Another year, another disappointing finish. Not much can be said other than, excuse the language, they got their asses handed to them.
I have read a lot from fans who try to place the blame for the debacle on AF and Roberts. AF does assemble the players, but it is up to them to perform, and our stars, the best we have, stunk up the joint.
You can bet Freddie and Mookie are being harder on themselves than we are being on them. They have to feel somewhat embarrassed by how they played. But you look at Atlanta, and the same thing happened to them for the second year in a row. They averaged two runs a game also.
And their MVP candidate did little better than Mookie and Freddie. He had three hits total, none for extra bases.
So, where do the Dodgers go from here? We all know they are not going to just blow it up and start over. But I have to believe there are going to be some huge changes in hitting philosophy and how they stack the pitching staff.
They have three players with options, Kelly, Muncy and Lynn. Least likely to be picked up is Lynn. I think his fate was sealed when he allowed those four homers.
Kelly’s is only 9 million. Not bad for a guy with his pedigree and success at the big league level. But most likely they pay the one million buyout.
Muncy’s is a 14 million dollar team option. No buyout. This is the one I am most on the fence with. I like Max, I do not like the three true outcome approaches he takes at the plate. I also dislike his high strikeout rate.
Yes he has an OPS over .800, and he hits 30 plus homers a year. But to me, he misses more chances than he succeeds at. His K rate has climbed in each of the last 3 seasons.
I am pretty sure the Dodgers will exercise the option, but personally, I would not. I am old school, I hate strikeouts. I think someone needs to work very hard with James Outman on his bat to ball skills also.
A lot of what we all have been thinking and saying is out of the frustration of another postseason meltdown, which in my humble opinion, are coming far too often.
Sorry, the better team lost. The team with no break and continuity to its season won.
Blow it up?
Nah. Just clean it up and polish it a bit.
I might hire a new conditioning staff. One that’s up to date with the latest algorithms on how to keep a team of professional athletes in shape for a 180 game season. I say Pilates and yoga. I would also add P90X. Twice. That adds up to 180.
Speaking of algorithms, check this read out:
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/batting-average-is-for-suckers/
Be sure to read the comments.
I think it was and is a total organizational failure. I don’t know what ca be done to change their results in the postseason. How does a team that has won 100+ games in recent seasons and then completely fail to continue that success in the playoffs?
MLB isn’t going to change the format for the playoffs. So, it’s up to the Dodger front office to shut down the computers for a time and really take a hard look at what they can do to fix this issue. After all, this involves human beings and number crunching most likely will not help with this issue.
I’m on the Chase Utley bandwagon. The team needs a new voice from a guy with an attitude. Maybe, Chase can get the team to focus better in the playoffs. It’s apparent Roberts has been unable to do so. Also, Roberts postseason failures have cost the team success in the past. Is it the only reason? Nope. But, it’s one identifiable area that can be improved.
The hitting staff needs to go. Putting the ball in play and some small ball should be incorporated into their game. You never know what can happen when you put the ball in play. With a strikeout there is no doubt. Maybe, not so much for the regular season. But, come playoff time those tools can be huge when facing top of the line pitching.
Carry on.
MLB Network had Jim Thome talking about a hitting plan for the playoffs. Sounded pretty good. That plan included a lot of analytics that were generated and then put in a way players could use it. He said he became a hitter once he stopped solely being ready for the fastball and then trying to adjust for something else. He had some at bats where he only looked for a changeup.
All teams now use analytics. Deciding when to pull a pitcher or pinch hit for a hitter might be an art but that art is backed with science.
2024
SS Lux
2B Betts
1B Freeman
C Smith
CF Outman
3B New
DH New
LF New
RF New
Rotation
Buehler, Miller, Montgomery?, Pepiot, Sheehan
Piggyback pitchers
Stone, Grove
Bullpen
?
Trade candidates
Vargas, Busch, righty pitching prospects
Another great FanGraphs article on someone the Dodgers should be coveting.
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/texas-rangers-offensive-coordinator-donnie-ecker-talks-hitting/
Texas has one of the better overall offenses in MLB. They are right behind LAD, but they are not falling apart in the playoffs as have the Dodgers over the past several years. In November 2021, Texas signed Donnie Ecker as their bench coach and offensive coordinator. They were in the bottom half of MLB in 2022 as Donnie was accumulating data. In 2023, the work paid off and no team had a better positive impact with the offensive side. You get the impression, nobody is going to out plan Ecker.
Prior to Texas, he was with San Francisco as one of two hitting coaches (2020-2021). In 2021, SF was one of the top hitting teams in MLB. They could hit, but they could not pitch. He left SF for Texas, and the Giants offense has dropped like a rock since.
It is a team philosophy that is individualized. They look for players who can work within that framework and is willing and able to adapt. They get the player to buy in and agree with their individualized approach.
Donnie Ecker is a future MLB manager, and IMO will be a good one. I do not believe he will be with the Dodgers, because he does not come across as a yes man for the owners, as does Dave Roberts. It is not that I believe that Doc does not want to win, it just comes across as secondary to being the corporate mouthpiece and communication director. I get the impression that Ecker wants to win. BTW, I feel the same about Chase Utley. He will not be a yes man mouthpiece for ownership and winning takes precedence.
BTW, Utley is thoroughly enjoying his new life as MLB Ambassador to Europe, living in London. He loves it. His family loves it. They have been traveling a lot as a family and have more planned including an African Safari. He has two sons, 11 and 8, and they plan on staying in London for at least another year. They have already stated that they do not want to take their kids out of school in their high school years, so it would seem that after another 1-2 years f that for that window to be open. Question will be…Does Chase want to come back to the everyday grind of MLB baseball. I would say yes, because he is driven. But will it be on the East Coast or West Coast. He loves LA (his home), but he loves East Coast sports, principally baseball.
True or contrived? I cannot possibly know for sure, but the results do seem to speak loudly.
If the Dodgers change managers and doesn’t make the playoffs the yakking over losing in the first round will be nothing compared to not getting into the first round.
Happy Anniversary everyone!
Oct 15, 1988 – “The impossible has happened”
Thanks for the article, Bear.
in my view, there is no need to blow up the team.
They have two great players at the top of lineup and talent throughout the organization. Buehler is returning and he has been a great postseason pitcher. Just need to supplement the young pitchers with with another starter or two. I would welcome Kershaw back as a regular season starter if he is healthy. He had the 2nd best era in the entire MLB for starters last year. It would be nice to also add Snell, Montgomery, Matsumoto, Gray or Nola to the staff if possible. Seth Lugo may be a lower tier alternative.
I would keep Muncy to play 3B, 2B, and DH as needed and give him 2 years for $20 million instead of one year $14 million to help with the luxury tax.
I would decline the options for Lynn and Kelly. If either wanted to stay for half of their option price then I would take them back as pitching depth. Otherwise the option prices exceed their value.