“It’s in my head, darling I hope
That you’ll be here, when I need you the most
So don’t let me, don’t let me, don’t let me down
D-Don’t let me down”
~The Chainsmokers
Don’t Let Me Down
Tag: Dave Roberts
Five of the Worst Trades in Dodgers’ Recent History
(Photo Credit: Getty Images)
With the 2016 non-waiver trade deadline buzz almost at its peak, many fans across Dodgertown can’t help but recollect some of the more disappointing trades in the history of the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise.
Continue reading “Five of the Worst Trades in Dodgers’ Recent History”
Dodgers’ Sputtering Offense Wastes More Quality Pitching
When the majority of avid Dodgers fans saw Wednesday evening’s lineup for the rubber game against the Rockies, many couldn’t help but feel a bit of disappointment. Not only did manager Dave Roberts decide to award a player or two a much deserved day off, he did it with a bang — permitting Chase Utley, Corey Seager, Joc Pederson and Yasmani Grandal to ride the pine with a travel day already scheduled for Thursday.
Continue reading “Dodgers’ Sputtering Offense Wastes More Quality Pitching”
Dodgers’ Roberts Creating New Type of Synergy in Camp
When Dave Roberts exited the room after his initial managerial interview in Los Angeles last November, members of the Dodgers‘ front office knew immediately they had their man.
“Everyone was blown away by who he is, what he represents. You can see his energy, you can see the enthusiasm, and his ability to connect with people,” Andrew Friedman said.
“There’s a positivity and energy to Dave that really is the overriding thing in any conversation you have with him,” Farhan Zaidi added. “You can feel it in any room that he’s in.”
Today, fully entrenched in the daily operations of spring training, Roberts is creating a new type of energy among the players — employing creative team building exercises with total player involvement and even going as far as utilizing cutting edge neurological technology.
Bill Plunkett of The OC Register was among the first to report the Dodgers’ application of “NeuroScouting,” which, according to outfielder Scott Van Slyke, “is the science of improving your performance in terms of reaction and recognition.”
“I think it’s certainly about being open-minded (as an organization). In this day and age, there’s a lot of research and time spent on various technologies. We vet it very thoroughly on the front end and introduce different things to our players with what we’ve learned and make it something that’s available to our guys if they want to try it,” Friedman said.
As far as the teamwork-type of activities, Plunkett cited several examples which involved numerous players having to to plot the hometown of all their coaches and teammates on a map, as well as one player, Cody Bellinger, needing to chronicle his attempts to reach 10,000 Twitter followers by the end of spring training.
Bellinger even went as far as preparing a fundraising chart which documented his progress. Many of Bellinger’s teammates and coaches reached out to their own audiences on Twitter to help the cause:
In addition, Roberts also held “Coffee with Doc” sessions where players had isolated meetings with Roberts and other members of the training staff, coaching staff and front office, giving all the new members of the organization an opportunity to become familiar with one another.
“I got a lot of it from Buddy Black (ex-Padres manager) and I think he learned it from (Angels manager Mike) Scioscia. There are certain things you take from everybody that you like and some that you don’t and that don’t make sense, but that is one of those things I really enjoyed,” Roberts said.
In light of all of Roberts’ efforts, the squad seems to be heading in a new direction in terms of chemistry — something that former manager Don Mattingly, with his laid-back and unruffled approach, was often criticized for not working harder to attain.
Regardless, while all the synergistic games and team building exercises may be great for boosting morale in camp, they don’t necessarily translate to wins on the baseball field.
Ultimately, the manager can only do so much, as it’s up to the players to perform and orchestrate the victories on the diamond.
However, if the squad embraces even a small portion of the energy, knowledge and experience that Roberts is exuding, 2016 could turn out to be a very special season.
(Photo Credit: Ed Crisostomo/OC Register)
Dodgers, Roberts Plan on Rotating Leadoff Batters in 2016
Whether it’s a mandate that trickled down from the front office, a decision that Manager Dave Roberts arrived upon himself, or a collaboration between the two, it was revealed on Tuesday that the Dodgers tentatively plan on rotating numerous players at the leadoff spot in the batting order when regular season play begins in April.
