Blog Kiosk: 4/14/2015 - Dodger Links - Tommy Lasorda, Adrian Gonzalez and Hyun-Jin Ryu

This past Saturday Tommy Lasorda visited CSUN to sign some books, meet with fans and provide an inspiring speech to the youthful ballplayers in that college program.  As evidenced in the photo above, he gave a rousing pep talk to the attentive students athletes prior to that afternoons game.  Photo above via CSUN Athletics.

During the pregame ceremony CSUN Head Baseball Coach Greg Moore, Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Dr. Brandon Martin, President Dr. Dianne Harrison and Matty the Matador presented Lasorda with his very own Matador uniform.  Photo below via BHEPhotos.

Below are some links to check out:

• To the surprise of no one, Adrian Gonzalez was named the National League Player of the Week for the week ending April 12th. Congrats!  Per a press release:

The veteran slugger, who led baseball with 116 RBI in 2014, opened the 2015 campaign on a torrid pace, leading the Majors with five home runs, 14 hits, 32 total bases and a .609 batting average (14-for-23) in six games last week.  Gonzalez also posted the top slugging (1.391) and on-base percentages (.667) in the Majors and led the NL with eight runs scored, while tying for fourth among National Leaguers with seven RBI.  

• What a bunch of petty little babies.  Via Andrew Joseph at AZ Central, "Dodgers fan is asked to wear Diamondbacks jersey."  They've got video to prove it.

We have heard stories in the past about the Diamondbacks asking opposing fans to wear D-Backs colors while sitting in the premium seats behind home plate or agree to change seats. The policy has come under scrutiny, and during Sunday's game against the Dodgers, it evidently happened again.

• Via Bill Plunkett at the OC Register, "Dodgers catcher Grandal defends questionable defensive reputation behind the plate."

“That’s the way it’s been ever since I was in high school,” the Dodgers catcher said. “I’ve been dealing with this for a long time. It hasn’t been just the past couple years.”

• What the heck!  Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, "Ryan Webb released by Dodgers, who bought draft pick for $2.7 million."  He then immediately signed a minor league deal with the Indians, via Jeff Todd at MLB Trade Rumors.
• Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, "Dodgers proceeding with caution with Hyun-jin Ryu rehab."

"The first week was really trying to be careful with him, and just amp up from there," manager Don Mattingly said on Monday. "We're trying to be cautious, make sure he give himself the us best chance to be healthy when he gets back. The MRIs and reports have not shown anything different than when we first signed him. We're fairly comfortable that it's inflammation and we have to get that out of there. The first time when he took two or three days off before throwing, that wasn't enough."

• Here is something fun.  Via Michael Baumann at Grantland, "The Man From Mildon: Remembering the Year the Dodgers’ Adrian Gonzalez Broke Baseball."  It's an excerpt from a future edition of Ken Burns' Baseball that will be released in 2021.

NARRATOR: Gonzalez continued to hit: 22 home runs in June, 18 more in July. He ended the season with a .662 batting average, 114 home runs, 450 hits, 319 runs scored, and 388 runs batted in, all major league records. The Dodgers won the division by 21 games.

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Blog Kiosk: 4/13/2015 - Dodger Links - Newcombe, Gagne, Lopes and Guerrero

One game hardly makes a trend, but suffice it to say that Alex Guerrero did a lot at the plate and on the field to bolster his chances at being part of the conversation.  Not too long ago he was thought to be a bad signing, but if he continues to impress that opinion will quickly fade.

Due to a couple of injuries Guerrero had an opportunity to start for the Dodgers on Sunday and made the most of it.  Guerrero went 3 for 5 with a two-run home run, a run scoring double and four RBI's total.  If not for his work with the bat the Dodgers surely would have been swept by the Diamondbacks.  Best yet, Guerrero made several good defensive plays at third base.  Although he is far from a wizard at the hot corner, he just might be able to get the job done there.

Overall, you gotta like that he took the opportunity and ran with it.  The photo above of Guerrero being interviewed by Alanna Rizzo was shared on the @Dodgers twitter.  BTW, Joc Pederson and Yasiel Puig both hit their first home runs on the season as well, so hopefully this is a sign that those bats are ready to come alive.

Below are some links to check out:

• Via Lyle Spencer at MLB.com, "On field and off, Newcombe's life has benefited many."

"He said, 'Don, you'll never know how easy you and Jackie and Roy and Doby made it for me to do my job by what you did on the baseball field,'" Newcombe said. "After everything he'd been through, here he was telling me how we'd helped him with the movement. I'll never forget that."

