Dugout

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell, and how amazing is it that the Dodgers are 19-9, on pace to win 110 games, and are still just barely in first place?

So the Dodgers’ bullpen imploded for a couple of days, costing the team. Most recently was Friday against the Cubs, when Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen and Tanner Scott coughed up a four-run lead in a game the Dodgers lost, 6-4.

This brought renewed pleas from fans on social media and some readers of this newsletter to move Roki Sasaki to the bullpen. After all, he has been no great shakes as a starter this season, while he was “lights out” as a closer at the end of last season. But was he, or are we remembering it a bit more fondly than it deserves, After all, the Dodgers were in no hurry to bring him in during Game 7 against the Blue Jays.

Let’s take a look at each of Sasaki’s relief outings at the end of last season and in the postseason.

Sept. 24 at Arizona
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 3-1
Seventh inning
James McCann grounds to third
Tim Tawa strikes out
Ildemaro Vargas strikes out

Sept. 26 at Seattle
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 3-1
Seventh inning
J.P Crawford grounds to third
Cole Young strikes out
Randy Arozarena doubles to left
Cal Raleigh strikes out

Postseason

NL wild card Game 2
vs. Cincinnati
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 8-4
Ninth inning
Spencer Steer strikes out
Gavin Lux strikes out
Austin Hays lines to short

The game against the Reds was when fans got excited, because he looked dominant.

NLDS Game 1
at Philadelphia
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 5-3
Ninth inning
J.T. Realmuto strikes out
Max Kepler doubles to right
Nick Castellanos grounds to second
Bryson Stott pops to third
Sasaki gets the save

NLDS Game 2
at Philadelphia
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 4-3
Ninth inning, two out, runners on first and third
Trea Turner grounds to second
Sasaki gets the save

NLDS Game 4
vs. Philadelphia
Score when entering game: Tied, 1-1
Eighth inning
Kyle Schwarber flies to right
Bryce Harper pops to third
Alec Bohm grounds to second
Ninth inning
Brandon Marsh grounds to second
J.T. Realmuto strikes out
Max Kepler pops to third
10th inning
Nick Castellanos grounds to third
Bryson Stott strikes out
Trea Turner lines to right
Dodgers win game, and series, in 11th inning

NLCS Game 1
at Milwaukee
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 2-0
Ninth inning
Caleb Durbin pops to third
Isaac Collins walks
Jake Bauers doubles to right
Jackson Chourio sacrifice fly to center
Christian Yelich walks
Blake Treinen replaces Sasaki, gets final out, Dodgers win. First bad relief outing by Sasaki

NLCS Game 3
vs. Milwaukee
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 3-1
Ninth inning
Andrew Vaughn grounds to short
Sal Frelich pops to short
Caleb Durbin strikes out
Sasaki gets the save

NLCS Game 4
vs. Milwaukee
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 5-1
Ninth inning
William Contreras singles to center
Andrew Vaughn flies to deep right
Sal Frelick grounds to second
Caleb Durbin flies to deep right
Dodgers win game and sweep NLCS

World Series Game 3
vs. Toronto
Score when entering game: Tied 5-5
Eighth inning, men on first and second, one out
Ty France grounds to third
Nathan Lukes grounds to the pitcher

Ninth inning
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. flies to right
Isiah Kiner-Falefa walks
Daulton Varsho singles off Freeman’s glove, Kiner-Falefa out trying to advance to third
Alejando Kirk walks
Myles Straw grounds to second
Dodgers win game in 18th inning

World Series Game 6
at Toronto
Score when entering game: Dodgers, 3-1
Eighth inning
George Springer singles to right
Nathan Lukes flies to center
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. walks
Bo Bichette pops to short
Daulton Varsho grounds to second

Ninth inning
Alejando Kirk hit by a pitch
Addison Barger ground-rule double
Sasaki replaced by Tyler Glasnow, who gets the final three outs

Sasaki wasn’t fooling anyone against Toronto

In the postseason, Sasaki pitched 10 2/3 innings, gave up six hits and walked five while striking out six. His ERA was 0.84. However, his big success came in the first two rounds. In the NLCS and World Series, his numbers were: 5 1/3 IP, five hits, five walks, one hit batter, one strikeouts, one run.

All of this is to say: Don’t expect Eric Gagne 2.0 if they move Sasaki to the bullpen. He won’t be a miracle cure.

Let’s look at where they rank in ERA in the NL:

Starting pitching
1. Dodgers, 2.79
2. Atlanta, 3.12
3. Pittsburgh, 3.47
4. Milwaukee, 3.59
5. Chicago, 3.98
15. Philadelphia, 5.80

Relief pitching
1. Cincinnati, 2.91
2. San Francisco, 2.93
3. Atlanta, 3.14
4. Pittsburgh, 3.17
5. Miami, 3.60
11. Dodgers, 4.26
15. Washington, 5.27

Inherited runners that scored %

1. Colorado, 13.6% (six of 44)
2. Cincinnati, 20% (nine of 45)
3. Dodgers, 26.7% (eight of 30)
4. San Francisco, 27.8% (10 of 36)
5. Atlanta, 28% (seven of 25)
15. Washington, 48.9% (23 of 47)

It looks like 2025 all over again.

Colleague Bill Plaschke wrote about this a couple of weeks ago. You can read that here.

Injury Updates

Will Smith is day to day (aren’t we all?) with tightness in his lower back. He is not expected to go on the IL. Luckily, Dalton Rushing is hitting like he is.

Mookie Betts, sidelined by an oblique injury, is swinging the bat now. He could go on a rehab assignment in the next couple of weeks and be back soon after that.

Tommy Edman still has some soreness in his ankle and isn’t running the bases fully yet. Dave Roberts said he probably won’t return until the end of May or the beginning of June.

Reliever Brock Stewart is in a rehab assignment with Class-A Ontario, so he could be back in a couple of weeks.

When Betts returns, the Dodgers will have to decide what to do. It seems unlikely they send Hyeseong Kim down as long as he is playing this well, so that leaves either Alex Freeland or Santiago Espinal as the most likely candidates to be removed from the roster.

More complaints about Ohtani

It seems more people are getting on board the “Why do the Dodgers get to have an extra pitcher just because they have Shohei Ohtani” bandwagon. Teams can carry up to 13 pitchers on the roster. The Ohtani two-way player rule basically allows the Dodgers to carry 14 pitchers, since as a two-way player Ohtani only counts once on the roster.

And I respond with what I always say: Why didn’t these people complain when he was on the Angels and they did the same thing? Why is it now suddenly a problem?

The other complaint: Umpires allow extra time for Ohtani to get ready to pitch when he makes the last out of an inning, or is on base when the last out was made.

Response: Did these people never watch the NL before the DH rule was added? Umpires always gave the pitcher extra time to get ready when they made the last out or were on the bases when the last out was made. Quite often a pitcher would make the last out, walk over to the dugout, sit for a moment, towel off, grab their glove then make a leisurely stroll to the mound. This is nothing new. And I have a feeling if the Dodgers hadn’t won the last two World Series, no one would be complaining about either of these things.

Obscure stat of the week

All the recent talk about Davey Lopes had me wondering who were the best at stealing bases in Dodgers history. A look at the top 10 in stolen base %, minimum 50 stolen bases:

1. Eric Davis, 89.7% (52 for 58)
2. Shohei Ohtani, 89% (81 for 91)
3. Kirk Gibson, 88.5% (69 for 78)
4. Freddie Freeman, 86.4% (51 for 59)
5. Davey Lopes, 83.1% (418 for 503)
6. Dave Roberts, 82.5% (118 for 143)
7. Cody Bellinger, 81.6% (62 for 76)
8. Mookie Betts, 81.4% (70 for 86)
9. Chris Taylor, 81% (81 for 100)
10. Mariano Duncan, 80% (100 for 125)
21. Maury Wills, 74.1% (490 for 661)

The 10 worst:

Babe Herman, 54.3%, (69 for 127)
John Roseboro, 55.7% (59 for 106)
Steve Garvey, 57.5% (77 for 134)
Duke Snider, 57.9% (99 for 171)
Harvey Hendrick, 59.8% (61 for 102)
Gil Hodges, 60% (63 for 105)
José Offerman, 61% (61 for 100)
César Izturis, 61.4% (51 for 85)
Dusty Baker, 61.9% (73 for 118)
Wes Parker, 63.8% (60 for 94)

Up next

Monday: Miami (Chris Paddack, 0-4, 6.38 ERA) at Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 2-2, 2.48 ERA), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Miami (Janson Junk, 1-2, 3.67 ERA) at Dodgers (Shohei Ohtani, 2-0, 0.38 ERA), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Miami (Sandy Alcantara, 3-2, 3.05 ERA) at Dodgers (Tyler Glasnow, 3-0, 2.45 ERA), 12:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

‘They started it:’ Pete Crow-Armstrong won’t apologize for mocking Dodgers fans

Dave Roberts has a sharp reply to Cubs manager Craig Counsell’s criticism of ‘Ohtani roster exception’

Shohei Ohtani homers, Justin Wrobleski shines as Dodgers shut out Cubs for series win

Dodgers rediscover their offense, scoring 12 runs to end Cubs’ 10-game win streak

Bullpen meltdown squanders Emmet Sheehan’s strong start in Dodgers’ loss to Cubs

And finally

Vin Scully recalls a story about Pearl Harbor. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell, and it looks like the Dodgers won’t be needing Tatiana Tate to be a live trumpeter for a while.

Well, we knew some bad news had to hit the Dodgers eventually, and it did on Monday when they put new closer Edwin Díaz on the injured list because of “loose bodies” in his right elbow. He will have surgery and will be out until sometime after the All-Star break.

Díaz signed a three-year, $69-million deal with the Dodgers before the season, and after a great debut, has steadily declined. He has a 10.50 ERA and has given up nine hits and walked five in six innings, striking out 10. He has four saves. Let’s look at each game:

March 27 vs. Arizona
1 IP, 0 hits, one walk, two strikeouts, save

March 28 vs. Arizona
1 IP, save

March 31 vs. Cleveland
1 IP, one hit, one ER, one walk, two strikeouts

April 5 at Washington
1 IP, one strikeout, save

April 7 at Toronto
1 IP, one hit, one walk, three strikeouts, save

April 10 vs. Texas
1 IP, four hits, three ER, one walk, two strikeouts, blown save, win

April 19 at Colorado
0 IP, three hits, three ER, one walk

We kept hearing from Díaz and the Dodgers that he was healthy, but his fastball had lost about two miles per hour, and he went nine days without pitching. The Dodgers are known for not always being 100% forthcoming about injuries (I’m pretty sure their health advisor is the Black Knight from “Monty Python and the Holy Grail”).

And then on Monday we hear about “loose bodies.” Loose bodies in the elbow are small fragments of bone or cartilage which are floating in the joint.

At the moment, Díaz joins names that include Don Stanhouse (2-2, 5.04 ERA) and Kirby Yates (4-3, 5.23 ERA) among terrible free agent reliever signings by the Dodgers. Tanner Scott was terrible last season, led the league in blown saves and didn’t pitch in the postseason, but has rebounded so far this year (of course, it’s still early).

I thought after Yates and Scott were so bad last season that the Dodgers would wait a while before offering big money to a reliever. But no. You have to figure they will be shy now.

Of course, Díaz could recover from this and come back to be a great closer. But right now, yikes.

So who will be the new closer? The guess here is that Dave Roberts will go with whoever the matchups dictate. Their best relievers this season have been Alex Vesia, Jack Dreyer and Scott. Blake Treinen pitched well until his last outing. Same with Will Klein.

So, looks like another season of bullpen uncertainty. We should all be used to it by now. But just think: Closer injured, Mookie Betts injured, Kyle Tucker not hitting as expected and the Dodgers are still 16-6 (on pace to win 118 games) and have the best record in baseball.

And of course those pesky San Diego Padres are right there with them at 15-7, the third-best record in baseball.

Welcome, Jake Eder

The Dodgers brought left-hander Jake Eder up from the minors to replace Díaz. Eder, 27, was with the Angels last season, where he went 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA in 18 1/3 innings, walking nine and striking out 15. He was selected out of Vanderbilt in the fourth round of the 2020 draft by the Miami Marlins.

Of course, we know one thing if he’s with the Dodgers, and sure enough: He missed the 2022 season after Tommy John surgery. The Marlins traded him to the White Sox in 2023 and he had an 11.42 ERA in five starts in double A. In 2024, he had a 6.61 ERA in 24 minor-league starts. His contract was purchased by the Angels before the 2025 season, and they traded him to Washington on July 30. The Dodgers purchased his contract on April 1.

Dalton Rushing is amazing

Dalton Rushing has 12 hits this season. Seven of them are home runs. In 27 at-bats, he is hitting .444/.496/1.296. He is one behind Max Muncy for the most home runs on the Dodgers. He is tied for fourth in the NL in homers, but everyone he is tied with or trailing has at least 50 more plate appearances.

He has 13 RBIs, tied for third on the team with Kyle Tucker and Teoscar Hernández, trailing Andy Pages (21) and Freddie Freeman (14). They all have at least 50 more plate appearances.

At this point, I’d play him every day until Freeman comes back from paternity leave and strongly consider starting him at DH when Shohei Ohtani is the starting pitcher. This run won’t last forever, but might as well ride it out while you can.

Davey Lopes remembered

I’m a little behind on this, but the Dodgers honored Davey Lopes before the first home game they played after he died. They played a video and had a moment of silence for him.

I think he deserves a patch on the uniform, but, the Dodgers must think otherwise.

Charley Steiner says thanks

After the last newsletter, where readers gave their best wishes and shared their favorite Charley Steiner moments, Steiner sent along the following:

“This has all been so very flattering. I’m feeling better and stronger. The messages were so kind, flattering and overwhelming.”

