The Dodgers Sign Kazmir

The Dodgers signed left handed starter Scott Kazmir to a three year $48 million contract to fill the void left in the starting rotation when Zack Greinke signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks. This will be Kazmir's first season in the National League as he has spent his entire 11 year career in the American League. He has compiled a 98-90 record in 272 games, 271 starts, and he has a career ERA of 3.96. He split last season between the Oakland A's and the Houston Astros where he had a combined record of 7-11 with a 3.10 ERA.

This is not a bad signing by the Dodgers and based on the free agent market this off season, could be considered a steal. The Dodgers could possibly field a rotation of five left handed starters. I do not know if that has ever been done before in major league baseball history but it could be interesting with today's platoon happy lineups. It could neutralize a lot of left handed power hitters.

Let's make A Deal

The San Francisco Giants won the baseball off season's version of Let's Make A Deal when they signed Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija for a tidy $220 million. When looking at the pitcher's closer, did the Giants get the trip to the World Series behind Door #1 or the pair of rag armed mules behind Door #2?

Johnny Cueto at least has a winning record in the majors. He won 19 games in 2012, when he also led the National League in strikeouts, and 20 in 2014 with the Cincinnati Reds. He was acquired as the missing piece of the pitching puzzle for the Kansas City Royals down the stretch last season but he only went 4-7 with a 4.76 ERA after he joined Kansas City's rotation. Cueto did pitch a complete game two-hitter over the New York Mets in the World Series and he did get a World Series ring out of his short stint in Kansas City but he has battled arm problems before and has a little bit of a bad attitude so the Giants do not know which version are the Giants going to get. It cost them $130 million over six seasons to find out with an opt out after 2018.

Jeff Samardzija has the distinction of losing 13 games a season for four seasons in a row and only has one winning season in the majors when he went 8-4 as a reliever in 2011 for the Chicago Cubs. He was turned into a full time starter after that season and he only went 11-13 with a 4.96 ERA with the Chicago White Sox last season. Samardzija was able to parlay that into a five year, $90 million with the Giants. Samardzija is probably just as well known for being a Wide Receiver on Notre Dame's football team but he definitely picked the more lucrative career.

The Winter Meetings

At last year's Winter Meetings, the Dodgers were movers and shakers. They signed who they thought they needed to sign, they made bold trades, and they completely reshaped their roster. The Dodgers brass did what they felt they had to do and it helped to bring the Dodgers their third straight National League West title.

At this year's winter meetings, they signed a rag armed Japanese pitcher, Hisashi Iwakuma, who only made 20 starts last season due to injury and he may or may not replace any number of rag armed Dodgers pitchers already on the roster, and they re-signed a 36 year old second baseman, Chase Utley, that batted a robust .202 in 34 games after acquiring him from the Phillies late in the season. For $7 million, they might be able to coax Mario Mendoza out of retirement.

The biggest trade they made but didn't make involves what might be the hardest thrower in the history of major league baseball, Aroldis Chapman of the Cincinnati Reds, but he is being investigated by the secret police of major league baseball for possibly abusing his girlfriend. I can't really understand major league baseball halting the trade unless making him stay with the Cincinnati Reds is going to be part of his punishment.

Taking a look at the Dodgers depth chart on their website, dodgers.com, it looks like a MASH unit already and the spring training is still two months away. They need to unload some outfielders but nobody wants them with the exception of maybe Joc Pederson. They should have unloaded Yasiel Puig last season when he may have still had some trade value but they may have to settle for trading him back to Cuba for a box of cigars, maybe two if they play hardball.

Dave Roberts

"We're extremely excited to bring Dave Roberts on board as the next manager of the Dodgers." With that simple statement, president of baseball operations for the Los Angeles Dodgers Andrew Friedman announced the hiring of Dave Roberts. Roberts is a former player for the Dodgers in the early 2000's but has no managerial experience at any level of professional baseball.

The two finalists, Gabe Kapler and Roberts, were a surprise because I believed that the Dodgers would go after someone with more experience. I also believed that Kapler had the advantage because of his relationship with Friedman but Roberts knocked it out of the park during his interview and a managerial career was born.

Crashing To Earth

It has taken me more than a month to be able to write about the Dodgers again. The New York Mets were a bad matchup for the Dodgers because of their young power arms. The Dodgers hung tough but their just wasn't enough hitting. The series loss to the Mets ended up costing Don Mattingly his job.

Three National League West titles in a row (for the first time in Dodgers history) were not enough so the Dodgers and Mattingly had a "mutual parting of the ways." That allows both sides to save face and I guess it beats "Mattingly did not meet expectations", "we have a $300 million payroll and can't get out of the first round", and "what the **** was he thinking" when he made that move. Mattingly could just not get them over the hump.

Mattingly had the talent in place but injuries derailed the Dodgers season early on as two of their starting pitchers were out for the season by May, Yasiel Puig missed half the season because of hamstring problems, the bullpen was a shambles because of misuse, overuse, and not enough quality arms. The Dodgers rode Greinke and Kershaw as long as they could but it was not enough. I always thought Mattingly was at his best when he had to cobble together a lineup or a pitching staff but not this season.

The Dodgers had a $300 million payroll and the current Dodgers ownership would settle for nothing less than a World Series title. Mattingly barely got them out of the first round in three playoff appearances. Mattingly is still a hot commodity in managerial circles and had no problems finding another job as the Miami Marlins snapped him up after about two weeks.

The Los Angeles Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman wants to put his stamp on the Dodgers with the new manager and it is down to two men, Gabe Kapler, who is already in the Dodgers organization, and Dave Roberts, currently with the San Diego Padres and who broke in with the Dodgers as a player. Kapler is Friedman's guy so my money would be on Kapler getting the job. Kapler is the only one that has any managerial experience as he managed one season of Class A baseball

Close Out The 2015 Season

Manager Don Mattingly and the Los Angeles Dodgers won their third straight National League West crown this season and followed the division title with another post season failure. The chants of "Fire Mattingly" can be heard all the way on the east coast.

I have always thought Mattingly was at his best when he had less talent to work with. When they went on their run about halfway through 2014, the Dodgers had a lot of key players that were injured. The 2015 season saw the Dodgers besieged by injuries as well. Injuries decimated the pitching staff, the outfield, and the infield all at one time or another.

The Dodgers had a ton of injuries this season as well. By the beginning of May, the Dodgers only had three of their original five man rotation. The Dodgers had to cobble together a fourth and fifth starter for the last 120 games of the season. Third starter Hyun Jin-Ryu did not throw one pitch. Brandon McCarthy was lost for the season after five starts. Brett Anderson was moved into the third spot in the rotation and the Dodgers finally settled on Mike Bolsinger as their fifth starter until trade deadline deals brought the Dodgers Mat Latos and Alex Wood as well as a bevy of relief pitchers. Alex Wood is the only one of those pitchers that proved themselves of any value to the Dodgers.

A One Game Season

The Los Angeles Dodgers played a 162 game season and have added four more games in the playoffs and it all comes down to a one game season. It is one of the Dodgers aces, Zack Greinke versus one of the New York Mets young guns, Jacob deGrom. DeGrom wore the Dodgers out in the first game of the series by striking out 13 and only giving up one run. Greinke won his only game of the series as well, giving up two runs in seven innings in what will be forever known as the "Utley slide" game.

This is the way baseball should be. Ace versus ace, winner take all, and move on to the next round to play against the Chicago Cubs. There is already talk of Clayton Kershaw being available in the bullpen on one day's rest. I am hoping it will not come to that but manager Mattingly and the Dodgers have to be willing to use the entire bench if it will win them this game.

Chase Utley's Slide

Here is the Chase Utley slide as I saw it. The Dodgers had runners on first and third with one out. Kike Hernandez was the runner on third and Chase Utley was on first. Howie Kendrick of the Dodgers hit a one hopper up the middle off of New York Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon that was fielded by second baseman Daniel Murphy. Shortstop Ruben Tejada went to cover second base. Murphy's momentum was carrying him away from the infield and his underhanded toss to Tejada was a little bit high and away from Tejada and to the shortstop side. Tejada caught the ball and tried to do a 360 spin that would allow him get off a throw to first base to double up Kendrick and get the Mets out of the inning. Right as Tejada completed his spin and started to throw the ball, Utley started his high and hard slide. Utley's head collided with Tejada's thigh and Utley's legs clipped Tejada's legs and knocked him down. He was not able to get off the throw. Hernandez scored from third base, tying the game at two and starting a four run Dodgers rally that allowed them to win the game 5-2.

The media reaction to Utley's slide was predictable. Baseball purists and ex-players thought it was a "hard nosed play" and Utley's intent was to not injure Tejada but to prevent the double play from occurring. The sports media described it as a "dirty play." Utley does not have a reputation as a dirty player and his intent was not to break Tejada's leg but to prevent the double play from occurring. The umpires on the field did not call Utley out for interference because he could still reach the bag making it a legal play in the eyes of the rules of the game.

Baseball analysts and ex-players Dallas Braden and Doug Glanville of ESPN's Baseball Tonight both agreed that it was a "hard-nosed play" and that the "break up slide" is a part of baseball. However, they both did agree that Utley could have and maybe should have started his slide a little bit sooner but that he was still within the rules of the game. The lead announcer immediately denounced the play as a "dirty play."

Winning With Class

The Los Angeles Dodgers finally took the National League West with an 8-0 victory over the San Francisco Giants. The Dodgers exorcised a few demons from this season in the form of Madison Bumgarner and AT & T Park in San Francisco. Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers had not beaten Bumgarner or won a game in San Francisco this season.

The Dodgers also won with class. The San Francisco Giants posted a message congratulating the Dodgers on winning the National League West with a hashtag of respecttherivalry on their scoreboard after the game and Kershaw and Adrian Gonzalez gave credit to the Giants for being a good team, competing until the end, and having a good season.

Kershaw pitched one of his best games of the season, pitching a one hit shutout and striking out 13. He also had a 13 pitch at bat against Bumgarner in the fifth inning in which Kershaw fouled off pitch after pitch before grounding out to second base. In describing the at bat bat after the game Kershaw admitted that he did not stand a chance against Bumgarner but wanted to make him work. Kershaw was congratulated by his teammates in the dugout after his at bat.

Justin Ruggiano and A.J. Ellis hit back-to-back homeruns in the sixth inning to finish off Bumgarner and Kershaw closed it out and that was how the west was won. I was surprised to learn that it was the first time that the Dodgers had won three division titles in a row and winning it in San Francisco made it even better for any Dodgers fan.

