The Dodgers’ worst-case scenario came true on Tuesday as MRIs revealed that starting shortstop Gavin Lux tore his right ACL and LCL, effectively ending his 2023 season.
Lux was running the bases when he suffered the injury, ducking for a split second to avoid a throw from Padres third baseman Jantzen Witte. Lux stumbled in the process and his right knee buckled awkwardly after a couple of steps.
The Dodgers have apparently found another potential arm for the bullpen, agreeing to terms with Alex Reyes on a one-year contract, per multiple reports.
Reyes missed all of 2022 with a frayed shoulder labrum that required surgery in May, but was an All-Star closer for the Cardinals the year before. He’s expected to miss the beginning of 2023 but is “on schedule to return to big league action before the All-Star break, according to a person with knowledge of the situation,” per Jack Harris at the Los Angeles Times.
The Dodgers were rumored to be interested in Reyes back in November, just days after he was non-tendered by the Cardinals. With five years, 56 days of service time, he was eligible for salary arbitration before getting cut loose by St. Louis.
According to Evan Drellich’s book, “Winning Fixes Everything: How Baseball’s Brightest Minds Created Sports’ Biggest Mess,” the Boston Red Sox thought the Los Angeles Dodgers also tried to steal signs in the 2018 World Series. Keep in mind, the Red Sox were involved in their own sign-stealing scandal in that same series.
Per Chad Finn and Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, a member of the Red Sox said in the book:
“The Dodgers have always been the thing that bothers me the most. Because they’re the biggest cheaters in the whole [expletive] industry. … They were doing it against us in the ‘18 World Series. They got caught by Major League Baseball and Major League Baseball did nothing.”
The Red Sox were accused of using their replay room to steal signs during the 2018 regular season. Per a report from commissioner Rob Manfred in 2020:
“I find that J.T. Watkins, the Red Sox video replay system operator, on at least some occasions during the 2018 regular season, utilized the game feeds in the replay room, in violation of MLB regulations, to revise sign sequence information that he had permissibly provided to players prior to the game.”
It was June 30, 1996. The Rockies beat the Dodgers, 16-15, capping a four-game series in which 85 runs were scored between the two teams. That doesn’t begin to describe it.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Dodgers third baseman Mike Blowers to the Los Angeles Times.
“As much as I’d like to hit here,” said Dodger first baseman Eric Karros, who’d just popped two home runs, “I don’t know I’d want to play 81 games here. I’d probably have a nervous breakdown. I’d have an ulcer. I couldn’t take it.”
He wasn’t the only one with health concerns.
“Hopefully,” wrote the Associated Press, “Tommy Lasorda’s doctors didn’t let him watch this one.”
Just a week earlier, the long-time Dodger skipper had suffered a coronary issue that ultimately ended his managerial career a month later, leaving Bill Russell on his first road trip as the team’s interim manager. Welcome to the job, Bill.
Is this all hyperbole? Sure, perhaps. But all these years later, when we attempted to answer the question of “what was the wildest game in baseball history,” this is what topped the list. Those who were there that day couldn’t have known about the historical relevance, or even the metrics we’ll use. But just listen to them talk. They could feel it.
The Dodgers announced on Saturday that the organization will retire Fernando Valenzuela’s No. 34 jersey this summer during a three-day “Fernandomania” celebration.
The weekend will start on Friday, Aug. 11, which is when Valenzuela’s No. 34 will be unveiled at Dodger Stadium. There will be a collector’s edition bobblehead giveaway on Saturday, Aug. 12, and a replica Valenzuela 1981 World Series ring will be handed out on Sunday, Aug. 13.
“To be a part of the group that includes so many legends is a great honor,” Valenzuela said. “But also for the fans—the support they’ve given me as a player and working for the Dodgers, this is also for them. I’m happy for all the fans and all the people who have followed my career. They’re going to be very excited to know that my No. 34 is being retired.”
Ralph Avila, an influential former Dodgers executive and scout who led the organization’s efforts to develop players in Latin America, particularly in the Dominican Republic, during his tenure from 1970 to 1999, died Monday at 92.
...