• Via Ron Cervenka at Think Blue LA, "An interview with 2003 Cy Young award winner Eric Gagné." 

EG: It’s hard to describe. I try to explain to my friends and my kids – my kids are older now and understand – and it’s hard to describe, crazy, emotional, everybody was so into it. The energy in there gets your adrenaline pumping and I think everybody fed off of each other. It was just amazing. I wasn’t there for Fernandomania and all that stuff but I heard it was just amazing. And I’d seen Hell’s Bells for Trevor Hoffman, it was really really cool, so I think I was really really lucky to be part of that.

• Via Ken Gurnick at MLB.com, "Cuban-born players support Dodgers' cause."
• Via Lyle Spencer at MLB.com, "Lopes appreciative of those who came before him."

"I met all the great players, but I never had the opportunity to meet Jackie," Lopes said. "I didn't get to tell him what he meant to me personally -- and to so many other people.

• Jon Weisman at Dodger Insider sets things straight, "Defensive shifts are old news."  I too can't believe there is any controversy in this.  Folks seem desperate to find something to complain about.

Shifts in baseball in 2015, such as the Dodgers have been using, might be more common, more extreme, more committed, more intense on the risk-reward proposition, but they’re an outgrowth of the way baseball has been played as long as I’ve known it — and longer than that I’m sure.

• I guess recently traded for reliever Ryan Webb isn't coming to Los Angeles.  Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, "Ryan Webb accepts outright assignment to Triple-A Oklahoma City."

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Welcome to the Blue, Ryan Webb and Brian Ward!

The Dodgers front office never seems to take a day off.  Today is the first break between games of the season, so the head honchos decide to take the time off to complete a trade.  This afternoon they announced a deal that has the Dodgers sending a couple of minor leaguers to the Orioles for a Major League relief pitcher, a minor league catcher and a Rule 4 Draft Pick. 

Per a Dodger press release:

The Los Angeles Dodgers today announced the acquisition of a Rule 4 competitive balance round B draft pick (No. 74), right-handed pitcher Ryan Webb and minor league catcher Brian Ward from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for minor league catcher Chris O’Brien and minor league pitcher Ben Rowen. Dodger President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman made the announcement.

Webb was 3-3 with a 3.83 ERA in 51 relief appearances for Baltimore last season and has appeared in 317 career games (all in relief) for the Padres (2009-10), Marlins (2011-13) and Orioles (2014). The 29-year-old Florida native was originally selected by the Oakland A’s in the fourth round of the 2004 player draft. He will be added to the Dodgers’ 40-man roster.

Ward, a Santa Monica native, appeared in 65 games (60 behind the plate) for Triple-A Norfolk last season, hitting .227 with two homers and 20 RBI.

As for the draft pick we got, the Dodgers are stocked and ready to do some major damage later this year.

With the acquisition of the Orioles’ Rule 4 competitive balance pick, the Dodgers now hold four of the first 74 picks (No. 24, No. 35, No. 67 and No. 74) in the upcoming June player draft.

Webb has one year remaining in his two year contract, and it will pay him $2.75Mil.  He is a right handed sinkerball pitcher who gets a lot of groundballs, so he'll fit right in with our revamped middle infield.  Webb will be placed on the 40-man roster (there was space already available for him), and we should expect a corresponding move on the active roster for him to join the Dodgers in Arizona.  Either a reliever (likely with options like Baez or Yimi Garcia) or a bench player (like Darwin Barney) will be sent to AAA.

BTW, Eric Stephen at True Blue LA notes that he is third on the all time list of relievers with the most career relief appearances without a save.

Brian Ward was born in Santa Monica and went to Marina High School in Huntington Beach.  He is thought of as a defensive specialist who has yet to show anything with the bat.  BTW, in 2012 he incurred a 50 game suspension for violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program a second time.  It was not for using a PED.

In celebration of Webb and Ward's arrival to the club I made the above fantasy cards for them.  For Webb I grabbed a photo taken during photo day last year by Kevin C. Cox/Getty (found at Zimbio) and the 1972 Topps Baseball card design.  For Ward I grabbed a 2012 photo day photo taken by Tony Firriolo/MLB Photos and the 1972 Topps Baseball card design.

Below is Webb's career statistics, via Baseball-Reference:


Below is Ward's career statistics, via Baseball-Reference:

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