Roger Arrieta
As we all watched the last game of the World Series and relished in joy, we knew in our hearts that there were changes coming to our team. The speculation of Justin Turner going elsewhere seemed to captivate the main concerns from fans. I for one could see both sides of the dilemma management had on their hands and I am sure uneasy feelings in their debates as to what move to make. Will we have a new hot corner position filled by Edwin Rios, and keep money aside for arguably the best player in baseball, Corey Seager? Let us all hope we get an answer to that question later this year, after another strong season from our MVP.
As the calendar turned to February and we read tweets from both Kiké Hernandez and then Joc Pederson sending us their good-byes, we were all still on the edge of the bleacher seats focused on JT and his decision. Fans in mass were worried about who could even try to replace Kiké’s energy on the field and in the dugout. The small characters of the DNA that scouts and coaches look for, these strengths cannot be taught but they are things players are born with and what teams spend all the time and effort looking for.
Kiké with his rally caps and antics energizing the team in a year especially without fans, those are the charms that need to be replaced. And Joc with his bombs, especially when he went on a hot streak, as a fan it seemed pitchers were helpless to get the ball past him. His smooth and almost effortless-looking swing would launch balls well past the confines of Chavez Ravine.
February 2nd and 5th, 2021 feels a year away now as we have begun the season and the team is on a mini-run of wins. But a new name has emerged playing in the outfield with a spark of character strength in 25-year-old Zach McKinstry. His inside the park home run on April 3rd. in Denver showed us all the character of the young man from Fort Wayne Indiana. The first home run of his career in his 16th at-bat and the celebration after was probably the result of his surprisingly unpredictable homer. It also maybe showed us a glimpse of the potential spark the team is needing to replace.
His road to the majors was not a clear path but had some bumps on the way. In 2015, after playing shortstop in his final year of high school in Fort Wayne, the McKinstry family home in Indiana, unfortunately, burned down. The family was not at home at the time, so thankfully it was only the accolades from previous accomplishments that were lost.
Undrafted Zach chose to attend Central Michigan University. The next year the Dodgers picked Zach in the 33 round, of the 2016 draft and moved him to Great Lake and the home of the Loons. His 4 years in the minors finished strong the last 2 years positionally playing all outfield spots along with 2B, 3B, and SS. He compiled 26 home runs, a .290 batting average in 193 games played.
Let us all root for the Dodgers this year to help replace some of the trophies lost at the McKinstry home.
At the time of writing, updates on Kiké and Joc, have started off slow in their new homes. Kiké has started the year going 2 for 16 with a couple of RBI’s and Joc is stuck at no hits in 13 attempts with a sacrifice fly.