Kershaw Versus Mattingly

Clayton Kershaw is a competitor and that competitive drive is what makes him one of the best pitchers in the game. Kershaw had pitched five innings against the Diamondbacks, giving up three runs but striking out nine, and throwing 80 pitches. The Dodgers were down by three runs, Kershaw was leading off the inning, and Manager Don Mattingly lifted Kershaw for pinch hitter Austin Barnes.

The Dodgers ended up scoring six runs on the strength of a Grand Slam by Chris Heisey (his first homerun of the season) but Kershaw was not happy about being pulled from the game after only five innings. Kershaw and Mattingly were seen having an animated discussion in the dugout in between innings.

Mattingly said of the discussion after the game "He doesn't ever want to come out. We just had to try to score, down three runs." Kershaw refused to comment on the discussion with Mattingly only saying It's between Donnie and I. No one else needs to know." I applaud Kershaw's decision to leave it in the dugout.

It is much easier to look at things in hindsight but in this instance I believe Mattingly made the right call. Kershaw was already up to 80 pitches, he was not having one of his better games, and the Dodgers needed to try to put some runs on the board. The Dodgers have not clinched the National League West yet. Every pitcher thinks he can get the next batter out and I would not want a guy out there that did not want to keep going. Altercations between pitchers and managers happen on a nightly basis but since it is Clayton Kershaw, there is more of a big deal made out of it.

Starter By Committee

The Los Angeles Dodgers returned to their "starter by committee" approach again against the Arizona Diamindbacks as Carlos Frias pitched the first four innings giving up only one run and then he turned it over to the bullpen and multiple relievers pitched the final five innings and did not give up a run. Chase Utley and Corey Seager homered in the 4-1 win and the Dodgers reduced their magic number to five with the win. Utley's homerun lead off the game and that was the first lead off homerun of his long career. Seager hit a breaking ball just inside the right field foul pole for his third of the season.

Wood Steps Up

Alex Wood pitched the best game of his young career against the Colorado Rockies only allowing one hit in eight innings on only 78 pitches. With only a 2-0 lead and with a big lead in the National League West, Manager Don Mattingly elected not to send Wood out for the ninth inning. He sent out close Kenley Jansen to finish off the game and he gave up a hit before earning his 32nd save.

Catcher A.J. Ellis continued his second half resurgence, hitting his sixth homerun of the season, a solo shot in the second inning. Ellis has batted .270 over his last 30 games also hitting all six of his homeruns. He has settled into a backup role behind starter Yasmani Grandal but Ellis playing time has increased down the stretch.

The Magic Number

The Dodgers reduced their "magic number" to clinch the National League West to eight games. I read somewhere the other day that major league baseball now wants it called the "elimination number". I am guessing that the power brokers in baseball wants to disassociate itself from the word "magic."

Baseball is magic. It is a sleight of hand, the hidden ball trick, making the impossible catch or the impossible throw. Baseball is getting the winning hit or squeezing the final out and winning the championship. Baseball is Bobby Thomson's homer, Willie Mays catch, Fernando Valenzuela and "Fernandomania", the Red Sox winning the World Series, Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Lou Gehrig, the latest rookie to take baseball by storm. Baseball is all of that and more. Baseball is magic and baseball has always been all about the numbers. Baseball needs to leave the "magic number" alone.

Two Games In One

The Dodgers played 16 innings against the Rockies and the bullpen did an outstanding job only giving up two runs in 10 innings of work. Unfortunately one of those was the winning run in the 16th inning. That is the good thing about having an expanded roster is that you can use every player at your disposal without fear of running out of players. Mat Latos gave up the losing run. He has not been getting many innings as a starter so the Dodgers thought they would try him in relief but pretty much got the same result. Starter Brett Anderson had another solid start, only giving up two earned runs in six innings after coming out of his last start with tightness in his calf.

Back Where He Was Drafted

Outfielder Justin Ruggiano returned to the Dodgers in early September, being acquired in a trade with the Seattle Mariners. Ruggiano was drafted by the Dodgers in the 25th round in 2004. He was traded to Tampa a few years later and that was really when his major league odyssey started. He played in the Tampa, Houston (he was never called up to the major league roster), Miami, Chicago Cubs, Seattle, and finally back to the Dodgers. Six major league organizations in seven seasons. Ruggiano is an end of the season rental for the Dodgers that has some pop in his bat and some major league experience.

Ruggiano had his best season with the Miami Marlins in 2013 when he hit 18 homeruns and had 50 runs batted in. His stat line for the Dodgers so far is 8 for 19 with three homeruns and ten runs batted in. He has already helped the Dodgers win a couple of games with his bat. The Dodgers acquired Ruggiano because of the rash of injuries they have had and also needed a right handed bat coming off the bench. This is a low risk gamble that has paid off for the Dodgers.

Down The Stretch

Clayton Kershaw got his 14th win of the season against the Colorado Rockies, giving up one run in seven innings, and lowered his ERA to 2.12. That win preserved the Dodgers seven and a half game lead over the San Francisco Giants with 19 games left to play. That means that Kershaw and Greinke will pitch at least six of those games.

Several of the Dodgers rookies are getting some quality time in the pennant race down the stretch. Scott Schebler, Corey Seager, Jose Perraza (injured and lost for the season), and Joc Pederson (although he has been starting since the season opener I don't really consider him a rookie anymore) have played a major role and given the Dodgers lineup a boost of energy since the beginning of September. Schebler hit his third homerun against the Rockies, Seager is batting well over .400, and Pederson is starting to find his stroke again after sinking to a season low of .210 at one point.

Most of these players are auditioning for roles next season as the Dodgers have several starters whose contracts are up at the end of the season. The Dodgers have not had a youth movement among position players like this in several seasons as it has taken them a while to rebuild their farm system into the power it once was.

The Rookies Get Their Day

The Los Angeles Dodgers started four rookies (five if you include the starting pitcher Joe Wieland) in their series finale with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Scott Schebler started in left field and hit his second homerun to lead off the game, Corey Seager at shortstop, Joc Pederson in centerfield, and Austin Barnes got the start at catcher. The rookies got three of the Dodgers four hits in the 3-2 loss and Joe Wieland pitched four innings and gave up two runs in his second start of the season.

The loss did not cost the Dodgers anything in the standings as the San Francisco Giants also lost so the Dodgers maintained their 8 1/2 game lead in the National League West with 24 games to play.

Kershaw Vs. The Angels

Clayton Kershaw is back in Cy Young form. He picked up another win versus the Angels but he wasn't as sharp as he normally is. He threw 106 pitches and only 66 strikes. He only walked two batters so he made the pitches count when he needed them to, striking out eight. The lack of sharpness made have had something to do with his 132 pitch, 95 strike outing against the San Francisco Giants in his last start.

Kershaw only has an above average fastball in today's major leagues, topping out at about 94 or 95 miles per hour with pretty good movement. He does have a knee buckling curve that he changes speeds on and a decent changeup. He also throws an occasional slider with pretty good bite to it. His ability to keep the hitters off balance is one of the keys to his success and helps to account for his high strikeout totals. Now if he would only start throwing a knuckleball....

A Learning Process

The Dodgers thought highly enough of top prospect Corey Seager to insert him into the lineup down the stretch in the heat of a pennant race. It is a trial by fire and his bat has been everything the Dodgers thought it would be to this point in his career but baseball as rookie in a pennant race is a trial by fire. He is batting .381 with four doubles in the first week of his career with four Runs Batted In and he also has three two hit games.

Corey Seager made his first two errors of his career, both on ground balls, against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim leading to one unearned run. Seager's defense was the question mark in his game coming through the minors leading many to speculate that he would end up at third base. Seager is a big shortstop standing 6'4" but Cal Ripken was a big shortstop and he managed to carve a Hall of Fame career for himself. If he continues to hit like this, I can live with the occasional error.

Scott Van Slyke Carries A Big Bat

"I'd rather be lucky than good", a quote attributed to Hall of Fame Pitcher Lefty Gomez, should be the Dodgers battle cry for the rest of the season.

The Dodgers won the first game of their season against their local rivals from the American League, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and Scott Van Slyke carried the big bat with four hits and four Runs Batted In. Two of those hits barely left the infield as his two RBI double deflected off the pitchers glove and barely made the outfield grass but he ended up on second base with his second double of the game. The four hits were a career high for Van Slyke and the four RBI's matched a career high.

Zack Greinke held on long enough to get the win, his 16th, and the Dodgers improved their National League West lead to 8 1/2 games over the San Francisco Giants.

The Baseball Gods

"I'd rather be lucky than good." Lefty Gomez, New York Yankees

The Baseball Gods smiled on the Dodgers yesterday afternoon. Andre Ethier was at bat in the top of the seventh inning with the bases loaded and two outs. Ethier hit a ground ball to San Diego Padres pitcher Nick Vincent who promptly fired the ball over the first baseman's head and down the right field line. That cleared the bases and eventually helped the Dodgers to a 5-1 win.

The Dodgers took three out of four from the Padres and maintained their 7 1/2 game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League West. It is too early to start talking magic numbers but the Dodgers only have 26 games left.

Starter Brett Anderson pitched a solid game to improve his record to 9-8 but left in the sixth inning due to a cramp. This is the first relatively healthy season Anderson has had in about five seasons. In any playoff scenario, I believe Alex Wood would get the nod as the third starter over Anderson.

Cory Seager's Major League Debut

Introducing Number Five, Shortstop Corey Seager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. I have been waiting on Seager to make his major league debut since the day the Dodgers drafted him. He was such a highly regarded prospect but the Dodgers have had a lot of highly regarded prospects over the years that have turned into suspects. These players never quite lived up to the hype. Some got in a little bit of time in the majors and some did not. The names of Outfielder Billy Ashley and Pitcher Greg Miller come to mind.

Seager went two for four with two runs scored and two Runs Batted In against the San Diego Padres in his debut and followed that up with a two for five performance with an RBI in his second game. This is Seager's audition to be the starting Shortstop next season as Jimmy Rollins, Howie Kendrick, and the newly acquired Chase Utley are all free agents after the season. Seager is off to a good start.

Kershaw Shuts The Door

It seems like every time Clayton Kershaw pitches for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he establishes a first or something that has only been done once or twice. In the final game against the San Francisco Giants, he struck out 15 hitters, the first time in modern baseball history that a pitcher has struck out at least 14 hitters in back-to-back games. He now has a career high 251 strikeouts in only 194 innings. More important than the "first" pitching feat was the fact that he beat the Giants for the first time this season. He threw 132 pitches, 95 for strikes. Ordinarily, Don Mattingly would not let him throw this many pitches but closer Kenley Jansen had pitched in back-to-back games and I don't think Don Mattingly trusted the sweep of the Giants in someone else's hands.

