Game 106, 2014

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Dodgers at Giants, 5:00PM PT, TV: ESPN

Hyun-Jin Ryu will try to make it three straight strong performances by Dodgers’ starters, following Zack Greinke’s 7-inning 4-hit effort on Friday night and Kershaw’s complete game 2-hit shutout yesterday. Ryu is 11-5 with a 3.39 ERA overall this season and 7-2 on the road with a 2.73 ERA. Michael Lananna of MLB writes that Ryu has added Josh Beckett’s curveball and Kershaw’s slider into his arsenal.

The Padres send out Jake Peavy, who got to San Francisco in mid-game yesterday and was announced as today’s pitcher almost immediately. The fact that he’s 14-2 with a 2.21 ERA in 25 career starts against the Dodgers might have swayed Manager Bruce Bochy’s decision.

Lineup when available.

87 thoughts on “Game 106, 2014”

  2. OK, the quest for relief help may be just a phone call away…

    That’d be one lefty Scott Elbert, rehabbing at ABQ. Line for his last 10–

    7.1 3 1 1 1 4 9 GO/AO .71, avg against .125, ERA 1.23.

    Last 4 times out– 0 hits, 1 BB, 5 K. All this in launching pad ABQ and hittter-friendly PCL.
    Dunno if his 92-3 mph is back. But he appears plenty fast for AAA hitters.

    Appears rehabbed to me. Paul Maholm may be peeking over his shoulder, with cause.

  4. OK, I’ve seen some rational thought about new Dodger Barney. That he may replace Rojas and while he might not be a drastic defensive upgrade, he would be offensively. Or, that he’s to replace Triunfel in the organization. I’d be for that.

    IMO this was too good not to pass on. From a commenter at truebluela:

    “Barney Song!
    You love Ned,
    Ned loves you,
    PTBNL better be poo…

    by gus2327
    Jul 28, 2014 | 12:12 PM

    • Arguably, acquiring Barney keeps the Gnats from replacing Uggla with a superior hitter.

  5. Pitchers are getting all the interest but I don’t think that’s our biggest problem. Catching is. AJ had a nice run but the clock struck twelve and he’s turning back into the pumpkin he always was. And there isn’t a single thing in the Catcher Drawer of the Dodger Cupboard. I’m desperate, I’ll send Crawford and all his salary to Minnesota for Suzuki.

    • I think relying on a fragile fourth and a fifth that hasn’t pitched well in a couple of months as our bigger problem at this point. Not that we shouldn’t start looking for a replacement for AJ. Moreover, I like where adding another frontline pitcher would put us right now, versus the improvement gained from making the change you suggest at catcher.

    • A.J. is still a good receiver and has a high OBP. Certainly the injuries have affected his footwork, which has had an impact on his throwing. The rebuilding Twinkies, who have one of the game’s best OF prospects, would have no interest whatsoever in Crawford, for what that’s worth.

  6. I’m convinced we’re going to wind up with either Price, Lester, Hamels, or Lee, whichever club cracks first. Or maybe two of them, can you believe? How about Hamels and Lee for some of our outfield deadwood plus prospects? I don’t want Lester as a rental, no extension, no trade. The Barney acquisition is puzzling, thankfully not an expensive one. With Dee playing well and Guerrero waiting in the wings, it doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense unless one of them converts back to shortstop and no extension for Hanley…

    • Realized earlier today that these big pitching names that have been mentioned in the same breath as the Dodgers are all lefties.

      Getting one (or, even more unlikely, two) would give the Dodgers at least 3 LH starters–not such a bad thing v potential playoff opponents like St. L.

      Most lineups will be righty heavy. But it’s not like these guys can’t handle righty-dominant lineups, as proven time and again.

  7. In major trade deadline news, the Dodgers acquired … Darwin Barney!!!

    He’s a 2012 Gold Glove second baseman with the Cubs who can’t hit a lick. I don’t get the reasoning here, but I’m not Ned Colletti. The good news is the Dodgers had a space available on the 40-man roster, so nobody needs to get dumped over the side right now. The Cubs will ge the proverbial “player to be named later” later.

    • The mind reels. As part of a bigger move, though why would you do this one first? Bigger move that might involve trading one or more outfielders (SVS, Ethier, CC, Kemp, Joc) for Price/Lester, moving Dee to cf and Puig back to RF and bringing up Guerrero with Barney as back up.

      • Can we nip this idea of Dee in CF in the bud? We have no evidence his arm is strong enough for the outfield, and he’s an All-Star at 2nd base! Dodgers, if you’re thinking of this, stop!

        • I think that we have plenty of evidence over the years that Dee has a great arm. But I will keep my mouth shut.

    • So typical of Ned. Overload the roster with marginal infielders and/or marginal relievers.

