|
|
Post by Bklyn_LA on May 16, 2018 5:14:48 GMT
Dodgers (sigh):
coming off their first World Series appearance in nearly three decades with five consecutive division titles will there be a number six one can certainly wonder as they are currently going through a stretch they haven’t gone through in a long period of time, you can put this on the health of the team as well.
Currently, L.A. is missing 3/4 of their infield. Alex Wood is the only starter from the original five-man rotation who hasn’t had injury concerns. Every day it appears the Dodgers are throwing a new team out there and we have yet to see a fully healthy ball club, YET!.
Blame, who gets it?:
Doc, Dave Roberts’ spot at least some fans and pundits alike may think. After the rough start, many are saying the Dodgers need to fire Roberts, which is a little extreme when you consider lack of execution by players, and the ever-growing "disabled list" Oh, not to mention coming up one game short of winning it all, however, a lot of pressure is on Roberts - Especially now to WIN!. Front Office Brass; Andrew Friedman, the president of baseball operations, is backing Dave Roberts to the hilt including the future of manager - Mr. Roberts.
Andrew Friedman:
"There is no doubt in my, and try to solve problems"mind that he is the right guy to lead this team going forward. The way our minds work is not to assign blame to anyone at this point. It’s to hunker down, all together".
Friedman is more than comfortable in saying; any blame at this point, it should be him (Andrew Friedman) taking that arrow, and not Doc".
Analysis:
How did we get here? Now, the Dodgers did lose two of their best bullpen pieces, with a few exceptions, every player from 2017 team has returned for 2018 season. Not including tonight's loss to Miami the Dodger bullpen has an ERA of 4.51, which is No. 22 in the MLB with 10 losses, all of which equates to the second worst in baseball.
Question:
Is Friedman to blame or does that responsibility fall onto someone else...plus?
|
|
|
|
Post by dodger1214 on May 16, 2018 6:48:06 GMT
80% Friedman. Letting Morrow walk was upsetting but understandable. But he should've tried harder to keep Watson. That left our bullpen extremely vulnerable and it's forcing them to use guys such as Hudson and Chargois, and it's not going well.
About 10% on Roberts/coaching staff. He hasn't had a full hand to deal with. But is inability to handle a pitching staff has hurt the team, as has his refusal to play small ball. If the front office is telling him not to do so, he needs to push back and say "this is how we're doing it. What we've done so far isn't working."
The rest goes on the players. Guys like Taylor and Barnes, who were huge contributors last year, have regressed badly and are staring at too many close pitches. Puig has often fallen back into bad habits, though he's looked good lately. Bellinger is a mess at the plate, Grandal is too streaky and often cold. Muncy is pretty much useless. Plus, everyone is swinging for the fences overtime. They need to shorten their swings and look to go opposite field.
That's how I see it at the moment.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bklyn_LA on May 16, 2018 12:12:25 GMT
With out even mentioning the rest of the team - Taylor, and Barnes - I just think back to last year and how difficult it was to get them out at the plate - The last time I looked, Taylor was a good 80 plus points south of the Mason-Dixon off of where his batting average should be. Meanwhile, Austin Barnes was a scrappy little dude whom at that time, reminded me a bit of a combination of; Phil Garner and Brett Butler as a pest who found ways to get on base!
|
|
|
|
Post by Blunashun on May 16, 2018 13:31:27 GMT
IF Friedman & Zaidi are dictating the style of ball this club plays, they need to knock it off. Yes, Dave Roberts told them whatever they wanted to hear to get the job. Yes, it helps to have the manager & front office on the same page. No, a college baseball player shouldn't tell a former major leaguer that he can't do this or that. Otherwise, why bother with a field manager? Scapegoat in waiting? You can just call down instructions from the booth without a manager. The very definition of insanity is doing the same thing over & over & expecting a different result. What we had & did last year worked. Worked great. This is a new year though & it isn't working anymore. Probably because of the missing & slumping players. So try something different & don't be so darn predictable.
I'd also like to know why our formerly aggressive hitters are taking so many called strikes. Taylor has remarkable hand to eye coordination & would make contact on pitches he had no business swinging at. But he DID make contact.
I also didn't like Roberts calling Bellinger out in public. You do that stuff in private. Just like I'd give Cody a few days of 'rest' against southpaws until he gets the message I'm platooning you until you start doing better against lefties. Get in the cage.
|
|
|
|
Post by trueblew on May 17, 2018 2:35:01 GMT
I don't know who to blame when almost the whole team is underperforming. Was last year an aberration? The two biggest difference were Taylor and Bellinger in the offense.
