April 2014 – Page 3 – Dodger Thoughts

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Dodgers at Giants, 12:45 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Justin Turner, SS
Yasiel Puig, RF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, CF
Scott Van Slyke, LF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Tim Federowicz, C
Hyun-Jin Ryu, P

By Jon Weisman

Though X-rays were negative on Hanley Ramirez’s left hand, which was struck by a Ryan Vogelsong pitch Wednesday, the Dodger shortstop will miss his first start of the season in today’s afternoon affair (and road trip finale) against at San Francisco.

It’s not implausible that Ramirez would have been on the bench even if healthy, given that he had played every inning for the Dodgers in 2014 until leaving in the seventh inning of the Dodgers’ 2-1 loss. Juan Uribe and Adrian Gonzalez, on the other hand, will make their 15th consecutive starts.

Ken Gurnick of MLB.com tweeted that Ramirez expects to start Friday at home against Arizona.

The Dodgers had more decent news about Chad Billingsley, whose right elbow ligament remains sound despite tendinitis, and Clayton Kershaw, who completed a bullpen session Tuesday and has another one Thursday. Neither pitcher, however, has a timetable for a rehab start.

Matt Kemp has the highest career BABIP in Dodger history — what does this mean?

By Jon Weisman

On April 17, 2014

In Analysis, Offense

By Jon Weisman

If it’s better to be lucky than good, it’s best to be both.

Matt Kemp has the interesting dichotomy so far this year of a .194 batting average with an .890 OPS, thanks to the fact that he has seven walks, three homers and two doubles but only one single in 38 plate appearances.

That compelled me to do some poking around, and among other things, I found that in the early going this young season, Kemp is both walking (18.4 percent of the time) and striking out (34.2 percent) at the highest rates of his career. Of his 38 plate appearances, he has only put the ball in play 15 times. (That’s 39 percent, compared with a 64 percent career rate entering this season.)

Of those 15 times, he has gotten only the aforementioned double doubles and single single, for a .200 batting average on balls in play. That’s on the unlucky side. I remembered that early in his career, Kemp had high BABIP numbers — folks who followed such things were always wondering if his BABIP would hold up as he got older — so I decided to see when the decline happened.

It never did.

Going into this season, Kemp had a career BABIP of .352. (It has since dropped to .351.) I’m no super-expert on stats, but this struck me as extraordinary. And, in fact, it’s tops in Dodger history.

Here’s a chart showing the best BABIP hitters since the team moved to Los Angeles:

Kemp is also near the top in the Majors over the past 10 years.

If Derek Jeter’s presence on this chart is any indication, BABIP is not necessarily something that declines significantly in your 30s. (Jeter was at .364 in his 20s, .345 since.) We’ll see, of course, in Kemp’s case. But I wouldn’t worry about that .194 batting average too much, or in any case, I’d be much happier about his returning power numbers than sad about the arguably temporary loss of singles.

April 16 pregame: Pretty pictures

By Jon Weisman

On April 16, 2014

In Pregame

Dodgers at Giants, 7:15 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Carl Crawford, LF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, CF
Andre Ethier, RF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Drew Butera, C
Paul Maholm, P

By Jon Weisman

Though the Dodgers lost Tuesday, it didn’t stop Jon SooHoo from collecting some great shots over at his LA Photog Blog.

Still, a win would have made them a touch more enjoyable, I suppose.

Here are a few quick notes before tonight’s game:

Each member of the Dodgers’ regular infield has an OPS over .900: Adrian Gonzalez (.975), Dee Gordon (.917), Hanley Ramirez (.908) and at an even 1.000, Juan Uribe (.379 OBP, .621 slugging).
Yes, it’s true. Uribe still hasn’t drawn a walk this year. According to Baseball-Reference.com, he has seen nine three-ball counts in his 58 plate appearances, and he’s gone 5 for 9 with a homer and three strikeouts.
Matt Kemp has the highest walk rate on the 2014 Dodgers (17.7%) and is tied for second on team in walks despite only playing eight games so far. Though his batting average is .214, his OPS is .960.
With his 10th steal of the year Tuesday, Dee Gordon has matched his 2013 MLB total.

Oh yeah – one more thing …

Today, before heading to the stadium, @yasielpuig stopped by the @RedCross to help promote donating blood: pic.twitter.com/zum5n8A6rD

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 16, 2014

Jackie Robinson Day celebrated at Dodger Stadium with community events

By Jon Weisman

On April 16, 2014

In Community

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By Jon Weisman

Though the Dodgers were (for a rare occasion) away on Jackie Robinson Day, the event didn’t go unnoticed at Dodger Stadium. On Tuesday, the Dodgers hosted scholars and alumni from the Jackie Robinson Foundation for a tour and seminar with the Dodgers to reflect on No. 42’s legacy.

