Kind of a quiet week on the farm for the Dodgers affiliates. The Loons went 4-1, but the other three affiliates didn’t play .500 ball.

The pitching seemed to lack this week more than the offense, but there have been some impressive early-season performances thus far.

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Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes (2-5)

Player Of The Week

Scott Van Slyke – 1B

.435/.517/.957/1.474, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 3 2B, 7 R, 5 BB, 4 K

Van Slyke is on fire to start the season. Not only is he hitting the cover off the ball, he’s walking, too. He’s slimmed down and it appears to be helping him. He’s a late-bloomer for sure, but this is ridiculous — in a good way.

Pitcher Of The Week

Matt Magill – RHP

5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K

Magill’s first start wasn’t great, but his second start was much better. He has the skill set to pitch in the Pacific Coast League, especially with his ability to get the strikeout. It’ll be interesting to see how Magill fares in the extreme hitter’s league this season.

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Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts (2-4)

Player Of The Week

Yasiel Puig – OF

.304/.333/.609/.942, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 BB, 5 K

Puig wasn’t as good as last week, but he still was able to smack four extra-base hits while trying to help the mediocre-thus-far Lookouts’ offense. Joc Pederson was a close second.

Pitcher Of The Week

Zach Lee – RHP

7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HR, 1 BB (Intentional), 7 K

Lee pitched like the Dodgers’ best pitching prospect this week, as he spun a gem against the Tennessee Smokies. He’s off to a fast start this season, and could re-establish his prospect status (even though he didn’t do a whole lot to hurt it in 2012) with a strong performance in Double-A.

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High-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (3-4)

Player Of The Week

Scott Wingo – 2B

.400/.571/.467/1.038, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 5 R, 4 BB, 3 K, 2 HBP

Wingo is an on-base machine, or at least he was this week. He gets pushed to the bottom of the lineup thanks to Darnell Sweeney and Noel Cuevas, but it’s nice to have that on-base ability to turn the lineup over.

Pitcher Of The Week

Pedro Baez – RHP

2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

Kind of a rough week for Quakes’ pitching. Ross Stripling pitched relatively well, but still gave up three runs in five innings. Baez is not the Quakes’ closer right now, but he could be by mid-season, due to either promotions or performance.

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Low-A Great Lakes Loons (4-1)

Player Of The Week

Paul Hoenecke – 3B

.476/.500/1.262/1.762, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 3 2B, 7 R, 1 BB, 3 K

Hoenecke has been the Loons’ best hitter by far. He’s providing the middle-of-the-order presence Great Lakes’ terrible offense needs. Corey Seager has struggled (statistically), and the team isn’t getting much offense from anyone else.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ralston Cash – RHP

6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K

Despite giving up six runs in his first start, none of them were earned. That explains the 0.93 ERA and 4.09 FIP this season, but still, he’s striking batters out (15 in 9 2/3 innings). This is a big year for the former second-rounder.

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Dustin Nosler is the founder of the site Feelin’ Kinda Blue. He also co-hosts the weekly podcast Dugout Blues. Follow him on Twitter @FeelinKindaBlue or like his site on Facebook.

All of the Dodgers minor league affiliates were in action this week, even if Chattanooga, Rancho Cucamonga, and Great Lakes played a short week because of its respective All-Star games.

Get used to hearing this: Ogden scored the most runs this week at 66, as the Raptors averaged 11 runs per game. They also gave up the most runs at 46.

The Arizona League began and the Dodger squad, filled with a plethora of 2012 draft picks (Zachary Bird, Justin Chigbogu, Joey Curletta, Jesmuel Valentin), went 4-0 in its first week.

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Notes: Zach Lee was promoted to Double-A Chattanooga from High-A Rancho Cucamonga on Monday. Ryan O’Sullivan was promoted from Low-A Great Lakes to Rancho.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (4-2)

Runs Scored: 38
Runs Allowed: 32

Player Of The Week

Brian Cavazos Galvez – OF

Cavazos-Galvez isn’t getting four at-bats every game, but he’s making the most of his trips to the plate. He went 9-for-19 (.474) this week with a home run, two RBI, a double, and seven runs scored. Cavazos-Galvez is hitting exceptionally well for the Isotopes. If he could handle center field, he’d probably be playing every day. This is his third award of the season.

