Dodger Thoughts

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

Category: Health/injuries (Page 21 of 33)

April 5 pregame: Dodgers seek a softer landing today

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS VS LOS ANGELES DODGERS

Giants at Dodgers, 1:10 p.m.
Yasiel Puig, RF
Justin Turner, 2B
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, CF
Scott Van Slyke, LF
Juan Uribe, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Paul Maholm, P

Click here for Jon SooHoo’s photo gallery from the home opener.

By Jon Weisman

Dodger pitchers on rehab assignments are taking several innings at Single-A Rancho Cucamonga this weekend.

Josh Beckett allowed three first-inning runs, then pitched three shutout innings on Friday. Brian Wilson is expected to throw an inning tonight, and Chad Billingsley plans to take a big step with his first rehab outing Sunday.

“I feel good, I’m progressing well and hopefully it stays that way,” Billingsley told Ken Gurnick of MLB.com on Friday. “Getting close. Right now I’m progressing with each start. I’m using this as a Spring Training, fine-tuning mechanics and working on my pitches. When I feel ready and they feel I’m ready, I’ll be back. Guys have this surgery all the time. Nothing new.”

In his outing, Beckett landed funny on his ankle while fielding a bunt in his last inning of work, and manager Don Mattingly said it was a little sore today but not major. The Dodgers have yet to set an activation date for the righthander.

As for today’s lineup, it will feature an all-righty outfield against San Francisco lefty Madison Bumgarner, with Andre Ethier in reserve for the first time this season and Carl Crawford for the first time in the U.S. Scott Van Slyke will get his first start since the season-opener in Australia, where he doubled and homered.

“This guy’s tough on lefties,” Mattingly said, conceding that Bumgarner, who had a 2.77 ERA last year, is tough on everyone. (Opposing lefties OPSed .487 against him in 2013, opposing righties .602.) “Scotty hasn’t played in a while. We’ve got to keep him in the mix.”

Mattingly said he talked to Ethier and Crawford but that he doesn’t expect to have to explain every day to whoever’s sitting why they’re sitting. He remains unflustered by the juggling of the outfield.

“We’re gonna get on a stretch when there’s no off days,” Mattingly said. “Someone’ll be nicked up; someone’ll need a breather. … I don’t think it’s gonna be complicated.”

Mattingly wrapped up his pregame chat by confirming that there was no issue with Yasiel Puig’s arrival time today.

 

Matt Kemp, ready to rock

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By Jon Weisman

The Bison’s back in town.

According to the Dodgers’ PR department, Matt Kemp is expected to be reinstated from the disabled list prior to today’s game (though not in today’s starting lineup),” looking to make a fresh start after a series of injuries derailed most of his past two seasons.

“I’m as ready as I can be, and (I’m) excited to get out and compete again,” Kemp told Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. “I’ve done all the practicing I can do, I’ve done the rehab. I’ve busted my butt and now I hope all the work has paid off.”

LOS ANGELES DODGERS VS SAN DIEGO PADRES

Photos by Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Coming off a near-MVP season in 2011, Kemp had a monstrous .446 on-base percentage and .726 slugging percentage and had played in 399 consecutive games, making a strong case as the best player in the game (watch the video above to refresh your memory of his prowess), when he went on the disabled list with a hamstring injury.

He has been beset by injuries to his hamstring, shoulder and ankle since then, lowering his production to a .330 OBP and .430 slugging in 145 games. That’s mostly due to the first three months of the 2013 season, the first three months he played after labrum surgery, when he had a .309 OBP and .355 slugging in 57 games. When he was able to get in the lineup in the second half of the season, he went 18 for 54 with four homers, a .400 OBP and .630 slugging.

Even in the post-injury portion of 2012, Kemp had a .332 OBP and .462 slugging with 11 homers in 72 games, production that most players would settle for.

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How well Kemp will perform at the outset of his return is impossible to know, though isn’t that really true of any player? In any case, the time to find out, as Gurnick reports, is now.

Manager Don Mattingly said the club has rejected the thought of further Minor League rehab action for Kemp, even if it means the team must bite the bullet and let him work through the rust.

“Physically, in his mind, Matt feels he’s ready,” Mattingly said. “He’s said he’s not afraid to do all the things he has to do. In a sense, we can only trust him. He’s been honest with us. He doesn’t want to get embarrassed. He wants to do well.”

Kemp understands the skepticism.

“I just want them to have faith in me and trust what I say,” he said. “I’m ready. I told them at the beginning of Spring Training, ‘If I’m not ready, I’m not going out there.’ I’m telling the truth if I say I can compete with those guys. I have no doubt at all. I’ve had good years. Everybody has their own opinion, but I know the type of player I am capable of being. Everybody has doubters, but I don’t let that affect me.