      Turner and Rojas likely can do anything this guy can, especially Rojas. And what of the 2 Cuban infielders signed to hefty contracts, one who may light it up on offense and one who already plays an excellent SS? Barney probably is just going to be deadweight overall, and DM will feel pressure to play him because Ned went out and got him. WHY?

      If a player ever received some kind of recognition like GG or amassed some kind of basically meaningless stat like lots of saves, Ned seems to think “ooohh…shiny. Must have, or at least try.” He seems to believe these players are just waiting to be Dodgers so they can get their old mojo back. Contrary evidence doesn’t matter.

      I haven’t read anything else about this yet. But let me guess…he’ll be described by Ned or other Dodger official as a “great clubhouse guy.” Or maybe he played for someone in a pennant race sometime (not the Cubs, obviously.) That’s shiny too.

      I’ve defended Ned in the past, saying he has grown in the GM job. I may rethink that.

      Beyond that, I’m not so sure Ned is capable of doing NOTHING. At times that’s the smartest move, if stuff like this is your only option.

      End/rant dealing psychologically with your Los Angeles Dodgers.

      • Quoted by Mike Petriello at Dodgers Digest, a Cubs fan blog says:

        I’m happy for Barney, who by all accounts is a good guy and a good teammate.

      • He’ll probably go to Albuquerque as emergency help. They may even be able to trade him to another club that is desperate for a second baseman for something more useful. Don’t take this as an endorsement for Ned, I think he’s an idiot…

  8. 6LFCarl Crawford*3255198186254562420113929.242.278.360.6387967410207CFAndre Ethier*32883072782469135437122357.248.314.374.6889410434113

  9. Just interested in everyone’s thoughts. Do y’all think that Crawford is better/more helpful than Ethier? It seems like everybody is happy to get a stable lineup, but I don’t see a lot of discussion regarding whether Ethier should be the LF instead of Crawford. Ethier is definitely stronger defensively and Ethier doesn’t hit lefties well. Crawford is a defensive liability, still has nice speed on the bases, and has anemic overall offensive numbers similar to Ethier’s. I want whatever is best for the Dodgers, but I guess I’m a little prejuduced toward Ethier because he seems more like a Dodger to me (traded for before he came up to the majors). Does it have to do with their contracts? their attitudes? Why do you think that Crawford is the definite choice as the starter, and do you agree with the choice?

    • I;m with you, Ethier offers better defense and more versatility, he can play all three outfield slots. Crawford seems very timid, has a terrible arm and no idea where to throw the ball once he catches it.

    • There’s not much to pick. As you say, Ethier a bit better defensively. CC maybe a bit better at the plate and on the bases. Historically neither exactly a juggernaut v LHP. Not too much difference between atrocious contracts either, tho Ethier’s might be a bit more palatable to someone else.

      I think DM remembers what CC did in the playoffs and is hoping that level player will emerge if he plays a while. (In an OF discussion not long ago he referred to CC in the playoffs.) It has been a while since Ethier did much of anything, so not like the team is losing a lot if he rides the pine a while. Not so much SSS with Ethier either since he has around 100 more AB than CC. (“Ethier either,” he unintentionally said. ;-])

      From some stuff DM has said, I think he wishes somebody would just claim LF the way Dee did 2B. That’d be better for the team both performance and fairness-wise. But, as he once pointed out, no one really has.

      • I appreciate this analysis. Ethier is so streaky at the plate. It’s great when he hits one of those times when he’s in the zone. I often wonder if the inconsistent playing time has prevented more of the good streaks.

        • May have made a difference in timing and such.

          Right after I responded I was thinking back to the times when Ethier personally decided quite a few games with walk-off hits, several HRs among them.

          It’s be great if he could recapture that magic…great for the team as well as fans.

      • No guarantees, of course, but is that like saying “no” to a World Championiship?

        • If we KNEW that the trade would yield a World Championship, then I think it would need to be done. But we can’t know. Joc Pederson’s story might end up like that of Greg Brock or he could be a cornerstone of the franchise kind of guy. I’m just generally against depleting the farm system in favor of three month rentals. (Unless we could know for sure that it would work out. Anything short of the title would make it not worth it to me.) I know that not everyone feels this way, but winning with guys who came up in the organization, or who have at least been with the team a while, is more fun and more satisfying to me.

          • You don’t think that a rotation of Clayton, Greinke and Lester would make us favorites for going all the way? Or you do, but don’t want to win that way? We have only three guys in the everyday lineup who came up through the organization.

          • Sure. I do think that rotation would make us the favorites. And if I knew it would produce the title, I would be willing to win that way. But the best team doesn’t always win it all. (Dean Smith said you have to be good and lucky to win a championship, and I agree.) But if we trade Pederson, and Hanley never gets healthy enough, and the hits dry up, and we lose to someone in the NLCS, I’m going to be really bummed, and really bummed about the trade. Maybe there’s no limit to the checkbook and we could lock up Lester at the end of the year, but odds are he moves on, and we lost Pederson for nothing. I’d like to be a real contender every year and it seems like that is more likely to happen by building a good young core combined with shrewd outside signings. (Though I’m thankful that the ownership has been willing to spend lately when we just didn’t have many answers in our organization.)
            Re: only three guys — I guess I count guys as ours if we are their primary MLB organization which would include Ethier and Puig along with Kemp, Ellis, and Gordon.
            I don’t think you’re wrong about how much Lester might help. I guess I just still have PTSD from Pedro for Delino Deshields and can’t imagine that the ownership will spend like this forever. (To be clear, I know that Lester is not DeShields, nor is Pederson going to rival Pedro’s impact. Just saying it almost always feels like these things work out wrong.)

        • Cost too high for a rental, which there’s a big chance he’d be. He’s been quoted saying he’d like to return to Bos as a FA even if he’s traded now.
          And as you say, no guarantees.

          Price–no nameplay intended–should be lower just for a rent-a-player.

          If he’d agree to an extension with the Dodgers pre-trade, that might be different.

          I kinda think this is mostly an invention for a Boston writer to have something to write about, knowing it’d stir the pot.

          • I think that he would cost a lot more (Price like?), if it was for more than a couple of months. There doesn’t seem to be an opening for Joc. Puig is the new guy in center and Dee must be next on the depth chart.

  14. Kudos to Donnie for arranging the pitching rotation.
    And the bats, for three consecutive “quality” games.
    And yes — even the bullpen, for three shutout innings today.

  17. One out from something I had hoped for but didn’t dare believe in . . .

    • The worst consequence of this series could be that the Gnats decide that the Swedish Owl is not a good fit.

  25. ANOTHER bullpen walk.
    Probably would’ve been the second one if Pence hadn’t swung.
    C’mon, Brian!

  26. Raising that debate again, with the heart of the SF lineup due in the 8th, isn’t this the time for the closer?

    Hopefully it’s a moot point.

  28. Every time I check in, the score has changed! Can’t wait to actually watch this one.

    • He didn’t hear me.
      Gotta be tough following Zack’s great game, then Kersh’s even better performance.
      Hope the offense kicks in some more support!

  30. Peavy seems to be an excitable sort. It’s been what, four years since he pitched for the Padres? I don’t remember how he looked while he was in the NL West.

  31. He’s not exactly getting hammered, but Ryu looks a long way from his sharpest.

  33. I thought we needed some catching help, I now know we need some catching help

    • AJ has reverted to that career minor leaguer who can’t hit. Please trade for Suzuki…

      • I’m happy if they share 50/50, but in Butera and fedex, he has no one pushing him for his spot

  38. Link: Before we get into today’s game, I just want to thank you for maintaining this site so comprehensively throughout the season and picking up where Jon Weisman left off. It is a great outlet for me and for many others. And I am sure it takes a lot of time on your part.

    • Thanks! It probably takes 1/2 an hour to do each post, so not so bad unless it’s a day game from the East Coast, which means I have to either write it up the night before or get up before it starts at 7:00am Honolulu time. 😉

      • I forgot that you live in Hawaii. Were you there when the Triple-A Islanders played there?

        • Was I HERE???? Oh boy, I was here!

          Heh. About ten or eleven years ago I built what is, as far as I know, still the only website devoted to the Hawaii Islanders of the Pacific Coast League. It’s pretty ugly; I haven’t tried to prettify it at all since I got smarter about HTML. Maybe I will someday.

          • Add my thanks for the site and keeping the community together . . . sure helps getting through the lean times and celebrating the rich ones.

            Dad was stationed at Hickam ’68-’72 and the Islanders was the first pro team I saw. I became a Dodger fan listening to the games we got only on the weekend . . . Armed Forces Radio?

          • Might have been K59. For a while there they were part of the Dodgers Radio Network. Unfortunately the town has now moved over to the Giants.

  39. Rumors Kemp to Boston with a large bag of money for Lester. That is acceptable only if Lester signs an extension. Seattle, Texas and a couple of other clubs also kicking the wheels. I would much rather move Crawford and/or Ethier. Someone will take them if enough money is included.

    • Matt has been showing signs of his worth lately . . . to the Dodgers AND to another team. . . . Andre on the bench hasn’t been able to do the same.
      The first goal in putting a team on the field for a particular game is to win that game . . until the deadline on Thursday, I’m sure the subtext is showcasing trade bait — or hiding shortcomings?

      Side note (if I posted this before, sorry — I have a background in local TV, so reruns aren’t all bad!): when I was at DS two weeks ago, I was surprised to see Kemp and Ethier adult T-shirts going for 1/2 price . . . determined by public demand, or a fire sale?

      • At this point, I’d be reluctant to lose Kemp. He has been showing signs of life much more frequently as of late. I’d rather we move Ethier, but Kemp is the bigger fish in any prospective deal.

        • I have very similar feelings, but if push came to shove, I would rather trade Kemp than any of our prospects