Pitcher Of The Week

Josh Wall – RHP

Wall earns his first POTW honor by saving three of the Isotopes’ four victories this week: 3 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 3 SV. Wall hit a bit of a rough stretch about a month ago, but has been solid in his last 10 games (1.80 ERA, 10.8 K/9) and could be the next player recalled if the Dodgers need yet another bullpen option.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (1-3)

Runs Scored: 16
Runs Allowed: 20

Player Of The Week

Rafael Ynoa – 2B

Ynoa wins his second award by going 7-for-11 (.636) with two doubles, four RBI, two runs, two stolen bases, and four walks. It was a great four games for him, but it wasn’t so great for the rest of the team. On the season, Ynoa has the following line: .260/.345/.329 with 13 stolen bases.

Pitcher Of The Week

Allen Webster – RHP

Webster finally seems to be rounding into form. He earned his second consecutive honor by having a really strong outing: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 K. He’s made four starts since returning to the starting rotation and fared well: 21 IP, 13 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 7 BB, 26 K, 1.71 ERA, 0.95 WHIP. That’s the Allen Webster we’ve been expecting all season.

Here’s to a strong finish.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (1-3)

Runs Scored: 29
Runs Allowed: 43

Player Of The Week

Jonathan Garcia – RF

I certainly thought we’d see Garcia on this list earlier than this, but he’s here now after going 9-for-19 (.474) with two home runs, seven RBI, a double, and four runs scored. His line on the season isn’t horrible (.266/.283/.447) considering he’s 20 years old and is playing against competition roughly a couple years older than him. However, while the pop is there, the walk rate is not. He’s drawn five walks against 63 strikeouts, and that isn’t going to cut it.

Pitcher Of The Week

Brandon Martinez – RHP

It’s hard to find a guy who threw well when the team gave up 43 runs in four games, but Martinez wins the award this week. He relieved the rehabbing Blake Hawksworth on Friday and pitched fairly well: 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 5 BB, 4 K. Obviously, the walks are the only blemish. Martinez, who started with Great Lakes this season, has thrown surprisingly well for the Quakes this season. He could end up being one of their top pitchers going forward.

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Great Lakes Loons (1-2)

Runs Scored: 11
Runs Allowed: 15

Player Of The Week

Scott Schebler – OF

Schebler takes home his third award in the last four weeks (second straight) by going 4-for-10 with a double, two RBI, two runs scored, and a stolen base. On the season, Schebler is hitting .279/.308/.444 in a pitcher’s league.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ralston Cash – RHP

Cash had the best outing of his season on Saturday for the Loons: 6 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. It’s nice to see him getting work in and averaging five innings per start. Not bad for a guy who hadn’t pitched since 2010.

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Ogden Raptors (6-1)

Runs Scored: 66
Runs Allowed: 46

Player Of The Week

Jesus Valdez – OF/1B

Like the team, Valdez absolutely destroyed Pioneer League pitching this week: 14-for-25 (.560), a double, two triples, seven RBI, 12 runs scored, and three walks. Valdez, 20, is a big kid (6’3″, 180) and is handling Pioneer pitching better than he handled Arizona League pitching last year.

Pitcher Of The Week

Carlos Frias – RHP

It’s going to be difficult finding a Pitcher Of The Week in the Pioneer League, but I’ll make it happen. Frias, who pitched 5 2/3 unsuccessful innings with the Quakes earlier this season, had a decent outing in his first start for the Raptors: 4 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K. He was throwing in the mid-90s with his fastball, so that’s encouraging. However, he is 22 years old, so he should dominate this level.

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Arizona League Dodgers (4-0)

Runs Scored: 36
Runs Allowed: 16

Player Of The Week

Paul Hoenecke – OF/1B

Hoenecke, the Dodgers 24th round pick just a few weeks ago, had himself quite the debut week: 9-for-18 (.500), one home run, six RBI, two doubles, one triple, and four runs scored. Hoenecke is almost 22 years old and could easily be promoted to Ogden if he proves he can handle Arizona League pitching. Drafted as a first baseman, he played one game at first and three in the outfield this week.

Pitcher Of The Week

Jonathan Martinez – RHP

Martinez, who turns 18 on Wednesday, threw the best game for the AZL Dodgers this week: 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K. He pitched in the Dominican Summer League last year and handled himself pretty well. He might be a pitcher to keep an eye on in Arizona.