One of Avila’s biggest contributions was helping to create the Dodgers’ Campo Las Palmas academy in the Dominican Republic. The academy, which opened in 1987, was the first in the Dominican to be operated by a major league team — a productive template for player development that other clubs soon followed, turning the country into the biggest hot spot for big league talent outside of the United States.
Avila also helped sign dozens of majors leaguers during his time with the Dodgers, which ended with his retirement after the 1999 season.
Some of the most notable players Avila mentored included Dodgers pitching great Ramón Martinez (as well as his brother, three-time Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez), former Dodgers outfielder Raúl Mondesí, former Dodgers infielder Mariano Duncan and many more.
Rojas, 34 next month, has been a high-contact, solid-defense shortstop for the Marlins for a long time, and although he may not be an everyday starter for the Dodgers, his righty bat might pair nicely in a time-share with Lux’s lefty bat (and Lux can man other positions when he’s not at short). This is a floor-raising move for a team that already had an incredibly strong floor.
It’s a good move for the Dodgers (and their pitchers), and they’ll part with shortstop prospect Jacob Amaya, who is ranked 15th in a very good Dodgers system:
The Los Angeles Dodgers cut ties Friday with starting pitcher Trevor Bauer, the embattled former Cy Young Award winner who was previously handed an unprecedented suspension following allegations of sexual assault.
Bauer was designated for assignment, which means the Dodgers have until 2 p.m. ET Thursday to find a trade partner. If they can’t, Bauer will be placed on unconditional release waivers. If he clears those, which is considered the likely scenario, he will become a free agent the following day.
The Dodgers’ decision came two weeks after an independent arbitrator trimmed Bauer’s suspension from 324 games to 194, reinstating him immediately but docking his pay for another 50 games to begin the 2023 season. The ruling triggered a 14-day window for the Dodgers to decide whether to add him to their 40-man roster.
I have read that the Dodgers would release him if the suspension were lifted. If that’s true, he’d then become a free agent. Fabian Ardaya says, “Dodgers have until Jan. 6 to either put Trevor Bauer back on the 40-man roster or release him, as others have said.” If that does happen, will he be blackballed by the other teams in the league or will some team take a chance on him?
Trevor Bauer’s 324-game suspension for violating the league’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy was reduced to 194 games by an arbitration panel Thursday.
Bauer’s suspension remains the longest to be handed down under that policy since it went into effect in 2015.
MLB said in a statement it would “abide by the neutral arbitrator’s decision.” Bauer, who will miss the first 50 games of the season, will be eligible to return on May 24, 2023, the league said.
Veteran slugger J.D. Martinez and the Dodgers have reached a one-year, $10 million deal, a source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand on Saturday. The deal, which is pending the completion of a physical, has not been confirmed by the club.
Right-hander Noah Syndergaard and the Los Angeles Dodgers are in agreement on a one-year contract, sources told ESPN, as the 30-year-old hopes to be the latest pitcher to find a midcareer renaissance with the team well-known for extracting the best from talented arms.
Syndergaard is expected to join a Dodgers rotation that includes All-Stars Julio Urías, Clayton Kershaw and Tony Gonsolin….
Last season, Syndergaard signed a one-year, $21 million deal with the Angels and started 15 games before a trade-deadline deal sent him to the Philadelphia Phillies. He threw 134⅔ innings between the teams—his highest figure since 2019—and posted a 3.94 ERA.
Jason Heyward, the longtime Cubs outfielder who was released last month, has agreed to a minor-league deal with the Dodgers that includes an invitation to spring training.
Team president Jed Hoyer announced in August the Cubs would release Heyward — the respected veteran, 2016 champ and five-time Gold Glove winner who underperformed offensively with the Cubs — after the 2022 season. The move became official last month.
The Cubs are on the hook for his salary in 2023 ($22 million) — the final season of the eight-year, $184 million deal Heyward signed entering 2016.
Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers wasted no time cementing that the likely Hall of Famer will return for a 16th season, agreeing to a deal early in November. The two sides made the one-year deal—which pays Kershaw a $15 million salary in 2023, plus a $5 million signing bonus—official on Monday.
Through the opening weeks of free agency, the team has largely shed payroll.