In addition, the Dodgers staged a clinic with kids from the Challengers Boys and Girls Club of Los Angeles. Definitely check out the photos here.

Julio Urias on Baseball America cover

By Jon Weisman

On April 16, 2014

In Minor leagues

By Jon Weisman

Dodger Insider magazine will have its own story on Julio Urias in May, but Baseball America is going one better by putting the 17-year-old phenom on the cover of its latest issue.

Urias is the youngest player in the California League — by almost two years. “There are only two other 17-year-olds playing anywhere in full-season ball,” Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper writes.

The Irony Committee approves the fact that this cover comes the week of perhaps Urias’ poorest career start, allowing five runs on eight baserunners in 4 1/3 innings, but we won’t let the idea of a BA jinx worry us. Urias had a 2.48 ERA with 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings for Great Lakes in 2013.

April 15 pregame: Buckle up

By Jon Weisman

On April 15, 2014

In Health/injuries, History, Pregame, Transactions

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Dodgers at Giants, 7:15 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Carl Crawford, LF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Andre Ethier, LF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Tim Federowicz, C
Josh Beckett, P

By Jon Weisman

After playing their first 13 games in 24 days, the Dodgers will play their next 13 games in 13 days. So get ready …

Late updates: Taking advantage of his remaining options, the Dodgers sent Paco Rodriguez to Albuquerque to make room for the return of Brian Wilson from the disabled list. Obviously, this won’t be the last the Dodgers see of Rodriguez, who had allowed six hits and two walks in 5 2/3 innings this year while striking out five.

More forebodingly, Chad Billingsley is returning to Los Angeles for an MRI after cutting short a bullpen session today with discomfort in his right elbow. Ken Gurnick of MLB.com has more on both stories if you click the links.

* * *

Some gems from the Dodger press notes:

The Dodgers’ 7-1 start on the road this season is their best since 1983, and a win tonight would make this their best road start since the 1977 team went 11-1.
The Dodgers lead MLB by scoring first in 10 games this season and winning nine of those (via Stats, LLC).
The Dodger bullpen has allowed only two of 20 inherited runners to score this season.
Adrian Gonzalez became the eighth Los Angeles Dodger to have at least 10 RBI in a three-game series. Frank Howard is tops with 12 from July 27-29, 1962 against the Giants.
Gonzalez has homered in four consecutive games, one off the team record held by Roy Campanella (1950), Shawn Green (2001) and Matt Kemp (2010).
Gonzalez has an extra-base hit in eight consecutive games, one off the team record held by Jack Fournier.
I looked up Fournier’s streak just now (August 20-26, 1925) and saw that it included doubleheaders on three consecutive days. From sunup on August 22 to sundown on August 24, the 35-year-old first baseman went 10 for 22 with two doubles, a triple, three homers and four walks.

* * *

Also in today’s mix …

The first Jackie Robinson Celebration Game was set for today at Holman Stadium at Historic Dodgertown in Vero Beach, matching Florida State League teams Lakeland (Tigers) and Brevard County (Brewers). Former MLB commissioner Fay Vincent was to address the crowd with history about Robinson.
Kenley Jansen threw a cutter that broke 100 mph, notes Daniel Brim at Dodgers Digest.
Ernest Reyes at Blue Heaven presents some anti-discrimination baseball memorabilia.
Duke Snider received the 1961 Union Oil Dodger Family Booklet treatment (also at Blue Heaven).
The Dodgers were shut out four times in nine games at San Francisco in 2012, but none in 2013.

Flash Gordon chases Flash Garvey

By Jon Weisman

On April 15, 2014

In Baserunning, History

By Jon Weisman

The Dodgers all-time stolen base leaders in Los Angeles are a funny mix. Once you get past the truly great thieves, like Maury Wills and Davey Lopes, you encounter a combination that includes short-term speedsters and team legends known more for their longevity than their legs.

Brett Butler, for example, is No. 5 on the list despite not becoming a Dodger until he was 33 years old. He’s one spot ahead of Bill Russell, whose Dodger career ran from ages 20 to 37.

Dee Gordon, who moved into 20th place with his four steals Sunday, is now only two steals behind Steve Garvey. Gordon has played 192 games as a Dodger; Garvey played 1,727.

With only 45 more steals sometime in his Dodger career, in 2014 or beyond (he has nine this year in 13 games), Gordon will zoom all the way up to the 10 spot.

