There are four teams in the NL West presently with records above.500. The Padres, Dodgers, Giants and Diamondbacks. All those teams playing at a .600 clip or better. No other division has more than two. The NL Central has just two teams over .500, the Cardinals and Cubs. The Reds are sitting right at .500. The NL West was the most competitive division last season, and despite the fact that the Dodgers have won every division title save one since 2013, any team in the division, except Colorado, can beat any team on any given day. The surprise team in the bunch is the Giants.
One of the reasons for their early success is their pitching, which has been stellar because of an improved bullpen and the resurgence of Robbie Ray. Their team ERA is lower than the Dodgers, the return of a true lead-off hitter, J.H. Lee, who has come out of the chute blazing hot. He is presently hitting .361 with 14 of his 26 hits going for extra bases. He has also stolen three bases. He and Tyler Fitzgerald have been the hitting stars. Their staff does not give up a lot of homers either.
Even with two of their better players on the IL, the Padres are the best hitting team in the majors right now. They are hitting .279 as a team, the Cardinals are the only other team with an average of .270 or better sitting right at .270. Tatis is their leading offensive threat. He has six homers and leads the team in RBI’s. The surprise hitter has been former White Sox player, Gavin Sheets. He is presently hitting .327 as their DH. Jose Iglesias, filling in for Cronenworth, is hitting .325.
Their pitching has been excellent. The starters have 9 of their 15 wins at this point, but their bullpen has been nails. Suarez has 8 saves in 8 tries. Most of the relievers ERAs are below 2.50. Adam, Estrada, Morejon, all below 1.00. Suarez has yet to be scored on. A really stacked pen. When they get Merrill and Cronenworth back, they should be even better at the plate. Machado is also hitting over .300 but has not shown his normal power bat yet.
Arizona leads the NL West in runs scored. They are hitting .260 as a team and have shown some power with 28 homers so far. They have also stolen 18 bases and been caught just 3 times. Ketel Marte has been out for a while, he has only played in 8 games. But Carroll, Naylor, Perdomo, and Smith all batting over .300 and have OPS over .900. Suarez and Gurriel are both hitting under the Mendoza line but have 6 and 4 homers respectively.
The team’s ERA is around 4.55. Corbin Burnes has yet to win a game, and his ERA is 4.64. He was their big free agent signing. Kelly has an ERA over 5 but is tied for the team lead in wins with Pfaadt, whose ERA is 3.04. They are getting solid work from their pen. Justin Beeks has allowed just 1 run in his 11.2 innings of work. Justin Martinez and Shelby Miller have not allowed any runs yet.
Arizona will be better when Marte gets back. Their offense is already a run scoring machine. They have bounced back from a rocky start to get over .500. They are a young and athletic team and seem to have replaced the power loss of Christian Walker with a solid player in Naylor. The key to beating these guys, is keeping the speedsters off base. They will definitely run on you.
The West has been playing excellent baseball. But keeping up the pace they have been on? Few teams can do that. To see three teams in the same division on pace for over 100 wins, that will definitely change at some point. Injuries will no doubt play a part. LA is dealing with some injury issues to a couple of relievers right now. Phillips just returned but was replaced on the IL by Treinen. The Dodgers are the oldest team in the league, expecting those aging stars to keep putting up solid numbers is stretching things a little. Pages is the only under 30 position player on the team. Edman turns 30 on the 9th of May. At some point, the team is going to have to inject some youth into the lineup.
By comparison, now that Heyward is on the IL, the Padres outfield has only one player who is 30, Tyler Wade. Arraez is 28. Cronenworth, who is on the IL is just 31, and Merrill is 22. The two oldest players on the Giants are Wilmer Flores, and Yastrzemski. The rest of their team is very young. Arizona is loaded with young players too. What LA has in abundance that the other teams do not is experience, especially playoff experience.
MiLB GAME SUMMARIES
OKC Comets 4 – Salt Lake City Bees (Angels) 3
Bobby Miller took the hill to start the series. He completed 5.0 IP. Once again it was his control that diminished what was a decent outing for Miller. He allowed 2 runs on 2 hits, 5 BBs, and 3 K. One of the runs scored via a HR, and the other run scored on 3 walks and an infield single.