With the expiring contracts of Trea Turner, Craig Kimbrel, David Price and other free agents — not including pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who is expected to finalize a one-year contract next week to return to the team in 2023 — the Dodgers already had about $70 million coming off the books.
After declining Justin Turner’s club option and, on Friday, non-tendering former National League MVP center fielder Cody Bellinger, the team has freed up about another $30 million more for next year’s payroll.
The question now: What will the Dodgers do with their nine figures of financial flexibility? And how aggressive will they be in spending this newfound $100 million to build their 2023 roster?
Arizona Diamondbacks: RHP Reyes Moronta
Atlanta Braves: RHP Silvino Bracho, OF Guillermo Heredia, RHP Alan Rangel, RHP Jackson Stephens, RHP Brooks Wilson
Baltimore Orioles: None
Boston Red Sox: INF Yu Chang, OF/1B Franchy Cordero
Chicago Cubs: LHP Brailyn Marquez, OF Rafael Ortega, RHP Alexander Vizcaíno
Chicago White Sox: OF Adam Engel, INF Danny Mendick, OF Mark Payton
Cincinnati Reds: OF Aristedes Aquino, OF Allan Cerda, RHP Kyle Dowdy, RHP Daniel Duarte, RHP Jeff Hoffman, RHP Derek Law, RHP Jared Solomon, RHP Art Warren
Cleveland Guardians: LHP Anthony Gose, C Luke Maile
Colorado Rockies: INF/OF Garrett Hampson
Detroit Tigers: 3B Jeimer Candelario, INF Brendan Davis, INF Harold Castro, INF Willi Castro, C Michael Papierski, RHP Miguel Diaz, RHP Kyle Funkhouser
Houston Astros: RHP Josh James
Kansas City Royals: LHP Jake Brentz, RHP Nate Webb
Los Angeles Angels: LHP Jhonathan Diaz, RHP, Touki Toussaint, RHP Nash Walters, LHP Rob Zastryzny
Los Angeles Dodgers: OF Cody Bellinger, INF Edwin Rios, OF/INF Luke Williams
Miami Marlins: INF/OF Brian Anderson, RHP Nick Neidert
Milwaukee Brewers: RHP Trevor Gott, RHP Jandel Gustave, RHP Luis Perdomo
Minnesota Twins: None
New York Mets: RHP Sean Reid-Foley, 1B/OF Dominic Smith
New York Yankees: None
Oakland Athletics: RHP Deolis Guerra, LHP Jared Koenig, INF David MacKinnon
Philadelphia Phillies: None
Pittsburgh Pirates: None
St. Louis Cardinals: OF Ben DeLuzio, RHP Alex Reyes
San Diego Padres: C Jorge Alfaro, RHP Efraín Contreras
San Francisco Giants: RHP Sam Delaplane, LHP Jarlín García, RHP Mauricio Llovera, Dom Núñez, Drew Strotman, C Meibrys Viloria, INF Jason Vosler, INF Donnie Walton, INF Colton Welker, LHP Alex Young
Seattle Mariners: C Brian O’Keefe, C Luis Torrens, RHP Luke Weaver
Tampa Bay Rays: LHP Ryan Yarbrough
Texas Rangers: RHP Nick Snyder
Toronto Blue Jays: INF Vinny Capra, OF Raimel Tapia, OF Bradley Zimmer
Washington Nationals: RHP Erick Fedde, RHP Tommy Romero, 1B Luke Voit
In a quiet moment, as his teammates showered, dressed and quietly left the visitors clubhouse at Petco Park in October, Clayton Kershaw sat.
The Dodgers’ 111-win season had been reduced to a first-round exit. The postseason run Kershaw came back for ended far sooner than anticipated. So the franchise’s most iconic face sat in his blue hoodie. He sipped on a beer.
While he offered encouraging words about coming back for 2023, he was hardly absolute. After all, he said, who’s to say what a winter with his thoughts would do to change what is now a year-to-year decision about whether to keep going?
“We’ll see what happens,” Kershaw said before sitting back at his locker with his beer. “Going home and being around and being a full-time dad changes your perspective on things. But as of right now, I’d say I’ll play again.”
Now it seems clear: The only man with more strikeouts than Sandy Koufax and Orel Hershiser and Don Drysdale and Don Newcombe and Don Sutton in a Dodger uniform will don the threads once again in 2023.
