By Jon Weisman
When Andrew Friedman and Dave Roberts spoke to reporters Monday, two days after the Dodgers’ season ended in Chicago, the press conference aired on Facebook Live, aka our planet’s complaint department.
Looking back at the video later, I was taken with these penetrating real-time comments from Dodger fans and thought they deserved a response.
Lance Juarez · 0:12 Resign turner and utley get rid of everyone else
There’s cleaning house, and then there’s cleaning house.
Michael Sepe · 0:30 I don’t understand the people that say “great season.” It must be the “every kid gets a trophy” crowd. It was a terrible season. We lost.
According to this report, “Choosing Natural Adjective Leaders,” there are 13 descriptive words that fall between “great” and “terrible.” Perhaps something in there?
Cesar Medina · 0:52 Dave Roberts cost us this series putting in blanton after that horrible grandslam
Actually, he put in Blanton before the grand … oh, wait. I see what you’re saying. I mean, what’s he supposed to do — never use his second-best reliever again in the playoffs?
Art Ortega · 0:42 A lot a laughing going on here, didn’t we just lose the NLCS!!!! But I guess it’s funny huh!!!
Art was among those who saw Friedman and Roberts laughing at a random joke and took this to mean that losing was a joke to them and the Dodgers. When exactly are people allowed to laugh — at anything — again?
Jonathan Kent · 1:00 Can’t wait to hear Friedman rationalize again…
Literally the entire purpose for the gathering. “Everything is awful” would make for a much newsier press conference, I suppose, but also a much shorter one.
Jesse Pantoja · 3:01 Hey Andrew how did the left righty strategy work for you.
It brought them to within two games of the World Series. I know, not enough. The pursuit of eight players who are equally brilliant against both sides continues.
Stephan Rogers · 3:03 I agree with you Frank . They should have pitched Kershaw 5th game to give us the 3-2 lead going into Chicago
A not uncommon sentiment but a weird one. How would pitching an exhausted Kershaw (on short rest) in Game 5 guaranteed a win, if pitching him in Game 6 didn’t?
Mauricio Rincon · 3:06 Kershaw looked like he was paid to lose 🤔
The long con.
Xochitl Rodriguez · 3:28 There not happy!! They are just over it! We have to move on! You guys are still here mad over what happened but it happened let it go life moves on smh.
Xochitl knows what I’m talking about.
Brian Steffen · 3:48 what is there to be proud of????? we have been knocked out of the playoffs 4yrs in a row!!!!
Getting into the playoffs four years in a row is an accomplishment. No one said it is the ultimate accomplishment, but consider the alternative.
Johnny Rodriguez · 4:19 Don’t be foolish people with a bullpen like that we will never win
Never is a long time — longer than 28 years, even. The Dodgers arguably had the most valuable bullpen in the NL, and most certainly one of the top three.
Charleen Pratt Morin · 5:30 Why would you trade AJ, when it worked for Kershaw???? You don’t mess with a good thing, like the Dodgers do so many times.
As we’ve said on numerous occasions, we loved A.J. Ellis — almost as much as we’d love to live in a world where his mere presence ensured a streak of Kershaw shutouts and a World Series title.
Paul Espitia · 5:35 Freedman should resign. Younger players needed.
Under Friedman and the current front office, the Dodgers have made explicit efforts at getting younger. Here’s just one example.
Lynn Huddleston · 6:20 Why didn’t Howie play more. I believe you should play the guys that got us there.
Andrew Toles going 6 for 13 with a walk and a sacrifice fly had something to do with it.
Jesse Pacheco · 6:26 The General manager should be fired he didn’t add any pitchers or relief and didn’t replace Zack I’d rather get in as a wild card stop making excuses
“I’d rather get in as a wild card?”
Vince Siracuse · 6:38 You guys need to figure out why Kershaw folds when the chips are down
NLDS Game 1. NLDS Game 4. NLDS Game 5. NLCS Game 2.