Giant Slayers

Zack Greinke matched Madison Bumgarner pitch for pitch and Rookie Joc Pederson hit a Bumgarner fastball in the bottom of the seventh inning to lead the Dodgers to a 2-1 win over the San Francisco Giants and a 5 1/2 game lead in the national League West. I am surprised that Pederson started against Bumgarner because of the agonizing slump he has been in but Mattingly's "hunch" paid off. That and the fact Kike Hernandez is hurt. The Dodgers much beleaguered bullpen shut the door, Luis Avialn finishing out the eighth inning on seven pitches and Kenley Jansen nailing down his 28th save.

Pederson had been in a 6 for 63 slump but he decided to employ one of the oldest hitting strategies of "see the ball. Hit the ball" and it paid off against one of the toughest left hands in the league. It was only the second homerun a left handed batter had hit off Bumgarner all season and only the fourth homerun Pederson has hit off a left hander.

Taking Down The Giants

The Dodgers are in first place in the National League West, they are playing in Chavez Ravine, and should be favored to win this series. However, the Giants have owned the Dodgers this season. The Dodgers won game one 5-4 in 14 innings and as much grief as I have given the bullpen, they pitched seven innings of one run baseball. Chris Hatcher pitched his longest, and best, outing of the year. He pitched three innings of shutout baseball but he did make it exciting, giving up three hits but he held tough. That game was Hatcher's to win or lose and he won it.

Zach Greinke is the Dodgers MVP but first baseman Adrian Gonzalez is quietly having another very good season. He leads the Dodgers in homeruns and RBI's and is batting about .290. He is the most consistent hitter the Dodgers have and has come up big in clutch situations all year.

The Dodgers have been no hit twice in the past nine days and they face the ace of the Giants staff Madison Bumgarner. After being no hit twice in the past nine days, I am hoping the baseball gods smile on the Dodger bats and bring them to life. I do not know if it is possible to "sit on" a slider but that is Bumgarner's out pitch. The Dodgers counter with Zack Greinke but he has not been as dominant as he was about a month ago. He always seems to raise his level of pitching against the other teams ace so it's ace vs. ace.

....And The Rest Of The Starting Pitchers

Manager Don Mattingly and the Los Angeles Dodgers have had to cobble together the back end of the starting rotation made up of rookies, cast offs, and veterans acquired by trade after Hyun Jin-Ryu and Brandon McCarthy went down early in the season. The Dodgers ran the gamut of pitchers from veteran arms, young arms, and rebuilt arms from the scrap heap to the independent leagues and all walks of the professional baseball community. It seems like everyone had the opportunity to nail down those last two starting spots from Scott Baker and Brandon Beachy to Ian Thomas and Zach Lee.

After Greinke and Kershaw, the oft-injured Brett Anderson has managed to stay healthy and productive this season and hold down the third spot in the rotation. The Dodgers eventually settled on Mat Latos and Alex Wood for their final two starters. Mat Latos gets another opportunity in the rotation, facing the Chicago Cubs tonight and this might be his last opportunity as the Dodgers head into the stretch with a 2 1/2 game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League West.

The Dodgers can expand their roster to 40 players on September 1 and if Latos has another bad outing, I look for the Dodgers to insert Mike Bolsinger back into the rotation. He was by far the most successful of the Dodgers open pitching tryouts throughout the balance of the season.

A Pair Of Aces

Usually every team has an ace on their pitching staff, even the worst of teams. Steve Carlton of the Philadelphia Phillies won 27 of his team's 59 wins in 1972, an astonishing 45.8 percent of his teams wins. The Los Angeles Dodgers have a pair of aces on their staff in Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw. The right-left combination are a combined 25-9 this season with an ERA around two, only accounting for about 35 percent of their team's wins. With a stronger bullpen, the win total would probably be much higher than that.

Kershaw shut down the powerful young bats of the Chicago Cubs, striking out 14 and only allowing three hits in eight innings. Greinke and Kershaw should both be in the running for the National League Cy Young Award but they will probably cancel each other out.

Sweeping The Reds

The Dodgers did what the Dodgers need to do. They scored enough runs (13 in three games), the starters got them into the sixth and seventh innings, the bullpen didn't implode, and the defense played solid, fundamental baseball. All of that adds up to a sweep. It was the Cincinnati Reds and they have already mailed the season in and seeing who can compete for a job next season. Sometimes those are the hardest teams to beat. I do not think the Reds started a pitcher that had more than about 15 or 20 starts in the majors. These are the types of teams the Dodgers should sweep. Those are the types of teams they have to sweep.

How The West Was Won (or Lost)

All roads to the World Series go through your bullpen. The Dodgers bullpen is struggling right now. Instead of trading for bullpen help or reaching into the minors for some fresh arms, the Dodgers trade for second baseman Chase Utley to take the place of injured Howie Kendrick. Utley was batting around .220 at the time of the trade and is winding his career down. The rest of baseball has figured out that your team will only go as far as your bullpen takes you. That is why the Kansas City Royals almost won the World Series last year. Why can't the Dodgers brass figure it out?

The Pitchers

The Dodgers made a big splash at the trade deadline and acquired four pitchers that are currently on the active roster. They are relievers Jim Johnson and Luis Avilan, and starters Mat Latos and Alex Wood. Since the trade, the quartet has combined to pitch in 17 games, totaling 42 1/3 innings, 37 earned runs, a 1-5 record and a 7.87 ERA.

It appears that the new acquisitions are getting adjusted to their new surroundings as Jim Johnson has had two scoreless outings in a row after giving up eight runs in 2/3 of an inning in a loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly said, "Jim's had two outings in a row" that has restored his confidence in his relief pitchers.

Mat Latos had a solid first start for the Dodgers only giving up one run in six innings but has gotten shelled in his last two starts. Alex Wood has been the most productive of the new acquisitions going 1-1 with a 5.09 ERA and winning his last start against the Cincinnati Reds. Wood said "It gives me some confidence to get my first win under my belt."

Greinke Can Hit

Zack Greinke pitched and hit the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 2-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds. Greinke pitched seven innings and only gave up one run and hit what proved to be the game winning homerun in the bottom of the fifth inning, his second homerun of the season. It is probably premature to start campaigning for Greinke for the Cy Young Award but I would have to believe that Greinke and Madison Bumgarner of the San Francisco Giants are the front runners. Bumgarner leads in wins 14 to 13 but Grienke has the ERA at 1.58. It may come down to who wins the National League West.

Trading Puig

There has been a lot of chatter on the internet and on sports TV about whether the Dodgers should trade Yasiel Puig or not. First of all, Yasiel Puig is an amazing talent. The potential he has is off the charts. He can hit for power, he has speed, and his arm in right field may be unparalleled in baseball today. Unfortunately, baseball history is littered with players that never realized their potential.

He is one of the most analyzed players in the baseball, known almost as much for his dugout antics as well as his play on the field. Puig's is seen on Sportscenter making throws to nail a base runner trying to take the extra base and sulking in the dugout because he struck out a few innings later. One of Manager Don Mattingly's biggest jobs the past three seasons has been trying to keep Puig motivated to play at a high level every night and to keep his head in the game. It seems like Mattingly benches Puig for about a game a week to try to get his attention.

Puig was injured and missed over a month early this season and he has had a hard time getting his offensive game back on track. He is only batting .243 but his power has showed signs of coming around as of late, hitting his ninth homerun of the season against the Washington Nationals. His powerful right arm has been on display the past couple of weeks, throwing a runner out at second base from the right centerfield warning track and throwing a Pittsburgh Pirates runner out at second on a force play.

I don't know if the Dodgers had any serious inquiries about Puig before the trade deadline July 31st and the Dodgers announced the other day that they will not trade him this season. You hate to trade a talent like Puig has but at some point and time, his antics and attitude have got to be a detriment in the clubhouse.

200 K's And Going Strong

Clayton Kershaw struck out his 200th batter of the season against the Washington Nationals in the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-0 win. Kershaw struck out eight and only allowed three hits in eight innings. It was his sixth straight season of 200 strikeouts and he joined Hall of Famers Sandy Koufax and Tom Seaver as the only pitchers in major league history to accomplish this feat. That is quite a list to join. When you think of all of the flame throwers in baseball history from Walter Johnson thru Nolan Ryan and Pedro Martinez, they never made it six straight seasons of striking out 200. Kershaw improved his record to 10-6.

Greinke To The Rescue

Zack Greinke came to the rescue of the Los Angeles Dodgers again as he pitched six shutout innings against the Washington Nationals to lead them to a 5-0 win. He wasn't sharp early on which led to a high pitch count (109) and led to his removal from the game after six innings. The Dodgers bullpen finished it off with three scoreless innings. Greinke improved his record to 12-2 and lowered his league leading ERA to 1.66.

Yasiel Puig was the offensive star, driving in all five of the Dodgers runs with his ninth homerun and a bases loaded triple. He broke a 1-14 slump in the process.

Greinke At The Bat

Zack Greinke had his worst start of the season against the Philadelphia Phillies giving up six runs in six innings, five of those runs in the first inning. The Dodgers mounted a quick comeback fueled by Zack Greinke's bat. He was three for three with three runs scored and he hit his first homerun of the season. The homerun was launched into the left centerfield seats and Greinke even has the bat flip down pat. He knew the ball was gone as soon as he hit it. The Dodgers couldn't afford to take Greinke out of the game no matter how many runs he gave up because of his hitting. The Dodgers went on to win 10-8 and take two out of three from the red hot Phillies.

From Worst To First?

The Los Angeles Dodgers ran into the Philadelphia Phillies at the worst possible time. The Phillies were 13-3 after the All Star break, the best record in baseball since that point. Even after that hot stretch, the Phillies still have the worst record in baseball. I don't think a team has ever gone from worst at the All Star break to first in the division in the same season but they have still been playing impressive baseball.

The Dodgers have managed to split the first two games with them. Newly acquired Alex Wood pitched well in his first start with the Dodgers before losing it in the seventh inning and getting a loss in the first game of the series. Brett Anderson pitched well in the second game, going six solid innings and giving up one run, and he was backed by a three run Yasiel Puig homerun in the first inning. Closer Kenly Jansen came in and struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth inning on 13 pitches to get his 20th save in 21 chances. That is the Jansen I am used to seeing.

