Sons of Steve Garvey

Ex-Giants C Buster Posey replaces Zaidi as prez of baseball ops (ESPN.com)

Mon 7.22 7p: Ryan vs. Snell
Tue 7.23 7p: Knack vs. Hicks
Wed 7.24 7p: Glasnow vs. TBD Ray
Thu 7.25 1p: Kershaw vs. TBD Webb

This is shaping up to to be quite the rivalry series. First, we open up with the major league debut of Dodgers prospect River Ryan, who has 24.1 whole innings of minor league work this year (2.22 ERA, 32 Ks vs 8 BBs), who has started all of five games this year for Oklahoma City. The Dodgers made room for Ryan by felling "Big Maple" James Paxton, who was servicable in yesterday's 9-6 victory over Boston (notching the series sweep), but still carried a 4.43 ERA and 0.4 WAR despite a decent 8-2 record.

Put frankly, the Dodgers may have appreciated the 89 IP this season from Paxton, but think they can do better than an average with Ryan.

And who knows, maybe Friedman has more tricks up his sleeve to fill out the rest of the starting rotation. Looking at the rest of the starters this series, there might be something to justify the Paxton DFA (like getting some value for him from another team): Landon Knack has a 0.8 WAR; Tyler Glasnow is 1.8 WAR (despite nearing his high-water mark for innings (120) already (109 IP this year).

And then there's the season debut of Clayton Kershaw--who knows what to expect from our workhorse at this stage of injury recovery, but he's got a 3.60 ERA over three rehab starts and ten innings in the minors this year.

So maybe Gavin Stone (1.8 WAR) continues fighting on; Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1.5 WAR) comes back; Bobby Miller (-0.9 WAR) shakes his 2024 blues; and Walker Buehler (-0.7 WAR) returns to some sort of form? And we pick up another starter? Or two?

I don't know, but this series against the Giants will definitely be telling...starting with Monday, with the Giants starting this familiar foe (Blake Snell is 0-3 on the year, but the Giants have won his last two starts (both no decisions) since returning from the IL):

I'll be at the game on Wednesday night, alongside my friend, a Giants fan. Let's go!

DODGERS 14, GIANTS 7 (11)

The Dodgers typically don't perform very well on nationally-televised games, and this afternoon's matchup with the Giants seemed to be more of the same. In a seesaw affair, the Dodgers took a 1-0 lead, then went down 5-2, before clawing back to tie the game at 6-6 and go to extra innings.

In extras, the Dodgers went up 7-6 in the tenth, only to see that lead evaporate and the Giants have bases loaded with one out on the bottom of the tenth. However, Dodgers reliever Daniel Hudson settled down and struck out Patrick Bailey and then induced a pop foulout on Matt Chapman (who started the game 3-for-3, so this was no small feat), to end the threat.

To be clear, with one out in the bottom of the tenth, the Giants had a 82.9% chance to win the game. And they couldn't seal the deal.

In the top of the 11th, facing a second inning from Giants reliever Sean Hjelle (whom Giants manager Bob Melvin had to leave in the game, against his judgment, given the Giants' injury-plagued rotation and bullpen), the Dodgers opened up a seven-run can of whupass that buried the Giants:

Seven runs from the Dodgers in the top of the eleventh inning put this game away. The Dodgers earn a split from the first two of this series--meaningful, since the red-hot Padres trounced the Red Sox on Friday and Saturday, and are now five games over .500 (and 7.5 games behind the Dodgers).

Also meaningful:

• Will Smith (3-for-6, 3 RBI) looks like he might have emerged from his recent slump;
• the Dodgers' bottom of the order largely contributed to the victory today (which is aberrant, given they are in the bottom third batting in the majors this year), save the black hole batting ninth that is Cavan Biggio (0-for-2 with lame fielding) plus Kiké Hernandez (0-for-4 with a fielding error)--please get well soon Max Muncy!;
• and Shohei Ohtani hit his NL-leading 26th home run in the third inning.

The Dodgers go for the series victory tomorrow. LFG!