Up next

Tuesday: Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 2-1, 2.10 ERA) at San Francisco (Landen Roupp, 3-1, 2.38 ERA), 6:45 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Dodgers (Shohei Ohtani, 2-0, 0.50 ERA) at San Francisco (Tyler Mahle, 0-3, 7.23 ERA), 6:45 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Thursday: Dodgers (Tyler Glasnow, 2-0, 3.24 ERA) at San Francisco (Logan Webb, 2-2, 5.40 ERA), 12:45 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz to undergo surgery, will return after All-Star break

Rick Monday on saving an American flag at Dodger Stadium: ‘I get letters every week’

Shaikin: Rick Monday saved an American flag in 1976. Why the moment resonates 50 years later

Behind the scenes of a milestone Make-A-Wish experience with the Dodgers

And finally

Vin Scully discusses what he does to prepare for a game. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell, and the Dodgers keep rolling. When will the first bad stretch of games begin?

Last week, I asked you to show some support for Dodgers broadcaster Charley Steiner, who battled cancer and has been heard infrequently on broadcasts since 2024.

And boy did you respond. We received over 1,000 emails from people who wanted to pass along best wishes. Obviously, we can’t run all 1,000 emails, but here are a selected few.

John Peterson of Pleasant Hill: I had the great fortune of meeting Charley Steiner in Las Vegas in the early ‘90s. At the time, I was an assistant athletic director at UNLV, and our men’s basketball team had played in three Final Fours (1987, 1990, 1991), so tickets to home games were super scarce in those days. Charley was in town to call a boxing match for ESPN, so he and Rich Rose, former president of Caesars World Sports, were desperate enough to sit in my staff seats (at least they weren’t in the balcony!). I was in total awe of those two giants of the sports entertainment landscape. We even took a photo together. I was already a huge Charley Steiner fan, but after meeting him in person, I became a fanboy for life, so when he became a Dodger announcer, I was over the moon. I will always remember how gracious he was — like any other fan who wanted to see for himself what all the fuss was about the Runnin’ Rebels. Have cherished the memory ever since.

Tara Elkinton: My husband and I are huge Dodger fans and it’s been said I Bleed Blue. We always enjoyed listening to Charley and Rick. Charley’s commentary was always honest, interesting, personal and made you feel like you were at the game. We love and miss him.

Steven Booth: Charley, thank you for bringing peace, love and happiness into our lives. Hearing you call games is like having a coffee or beer with your friend at the ballpark. We love you and are praying for you.

Darin Axel-Adams of Pendleton, Ind.: I was a teenager when he started at ESPN and always enjoyed watching him on SportsCenter. I was a budding high school radio broadcaster and Charley was one of the ESPN anchors I attempted (not very successfully!) to mimic. I also thought he had some of the funniest “This is SportsCenter” promos … it was pretty obvious that he didn’t take himself or his profession too seriously. Living in the Midwest, I haven’t been able to enjoy much of Charley’s time with the Dodgers, but when I do, I am reminded again of what a truly gifted broadcaster he is!

Kim Haack: My father was a Dodger fan for more than 50 years. He is the reason I’m a Dodger fan today. He died three weeks before the Dodgers won the World Series in 2020. We often listened to the radio in the car and enjoyed listening to Charley and Mo. The radio call from Charley at Game 6 of the 2020 World Series when the Dodgers won was absolutely amazing. Of course, I was sobbing when they won, thinking of my father. It was a balm to hear Charley’s familiar voice and I think he spoke for all of us when he said, “In a year like no other, when joy has been so hard to come by, tonight tears of joy, let ‘em flow …” Charley’s call of that game is something I will never forget for the rest of my life. Whenever I see that clip and hear Charley’s voice, I tear up remembering how much I appreciated his familiar voice when facing a bittersweet time in my life.

Kirk Stitt: Charley, I’m a 76-year-old Dodger fan since 1958. I know you value your privacy, I get that. You need to know that thousands of Dodgers fans everywhere are thinking of you and wishing you the best and hoping to hear you.

Donald Golightly of Russell, Ky.: Being an old Brooklyn Dodger fan myself, I can relate to Charley. While I don’t feel the connection to the new Dodgers, in recent years I really enjoyed listening to Charley and Rick on the internet. So here’s wishing Charley the best now and always! Keep your head up and keep smiling!

Philip Nelson: The absolute best ESPN SportsCenter commercial is the Y2K commercial. Near the end Steiner is wearing his tie around his head like a bandana. War paint as if he is in The Lord of the Flies and says, “Follow me. Follow me to freedom!” (Note: You can watch that commercial here.)

Jim Carlisle: I have “followed you to freedom” for years and have greatly appreciated your integrity, personality, accuracy and humor on the air. It was so great to hear you on the air on opening day with Rick Monday. It was like having a reunion with an old friend. I’m hoping you’ll be able to return to the booth whenever you feel up to it. You have many fans who are hoping the same thing.

Stephen Knight: I’ve enjoyed your calls since, like, forever. As a cancer survivor myself with what I like to call unremission, the choice of how you deal with it is a personal one and is yours, and your family’s. And I just want to thank you for putting me inside the park for all of those Dodger games. You made me feel so alive, so connected with each call of every strike, ball, hit or miss.

Jimie Murray of Redondo Beach: One of my favorite memories was a totally random call about 10 years ago. A Dodgers runner slid into second base head first and got up after time was called to shake his belt and pants. Charley said, (Runner) is getting the dirt out of all the places dirt shouldn’t be.” It just made me laugh and now any time a player slides head first, I repeat it for my wife.

Tom Schulz: I’ve always been a Dodger fan, initially (and continuing so) because of Jackie Robinson. But I really became a fan in 2020 while living in Arkansas (now thankfully in California), and Charley and Rick helped me preserve my sanity during COVID. In the midst of that bizarre and unsettling year, Charley and Rick were voices of normalcy. Since then, I have caught at least part of every Dodgers radio broadcast. Charley and Rick became my friends.

Eliza Rubenstein: I’m a third-generation Cardinals fan living in SoCal, and it takes a LOT to get me to say nice things about the Dodgers. But I spent years listening to Dodger games on the radio in large part because I found Charley Steiner to be so completely and consistently delightful. His intelligence, his dry wit, his charming habit of saying “he’s been struck out” rather than “he struck out” … his rhythm and diction and humor have always spoken directly to my baseball-obsessed heart, and considering that I grew up with Jack Buck in my ear and high standards in my soul, that’s saying a lot.

Nancy Shattuck: Thank you for voicing joy and Dodger blue to this grateful fan.

Lydia Valenzuela: You’ve been missed. It was so nice to hear you on opening day. I’m sure I speak for all the fans when I say we can’t wait until you’re back again on the radio. I love to hear the banter between you and Rick. You both always bring a smile to my face. That warm soothing voice of yours is missed. Hope to hear from you again soon.

Howard Hancock: Thank you for being such a terrific part of my sports enjoyment for so many years. I greatly hope to hear you call many more innings in the future.

Scott Snyder: You have been the most underrated voice in my 55 years of loving baseball. Best of wishes to you.

Linda Seidman: We fans miss you and your calling the games so very much! Nobody calls a game like you, especially the home runs. The games just aren’t as good or as fun or as exciting without your calls, so please get back in the booth whenever you can!

Larry Oppenheim: What I love most about Charley Steiner is the sheer joy he brings to announcing the Dodgers. And his joy is contagious. A friend and I would text back and forth while listening to Dodgers games. I would say ‘did you hear what Charley just said’ and I would write it down in my text. Thankfully, I found these messages. Delving into my old text messages has brought back so many joyful memories. Charley, I miss you terribly.

Samuel Contreras of Chino Hills: Charley, we haven’t forgotten you at all. Dodger fans miss you and look forward to your return to the broadcast booth on a regular basis. My family’s life has been affected by multiple myeloma as my wife was diagnosed in October 2024. Thankfully, she’s doing well and I wish the same for you. Please know that Dodger broadcasts are not the same without you.

Keith Putirka: Charley Steiner is one of my all-time favorite baseball announcers and when I heard he was headed to L.A. to cover the Dodgers, I was thrilled. I grew up listening to Vin Scully and was clearly very spoiled. Until I moved to New York in the early 1990s, I had no idea how much of a gap there was between Vin and everyone else. But I still loved listening to baseball games, especially on ESPN, and I first heard Charley on the radio when he called the 1997 World Series on ESPN radio. He was terrific. He made the games come to life, conveying the environment, the stories and the excitement, in his own inimitable style. After that, I would always tune in to any ESPN-broadcast game so that I could hear Charley Steiner call the games. I’m 63 and I’ve been listening to and watching baseball for a very long time. Growing up in L.A. I heard a lot of great announcers, but my list for the top three announcers in baseball is an easy choice; it is in order, Vin Scully, Charley Steiner and Jon Miller. Thank you, Mr. Steiner, for making a great sport even greater to listen to.

Hoyt Adams: I used to work at the Genius Bar at the Apple Store in Santa Monica, and one day I helped Charley. He was so easygoing, funny and genuinely delighted to talk baseball with a stranger who was helping him with his computer.

When I told him the hard drive on his laptop was failing, he said in that wonderful radio voice, “So that’s your story and you’re sticking to it.” But he immediately lit up when we started talking baseball again. For one reason or another, I brought up how much I loved players like Jamey Carroll, who was getting a lot of time at shortstop that season. When I was driving home from work that night, I turned on the game, and Jamey Carroll just so happened to be having a killer night. Charley talked about him and even mentioned several beats from our conversation — it absolutely made my season.

Patrick Hennes of Corona: I have “worshipped” Vin Scully since I was one of millions of young fans that had my transistor radio under my pillow listening to my Dodgers, beginning in the early 1960s. No one could ever be better. But for this one night, I think Charley surpassed the GOAT. It’s always a good time to go back to this incredible game, when the Dodgers hit four straight home runs in the bottom of the ninth to tie San Diego. And to appreciate Charley Steiner as a fantastic announcer. (Note: You can watch and listen here.)

George Martin of Virginia: Listening to Charley Steiner call a game is like a warm blanket on a cold and rainy day. Whatever your troubles, hearing him brings security, relief and joy.

Jason Hashmi: The line, “we’ll find out together” is the classic Steiner phrase for me. Will Freeman’s ankle heal in time for the World Series and will he be a liability on the bases if he does return? “We’ll find out together.” I’ve adopted the phrase myself, and often for things unrelated to baseball. I always give a wink to Steiner in my mind when I do. I wish him health and peace.

Kathy Pratt: In 2014 my husband and I drove up from Tucson to see a spring training game. As we were walking into Camelback Ranch Stadium we looked up and there was Charley Steiner. My husband asked if he could take a picture of him and his wife. Charlie’s reply was, “I always love to have my picture taken with a beautiful woman!” Charley’s kindness was so appreciated and it made our day.

Candi Hersch: I miss hearing you on the radio. You are much younger than my father, but listening to the game with you is like hanging out with my dear departed dad. It’s comforting and you always have great insight.

Doug Weber of Carlsbad: For every note you receive, please know that there are thousands more who wish you all the best. Thank you for everything and we’ll look forward to hearing from you soon.

Bill Walsh of Oceanside: I miss Charley’s voice on the radio. While working I always had the Dodger radio broadcasts playing behind my desk. Charley and Rick became my daily companions. I miss you greatly Charley.

Andrew Mounts of Clovis: You’re part of this wonderful thing we call the Dodger family. Your enthusiasm and love for this crazy game and the Dodgers is greatly appreciated and very sorely missed. Never forget your voice paints a picture of this game that we love so much. You and Mo put us in the ballpark when we couldn’t be there. Thank you so very much. Get well Dodger friend and may God bless you and your family.

Geoff King of Bakersfield: The Dodgers have been blessed with the best radio and TV broadcast personalities ever, with Vin Scully at the top of the list. But Charley was a great addition to the Dodger broadcast crew years ago. His demeanor, stories and mannerisms calling the game were like Scully. We went several years without TV because of the Direct TV dispute so we would listen to the games on the radio. Charley was a lifesaver of Dodger baseball for us.

Rich Mortimer: My family and I have enjoyed your Dodger coverage for many years. I am 73 and have been a Dodger fan my whole life and Charley’s reporting has made our viewing and listening so much more enjoyable. Thank you Charley. Please know that there are thousands of Dodger fans, Charley Steiner fans, who are praying for your recovery.

John Sotos of Leesburg, Va.: I have always been a Charley Steiner fan, from his days at ESPN to his time broadcasting Dodgers games. That ESPN commercial — no, not “follow me to freedom!” — but the one in which he has to hide under his desk while an angry Evander Holyfield, having been told that Charley disparaged his boxing, prowls the ESPN spaces shouting “Charley Steiner! Come out and get your whoopin’!” Still one of my favorites. (Note: You can watch that ad here.)

Ohtani out of the batting lineup

Much concern was raised when Shohei Ohtani wasn’t in the hitting lineup Wednesday when he was the starting pitcher against the Mets. Nothing to worry about. Ohtani was hit in the right shoulder by a pitch Monday, and the Dodgers were just being cautious. As Maddie Lee reported:

“If it weren’t for the hit by pitch [Monday], he would’ve been DHing and pitching tonight,” Dave Roberts said before Wednesday’s game.

“Just feeling what gives him the best chance to stay loose during the outing, feel good,” Roberts said. “There’s still some soreness in there. When he’s hitting, there’s a component that he’s in the cage getting ready to hit, and if we can take that off his plate and just focus on one thing tonight, we felt — training staff, pitching coaches, myself — we just felt it was the best thing for him. So, once I told him, he completely understood.”

Up next

Friday: Dodgers (Tyler Glasnow, 1-0, 4.00 ERA) at Colorado (Ryan Feltner, 1-1, 7.30 ERA), 5:40 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Saturday: Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan, 2-0, 6.60 ERA) at Colorado (TBD), 5:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Sunday: Dodgers (Roki Sasaki, 0-2, 6.23 ERA) at Colorado (Michael Lorenzen, 1-2, 8.10 ERA), 12:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Monday: Dodgers (*-Justin Wrobleski, 2-0, 2.12 ERA) at Colorado (*-Jose Quintana, 0-0, 4.15 ERA), 5:40 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

And finally

Charley Steiner on the 30th anniversary of his famous Carl Lewis call. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Kaylyn “KK” Alves had been talking all day about her favorite moment in any Dodgers game: when Teoscar Hernández greets his teammates at the entrance to the dugout with a shower of sunflower seeds after a home run.

KK, 14, could name Hernández’s favorite flavor of seeds — ranch — and had thought through the potential downsides of throwing flavored seeds instead of original — the seasoning posed a risk for the eyes.

So, when Hernández met KK on the field Tuesday before the Dodgers’ game against the Mets, he had a suggestion for a pregame activity.

“Do you want to be part of the celebration?” he asked, gesturing toward the dugout. “Come on, let’s go.”

KK, her parents and her sister visited Dodger Stadium this week for an experience coordinated by the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America. KK, who was diagnosed with epilepsy at the age of two, is an avid Dodgers fan from Northern California.

Those at the game Tuesday saw her throw out the first pitch to Freddie Freeman, her favorite player. In addition to the sunflower seed celebration with Hernández, KK’s wish — the 1,000th granted since Make-A-Wish and Fanatics partnered in 2023 — included a tour, field passes for batting practice, and extra time with Freeman before the game.

Kaylyn “KK” Alves throws out the first pitch before Tuesday’s game against the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium.

(Gary A. Vasquez / Los Angeles Dodgers)

“To see my kid meet her hero, basically — it’s indescribable,” said KK’s father, David.

KK inherited her Dodgers fandom from her dad, who was originally an A’s fan but made the switch when infielder Max Muncy did. It became a family passion.

David watched KK light up when they walked out to the field Tuesday and spotted Freeman going through his ground ball routine. And the day kept getting better. Freeman walked over and gifted KK a jersey with his number and her name on the back.

“It was amazing,” KK said. “He’s the sweetest.”

Freeman then led the family to the media room and took a seat next to KK at the podium. She asked him about his growing family — Freeman and his wife Chelsea have three sons and announced in March that they are expecting a baby girl.

Kaylyn “KK” Alves prepares to throw sunflower seeds with Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernández to mimic the team’s home run celebration before Tuesday’s game at Dodger Stadium.

(Gary A. Vasquez / Los Angeles Dodgers)

Freeman asked KK about her interests. She grew steadily more talkative, nerves subsiding, as they talked about puzzles and video games. She even ran her thoughts on the seed celebration by Freeman.

“I’ve had sunflower seeds go all the way down my back, and into my shirt, and it’s quite uncomfortable,” Freeman said. “But if you’ve got sunflower seeds down your shirt, it means you’ve hit a home run, so you can take it.”

An hour and a half later, KK experienced just that, walking through a shower of sunflower seeds thrown by Hernández. Then they traded places and she returned the favor, both smiling ear to ear.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell, and today is a very special day, so it’s time for the annual Jackie Robinson newsletter.

On April 15, 1947, Robinson made his major league debut at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field in front of crowd of 26,623. He walked and scored a run in the Dodgers’ 5–3 victory. Thus began one of the most amazing careers in sports history. Robinson broke the color barrier and faced challenges few major leaguers ever had to endure.

Some players on his team didn’t want to play alongside him, starting a petition saying they would rather not be his teammate. Manager Leo Durocher’s response: “I don’t care if the guy is yellow or Black, or if he has stripes like a … zebra. I’m the manager of this team, and I say he plays. What’s more, I say he can make all of us rich. And if any of you can’t use the money, I will see that you are traded.”

Players on other teams called him every racial insult. Some opposing managers were worse. Fans, some of them little kids parroting what their parents were saying, called him vile names. And Robinson had, and could have, only one response: No response. Give in and lose his temper, then the racists would say “See, his kind aren’t strong enough to play in the majors.” It would be used as leverage to kick him out and keep the majors “pure.” For a good example of what Robinson endured, watch “42” starring the late, great Chadwick Boseman.

So, Robinson took it. But he not only had to take it, he also had to play at a high level to prove Black people could play in the majors. He ran the bases with abandon. He excelled as a fielder no matter where they put him. He led the Dodgers to victory after victory, including their first World Series title in 1955.

And let’s not forget his wife, Rachel, who will turn 104 in July. She was a source of strength for Jackie and underwent verbal abuse and threats herself. She is an amazing woman and deserves full credit for her role in all of this. I think it’s safe to say that Jackie wouldn’t have been the same without her.

Robinson was a standout player at whichever position the Dodgers played him. On the bases, he was a terror. He stole home 19 times in his career, tied with Bobby Bragan for the most since 1920.

Robinson was drafted into the Army in 1942. Stationed at Fort Riley, Kan., he was not allowed to play on the segregated camp baseball team. He was appointed morale officer for the Black troops at Fort Riley and later was re-assigned to Ford Hood, Texas. On July 6, 1944 he refused when a white bus driver told him to move to the back of the bus. The base provost marshal and military police supported the driver, and Robinson was subject to court-martial. He won the hearing and the Army decided to kick him out with an honorable discharge.

In 1945, Robinson joined the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro American League, which is where Branch Rickey found him and signed him. The rest is history.

After he retired from baseball, Robinson became a leader in the Civil Rights movement. He was hired to serve as a vice president for Chock Full O’Nuts, the first Black man to be named a vice president of a major American company. In 1964, he co-founded Freedom National Bank of Harlem, created to financially help Black communities. In 1970, he founded the Jackie Robinson Construction Company, which built housing for low-income people.

In perhaps the most famous steal of home in history, Jackie Robinson steals home in Game 1 of the 1955 World Series. For the rest of his life, Yankees catcher Yogi Berra said Robinson was out.

(John Rooney / Associated Press)

But let’s go back to his baseball career.

Imagine trying to do your job every day with thousands of people surrounding you, hurling racist taunts. Imagine going on the road and not being able to stay in the same place as your co-workers, but being forced to room with someone across town. Imagine having a wife and child who have to go through the same thing. Imagine a policeman coming into your workplace and threatening to arrest you and shut down your business unless you left, because they don’t appreciate “your kind” in their city. Imagine getting death threats every day in the mail.

Most people would not be able to do what Robinson did. He set the example that players such as Larry Doby of Cleveland, who broke the color barrier in the American League, were able to follow.

It’s sad that sometimes I will hear fans of other teams complain that Robinson’s No. 42 is retired and listed alongside the numbers of the legends from their team, because “he didn’t play for their team.”

Even now, some people try to find flaws that Robinson had to cut him down. What they don’t realize is that pointing out whatever flaws he had doesn’t make him seem less impressive — but even more impressive. It shows he was an imperfect man who performed one of the most perfect human achievements of all time.

But words don’t adequately describe what Jackie Robinson did or what he went through. They can’t. It’s embarrassing to even try.

What’s a good way to celebrate Jackie Robinson Day? Find anyone you know under the age of 18 and make sure they know who Jackie Robinson was and what he did. Don’t let his memory be forgotten. Show them the movie “42.” Give them a book on Robinson. Or sit down and talk to them about him. It’s the best gift you can give them.

In his own words

Some of the best quotes from Jackie Robinson:

“Plenty of times I wanted to haul off when somebody insulted me for the color of my skin, but I had to hold to myself. I knew I was kind of an experiment. The whole thing was bigger than me.”

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”

“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me. All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.”

“Life is not a spectator sport. If you’re going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you’re wasting your life.”

“There’s not an American in this country free until every one of us is free.”

“During my life, I have had a few nightmares which happened to me while I was wide awake.”

“I’m grateful for all the breaks and honors and opportunities I’ve had, but I always believe I won’t have it made until the humblest Black kid in the most remote backwoods of America has it made.”

“Many people resented my impatience and honesty, but I never cared about acceptance as much as I cared about respect.”

“Negroes aren’t seeking anything which is not good for the nation as well as ourselves. In order for America to be 100% strong — economically, defensively and morally — we cannot afford the waste of having second- and third-class citizens.”

“Blacks have had to learn to protect themselves by being cynical but not cynical enough to slam the door on potential opportunities. We go through life walking a tightrope to prevent too much disillusionment.”

“It kills me to lose. If I’m a troublemaker, and I don’t think that my temper makes me one, then it’s because I can’t stand losing. That’s the way I am about winning, all I ever wanted to do was finish first.”

Jackie Robinson joins a picket line in Cleveland in 1960 to protest discrimination against Black people at southern lunch counters.

(Associated Press)

“When I am playing baseball, I give it all that I have on the ball field. When the ballgame is over, I certainly don’t take it home. My little girl who is sitting out there wouldn’t know the difference between a third strike and a foul ball.”

“Pop flies, in a sense, are just a diversion for a second baseman. Grounders are his stock trade.”

“I guess you’d call me an independent, since I’ve never identified myself with one party or another in politics. I always decide my vote by taking as careful a look as I can at the actual candidates and issues themselves, no matter what the party label.”

“How you played in yesterday’s game is all that counts.”

“I think if we go back and check our record, the Negro has proven beyond a doubt that we have been more than patient in seeking our rights as American citizens.”

“Baseball is like a poker game. Nobody wants to quit when he’s losing; nobody wants you to quit when you’re ahead.”

“The most luxurious possession, the richest treasure anybody has, is his personal dignity.”

In the words of others

”A credit to baseball and to America.”
—Branch Rickey, general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers

“To do what he did has got to be the most tremendous thing I’ve ever seen in sports.”
—Pee Wee Reese, teammate of Jackie Robinson

“The greatest moment in the history of baseball.”
—MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred

“He gave the Black community a sense of hope, a sense of pride.”
—John Lewis, civil rights leader

”I didn’t know baseball from pingpong. But the point was that he had broken in. I grew inches that day. I puffed out my chest. A Black person had made it against the most tremendous odds.”
—Archbishop Desmond Tutu

“Jackie’s character was much more important than his batting average.”
—Hank Aaron

”Jackie Robinson made his country and you and me and all of us a shade more free.”
—Roger Kahn, author of “The Boys of Summer”

“There’s a direct line between Jackie Robinson and me.”
—former President Barack Obama

“He knew he had to do well. He knew that the future of Blacks in baseball depended on it. The pressure was enormous, overwhelming, and unbearable at times. I don’t know how he held up. I know I never could have. He was the greatest competitor I have ever seen.”
—Duke Snider, teammate

”There was never a man in the game who could put mind and muscle together quicker than Jackie Robinson.”
—Rickey

“After the game, Jackie Robinson came into our clubhouse and shook my hand. He said, ‘You’re a helluva ballplayer and you’ve got a great future.’ I thought that was a classy gesture, one I wasn’t then capable of making. I was a bad loser. What meant even more was what Jackie told the press, ‘Mantle beat us. He was the difference between the two teams. They didn’t miss DiMaggio.’ I have to admit, I became a Jackie Robinson fan on the spot. And when I think of that World Series, his gesture is what comes to mind. Here was a player who had without doubt suffered more abuse and more taunts and more hatred than any player in the history of the game. And he had made a special effort to compliment and encourage a young white kid from Oklahoma.”
—Mickey Mantle, on the 1952 World Series

”Jackie, we’ve got no army. There’s virtually nobody on our side. No owner, no umpires, very few newspapermen. And I’m afraid that many fans may be hostile. We’ll be in a tough position. We can win only if we can convince the world that I am doing this because you’re a great ballplayer, and a fine gentleman.”
—Rickey

“Every time I look at my pocketbook, I see Jackie Robinson .”
—Willie Mays

“Give me five players like Robinson and a pitcher and I’ll beat any nine-man team in baseball.”
—former Dodgers manager Chuck Dressen

“He led America by example. He reminded our people of what was right and he reminded them of what was wrong. I think it can be safely said today that Jackie Robinson made the United States a better nation.”
—American League president Gene Budig

”Jackie Robinson is the best I’ve seen. Robinson is the perfect blend of ballplayer. He has creativeness and imagination. Every move he makes from the minute he steps onto the field is designed to beat the other club. He’s constantly asking himself, at bat or on the bases, ‘what can I do to beat the other guy?’ That’s the kind of ballplayer that wins pennants.”
—Fresco Thompson, assistant farm director for the Dodgers when Robinson played his first game

“If I were in Jackie Robinson’s shoes, I probably never would have made it.”
—Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson

”Today we must balance the tears of sorrow with the tears of joy. Mix the bitter with the sweet in death and life. Jackie as a figure in history was a rock in the water, creating concentric circles and ripples of new possibility. He was medicine. He was immunized by God from catching the diseases that he fought. The Lord’s arms of protection enabled him to go through dangers seen and unseen, and he had the capacity to wear glory with grace. Jackie’s body was a temple of God. An instrument of peace. We would watch him disappear into nothingness and stand back as spectators, and watch the suffering from afar. The mercy of God intercepted this process Tuesday and permitted him to steal away home, where referees are out of place, and only the supreme judge of the universe speaks.”
—Jesse Jackson, delivering a eulogy for Robinson

For more on Robinson, I recommend visiting jackierobinson.org, where several of the above quotes and much more can be found.

And finally

Jackie Robinson is interviewed by Dick Cavett. Watch and listen here. And you can watch “42” for free on Youtube. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Last week it’s hot, this week it’s cold. I think the weather has the flu.

The Dodgers are 12-4, are on pace to win 122 games, have the best record in baseball and generally are off to the type of start everyone expected.

So, let’s check in and see how the players are doing. We will list in order from highest batting average to lowest. To see everyone’s complete stats, click here.

Dalton Rushing, .538/.571/1.308

It’s great to see him off to this start, but it has been only four games. He’s a much better hitter than he showed last season. He will cool off of course.

Andy Pages, .417/.453/.733

He was Dave Roberts’ pick to have a breakout season, and he’s certainly doing that, leading the majors in batting average, hits and RBIs (20).

Alex Call, .417/.563/.583

Just what you want out of your fourth outfielder. Solid defense and offense. The top three guys here won’t come close to finishing with these numbers of course, but you can realize that and acknowledge their incredible start.

Miguel Rojas, .357/.387/.429

Doing what he has done his whole career: Solid at-bats, strong fielding.

Teoscar Hernández, .314/.357/.549

It appears the 2024 version of Hernández has been re-introduced after consumers weren’t satisfied by the 2025 model.

Hyeseong Kim, .308/.412/.385

Kim was hitting the cover off the ball in his brief stint in the minors, and has continued to hit and field well in the majors. It’s only 13 at-bats, the same number as Rushing, but the Dodgers will have an interesting roster decision to make when Mookie Betts is ready to return.

Will Smith, .298/.400/.426

Best catcher in the game continues to prove it.

Freddie Freeman, .273/.324/.485

Batting average isn’t where it usually is, but, and stop me if you’ve heard this before, it’s still very early.

Shohei Ohtani, .267/.410/.533

I hear he can pitch a little too.

Kyle Tucker, .237/.352/.305

The first disappointment on the list. Two extra-base hits in 71 plate appearances. 16 strikeouts, nine walks. After 16 games last season, Michael Conforto was hitting .200/.333/.422 with six extra-base hits.

Max Muncy, .226/.317/.453

This is what Muncy does. Can look lost one game (striking out four homers Monday), just two days after hitting three homers in a game.

Alex Freeland, .220/.289/341

Had a great first game, but hasn’t quite found his groove since then. Will he eventually find it, or is he Miguel Vargas 2.0?

Mookie Betts, .179/.281/.429

Played eight games before he got injured. We are still waiting to see if last season was his new norm as a hitter, or just a down year.

Santiago Espinal, .154/.154/.231

Has had only 13 at-bats, but seems to be the last man on the bench. Does he go when Betts comes back?

Now we move on the pitching, listed in order of ERA:

Shohei Ohtani, 1-0, 0.00 ERA

I guess we could quibble a bit about his walk rate (three walks per nine IP).

Alex Vesia, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 save

Gives what he always gives, high emotion, high energy, good results.

Blake Treinen, 0-0, 0.00 ERA

Has struck out four and walked three in 5 1/3 innings. If the old Treinen is back, then the Dodgers will cruise to the NL West title.

Will Klein, 1-0, 1.17 ERA

The new fan favorite looks great out there, and it appears that amazing World Series performance elevated him to a different level.

Tanner Scott, 0-0, 1.17 ERA

Has pitched in more games than any other reliever (nine) and has given up five hits in 7 2/3 innings. Looks like his old self out there.

Justin Wrobleski, 2-0, 2.12 ERA

Who picked Wrobleski to have the best start as a Dodger so far this season?

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 2-1, 2.50 ERA

Is Ohtani the ace, or Yamamoto? A good problem to have.

Jack Dreyer, 1-0, 2.84 ERA

A key left-hander they go to early, Dreyer has done well and made trading Anthony Banda a little easier to swallow.

Tyler Glasnow, 1-0, 4.00 ERA

Has pitched into a little bad luck, as his FIP is 2.81. He has struck out 22, walked four and given up 13 hits in 18 innings.

Edgardo Henriquez, 1-0, 5.40 ERA

Henriquez has an electric arm, but his numbers never seem to reflect that.

Edwin Díaz, 1-0, 6.00 ERA, 4 saves

The problem with being a reliever is that a bad outing can ruin your ERA for a couple of weeks. As Maddie Lee reported Sunday, Díaz’s velocity has been down this season and Friday (when he had his first blown save), his fastball velocity sat at 95.5 mph and slider at 87.8, according to Statcast, 1.7 mph and 1.3 mph down from last season, respectively.

“Two miles an hour, that’s pretty significant,” Roberts said Sunday. “So I think that’s why we sort of flagged it. We wanted to have him down [Saturday] and kind of see what we get. Because a couple days ago there were a lot of throws in there too. So just trying to also, like we’ve done many times, play the long game with our guys.”

Roki Sasaki, 0-2, 6.23 ERA

The Dodgers have lost four games, and Sasaki is responsible for two of them. In his other outing, he gave up six runs in five innings. That about sums up his value so far.

Emmet Sheehan, 2-0, 6.60 ERA

Then you have Sheehan, who has pitched about as poorly as Sasaki but has two wins. Baseball is crazy.

Ben Casparius, 0-1, 9.64 ERA

Casparius wins the award for first pitcher to go on the IL. He was put on the 15-day IL on Monday because of shoulder inflammation. Kyle Hurt was brought up to replace him.

Where is Julio Urías?

There hasn’t been much news on former Dodger Julio Urías since he last pitched for the Dodgers in September 2023. He was investigated for domestic abuse and sat out the 2024 season, then was suspended for the first half of the 2025 season. He has been eligible to pitch since then, but unlike Trevor Bauer, who has pitched overseas after his suspension ended, Urías has not surfaced anywhere. And, according to his agent, Scott Boras, who talked to my colleague Bill Shaikin about him, that is by Urías’ choice.

“Teams ask me about him all the time,” Boras said. “With the pitching market in this world, Julio could play in a minute. But I think it’s about him deciding if it’s something he wants to go do right now.”

In case you missed it

How changes last year set up Dodgers’ Justin Wrobleski’s gem against Mets: ‘He was at a crossroads’

Whatever happened to Julio Urías? ‘Teams ask me about him all the time,’ agent says

It’s time for Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki to take next step

Dodgers are being careful with Edwin Díaz but don’t need him in loss to Rangers

Dodgers’ Emmet Sheehan says honing timing was key to a breakthrough win over Rangers

Max Muncy caps his three-homer night with historic walk-off blast for Dodgers

Shaikin: Forget Team USA’s WBC lineup. The Dodgers’ 2026 lineup is baseball’s most elite

And finally

A Vin Scully hightlight reel. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Today, we remember a Dodgers icon.

Sad news in Dodgersland this week as Davey Lopes, member of the famed Garvey-Lopes-Russell-Cey infield, died at the age of 80.

“Even though Davey may have been the less visible of the famous long-running Dodger infield with Cey, Russell and Garvey, his impact on the team’s success was huge,” former Dodgers owner and president Peter O’Malley told The Times. “All Dodger fans will always remember the excitement he gave us on the basepaths and I admire his commitment to the game managing, coaching and instructing after his playing days.”

Lopes was born May 3, 1945, in East Providence, R.I. He did not remember his father, who died when Lopes was 2. His mother, Mary Rose, supported Lopes and his nine siblings on the meager salary she earned as a maid. Lopes found solace in baseball.

“If it hadn’t been for sports, there’s no telling what I’d be or where I’d be,” Lopes told former Times baseball columnist Ross Newhan in 1973. “I had one glove until I got to high school. I guess I can admit now that I confiscated more than a few bats and balls.”

Lopes found a mentor in baseball coach Michael Sarkesian, who usually coached the team Lopes was playing against while growing up. Sarkesian remembers Lopes, though, and brought him to Iowa Wesleyan when Sarkesian became the athletic director there.

“Whatever I missed by not really having had a father, Sarkesian provided,” Lopes told Newhan. “He could relate to my problems, my environment. The drive, the determination, not to give in to the ghetto, to make something of my life, stems from my relations with him.”

Lopes was an NAIA All-American at Wesleyan and then followed Sarkesian to Washburn University in Topeka, Kan. He hit .380 and was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the seventh round of the 1967 MLB draft. He turned them down, then signed with the Dodgers when they chose him in the second round of the secondary phase of the 1968 draft.

He played his first two seasons at Class A Daytona Beach, hitting .247 with 26 steals in 82 games in 1968, then hitting .280 with 32 steals in 72 games in 1969.

Davey Lopes steals second while Reds shortstop Davey Concepcion awaits the throw in a 1980 game.

(Joe Kennedy / Los Angeles Times)

Lopes was promoted to triple-A Spokane in 1970, and it was there that he met Tommy Lasorda, who was managing Spokane, and where the Dodgers converted Lopes from an outfielder to a second baseman under the tutelage of Monty Basgall. He was focused on learning a new position and stole only 11 bases, but rebounded in 1971 to hit .306 with 27 steals.

After another standout year in 1972, the Dodgers called him up to the majors for the first time for the final two weeks of the season. He stole four bases in four attempts.

At spring training in 1973, Lopes battled with Lee Lacy for the second base job and lost. But Lacy got off to a terrible start and Walter Alston made Lopes the starting second baseman on April 22. And he remained the starting second baseman until the 1982 season.

Eventually, Bill Russell, Ron Cey and Steve Garvey found their way into the starting lineup and on June 23, 1973, the foursome started together for the first time and stayed together for nine seasons, the longest-running infield in MLB history.

Lopes was the spark plug atop the lineup, becoming one of the best base stealers in the game. “I realize that when I’m running and stealing bases, I’m setting the momentum and getting the adrenaline going for the rest of the lineup,” Lopes told Newhan in 1974. “And until someone proves he can stop me, or the situation dictates I don’t run, I’m going to be stealing all the time.”

Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench once called Lopes the best base stealer in the game.

Beginning in 1975, Lopes racked up some impressive stolen base numbers:

1975*: 77 steals, 12 caught stealing, 86.5% success rate.
1976*: 63 steals, 10 caught stealing, 86.3%
1977: 47 steals, 12 caught stealing, 79.7%
1978: 45 steals, four caught stealing, 91.8%
1979: 44 steals, four caught stealing, 91.7%

*-Led league in steals.

In those five seasons, he stole 276 bases and was caught only 42 times, an amazing 86.8% success rate. He is the best base stealer in Dodger history. Maury Wills stole more often, but Lopes was more successful.

In 1975, Lopes stole 38 bases in a row from June 10 to August 24 to break Max Carey’s mark of 36 in a row set during the 1922-23 seasons. He was finally thrown out by Montreal’s Gary Carter in the 12th inning of a game.

In postseason play for the Dodgers, Lopes hit .241 with six home runs, 22 RBIs, 28 runs scored and 20 steals in 50 games, as the Dodgers lost in the World Series to Oakland (1974) and the Yankees twice (1977-78) before finally breaking through against the Yankees in 1981.

Lopes’ mentor with the Dodgers was Jim Gilliam. One day after the Dodgers won the 1978 NLCS, Gilliam died, leaving Lopes distraught. He channeled his emotions into an incredible Game 1 of the World Series, hitting two home runs and driving in five in an 11-5 rout. After his first homer, Lopes pointed to the sky to acknowledge Gilliam. A couple of years later, “The Bronx Zoo” by Yankees reliever Sparky Lyle was published. In it, he wrote about Lopes, saying, and I’m paraphrasing here, that it was bush league for Lopes to put up “We’re No. 1” while circling the bases, that the Dodgers had no class and that the Red Sox were better than the Dodgers. He had missed the point completely.

“They can do anything they want with us now,” Lopes said after the 1981 World Series victory. “I’ve got the ring. They can’t take that away from me.”

From left, Ron Cey, Bill Russell, Davey Lopes and Steve Garvey reunite in 2013.

(Los Angeles Times)

His comments contained a bit of foreshadowing. Lopes had his worst season in 1981, hitting .206 in 58 games of a strike-interrupted season (though he still stole 20 bases while being caught only twice). The Dodgers had prized prospect Steve Sax waiting in the wings. So, on Feb. 8, 1982, the Dodgers traded Lopes to Oakland for Lance Hudson. If you’ve never heard of Hudson, that’s OK, because he never made it to the majors. In essence, the Dodgers gave Lopes away for nothing.

Lopes was far from through, though. He hit .242 with the A’s in 1982 and .277 with 17 homers and 22 steals in 1983. Oakland sent him to the Chicago Cubs near the end of the 1984 season for pitcher Chuck Rainey. And in 1985, Lopes had a season for the ages, or at least, aged. At the age of 40, he stole 47 bases and was caught only four times while hitting .284/.383/.444 with 11 homers and 44 RBIs in 99 games. It is still the record for most stolen bases at age 40. Rickey Henderson is next with 37 in 1999.

Lopes finished his career with two seasons with the Astros, retiring after the 1987 season. He then began a long career as coach and manager, including a stint as first base coach for the Dodgers from 2011-15. Then GM Ned Colletti made it his mission to bring Lopes back as a coach.

Colletti had this to say after learning of Lopes’ death: “Davey Lopes transformed coaching at first base. His situational awareness and intricacy of coaching first base was the best I have ever watched. He changed a coaching position and how it was executed — base running, secondary leads, pitch tipping, cutting your steps from first to third.

“His contract has expired in Philadelphia [after the 2010 season] and I went and recruited him back. He helped players and, therefore, teams, get better. He could find any advantage and he was a great teacher. He was one of my favorite people.”

Former Dodgers reliever Tom Niedenfuer, who played with Lopes on the 1981 championship team, had this to say: “Davey was 15 years older than me and he was quiet with us new guys. But he treated us as equals and was helpful. It had to be tough seeing Sax come up and knowing his days were numbered.”

Among the 112 players with at least 350 stolen bases, Lopes is fifth in stolen base percentage:

1. Tim Raines, 808 steals, 146 caught, 84.7%
2. Willie Wilson, 668-134, 83.3%
3. Barry Larkin, 379-77, 83.11%
4. Tony Womack, 363-74, 83.07%
5. Davey Lopes, 557-114, 83%
6. Jimmy Rollins, 470-105, 81.7%
7. Carl Crawford, 480-109, 81.5%
8. Ichiro Suzuki, 509-117, 81.3%
9. Joe Morgan, 689-162, 81%
10. Vince Coleman, 752-177, 80.9%

Rickey Henderson is 11th with an 80.8% success rate. Maury Wills is 42nd at 73.8%. Steve Sax 49th at 71.4%. Ty Cobb 81st at 64.3%.

How was Lopes so successful? In an interview with Ross Porter, he said, “Well, it’s just not running by chance. I studied the pitchers. I tried to look for idiosyncrasies in their bodies that tell me when they go to first base compared to going home. Try to pick that up, react to it as quickly as I possibly can.”

He also told Porter his favorite moment of his career: “Actually, the first time I ran on the field. It was like I had reached a goal I set as a kid — to be a Dodger. I always wanted to be a Brooklyn Dodger, but for some reason, they left Brooklyn. We won’t get into that. But to do it as a Dodger — that meant everything. It was kind of like second best, but it was like I arrived.”

As a leadoff hitter, Lopes would often bat after the pitcher. I always enjoyed watching Lopes stall for time when the pitcher had to run hard during his at-bat. To give the pitcher ample time to rest in the dugout, especially if there were two out, Lopes had a variety of delay tactics before getting to the batter’s box. He’d give a couple of extra swings in the on-deck circle. He’d walk to the plate, then stop and go back to the on-deck circle to get some extra pine tar. He’d “have trouble” getting the weighted circle off his bat. He’d take the first pitch and then call time. It was a master class in looking at the big picture.

Our best wishes to Lopes’ family, friends and former teammates. He will be missed.

More sad news

Miguel Rojas was all set to play Tuesday against Toronto when he learned that his father had passed away in Venezuela.

“There’s nothing I could do being this far,” Rojas told reporters Wednesday. “Just support my family, and trying to understand a little bit of what’s going on. I found out that my dad, on the way to the hospital, passed away. He couldn’t live through the heart attack that he had. So it was suddenly that he passed away; he was feeling good. Really hard to understand. I’m still trying to process the whole thing.”

Micky Rojas’ funeral was Wednesday. “That’s how they do things in Venezuela,” Miguel Rojas said. “It happens quick because they have to. They don’t have many places to hold these funerals.”

Rojas played Wednesday and wanted to play Tuesday until a couple of Dodgers talked him out of it. He said later he was glad that Dave Roberts and Freddie Freeman took that decision out of his hands. But Rojas was adamant about playing Wednesday.

“It’s going to be emotional, yes, for me, I understand that,” Rojas said. “But I’ve been through moments like this before with my mom, my grandparents. I know what they want me to do is play baseball. They raised me up and they gave up everything in their life for me to be a baseball player. This is what they want me to do. They know how much pride I take in showing up every day, and not letting my teammates down.”

We send out best wishes to Rojas and his family. You can read more about the situation in this story by Maddie Lee.

What about the team?

We will discuss the team in detail starting next week. It has been a strange two weeks with Charley Steiner, Lopes and Rojas, and sometimes life is more important that baseball. I received over 500 emails about Steiner, and some of them will appear in a special edition of this newsletter in the next couple of weeks.

Up next

Friday: Texas (Kumar Rocker, 0-1, 3.60 ERA) at Dodgers (Tyler Glasnow, 1-0, 3.00 ERA), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Saturday: Texas (Jack Leiter, 1-0, 2.45 ERA) at Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan, 1-0, 8.00 ERA), 6:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Sunday: Texas (Jacob deGrom, 0-0, 3.72 ERA) at Dodgers (Roki Sasaki, 0-1, 7.00 ERA), 1:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Tough day for Dodgers and Miguel Rojas following the death of his father

Davey Lopes, part of Dodgers’ historic infield and World Series winner, dies at age 80

These Canadian kids absolutely torched Freddie Freeman — and all for a good cause

Shohei Ohtani matches Ichiro’s on-base mark and adds to another impressive streak

Shaikin: Yoshinobu Yamamoto winning a Cy Young doesn’t mesh with a Dodgers three-peat

Shaikin: Dodgers continue to be the evil American mercenaries Toronto fans love to hate

Dodgers’ Andy Pages scorching start at the plate turning heads. ‘I really like his work’

Mookie Betts offers no specific timeline on when he’ll return from injury

And finally

Davey Lopes hits two home runs in Game 1 of the 1978 World Series. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. I hope those of you who participate enjoyed the Easter festivities over the weekend. But why does a rabbit bring eggs? Shouldn’t it be the Easter Chicken?

We are only nine games into the season, far too early to reach any conclusions. Yes, the offense struggled for a few games, but the Dodgers are still 7-2. And the offense’s struggles wouldn’t have been noticeable if it had happened for a few games in the middle of the season instead of right at the start.

So let’s turn our attention to something else. I get emails every week asking about Charley Steiner. He handled the radio call for the first three innings on opening day, then left and hasn’t been back since. Stephen Nelson put up a picture of Steiner and Rick Monday that you can see by clicking here.

In October 2024, Bill Plaschke wrote a column detailing Steiner’s battle with multiple myeloma blood cancer. You can read that column here. Steiner sat out the 2004 season because of it. He called six innings on opening day in 2025 and three innings on opening day this year.

In his column, Plaschke wrote:

—”He endured constant debilitating lower back pain. He lost 50 pounds. He was confined to a wheelchair. He initially moved his bed from the second floor of his Westside home down to the family room because he couldn’t climb the stairs. He enlisted the full-time help of nurses. It wasn’t pretty.”

—“He’s gone through hell,” said his longtime radio partner Rick Monday.

—”An extremely private person, Steiner lived the nightmare without fanfare, without telling anyone outside of his inner circle, the loquacious storyteller keeping his most important words to himself.”

At the time, Steiner’s cancer was in remission, which is why he talked about it. I don’t want to speculate too much about his current health, but the fact he has called only nine innings since then can’t be a great sign. The Dodgers have kept him on the payroll and support him, just as they have done with Andrew Toles. It is one of the great things about the organization.

When Steiner was calling games on the radio full time, I would occasionally criticize him for not mentioning the score and game situation enough. Now that seems rather meaningless.

So, with so much divisiveness and unkindness in the world, here is what I would like you to do. If you remember a particular call of Steiner’s, or a moment he made you laugh, or if you just want to wish him well and let him know Dodgers fans have not forgotten him, send me an email at houston.mitchell@latimes.com, and I will compile them in a future newsletter. I’m sure he will see it, and if we can bring a little sunshine into someone’s day, then we have accomplished a good thing.

A couple of my favorite Steiner moments:

When Steiner was with ESPN, he couldn’t stop laughing after hearing Carl Lewis singing the national anthem. His laughter will make you laugh. You can watch that here.

Steiner talks about growing up a Brooklyn Dodgers fan and how much Vin Scully meant to him. You can watch that here.

Mookie injured

Mookie Betts injured his back while running the bases during Saturday’s victory and was put on the injured list on Sunday because of a strained right oblique. According to WebMD, the oblique muscles are broad, diagonal abdominal muscles located on the sides of the torso (internal and external) that enable trunk rotation, side-bending, and core stability. They assist in breathing and protect the spine, with external obliques running over internal obliques in opposite directions and…. this is why I’m not a doctor.

Injuries are one of the biggest things that could derail the Dodgers this season. Can they survive for four-to-six weeks without Betts? Sure, their offense is build to withstand things such as that. But if multiple hitters start ailing, then there could be a problem. Just look at the Lakers. Cruising toward the playoffs, with some experts saying they could at least reach the conference finals. Then, suddenly Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves are injured, and winning a first-round series now seems problematic.

The Dodgers recalled Hyeseong Kim from Oklahoma City, where he has been crushing the ball. Kim and Miguel Rojas will share time to shortstop.

How much is too much?

On opening day, the Dodgers offered a Shohei Ohtani collectors cup for $75, with free soda all game. Many fans online were outraged by the price. For the second game of the season, the Dodgers dropped the price to $68.99 and said you could get free refills of soda all season long.

And actually, if you go to a few games a season and drink soda, that is quite a bargain, considering sodas at the stadium cost around $11.99. Of course, your ensuing bill for the onset of diabetes will make it less of a bargain.

Survey says

We asked, “Which Dodger closer had the best entrance music?” The results, after 10,941 votes:

Eric Gagne, “Welcome to the Jungle” — 53.9%
Edwin Díaz, “Narco” — 30.9%
Kenley Jansen, “California Love” — 15.2%

Up next

Monday: Dodgers (*-Justin Wrobleski, 0-0, 6.75 ERA) at Toronto (Max Scherzer, 1-0, 1.50 ERA), 4:05 p.m., Sportsnet LA, FS1, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 1-1, 3.00 ERA) at Toronto (Kevin Gausman, 0-0, 0.75 ERA), 4:05 p.m., Sportsnet LA, TBS, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Dodgers (Shohei Ohtani, 1-0, 0.00 ERA) at Toronto (Dylan Cease, 0-0, 2.79 ERA), noon, Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Dodgers put Mookie Betts on IL, call up Hyeseong Kim before sweeping Nationals

Dodgers offense stays hot as Andy Pages and Kyle Tucker balance lineup with big hits

‘A new day’: Shohei Ohtani hits first homer of the season, Dodgers wake up at the plate

Dodgers Debate: LET’S PANIC! Or let’s wait for that?

Dodgers confident their bats will come alive soon despite series loss to Guardians

Shohei Ohtani battles through the rain to throw a one-hit gem in Dodgers’ win

And finally

Shohei Ohtani hits his first home run of the season. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. The Dodgers are on pace to finish 162-0! That might be a record.

Some random thoughts after an opening three-game sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

—It is apparent that the Dodgers will never be out of almost any game. They’re 3-0, and they trailed in all three games.

—Opening day is always fun, filled with pomp and circumstance.

—However, having the starting lineup on opening day come in from center field, walk up a stage and back down it, was a bit much. Even the players seemed somewhat embarrassed, and I was just waiting for someone to turn an ankle on the stairs.

—Shohei Ohtani is hitting only .125. He is so overpaid.

—Clayton Kershaw did really well as an analyst. He seemed to know a lot about the Dodgers. I wonder how?

—Bob Costas told Kershaw he had permission to leave in a few minutes for the ring ceremony. Way to do your homework there, Bob. The ring ceremony was the next day.

—Kershaw sat in the stands next to the dugout during the game. Sitting across the aisle from him was Magic Johnson. Two of the greatest sports legends in L.A. history. We have an embarrassment of riches here.

—Alex Freeland certainly showed why he belongs on the roster. Meanwhile, in Oklahoma City, Hyeseong Kim went five for five on Saturday.

—It took all the way until the second inning of the second game of the season to get an email from a reader concerned about the team. “They don’t look ready!”

—Will Smith comes through on Will Smith bobblehead night. You can’t write it any better than that.

—OK, the Timmy Trumpet entrance by Edwin Díaz is really cool. If you haven’t seen it, you can here.

—That brings me a to quick poll. Which Dodgers closer had the best entrance?

—Eric Gagne, “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns N’ Roses
—Kenley Jansen, “California Love” by Tupac Shakur
—Edwin Díaz, “Narco” by Blasterjaxx and Timmy Trumpet

Click here to vote in our poll.

—Remember in the last newsletter when we talked about Will Klein perhaps reaching a new level after his Game 3 performance last season? Well, he has pitched two scoreless innings and has a win.

—The first three batters in the lineup are hitting below .200, but the Dodgers are 3-0. A good sign.

—If you believe social media, there were apparently a lot of fights in the stands in the opening homestand. I can’t speak as to this season yet, but in the past it has always been ridiculously easy to get around their beer limitation policies. And alcohol has been a prime factor in every fight I’ve ever seen there.

—What a bizarre schedule. Games on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but no game on Sunday.

—Take a look at the very, very early NL West standings. Maybe the experts were right about everyone except the Dodgers finishing with a losing record.

Dodgers, 3-0
San Diego, 1-2
Arizona, 0-3
Colorado, 0-3
San Francisco, 0-3

—The Dodgers’ magic number is 158. Too soon?

—There are only 159 games left to go in the season.

Meet Maddie Lee

Jack Harris, our former Dodgers beat writer, has left us to become a Tibetan monk (at least, that’s what I’ve heard). We have a new Dodgers beat writer this season: Maddie Lee, who spent the last few years covering the Chicago Cubs. Here’s a Q&A with her:

Q. Welcome to The Times. What was the road that led you here?

Lee: Thank you. It was a pretty winding road, to be honest. I grew up in Seattle, played Division III softball in Portland, and have covered everything from high school football, to MLS, to the NBA. But the last six years I’ve been a Cubs beat writer, first for NBC Sports Chicago and then for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Q. We will just jump right into the fire: Roki Sasaki. He looks lost at times. Is he really the best pick for the rotation?

Lee: Sasaki’s spring performance rightfully made him a controversial pick. And if his first regular-season start goes the same way, we could very well see Justin Wrobleski coming in to pitch multiple innings behind him. But with Sasaki’s record in Japan, and even last year, the Dodgers are hoping that pitching in games that matter will help him snap into compete mode and pull out a better version than we’ve seen so far. And if that doesn’t happen, they may have to reevaluate.

Q. You covered the Cubs for a bit. Have you detected any big differences in the way the teams do things? Which team has the best press box?

Lee: I haven’t been around the Dodgers enough yet to give a fair comparison between the organizations. But I’ve spent plenty of time in both press boxes. The Wrigley Field press box is roomier, but this time of year it’s also usually freezing.

Q. Why Alex Freeland and not Hyeseong Kim?

Lee: This was another decision that wasn’t rooted in spring performance. The Dodgers thought Kim could get value going to triple A, where he could get his swing and plate discipline back on track with regular at-bats, while also playing multiple positions. On the other hand, they saw a greater development opportunity for Freeland in the majors, where he’d be tested against a higher caliber of pitching. And it’s not a long-term decision. Kim is expected to make an impact on the major-league roster this year. And when Tommy Edman is ready to return from the IL, the Dodgers will have to clear a spot on the active roster for him.

Q. For many of our readers, covering the Dodgers sounds like a dream job. But there’s travel, little free time, not to mention the fact you have to try and find somewhere to live and move all your belongings. What do you do in your little free time to stay sane?

Lee: Let me be clear, it’s definitely a dream job. That will never be lost on me.

Also, what’s this free time you speak of?

Just kidding, most of my time away from the ballpark is spent with my dog, who loves beach walks and hikes.

Q. I understand you once had Tommy John surgery! What was that recovery like, and can you still touch 100 on the radar?

Lee: I had TJ between my freshman and sophomore year in college. I also got nerve damage from the operation, which added a bit of a wrinkle to the recovery, but I played all four years. I was a catcher and luckily my biggest strength was my softball IQ, not any physical gifts. What a shock that I would end up in the press box rather than on the field.

Q. Lastly, some Dodger fans aren’t satisfied unless the Dodgers build a 20-game lead in April and then slowly pull away. Do you have a prediction for how many games they will win this season?

Lee: I like using PECOTA projections as a jumping off point. They have the Dodgers at 103 wins, which would be a big improvement from their 93-win season last year. But the Dodgers obviously dealt with the injury bug last year and underperformed in the regular season. And, of course, Kyle Tucker and Edwin Díaz were big offseason additions. So, 103 wins feels attainable. I’ll go with 100.

The new rings are here

A detailed look at the inside of the Dodgers’ 2025 World Series championship ring.

(The Champions Collective)

The Dodgers gave out World Series rings on Friday. The diamond- and sapphire-encrusted rings include engravings of the 2024 and 2025 trophies on both the outside and inside of the ring.

The L.A. logo is made up of 17 custom-cut blue sapphires, one for every postseason game the Dodgers played last year.

On the underside side of the ring, the four playoff series are listed, along with “11.01.25,” the date of Game 7 of the World Series.

A detailed look at the inside of the Dodgers’ 2025 World Series championship ring.

(The Champions Collective)

The ring top holds dirt collected from home plate during Game 7, visible through a glass window when the ring is opened. Inside the ring sits a band that’s also set with sapphires and a diamond.

The total attendance figure for the 2025 season (4,012,470) gleams in blue on the bottom of the ring. Each player’s ring is also personalized with his signature, last name and number.

Up next

Monday: Cleveland (*-Parker Messick) at Dodgers (Roki Sasaki), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Tuesday: Cleveland (TBA) at Dodgers (Shohei Ohtani), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Wednesday: Cleveland (Gavin Williams) at Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto), 5:20 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Will Smith’s big birthday blast powers Dodgers to season-opening sweep of Arizona

Alex Freeland shows why he made Dodgers’ roster in victory over Diamondbacks

The Dodgers received their 2025 World Series rings. What do they look like?

Swanson: Dodgers’ Andy Pages proves he’s primed for a potential breakout season

Plaschke: Seeing double: Dodgers celebrate titles on a sparkling opening day

Miguel Rojas cherishes final opening day as ‘Uncle Miggy’ in Dodgers’ win over Arizona

Shaikin: Dodgers owner Mark Walter: ‘We’ve got to have some parity’

The Sights and Sounds of 2026 Dodgers Opening Day

The Dodgers are boring. And that is good.

Dodgers Debate: The road to a three-peat

Dodgers’ opening week will celebrate 2025 World Series, but also set the tone for 2026

Shaikin: The signs say Uniqlo Field. You will continue to say Dodger Stadium

And finally

Edwin Díaz comes in from the bullpen for a save. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. The long journey to the postseason begins today.

As we embark on the 12th season of this newsletter, there are certain things, like death and taxes, that are guaranteed. Here they are.

—The Dodgers will charge way too much to park in their poorly designed, poorly lit parking lot.

—Shohei Ohtani will have a game where he strikes out 10 and hits multiple home runs. No one will be able to explain how he does this until we learn he was actually sent here by the aliens from “Project Hail Mary.”

—Ohtani will go hitless for three-to-four games in a row and have a bad pitching outing during the same time, leading to some to say he is overpaid.

—Will Smith will catch at least 130 games and be in the conversation for NL MVP.

—The Padres will be better than most are saying and their fans will approach the games with the Dodgers as if it is their World Series.

—The Rockies will be terrible again.

—Teoscar Hernández will continue to struggle as a fielder, but people won’t care as much as his bat will be rejuvenated.

—A pitcher no one has heard of will be signed by the Dodgers off the waiver wire. He will appear in a game and pitch great, maybe even getting the win. The following week, he will be designated for assignment.

—Mookie Betts will win the Gold Glove at short, and while he won’t reach his previous heights at the plate, he will hit better than last season.

—Andy Pages will slump at some point and fans will demand that Ryan Ward, who is hitting .350 with about a million homers in the minors, get a chance. He won’t get a chance and Pages will recover.

—Fans will complain that Joe Davis takes too many games off and isn’t a true Dodger like Vin Scully was, even though Vin took just as many games off for national duties.

—The music at Dodger Stadium will continue to be so loud that even the aliens from “A Quiet Place” will complain. (Editor’s note: Two outer space aliens references in one newsletter. What is wrong with this guy?)

—The most worn former Dodger jersey worn by fans at the stadium will continue to be… Fernando Valenzuela‘s. And it will be for many years to come.

—Max Muncy will look like the worst hitter in baseball for an extended period, then he will hit like Babe Ruth.

—Dalton Rushing will be a decent backup for Smith and will hit well enough that he can spell Freddie Freeman at first base on occasion.

—Freeman will hit .300 again in what will be his last great season at the plate.

—The Dodgers will continue to “give away” games during the season in order to be ready for the postseason. For example, they will allow a reliever to take a beating in a game at the start of long road trip in order to preserve the rest of the bullpen. Some fans will be irate at this, thinking the Dodgers should try to win every game at all costs.

—The Cool-A-Coo will not return to Dodger Stadium and will continue to be missed.

—The Dodgers will continue to call the hot dog they sell a Dodger Dog, even though it tastes nothing like a Farmer John Dodger Dog.

—Only three pitchers will pitch more than 100 innings, but the quality of the staff from top to bottom will be more consistent throughout the season, allowing them to use fewer than 40 pitchers this season.

—Either Blake Treinen or Tanner Scott will continue to pitch poorly, but the Dodgers, again with their eye on the postseason and on how much money they are paying these guys, will continue to trot them out there in hopes they will rebound.

—Some fans will complain about the abhorrent price of going to a Dodger game. They will still go though, and the Dodgers will draw four million, giving them no reason to lower prices.

—Justin Turner will sign a one-day contract with the team and then retire.

—Edwin Díaz will save 30 games and give the bullpen some much-needed stability.

—Kyle Tucker won’t hit as well as hoped, but will be a significant upgrade over Michael Conforto.

—Hyeseong Kim will come up at some point, wow fans with his blazing speed, hit close to .300, and then be sent back down.

—Dave Roberts will have a bad game or two where he makes a decision that seems nonsensical. Some will demand he be fired because “Anyone could manage this team.” Those people will be wrong.

—You will continue to need to subscribe to about a dozen streaming channels to watch all the Dodger games on TV. No one will.

—Yoshinobu Yamamoto will lead the team in victories.

—Organist Dieter Ruehle will continue to find the perfect song for any situation.

—Tyler Glasnow will look unbeatable one start, then get thrown off his next start by a hangnail and pitch like Dave Goltz.

—There will be thrilling victories, agonizing defeats and some boring games. But it will all be worth it as we look around and see all the different types of Dodger fans out there, reminding us that baseball unites us.

—The Dodgers will finish the season 98-64 and cruise to the NL West title. They will not have to play in the wild-card game.

—And that means they will be in the postseason where … anything can happen.

—So, don’t get so worried about the destination that you forget to enjoy the ride.

How many games will the Dodgers win?

We asked, How many games will the Dodgers win this season? After 10,566 responses:

They will win 96-100 games, 46.3%
They will win 101-110 games, 35.5%
They will win 91-95 games, 13.2%
They will set the record by winning more than 116 games, 2.3%
They will win 111-115 games, 1.6%
They will win 86-90 games, 0.9%
They will finish under .500, 0.2%
They will win 81-85 games, one vote

We asked, Will the Dodgers win the World Series this season? After 10,538 responses:

Yes, 79.1%
No, 20.9%

A walking path to Dodger Stadium?

Did you know there is a walking path to Dodger Stadium? There is a one-mile walking path from the Chinatown Metro station to Dodger Stadium. There’s one problem though, to quote Bill Shaikin‘s column on the path: “To go a very short distance safely with a feeling that you’re not going to die is very difficult.”

Read more about this here.

Up next

Thursday: Arizona (Zac Gallen) at Dodgers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto), 5:30 p.m., NBC, Peacock, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Friday: Arizona (Ryne Nelson) at Dodgers (Emmet Sheehan), 7:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

Saturday: Arizona (*-Eduardo Rodriguez) at Dodgers (Tyler Glasnow), 6:10 p.m., Sportsnet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020

*-left-handed

In case you missed it

Dodgers sign right-hander Jake Cousins to one-year deal on eve of opening day

Shaikin: Dodger Walk: A great city needs a walking path to blue heaven. Do it, Frank McCourt

How Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani can put himself in the 2026 NL Cy Young conversation

And finally

Our opening day tradition: Danny Kaye sings the Dodgers song. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. If you told me five years ago that right now we would ‘ be discussing whether the Dodgers could win their third consecutive World Series, I would have laughed. How fortunate we are.

Opening day is Thursday, with the flag ceremony that day and the ring ceremony Friday. So, let’s take a look at the opening day roster, barring an injury or implosion by someone.

Catchers

Will Smith — Some Mariners fans took umbrage that I said Smith was the best catcher in the game with Cal Raleigh second. Consistency lifts Smith to No. 1. If Raleigh has another season like last season, he could move up. And did you notice who started the key games for the U.S. in the WBC? Smith, not Raleigh.

Dalton Rushing — An important season for Rushing, who failed to impress last season. Far too early to throw in the towel on him. Can he become a consistent hitter while playing twice a week? Would Ben Rortvedt have made the team instead of Rushing?

Infielders

Mookie Betts — Remember, last season he was very sick around opening day and lost 20 pounds in two weeks. And he’s not exactly a physical giant to begin with. He then had to come back and learn a new position on the fly. It’s possible he never reaches the MVP heights of the past, but it’s also possible he hits much better than last season.

Santiago Espinal — Hitting .372 this spring and played steady defense, more than earning his way onto the team. Hasn’t had a good season on offense since 2021, but is a career .291 hitter against left-handers, so expect to see him against lefties.

Alex Freeland — He won the utility job over Hyeseong Kim despite having a terrible spring in which he went five for 45, though with 13 walks. There must be something about Kim the Dodgers do not like, though they say they sent him down so he can get consistent daily at-bats. Freeland will get a big opportunity here. Can he deliver?

Freddie Freeman — Here’s betting he becomes a .300 hitter again this season and that his mobility improves at first now that his ankle has had more time to heal.

Max Muncy — Everyone knows what Muncy will provide each season between stints on the IL, and there’s no reason to believe he won’t provide it again.

Miguel Rojas — Shohei Ohtani asked him not to retire. He will be the defensive glue for the infield, will get some key hits, and will help everyone on the infield become better defensively.

Outfielders

Alex Call — Exactly what you want in a fourth outfielder: Good defense with the ability to get on base and spell someone in the lineup without a huge dropoff in quality.

Teoscar Hernández — Says he never felt quite right after his injury early last season. Judging by his spring numbers (.468 with five homers), I’d say he was correct.

Andy Pages — Dave Roberts says Pages is his “pick to click” this season. Considering he hit 27 homers last season, you have to wonder what his numbers will be if he does click.

Kyle Tucker — Will the pressure of a big contract cause him to start slow as it has so many others?

Two-way player

Shohei Ohtani — Just think, Ohtani could hit 40 homers this season and be accused of having a disappointing season.

Tommy Edman will be back at some point, and Kiké Hernández will be back around the midpoint of the season, perhaps sooner.

Rotation

Yoshinobu Yamamoto — There are certain guys who should never be booed later in their playing career after what they have done in the past for the team. Fernando. Orel Hershiser. With his 2025 postseason, Yamamoto has claimed a spot on that list.

Tyler Glasnow — Fans still like to call him Glass-now. Pitched only 90 1/3 innings last season. Has pitched in 100 or more innings in only three of his 10 major league seasons. It would be a miracle if he makes 25 starts this season, but when he does pitch, he’s usually very good and the Dodgers will protect his arm as much as they can to make sure he can pitch in the postseason.

Shohei Ohtani — Will Ohtani win the MVP and Cy Young Award? The only time he came close was in 2022 with the Angels, when he was second in MVP voting and fourth in Cy Young voting. Last season he made 14 starts and pitched 47 innings. My prediction is he receives votes for both, but doesn’t win both as some pitcher will put up better or similar numbers in more innings.

Roki Sasaki — One of the big mysteries of the season. Can Sasaki harness his ability? His emotions seem to overwhelm his ability at times. But he’s only 24. When I was 24, I had just started working at The Times and my emotions overwhelmed my ability at times. It’s easy to forget these are men, not machines. However, after a disastrous start Monday against the Angels, giving up four runs in the first inning, you have to wonder if he will indeed start the season in the majors.

Emmet Sheehan — Went 6-3 with a 2.82 ERA last season before he was moved to the bullpen for the postseason and pitched terribly (8.59 ERA). When Blake Snell is ready to come back, hopefully in May, either Sasaki or Sheehan will either move to the bullpen or get sent down. They are in effect using April to battle for a permanent spot in the rotation.

Bullpen

Ben Casparius — He can be a starter, a short guy, a long man, an opener. He’s a jack-of-all-trades, or, a Ben of all trades. Has walked nine in 7.2 spring innings, so that’s something that can’t continue.

Edwin Díaz — The closer job is his. Mets fans say Dodgers fans should get used to Díaz walking a tightrope when he pitches. We’ll have to wait and see, but as of right now, this is a terrific signing.

Jack Dreyer — Had a solid rookie season and pitched four scoreless innings in the postseason.

Edgardo Henriquez — An electric arm that hasn’t always translated to electric results. He bounced back and forth between the minors and the Dodgers last season and could again this season.

Will Klein — Sometimes one outing transforms a player from being an average player to being a good-to-great one. Was Game 3 the pivot point for Klein, who has a career 5.16 ERA? He has been great this spring. And apparently Klein jerseys have become a top seller, so there will be a lot of people pulling for him.

Tanner Scott — He is in the second year of a four-year, $72-million deal, and he was terrible in Year 1 of the deal. The comment for Treinen below applies to Scott as well. Will the Dodgers use Scott and Treinen as their first non-closer option in high leverage roles at the start of the season?

Blake Treinen — Will the Treinen of 2024 return, or will it be the Treinen of 2025? And if it is the Treinen of 2025, how much leash will the Dodgers give him before giving up? Those will be two key things to watch early in the season.

Alex Vesia — After what he and his wife went through, is anyone rooting against this guy? He will wear his emotions on his sleeve as always and will neutralize left-handers.

Justin Wrobleski — Can give them some length out of the bullpen, plus can step into the rotation if Sasaki or Sheehan prove too unreliable before Snell returns.

Some teams say the Dodgers have an unfair advantage, because Ohtani being a two-way player means the Dodgers can carry nine relievers while most teams can carry only eight. Funny how those teams never complained about this when Ohtani was with the Angels.

At some point, Snell, Brusdar Graterol, Evan Phillips and Brock Stewart will be back.

Also keep in mind that last season the Dodgers used 40 pitchers, so there will be a lot of churn among that part of the roster. They will start April with these 14 pitchers, but it’s unlikely the same 14 reach the end of April, or maybe even mid-April.

They used 25 position players last season, but it seems like the opening 13 will stay together for a little bit, at least until the first injury.

How many games will the Dodgers win?

It’s that time of year where I ask you how many games the Dodgers will win, and this year I will also ask if the Dodgers will win the World Series again?

So, how many games will the Dodgers win this season?

They will finish under .500 (this will tell me how many Padres/Giants fans subscribe to the newsletter)

They will win 81-90 games

They will win 91-95 games

They will win 96-100 games

They will win 101-110 games

They will win 111-116 games

They will set the record with more than 116 wins

Click here to vote in this survey and the World Series survey. Results will be announced Thursday.

The experts say

Most experts point to the fact the the Dodgers are favorites to win it all among oddsmakers. If you look around at the various oddsmakers, the Dodgers are given about a 28% chance to win the World Series, far ahead of any other team (Seattle usually is second).

But, look at it another way. You could also say there is a 72% chance the Dodgers won’t win the World Series. We have been spoiled the last two seasons. Really, compared to most teams, we have been spoiled ever since Guggenheim bought the team. Winning a World Series is really difficult, even if you have the best team during the season.

I’ll give my predictions on Thursday. In the meantime, Bill Plaschke gave his prediction, which you can read here.

Andrew Friedman speaks….

President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman sat down with our new Dodgers reporter, Maddie Lee (we’ll meet her officially soon) and answered some questions. You can read the whole thing here. A couple of highlights:

Q: It’s such a cliche to say you can never have too much pitching, but with this group, are you close?

Friedman: I’ve learned my lesson to never say that we have enough pitching. But I do feel like we are breaking camp with the most talented one through 20 arms — which gets at, obviously, who we’ll break with, and then depth behind it — that we’ve ever had.

Q: The Dodgers are very much caught in the middle of CBA posturing with the current agreement expiring this year. You hear a lot of players saying the Dodgers are doing it the right way and other teams could be doing something similar. On the other hand, the league appears to be floating a salary cap, and plenty of fans are accusing the Dodgers of “ruining baseball.” What’s it been like to see those conflicting narratives?

Friedman: Obviously see it, come across it, hear it quite a bit. But we’re just not that focused on it. We’re a really healthy organization, and the partnership we have with our fans is our guiding light. And we’re doing everything we can to put a team out there that our fans really connect with, and that they feel that partnership with all that they pour into us, and don’t really think about it in any other terms.

And so obviously, there’s a lot of narratives that get extrapolated from that. But our sole focus is on ourselves and the partnership we have with our fans and the rest of it to us, it’s kind of just noise.

The Q&A, which covers several topics, can be found here.

In case you missed it

Swanson: The Dodgers are chasing a three-peat. They can take some cues from the 2002 Lakers

Why the Dodgers are preaching patience as Roki Sasaki continues development

NL West preview: The Dodgers should be heavy favorites, but the Padres could surprise

Ohtani. Yamamoto. Sasaki. A 12-story ‘cultural bridge’ between L.A. and Japan to debut in Torrance

Alex Freeland edges Hyeseong Kim for a Dodgers opening day roster spot

For two-time defending champion Dodgers, the goal is simple: ‘They want to keep winning’

Plaschke: The Dodgers and their fans are geared up for a three-peat. Why the quest will fall short

Yoshinobu Yamamoto smooth in his final spring start before Dodgers opening day

Q&A: Andrew Friedman on team culture, the upcoming season and ‘noise’ around the Dodgers

And finally

Shohei Ohtani hits three homers and strikes out 10 in Game 4 of the 2025 NLCS. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Today we continue our series looking at the NL West, position by position.

NL West, the third basemen

Let’s look at the third basemen and shorstops, ranked from best to worst. Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page.

San Diego
Manny Machado
Last season: .275/.335/.460, 33 doubles, 27 homers, 95 RBIs, 118 OPS+
Career: .279/.338/.486, 94 OPS+, 124 OPS+

Though, as Yogi Berra famously said, “Nobody likes Manny Machado,” you have to give the devil his due. Machado is one of the best third basemen in the game, not just the NL West. He hits for average and power and is a defensive stalwart at third. It has already been eight years since he was with the Dodgers.

San Francisco
Matt Chapman
Last season: .231/.340/.430, 23 doubles, 21 homers, 61 RBIs, 120 OPS+
Career: .240/.330/.458, 119 OPS+

Similar to Max Muncy offensively, Chapman gets the nod because he is a five-time Gold Glove winner at third and stays in the lineup more consistently.

Dodgers
Max Muncy
Last season: .243/.376/.470, 10 doubles, 19 homers, 67 RBIs, 136 OPS+
Career: .229/.354/.474, 124 OPS+

There will come a time this season when Muncy will go on one of his notorious cold streaks. Some will say the Dodgers should dump him. Nonsense. He is one of the 10 best third basemen in the league and is a steal at only $10 million this season.

Arizona
Nolan Arenado
Last season: .237/.289/.377, 18 doubles, 12 homers, 52 RBIs, 87 OPS+
Career: .282/.338/.507, 119 OPS+

He finished third in MVP voting in 2022, but has been in decline since then. Can a new team help him recapture some former glory?

Colorado
Kyle Karros
Last season: .226/.308/.377, 4 doubles, 1 homer, 9 RBIs, 58 OPS+
Career: .226/.308/.377, 58 OPS+

Yes, he’s the son of former Dodger Eric Karros. Don’t let those offensive numbers fool you, they were in limited playing time. He is one of the Rockies’ top prospects and has a bright future. He is only 23.

Shortstop

Dodgers
Mookie Betts
Last season: .258/.326/.406, 23 doubles, 20 homers, 82 RBIs, 104 OPS+
Career: .290/.369/.512, 135 OPS+

I’ve been writing this newsletter for 12 seasons now, and sometimes I get things very, very wrong. I was against moving Betts to short. But I was wrong. He’s already Gold Glove level there, and here’s guessing his bat rebounds to elite levels this season, because one thing I have learned is to not bet against Mookie Betts.

Arizona
Geraldo Perdomo
Last season: .290/.389/.462, 33 doubles, 20 homers, 100 RBIs, 136 OPS+
Career: .253/.348/.374, 101 OPS+

If his new level of offense reached last season is for real (his previous high in homers was six), then he could easily move up to No. 1 on this list.

San Francisco
Willy Adames
Last season: .225/.318/.421, 22 doubles, 30 homers, 87 RBIs, 111 OPS+
Career: .244/.321/.440, 109 OPS+

He signed a seven-year, $182-million deal with the Giants before last season, then got off to a horrible start, dampening his overall numbers, which were pretty good despite that. There are a lot of good shortstops in the NL West.

San Diego
Xander Bogaerts
Last season: .263/.328/.391, 30 doubles, 11 homers, 53 RBIs, 99 OPS+
Career: .287/.350/.446, 114 OPS+

Still a good fielder, but his offense has regressed, as he has been below average the last two seasons.

Colorado
Ezequiel Tovar
Last season: .253/.294/.400, 18 doubles, 9 homers, 33 RBIs, 83 OPS+
Career: .258/.291/.429, 88 OPS+

Tovar has never met a pitch he wouldn’t swing at, but when he does connect he hits it hard. He won the Gold Glove in 2024, but last season was a setback for him, in part due to injuries.

In case you missed it

Andrew Friedman on team culture, the upcoming season and ‘noise’ around the Dodgers

Shohei Ohtani pitches effectively in first spring training start. ‘He expects perfection’

‘It wasn’t just my name.’ Why Miguel Rojas was bothered by erroneous suspension report

And finally

Max Muncy hits an important home run in Game 7 of the 2025 World Series. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Today we continue our series looking at the NL West, position by position.

NL West, the first basemen

Let’s look at the first and second basemen, ranked from best to worst. Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page.

Dodgers
Freddie Freeman
Last season: .295/.367/.502, 39 doubles, 24 homers, 90 RBIs, 141 OPS+
Career: .300/.386/.511, 142 OPS+

Freeman’s ankle never seemed 100% last season, and he still put up solid numbers. He has said he wants to hit .300 again after failing to do so the past two seasons. There are only three current players (minimum 2,000 plate appearances) with a career batting average of at least .300: Freeman, Luis Arráez (.317) and Jose Altuve (.303). The top 10 in career batting average among active players:

1. Arráez, .317
2. Altuve, .303
3. Freeman, .300
4. Trea Turner, .297
5. Yordan Alvarez, .297
6. Bo Bichette, .294
7. Mike Trout, .294
8. Aaron Judge, .294
9. Mookie Betts, .290
10. Yandy Díaz, .290

San Francisco
Rafael Devers
Last season: .252/.372/.479, 33 doubles, 35 homers, 109 RBIs, 140 OPS+
Career: .276/.349/.506, 129 OPS+

Devers was acquired at the trade deadline from Boston. Oracle Park didn’t seem to dampen his numbers as much as it does to others, as he hit 11 homers there and 20 overall with the Giants. He’s not exactly Wes Parker at first base, but he is a solid run producer.

San Diego
Gavin Sheets
Last season: .252/.317/.429, 28 doubles, 19 homers, 71 RBIs, 105 OPS+
Career: .236/.301/.397, 94 OPS+

Sheets was a big surprise for the Padres last season, hitting better than he had in four seasons with the White Sox. He will get the majority of starts against right-handers, but could sit against tough lefties.

“The big thing for me has been controlling the strike zone, getting walks and being disciplined,” Sheets said about his improved hitting this spring. “You get swings like this and you build off the two of those things, you can really put the two of those things together.”

Arizona
Carlos Santana
Last season: .219/.308/.325, 11 doubles, 11 homers, 54 RBIs, 77 OPS+
Career: .241/.352/.425, 112 OPS+

How old is Carlos Santana? He was signed as an amateur free agent by the Dodgers in 2004. He was traded to Cleveland in 2008 for Casey Blake, who retired in 2011. He was a solid player for the then Indians, twice finishing in the top 20 in MVP voting, but he is well into his decline stage now.

Colorado
Edouard Julien
Last season: .220/.309/.324, 10 doubles, three homers, 12 RBIs, 76 OPS+
Career: .232/.336/.382, 99 OPS+

Julien finished seventh in rookie of the year voting in 2023 when he hit .263/.381/.459 for the Minnesota Twins in a little over half the season. It has been all downhill since then. The Twins traded him to Colorado in January, and the Rockies get to see if they can unlock whatever was working for him three years ago.

Second base

Arizona
Ketel Marte
Last season: .283/.376/.517, 28 doubles, 28 homers, 72 RBIs, 145 OPS+
Career: .281/.351/.472, 121 OPS+

He has won back-to-back NL Silver Sluggers, finished third in 2024 NL MVP balloting and had an OPS+ of 145 last season. He is the key to the Diamondbacks’ offense and one of the more underrated players in the game.

San Diego
Jake Cronenworth
Last season: .246/.367/.377, 20 doubles, 11 homers, 59 RBIs, 108 OPS+
Career: .247/.335/.406, 107 OPS+

Cronenworth is one of those guys who don’t make the headlines but quietly puts up steady production every day. Every team needs a player or two such as Cronenworth, a guy you can pencil into the lineup every day and not have to worry about him.

Dodgers
Miguel Rojas
Last season: .262/.318/.397, 18 doubles, seven homers, 27 RBIs, 100 OPS+
Career: .260/.314/.362, 86 OPS+

He apparently had some sort of big hit in the World Series last season. I must have missed it. Hyeseong Kim and Santiago Espinal could also get playing time at second until Tommy Edman is able to return.

San Francisco
Luis Arráez
Last season: .292/.327/.392, 30 doubles, eight homers, 61 RBIs, 99 OPS+
Career: .317/.363/.413, 115 OPS+

How valuable is a guy whose value lies almost entirely in his batting average? Arráez has won three batting titles, three years in a row, with three different teams. He is with a new team again this year. He has mild power, draws few walks, is terrible on defense. But he can get line drive singles all day long.

Colorado
Tyler Freeman
Last season: .281/.354/.361, 20 doubles, two homers, 31 RBIs, 92 OPS+
Career: .247/.324/.342, 85 OPS+

It appears, according to MLB.com, that Freeman has edged out Willi Castro for the job. Either one can play multiple positions and will probably get plenty of time everywhere on a team that is expected to lose 100 games again.

In case you missed it

Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s lead-up to Dodgers opening day ‘hard to put into words’

‘There’s endless possibilities.’ Mookie Betts embraces Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s training methods

And finally

Freddie Freeman hits the walk-off homer in Game 3 of the 2025 World Series. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

MIAMI — The victors erupted onto the field and into multiple dogpiles. Some wore national flags around their shoulders. Within minutes, the Venezuelans wore T-shirts that read: “The Best Baseball in the World.”

The players from the United States watched from their dugout. Within minutes, they trudged back onto the field so a silver medal could be draped around their necks. Not every player wore the medal all the way back to the dugout.

You can say all you want about how the World Baseball Classic has matured into a must-see event for fans and a must-play event for the game’s elite players. You can salute Venezuela for a spirited and thrilling victory, and the Venezuelan fans for nine innings of joyful delirium.

But you also can say this: A U.S. team billed as featuring a killer lineup could not hit, and the U.S. could not use its best pitcher because the San Diego Padres said so. The result: For the second consecutive World Baseball Classic, the U.S. lost the championship by a 3-2 score.

U.S. captain Aaron Judge looks across the field after striking out against Velezuela at the World Baseball Classic Tuesday.

(Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)

“I’m not OK with winning silver,” Bryce Harper said. “I don’t want to win silver.

