DodgerHeads Postgame: Should Dodgers be worried about Jack Flaherty? Freddie Freeman's plan

e M [Applause] magic Dodgers have won at all High Fly ball into right field she is gone he St him out two balls at a strike the count on Taylor re fires going to drive de left down this [Music] [Applause] [Music] his what's up everyone welcome into Dodger Heads live presented by Dodger blue.com part of the bluewire podcast Network my name is Jeff Spiegel joined tonight by Anthony wado Anthony the the intro video ends with Chris Taylor coming up with a big hit off the bat off the bat I thought we were finding some grass out there in the Gap but uh no dice Dodgers end up losing this one three to2 to the Orioles the offense comes up short despite Jack flare giving a uh I would say a positive performance although some injury concerns will get to you in a little bit yeah you know I when he hit that ball uh it was obvious it was hit well and then uh you know they they showed the the camera to the Outfield and look at both outfielders and trying to see where they're going to converge and then the left fielder stops and it's like H yeah gosh yeah tough one tough one and I see some people in the chat as always we appreciate everyone joining us on Facebook on YouTube on Twitter we're going to get to some of the umpiring there uh as well we got a super chat here from 300 gjw Freddy Freeman not pinch hitting there shows his how his finger is bothering him this is one of the big story lines some big at bats for the Dodgers there at the end Anthony and Freddy Freeman who is not expected to go on the injured list but was not in the starting lineup tonight clearly not available Off the Bench in a moment when you know with Chris Taylor up especially I would say you kind of would have liked to see Freddy Freeman in that spot given the urgency of the divisional race yeah you know I am holding out hope that they just were gonna stay away from him no matter what tonight and say like we don't think this is an i St but we want to give him you know a couple of days I think this is day two in a row uh where you know essentially he just doesn't have to do anything and you know that's that's the hope I would say if he's not in there tomorrow then there's probably some reason for concern um the the other thing is too like if if they if they pinch hit him they can't retroact retroactively do an iant to like when it happened right like so it starts from the day that you were last in a game so they may be playing it safe in terms of that also in case they think that they may have to iil him but that it's also not a long-term deal so you know trying to save a day there there's a few different scenarios there um but yeah the fact that he wasn't pitch hitting in those situations meant that he was not going to be it tonight yeah and we'll get to some of the quotes about Freddy Freeman and his injury later in the show but we appreciate the Super Chat 300 there as well again the Dodgers lose this one 3-2 to the Orioles the National League West lead down to three games Anthony the Padres 26 and8 in their last 34 and the Dodgers have been pretty good like the Dodgers haven't been bad over baseball since the All-Star break yeah it's just that the two teams right behind them can't seem to do anything wrong the Padre's go down again tonight and then come back to win of course uh it is still a three-game lead I guess we can take solace in that there's lots of teams around the league uh the Guardians the Mariners among them who have blown massive divisional leads the Dodgers at least are still clinging to theirs and I would argue have less of a grip because of how well the team's behind them it's not like they're choking as much as the teams behind them just can't can't seem to find a way to lose yeah the Dodgers aren't collapsing uh it's just these other teams have been have been really good and and I think until this weekend I I don't know if since the break the if they've even played the Padre's or the Diamondbacks right like so they haven't had a chance to to Really create separation that way either uh like I said I think they're the third best record in baseball right now and the two teams ahead of them are the two teams chasing them right so um even though they're playing well they can't create any separation and the Padres Man two game series by the way Dodgers played the Padre's twice in San Diego lost in Extra Innings lost eight to one but to your point just two opportunities none against the Diamondbacks although that's about to change at the end of uh this upcoming week yeah that's going to be a big series um but yeah you know to to my point about the Padre's being like they they they won't stay down I mean they very easily could have six more losses in that stretch yeah and I mean they've got some come come from behind winds and they're doing it like it's just you know it's just normal business for them at this point like that that's frustrating as the as the you know if you're a Diamondbacks fan or a Dodgers fan watching them do that you know two or three times a week it seems like is just that's got to be maddening yeah uh Padre's down five to four in the seventh inning tonight and come back to win that one um again that's just that's just what they do so uh again looking at this one uh you know it's sort of a back and forth Affair from the Dodgers they go down early um they end up taking the lead in early on when Muki Works a two-out walk teoscar Hernandez capitalizes and uh you know knocks him in to tie this game um unfortunately the Orioles come right back two to one down they hit a two run home run and then that was kind of it the Dodgers had an opportunity in the fifth Anthony a leadoff S A leadoff double and walk from Kik Hernandez and Chris Taylor and with Otani Muki and teoscar up in that situation you're expecting something uh ball barely gets out of the infield infield pop up Shallow right field fly out and then a fly a line out to right field from teoscar that felt like the big moment for them to get something they put a couple guys on uh in the ninth inning they had an opportunity in the eighth inning with Will Smith up and and Will Smith I know is going to be a talking point here but I just want to hover over the fact that Dodgers again had some opportunities tonight one for eight with runners in scoring position teoscar one for three Betts 0 for one Taylor 0 for one Otani 0 for one and Smith 0 for two so uh just you know this one's on the offense and it it was a shared experience I would say across a lot of guys in this lineup yeah uh you know maybe you know it seemed to be one of those nights they did hit some balls hard uh you know mooki hit into that double play in the first inning I think yeah ruined my Shi Otani over5 stolen bases pet tonight Anthony we need give that guy an opportunity to take some take a lead favors there but yeah I mean you know he smokes that ball uh Chris Taylor on the last out smokes that ball I think T Oscar on that line out he hit that looked like pretty well but just right at him um you know so so they had some swings that were pretty good uh the strike zone didn't do them any favors tonight uh you know and and I know like yes guys you know you would like to see them adjust also you'd go well you know they're still making outs like all those pitches weren't like strike threes but and then this isn't to give him a complete pass but like those those change at bats yeah you know it changes the situation uh of the played appearance it changes sort of the strategy it changes the mindset and changes what the pitcher is going to do yeah um you know so uh it's not the end all be all but you know aside from it being a strike to change the count it it really does changeing that bat uh and you know when it happens repeatedly in a in a one-run game I mean it's yeah it's GNA happen I can't wait to see that report card tomorrow it's gonna be rough uh you mentioned some hard hit Balls by the Dodgers that didn't land they had 107.7 M hour lineup from Max mty with an expected