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2011 Dodgers Season - Thanks For Everything
The Dodgers defeated the defending champion Giants on national television to start the season. Everyone witnessed Clayton Kershaw shutdown our rivals but that wasn't the headlines the following day. Two morons attacked, Bryan Stow, a Giants fan, in the Dodger Stadium parking lot. This unfortunate event gave the stadium a bad reputation and even scared fans from attending games. This was another problem Frank McCourt had to deal with.
Two days later, Andre Ethier began a streak. A streak that was very entertaining to watch even though the Dodgers were struggling to win games. Ethier was one game away from tying Tommy Davis for the Los Angeles Dodgers hitting streak record. The 30-game hit streak ended on May 8th in New York. Ethier played well enough to make the All-Star team as a replacement. Shortly after the All-Star break, he became very frustrated. He couldn't hit and his anger towards management was becoming a story. I know Ethier isn't happy to be in Los Angeles, so I wonder what they will do with him next season. Maybe he'll want to stay if the Dodgers sign a big name this off-season.
The last couple of months made me forget that Jonathan Broxton even pitched for the Dodgers this season. He didn't make it to June and was put on the disabled list with seven saves. He hasn't been the same since Matt Stairs hit that home run against him the 2008 NLDS.
The Dodgers didn't quit on their season in August. They kept playing hard and it showed. They were 12 games under .500 at one point in the season and ended up with an (82-79) record. Since the Dodgers and Nationals were out of the playoff race in September, MLB never rescheduled their game that was rained out. Matt Kemp ended the season with 39 home runs and 40 stolen bases. He was only one home run shy of becoming the 5th player in MLB history to have a 40/40 season.
There is so much to say about this season.
Divorce and Bankruptcy
Frank McCourt's divorce was the spotlight going into Spring Training. Frank and Jamie still hadn't come to a settlement. Information about the Dodgers money was being presented in court during their trial, which caught the eye of MLB. Frank filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June because MLB didn't approve his FOX television deal. This just added more off-field drama which was painful to see happening to the team. It sucks that we (fans) have to go through all this crap for no reason. He's just wasting more money on paying his lawyers than paying some players this season like Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp. When will it end????
Off-Season Signings
The Dodgers bring in a couple of veterans including Juan Uribe. Tony Gwynn Jr., Matt Guerrier, Mike MacDougal, Jon Garland, Marcus Thames and Dioner Navarro.
It was disappointing just how bad Juan Uribe played this entire season. He barely hit over .200 and only had 4 HRs. He performed so bad that one of my favorite websites was created: Emo Juan Uribe.
Tony Gwynn Jr. was a nice signing for the Dodgers because he had speed and played some great defense at times. I remember two games this year that TGJ saved with a diving catch to end the game. One game was in Colorado and the other was at Dodger Stadium against the San Diego Padres.
Matt Guerrier and Mike MacDougal didn't really impress me this season. They allowed quite a few inherited runners to score which doesn't reflect their ERA. They also were great leaders in the bullpen for the young guys.
Two players the Dodgers released during the middle of the season were Marcus Thames and Dioner Navarro. Thames didn't play that much but he failed to come through in clutch spots. That lead to the release of Thames.
Dioner Navarro was a mystery. At times, it looked like he enjoyed playing and other times he didn't. The Dodgers won a couple games, including a walk-off hit against the Padres, where Navarro drove in the only run of the game. Towards the middle of August is when I started to notice Navarro getting lazy behind the plate. He was missing catch-able pitches, which allowed runners to advance. It seemed like he didn't want to be there anymore. I understand the Dodgers were 12 games under .500 but you play hard everyday. Look at Jamey Carroll, who was the hardest working player on the Dodgers. Navarro got the boot at the end of August and I feel changed the clubhouse a little bit. The Dodgers kept winning and finished on a positive note.
Rookies
It's incredible how many rookies played for the Dodgers this season and most of them stepped right now.
The list includes Rubby De La Rosa, Javy Guerra, Kenley Jansen, Nathan Eovaldi, Scott Elbert, Josh Lindblom, Dee Gordon, Jerry Sands, Justin Sellers, Russ Mitchell, Ivan DeJesus Jr., Trent Oeltjen and Tim Federowicz.
De La Rosa made his debut out of the bullpen in May. When Garland went down with a season-ending injury, the Dodgers put Rubby into the rotation. He pitched fine and won his first two starts. His fastball could hit triple digits on the radar gun. Horrible news came on August 1st when the Dodgers announced that De La Rosa was having Tommy John surgery. He will likely miss the 2012 season unless he heals like Stephen Strasburg.
Javy Guerra and Kenley Jansen were nice additions to the bullpen. Guerra recorded his first major league save on May 25 and his second save opportunity was almost a month later on June 19. The Dodgers made Guerra their full time closer in the beginning of July. He only blew two games the entire season, one of which came just two days ago in the 10th inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
We got a glimpse of Kenley Jansen last season. Since he's a big guy, his fastball can also reach triple digits. Jansen broke a record this season with 16.1 K/9. (He strikes out at least 16 batters for every 9 innings he pitches) It's hard to believe Jansen use to be a catcher.