“I want to win gold, just like anybody else. But, at the end of the night, they did it, they won, all the congratulations to them. They fought hard. I’ve got nothing but respect for them.”

By the time the eighth inning rolled around, the mighty U.S. offense had not gotten a runner into scoring position on Tuesday, and had gone scoreless for 18 of its previous 19 innings. With two out in the eighth, and Venezuela up 2-0, Bobby Witt Jr. walked, and Harper followed with a 432-foot home run, so monstrous that Venezuelan pitcher Andres Machado could only watch the flight of the ball and smile.

Harper stood and watched too, then he flipped his bat toward the dugout. At third base, he stopped to give a salute, then spotted the cameraman trailing him around the bases and pointed to the American flag on his left sleeve.

“Just enjoying the moment,” Harper said. “Super grateful for it.”

With the game tied 2-2 entering the ninth, the pitcher trotting in from the U.S. bullpen should have been Mason Miller, who had not given up a hit in the WBC and struck out 10 of the 14 batters he had faced.

Before the game, U.S. manager Mark DeRosa had said Miller would be available. After the game, DeRosa said he and Miller’s employers, the Padres, had agreed Miller would only be used to protect a lead.

Once the game entered the ninth, Miller would not be able to protect a lead, since the U.S. was the home team and there could be no save situation for him. DeRosa nonetheless declined to use Miller.

“Honoring the Padres,” DeRosa said.

This is not on DeRosa, but that is nonsense. If a closer cannot be used three times in five days — with another week to ease into the regular season by throwing bullpens or in structured B games, or taking a few days off, or whatever — then he should stay home.

Venezuela scored the winning run in the ninth off Garrett Whitlock, on a walk, stolen base and RBI double by Eugenio Suárez.

In its final five WBC games — after routs of Brazil and Britain — the U.S. scored more than five runs once, with a two-run win, a two-run loss, a two-run win, a one-run win, and a one-run loss. In the semifinal and final, the U.S. combined to bat .159 and strike out 25 times, and every run came on a home run.

That — not any attempt at small ball — is American baseball. And the U.S. was outslugged by six other teams, including Australia and Italy. For glory, as the U.S. team hoodies said.

“A lot of pop ups, a lot of just-missed pitches,” U.S. captain Aaron Judge said. “I wouldn’t say we tensed up. We just didn’t execute when we needed to.”

Said DeRosa: “I mean, surprised because of the names at the back of the jersey, but not surprised because of where they’re at in spring training.

“Yeah, that’s my answer. I really don’t have a rhyme or reason to why. I just think you’re either hot or not in a seven-game blast like this.”

American Bryce Harper celebrates at home plate with teammates after hitting a two-run home run during the World Baseball Classic Tuesday in Miami.

(Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)

The WBC absolutely was a blast. The Venezuelan fans delivered concert-level noise all night long, without needing a silly stadium host or scoreboard command to do so. The WBC allowed fans to bring in 16 “permissible instruments,” including bongos, cowbells, maracas and trumpets.

“There’s bands playing,” Judge said. “There’s chants going on. You don’t usually hear that too much in the World Series games. That’s amazing. So much fun.”

More Americans watched the U.S.-Dominican Republic semifinal than watched last year’s NBA All-Star Game, according to Fox. The championship game almost certainly will have drawn more viewers than at least one game of last year’s NBA Finals.

In the 10 minutes I spent along the concourse before Tuesday’s game, I counted fans wearing the jerseys of many national teams and 17 MLB teams, plus the late and greatly beloved Montreal Expos. Japan did not qualify for the final four, but I nonetheless counted 11 fans in Japan jerseys with Shohei Ohtani’s name on the back. The advertisers believed too: DeRosa spoke in front of a banner displaying the logo of nine corporate sponsors, eight of them Japanese.

After such a lively event, can these players get fired up to go back to spring training, and then for the grind of a 162-game season?

“I’m always fired up for the Yankees, but I’m still pissed about this,” Judge said.

“I’m looking forward to the next time we get a chance to throw on the red, white and blue and take care of business.”

That would be the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, where Dave Roberts has expressed interest in managing Team USA at Dodger Stadium. The major leaguers are almost certainly coming, even if the details are still being worked out.

See you there, Bryce Harper?

“I hope so,” he said. “I really do.”

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. Today we start a series looking at the NL West, position by position, and we meet our new sports columnist.

NL West, the catchers

It seems like a good time to look at the starting lineups for all the teams in the NL West. The Dodgers are prohibitive favorites to win the division, with some prognosticators thinking they will be the only team in the division to finish above .500.

Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA projection has the NL West finishing like this.

1. Dodgers, 105-57
2. San Francisco, 81-81
2. San Diego, 81-81
4. Arizona, 79-83
5. Colorado, 61-101

It seems to me at least one other team will finish above .500, but, that’s why they play the games. A lot of projections had Toronto not even making the postseason last year. So take it with a grain of salt.

Now, let’s look at the catchers, ranked from best to worst. Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page.

Dodgers
Will Smith
Last season: .296/.404/.497, 20 doubles, 17 homers, 61 RBIs
Career: .264/.358/.476, 128 OPS+

Smith, who turns 31 on March 28, is the best catcher in baseball and he is a steal at only $14 million a season through 2033. Of catchers who started at least 81 games last season, he was eighth in caught stealing at 25.5%. Some will argue that Cal Raleigh or Alejandro Kirk are better, but when you consider the total package, I put Smith first. Of course, if Raleigh’s huge step up in offense that he took last season is for real, then he could certainly slot ahead of Smith.

Arizona
Gabriel Moreno
Last season: .285/.353/.433, 12 doubles, nine homers, 40 RBIs
Career: .281/.349/.404, 108 OPS+

Moreno has inflammation in his right elbow, but it appears he will be ready for opening day. He has had quite a few injuries the last couple of seasons.

Colorado
Hunter Goodman
Last season: .278/.323/.520, 28 doubles, 31 homers, 91 RBIs
Career: .248/.292/.482, 102 OPS+

Goodman was one of the few bright spots for the Rockies, who lost 119 games last season. Last season was his first good season at the plate. He was an All-Star and won the Silver Slugger award. Earlier this spring training, he had this to say about his defense: “I mean, last year for the whole first half, was kind of like I was in fight-or-flight mode the whole game behind the dish. So just trying to get to where I’m comfortable on the plate and working to get these guys strikes and call better games and stuff like that.”

San Francisco
Patrick Bailey
Last season: .222/.277/.325, six homers, 55 RBIs
Career: .230/.287/.340, 78 OPS+

Bailey is solid defensively, and has proven to be a master at when to challenge a ball/strike call under the new Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System (more on that in a future newsletter). Bailey has also focused on his swing in the offseason and has been a much better hitter this spring.

San Diego
Freddy Fermin
Last season: .251/.297/.339, 13 doubles, five homers, 26 RBIs
Career: .264/.309/.376, 91 OPS+

The Padres acquired Fermin from the Royals at the trade deadline last season, and loved how he handled the pitching staff, much like the Dodgers with Ben Rortvedt. He will be backed up Luis Campusano, who hit .336 in triple A but isn’t exactly Johnny Bench behind the plate.

Meet our new columnist

We have a new columnist at The Times, Mirjam Swanson. She will be covering all sports, but here’s guessing she will be writing quite a bit of opinion about the Dodgers. So, let’s get to know her.

Q. Welcome to The Times. What was the road that led you here?

Swanson: Thank you! Oh, it’s been a long and windy road, scenic let’s say. I grew up in Southern California, so it was always my dream to work for the L.A. Times. But journalism is a tough business. And I know I’m not the only mom out there who has turned down and/or taken jobs based on what was best for her children. Plus, I’ve always had this problem of getting really into whatever I’m covering, whether it was action sports or local politics or World Series runs. So while the dream of working at the Times persisted, I was also always happy with what was right in front of me, never desperate to move on. But here I am now, finally, better for the journey, I think.

Q. You will be an all-sports columnist, but we’ll focus on the Dodgers since this is a Dodgers newsletter. Do you have a favorite moment in Dodger history?

Swanson: The moment in Dodgers history that will stick with me most is …

… hmm. The Dodgers’ history books could fill a library — where to start?

I was in the backseat of the family car on a freeway somewhere in Southern California listening to Kirk Gibson put his signature on the improbable 1988 season with his impossibly clutch pinch-hit home run in Game 1 of the World Series. And I was in the ballpark when Gibby met Freddie in 2024, feeling the stadium shake and watching on a TV in the overflow media workspace, feeling awe and angst. Freddie Freeman with grand timing that night, right on deadline.

Watched Shohei Ohtani turn Game 4 of the 2025 NLCS into a Little League game with 10 strikeouts and three home runs. There might never be a greater individual game — or there might be. Put nothing past Ohtani, including the inconceivable.

And I won’t forget my L.A. neighborhood erupting over Miguel Rojas’ “no-way!” ninth-inning solo shot in Game 7 of last season’s World Series.

But all of that is a long and windy way to arrive at this: It’s Andy Pages’ catch.

That’s not recency bias, either. It’s that the play was so confounding, so unexpected, the plot twist no one saw coming. Violent and athletic and hilarious. A whole movie in 10 seconds.

We might not have expected it to be Rojas to hit that season-saving home run, but our brains are trained to accept seeing a home run in such a moment. But an outfielder coming out of nowhere, running down and over his own teammate to make an improbable, impossible season-saving catch for the final out in the ninth inning of Game 7? Wasn’t on my bingo card.

I think about that play daily, it was so cool.

Q. What do you see as the biggest obstacle for the team this season?

Swanson: The answer is health, of course. But the Dodgers are so deep, they’ve done as much as a club can to fortify itself against inevitable injuries and ailments throughout a season, so it feels like less of a concern than it’s supposed to be.

So it’ll be mental. Having to handle the weight of trying to three-peat, of everyone either desperately wanting to see them do it or rooting desperately against them doing it. Every other team is going to treat their games against the Dodgers like it’s the World Series. That should make for good baseball, but it also will test these guys’ psychological stamina.

Manager Dave Roberts said the other night that he felt more pressure to repeat than three-peat, and that at this point, the Dodgers are playing with house money. That might be true, but there’s no ignoring the historic opportunity, either. Heady stuff for a team that’s set up as well as a team can be to do it if players can keep their edge.

Q. I get quite a bit of email from fans saying Roberts is overrated and that anyone could manage this team to the World Series. What are your thoughts on Roberts as a manager?

Swanson: I know some of these people.

And I hope they’re on no one’s jury, because evidence evidently means nothing to them.

A guy I know, an otherwise relatively rational dude, told me after the Dodgers repeated: “The only bad thing about this is Dave Roberts is going to be around longer.”

As if there was any bad thing for fans of the team about the Dodgers’ repeating. You really have to want to be unhappy about something if you’re anti-the manager who has won three World Series crowns in six seasons.

As if it’s automatic to pilot a team with so many talented players, to keep them happy and motivated and locked in, to manage these millionaires with understandable egos. That’s actually so much harder to do than to coach up a team of prospects with modest expectations.

And to pull so many of the right levers along the way, too?

Yeah, Roberts is elite at what he does. And apparently his haters are elite at what they do too.

Q. Is a lockout inevitable after the season, and does baseball need a salary cap?

Swanson: Sigh.

Yes, probably.

No, probably not.

All the salary cap is going to do is save the smarter-than-you Dodgers’ ownership group money while everyone keeps chasing them. It won’t level the playing field, but it will give owners cover for not paying their players as much as they could — and possibly cost us all priceless opportunities to watch Ohtani play baseball while the owners and players arm wrestle over finances offstage.

Sigh.

Q. Lastly, how many games will the Dodgers win this season?

Swanson: Fewer than 100.

Yes, they’re the most talented team money could buy. But every other team is going to give everything it has in every game against the Dodgers. And the Dodgers aren’t going to match that energy every time out — or 117 times out, if you’re hoping the major league record + World Series three-peat combo is on the menu.

The regular season isn’t what it’s really about for the Dodgers. They’ll be conservative with their approach, they won’t push anyone to do anything that could diminish their performance in the postseason. They’re going to play it cool … until they’re not.

And it’s going to drive observers along the way nuts, because it will cost them some games. But let’s try not to fret too much, Dodgers fans. Try not be too hard on Roberts.

Because only one number really matters: Three.

Dodger Stadium has a new field name

The Dodgers agreed to a deal granting Uniqlo naming rights to the field at Dodger Stadium. Though not officially announced by the Dodgers, the name likely will be Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium.

Uniqlo is a Japan-based clothing brand. This is just another example of the revenue the Dodgers are generating because of Shohei Ohtani.

But here’s guessing that no one will call it Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium.

Opening day starter will be…

Dave Roberts said Monday that Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be the opening day starter on March 26 against Arizona at Dodger Stadium. It will be the second straight opening day start for Yamamoto, and after all he did in the postseason last year, it is much deserved.

And the number is….

Some of you who haven’t seen any spring training games have asked what numbers the new Dodgers are wearing.

Edwin Díaz is wearing No. 3, last worn by Chris Taylor and also worn by such Dodger luminaries as Steve Sax, Willie Davis and Billy Cox. He becomes the 40th Dodger to wear No. 3.

Kyle Tucker is wearing No. 23, last worn by Michael Conforto (I hope that’s not a bad omen) and also worn by, among others, Adrián González, Eric Karros, Kirk Gibson, Jim Wynn, Claude Osteen and Don Zimmer.

In case you missed it

Yoshinobu Yamamoto named Dodgers’ opening-day starter for second straight season

Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani apologizes for ‘shortcomings’ in Japan’s early exit from WBC

Dodgers reportedly agree to deal with Uniqlo for naming rights to Dodger Stadium field

Swanson: Yoshinobu Yamamoto might not wear a cape, but he has super powers

‘Bigger than baseball.’ Why being in Puerto Rico for WBC meant so much to Kiké Hernández

Blake Snell throws first bullpen session of spring training, taking key step forward

Dodgers prospect James Tibbs III attempts to show staying power after multiple trades

And finally

Kyle Tucker hits his first home run with the Dodgers. Watch and listen here.

Until next time….

Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.