Dodgers need to relieve themselves of Kenley Jansen

It’s time to close the book on Kenley Jansen.

His time as the Dodgers closer is at the end. It was a good run. He had his moments. 

When he is on, he is one of the best relief pitchers in the league.

But when he is struggling, he costs the Dodgers games. Important games. At crucial times during the season.

Last week was a good example.

He blew two saves against the surprising San Francisco Giants. The Dodgers were within striking distance of first place in the National League West standings when the series between the Dodgers and Giants started on Monday. The Dodgers were one game back and starting a four-game set against the first-place Giants.

In the third game of the series, with the Dodgers up 2-1 in the ninth inning, Jansen gave up three runs including a go-ahead, two-run home run to Wilmer Flores, and the Dodgers lost the game, 4-2.

The next night, Jansen gave up four runs in the ninth inning and blew a two-run lead. The Giants won that game, 5-3, and the Dodgers fell to three games out of first place as the series came to a close.

Without Jansen, the Dodgers probably don’t have the second best record in the majors. He was unhittable in June, gave up zero earned runs, zero runs of any sort, and was 8-for-8 in save opportunities. His June numbers were All Star worthy, even though he was not an All Star. He had 10 strikeouts in 11 games and 10.1 innings. He walked only four batters in those 11 appearances and lowered his ERA to 1.38 at one point.

But July has been a much different story.

Jansen has surrendered eight earned runs in 6.2 innings. He has eight strikeouts and seven walks in that stretch. He is 2-for-5 in save opportunities, and two of his three blown saves came against the Giants when the Dodgers had a chance to close the gap in the standings. 

Bad timing. Bad performances. Bad news.

Jansen’s ERA went from 1.38 in June to 3.05 in July. It begs the question, what are the Dodgers options with Jansen?

There are three possibilities. 

One is to replace him with another closer. There are a few options: Blake Treinen, Joe Kelly, David Price. But it doesn’t look like manager Dave Roberts is going to choose any of those relievers over Jansen. Jansen closed out the game against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday night. The Dodgers had a 1-0 lead and Roberts brought in Jansen to pitch the ninth inning. Even though Jansen walked a batter with two outs, he delivered with his 22nd save of the season.

Whew!

But every game that Jansen has appeared in recent weeks has been too close for comfort.

The second option is to trade for a closer. The Chicago Cubs are selling and their closer, Craig Kimbrel, is one of the players the Cubs are considering trading. Are the Dodgers willing to pay the price for a legitimate closer like Kimbrel? What is the asking price? Are the Dodgers willing to bring in a pitcher that will ultimately destroy Jansen’s confidence? The answer to all those questions will surface by the end of the month. July 31 is the trade deadline.

The third option is to stand pat. The Dodgers have a couple reliable relievers expected to return off the injured list. Corey Knebel is the most intriguing of the pitchers. He is definitely an option at closer if he returns at 100%. The other reliever who will make an impact is Jimmy Nelson. He is not only a reliable arm out of the bullpen, but he can make a spot start here and there. The starting rotation is becoming another glaring hole as the trade deadline nears. 

But that’s another topic for another day. 

Dodgers starting pitching power rankings:

1. Walker Buehler
2. Julio Urias
3. Tony Gonsolin
4. Josiah Gray
5. David Price 

The Dodgers played their 101st game on Sunday, a 3-2 win over the visiting Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium. Kelly pitched the ninth inning to earn the save, an unexpected surprise for sure. The season is about two-thirds over and it doesn’t look like the Giants are going to fade anytime soon. It also looks like the Dodgers are in the fight for a wild-card spot in the playoffs. That also means those pesky San Diego Padres, Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves are all of a sudden threats to the Dodgers repeating as World Series champions.

The Dodgers (61-40) start a three-game series against the first-place Giants on Tuesday. The Dodgers have another chance to make up some ground, even take over first place in the NL West standings. It will take a sweep, but the opportunity is there. The Dodgers end the week with a series against the lowly Diamondbacks in Arizona starting on Friday. 

Dodgers face the Giants with first place in the NL West on the line

The Dodgers face the surprising San Francisco Giants in the most important series of the season this week.

Not only is this the last time the Dodgers play the Giants at Dodger Stadium in the regular season, it could determine who wins the National League West championship.

First of all, who was the genius who made the schedule? The Dodgers should play the Giants the last weekend of every season. This should be non-negotiable. The best rivalry in baseball deserves to be played at the pinnacle of the season, not in the middle of July.

Secondly, this series couldn’t have come at a worse time for the Dodgers. 

The Giants have a one-game lead over the Dodgers in the standings. The four-game series, which starts Monday, could tip the advantage to either team when it ends on Thursday.

The Dodgers could have a three-game lead in the NL West when this series is over.

The Giants could have a five-game lead over the Dodgers when the series is over.