The Trade That Wasn't

Sometimes in baseball the best trades are the one's you don't make. It was a widely belief by many baseball people, me included, that the Dodgers would trade outfielder Andre Ethier this past off season. The Dodgers Outfield was crowded and Ethier was seen as the odd man out. He had only hit four homeruns in 2014, the lowest total of his career, and his trade value was virtually gone. Spring Training came and went and Ethier was still a Dodger. His role was seen as a spot starter, he can play all three outfield positions, and a left handed bat off of the bench. The phrase "until he is traded" was often added to that assessment of his role with the Dodgers.

As the season progressed, injuries started taking it's toll on the Dodger outfield. Yasiel Puig, Carl Crawford, and Scott Van Slyke have all missed major chunks of the season due to injury. Ethier's role with the team became much more valuable, he assumed a more regular place in the Dodgers outfield, and it all culminated with the two homerun game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including the walk off game winner in the bottom of the tenth inning.

Ethier has hit 12 homeruns already this season, tripling last season's total, and is batting a solid .280. The Dodgers would not be in first place in the National League West without him. He is signed through 2017 and there is no telling what will happen this next off season but Ethier has brought his trade value up.

An Angelic Sweep

This is something that I do not get to blog about often and that is a seep of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim or whatever they are calling themselves these days. Mat Latos pitched well in his Dodgers debut only giving up one run in six innings and he left with a 2-1 lead.

Newly acquired relief pitcher Jim Johnson immediately fit right in to the Dodgers bullpen and gave up the tying run in the top of the eighth inning. Andre Ethier hit a solo homerun in the bottom of the eight inning to give the Dodgers the lead back only to have J.P. Howell and Pedro Baez allow the Angels to tie it again in the top of the ninth inning at three. Andre Ethier provided the extra innings heroics that we have not seen from him in quite a while, hitting a two run blast into the Angels bullpen over the right field wall to win it 5-3, giving the Dodgers the walkoff win and a sweep of the Angels.

Kershaw Versus Trout

Head-to-head matchups within the team framework of the game is one of the things I love about baseball. When Clayton Kershaw faced Mike Trout, it was the first time reigning MVP's had faced off against each other in the regular season. Carl Hubbell of the New York Giants faced Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees in the 1937 World Series.

Kershaw caught Trout looking on a beautiful curveball in the first at bat that really buckled Trout's knees, Trout grounded into a force out in his second at bat, and Trout timed a curveball pretty well in his third at bat but Yasiel Puig made a diving catch on the third at bat. Three up and three down.

Kershaw said of Trout after the game, "He's a great hitter, probably the best hitter in the game. I was just trying to get him out." Trout responded by saying, "I felt like I was seeing him pretty good. He was throwing all his pitches- cutting, sinking, sliding, curving, the whole bit."

Howie Kendrick played with Trout for the past four seasons with the Angels and he got to watch the battle from his position at second base. Kendrick admires the way Trout plays the game and said "Doesn't get any better than this, does it?"

This round went to Kershaw. Last season Trout went two for three with an opposite field double against Kershaw so in his career, Trout is two for six. I look forward to this matchup for many years to come.

Kershaw Is King

Clayton Kershaw added eight more scoreless innings to extend his scoreless innings streak to 37 in a Dodgers victory over the Angels. Kershaw was not as dominate as he has been in his past three or four games, only striking out seven, but he only gave up two hits against a powerful Angels lineup.

The Dodgers were also facing former Dodger Andrew Heaney who had a record of 5-0 coming into the game with an ERA well under 2.00. Heaney was a Dodger for about two hours before he was traded to the Angels in the Howie Kendrick deal. I hate for the Dodgers to give up a young arm like Heaney's but it was a deal that solidified the Dodgers infield, making them the best defensive team in the National League.

Sorting Out The Trade

The Dodgers made a big splash at the trade deadline. The trade involved the Miami Marlins, Atlanta Braves, and the Dodgers and 13 players changed teams. The Dodgers added seven players and subtracted six. Only one of the six traded by the Dodgers were major leaguers and that is the injured left handed relief pitcher, Paco Rodriquez.

The Dodgers acquired the starting pitching they were after in Mat Latos of the Marlins and Alex Wood of the Braves. The Dodgers also picked up relievers Jim Johnson and Luis Avilan from the Braves to help solidify a sometimes shaky Dodgers bullpen. The Dodgers also received what some scouting services believe is the Braves #1 ranked prospect, 21 year old Shortstop Jose Peraza. Peraza is hitting .295 at AAA Gwinnett this season.

As part of the trade, the Dodgers had to take on a couple of salaries in those of Marlins outfielder Michael Morse and injured Braves pitcher Bronson Arroyo. The Dodgers immediately designated Morse for assignment because they have no room for him in an already crowded outfield and Morse has not been productive this season. Arroyo is on the 60 day Disabled List and is lost for the season.

The biggest name player that the Dodgers traded was 30 year old Cuban Shortstop Hector Olivera who has been battling hamstring problems all season long. Olivera only has 69 at bats in three stops in the Dodgers minor league system this season. The other players the Dodgers traded away were all minor league pitchers with Zachary Bird being the highest ranked of those prospects.

The Dodgers have seen their lead in the National League West shrink to a half game over the San Francisco Giants. The Dodgers needed starting pitching and got it in Latos and Wood. It is not the top tier pitching in Cole Hamels and David Price that most Dodgers fans clamored for but the Dodgers gave up next to nothing in return. Latos is having a subpar season by any standards at 4-7 with a 4.48 ERA but has pitched much better since coming off the Disabled list in June. Latos does become a free agent at the end of the season. Wood is only 24 years old and is 7-6 with a 3.54 ERA and he is not even arbitration eligible until 2017.

The Streak Is Over

Zack Greinke's scoreless inning streak came to an end at 45 2/3 innings. Unfortunately the New York Mets official scorer had made a ruling, charging Greinke with an earned run because an error wasmade earlier in the inning by Joc Pederson. He made assumptions and my school of thought is the same as is for double plays. You cannot assume a double play just because one should have been made. All streaks come to an end. That is inevitable. Greinke virtually had no reaction to the end of the streak. In regards to the scoreless innings streak, Greinke said, "if anything, I feel negative about it. Now I don't have to answer questions all the time." The Dodgers did lose the game 3-2 in 10 innings.

I remember when Pete Rose's heating streak had reached 44 games and it came to an end on August 1, 1978 against the Atlanta Braves. Rookie left hander Larry McWilliams of the Braves made his fourth major league start that night and he walked Rose his first time up, speared a line drive that was destined to be a hit, grounded out to Jerry Royster his third time up, and McWilliams was pulled from the game after five innings. Rose faced reliever Gene Garber next and Rose lined out to rookie third baseman Bob Horner who doubled Dave Collins off first. The Braves had a 16-4 lead when Rose came up for his final at bat with two outs in the top of the ninth inning. Gene Garber was still pitching and he struck Rose out on a changeup that was low and outside on a 2-2 count. Rose was mad at the Braves pitchers for not "challenging him with fastballs" (Baseball Almanac and he is quoted as saying after the game "I was a little surprised that in a game that was 16-4, he [Garber] pitched me like it was the seventh game of the World Series." (Savannahnow.com. What Rose did not say was how he tried to bunt his way on with the first pitch of the top of the ninth which would have been a very cheap way of extending the streak. He was trying to get on base using any means necessary so why shouldn't Garber try to get him out using all of the pitches in his repertoire.

Greinke's scoreless innings streak was a great streak and is the third longest in Dodgers history. Up next on the watch list is Clayton Kershaw's scoreless inning streak and it is up to 29 innings.

A Major League Debut

I have waited for Zach Lee's major league debut since the day the Dodgers drafted him in the first round in 2010 and signed him away from being the Quarterback at LSU at the last minute. That is one of the things I love about Major League Baseball is that it may take five or six years for a player to develop to where he can even make it to "The Show" to pitch one inning, one at bat, or even spend one day on the roster.

Zach Lee had been called up a couple of weeks to spend one day on the Dodgers roster in case he was needed and immediately sent back down after the game. He was called up for a start against Matt Harvey and the New York Mets and it was not the Hall of Fame beginning that I was hoping for. Lee got touched up to the tune of seven runs in 4 2/3 innings and was tagged with the loss. Lee was probably headed back to Oklahoma City after this game anyway, so hopefully he will use this as a learning experience and know what he has to work on and how to improve his game.

Pitching is an art form. Almost every pitcher in the majors can hit 90 MPH on the radar gun. The minors are filled with hard throwers that will never make it past AA baseball. When you learn how to pitch is when you stand a chance of being a major league pitcher.

Justin Turner

With the long flowing red beard, Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner looks like a bat wielding Viking. He is wielding a hot bat for the Dodgers wreaking havoc over his old team the New York Mets with two doubles and his 13th homerun. With Juan Uribe's trade from the Atlanta Braves to the New York Mets, it was a roundabout trade that was two years in the making. The Dodgers signed Turner as a free agent in 2014 after the Mets non-tendered him, making him a free agent.

Justin Turner was a seventh round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2006 out of Cal State-Fullerton, was traded to the Baltimore Orioles in 2008 and Baltimore was where he made his major league debut in 2009. He was picked off the waiver wire in 2010 by the New York Mets where he played until 2013.

Turner has already reached his career high in homeruns this season and he has hit with more power and more average with the Dodgers than he did with the Mets. Turner's play this season diminished Uribe's playing time and made him expendable and Turner also has the ability to play multiple positions. I still have a hard time seeing Turner in Ron Cey's old number 10 jersey but he is wearing it with pride.

The 13th Starter

28 year old rookie Ian Thomas became the 13th starting pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers when he faced the New York Mets in a spot start in game two of their four game series in New York. It was also Thomas' first major league start. He was filling in for Zack Greinke who went home to be with his wife for the birth of their child. Thomas pitched well, going five innings, striking out five and allowing only one run. The Dodgers had given him a three run cushion to work with by the top of the second inning and they added three more in the top of the third.

Ian Thomas had a circuitous route to get to the major leagues. He was undrafted and unsigned out of Virginia Commonwealth University and went pitched in the Independent Leagues to get to the majors. He pitched with Winnipeg of the Northern League from 2009-2011 and was pitching with York of the Atlantic League when the Atlanta Braves signed him in 2012. He has already pitched with five teams this season- AA Mississippi, AAA Gwinnett, Atlanta Braves, AAA Oklahoma City, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Thomas was acquired by the Dodgers from the Atlanta Braves in the Juan Uribe deal earlier this season and this is his second call up with the Dodgers. The five inning performance may have earned Thomas another trip back to Oklahoma City because when it comes to the fifth starter, I believe Manager Don Mattingly picks the pitchers name out of a hat. Ian Thomas knows that Los Angeles and Oklahoma City are a long way from Winnipeg.

