DODGERS The FRONT OFFICE (NERDS) Thread

byrnes is definitely chris perez

 

hilarious...
and i love how dilbeck refers to them as geeks
as if he were some strapping jock
idiot

Dodgers GM Farhan Zaidi has funny response to insulting L.A. Times column
By Mark Townsend 1 hour ago Big League Stew

The reaction to the Los Angeles Dodgers front office reshuffling has been interesting and wide-ranging to say the least. From outright praise for being 'ahead of the curve' and thinking 'outside the box,' to Ryan Theriot's obnoxious dismissal on Twitter, the opinions have gone from one extreme to the other.

In between it all, though obviously far closer to Theriot's side, was Steve Dilbeck's column in Wednesday's Los Angeles Times in which he labels the Dodgers revamped front office the Geek Squad.

Yeah, he really went there. Here are a couple of the "gems" included in Dilbeck's column.

The nerds have officially taken over the world. Just give into it. All those guys who used to sit in the back of the classroom with their black horn-rimmed glasses, pocket calculators and clothes their mommies picked out?

They run things now. They’re making the decisions and signing the paychecks. All those years spent cozying up to the jocks and the popular kids just wasted.​

Friendly gentleman, isn't he?

But wait. There was more.

They moved Ned Colletti out of the general manager spot and brought in the Rays’ GM and lover of all things numbers, Andrew Friedman, as president of baseball operations. Now he has reportedly hired Farhan Zaidi from the A’s, where he was Billy Beane’s latest king of statistics, to be the new GM and is poised to add Josh Byrnes, a two-time fired GM who prizes statistical analysis. And Gabe Kapler, a former major leaguer who has become a big booster of all the new numbers, may be coming. Plus, Friedman is keeping around Alex Tamin, the Dodgers’ previous numbers guru.

The Dodgers have formed their very own Geek Squad. Not exactly sure how much baseball wherewithal they actually have, but I know where I’m taking my laptop the next time it has a virus.​

Dilbeck's column was met with its share of approving nods, but the general consensus were rolling their eyes over its glaring ignorance, irrelevant and outdated references and insulting tone. To which Dilbeck replied.

Steve Dilbeck @stevedilbeck
Stat wonks are so sensitive. Insecure over their niche? Never said sabermetics lacked value, just expressed concern Dodgers going overboard.
3:14 PM - 5 Nov 2014
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Of course, no one associated the Dodgers went public with a rebuttal in the immediate aftermath. However, that changed the very moment Farhan Zaidi got in front of the microphone at Friday's introductory press conference.

Pedro Moura @pedromoura Follow
New Dodgers GM Farhan Zaidi opens press conference with this: "Is Steve Dilbeck here, by the way? I brought my mini-screwdriver with me."
11:19 AM - 7 Nov 2014​

We won't need a calculator or complicated formula to figure this one out.

Farhan Zaidi 1, Steve Dilbeck 0.

Granted, it wasn't a home run comeback. But he didn't need to swings for the fences either. Just something subtle to let Dilbeck know he was aware of his comments, but was now there to do a job. It was more of a solid nine-pitch walk, followed by a stolen base, ground out and sacrifice fly to get on the board.

It just worked. And hey, 1-0 is 1-0 any way you slice. Given how often Dilbeck has watched the likes of Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke pitch, he should know better than anyone that sometimes all it takes is one.​

 

The Geek Squad.

 

think nerd

 

Zaidi excited to be part of Dodgers' team
New GM to work collaboratively with Friedman, Byrnes
By Ken Gurnick | MLB.com -- November 7, 2014

LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers not only have a new general manager, they have a new definition of general manager.

Farhan Zaidi was given the title Thursday, but at his introductory press conference Friday it was clear the lines have blurred on the autonomy once associated with that position.

"For me," said Zaidi, "this opportunity wasn't about coming here to be a general manager, but the opportunity to be part of the vision of Stan and the organization. There's such a great amount of potential, that's what excited me."

In his restructuring of the front office, club president Stan Kasten has brought in Andrew Friedman as president of baseball operations, as well as another former GM, Josh Byrnes, as senior vice president of baseball operations, and now Zaidi.

So, who's in charge?

"Baseball operations, Andrew is the point man of all that and that's the M.O. for the rest of us," said the 37-year-old Zaidi, who came to the Dodgers after 10 years with Billy Beane and the Oakland A's. "This is a big operation. He needs a lot of help. I see me focusing on the Major League club and Josh focusing on scouting and player development. There's a lot of room to share across those responsibilities."

Friedman said his top two lieutenants will "touch everything" to be "as good as we can be in all facets as quickly as we can be" in what Zaidi described as a "collaborative and collective" front office without "silos," as he experienced in Oakland.