batting average of 660 they had 103.2 mph lineup from from Will Smith with an expected batting average of 550 and they had 101.7 mph lineup from teoscar Hernandez with an expected batting average of 550 so three of the eight hardest hit balls of the game from the Dodgers all go for outs if you look at the top eight uh hardest hit balls in this game the Orioles had four home run single single home run the Dodgers had four they went one for four on there so Oriol four for four and their hard hit you know balls over 102 mph Dodgers just one for four we got another Super here from Richard Richard we appreciate you a regular loyal listener Watcher of us so thank you so much and thank you for the Super Chat He says Blame the strike zone all you want but one for eight with runners in scoring position fifth inning was a big blow that was the one I mentioned with the top of the order coming up and two Runners on nobody out the injury reports from the Dodgers are as accurate as my dog ate my homework not being honest with glass now we'll get to that we'll get to that let's talk the strike zone because Richard mentions it I actually don't disagree with Richard to say it can be both like like one for eight with runners in scoring position is problematic entirely wholeheartedly agree with you while at the same time I would say the strike zone like we don't have to choose between these both of these were factors and when some of those at bats with two strikes in the terrible Strike Zone are with runners in scoring position those things are related of course Will Smith a disgraceful strikeout in the bottom of the eth uh a disgraceful strike out to Tommy Edmund in the bottom of the ninth a disgraceful strike too to Max Muny in that at bat I mean these were all huge at bats in key spots Anthony and so yes one for eight with Runners and scoring position but they might they might have been two for eight if they get a couple calls that go their way and this could be a four to three Dodgers victory yeah you know and a c a couple of points here um the 148 yes and it's like well be better but also like year overy year over year over year you look at and this is just not saying that this is what what the count was when these all these calls happened but to show you that the difference in in one pitch here or there and how it can change the complexion of an bat and then eventually the complexion of a game you look at batting averages every single season yeah from 10 versus 01 right and then 21 versus one two they are pretty telling in terms of how they benefit whoever's ahead in the count um so so that that's one thing um two you know I see I I saw on Twitter and I see some people in the comments saying like Okay well you got to figure out that the Umpire is making these kinds of calls his zone is wide you have to make that adjustment it's not that easy you're you've been conditioned your entire baseball playing career to especially in the Dodgers organization to do things a certain way and and then you go okay well this umpire is expanding the zone you need to swing at pitches that are out of the Zone their brains don't work like that immediately also it takes some time it might take half the game for that Dugout to realize to differentiate between are those a couple of bad calls or is this what the zone is tonight yeah because you might get one of those calls in the first inning and the second one might not come into the third inning yeah but you also got one that went in your favor so you know what I mean so it's not it's not necessarily a trend until you know it doesn't always work out that way it became very obvious like in the seventh eighth inning yeah and by then you know that that's tough because guys are also try at that point guys are trying to get the counts in their favor and those balls are clearly off the plate and to say like well you just got a swing at that it's much easier said than done when you're standing in the box and you're a hitter and you've conditioned your brain to say that's a ball don't swing at that yeah just look doing a quick search and finding this so this was a study that was done kind of a compilation of Statistics back you know seven or eight years ago but I imagine this hasn't changed all that dramatically they basically looked at the entirety of the American League between 2015 and 2017 and what their batting average was on every individual type of count okay so let's imagine you're at a one-1 count and at this point uh a one-1 count the batting average on this count is is 332 that's the average League average on a 1-1 count if if it goes to 1-2 that drops to a 166 batting average if it goes to two- one it jumps to a 344 batting average so this is statistically just like the the outcome so if you get a one-1 pitch that should be a ball but becomes a strike it's a 180 Point difference in average batting average over a three threeyear season in in the American League in this case again I'm I'm assuming this hasn't changed all that much even if it's 150 points right you can see how one pitch goes right and even if you're at a you know a two and one count the difference between a three and one count which is a 363 and a two and two count which is 183 same thing these are 180 Point swings by bad calls in the case of Will Smith it was three consecutive bad calls and that was with Runners and scoring position so to go back to Richard's point the one for eight with Runners and scoring position one of those should have been a walk from Will Smith and then all of a sudden the lineup moves along and and who knows what happens from there but he never gets that opportunity and and I I will say there's part of me that thinks if you see that pitch called to strike twice you've got to protect right you've got to expand the Z bat I agree in your own at bat that part of it I agree with totally like if you are you know pick a pick a hitter if if you're Max Muny and you see that pitch called two innings before right it's tough in a one in a in a one instance and then you come up and you get the same call well okay that's that's tough to be like well you should swing at that because he called it earlier if you if you're seeing it multiple times in the same at bat that that you're own at bat then yeah you probably need to start you know trying to fight something off with two strikes there yeah and I want to come back to Will Smith so I see because I see some comments but let's get to some of these super chats John leond saying Ryan braer killing it another solid performance from Ryan brazer he gave up his first hit since coming back but one inning just one hit he throws 11 pitches nine of them from strikes you know again the Dodgers Bullpen vessia it wasn't pretty two walks two strikeouts braier one hit copc gives up the walk and two strikeouts so it is four base runners in three Innings but just one hit nowhere in runs four strikeouts the bullpen does their job and I'll admit Anthony Ryan braer was not a guy who was expecting to be impressed by and to trust and yet all he does is fill up the strike zone and again I think this is like his first in 12 batters that he's faced I think he's now given up one hit or something like that yeah you know one of the things that the Dodgers tend to do is they look for guys who just have the raw stuff and and you know typically like maybe maybe guys who have struggled elsewhere you know we we've seen it with them over and over or guys who got DFA or something like that or you can get cheaply in a trade um because they think if they can get the guy to harness his stuff enough to fill up the Zone yeah then the stuff will play and a lot of times for them it works we've seen it not work but a lot of times it does work for them and I think that a guy like braier as long as he can not give free passes out he's he's okay yeah yeah I agree I agree Godfrey wants to know is it just me or do the Dodgers have way more bad calls against them uh I think there's an Umpire score card like sort of quantity for the season where you can look at plus and minus