Article:Think Blue...

June 18, 2008 10:43 pm

So the sign says beyond the left field fence of Dodger Stadium.

I do. I think that the Los Angeles Dodgers will win the NL West. Or Maybe they won’t.

That matters entirely on the mindset of manager Joe Torre and General Manager Ned Coletti. If they decide that they want to win this year and beyond, they will trot out one set of players each night. If they decide that it is more important to get value out of their big free agent signings gone awry, they will trot out another, and lose most nights.

The Keys to this team aren’t Andruw Jones starting to hit or Juan Pierre actually playing like he’s worth the sum of money he received a couple of years ago. It’s the three or four young, talented players that don’t get as much playing time as they should.

The Keys to this team are Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, James Loney, and Andy LaRoche.

Kemp and Ethier are two thirds of the best outfield that the Dodgers can put on the field. Kemp is getting on base at a solid clip at .341, and his power numbers aren’t bad as he’s hit five home runs and has 39 RBIs. His OPS is .769. Ethier has a similar .344 OBP and six home runs and 26 RBIs. His OPS is slightly higher at .771.

Compare that to the the other two options.

First is Juan Pierre. Pierre is beyond bad. His .336 OBP would be bearable if he produced decent power, but he just doesn’t. His 20 RBIs and ZERO homeruns are just sad. He slugs just .317. That’s right he slugs less than his OBP.

Even his own fans hate him. Here’s what the Sponsor of his baseball-reference.com page has to say:

''Freebasing grit and hustle doesn’t obscure the 700+ PA’s of 75 OPS+ production Pierre brings. He’s a black David Eckstein. Bill Plaschke’s unsavory fetish notwithstanding, Juan Pierre is probably the worst regular in baseball.''

Ouch.

Andruw Jones is the other. His current OBP of .273 is enough to be sent to the minors and his power has vanished. Remember in 2005 when Jones hit 51 homers? Yea, that’s a thing of the past. He hit two this season before going down for two months and having to have surgery on his knee. His OPS is just .543.

Yea. Alright. Do you see any reason that those two should be starting? The only reason I can see is the embarrassment that the Dodgers front office would suffer by admitting they made two huge mistakes.

Andy LaRoche is a highly regarded third base prospect. He has been destined for the role for quite some time now. He has been injured for most of this season, but his numbers from last can tell you a lot about his production. In 35 games his .365 OBP made up for a poor .226 Batting Average. That’s a huge key. If LaRoche can walk that much over a full season, it puts him a great position to hit high in the lineup and contribute to an offense that has been sputtering.

Who would start in front of LaRoche? Well, none other than Boston’s favorite son: Nomar Garciaparra! Nomar has been terrible ever since he left the Red Sox, and this year has been no different. The best thing that he provided to the Dodgers has a spot on the 25 man roster when he went down with an injury.

The only deserving youngster on this team that has gotten consistent playing time is James Loney. Besides being a personal man crush, Loney is a great hitter, even if his power is developing a little slower than some would like. His .352 OBP is solid and he slugs a respectable .440. Add it up, and it’s an OPS of .792. The last two years, he’s seen limited action and put up OPS numbers above .900, so I would look for him to finish in that range again.

So, the Dodgers should make a decision. If they want to compete, they should put these youngsters in and leave the veterans on the bench. If they want to play the vets, than they should trade the young guys away and let them play somewhere else.

For example, I could imagine Kemp or Ethier in pinstripes next year, couldn’t you?