DODGERS NEWS/RUMORS/AROUND MLB Thread

^ "liked" on principle

 

Kershaw raises the bar, expectations for opener
by Ken Gurnick | MLB.com — 12 hours ago

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- In his first Opening Day start, Clayton Kershaw outdueled two-time National League Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum. One year later on Opening Day in San Diego, Kershaw gutted out three innings until he was TKOed by food poisoning. On Opening Day 2013, Kershaw was a one-man show with a shutout and a home run. And last year, he pitched the Dodgers to a victory in Australia, but he came out of it with a back injury and missed the next five weeks.

So while the typical baseball axiom is to minimize Opening Day as just one game out of 162, don't believe it with Kershaw. His Opening Days are exceptional.

When Kershaw takes the mound Monday against the Padres at Dodger Stadium at 1:10 p.m. PT, he will be the first Dodgers pitcher to make five consecutive Opening Day starts since Hall of Famer Don Sutton made seven from 1972-78, the Los Angeles record. Don Drysdale made seven Opening Day starts, Fernando Valenzuela made six and Ramon Martinez made five, but not in consecutive seasons.

The 27-year-old Kershaw is coming off his third NL Cy Young Award in the past four seasons -- with a runner-up finish in 2012. He won the Cy Young Award unanimously in '14, and even that wasn't the pinnacle, as he then became the first NL pitcher since Bob Gibson in 1968 to also win the MVP Award.

Kershaw went 21-3 with a 1.77 ERA and had enough record-setting achievements to validate comparisons to Sandy Koufax -- the last Dodgers pitcher to pull off this double win, which has been accomplished 11 times, most recently by Detroit's Justin Verlander in 2011. Roger Clemens in 1986 and Vida Blue in '71 are the only other starting pitchers to win the MVP since Gibson and Denny McLain did it in '68, after which Major League Baseball lowered the mound.

How can he top that? The only encore Kershaw talks about is a World Series. But there's a regular season to navigate first, and four former MVPs in Dodgers camp this spring recounted how the next season went after their MVP season.

Start with 1956 MVP Don Newcombe, now a special advisor to Dodgers chairman Mark Walter. He was 27-7 in 1956, but he went 11-12 and threw 70 fewer innings the following year.

"I didn't have a good year in 1957, but it might have been me," said Newcombe. "It probably had a lot to do with my personal life. That's when my alcoholism came in. Maybe I was starting to back off and give up. And we had a lot going on that year, with all the talk of moving out of Brooklyn.

"But I know it won't happen with this young man. Clayton Kershaw works too hard, he puts too much into his training to let that happen. He's very intense in what he does. He doesn't have the frame of mind I had."

Maury Wills, a bunt instructor in the spring, won the MVP in 1962, when he stole 104 bases. The next year, he played 31 fewer games and stole 64 fewer bases.

"The year after, my body was beat up from stealing all of those bases," said Wills. "But it wasn't tough as far as the opposition against me. Maybe it was a little easier. I knew I had 'em. I got in their head a little bit."

Jimmy Rollins was the NL MVP in 2007 for the Phillies. He had a solid season in 2008, but only after turning an ankle in April.

"For me, the next year wasn't any different at all," Rollins said. "Maybe if Ryan [Howard] hadn't won it the year before, it would have been different. What really mattered was that we finally made it to the playoffs. It was about what we accomplished as a team."

Manager Don Mattingly was the American League MVP for the Yankees in 1985. The next year, he finished second in the voting.

"I don't think anything will be much different," said Mattingly. "What you see with Clayton, you can study all you want, but he's got weapons up and down that the hitter has to deal with. Everybody knew what Randy Johnson threw; you still had to hit it."

 

meh, whatev...

Josh Hamilton will not be suspended for drug relapse
by Jeff Passan | Yahoo Sports — moments ago



Josh Hamilton will not be suspended after an arbitrator ruled a binge around Super Bowl weekend that resulted in a positive test did not violate his drug-treatment program.

After Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association deadlocked on whether to suspend Hamilton for cocaine use, an independent arbitrator considered the case of the Los Angeles Angels outfielder and agreed with the union’s argument that one-time use did not merit a suspension.

Hamilton’s case hinged on what constituted a violation of the program. The failure to comply with a drug-treatment program – which Hamilton has been in for nearly a decade following long battles with cocaine and alcohol – was not undone by Hamilton’s episode, the arbitrator ruled.

