Before I get to the review I wanted to write about how the Dodgers develop and then use their pitchers at the MLB level. I’m a casual fan who has no special insight or experience to base my opinion. Sometimes I don’t understand how they use these pitchers once they arrive in LA. A reliever is one thing, but a starting pitcher seems to be treated too cautiously. I see in Jeff’s recaps of the Dodger minors games and it seems that a younger starting pitcher only pitches 3-4 innings. Why? Don’t these players pitch seven innings all the time in high school or college? Why not back off the velocity, learn to “pitch”, and build up arm strength with longer outings. And then once promoted to LA that should allow them to go deeper into games. Thus, putting less stress on the bullpen. Right now the Dodgers, as well as many other teams, grind these relievers all season long. The Dodgers have used 25 pitchers so far this season. 25! Come postseason it creates a problem. But, a subject for another time.
So, let’s review how the Dodger pitching prospects have done in 2023.
Ryan Pepiot – So, this player has yet to pitch this year because of an oblique injury. Ryan is 25 years old. He has access to the top training personnel and methods and yet he has spent several months trying to get back on the mound. I don’t get this. But, with the Dodgers, injury disclosures are always sketchy. I know HIPPA and all that but if it’s baseball related then how about some honesty about his rehab. I liked what I saw from him last year. At least a solid bullpen piece.
Grade – Incomplete. Looks like a wasted season for Ryan.
Michael Grove – At 26 I think the Dodgers need to make a decision on how they plan to use Grove. When recently called up he had gotten his velocity up to 97-99 in his first outing. I don’t know where that came from. He has good stuff and for now would be right for a spot starter (opener) or long relief role.
Grade – B-. He has the pitches, velocity, and is not afraid to challenge hitters or throw strikes.
Gavin Stone – Stone got a lot of hype in the offseason with his incredible 2022 season of catapulting through the Dodger system. He was successful enough in AAA to get called up to the Dodgers. I watched him with the anticipation of maybe being the next pitching star for the Dodgers. What a disappointment. He basically had two pitches and neither seemed to be MLB ready. With only a fastball and changeup it has to be difficult to get hitters out unless you have bullseye accuracy with both pitches. And he didn’t. Unless he develops another pitch I don’t see him as a MLB starter. The Dodgers could use him in a trade piece or move him to the bullpen.
Grade – D. This grade was based on all the hype and the letdown when he did get his chance. He will be a major league pitcher. The questions are with what team and in what role?
Bobby Miller – I have been very impressed with the first couple of starts. I missed seeing his last two starts. Miller definitely has big league stuff and the physical stature to become an innings eater as well. Right now it appears he has some emotional issues when things don’t go his way during a game. This should be addressed ASAP. He is too talented to let this continue. Walker Buehler had these same problems his first couple of years. He could be a good source for Miller to access and learn from. I would like to see him back off his velocity a bit and become a better pitcher as opposed to trying to throw the ball through a wall approach. By continuing to try to throw 100 MPH just screams TJ surgery down the road.
Grade – B+. If Miller can harness his emotions on the mound and learn to pitch smart he could be the next Dodger ace.
Emmet Sheehan – First off, the Dodgers should have a player named Emmet. It rings of the Brooklyn days. He had an incredible first outing going six innings of no hit ball. He seems composed on the mound and is not afraid to attack the hitters. To have a sixth round 23 year old make the jump from AA to the show and do what he has done in his three starts is impressive.
Grade – A. To grade him after only three starts is silly, but the grade is based on how he made the jump from AA and how he responded when given the chance. I hope he can finish the season with the Dodgers.
Nick Robertson – Nick was chosen in the 2019 draft and like all minor leaguers lost the 2020 season to Covid. So, he has two minor league seasons to develop as a reliever. When called up this June his first outing went well. Unfortunately, three of the next five appearances didn’t go very well. He allowed six earned runs in five innings with the opposition hitting .364 with a 2.09 WHIP during his short stint with the team. He’s now back in AAA. For a college pitcher who was drafted to relieve and two years’ experience as a pro this doesn’t display successful development on his part nor the Dodgers. I believe AF drafted multiple high round college pitchers in 2019 to fast track to the Dodgers as relievers. Where are they?