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Dominican Summer League Dodgers (5-1)

Runs Scored: 55
Runs Allowed: 34

Player Of The Week

Josmar Cordero – 1B/C

Cordero wins this award for the second consecutive week by going 13-for-28 (.464) with two home runs, nine RBI, three doubles, and 10 runs cored. Cordero has a ridiculous .469/.506/.716 line and needs to be moved up as he has absolutely nothing left to prove in the Dominican Summer League. Gerson Nunez gave Cordero a run for his money this week (.519/.552/.630), but fell just short.

Pitcher Of The Week

Jhouse Bermudez – LHP

I promise I’m not being lazy. Bermudez, like Cordero, wins this honor for the second straight week by posting the following line: 11 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 7 BB, 10 K. He’s won all four games he’s started for the DSL Dodgers and owns a 0.86 ERA. He’s walked 11 batters in 21 innings, and that’s the only blemish on his record thus far.

Quakes 3B C.J. Retherford hits against the Stockton Ports on June 5th. Photo: Dustin Nosler

Someone break up the Quakes. Rancho Cucamonga went 7-0 this week, thanks largely in part to my attendance on Tuesday and Wednesday. All kidding aside, the Quakes got some great pitching and some timely hitting to catapult them into a first place tie in their division with the Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego Padres) at 34-30. With six games left in the first half, the Quakes are in a good position to win the division. They have the Lancaster Jethawks (Houston Astros) and High Desert Mavericks (Seattle Mariners) this week.

The Isotopes great week is overshadowed by the Quakes performance. The team hit well and pitched exceptionally well (until giving up 11 runs yesterday). Still, 25 runs allowed in seven games in the Pacific Coast League? Yeah, I’ll take that.

The Lookouts were shortened this week by rain. They were rained out on Saturday and a Sunday doubleheader was also rained out.

The Loons allowed the fewest runs this week at 18. The ‘Topes scored the most at 44.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (5-1)

Runs Scored: 44
Runs Allowed: 25

Player Of The Week

Brian Cavazos Galvez – OF

The Isotopes had a nice week at the plate, but no one was hotter than Cavazos-Galvez: 9-for-16 (.562) with a double, a triple, three RBI, and two runs scored. He struggled so much in the Southern League (.167/.233/.359), it’s almost amazing to see him tearing up PCL pitching (.364/.397/.622). This is Cavazos-Galvez’s second award in the last three weeks.

Pitcher Of The Week

John Ely  – RHP

Ely takes his third POTW award by throwing the ball well in one appearance: 6 2/3 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 K. Ely has been fantastic for the Isotopes this season, as he’s fourth in the PCL in ERA (3.22, among pitchers with at least 50 IP), leads in strikeouts (78), and is third in K/9 among starting pitchers (9.7).

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him back in the majors sometime this season.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (2-3)

Runs Scored: 20
Runs Allowed: 22

Player Of The Week

Brahiam Maldonado – OF

Signed as a free agent earlier this season, Maldonado just barely beat out Blake Smith for this week’s award by going 7-for-16 (.437) with two doubles, two triples, four RBI, and four runs scored. The 26-year-old is hitting significantly better with the Lookouts (.364/.435/.628) than he did with the New York Mets Double-A affiliate (.094/.147/.094).

Pitcher Of The Week

Aaron Miller – LHP

Miller had the best outing of any Lookouts pitcher this week: 5 IP, 6 , 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K. While his WHIP wasn’t great, he did strikeout more batters than he pitched innings.

Miller has been up and down this season for the Lookouts, but there’s obviously still potential in his left arm. He needs to start throwing more innings per start (only 5 IP in five of his last six starts).

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (7-0)

Runs Scored: 39
Runs Allowed: 19

Player Of The Week

C.J. Retherford – 3B

Retherford had perhaps the best week of anyone not named Alex Castellanos this season. He went 13-for-28 (.464) with six home runs, 11 RBI, eight runs scored, and two stolen bases. His triple slash has skyrocketed in the last 10 games and now sits at .337/.369/.631. He was named the California League‘s Player Of The Week. It marks the second week in a row a Quake has won it, as Michael Pericht won it last week.

