Blog Kiosk: 6/8/2015 - Dodger Links - Some Odds and Ends

Once again Zach Greinke was dominant on the mound for the Dodgers.  He went 6.2 innings and allowed just one earned run.  Still, the Dodger lost due to a blowup in the later innings.

Much of the blame for can be laid at the feet of the bullpen.  Via Steve Bourbon at MLB.com:

"We haven't been nearly as consistent as we were early," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said of his bullpen. "We've had some games that we've let get away from us, and we've got find a way to get the ball to [Kenley Jansen]."

Zack added further:

"It makes sense what [the Dodgers] did. Liberatore has been amazing getting lefties out all year," Greinke said. "The matchups made a lot of sense."

Maybe the Dodgers recent troubles out of the 'pen are just the natural doldrums that occur during a long season.  After all, they've been lights out for much of the year, so you have to expect that lulls and valleys will occur from time to time.  Even know this, though, does little to assuage the stress these lapses can have on the fanbase.  Hopefully, the team and the peanut gallery in the stands can weather the storm.

The photo above is via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2015.  Go here to check out more pics of yesterday;s game from Jon.  Below are some links to check out:

• BTW, today is the Baseball Draft, and the Dodgers have four picks to make this evening.
• ICYMI:  Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, "Dodgers send David Huff outright to Triple-A, lose Sergio Santos to free agency."
• Via Matt Goldman at Beyond the Boxscore, "Andre Ethier is good again."

This season, Ethier's power is back, he's driving in runs again (although his defense is still awful), and it no longer seems that he's destined for an early end to his career. He's on pace for his highest ISO in five years, his best wOBA in seven years, and his best wRC+ and fWAR ever.

• GCRL shares some more Steve Garvey cards in his collection, here.  It includes a whole bunch of different inserts.
• Via David Hood at True Blue LA, "Jose De Leon, Cody Bellinger Standout in May Prospect Review."
• Ha!  I remember this.  Via jbox at Gaslamp Ball, "Two Padres who attacked Giants' anti-mascot in 1984 revealed."

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Diamondbacks Series Starts Tomorrow - Scheduled Autograph Sessions,Pregame Info and Other Stuff!

The next homestand starts tomorrow against the Arizona Diamondbacks, and several former Dodgers' are scheduled for an autograph session with fans.  Below are the scheduled autograph opportunities and other odds and ends for this upcoming homestand.

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Monday, June 8th at 7:10 PM

SNLA / AM 570 (Eng.), KTNQ 1020 AM (Span.)

Monday's game starts at 7:10 PM.  Auto gates open at 4:30 PM, and stadium gates open at 5:00 PM.

It is also Firefighter Appreciation Night at Dodger Stadium.  Folks who ordered a special ticket package in the All You Can Eat Right Field Pavilion or Infield Reserve will get an exclusive Firefighter Appreciation Night T-Shirt with your ticket.  See that on the left.  If not already sold out go here for information.

For Firefighter Appreciation Night, Levy Restaurants will offer the Firehouse Dog. The Firehouse Dog is a quarter pound all-beef hot dog smothered in spicy nacho cheese sauce and topped with jalapeño wheels and flaming hot Cheetos (Mmmmm!). It will be sold Monday only at Extreme Loaded Dog locations located on the field, loge and reserve levels.

(pic via @Lord_of_Buffet on twitter)

Bryce Ryness, lead in the national tour of the Tony award-winning musical “Matilda,” will perform the national anthem and three-time WNBA MVP and a four-time Olympic gold medal winner Lisa Leslie will throw the ceremonial first pitch.

Dodger alumnus Kenny Landreaux will sign autographs in the left-field pavilion from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.  Smokey the Bear will be on hand for photo opportunities with fans in both the left and right-field plazas.

• The Military Hero of the Game is US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Walter Jimenez of Long Beach. Jimenez first served as a nuclear missile operations officer in Montana followed by assignments as a missile test officer, launch director, missile attack early warning operator, and he flew spy satellites and was also program manager for a major defense weapons program. His 23rd year in service has been spent in the space operations satellite rocket launches and nuclear missile operations field. Jimenez has served in four states, in 10 countries and on nine assignments and is currently stationed at Vandenberg Air Force base on California’s central coast.

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Tuesday, June 9th at 7:10 PM

SNLA / AM 570 (Eng.), KTNQ 1020 AM (Span.)

Tuesday's game starts at 7:10 PM.  Auto gates open at 4:40 PM, and stadium gates open at 5:10 PM.  The first 40,000 fans will receive an oc Pederson T-Shirt.  See it on the right.

R&B recording artist TQ will perform the national anthem.

