The LA Dodgers have been one baseball's biggest stories since August 26, 2012 when they made a trade with the Boston Red Sox for Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, and Adrian Gonzalez. Apparently not satisfied with committing themselves to ~$250M in new contracts, they proceeded to sign Zack Greinke to a six-year, $147M free-agent contract a few months later. I listened to part-owner and Team President Stan Kasten on a FanGraphs podcast not long after the signing and I remember him saying that all the moves were made with an eye towards improving the brand from a PR perspective, implying that improving the product on the field was more a secondary vision. Up to this point, I saw all of the moves he made, from overpaying for the franchise itself (~two billion dollars, a figure that makes the Steinbrenners giddy) to the aforementioned transactions, and thought to myself: "surely they don't think this is going to work, right?"
Well, it hasn't worked. The Dodgers sit in last place in the NL west, looking up 8.5 games at a surprisingly good Arizona Diamondbacks club. Matt Kemp, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, and AJ Ellis are currently on the DL. Unfortunately, manager Don Mattingly is probably going to lose his job at some point, be it during the season or after. Led by a good rotation, the pitching has been solid, although the bullpen has underperformed (how's that $21M to Brandon League looking?). The offense has been mediocre, though some of that can be attributed to injuries to key performers such as Matt Kemp and Hanley Ramirez. In an attempt to cure their woes, the Dodgers recently called up Cuban phenom Yasiel Puig (yah-SEAL PWEEG) who promptly rewarded them with two homers and a spectacular throw to end the game in his debut. Coincidentally, another throw shown on the linked video is of Bo Jackson throwing out a runner during his days with Kansas City. Bo Jackson of course, being the greatest athlete that ever lived, is a high standard, but I have heard Puig mentioned in the same breath as him numerous occasions and look forward to judging the accuracy of those comparisons.
The Dodgers are the current poster child for the money flying around in baseball, having signed a 25-year, $7B deal in January with Time Warner to start broadcasting games exclusively on their own channel, SportsNet LA, a deal that makes some in baseball uncomfortable. In terms of the big picture, the Dodgers will most likely be a very successful franchise in the not-too-distant future, not just because they have more money than some entire nations, but also because they have some very savvy people in charge. We all remember what Stan Kasten did in Atlanta, helping to build the Braves into a winner, building a respectable Hawks team, and playing a big part in where the Nationals are today. There's no reason to think he can't do the same with a franchise that is becoming a price setter in the player market, located in a city with strong baseball roots that just so happens to be one of the biggest media markets in the world. He will at some point have to find some people that can spend money more efficiently though, because there's no such thing as an infinity-dollar bill. It will be a few years before real, substantive judgments can be made about his vision.
As for this series the Braves luck out, missing Clayton Kershaw again. Tonight's game marks the start of a seven-game west coast swing, with four in LA and three in San Diego. Of course, that also means some extremely late starts, frustrating for those of us with things to do in the morning. This road trip bears monitoring, as the Braves have played very well at home so far this season (21-7) but barely above .500 on the road (16-15). The Dodgers have not played well since the beginning of May, a 12-20 span that includes a Braves' sweep, so taking anything less than three of four in this series would have to be considered a disappointment.
Series matchups:
Thursday, 10:10 (local broadcast)
Tim Hudson v. Zack Greinke
Friday, 10:10 (local broadcast)
Paul Maholm v. Hyun-Jin Ryu
Saturday, 10:10 (local broadcast)
Kris Medlen v. Stephen Fife
Sunday, 4:10 (local broadcast)
Mike Minor v. Ted Lilly
(All relevant info courtesy of ESPN, MLB.com, and FanGraphs)
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