Doug Padilla of ESPN recently pointed out that everyone from Howie Kendrick to Carl Crawford to Joc Pederson to Corey Seager to Enrique Hernandez could have the leadoff job at some point, and that Roberts appears to be fully on board with the sabermetric philosophies of the front office.
“You know what, I think that as a former leadoff hitter, we have all been conditioned for routines and consistency, but I think that as this game has evolved, we’ve all had to see things in a different way,” Roberts said. “I’ve had many conversations with the players that there will be some change. I think that where you hit in the order in years past, in decades past, there is a lot to be said for that. But this day and age, with the data that we have, sometimes change is good.”
Padilla also indicated that Roberts will use advanced analytics to determine who hits where throughout the entire lineup — not just with the leadoff spot.
Kendrick seems to be the favorite to command most of the repetitions hitting first in the batting order. As early as the Dodgers’ first Cactus League matchup against the White Sox last week, Roberts believed Kendrick would be in the mix for the leadoff role. Per Eric Stephen of True Blue LA:
Back in January, TBPC discussed the logistics of the modern leadoff batter, and concluded that players who get on base more frequently and hit the ball harder are actually more beneficial to a team’s success than the traditional speed burner, adding that both Pederson and Yasiel Puig had the tools to productively slot into the Dodgers’ leadoff role.
Ken Gurnick of MLB.com specified that in 2014, the last year of the Ned Colletti regime, the Dodgers used six different leadoff hitters. Dee Gordon hit first in the lineup the most, leading off in 133 games total, while the team used 142 different lineups during the entirety of the season.
Last season, the first under president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers used 12 different leadoff hitters. The club used 137 different lineups altogether, tied for seventh-most in the bigs. Pederson led off the most times, starting 69 games batting first.
Many fans will argue that continuity and team chemistry could possibly be affected by the revolving batting orders and potential positional platoons, but Roberts seems to have a firm grasp on the strategies for the upcoming campaign.
“There is an argument to be made for (continuity), but regardless of where an individual hits in the lineup, it shouldn’t change how they are as a hitter,” Roberts said. “Adrian (Gonzalez), if he hits third or fourth, he is going to be Adrian. Whether Howie hits first or second, or he hits fifth, he should be the same hitter. I think Chase (Utley) will be the same way. If you look at the guys on our roster, that’s the way that should be.”
Roberts will have until the end of the month to experiment and analyze which lineup combinations will be best for the club to begin the season. New base coaches George Lombard and Chris Woodward also bring fresh perspectives in terms of enhancing baserunning skills and improving run production.
The Dodgers open the season against the Padres on April 4 in San Diego.
(Photo Credit: Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images)
Doctor My Eyes
I’ll admit I didn’t know too much about Dodgers‘ new manager Dave Roberts when he was hired. I had a vague recollection of his steal in the ’04 ALCS that helped propel the Red Sox past the Yankees and into the World Series, and also that he had previously played for the Dodgers (’02-’04).
The first thing that I notice about him is his smile. Such a girly thing to notice, right? But from my armchair psychologist view, it says a lot. Sure, we saw Don Mattingly smile a lot during his time with the Dodgers. But in retrospect it always seemed strained to some degree. Maybe that’s just Mattingly’s nature. Roberts’ smile is huge and genuine. Being genuine surely can only help being a first time manager of an iconic baseball team.
Much of Roberts’ playing career was marred by injury. But he was excellent at manufacturing runs, which is something this Dodgers team can only benefit from after ranking 19th in the Majors in runs scored last year. More offensive output can only bolster the confidence of a pitching staff many have questions about, after Clayton Kershaw.
Roberts started out the season by reaching out to Yasiel Puig, and saying that they were starting with a fresh slate. He met with each player one-on-one at the beginning of spring training. Brandon McCarthy had some great things to say, according to Eric Stephen via Twitter
Roberts even joined in the annual ping pong tournament, partnered with Joc Pederson
Maybe the most important aspect, though, is that he buys into and is aligned with the thinking of this front office. Roberts, along with new bench coach Bob Geren who previously was with the NL champion New York Mets, take into account the analytics and stats along with the old school thought. Mattingly never seemed to be comfortable with all of that.