The Dodgers don’t need to change; their fans need to chill out.
Kasten emphasized that the team would spend whatever it deemed necessary to improve but noted that this offseason could be a little different.
“If money is what is needed, we’ll certainly do that, as we’ve shown time and time again,” he said. “[But] if we think we have kids who need time to play up here, I’m sure we’ll do that as well.”
...
He strongly supported the two most visible — and criticized — people in that championship effort, manager Dave Roberts and baseball president Andrew Friedman.
“Everyone who is a sports fans think they could a) run a bar and b,) be a manager, and it’s just not true,” he said. “It’s hard, man, it is hard. Every time they don’t win, they think of something we could have done better, and they may be right at various times ... [but] we’re talking about the [manager] that maybe right now has the greatest lifetime record ever?”
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As for Friedman, he said: “We disagree plenty, but we talk through all of those things. Andrew, Mark [Walter, chairman] and I have developed a rhythm that is extraordinarily productive.”
In general, Kasten said he is sold on the club’s leadership.
“I’m very happy with all the things that are currently in place with the Dodgers,” he said. “Andrew is on his way to the Hall of Fame, probably so is Doc. ... We are very fortunate to have both of them here.”
I tell Kasten that many fans aren’t going to like hearing some of these quotes. They want open anger. They want radical change. They’re no longer simply cherishing the summer journey. They want October satisfaction.
...“I’m so proud we have an ownership group that has lived up to all the things we committed to. It’s rare, you know, it really is,” he said. “We sell about 4 million tickets a year, and these people aren’t here because we might win or lose the last game of the year. They’re here because every night is worth coming to. ... They’re going to be entertained, they’re going to engage, they’re going to enjoy it. ... You can enjoy the whole year without just focusing on the last game or games of the year.”
According to sources, the Dodgers could become serious players in this offseason’s Aaron Judge sweepstakes, a move that would potentially result in a position change for Betts, a six-time All-Star outfielder.
Should the Dodgers decide to let the likes of Trea Turner, Justin Turner (club option), Craig Kimbrel and Joey Gallo (among others), leave as free agents, they could have roughly $100 million coming off the payroll, giving them ample space to make a bid for Judge.
Judge started 74 games in center field, 54 in right field and 25 as a designated hitter this season, but he has spent the vast majority of his time in the Majors playing right field. While Judge—who turns 31 in April—could potentially take over in center field and play next to Betts, it seems unlikely that he would do so for more than a year or two given the toll the position can take physically.
Betts has been the Dodgers’ everyday right fielder since he joined the team in 2020, but the 30-year-old was drafted as a second baseman and, according to a source, would be open to a move back to the infield at some point during his career.
If the Dodgers were to sign Judge, that could hasten such a move.
And of all the things that doomed the Dodgers to another October faceplant this year, situational hitting — specifically, a five for 34 mark (.147 average) with runners in scoring position — tripped them up most once again.
“If you were to boil it down to its simplest form, in the regular season, we led baseball in every statistical category with runners in scoring position,” Friedman said. “In the series, we were not good.”
Sometimes, the problem appeared to be with their approach.
In the third inning of a 2-1 loss in Game 3, for example, the Dodgers stranded two on base after Betts chased a 3-and-1 fastball out of the zone for a lineout, and Trea Turner whiffed on two curveballs in the dirt before taking a called third strike at the knees.
In other cases, they simply failed to capitalize on hittable pitches.
First time I saw Bellinger was in a Spring Training game. I saw him CRUSH a few balls and proceeded to pick in him in every fantasy and sim league where he was available. He then helped me win a few championships. I haven’t drafted him a couple of years in my fantasy league but have kept him in my main OOTP dynasty league (which is tethered to real baseball).
My league mates have been complaining about him being much better in the game than in real life. I keep explaining that OOTP depends a lot on projections (which would still be good based on his previous play) and that his past success pushes OOTP’s development engine to move his ratings toward his in-game potentials. The explanation is correct but not satisfying to them.
While all this is going on, I’ve been watching him play with the Dodgers, who I watch often. My eyes have been telling me the same thing the metrics have been saying…he just doesn’t hit the ball as hard as he used to hit them. At the same time, his approach at the plate looks lackluster. It’s like he’s just expecting his performance to self-correct.