“Honestly, my legs are in great shape. I’ve done all the tests, but you can never simulate Major League game situations. I’ve gone first to third, I’ve been sliding, I definitely can do that. It’s all cool. My shoulder feels great, that’s the least of my concerns. The focus on that is over.”

If you argue that it’s too optimistic to expect a return to his 2011 form, it’s also too pessimistic to assume Kemp can’t surpass his 2013 performance. There’s no doubt about the effort Kemp has put into a long and excruciating rehab, or his desire to be as good as he ever was. It’s hard not to be eager to see what happens.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS VS HOUSTON ASTROS

From the magazine: How Hanley Ramirez overcame injuries on way to historic 2013 season

By Jon Weisman

With the April issue of Dodger Insider magazine set to unveil in the next 24 hours, I thought I’d share a taste from the March issue to give you more of an idea of the magazine content.

To subscribe to either the print or digital versions of Dodger Insider, go to our magazine ordering page on Dodgers.com.

Click on any page below to enlarge …

Ow-Mageddon 1

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Life is just a bowl of everything

Screen Shot 2014-04-01 at 9.08.05 PM

By Jon Weisman

Sometimes life is like a baseball season, and sometimes a baseball season is like a single game, and sometimes a single game is like protecting a one-run lead in the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and two out.

The Dodgers are living almost every thread of that journey at once, smack at the intersection of great expectations, fragile health and the narrow margins that life and baseball present.

Clayton Kershaw is out until at least May, maybe longer. Brian Wilson is following him to the disabled list. Zack Greinke is going from retiring the first 10 batters of a game to fighting to get through the bottom of the fifth. And Kenley Jansen is a closer extraordinaire who had to scrape out of a jam of his own making, giving up two hits and a walk before striking out Nick Hundley to cement the Dodgers’ 3-2 victory at San Diego.

It’s like balancing a book on your head while standing on the head of a pin. Sunday, it didn’t work. Tonight, it did.

They’ll keep teetering as long as the injuries keep coming, especially the one to their unparalleled ace, which I’m frankly still in denial about.

On the other hand, Yasiel Puig is smashing baseballs, Matt Kemp is close to a return, with Josh Beckett not far behind and Chad Billingsley steadily gaining speed.

Sometimes, your 3-4-5 hitters are 4 for 43 at the plate (with seven walks) through four games, and sometimes your easily dismissed No. 8 hitter is OPSing .962 and working through an eight-pitch at-bat for a decisive RBI single. Sometimes, life gives you lemons, and other times, life gives you both lemons and strawberries and grapes and mangoes.

No sweet without the sour, no sour without the sweet. Welcome back to baseball, welcome back to life.

In case you missed it: Kemp, Beckett and more on Ryu

LOS ANGELES DODGERS VS SAN DIEGO PADRES

By Jon Weisman

Turnabout is fair play. Today, the other MLB teams get their turn, and we watch.

As far as the National League West goes, 1993 expansion partners Colorado and Miami (nee Florida) play at 4:05 p.m., with San Francisco at Arizona at 6:40 p.m.

Meanwhile, in the Dodgers’ world …

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March 29 pregame: Kershaw to disabled list

Dodgers at Angels, 6:05 p.m.
Yasiel Puig, RF
Carl Crawford, DH
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Scott Van Slyke, LF
Juan Uribe, 3B
Andre Ethier, CF
Justin Turner, 2B
A.J. Ellis, C
(Dan Haren, P)

By Jon Weisman

So it has happened: Clayton Kershaw is heading for the disabled list.

It’s not the first time he has missed a start in his career, though that is rare in itself. But it is the first time he has been placed on the DL.

Don Mattingly gave reporters the news today. From Eric Stephen of True Blue L.A.:

Kershaw was throwing off flat ground in right field with trainer Stan Conte earlier Saturday, gradually increasing the intensity and distance of his throws. Once he felt something, on the 27th throw, he immediately ceased throwing.

“We have to save Clayton from Clayton. If it was up to him, I’m sure he’d want to go farther. We can’t allow him to do that,” manager Don Mattingly said. “He’s getting better, but it’s not at a point where we can go any farther. It kind of tells you he’s hit a ceiling at this point, and had to stop.”

Kershaw could next pitch as early as April 8 against Detroit. That potentially could be a matchup of 2013 Cy Young Winners: Kershaw and Max Scherzer.

Jose Dominguez, meanwhile, was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque.

