Heading into today’s game against the Padres in the battle for basement in the N.L. West, it’s time to look at the Dodgers’ first-half progress.
Win or lose, they’ll be below .500 in double-digit fashion, either ten games below, or twelve. Los Angeles will head into the break either with a season-best four game win streak, or in last place by itself.
Rookie manager Don Mattingly has remained upbeat through it all, but even he is a realist.
“We’re on the outskirts of the mix,” he said. “That only changes if we put up some more wins. There’s a lot of baseball left. We’re not cashing in any chips”
Pitching -- C+
The starting rotation, expected to be a strength of the team, has been weaker than hoped.
At the top of the rotation, Clayton Kershaw leads the majors in strikeouts and was named to the All Star team.
Chad Billingsley has been solid, posting an 8-7 record. Heading into the break, he’s been especially effective, allowing only four runs in his last four starts.
Hard-luck Hiroki Kuroda has a 3.06 ERA that doesn’t seem to match up with a 6-10 record. He has allowed more than three earned runs in only five of his 18 starts.
After that, the rotation has been a disappointment.
Ted Lilly has won only five of his 18 games and is averaging 5 2/3 innings per start. His 4.94 ERA is further evidence that the Dodgers might have overpaid when they signed him to a 3-year $33 million deal.
Jon Garland, slated for the fifth spot in the rotation started nine games, winning only once before having season-ending shoulder surgery.
Garland’s absence paved the way for the debut of Minor League Pitcher of the Year Rubby De La Rosa. The 22-year-old Dominican looks like he’s ready.
Keep an eye on how much he pitches as the season moves on. De La Rosa logged a career-high 110 1/3 innings last year.
“Obviously one of the things you’ve got to worry about is the number of innings,” Mattingly said. “We’re aware of it.”
The bullpen has been ravaged by injuries.
Offense – D
The Dodgers have scored 336 runs through the first 91 games. In the National League, only the pitching-rich, division-leading Giants, and the woeful Padres have scored fewer runs.
Los Angeles isn’t hitting for power either, as evidenced by their .365 slugging percentage which ranks 13th in the 16-team league. The club enters today with a 10-game homerless streak. The last time the team had such a streak was in July, 1992.
Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier have provided most of the punch.
Voted by the fans as a starting outfielder for the All Star game, Kemp is tied for second in the league with 22 homers, is third with 66 RBI, and sixth with a .317 average. He also has 26 stolen bases.
In the opening month of the season, Ethier had a 30-game hit streak, the longest in the majors this year. Though he’s cooled recently, going 1-for-17 in the home stand entering today’s game, his .311 average still ties him for eighth in the league.
“It’s been rough enough…if you take one of those two guys out…,” Mattingly said, his voice trailing off, perhaps not wanting to finish the thought.
James Loney has rebounded from a slow start. His batting average is up to .271, but he’s driven in only 31 runs. Juan Uribe has been disappointing.
Injuries have played a part in the demise of the Dodger offense, crippling the left side of the infield.
Shortstop Rafael Furcal came off of the disabled list a week ago and has yet to find his stroke, going 3-for-24 since his return. Third baseman Casey Blake, currently on the 15-day DL, has been limited to 140 at bats through the first 91 games.
If Blake returns and Furcal regains form, the offense could be much improved.
Off-season moves -- D
General manager Ned Colletti ‘s principal off-season moves were signing Juan Uribe, Jon Garland, Marcus Thames, and Tony Gwynn Jr. Colletti also retained last season’s Opening Day starter, Vicente Padilla, and inked Chad Billingsley to a three-year deal.
The team expected power and run production from Uribe after signing him to a three-year $21 million contract. So far, he hasn’t delivered, batting just .208, with four homers. Uribe has recorded twice as many strikeouts as extra-base hits.
Garland, signed to a one-year $5 million dollar deal, pitched in nine games and won only one before season- ending shoulder surgery.
Meanwhile, Padilla, expected to set up, spot start, and maybe even close, underwent surgery for a bulging disk in his neck and isn’t expected back either. Padilla made nine appearances, netting three saves. That’s not what Colletti was hoping for when he signed him to a $2 million contract.
Thames is below the Mendoza line at .197.
Gwynn Jr. has been a bright spot, settling in at the lead-off spot. Since June 1, he’s 27-for-86, good for a .314 average.
The biggest winner in the off season was last season’s waiver wire acquisition, Rod Barajas. After hitting .225 last season, the Mets released him in August. The move was motivated purely on performance as Barajas’ was making only $500,000.
Barajas’ hometown Dodgers claimed him in late-August. Barajas responded by hitting .297 – 58 points higher than his lifetime average - with five homers and 13 runs batted in over the final 25 games of the season.
In a head-scratcher, the Dodgers rewarded the 35-year-old catcher with the biggest contract of his career, a $3.5 million one-year deal.
All told, the off-season moves haven’t panned out. This isn’t completely Colletti’s fault, but as the team’s general manager, the team’s performance is his responsibility.
Ownership -- Fail
No matter what Mattingly and the players say, the uncertainty of the ownership situation has to be a distraction. Players have to dance around daily questions from the media, and consider the consequences of a battle between Frank McCourt and Major League Baseball.
Attendance at Dodger Stadium is down more than 7,000 per game. A sparsely-attended demonstration was held outside of the stadium yesterday and fans are sounding off more and more. There’s even Frankrupt.com, a site selling apparel denouncing current ownership.
More pragmatically, the Dodgers can’t expect any sort of help this season from a trade-deadline acquisition.
Any prolonged fight for control of the team could further hamstring Colletti. Investment in high-profile free agents won’t happen and it might prove difficult to retain the key performers.
The contracts of the three All Stars, Clayton Kershaw, Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier expire at the end of the season. Each will be eligible for arbitration and would command hefty raises. Without some sort of resolution of team ownership, can the Dodgers take on the payroll needed to retain the franchise’s three core players?
Certainly the team hasn’t performed as well as hoped up until the All-Star break.
As difficult as it might be for Dodger fans to swallow, next year could be worse.
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