Then, 2016 happened. With all the managerial candidates out there the Dodgers go with Dave Roberts? I liked Roberts as a player. But for all of the analytics and brain power in the front office, Dave Roberts? No Major League managerial experience and seems to be a soft spoken person as well. I was intrigued! Although I wasn't pushing for a change at manager, it seemed to be time to do so.
I was a bit shocked when the Dodgers re-signed Chase Utley. He seemed to be ready to retire by the way he played after coming to the Dodgers. None of the other free agent signings inspired me much either. With the exception of Kenta Maeda. I have long admired Japanese pitchers. They seem to have a tenacity and competitiveness that lacks in some of todays players. With success in Japan that somewhat translates to American baseball, he is also at a young enough age as well. They also signed him at a bargain price with performance incentives. Outside of Maeda I felt it was time to see what the young players had to offer.
Joc Pederson started off his career in 2015 with a bang! Hitting over 20 home runs as a rookie and seems to be a quality person. But a rough second half of the season had me wondering if he could keep his batting average up high enough to make it in the bigs. The two players that really had me intrigued were Corey Seager and Julio Urias. Seager has an older brother that has had success on the Mariners and Urias has had the most hype for a young Dodger pitcher since Clayton Kershaw. Although Seager didn't start the season off scorchingly he has turned into the MVP of the Dodgers offense. Batting nearly .320 while again hitting over 20 homers he has a sweet left handed swing. Urias has also impressed although he's had a couple of rough outings. Add Jose Deleon into the mix and the Dodgers seem to have some solid young talent.
Then came the trade deadline. With Adrian Gonzalez seeming to be declining this year, now reaching his med 30s I felt the Dodgers needed an additional offensive player. One that could hit for average over power. With so many young players focusing on power I feel that their is a lack of players hitting for average. The Dodgers already have players such as Grandal, Pederson, Puig, that hit for power but low averages. With only Gonzalez and Justin Turner hitting for both power and average, I was hoping for a player that could consistently get on base. Unfortunately after rumors of Jay Bruce coming to the Dodgers, no significant offensive players came. Instead, theDodgers traded for Rich Hill from the A's. In his three starts since coming to the Dodgers, Hill has pitched 19 innings without giving up a run. Hill has me hoping the Oakland Athletics will once again are part of Dodgers postseason success. All of a sudden if Kershaw can come back from the disabled list healthy, the Dodgers have three solid starters if they can make the playoffs.
In 1988 the Dodgers were able to sign a big bat before the season in Kirk Gibson while also getting Tim Belcher. But at no point did I think they had the makings of a World Series contender. Of course as an 11 year old boy I believed anything was possible. With one of the best Dodgers ever Pedro Guerrero injured it just didn't seem like the Dodgers had enough offense. Little did I know that even after trading Guerrero to the Cardinals for John Tudor that the Dodgers would go on an improbable run that still gives me childhood dreams to this day. Orel Hershiser had one of the best seasons ever for a pitcher while Kirk Gibson provided what is still my finest moment ever for me as a Dodger fan. Coincidentally, the Dodgers beat the Cardinals with whom they had traded Guerrero to without much help from John Tudor. They also beat the A's who to me were one of the best teams of that era. With bash brothers Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco as well as pitchers Dave Stewart and Dennis Eckersley, the A's were a scarily dominant team. Also coincidentally the A's traded pitcher Jesse Orosco and Alfredo Griffen to the Dodgers before the season started. Now, although the Dodgers have broken the record for players on the disabled list? They have the makings of a team that makes up for lack of extreme talent by chemistry and good ol Los Angeles Dodgers luck and intangibles.
As Dave Roberts continues his first season as manager of the Dodgers they're seems to be a different attitude on the Dodgers. One that they didn't have with Don Mattingly. One example is a game in which Rich Hill had a perfect game going into the 8th inning. Dave Roberts pulled Hill to start the 8th inning and Joe Blanton promptly gave up a hit to end the perfect game. As shocked as I was I felt it was the right decision. Too many times Don Mattingly and the Dodger pitching coach left Kershaw in during similar situations. Allowing him to pitch complete games even when the Dodgers had a big enough lead to not push Kershaw's innings total. With Clayton Kershaw struggling in multiple postseasons in the 7th inning I feel having him rested and ready is more important than any individual accomplishment. Dave Roberts seems to feel the same way and probably wasn't popular by making that decision. With me as an advocate for not allowing Kershaw to pitch as much early in the season, he was able to get time off on the disabled list. While I do not like the idea of Kershaw with a back injury I feel he's coming back just in time to hit his stride going into the playoffs. With around two months off he should now have the stamina to be effective in the playoffs like he always is in the regular season. While nothing is guaranteed in sports as evidenced by the loss of the 1988 Oakland Athletics to my Los Angeles Dodgers, this team and season has me fondly remembering back to that 12 year old boy (turned 12 in September of that year) who believed that anything was possible. Although there is no guarantee I will remember this season as one where although the Dodgers didn't have the best team on paper. There a team that I can support and will no longer doubt the capability of the Dodger front office.
