Earlier this week the Mariners came to Dodger Stadium for a 3-game series that the Dodgers ended up sweeping. One of the players with Seattle was former Dodger 3rd baseman, Justin Turner. JT was making his first visit to Dodger Stadium since he left as a free agent after the 2022 season to sign with Boston. After a year with the Red Sox, JT signed with the Blue Jays as a free agent. The Dodgers saw him when they went to Toronto in April. They won 2 of the three games there. JT went 2-11 during the series.
Turner during his tenure in Los Angeles was one of the most popular players on the team. And why not, JT turned his entire career around once he signed with LA. Turner was originally drafted by the Reds in the seventh round of the 2006 draft. The Reds gave him a 50,000-dollar bonus to sign.
He started out at Billings in the rookie league. He batted .338 that year and had a .921 OPS. Within two years, he was at AA Chatanooga where he batted .289 with a .792 OPS in 2008. At the winter meetings he was traded along with Ryan Freel and Brandon Waring to the Baltimore Orioles for catcher, Ramon Hernandez. He went to spring training with the Orioles and then was assigned to AAA Norfolk where he hit .300. He was playing mostly at second and third. In September, he was called up to the Orioles and he made his MLB debut that day at Fenway, pinch hitting for Melvin Mora, and he finished the game playing third base. He went 3-18 over 12 games.
He went to spring training as a member of the 40-man roster, but he was sent back to Norfolk. He was called up to replace Brian Roberts. But on May 21st, he was designated for assignment. In 17 games he hit .111. Then on May 25th, 2010, he was claimed on waivers by the New York Mets. He had 8 at bats with the Mets and then was sent down to AAA. 
In April of 2011, Turner was recalled by the Mets. On May 15th, he hit his first major league homer against the Astros off Aneury Rodriguez. It was a three-run homer and capped a 5 RBI Day for Turner. Turner ended up being named the NL Rookie of the Month in May of 2011, their first since 2001. He spent the next two years as the Mets utility man. After the 2013 season, Turner was non-tendered by the Mets, and he became a free agent.
Following the release, Dodger coach, Tim Wallach saw Turner hitting at a Cal-State Fullerton alumni game. On February 5, 2014, Turner signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers. He got an invitation to spring training and impressed enough to have his contract purchased by the Dodgers on March 16th and he was added to the roster. JT got into 109 games due to his versatility and led the team with a .340 BA, 7 homers and 43 runs driven in in 288 at bats.
The Dodgers re-signed him to a 2.5-million-dollar deal, avoiding arbitration. He became the starting 3rd baseman for most of the season and responded with a .294 average, 16 homers and 60RBIs. In the 2015 LDS against his former team, the Mets, he hit .526 with 10 hits. Six of those hits were doubles. The Dodgers lost the series, but it was the first of many solid post-season performances for the player who was becoming known as RedTurn-10. He underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee after the season and then signed a 1-year-5.1-million-dollar deal.
Turner had one of his best seasons in 2016, batting .275, hitting 27 homers, and driving in 90 runs. He did well in the LDS, with six hits, including a homer. But struggled in the LCS hitting only .200 against the Cubs. As a reward for his great season, the Dodgers signed Turner to a 4-year, 64-million-dollar deal. Turner rewarded the Dodgers with a season where he hit .322 with a .415 OBP, 21 homers and 71 RBIs. All of that despite missing almost a month. JT finished 3rd in the batting race and second in OBP.
In the NLDS against the Diamondbacks, he had 6 hits. He and Chris Taylor were named Co-MVP’s of the NLCS against the Cubs. In game 2, Turner hit a walk off 3 run-homer. He struggled in the World Series against the Astros. He hit only .160. In 2018, he was hit by a pitch during spring training and was out until May. Because of injuries, he missed time and still had a good season with a .312/14/52. He hit well in the NLDS when he reached base in nine of his 18 plate appearances. He was 7-29 in the NLCS against Milwaukee and then went 8-24 against the Red Sox. He was nominated for the Roberto Clemente award during the season.
Turner not only showed leadership on the field, off the field, he and his wife, Kourtney, were involved in many charities and off the field community services. They had been married in December of 2017 at a beachfront resort in Mexico in a ceremony officiated by Orel Hershiser. The Justin Turner foundation helps homeless veterans, children facing life-altering diseases and various youth baseball organizations.
In 2019, Justin hit his 100th career homer. He finished with .290/27/67. He had 2 homers and 5 RBIs in the losing cause against the Nationals in the NLDS. He had a 3 homer, 6 RBI game against the Braves in May. 2020 was the pandemic year. JT was hit by a pitch on opening day, tying the record at 73 set by Zack Wheat. He was hampered by a sore hamstring and missed two weeks. In the postseason, he was hitless in the 2 games with the Brewers. He went 4-15 against the Padres in the LDS. He hit .280 against the Braves in the NLCS with a homer and 1 driven in. He hit .320 in the World Series with 2 homers and 2 RBIs. He was pulled in game 6 after testing positive for Covid and was chastised when he returned to the field for the team photo in violation of MLB protocols.
He signed a 2-year-34-million-dollar contract with a 14-million-dollar option for a third year. 2021 saw him go .278/27/87. His third season hitting 27 homers. He made his second All-Star team that year. Turner struggled in the post season going 2-38 with 1 homer in the three series. He strained his hammy in game 4 of the NLCS and was ruled out of playing anymore postseason games.
2022 would be Turner’s last season as a Dodger. He split his time between DH and third base. His stats dropped off accordingly. He had a .278/14/81. After the playoff loss to the Padres, the Dodgers declined his option, and he became a free agent. He would sign with the Red Sox and have a really solid season for them. .276/23/90. The 90 RBIs were a career high. He left the Red Sox and signed with the Blue Jays. He was traded at the deadline to Seattle.
The fans gave Turner a standing ovation prior to his first at bat. The team presented his foundation with a 10,000-dollar check. Many fans hope Justin will return to the Dodgers in some capacity after he retires. Yes, he is truly gone, but not forgotten.
Minor League Scores
OKC: 1 El Paso: 0 Alex Gamboa and Ben Casparius combined for a 1-hit shutout of the Chihuahua’s. Andy Pages HR in the bottom of the 8th won the game. Between them, Casparius and Gamboa allowed 1 hit, 4 walks and struck out 7. Rushing was 2-3. His BA is now .328.
Tulsa dropped a 4-1 decision to Springfield. The Drillers outhit Springfield, 10-9 but could not overcome the 2 runs they scored in the 2nd inning. Keith was 3-5 and Miller 2-5. Campos gave up all four runs and took the loss.
Great Lakes shut out Wisconsin, 7-0 allowing only 2 hits. The Loons managed 7 hits and walked 6 times. Biddison was the only Loon with multiple hits. Martin started and went 5 innings allowing 1 hit, no walks and striking out 2. Neecks and Hobbs threw scoreless frames in relief.
Lake Elsinore beat Rancho, 8-5. Hope went 1-4. Scored a run and drove one in. Meza was 2-5. Zazueta took the loss despite only giving up 2 of the 8 runs. Gonzalez gave up 5 in his 1/3rd inning of work.
Dodgers lost 9-8 to the Rays in extra innings. Joe Kelly gave up a 2-run shot to Caballero in the top of the 10th. Mookie Betts drove in the 8th run with a sac-fly in the bottom of the inning. The Dodgers lost despite getting homers from Hernandez, Ohtani and Rojas. Kershaw gave up the first five runs. Lead over Az is down to 3 games, but they still lead SD by 4.5.
Shohei threw from the mound for the first time today. He is expected to be back pitching by next spring. Yamamoto will pitch one more sim game and then start his re-hab in the minors. Glasnow also threw for the first time today. The Dodgers plan on being very careful with Glasnow. He might not pitch until Mid-September.
With Glasnow and Yamamoto still on the mend, I find myself feeling the most confidence in Stone as a postseason starter, followed by Flaherty.
