- Sep 1, 2008
- 15,237
- 4,607
Damn thought I read they traded Turner as well. 
Had me about to weep. Our most consistent guy the last few years.
Had me about to weep. Our most consistent guy the last few years.
Official 2018 Los Angeles Dodgers Thread : Game 4
- Thread in 'Sports & Training' Thread starter Started by cincoseisdos,
- Start date
- Status
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
****, I'd like to be optimistic and hope so but the truth is our rotation is pretty much set
- Oct 25, 2006
- 12,116
- 13,242
Cody is FEELING himself haha! Here's a piece from The Athletic, my favorite quote from Belly was "...Even when I’m not good, I’m still really good." :
Cody Bellinger wants regular role: ‘I should be in the lineup every single day’
By Pedro Moura Feb 14, 2019
9
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Cody Bellinger felt terrible for so much of last season, feeble and powerless and often inept. But the numbers say he was well above average. And the numbers give him confidence.
Cody Bellinger wants regular role: ‘I should be in the lineup every single day’
By Pedro Moura Feb 14, 2019
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Cody Bellinger felt terrible for so much of last season, feeble and powerless and often inept. But the numbers say he was well above average. And the numbers give him confidence.
“It’s very promising because of how ****** I felt,” Bellinger said. “If that’s my lowest it’s gonna go, well, ****.”
Hellbent on repeating his rookie year but uncertain how to do it, Bellinger spent his sophomore season switching up his swing and approach weekly, even daily. The 23-year-old took advice from anyone offering ideas and instituted much of them immediately. Some days he was great. Others he was an automatic out. Sometimes he didn’t even start.
Yet, overall, he was still elite. At a .814 OPS, he was 20 percent better than the average hitter. Incorporating defense and baserunning, Baseball-Reference.com’s Wins Above Replacement metric measured only 30 position players more valuable. Bellinger would’ve been 12 MLB teams’ top performer.
“I should be in the lineup every single day,” Bellinger told The Athletic. “I don’t think there’s a question about that. Even when I’m not good, I’m still really good.”
Bellinger, who reported to Camelback Ranch well ahead of next week’s deadline for position players, senses the team’s decision makers agree with him. Manager Dave Roberts has indicated as such publicly. But Bellinger still feels the need to say something to his bosses this month, having been scarred by a September spent coming off the bench and a World Series in which he sat more than he started and collected only one hit in 16 tries.
“We had to win games, and I understood that,” Bellinger said. “I obviously didn’t like that, but what was best for the team at the time might’ve been that. We never really know. It was just an unfortunate situation for me because I know I would be an everyday player on every other team.”
During his standout rookie season, Bellinger started nearly every game when he was healthy, and mostly at first base. In 2018, Bellinger started 135 of the Dodgers’ regular-season games, or 83 percent, his opportunities increasingly shifting to center field.
Now, both of those positions are occupied, and Bellinger will spend most of spring training preparing to play right field. He doesn’t care about where he plays as long as he does play.
“I love center field. I love first,” he said. “I will play right. I will do that. Getting in the lineup is important. Because if I play consistently, whether it’s left field, center, right, first base, I know for a fact I would win a Gold Glove anywhere. And they know I’m a Gold Glove anywhere I go. I just need to be in the lineup every day.”
Over the offseason, Bellinger spoke several times by phone with Roberts, in conversations he called promising. He also visited Camelback Ranch and Dodger Stadium, working on his approach with new hitting coach Robert Van Scoyoc in Los Angeles and hitting strategist Brant Brown in Glendale.
The two presented Bellinger with a package of metrics that he said proved last season went better than it felt. And they set out to do better. They emphasized the value of using his leverage as an advantage within his swing, staying simple and returning to his old ways. He said his approach will mirror that of his Rookie of the Year campaign.
Cody Bellinger managed just one hit against Boston in the World Series. (Gary A. Vasquez / USA TODAY Sports)
“It’s what I was doing in 2017 with more of an understanding of what I was doing,” Bellinger said. “Because my whole life I was just swinging. I never had an understanding of what I was really doing. I was just talented enough to keep hitting the ball and have results.”
President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said he is most curious this spring to see how the team’s new hitting coaches and their tactics take hold. There may be no better test case than Bellinger. The Dodgers did not want to take him out of their lineup last year. They did it only when it became an imperative, when his OPS against left-handers loomed below .700 as September approached and National League West rivals needed to be caught.
“This is a production business,” Roberts said. “When you’re playing for a championship every single year, there’s nothing handed to anybody. So there’s a point where production should matter, right? But for him to be in there every day, that’s a great sign for the Dodgers.
“Right now, and going forward, Cody’s gotta be our guy.”
Bellinger made mistakes in 2018. Anxious about his average in May, he made mechanical changes to his swing that rendered him susceptible to sweeping breaking balls from left-handed pitchers. He never fully recovered. And he showed up to spring training too big, having spent the winter striving to see a bigger number when he stepped on the scale.
“I thought that was important to people,” Bellinger said this week. “At the end of the day, it’s really not.”
He lost the extra weight by June anyway. So he focused this winter on adding muscle, not weight, and he arrived lighter, aware he is likely to man the outfield. He saw himself as an all-around player, not solely a slugger.
“I’m gonna help the team win on offense, defense, baserunning, because I can do it all,” Bellinger said. “But I can’t do it off the bench. And they know that.”
They know, but he still plans to emphasize it.
“I’m gonna have that conversation here soon with them,” he said. “I want that, and I know they’ll give it to me. They’re really good at communicating. So, it’s gonna be nice to see what the actual plan is.”
Hellbent on repeating his rookie year but uncertain how to do it, Bellinger spent his sophomore season switching up his swing and approach weekly, even daily. The 23-year-old took advice from anyone offering ideas and instituted much of them immediately. Some days he was great. Others he was an automatic out. Sometimes he didn’t even start.
Yet, overall, he was still elite. At a .814 OPS, he was 20 percent better than the average hitter. Incorporating defense and baserunning, Baseball-Reference.com’s Wins Above Replacement metric measured only 30 position players more valuable. Bellinger would’ve been 12 MLB teams’ top performer.
“I should be in the lineup every single day,” Bellinger told The Athletic. “I don’t think there’s a question about that. Even when I’m not good, I’m still really good.”
Bellinger, who reported to Camelback Ranch well ahead of next week’s deadline for position players, senses the team’s decision makers agree with him. Manager Dave Roberts has indicated as such publicly. But Bellinger still feels the need to say something to his bosses this month, having been scarred by a September spent coming off the bench and a World Series in which he sat more than he started and collected only one hit in 16 tries.
“We had to win games, and I understood that,” Bellinger said. “I obviously didn’t like that, but what was best for the team at the time might’ve been that. We never really know. It was just an unfortunate situation for me because I know I would be an everyday player on every other team.”
During his standout rookie season, Bellinger started nearly every game when he was healthy, and mostly at first base. In 2018, Bellinger started 135 of the Dodgers’ regular-season games, or 83 percent, his opportunities increasingly shifting to center field.
Now, both of those positions are occupied, and Bellinger will spend most of spring training preparing to play right field. He doesn’t care about where he plays as long as he does play.
“I love center field. I love first,” he said. “I will play right. I will do that. Getting in the lineup is important. Because if I play consistently, whether it’s left field, center, right, first base, I know for a fact I would win a Gold Glove anywhere. And they know I’m a Gold Glove anywhere I go. I just need to be in the lineup every day.”
Over the offseason, Bellinger spoke several times by phone with Roberts, in conversations he called promising. He also visited Camelback Ranch and Dodger Stadium, working on his approach with new hitting coach Robert Van Scoyoc in Los Angeles and hitting strategist Brant Brown in Glendale.
The two presented Bellinger with a package of metrics that he said proved last season went better than it felt. And they set out to do better. They emphasized the value of using his leverage as an advantage within his swing, staying simple and returning to his old ways. He said his approach will mirror that of his Rookie of the Year campaign.
Cody Bellinger managed just one hit against Boston in the World Series. (Gary A. Vasquez / USA TODAY Sports)
“It’s what I was doing in 2017 with more of an understanding of what I was doing,” Bellinger said. “Because my whole life I was just swinging. I never had an understanding of what I was really doing. I was just talented enough to keep hitting the ball and have results.”
President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said he is most curious this spring to see how the team’s new hitting coaches and their tactics take hold. There may be no better test case than Bellinger. The Dodgers did not want to take him out of their lineup last year. They did it only when it became an imperative, when his OPS against left-handers loomed below .700 as September approached and National League West rivals needed to be caught.
“This is a production business,” Roberts said. “When you’re playing for a championship every single year, there’s nothing handed to anybody. So there’s a point where production should matter, right? But for him to be in there every day, that’s a great sign for the Dodgers.
“Right now, and going forward, Cody’s gotta be our guy.”
Bellinger made mistakes in 2018. Anxious about his average in May, he made mechanical changes to his swing that rendered him susceptible to sweeping breaking balls from left-handed pitchers. He never fully recovered. And he showed up to spring training too big, having spent the winter striving to see a bigger number when he stepped on the scale.
“I thought that was important to people,” Bellinger said this week. “At the end of the day, it’s really not.”
He lost the extra weight by June anyway. So he focused this winter on adding muscle, not weight, and he arrived lighter, aware he is likely to man the outfield. He saw himself as an all-around player, not solely a slugger.
“I’m gonna help the team win on offense, defense, baserunning, because I can do it all,” Bellinger said. “But I can’t do it off the bench. And they know that.”
They know, but he still plans to emphasize it.
“I’m gonna have that conversation here soon with them,” he said. “I want that, and I know they’ll give it to me. They’re really good at communicating. So, it’s gonna be nice to see what the actual plan is.”
- Dec 19, 2013
- 17,273
- 24,260
Lessgoo!! #ITFDB #3rdtimesthecharm 
- Apr 24, 2006
- 18,754
- 13,104
- Jan 19, 2002
- 23,413
- 5,523
Good luck with that Cody
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
codyHit consistently for average bro
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
So manny stays in the division, pretty interesting ... but not worried about him dude has all the skills in the world but that attitude is terrible.
cant blame him for choosing SD one of my favorite cities
but we really like fr fr doing this w martin & barnes
good to see corey back out there
cant blame him for choosing SD one of my favorite cities
but we really like fr fr doing this w martin & barnes
good to see corey back out there
- Oct 25, 2006
- 12,116
- 13,242
Really good to see Corey. In regards to Belly, I'm fine with him talking that mess as long as he finally learns how to hit a damn breaking ball inside.
I believe Barnes will bounce back this year and we'll see how much incorporating a launch angle will help Martin. I'm just ready for some damn Dodger baseball.
I believe Barnes will bounce back this year and we'll see how much incorporating a launch angle will help Martin. I'm just ready for some damn Dodger baseball.
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
With cody it seemed like he was even whiffing on a lot of fastballs iunno man these dudes just need to get back to the basics
- Nov 25, 2017
- 4,030
- 4,635
RIP DON NEWCOMBE
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
Rip donny
VinMillerHearn58
formerly lakersreppa008
- May 5, 2006
- 15,240
- 3,864
Rest easy Newk
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
kersh shut down per roberts "arm kind of thing"
- Sep 17, 2013
- 7,516
- 5,132
So what the hell is wrong with him?
- Jan 19, 2002
- 23,413
- 5,523
- Dec 19, 2013
- 17,273
- 24,260
I guess he didn't ask Verlander or Scherzer for advice in the offseason. Low 90s Kersh still here 
- Nov 25, 2017
- 4,030
- 4,635
hope its not that serious. 
- Jan 19, 2002
- 23,413
- 5,523
For 3 more yearsI guess he didn't ask Verlander or Scherzer for advice in the offseason. Low 90s Kersh still here
- Dec 19, 2013
- 17,273
- 24,260
This could get ugly fast with the amount of innings he's thrown. See Felix Hernandez...
Rockabilly Zombie
formerly sithlord22
- Sep 30, 2003
- 2,094
- 2,097
We need another top end starter. Keichel or kluber? Apparently they are still gonna restrict urias innings this season so he’ll be coming out of the bullpen again.
Los Angeles
formerly bright nikes
- Apr 11, 2004
- 23,225
- 4,898
Bro we really going into the season with richard hill and kenta maeda ... lets see if my ace walker builds on last season.
this **** could get ugly fast, hope tolesy is ok
this **** could get ugly fast, hope tolesy is ok
Rockabilly Zombie
formerly sithlord22
- Sep 30, 2003
- 2,094
- 2,097
I hate that we haven’t done anything through free agency trades really other than pollack and kelly. We have like a gagillion dollars. Yes that is a technical term. This team frustrates me so. Lol
- Sep 17, 2013
- 7,516
- 5,132
Is it too late to trade for Kluber?
- Jan 19, 2002
- 23,413
- 5,523
That’s fake news, the fans are happy according to the front office
- Status