Keeping Up With Greinke

Kershaw has a scoreless inning streak of his own and Kershaw's streak reached 29 innings with a three hit shutout of the New York Mets. Kershaw struck out 11 and walked none. He had a perfect game through six innings and it was his third straight dominant start and his second straight shutout. He may not have the overall stats to win the Cy Young award again this year, but he is still the best pitcher in the game.

Jimmy Rollins homered off Bartolo Colon early in the game and the Dodgers manufactured two runs in the top of the ninth for the final score of 3-0. I was surprised to learn that Kershaw is not even in the top five pitchers for receiving the smallest amount of run support. It seems that Kershaw is usually pitching with a 1-0 lead or a 2-1 lead but that is apparently not the case. I wonder what pitcher's bullpen has blown the most saves in his starts?

Bolsinger Steps Up

Pitcher Mike Bolsinger, possibly fighting for his rotation life, shutout down the Atlanta Braves only giving up one unearned run in seven innings and getting the victory in the 3-1 win. Bolsinger kept the Braves off balance with a biting curveball and a sneaky fastball. He also go some ESPN worthy defensive plays from second baseman Howie Kendrick and third baseman Alberto Callaspo to assist in keeping the Braves off the bases.

The trade deadline is only eight days a week and Bolsinger has pitched well and above expectations. What started out as a spot start in May has turned into him getting the ball every five days. He has a 5-3 record with a 2.79 ERA and outside of the fact that he needs to be able to pitch deeper into games (he is only averaging a little over 5 1/2 innings a start), he deserves to keep his spot in the rotation.

The Dodgers Need Starting Pitching

I hate to admit this but the Dodgers need to be active for starting pitchers at the trade deadline. In order to get that starting pitching, they are going to have to give up prospects. I have never liked the idea of "renting" a pitcher for three months and giving up prospects in return. Most of the time, a team like the Dodgers ends up overpaying for a pitcher that may not win a game just on the chance that he may put them over the top and bring them a World Series title.

After Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, and Brett Anderson, the Dodgers have cobbled together a starting staff that probably would not strike fear into the lineup of a bad college team. Fourth Starter Carlos Frias ended up on the Disabled List and he is inconsistent on his best day. Fifth Starter Mike Bolsinger is good for four or five innings and then he turns it over to the overused middle relievers and setup men.

The pitchers most mentioned as possibilities to join the Dodgers are Cole Hamels of the Philadelphia Phillies and Johnny Cueto of the Cincinnati Reds. Cole Hamels is 5-7 with a 3.91 ERA on what is possibly the worst team in baseball. He is signed through 2018 with a team option for 2019 at almost $23 million. Cueto is in the last year of his contract that only pays him a little over $7 million this season. Who would be the better bargain? Cueto is younger but would probably cost the Dodgers more in prospects while Hamels has been more durable and is under contract for longer.

Zack Greinke Streak Continues

Zack Greinke added eight scoreless innings against the Washington Nationals to run his scoreless streak to 43 2/3 innings. He only allowed three hits, struck out 11 and walked only one. He left with a 1-0 lead and the Dodgers added four runs in the top of the ninth to take the bullpen out of the equation.

Greinke now only trails Orel Hershiser and Don Drysdale, both Los Angeles Dodgers, in consecutive scoreless innings with Hershiser's record being 59. I never thought Orel Hershiser got enough credit for being a great pitcher. He pitched 18 seasons in the Majors, won 204 games with 135 of those coming as a Dodger. His 1988 season was great by any standard and he was awarded the Cy Young Award that season as well as winning a World Series title. He also batted .201, had 50 RBI's, and stole eight bases. The .201 batting average was considered high for a pitcher.

I was disappointed in what Bryce Harper had to say after the game. When asked about Greinke, Harper said "I think he was OK. For me, I don't think he was very tough." Harper referenced a couple of times in the interview that he thought Greinke got "five or six inches" off the plate. It is a good thing Bryce harper never had to face Greg Maddux or Tom Glavine of the Atlanta Braves during the early 1990's.

The Nastiest Pitch In Baseball Today

The Bender. The Hook. Uncle Charlie. The Yellow Hammer. Public Enemy Number One. Those are just a few of the nicknames for the Curveball. Many people have tried to describe the Curveball as an "optical illusion." In 1949, Aeronautical Engineer Ralph B. Lightfoot of Sikorsky Aircraft did wind tunnel tests that proved a Curveball does curve. Hall of Fame Pitcher Dizzy Dean eloquently said about the Curveball "Stand behind a tree 60 feet away, and I'll whomp you with an optical illusion."

Clayton Kershaw had the nastiest Curveball he has had all season against the Washington Nationals. Knees buckled. Hitters stared with bats on their shoulders. Hitters swung and missed. No matter what happened, the Washington Nationals hitters shook their heads. Kershaw struck out the best player in the National League, Bryce Harper, three times. Harper said of Kershaw after the game "He put on a clinic today" and "sometimes you just gotta tip your cap and laugh." (Washington Post). Nationals hitters swung and missed at 30 Kershaw pitches, the most swings and misses a pitcher has had in the past seven years. Kershaw commented after the game that he may have had the most consistent slider he has had all season. (Los Angeles Times).

Kershaw pitched eight innings and had 14 strikeouts. He only gave up three hits. He has 27 strikeouts in his last 17 innings pitched and has given up zero runs during that time. It looks like Kershaw may be hitting his stride and that may spell trouble for the rest of the National League every fifth day.

The Home Run Derby

Los Angeles Dodgers rookie Joc Pederson was one of eight contestants in the Home Run Derby and he did very well for the Dodgers and for himself. He made it to the final round where he lost to the Cincinnati Reds' Todd Frazier 15-14. I am not a big fan of this even especially from the perspective of the Dodgers going in to the second half of the season.

Pederson hit a total of 39 home runs on the night but remarked how tired he was after the event was over. A home run hitting contest is also a great way to mess up a swing. Pederson leads the Dodgers with 20 home runs but his average has dipped into the high .220's.

He is also starting in the All Star game so the Dodgers may need to rest him more in the second half of the season. Carl Crawford is due back shortly after the break and Andre Ethier can also provide a left handed bat in the lineup.

Another Comeback Story

The Dodgers rolled out another comeback story against the Milwaukee Brewers in the form of Starting Pitcher Brandon Beachy. It had been more than two years since Beach had appeared in a major league game. This comeback story did not go as well as Chin-hui Tsao's as Beachy gave up three runs in four innings and took the loss. Beach gave up all three runs in the top of the third inning on a bases loaded double.

Beachy was signed as an insurance policy in case something happened to one of the Dodgers brittle starters and now that insurance has come due. He was not expected to be ready until the All Star break so he is right on schedule. Beach had some control issues and outside of the one bad inning, he did not look too bad.

Chin-hui Tsao pitched two more scoreless innings in middle relief so it will be interesting to see how the bullpen shakes out after the All Star break.

The Long Road Back

Dodgers reliever Chin-hui Tsao got the win against the Milwaukee Brewers in his first major league appearance since 2007. He pitched a scoreless inning, recording one strikeout, and was the beneficiary of three Dodgers runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, a two out two run single by pinch hitter Andre Ethier and a Joc Pederson opposite field double that drove in Ethier.

I had the opportunity to see Tsao pitch for the Asheville Tourists, the Low A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, in 2000. I had heard so much about the Taiwanese phenom, I had to go see for myself. He was a power pitcher in a power hitters park and he handled himself quite well. He went 11-8 that season with a 2.73 ERA and 187 strikeouts in 145 innings.

After a few injury plagued seasons with the Rockies, they released him in 2006, the Dodgers picked him up in 2007 and he made 21 appearances for them. He had some legal problems in Taiwan, received a five year ban, owned a barbecue restaurant, and thought he would give professional baseball another try. The Dodgers signed him to a minor league contract and after a handful of appearances at AA Tulsa and AAA Oklahoma City, the Dodgers called him up. Tsao's statistics in the minors were not overwhelming but the Dodgers thought his pitches showed enough movement to add him to the bullpen mix. The road between the Dodgers bullpen and Oklahoma City has been a well traveled one this season

Pitching Another Eight

Zack Greinke extended his scoreless inning streak to 35 2/3 against the Philadelphia Phillies in the Dodgers 6-0 win. Greinke dominated the Phillies lineup only giving up one hit in eight innings, striking out eight. He dropped his ERA to 1.39 and made a strong statement for being the starter for the National League in the All-Star game. He ran his record to 8-2. Greinke is a free agent after this season and he is also stating his case to be one of the highest paid pitchers in the game.

Major League Baseball has not seen a first half of pitching like this since 1968. In that season, three pitchers- Bob Gibson, Luis Tiant, and Dodger great Don Drysdale- all had ERA's under 1.40 at the All Star break. Bob Gibson ended that season with a major league record 1.12 ERA and 13 shutouts.

Yasiel Puig showed signs of breaking out of his season long power slump hitting his fourth homerun and driving in four of the Dodgers six runs.

Kershaw's First Shutout

Clayton Kershaw pitched one of his best games of the season against the Phillies, going the distance in the shutout and striking out 13. Kershaw gave up eight hits but he was really snapping off the curveball when it counted. 123 pitches in the complete game, 82 for strikes. There are times when you can throw too many strikes.

The game was also his statement for the "at large" bid for the last spot on the National League All-Star team. Most fans want to look at his record of 6-6. The fans have not taken into consideration his 1.53 ERA over his last nine starts, he leads the league in strikeouts, and the lack of run support he has received.

Shortstop Jimmy Rollins has been killing his old team the Phillies, hitting a three run homer, and driving in five of the Dodgers 17 runs they have scored in the series. Catcher A.J. Ellis rocketed above the Mendoza line (.215) with three hits, and his first homerun of the season, a two run shot.

Billingsley Returns

Former Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley returned to Chavez Ravine and pitched the best game of his short Philadelphia Phillies career and also got his first win as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies. It was Billingsley's first win in over two years as he has been battling arm problems. The Phillies gave him a chance after the Dodgers bought out his contract earlier in 2015.

I always liked Billingsley when he was with the Dodgers. He was a first round draft pick by the Dodgers in 2003 and made it to the Dodgers in 2006. He compiled an 81-61 record with the Dodgers but after a career high 16 wins in 2008, he never really fulfilled the potential that many Dodgers brass and fans thought he had. When Clayton Kershaw came along, I believed that Billingsley-Kershaw would be a righty-lefty tandem that would be second to none in the National League.