Ryu to start Sunday, Kershaw possible for Friday

LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM VS LOS ANGELES DODGERS

Darnell Sweeney strokes the game-winning hit in the bottom of the 10th inning of the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory over the Angels on Friday.

By Jon Weisman

Hyun-Jin Ryu has been cleared to start Sunday’s domestic opener at San Diego. In theory, Zack Greinke and Dan Haren will start the next two games, Tuesday and Wednesday, with Clayton Kershaw a strong possibility to take the mound in front of Dodger Stadium fans Friday against the Giants.

As Scott Miller writes for MLB.com, Kershaw’s situation is still a bit fluid.

Kershaw’s next step will be to throw with a little more intensity and see how he reacts to that.

“We’re not ready to put a timeline out there,” (Don) Mattingly said. “The next few days will be a little barrier to cross.

“We’re not going to let him go out unless he’s 100 percent. If he’s not 100 percent, we’re going to hold him back.”

If not Kershaw, the honor of starting the home opener could go to Josh Beckett, who wasn’t expected to make his regular season debut until mid-April. Paul Maholm appears ticketed for long relief unless other injuries come up.

Haren, by the way, will start tonight’s exhibition finale against the Angels in Anaheim.

March 28 pregame: Matt Kemp raring to go

Arizona Diamondbacks vs Los Angeles Dodgers

Angels at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m.
Carl Crawford, LF
Yasiel Puig, RF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Andre Ethier, CF
Juan Uribe, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Dee Gordon, 2B
Zach Lee, P

By Jon Weisman

Matt Kemp is looking like a better and better bet to be activated from the disabled list on his first day of eligibility, in time for the Dodgers’ home opener April 4.

“I’ve progressed a lot since they left for Australia,” Kemp said. “I’m ready to go. … All I’ve been doing is working. What they were doing in Spring Training, I kept doing in Arizona.

“I feel really good. I feel really confident. It’s going to be fun get back out here with the guys.”

Kemp indicated that he had checked off every box of his long rehab, including the last hurdle of running, and was even stealing bases in Arizona. He had been forced to learn patience through his long comeback process, and is eager to reap the benefits.

“I wouldn’t be playing if I wasn’t 100 percent,” Kemp said.

March 27 pregame: Dodgers to break 3 million in ticket sales before home opener

Angels at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m.
Yasiel Puig, RF
Carl Crawford, LF
Hanley Ramirez, SS
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Juan Uribe, 3B
Andre Ethier, CF
Justin Turner, 2B
A.J. Ellis, C
Zack Greinke, P

By Jon Weisman

Tonight, the Dodgers announced that for the first time in franchise history, they will have sold 3 million tickets before the home Opening Day.

Sales of year-long season tickets ended up approaching the 35,000 mark. The extra season seats came out of what would have been day-of-game sales.

* * *

Alex Guerrero, who was optioned by the Dodgers to the minors but was expected to play in the Freeway Series, will be sidelined indefinitely with a pulled muscle in his side.

Kershaw to miss Sunday start

By Jon Weisman

From the Dodgers public relations department:

“This morning in Los Angeles, Clayton Kershaw underwent a MRI of his left upper back that showed inflammation of the Teres Major muscle. This was a result of complaints of tightness while throwing yesterday at the workout. He will be held out of his start on Sunday. His next start will be determined by his progress with his throwing during the next week.”

In case you missed it: Oh Captain, my Captain

Los Angeles Dodgers vs Arizona Diamondbacks
By Jon Weisman

While Matt Kemp could be activated in time for the Dodgers’ home opener April 4, it’s not clear when Hyun-Jin Ryu will next pitch.

Ryu injured his right Captain of the Toes on the play pictured above, making a sudden stop at third base on Dee Gordon’s double. As Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports, Ryu would slot in for the third game of the San Diego series April 2 (after Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke), but that start could go to Dan Haren or Paul Maholm.

Kemp, meanwhile, has had no setbacks, Gurnick reports, and is playing six innings a game now in minor-league affairs. The Dodgers just want to make sure he’s completely confident before activating him.

More from Gurnick:

The Dodgers will play a simulated game at Dodger Stadium, on Wednesday. Mattingly said it will last four or five innings, and it is mostly being held to keep the relievers sharp. He said his regulars will average three or four at-bats in the first two Freeway Series games Thursday and Friday, but they will back off in Saturday night’s game because the season resumes Sunday night in San Diego.