For added fun, we’ll present the all-time caught stealing leaders in Los Angeles. You’ll see that players like Garvey and John Roseboro barely broke even, and Mike Marshall was underwater. Then there are some whose lack of effectiveness on the basepaths might surprise you, such as Willie Crawford and Cesar Izturis.

Neither Kirk Gibson nor Eric Davis make this second list. In their Dodger careers, the pair combined for 121 steals and were caught only 15 times.

Jackie

By Jon Weisman

On April 15, 2014

In History

By Jon Weisman

Below, to celebrate Jackie Robinson Day, please enjoy this reprint of Chapter 1 of 100 Things Dodgers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die:

Jackie
From beginning to end, we root for greatness.

We root for our team to do well. We root for our team to create and leave lasting memories, from a dazzling defensive play in a Spring Training game to the final World Series-clinching out. With every pitch in a baseball game, we’re seeking a connection to something special, a fastball right to our nervous system.

In a world that can bring frustrations on a daily basis, we root as an investment toward bragging rights, which are not as mundane as that expression makes them sound. If our team succeeds, if our guys succeed, that’s something we can feel good about today, maybe tomorrow, maybe forever.

Video: The glory of Juan Uribe’s defense

By Jon Weisman

On April 14, 2014

In Defense

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By Jon Weisman

We’re obviously big fans of Juan Uribe in these parts — the clutch home runs of Uribe, the stylings of Uribe — in other words, the Uribe of Uribe.

But perhaps most of all, we marvel at the defense of Juan Uribe. So we had senior video producer and editor Erick Vazquez prepare the video above to showcase some defensive highlights from the one and only Uribear.

Since finally entrenching himself as the Dodgers’ full-time third baseman a year ago, Uribe has dazzled with the glove. The talent has been there, born in nearly 8,000 career innings as a shortstop, but seeing him own third base day after day has really been something else.

A Gold Glove finalist a year ago, Uribe actually led all 2013 National League third basemen in defensive value, according to Fangraphs. In the young 2014 season, in which he has played every one of the Dodgers’ 118 innings at third, he is back on top in the NL, trailing only Corey Seager’s older brother Kyle among MLB hot corneristes.

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Not for nothing: Combined with his .906 OPS through 13 games, Uribe is by one measure the most valuable third baseman in the world so far this season, already achieving 0.7 Wins Above Replacement, and 11th most valuable position player in the game.

It’s all part of what remains one of the more amazing rags-to-riches stories in Dodger history, the rise of a player from two years of near oblivion to an integral, arguably indispensable role on the team.

So sit back, watch the video and enjoy the glory of Juan Uribe.

Numbers from another planet

By Jon Weisman

On April 13, 2014

In Postgame

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By Jon Weisman

Some jottings before turning out the lights on the weekend, a most successful one for the Dodgers.

If someone had offered you a 9-4 start in a season that began with a cross-globe trip to Australia and was soon followed by injuries to Clayton Kershaw and Brian Wilson, I’m guessing you’d take that, right? Only surprising Milwaukee, winners of nine games in a row en route to a 10-2 record, has a better record in the Majors than the Dodgers.
The Dodgers’ offense roared this weekend in their three game sweep of Arizona, climaxing in today’s 8-6 victory (recapped here by Ken Gurnick of MLB.com), but it’s not that much of a surprise that the team would have an easier time scoring at Chase Field than Petco Park or even Dodger Stadium.
Similarly, Phoenix is going to be a tougher place to hold a lead, so don’t get too angry at the Dodger bullpen.
Not that I’m looking to take anything away from Adrian Gonzalez, who has an extra-base hit in eight consecutive games, one shy of a team record. Tied for the MLB lead in home runs at five until Mark Trumbo launched No. 6 today off Jamey Wright, Gonzalez is slugging .680 in 2014. Last year, Gonzalez hit his fifth home run in his 42nd start, May 25.
Tonight’s random trivia: The Dodgers have scored eight runs in two consecutive games. Only two seasons ago, they tallied exactly eight runs in three consecutive games.
Meet your MLB stolen base leader, Dee Gordon, with nine steals in 11 games. What a display he put on today. And in addition to his four steals, he also walked twice, raising his on-base percentage to .457, eighth in the Majors.
Also, this, from Jon SooHoo:
Meet your MLB co-leader in doubles, Juan Uribe, who has a .547 slugging percentage and a .358 OBP despite going the entire season to date without a walk. Yeah, I know — but don’t worry about it now.
You want to use a .154 batting average to judge Matt Kemp, be my guest. I’ll take the .829 OPS. After 31 plate appearances, Kemp has 14 total bases but has yet to hit a single.
Making his debut for Albuquerque today, Alex Guerrero had a three-run homer, double and single in four at-bats, as Christopher Jackson notes at Examiner.com.
One more note from the minors: Joc Pederson has a .511 on-base percentage and .714 slugging this season for the Isotopes. He has 13 hits, six of them for extra bases. But he has yet to drive in another runner. He has three RBI, each coming on a solo home run.
The Dodgers struck out 16 times today, tied for third-most in team history (the record of 20, you should recall, was set last year before Yasiel Puig hit his walkoff home run to beat Cincinnati, 1-0). Never before had the Dodgers struck out 16 times in a nine-inning game and won.
The Dodgers have now struck out 123 times in 13 games, or 9.46 times per game. a pace that would give them 1,533 strikeouts in their 162-game season. That would break the franchise record of 1,190 by more than 300. I guess I should be more worried about this, but I’m going to assume that it will taper off, unless you’re also willing to grant that all the superb offensive numbers will also stick.