The league issued a statement Friday afternoon acknowledging the defeat: “The Office of the Commissioner disagrees with the decision, and will seek to address deficiencies in the manner in which drugs of abuse are addressed under the Program in the collective bargaining process.”

Hamilton was represented by lawyers Jay Reisinger and Tina Miller, who declined comment when reached by Yahoo Sports.

Discipline was considered almost a foregone conclusion in Hamilton’s case, and a victory in arbitration allows him to not only avoid missing games but to collect his full $23 million salary. The 33-year-old outfielder, who signed a five-year, $125 million deal with the Angels in 2013, has $83 million remaining on the final three years of his contract. His struggles with the Angels have been marked, a .255/.316/.426 line over two seasons compounded with 73 games missed last season.

The Angels released the following statement regarding Hamilton's situation:

"The Angels have serious concerns about Josh’s conduct, health and behavior and we are disappointed that he has broken an important commitment which he made to himself, his family, his teammates and our fans. We are going to do everything possible to assure he receives proper help for himself and for the well-being of his family.”​

Hamilton had surgery on his right shoulder in February and continues to rehab in Texas. He missed spring training, and it is unclear when he'll be healthy enough to return.​

 

pretty cool reference feature from baseball-reference.com
usually a paid feature, free from now until tax day...

http://www.baseball-reference.com/play-index/

http://www.sports-reference.com/blo...-reference-play-index-trial-through-april-15/

 

ervin santana suspended 80 games for steroids...

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-b...-testing-positive-for-steroids-205302969.html

 

lol at "I am frustrated that I can't pinpoint how the substance in question entered my body"
hey erv, just a hunch... but it might have been that needle you stuck in your ass
and i'm guessing your team -- you know, the one that signed you to the largest free agent contract in their history -- is even more "frustrated" than you
idiot

Ervin Santana suspended 80 games after testing positive for steroids
by Chris Cwik | Yahoo Sports Big League Stew — 40 minutes ago

Minnesota Twins pitcher Ervin Santana will be suspended 80 games after testing positive for the steroid Stanozolol, Major League Baseball announced Friday. Santana will miss the first 80 games of the 2015 season, and will not be paid while he's suspended.

Santana released a statement on the Twins' website shortly after MLB announced the news. A portion of it reads:

"I am very disappointed that I tested positive for a performance enhancing drug. I am frustrated that I can't pinpoint how the substance in question entered my body. I would never knowingly take anything illegal to enhance my performance. What I can guarantee is I never knowingly took anything illegal to enhance my performance. That's just not me, never has been and never will."​

Santana added that he'll be more careful about the substances he takes when he's back home in the Dominican Republic. He does not intend to appeal the suspension.

The 32-year-old Santana signed a four-year, $55 million deal with Minnesota in December. The deal is the largest free-agent contract in Twins' history. Santana was coming off a solid season with the Atlanta Braves, in which he posted a 3.95 ERA over 196 innings. He was expected to be Minnesota's No. 2 starter behind Phil Hughes.

With Santana out for half the season, the team will turn to Mike Pelfrey in the rotation. The 31-year-old Pelfrey posted a 7.99 ERA over 23 2/3 innings with the club last season before missing the rest of the year with various injuries. Pelfrey was expected to open 2015 in the team's bullpen, and initially expressed frustration about not being in the rotation. He'll have that chance now.

The club could have opted to go with youngsters Trevor May or Alex Meyer, but chose to go with the veteran in Pelfrey. Both May and Meyer competed for the fifth spot in the rotation this spring, but were beaten out by Tommy Milone. May and Meyer should both be in the majors at some point this season.

While the addition of Santana wasn't expected to make the Twins a contender, the news hurts. The rotation is certainly weaker, and the team will miss out on the innings Santana would have provided. The Twins weren't going to be good with or without Santana, but the news puts a lot of pressure on the rest of the team's staff.​

 

was thinking the same thing
especially since it was only 4 years/$55MM
shit, we gave more to mehcarthy

edit: my bad, mehcarthy's $48MM < santana's $55M
apparently liquor affects my math :drunk:

 

so they take it in the ass or down the throat...
sounds like a typical game day for a certain team