Elsewhere …

  • A.J. Ellis is working on pitch framing, he explains in an interview with Mike Petriello for Fangraphs.
  • At Blue Heaven, Ernest Reyes has this discovery about long-ago Dodger reliever Ron Perranoski:”If Ron Perranoski were not a newspaper reader, he might have taken weeks to find out that the Cubs had dealt him to the Dodgers.  He was in the army then, and read about it in the sports page.  Nobody had told him.”
  • Reggie Smith hung a “Gone Fishin'” sign just before a 1980 MLB labor stoppage was averted — see it at the Times’ Framework blog.
  • Former Dodger reliever Matt Guerrier has had an interesting transactional week, as MLB Trade Rumors notes.
  • Former Dodger infielder Jamey Carroll was released by Washington.

In case you missed it: We’re gettin’ close, folks

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By Jon Weisman

Like the saying goes, “It’s Opening Day somewhere …”

  • Dylan Hernandez of the Times explores why the Dodgers and Diamondbacks are in Australia in the first place, talking to Paul Archey, MLB’s vice president of international business operations.

    “We’re not going to know the benefits of this game on Sunday night,” Archey said. “It’s long term. It can be generational.”

    MLB was paid by a promoter to open its season in Sydney, but Archey said that wasn’t the league’s motive for coming. “This is not about money,” he said. “This is about the future. It’s about developing the market for bigger business and it’s about developing the market for more players.”

    MLB has opened regular seasons in Mexico, Japan and Puerto Rico. What makes Australia different is that baseball doesn’t have a large fan base.

    The Dodgers were also involved in MLB’s last venture into a nontraditional market. That was in 2008, when the Dodgers and the San Diego Padres played a two-game exhibition series in China.

    Archey views that trip as a success. MLB now has 11 television partners in China, where it funds three youth academies and a 60-school intercollegiate league.

    “None of this existed prior to that game,” Archey said.

  • You’ve read all about the players fighting jet lag. Now, here’s a guide for us game-watchers on how to handle the sleep challenges for the 1 a.m. season opener, from Mark Newman of MLB.com.  Again, I see no mention of how to handle my son’s 9:30 a.m. birthday party after the game.
  • Brian Wilson gets cricket, writes Ben Horne of the Sydney Morning Herald.
  • A.J. Ellis shared a day in the life from the Australia trip with Michael Chammas of the same paper. I’m ignorant, so I had to Google “a long black with milk.”
  • Did you know the Diamondbacks have won seven straight Opening Day games? I didn’t until I read this stats piece from Mark Simon at ESPN.com. The Dodgers have won three in a row.
  • Also of note: Clayton Kershaw has a 2.31 ERA in his past seven starts against Arizona — and one win to his credit.
  • Team Australia, which led the Dodgers 2-0 late before losing, shut out Arizona, 5-0.
  • $36 hot dog, anyone?
  • Chad Billingsley has passed another milestone in his rehab, facing a real-life batter (in this case, Matt Kemp) in a 15-pitch session, reports Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com. Sanchez adds that Billingsley is on track for his first outing in a minor-league game April 6.
  • Kemp then doubled and homered in a Triple-A game against the White Sox.
  • Here’s another piece picking the Dodgers to win the National League West and maybe more, from Marc Normandin of Sports on Earth.

Yasiel Puig turns spring struggles upside down Down Under

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By Jon Weisman

Appropriately, it didn’t get talked about all that much, but you could still catch some people muttering and snickering about Yasiel Puig’s homerless sub-.150 Spring Training batting average.

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Beckett thumbs nose at hitters, noses thumb at fates

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By Jon Weisman

Josh Beckett pitched three shutout innings today in the Dodgers’ 5-4 loss to the Cubs (recapped here by A.J. Cassavell of MLB.com), but instead of turning his frown upside down, his grin was turned outside in.

Beckett had to leave the game an inning before he planned, because of a right thumb as aggravated as Beckett’s patience. An excerpt from Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:

“It’s not getting worse, but not getting better,” Beckett said. “I’ll probably see the doctor again, such as that on Daily Care Solutions. It’s frustrating, but it could have happened at a worse time. Just dealing with it the best I can. If I need a couple days off, maybe I will. I don’t want to fall too far behind.”

The injury is on the inside of the base of the thumb near the joint. Beckett said it bothers him mostly throwing breaking balls, but in his final inning on Friday, he also was uncomfortable with fastballs. The original plan was to pitch four innings Friday, but trainer Stan Conte and manager Don Mattingly decided to cut it short.

Beckett becomes a prime candidate to open the season on the disabled list. He was not going to be needed in Australia anyway, and as the fifth starter, Beckett would not make a start until mid-April.

Eric Stephen of True Blue L.A. did record a silver lining from Beckett.

