I don't think Crawford is a good outfielder, like at all and his sub .300 OBP% is a problem, I don't hate Crawford, but I would rather Kemp be playing and now through the unfortunate circumstances, that is exactly what is going to happen. Although, like I said, I thought Kemp should be starting all along anyways.
I didn't care for the 0 for 6 shit where the last three AB's Kemp's bat never left his shoulder... mentally checked out. Not a fuck was given about getting on base...
This is where the manager comes into play - getting the most out of your prima donna players. I don't think Donnie's use of the bench as a punishing ploy is working. I think you've got have a coach's meeting and set a new tone around the ballclub. And Ned needs to understand that this 4 OF'er thing isn't working. You don't get players competing for playing time, what you get is a lot of bitching. At least it seems that way to me.
If I was coach I put Matt hitting 2nd. Tell him to concentrate on walking, taking pitches,.helping team see pitchers stuff before Puig, Hanley, Adrian come up. Maximize them and scoring options. This will help his batting eye. Allow him time to get swing and power back all the way while still being a threat to opponents minds. Maybe why Matt is swinging less, possibly been told to be Mattingly. Or could be opposite and Matt taking pitches on his own while manager wants him to play the same as when he hadn't been injured.
I'm no great DBBfan, that's for sure....but you can't fit a round peg in a square hole. It's not his fault this is what it is, no matter what his motivations may be. Speaking of square holes, Ned Colletti is an asshole and the blame falls squarely on his rounded scoleotic, shoulders, for: A) creating this situation; B) expecting anyone , especially Donnie to handle this and keep everyone happy, all veterans; and C) not done shit to correct this abomination by a trade, like say maybe a fucking catcher, in the first third of the season. The wait and procrastination maybe be a serious strategic error, as who now wants Kemp with the huge salary baggage he carries with him. He's firmly entered into the "head case" files, too now. And part of it is non-hustle, which is unforgiveable. Loser Ned, he makes our bed. Made so real by Carl's mistread Thinks it's wise to incite dissent Playing superstar chess is money spent Doesn't care because it's not his... and Donnie's no lineup whiz. However, I think it was Orel who said," there are only four teams in BB with a better record than the Dodgers". and Steiner said,"unfortunately one of them happens to be the Giants"...
Yeah, Donnie is in an impossible situation, compounded by his own ignorance at the helm. But, really, I wonder if Ned is in a much bigger bind - Kasten, the Illuminati mouthpiece, has told him he shall not spend any more money on this club or he will die. Well, he can't trade any of those OF'ers because it would be a huge financial loss for the boys upstairs. So, he is stuck, hoping that no more of his players trip over the catcher's masks that appear to be littering the field. We don't know how the Illuminati works, it is true, Ned and Donnie may already have black marks next to their names. Or, maybe the Guggenheim elite really don't care about winning and baseball is really about flying around the country in private jets, having three hundred dollar lunches and taking in games from behind the tinted glass of the executive suites.
^and what happened to that whole "we will do whatever it takes to win a world series as soon as possible" bullshit? and if money is not a concern (as they initially preached) then trade whoever for less than market value or just fucken release them the juan uribe comeback in year three is the exception, not the rule the matt kemp of 2012 is not coming back nor is the ethier of 2009 nor the crawford who played in tampa would have no problem with puig/joc/svs starting
what do you say about Hanley?..he's missing from that list and a huge source of our defensive problems.
hanley is only signed thru this year, so he's nowhere near the financial liability we can walk away without eating $$$ if we choose after this season, kemp is signed for 5 more at >$100MM ethier, three years >$55MM carl, 3 years >$60MM
yes, but i was asking more from the standpoint of you saying " trade them or release them " because Hanley's a part of the problem as well. the fact that he's not a financial liability actually makes him the most tradable of the group. plus we also have talented youth coming in behind him as well. down to trade Hanley?
he's only more tradeable in regard to his playing abilities how much does someone want to give up for someone who could walk away after the season and leave them with nothing? now that could all change around the trade deadline if a contender were to lose a shortstop or look to upgrade that said, hanley is a far better player than any of our outfielders not named puig when he's right, he's an amazing offensive asset going into last year's nlcs, he was -- without a doubt -- our most valuable position player and, imo, the likelihood of hanley returning to form -- this year -- is far greater than that of kemp, dre or carl if olivio hadn't gone hannibal lechter on guerrero, then it might make a bit more sense just my
The two "old" players we keep are Adrian and Hanley. They are incredibly professional hitters who will age well offensively. Everybody else born in the early 80s is free to leave whenever they want. LF- Hanley CF- Joc RF- Puig SS- Arruba 2B- Guerrero 1B- Gonzalez C- 3B-
All the above posts are saavy and insightful, IMO. And I haven't glued the record back together yet, but it's stiil all Ned's fault. no matter whose making the lineup, or whose laying out the mega dust, or whatever the rules are now as far as new acquisitions, Ned is the man who pushed all the buttons. He is Dr. Frankenstein...pronounced the Gene Wilder way, no matter which. "IT''S ALIVE"! Whatever the near future holds, all his multifaceted moves must all fall somewhere eventually to some sort of final resting place. The Dodgers are very interesting of late, a divergence from the total bore they have been practically from the get-go. Gluttonous pig that I am, I know fully that is because they are winning a bit. Puig is fascinating. The SP are totally absorbing. Even the announcing is informative at times, even without the Vin. And somehow, Mattingly remains the eternal yawn, like watching a herd of hippos in a river on Animal Planet.
all depends on who the suitor is. for example; if it's the Yankees..likely Hanley's biggest suitor outside of maybe us come free agency..they might feel they need a boost offensively with Beltran/Jeter/Tex all battling injuries and that Hanley could put them over the top..may be willing to part with decent prospects. you have to remember..we're also in a position to lose Hanley and get nothing in return. something is better than nothing..especially when we already have pretty good depth in general and youngsters ready to play behind Hanley. that's a game of chicken and i hate that game. we sit around and wait for Hanley to stop pressing in his contract year and it just goes on and on, the trade deadline passes and then all of a sudden we not only have a struggling Hanley at the plate, but a shitty defender @ SS. that's a hell of a risk and i feel our pitchers don't deserve it. i don't think Guerrero would've been an option @ SS..funny enough, i feel the real option @ SS ended up getting the call and is already with the big club. if they plan on keeping Dee..looking into the future i feel Guerrero and Dee will be our options @ 2B/LF. at some point, like you, i just assume they're gonna send Ethier, Crawford, and Kemp on their way..it wasn't this ownership group that gave the OK to sign any of these guys to mega-deals, so they may have to eat the money, but they certainly don't have to take the blame for their contracts. it was the price of getting AGon..and thank the lord up above for Puig.