Miller threw 93 pitches (51 strikes) using primarily 3 pitches:
- 4-seamer – 52
- Change – 19
- Curve – 21
- Sinker – 1
Miller’s 4-seamer sat 98-99, reached 99.6, including 99.2 in the 5th. The HR he surrendered was on his 4-seamer.
Esteury Ruiz led off the game with a single. Michael Chavis hit a one out single moving Ruiz to 3rd. Dalton Rushing then followed with a 3-run HR.
Esteury Ruiz hit a 2-out single and stole 2nd. Alex Freeland followed with a RBI single.
In the 8th, 30 year old LHP, Joe Jacques, gave up a run in the 8th. With 2 outs, Jacques hit Ryan Noda, and Noda scored on a double.
Jack Little pitched a scoreless 9th to record his 4th save.
- Esteury Ruiz – 2-4, 1 run, 2 SB (8)
- Michael Chavis – 2-4, 1 run
- Dalton Rushing – 1-3, 1 BB, 1 run, 3 RBI, HR (2)
- Alex Freeland – 1-3, 1 BB, 1 RBI
- Doubles – James Outman (5)
NW Arkansas Naturals (KC) 9 – Tulsa Drillers 7
Six years ago, on an April night, future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw took the mound for the Tulsa Drillers before an overflow crowd at ONEOK Field. Tuesday night, Kershaw was back with the Drillers making another April, injury-rehabilitation start.
This time, the appearance came on the road against Northwest Arkansas in Springdale, Arkansas.
Kershaw appeared comfortable and without any issues in his three-plus innings and departed with Tulsa holding a 6-1 lead. However the lead did not hold, as the Naturals scored seven straight runs.
Kershaw was charged with one run, and it came in the bottom of the first inning. Peyton Wilson led off with a double and moved to third on a wild pitch. He scored the game’s first run on a one-out double by uber prospect Jac Caglianone.
Clayton Kershaw continued his rehab, but tonight with AA Tulsa. Smart move considering the travel, OKC is in Salt Lake. But also, in AA, he'll get the Trackman data, but it won't be available to the public. So folks like me can't overanalyze everything he does.
— Dodgers Daily (@dodger_daily) April 23, 2025
Also, Jackson… pic.twitter.com/EZq9iqcovI
The Drillers overturned the deficit with four runs in the top of the third, with the first three coming on a three-run homer from Damon Keith.
Damon Keith continues to knock the cover off the ball for AA Tulsa. Keith hit another impressive home run tonight, which is no surprise, because when he hits balls, they stay hit.
— Dodgers Daily (@dodger_daily) April 23, 2025
Also, to no one's surprise, his helmet spun around his head after he hit the ball because he's… pic.twitter.com/0OKYurmjBR
They added two more runs in the fifth to up their lead to 6-1. Jose Ramos singled, and Griffin Lockwood-Powell followed with a double. Ramos scored on a base hit from Chris Newell, and Lockwood Powell came home on a ground out by Bubba Alleyne.
NWA erased the five-run Drillers lead with seven straight runs. The first run came in the fifth and six more followed in the bottom of the sixth as the Naturals took an 8-6 lead. I do not know why Jackson Ferris was moved to the Development List, but his coming off the List was nothing short of a disaster. All seven runs were charged to Ferris (5 earned) on 6 hits, 2 BB, and 2 K.
Tulsa got a run back in the seventh when Keith doubled and scored on a single by Lockwood-Powell, but three errors from the Drillers in the bottom half of the seventh set the Naturals up to get the run right back.
Griffin Lockwood Powell had a night tonight that he won't ever forget. He caught the 3 innings from Clayton Kershaw, then got him 3 knocks.
— Dodgers Daily (@dodger_daily) April 23, 2025
Not every day a young man from Sioux Falls gets to call pitches for a Hall of Famer, then get 3 hits. And it couldn't happen to a nicer… pic.twitter.com/ZCml1Fi1VA
- Damon Keith – 2-5, 2 runs, 3 RBI, double (4), HR (2)
- Griffin Lockwood-Powell – 3-5, 1 run, 1 RBI
- Taylor Young – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run
Great Lakes Loons 9 – Lake County Captains (Cleveland) 3
Great Lakes put 4 on the board in the 2nd. Kendall George and Wilman Diaz opened the inning with singles. Kole Myers singled to score George, and Logan Wagner followed with a 3-run HR.