Grade – C-. Nick had a couple of nice appearances so he did have some success. Maybe with this experience and some more work at OKC will help him get another callup at the end of the season. He has the tools.
Landon Knack – The headline possibilities with Knack for a last name are going to be fun if he becomes a success in MLB. He’s having a very nice season with Tulsa and now OKC. At 25 he deserves a shot with the Dodgers. Looking forward to seeing him sometime this year.
So, many of the above grades are for prospects who have somewhat or very limited time with the Dodgers. Are they fair? Probably not. But they were mainly based on how the prospect performed and how I think they will do in the future. The team hasn’t had a starting pitching prospect come up and really excel since Walker Buehler. Dustin May looked like he was going to be that guy, but injuries have crippled his career so far. Julio Urias had the look of an ace in the making too. But, this year injuries and his pending free agency is going to probably derail that scenario. My next pick to take the mantle from Kershaw for ace status is Bobby Miller. We’ll see what happens.
07-02-2023 MiLB Game Summary Reports
(by Jeff Dominique)
OKC Dodgers 8 – Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Houston) 2
Matt Andriese started a game that was originally set for Gavin Stone. Is Gavin Stone in LA looking to start Monday’s game? Matt completed 6.0 innings. The sole run he did allow was a solo HR. He surrendered three additional hits, no BB, and 8 K. Gus Varland pitched two perfect innings with a K. Wander Suero pitched the final inning, allowing a run on 2 hits.
OKC got on the board in the first. Drew Avans drew a BB that was followed by a Michael Busch single. Bryson Brigham reached on an error to load the bases. Kole Calhoun walked to force in one run, and Ryan Ward singled to plate the second. After five OKC batters, the score was 2-0.
Justin Yurchak homered (3) to lead off the 2nd. Ryan Ward (8) and Hunter Feduccia (7) hit solo HRs in the 3rd.
Ryan Ward hit a 2nd HR (9) in the 6th. OKC scored single runs in the 7th and 8th. Devin Mann hit his PCL leading 28th double for the run in the 8th.
- Ryan Ward – 3-5, 3 runs, 3 RBI, 2 HR (9)
- Michael Busch – 2-4, 2 BB, triple (3)
- Kole Calhoun – 2-4
- Justin Yurchak – 2-4, HR (3)
- Hunter Feduccia – HR (7)
- Devin Mann – Double (28)
Tulsa Drillers – Amarillo Sod Poodles (Arizona)
Game five of a six-game series between the Tulsa Drillers and the Amarillo Sod Poodles, that was scheduled to be played Sunday night, was postponed by rain.
The game will now be made up as part of a doubleheader on Monday.
Great Lakes Loons 4 – Lansing Lugnuts (A’s) 2
RHP Hyun-il Choi had a nice 3.0 scoreless inning start. He was followed by 5 pitchers to complete the bullpen game.
In the 5th, Luis Yanel Diaz doubled (12), and Chris Newell drew a walk. Chris Alleyne doubled (12) home both runners, and GL had a 2-0 lead. In the 7th, Diaz singled, stole 2nd, Griffin Lockwood-Powell walked and Chris Alleyne tripled (3) them both home.
Lansing scored a run in the 8th (unearned) and 9th.
- Luis Yanel Diaz – 2-2, 2 runs, double (12)
- Chris Alleyne – 2-2, HBP, 4 RBIs, double (12), triple (3)
Visalia Rawhide (Arizona) 3 – Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 2
Despite getting badly out-hit and committing four errors, the Visalia Rawhide managed a 3-2 win over the Rancho Cucamonga.
The RC offense produced ten hits, while Visalia collected just three, but the Rawhide made them count, as they slugged a pair of solo home runs and used an RBI double from Juan Corniel to win their second straight game in the series and for the third time in five days.
Kristian Robinson (3) and Riquelmin Cabral (2) each blasted a solo homer, as the Rawhide took a 2-0 lead over Rancho starter Gabe Emmett.
The Quakes fought back against Visalia starter Ricardo Yan, getting one in the fourth and then tying the game with a Jesus Galiz RBI hit in the fifth, knotting the game at 2-2.