If there was a positive for Beckett, it was his five groundball outs in three innings.

“I always feel like if I’m getting ground balls I’m doing fine, even if they’re rolling in for hits during spring training,” he said. “Getting ground balls means you’re fingers are on top of the ball and you’re getting decent plane.”

Positive news came from two other Dodger starters on the mend, as Gurnick notes. Zack Greinke showed continued improvement in his right calf after completing a scheduled bullpen session, while Chad Billingsley is on target for minor-league rehabilitation assignment in April. J.P. Hoornstra of the Daily News has more.

Also …

  • Dodger infielders Dee Gordon, Alex Guerrero and Miguel Rojas combined to go 5 for 7 with three doubles, a triple and a steal today.
  • Andre Ethier is 7 for 15 with two doubles and a homer in a five-game hitting streak.
  • Drew Butera hit one out today in the ninth inning.
  • Today’s game was played before a Cactus League record 15,191, according to Cassavell.
  • Yasiel Puig is frustrated, to sum up this Gurnick piece.

March 14 pregame: Kershaw’s careful curveball

[mlbvideo id=”31524827″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]

Dodgers vs. Cubs, 1:05 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Carl Crawford, LF
Yasiel Puig, RF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Andre Ethier, CF
Justin Turner, 3B
AJ Ellis, C
Miguel Rojas, SS
Josh Beckett, RHP

By Jon Weisman

Above, my favorite play of Spring Training to date: Justin Turner to Red Patterson on the fly …

Below, news and links aplenty …

  • Clayton Kershaw didn’t throw a single curveball with a three-ball count in 2013 and has done so only once since 2010, writes Cory DiBenedetto in a short analysis for Gammons Daily. Kershaw also hasn’t allowed a home run on his curveball — on any count — in the past four seasons. (In case you’re wondering, the famous “Public Enemy No. 1” curve came on a 1-2 count.)
  • Sam Demel and Kershaw are the scheduled starters for Saturday’s split-squad games. Both games are at Camelback Ranch, though the night game against the White Sox is technically a road game. For Kershaw, it will be his last game action before the regular season begins March 22 in Australia.
  • ESPN’s Future Power Rankings, which “attempt to measure how well each team is set up for sustained success over the next five years,” place the Dodgers third among MLB teams, behind Boston and St. Louis. A year ago, ESPN had the Dodgers eighth, which at the time struck me as too low given the team’s burgeoning resources.
  • Related: The Dodgers have the best “core five” in the game, according to David Schoenfield of ESPN.

    1. Los Angeles Dodgers
    Clayton Kershaw, Hanley Ramirez, Yasiel Puig, Zack Greinke, Adrian Gonzalez

    This group could be even better than it was in 2013 with full seasons from Ramirez and Puig. Greinke was so dominant over his final 16 starts (1.57 ERA) that he’s a reasonable Cy Young candidate behind his best-starter-in-baseball teammate. The fifth player on the list could be Gonzalez or Matt Kemp or even third starter Hyun-Jin Ryu.

  • Manny Mota, who has graciously passed his No. 11 jersey to Erisbel Arruebarrena, remembers Roberto Clemente in this interview with Lyle Spencer of MLB.com.
  • Stan Conte spoke in some detail about injury prevention and predicting injuries at the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) Analytics Conference on Thursday. J.P Hoornstra of the Daily News has details, and Christina Kahrl of ESPN.com has more as well.
  • Don Mattingly is back in camp today after two days away on bereavement leave.
  • Yasiel Puig went 4 for 10 in intrasquad play Thursday — he starts in right field today.
  • Scheduled to follow Josh Beckett, who is testing a sprained right thumb, on the mound today are Jose Dominguez, Paco Rodriguez, Javy Guerra, Chris Withrow and Jamey Wright.
  • Red Patterson pitched 3 1/3 shutout innings for the Dodgers on Thursday, but Seth Rosin finally gave up his first earned run. If you’re keeping track, Patterson has a 0.93 ERA this spring, while Rosin is at 1.64.
  • Rosin still leads the staff in strikeouts (12) and is tied with Hyun-Jin Ryu for the most innings (11).
  • Brandon League talked about his spring to Eric Stephen of True Blue L.A. Stephen also gets Mattingly’s thoughts on League’s progress.
  • Brett Tomko, 41 next month and seven seasons removed from his Dodger days, is going to Kansas City on a minor-league deal, a week after the Royals parted ways with a Dodger teammate of Tomko’s, Brad Penny.
  • Tim Newcomb of SI.com presents a vision of the ballpark of the future. Pretty pictures.
  • Thursday in Jon SooHoo.

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