Great Lakes scored an unearned run in the 3rd with a Diaz RBI single.
23 year old LHP, Luke Fox, pitched 4.0 scoreless innings. LHP Robinson Ortiz was a one time top 27 LAD prospect in the LAD organization. In 2021, Ortiz pitched 11.2 innings but injuries blocked him from pitching in 2022 and 2023. Ortiz came back to pitch 11.1 innings in 2024. He already has 10.0 innings in 2025, but they have not been effective innings. Ortiz gave up a solo HR in the 6th.
Christian Ruebeck entered the 8th. The first batter he faced reached on an error. A walk and double steal put runners on 2nd and 3rd. A balk plated one runner and a WP scored the 2nd.
Jordan Thompson hit a grand slam HR in the 9th to close out the scoring.
Jordan Thompson…Have a DAY!
— Dodgers Daily (@dodger_daily) April 23, 2025
Actually, have a final 2 at-bats!
Thompson led the 8th off with a ringing double, then hit a grand slam to open the game up in the 9th for the Loons.
Thompson is a talented infield prospect out of LSU who has hits in 3 games in a row. Good… pic.twitter.com/wElMomtGAT
23 year old RHP Joseilyn Gonzalez pitched a scoreless 9th to preserve the victory.
- Kendall George – 2-3, 1 BB,1 run, sac bunt
- Wilman Diaz – 2-4, 1 run, 1 RBI
- Jordan Thompson – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run, 4 RBI, double (3) HR (2)
- Logan Wagner – 1-4, 1 BB, 2 runs, 3 RBI, HR (3)
- Double – Zyhir Hope (6)
Inland Empire 66ers (Angels) 10 – Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 4
Rancho’s bullpen had a tough time throwing strikes late, as the Quakes saw their two-game win streak come to an end with a 10-4 loss to the Inland Empire 66ers on Tuesday night.
Moments after tying the game at 4-4 in the top of the eighth, Rancho watched Inland score six times in the last of the eighth to break the tie and pull away.
Rancho reliever Felix Cabrera (0-1) lost his command, as after giving up a one-out single, he walked four of the next five hitters. Cody Morse then came in out of the pen, and after walking the first batter he faced, surrendered a three-run triple giving the Sixers a 10-4 lead and eventual win.
Rancho battled back all night long, as the offense, which was held to just five hits all night, was helped from the first professional home run by Mike Sirota (1) in the fourth and the first homer of the year from Samuel Munoz (1).
The Quakes (9-7) still lead the South Division by three games and will look to get back on track on Wednesday morning, as Aidan Foeller (0-1) will take on Chris Clark (0-1) in a special 11:05 AM contest.
Born June 14th, 1948, in Los Angeles California. AKA The Bear
Well, two blown saves in the last games, one each by our high leverage free agent signings Scott and Yates respectively. Not encouraging.
And even while scoring 10 runs without any help by Mookie and Shohei the hitting is a concern too. Kike, Muncy, Conforto, Barnes, CT, Rojas . How many dead bats can you carry ?
I know the Dodgers are playing for October but the way this NL West is stacked you got to make it to October first. And with the Mets, Phillies, Braves there are some more teams you have to take into consideration for a WC spot too.
And how it can it be with all that supposed depth we have to throw a bullpen game already ?
The record is still fine but there are reasons to be concerned.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You’re not wrong
The NL West is very strong.
The Dodgers are considered a lock…. but I think it will be a battle. A few years ago, weren’t we all surprised when the Giants somehow topped the Dodgers’ 106-win season?
The Achilles’ Heel could be the defense. Or maybe it’s age. Or perhaps a combination–as Freddie’s ankle may illustrate.
The best defender in the OF is Edman–but today he played a catchable drive to the wall into a triple. Not an easy play, but he looked like Pages on that one.
The best defender in the IF might also be Edman, who won a gold glove at the position for the Cards. Will Smith has been very good, Freddie and Mookie have been solid, and Max has been Max.
I’m hoping Kim or Freeland or both will soon bring some youth and energy to this team. I’m not rooting for a serious injury. Still, perhaps Taylor or Rojas could strain something.
But it’s occured to me that the brass might pass up on both in favor of hot-hitting veteran Michael Chavis–because Chavis, at 29, would still seem young.