The only bad thing about this is the fact Retherford is 26 years old in the Cal League, but he hit the cover off the ball this week, regardless. This is Retherford’s second award.

Pitcher Of The Week

Jon Michael Redding – RHP

Redding started on Tuesday and had a fantastic outing. He retired 17 hitters in a row at one point. Redding’s numbers for the week were solid: 14 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 14 K. As a 24-year-old in High-A, he isn’t much of a prospect. He is what he is — a soft-tossing righty who relies on control to be successful.

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Great Lakes Loons (2-4)

Runs Scored: 18
Runs Allowed: 18

Player Of The Week

O’Koyea Dickson – 1B/DH

It was another off week offensively for the Loons, but Dickson managed to put up decent numbers in five games: 6-for-18 (.333), one home run, four RBI, three runs scored, two walks, and one strikeout. On the season, the slugging first baseman is up to .325/.428/.561 on the year. He should get a promotion soon — perhaps after the All-Star break. This is Dickson’s third award.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ryan O’Sullivan – RHP

Last year’s fourth-round pick topped Ralston Cash for this week’s award with two stellar outings: 15 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 9 K.  As a groundball pitcher, he isn’t going to get a lot of strikeouts — and hasn’t this season (6.4 K/9). But he’s been effective against Midwest League hitters and might get a look in Rancho before the season is out.

His 2.77 ERA, 1.05 WHIP .199 BAA lead the team (among starting pitchers with enough innings) and is second to Jarret Martin in innings pitched (65 1/3 to 65). This is O’Sullivan’s second award.

This was an interesting week in the minors. The Isotopes actually looked like they were playing in the Pacific Coast League, scoring 45 runs in seven games (6.4 runs per game) while giving up 57 runs (8.1). Despite that, they were still be better than .500 this week. Of course, they got a little help from Matt Kemp and Juan Rivera in Sunday’s game.

The Quakes only scored 16 runs on the week, and that’s not a typo. The Lookouts gave up the fewest runs with 27. That pitching staff, despite the promotions, is really stepping up.

The Loons should get a boost this week from new additions Angelo Songco and Ralston Cash, both of whom made their season debuts Monday.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (4-3)

Runs Scored: 45
Runs Allowed: 57

Player Of The Week

Brian Cavazos-Galvez – OF

Despite struggling mightily in Double-A, Cavazos-Galvez, local to New Mexico, is flourishing with the Isotopes. He went 11-for-24 (.458) with a home run, seven RBI, three doubles, a triple, and six runs scored. I wouldn’t get too terribly excited; Cavazos-Galvez has done well in the hitter’s league and has struggled in the pitcher’s league this season.

Pitcher Of The Week

John Ely – RHP

Can there really be a Pitcher Of The Week when the staff allowed 57 runs in seven games? Sure. This week, it’s Ely. Elymania posted a great line this week: 14 IP, 11 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 13 K. This is his second POTW honor, and it’s really surprising to see such a good performance from him in a week the team allowed so many runs. In fact, if you take away Ely’s three runs allowed, the rest of the Isotopes staff allowed 54 runs. That’s … ugly.

After a rough start to the season, Ely has put up some great numbers in an extreme hitter’s league: 3.58 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 0.7 HR/9, 2.2 BB/9, 9.7 K/9, 4.33 BB/K and a 1.85 groundout to flyout rate. He wouldn’t be nearly this good in the majors, but it’s nice to see him pitching well in case the Dodgers need an emergency starter later this season.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (4-2)

Runs Scored: 31
Runs Allowed: 27

Player Of The Week

Pedro Baez – 3B

Nick Buss pushed hard for this award, but Baez gets the nod this week. He went 8-for-20 (.400) with two home runs, six RBI, a double, and, most encouraging, five walks (against three strikeouts). I have long since given up on Baez being any kind of contributor for the Dodgers, but the talent is there, as his defensive ability at third base has never been questioned. His bat, however, hasn’t lived up to the potential. While he’s hitting just .259, he does have a .360 on-base percentage and is improving his pop a little bit.

Pitcher Of The Week

Ethan Martin – RHP

Martin’s resurgence continues, as he had a good start and a mediocre start this week: 11 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 6 BB, 12 K. The walk total was a bit high this week, but it’s still pretty good by Martin’s standards. He’s holding opposing hitters to a .190 batting average and has given up just three home runs this season.

With Nate Eovaldi‘s promotion to Los Angeles (for now), Martin is vying with Matt Magill for the role of Chattanooga‘s ace — something I bet no one was expecting coming into the season (on both accounts).

The Southern League, however, doesn’t agree with my pick as Magill was named league’s Pitcher of the Week (for the second time this season) on Tuesday. He had a fantastic outing on Thursday: 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 10 K.  Seems I should have gone with him instead of Martin, but I’m standing by my choice.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (2-4)

Runs Scored: 16
Runs Allowed: 31

Player Of The Week

Austin Gallagher – 1B/DH

This was slim pickins, as the Quakes scored an unimpressive 16 runs in six games this week. Gallagher was the best of the bunch, going 7-for-22 (.318) with two doubles, two RBI, three walks, and a run scored. Like I said, slim. Gallagher, who earns his second POTW award, is still hitting with some pop, posting a .483 slugging percentage on the season. However, I’d like to see his .264 average come up substantially.

Pitcher Of The Week

Angel Sanchez – RHP

Wasn’t much to get excited about this week on the hill for the Quakes. Chris Reed made his return and Scott McGough was solid out of the bullpen, but Angel Sanchez had one of his best starts of the season, earning him this week’s honor: 6 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K. Sanchez has been a bit up and down this season, but hopefully this outing gets him going. He’s issued just two walks in his last 27 2/3 innings. Like Gallagher, this is Sanchez’s second POTW award.

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Great Lakes Loons (3-3)

Runs Scored: 33
Runs Allowed: 39

Player Of The Week

James Baldwin – CF

Baldwin just edges out O’Koyea Dickson for the honor this week. It would have been Dickson’s third consecutive award, but instead, this is Baldwin’s second award this season. He went 9-for-24 (.375) with two doubles, two RBI, two walks, and seven stolen bases. Baldwin did most of his damage on May 21st, going 5-for-5 on the day.

Despite the solid week, he’s struggled mightily this season. His power has completely disappeared (six doubles, no triples or home runs) and he’s still striking out far too much (35.2 percent). His potential and talent is unquestioned; the ability to harness said potential is what’s in question.

Pitcher Of The Week

Yimi Garcia – RHP

As you can probably tell from the 39 runs allowed in six games, it wasn’t a great week on the hill for the Loons. So, this award is going to the Loons’ closer this week. Garcia was decent but not great this week: 3 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 2 saves. Garcia is more than holding his own as a 21-year-old in Low-A (1.93 ERA, 12.5 K/9) and should get the call to Rancho Cucamonga soon.

There has been no harsher critic of Ethan Martin than myself.

While I once rated him as the Dodgers second-best prospect, he has since fallen flat on his face and my rankings have reflected that. This season, however, he’s showing signs of putting it all together for the first time as a professional baseball player.

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Martin was extremely raw coming out of high school as a 2008 first-round draft pick, and it showed in his first couple seasons. Last season, Martin began at Rancho Cucamonga and struggled … a lot: 7.36 ERA, 5.16 FIP, 1.85 WHIP, 10. 6 H/9, and 6.1 BB/9. This came one season after struggling with Inland Empire, the Dodgers former California League affiliate.

Curiously, the Dodgers promoted him to Chattanooga to pitch for the Lookouts midway through 2011. He appeared in 21 games, but just three as a starter. It looked as if the team had finally given up on any thoughts of using him as a starter and accepted that Martin was destined for bullpen duty. However, in an about-face, the Dodgers continued with him as a starter in 2012, and so far it’s paying dividends: 3.58 ERA, 3.60 FIP, 1.30 WHIP, 5.5 H/9, and 6.2 BB/9.

The walks are still a concern, but I’m assuming that’s always going to be a “thing” with Martin. One really encouraging statistic is that, in 27 2/3 innings, he’s yet to allow a home run (knock on wood). Coming into the season, his HR/9 for his career was 0.7, so it’s not like he was giving up a bunch of long-balls, but against advanced competition, that’s pretty impressive. Another thing to keep an eye on is the decrease in strikeouts. He had a 9.6 K/9 coming into the season, but this season he’s sitting at 7.5 K/9. At this point though, I’ll gladly take a decrease in strikeouts in exchange for a better overall pitcher.

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Stuff has never been a question for Martin. He boasts a legitimate mid-90s fastball, a power curveball that has a chance to be a plus pitch, a low-to-mid-80s slider, and a mid-80s changeup. Yet, he’s always been inconsistent and lacking refinement, so that’s what needed to change.

This quote, via Tyler Brown of Nooga.com, from Lookouts manager Carlos Subero gives a glimpse into what has powered Martin’s turnaround so far.

“When he gives up a walk and three runs in the first inning, knowing the Ethan from the past, he did not let that snowball. In the second inning he was still a little shaken with a couple of walks, but he was able to put up five zeros in a row. For me, that’s the highlight of development tonight.”

That’s really telling. It seems Martin is learning to pitch, which is the best thing for him right now, because the criticism from scouts has always been that he’s just a thrower.

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As a guy who’s been really difficult on him in the past (from #2 to #14 to #37), it’s nice to see him having some early-season success. Now, if he can put up solid numbers over the course of a season, the Dodgers either have another studly right-handed pitching prospect or a valuable trade chip (bet on the former, if either). So perhaps all hope is not lost for Martin, though we’ll have to monitor him for a few months to truly get a read on his progress.

Now if he could just get Ralston Cash (seriously, check his feed — it’s nuts), his cousin and Dodgers 2010 second-round pick, to stop tweeting weird stuff and get him back on the mound, we’d be in business.

Clayton Kershaw

Was there anyone else to begin this review with? Just 23-years-old and consistently underrated and overlooked by the mainstream media entering 2011, Clayton Kershaw silenced all of his remaining critics with one of the best seasons for a pitcher in recent memory, Dodger or otherwise.

Consistent from start to finish, Clayton improved in every respect from his fantastic 2010. First and foremost, he cut a walk and a half off of his 2010 mark, and has seen a three-year improvement in that area of his game (4.79/3.57/2.08 BB per nine). He set career highs in tERA (2.52), FIP (2.47), and SIERA (2.81); induced more ground balls than last season (40.1%/43.2%), while giving up less fly balls (42.1%/38.6%); and continued to master the craft of creating weak contact. With his already amazing ability to get hitters to swing and miss, Kershaw also generated more infield popups, in 13.3% of his opponents’ plate appearances to be exact. An infield popup serves the same purpose as a strikeout, as no runner who may be on-base will advance, and it does in fact speak to his skill at creating weak contact, a point that can’t be emphasized enough.

Kershaw, who has seen a four-year incline in his WAR (1.4/4.1/4.7/6.8), struck out 9.57 per nine innings pitched, and combined with his limiting of free passes, saw his K/BB ratio leap up to over four and a half and his WHIP reach a new low of 0.977. Keeping hitters off-balance with a four pitch repertoire that features a fastball, slider, change, and Public Enemy Number One, Clayton is in line to finish first or second in the Cy Young voting.

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Considering that he’s young, has had tremendous success already, and captured the pitching Triple Crown in 2011 (two of which are meaningless categories, though that of course does not diminish his dominance this season), he’ll be in line for a lengthy raise as he hits arbitration for the first time.

With the season he just had, proving conclusively that he could control his walks and be a workhorse at the same time, as he made 33 starts and surpassed the 200 IP mark for the second consecutive season, the Dodgers would be wise to sign him long-term. They would have been wise to do that prior to this campaign, of course, but better late than never.

Chad Billingsley

Chad Billingsley entered 2011 on the heels of his best season as a pro, one in which he posted a career best 3.18 tERA and a FIP of 3.08, another professional low for the righty. He had washed away the complaints of many that he lacked the intestinal fortitude and mental stability to pitch successfully, deep into games, and in high-pressure situations (though, of course, we know that those claims never carried any water to begin with). His performance earned him a new multi-year, big money contract, and the Dodgers entered the season with one of the premier one-two punches on the mound in either league.

Unfortunately for Chad and the Dodgers, 2011 proved to not be another step forward for Chad. His numbers fell across the board, as he missed fewer bats, allowed more free passes, and saw his home run rate nearly double as his BABIP remained steady with his 2010 mark. While there were undoubtedly games where he was singled to death, as it was put by one Dodger blogger, Bills simply did not perform as well as he is clearly capable of. His tERA, FIP, and SIERA all increased from their 2010 resting places (4.18, 3.83, and 4.26 in 2011, respectively), but most troubling of all were his strikeout and walk ratios. He whiffed a full season low 7.28 opposing batters per nine while walking a full season high of over four per nine.

