As everybody knew going into the game, it was literally a must-win contest for the Dodgers, as the magic number of the Cardinals was one for the final playoff spot in the National League. —– Buster Posey started the scoring in the top of second inning with a homer off Chris Capuano. A Luis Cruz RBI groundout knotted the game ... Read More »
I previously complimented (sorta) Ned Colletti for potentially taking a sabermetric stance on the issue of Andre Ethier hitting against lefties, but after reading the rest of the interview with Barry Bloom of MLB.com, perhaps I spoke too soon. MLB.com: Do you think there has been enough time for all these parts to fit together? Colletti: What guys have been ... Read More »
Barry Bloom of MLB.com revealed through an interview that Ned Colletti and the Dodger coaching staff got into a bit of an argument after Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to the Padres. MLB.com: So there was a little blowup in the clubhouse after Tuesday night’s loss here. We heard that was you. Colletti: I had a passionate exchange in the coach’s room. ... Read More »
Since the execution of The Trade on August 25th, the Dodgers have gone from scoring 4.0 runs per game to 3.1 runs per game. What was already a mediocre offense in the bottom third of the league has scored the second fewest runs in all of baseball since the start of September. Adrian Gonzalez was supposed to be the impact ... Read More »
Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness: Mike Petriello asks whether we should start worrying about Andre Ethier. Go over and read the whole thing, but he brings up points I wanted to address: The obvious answer is that it’s yet another injury, but I’m not sure it’s that simple. Yes, he strained his oblique in San Francisco at the end of June ... Read More »
The quote found in the title basically sums up Don Mattingly‘s logic when he was asked about Andre Ethier‘s struggles against lefties, as reported by Eric Stephen of True Blue LA. Part of the struggles for Ethier have been against left-handed pitchers, against whom Ethier is hitting .218/.282/.315 this season. But don’t expect Mattingly to pinch hit for Ethier in ... Read More »
Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw are the two Dodgers who will represent the team at the 2012 All-Star Game. Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw are headed back to the All-Star game. Kemp and Kershaw were selected to their second National League All-Star teams Sunday. Both players made their All-Star debuts last year. Both played well enough, but both partially got ... Read More »
Yahoo! Sports: Jeff Passan writes about MLB‘s ridiculous blackout policy. I wrote about my issues with it here. —– FanGraphs: Dave Cameron‘s “Stat Nerd NL All-Star Roster” includes A.J. Ellis and Clayton Kershaw, but Andre Ethier just misses. —– Baseball Prospectus: Doug Thorburn dissects the slide step and doesn’t think it’s worth implementing. It is my contention that most pitchers ... Read More »
The Dodgers got … positive news on a potentially serious injury? That truly is a shocker. The Dodgers got some much-needed good news on Thursday, when an MRI on Andre Ethier’s strained left oblique showed no swelling. The right fielder is listed as day to day and likely will avoid a trip to the disabled list. “Yesterday I assumed we ... Read More »
Andre Ethier injured his left oblique yesterday, in what can only amount to a “It seriously can’t get any worse now, can it?” moment for Dodgers fans. The Dodgers will await the results of the MRI exam for Andre Ethier, which he will take on Thursday morning. But it seems clear that Ethier, who injured his left oblique on a ... Read More »
R.J. Anderson looked at Ned Colletti‘s trade history over at Baseball Prospectus and wondered why Dodgers fans are so worried about him. Colletti’s evaluation mistakes cost the Dodgers two middle-of-the-rotation starters, an All-Star catcher, and a good fourth outfielder at most. But what about the flip side? What about when Colletti correctly evaluated his own prospects? Silver wrote, “One of ... Read More »
So according to Alex Angert of MLB.com, the Dodgers are winning because they like each other … or something to that effect. But in the Dodgers’ clubhouse, it provides the best possible answer as to why this mixed-and-matched bunch of journeymen and callups have been able to string together the best record in baseball at 42-25. Not a surprising article, ... Read More »
Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness: Mike Petriello once feared the exact deal that Andre Ethier signed, and while he holds some concerns, he finds it hard to argue against the deal. What interests me more right now is trying to figure out just how much a big 2012 could enhance Ethier’s value on the market, because there’s a big difference between ... Read More »
Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier agreed to an extension with the team yesterday, and he’ll now be locked in with the franchise for the next five years for a sum of $85 million. Additionally, there’s a vesting option for a sixth year for an additional $15 million. Ethier close to deal with #Dodgers that would be guaranteed for $85M over 5 ... Read More »
Matt Kemp will head to the disabled list with a hamstring problem and Jerry Sands will take his place. The Dodgers lost their best player on Monday night as Matt Kemp was placed on the disabled list with a left hamstring strain. The news was pretty much expected since before the game, when manager Don Mattingly, Kemp, and the training ... Read More »
Chad Moriyama Dodgers, Sabermetrics, Scouting