With the General Managers Meetings starting next week in Phoenix, Friedman and his staff will strategize over the weekend with an immediate focus on the Major League roster, although Zaidi acknowledged he's inherited a back-to-back division winner from predecessor Ned Colletti.

Zaidi excited to join DodgersZaidi excited to join Dodgers 2:27
Dodgers GM Farhan Zaidi shares his excitement over joining the team's front office and what challenges the club faces going forward

"We start from a good starting point," he said, before sidestepping a question about what the Dodgers need to get to win a World Series. "To be honest, this is my first day on the job. ... It's not really a question I feel fully prepared to answer right now."

He's pretty happy, though, about working with manager Don Mattingly. Zaidi, the first Muslim GM, said his idol growing up in the Philippines was the Yankees first baseman that now calls him boss.

"I told him how much I idolized him," Zaidi said. "I don't think he'll ever see me as a position of authority. I had a great conversation with him. I told him, this is your team and you know the players and personalities as well as anybody. The knowledge that he and Ned have will be an invaluable resource for us."

That said, he understands the expectations of a team with a record-setting payroll, purchased for a record-setting price, with a fan base spoiled by vast entertainment options and frustrated with a 26-year championship drought.

"I know how we are going to be judged, by how the team performs on the field and subject to the high expectations of Stan and ownership and the fans," Zaidi said. "We're going to judge ourselves by the very same high standards."

Zaidi, like Friedman and Byrnes, came to the Dodgers from a small-market club where "we were always fighting an uphill battle." Although they now have the vast resources of the Dodgers and Guggenheim Baseball Management, he said it's inherent "in the DNA" of the new management team to "create a roster that can be sustained over the long run."

"We're the Dodgers, with incredible resources and high expectations," he said. "We need to be the best of everything. We need to do everything at the absolute peak level."

All three new executives arrive with backgrounds strong on advanced analytics, but the Dodgers had quietly shifted dramatically in that direction over the past year anyway with the encouragement of Kasten.

"My background is scouting, but I wanted more analytics when we came in," said Kasten. "Now we are on the way to proficiency in analytics, so I'm reminding everyone of the importance of the wise-old owls, more scouts, more scouts. We require all of the input to be the best we can be."

Friedman said his new team is "well-rounded" and argued that to "pigeonhole" Zaidi as a stat geek "is not doing him justice. ... People who focus on one to exclusion of another ... are not putting themselves in the best position for the organization."

Zaidi said he isn't intimidated by the presence of five former GMs in the organization -- Friedman, Byrnes, Colletti, Gerry Hunsicker and Tommy Lasorda.

"I think it's a great thing," he said. "One thing I've heard from a lot of GMs is that it's a really hard job. People think it's just trade player X for player Y; there's so much more to the job. Having them as a sounding board I think will be great. Andrew has a long relationship with Hunsicker. I had a great exchange with Ned. Stan brought it up -- you can't have too much experience. I'm thrilled to be part of it and to work alongside them."

Friedman said that as competing general managers, he became friendly with Byrnes and envisioned one day working with him, having assigned him the player development system that probably needs the most work. He said he didn't know Zaidi as well, but praised him for having "an incredible mind for the game and the ability to connect with and inspire people." Friedman said Beane "could not speak more glowingly of him."

Friedman declined to discuss what areas of the organization he feels need the most immediate improvement or how he would improve the bullpen. He wouldn't put a timetable on top prospect Corey Seager's Major League arrival, but insisted Seager "will not move off shortstop right now."

Friedman said the Dodgers have not heard from free agent Hanley Ramirez about whether he would accept or reject the club's $15.3 million qualifying offer. Ramirez -- who removed any reference to "Dodgers" from his Twitter account -- must decide by Monday.

 

maybe it's just me
but wtf has kRapler done to warrant a spot in the front office?
sure he managed (one season) and coached (for Team Israel in the WBC)
but i don't see that giving him any credibility to work in a front office...
unless they need someone to manage the spray tan booth

 

on that note...

 

thx for the elaboration chris
i guess i should have faith in the braintrust

and if you squint your eyes, he looks a bit like matt holliday...

 

more coming our way...

Jason A. Churchill ‏@ProspectInsider 1h1 hour ago
Dave Finley among Boston scouts leaving for Dodgers. Met him once in Vegas w/ klaw. Dude gets it. Good add for LAD.
3:04 PM - 10 Nov 2014 · Details
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edit:
turns out carr was the scout and finley was actually director of player personnel
we're going to have quite a cast once it's all assembled

Nick Cafardo ‏@nickcafardo 2h2 hours ago
red sox have lost pro scout Galen Carr and director of player personnel David Finley to the Dodgers.
2:15 PM - 10 Nov 2014 · Details​

 

hey @Dodgers99 do you think there's any way seager makes the roster this year out of spring training, or is he destined for the minors regardless of how (well) he performs?