Speaking of veterans, whatever happened to David Bote? Has he landed somewhere?
Fraudman and Roberts prefer vets over youth. They will reap what they have sown. Aging roster with poor fundamentals and poor defense doesn’t add up to a dynasty. Perhaps they got lucky last year we shall see.
Fraudman? Really? We’re going there again?
That said, your point about an aging roster and poor fundamentals is one worthy of discussion. Poor defense has bothered me for a while now. And though I am not yet concerned about the leaders of this club being post 30 I do believe it’s a good idea to keep an eye on it. MLB prime production years are generally considered to be before 30.
Badger used Fraudman just to see if you and Bear were awake yet
I was all ready to get mad but then calmed down and drank coffee instead.
Did the coffee help? Sometimes in our current you have to have a little fun life is indeed short.
Coffee always helps; it is the elixir of life.
I am awake, I am not concerned about the Dodgers. It is too damn early in the season to make any judgements. They are who they are and wishing for any huge changes this early in the season is wishful thinking. I have to assemble my new love seat for my apartment today, so that is #1 on my list.
Is it too early? When is it too “early” too make some minor adjustments, and why is it that anyone who expresses any concern for anything is questioned or called out here?
The club has not played well at all this year. Other than a 6-game stretch to begin the season if you do not count the Tokoyo games. 8-8 in the last 16 games is poor no matter how you look at it.
The Dodgers have a tendency of doing bullpen games immediately after crushing losses, or during losing streaks. Does not add up. Is there nobody in the organization that can be called on to pitch 5 innings today? nobody?
The pitching on the road has been dreadful, but how many guys are batting below the mendoza line? Kike, Taylor, Rojas, Barnes, Conforto, Muncy…That’s like half the team. If you remove Barnes, (since he’s the backup catcher), the rest of the guys make up the bottom half of the lineup and roster. Frankly, it’s bad. no matter how you cut it.
Why are guys like Noah Davis, and Luis Garcia even on the roster for a single day? I complain, but looking at the OKC roster, I understand why. Other than a few of the starters like Frasso, Wrobleski, and Knack, there is not one pitcher of value.
An idea for the Dodgers, since I know that Garcia and Davis are only there because of injuries., but as you can see they can be forced into high leverage innings. this is what happens when not one reliever is called on to pitch more than an inning, and you use 7 relievers over a 10- inning game. Why not replace Garica, and Davis with Wrobleski/Knack/Frasso? Those guys could be used as multi-innings relievers. Otherwise what is the poiint of keeping them in OKC other than “depth” ocassional spot starter, or as a trade chip. They are blocked anyways, since when everyone is healthy, the rotation is Snell, Glasnow, Yamamoto, Sasaki, and May/Kershaw/Gonsolin. Where is there room for anyone else?
Let’s be real here, take a look at their pythagorean record of 13-11, and a meager +10 run differential. They are barely outscoring opponents, a far cry from the +180 they had last year.
If we can’t point out issues, and call for improvements without being labled as stupid, then we may as well go back to Mark’s site and be called “Idiots” and “morons”.
Just my take here.
Touche’. Nothing wrong with some constructive criticism.
If you don’t count every game the Dodgers have won, they have a dreadful record!
nobody likes bullpen games. Nobody. But we all know the Dodgers aren’t gonna waste an option call up just for a one game start in April.
Bluto,
What’s the difference between calling up Wrobelski, or Knack to pitch a spot start due to an injury, or “wasting an option to call up for a one game start”.
I’ll gladly waste the option than using a bullpen game, a day after using the entire bullpen in a loss.
it doesn’t make much sense here. Do you think Wrobelski or Knack become regulars in the rotation? Do you see them replacing Snell, Glasnow, Yamamoto? No.
Then what does it matter if they use an option?
You can complain all you want, that is fine, but it won’t make any difference to the front office. They know their players better than we do. If they feel like having a bullpen game, that is what they are going to do to protect their young arms.
Wrobleski pitched 4.0 innings on Sunday
Knack pitched 4.1 innings on Sunday
Frasso pitched 3.0 innings on Sunday
OKC had a DH on Sunday.
Tony Gonsolin is apparently not ready as he is scheduled to pitch for OKC tonight.
