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That famous mother Necessity has a couple of other kids besides Invention. There's brother Respect and sister Acceptance.
And thanks to the whole family, on Sunday we found the preeminent slot in the batting order manned by the scourge of Southern California 2004, Hee Seop Choi.
J.D. Drew, the man Choi uprooted in the lineup, should be the top hitter on the team and may well end up that way. But right now, Choi - except perhaps for Olmedo Saenz or Cesar Izturis - is the best thing the Dodgers have going offensively these days. And if you saw his quality at-bat against a left-handed pitcher Sunday, you once again saw evidence that Choi can work a pitcher throwing from either direction.
Pragmatically, the Dodgers are still making a mistake by locking Choi and Drew together, in either order. They're encouraging opponents to bring in left-handed specialists late in the game, rather than getting at least one at-bat against an opposite-handed pitcher. And I say this with more concern over Drew, who seems flummoxed all too often by lefty pitches sweeping away from him.
It's a problem that must be too easy to solve. Example:
S Cesar Izturis
L J.D. Drew
R Jeff Kent
L Hee Seop Choi
S Milton Bradley
R Olmedo Saenz/Antonio Perez
L Ricky Ledee
R Jason Phillips
Somehow, Choi seems like the last guy who would get intoxicated enough by batting cleanup to let his batting stroke fall drunk in the streets. There may be a reason that Choi and Drew go together like ra-ma la-ma la-ma ka dinga kading-a-dong, so forgive me, but I can't see it.
None of this is to say the Dodger batting order has been a major problem. I'm gonna stay on message, people - any offense playing half its games in Dodger Stadium that can be among the league leaders in OPS, that doesn't get shut out until the season is more than 40 games old, is a good offense. It's time for my annual Paula Marshall reference: Just because every series she is in gets canceled doesn't mean she can't act. There are other forces at play.
But as they wait for their starting pitching to become more effective, there's no reason not to try to eke out an extra advantage on offense here and there. Appreciating Choi is one thing - thwarting another team's bullpen management is something more.
* * *
How to replace the disabled Odalis Perez, now that Wilson Alvarez is already taking Scott Erickson's spot? Give anyone a shot that you want, and just be happy that it won't be Erickson revisiting Arizona. Won't it be refreshing to see hope take the mound instead of hopelessness?
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2066296
Izzy, Choi, Bradley, Kent, Drew, Perez/Saenz
Having two switch hitters who are hitting well makes it easy. In fact, Tracy has found the only way there is to avoid the LRLRL by pairing Drew and Choi.
#1 S Izturis
#2 L Drew - Keep letting him see good pitches with our best hitter on deck
#3 S Bradley - Our best hitter right now with speed
#4 R Kent - proven RBI man, solid OBP
#5 L Choi - solid OBP, good avg thus far
#6 R Werth - we know what he can do when healthy
#7 R Phillips - he should be decent protection from Werth who is coming off the bad wrist
#8 R Perez - I love speed and OBP for a #8 because they will either be on base or be safer from sacrificing over to 2B and a single can score them from your leadoff guy.
I believe Ted McGinley and Tommy Lasorda appear on the same poster promoting L.A. tourism. It's not a good sign.
With Alvarez and Sanchez/Houlton taking over in the 4 and 5 spots in the rotation the bullpen figures to suffer greatly. Not only due to the relievers stepping up into starting roles, but also the fact that we don't figure to get too many innings out of them.
I really hate to see Alvarez pressed into the starting role because I just don't think he can hold up physically. Never thought I'd see the day I was eager for the return of Elmer Dessens, but unless DePo is willing to call up some youngsters and/or Mahomes, it looks like that's where we're at.
If the hitters don't step up big-time, this swoon may continue well into June.
S-Izturis
3-Perez
1-Choi
C-Bradley
2-Kent
R-Drew
L-Ledee/Werth/Repko
C-Phillips
I liked Tracy not sticking with Bako at catcher even tho a righty was on the mound. As I have said before, I am not so sold on the matchup thing. I'd try a regular lineup day in and day out, with the exception of maybe left field and an occasional day of rest or late inning double switch, and see how it goes. I am a big believer in the hitters developing a rhythm, and I think excessing platooning disrupts that.
I think A Perez has to play every day at third until he proves otherwise...he looks like a "player", and I think our defense is significantly stronger with him there.
They looked better yesterday than they have in a month.
