DODGERS NEWS/RUMORS/AROUND MLB Thread

Didn't Kemp say the same thing to the press I think I should start? If you aren't one of the top three you are the 4th or lower. When Dre says he is one of the top three he is essentially and functionally saying I am not a 4th outfielder and he said it to the press. This is how it started last year. I mean come on saying I am one of the top three is saying I am not the 4th.

http://articles.latimes.com/2014/feb/14/sports/la-sp-dn-dodgers-matt-kemp-20140214
“I don’t know where you get this fourth outfielder talk from, man. You all love talking about four outfielders, man. That’s like the question of the day every day. I think all four of us outfielders feel the same way. None of us are fourth outfielders. Everybody wants to play every day. I won’t accept that role. I can’t accept that role.”

Now go ahead and parse the difference in the words and innuendo and personalities and egos and characters of the players. Note he said everybody want to play every day and included all of them.

 

So maybe the Angel's are looking for an everyday leftfielder that's available now?!?!?!

 

The difference is Kemp said "I won’t accept that role. I can’t accept that role.” before the season ever started, and Ethier has already accepted and played that role for two years before saying he wanted to play. I think that's a huge difference.

 

Doesn't Ethier have the right to play, or want to play, somewhere? He's a BB player...and whether we think he's not lived up to what we thing he should have done, he wants to play.
Quite honestly, it was quite a while before I though CC was anything but a washed up, has been albatross. He turned that around, and kudos to him. But, he seems a bit fragile to me. maybe I'm wrong. And he'll play, with his $alary numbers, another Bosox disease we've gotten...epidemic!!
Our fortunes have been dictated to a large degree for some time now by the Boston Red Sox (with the help of idiotic Ned ), and who they unloaded on us so we could get Adrian...so, then we had this OF log jam, that we read about 800 times a week. And a bad BP, that sucked basically whenever we needed them most of all. I didn't realize that we were 22nd in the ML even with Kenley Jansen...whoa.
So, in comes the all genius FO, and I'm looking at the team, reading about whatever he said, however he said or meant it, and I'm thinking...all that sturm and drang about the brilliance of the Nerds (who left DBB right in the dugout like he was crazy glued there), and what are our problems now?
The OF log jam and the BP.

 

I like c Coke.

 

x

 

I was wrong to mention Kemp in this conversation or to respond to references to him. This is 2015 Dodgers and Matt is in San Diego and has nothing to do with this or how it plays out. This is current roster and management.
My Bad!

 

Interesting tid bit. The luxury tax is based on the end of season payroll. So any money you can shed towards season end lowers your bill on the amount to be used for owing the tax if any.

http://www.si.com/mlb/2014/12/19/los-angeles-dodgers-record-payroll-highest-luxury-tax
Teams incurred luxury tax penalties for payrolls exceeding $189 million, the threshold set for 2014.

The league's luxury tax calculations, which were based on a Dodgers payroll of $277.7 million, found that Los Angeles owes $26,621,125 this year. The tax for this season brings the team's two-year total to $38 million.

The Yankees owe $18.3 million this year, which, thanks to a payroll cut, is down from the $28.1 million owed in 2013. New York has surpassed the tax threshold every year, incurring a total of $271 million in taxes.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/b29d...dodgers-end-yanks-payroll-streak-owe-most-tax
The Dodgers owe $26,621,125 based on a $277.7 million payroll for purposes of the tax, which calculates payroll based on the average annual value of contracts for players on the 40-man roster and includes benefits. That raises the team's two-year total to $38 million.

Los Angeles, which flopped out of this year's playoffs in the division round and is seeking its first World Series title since 1988, pays the tax at a 30 percent rate because it has gone over the threshold for the second straight year. The Dodgers' rate would increase to 40 percent if they go over in 2015, which is likely.

The Yankees cut their payroll and owe $18.3 million in tax, down from $28.1 million for 2013. New York originally hoped to get under the threshold but wound up more than $36 million over. The Yankees have gone over every year, totaling nearly $271 million. New York pays at a 50 percent rate, the highest called for in baseball's collective bargaining agreement.

we pay at the rate of 40% this year and 50% if over next year. Interesting stuff and part of decision making we don't read or hear about.

 

Reports saying Josh Hamilton relapsed during the off-season (cocaine). Facing a suspension.

 

Add this this word to the theme of your delususional approach.." Excuse "..because you're giving Ethier one excuse after another. Nobody other than yourself gives a damn if Ethier sought out the media or not. Get that " blame the media! They cornered him! " bullshit outta here. Lmmfao. Ethier's been in the league long enough to know how to deflect and sidestep questions. No, he's likely just mad that he's not on his new team yet..he admitted that he thought he'd already be there.

And now you throw Kemp under the bus. Good grief. What won't you do for Ethier? We already know what Kemp did last year and it has nothing to do with Ethier deciding it was story time again while at Spring training.

 

Well, of course he wants equal opportunity..every player would like that. However, in reality there's a depth chart and his credentials don't stand up to Crawford's, so he's gonna get the short end to start out and rightfully so. That's life. There's a pecking order based on talent and performance. He's delusional and that's ok..he needs to sit and keep quiet until he gets his chance and then let his play speak. If he hit a left hander for the first time since the NFL left LA that'd go a long way in helping him get the role he wants..it might even urge another team to take interest in him.

That's the funny thing in all of this..he thinks he may have to move on, but where's the interest coming from? The Dbags passed. Baltimore passed. Everybody passed. They should let his agent go looking for trades just so he gets a real idea of where he stands these days. He's a platoon guy who likely needs replacing late in close games when teams start mixing and matching. The Royals said " fuck it..we'll just sign Rios ". Lol

 

That's terrible news. I thought he was over that stuff.

 

Southern California Excess. People thought there was a good chance it would get to him.

But he's getting paid..

 

My tablet is a

 

Josh Hamilton going back to his power pellets. Smh. Hamilton and Ron Washington need their own reality series..duo style. I bet you Wash made it down to the ranch. Lol. We don't even know if it was coke yet, so let me stop..I remember we all thought Wash had gone back to the white girl and we were wrong. It was a different girl..

No, but seriously..ever since Hamilton stopped chewing tobacco his game has fallen off.

 

Mark Ellis retires.