That belief never materialized as Billingsley finished his Dodgers career with an 81-61 record and a 3.65 ERA and then the arm problems began after he pitched in two games in 2013. He didn't pitch at all last season and he ended up getting a chance with the Phillies, beginning in their minor league system this season and working his way back to the majors. I wish him all of the success in the world.

And The Starting Pitcher Is....

Reliever Yimi Garcia got the surprise start against the Philadelphia Phillies but he was a starter in name only. It was more like a glorified relief appearance as he only went two innings giving up two runs. Eric Surkamp was next on the list as the fifth spot in the rotation has turned into starter by committee and he fared even worse than Garcia. Surkamp made it 3 1/3 innings giving up four runs. Reliever J. P. Howell got the most production out of his one out by getting credit for the win.

I look for the Dodgers to trade for another starter at the trade deadline. If they want to make a serious run at the World Series, they do not have a choice. Bolsinger and Frias have held down the fort but neither much can make it much past the fifth inning and the Dodgers bullpen is logging a lot of innings. The Dodgers are going to have to part with some prospects but who are they willing to give up? I would rather give up young bats than young arms.

A Coin Flip

The Dodgers have one of the worst teams in baseball in the Philadelphia Phillies coming to Los Angeles tonight and the Dodgers have still not named a starting pitcher. Carlos Frias was placed on the Disabled List because of stiffness in his lower back and the Dodgers replaced him on the active roster with left handed reliever Daniel Coulombe.

The two names being bounced around to start tonight are minor leaguer Eric Surkamp who was acquired from the Chicago White Sox in a minor league trade for Outfielder Blake Smith earlier in the season. He was 3-0 with a 2.81 ERA for the AAA Charlotte Knights before his trade and he is 4-2 with a 4.50 ERA for AAA Oklahoma City after the trade. He was scratched from his start Sunday in preparation for his call up on Monday. Surkamp was a sixth round draft choice of the San Francisco Giants out of North Carolina State in 2008. Surkamp does have major league experience appearing in 42 games with 7 starts for the San Francisco Giants and Chicago White Sox. He has a career record of 4-3 with a 6.20 ERA.

Former Dodger Eric Stults is also on the radar to start tonight. He was 1-5 with a 5.85 ERA for the Atlanta Braves in eight starts earlier this season. Stults was drafted by the Dodgers in 2002 and spent parts of four seasons, 2006-2009, with the Dodgers. He has a career record of 36-48 in 135 games with 112 starts. The problem with Stults is that if he does not stick with the team he would have to clear waivers again.

Neither pitcher exactly strikes fear in the hearts of any bats, not even the Philadelphia Phillies. The Dodgers cannot seem to keep a starter on the mound if his name is not Kershaw, Greinke, or Anderson.

International Market Is Open For Business

The Los Angeles Dodgers got out the checkbook when the International Signing Period opened. The Dodgers are more than willing to pay huge taxes for spending over their allotted amount as they spent over $20 million the first day, well over their allotted $2.7 million. They signed three of the top 30 international players, as ranked by mlb.com.

Yadiel Alvarez, 19, RHP, Cuba, $16 million- The Dodgers invaded Cuba gain for the #2 ranked International prospect. Alvarez had a hefty price tag but he might have as just a hefty ceiling as far as being a prospect goes. He has a fastball that hits he high 90's, a slider that is a strikeout pitch, and an above average changeup. He has a power arm that all of the scouts love and one scout went so far as to say that Alvarez was the best 18 year old pitcher he had ever seen (mlb.com).

Starling Heredia, 16, OF, Dominican Republic, $2.6 million- Nicknamed "the Pit Bull", Heredia is widely believed to be the best total package player of the international prospects and is the #5 ranked player. I have never been a big fan of signing 16 year old players. What he does going forward from this point is all speculation. Scouts like his power and he models his game after Yasiel Puig.

Ronny Brito,16, SS, Dominican Republic, $2 million- The best part of Brito's game is his defense- good feet, strong arm- and he is a left-handed line drive hitter. At this point in his development, Brito is seen as providing organizational depth because scouts question his ability to hit once he gets into the Dodgers minor league system.

Oneal Cruz, 16, SS, Dominican Republic, $950,000- Cruz is also a left-handed hitting Shortstop but is very tall for the position and may end up in the Outfield. He has developing power and average speed.

Christopher Arias, 16, OF, Dominican Republic, $500,000- Baseball America described the best part of Arias's game as "raw power." Arias is 6'2" and a 175 pounds and he is seen as a power hitting corner Outfielder.

That is a little over $22 million for five prospects and all, with the exception of Alvarez, will stay in the Dominican Republic to play for the next two or three seasons. It will be interesting to track their development over the next couple of seasons, especially Alvarez.

A Matchup Of Aces

Zach Greinke of the Los Angeles Dodgers versus Matt Harvey of the New York Mets is not exactly Snoopy versus the Red Baron but as far as a matchup of team aces go, it is pretty close. Greinke pitched seven more innings of shutout baseball, extending his scoreless innings streak to 27 2/3 and lowering his ERA to 1.48, and left the game with a 4-0 lead. The Dodgers touched up Harvey for three runs in five innings.

Enter the Dodgers bullpen. The Dodgers bullpen can usually be counted on to make the game exciting and the bullpen did not let the Dodgers fans down. It took four pitchers from the Dodgers bullpen to complete those last two innings and they gave up three runs. Lefty J.P. Howell had to come on to get the final out for his first save of the season.

If I was a Dodgers starter and I left the game with a three run lead, I believe I would go to the clubhouse and hide until the game was over. I do not think I could bear to watch.

All It Takes Is One Run

After all of these seasons, I think the rest of the National League has final figured out how to beat Clayton Kershaw. This season all the other teams have to do is score one run. Score the one run, get Kershaw out of the game after about seven innings, and then lay the Dodgers bullpen to waste.

Evidently for the Dodgers to score more than one run when Kershaw pitches, Kershaw is going to have to pull a Steven Matz of the Mets and drive in all of his team's runs himself. The only problem with that theory is that there would actually have to be Dodger runners on base for Kershaw to be able to drive them in.

Clayton Kershaw has a 5-6 record with a 3.08 record and has pitched much better than his record indicates. Bartolo Colon of the New York Mets has nine wins but a 4.55 ERA, and Chris Heston (eight wins) and Tim Lincecum (seven wins)of the Giants both have ERA's hovering around 4.00. If only Clayton could get some run support.

Taking A Chance

This past offseason, the Dodgers took a big chance when they signed left handed starter Brett Anderson to a one year, $10 million contract. Now it is looking like the most important signing of the off season. Anderson was slated to be the #5 starter when the season began but due to season ending injuries to Hyun-Jin Ryu and Brandon McCarthy, he has been boosted to the #3 slot in the rotation. Backup Catcher A.J. Ellis said after last night's seven inning, one run performance against the Diamondbacks that Anderson had often pitched like a #1 or #2.

The oft-injured Anderson has already started more games this season than he has since 2010, his second season with the Oakland A's, and has as many wins, five, as staff ace Clayton Kershaw and a better ERA than Kershaw, 3.00 versus 3.20. Anderson has overcome a variety of injuries since 2010 including a Tommy John surgery but it looks like this $10 million gamble is paying off for the Dodgers and looking like a bargain.

A Trade: A Tale Of Two Home Runs

Although Dee Gordon of the Miami Marlins and Howie Kendrick of the Los Angeles Dodgers were not traded for each other, trades by the Dodgers are how they ended up with their respective teams. Howie Kendrick replaced Dee Gordon at second base for the Dodgers. Dee Gordon is leading the Major Leagues in hitting, batting over .350. Howie Kendrick has provided more power and a veteran presence that the Dodgers needed.

They both hit homeruns yesterday and both ended up being game winners. Both homeruns were very different. Dee Gordon hit a line drive into the right centerfield gap against the San Francisco Giants and then Gordon's speed took over. He rounded the bases in a little over 14 seconds for an inside-the-park, three-run homer that gave the marlins a 3-1 lead. Gordon's speed is the most impressive part of his game and last year for the Dodgers, he became a baseball player. This year with the Marlins he managed to turn it up another couple of notches.

Howie Kendrick's homerun came in the top of the tenth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks and also ended up being the game winner in a 6-4 Dodgers win. Kendrick's homerun was a line drive over the right field fence and rather than race around the bases, he got to break into a homerun trot. Coming through in the clutch might be the most impressive part of Kendrick's game.

The Dodgers had to give up a player in Gordon that provided speed and got a player in return that provided veteran leadership and clutch hitting. Last night, the homeruns showcased both of the player's skills and brought both of their teams a win.

Body Language

I did not get to see much of the Dodgers 10-2 win last night over the Giants (I only got to see the seventh inning). What I did see, I did not particularly like. I hate to admit it but the ESPN announcing crew brought it to my attention. They were picking on Yasiel Puig and pointing out every shortcoming that he has. Puig seems to be every announcers favorite target when it comes to the Dodgers. Puig had a meltdown a few games ago and his ability has not caught up to his bad attitude yet.

Puig swung and missed at a pitch and he acted like someone had just punched his mother. The Dodgers had a 10-1 lead at the time. Then there are times when Puig will make a catch or hit a homerun and he makes you think "Wow! Where is that player on a consistent basis?" Then there are times when he forgets how many outs there are, loafs in the outfield and to first, or acts like he would rather be anywhere else other than roaming the outfield for the Dodgers.and you think "When is Mattingly going to bench his ass?"

Puig wasn't the only one with bad body language. Alex Guerrero hit a fly ball and was already halfway back to the dugout in a slow trot when the ball was caught. Joc Pederson fouled out to third base and he slowly walked back to the dugout. Left handed relief pitcher Daniel Coulombe issued a four pitch walk in the top of the seventh to left handed batter Brandon Crawford and did not come close to throwing a strike. All he has to do with a 10-1 lead is throw strikes. He ended up giving up a run in the top of the eighth. No wonder his ERA is 8.53. If you cn't trust him with a nine run lead why should you trust him with a one run lead?

Reggie Jackson is an example of a player's ability far outweighing his bad attitude. His battles with the Oakland A's, Baltimore Orioles, and especially the New York Yankees, were legendary. His attitude was just as bad with the California Angels but they were never in the spotlight of the World Series so it wasn't as blatant at the end of his career. His antics on the field, arguments in the dugout, and comments off the field could all be tolerated because he produced when it counted. Jackson was also the king of self promotion. He was "the straw that stirred the Yankee drink" and "Mr. October." He did not give himself that nickname but he did take it and run with it.