Certainly the brass hope that Glasnow and Yamamoto will provide a good return on their investment. Based on recent performances, Kershaw and Miller and especially Buehler all feel iffy. Knack has probably been the most consistent, but is perceived to have the least upside.
Anyway, I hope the September performances deliver a clear message about who should start.
Today’s game raises a postseason scenario: In a close game, would you rather have Joe Kelly and Ryan Brasier in the bullpen, or Bobby Miller?
As for the lineup and defense, nothing feels iffy.
Just noticed something about the lineup…
Max’s impressive return from injury has moved him into the 3rd position for OPS at .868 on the team, 8 points ahead of Freddie and 10 below Mookie. (Shohei is 130 points ahead of Max.) Teo is fifth at .817.
Over the past 30 days, Lux has hit to a .930 OPS, bringing his once woeful OPS up to .699.
FWIW, Pages OPS for the season is .693, which is nearly 100 points than Outman’s in ’23. But against lefties, Pages’s OPS is .871.
There will be adjustments. Graterol was in the dugout and has been working out at the stadium, but just how much are you going to trust a guy who hasn’t faced hitters all year? If Yamamoto and Glasnow get into some games in September, they will both be in the rotation. I expect Miller to build on his decent outing from the other day, and Kershaw, unless he completely implodes, is going to be pitching in the post-season. Bank on it. And they only need 4 starters in post-season play. Brogdon is pitching at AAA and on the roster and almost healthy, he might be up for a look see.
Actually, Graterol did face two batters this year. He got one out and then left mid count due to injury.
Hardly counts. He only threw 7 pitches in spring training. He has great stuff, but unless he gets some innings under his belt before the end of the season, he is an option for next year.
Tough loss.
Kersh settled down after that disastrous first inning and was in line to win it but the pen could not hold it for him.
If I am correct that already was the 32 blown save by the Dodgers this season leading MLB in that department.
Treinen was wobbly but escaped barley but Kopech and phillpps both surrendered runs to allow the Rays to tie then Kelly lost it in extras.
ARI won again, lead down to 3.
Casparius pitched 4 scoreless innings at OKC in relief.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yes, Kopech finally got roughed up a bit. It was bound to happen.
So did Phillips and Kelly.
Will we see Graterol back? The last report I saw suggested that his injury wasn’t as severe as initially thought.
This game exposed our weakness. Pitching. The bullpen just can’t be used like that. There are 8 guys down there and a couple more in the minors if needed. Kershaw, Buehler, Miller ERA’s tell their story. What to do? Well, recovery is a place to start. It appears the starters are getting 5 days between starts. Is it enough? Glasnow and Yamamoto should help from September on. Don’t use this bullpen’s best arms on back to back days, keep scoring 8-9 runs and hope it’s enough.
Just checked MLB.com and it has the Dodgers at 26 blown saves. 41 saves in 67 save opportunities. Definitely room for improvement.
“Definitely room for improvement”
That’s for sure. I think the talent is there, but maybe the depth isn’t.
Hudson has 7 of the blown saves in 17 opportunities.
He also has 10 of the saves.
Not a great percentage of success. 59%
No, but most of those were in that stretch where he was giving up a lot of homers. He is still one of the more reliable arms out there. He also has 6 wins and a sub 3 ERA. Only 3 other bullpen arms are below 3. Banda, Treinen and Vesia. Kopech is at 0.79 in 11 games. I still trust Hudson in big games.
I trust him more than Kelly.
Usually you get demoted from the closer job for that kind of save percentage.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Treinen, Hudson, Graterol, Phillips, Vesia, Brasier, Kopech, Banda, and even Brogdon and Kelly is a talented bullpen if all were healthy and used properly. Some of them, most notably Treinen, Hudson and Phillips don’t look right yet. Hopefully it’s just a case of working it out. But with this starting staff a deep and talented bullpen is must starting very soon.
That’s a good group, but let’s think outside the box and outside and outside bullpen?
Give Bobby Miller some action as an RP. If Stone isn’t starting, he’d be in the mix too. (I am less optimistic about Buehler, but who knows?)
Whether you pitch at the start of the game or at the start of the sixth, it’s just pitching.
The Dodger closer last night, Phillips, blew his 3rd. You throw a hang-me bang-me pitch, you deserve to lose. Dodgers do not have a set closer. 12 different pitchers have been credited with saves this season. Kopech might be that guy from here on out, but most of these guys are less effective if they pitch back-to-back. Brasier only threw 5 pitches. I would have brought him back out for the seventh. You rarely expect your bullpen to give up homers late in the game. Dodgers # 1 priority in the offseason should be a closer. No more of this matchup stuff.
Exactly. Enough with this closer by committee approach.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Factor in the starters who won’t start, like Miller, and there should be depth.
And would the Dodgers dare bring up Edgardo Henriquez from OKC?
When Scioscia’s Angels beat the Giants in the WS, one of the stars was a rookie RP who seemed to come out of nowhere: Francisco Rodriguez. Why not give Henriquez a good look in LA?
Next weekend will be telling. 4-games with Arizona in Arizona. Dodgers could open the lead up. Or lose it all.
Or neither of those
A split would keep the lead as it is. But I think they need to win at least 3 of the 4 games.
What does the future hold for Justin Turner?
I don’t think the Dodgers will be interested in a right-handed pinch-hitter. Certainly he would join the coaching staff in some capacity.
But how about going the Scioscia route and taking the manager’s job in Anaheim?
JT is a known commodity, widely respected for his clubhouse leadership and his rapport with the media. He’s a local boy who grew up in Long Beach and played at Cal State Fullerton, as did former Angel manager Phil Nevin.
I have no problem rooting for both the Dodgers and the Angels… but mostly the Dodgers.
Wow! I go to bed up 7-5 after 7 innings and wake up to this! Terrible loss. Thx Bear for the write up on JT. Dodger forever. Love that guy!
It was just one of those games. To be down 5-0 and then battle back to take the lead, that shows fight. They never gave up, not even after the 2-run shot in the 10th put them down again. Freddie is in another little slump. And he is not hitting lefties like he normally does. In clutch situations, Ohtani swings at the first pitch way too often. When it results in a homer, like it did on Friday, everyone is ecstatic. But when he rolls one over and leaves men on base, which he does a lot, it kills rally’s.
And yet… from Howard Cole:
Shohei Ohtani is a .402/.410/.852 hitter on the first pitch lifetime.
.273/.311/.605 this year, I care less what he did as an Angel. .308/.421/.625 when he takes the first pitch.
Why would it matter which team he did it with?
What matters is how is he doing this year, and as you can see, it is nowhere near what he has done career wise, that is why it matters, and it proves my point.
Whatever Michael. I know it’s important for you to feel you know more about baseball than anyone else.
Horse shit Fred. Why should we care what his career marks are if he is nowhere near that playing for the Dodgers? I am not trying to say I know more about baseball than anyone else, I am quoting his stats. You threw Cole out there and I showed that he isn’t doing that now.
Watch your language there cowboy. I just brought up a stat I read (I don’t even know who Cole is) and you jumped all over it.
I will say Ohtani knows more about his swing than you ever will.
Nobody should work or play or go to Angels games until they have a new owner!
Any organization could use people like Turner and Heyward. It’s my opinion Scioscia and/or Baker should have remained and both Turner and Heyward should be brought back if they want to return.
Next year:
Ohtani
Glasnow
Yamamoto
Miller
Wrobleski
No Stone?
Stone definitely belongs–and with Shohei in there, it will probably be a six-man rotation.
Right now Stone is the Dodgers’ most effective pitcher.
Against the Rays, he needed only 80 pitches to get through 7 innings, with 7 Ks, 3 hits, 2 walks. If not for the homer he allowed, Stone had a chance for another “Maddux”: a complete game shutout with fewer than 100 pitches. He deserved the W, but that went to Treinen thanks to Mookie’s two-run HR in the 8th.
And it was nice to see that Stone was pitching to Feduccia, getting his first start as catcher. They were probably paired a lot in the minors. Feduccia got his first hit in the majors.
Something else interesting about this game: With the Rays starting lefty Jacob Lopez, Roberts opted to start Taylor in place of Lux at 2B, but kept Max at 3B. He had Kike start in CF, with Edman playing SS and Rojas and Kiermaier on the bench. Pretty sure this is the first time we’ve seen this mix-and-match alignment.
Kike has been swinging the bat well lately and he delivered his 9th HR–not bad for part-time player.
Doubtful. May and Gonsolin will be coming back. Stone has solidified a spot. Wrobleski is close, but not even in the top 6 starters on the roster. They might re-sign Flaherty.
Don’t forget the random innings filler veteran we sign who somehow wins the #5 job and does a decent job
That could be Buehler.
Could be, but remember, if Kersh finishes the season on a high note, he could be back. There is an option in his contract. He is still one of the biggest competitors in the league.
Totally agree.
Or if the Dodgers finish with a championship, that high note might be way he would want it to end.
Arizona has been playing great baseball. And they have beaten up the teams they should beat. But their schedule in September gets a lot harder. They play Milwaukee seven times in 10 days. While they are doing that, the Dodgers are playing 2 with Atlanta, 3 in Miami and 3 at home with the Rockies just prior to their last series with the Padres. And while the Dodgers are playing their final three games in Denver, the Padres and D-Backs will be going head-to-head. Arizona also faces the Giants, Rockies, Rangers and Astros. Their last 6 games are all on the road, SF and SD.
Today’s starting lineup. Rays are going with a bullpen game against Stone. LHP starting the game. Ohtani DH, Betts, RF, Freeman 1B, Hernandez LF, Edman SS, Muncy 3B, Kike CF, Feduccia C, Taylor 2B, Stone P.
Cool, we finally get a look at Feduccia. When did he last have an at bat?
I believe that would be July 31st, so he should be well rested.
Kopech has seemed to evolve into the closers role or matched up in the highest leverage situation. Doc changed that up for some reason last night, putting Kopech in the 8th to face 7, 8 and 9. And he looked the worst I’ve seen him pitch.
I didn’t know why Doc changed it up last night before Phillips followed by Kopech. But a closer look revealed that Phillips faces the top of the opponent’s order and Kopech 6 through 9.
Any way you stack it, Kelly would never see the back end with the game on the line. Vesia yes, Kelly NO. He’s too unpredictable for me.
Despite his K in the 9th, my man Miggy Ro had a nice game; 2 for 4 with a dinger and a run saving great stop and back pick.
Feduccia gets his first MLB hit. Two batters hit in the 8th by the Rays pitcher. Padres losing still in the 7th 2-0 to the Mets.
Yankees signed former Dodger, Phil Bickford to a major league deal and he will join the team today. My bullpen for the playoffs, Treinen, Hudson, Vesia, Phillips, Banda, Kopech, Graterol, Stone and Miller as the long reliever. Glasnow, Flaherty, Yamamoto, Kershaw are the starters. If Kersh cannot go, then Stone.
Of that group of relievers: treinen, Hudson have not looked good lately. Banda, Vesia struggle throwing strikes (but all the lh guys we have) Graterol who knows. I don’t really c miller in there but the alternative would b Kelly so I’m in. I think the chess players will want Kelly. I wish they would look at Henriquez but with no experience I understand. I once thought our bullpen would be dominant but treinen, Hudson, Phillips have shaken my confidence. Phillips threw a real dumb pitch last night. Fastball right down the middle to a hot hitter. I expected Kelly to blow it.
Boston has blown a 4-0 lead and now trail the D-Backs 6-4. Suarez hit a three-run homer to put them ahead in the 6th. They also scored 3 in the 5th after the Sox rode a Devers 3-run homer to go ahead. Dodgers getting no help so far from the Sox.
D-Backs are playing out of their minds. Same as they did last season down the stretch and in the playoffs.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can they keep it up, remains to be seen.
Rehab stuff:
1) deGrom will have rehab against OKC on Tuesday. I’ll be interested to see how Rushing does against him.
2) Yamamoto will throw a bullpen Monday and then head to OKC for his rehab beginning on Wednesday
3) Graterol will start another rehab next weekend
4) Gonsolin is ahead of schedule and will start his rehab in the not too distant future. At this point, if all goes well, he expects to make it back this year. One could ask, where do we have room for him, but between injuries to starters and injuries and ineffectiveness in the bullpen, we’ll probably be able to use Catman somehow, somewhere.
Perhaps Gonsolin starts NLDS game 1?
I will pencil him in.
Roberts said there’s not enough time to stretch him out to start.
It’s bullpen or bust ’24 for Gonsolin.
Nobody is ahead of schedule with the Dodgers. Buehler was gonna make the playoffs last year to. 5 months later couldn’t even start the regular season. Muncy out 3months plus. Yamamoto is he still with the Dodgers? To name a few. I will believe it when I c it lol.
tampa starter supposed to be wild. A strike every pitch. Arizona wins again and the beat goes on. We just have to beat them head to head.
There’s your defense guy Kiki who made a good catch and he hit a home run. There’s no need for any defense guys that can’t hit. Kiki takes care of the defense at just about all positions.
Why do I feel like so many of your posts Eric are referencing obtuse previous comments and read like non-sequiturs.
I had to look this up.
Obtuse:
annoyingly slow to understand. Difficult to understand; unclear:
non-sequiturs:
Responses or follow-up statements that are not related to the previous statement or question. Literary devices that do not follow the fundamental principles of logic and reason.
I’m difficult to understand and not logical?
Ok I won’t touch it because that’s your opinion and you didn’t attack me. I compliment you for not attacking me because you just/only pointed that out.
“Obtuse” is the word Andy used that pissed off the warden in “The Shawshank Redemption.”
Kike is a very good defender, but he is not elite. Kike is also only a .217 hitter. Yes, he is a better hitter than Kiermaier, but in the 9th inning of a one run game, I want Kiermaier in center field.
How much diffence is good and elite and is it enough to take up a roster spot in the playoffs when all of the bench are poor hitters unless they have Pages on the roster and still that only takes care of good hitting against LHP. What about against RHP. I’m assuming Rojas is the full time starting SS and Edman is the full time CF..
Plus in a one-run game is there a guarantee that a tough play is going to happen that Kike can’t make?
Kiermaier is decent against RHP. His defense is elite, and in a short series, one great defensive play can change the outcome. You might not remember this, but in the 2020 NLCS, Mookie made two great plays in right that stopped Braves rally’s. He caught a ball against the fence that nipped one rally, and then he threw Ozuna out when he forgot how many outs there were. Bellinger took a homer away from Tatis in the series against the Padres that year. There are no guarantees in baseball. But, in a tight game, especially a playoff game, you want your BEST defenders on the field. Edman is going to play center most of the time. Rojas will be the main guy at SS. But unless you have great pitching, the defense isn’t going to matter. The Dodgers will win or lose depending on their pitchers. Both starters and relievers. I know you will bring up Kiermaier’s numbers this year, but you can throw all of that out when the postseason starts. Kiermaier has a lot of postseason experience. That right there trumps anything Pages brings. He has never played postseason baseball, and I would not trust him in a clutch spot in a must win game. Give me the player who has been there before.
I can’t disagree with Bear. Kiermaier is a warrior that dominates CF and his hitting has come alive again on the Dodgers. Defense inspires the team to win and personalities like KK know what it takes to win. If it is a choice between Edman and KK in CF. I’m for KK. Edman is still getting used to playing again. He can be a difference maker for us if he finds his bat again. This is not to disparage Kike. I’ve always supported him but there is a limit. Bench guy? No problem. Taylor? Fuggedaboudit.
Mookie is clutch.
Great clutch hit Mookie!!
freeman has no business in the lineup. He acts like he doesn’t want to be there. His rh is coming off the bat every time he swings. Give him a few days off until he can recover. I don’t say this as a knock. Best for him and the team.
Freeman has every right to be in the game. Nobody else on this team is as good at first as he is. Yeah, he has a ton on his mind, but the ballfield is his refuge from all of that. It is a hairline fracture at the tip of his finger. He says it does not hurt when he swings.
Wow, he has a right to be in there? He may say it doesn’t hurt but his right hand keeps coming off the bat. It is effecting his swing. He has had 1 hit in the series and it was a blooper that very well could have been caught. Do him a favor and sit him for a couple of games. Mb it will b better Tuesday.
I went back and watched all of his at bats from this weekend. His hand came off of his bat exactly twice, both times today when he tried to reach outside pitches. Otherwise, both hands stayed on his bat. Maybe he has one hit because A. He is facing one of the best pitching staffs in the majors and B. He has faced a lot of lefties in this series, and he is not hitting left-handed pitching very well this year. He is not having a typical Freeman year. Acts like he doesn’t want to be playing? Ridiculous.
U May b right bear but his facial expressions look like his mind is somewhere else. He certainly is not playing with passion. More like going through the motions. But u may be right.
It is easy to fast forward the games to his at bats on MLB.TV. I wouldn’t doubt he has a lot on his mind, up to and including his son’s wellbeing and health. And at this point in the season he is probably banged up some. Freddie is intense. When he is hitting, he never looks like he is happy at all. And it never changes. I do not think we can judge how much passion a player is playing with until we see a moment when they truly express what is happening underneath. I saw that with Mookie rounding the bases after his homer. He was definitely pumped up. Just watch his expression the next time he does something to help the team win. He hasn’t had one of those moments for a couple of weeks.
Freddie normally has a serious look to him. He is not a giddy, haha kinda guy. He is focused. But, with a kid on the edge, no one can be 100% present. With Freddie, I give him the responsibility to excuse himself from the lineup, not from management.
Many times when a superstar is in a mini slump it still makes a significant difference on how pitchers throw to the other players in the lineup especially to the batters before him. We all know what Freeman is capable of and he will be there again sooner than later. Freeman is a player, he won’t make excuses and he will be there for his team everyday. Freeman seems to be a good family man so if he’s in the game his attention is there also.
Exactly John.
Banda another reliving gem unearthed by Dodgers FO and pitching dev.
You mean the front office that needs to be blown up with AF getting fired according to Scott. Love me some Banda!
Stoney, Kike, and the Mook.
Nice.
Great 5-1 homestand. We blew one yesterday but also came back in other games, so all good.
The best part of it all? The bullpen gets a huge rest day tomorrow!!
Good win but hopefully Ohtani is okay. Hit him right on the wrist.
Fingers crossed nothing is broken.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great read about how HR-centric offenses are not more prone to slumps than “small ball” ones. ($$$$$)
https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/93171/baseball-therapy-prone-to-drought-home-run-teams-run-scoring/
Now we know how you are a super premium fan! I’m just too cheap. X rays on Ohtani’s wrist are negative.
Big win. Padres just tied the Mets in the bottom of the 8th on a Profar 2-run homer.
Pads won. Merril homered.
Jackson Merril has that “it” factor. How many late innings home runs is that for him now??
Rookie of the year I believe. Skeenes has much more hype but right now Merril may have the head up. Came up as a ss and plays cf like he has been there forever.
Merrill hits .335 in their wins, .228 in their losses. You also have a better chance of getting him out if he does not swing at the first pitch. He is hitting .319 on the first pitch this year. He has hit 7 of his 18 homers from the 7th inning on.
Much needed win and day off tomorrow. Padres play the Cardinals in St. Louis and then play 3 in Tampa and one at home against the Tigers before they get a day off.
This is one of the few games I missed because of time zones. 3:30 am for me. Need my sleep. Got 9 hours in. So glad we won but sorry to see Stone not get the win.