Dodgers primed for run?
The bold move for Manny Machado is just part of a story of a team that found itself after a disastrous start.
Trim at 59, Orel Hershiser looks like he could whip a fastball past the knees if he had to.
And on a recent day at the ballpark, the Dodgers again put a smile on Hershiser’s still-youthful face.
“The Bulldog” said he sees resilience in this Dodgers team and the front office and farm system, too.
Sure, the road ahead could be a dead end. But on a recent afternoon at the ballpark, some 20 years after he pitched them to their last World Series title in 1998, Hershiser lauded the team for positioning itself to make a push that now includes Manny Machado, the American League All-Star shortstop the Dodgers traded for during the All-Star break in July.
It took a strong rally to encourage the front office to pursue Machado, who has averaged 30 home runs and owns two Gold Gloves as a third baseman when he was with the Orioles.
“It was really weird to think that this could be a surprise team after going to Game 7 in the World Series, after keeping pretty much the same roster,” Hershiser told USA TODAY before a recent game, “but in some ways, the way this is panning out, it could be a surprise team.”
Not long ago, the Dodgers scarcely resembled the 2017 squad that had won 104 games. Banged up and disjointed, they had fallen to 16-26 on May 17, leaving their manager, Dave Roberts, to quote Winston Churchill.
“When you’re going through hell,” Roberts said, “keep going.”
Was it a World Series hangover that ailed the Dodgers?
“I would say injuries led to a slow start; I don’t think the World Series had much to do with it,” said slugger Cody Bellinger, whose home run rate is way down from last year.
The Dodgers are built to overcome injuries, but these breakdowns put them to quite the test.
A cracked wrist had shelved Justin Turner, the No. 3 hitter, for two months. (A more recent groin injury has him currently out, with Machada playing third in his absence.)
A blown-out elbow in late April would end the season of shortstop Corey Seager, who was perhaps the team’s best player.
As for the pitching rotation, injuries punched four holes.
Kudos are due the likes of position players Max Muncy and Matt Kemp and pitcher Ross Stripling.
All three authored first halves of season that were among the sport’s most surprising.
Maybe we shouldn’t be shocked, though, when a Dodger seemingly comes out of nowhere to make a prolonged splash.
The breakout in Dodgers blue by lefty hitter Muncy, whom the Athletics had released in early 2017, reprised the breakout last year of Chris Taylor after he was acquired in a low-cost trade with the Mariners.
While the Dodgers got lucky with Kemp, the team’s former star who was acquired in a salary dump, the slugger’s improved fitness could be related to the buy-low timing of the deal.
Enrique Hernandez and Austin Barnes, relatively obscure players when the Dodgers traded for them, emerged in 2017 to make important contributions both during the season and in October.
The Dodgers say their hyper-emphasis on creating depth is fundamental to their success. “Surprises come out of the depth,” executive Josh Byrnes told USA TODAY.
Hershiser, an analyst on Dodgers TV broadcasts, suggested that the front office, which up top was largely assembled in the fall of 2014 with the hiring of President Andrew Friedman and general manager Farhan Zaidi, was at the forefront of an industry trend.
“The theme of this team and our front office, which wasn’t very sexy when they took over, was we’re going to be here year in and year out, and we’re going to have a very deep roster,” Hershiser said. “So now, you’re where the depth has continued to pay off and it has been actually part of what’s changing baseball culture. You see teams generally talk about depth and talk about rest and talk about we need a thicker bullpen.”
Will Machado pay off?
Of late, two summer trades can be correlated to winning the World Series. And, the Dodgers didn’t make those trades.
Byrnes ticked off two moves that put a team over the top. “Aroldis Chapman in 2016, ” he said, “and Justin Verlander last year.”
Chapman dominated with a 1.01 ERA in 28 outings after the Cubs dealt the Yankees four prospects to get him in late July. He cooled somewhat in October but nevertheless was a force in Chicago ending its World Series drought.
Verlander went to the Astros in a trade for three prospects Aug. 31 and played a big role in Houston winning its first world title. In fact, Houston’s trade for Verlander trumped Los Angeles’ summer trade for pitcher Yu Darvish.
Darvish had two poor outings in the World Series, which Houston won in seven games.
The Machado move — and the expected and perhaps noless important trade for bullpen help — was Los Angeles’ front office taking a bigger swing. Machado, a potential free agent, could end up being a multimonth rental who cost the Dodgers five prospects.
“We know it’s been since 1988,” Byrnes said.
“It’s a means to an end,” Zaidi, saying this was no time for a victory lap, told MLB.com. “We’re trying to win a World Series every year, but this year in particular. We think it’s a big steppingstone to this point.”
Forgive Dodgers fans for not laying away champagne in response to Machado’s arrival.
In fairness, because of the schedule, fans didn’t see much of Machado at Dodger Stadium before August rolled around.
An iffy Dodgers bullpen was on their minds, too. Entering the week, it ranked 11th out of 30 major league teams in ERA.
And if the Dodgers do get back to the playoffs, well, the most recent 11 times that has happened, someone else won
the World Series.
“Everyone in Los Angeles, every Dodgers fan is so hyperfocused on the ‘World Series or bust’ thing that it’s almost like nothing the Dodgers do matters until they win the World Series,” said Jon Weisman, creator of the 16-year-old blog Dodgers Thoughts.
Also, Weisman suggested that the Darvish trade “scarred” fans who otherwise might have been over the moon about Machado’s arrival.
Look to the shrewd Astros for more fodder why, for contenders and fans, the summer trade season isn’t for the faint of heart. Trading with Houston for reliever Josh Fields two summers ago, the Dodgers addressed their bullpen. Fields, though, has returned mix results. In the meantime, Cuban first-baseman-outfielder Yordan Alvarez, 21, has become Baseball America’s 37th prospect since going to Houston in the trade.
Hershisher, for his part, isn’t ruling out more pleasant surprises for the Dodgers this year. He suggests outfielder Alex Verdugo, 22, as one to watch.
And both Hershiser and Roberts said if the Dodgers return to the postseason, several younger players would benefit from last fall’s experiences.
Bellinger doesn’t disagree. “We had a pretty young team,” said the first baseman, who turned 23 last month. “To get that postseason experience pretty early in your career, it’s good, because now we know what to expect. I don’t know if it helps us now, but if we were to go back there, then it would help us.”
The Dodgers would like to find out, having not reached consecutive World Series since the 1977 and 1978 seasons.