A Balkoff And A Walkoff

The Dodgers salvaged the final game of the series against the Texas Rangers in about the most unconventional way you can. The media is labeling it a "balkoff." With pinch runner Kike Hernandez on third base and two strikes on batter Jimmy Rollins, Third Base Coach Lorenzo Bundy urged Hernandez to fake a break towards home plate to try to rattle Rangers rookie pitcher Keone Kela. Hernandez is no Jackie Robinson but the fake was effective enough to cause Kela to flinch his right shoulder just enough to balk in Hernandez with the lone run of the game. Baseball purists would probably call the move bush league but the Dodgers needed the run and the win using whatever legal means necessary and it worked.

Dodgers starter Zach Greinke cannot get a break....or any run support. His line against the Rangers was seven innings pitched, four hits, and zero runs. He lowered his ERA to 1.81 and does not have a win since May 8 or eight straight starts. Greinke is heading into free agency next season and with the kind of season he is having and numbers he is putting up, the Dodgers probably will not make a serious run at him.

Looking At The Numbers

The Dodgers have been scuffling at the plate lately. I know they went through an eight game stretch in May where they only scored nine runs. The Dodgers have suffered through a stretch of three straight shutouts at the hands of the San Francisco Giants and 42 consecutive scoreless innings on the road. These games came against the San Francisco Giants and the St. Louis Cardinals, two of the best pitching staffs in baseball.

I decided to take a look at the overall offensive numbers of the Dodgers. What I saw really surprised me. After 60 games, the Dodgers are first in Major League baseball in OBP, tied for first in home runs with the Houston Astros, second in OPS, fifth in runs scored, and ninth in batting average.

The Dodgers have racked up these numbers in spite of outfielders Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford missing large chunks of the season and starting shortstop Jimmy Rollins being off to the worst start of his career.

On the plus side Joc Pederson has been as advertised and Andre Ethier has shown flashes of his form of five or six seasons ago. Pederson leads Major League rookies in home runs with 17 and Ethier has already doubled his homerun output from last season. Alex Guerrero's emergence as a power hitter helped lead to Juan Uribe's trade.

Where is the consistency in the run scoring? It has always been said that good pitching beats good hitting and that is how the Giants and the Cardinals are taking it to the Dodgers this season and in last season's playoffs.. The Dodgers are also missing their third and fourth starters in Hyun Jin-Ryu and Brandon McCarthy and they have been piecing together the back end of their pitching staff since Opening Day. Right now Carlos Frias and Mike Bolsinger are doing the job and Brandon Beachy should be back in about another six weeks.

Clutch Hitting

Howie Kendrick came up clutch again as he hit a walk off single with one out driving in Yasiel Puig with the winning run in the Dodgers 7-6 victory over the Arizona Diamond Backs. Puig went four for four with a walk, hit a three run homer in the second inning, and has been en fuego since coming off the Disabled List a week ago. Kendrick's heroics would not have been needed but Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen gave up a game tying homer to A.J. Pollock in the top of the ninth. That was Jansen's first run allowed this season. Yasmani Grandal also homered for the Dodgers.

Kendrick Saves The Day

Howie Kendrick drove in all three runs, a solo homerun in the sixth inning and a two run single in the seventh, in the Dodgers 3-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Overall, it was another lackluster offensive performance by the Dodgers. The Dodgers only had seven hits last night but drew five walks.

The Dodgers wasted another great pitching performance by Carlos Frias who went 6 2/3 innings and only gave up the one run. Adam Liberatore pitched 1/3 of an inning (at least he struck the batter out- that looks much better in the box score than o foul out to the catcher) to get the victory. Kenley Jansen has almost pitched perfect relief this year- eight games, eight innings, one hit, no runs, 14 strikeouts, and no walks. He sealed Liberatore's win with a perfect ninth.

The Former Team

Mike Bolsinger got to face his former team, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and he pitched seven strong innings in the Dodgers 9-3 win. He only gave up two runs and improved his record to 4-1 with an ERA of 2.08. Bolsinger came up through the Diamondbacks system and went 1-6 for them last season in nine starts. He was purchased by the Los Angeles Dodgers from the Diamondbacks in November of last year. Being purchased seems much worse than being traded for and Bolsinger took the opportunity to show the Diamondbacks how much he had improved.

I always thought that it was a bad idea to let your players go to a division rival because you would be facing them quite often in the near future and that is why I hate the fact that the Dodgers traded Matt Kemp to the San Diego Padres. That trade could come back to haunt them this season.

A Broken Record

At least the Dodgers have been consistent lately. Another game of two or fewer runs scored, another great start and no decision by Zach Greinke, and another implosion by the Dodgers bullpen equals another Dodgers loss.

During this past off season the Dodgers tried to piece together their bullpen with young arms and veteran cast offs. That worked pretty well for the first month of the season and then injuries hit and the young arms started struggling and veteran cast offs reminded us of why they were cast offs.

I don't think a trade is possible at this point. Middle relief pitching is at a premium in Major League Baseball. Just about every team out there needs arms. The Dodgers could about fill out an entire staff with just what is on the Disabled list. I would hate to give up any of the Dodgers young positional talent for a middle reliever. I don't know of anyone that has ever said middle relieving wins championships but it sure does bridge the gap between the starters and the closer.

Getting Some Missing Pieces Back

Yasiel Puig came off the Disabled List yesterday after missing 39 games with hamstring issues meaning that Scott Schebler stay with the Dodgers only lasted one game. Puig immediately made his presence felt against the St. Louis Cardinals as he lined a double into the right centerfield gap to drive in Chris Heisey in the seventh inning for the Dodgers first run in the 2-0 win. Puig later scored on a Justin Turner infield single.

Clayton Kershaw seems to be back on track with his second straight scoreless performance, pitching eight innings and only giving up one hit. He struck out 11 and walked 2. He improved his record to 5-3. Kenley Jansen pitched a scoreless ninth for his 6th save.

The St. Louis Cardinals have owned Clayton Kershaw like no other team in baseball. Over his last nine starts against them including the post season, he has a 1-7 record. Last night his location on his pitches was much better, he was snapping off the curveball, and he was getting ahead in the counts. He threw first pitch strikes to 20 out of the 27 batters he faced and 75 strikes out of 106 pitches overall. He looked like the Cy Young and MVP winner he was last year.

Baseball Tradition

One of the things I love about baseball is the tradition of the game. Dodgers rookie Scott Schebler got his first major league hit last night on the first pitch he ever saw in the Majors. Cardinals starter and right hander threw a fastball that was running away from him and Schebler hit a line drive between third base and shortstop for a single. The Cardinals immediately threw the ball in and tossed it to Dodgers third base coach Alonzo Bundy and he passed it on to the dugout for Schebler to keep the ball he hit for his first major league hit. Dodgers Hall Of Fame announcer Vin Scully commented that hopefully Schebler had "10 or 15 more years" of those left in him.

Missing In Action

The Dodgers gave up three runs in the ninth inning to the Colorado Rockies to lose the game the other night. Closer Kenley Jansen was "unavailable" for an unannounced reason in a game that he should have shut the door on. Jansen had only made one appearance in the past week where he threw 16 pitches and got the save. Evidently Jansen's status changed during the course of the came and Manager Don Mattingly was being very tight lipped about Jansen's non-appearance after the game.

The Dodgers personnel people seemed to be uninformed as to exactly what the issue was and only were able to offer up "he didn't feel well." Injuries and the Dodgers bullpen issues are beginning to catch up with them.

Two Teams

Take away two teams from the Los Angeles Dodgers season thus far and the Dodgers would be having a great season. The Dodgers cannot seem to get past the San Francisco Giants or the St. Louis Cardinals. If the Dodgers do get as far as the post season, they will more than likely be dealing with both of those teams. In the Dodgers defense, everyday seems to bring a new injury or a new personnel issue.

Outfielder Scott Schebler is the latest player to make his major league debut as Scott Van Slyke hit the Disabled List. Schebler went 1 for 3 last night. Schebler has hit at every minor league stop he has been at and hit with some power but he has struggled at AAA Oklahoma City this season.

Alex To The Rescue

Just as the Dodgers were about to get swept in a doubleheader by the Colorado Rockies, rookie Alex Guerrero came to the rescue. Trailing 8-5 in the top of the ninth inning with the bases loaded and a 1-2 count on him, Guerrero drove a fastball over the centerfield wall for a grand slam and an eventual 9-8 Dodgers win. It was his 10th homerun on the season. Kenley Jansen put a Rockies runner on third base before striking out the last Rockies batter to earn the save.

Guerrero has played in the outfield and third base for the Dodgers this season and he will probably never win any Gold Gloves. He has made two errors in left field and none at third base. However, he does provide power at the plate no matter where he plays or even as a pinch hitter coming off the bench. He is another one of the Dodgers "Cuban Connection" and the first to make a contribution.

Kershaw At The Bat

Clayton Kershaw pitched seven strong innings against the Colorado Rockies last night in the Dodgers 11-4 win and he also had the first three hit game of his career, driving in a run in the process. He improved his record to 4-3 and his batting average to .185. It was also his first road win on the season. He has always had a tougher time pitching in Coors Field, with an ERA about twice that of his career ERA but that was his eighth straight win against the Rockies.

The Dodgers had been suffering from a team wide slump for about the past two weeks but broke out of it in a big way last night. They hit four homeruns- Ethier, Rollins, Pederson, and Kendrick. Joc Pederson leads all major league rookie with 14 homeruns although his average has fell into the .250's from a high of the low .300's.

One Good Inning

Michael Wacha is the latest St. Louis Cardinals pitching wunderkind. He came into last night's game against the Dodgers with a 7-0 record and for the first five innings, he owned the Dodgers. He carried a no hitter into the sixth inning and the Dodgers possessed a 42 inning road scoreless streak. Wacha lost his no hitter and a precarious 1-0 lead as the Dodgers scored four runs in the top of the sixth inning, the last three coming on Yasmani Grandal's two out, three run homerun. The Dodgers only managed three hits off of Wacha but three walks and timely hitting lead them to the victory.

When I saw the pitching matchup of Wacha versus Carlos Frias, I did not like the Dodgers chances. Frias settled down after a shaky first inning when he gave up an unearned run and pitched seven solid innings, getting his fourth win. The Dodgers really needed him to produce and he pitched deep into the game, saving a few bullpen arms in the process.