on the whole yeah I imagine we remember the bad ones we forget the good ones and and obviously we're studying these when it's against the Dodgers but you know it's so I don't think I my personal view I don't think there's some bi against the Dodgers I don't think it's it's we're worse off than everybody else I just think umpiring isn't very good and you play enough of these games there's going to be a bunch like this Anthony where it just feels like umpire wanted to get home and you were on the receiving end of it yeah a couple of things is like you know people don't complain about things until it's bad for them right like you don't you don't necessarily you know get on Yelp and and see all of the great reviews necessarily um but you know we're looking at it from the Dodgers point of view so we always remember those uh you know and and I think that the the other part of this too is that uh the Dodgers are a lot more patient than a lot of than most teams and so you're gonna get probably a bigger share of these types of games and these types of calls than teams who are sort of more free swinging um you know it's it's kind of what the what the Dodgers or as an organization preach um you know and back to my point about like changing your mentality when you're when you're when you have an expanded Strike Zone too um so yeah you know you're we're going to remember those you know the Umpire scorecard for this particular game will come out in the morning though and we'll see and and they put some expected numbers on that you know how much it kind of cost a team I would very much expect that the Dodgers come out on the negative end of this one yeah it felt like it it felt like it h Jonathan said it may seem like a 3-2 loss but Roberts assures us this game will be recovering soon and may end up a 4-3 win after a rehab assignment so again uh we're going to get to some injuries stuff here later but Jonathan I appreciate the humor because it does feel like you know and Anthony and I have been having these conversations about guys like Tyler glass now and then the update comes and sometimes it feels inevitable that that the update you you think you're going to get and the update that you actually get and where it ends up uh doesn't seem to always make all that much sense and I think as Dodgers fans um we're starting to get used to that I I do want to talk Will Smith Anthony um he's been really bad everybody who watches this shows know knows that that I'm a huge Will Smith fan uh 0 for four tonight with two strikeouts again we just talked about the one strikeout uh the Ops on the season remains solid 750 and yet we know how bad he has been not just for the last few weeks but for the last few months yeah all that said I'm still surprised at how negative The Vibes are around Will Smith when it comes to the interactions that I have and I know look social media is one thing not everybody the loudest people are not necessarily repres representative of but and I'm not even saying like flat out these people are crazy and these people are wrong I'm just trying to make sense of it this is a guy who has had a bad second half this year he had a bad second half last year and yet over the last four seasons has more wins above replacement than any catcher in Major League Baseball so just give me your like zoom out a little bit take take off the hat the the the fan hat for a second like is there reason for serious concern and negativity towards Will Smith as far as skepticism of whether or not he's going to make out break out of this yeah I think it's been too long to call it a slump it's it's kind of the way his season is going at this point like you said there are some still Silver Lining numbers that are that are hanging out but I think yeah and like I said I've said this before about him with when me and you were on I haven't seen the story yet that and I and I may have missed it I'm not saying that it hasn't been written maybe I just didn't see but I haven't seen the story yet that talks about like here's what the coaching staff or here's what he feels is not going right here's what's off it's mechanical or it's you know uh you know maybe he feels like he's chasing pitches that he shouldn't be or you know whatever whatever the case may be I haven't seen that story yet and so I I don't know what they see as the issue right now yeah um you know we've said it before like you wish you could afford at that position to give him a Ser an entire series off yeah you know something like that they can't right now also like he's becoming a better defensive catcher yeah he's one of the best in baseball yeah and and you know this is a 10-year contract he's not going to catch for 10 years of it um so at some point they're going to make that that decision but like you wish that he could DH but but then you got Otani you wish he could play first base but then you got Freddy Freeman who plays essentially every day and you know can he learn third base or something like that like you know we'll we're going to find all these all this out you know later on down the road with the during the life of this contract but yeah um yeah I I I think I think we're we're Beyond a point where like it's a concern and is he gonna break out of this um it's interesting because the because the underlying stuff just pulling it up all remains just about everything is 60th percentile or higher and I'm not saying 60th percentile is good don't hear me wrong but I'm saying for a guy who's had a 200 batting average it feels like for five month months to look down and say 72 percentile for Barrel rate you know 66 percentile expected slugging rate he doesn't whiff he doesn't strike out 69th percentile for walk rate squares it up 61% of the time hard hit 60% of the time 60th percentile you know like I'm just looking at these numbers and so again I'm not try like I'm I'm genuinely trying to step back and say I don't know what is happening here I'm encouraged that the underlying stuff does not line up necessarily with the actual performance although expected batting average is really bad so expected batting average actual batting average those two numbers line up but it like it is there an element of bad luck here is there an element of some of these numbers are booed by just how incredible he was for the first 30 to 45 days of the Season like I I just genuinely don't know what's reasonable to expect for the guy moving forward yeah I'm I think I'm beyond the point of thinking like if you keep running him out there every day he's just going to magically break out of it because it's been too long it's not like this is a two or three week slump where like that still feels like a possibility yeah uh this this feels like he's having a bad season now and and you know that's tough and the fact that the the lead is only three games at this point yeah means that they really can't afford to say you know take these next two games against Baltimore off you know and we're going to also give you the first game against Arizona or something like that right like they they're not afforded that luxury anymore and so and they're not afforded the luxury of him being a DH for a while because they have shohi yeah so you know you you just and and and I mentioned the defensive aspect of this because they do now want to keep running him out there because he's doing a really outstanding job of helping control the running game against this with this pitching staff and so you you you have to continue to put him in the lineup for at least for that reason yeah but he's he's a hole right now and it's it's tough because you keep waiting for him to like run into one at least and be like ah okay that's you know maybe that's it and he just he's not doing it yeah I'm smiling because two things one I want to talk about Dalton rushing but I'm smiling because when I've been critical of Kevin kerm I've gotten crushed for it because everybody tells me how important the defense is with Kevin kirmar and yet when Will Smith is one of the best if not the best defensive catcher in baseball