Fri 6.28 7.15p: Knack vs. Webb
Sat 6.29 4.15p: Glasnow vs. TBD
Sun 630 1p: Paxton vs. TBD

Lots of injuries on the rosters of these two rivals. While we try to push through losses to Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Mookie Betts, Walker Buehler, and Max Muncy (not to mention Clayton Kershaw, Michael Grove, and Joe Kelly), the Giants are suffering through injuries to Jung Hoo Lee, Blake Snell, Keaton Winn, Mike Yastrzemski, and Kyle Harrison.

San Francisco might get Lamonte Wade Jr. back for this weekend series, though. I haven't heard of any returning Dodgers scheduled for this weekend (though I expect we'll have Will "Slappy" Smith back in the lineup, sitting recently due to a slump at the plate).

Which means we'll probably see more Cavan Biggio, Chris Taylor, and Austin Barnes this weekend, I reckon.

And that makes me the stick figure in the middle of the above picture.

Mon 5.13 6.45p: Gavin Stone (3-1, 3.55) vs. Jordan Hicks (3-1, 2.30)
Tues 5.14 6.45p: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (4-1, 2.79) vs. Keaton Winn (3-5, 5.63)
Wed 5.15 6.45p: TBD vs Logan Webb (3-4, 3.38)

After dropping yet another series to the Padres, who really have our number this year (losing five of eight games played), we sulk up to San Francisco to play a team that might be Giants? I mean, San Francisco made a lot of moves this off-season (including the late signing of Blake Snell), but still finds themselves eight games back and four games below .500, fourth place in the NL West.

But with Shohei Ohtani experiencing back pain (he left the Saturday game early, and didn't play Sunday), and no starter named for Wednesday...I don't know. Don't...let's start?

DODGERS 5, GIANTS 4: DODGERS SWEEP!

Shohei Ohtani finally broke out of his home run slump--the longest of his career apparently (but only by a game)--by CRUSHING a home run to right that sounded so amazing off the bat, the pavilion lights started flashing well before the ball even reached the fans in the crowd:

Shohei Ohtani crushes his first home run as a Dodger! pic.twitter.com/Riq4vqqeDr

— MLB (@MLB) April 4, 2024

We ended up needing that insurance run after the Giants' Jorge Soler hit a home run in the eighth to make it close, but Dinelson Lamet secured the save with a scoreless, 2-K ninth, and the Dodgers earned the sweep.

Dodgers also got a solid start from Tyler Glasnow (6.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB and 7 Ks), as well as some small ball off the bat of Will Smith (RBI double to score Ohtani from first) and Kike Hernandez (RBI single to score Smith in the same inning). And Miguel Rojas hit his second home run of the year, which is absolutely crazy. Gavin Lux is clearly dealing with some confidence issues, but in the meantime, it's good to know we might have options.

Sax was at the game and I have to admit, I wasn't on the edge of my seat for that seventh-inning Ohtani AB, partially because Ohtani's offense to date hasn't been other-worldly (.270 BA, .749 OPS). But man, it was electric from the moment it left the bat. I can't wait to see more of this from Ohtani in the days, weeks, months, and years to come.

Tyler Glasnow vs. Kyle Harrison.

Kyle Harrison is the Giants' new pitching prospect, with a 2-1 career record and 3.98 ERA across 8 games. The 22-year-old debuted in August last year, and supposedly neutralizes lefty batters with a hard slurve from a low three-quarters arm slot.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers--who, to be fair, have played more games than most teams so far this season--are turning out to be pretty potent offensively:

• Team batting average: 4th (.293), behind AZ, ATL, and PIT
• Team OPS: 3rd (.863), behind ATL, AZ
• Batting average: Mookie Betts second at .500 (NYY Anthony Volpe at .529)
• Home runs: Betts first (5); Teoscar Hernandez second (4); eight others tied at 3
• RBI: Betts first (11)
• Runs: Betts first (14), T Herndandez second (9)
• Slugging: Betts first (1.167)
• OPS: Betts first (1.772)
• Hits: Betts first (15); Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and SD Luis Campusano tied for second (12)
• AB: Ohtani first (33). But wait, that must mean...
• BB: Betts first (8)

I'm not sure if I'll be able to see this majesty high up in the reserve deck tonight, but I'll be there, for my first Dodgers game in 2024! Let's get that SWEEP!

