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.
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
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 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.
Sunday, May 24, 2015
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 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.
Friday, May 22, 2015
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.
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.
Monday, May 18, 2015
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.
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.
Saturday, May 16, 2015
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.
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.
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