I'm interested to see what the kid has. They say he's got a little power, but he's more of an on-base kind of guy. I think that's incredibly useful and would be great to see early in the lineup. There's always room for Chris Taylors on the field. You have Taylor and Verdugo get on and let Turner and Bellinger bring 'em in. Sounds lovely. Right now we're muddling around with Kike and Granderson in that two spot.
Im not so sure they have us figured out. I know they said Rodney said after game 1 of this series they want the Dodgers but that could be stupidity talking. Not making excuses for our boys but there is a difference in the current drive of the two teams. The Dbacks have hit a good patch and are really needed it to create some distance in the WC race. With 6 straight wins they are still only 3 games ahead of Colorodo and 6 on the Brewers. They and the Rockies should of been coasting to the WC game. I think Roberts giving guys rest and playing some different lineups has taken us out of it a bit BUT they still should be winning. Our pitchers haven't been overly sharp and they have jumped us early. However, in each game when we started putting in our players we have been in position to tie the game or take the lead. last night I was suprised at Utleys strikeout with bases loaded and 1 out. He scores Puig I pretty sure we win that game. I am really looking at our next series with the DBacks to see if we have righted the ship. although september callups can be a bit of a mess too.
Yeah I'm with you. I just don't like the shuffling messing with our mojo. We don't need to freak out or anything, and I'm glad we're stumbling now instead of later, but I'd like to see them get back on track here in this last Arizona game. I'd love to see us win this game in a big way so we can just let them know, "hey you beat our back of the rotation, so calm down".
man our pitchers are really not playing well. Yu struggled. Announcers said the pitching staff has been working with his mechanics since he has been with us. And we are leaving so many guys on base tonight. Like I said, I am glad they are hitting this bump now and not as the playoffs start BUT it is still frustrating to see us lose like this.
Maybe it's a master plan to not show their best secret stuff for the playoffs! I agree though, the pitching has tanked (Wood has looked awful post ASB like 2015 Joc; he's lost his velocity) along with the offense. The fiddling is annoying, but maybe it's a way to keep the players more fresh for the playoffs.
I heard something interesting that I hadn't thought about. The dodgers spent most of August on the road. Like all of it. We could be facing a little road fatigue. Also it looks like teams are coming out super aggressive with us and are making good with those choices. I think overall that is good because as some say it is showing the Dodgers weaknesses it is also showing the Dodgers that too. They need to turn it around though cause losing can be contagious and habit forming. Still not super worried but not a fun time for the Boys in Blue.
Yeah I'm all for them going through a little more adversity, but at some point I expect them to pick themselves up and play with more pride than this. Our pitching has disintegrated. I think they messed with Yu's mechanics too much. Wood has hit a big wall. Hill is either the greatest pitcher or a bum every other time on the mound. They need to clear their heads and get back to winning.
I def agree. I think Yu is thinking too much and trying to live up to being a part of what very well should be a WS Champion team. I think he gets that one good game and he'll be back to what we expect him to be. Wood is always a question mark to me but he has been amazing all year. I think with he (wood) and Hill they need the offense to put them at ease to start the game. If we suck this series then im going to be a little more than annoyed
That was a terrible start to this series, feels like the Dodgers are still experimenting too much. At some point, we have to get back to what was working and put Seager, Bellinger, and Turner starting together again. Maybe Joc coming back might help as well? In terms of the pitching, we do have Walker Buehler waiting in the wings. He could at least replace Baez, who's been awful and doesn't handle high leverage situations well.
Once Seager is healthy, I want to stop messing around. For now... I'm willing to just let this work its course. Once Seager is back though I want: Taylor/Seager/Turner/Bellinger/Granderson/Forsythe/Puig/Grandal/Pitcher That's our regular rotation this fall and that's how it should be. Taylor works best when teams have to worry about Seager after him. Then with at least one man and Bellinger coming up, teams have to pitch strikes to Turner. Bellinger of course to clean up. I want Granderson there working walks or hitting homeruns. Forsythe has had some decent at bats lately. I like Puig in there as mini-cleanup duty behind Forsythe and Granderson getting on base. Grandal is a throwaway at bat these days, but he's got power late in the lineup (the Puig role for most of the year) so you can't just pitch him garbage. The pitcher does whatever he can do to get on. Off the bench I want: Kike, Verdugo, Utley, Barnes, and Gonzalez. The last spot goes to one of: Ethier, Segedin, or Trayce. Whichever guy hits best over this final month gets in. I want to roll into the playoffs with: Kershaw/Darvish/Hill/Wood as my starters. Out of the pen I want: Maeda/Avilan/Paredes/Watson/Morrow/Jansen/Ravin or Fields or Buehler if he looks good. We've got another week or so to f*** around, but then we've got to get serious. This losing becomes a habit just like winning did before it. They need to get their minds right and get back to expecting wins.
You don't see Gonzalez starting regularly any more if it were to turn out he's able to be healthy rest of season? Cody takes over full time 1st base?
I think Ryu should be a part of the rotation if he continues to pitch well. He's also given two quality playoff starts in the past.
I am not sure Agon should not be starting though. He has proven time and time again he can come up with the hits we need. No liability on first or at the plate. The Grandy inclusion does intrigue with Agon hitting off the bench. I worry about the young guys getting too much pressure playing in the big games. We need those veterans. Utely needs to start some games too. The guy is just a beast for me.
Is it concerning that Arizona absolutely owns you right now? It would concern me this close to the end of the regular season. Never good to peak in like July.
Gotta agree with Real on that point. The DBacks are playing for their lives and we didn't even change our rotation to put some fear in them. I just hope we put the lineup back in and let the boys get back on track.
I see, just wondered. Seems the Dodgers choke every season close to this time of year so I was curious if there was cause for concern. I'm not a fan, but my grandparents that live with us are so I'm rooting for them to win it all. My team is pretty much irrelevant, but I always enjoy the baseball playoffs in general, usually find some team to get behind for fun. Last season it was the Cubs after the Dodgers were out, because I mean, those poor fans.