OKC does have an intriguing option in Justin Jarvis. I have no idea why Noah Davis is on the 40 man or what they see in him. Only thing I can say is that the Dodgers did “fix” Anthony Banda, Evan Phillips, Ryan Brasier…Maybe they thought Noah Davis was fixable. Justin Jarvis (25) is three years younger than Davis, and IMO a much better pitcher and option.
Scott, for as long as Freidman has been running this team, have you ever seen him make any really big moves this early in the year? No? I did not think so. I think they have a better idea where their players are than any of us fans do. Garcia is a short reliever. Knack, Wrobleski and Frasso are starters for now. So why would they replace Garcia with one of those guys. Garcia did not blow the game. It was basically lost when the starting pitcher could not stop the Cubs from scoring seven runs. It wasn’t because of bad defense either. You can call for improvements all you want, but I doubt if the front office brass will listen to you. Same stuff happens every time and every year that they have issues early in the seasons. Fans have little patience, they want everything like fast food, right now. It is not happening and you of all people should know that. You have been writing about this team for years. Right now, they have exactly the same record as the 2015 team after 24 games. They are 4 games better than 16, 17. 5 better than 18 when they were under .500 at the 24-game mark. 1 better than 19, 1 worse than 20. 1 game better than 21, 1 game behind 22, 3 better than 23 and 24. Nobody is calling anyone stupid. Sure, you can call for improvements all you want. But I am just pointing out that making major moves, unless it involves pitching, just are not done this early in the year unless there is an injury. The offense is not the same, but the pitching for the most part, especially the bullpen, has been very good.
I’m definitly not calling for major moves, or trades this early. But making some minor adjustments can help.
Here’s the question. Do you think Frasso, Knack, Wrobleski will be regulars in the Dodger’s rotation? Probably not, since they are blocked by Glasnow, Snell, Yamamoto, Sasaki, Kershaw, May, and Gonsolin. So what are their roles, and what future do they have with the club?
If they are blocked, then there is no point in not using them in a different capacity, instead of wasting them down in OKC. If they became multi-innings relievers? That would get Garcia and Noah Davis off the roster, and would improve the pitching staff. Even if just marginally.
That’s one adjustment they could make this week, that would make the club at least a little better. This is the point I am making.
I would like to see what Kim can do with the big club, but that’s a different point. Either way, it’s not worth losing a game to save an option later in the season.
As I said, Knack, Wrobleski, and Frasso each pitched 3.0 innings or more on Sunday. They could get recalled for this weekend, but were not available for tonight’s game.
Which is why the fans are not making the roster moves. AF knows his stuff.
That does change things a bit. If that’s the case, then yes those guys were not available for yesterday’s or today’s game.
Better question is if the club knew they would need a starter for Wednesday, why one of those guys were not held back. Losing just one game is better than losing both games.
Well played!
Chavis? We’re talkin’ about Chavis!? 😉
On a more optimistic note, how about that throw from Pages to home plate and tagging out the runner! A perfect bullet to Smith. That was very impressive.
What was not impressive was Dustin May melting down early. Disheartening to me. And, trying to finish with Davis?????? WTF????
Really liked Pages banging that HR. Nice wrist action and big-time power. That’s the guy we thought we had all along.
Finishing with Davis was simply because today’s game is going to be a bullpen game. Casparius and Dreyer will probably get some bulk innings today. Had Scott not hung one, we would not even be talking about Davis. Had the offense gotten anything from Ohtani and Betts, we would not be talking about a loss either. Ohtani is ofer since he returned and Betts is mired in a slump.
Bote is still on the restricted list at AAA ever since he invoked his upward mobility clause in his contract. He hasn’t been able to land a job with another team as of this time.
Sirota with the dong.
A dong? Really?
Dodgers Digest reject prolly
I wondered why they brought up Davis and was surprised he was even on the 40 man. His era in OKC was over 7! Didn’t they have anyone better to bring up instead?
Apparently not.
AF tries on relievers like women try on jeans.
Define better?
like better performer?
better use of an option?
better use of MLB time?
better use of someone you can DFA when you need the 40 man slot?
Ok I’ll give this one a shot here…..
Let’s define better….
Anyone with a career MLB ERA under 7
Anyone who allows less than seven earned runs per nine innings pitched.
Anyone who can consistently record outs as a major league pitcher.
Anyone who can pitch batting practice.
Anyone who can put on the uniform, stand on the mound and throw to home plate.