I don’t know what the Dodgers will do but when faced with protecting him for my league’s recent Expansion Draft, and despite a very reasonable contract, I exposed him to selection where he was picked 4th overall. It was a sad day because I appreciate all he’s contributed to my past success in our alternative baseball universe.
He might be one of those guys who needs different voices in his ears.
That has been part of his problem. He also isn’t hitting the ball as hard as in previous years. After topping out at 91.1 MPH average exit velo in ’19, he has averaged 89.3 MPH over the last three seasons. It’s been consistent, but below his capability and just slightly above league-average. His maximum exit velo has been 107.4 and 107.3 MPH the last two seasons after being a consistent 110+ MPH guy. His average launch angle increased over the last two seasons — 22.2 degrees in ’21, 20.3 degrees in ’22 — after being between 16.2 degrees and 17.9 degrees for the other four seasons of his career. Decreased exit velocity and a higher launch angle is going to mean more outs … when contact is made.
His pride wouldn’t allow him to admit he made any mistakes, which made him an unsympathetic figure Tuesday but not necessarily irredeemable. More important is whether he’s admitted to himself that something has to change, that he isn’t just getting unlucky every October, that there’s a reason the only championship he’s won came in a pandemic-shortened season in which the playoffs were most like the regular season.
This is a very interesting news conference. Rabid, moronic fans who clearly don’t understand how baseball works are calling for CHANGE. SOMEBODY HAS TO PAY! Craziness.
Be careful what you wish for, sometimes you’ll get it.
In 2019, Bellinger was the league’s most valuable player, and its leader in WAR, with a 1.035 OPS. In the postseason, he batted cleanup.
In 2021, he batted .165, with a .542 OPS. Of the 132 NL players with at least 300 plate appearances that season, he ranked 131st. He struck out more than ever. When he hit the ball, he hit it hard less than ever.
The Dodgers had reason to hope Bellinger’s 2021 was an aberration.
He started the season late as he recovered from shoulder surgery, then spent time on the injured list because of calf, hamstring and rib injuries.
The calendar turned to 2022, and to spring training. The games did not count, but the signs were not good. Bellinger batted .139 last spring, with no extra-base hits and 18 strikeouts in 36 at-bats.
In the regular season, the Dodgers gave 500 at-bats to five players. The other four — Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith and Trea Turner — each were at least 20% above league average, according to the OPS+ statistic. Bellinger was 20% below league average. He struck out even more often than he had in 2021.
The Dodgers hope to push off talk of the future, at least through the end of the month. At some point, the Dodgers will have to decide whether to retain Bellinger — his salary next season is estimated at $18.1 million, according to the MLB Trade Rumors projections — or consider ways to get more production out of the position.
Kershaw is a devout Christian, though unlike Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, he is hardly in your face about it. Kershaw and Tebow are two highly famous young professional athletes who outwardly approach their strong faith in markedly different ways.
If there is a showy, look-at-me aspect to Tebow and his kneeling in prayer on the football field and near zeal off it, Kershaw is more understated in his approach, if no less sincere.
I’ve never heard him bring up God in postgame interviews or seen him point to the sky after a big strikeout. Yet, I still have a clear understanding of his commitment.
“I think everybody has different approaches to it,” Kershaw said. “For me, everything I do has a purpose to it beyond what’s in this lifetime. At the same time, on the field I have a job to do and that’s what I’m focused on.
“I guess you could say I’m a little more understated than Tim is. Not to say either one is wrong, that’s just kind of my personality a little bit.”
Indeed, even if it’s not exactly his way, Kershaw admires Tebow for using his high-profile platform to bring attention to his faith.
“I have a lot of respect for Tim,” Kershaw said. “I don’t know him personally, but I think what he’s doing is special. I think what he’s trying to do should be recognized, in whatever way that you try to do it. He’s playing football but I think there’s more to it than that.
Bartolo Colon has agreed to a deal with an unknown club reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today (on Twitter). The right-hander wouldn’t divulge the team because he has not yet passed his physical.
Pretty sure it’s either the All-Stars or the Champs.
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