at 2nd. He doesn’t cross over to shorten the distance to catch the initial throw from 3rd or a slow roller to SS. He waits and straddles the base, steps right into the baseline, stagnant, and never gets any momentum on his throw to first. Please! Crossover, move your damn feet correctly and get something on the relay throw. My high school kids could do that!
And he looked like his was drunk on an attempted back-hand play up the middle, that went as a hit. He made that play look really difficult; and it wasn’t.
I’m sure Dino Ebel has Lux practice that back-hand play everyday with him falling to his ass, right hip and knee. NOT. Stay on your feet and make the backhand pick.
My Man, Miggy Ro continues to play his ass off. He’s had an awesome year.
Shohei is the flavor of the year around the league. He was like a rock star last night in Miami. He does amazing things with his power and speed. 50-50 will be amazing.
But I’m in the camp that thinks he’s an incredibly undisciplined hitter, swinging at all kinds of shit. He’s regressing to his mean in average. Think what he’s capable of doing if he had more plate discipline?
It’s absolutely pathetic that you score 9 runs and lose a game to the friggin Marlins.
Maybe Miller is wearing Buehler’s pants…
Even with all of rotation trouble, I find myself feeling strangely optimistic heading toward the playoffs.
One reason is that it seems like every team is struggling down the home stretch. Another is that the Dodgers’ offense is now getting extra energy from Max, Miggy and Edman. And then there are glorious moments like that Edman-to-Kike-to Smith relay…
Rooting for Shohei to reach the 50/50 mark, of course,
And then I’d be rooting for him to pitch in the playoffs.
Lux has played very good defense this season. Yes, did not turn some possible double plays yesterday but overall his D has been more than solid.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I saw what u saw Phil. Lux looked like he was drunk or hungover. Worst performance of the year at the worst time. Miller and grove are awful with Hudson not far behind. Burger hits a homer against us every series we play no matter who he is playing for. Ohtani is exasperating. The strikeouts just show he is not a hitter just a slugger. He certainly draws a crowd but mb I can c how he and trout on the same team couldn’t make the playoffs. A silver lining Graterol looks good.
Solid post Phil.
Lux is slumping again and his defense was awful. With pitchers struggling you just have to make plays behind them. He didn’t. All night.
I think maybe Ohtani is pushing for that 50-50 mark and in the process is making a fundamental error – get a good pitch to hit. It was the first thing I referenced when teaching young kids to hit. And if I was instructing a pitcher how to throw to him it would be high and tight low and away. He’s so anxious he’ll swing at anything. Just don’t make a mistake, he’ll punish it.
I have no idea where the Dodgers will find pitching but this series is where they need to find it as it’s important to be at full strength against the Padres. This pitching staff looks worn out. They could all use some down time. Fortunately the Padres kept pace losing a close one to Houston. The dbacks are 6 out, 4-6 and the Mets just caught them.
It should be noted that the Brewers, 6-4, are only 2 behind the Dodgers, 5-5, for a bye spot. It remains very important for the Dodgers to take advantage of the soft schedule. They have to beat these last place teams.
Badger, I might argue that the Dodger pitchers have had plenty of downtime already.
I never coached where pitchers could actually put the ball where they wanted and therefore instead of high and away and low and in, I was just saying change speeds and throw strikes. I would also emphasize enjoying the game and enjoying the success of hitters they were pitching to.
Of course they are worn out. The bullpen has pitched over 580 innings this year. The rotation has only pitched a couple of hundred more. They’re getting nothing from the rotation, because they have no rotation again….again…for the third consecutive season.
You can’t win without starting pitching. I’ve said this so many times here, and still get dimwits telling me how great the pitching staff is.
Lux has been slumping offensively and defensively. I supported him much more than most but he is now on my trade list. I think Lux and Muncy could be better hitters if they would go with the pitch consistently.
Miggy has been incredible. I have to admit I am turned off with his constant “coaching” during the game but will allow that it might be something his teammates appreciate. I wouldn’t .
I often find myself regularly wondering why Ohtani who gets so much acclaim for being the best player in baseball, can look so terrible with some swings of the bat.
Thanks Phil for bringing Lux’ deficiencies out in the open again. I think while he has been hitting well, people just forget the guy is a liability in the field. He really should be a DH because I can’t think of any position I feel good about watching him play. Maybe next year Ohtani could play some field and we can be spared having to hold our breath every time the ball is hit to him.
Only pitch Miller and Grove whenever we are getting killed and we need arms to eat innings. They both should not be on the playoff roster so let them give up 5 runs in 2 innings each when we re already losing 10-0.