Anyone not a journeyman reliever who is a waste of a roster spot.
Anyone not named Miguel Rojas.
I think I just did it.
There is a lot of room to get better on this roster. Whether thru current players improving or replacing the underperformers. Rojas, Muncy, Kike, Taylor, Conforto, and Barnes come to mind.
Not really, well kinda. You intentionally or unintentionally overlook the complexities with options, MLB playing time, or 40 man space. But I don’t think you care about that stuff.
I care to a certain extent. I don’t however believe that roster spot limitations, or Options force the Dodgers to waste roster spots and use softball league pitchers in high leverage situations.
I think they could do better, if they chose too.
Banda had a plus 7 ERA when they got him. They see stuff we do not. He has turned into a decent bullpen piece.
They traded for the guy, obviously they felt he could contribute something. He won’t be on the roster come September. This loss isn’t on Davis. This loss is on May.
I disagree. We were up 10-7 in the 8th with 2 out. And 2 reliable bullpen guys blew it. It happens, but the loss is still on them.
Have to agree with you Bobby. May was not good but the offense bailed him out and put us in a position to win the game. The bullpen freaking blew it.
Yeah, this is an easy one. Bullpen loss. Erase it and move on.
I dislike the Cubs so my only solace is Kyle Tucker is going to sign for $500m with a team not in Chicago.
Cubs have a great offense right now but depth could be an issue. Busch looks terrific this year.
https://athlonsports.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/kyle-tuckers-agency-reportedly-reveals-extension-price-for-star
I”ve never really watched Tucker play (I know our fearless leader Jeff has loved him).
But now that I watch him, wow he is an ELITE player! He will be a much better value going forward than Juan Soto and his $760mil deal.
Agree, he’s damn good. And he is officially the kind of hitter where you when his turn is coming up in the lineup. I was yelling at the screen yesterday with my son to pitch around him.
Yes I have always loved Kyle Tucker. He is one that I would have overspent for and then worry about signing later.
12m/$500 vs. 10y/$475
Smart agent!
Yes, I think that could get it done, possibly even this year if the Cubs were willing to meet it.
And I disagree with that. Your starting pitcher has to set the tone. May put them behind the 8 ball after they scored 3 in the top of the first, something they have not done much. They got to 5-4 with Pages homer. Then May gives up 2 more. Had he pitched better, they would not have had to use the pen as much.
May certainly did not help our cause yesterday. I think we can safely say that the pitching as a whole lost the game for us. And May was the biggest part of that collapse.
Agreed. The thing was, he looked out of sync from the first pitch. They had three hits within the first seven pitches.
I don’t think he was out of sync. I think he didn’t have his good stuff and battled as best he could.
I thought May’s stuff was flat. I didn’t see the usually late movement on the arm side runner that’s usually a heat seeker and his breaking ball didn’t have any teeth. Just one of those days when he had bad stuff over too much of the plate. As we know 1/3 of the time your stuff is sharp. A third is okay and you make do. And a 1/3 your stuff sucks and you do the best you can to eat some innings and keep you’re team in the game.
That’s baseball.
I know it’s early but games pissed away in August count as much as games in September. I’m not as lenient with poor play because “it’s early”.
*I had concerns early on about out bench constructions. I’m not opposed to utility players offering versatility but how many do we need?
*I wanted CT3 gone. Still do. Nothing personal but so far with his 12 at bats and role as a 9th inning defensive replacement for Conforto at the tune of 15 million a year (or 12?), he’s a waste.
*I hear bitching about Rojas (.147) and CT3 but the head scratcher to me is Kike. As I previously mentioned he’s a fan favorite and praised as being Mr. October. Again, I’d like to see him be Mr. April. I can’t wait 6 months for him to hit .275 in October.
Kike has been a regular in the line-up playing in 18 of 24 games. I know he filled in for Freddie while he was down. But he plays somewhere everyday. In that role. he’s at .136./.557, with a 35% K-rate. I don’t get it.
Oh, yeah, it’s early.
I would like to see a better bench in the not too distant future, if one of Kike, CT3 of Rojas don’t get going. I am partial to Rojas for his defense and leadership and way less enthusiastic about CT3 and Kike.
*I would be good with a youngster given a chance and being available off the bench.