In the seventh, Quakes’ reliever Jon Edwards (1-1) walked the leadoff man and then gave up a two-out RBI double to Juan Corniel, giving Visalia the lead for good at 3-2.
Rancho had chances throughout, but left 12 men stranded over their first eight innings. In the ninth, they’d go in order against closer Juan Morillo.
- Josue De Paula – 2-5, double (7)
- Kenneth Bettencourt – 2-5
- Simon Reid – 2-4, double (1)
Please welcome tedraymond for his inaugural published article in LA Dodger Chronicles. I thought his writing style and knowledge would be a welcome addition to Bear’s and my posts. If you recall, Ted posted a comment on his grades for the rookie position players. I thought that it was so good that it deserved to be a headliner. I reached out and asked if he would be willing to write the pitcher grade report as an article, and he agreed. I hope this is the first of multiple posts from Ted.
Yesterday Bluto asked: Just playing Devil’s Advocate here, but how and where have the repercussions of teams running more been quantified?
Take a look at the records of Arizona, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh in 2023 vs 2022. Look at what those teams have done against the Dodgers.
Arizona – 104 SB all last year. 82 for 1/2 year.
Cincinnati – 58 SB all last year. 94 for 1/2 year.
Pittsburgh – 89 SB all last year. 79 for 1/2 year.
Atlanta – 87 SB all last year. 67 for 1/2 year.
Every one of those teams will blow past last year’s SB numbers, and will run wild on LAD as they have already done this year.
Ted, I enjoyed reading your concise reviews of our rookie pitchers. Your comments on how the club basically coddles the new pitchers are very telling about their training. Strength training is always about adding more to your workout process so you build endurance. As I’ve mentioned before, this is the first area I would investigate in the process of conditioning. Going 7 innings should be a goal and a milestone for all starters. Somehow, I think velocity has superimposed itself and has become a sign for modern times. Injury lurks. One little tweak and a player can miss a month or more. Missing multiple weeks and months is unacceptable with the right trainers and staff.
I pretty much agree with your take except on Michael Grove. With an 0-2 start, no QS’s(quality starts) in 7 starts, 7.54. ERA, 1.59. WHIP, and 8 HRs in 9 appearances, doesn’t give me the warm and fuzzies. How did you arrive at a B- grade?
I also see good things for both Miller and Sheehan. If these two continue on this trajectory, they will be welcome additions to our wounded vets and some may never get back that mojo they once had.
Good stuff, Ted. Looking forward to more of your insights.
May I call you Ted?
Keep at it. Your knowledge and ability to express it adds a lot to this site.
I agree with your opening paragraph and would like to know more on how the Dodgers go about it in the minors. They are alleged to be the leader in pitching development but the questions that have been raised here are legitimate. Why the injuries and why the inability to hit spots? I learned how do it in Little League. Maybe I had an advantage, my grandfather was a pitcher in the Texas leagues decades ago and taught me “high and tight low and away” when I was 11. He also said forget the curve til later and taught me “change of pace” and different fastball and change grips. Weak contact. As an 11-12 year old. It worked. I keep asking myself, what are they teaching now and would the old techniques work today?
Here is some more likely useless information I learned in a kinesiology class in college – the arm isn’t designed to throw overhand. Actually the shoulder isn’t. Sidearm, like Walter Johnson, or underhand, like softball pitchers. I faced fast pitch pitchers who could throw 300 pitches in a weekend tournament without issues. And I think the question regarding elbow torque on a 100 mph pitch has been ongoing for some time now. I keep asking, how about 97 located instead? And unless you have hands the size of LeBron, the split finger is a ticket to TJ.
It seems to me that Grove is victimized by weak hits that are compounded by opposing team’s running game. If one looks at the exit velocity against Grove instead of runs against him, it could lead to a grade of B.
https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/michael-grove-675627?stats=statcast-r-pitching-mlb
The increased number of arm injuries to pitchers is not exclusive to Dodger pitchers. There is an outstanding SI article written by Tom Verducci on pitchers increased injuries and the 100 MPH pitch as a significant contributor.