Ed Rosas · 6:41 Cut Baez, Blanton, Piug, and stripling. Send Peterson to the minors for a few months. And , even though I hate the idea, consider a first baseman. Maybe bring back Kemp at a cheap price.
Lots to unpack here, though I think I’ll focus my attention on Joc Pederson, who was third on the Dodgers in wins above replacement and who reached base more than any Dodger in the playoffs except Justin Turner. (Also, call me a little skeptical about Matt Kemp as a first baseman.)
Victoria Medina · 9:21 Get rid of Baez! He’s horrible!
Strangely, “Choosing Natural Adjective Leaders” doesn’t include “horrible.” But look, I will continue to play public defender for Baez, He’s flawed, but not horrible. He has long (no pun intended) stretches of effectiveness. When things go badly, admittedly, they go badly.
Alma Arias · 9:44 Friedman you are over your head in making decisions for this organization. It takes small miracles to get this far and you were not prepared. We have needed pitching all year plus you gave away granule!! You let all the fans down!! You need to be fired!!! Or fed to sharks!!
At first I read this as Friedman not having prepared enough small miracles for this year, but that might not be the right interpretation. Anyway, the choice between unemployment and shark bait is a stark one, but at least Alma offered a choice.
Armando Lara · 10:12 should have kept chapman someone ask why we let him go!!!!
People know the answer to this one, right?
Randy Jesús Knickerbocker · 10:41 Bring back Scully🎙
Wish we could …
Barry Le Blanc · 11:00 I lost all respect for Roberts after he pulled Hill from his perfect game!!!
Disappointment, I get. But losing all respect for Roberts when he put the team first? That’s confusing.
Frank Pizziketti · 12:30 If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll always get the same thing. No world series after 4 straight division titles. This team is not built for the post season
This is a tough one for me to respond to, because I see many obvious differences between the Dodger teams of the past four seasons. (In other words, the 2013-16 Dodgers are not the definition of insanity.) And yet, they have consistently operated under a philosophy of trying to build a long-term foundation while winning a World Series — admittedly, a tough double play to turn. To me, doing things differently and building a team specifically for the postseason would be to go absolutely all-in one season. Maybe that pays off, but that’s a high-stakes gamble. I think you have at least as much chance of winning a single World Series by being in the hunt every year.
Sergio Solis · 13:13 I dont understand why be so satisfied with this “yr”. 300million dollar payroll and we are supposed to just be ok with. Well be ready next year!? Lol. Clippers mentality
No one in the Dodger organization has ever said they were satisfied without winning a World Series.
Alex N Claudia Ybarra · 13:20 2 big bats, 2 good pitchers, 2 good middle relief and 1 good lead off, and New uniform look will do it. Dave Roberts would have won 110 games with the right people.
“New uniform look?”
Ruben E Pratti · 13:31 Friedman this isn’t Tampa Bay your in a huge market! Youblew it last year by not getting Cole Hammels and this year by not getting Archer or Moore!
Guess you don’t like those Seager or Urías guys, huh?
Michael Garay · 14:35 We need 5 players that are in the style of hunter Pence from SF – Go Find them…
I’ve got this. Here’s your five pence.
Jamie Cloninger · 14:49 We need Darren Dreifort
At this point of the press conference, things really started to get interesting …
Art Hernandez · 15:32 Trade Puig for Raul Mondesi
With or without a time machine?
Mario Palma · 16:07 We need to play again at the Coliseum.
So, definitely no new uniform, then.
Nat Gomez Gutierrez · 19:36 Lol Dave isn’t the problem, the problem is these guys have zero heart and no fight when they need it.
This comment is one of my pet peeves. Team wins 96 games, many of which they very much needed, somehow has zero heart.
Diego Fajardo · 20:06 Make all the necessary changes to improve our teams weaknesses, no more excuses come next year
Yes, well, OK.
Stefan Ghan · 21:50 I wouldnt mind seeing urias go
… you mean, to the Hall of Fame? Me neither.