DODGERS 5, GIANTS 4

I can't promise I can always put up a PGT anymore, but tonight's win in a bullpen game merited some digital ink. Not only did the Dodgers outflank the Giants' late call on the starting pitching (as they announced Logan Webb's start very late), but the Dodgers were bold enough to proceed with a bullpen game (Ryan Brasier opened with a scoreless inning, followed by a servicabel Ryan Yarbrough 4.1 IP (4 ER and 7Ks, but got the job done and earned the win). And the Dodgers still won.

Giants ace Logan Webb lasted only 3.2 IP and 96 pitches, yielding 5 ER that included another home run from non-player-of-the-week Mookie Betts, his fifth HR on the year. Freddie Freeman had a three-hit game with an RBI, and even the bottom of the lineup (James Outman, Gavin Lux, and Kike Hernandez) each got a hit, lifting their averages to .120, .200, and .182! Wow, that's still pretty bad.

Not as bad as Will Smith (0-for-4 with 2 Ks) or Shohei Ohtani (0-for-3 with a K), but who's counting? We'll take the series victory and remain in first place by a game over the Diamondbacks.

Sax is at the game tomorrow, so I'll put a new Game Thread up in the morning!

Monday 4/1: James Paxton vs. Keaton Winn
Tuesday 4/2: Tyler Glasnow TBD vs. TBD Logan Webb
Wednesday 4/3: Bobby Miller Tyler Glasnow vs. TBD Kyle Harrison
All games, 7p

With the Giants' off-season excising of Gabe Kapler and the decision to move on from shortstop stalwart Brandon Crawford, San Francisco finally took the opportunity to re-tool their lineup this off-season...and went nuts. Six years, $113M to Korean Baseball Organization star Jung-Hoo Lee; three years, $54M (and opt-outs!) to 3B Matt Chapman, and two-years, $62M (also with opt-outs!) to 2023 Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.

So far, Farhan Zaidi's moves have paid off. The Giants are 2-2 including Chapman's two-HR performance to earn the Giants' first win, followed by Lee's first MLB home run in Saturday's win over the Padres. (The Giants were spanked by the Padres, 13-4, on Sunday.)

Speaking of which, guess what other Asian star does not have a home run yet this year? (Shohei Ohtani, who is also batting .269 with a .656 OPS, to Lee's .286 BA / .868 OPS.)

Dodger foil Blake Snell will likely get one of the two "TBD" starts in this series. In the regular season, Snell is 2-2 with a 2.59 ERA lifetime against the Dodgers, but we'll always have this.

So there's a lot of reasons to bring the hateHateHATE to this series, but here's another one: thanks to this stupid balanced schedule, this is one of only two series the Giants will play in Los Angeles this year. So bring your vitriol.

UPDATE 4/2 11.38a: Tyler Glasnow's start shifted to Wednesday, so there's a TBD for today's game. Giants named their starters for Tuesday and Wednesday--and neither start is slated for Snell.

UPDATE 4/3 8.50a: Game Thread for Game 9 is here.

Saturday night, I went up with a friend to Oracle Park to see the Dodgers fall to the Giants, 2-1. The game itself was kind of a bummer of an evening, with the only redeeming takeaway being Mookie Betts registering his 107th and final RBI of the 2023 season, driving in David Peralta in the top of the fifth to momentarily tie the game at 1-1.

But even though starter Clayton Kershaw was cruising (having given up only a solo HR earlier), he was undone by Max Muncy's ineptitude at third base on two consecutive plays in the sixth. First, with two runners on and no out, Muncy is hit a ball that he foolishly decides on which he can try to pull a 5-4-3 double play (he didn't), so the runner on first is safe and the lead runner, whom Muncy could have either tagged out or just raced to the third base bag, is now safe at third. The following batter, Wilmer Flores, again hits a ball to Muncy, who promptly botches the play and allows the runner on third to easily score. Michael Grove came in to escape the jam, but the damage was already done--and worse off, Clayton Kershaw, in what could be his final appearance as a pitcher let along possibly as a Los Angeles Dodger, was on the hook for the loss, his first since May 21.

