Dodgers hanging on to slim lead in NL West

June is nearly here and the Dodgers, winners of the NL West the last two years, are right in the thick of it. Going into tonight’s game against the Braves, LA held a slim 1.5 game lead on the Giants, who have been on a tear.

Dodger fans are wondering if the deep pocket owners will go get another pitcher to replace Hyun Jin-Ryu and Brandon McCarthy, out for the season with injuries.

Zack Greinke (5-1, 1.48 ERA) has been the ace of the staff while Clayton Kershaw has been slow out of the gates, posting a 3-3 record and 3.86 ERA. Kershaw tossed seven innings of scoreless ball and struck out 10 against the Braves on Tuesday. If he keeps that up, fans in Chavez Ravine may call off the death watch.

The Dodger rotation is a little shaky with Brett Anderson (2-2, 3.47 ERA), Mike Bolsinger (3-0, 0.71 ERA) and Carlos Frias (3-2, 5.34 ERA) trying to shore up the gap caused by injuries.

Kenley Jansen is back in the pen as the closer, which has stabilized the young reliever corps. 

Offensively, the Dodgers are leading the National League in homers and other than when they are playing in San Francisco they are swinging hot bats. The Giants have swept all six games at AT&T Park this season with the last three shutouts.

Adrian Gonzalez is having another torrid year, hitting at a .344 clip with 10 homers and 35 RBI. Alex Guerrero (.313, 8 HR), Andre Ethier (.311, 6 HR), Justin Turner (.287, 5 HR) Howie Kendrick (.298, 4 HR) and Joc Pederson (.257, 12 HR) have pushed the Dodgers to the top of the home run list in the National League. Turner and Guerrero made Juan Uribe expendable and the third sacker was traded to the Braves today.

Ethier is the feel good story of the year. After losing a starting position to Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford, the veteran outfielder stepped into the batting order and is raking while Puig and Crawford have been on the DL. The Dodgers are deep this year and having a player of Ethier’s ability step into the starting lineup is a luxury for Don Mattingly.

Rainy days and Thursdays in LA

It rained in Southern California last night, so when they rolled out the tarp (which had to be dusty) and the Dodgers leading 4-2, I went to bed.

What I missed was Carlos Gonzalez jacking a three-run homer off of Yimi Garcia in the ninth as the Rockies took a 5-4 win and snapped an eight-game losing streak against Los Angeles.

Combined with San Diego’s win against Washington, LA’s lead in the NL West shrunk to four games. Still, the Dodgers have been on a tear, putting together a 22-12 record built on a 15-4 record at home.  Away from Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers are struggling at 7-8.

San Diego, two games above .500, figures to stay with the Dodgers all season.  San Francisco, Arizona and Colorado shouldn’t, but you can never count out a team that has three rings in five years.

Clayton Kershaw (1-2, 4.26) takes the hill tonight. He has struggled but not as bad as those numbers indicate.

Kershaw will right the ship and have a decent season, if not another Cy Young season.

Closer Kenley Jansen comes off the DL today but Mattingly won’t rush him into a closing role. He will ease the big righty back into the bullpen rotation, which will make a good pen even better.

On the injury front, Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford are still healing but frankly the trio of Andre Ethier, Scott Van Slyke and Alex Guerrero has it covered. Take the time to heal guys.

An interesting dynamic is happening at third base where Juan Uribe’s grip on the hot corner is starting to slip. Guerrero and Justin Turner are earning more playing time with their bats and Uribe may soon find himself in pre-injury Ethierville, the odd man out.

Howie Kendrick is solid at second but Jimmy Rollins is looking more and more like a stopgap measure at short until Cory Seager is ready to come up from the minors. Joc Pederson is still earning his stripes in center but his 10 dingers and 21 RBI show he can hit at this level, even handling the leadoff role.

The glue holding it all together is first sacker Adrian Gonzalez, off to another phenomenal year. Gonzo is hitting .367 with 32 RBI and nine dingers. Steady as Swiss watch.

Then there’s Zack Grienke. Greinke is 5-0 with a 1.52 ERA and is currently the ace of the staff. He becomes a free agent at the end of the season and if he continues to pitch like this he will seriously inflate his asking price.

Starting pitching, with Hyun Jin-Ryu still on the DL and Brendan McCarthy out for the season, remains the Dodgers’ biggest hole.  Carlos Frias and Mike Bolsinger are serviceable but expect the wheelers and dealers to go out and get another arm before the trade deadline.

Bench depth is as deep as the Grand Canyon

Some years ago we took a family vacation to Arizona and made our way to the Grand Canyon. 

Though I had grown up in California and lived for a time in Utah, I had never made the trip.

A big hole in the ground, I told myself. But getting to the Grand Canyon and taking in the width and breadth of the place was a different story. It is deep and amazing.

Which brings me to the bench Don Mattingly has sitting behind him.

It’s nothing short of amazing.

First closer Kenley Jansen and No. 3 starter Hyun -Jin Ryu start the season on the DL, and Brendan McCarthy and Joel Peralta soon join them. No problem, Carlos Frias and Mike Bolsinger emerge as viable starters. The pen? No problem. Yimi Garcia, Pedro Baez, Adam Liberatore, Paco Rodriguez, Juan Nicasio, J.P. Howell and Chris Hatcher step into the breach.

Then comes the outfield. Stars Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford go down with injuries. No problem, Andre Ethier, Scott Van Slyke and Alex Guerrero are inserted into the lineup and hit like they were starters all along.

Toss in Justin Turner, who can hit while getting out of bed, and the Dodgers are hitting with power and average.

Turner, Ethier and Van Slyke have led the team in their last three wins and are all swinging hot bats. 

Turner hit a critical pinch-hit homer to lead one victory, Van Slyke hit a walk-off three-run dinger the next night and Ethier went 5-for-5 with a solo shot to center in last night’s 11-1, 21-hit explosion over the Marlins.

Adrian Gonzalez and Howie Kendrick are hitting, Jimmy Rollins has yet to heat up and Yasmani Grandal has found his stroke six weeks into the season.

All this has happened while Clayton Kershaw has sputtered to a 1-2 record and 4.26 ERA. The reigning Cy Young and MVP winner will eventually get his bearings but until he does, Zack Greinke is making his own bid for hardware, posting a 5-0 record and 1.52 ERA.

Aside from the starting rotation, this team is as deep as that big hole in the ground in Arizona.

Pederson coming into his own

Last season, the Dodgers brought up rookie Joc Pederson for his proverbial “cup of coffee” at the Show.

He was over matched.

In 28 plate appearances he hit a dismal .143 with no homers and no RBI.

The kid who turned in a 30/30 year in AAA was definitely not ready to make the leap to the major leagues.

Yet, Pederson went into spring training as the heir apparent in centerfield and made Matt Kemp expendable for a trade to San Diego.

Maybe those analytic masterminds knew what they were doing.

Pederson has been on tear the past several weeks and now has nine dingers and 19 RBI and is hitting a respectable .264 while playing a ball-gobbling centerfield.

The Dodgers are up four games in the NL West and they have done it with a surprising show of power (considering the loss of Kemp and Hanley Ramirez) and have showcased a deep bench.

For example, Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford have been sidelined with nagging injuries and Andre Ethier (.288) and Alex Guerrero (.350) have stepped in. Guerrero has gone yard six times and Ethier four times.

Another case in point is Justin Turner, who has hit four homers and is hitting at a .314 clip coming off the bench.

The bullpen has been strong and Zack Greinke (5-0, 1.56) is off to a hot start. Clayton Kershaw is uncharacteristically struggling at 1-2 with a 3.72 ERA. Brett Anderson (2-1, 3.52) and Carlos Frias (3-0, 2.13) are holding down the fort until Hyun Jin-Ryu comes off the disabled list.

Catcher Yasmani Grandal, acquired from the Padres, is also heating up. Grandal was hitting .179 on May 1 then took Don Mattingly’s advice to stop pressing. In a week, Grandal lifted his batting average to .307, sparked by a two-homerun, eight RBI game on Thursday.

Dodgers flex muscle; visit the DL

One month into the Los Angeles Dodgers 2015 campaign and two things stand out: LA has some pop in their bats and they are having a hard time staying off the disabled list.

The Dodgers have smacked 32 homers this season, tops in the National League and one ahead of Cincinnati.

Third starter Hyun Jin-Ryu and closer Kenley Jansen started the season on the DL and hope to return in May. Starting pitcher Brendan McCarthy started the season with a deceiving 3-0 record but is out for the rest of the year with an arm injury. Mr. Everything Clayton Kershaw is struggling with a 1-2 record and 3.73 ERA in five starts.

Zack Greinke, on the other hand, looks like a Cy Young winner with a 4-0 record and 1.93 ERA to start the season.

Outfielders Carl Crawford and Yasiel Puig are on the 15-day DL, which has allowed Andre Ethier and Scott Van Slyke some playing time. Ethier, once thought to be on the trading block as the odd man out, is hitting .304 and Van Slyke is hitting .393. Depth in the outfield is proving to be a strength.

Rookie Joc Pederson is starting to demonstrate why he is getting the start in center. Pederson is hitting .298 with four dingers and 10 RBI and has demonstrated great range in the outfield.

Adrian Gonzalez started the season on fire, hitting .383 in April with eight homers and 19 RBI.

Howie Kendrick (.295) and Juan Uribe (.278) are holding their own while shortstop Jimmy Rollins (.185) is 15 points below the Mendoza Line.

Subs Alex Guerrero (.423) and Justin Turner (.273) are providing punch off the bench. Guerrero has gone yard five times and is making it hard to keep him out of the lineup.

A definite liability last year, a young bullpen is holding its own with relievers Yimi Garcia, Adam Liberatore, J.P. Howell, Pedro Baez, Juan Nicasio and Joel Peralta holding their own.

Catcher Yasmani Grandal is contributing behind the plate but is hitting a paltry .189.

The Dodgers are using several young starters until Ryu gets back to fill out the starting rotation.

The Dodgers go into May with a three-game set against Arizona on Friday night.

In April, the Dodgers played seven three-game series and won five of them. San Francisco took a three-game sweep April 21-23 and Arizona took a 2-1 series in Phoenix April 10-12.

The Dodgers swept Seattle and Colorado and took two of three against the Giants in LA this past week. LA also won two series against San Diego, which figures to challenge the Dodgers in the NL West.

San Diego, Colorado, Arizona and San Francisco are all within striking distance of the first-place Dodgers as the pack has yet to see any team take a commanding lead in the standings.

Guerrero’s hot bat may force Mattingly’s hand

Alex Guerrero is a man without a position.

But if the 28-year old Cuban import from Las Tunas keeps hitting the way he has lately, Dodger skipper Don Mattingly will have to find a place for him in the lineup.

Guerrero hit two homers in the series against the Giants and is hitting at a .474 clip in limited playing time this year. Guerrero is 9-for-19 with four homers and 12 RBI. His slugging percentage is a crazy 1.211.

The knock on Guerrero is his defense and limited range. He was an All-Star shortstop in Cuba but does not seem destined to play that position for the Dodgers. Conventional wisdom says 36-year-old Jimmy Rollins is a stopgap measure at short until Cory Seager is ready to come up from the minors. Guerrero’s most likely position is at third base where 37-year-old Juan Uribe is entrenched as the starter and Justin Turner is the backup.

Uribe has been the mainstay for the Dodgers at the hot corner for years but has started slow (.250) with the bat this season. If Guerrero’s bat stays hot, Mattingly will have to find more frequent plate appearances for him.

Guerrero went yard against Madison Bumgarner in Wednesday’s loss and then went yard Thursday in LA’s 3-2 loss to San Francisco. 

Guerrero defected from Cuba in 2013, then established residency in Haiti in order to become a free agent. He signed a four-year, $28 million deal to play for the Dodgers. 

Dodgers-Giants rivalry renewed tonight

The Dodgers and Giants renew their blood feud tonight at AT&T Park and the feelings still run high.

I have been a Dodgers fan for as long as I can remember. It was a family tradition primarily because by Mom liked to go out to Dodger Stadium whenever she could and allowed me to tag along and bring a few friends at 75 cents a pop to sit in the left field pavilion.

The Giants have always been the enemy. Willie Mays, Will McCovey, Gaylord Perry, Juan Marichal, Orlando Cepeda, Hal Lanier and later Barry Bonds, Matt Williiams, Will Clark, Jeff Kent and others have played the role of villain against the Dodgers.

But let’s give credit where it is due. The Giants have won three World Series titles in the last five years. That’s as close to a dynasty that baseball has seen for decades.

San Francisco has proven that all that matters is getting to October and then anything can happen. The Giants won the one-game Wild Card play-in last year then marched all the way to the title.

I caught the Dodgers against the Giants for a couple of games last year at AT&T and the fans were friendly and playfully giving me and others a hard time for being decked out in Dodger gear. I never felt it was anything more than friendly competition.

The funniest moment came on the Muni train after the game when a decidedly inebriated young lady starting berating a group of us wearing Dodger gear.

“LA, everything about LA is phony. Even the women with their boob jobs. Everything there is fake,” she said. Then (pointing at her own chest) she proclaimed, “these are real.”

The guy sitting next to me then earned a high five when he said, “Prove it.”

You gotta love baseball.