Taylor was almost unbelievable last year. It's hard to believe this is the same guy now. Perhaps his swing got too long and he's having trouble dialing it back. Maybe they didn't season Bellinger enough. He rocketed through the minor leagues, had little time for the opposing pitchers in the minors to adjust. Then he got rushed to the majors with a big hole in his swing that the league is finally exploiting.
As far as pitching, getting under that luxury tax is painful and the lesser named guys that they acquired are not impressing at all. Morrow was a huge loss, but they had to pass.
It just may be one of those seasons where we have to bear it until next year.
|
|
|
|
Post by 88bulldog on May 17, 2018 19:05:03 GMT
80% Friedman. Letting Morrow walk was upsetting but understandable. But he should've tried harder to keep Watson. That left our bullpen extremely vulnerable and it's forcing them to use guys such as Hudson and Chargois, and it's not going well. About 10% on Roberts/coaching staff. He hasn't had a full hand to deal with. But is inability to handle a pitching staff has hurt the team, as has his refusal to play small ball. If the front office is telling him not to do so, he needs to push back and say "this is how we're doing it. What we've done so far isn't working." The rest goes on the players. Guys like Taylor and Barnes, who were huge contributors last year, have regressed badly and are staring at too many close pitches. Puig has often fallen back into bad habits, though he's looked good lately. Bellinger is a mess at the plate, Grandal is too streaky and often cold. Muncy is pretty much useless. Plus, everyone is swinging for the fences overtime. They need to shorten their swings and look to go opposite field. That's how I see it at the moment. So you're saying that keeping Watson would have made a difference of maybe 10 or 15 games so far... got it. BTW, his WAR this year so far is 0.6. Ridiculous. |
|
|
|
Post by Blunashun on May 26, 2018 20:21:21 GMT
Turner has returned, Kenley is Kenley again, Matt Kemp has been great, Ross Stripling has been awesome, Walker Buehler has been unreal, Kenta Maeda is on fire, Max Muncy has been a very pleasant surprise & the Dodgers start winning again with Kershaw on the DL. Still wish they ran more.
|
|
|
|
Post by Bklyn_LA on May 28, 2018 0:20:48 GMT
Turner has returned, Kenley is Kenley again, Matt Kemp has been great, Ross Stripling has been awesome, Walker Buehler has been unreal, Kenta Maeda is on fire, Max Muncy has been a very pleasant surprise & the Dodgers start winning again with Kershaw on the DL. Still wish they ran more. I was at all the games this past weekend =Excusing Saturday nights stumble= Dodgers just might have turned the corner if the Dodgers can "just stay healthy" that their ticket to the "top of the pops" the Muncinator is this year Chris Taylor, MM hit the ball hard as I've gotten up close looks at his swing and watch the ball jump off his bat. That tells me a lot! If need be, they'll run more and I would be interesting to see how much playing time Puig will get his aggressive style lends to the run game! |
|
|
|
Post by Blunashun on May 28, 2018 0:23:44 GMT
Turner has returned, Kenley is Kenley again, Matt Kemp has been great, Ross Stripling has been awesome, Walker Buehler has been unreal, Kenta Maeda is on fire, Max Muncy has been a very pleasant surprise & the Dodgers start winning again with Kershaw on the DL. Still wish they ran more. I was at all the games this past weekend =Excusing Saturday nights stumble= Dodgers just might have turned the corner if the Dodgers can "just stay healthy" that their ticket to the "top of the pops" the Muncinator is this year Chris Taylor, MM hit the ball hard as I've gotten up close looks at his swing and watch the ball jump off his bat. That tells me a lot! If need be, they'll run more and I would be interesting to see how much playing time Puig will get his aggressive style lends to the run game! He's playing for a contract. |
|
|
|
Post by Bklyn_LA on May 28, 2018 0:38:26 GMT
I was at all the games this past weekend =Excusing Saturday nights stumble= Dodgers just might have turned the corner if the Dodgers can "just stay healthy" that their ticket to the "top of the pops" the Muncinator is this year Chris Taylor, MM hit the ball hard as I've gotten up close looks at his swing and watch the ball jump off his bat. That tells me a lot! If need be, they'll run more and I would be interesting to see how much playing time Puig will get his aggressive style lends to the run game! He's playing for a contract. Oh, I understand that $ = motivation but personally I want WS in LA NOW I don't care how they do it, as long as it done and I can't wait another 30 years. If this was 1988 and you told me that the Dodgers would not be in another WS -let alone- win one for 29 years plus - I 'd would have said you're crazy - flash fwd 2018 - and Yet here I stand! NO Dodger WS Rings in hand! |
|
