Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
On this episode of “Dugout Blues,” Jared Massey (Dodger Blue) and I prepare our bodies for the return of Clayton Kershaw.
Yes, Kershaw is supposed to return on Friday from his mildly herniated disc (if there is such a thing) in his back. If he comes back at even 75 percent of what he was before the injury, he’s still the best pitcher in baseball.
Jose De Leon finally made his MLB debut, and he did so in impressive fashion. Sure, he gave up four runs, but he also struck out nine, walked none and pitched six complete innings. He has some things to work on, but the first return was solid.
Yasiel Puig is back! And he might be fixed, maybe. We’ve seen this movie before, but we hope it ends in a different way.
Andrew Toles, a guy who got some of Puig’s playing time while he was gone, had himself a good week, capped off with a go-ahead grand slam in the ninth inning in Colorado that ultimately won the game for the Dodgers. He might be a keeper.
Brett Anderson still has a blister and is still bad at pitching. Scott Kazmir is going to start Game 1 of OKC’s playoff series. Also, Andre Ethier has been rehabbing with Rancho Cucamonga and it’s going OK, but he’s still not 100 percent.
Julio Urias is great, but he’s going to be (rightly) shut down soon. If only the Dodgers hadn’t messed with his development last season and this season.
On the farm, Cody Bellinger, Willie Calhoun and Alex Verdugo are going to the Arizona Fall League. The pitchers will be selected at a later date. Speaking of Bellinger, he got on a hot streak the last month or so with Tulsa and he was promoted to OKC. In his first three games (two starts), he has three home runs and is hitting .545. He good. Brock Stewart and Edwin Rios were named the Dodgers’ pitcher and player of the year. Solid choices.
Finally, we get to the Q&A session. Please keep them coming.
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Look for new episodes of “Dugout Blues” every Monday. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast and review us on iTunes. We want to make this the best podcast we can so we’re always looking for suggestions and ways to improve.
If you have questions you’d like us to answer or certain topics/players you want to hear more about, feel free to email us ([email protected]) or send us messages on Twitter (@JaredJMassey or @DustinNosler). You can also “Like” the podcast on Facebook. We always welcome audience participation.
