Joc Pederson has just been outstanding. He's slashing .296/.458/.556 with three home runs and five doubles at the plate. That's not shabby for a young kid. Best yet, he has shown that he can more than handle the center field position.
Case in point, last night he turned a potential run scoring double off the outfield wall into a spectacular over-the-head running catch and double play. (Watch it here) Via Earl Bloom and Chris Haft at MLB.com:
"He hit it well," Pederson said. "Earlier in the day, we worked on angles, with [coach] Lorenzo Bundy. I kept my eye on the ball, and it worked out pretty well."Something tells me that his numbers in Albuquerque were not some altitude-aided fluke. That's not to say he'll be that same home run slugger, but he will certainly impress. Via Jon Weisman at Dodger Insider:
“We just think Joc’s gonna keep improving,” manager Don Mattingly said. “He’s got a really good eye, and he’s going to strike out less as time goes on as he sees pitchers and knows how they’re attacking him and how to set himself up. I think he’s gonna get better.”The photo above of Joc was taken by Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2015. Go here to check out more pics by him from yesterday. Below are some links to check out:
- Via WM Akers at Vice Sports, "The Forgotten Men Who Broke Baseball's Color Line With Jackie Robinson." Here's a fantastic bio on former Dodger prospect, Negro League ace pitcher and Robinson roommate John "Needle Nose" Wright.
- Thanks for the memories, Xavier! Via Steve Adams at MLB Trade Rumors, "Rays Acquire Xavier Cedeno From Dodgers."
- Via Jon Weisman at Dodger Insider, "Brandon McCarthy speaks about torn UCL."
“For the next couple of hours, I’ll keep talking it through and I’ll talk to the doc when he gets here,” McCarthy said this afternoon, “but it certainly (points) in one direction, and I don’t want to be one of those guys who plays out the string for a few months, only to waste everybody’s time.”
- Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, "Carl Crawford leaves game in 3rd with tightness in right side."
"He has some tightness in his right side. We'll just have to see overnight," Mattingly said. "Tightness in the right side usually sounds like [an oblique], but I don't want to be the doctor.
- Via Craig Edwards at Fan Graphs, "Mike Bolsinger to the Rescue."
Bolsinger is not going to provide the production the Dodgers thought they were going to get from Brandon McCarthy, but he could provide above replacement level pitching until reinforcements arrive or perhaps even hold down the fifth spot all season.
- Kudos to Orioles COO John P. Angelos for stepping up. Via Cindy Boren at the Washington Post, "Son of Orioles owner Peter Angelos tweets perspective on Freddie Gray protests." Unfortunately, this all got lost in the ensuing disturbances around Baltimore.
“The innocent working families of all backgrounds whose lives and dreams have been cut short by excessive violence, surveillance, and other abuses of the Bill of Rights by government pay the true price, and ultimate price, and one that far exceeds the importances of any kids’ game played tonight, or ever, at Camden Yards. We need to keep in mind people are suffering and dying around the U.S., and while we are thankful no one was injured at Camden Yards, there is a far bigger picture for poor Americans in Baltimore and everywhere who don’t have jobs and are losing economic civil and legal rights, and this makes inconvenience at a ballgame irrelevant in light of the needless suffering government is inflicting upon ordinary Americans.”
* Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes *
* Like Dodgers Blue Heaven on facebook *
* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *
No comments:
Post a Comment