Corey Seager

The internet sports world is abuzz after Corey Seager's 6 for 6 day with 6 RBI's for Oklahoma City last night. The big question being when will the Dodgers bring the 21 year old and #6 major league prospect up to Los Angeles. Seager is a natural Shortstop but projected to be a Third Baseman in the Majors. The Dodgers currently have a crowded infield. Turner and Guerrero are manning Third, starting Shortstop Jimmy Rollins is off to a slow start only batting about .200 but he is in the last year of his contract, Howie Kendrick is having a solid season at Second Base, and no one is replacing A-Gon at First. The Dodgers also just traded for utility man Alberto Callaspo.

The Dodgers will leave Seager in Oklahoma City because he needs at-bats everyday. I don't believe he will be brought up until the roster expands to 40 in September. I would look for him to be a regular in Los Angeles in 2016 unless Jimmy Rollins gets injured at some point and time this season.

The Expendable

The Los Angeles Dodgers made their first trade of the seson last night trading Third Baseman Juan Uribe and Pitcher Chris Withrow across the hallway to the Atlanta Braves Visitor's Locker Room for Utility Infielder Alberto Callaspo, Pitchers Eric Stults, Ian Thomas, and Juan Jaime.

Uribe's playing time had waned over the course of the past couple of weeks with Justin Turner and Alex Guerrero getting the majority of the playing time. Guerrero can play multiple positions and has emerged as a legitimate power threat, hitting his 9th homerun against the Atlanta Braves last night. Uribe was in the last year of his contract, was not off to a good start, and did not have the defensive versatility that Turner and Guerrero have. Alberto Callaspo is also a versatile player and his stats and Uribe's stats about mirrored each other.

Pitcher Eric Stults was drafted by the Dodgers in 2002 and appeared in 35 games with 24 starts from 2006-09, compiling an 8-10 record. He has bounced around the majors since then compiling a 36-48 overall record including 1-5 with the Braves this season. He even spent a season in Japan. He is not really in the Dodgers plans so they immediately designated him for assignment. Internet chatter has the Milwaukee Brewers taking a look at him.

The Dodgers also picked up two relievers, Ian Thomas and Juan Jaime. Both have some major league time under their belt, Thomas appearing in 21 games over the past couple of seasons and Jaime appearing in 18. Thomas was sent to Oklahoma City and Jaime was sent to Camelback Ranch to try to iron out some control issues.

The player I hated to see go was reliever Chris Withrow. He has been a highly ranked Dodgers prospect for years and he appeared in 46 games over 2013-14 but a back injury and Tommy John surgery wiped out his 2015 season. He has always had a power arm but he was not going to be able to help the Dodgers this season.

This was one of those trades that might end up being a blip on the radar. The Dodgers moved an unhappy Uribe, got a more versatile Callaspo, and got some more arms for the bullpen. The Dodgers just shuffled some personnel and sometimes that unhappiness can infect the clubhouse. It was nice to see Uribe get a nice ovation from the Dodgers crowd in his first at bat with the Braves the other night. I remember seeing Juan Uribe play as an Asheville Tourist in the Colorado Rockies organization in the early 1990's and he has turned it into a nice long career.

A Confession

I have to admit it, when the Dodgers put reliever Chris Hatcher into a 1-1 game in the 8th inning last night, I turned the TV off. I am not one of these fair weather Dodger fans that only pull for the Dodgers when things are going good, I am with them through thick and thin. I wear all of my Dodger gear proudly. Chris Hatcher had a lot of help losing last night's game due to a bullpen breakdown, but I have lost confidence in Chris Hatcher. Two batters and zero outs last night. He almost resembles a batting practice pitcher out there. It might be time to send him down to Oklahoma City and work things out there unless he is out of options, then I believe I would take my chances on another team claiming him. Arms seem to be in short supply in the Major Leagues this season so there might be a trade possibility there if someone does claim Hatcher.

Kershaw

Clayton Kershaw pitched one his best games of the season last night against the Atlanta Braves in the Dodgers 8-0 win. Kershaw was staked to a 6-0 lead after the 4th inning and Adrian Gonzalez drove in his 1,000 and 1,001 RBI's with a two run homer in the 5th. Kershaw struck out 10 and didn't walk anyone in 7 innings of work. A.J. Ellis even had a hit and drove in his second run of the season. He is now batting a robust .133.

The Backup Catcher

The backup Catcher has had a valuable role on a baseball team since the beginning of baseball. Catching is physically the toughest job on a baseball team. Foul tips, the constant squatting behind the plate, the now rare home plate collision, and blocking pitches in the dirt takes it's toll on any catcher. That is what makes a backup Catcher so valuable. Being a great hitter is not a necessity for a backup. Being able to call a good game, handle a pitching staff, throw out the occasional baserunner, and play solid defense is all a backup catcher needs to do to cement his roll on the team.

The backup catcher probably does need to bat higher than the .116 which is what Dodger backup Catcher A.J. Ellis is currently hitting. That is barely over half of the infamous Mendoza Line. This is after he batted .191 last year as the primary starter. Starter Yasmani Grandal and his .291 average is on the seven day concussion disabled list so Rookie Austin Barnes got the call from AAA Oklahoma City and went 1 for 3 in his debut on Sunday.

I don't know if the Dodgers are shopping for a backup Catcher or not but it will be interesting to see what happens around the trade deadline.

Power Surge

There was a power surge in Los Angeles last night against the Atlanta Braves and in came in the form of three homeruns in the eighth inning of a 6-3 win. Andre Ethier, Alex Guerrero, and Jimmy Rollins all hit one out to bring the Dodgers back from a 2-1 deficit in the 7th inning. The Dodgers had only scored 9 runs in their previous 8 games.

The Dodgers versus the Braves takes on a special significance for me because I live in Braves country. It was real bad for me when the Braves were going to all of those World Series in the 1990's. I never heard the end of it. It was just as bad when they were National League West rivals. The Braves had some great teams in the 1990's but only won one World Series during that time. I got to refer to them as the "Buffalo Bills of baseball." That is a title that they still retain.

The New Ace

Mike Bolsinger has turned into the ace of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitching staff at this point in the season. He pitched eight innings of one hit ball with eight strikeouts and no walks against the San Diego Padres last night. Bolsinger got all the run support he needed from a Joc Pederson leadoff homerun (his 12th) and improved his record to 3-0 and lowered his ERA to 0.71. Kenley Jansen pitched a perfect 9th inning and between Bolsinger and Jansen, faced the minimum 27 batters.

The way the Dodgers offense is going now, the Dodgers need those kind of pitching performances just to get a win and with Jansen coming off the Disabled List, he can make those one run leads hold up.

The Panic Button

Losing three games in a row to the San Francisco Giants is bad enough. Getting shutout three games in a row by the San Francisco Giants? Madison Bumgarner hitting a homerun off Clayton Kershaw? I don't think these are three signs of the apocalypse, but in the Dodger universe, they are very close.

It is kind of ironic, but before the Giants series started, one of the Dodgers bloggers had posted something about what an unprecedented season the Dodgers offense was having. Now I read one today, that believed the Dodgers starting pitching was falling apart. It is not like the Giants averaged ten runs a game in the series. The Dodgers are missing two starting outfielders and two starting pitchers. Every team goes through periods like this. The Dodgers just need to ride the storm out and hopefully they will get back on track. They have only played about one-fourth of the season.

Bolsinger Makes His Case

Mike Bolsinger pitched six strong innings against the Colorado Rockies, giving up three hits, striking out six and walking two. He made a fourth inning two out RBI single by Yasmani Grandal stand up. Yimi Garcia got back on track after two bad outings by pitching an inning of scoreless relief, Chris Hatcher pitched a scoreless eighth, and Kenley Jansen earned his first save of the year by shutting the door in the ninth inning.

That was Bolsinger's third start of the year and he lowered his ERA to 1.04. He finally made it through the sixth inning and he is doing what the Dodger's need him to do- Keep them in games, go as deep as he can and save the bullpen some innings, and he is now 2-0 in three starts. Depending on what happens with Ryu and McCarthy, he may not be around all season long but he is making his case for at least the 5th starter's job.

Prospects In Oklahoma City

Several of the Los Angeles Dodgers top prospects have made it to AAA Oklahoma City. One of the Dodgers top prospects, starting pitcher and #13 ranked Zach Lee, is off to a strong start with a 4-2 record and a 2.70 ERA with a strikeout to walk ratio of 3 to 1.

Top prospect Corey Seager got the call to Oklahoma City a few weeks ago from AA Tulsa where he got off to a .375 average with 5 homeruns in 80 at bats. At 21 years old, is the second youngest player in the Pacific Coast League. He has played both Third Base and Shortstop at Oklahoma City and he is still feeling his way around batting in the mid .270's with 5 RBI's.

#7 ranked prospect, Second Baseman Darnell Sweeney, provides an element of speed that the Dodgers are missing from this year's team. He has 17 steals in 34 games and can play both the infield and outfield although he is seen as primarily a second baseman.

#8 prospect, Outfielder Scott Schebler has not hit for a high average this season but he does have 6 homeruns and has hit in every league he has been in since being drafted by the Dodgers in the 26th round of 2010. With the Dodgers crowded outfield, he might be a trade possibility at the trade deadline this season.

#11 prospect Austin Barnes was acquired by the Dodgers from the Miami Marlins in the Dee Gordon trade and is one of those rare players that has played both Catcher and Second Base. He is batting in the mid .270's with 3 homeruns and 4 stolen bases and if anything happens to A.J. Ellis or Yasmani Grandal, may get the call at some point this season.

Jansen Back In Style

Kenley Jansen made his 2015 season debut last night against the Colorado Rockies and he did it in style. He struck out four Rockies batters on 14 pitches (the first batter he faced, Carlos Gonzalez, reached base on a strike three passed ball) and he looked like he never missed a beat. The Dodgers need Jansen to step up now because the closers position has been passed around a couple of times in his absence and no one has been able to nail it down. The Dodgers are now 23-12 and Jansen might have been the biggest missing piece of the puzzle.

Kershaw Finally Gets Win #100

Clayton Kershaw finally got his 100th career win last night. No Dodger fan thought it would take him until the middle of May to achieve that milestone. I believed he would get that in the first week of the season. His location has been off this year and his pitch counts have been high. He threw 110 pitches last night in 6 2/3 innings and his walk ratio is much higher than it was last year.

Even with Kershaw's slow start, the Dodgers are off to a 23-12 start and a solid lead in the National League West. This is due to a great start by Zach Greinke and a surprising offense that is putting up record numbers for the Dodgers and is one of the best in baseball. This is in spite of a slow start by Jimmy Rollins (.197 BA) and injuries to two starting outfielders, Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford.