Dodgers 4, Twins 3: Checking Out

[tony&rodney]

Sell.

[Blyleven2011]

8 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Sell.

Sell and get what we need , if we trade one of Jax or Duran  , we better be trading for high quality players that can fill a ML position of need right away  ...

The free agents to be trades will probably amount to fringe players to audition  ...

[Sjoski]

59 minutes ago, h2oface said:

ALL missed calls are horrid. Even if they benefit the favored team. It changes every game. ALL MISSED 

 

The sad thing is…
A 90-year-old grandma in a wheelchair could sit on her couch at home and still call a better game than the average MLB umpire behind the plate.

And that’s the truth.

Until MLB finally implements automatic balls and strikes—and gives an umps in the booth the authority to quickly reverse bad calls, this junk will never end. Never.

Fans are tired of hearing about the "human element" when it’s really just a fancy way of defending poor judgment. We’ve got the technology. We’ve got the angles. There’s zero excuse for letting blown calls dictate games in 2025.

Fix it then MLB. Your umps suck! 
 

[USAFChief]

1 hour ago, Aggies7 said:

As a Rocco non-fan, I agreed 1,000% with the move to walk Ohtani to face Esteury Ruiz, the man on his 4th team in as many years, with 16 at bats this season and a career OPS of .642. Two outs and two bases open, you make that move 1,000 times out of 1,000. Not even a debate in my mind.

It’s not like Jax is one of the lower end relievers. He’s always mentioned in the same breath as Duran, and many have wanted him as closer at various times. Throw some damn strikes to a guy only batting because he pinch ran. 

I wouldn't ever intentionally walk the winning run on base,  but I certainly can understand your position in this case.

And it's one i wouldn't blame Rocco for doing either.

 

[Mike Sixel]

19 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

Sell and get what we need , if we trade one of Jax or Duran  , we better be trading for high quality players that can fill a ML position of need right away  ...

The free agents to be trades will probably amount to fringe players to audition  ...

They literally got Ryan for a rental. 

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

Didn’t see game, but the non-intentional intentional walk would have been an option too. Made a little bit trickier with right on left and your breaking pitches breaking in onto the bat. 

[USAFChief]

18 minutes ago, Sjoski said:

 

The sad thing is…
A 90-year-old grandma in a wheelchair could sit on her couch at home and still call a better game than the average MLB umpire behind the plate.

And that’s the truth.

Until MLB finally implements automatic balls and strikes—and gives an umps in the booth the authority to quickly reverse bad calls, this junk will never end. Never.

Fans are tired of hearing about the "human element" when it’s really just a fancy way of defending poor judgment. We’ve got the technology. We’ve got the angles. There’s zero excuse for letting blown calls dictate games in 2025.

Fix it then MLB. Your umps suck! 
 

MLB umpires are easily the best of any of the major pro sports. Easily. 

They miss almost no calls on the bases. 

Umpiring balls and strikes is incredibly difficult. Yet they do a pretty damn good job at that, too. Yeah, sone pitches are missed. It's not intentional and for the most part it's not that impactful. 

A computer called strike zone is coming, simply because of the little box on TV screens. That little invention has created a monster, and it often isn't even correct. The top of that box is sometimes belt high.

However, Newsflash: the automated dall/strike system won't get all calls correct and it won't stop the bellyaching.

[Otwins]

The worst part in my mind was walking Ruiz with 4 of 5 non-competitive pitches. They weren't even close. Mostly breaking balls to the Dodger's pinch runner. He is their Keirsey and we walked him with 4 clear balls. Why we did not go right after him and make him beat us was very frustrating

[Blyleven2011]

44 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

They literally got Ryan for a rental. 

Good call ...

[Danchat]

57 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

They literally got Ryan for a rental. 

And Duran... two of Falvey's biggest pitching successes have been acquired via trading players with expiring deals. No reason not to deal them as this team isn't going on a deep playoff run, and if the Twins really like these guys they can sign them back this winter when they hit the market.

[S Bart]

I attended the game on Wednesday. It haunted me that Rocco used Duran on Tuesday in the 9th when they led 10-5. My concerns were justified on Wednesday when he could have been available. I salute Paddack. It was a hot day in LA. There were little things like Castro pushing a bunt with bases loaded that did not take place with 0 outs. Instead, he hit into a double play. These are things that make me flustered. I played HS ball and know some simple basics. Rocco frustrates me and some of the decisions that you would not see in a skilled manager at the helm. Regardless, I am a Twins fan ..hey I have been for 60 years and will continue to be...go Twins

[twinstalker]

Stewart pitched.

[Mike Sixel]

14 minutes ago, S Bart said:

I attended the game on Wednesday. It haunted me that Rocco used Duran on Tuesday in the 9th when they led 10-5. My concerns were justified on Wednesday when he could have been available. I salute Paddack. It was a hot day in LA. There were little things like Castro pushing a bunt with bases loaded that did not take place with 0 outs. Instead, he hit into a double play. These are things that make me flustered. I played HS ball and know some simple basics. Rocco frustrates me and some of the decisions that you would not see in a skilled manager at the helm. Regardless, I am a Twins fan ..hey I have been for 60 years and will continue to be...go Twins

Bunting with the bases loaded is a terrible idea. It's virtually unheard of on professional ball. HS teams do it....

[S Bart]

31 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Bunting with the bases loaded is a terrible idea. It's virtually unheard of on professional ball. HS teams do it....

Fully disagree with you...seen it happen and it works at times (l was at the game and the infielders were back and would have been caught off guard)..at all levels...saw the Yankees do it and succeed...that is not a HS team .I am seriously not trying to be disrespectful, as you are listed as an old timer (I am also OLD)...but ..I have seen numerous managers with other teams at 8 different ballparks in person this year as I have in past years. Yes...it is my opinion...MY MAIN POINT HERE.. there is a noticeable difference between somebody like Roberts and Rocco. Rocco seems like a nice guy, but changes are needed on this team especially the decision making by the manager, i.e. wasting Duran on Monday. Sir, you have a right to your opinion as do I.  Have a good day and go Twins. ..hope I am wrong and they make the playoffs.

[Western SD Fan]

As @USAFChief has kept hammering away today, this loss started last night when Rocco left Duran in a 5-run lead to pitch a second inning and thus made him one of the last pitchers available today.  Had Duran only been used for one inning last night, he would have thrown 12 pitches and easily available for today.  With that being said, I still may have asked him if he could get one out and brought him in for Ohtani or Ruiz if you're still hell bent on IBB Ohtani.

Other concerns I had during the game included:

1.  Taking out Paddack after 78 pitches.  I understand that there were two lefties in the next three and it screams Coulombe, but Paddack had just collected 2K's and a lineout in 12 pitches and went through the toughest part of the lineup in the 6th (Betts, Ohtani, and T. Hernandez).  Let Paddack go until he was in trouble, and you could have had both Coulombe and Varland warming up for matchup concerns.

2.  PR Keirsey Jr right away.  While this was rendered moot eventually when the bases were loaded, this isn't my biggest complaint although it did take out our best hitter this afternoon. (Dodgers eventually did the same thing by taking out T. Hernandez for Ruiz)

3.  Willi.....oh WIlli.  When the Dodgers can't find a pitcher who can throw a pitch over the plate, you hit the first pitch that he throws and weakly ground into a double play thus killing the rally.

4. Since Duran was not available (see above), I would have flip-flopped Jax and Stewart.  In my perfect world, Duran would have been available since he wasn't uselessly wasted for 2 innings last night.  Jax would have faced Ohtani, T. Hernandez, and Freeman in the 8th in a more familiar position in the lineup and the game.  Stewart in the 9th would have faced a weaker part of the lineup and I would have seen if Duran could go at all today with the day off tomorrow and have him ready to get 1 or 2 outs if Stewart was in trouble.  

Notice in all of this there is no blame on the umps.  We will have to see how the Ump Scorecard grades this, but my eyeballs suggest it was fairly evenly called on both sides.  The only frustrating part was that his strike zone seemed to wander as the game progressed, but it was still called evenly.  Had we executed point #1 and #3, we're not talking about a bad check swing call.  As according to the rule book, there is no such thing as a bad check swing call, but that is another argument for another day.  Fix the rule and you'll hear me complaining about it like I like to complain about everything else as a fan. 🙂

Edited July 24, 2025 by Western SD Fan
Cleaning up grammatical errors

[terrydactyls]

Watching Jax pitch the last half inning today, a thought came to me.  I'm thinking that Jax really likes playing in Minnesota and he knew he was pitching as an audition for the Dodgers.  So he imploded intentionally so that the Dodgers would lose interest in trading for him.  Pretty clever.

[Vanimal46]

5 hours ago, USAFChief said:

As for today's game, might have been nice to have your closer available. 

Too bad he was needed for 2 innings yesterday to close down that 1 run win. 

Eh Rocco?

Hard to turn down a 5 run victory yesterday /s. We got 1 in LA which is what the spreadsheet told us is an acceptable outcome 

[knothole61]

5 hours ago, DocBauer said:

I watched the end of the game and turned away. 

I was so disgusted when I saw an UGLY obvious strike 3 call from the umps on Betts I left. The video shows him a good foot or foot and a half beyond the plate. I mean, it's so obvious anyone with decent eyesight and integrity would have called it a strike. 

Just ridiculous!

Doc, most on here are taking a "high road" of sorts and pointing to many other things that the Twins failed to do that resulted in defeat, and the fact that "there is no check swing rule in baseball" and therefore (apparently) one cannot condemn the ump for ignoring a rule that isn't a rule, or something like that. Well...I agree with you 100%. However you slice it, that was an egregious no call. If you want to see the worst, and most significant, check swing no call, watch the video of game #7 of the 1960 World Series. Pittsburgh catcher Hal Smith, with a 1-2 count in the last of the 8th, (2 outs, 2 on, Bucs down by 1) gave a full 3/4 swing on a Jim Coates pitch that was called a ball. On he very next pitch he hit a 3-run homer. Without that there's no tie in the 9th and no legendary Mazeroski walk off. I know that the no call was not the only factor in the Twins' loss...I also know that it was wrong. 

[Bodie]

Would have bet on just this result as soon as Jax was announced for the 9th... 

But I'm "a hater", so being right doesn't count, and a fan so there is no joy in being correct. 

[Bodie]

11 hours ago, USAFChief said:

As for today's game, might have been nice to have your closer available. 

Too bad he was needed for 2 innings yesterday to close down that 1 run win. 

Eh Rocco?

Well he did use what, 5 or 6 BP guys in game 2.  An eventual blowout win.

It is modern MLB  baseball... and statistically proven superior! To quote Master Baldelli, you've got to "trust the process ."

[jmlease1]

A disastrous loss that basically puts the nail in the season, which sucks. Team needed a good road trip, instead they fumbled it. Hate seeing it.

Nice to see Royce finding his form again, at least and maybe Paddack's outing gets someone hot for him that they'll overpay. But not much good to find when they look like they have to be sellers now.

I guess that will make some people happy? Next ownership probably cleans house and Rocco gets fired if a deal gets done by the end of the calendar year or so. Feels like some people would prefer anything that got the current group fired, including losing.

Kiersey as a pinch runner helped a little this game, but when he came up with an opportunity to hit, all I could think was we'd be better off with Jerome Kersey in that position.

[Riverbrian]

I do wonder if Ohtani is intentionally walked with Duran on the mound. That "doesn't matter who is at the plate" closer mentality is alive and well in today's game. Has Jax not earned this bulldog badge? 

With that said... Walking Ohtani is justifiable because it's Ohtani and it's Ruiz on deck. 

However... it's only justifiable because Ruiz was on deck.

Once Jax walked Ruiz on incredibly non-competitive pitches. Any potential benefit of the Ohtani walk was immediately negated and flipped to a huge mistake because Freeman was in the hole following Ruiz. 

i watched Jax throw to Ruiz like he was Ohtani.

Watching that AB... I'm talking back to the television after every pitch. "What are you doing Griffin? What are you doing?". 

Obviously... he couldn't hear me. 

 

[thelanges5]

Twins 12-17 in 1 run games and 23-34 against teams >.500

[TwinsDr2021]

IMO walking Ohtani was the absolute right call. The Dodgers TV crew said the same exact thing, you have to walk him (Lets not forgot he has hit a homer in 5 straight games). 

I agree with those people that say the bullpen use the prior day was a big problem, it seems like Jax and Stewart aren't great in back to back days. 

As far as the umps go and missed called, it is part of the game, they missed a strike 3 call on Wallner, but I guess Wallner felt bad because  he struck out on the next pitch out of the zone. They missed another strike for Glasnow that cost him I think it was 6 or 7 more pitches, but he overcame (or was allowed to) and pitched 7 innings (106 pitches), IMO Roberts seen how well he was pitching and new how bad his pen is and said I have faith in this guy, and it worked, will it always probably not. 

This series also reminded me why it is important just to get into the playoffs because anything can happen (Rocco usually makes it harder🤷‍♂️) in a short series. 

Finally how many of the Twins batters take the same approach as Freeman does there? (My son said here comes a homer, and I said no way he is too smart of hitter to try for a homer when a slap single to left wins the game) Bader should have caught that (Which I haven't seen anybody talk about), or played it different but......

 

[Riverbrian]

9 minutes ago, thelanges5 said:

23-34 against teams >.500

Yet interesting that we lost two out of three to perhaps the worst team in the game and followed that with being an umpire call from winning two out of three from perhaps the best team in baseball. 

That's baseball... the margins are thin. 

[shimrod]

10 hours ago, USAFChief said:

A computer called strike zone is coming, simply because of the little box on TV screens. That little invention has created a monster, and it often isn't even correct. The top of that box is sometimes belt high.

It doesn't matter if the ASZ is accurate as long as it's consistent pitch to pitch. The players will adapt. The key is eliminating the mistakes, as well as any potential bias, conscious or unconscious.

It really aggravates me when the announcers defend a bad call because the pitcher was wild on earlier pitches, or the ball isn't where the catcher set up.

Individual umpires have "their" strike zone. It's no different.

[chinmusic]

8 hours ago, terrydactyls said:

Watching Jax pitch the last half inning today, a thought came to me.  I'm thinking that Jax really likes playing in Minnesota and he knew he was pitching as an audition for the Dodgers.  So he imploded intentionally so that the Dodgers would lose interest in trading for him.  Pretty clever.

Sure, why not...and the Twins deliberately lost 2 of 3 in Colorado because they really, really want the White Sox record of futility last year to remain the gold standard.

[Woof Bronzer]

11 hours ago, Sjoski said:

 

The sad thing is…
A 90-year-old grandma in a wheelchair could sit on her couch at home and still call a better game than the average MLB umpire behind the plate.

And that’s the truth.
 

This is absolutely, positively false.  MLB umps average about 95% accuracy in a game that involves chucking a ball a hundred miles an hour 60 feet away.  They are actually astoundingly accurate, and are only getting better.  

Grow up.  The Twins lost because they are a bad team.  Blaming umps is for losers, denigrating them is childish.

[MinnInPa]

0-2 pitch to Ohtani ....and you give up a gopher ball ????  Twins pitchers are clueless..dont think there's much between the ears at times... to hitters like Ohtani and Judge ..you always throw the unintentional ..intentional walk..nothing ever on the plate ..if you walk them ..so be it

[JD-TWINS]

Gotta score runs to win - can’t give up 0-2 count HR’s, ever - Jax absolutely CANNOT WALK the guy they want to get to with cutters/skiders…….and then dot two straight fastballs to Freeman…..who is calling pitches? - no execution!

Bader had a chance ……. Betts was out on his checked swing.

Tough one!