NEWS/RUMORS/AROUND MLB Thread

touche d

 

fwiw...

Dodgers can get themselves right with a few moves
by Michael Marcantonini | Yardbarker — 4 hours ago

Remember when the Dodgers were an annual lock to win the National League West? Well, they’re not anymore. In fact, they’re not even a lock to reach the postseason this year.

Following three consecutive NL West titles from 2013 to 2015, the Dodgers find themselves in a funk in 2016, only two games over .500 and six and a half games behind the division's first-place Giants.

It’s not like the Dodgers are heading toward a first-to-worst tailspin, though. They’re right in the thick of things in the early NL playoff race and with the All-Star break still weeks away, there is a lot of baseball left to be played. But this Dodgers team doesn’t appear to have the postseason vibe surrounding it that it had in recent years.

Maybe they’re feeling the pressure of the Giants’ even-year 'magic' early this year, or maybe the Dodgers are just going through a first-half rough patch. Regardless, they can step it up by making one big acquisition and a couple other small tweaks to the lineup.

Here’s my take:

Trade for another front-end starter

With 10 wins in 14 starts, Clayton Kershaw is responsible for almost 30 percent of the Dodgers’ wins this season. He’s been the best pitcher in baseball by far and with a 19.00 K:BB ratio, 133 K, a 1.58 ERA, a 0.66 WHIP, and three complete game shutouts; he’s well on his way to his fourth career Cy Young Award.

The problem is, Kershaw can only pitch once every fifth day, and the Dodgers have struggled when he’s not been on the mound to bail them out. The team’s offense is lethargic, so until they can start putting more runs on the board, they will need more help winning games from their other starting pitchers.

They’re going to get Brandon McCarthy (elbow) and Hyun-Jin Ryu (shoulder) back relatively soon, but who knows what either will bring to the table coming off significant injuries. Scott Kazmir is a nice arm to have, but he’s not going to give the Dodgers top-of-the-rotation production, and Kenta Maeda has fallen off since the end of April.

The Dodgers' rotation is better than what most teams have, but it could be better. If the offense continues to struggle, the Dodgers are going to have to bank on their starting pitching to really limit opposing offenses and win them games, meaning they need another front-end starter.

LA’s best bet would be to trade for A’s ace Sonny Gray, who is cheap and won’t be a free agent until 2020. Gray, who has a 5.54 ERA and just a 1.96 K:BB ratio, has struggled in 2016 and has also spent time on the DL.

That being said, he’s a proven top-of-the-rotation workhorse with a strong career track record. The Dodgers have the prospects--specifically minor league arms--to get a deal done. However, the A’s would have to be willing to trade their No. 1 starter.

The argument for the A’s keeping Gray is that he’s only 26 and is a franchise ace. The A’s aren’t winning a whole lot with him right now, so trading him might be a valid option so that they can restock the organization’s farm system. The lack of top-end starting pitchers in this offseason’s free agency class could benefit the A's, allowing them to get a haul back for Gray given the current demand for All-Star arms.

Gray to LA is all speculation right now, but it’s reasonable and both sides have what it takes to make it happen. Slide Gray into the Dodgers’ rotation behind Kershaw, and suddenly they have a pretty devastating one-two punch, once Gray is able to find his way back to top form. Not only that, but it makes Kazmir and Maeda look more formidable as third and fourth starters, as opposed to second and third starters, and it adds important depth to the rotation.

Get young outfielders more reps

The Dodgers have a surplus of outfielders when everyone is healthy. That's rarely the case, though. With Yasiel Puig and Andre Ethier currently on the DL, now is the perfect time to see what youngsters Joc Pederson and Trayce Thompson can do on a daily basis.

But the only way to do that is to actually play them every day.

By only playing Pederson, 24, against right-handed pitchers and only playing Thompson, 25, a few days in a row before giving him a day off, the Dodgers are holding back both players’ development. They both clearly have high ceilings, given what they have already shown they can do with inconsistent playing time. Not only that, but they can help the Dodgers win games because they're the best outfield options the team has.

Thompson has gotten significantly more playing time since the first month of the season, but he still needs to be in the lineup more often. The bigger issue is Pederson, who is caught in a platoon situation because of his serious struggles hitting lefties.

Analytics will show righty-lefty platoons make sense, but analytics don’t take into account the human element of baseball. The fact of the matter is Pederson is in his second full Major League season and was a world-class prospect coming up through the Dodgers’ system.

If Pederson is truly a centerpiece of the Dodgers’ future along with shortstop and Rookie of the Year frontrunner Corey Seager, he needs to be in the lineup every day, regardless of the opposing pitcher. He needs to get regular at-bats against lefties so he can learn how to hit them and know his manager has confidence in him facing a tough southpaw.

Pederson also needs to get into an everyday rhythm because he can’t be expected to produce regularly if he doesn’t know until he walks into the clubhouse the afternoon before a game if he’s going to be starting or coming off the bench that night.

It also doesn’t help the confidence of a player like Pederson knowing he can go 3-for-4 with a homer and a double one night against a righty and be out of the lineup a day later because a lefty is on the mound.

Sure, he only has a .646 career OPS against lefties as opposed to a .794 mark against righties, but how can he be expected to improve those splits if he is rarely getting opportunities to hit against lefties?