Here are some of the more pertinent points made in the article
· $486MM paid last year for 427 pitchers on IL or $2.67MM per day
· Number of MLB pitches thrown 100 MPH tripled over three years. 1,056 in 2019 to 3,348 in 2022. Even more in 2023.
· Only 51% of pitchers who appeared in a game last season stayed off the IL.
· So far this season, 173 pitchers ended April on IL, collecting $100MM or $3.1MM/day.
· The rotation of the shoulder when throwing a baseball is the fastest human motion ever measured biomechanically. The shoulder fires 7,000 degrees per second. It’s the equivalent of having your arm complete 20 circles in one second.
Here are some quotes from Glenn Fleisig, the research director at the American Sports Medicine Institute in Birmingham who is also an adviser to MLB and an established leader in pitching biomechanics.
Above Jeff wrote:
Per the above, you certainly appear to be correct about the superimposed velocity. However, not truly understanding if you think the pitchers are underconditioned and that is the cause of the increased injuries, I am not certain about your conclusion. Per Fleisig:
Support for Badger’s 6 man rotation:
Ten years ago, pitchers made 51% of starts on four days of rest. By last season it had dropped to 39%. This year it is 24%. Having a rotation work every fifth day is a dead concept.
No pitcher has thrown 120 pitches since June 28, 2022, a streak of more than 3,400 consecutive starts. Over the past three seasons, a pitcher thrown 120 pitches only eight times—as many times as Kerry Woods did in a 21-start stretch as a 21-year-old rookie in 1998. Now we have real-time biomechanical measurements and acute-to-chronic workload ratios, which is why the Yankees generally pitch Cole every sixth day and have kept his pitch count within the narrow range of 92 and 109.
LAA is doing this for Ohtani and NYY is doing this for Cole.
BTW – More than two-thirds of teams employ biomechanists, and teams have biomechanics equipment.
The entire article can be found here:
https://www.si.com/mlb/2023/05/01/high-velocity-pitching-what-it-means-for-mlb-pitchers
Good stuff Ted. You’ve gotten a good discussion going here. Hope to see more articles from you.
Now, as to the subject at hand, it seems to me that if speed is leading to more injuries, some team with foresight should start drafting and developing SOME of their pitchers who don’t throw 100 mph and whose repertoire consists of off speed stuff which is less likely to incur injury.
I’ve been pounding the table for us to develop a couple of knuckleballers. Be contrarian. Familiarity breeds contempt (or multiple hits and losses).
If throwing sidearm and underhand is healthier for the arm, has anyone ever determined if throwing a MLB ball underhand is possible? Batters would need to adjust to seeing the ball coming at a totally different angle and might not adapt very well.
When they zig, we zag………….because we aren’t doing a great job of zigging this year.
I realize we have an excellent chance of making the playoffs this year if we can keep our rotation from totally disintegrating, but I’m already concerned about next year’s pitching.
Consider:
1) Kershaw may retire or go to the Rangers.
2) Buehler may not come back successfully from his surgery, or at least may not be as effective since it’s his second TJ.
3) Urias is at least a 50-50 possibility not to return (either by his choice or AF’s)
4) Gonsolin – well, it’s the Catman and you can never be sure when he’ll be healthy.
5) May – this could be another Treinen story. Wait all year hoping to cure yourself without surgery and then, having wasted a year, have surgery.
This was supposed to be the reset year but we might go into spring training next year with a rotation of Miller, Sheehan, Stone, Grove, Pepiot and Knack (pick 5).
In spite of the fact that Miller and Sheehan have had their excellent moments, we can’t be sure that any of those 6 are going to be effective longtime major league starters.
We keep on hearing that AF should go out and get a couple of guys as rentals, but I’m thinking maybe it’s time to spend that prospect capital and pay up for some pitchers that we’ll control for at least two or three years and who could be our #1 or 2 starters.
Jeff D. (or anyone else), please get me some names of pitchers we could go after that would fit those criteria.
In the meanwhile, I hope Andrew has saved some money to go after the Japanese pitcher Yamamoto who will be posted this winter. He sounds like a really good one.
Clayton Kershaw to the IL – Eligible to come off July 15.
Victor Gonzalez – Optioned to OKC
Michael Grove and Gavin Stone recalled.
Vargas needs a trip to OKC…