One thought is the youngsters need to get innings in MiLB. Well with the age of our veterans, it isn’t a sin to have a young player or two on the bench learning the ropes and preparing to become regulars next season. They might provide a spark off the Dodger bench and not in AAA or AA. They can’t be much worse than we are seeing.
Way too much dead weight now. But again – it’s early.
Taylor didn’t lose last night’s game though and the only time we post long lists of negative things is after a loss.
That is not true in my case.
Doom is imminent
What does that mean Johnny? “Doom is Imminent”
My MO is to point out baseball stuff, frequently from a player’s or coach’s perspective. Some is praise and positive and some is critical where improvement is needed.
You lost me here.
I am ready to see some of the players from our highly thought of farm system get some playing time in the show. Looking forward to some big changes next year. I want someone to let me know when it is no longer “early”. I’ll give it until mid May.
Usually, managers say it is around 50 games in when they have a good idea what kind of team they have. LA gave Outman 37 games before he was sent down last year. Doc said he is giving Pages 130 plate appearances. He is half-way there now. Doubt you will see Freeland unless someone goes down to an injury. Rushing is catching about every third day. Then playing left sometimes.
Yep, 50 games. That is around mid to late May. I am hoping Muncy and Conforto can improve. That would go a long way in solving some of our current offensive woes.
Dodgers fiftieth game is on May 21 at Dodger Stadium against the D-Backs. Muncy and Conforto have to improve, a lot. There is no question about that. You could see the frustration on Muncy’s face when he hit that long fly out. It was even worse when he struck out in the 10th. Conforto looks the same no matter how he is playing.
To be blunt, no one really expected much from Taylor, Barnes, and Rojas offensively. Perhaps a bit more than they are currently producing. I think we did expect more from Kike. Pages is being tried out to see what he can do. Our biggest problems right now are Ohtani and Betts slumping somewhat and Muncy and Conforto are just not getting it done.
I get it Bear. Playing shitty is no fun. I was one for 32 once and kids on the street were telling me how to hit. But invariably it’s a production business. This isn’t Boy’s Town.
The question is how much rope is given and one of the reasons Doc is a Players Skipper is he gives veterans time to play out of their funks.
My problems is the number of guys who need to play out of their funks.
Minor correction, Roberts said 150 plate appearances not 130.
Strength of the farm system is its teenage hitters and overall depth. Aside from Rushing, Freeland & Frasso, not much is above AA.
Kike has never been great in the regular season, but he usually isn’t this bad either. I think he felt playing first made him have to hit for power, and of course when Kike tries to do that, he ends up striking out a lot and rolling over on pitches.
Fans are going to panic. The players aren’t and certainly the owners and front office are not in panic mode yet. Yes, losses in April and March can come back to haunt you. But they are in Chicago at Wrigley. Some very weird things have happened in that ballpark. And the Cubs are not some second-class team. They have some very good players. I would venture that some of the players are very frustrated at this point, especially Muncy and Conforto. I would think they both feel they can play a lot better. But after watching the way Freidman conducts business over these last 10 years, I can say with some confidence that he makes no knee jerk moves this early. By mid-May, things might be a lot different. But with 2 of their top five players slumping, Ohtani and Betts, they will need the bottom of the lineup to step up and play a lot better.
Who’s panicking? Why is it when people analyze a rough loss, that the team should have won is “panicking”. We’re not throwing chairs against the wall or anything, but the club could have easily won yesterday.
We can ask questions here, and should. The loss yesterday was pathetic, and I wouldn’t be surprised with another pathetic loss today.
Cubs DFAd Workman and bought the contract of Nicky Lopez.
SP Ben Casparius R
2-0 4.11 ERA
SP Matthew Boyd L
1-2 2.01 ERA
Lineup:
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
RF T. Hernandez R
1B F. Freeman L
2B Tommy Edman S
CF Andy Pages R
LF M. Conforto L
3B Miguel Rojas R
C A. Barnes R
I really don’t get not playing Smith today. Especially as this is a bullpen game and we will most likely need all the offense we can get. And we have an off day tomorrow.
He’s injured
Thanks. I did not know that. What is his injury?
Sore hand from tagging a guy out last night at the plate
*wrist
Happens a lot to catchers. He will be ok.
Well this is not good news.