Also want to call out that many Giants fans--and the crowd was about 50-50 from where we were sitting--applauded as Kershaw left the mound for the dugout in the sixth. That might be his last regular season start, as a Dodger or as a player in total. I was excited to be there to see it, even if the result wasn't what I had hoped.

Muncy also went 1-for-4 and I know his OPS is over .800 and his WAR is 2.6 (ahead of JD Martinez and Jason Heyward, for example). But he's a three-outcome hitter and more often than not, it's a strikeout (his 153 Ks on the year is second only to James Outman) or a weak fly out to the infield. And his defense is a disaster, as evidenced by this debacle Saturday night.

The Dodgers ultimately ended up losing when, having just reached on a two-out single, Chris Taylor was thrown out trying to advance to second. Upon exiting the stadium, I heard another Dodger fan (and there were plenty of them at this game, which was great) mutter about how Taylor shouldn't have been running with David Peralta at the plate. But with Austin "Automatic Out" Barnes batting behind Peralta, Taylor really didn't have another option. It was then or never. He had to try to get into scoring position for Peralta.

And anyway, the game was meaningless for the standings, and it felt like a low-stakes game in kind. The Giants' season ended the following day, and they go into the offseason having shed themselves of smarter-than-everyone-else manager Gabe Kapler and a lot of pressure to make a bold move after striking out on both Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa last offseason. The Dodgers rest up during the Wild Card round and prepare to face either the Brewers or Diamondbacks next week in the NLDS.

We move on. The Giants stay home.

On Saturday, the Dodgers didn't get their 100th win of the season (though they did on Sunday afternoon). Nor did Mookie get his 40th HR or Freddie his 30th HR or 60th double (none of which happened on Sunday, either). So from that perspective, it was a bummer.

I end up the season 5-5, counting this road game.

That said, my friend (who invited me to the game) had incredible seats, first row right down the first base line. And even with the quicker pace of play, the game gave us enough time to talk and reminisce about the rivalry, how we got into our respective NL West fandoms. We shared perspectives on empty nest syndrome as well as the difficulties of aging. And we got to watch some great athletes and a stadium full enough to keep the seagulls away for one evening. It was a great night.

I noticed that the Oracle Park scoreboard seems sharper than our Diamondvision screen at the Stadium. The Giants also have more quiet time between innings and pitches, a stark contrast to the aural barrage that happens at Dodger Stadium. And they have stupid between-innings traditions--namely, a sing-along set to Vanessa Carlton's "A Thousand Miles" (because nothing strikes fear in one's opponent like a 90's one-hit wonder from the Dawson's Creek soundtrack)--but at least it wasn't as insipid as the Food Truck dot racing animation that they've been running this year at Dodger Stadium. But overall it was a good night.

Actually, it's always a good night at a ballpark. This year, I got to a game at Yankee Stadium (my first at new Yankee) as well as here at Oracle Park. I also got in a game at the Dayton Dragons (the Reds' High-A affiliate) as they hosted the Lansing Lugnuts.

Man, I do love baseball.

Fri 9.29 7p: Lynn vs. Winn
Sat 9.30 6p: Kershaw vs. Beck
Sun 10.1 12p: Miller vs. Harrison

After posting a quick placeholder on Friday afternoon, I listened to Lance Lynn suffer through a 359-pitch first inning (yielding one run) and thought that the Dodgers' 2-1 lead (through 1) was precarious. Well, it was, though not for the Dodgers; they went on to win 6-2 off the backs of homers from Will Smith, Freddie Freeman, and J.D. Martinez. Lynn actually got the win, as well, which is nuts; he's 7-2 with the Dodgers though it's a nail-biter each outing.

Clayton Kershaw goes on Saturday and I am going to be at Birdshit Park to watch, unlike former Giants manager Gabe Kapler, who was strangely fired with three games to go this season (and one postseason appearance in four seasons). Kapler may the fall guy, and Logan Webb may be mad at his teammates, but I'm sure the Giants will deploy their massive financial resources and record profitability to figure it all out.

For now, though: the Dodgers are NL West Champions in 2023, and advancing to the playoffs next week. Let's celebrate.

