Dodger Thoughts

Jon Weisman's outlet for dealing psychologically with the Los Angeles Dodgers, baseball and life

Month: February 2015 (Page 4 of 4)

The Dodgers’ first true catcher-second baseman could be Austin Barnes

Dodgers who have played catcher and second or third base 
C-2b-3B 2
2014 Miami Marlins Photo Day

By Jon Weisman

Twelve players in Dodger history have played both catcher and second base. Ten have played catcher, second and third.

No one in Dodger history has played more than 10 games at catcher, second base and third base. Only Derrel Thomas has played even five games at all three positions, and Thomas was truly an emergency catcher.

Austin Barnes, who came to the Dodgers from Miami in December, has the chance to carve out a unique place with the franchise.

Read More

Live Twitter chat with Farhan Zaidi on Friday

Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Dodger general manager Farhan Zaidi will answer fan questions live on the Dodgers’ Twitter account at 11 a.m. on Friday. With Spring Training just around the corner, it’s a perfect time to check in. Tweet your queries to @Dodgers with the hashtag #AskFarhan.

— Jon Weisman

Daniel Coulombe learns from September stint

[mlbvideo id=”36322365″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]

By Jon Weisman

Lefty reliever Daniel Coulombe said he had absolutely “no idea” that he was going to get called up to the Majors in September, and considering he began 2014 with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, who can blame him for his surprise?

At FanFest on Saturday, I asked Coulombe to reflect what he’ll take from the experience into 2015, when he will be competing for a spot in the Dodgers’ Opening Day bullpen.

Read More

Bill Haselman to manage Rancho Cucamonga as P.J. Forbes resigns

By Jon Weisman

Bill Haselman, who managed the Dodgers’ Single-A Great Lakes affiliate in 2014, will move to manage Single-A Rancho Cucamonga in 2015, succeeding P.J. Forbes, who has resigned for family reasons.

Haselman returns to the California League, where he won a 2013 title with Class A Inland Empire (Angels).

The Dodgers have not yet announced the new manager for Great Lakes. Forbes has managed 11 seasons in the minors, the past two with the Dodgers.

“While we wish P.J. and his family all the best, we now look forward to welcoming Bill Haselman to Rancho Cucamonga,” Quakes vice president and general manager Grant Riddle said at the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes’ website. “We’re familiar with Bill from his earlier time in the league and we’re excited to get him in a Quakes’ jersey and welcome him to the Quakes’ family.”

Mickey Hatcher’s other homer in 1988

hatcher on base01By Jon Weisman

Mickey Hatcher’s two World Series home runs in 1988 are well known, as is the fact that he only hit one regular-season homer that season. But do you remember the significance of that one homer?

It didn’t come until September 23, but it was a big one. In the season’s 154th game, Hatcher broke a scoreless tie in the eighth with a three-run shot at San Francisco to give Orel Hershiser his 23rd and final victory of ’88.

The win also reduced the Dodgers’ magic number in the National League West to two. Los Angeles clinched a tie for the division title the next day, and wrapped up the division outright on September 26.

You’ll recall that Hershiser went 10 innings in his next and last start of the regular season, at San Diego, to break Don Drysdale’s record for consecutive scoreless innings. If not for Hatcher’s homer, might Hershiser, who threw 112 pitches in his 3-0 shutout victory against the Giants, have gone extra innings in this one?

Footnote: How many games did Hatcher play in during the 1988 regular season? Answer: 88.

Think Blue Review: Caravan and Fanfest edition

[mlbvideo id=”37198403″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]

A busy week, and now it’s February … pitchers and catchers in 18 days.

– Jon Weisman

Page 4 of 4

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén