Chad Moriyama Dodgers, Sabermetrics, Scouting
The Dodgers are currently three games back of the Cardinals for the National League‘s final playoff spot. Los Angeles has a 3.1% (-1.4% since yesterday) chance of making the playoffs according to Cool Standings and a 4.0% (-1.7% since yesterday) chance according to Baseball Prospectus.
After Clayton Kershaw threw a gem yesterday, the Dodgers sit seven games above .500, but Edwin Jackson laid an egg for the Nationals, so the Dodgers remained three back of the playoffs with the clock getting closer to zero.
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For today’s game, the Dodgers send Joe Blanton to the mound against Tyler Chatwood, and they’re -200 betting favorites to win (66.7%). Additionally, AccuScore has the Dodgers winning at a 67% clip. The Cardinals send Kyle Lohse to the hill against Jordan Zimmermann and are -115 betting favorites to win (53.5%), and AccuScore has their chances of prevailing at 56%.
It might be surprising to some to see the Dodgers favored by so much with Blanton going, but on paper, the Rockies are a vastly inferior team with the worst pitching staff in the majors, so the Dodgers probably should be taking them to the woodshed. Of course, what this team should be doing and what they actually are doing has been a problem all year long.
The game story I read said that Kershaw felt no pain. I am really hoping that he is telling the truth and not trying to be a “tough guy” as he is in line to pitch the season finale…
I’ll be skeptical of what they say about injuries until the staff can prove that they’re being either truthful or that they’re competent.
I had faith in them to begin the year, and they’ve broken that, so I see no reason to take their word for it now.
By staff do you mean the players themselves or the training staff? For me, both are rather untrustworthy at the moment.
Both?
I defended them to start the year, because they do surely know more than us fans, but one can only have so much faith before it just becomes delusion.