Lisa Hollieday · 22:50 Don’t think….do it!!!!!!!!
OK!
Elizabeth Zarate · 23:00 Lets get back to old school baseball and leave all this nonsense behind. Sabermetrics or whatever the heck it’s called!!
I could be wrong, but I think this was Arizona’s approach in 2016.
Chris Chauncey · 24:24 Starting Kershaw on extra rest instead of short rest (and ignoring EVERY stat that advised otherwise) cost them the series.
Kershaw has a fine history of pitching well on short rest, but his history of pitching on regular rest is going to put him in Cooperstown.
Shane Battan · 25:35 Dodgers should change their name to the losers
Intriguing idea. Maybe every team that doesn’t win the title should do the same. I look forward to the Freeway Series between the Los Angeles Losers and the Los Angeles Losers of Anaheim, before traveling to San Francisco to play the San Francisco Losers. (And yes, let’s incorporate this in the new uniform design.)
Stevie Murillo · 26:59 Willie Calhoun best player in the minor leagues.. can’t wait to see him up there
Just passing this along because there were a lot of Willie Calhoun fans commenting Monday. Say hey, Willie!
Sherry Baumgartner · 27:03 I honestly don’t know how dayton made the playoff roster, much less the nlcs roster. dude was bad
A 2.05 ERA, 13.3 strikeouts per nine innings, 6.5 strikeout-walk ratio and ability to pitch to both lefty and right hitters pulled the wool over people’s eyes, I guess.
Steven Barrera · 27:44 SIGN LEBRON!!!
To quote Steve Martin, “More comedy jokes.”
Ernie Romo · 29:05 Puig, Madea, Hernandez, Ryu, de Leon,Wood, Van Slyke, Hatcher,Chavez, Hatcher, Anderson,Baez , Howell. All gone please. Need pitching
Another mass cleansing. That’s a quick hook on Jose De León, by the way.
Javi Padilla · 31:33 Honeycutt one of best itching coaches in all of baseball girl is lost
I’m not looking to make fun of anyone’s typos — I just particularly liked this one.
Mario Palma · 31:56 We need Tim Tebow
It’s gonna cost ya …
Greg Lerch · 32:26 Will we ever see a Dodgers pitcher other then Kershaw go more then 5 innings!???
There hasn’t been one since all the way back in NLCS Game 4.
Patrick Robinson · 33:00 Chemistry. It’s all about chemistry. And really good hitting and pitching.
Patrick covers the bases.
Kev Contreras · 33:17 You slacked off the last week of the season, you went into the playoffs cold. You cant be resting players when you make playoffs
If anything, wouldn’t the fact that the Dodgers won the NLDS right after they “slacked off,” then lost the NLCS when they were playing their hearts out, prove the opposite?
Sam Foster · 33:23 I think in order to get better the Dodgers need to let go of their bad players and sign more good ones. That’s an unbeatable strategy.
Sam gets it.
Sam Foster · 34:20 Let’s trade Baez for Giancarlo Stanton straight up. That would be a good trade.
Sam really gets it.
Jacob Goldstein · 36:19 Bring back Jose Offerman
I had to check to make sure this wasn’t the Dreifort commenter. I have to admit, I was probably the last remaining Jose Offerman fan in Los Angeles.
Danny Gimena · 38:08 It’s all part of the game…there’s the winning side and the losing side…better luck next time…next time will be ours….
Right on, Danny. Right on.
Michael Green
Some were, I’m sure, being funny, but this is a reminder that fan is short for fanatic.
Samuel Levin (@heathclifbar)
Big fan of all the people who blame sabermetrics for the fact that the Dodgers were beaten by the team with the most well-covered sabermetric front office in baseball.
Don Bright
Amazing the idiots that come out of the woodwork. I’d admit not liking all the moves, but man, you got to know not all of them will work, and a lot will surprise.
oldbrooklynfan
I’m enjoying the World Series every year, just imagining how much more I’d enjoy it if dem bums were in it.