this season 100th percentile in in caught stealing above average it's all DFA Will Smith you know and I know the DFA stuff is a joke or or a troll but like it's interesting to me and I think it just speaks to expectations like if you walk in with KM and say we know the bat's not going to be great but we like the defense then you are are pleased with it and you become defensive and I know I see Matty man saying km has been hitting fourth Smith's been hitting like seventh ever since M's come back and Lux was up Smith's been hitting seven so where he's hitting in the order doesn't have anything to do with this conversation has everything to do with expectations which I think is is fair like and I'm I'm not saying that's wrong because Will Smith you should have higher expectations the Dodgers just paid him this is an All-Star level type player but I think it's just interesting the way that we frame defense but I want to shift this to Dalton rushing because he was in my notes and this is the perfect uh uh sort of transition he had two home runs tonight D rushing's hitting 343 with an Ops of almost 1100 at AAA and before you say oh triaa numbers are inflated go look at his double A numbers the guy has hit absolutely everywhere he goes and and I think you know I joked about Dalton rushing possibly getting a 26th man call up to see what he's got in left field or something like that I mean I I think we're seriously veering towards I I I'm I'm hesit to put a number on this but like we can't be that far away from well let's just see what happens if Dalton rushing starts catching some games at the major league level and hitting like does Will Smith get a two- week vacation Dalton rushing comes up to catch some games because if Smith is this bad Barnes is no better we know they don't like fedia like it it feels like you're nearing the point of well do you just try it and see what happens he is a catcher like he can catch so it's not like you're squeezing a square peg into a round hole here even if the defense is a downgrade just because I haven't looked at the lineup at OKC is he mostly playing The Outfield right now or is he catching also uh that's a great question I know he had been playing a lot of outfield for OKC um I'll see if I can pull that up as you talk my my my greater point to that is at this level and when you're play when you're really playing for something it's more than just sticking a guy at that position because he might be swinging a hot bat in the miners this is about their first and you know what the the entire reason they're dealing with this slump from Will Smith is because they like how he handles the staff so to say well let's just run Dalton rushing out there because he has a Ops above one in the miners it doesn't play in this particular sit catcher really the only position where like it's really different than the other seven positions out on the field yeah because that guy also has to be handling an a pitching staff that you are looking to lean on to take you to the World Series and I can tell you right now they're just not going to do that yeah yeah and I see David here uh primarily left field he's played 16 games 143 Innings uh he's he's played exclusively left field um maybe he's maybe uh and couple games that designated hitter so only left field um he did catch 39 games uh at at Double A so he's got 324 innings of catching experience uh this season but um you know I I'm with you I'm just saying like we're all looking at the numbers and again I'm a Will Smith guy I'm not even defending it like I think we're getting to the point where you know the the argument had long been well Austin Barnes game calling you just give up all the rest of that stuff and you just take you know like that's why Austin Barnes would catch games in the playoffs Will Smith is that guy like Will Smith from a defensive non off like if you take offense off the table Will Smith is now the the non-offset that they have because of the way he controls the running game and so the question is they valued that in the past do they continue to Value it in the form of Will Smith and not Austin Barnes or do they throw a dart at the board and say Dalton rushing let's see what we got he doesn't need to be added to the 40 men even next year that's kind of the tricky part I believe um I believe his rule fiveyear is not until like a year and a half from now but you know I just think it's an interesting conversation and and Anthony the longer this slump goes on to your point it's not a slump anymore it's you know May June July August four months three and a half months now I think there's questions that are going to be asked and I think Dalton rushing is a guy that if he continues to do what he's doing down in Oklahoma City rightfully so so let me just ask you straight up if 10% chance Dalton rushing is catching games for the Dodgers under zero percent chance Z percent chance I like that you know what Anthony I'm gonna give you this I like the definitive nature there's no Heming and ha on that there's no sitting on the fence z% I respect it I'm take the over I'm gonna take the over give me rushing catching games to the Dodgers um then I will say this if it happens it won't be anything meaningful like you're tied for the division the last 10 days of the Season he's they're running him out there behind the plate that that's not going to happen um if if he is a call up in that situation and they want to give him some Innings behind the play you know it it'll happen early on probably yeah uh I could you know I could listen to the case of like maybe they run him out there in left field and see what happens for a little bit but Tail's not struggling like that like and and when once they move Muki out to right they had their Outfield set for October assuming everybody's healthy and fine um you know so even that is a little bit of a stretch but yeah I I'm zero real Innings behind the plate for rushing this season for the Dodgers I like it I like it I appreciate again I appreciate your commitment to this uh let's get to some of these super chats John reality Dodgers one for eight with runners in scoring position seven left on base again totally agree if they had been three for eight none of the strike zone stuff matters not we're not even talking about it because they win this game but Otani Betts teoscar Hernandez all guys who had opportuni Tao is one for three I'll leave him off the list Betts Otani Smith uh and of course Chris Taylor guys who had opportunities and to one of those outs that you made was was a hard hit ball at least too uh rod says frustrated MLB doesn't have a challenge system I I've said Anthony I've seen it at the Triple A level I love it are you yep exactly works and it's quick which yeah which are the two things that baseball really concerns itself about with these kinds of things it's been proven to be successful in the miners I mean if you guys haven't seen it it's a it's a challenge system I think I don't know if it's a team or a batter gets so many challenges per game the team and all you got to do if you're the hitter is you step out of the box and like you either tell the Umpire or I think some places the miners like look up at the Press Box where the where the replay is and you know they kind of point up there and they said we want that replay and they that answer comes back in seconds because they're looking at the same things we're looking at you know whether it be on game day or or the the Box on TV or whatever it might be that answer comes back in seconds and the guy's right back in the Box yeah absolutely absolutely it's awesome I mean I saw it in Reno yeah it's fantastic everybody looks up at the board you see the results and things move on uh Godfrey says games like these get magnified because the Diamondbacks and Padre's keep winning yes yeah Godfrey a million percent yes a million times yes again we're we're talking about them as if they're just completely falling off a they have the third best record in baseball since the All-Star break yeah if they just finished