Otani won’t be playing the field anytime soon, and certainly not next season. He will be pitching and then DH. Lux is not that good of a hitter right now either. Time to trade the kid. Sign Adames to play SS full time and Move Mookie to second full time. Outfielders are easy to find. Will be plenty of good ones come this winter on the Market.
Tough loss for the Dodgers. The pitching staff is in disarray.
The hope is that Flaherty and Yamamoto can be first and second game starters, but even they are question marks. Flaherty has had a nice run since the trade deadline, but his last start was shaky and last year he was a below average pitcher. He has a 1-3 lifetime record in the postseason.
Yamamoto has great stuff when healthy, but he was a little lucky yesterday, and still coming off the injury. The offense is talented enough to carry them in the playoffs, but pitching usually wins championships.
Also, Ohtani is having a great year and his 50/50 chase will be historic. But in looking at his hitting stats, he actually had a much better year last season. There are still 11games left, but his OPS is 983 compared to 1066 last year. And his OBP is 372 compared to 412 last year. By comparison, Judge has an OPS of 1148 and OBP of 456 this year.
Ohtani certainly seems to get more of the headlines for the 50/50 chase and he is headed to NL MVP, but he had a better year in 2023 and Judge has been better this year.
No more Bobby Miller. Please.Shut him down for the season.
Enough said.
Bullpen is completely overworked and it showed today again.
Scoring 9 runs and still lose to the Marlins ? 😠
I would also sent Grove down. He is giving up runs almost every outing.
Ohtani now on a 51-51 pace.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Need fresh arms for the next 5 games .
Wrobleski was not good yesterday at OKC in 0.1 innings in relief. 2 runs, 2 hits.
Casparius should be up today for Miller. Maybe Henriquez for Grove ?
Then maybe Gonsolin for Miller when this spot in the rotation comes up again ?Or Wrobleski ? Not the best options but better than Miller at this time. Can not trot out Miller again , not vs the Padres when you are in a pennant race.
Where is Danny Duffy ? 😀
Rushing played C last night at OKC.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Loved the writeup on Osteen Bear. Thx.
We have spent the entire season protecting our starters and now it has blown up a pretty decent bullpen. I don’t see how you can be optimistic about October with the state of our pitching right now.
Still not calling him up.
Miller is toast, but the options now are… Wrobleski? Casparias? Gonsolin?
They might (BIG might) help the SP for the rest of the season…
..but not for the playoffs.
True. For the playoffs we can only hope that Flahertiy and Yamamoto stay healthy and pitch lights out. After that it is hope and pray as far as the starters go.
Dodgers also need that first round bye badly to reset their bullpen and give them some rest.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!
Maybe. Depends on how you look at it.
If those three, and hopefully anyone else, might could throw strikes for an inning or two, it would help those who need it get some time off.
Miller at times looked fine. But then someone would swing late and connect with a line drive barely fair and more runs would be produced. The kid could use some luck. And correct me if I’m wrong but wasn’t he on the mound when Lux went stumblin bumblin fumblin on that non error error that f’d up an easy double play?
This team, and I mean team not the manager, needs to figure out how to win games like these and i think it begins with those 8 on the field with whoever is pitching playing Miggy defense and just put a stop to giving away bases.
I’m still hopeful the Dodgers can win the Division and get that bye so those who are exhausted (everyone in the bullpen) can get a few days of massages, sleep, and recoup smoothies. This team playing on all cylinders can beat anybody. I believe that. In the mean time, take advantage of this soft schedule and win going away.
Freeman, Mookie etc need to have a meeting with lux. That was absolutely embarrassing and hurt the team. He is back to not hitting and his lack of defense made millers outing worse. Anybody can have an off day but it looked like something else. Rojas has been great and a leader mb he needs to tell everyone u can’t take these games lightly. The lefty going today has always been tough on LA.
You are right. Miller was much better than the box score showed.
Great write up. Osteen was kind of the forgotten man in the rotation. Thanks Bear!!
I agree. Osteen did something nobody on the Dodgers can do, he pitched over 200 innings 11 years in a row, including 321 innings in ‘69. Kershaw didn’t do that. Not even close. Osteen would no doubt be a #1 today.
Great article on Claude Osteen!
I didn’t realize he pitched so well in the World Series. And I also underrated how durable and effective he was as a starter for the Dodgers. He had a great career pitching in the shadow of Koufax and Drysdale. Thanks for the great insights Bear!
It seems to me that suddenly a lot depends on Buehler having hopefully turned a corner.
A Buehler / Knack piggy back might work.
Gonsolin returning at somewhere near his best, albeit for a few innings would also help immensely.
Whatever happens outside of Flaherty no Starter is going more than 5. The Pen is really gonna have to cover a lot of innings. Securing a bye could be very important to let them rest up for a week.
Lux looks tired to me. Remember he hasn’t t played a full season in a while. He might need to sit for a bit once we clinch.
Great business at the TD by AF.
Tommy Edman can play, Kopech has been lights out, and obviously without Flaherty we’d be up the creek.
I think Buehler has to believe he has turned the corner. To this point he has had good velocity and good stuff but struggled to locate and throw strikes, Maybe another solid game will make a connection between his ears. If he hasn’t turned a corner I think we have a very steep hill in front of us.
Bear this in mind:
In the playoffs going for than twice through the lineups is VERY rare.
Per MLB Trade Rumors:
“Dodgers manager Dave Roberts announced to reporters that right-hander Gavin Stone is still experiencing shoulder soreness and is “very unlikely” to return this year. Alden González of ESPN was among those to relay the news on X.”
Bobby Miller and Michael Grove have been sent to the minors while Joe Kelly has been activated. Both had to be sent down as they have not played well enough to be considered for the post season roster.
CK threw a BP session with 84 pitches thrown and it has been mentioned by Doc that Gavin Stone returning this season is highly unlikely. Hasn’t even started throwing and the shoulder pain persists.
the latest
The Dodgers announced that they have reinstated right-hander Joe Kelly from the 15-day injured list and selected the contract of left-hander Zach Logue. Righties Bobby Miller and Michael Grove were optioned in corresponding moves. Righty Tyler Glasnow was transferred to the 60-day IL to open a 40-man spot for Logue.
Based on the reality of our team (good lineup, no pitchers that can pitch past the 5th inning), I’d actually hope we, at least for the first series, play with less position players and add more bullpen arm to the staff.
At this point, if a guy like Knack can give us 4 good innings, regardless of pitch count, that’s considered a success.
So stop fighting it, and go with it. Let the starters go 4 ip if that’s all they can do, and have more bullpen arms ready for the other innings. Especially if we have bullpen arms who could give us 2 innings at a time.
Combine that with the more days off in October, that may allow for more rest for bullpen arms.
They can’t add bullpen arms. With a 28 man roster they are only allowed 14 pitchers. With a 26 man roster they are only allowed 13 pitchers. league rules
I’m not able to watch the game— why was Knack pulled after five? From what I read he only threw 87 pitches, gave up only two hits and struck out seven. Seems like with the bullpen on fumes Roberts would have sent him back out for the sixth.
Another brilliant move by the chess players to bring a reliever with over 7 era into the heat of a pennant race. I realize he is a lefty but just get somebody who can get outs. Henriquez anyone? At least Roberts had enough sense to get him out before he totally blew the lead.
How do u like Taylor now? One of the announcers was saying earlier that lux pinch hitting for Hernandez and Hernandez pinch hitting for lux they are a combined 1-35.
I’d like to hear the story on the shallow pop fly that Lux gave up on, Taylor was to deep to make the play, but Lux looked like he wasn’t trying very hard to get to the ball. If anybody hears any explanation for it let me know.
just like I posted a few days ago, I’m still not a Lux fan and can’t believe he’s the future at second for the Dodgers, heck they are platooning him all the time now.
He had a 3-4 week stretch where he was hitting the ball well, but that is now in the rearview mirror. The strikeout, especially watching strike three, was particularly upsetting. His backhanded attempts to get to two different ground balls last night were weakly played and I agree his lack of hustle on the pop fly to CF has to grate on Doc.
As Watford pointed out, he could just have run out of gas, not having played a full season in so long, but even so, it probably tells us he isn’t as tough as he should be.
If he doesn’t blow things completely, he still has some trade value (for what in return, I’m not sure), so that Mookie can move back to second next year.
If they do that , they can go after Adames or make Edman the shortstop and go get a centerfielder.
Pick up MiggyRo’s option but don’t expect him to be the starting shortstop. He can move around the infield and still be of great value without having to play every day.
I am now wondering if the Dodgers are better off with Betts at second and Pages in right field. Lux looks lost at the plate – taking strikes and swinging at balls. Much like he did for the first half of the year. His defense is below average. A topic for off season but I would move Lux for pitching or a young outfielder and play Betts at second starting next year.
There’s as much chance, in my silly opinion, of Lux being moved as Ohtani being moved.
Sorry guys, but Ohtani frustrates the hell out of me. Historic season, yes, but the guy is awful with RISP. He is hitting .223 in those situations. He has struck out 158 times. I would guess almost half of those looking and the other half chasing pitches he can’t touch. He could easily have 130 ribbies instead of 110 with a little more plate discipline. Jon Duplantier has been perfect through 5 innings tonight. Dodgers keep their lead over SD and AZ while taking a game and a day off of the schedule.
Eh.
Nothing to be sorry about Bear, never apologize for an opinion.
Thankfully, you don’t posit your opinions as facts.