In 2015, Pederson actually hit for a better average against lefties (.216) than he did against righties (.209). That doesn’t say much because he’s not an average guy, but it shouldn’t be disregarded.

As for Thompson, he’s been clutch this year and he’s proven he can swing the stick. He has 11 HRs and an .875 OPS along with 20 walks and only 40 strikeouts in fewer than 200 plate appearances. He’s been playing more lately because of injuries and Carl Crawford’s DFA, but Thompson is still not getting the consistent playing time that he needs to continue growing as a player.

He’s been one of the Dodgers’ most reliable bats and he needs to be in the lineup every day. It’s not like he’s a young pitcher on an innings limit; he’s a young hitter that needs regular reps.

Even after Puig and Ethier come back--with Puig set to return soon--getting playing time for Thompson should be a priority. The Dodgers will still need to play Puig to get his trade value up should a potential deal presents itself, but that shouldn’t be done at the expense of Thompson, or Pederson for that matter.

The Dodgers' lineup has underperformed all year, but imagine the lineup’s potential with Pederson and Thompson both locked in and red-hot. The only way to do that is to keep both in the lineup every day along with their fellow youngster Seager. It might take a while for them to get going and it will come with aches and pains, but it will be for the better in the long run.

The Dodgers’ lineup likely won’t be on the same level as the Red Sox, Orioles, or Cubs, but it would certainly be more intimidating than it is now.​

 

agreed, much better article would have been...

What Dodgers need to do
by irish | DSP Nazi — seconds ago

play better

THE END​

 

yup
imagine the rage if he came here and struggled?

 

fwiw...

5 contenders interested in Yankees’ Chapman, Miller
by Connor Byrne | MLB Trade Rumors — 9 hours ago

The 34-34 Yankees remain in the thick of the playoff race in the American League, where they sit 5.5 games back of the AL East-leading Orioles and 3.5 games out of a Wild Card position. If the Yankees fall off prior to the Aug. 1 trade deadline and decide to shop elite relievers Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller, they’ll garner interest from the Cubs, Nationals, Giants, Dodgers and Rangers, among other potential suitors, reports FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (video link).

New York could trade both and find a complement to Dellin Betances through free agency, according to Rosenthal, who notes that Chapman, the Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen and the Pirates’ Mark Melancon – a former Yankee – are all on expiring contracts. Of those three, the only one who’s likely to cost a first-round pick to sign is Jansen, who’s a good bet to receive a qualifying offer (worth roughly $16MM) from Los Angeles.

Miller’s connection to the Cubs, Nationals and Giants is nothing new, of course, with the same holding true for Chapman in regards to Chicago and Washington. The Cubs scouted Yankees relievers last week, and multiple reports this month have linked the Nationals to Chapman and Miller. The Giants, meanwhile, were reportedly mulling going after Miller as of two weeks ago. The Dodgers nearly acquired Chapman from the Reds over the winter, but they moved on amid the 28-year-old’s domestic violence issues and pondered pursuing Miller, whom the Yankees ultimately retained.

The Dodgers already rank an outstanding fourth in bullpen ERA (3.12) and ninth in K/BB (2.88), though adding Chapman or Miller to the likes of Jansen, Joe Blanton and Adam Liberatore would improve their odds of catching the NL West-leading Giants, whom they’re 6.5 games behind, or at least keeping pace in the Wild Card hunt.

Despite San Francisco’s success, its bullpen has been mediocre on the whole and lacks anyone in the stratosphere of Chapman or Miller. It helps that either of those two would bring variety to a unit whose best options – Santiago Casilla, Hunter Strickland, Cory Gearrin and Derek Law – are all right-handed.

The Cubs, who lead the majors with a 46-20 record, are all but devoid of weaknesses. They lack a top-end lefty reliever to complement shutdown righties Pedro Strop and Hector Rondon, however, which is why they’re interested in the Yankees’ tandem. Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein acknowledged Friday that relievers are on the team’s radar, saying he “would love” to pick up another quality bullpen arm.

Nationals relievers are eighth in the league in both ERA (3.38) and K/BB ratio (2.9), which has helped the team gain a six-game advantage in the NL East, but closer Jonathan Papelbon is on the disabled list with a right intercostal strain and was merely good before succumbing to injury. There’s also risk with fill-in closer Shawn Kelley – while he has fared brilliantly this season, the 32-year-old is a two-time Tommy John surgery recipient.​

Although they’re atop the AL with a 44-25 mark, Rangers relievers are just 25th in ERA (4.84) and a below-average 19th in K/BB (2.38). Sam Dyson, Jake Diekman and Matt Bush are all thriving, but team president and GM Jon Daniels said Saturday that the Rangers would consider looking for outside bullpen help.

Acquiring either Chapman or Miller would clearly be a boon to any of these World Series-contending clubs, though the latter of the two figures to command a heftier return. Not only is Miller locked up through 2018 at a reasonable $9MM salary, but he doesn’t bring any of Chapman’s off-the-field baggage and has been the better of the tandem this season. If shopped, both should require notable young talent coming back, and it’s worth pointing out that ESPN’s Keith Law (Insider required) placed the Dodgers second, the Cubs fourth, the Rangers ninth, the Nationals 15th and the Giants 21st in his preseason farm system rankings.