Thu 21 7p: Sheehan vs. Harrison
Fri 22 7p: TBD vs. Manaea
Sat 23 6p: Kershaw vs. TBD
Sun 24 4p: Lynn vs. TBD

The Giants are 76-76 this year and three games out of the final NL Wild Card spot. But they have to vault over Miami and Cincinnati to get there, but it's still possible--FanGraphs says there's a 2.1% chance of the Giants making the playoffs.

Now, the Dodgers could pull a 2021 NLDS here and just squash all hope for their rivals. Or, the Dodgers could just take it easy--we're comfortably set for the #2 National League playoff slot, which gets us a bye in the first round. It's a nice position in which to be for these seven remaining games with the Giants (four here, three up north).

I'm going to the Stadium on Friday, and am excited to watch TBD as our starter.

Fri 6.16 7p
Sat 6.17 6p
Sun 6.18 1p

I'm having to put up a bunch of placeholder GameThreads while I will be off the grid, so these won't be full of my pithy sarcastic wit. I know you'll weep at its absence as you lament the void in your soul. Sorry about that.

But screw the Giants anyway.

DODGERS 10, GIANTS 5

Max Muncy will not be denied in the Giants' Oracle Park.

When Dave Roberts started Muncy this series, he delivered. Two homers and 7 RBI (including a grand slam in the seventh inning) led the Dodgers to a 9-1 lashing over San Francisco on Monday. Here's both HR, with the grand slam being pretty majestic:

And thanks to SoSG QuadSevens for picking up Muncy on the post-game show Monday, when he confessed he doesn't even like Oracle Park in the first place:

Roberts followed that epic performance...by sitting Muncy against Alex Wood (Muncy did come in to pinch hit in the eighth, and struck out. And the Dodgers promptly lost 5-0.

So in the rubber match against the Giants on Wednesday, guess who was back in the starting lineup? Max Frickin' Muncy. And even though the Dodgers were down 3-0 through two frames, and the comeback was a team effort (with six Dodgers tallying RBI, and eight Dodgers scoring runs), it was Muncy's heroics which headlined the win. Here's Muncy's second home run of the game:

According to Ben Ross of MLB.com, Muncy's 21 round-trippers against the Giants since the start of the 2020 season are the second-most of any player against any team, behind only Aaron Judge’s 22 against the Orioles. Kershaw got win #199 (6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB and 4 Ks).

It's a series win over the Giants. but itnwould have been a series sweep if Muncy had started all three games.

And the Dodgers go back atop the NL for run differential (+24), tied with the Brewers. Los Angeles ends the day in second place in the NL West, tied with the Padres and trailing the Diamondbacks.

Muncy's batting average lifted from .121 before the series to a whopping .214 ending play tonight. Now, Chris Taylor is still batting .091, so that's a continuing concern. We're going to need Taylor more, now that Miguel Roas looks to be out with a left hamstring cramp. Maybe some home cooking (starting Friday against the Cubs) will turn things around for CT3?

Mon 4.10: Julio Urias vs. Webb
Tue 4.11: Dustin May vs. Wood
Wed 4.12: Clayton Kershaw vs. Cobb
All games 6.45p

The Dodgers just came off a very unsatisfying four-game series in Arizona in which they scored 22 runs, striking first blood in all four games--and only ended up with one win to show for those efforts. Three times, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, the Diamondbacks used speed on the bases and timely hitting to overwhelm the Dodgers and take back leads for good. The Dodgers yielded 23 runs to the Snakes on Saturday and Sunday alone, letting the games get out of hand quickly.

This may be the pitch clock era swallowing the methodical Dave Roberts' relief pitching decisions, as things spiral out of control before an arm is reaady in the extremely shaky bullpen. Noah Syndergaard's 6.30 ERA and Michael Grove's 14.73 ERA also don't help any, but nor does a bullpen full of underachieving pitchers (Caleb Ferguson, 4.50 ERA; Andre Jackson, 5.40; Brusdar Graterol, 6.75; and Alex Vesia, a stratospheric 12.00).

Oh, and Max Muncy, who ended last year batting .196, is even WORSE this year at .121. I didn't think that was possible given the shift limitations, but Muncy is beyond my putrid expectations so far. Miguel "I'm Not Gavin" Rojas is .118; Chris Taylor is .125; and David Peralta is .174. It's pretty pathetic from about half of the Dodgers' lineup.