April 13 pregame: Some progress on the health front

By Jon Weisman

On April 13, 2014

In Health/injuries, Pregame

Dodgers at Diamondbacks, 1:10 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, CF
Andre Ethier, LF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Tim Federowicz, C
Dan Haren, P

By Jon Weisman

Carl Crawford has tightness in his right side, reports Bill Plunkett of the Register, helping to make him one of the reserve outfielders today against Arizona.

But there’s also some progress to report from the medical side of things:

This update on Clayton Kershaw comes from Ken Gurnick of MLB.com.

Proof of improvement in Clayton Kershaw was visible Saturday, when the disabled Dodgers ace threw off the bullpen mound for the first time since being injured.

Kershaw, disabled with a strained teres major muscle in his back after winning his Opening Night start in Australia, was not throwing full speed, but wasn’t lobbing either.

Manager Don Mattingly said Kershaw remains under orders to hold back on velocity and is monitored by trainers using an app that calculates pitch speed.
Brian Wilson can return to active duty Tuesday, and it isn’t expected to take much longer, Gurnick writes.
Alex Guerrero has been activated from the disabled list by Triple-A Albuquerque, which released Brendan Harris to make room, reports Gurnick.
Gurnick added that Erisbel Arruebarrena “is still at extended spring training in Arizona but will likely be assigned to Double-A Chattanooga within the week to play shortstop alongside prospect Darnell Sweeney.”
And, looking ahead …

Josh Beckett starts Tuesday. Maholm Wednesday and Ryu Thursday.

— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) April 13, 2014

Putting Kenley Jansen’s usage in perspective

By Jon Weisman

On April 13, 2014

In Bullpen, Pitching, Uncategorized

By Jon Weisman

Kenley Jansen’s sudden appearance Saturday in a game the Dodgers led 8-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth (the score was 8-5 when he entered, and when he finished four pitches later) added to concerns that Jansen is being overworked early. The Dodger closer leads Major League pitchers with eight appearances.

Keep in mind, however, that Jansen’s totals are skewed by the Dodgers’ Australia start and numerous off days so far. Below is a small chart of Jansen’s appearances, how many days off before each appearance and how many pitches thrown.

Date Days Pitches
3/22 * 15
3/23 0 5
4/1 8 18
4/5 3 22
4/6 0 17
4/8 1 19
4/9 0 19
4/12 2 4
*Opening Day

In only two games this year has Jansen thrown more than five pitches without resting the day before, and he didn’t surpass 20 pitches in either of those games. The second game of the Detroit series on April 9 without a day off was a high-stress outing for April, but essentially that was his only such outing of the year.

While the 77 pitches he threw in five days last week is noteworthy, it’s also an anomaly.

Last year, Jansen pitched 27 games on zero days rest and was pretty amazingly effective, as you’ll see from this Baseball-Reference.com snippet:

This is not to suggest that Jansen should be used recklessly. Just offering some context.

April 12 pregame: The four outfielders are five outfielders

By Jon Weisman

On April 12, 2014

In Pregame, Uncategorized

Dodgers at Diamondbacks, 5:10 p.m.
Yasiel Puig, RF
Matt Kemp, CF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Scott Van Slyke, LF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Justin Turner, 2B
Drew Butera, C
Zack Greinke, P

By Jon Weisman

Jamey Wright starts in Part II of Jon SooHoo’s series, “Relief Pitchers Batting.” See Part I here.
See SooHoo’s Friday photo gallery here.

