The Dodgers announced their full coaching staff for 2013: Don Mattingly – Manager (3rd Season) Chuck Crim – Bullpen Coach (1st Season) Trey Hillman – Bench Coach (3rd Season) Rick Honeycutt – Pitching Coach (8th Season) Davey Lopes – First Base Coach (3rd Season) Mark McGwire – Hitting Coach (1st Season) Tim Wallach – Third Base Coach (3rd Season) Ken ... Read More »
Andre Ethier Andre Ethier, in his age-30 season and coming off a couple of years in which he had to deal with injuries, spent time on the DL again this past season, which limited him to just 146 games. Oblique injury aside, Dre actually had one of his best campaigns as a pro, posting a ~3.1 WAR that included average ... Read More »
Matt Kemp After an amazingly elite 2011 that saw him finish second in MVP voting — even though he was the best player in the National League last year — Matt Kemp had to spend far too much of 2012 as you see him above. Kemp’s season is really quite easy to break down: when healthy, he was elite, but ... Read More »
Left field has been, is, and will in all likelihood continue to be, a vast wasteland for the Dodgers. That is, unless Carl Crawford returns to his Tampa Bay form in 2013 or the Yasiel Puig era — whenever that actually begins — proves to be worth the wait. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s review 2012, which was ... Read More »
Hanley Ramirez Hanley Ramirez was once a stud shortstop (based solely on his bat, of course), a young player a franchise could build around. Fast forward to 2012 and Han-Ram was just a struggling player acquired by the Dodgers in an effort to upgrade at a position of need and make a run at 2012. Acquired for Nate Eovaldi and ... Read More »
Luis Cruz I can safely say that I’m not the only one who had no idea who Luis Cruz was at the outset of the 2012 season. By the end of it, the once unknown 28-year-old journeyman had become a cult hero in Los Angeles. Heading into 2013, it appears he’ll not only hold down a roster spot, but be the ... Read More »
Mark Ellis Signed to a back-loaded two-year deal in the off-season, Mark Ellis only played in 110 games after nearly losing a leg on the play you see above, posting a ~2.7 WAR in the process. 35 now and turning 36 years of age next summer, Ellis can’t afford to lose anything physically beyond what Father Time was already taking ... Read More »
The Dodgers officially announced the hiring of Mark McGwire as hitting coach, replacing Dave Hansen. McGwire spent the past three years with the Cardinals as their hitting coach. Under his tutelage, the Cards offense was top-five in OBP in each of his seasons at the offensive helm, leading all of baseball last year. McGwire has stated that his philosophy includes ... Read More »
Adrian Gonzalez When the Dodgers acquired Adrian Gonzalez from the Boston Red Sox, I saw a plethora of Dodger fans begin to assert wild and crazy things. Not only were the Dodgers guaranteed of making the playoffs, but they were a lock to make the World Series on the back of a hero who was absolutely the right acquisition because ... Read More »
A.J. Ellis After toiling in the minors for parts of nine seasons with just a couple cups of coffee to show for it, all the while watching the Dodgers treat the catcher position like it was wholly unimportant (trading Carlos Santana, allowing Joe Torre to run Russell Martin into the ground, and Rod Barajas not only being on the team ... Read More »
Javy Guerra, following an injury-plagued 2012 season, underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery on his throwing shoulder. His laundry list of injuries this year ranged from an oblique to a knee to his shoulder to his head. The Dodgers expect him to be fully ready to go by Spring Training, and he’ll be a solid contributor in middle to late relief yet ... Read More »
Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen underwent heart surgery on Tuesday to correct an irregular heartbeat, a procedure we were all aware would occur during the offseason. Jansen’s heart problems have sidelined him for stretches during the 2011 regular season, Spring Training of 2012, and the 2012 regular season. Ken Gurnick reports that Jansen will now be out for at least three ... Read More »
The Dodgers have announced that all members of the 2012 coaching staff will return in 2013 with the lone exception being hitting coach Dave Hansen, whom the club has parted ways with after he spent just over a season in the position. While it’s true that this squad was fairly terrible offensively for most of the season, I can’t and ... Read More »
The Dodgers outrighted both Blake Hawksworth and Matt Angle to AAA yesterday. Neither move is shocking nor particularly noteworthy, but it’s important nonetheless because it frees up a couple of spots on the 40-man roster that has to be set for the Rule 5 Draft by next month. Angle did little for the team both on the field and off ... Read More »
A.J. Ellis underwent knee surgery for a torn meniscus in his left knee. The information, as far as I can tell, was broken on Twitter by his wife. Surgery went well Friday. Recovering and flying home Tuesday! #pregnantwith3babies #ipadteddybear twitter.com/Cindyluellis/s… — Cindy Ellis (@Cindyluellis) October 8, 2012 The necessity of this surgery could probably explain a few of his late-season ... Read More »
Chad Moriyama Dodgers, Sabermetrics, Scouting