So what to make of this? Maybe the Snakes just have our number this year (winning five of eight). Or maybe this 2023 Dodgers team just sucks. At 5-5 through 10 games, we're in second place by a game. This series against San Francisco should prove whether we've got something, or whether we will just be in the Padres' rear view mirror all year.

Mon Sep 5 7p: Heaney vs. Webb
Tue Sep 6 7p: Anderson vs. TBD
Wed Sep 7 1p: Kershaw vs. Cobb

This Game Thread is late.

But the Giants are still lame.

photo from San Jose Mercury News; Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group, May 23, 2022

Thu 21: White vs. Rodon
Fri 22: TBD vs. Webb
Sat 23: TBD vs. Wood
Sun 24: TBD vs. Cobb

The Dodgers come out of the All-Star Break with a league-leading 60-30 record, and a 10-game lead over second-place San Diego (and a 12.5 game lead over the Giants). Going 10-1 over the last homestand was pretty sweet, and now we have seven against the Giants and Nationals. Let's keep it rolling!

Fri 6.10 7p: Walker Buehler vs. Junis
Sat 6.11 4p: Julio Urias vs. TBD
Sun 6.12 1p: TBD (Clayton Kershaw?) vs. Rodon

Hot off a series victory over the Chicago White Sox (which only came after a close 11-9 victory in the rubber match Thursday afternoon, in a game which had the Dodgers' win percentage at 6% at one point), the Dodgers go up to Birdshit Park for a weekend series againt the third-place Giants, 6.5 games back of first. The Dodgers certainly haven't looked good of late, dropping the last homestand 2-5 and then limping to the series victory at Comiskey Park.

Mookie Betts went 0-for-6 Thursday with 2 Ks and 9 LOB (egads!), and Justin Turner also had a 0-for-3 day with 2 BB and a K. But surprisingly, Max Muncy rejoined the lineup following a rehab stint in Rnacho Cucamonga, and he did great: 2-for-5 with 5 RBI, including a three-run HR, to lift his average to .159 (he's gaining on you, Bellinger!). So maybe there's hope for the Dodgers, with a resurgent batter with a penchant for deliveing balls to the ocean?

We've got two starters going who have notable this year for their short starts. And then we've got Clayton Kershaw pencilled in for his return off the IL on Sunday. So I'm still terrified with fear.

DODGERS 9, GIANTS 1

May the Fourth be with the Dodgers, who swept the Giants in two games with a resounding beatdown Wednesday, a 9-1 victory that snowballed with momentum like a Real Madrid Champions League playoff game.

Down 1-0 through three innings on a Brandon Crawford solo shot, the Dodgers got two back in the bottom of the fourth on successive RBI singles from Trea Turner and Will Smith. Then a Mookie Betts solo shot to lead off the bottom of the sixth.

Then a four-run seventh punctuated by the aforementioned Lux RBI single (Wilmer Flores fields the ball at first, and then has no play when Giants don't cover the bag), a Betts sac fly, and a Freddie Freeman triple. And then finally, a Max Muncy two-run HR to notch the final runs.

Unlike the Giants' penchant for running up the score, those last two runs were not a matter of gloating. Muncy has been off to a horrible start this season, as he probably is rehabilitating from that brutal injury from the end of last season. But his surprising 2-for-4 night (only his second multi-hit game this year) lifts Muncy's average to .151, the lowest of all Dodger regulars--so if Muncy can show some signs of life, that would be a huge boon.

All Dodgers starters reached base tonight. Only Chris Taylor didn't get a hit tonight.

Tony Gonsolin was fine, 5.0 IP with 3 H and 1 ER (1 BB, 5 Ks). The Dodgers used four bullpen pitchers to pitch four scoreless frames.

The Dodgers' 16-7 record is best in the National League, and one game ahead of San Diego in the NL West. And sure, the Giants had a depleted roster for this series, which probably contributed to the sweep. There's still 17 games to play here!

The Dodgers get a day off Thursday, and then a weekend series in Chicago, where it's scheduled to rain Friday and be in the 50s all weekend. Yikes.