Easler only got the job because Mattingly was going through a messy divorce. It must have resolved itself enough that Mattingly felt he could concentrate.

New deck chairs for all!

It's Matt Kemp's fault. If only he was more like Blake DeWitt!

/Plaschke

you beat me to it, vlad.

oh, and kemp struck out 4 times last night, so expect a front page column from plaschke urging a trade for someone who 'knows how to win' or some such bullsh!t.
slappy pierre strikes out 4 times in a game and 'he's maybe just trying too hard' ...

oh, and kemp struck out 4 times last night, so expect a front page column from plaschke urging a trade for someone who 'knows how to win' or some such bullsh!t.

Someone is going to get a very good player for pennies on the dollar, aren't they?

Juan Pierre has never struck out four times in a game in his career.

If you were looking for weak groundouts to third, then you might get up to four.

got news for all yall pasty stat geeks in your mothers basements -

EVERYBODY knows that good ballplayers groundout. it is bad guys who strike out.

Pierre averages about 40 Ks per season. And his career OBP rates higher than Kemp's, and just a little lower this season. Pierre has walked 17 times, Kemp 26 in 2008.

I like Kemp, and he's a better hitter than Pierre by far, but people should pay more attention to Walt Davis' arguments regarding him. Kemp's still young and has time to mature, but he doesn't project as an all-star at this point. His OPS+ this season is 97, career 105.

Kemp was reportedly offered along with with a couple of minor league pitchers to the Indians for Sabathia. It's only a matter of time until he's dealt.

Juan Pierre has never struck out four times in a game in his career.

fair enough. i'm thinking of a game earlier this year when he took an 0-fer, and nary a word in the paper.

i've also seen him bunt his way on, then get caught stealing. drives me nuts.

i know its a little irrational. i live in L.A. now, so i root for the dodgers when they aren't playing the cardinals. pierre is my tino martinez, the player on my team that i have a deep distaste for and cannot understand why the team threw all this money at him. he gets every chance imaginable, meanwhile kemp is trade bait. all's i can say is, maybe the front office knows something i don't ...

O-fers with 4 Ks should draw attention. You definitely aren't going to get on base if you can't even make contact.

278/333/427 through half a season.

Kemp's a lot closer to Pierre at this point than a useful major leaguer. When he actually starts to live up to the hype, nobody will care too much about the strikeouts.

at the risk of sounding like an armchair psychologist, i can't help but observe that the treatment kemp has gotten in the media and by the organization since the clubhouse meltdown last year has been awful. i don't think its unfair to suggest that he isn't performing as well as he might if he only got the same kind of consideration slappy gets all the time.

someone observed earlier this year that every at bat pierre gets while kemp is on the bench is a step backward, or something like that. if kemp could get guaranteed playing time, he would do better. i firmly believe that, and would rather be proven wrong with him than have to watch an ineffectual player like pierre for another minute.

.277 .327 .318 69

that's slappy. the 69 is his OPS+. i don't think the fact that he can play center is enough to make up for that. and don't even talk about andruw jones.

kemp is not the problem. but if he somehow doesn't morph into barry bonds, he'll be the scapegoat.

Pierre's hitting line is nowhere near as comical as that for #1 pinch hitter Mark Sweeney. (Go ahead, look it up - let's just say that there's a minus sign in there somewhere.) Shouldn't there be someone, somewhere who could do better with those at bats? Terry Tiffee, maybe?

Any player you compare to Pierre is gonna look better.

I believe Kemp has started every game but one since April 20 (not counting the suspension). "Regular playing time" is an excuse that doesn't wash. He had one hot stretch at the end of April/beginning of May that raised his ops to 876. Playing regularly since then, his OPS now stands at 761.

How 'bout morphing into a league-avg. corner outfielder before aiming higher. His OPS currently falls between Randy Winn and Jeremy Hermida. He's 25th in the NL in OBA.

He's just not very good right now, and is not likely to ever be great, more Jeff Francouer than Ryan Braun. I've been against it, but the Dodgers probably should trade him if they can get a very good outfielder in return.

those are good points. i'll defer to you if he pans out like this. but he's still better and cheaper than juan pierre.

and as i said, he'll be the whipping boy if the dodgers fail to deliver.

alex, are you in L.A.? i may have asked this question before.

not to hi-jack the dodger thread, but looking up how bad Mark Sweeney was made me want to compare him to corky miller (now a robust 4-43 on the year). Do you realize that other than his hot 2007 (7-27), in the last 4 years at the MLB level, Corky Miller has been 5-93???? How can that be??? How can a guy who goes 1-39 in a year, and hitless in the next 2 years, get an MLB job the following year?

Nope. Just a Dodger watcher from afar. Always had a place of affection for the team since they won me some money in the '88 Series. Or was it beating the Yankees in '81?

Now, it's like watching a bad tv melodrama that you just can't turn off. (Plus, my roto team is loaded with Dodgers, including both Kemp and Pierre -- the one place he still holds value.)

Corky Miller is employed as a backup catcher. Not to defend him or anything, but that job title comes with slightly different offensive expectations than PH/OF/1B.

