The Major League Baseball season has reached the All-Star break, and with it comes four days of rest for each club. The Dodgers were either awful or fantastic, with not much in between. Here I will take a look at how each player has performed, report card style. Let's go!
A
Clayton Kershaw - He's at the top of the National League (1.98 ERA, 0.91 WHIP), or in second (139 K's, 145 1/3 IP). There's not much more you can say about just how awesome he is. He's about to earn some serious dough in the near future.
Yasiel Puig - About the only thing that has even somewhat held him down is a sore left hip. Electrified LA at the perfect time by hitting .391 with 8 2B, 8 HR, 19 RBI, and 5 SB. Plus great defense, too. Puigmania!
Hanley Ramirez - Has only played in 39 games, so probably deserves a "B" at the most, but has been so good of late, he gets bumped up. He's hitting .386 with 11 2B, 8 HR, 25 RBI, and 4 SB. The ball has been jumping of his bat. His defense at short, something that has been an issue in the past, appears to be much-improved.
Adrian Gonzalez - Isn't the same power threat he once was, but is tied with Andre Ethier for most games played at 91, and by far leads the team with 14 homers and 59 RBIs.
Juan Uribe - Seriously! He gets graded on a curve based on how absolutely horrific he was the last two seasons. Right now he's hitting .270 with 10 2B, 5 HR, and 28 RBI. What also cannot be ignored has been his fantastic play at the hot corner. I never would have guessed he'd play even close to this, but he is.
Kenley Jansen - Is still a flamethrower with 12.63 K/9, and has taken over the closer's spot for nine saves, in addition to the 16 holds he collected before that.
J.P Howell - Has gotten the job done from the left side, holding left-handed batters to a mere .167 AVG.
Paco Rodriguez - Continues his rise only a year removed from college. Neither right (.143) or left (.140) handed hitters are doing anything against him.
Hyun-Jin Ryu - Signed a huge deal, but was still a bit of a question mark adjusting to MLB batters. Responded by going 7-3 with a 3.09 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, and 93 K's in 116 2/3 IP. Looks to only be getting better.
B
Zack Greinke - Has been as dominant as one can possibly be the last two starts, including a two-hit shutout of the Rockies. But, has gone through some rough patches, with an ERA at 3.49. Thankfully he's trending up, not down.
A.J. Ellis - Gives the Dodgers big hits when they need it, and has been very solid in controlling the running game. Also, continues to get on base with a .349 OBP.
Carl Crawford - Started the year on time, which was a bit of a surprise, and responded as one of the best hitters in the early going. Injuries have really slowed him, as his average has gone down to .273 with only nine steals. His defense is nothing to brag about, either.
Mark Ellis - Age is definitely catching up to him, as he's only hitting .255. But something needs to be said for the example he sets of playing hard, which he does each day.
Stephen Fife - Was nowhere near the Dodgers' rotation plans coming into the season, and has already made eight starts, good for a 2.76 ERA and 1.27 WHIP. Has been on the DL twice, though, which has held him back a bit.
Andre Ethier - Couldn't have possibly started the season any worse, as he looked like he was trying to get traded. But with all of the outfield injuries, has played all three positions with ease. His batting average has gone up each month, topping out with a .362 thus far in July.
Nick Punto - At this point, is just a so-so player with a .251 AVG. But, made a lot of starts at third, short, and second earlier in the with injuries to pretty much everyone else, and his versatility makes him a key utility man.
C
Skip Schumaker - Has actually pitched two scoreless innings in blowouts, and is very versatile by playing every outfield position and 2nd. His hitting has just been OK at .260 with only nine extra-base hits. Is a notch below Punto because he was brought in from the Cardinals to be a key pinch-hitter, but that hasn't really happened.
Scott Van Slyke - Was playing very well at first, but a horrible .188 in June brought a demotion. Can be a good power hitter, but it's been awhile since he's made a difference with his bat.
Jerry Hairston - Much like Schumaker and Punto, is versatile, and does little at the plate at .258 with 12 RBIs. His numbers across the board have taken a step back from last year.
Ronald Belisario - Had a good April and May, an atrocious July (8.31 ERA), and hasn't given up a run in July. It's the typical roller coaster ride with him, but has at least turned it around to appear in the late innings again.
Chris Capuano - Quite often pitches like a "D," but every now and then throws a gem. He's hard to figure out, but is capable of pitching in either role, making him a little more valuable.
D
Matt Kemp - The last two seasons have not been kind to him.
Injuries have limited him to 61 games, and is only hitting .254 with
four homers. Just when you think he's back, he gets hurt again.
Josh Beckett - It's almost unfair to put him here considering he's already out for the season, but was pretty bad when he did pitch (0-5, 5.19 ERA, 1.50 WHIP).
Ramon Hernandez - Traded to the Dodgers for Aaron Harang, and proceeded to do next to nothing by hitting .208 with three homers and six RBIs. And with that, he's already gone.
Matt Guerrier - Never was able to be the key setup man the Dodgers signed him for. Traded to the Cubs after posting a 4.80 ERA and 1.47 WHIP. Good bye, good riddance!
Ted Lilly - Wasn't happy to start the season in the bullpen, then made five winless starts with a 5.09 ERA and 1.61 WHIP. Injuries have happened way too much as well.
Tim Federowicz - Doesn't get much playing time with only 84 at-bats, but hasn't done much with it regardless with a .190 AVG, 3 HR, and 12 RBI. To his defense, Hernandez should have never been brought in, so that took away lots of playing time from him.
F
Luis Cruz - Took Uribe's role as the worst starting position player in the majors for much of the first part of the season. Was mercifully designated after hitting .1 freakin' 27 with three extra-base hits in 118 at-bats. Horrible!
Brandon League - Given a three-year contract to be the closer... and didn't even last the first half in that role. Has the worst 14 saves you'll ever see with four blown ones, along with a 6.25 ERA and 1.58 WHIP. Awful, just awful.
Justin Sellers and Dee Gordon - Both were supposed to fill in at short for the injured Ramirez, and both were terrible. Sellers hit .188 and Gordon .175. Good Lord, that's abysmal.
Matt Magill - Simply cannot put the ball over the plate, walking 28 in 27 2/3 innings. A 6.51 ERA and 1.99 WHIP? Yup, he sucks.
Peter Moylan - Was given 10 appearances to show what he had. Well, he did alright with a 6.34 ERA and 1.94 WHIP. Like so many others, he's gone.
Javy Guerra - It's hard to believe he was once the closer. Only appeared in nine games, and the numbers aren't much different than the ones above (6.75 and 1.97). His career has fallen apart, and fast.
Josh Wall - Six games, 18.00 ERA, 3.29 WHIP. That's hard to do! Traded to the Marlins in the Ricky Nolasco deal. What a shame!
(Note: I will hold off on ranking Nolasco, Jose Dominguez, and Chris Withrow since they don't have a big enough sample size at this time.)
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