Friday, March 04, 2016

Dodgers Notes from Spring Training: Spring Game 2/Away Game 1


Throughout Spring Training the Dodgers PR department sends out helpful daily notes from Camelback Ranch, and I am happy to pass them along.  See what they've written below.

------------------
 LOS ANGELES DODGERS (1-0) at Texas Rangers (2-0)
Friday, March 4, 2016 – 12:05 p.m. PST | Surprise Recreation Campus
LHP Scott Kazmir (0-0) vs. RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez (0-0)

TV: None Radio: AM 570 (Eng.)
------------------
(Roberts and Ventura, pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2016)

IN THE BOOKS: The Dodgers opened up their Cactus League season yesterday with a 6-1 win over the Chicago White Sox at Camelback Ranch – Glendale and take on the Texas Rangers today at Surprise, which is their first of 15 road Spring Training games in Arizona. Starting pitcher and 2016 Opening Day starter Clayton Kershaw took the win in his first start of Spring Training, striking out two and allowing just one hit in 2.0 scoreless innings. Third baseman Alex Guerrero went 2-for-3, slugging a home run to left field in his first at-bat, and shortstop Charlie Culberson went 2-for-2, with a triple and a run scored after entering the game in the sixth inning.

A GOOD START: Dave Roberts picked up the win in his managerial debut yesterday after being named the 10th manager in Los Angeles Dodgers history (28th in franchise history) on Nov. 23, 2015. Roberts, 43, served as the Padres’ bench coach from 2014-15 and was San Diego’s first base coach from 2011-13, after originally joining the organization as a special assistant in 2010. A veteran of 10 MLB seasons, Roberts was the starting center fielder for the Dodgers from 2002-04 and will become the fourth manager in Los Angeles history (15th overall in franchise history) to both play and manage the club.
  • Rick Honeycutt returns for an 11th season as Dodger pitching coach and is the lone returning member of the Los Angeles coaching staff beyond catching instructor Steve Yeager. The new-look staff is comprised of bench coach Bob Geren (2015: Mets’ bench coach), hitting coach Turner Ward (2015: D-backs’ hitting coach), first base coach George Lombard (2015: Red Sox’ minor league outfield/baserunning coordinator), third base coach Chris Woodward (2015: Mariners’ first base coach), bullpen coach Josh Bard (2015: Dodgers’ pro scout), assistant hitting coach Tim Hyers (2015: Red Sox’ minor league hitting coordinator) and quality assurance coach Juan Castro (2015: Dodgers’ minor league infield coordinator).
(Kazmir, Honeycutt and Grandal, pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2016)

ON THE MOUND: Left-hander Scott Kazmir, signed by the club to a three-year deal in the offseason, will make his first start of the spring and his Dodger debut today against the Rangers. Last season with Oakland and Houston, Kazmir combined to post a 7-11 record with a 3.10 ERA in 31 starts, ranking among the American League’s best in ERA (4th), opponents’ batting average (.237, 15th) and WHIP (1.21, 15th). He started the season with the Athletics, going 5-5 with a 2.38 ERA in 18 starts before being traded to the Astros on July 23.
  • In 272 games (271 starts), he has a 98-90 career record with a 3.96 ERA in 11 big league seasons, all in the American League with the Rays (2004-09), Indians (2013), Athletics (2014-15) and Astros (2015). The three-time All-Star (2006, ’08, ’14) has posted double-digit victories in seven of his 11 MLB seasons.
  • Last year, Kazmir went 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA in four Cactus League starts.
THE YOUNG GUNS: The Dodgers enter the 2016 season with Baseball America’s top-ranked farm system and with seven players ranked among the publication’s top 100 prospects: IF Corey Seager (#1), LHP Julio Urias (#4), RHP Jose De Leon (#23), RHP Kenta Maeda (#50), IF/OF Cody Bellinger (#54), RHP Grant Holmes (#72) and OF Alex Verdugo (#100).
(Gagne, Honeycutt and Cotton, pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2016)

NEXT UP: RHP Jharel Cotton, who will follow Kazmir to the mound today, enters his first big league camp after being added to the 40-man roster on Nov. 21, 2015. He posted a combined 6-2 record with 2.45 ERA in 21 games (11 starts) in 2015 for Triple-A Oklahoma City, Double-A Tulsa, Single-A Rancho Cucamonga and Single-A Great Lakes.
  • RHP Mike Bolsinger, 28, enters his third MLB season after spending the majority of the 2015 season with the Dodgers, going 6-6 with a 3.62 ERA in 21 starts.
  • RHP Jacob Rhame enters his fourth professional season and first big league camp after combining to go 3-3 with four saves and a 2.68 ERA in 44 relief appearances last season with Single-A Ranch Cucamonga and Double-A Tulsa.
  • RHP Pedro Baez saw his first full big league action last season with the Dodgers, going 4-2 with a 3.35 ERA in 52 relief appearances.
  • RHP Louis Coleman, 29, enters his sixth big league season and his first with the Dodgers after signing with the club on Feb. 19, 2016. He made four scoreless appearances (3.0 IP) for the Royals last season after being called up on Sept. 7. 
  • The Dodgers have three additional players suiting up today from the minor league side: RHP Logan Bawcom (#88) RHP Jeremy Kehrt (#89) and INF Brandon Trinkwon (#69).
GOING, GOING…: Last year, the Dodgers established team records in total (147,066) and average (9,804) Spring Training attendance, while Camelback Ranch saw a record number of fans with a combined attendance of 232,305 between the Dodgers and the White Sox. So far this season, advance ticket sales have been brisk with Camelback Ranch enjoying its best advance ticket sale in its eight-year history. Three Dodger games already have sold out - Friday, March 11 (Los Angeles Angels-Dodgers), Saturday night, March 12 (Chicago Cubs-Dodgers) and Friday night, March 25 (San Francisco Giants-Dodgers).
Fumi Ishibashi (L), Yosuke Nakajima & Kazuhisa Ishii, pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2016)

FLASHBACK FRIDAY: The Dodgers went 92-70 in 2015, with the club claiming its third consecutive and 14th overall National League West title. It marked the first time in franchise history that the team reached the postseason in three consecutive seasons.
  • The Dodgers topped the National League in homers for the first time since 1983, blasting 187, their most since 2004 (203 HR). Los Angeles also ranked among the NL’s best in walks (563, 2nd), on-base percentage (.326, 2nd) and slugging pct. (.413, 3rd).
  • Los Angeles led the Majors with a .988 fielding percentage, while committing the fewest errors (75) of any big league team.
  • Los Angeles pitchers combined to post a 3.44 ERA, the fifth-best mark in the Majors, and tied for the big league lead with the Cubs with 21 shutouts. The Dodgers also ranked among the Major League leaders in strikeouts (1,396, 3rd), WHIP (1.18, 3rd), and opponents’ batting average (.242, 5th).

* Please follow on twitter @ernestreyes *
* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...