Dodger alumnus Al Ferrara will sign autographs in the left-field pavilion from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

• The Military Hero of the Game is U.S. Army Sergeant Chad Garcia of Bakersfield. Garcia earned his Combat Infantry Badge while serving in Afghanistan and retired from service in last year.  

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Wednesday, June 10th at 7:10 PM

SNLA / AM 570 (Eng.), KTNQ 1020 AM (Span.)

Wednesday's game starts at 7:10 PM.  Auto gates open at 4:30 PM, and stadium gates open at 5:00 PM.

It is also Filipino Heritage Night at Dodger Stadium.  Folks who ordered a special ticket package in the All You Can Eat Right Field Pavilion or Infield Reserve will get an exclusive Filipino Heritage Night T-Shirt with your ticket.  See that on the left.  If not already sold out go here for information.

(pic via 714_Matias on instagram)

UPDATE: They offered a Filipino Dog at the Extreme Loaded Dogstands that includes spam, chicharron, pineapple and an onion suace with a Dodger dog.

The Filharmonic will perform pregame and sing the national anthem as part of Filipino Heritage Night.

Dodger alumnus Al Downing will sign autographs in the left-field pavilion from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

• The Military Hero of the Game is U.S. Navy Operation Specialist Second Class Anna Gallegos of Pomona. Gallegos joined the Navy after graduating high school and was stationed as an Operation Specialist on board the USS Howard. During the ship’s deployments, she assisted in counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia and provided humanitarian assistance to the Philippines after the 2008 typhoon. She served a deployment to Camp Lemmonier in Djbouti, Africa, for one year and also served a deployment to DaNang Province, Vietnam. Gallegos will depart on her third deployment this summer to the Arabian Gulf.

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The Skunks are Back at Dodger Stadium

Holy Moly!  They're back!

In 2013 a skunk, possibly a family of skunks, made their presence known at the Dodger Stadium.  I originally wrote a bit about that here.  They were initially found in the stands in early June of that year, and now, nearly two years later, they have made their glorious return. 

Per various tweets, a skunk has made his/her way to the Cardinals dugout, and is currently camping underneath the photog area.  Apparently, it is refusing to leave.   

#SkunkWatch #STLCards pic.twitter.com/uMMNjY6DAW

— Jim Hayes (@TheCatOnFox) June 5, 2015

As you might recall, the day that skunk first showed up at Dodger Stadium was on the same day Yasiel Puig made his debut as a Dodger.  Seemingly, out of the Blue, the Dodgers immediately went on an fantastic tear with Puig as their new offensive leader.

Now, the skunk has returned and standing in left field this evening will be rookie Scott Schebler to make his Major League debut as a Dodger.  

Do you think this is a coincidence?

I think not!

The mighty Dodger Skunk has come back to send his well wishes to the newest Dodger prospect, and if the past is any indicator of future events then we should be on the cusp of witnessing the emergence of our next great star. 

Good luck, Scott Schebler! 

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Welcome to the Blue, Scott Schebler!

The Dodgers have just called up another young bat from the minors to join the Dodgers in Los Angeles.  His name is Scott Schebler, and the righty thrower/lefty hitter will be inserted into the starting lineup - batting seventh.  This will be his Major League debut, and he will wear #55.  Per a Dodger press release:

The Los Angeles Dodgers today recalled outfielder Scott Schebler (#55) from Triple-A Oklahoma City and optioned left-handed reliever Daniel Coulombe to Triple-A.

Schebler, 24, will make his Major League debut tonight, batting seventh in left field, and has a .274 career batting average with 80 home runs and 305 RBI in 521 games in six minor league seasons. With Triple-A Oklahoma City this year, he's appeared at all three outfield positions and is batting .216 with six homers and 15 RBI in 49 games. Schebler, who was honored as the Dodgers' 2013 Branch Rickey Minor League Player of the Year, was selected by Los Angeles in the 26^th round of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft out of Des Moines Area (Iowa) Community College.

With the Dodgers a bit shorthanded in the outfield, Schebler will get an opportunity to show what he can do.  I do not expect him to be with us for very long, considering that Puig is expected to arrive soon.  Nevertheless, this "cup of coffee" provides a great chance to watch one of the clubs top-10 prospects up-close.  Here are some links to check out about him:

• Via Jeff Johnson at The Gazette, "C.R.'s Schebler gets call to the major leagues."  His hometown newspaper in Cedar Rapids, IA.

“I do know he is more prepared than I am for this,” Deb Schebler said. “Even though I always believed it would happen, I’m still not prepared.”

• Via Jon Weisman at Dodger Insider, "Scott Schebler called up for MLB debut."  Jon includes a feature written about Schebler that was originally printed in the current issue of Dodger Insider Magazine.
• Via David Hood at True Blue LA, "Dodgers top prospects 2015: Scott Schebler, No. 6."