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/04/dodgers-shut-down-blake-snell.html
The worst
*wrost
Not good at all. Here is where that depth is supposed to kick in.
Buh-bye
I was never in favor of signing him. The FO needs to rethink their pitching choices. We are melting down and its a continuation of what we’ve been dealing with for the last few years. AF relies on dice.
Funny note from Shaikin:
Just before Opening Day, the Angels sent P Jose Suarez to the Braves for P Ian Anderson.
Monday: Braves DFA Suarez.
Today: Angels DFA Anderson.
What’s Jethro Tull going to now with now without their lead singer and flute player?
😀
Per Harris:
Blake Snell was supposed to throw another bullpen this week in Chicago, but it was canceled after he still “didn’t feel great” in catch play yesterday, Dave Roberts said
Snell will get re-examined when the team returns home, but Roberts said he’s not concerned right now
Roberts said the Dodgers are “gonna slow-play the throwing” with Snell for now
“Part of the messaging from us to Blake is, it’s about later on in the season,” Roberts said. “And if there’s any type of discomfort, let’s not try to fight through it.”
I think I’d rather have Joe pitching rather than Noah
Ohtani is just so off balance right now. Nice Barnes.
Aren’t you guys glad the Dodgers picked up Noah Davis and held him back to pitch in this game?
So we don’t even make a throw on a guy stealing third now?
it was a double steal, so no throw to second either.
So what. It’s ridiculous how many steals we give up. And many without even a throw. You just cannot give up steals of third base!
Don’t worry there will soon be the chief LADC apologist on here soon to offer some excuse for this horrible BP.
“You could hit a thousand foul balls down that line and none of them would be foul”. Orel Hershiser.
He says something like this every night.
dreyer has been good and will be.
muncy has been good and may not be
barnes may be playing high
They suck right now Bluto.
The losses will continue to pile up.
But what about that Dodger depth? Noah Davis should be sent out. Shohei looking feeble in the ninth inning striking out without as much as a whimper. Swinging wildly with his rear-end flying wide open. Got to get locked in.
Back to performing, Scott!
I’m not performing Bluto. They’ve been bad for weeks now. 8-10 over their last 18 games. The pitching staff allowed 17 runs this series.
Just stop.
Why not use #firefraudman?
tell me to enjoy losing?
it’s all performance with you, bad performance but performance
Have I said any of those things?
You’re wrong and way off base.
You are just out of touch with reality.
I look forward to your high quality comments on this board after a two game win streak.
You are an arrogant know it all. Yet you know very little.
That streak could happen playing Pittsburgh and Miami.
The box score tonight shows 5 hitters with batting averages below .200. That won’t continue of course, but it’s notable.
Pittsburgh changed their rotation starts. Paul Skenes was supposed to start on Thursday but was pushed back to pitch against LAD on Friday.
Cubs are good and may be even better
I am not sure who the chief LADC apologist is, but there do seem to be a lot of Chicken Little’s.
Just waiting for the first; “we gotta blow this team up.” Or Roberts needs to be fired
Not one poster said this here today.
It’s just silly. So referencing a book for Kindergarten is apropos.
I’ll mention this again as it continues to be on my mind. Ohtani looks unfocused. He was initially scheduled to be ready to pitch in May. That’s coming up. Is it possible that is weighing heavily on his mind? Also, Mookie has spent a lot of time and energy trying to get better at playing shortstop. Has that possibly taken away from his focus at the plate?
And this; it’s still April and we are seeing bullpen games and minor league pitchers already being brought up. I figured these things were eventually going to happen, but not this early.
Yes the team is still at the top of the standings, but I think you gotta admit there’s some weird stuff going on with this team. Bumps in the road or cause for concern? Beats me. I’m just a fan.
Ohtani just did welcome his first child.
Love that post, Badger just not sure anything is weird.
The team hasn’t hit their stride, that’s not weird.
Not sure about anyone else but this season hasn’t really seemed to get going or perhaps flowing yet.
A trip to Japan and a 2 game start on everyone else has meant a number of days off early in the season (there’s another tonight) and it’s all felt a bit weird.
Key pieces, Mookie, Freddie, Shohei and Will have all missed time, and again it’s only my observation, but it feels like the Bullpen is already being asked to do a lot of work.
I think we will see an upturn in form once we settle down into the season proper, with more games and the opportunity to get some consistency.