Dave Roberts nickname is ‘Doc’, a play on his initials DR. Maybe he is just what the doctor ordered to finally get the Dodgers into the World Series.
Joc Pederson Redeveloping Swing Mechanics
There was no secret that Los Angeles Dodgers‘ center fielder Joc Pederson intended on making adjustments to his swing over the months leading up to spring training.
Pederson has always worked hard in the winter. After a full season with Double-A Chattanooga in 2013, he played 34 games for the Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League. In 2014, after breaking several Pacific Coast League records with the Albuquerque Isotopes, he extended his year by playing 22 games with Leones del Escogido in the Dominican Winter League.
Following the 2015 season, rather than travelling abroad, Pederson decided to stay on the West Coast and spend time with both old minor league hitting coach Johnny Washington and new Dodgers’ hitting coach Turner Ward.
Having succeeded immensely at almost every level at which he’s competed, and despite putting in extra work almost every winter, it’s been a long time since Pederson has found himself needing to make adjustments in his swing.
“I’ve been working hard this offseason to work on becoming a better hitter, hitting more line drives and using the whole field,” Pederson said. “I think I’m gifted that the power will be there. I’m just trying to hit balls on the barrel.”
As indicated early in spring training, Pederson’s swing is much more compact. Gone is the heavy thump of his front foot at the end of his leg kick. And the twisting of his right ankle once the foot lands isn’t as exaggerated as it was last season.
Perhaps it was Ward’s arrival that led to Pederson’s new and fresh approach to hitting. After all, there were subtle hints last season that Pederson had experienced differences of opinion with former hitting coach Mark McGwire.
Ward, who was a minor league teammate of Pederson’s father, Stu, likes what he sees in terms of Pederson’s progress. He continues to assist Pederson both in the cages and on the fields at Camelback Ranch.
“He’s going to be a pure hitter. He is a pure hitter. But he had to go through some stuff to kind of help him recognize some things he needed to work on,” Ward said of Pederson.
In the first half of 2015, Pederson had an .851 OPS, a 137 wRC+, and was chosen to represent the Dodgers in the All-Star Game. He hit his 20th home run on June 29, and was actually an early favorite for the National League Rookie of the Year award.
He struggled in the second half, though, posting a .617 OPS and 79 wRC+. He hit .177 and had a .319 OBP. By the time the playoffs rolled around, Enrique Hernandez was getting the majority of playing time in center field.
Now equipped with a new swing, Pederson hopes to revive the success he experienced early last season.
“Baseball’s a crazy game,” Pederson said. “But last year is old news, you know. I don’t even have any thought about last year. I learned from it. I gathered my information and I’m moving forward.”
Upon being hired Dodgers’ manager, Dave Roberts reached out to Pederson almost immediately to discuss swing mechanics, reinforcing pitch recognition and how to go about developing a better swing path to the baseball. Roberts also deliberated the psychological aspects of hitting with Pederson.
Roberts emphasized how he was always impressed with Pederson’s defensive ability in the field. In terms of offense, Roberts, like Ward, is pleased with the way Pederson looks early in camp.
“Joc has been consistent defensively and continued to get better defensively,” Roberts said. “On the offensive side, he and Turner (Ward) and Tim Hyers, they’ve got a great rapport, and continue to keep that stroke clean and be consistent. There’s a little bit more comfort as he comes into camp this year than last year.”
Dodgers fans everywhere hope that Pederson’s progression continues through spring training, and that his new swing leads to less strikeouts and more line drives off his bat. In the back of everyone’s minds is the fact that the Dodgers still desperately need an effective leadoff hitter.
Pederson may fit the bill if everything falls into place properly.
And, in the fullness of time, it doesn’t hurt having his manager, who was once a very solid leadoff hitter himself, guiding and supporting him one-hundred percent of the way.
(Photo Credit: whatproswear.com)
Think Blue Planning Committee 