To make things worse, the Dodgers are definitely at a significant disadvantage in this series.

Not only is Trevor Bauer going through some things and is unavailable until at least July 27, if ever again for the Dodgers, Clayton Kershaw is on the injured list until the beginning of August at the earliest. Half the Dodgers rotation is out of commission in this crucial series.

Add that Corey Seager is still on the mend and it makes for a bad combination of circumstances for the Dodgers. Throw in that Mookie Betts is nursing a sore hip and Gavin Lux pulled a hamstring in Sunday’s game against the Colorado Rockies and the Dodgers are hurting for some hitters. 

Tony Gonsolin, who has been inconsistent at best, starts against Kevin Gausman in Game 1 of the series against the Giants. Gausman has been one of the best pitchers in the National League with a 9-3 record and a 1.73 ERA. Gonsolin is making his seventh start of the season and is 1-0 with a 2.13 ERA. It’s not embarrassing, but far from impressive next to Gausman’s numbers. The Giants have the advantage in Game 1.

The Dodgers have yet to announce a starter for Game 2. That means it’s probably a bullpen game. So, hopefully Gonsolin can go more than five innings in Game 1 to give the Dodgers bullpen a decent chance in Game 2. The Giants are scheduled to start Alex Wood. Don’t the Dodgers wish they signed Wood when they had the chance? He is 8-3 with a 3.67 ERA and having one of the best seasons of his career. The Giants probably have the edge in Game 2.

Julio Urias is scheduled to start Game 3 of this series against Logan Webb. Urias has been fantastic. If not for Jacob deGrom of the New York Mets, Urias would probably be the favorite for the Cy Young Award. He leads the majors in wins, is 12-3 with a 3.78 ERA and, for whatever reason, the Dodgers give him tons of run support. 

Webb is having a very pedestrian season, at 4-3 with a 3.54 ERA. He is the Gonsolin of the Giants rotation. The Dodgers should be in good shape for Game 3.

In Game 4, Walker Beuhler is set to start against Anthony DeSclafani. Buehler is having a Cy Young Award-caliber season, too. He is 10-1 with a 2.36 ERA and has 114 strikeouts in 114.1 innings.

DeSclafani is no slouch either, with a 10-3 record and 2.68 ERA. The final game of this series looks like a pitchers duel on the horizon. Runs will be at a premium. As long as this game doesn’t go into extra innings, the Dodgers should be fine. 

Speaking of extra innings, the Dodgers exposed one of its biggest weaknesses in the series finale against the Rockies on Sunday. The Dodgers took two of three games against the Rockies over the weekend, but the Dodgers lost Sunday’s game, 6-5, on a walk-off, two-run home run by Charlie Blackmon in the 10th inning. That dropped the Dodgers to 1-9 in extra inning games. Ouch!

The Dodgers starting pitchers power rankings:

1. Julio Urias
2. Walker Buehler
3. Tony Gonsolin
4. David Price

The Dodgers (58-36) play the Rockies at Dodger Stadium in a three-game series that starts on Friday to close out the week. That should give the Dodgers a little breather before heading to Frisco for a three-game series against the Giants. The next two weeks could seal the fate of the Dodgers in their pursuit of a ninth NL West title in a row. It could also give Dodger fans a glimpse of how the Dodgers stack up against the Giants. It is going to be another long two weeks for the Dodgers. 

Dodgers bats break out after hitting low point

Last week might have been the longest week in Dodgers history.

At least it ended on a high note. The Dodgers scored a Dodger Stadium record 22 runs on Saturday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks. They hit eight home runs, tying a Dodger Stadium record, and two grand slams in a 22-1 rout.

The Dodgers had to rally for three runs in the eighth inning to tie the score against the Diamondbacks before winning Sunday’s game, 7-4, in the bottom of the ninth inning on a three-run, walk-off home run by Max Muncy.

The Dodgers improved their record in one-run games in 2021 to 12-16, not exactly a reassuring record. The Dodgers are an equally alarming 1-7 in extra-inning games in the first half of 2021. 

The Dodgers can point to a number of high points as the first half of the season comes to an unofficial end. The Dodgers lead the majors in run differential, ERA and opposing batting average. Still, it’s only good enough for the second best record in the National League. 

Before Saturday night’s game, the Dodgers reached one of the lowest points in franchise history.

The Trevor Bauer saga alone is exhausting. It is far from over. His initial seven-day paid leave was extended another week. The Dodgers canceled his bobblehead night and pulled all his merchandise from the stadium stores. Some of his teammates unfollowed him on social media. It certainly looks like the Dodgers are trying to distance themselves as far away from Bauer as possible.

In the era of coronavirus, this might be a smart move.

But the reason to keep Bauer at a safe distance has nothing to do with avoiding catching a deadly disease.

He is a cancer. There is no doubt of that. Is he toxic enough to kill the Dodgers season? That has yet to be seen. 