a five-game winning streak I think they just went like 10 and four 10 and five over a 15 game stretch or something like that like still one of the best teams in baseball it's just the two team the two teams of the 29 other teams that are better than them right now since the All-Star break are the two teams in their division that are chasing them yeah I agree and I I I mean I haven't checked are the Dodgers still probably at least in the hunt for the best record in Major League Baseball I would imagine um 78 and 54 um yeah I mean I think that's the best uh I think that's the best tied with the Phillies tied with the Phillies for the best record in Major League Baseball best win percentage 591 so there you go uh John Jeff Will Smith is batting 165 the past 30 days with one Homer and eight RBI who is to blame in putting him in the top four in the lineup uh if anybody I have been so critical of lineups for the Dodgers this season I would not be putting Will Smith fourth in the lineup uh I think I can understand and this is like I understand why Will Smith has hit lefties actually really well this year and even since May 1 I was just looking up this split because I was like they talked how he's been one of the best hitters in baseball against lefties I think he's got like a 148 way to runs created plus against lefties on the season so I like all right well starting May 1 when he's been terrible what's it been like since then he's hitting 188 against lefties which you might say well there you go he sucks actually on base slugging combined Ops of almost 800 way to runs crated plus is 101 so he's basically been League average against left-handed pitchers there was a lefty on the mountain all that said I'm with you a th% Will Smith should be batting seventh he should be batting eighth and I'm perfectly content with that there's no justification for me Anthony even against the Lefty putting him up there because I know M's numbers against lefties I'd still trust Muny more I trust Kik more against lefties now so I'm with you John no uh no no no arguments with me I'm with you and I see 188 does suck I agree with you again uh his on base percentage has been good the slugging has been good I laugh that a guy Anthony with a 188 batting average has a weighted runs created plus that's above average he's an above average hitter hitting 188 a because teams suck against lefties and B you draw a bunch of walks and I guess that's what happens yeah um yeah I I got nothing to add to that I mean he yeah he shouldn't be hitting that high in the order he has been bad uh you know he's he's just right at the level of replacement level um you know so you know I I don't know what the answer is nobody here is defending it like I guess that's the bottom line like nobody we're all on the same side of the fence screaming at Dave Roberts and saying what the hell are you doing with these lineups because when he's had to mix and match when it feels like he has to get creative and get cute is when things go sideways um and yet you know I thought there were decisions he made tonight that were fine but I think lineup construction on the whole this season has uh has been confusing at best yeah and we can be nitpicky about the lineup stuff like they have best it doesn't really matter till it matters you know what I mean like yeah it it it is what it is but I'm I'm in agreement with with everybody he he has no business at this point hitting that high in the lineup um you know yeah look I I don't know why Kik is hitting eth I mean like against the Lefty to have Kik hitting way down there uh behind Smith Edmund Roos and Muny is confusing to me maybe a little protection for Muny but um anyways let's talk Jack flarity we haven't had any conversation about him as always thank you to everybody by the way joining us on Facebook on YouTube on Twitter we appreciate you uh Flare's final Line Tonight six Innings six hits three earn two walks five strikeouts he had a 24% whiff rate on swings he got 24 called strikes across six Innings my I don't I don't have anything creative to say other than about Jack flare other than Anthony he continues to be pretty much exactly the guy I thought they were getting he was solid again tonight he battled it wasn't pretty but he just continues to seemingly get the job done every time he takes the ball yeah it was a solid start tonight um he left a couple of you know I'm gonna hang it let's see if you bang it and they they did yeah um which you know now that we're watching him uh every start he's got a little tendency to leave some balls dangling in the zone yeah uh you know I would I would say that is the one Bugaboo that I've seen so far um but he's been he's been solid uh one interesting thing is is you know what the Run prevention numbers are uh I think it was like the first through fourth inning or first through fifth inning or whatever it is and then what it is after that yeah so you know probably a guy that is not going to have a Long Leash after 15 or so outs take um you know so he got the leash tonight I mean they that that five and two3 he's got Runners on first and second a lefty up and Dave left him in that was I I was surprised by the decision it ends up working out stuff still looked pretty good yeah his stuff still looked pretty good it looked like he still had pretty decent command um you know during that stretch I it I was never like Dave's got to move him yeah you know Dave's gotta get Dave's got to take out I never you didn't have under 17 and a half outs recorded tonight Anthony if hypothetically somebody had 17 and a half they might have been frustrated they didn't go to besti against the Lefty there I'm just saying oh ouch go the ball goes off the wrist you're thinking cash it just you know Fifth Fifth inning cash that off the wrist he comes back out I mean kudos to ferity again um I see somebody in the chat like what was your thoughts because I joke all eyes is g to be on postgame and and what they say about the wrist the fact that he stayed in sat in the Dugout came back out pitched a full inning tells me you know clearly they felt around and aren't tooo worried about this but I was surprised with how they handled him but you know again kudos to flarity getting the full sixth inning letting vesia come in in the seventh and work a clean one the bullpen getting three clean Innings I think part of that credit goes to flarity kind of being able to close his deal out yeah for sure and I think that was that had to be on Dave's mind a little bit um you know the bullpen had just blown two leads uh in the previous Series so yeah I think that probably had a little something to do with with it too uh his stuff looked good when he came back out again uh you know I I think there's probably very little concern there this is a Dodger staff too that and medical staff that is hyper cautious with these guys when it comes to stuff like this like I thought he was coming out whether he felt fine or not like yeah when I saw where it hit him um looked like it missed any of like the Sensi like super sensitive stuff right like the pinky or maybe that little wrist bone looked like it was higher than that but I I thought he was coming out I was like there's no way they're letting him stay in and and I believe it was Colton cowser and that ball was 71 miles an hour off the bat so talk 110 yeah doesn't mean it didn't hurt uh but I like you looked at his face too like in the slow-mo replay yeah and that's the face of a guy who I think thought he was coming out yeah you know yeah but they left him in and and he came back out and pitched another inning and got through it um so yeah I don't I don't have any concern right now uh yeah you know it looked like it looked like he wasn't too concerned either so um yeah just just one of those bad luck things you know he the play he did make on that ball that was coming back at his head though glad that's not the one that hit him yeah yeah I'm with you I'm with you uh Dave Roberts by the way confirmed Freddy Freeman was not Avail available tonight they're