For the second consecutive time against a left-handed starting pitcher, both Carl Crawford and Andre Ethier will be on the bench, as Matt Kemp, Yasiel Puig and Scott Van Slyke start in support of pitcher Zack Greinke (above).

Call me crazy (and perhaps temporary), but I see this flexibility as a positive.

Fans of history repeating itself will particularly enjoy Van Slyke’s appearance in the lineup. Thanks in no small part to his double and homer on Opening Day in Sydney, Van Slyke has a 1.111 slugging percentage and 1.511 OPS in the small sample of 10 plate appearances against tonight’s starter for Arizona, Wade Miley. Ethier is 4 for 16 against Miley, with no extra-base hits or walks. Crawford hasn’t faced him.

Dodger batting vs. LHP in 2014

No road rage for Ryu, Dodgers

By Jon Weisman

On April 11, 2014

In Postgame

By Jon Weisman

Well, that was a nice wire-to-wire victory for the Dodgers tonight.

As Los Angeles stomped the Arizona Diamondbacks, 6-0 in 141 minutes, allowing only two singles and two walks, these noteworthy feats emerged.

Hyun-Jin Ryu

Ryu allowed six earned runs in two innings at the Dodgers’ home opener a week ago. Here’s how far back you have to go to find more than six earned runs allowed by Ryu on the road:

Tonight at Arizona: seven innings, zero runs
March 30 at San Diego: seven innings, zero runs
March 23 at Arizona (in Sydney): five innings, zero runs
Sept. 24 at San Francisco: seven innings, one earned run
Sept. 16 at Arizona: eight innings, two earned runs
Aug. 19 at Miami: 7 1/3 innings, three earned runs
Aug. 8 at St. Louis: seven innings, one unearned run
Aug. 2 at Chicago Cubs: 5 1/3 innings, two earned runs

Ryu has pitched 21 consecutive shutout innings on the road and has a road ERA of 0.27 in his last 33 road innings.

Adrian Gonzalez

Gonzalez had five RBI tonight — four by the top of the third inning — to give him the 24th game of at least four RBI in his career and third game of at least five RBI. His career high of six RBI came against the Dodgers on May 19, 2010.

Hanley Ramirez

The Dodger shortstop had two doubles tonight, tying him for the MLB lead with six this season. One of three Dodgers to play all 100 innings his season, Ramirez has combined his new-found durability with a .383 on-base percentage and a .595 slugging percentage.

Dee Gordon

Two more hits for Gordon, whose OBP is now .439 while slugging .541. He also stole his fifth base, tying him for second in the Majors. Still, expect him to start Saturday’s game on the bench when the Dodgers face Arizona lefty Wade Miley.

April 11 pregame: Puig returns

By Jon Weisman

On April 11, 2014

In Health/injuries, Pregame

Dodgers at Diamondbacks, 6:40 p.m.
Carl Crawford, LF
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Tim Federowicz, C
Dee Gordon, 2B
Hyun-Jin Ryu, P

By Jon Weisman

Yasiel Puig makes his first start since Saturday for the Dodgers tonight. From Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:

Puig took early batting practice Friday at Chase Field and did outfield drills, appearing tentative catching line drives in particular.

“We’ll see what it looks like tonight,” said manager Don Mattingly.

Elsewhere …

In addition to leading the Majors in stolen bases, the Dodgers are tops in doubles.
Brandon McCarthy is the ninth righthanded starting pitcher the Dodgers have faced in 11 games. The Dodgers have a .777 OPS against righties this year, .579 against lefties.
Adrian Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez and Juan Uribe have started every game this season and have played all 91 of the Dodgers’ innings in 2014.
Uribe has 27 assists without an error, yet to record a putout. He had 62 putouts last year.
The long and winding road for Seth Rosin has brought him back to where he was last season, in the Phillies organization.

Dodger Thoughts

Jon Weisman's outlet for dealing psychologically with the Los Angeles Dodgers, baseball and life

Month: April 2014 (Page 3 of 6)

April 17 pregame: X-rays negative, but Hanley misses start

Matt Kemp has the highest career BABIP in Dodger history — what does this mean?

April 16 pregame: Pretty pictures

Jackie Robinson Day celebrated at Dodger Stadium with community events

Julio Urias on Baseball America cover

April 15 pregame: Buckle up

Flash Gordon chases Flash Garvey

Jackie

Video: The glory of Juan Uribe’s defense

Numbers from another planet

April 13 pregame: Some progress on the health front

Putting Kenley Jansen’s usage in perspective

April 12 pregame: The four outfielders are five outfielders

No road rage for Ryu, Dodgers

April 11 pregame: Puig returns

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