Jackson got shelled Erickson style in his last start against the dreaded Alb.Isotopes, so it looks like he's stalled, with a 6.99 era. Too bad we can't use a time machine, and revisit some of those Dan Evans era deals involving Jackson, Hanrahan, and Greg Miller.
Guess it's time for a Houlton, Erickson, Duaner tag team for the Perez start, and hope for the best.
Maybe the Dodgers just need to stop using thin-air desert communities for their top minor league teams. Greg Brock and Mike Marshall were going to be Ruth and Gehrig, according to how they hit in Albuquerque, but noooooo. Let's move our AAA operation to someplace with thick, moist air like Oklahoma so we stop being misled about our players' true potential.
"Glad you asked, DT crowd! Remember the Titanic? They had it good..."
"What on earth can you mean?"
"Well, since you asked, I just found out that a "small move" of six blocks takes professional movers 5 hours and boy howdy, that hurts the pocketbook!"
"Wow, you should've done (several other simpler suggestions spill forth from the crowd)..."
"I'll ask all of you to shut your yappers because it gets better! As of 9:15am, because of a technicality that is only possible through my kind of luck, I'll be without internet service until June 6th!"
"What?? No Fact of Choi until then??"
"It's not like they've been spilling forth lately..."
"But you were moving!! And now, your relatively free! Whatever will we do??"
"Take this last bit until I return on June 6th. Until such time....
--------------------------------------------
TODAY'S FACT OF CHOI, SB'S FAVORITE PLAYER, 2005:
I have pulled significant strings and run up a long distance bill to make my wife's personality magically transform into that of Albert Belle but it was worth it!
(courtesy of my pal, Archipelago, the formerly grumpy poster of Dodgerkid who knows a guy who says he knew Choi during our hero's time at Kwang-Ju High School... in other words, another of SB's rock-solid sources)
As you all have no doubt noticed, Choi is bigger than the average Korean. Even in high school, before the weight training program of 2000, he was huge and apparently, a helluva basketball player.
One day Kwang-Ju gym, Choi was messing around with friends having a dunk contest (apparently, Seo was also involved). Our hero went up for a two-handed slam... and brought down the rim (Archipelago's friend swears he saw this happen).
Now for the punchline. The kids in the gym went crazy nuts until the coach showed up and chewed out Choi for breaking the rim. The coach ordered Choi to clean up the mess. This was a problem; Choi had a baseball game to play. The other kids volunteered to help, explaining to the coach they had encouraged Choi to dunk (the coach apparently warned the kids not to practice the slams because the rims would bend) but Choi spoke up and insisted it was his mess to clean up. He was late for his baseball game and had to run laps afterward.
See in two weeks, folks, unless I can get on the internet on a friends computer....
Also, agree with # 13 in that it would be doubtful that we go to a pitcher not on the 40-man roster. D Thompson is on the 40-man roster and he is 24 so he has a bit more experience then our 20-year-old prospects like (Jackson/Billingsly/Broxton). Of course, if we have to designate someone off the 40-man roster I would think Joel Hanrahan would be expendable.
FYI - Evidently one of our old top prospects is finally back after numerous arm surgeries. Hong-Chih Kuo has 13 K's in 10 innings so maybe his stuff is back as well. Probably not a prospect anymore and he is only pitching in relief but at least he made it back from his surgeries
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=neel/050520
Whether or not pitching in an extreme hitter's park (i.e. Denver, Colorado Springs, Las Vegas) shreds a pitcher's psyche is still debateable. I would prefer having our AAA team in a neutral ballpark, but revenue plays into it as well. You can't draw nearly as many fans in Bakersfield as you can in Las Vegas.
"The biggest reason we shouldn't discount Jackson's performance in AAA is that he's hurting himself. He's walked 20 in 37.3 innings while striking out only 26. Strikeouts and walks are only minimally impacted by ballpark effects."
Although I know this is part of the catechism, I have my doubts. If I thought a fastball over the plate would result in a home run or GR double, I'd be more likely to nibble around the edges and use more breaking pitches--taking the risk of a base on balls, and avoiding the opportunity for a strikeout. If I knew the hard-hit fly ball would die in the centerfielders' glove, I might be more willing to throw strikes. If you're pitching adaptively in a hitter's park, unless you have incredible confidence in your fast ball I would think you'd try to evolve into a ground ball pitcher, more sinkers and curves, in order to win games. Jackson's game might be more suited for Dodger Stadium than for the field in Vegas, by this reasoning (or lack thereof).
Actually, Fox didn't fare too well with sitcoms in its early period outside of "Married with Children".
He's 21, has been given shots the last two Spring Trainings to win the #5 starter slot without success, had to be briefly shut down last year, and both in his 2004 stint with the Dodgers, and in AAA has shown an inconsistent ability to throw strikes.
We'd all like to see the young pitcher that had Tracy making comparisons to Doc Gooden, but Jackson seems to be a work in progress, and at this point may be closer to James Baldwin.
1. Penny
2. Weaver
3. Lowe
4. Perez
5. Erickson
Obviously, 4 and 5 are big question marks now, with Perez on the DL and Erickson apparently in the bullpen. Here's my suggestion. Release Erickson immediately, and call up Jackson, putting him in the #4 spot where Perez normally is. Let Alvarez take the #5 spot, when it comes up, until Dessens is ready. Or, if JT is feeling creative, until Duaner or DJ (might as well use him if he's occupying a roster spot) is ready to go.
Doesn't seem all that complicated to me. Let Jackson take his lumps and find out if he's MLB material. At some point he has to go from "prospect" to "asset."
Poor SB, looks like it's Kinkos for him for a couple weeks.
I don't know that I'd call Dan Evans "damn good". I think it's more accurate to say "he didn't totally screw us." Some of the Logan White/Evans draft picks have looked good and some of the pieces we've scooped in otherwise marginal trades have been very productive, but let's not forget the Worst Offense Ever™ in 2003 and his failure to establish a team core past 2005, something DePodesta has done very quickly and [relatively] cheaply.
Dan Evans = 5.0 / 10
vr
Xei
I never saw the need for a pitcher, or a hitter for that matter, to spend several years being groomed...a little time in the minors, teach them a few things necessary for the bigs, then let's see what they can do.
In his first start, Cleveland's first four batters hit for the cycle against him.
How 'bout making Rancho Cucamonga the AAA team? The air don't get any thicker than in the Inland Empire... besides, it might be enough to make me move back there ;)
Getting Izturis and... I want to say Paul Quantrill, but is that right?... in exchange for Luke Prokopec looks like a pretty shrewd deal to me. And remember, he had to dig himself out of the mess that Malone left behind. DePo has benefitted from the repair work that he did.
vr
Xei
The Dodgers last A league team was in San Bernardino. I saw Chin-Feng Chen play there. Thought he would be great. So did the Dodgers hitting instructor there, Steve Yeager.
This is why I am not a scout.
You're right about Paul Quantrill. That's what I meant about 'didn't totally screw us" - Evan's mistakes were overcome-able [Encarnacion, Jeromy Burnitz, Fred McGriff, Hundley], and his successes have had lasting benefits [Gagne, Izturis, Brazoban]. However, I seriously doubt the team would have been as successful in 2004 or as competitive going forward as the DePodesta team - I just don't see Evans pulling off any of those shrewd deals.
Still, I'll never forgive him for the 2003 offense. Also, his tendency to overvalue certian prospects hurt the team's ability to add real impact players, [of course, I benefit from hindsight when saying we should have traded the Hanrahans, Jacksons, and Millers of the world before they lost all perceived value - something Evans didn't have].
He is probably a valuable piece in Seattle's scouting department now, but didn't appear to have the guts for an executive-level position here. I speculate that he may have been picked by the FOX ownership because he was a relative unknown who would follow orders from his superiors and not 'rock the boat' until the team was sold.
I don't like to count the Izturis trade as a success, simply because Evans begged the Blue Jays to take Gagne instead of Prokopec.
https://dodgerthoughts.baseballtoaster.com/archives/013894.html
The notion that the Blue Jays chose Luke Prokopec over Eric Gagne in the Paul Quantrill trade of 2001 is myth, folklore and urban legend, according to Jeff Blair in the Toronto Globe and Mail - although once you read the article, it's not quite in the way you'd expect.
It's not that Prokopec was chosen over Gagne by the Blue Jays. It's that Gagne wasn't even considered in the trade - by either side.
"Nobody ever said, 'Hey, you want Gagne?' We didn't ask for him, either," (Toronto general manager J.P.) Ricciardi told Blair, adding: "... if it had happened, I'd be the first to admit it."
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