What makes Schebler a top prospect in the Dodgers system is his bat. Schebler has 60 or better grades on both his hit and power tool and has the potential to be a .285 hitter with 20+ home runs at the major league level. Schebler’s swing is geared to hit the ball with authority. He uses a long stride and significant weight transfer to incorporate his lower half into his swing. His swing plane is designed to produce loft on the ball and he has the power to carry mishits out of the park as well.

And here's a video scouting report on Schebler from Bernie Pleskoff of MLBPipeline.com (8/8/2014).

Video Link:

In celebration of Schebler's arrival to the Dodgers I made the above fantasy card for him.  I used a Getty Images photo/Jason Wise and the 1959 Topps Baseball card design.

Below are his career stats, via Baseball-Reference:

Last time I saw Scott Schebler at Dodger Stadium was during the 2014 Winter Development Program. pic.twitter.com/Mt9c31ErxX

— Stacie Wheeler (@organicallyrude) June 5, 2015

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2015 Topps Pro Debut - All the Dodger Insert Cards

Here is a glimpse at all of the Dodger prospect insert cards found within packs of 2015 Topps Pro Debut.  Unfortunately, there are no autograph cards available... But there is a cool looking mascot patch card of Oggie the Raptor.  So, there's that.  Go here to see my past post on this set.

Distinguished Debuts

#DD-16 Grant Holmes                      #DD-24 Alex Verdugo

Blog Kiosk: 6/5/2015 - Dodger Links - Puig, Jansen and Julio Urias

The toast of the town, Joc Pederson, is captured in the photo above signing autographs for adoring fans prior to the start of yesterdays game.  Pic above via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2015.  Go here to check out more photos taken by Jon from Thursday's game.

Below are some more links to check out:

• My fantasy team could really use a healthy Puig right now.  Via George Alfano at MLB.com, "Puig gets two hits, hopes to return this weekend."

"I thought he looked great, and the hamstring looks good," Rancho Cucamonga manager Bill Haselman said. "He ran great. With a pulled muscle, the body eventually heals itself."

"I'm not 100 percent now, but it felt comfortable," said Puig, who is in his third season with the Dodgers and has a career batting average of .304. "I did my job, did my rehab in Arizona and I'll come back here [to Lancaster] tomorrow night."

• Via Eric Stephen at True Blue LA, "Grant Holmes, J.D. Underwood, Michael Ahmed named Midwest League All-Stars."
• Via Steve Adams at MLB Trade Rumors, "David Aardsma Opts Out Of Dodgers Contract."  This is too bad, he could've been a nice piece out of the pen.

The 33-year-old Aardsma has pitched quite well for L.A.’s Triple-A affiliate in Oklahoma City, working to an excellent 2.41 ERA with 11.1 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and 15 saves in 18 2/3 innings. Aardsma recently explained to The Oklahoman’s Jacob Unruh that his offseason work in a strengthening program called Top Velocity helped him add a couple of ticks back to his fastball, which is now regularly sitting in the 91-93 mph range.

• Here's great news.  Via Jon Weisman at Dodger Insider, "Kenley Jansen cleared to pitch tonight (Thursday)." Via Ken Gurnick at MLB.com, "Altitude triggers high blood pressure in Jansen."
• Here's some not so great news, via Eric Stephen on twitter:

Zach Lee is in Los Angeles getting examined. Experiencing tingling in fingers of throwing hand

— Eric Stephen (@truebluela) June 4, 2015

• Now... Back to some awesome news!  Top prospect Julio Urias appears to be recovering well from his recent surgery to his eye, per a tweet by him from yesterday.  He tells us that he'll be back on the field in one weeks time:

1 semana mas y estamos de regreso⚾️.. #Thanksgod! pic.twitter.com/oYUhhGx286

— Julio Urias (@theteenager7) June 4, 2015

• I would like to extend a hearty congratulations to LA Kings broadcaster Nick Nickson for being selected as the Hockey Hall of Fame 2015 Foster Hewitt Memorial Award winner.  This award celebrates "members of the radio and television industry who made outstanding contributions to their profession and the game during their career in hockey broadcasting."  This is the highest honor a hockey broadcaster can receive - like winning the Ford Frick Award for Baseball broadcasters.  Jon Rosen at LA Kings Insider shares a recent interview with him here.

“I don’t know if it’s going to sink in anytime soon,” Nickson said on Thursday. “I just talked to Pat Foley – he called like 10 minutes ago, literally – who won it last year in Chicago. He was telling me it’s been a year since he won it and he still kind of walks around and goes ‘Did this really happen?’ I guess it’s nice to know that your work is appreciated and the work that you do put in gets rewarded in some way.”

(Nick and I)

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