gon to re-evaluate his status tomorrow um Blake Williams is down in the uh in the clubhouse getting that um this is also from Blake Jack flarity said his wrist didn't bother him while he was pitching the sixth he feels fine right now might need to wait and see how it's feeling tomorrow Robert said that he should be fine likely to have some swelling um during the game flared he assured Roberts he was okay and they kept a close eye on him after that so um there you go the number from flarity Anthony that stood out to me and I posted this on Twitter um he threw 41 fast balls tonight 17 of them were called strikes that's a crazy number 17 of 41 fast balls dudes are just staring at and that's entirely a testament to how nasty his breaking stuff that stuff is so gross that dudes have to protect against it so then when they see 95 M hour fastball coming at them they don't even have time to react so 17 called strikes on Fast balls again just an absurd number from Jack flarity and it leads to helps him get to this line six inning six hits three earn two walks and five strikeouts uh let's get to some injury updates Anthony because in addition to the flarity news there was some uh dare I say interesting commentary pregame from the Dodgers from Dave Roberts as far as uh some guys Health uh you want to start with the good news or the bad news Anthony I'll let you choose today we we need to end on on a positive note so let's start let go bad news first okay let's start with the worst possible news Tyler glass now rehab is moving quote slow or excuse me rehab is quote slow moving he will need a rehab appear Dave Roberts saying quote the coming days will be telling as to whether or not he will be built up in time for October Roberts added he just isn't getting better he's not getting worse but the sore elbow is not getting better uh it's nearly September Labor Day is is this upcoming weekend Anthony and to hear that our star pitcher is not improving slow moving uh needs a rehab appearance whether he's built up for October in Jeopardy I mean this is pretty much this might be worse than the game we just watched the Dodgers lost 3 to2 and the glass Now update we got pregame might be worse Anthony this is absolutely worse if you told me before the day started that the Dodgers will lose this one by a run but glass now will be back as soon as possible based on the IL stint I'd be like let's book it take it let's take it um I I was I was told several times you know in chats and on Twitter that this was a phantom I Elon yeah um you know we we were both saying no it's not didn't that's not how this is playing out um and the Dodgers also Dave also said you know minimum time yeah he'll be back when he's eligible Max Mony and TI of the glass now baby they'll be back as soon as possible uh look this is not good no this is not good because depending on how long this plateau last for him it it's that much longer for the buildup yeah um and if he if he gets right back if he comes back like right up against it yeah like end of September and he and he does take the ball in the playoffs like you're looking at like a five ining Max yeah if he you know what I mean like like dep depending on when he does come back it could be shorter than that um yeah and that's that's not good news for a guy who you're looking to lead the rotation yeah and you know flarity has been good he has not been great of lately uh we're going to get to Yamamoto in a moment about to start a rehab appearance and so the number of things on the Dodgers bingo card that you feel like you can write in permanent marker seems to be getting smaller and smaller as it relates to starting pitching I do think there's some encouragement sort of down the pecking order if you will guys that maybe were more confident about today than we were a month ago but none of that matters if the numbers one two and three guys aren't filled out the way that they need to be and with glass now again the update is that rehab is quote slow moving he will need a rehab appearance whenever he starts pitching again which is not yet um the coming days will be telling and that Dave Roberts adding he just isn't getting any better his October buildup is definitely now in question the other bad news is Freddy Freeman uh is quote doing fine he wanted to play tonight but Dave Roberts says the team is trying to get his fractured finger some rest um they are not anticipating putting him on the injured list because 10 days isn't going to change anything basically as far as how his finger heals they're just hoping a couple days the day off yesterday a day off today um you know maybe one more day off some point in the coming days is sort of I don't know helps makes him feel a little bit better but he's got a fractured finger and he's gonna have to play with it and so uh the fact that there's even a level of concern that would say give him the day off today I'm not going to say this is nearly as concerning as glass now but you know in a situation where you feel like you need everything to no pun intended break your way this is not the kind of update you wanted from Freddy Freeman today uh yeah I mean I I I sort of expected it I I didn't think he was gonna play like I thought it would be excellent news on the finger front if he was in the lineup so when he wasn't in it I wasn't very surprised um you know I they're going to they like to stack days all teams do not just the Dodgers they like to stack days so when you have an off day um you know they they like to if you're nursing an injury or if you know they're saying you need rest or whatever like they like to stack them in that way with your with the off day so this wasn't too surprising for me um the fact that they haven't put him on the ilil and the fact that Freddy thought you know he could go today is good news um and guys can play with the fractured finger uh depending on which finger it is and it sounds like for him um it's it's going to be okay uh so yeah I mean I I this one for me like I wouldn't necessarily classify it as bad news at least I didn't when I saw it um now if that's the Dodgers so if he misses this entire Series yeah then I start to get concerned yeah I'm with you I'm with you let's go to the good let's cleanse the pallet here Anthony and let's talk Yoshi noo Yamamoto he had a bullpen it went really well Anthony he's going to start his rehab appearance with Oklahoma City uh on Wednesday two innings pitched is the expectation um we're talking about one starting pitcher one ace level guy going the wrong direction good news the other one seems to be at least be progressing in a way that many of us assumed might never happen this season so still some some speed bumps ahead right Clayton Kershaw went on his rehab appearance and then got shut down again so hopefully that's not the case with Yamamoto but um some good news here that he is a great Bullpen and starting a rehab appearance on Wednesday yeah I think the positive news with him also is like all the steps in this progression have been smooth so far yeah knock on wood um with Kershaw is a little different because he had met he was missing the entire season and this was his first time coming um you know Yamamoto is obviously pitched this year and so and the the ramp up to this point has been as expected so that's that's positive yeah uh yeah they I mean he's coming back back at a time when they really need them I think yeah yeah I mean again you look at the starting pitching from the Dodgers and in order for this group to be good in order for the four five and six guys that we could have a conversation about to to sort of matter you need one two and three because you could like Gavin Stone as much as you want if he's your number two starter in the postseason we've got issues you could be bullish on Bobby Miller after one encouraging start and yet if he's your number three starter you've got issues even Clayton Kershaw as much as I love him if he's any anything other than your fourth starter we've got issues and I know there are people that are going to tell