But if the Dodgers performance over the past week is any indication of what to expect for the rest of the season, it doesn’t look good.

The Dodgers dropped three of four games to the mediocre Miami Marlins to start the week. The same problems that have plagued the Dodgers all season surfaced. Lack of timely hitting and an inconsistent bullpen led to three losses in a row to start the series. The Dodgers were able to salvage the fourth game, behind a gem from Julio Urias. He went seven innings, allowed a solo home run to Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the first inning, and struck out nine without giving up another run to win his 11th game of the season.

The Dodgers needed that.

But the good vibes didn’t last long.

The Dodgers lost the opener of the weekend series to the lowly, last-place Diamondbacks on Friday. In addition to struggling at the plate and out of the bullpen, the Dodgers butchered the baseball in the field. They committed two errors, and issued two bases-loaded walks in the ninth inning, in losing 5-2.

How embarrassing.

If that wasn’t painful enough to watch, the Dodgers put Clayton Kershaw on the 10-day injured list. It looks like a precautionary move, and gives him time to rest over the All Star break. An MRI revealed Kershaw has a sore elbow, no inflammation. The last thing the Dodgers need is to lose another starter. The starting rotation has been the strongest part of the Dodgers team this year.

Dodgers starting pitchers power rankings:

1. Julio Urias
2. Walker Buehler
3. Tony Gonsolin
4. David Price
5. Jake Reed

The All-Star Game is Tuesday. Representing the Dodgers on the All Star team are Justin Turner, Max Muncy, Chris Taylor and Walker Buehler. Mookie Betts was selected to the team, but decided to skip the All-Star Game. Dave Roberts is the manager of the National League All Stars. 

The Dodgers (56-35) start a weekend series against the Colorado Rockies on Friday. Who knows if anything will be resolved in the Bauer saga by then. The only thing that is certain is the Dodgers are in second place in the National League West standings, behind those surprising San Francisco Giants, at the All Star break. 

Bauer puts Dodgers in a difficult position

It was only a matter of time before Trevor Bauer was suspended.

The reason, well that was a little out of left field.

Bauer was put on seven-day paid administrative leave as he faces sexual assault charges, and investigations from the Pasadena Police Department and Major League Baseball.

Remember when sticky stuff was his biggest problem?

The more starts Bauer misses, the more likely the Dodgers miss the playoffs.

But that is not the biggest problem facing the Dodgers or baseball or professional sports.

When will sexual assault, domestic violence, any sort of harassment women in sports face going to stop being tolerated? 

It’s beyond tolerated. It’s accepted behavior on so many levels throughout sports, throughout politics, throughout society. 

If baseball and the Dodgers want to send the right message, Bauer should never be allowed to play baseball again.

Baseball has banned players for less -- gambling, fixing games, using steroids, abusing their own bodies. But when it comes to abusing women’s bodies, all bets are off. Baseball says, have at it. Keep those dollars rolling in and baseball players on the field.

It’s pathetic.

Bauer missed his scheduled start against the Washington Nationals on Sunday. The Dodgers won the game anyway, 5-1, going with a bullpen game. Garrett Cleavinger started and the Dodgers used eight pitchers to win their ninth game in a row. Losing Bauer didn’t hurt the Dodgers much this time. But how many times can the Dodgers use eight pitchers in a game before it starts to cause more damage than good?

All the while Bauer brought his chaos with him to Washington, D.C., the Dodgers were riding a nine-game winning streak, moving into first-place tie with the surprising San Francisco Giants and visiting the White House to celebrate their 2020 World Series championship.

Instead of enjoying a long-awaited midseason surge and their recent success, the Dodgers have been answering questions about Bauer.

Can they release him?

Can they trade him?

Can they welcome him back to the rotation?

How will this affect the team?

Does he deserve a spot on the team?

How long will the investigations last? 

How will fans react to Bauer when he steps on the field again?

Because he will play again this season.

Will he be met with applause and cheers?

Or will fans boo him like a starter for the Giants?

It’s hard rooting for a team that has a player who is accused of sexual assault.

But Bauer will still have fans.

There will be those who say, root for the team, not the players.

The players are not perfect, but they do make up the teams. 

This will be a difficult hurdle for the Dodgers to overcome.

But one they can fix by simply saying, bye Bauer.

Dodger starter power rankings:

1. Walker Buehler
2. Julio Urias
3. Clayton Kershaw
4. Victor Gonzalez
5. Garrett Cleavinger

The Chicago Cubs were tied for first place in the National League Central standings when they no-hit the Dodgers on June 24. Since then, the Cubs lost eight games in a row and were 8.5 games out of first place after losing 3-2 to the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday. 

The Dodgers head to Miami to start a four-game series against the Marlins on Monday, then return home for a weekend series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Bauer’s seven-day leave ends on Saturday against the Diamondbacks.