Cody Snavely
Happy Monday! The Los Angeles Dodgers rolled into the all-star break losers of five of their last six games but got a much-needed break for most of the roster; however, multiple stars would continue the grind of a long season heading to Arlington, Texas for the mid-summer classic, and home run derby.
After an eventful week for Dodgers players at this year’s all-star game, the Dodgers kick off the unofficial second half of the season, starting with a seven-game homestand that will see them welcome the Boston Red Sox for three games over the weekend.
Over the past week, the Dodgers made numerous moves on the roster, activating or planning to activate players and updates on Yamamoto, Graterol, and more, along with plenty of trade rumors as we are less than ten days away from the July 30th deadline.
Week recap (7/15/2024-7/21/2024)
2024 All-Star Week Recap: Unlike most years, the Los Angeles Dodgers actually had a great showcase at this year’s mid-summer classic, kicking off with Teoscar Hernández, who would steal that show at this year’s T-Mobile Home Run Derby, becoming the first Dodgers player to win the tournament.
In the new format, Hernández would squeak by the first round, having just enough to move on to the semi-final after hitting nineteen home runs in the first round.
The semi-final match was a showdown between Teoscar Hernández and Phillies all-star third baseman Alec Bohm, who had hit the most home runs in the first round at twenty-one.
Despite a back-and-forth affair that ended in a swing off, Teoscar Hernández ended up victorious, going two-for-three in the swing off, moving on to face young star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals.
Bobby Witt would put on a late comeback but would fall just short in the final round, losing to Teoscar Hernández, who was in the bottom third of betting odds prior to the start.
As for the all-star game itself, the Dodgers would wind up with two starters in the lineup, with Shohei Ohtani voted in as the starting DH and Teoscar Hernándezbeing added as a sub for San Diego Padres outfielder Fernando Tatís Jr., who was inactive.
Despite Shohei Ohtani clobbering a massive three-run homerun off Red Sox all-star pitcher Tanner Houck, the National League could not come away with the victory as they would lose their tenth game in eleven tries.
Red Sox Recap: After a rocky week to end the first half of the 2024 regular season, the Dodgers looked to get back to playing good baseball. Their first test was the red-hot Boston Red Sox, who surprised the baseball world and held the third and final American League wild-card spot.
The Dodgers, who finished the season losing seven of their ten games, faced a Red Sox team that was the complete opposite, with seven wins in their last ten. However, the Sox would be no match for the Dodgers in this series, as LA would finish off a three-game weekend series sweep.
Gavin Stone was himself in game one, only allowing one run as the Dodgers offense would score just enough to start the second half with a W in the win column thanks to a late go-ahead grand slam by Freddie Freeman.
In game two, the Dodgers would walk off in the tenth inning by Dodgers catcher Will Smith, and James Paxton would be nails against his former team despite a shaky first inning where the southpaw gave up two runs.
- Game One: 4-1, W
- Game Two: 7-6, W
- Game Three: 9-6, W
Injury Notes
The Los Angeles Dodgers have received plenty of injury updates over the past week, including numerous updates on pitching and offensive players, as the team gets ready to kick off the second half of play.
Starting with right-handed pitcher Tyler Glasnow, who was placed on the 15-day injured list during the Philadelphia Phillies series due to back tightness.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts at the time stated that it was not load management for Glasnow, who is inching closer to his career high in innings (120), but was just more of a precautionary injured list stint as the team was getting closer to the all-star break.
Glasnow would ultimately miss only one start, which would have been in the Detroit Tigers series, in which the team went with a bullpen game to end the season. Glasnow threw a three-inning sim game over the week, and with all signs lighting green, the Dodgers will activate him for the San Fransisco Giants series.
Another starter that will join Glasnow during the four-game series against the San Francisco Giants will be veteran left-handed pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who has missed the entire season until this point rehabbing from offseason shoulder surgery.
Kershaw, 36, stated that he aimed for a “mid-summer” return date, and that is right on schedule as the lefty will rejoin a Dodgers starting rotation that desperately needs him as they have struggled with injuries over the last two months.
In three minor league rehab starts, Kershaw was dominant, tossing ten innings and collecting twelve strikeouts while posting a 3.60 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. Regarding velocity, the lefty was hovering around 90-92mph. Still, in his recent starts, when pitching in the fourth inning, his velocity dipped into the high eighties, which Kershaw attributed to not being built up to approximately eighty to one hundred pitches.
The Dodgers also got an update on right-handed pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who has been sidelined since mid-June with a strained rotator cuff.
Dave Roberts said the righty would begin throwing the ball before the all-star break. Still, we have learned that Yamamoto is no longer feeling pain or discomfort in his shoulder and has already started stretching his catch play to two hundred feet, but he still has no timetable for bullpens.
Before yesterday’s game, the Los Angeles Dodgers also activated left-handed outfielder Jason Heyward off the 10-day injured list, who has missed the last two weeks with a knee contusion.
In his place, the Dodgers optioned James Outman, who, upon his recall from Triple-A OKC, was hitting .200/.250/.200 with a .450 OPS in nine games.
Both right-handed pitchers Micahel Grove and Brusdar Graterol have joined the OKC Baseball Club to begin their rehab assignment.
Dave Roberts stated that it was a spring training-esque build-up as each pitcher will need about five to seven rehab outings before being activated to rejoin the big league club.
Grove has been on the injured list since June with a lat strain, and Graterol has yet to appear during the 2024 season and only pitched once in the 2024 Cactus League before being shut down with a shoulder issue.
Trade rumors
As we inch closer to the 2024 Major League Baseball trade deadline, the rumor mill is in full force, and the Dodgers have been connected to multiple names throughout the league, according to many insiders.
The Dodgers, who spent over one billion dollars this offseason, are expected to be aggressive at this year’s trade deadline, looking to add elite/frontend talent as compared to the marginal moves they have made in years past.
The Dodgers are looking for stars to help them get the monkey off the back and bring the city its first full-season championship since 1988, and according to ESPN’s Alden González, the Dodgers are heavily interested in left-handed starting pitchers Garret Chrochet and Luis Robert Jr.
It is interesting that the Dodgers, due to Chrochet’s innings limit, value him more as a possible relief pitching option come October above all else. However, with the years of control from both players, it will cost the Dodgers a lot.
Another player who has been linked to the Dodgers and Baltimore Orioles is Detroit Tigers left-handed pitcher Tarik Skubal, an American League Cy Young favorite.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports stated that both clubs have begun to submit trade packages, but unless blown away by an offer, the Tigers are unlikely to trade the lefty and his two-plus years of team control.
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