me even if he's your fourth starter you've got issues but the Dodgers need Tyler glass now back they need Yoshi noobu Yamamoto back and they need Jack flarity to kind of hang on Baby keep some keep some gas left in the tank as this season winds down um in order for this all to matter and in the midst of all of it Anthony they're in the midst of a divisional race that is down to three games let's get to some questions here we got about 10 minutes left as always we appreciate over 1500 people here on YouTube on Twitter on Facebook we got a super chat here uh from John Corbin Burns gave up two extra base hits to Rafael Des on Corbin's last start Des bats left number 42 for Otani tomorrow I love this John first of all because it's a super chat but more importantly because there's optimism here Otani number 42 tomorrow Anthony yay or nay I like it let's do it 42 tomorrow there you go that's a that's a that's a layup question for us all the say say yes we're rooting for the Dodgers we're rooting for showe Otani that'd be a nice you know it feels like he's du it's been what like three or four days Anthony gez Louise I can't go this long he get if he gets out of August he's he's got 41 right now right yeah if he gets out of August with 43 which is very it seems very doable for him yeah man man it starts to look real good yeah I'm with you I'm with you uh John we appreciate the super chat noisy ninja with a question I'm confused by the Lux pinch hit why take Kiki out when he has at least one hit wouldn't it have made more sense to keep k kik in and take Chris Taylor out for Lux uh it was just a lefty righty thing Gavin Lux one of the best hitters in baseball against righties Kik Hernandez hits lefties better so with the righty reliever on the mound um look there was I I was questioning why Lux wasn't pinch hitting for Roos a roas gets the single and then Lux pinch hits later and I'm like okay that makes sense um with two outs they probably Anthony couldn't roll the dice because I'd rather have Kik up against ory than Chris Taylor but in order to get to Chris Taylor that Kik spot which ended up being Lux needs to reach base so it felt like Dave was kind of running out of options there if Freddy Freeman truly was unavailable yeah I think I I think that was you know pretty clear what some of the that situation was um he was trying to win it then you know and you know sometimes managers will will empty the gun they'll empty the clip if they just do not want to you know bll tax Bullpen or short bench that kind of stuff um they'll say like we're gonna win it or lose it right here kind of thing um and that's probably how Dave was managing this one considering the bench yeah yeah I'm with you Richard asks how long does Doc stay with Ferris bu I keep telling you Richard we got to get rid of Ferris because there's a ferris in the organization Jackson Ferris he's really good but how long does Dave stay with Ferris fer I have more faith taking a cruise on the Titanic um you know you and I have been pretty pretty consistent on this one Anthony uh that if it were up to us uh we'd be doing things differently than the Dodgers have been and yet um Corbin Burns versus Walker berer on Wednesday night baby yeah you know part of this is the way they manag the rotation in the regular season too like he's I I think at this first of all they're hoping that he he just he digs in the right spot and oils starts to spurt like yeah I mean look Bobby Miller none of us were expecting positive things from Bobby Miller and it was encouraging at the very least last time out so who knows you know maybe maybe a they find blind squirrel finds a nut twice in a week who knows yeah yeah exactly that's there's part of it there but I also think they need him to for for rotation construction based on how they want to go right like they they'd like to give guys extra rest um you know you talked about flarity hanging in there I'm not sure how the Tigers handled him I haven't looked at that but you know he's going to get extra rest with the Dodgers now and so like ber is a part of that plan because he's a guy who can start uh maybe not effectively but he's a guy who can take the ball for you and and and fill one of those days so um you know I I don't think that like like get basically get used to Walker buer taking the ball every like sixth day or seventh day or whatever it's going to be there I don't think they're going to boot him from the rotation anytime soon uh like I said because the the because yamamoto's out because glass now's out um you know they're they're going to keep him in there at least to sort of extend the rotation yeah yeah I'm with you I'm with you um you know it'll be interesting to see kind of like how this plays out because the Dodgers are now walking the tight RPP of trying to keep these guys sort of um trying to keep these guys preserved for the postseason while also recognizing that they're currently in the midst of a of a massive uh you know fight for the National League West and so you Trot Walker buer out there for for one particular reason uh and that's because you need to preserve guys and you're trying to just save everybody while at the same time you're three games up in the division that's a tough line to balance and and and look until some of these Yamamoto types or glass now types actually come back the options are limited now we all agree Landon Knack is a better option than wer buer the Dodgers might realize that at some point but for now Corbin Burns versus Walker berer join us on the postgame show show tomorrow night because that one should be fun with Walker ber uh on the bump for that one I mean it's it's a numbers thing too with that like they're not going to DFA Walker buer so they're just not going to it's you know we're coming up on September I know that I know that Hayward was Hayward had far more reason far less credibility far less loyalty within the organization um but the part of me thinks that that more likely now because I saw how they how they did the Jason Hayward thing that that makes me believe it's it's not likely but it's it's slightly more likely than it was in my mind a couple weeks ago I'll take that money they're they're not gonna DFA him look I agree with you I agree with you I'm just saying part of the reason I believe that is because of history and what history has told me you're talking a guy who's been was there a season and a half who really hadn't produced at like I agree he wasn't good enough ever to even be a starter on this team like in a regular POS as a regular position player so like that's that's a lot different than the history they have with ber and also the need they have an actual need for berer they didn't have a need for Jason Hayward this year it's true and again I'm not saying it's likely I wouldn't bet on it even slightly I'm just saying the idea that the Dodgers wouldn't do something because of loyalty or because of that Jason Hayward totally agree with you in a completely different category and yet I think there's a case to be made that that what they did to Jason Hayward could have a greater impact on the clubhouse than if they were to DFA Walker bu just because of the personality and the place that that personality held in the 2024 Clubhouse even though in bu's case we're talking about what he did for us two three years ago and kind of where he stands historically so I'm with you I don't think it's gonna happen I'm just saying more is on the table for me after how they handled Jason Hayward even that yeah even that Clubhouse argument is like look this is a guy who's well-liked who's been part of the organization his entire professional career who if they DFA a guy you know 10 starts or whatever it's been after he comes back from yeah Second Tommy John surgery that's not going to sit well with some guys in there either because that look they they take that stuff seriously like yeah you know how you treat players especially veterans they they take that stuff very seriously like I think they understood the Jason Hayward stuff like yeah