Jerry Sands, Dee Gordon and Justin Sellers all became fan favorites. The Dodgers have a bright future with these young guys. Gordon's speed is tremendous to watch, especially when he hits the ball into the outfield. He can turn a routine single into a double. When Gordon was injured and the Dodgers traded away Rafael Furcal, they needed someone to help Jamey Carroll. They called up Justin Sellers, who I didn't know anything about. I love his hard work and especially his defense. Hopefully he can help Dee sharpen his defense for next year. Jerry Sands has some great potential and it started showing the last two weeks of the season. He has a great arm in the outfield and hopefully he brings his power to the bat next season.
Eugenio Velez
Yes, Eugenio Velez gets his own paragraph. I feel bad that Velez wasn't able to get a hit during his time in the Majors. He made his Dodgers debut on July 4th as a pinch hitter. At the time, no one expected Velez would break a record. He had 37 ABs this season without a single hit. I was rooting for him the last couple weeks but it wasn't meant to be. He did score the winning run against the Giants on September 9 and helped Kershaw get his 18th win of the season. I got this from Velez's profile on ESPN (which doesn't include his last pinch-hit AB on Wednesday):
Congratulations to Velez, who after going 0-for-3 (three strikeouts) on Friday, is now the all-time record holder for most at-bats in a hitless season with 36, the LA Times reports.
He probably won't be on the Dodgers next season, but I hope he gets an opportunity to finally break his hitless streak.Jamey Carroll
The most underrated Dodger of the season for me. His work ethic was outstanding the entire year. He probably expected to be a bench player that would play once or twice a week at the most. Since Rafael Furcal, Juan Uribe, and Casey Blake all went down with injuries, the Dodgers had to rely on Jamey Carroll and Aaron Miles. Carroll didn't drive in runs but he was constantly on base for Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp. He made outstanding plays on defense and I even made a blog post about why Carroll deserved to be on the All-Star team. He didn't make it, oh well.
Don Mattingly
I was happy when the Dodgers gave the job to Don Mattingly. I had a feeling that learning from Joe Torre wasn't such a bad thing. Joe Torre was successful in New York and Los Angeles, so why couldn't Mattingly be successful? Injuries and some players struggling were some reasons the Dodgers didn't get off to a great start. That wasn't Mattingly's fault. The young rookies really stepped up and did what Mattingly asked. He ended the season with a winning record and the team didn't collapse at the end like the Boston Redsox or Atlanta Braves.
MVP
Matt Kemp should be the National League MVP. His numbers are ridiculous and he had no protection the entire season. Why teams kept pitching to him earlier in the season would blow my mind. It was incredible to watch on a nightly basis. His speed on the base paths, his power and at times, his defense. He still needs to fix some things on defense but he's got the tools to be a great player for many years. I attended two games where Matt Kemp hit a walk-off home run in extra innings. (against Braves/Rockies)
2011 League Ranks:
• 3rd in NL in BA (.324)
• 1st in NL in HR (39)
• 1st in NL in RBI (126)
• 1st in NL in R (115)
• 8th in NL in BB (74)
• 2nd in NL in SB (40)
• 2nd in NL in SLG (.586)
• 2nd in NL in OPS (.986)
When Matt Kemp broke up with Rihanna after the 2010 season, I was one of those who believed he would have a bounce back season. I even named one of my fantasy baseball teams after him (and yes, he was on my team along with Ethier & Kershaw):
Cy Young
In just his fourth major league season, Clayton Kershaw was the most impressive pitcher in the National League. At the age of 23, he won the NL pitching Triple Crown. Every time a pitcher has won the Triple Crown, they also won the Cy Young. He should be a lock for the award. Roy Halladay had another great year but Kershaw just had a better one. My favorite part of the Kershaw's season was going 5-0 against the [Defending Champions] San Francisco Giants.
2011 League Ranks:
• 1st in NL in W (21)
• 3rd in NL in IP (233.1)
• 1st in NL in SO (248)
• 1st in NL in ERA (2.28)
• 1st in NL in WHIP (0.98)
• 2nd in NL in W% (.808)
• 3rd in NL in CG (5)
There was a writer last season, by the name of Jon Heyman, who tweeted that Clayton Kershaw wasn't that good. Nobody knows why he would say something like that. He probably doesn't even watch when the west coast play. I saved his statement on my computer and I'll share it:
Vin Scully
The best in the business. I always missed listening to his voice when the Dodgers were on the road and instead I had to listen to Eric Collins and Steve Lyons. His stories are always fascinating even if he's told it three times in the same series. When he said good night everybody after a ball game, I would say" Good Night Vinny". I know he couldn't hear me.
Vin Scully is coming back for another season! It wouldn't be the same without him.
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Thanks to the Dodgers for a wonderful season. This season was extra special because I met a lot of new friends. I enjoyed going to ball games with my family and friends as well.
Let's hope McCourt is gone during the off-season and we get new ownership. We're one power hitter away from making the playoffs.
See you guys on April 5th, 2012 in San Diego!
Picture Credit: AP, ESPN, Dodgers and MSTI (for the gif)
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