Bills struggles resulted in a WAR cut in half from the previous year (2.1, down from 4.5) and questions about his mechanics and health. Still shy of his 28th birthday, Billingsley has every chance to rebound, and much like his poor second half of 2009 led to his best professional season, said rebound in 2012 would not be the least surprising to me. In fact, I’ll call it right now, as I fully expect Chad to be productive as Kershaw’s running mate next season, provided he is in fact healthy.

Hiroki Kuroda

Hiroki Kuroda, in perhaps his final season as a Dodger, was once again solid, though he followed Billingsley in having a down year from 2010. His WAR fell from 4.1 to 2.4, his K/9 IP dipped down to 7.17, and he allowed a whopping 24 long balls in over 200 IP.

Again though, at the progressing age of 36 and as a third starter, Hiroki was not the issue. His 4.22 tERA left much to be desired, but his FIP was 3.78 and his SIERA checked in at 3.66, and as always, his control was impeccable (2.18 BB per nine, and a K/BB ratio of over three and a quarter). 13.1% of plate appearances ended in an infield popup, though he induced far fewer ground balls than in 2010 (51.1%/43.2%).

Should this in fact be his last season in Los Angeles, Kuroda departs with a career FIP of 3.55, over three strikeouts for every walk issued, and 12.2 WAR over four seasons. All in all, a very good big league career for the Japanese import, and Kuroda’s consistency will be missed.

Ted Lilly

After coming over from Chicago at the deadline in 2010, Ted Lilly was signed to a ridiculous three year, $33 million dollar deal by Ned Colletti to be a fourth starter. And quite predictably, he flopped in a major way for most of the season. Competing with Matt Kemp to be the second Dodger to go 30/30 in 2011, Lilly couldn’t help himself in allowing home runs and stolen bases at a seemingly record pace. The lefty threw just under 200 innings and allowed 28 home runs and 35 stolen bases, with 4.24 tERA and a FIP of 4.21.

The 35-year-old did end strong, holding opponents to a .169/.250/.293/.543 line over the final two months of the season (though it should be noted he benefited immensely from a .208 BABIP).

Dodger fans have to hope and pray he can be half the man he was from August on, as he still has two years and $22.5 million remaining on his contract, will most likely be the third starter in 2012, and has a full no-trade clause for this upcoming campaign.

Rubby De La Rosa/Nathan Eovaldi

Rubby De La Rosa made his major league debut on May 24th, and would throw 60 and two-thirds innings over 10 starts and three relief appearances before succumbing to Tommy John surgery. The young righty was impressive in his limited exposure, whiffing 60 against 31 walks and displaying a nice collection of four pitches. Out for anywhere from 10 months to over a year, the Dodgers will be without his electric arm as he works his way back to the starting rotation.

With some major league experience and success, excellent swing and miss ability, and a strong minor league track record, if he rebounds from the arm injury, the Dodgers have a potential gem and fixture in the rotation for years to come, as he held opponents to a .225/.306/.364/.670 line with 33 Ks in 35 IP over his final six trips to the hill.

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Nathan Eovaldi replaced De La Rosa in the rotation before being moved to the pen as the season wound down and he reached his innings cap. Eovaldi posted a 4.35 FIP, but struck out just under six per nine while walking just over five per nine. Whether he settles into the rotation or the pen, Nate will need to refine his control and bump his strikeout numbers back up to what they were at a handful of minor league stops, including an 8.65 mark in AA prior to his call-up.

Minor League Strength

The starting rotation is a definite organizational strength for the Blue Crew. Along with young arms we’ve seen, like De La Rosa and Eovaldi, the Dodgers also boast minor league stud Zach Lee, as well as Garrett Gould, Allen Webster, Ralston Cash, 2011 draftee Chris Reed, and even the consistently frustrating Chris Withrow.

The Dodgers have shown the ability to draft and develop starters in abundance, an excellent quality and a testament to the work of Logan White, De Jon Watson, and their respective staffs.