they got that like even though for Freddy Freeman it sucked because it was one of his best friends and all of that stuff sure but like they also understood the the situation they understood that his tenure there was short they understood there was not a place for him all of that they these guys also know how the Dodgers handle their rotation and what the needs are and to just flat out cut bait on a guy like Walker bueler that's not going to sit well in that Clubhouse either maybe even maybe it's not for the exact same reasons as it was for Hayward um but there would be there would be some people barging into Dave Roberts's office I can tell you that for sure well so here here's what I'll say so there's a I've got a good friend that is connected to a guy who used to be on the Dodgers in the last couple of years and when the Hayward news came out the word that came back to me is like all the stuff you hear about Jason Hayward Clubhouse stuff and most of us talk about it in like theoretical terms because we just heard it like this person was like hayward's literally was the guy in the clubhouse like every single person in there regardless of where they came from regardless of what position they played regardless every single dude like loved loved loved Jason Hayward and so I'm just I'm only saying that because it is not overblown the Hayward Clubhouse culture etc etc not overblown even in the slightest and so I do think there's been a ripple effect I'm not saying they shouldn't have done it because I think at some point you got to make baseball decisions again I just to me if if you've gone down the road of we're making baseball decisions and not culture decisions baseball decisions and not loyalty decisions it makes me wonder how the walker buer story ends and I hope the walker buer story has a baseball impact though like yeah but you could make a case he's a worse baseball player right now than Jason Hayward was albe it at a different positions and different needs that's fine and I'm not arguing with you on that like that could absolutely be there's a case for that yeah what what he he is more valuable though for what they're trying to do than Jason Hayward was because of what got eight guys that could pitch make better starts than Walker Beer's giving okay but then that means you have to ABS you you have to just get rid of that guy you cannot keep him anymore and I don't think they're ready to do that and I think also uh like these are these are roster decision they're not just making these decisions based on like um sentiment yeah you know what I mean if they did then they would have kept Jason Hayward they would have resigned Justin Turner like right you know what I mean they're not there's there's specific baseball reasons why they're keeping this guy around um you know one of them is pretty obvious he's giving them length in their rotation uh for good or for bad or whatever like at this point they just need him to get some outs like between 12 I could give him length Anthony you give me the ball I'll give you six Innings it might take us a few hours to get there but I can get you six in your arm might fall off dude I mean I ain't throwing it hard it's not going to be hard it's going to be it's going to be we're going to be setting records with some Loopers coming down and hopefully finding the strike zone yeah I mean my point my point last time three and has more of a role than Hayward had he had 11 and a third his last three starts Walker be not good I'm not yeah I'm not saying he's been good but um look I think part of it too is that they don't think think Landon Knack is going to be on the playoff roster anyway yeah like if that's the name we want to put out there I like and I'm not saying that they think buer is necessarily but I hope not then we'll just keep this guy and and and let that guy continue to do his thing where he's at and we'll bring him up we need to also Ros are about to expand he may be up too yeah yeah they've got options I think there was somebody was saying on roesy with the way that days lined up and who's going to be a starter on certain days that roesy might be the guy but something to watch let's go out with one last Super Chat here from John Dodgers have not hit good pitching in the last post past 11 postseason years why should we believe the Dodgers will hit this year against the pitchers in the postseason Dodgers can't hit with runners in scoring position here's why John I appreciate it John but nobody hits good pitching yeah yeah uh why because sh Otani Mookie Betts Freddy Freeman teoscar Hernandez Gavin Lux Max Muny I'm gonna say Will Smith Tommy Edmond Miguel roas that's why K Hernandez that's why because they're going to have the best lineup in baseball when the postseason happens I genuinely believe that they're gonna have the best lineup in baseball when the postseason starts and that's the reason for optimism that's the reason for Hope yeah like every team every team's blank whatever they call their post game shows like they they all talk about this this stuff too about the guy in the line lineup who's hitting 113 over the last 25 games like yeah every team has that or the pitcher who has a 9 ER over his last four starts like every team has those things every team struggles with guys in scoring position at some point or in some game or whatever and the reason why the Dodgers might not hit good pitching well is because it's good pitching and most almost all teams don't hit good pitching well that's why it's good pitching otherwise it' just be okay pitching and sometimes it would be okay yeah John to your point Dodgers this season by the way 16th uh in with on Ops with Runners and scoring position so basically right League average smack dab in the middle um for the Dodgers this season so we'll see and and you know the Dodgers create more opportunities than almost every other team in baseball too yeah uh I was going to try and find if they've got it bats here uh 11 yeah yeah they're they're top five in at bats with Runners and scoring position it looks like yeah they're fourth fourth with uh fourth in at bats with runners in scoring position um so 1138 so there you go there you go well everybody that's going to do it for us tonight we appreciate you joining us as always on Dodger heads apologize that we couldn't get a win for you the Dodgers lose three to2 Jack flarity okay Bullpen solid offense can't get it done one for eight with runners in scoring position some bad luck from an umpiring perspective stay tuned for the Umpire scorecard in the morning but at the end of the day the Dodgers had chances even regardless of the Umpire and could not get them done sh Otani Muki bets um just couldn't get the job done Will Smith continues to slump so lots to talk about again a bad glass now injury update a good Yamamoto injury update so lots going on in the land of the Dodgers and they are back tomorrow walk surprises us tomorrow positively I assume you're saying right yes well we can't we're not going to be surprised if he's bad that's true you want let's you want to throw a number out there we going five five innings we get five innings two runs seven strike out two walks wow five innings two runs seven strikeouts you heard it here first Anthony wado I love it I love it um I am gonna go four Innings two runs that's gonna be my Walker buer which would still be positively surprising take it you and me both you and me both Bullpen not in terrible shape off day yesterday only three guys used tonight so uh who knows who knows what happens so that's Anthony I'm Jeff as always again thank you joining us check out Dodger bl.com if you're on the YouTube page stick around here because Blake was at the game some good postgame press conference stuff Jack flarity speaking to the media that'll be up on our YouTube page right here dodgerblue 1958 and if you're a podcast person Apple Spotify Google find the Dodger heads podcast go ahead subscribe rate and review we would greatly appreciate it enjoy the rest of your night everybody as always go Dodgers