Joc Pederson started off his career in 2015 with a bang! Hitting over 20 home runs as a rookie and seems to be a quality person. But a rough second half of the season had me wondering if he could keep his batting average up high enough to make it in the bigs. The two players that really had me intrigued were Corey Seager and Julio Urias. Seager has an older brother that has had success on the Mariners and Urias has had the most hype for a young Dodger pitcher since Clayton Kershaw. Although Seager didn't start the season off scorchingly he has turned into the MVP of the Dodgers offense. Batting nearly .320 while again hitting over 20 homers he has a sweet left handed swing. Urias has also impressed although he's had a couple of rough outings. Add Jose Deleon into the mix and the Dodgers seem to have some solid young talent.
Then came the trade deadline. With Adrian Gonzalez seeming to be declining this year, now reaching his med 30s I felt the Dodgers needed an additional offensive player. One that could hit for average over power. With so many young players focusing on power I feel that their is a lack of players hitting for average. The Dodgers already have players such as Grandal, Pederson, Puig, that hit for power but low averages. With only Gonzalez and Justin Turner hitting for both power and average, I was hoping for a player that could consistently get on base. Unfortunately after rumors of Jay Bruce coming to the Dodgers, no significant offensive players came. Instead, theDodgers traded for Rich Hill from the A's. In his three starts since coming to the Dodgers, Hill has pitched 19 innings without giving up a run. Hill has me hoping the Oakland Athletics will once again are part of Dodgers postseason success. All of a sudden if Kershaw can come back from the disabled list healthy, the Dodgers have three solid starters if they can make the playoffs.
In 1988 the Dodgers were able to sign a big bat before the season in Kirk Gibson while also getting Tim Belcher. But at no point did I think they had the makings of a World Series contender. Of course as an 11 year old boy I believed anything was possible. With one of the best Dodgers ever Pedro Guerrero injured it just didn't seem like the Dodgers had enough offense. Little did I know that even after trading Guerrero to the Cardinals for John Tudor that the Dodgers would go on an improbable run that still gives me childhood dreams to this day. Orel Hershiser had one of the best seasons ever for a pitcher while Kirk Gibson provided what is still my finest moment ever for me as a Dodger fan. Coincidentally, the Dodgers beat the Cardinals with whom they had traded Guerrero to without much help from John Tudor. They also beat the A's who to me were one of the best teams of that era. With bash brothers Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco as well as pitchers Dave Stewart and Dennis Eckersley, the A's were a scarily dominant team. Also coincidentally the A's traded pitcher Jesse Orosco and Alfredo Griffen to the Dodgers before the season started. Now, although the Dodgers have broken the record for players on the disabled list? They have the makings of a team that makes up for lack of extreme talent by chemistry and good ol Los Angeles Dodgers luck and intangibles.
As Dave Roberts continues his first season as manager of the Dodgers they're seems to be a different attitude on the Dodgers. One that they didn't have with Don Mattingly. One example is a game in which Rich Hill had a perfect game going into the 8th inning. Dave Roberts pulled Hill to start the 8th inning and Joe Blanton promptly gave up a hit to end the perfect game. As shocked as I was I felt it was the right decision. Too many times Don Mattingly and the Dodger pitching coach left Kershaw in during similar situations. Allowing him to pitch complete games even when the Dodgers had a big enough lead to not push Kershaw's innings total. With Clayton Kershaw struggling in multiple postseasons in the 7th inning I feel having him rested and ready is more important than any individual accomplishment. Dave Roberts seems to feel the same way and probably wasn't popular by making that decision. With me as an advocate for not allowing Kershaw to pitch as much early in the season, he was able to get time off on the disabled list. While I do not like the idea of Kershaw with a back injury I feel he's coming back just in time to hit his stride going into the playoffs. With around two months off he should now have the stamina to be effective in the playoffs like he always is in the regular season. While nothing is guaranteed in sports as evidenced by the loss of the 1988 Oakland Athletics to my Los Angeles Dodgers, this team and season has me fondly remembering back to that 12 year old boy (turned 12 in September of that year) who believed that anything was possible. Although there is no guarantee I will remember this season as one where although the Dodgers didn't have the best team on paper. There a team that I can support and will no longer doubt the capability of the Dodger front office.
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