Looking back at my Terry Tiffee comment: at his age, Tiffee is no prospect. Looking back on his career, I'd guess that his true talent level is nowhere near as good a you'd guess from a superficial look at his 2008 Las Vegas statistics. And I'm still pretty sure he could outhit Sweeney.

you are correct that a PH/OF/IB needs to hit better than 6-64. That having been said, 4-43 is pretty nausia inducing and again, given that wonderful 5 year run where he hit .100, how can someone give him a job on a roster with a straight face.

I like Kemp, and he's a better hitter than Pierre by far, but people should pay more attention to Walt Davis' arguments regarding him. Kemp's still young and has time to mature, but he doesn't project as an all-star at this point. His OPS+ this season is 97, career 105.

He's 23. He's torn up every league he's played in, and had a good half season last year. If he has a nice 2nd half, he could be Grady Sizemore.

Kemp's issue this year mostly appears to be that he's swinging and missing more often. Everything else is more or less right in line with his major league performance of a year ago (including the percentage of strikes being thrown to him), but he's putting far fewer pitches in play.

-- MWE

If he has a nice 2nd half, he could be Grady Sizemore.

Sizemore's age-23 season -- 290/375/533 with a OPS+ of 132.

That'd be quite a tear.

I'm not saying Kemp won't turn into a pretty good ballplayer eventually, but he's being overestimated here. He's way too easy to strike out now, he doesn't walk enough (4/1 K/BB ratio for his career), and he's not hitting for power. He's basically a tools guy with significant deficits in his game going forward. Not someone to throw away, but not a likely all-star either, a good bargaining chip IF the Dodgers can get a real player in return.

Not convinced at all that Colletti can do this.

I'm not saying Kemp won't turn into a pretty good ballplayer eventually, but he's being overestimated here. He's way too easy to strike out now, he doesn't walk enough (4/1 K/BB ratio for his career), and he's not hitting for power. He's basically a tools guy with significant deficits in his game going forward. Not someone to throw away, but not a likely all-star either, a good bargaining chip IF the Dodgers can get a real player in return.

His career so far is basically a little over one season. The first year he was in the majors he wasn't ever considered a real option, they just needed a body. He's still 23 and a starter in the majors, it takes talent to do that.

His 5 seasons in the minors he hit .311/.359/.519. Young for his level at every step. I'm not saying he's a star, but there aren't many teams in the majors that would throw that kind of talent away, or treat it like garbage. The Dodgers seem to be doing that.

He's still 23 and a starter in the majors...

That would seem to contradict the "treat it like garbage." I certainly agree that he shouldn't be thrown away, but the Dodgers haven't done so.

Trading him may be best for both Kemp and the Dodgers, if they get fair return.

Trading him may be best for both Kemp and the Dodgers, if they get fair return.

World series MVP, David Eckstein

I'm not saying he's a star, but there aren't many teams in the majors that would throw that kind of talent away, or treat it like garbage. The Dodgers seem to be doing that.

bingo. alex, kemp is treated like dirt by the times, which seems to have a level of influence on the front office that is ridiculous, and joe torre has not been encouraging. contrast how kemp is being handled in LA versus how ankiel is being handled in st. louis. they aren't comparable players, really, but the point i'm trying to make is that ankiel -- another work in progress -- is treated like he belongs. kemp is hanging in the wind at just the wrong time in his development.

once again, i will qualify this by saying i don't work in the dodgers front office, so i don't know all that goes on. but imho, it doesn't feel right.

bingo. alex, kemp is treated like dirt by the times,

To be fair, Simers has been calling for Kemp to play over Pierre all season.

agree with phred

- the writers at the LA times just seem to hate all young players - well except for russell martin not sure why. i mean it is not like they are ALL drafted by The Hated Paul DePodesta and his zits

oh - and kemp isn't near as hot as grady. who is one of the hottest of hot ballplayers

"Kemp's issue this year mostly appears to be that he's swinging and missing more often. Everything else is more or less right in line with his major league performance of a year ago (including the percentage of strikes being thrown to him), but he's putting far fewer pitches in play."

Check his eyes, maybe?

I only see him when he plays against the Angels, but I have literally never seen Matt Kemp have a good at-bat. Sure, I've seen him get hits, but always on mistake pitches.

Still, his combination of youth, athleticism, and performance is promising. I'd rather have him than Gary Matthews Jr.

the writers at the LA times just seem to hate all young players - well except for russell martin

somehow martin has been covered with True Dodger fairy dust, not that i don't like him. the writers reflect the weird attitudes among the fans. there really is no explanation for the bizarre pecking order imposed on the dodger lineup in terms of popularity. nomar gets cheered every time he manages to be in the lineup, as does pierre, while andruw jones has been lustily booed all year. so at least they got one right.

seems like torre is still getting respect, but last time i went to a game it felt like everybody was waiting for a good reason to boo him too.

and yes, simers prefers kemp over pierre. not sure how he managed to come to that conclusion, cuz kemp doesn't seem like a friendly guy. all simers is about is stirring sh!t.

and yes, simers prefers kemp over pierre. not sure how he managed to come to that conclusion, cuz kemp doesn't seem like a friendly guy. all simers is about is stirring sh!t.

Maybe it's because everyone else in LA hates Kemp