Blog Kiosk: 9/6/2018 - Dodgers Links - Some Odds and Ends

We're dropping the ball. Per Ken Gurnick at MLB.com:

"I didn't think we played good defense behind Hyun-Jin and I thought the way he threw the baseball was better than the linescore," said manager Dave Roberts. "When you're facing a guy like Wheeler, you've got to play good baseball. We just didn't give ourselves a chance today. 

"There were plays we usually make, you could just look around the diamond. Whether it's added pitches or a run that scores that shouldn't or whatever. For us, at this point in time, we've got to play better baseball. This was one of those games where we just didn't execute defensively."

Dammit! This just can't happen anymore!

Photo above via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2018 at Dodger Insider. Below are more links to check out:

• This Day in Dodgers History: In 1943 the Dodgers signed 19-year old amateur free agent Gil Hodges out of  St. Joseph's College in Rensselaer, IN. In 1950 Don Newcombe started both ends of a doubleheader against the Phillies at Shibe Park. In Game 1 he threw a complete game three-hit shutout. In Game 2 he left the game behind by two runs in the seventh inning. The Dodgers would eventually win that game on a three-run single in the ninth inning by Gil Hodges. In 1953 Giants manager and Dodger-traitor Leo Durocher is heard yelling "stick it in his ear" before pitcher Ruben Gomez struck Dodger outfielder Carl Furillo on the wrist with a pitch. As Furillo took first base he suddenly sprinted to the dugout to get at Durocher. In the subsequent melee Furillo fractures a finger -- ending his season. In 1976 catcher Steve Yeager is injured in the on-deck circle when a jagged end of Bill Russell's broken bat struck him in the throat. It pierced his esophagus, necessitating surgery. Soon thereafter, Dodger trainer Bill Buhler invented a device that hung down from a catchers mask to protect a players throat. In 1981 Fernando Valenzuela threw his seventh shutout as a rookie -- tying a National League record. In 1996 the ever-popular Brett Butler defied the odds to return to the field for the first time after being diagnosed with cancer of the tonsils, having surgery and intensive radiation therapy earlier in the year.
• Happy Birthday, Oyster Burns, Pete Gilbert, George Hildebrand & Del Bissonette!
• Podcast: True Blue LA -- Podcast episode 1819: September additions & the wild, wild NL West race (Podcast Link).
• There is one absolute truth -- no players health is worth risking for a weekend series against a rival. This is the right call. Per Ken Gunick at MLB.com; "Doctor: Jansen should skip road trip to Denver: Closer would 'definitely' go to Colorado for postseason games."
• ICYMI: The Dodgers have announced they have signed a working agreement to continue their relationships with the Oklahoma City Dodgers, Tulsa Drillers, Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and the Great Lakes Loons.
• Thank you, Adam. Via Steve Adams at MLB Trade Rumors; "Dodgers Release Adam Liberatore."

At his best in 2016, Liberatore gave the Dodgers 42 2/3 frames of 3.38 ERA ball with 9.9 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and a 38.9 percent ground-ball rate. Despite being more of a fly-ball pitcher, he yielded only two long balls that year. He’s lost a couple of ticks off his fastball since that ’16 season, averaging 90.9 mph on his heater in his limited sample of big league innings this year, but Liberatore was still characteristically tough on left-handed opponents. Throughout his career, lefties have batted just .204/.294/.311 against him through 188 plate appearances.

• This mornings Baseball America prospect report makes note of catcher Keibert Ruiz:

Ruiz went 3-for-4 with a home run and 3 RBIs to spot Tulsa to an early lead in the Drillers first game of the playoffs. Arkansas rallied to win in the ninth. Ruiz' 2018 season was modest offensively as he failed to slug .400. But Ruiz' long-term promise remains absolutely tantalizing. He is a switch-hitting catcher who makes tons of contact, controls the strike zone and has significant offensive potential.

• Per Forest Stulting at Beyond the Bricks; "OKC Mounts Miraculous Comeback to Win Division Title: The Dodgers won four straight games in two days over Colorado Springs to clinch the PCL American Northern Division title and PCL playoff spot."
• I kinda hate the wave, but I do admit that no city in the league does it better than Dodger fans. Below is a recent tweet by Mets hurler Noah Syndergaard:

Official Statement: Dodger Stadium is the only acceptable ballpark to do the WAVE. The ban shall remain in effect for all other stadiums.

— Noah Syndergaard (@Noahsyndergaard) September 5, 2018

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