Dodgers' James Outman Becomes Contender For 2023 National League Rookie of the Year
ALSO: ALBIES PROVES TO BE WIZARD OF OZZIE IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE
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Reader Reacts
“Great story last weekend about the original Yankee Stadium. I loved that place. I remember going go a Mayor's Trophy Game there, which my father [Leonard Lyons] played in. So did Eddie Arcaro. Also a game between the Gentlemen of ‘21’ and the CrumBumbs of Toots Shor's.
I liked looking out at the field and saying ‘This is where Ruth and Gehrig played. This is where Larsen pitched a perfect game in the World Series.’ The new Yankee Stadium is just new.”
— Doug Lyons, New York
The writer is the author of numerous baseball books, some in concert with his brother Jeffrey Lyons.
Pregame Pepper
Did you know…
Cardinals rookie Jordan Walker, a pre-season Rookie of the Year favorite, is back in the minors after his hot start turned ice cold . . .
In the eighth inning Sunday at American Family Field in Milwaukee, rookie outfielder Masataka Yoshida of the Boston Red Sox homered twice — one of them his first grand-slam — in a nine-run eighth inning. That made him the first player with two home runs, including at least one slam, in an inning since Edwin Encarnación did it for the Blue Jays on July 26, 2013 . . .
Credit Pittsburgh’s strong start to the work of closer David Bednar, the early leader in saves this season, and savvy veteran catcher Austin Hedges . . .
New Angels outfielder Hunter Renfroe bears an amazing resemblance to Mike Trout, now his teammate . . .
Injured Yankees Harrison Bader, Josh Donaldson, and Luis Severino are still weeks away from returning but Justin Verlander is only days away from his Mets debut . . .
After hitting .211 in his final two seasons with the Cubs, 33-year-old Jason Heyward is enjoying a renaissance in Los Angeles . . .
With their offense sputtering, the Braves can’t wait for the return of reigning NL Rookie of the Year Michael Harris II and fellow slugger Travis d’Arnaud . . .
Colorado discard Sam Hilliard has proven to be a solid understudy for Harris II in center field and a revelation at bat.
Leading Off
James Outman is Shining Brightly This Season
By Anthony Solorzano
James Outman's successful start to the season helps me forget about the problems that the Dodgers currently have. Coming into the season, the Dodgers were entering the new year with a significantly different team from the previous year.
Veterans like Justin Turner and Cody Bellinger left the team and signed elsewhere. The front office had a remarkably quiet off-season during which they signed a number of one-year contracts with players like Noah Syndergaard and David Peralta. The Dodgers front office decided to rely on rookies like Miguel Vargas and James Outman to fill the holes in the team.
At a glance, the LA Dodgers seem to have lost a lot of important players without replacing them, and are likely destined to finish the season as one of the Wild Card teams. In their first month of the season, their record is a reflection of what their season is likely to be –- always flirting with .500.
As of April 25th, the Dodgers are one game above .500. Throughout the month, they have played inconsistent baseball. On some occasions, their offense has games where they score in big chunks. On other occasions, they have games where the opposing pitcher has a perfect game going into the eighth inning. They are currently leading the league in home runs and several of their players were a little too busy nine months ago that resulted in them making many visits to the paternity list.
During a month of inconsistencies, the player who remains consistent is James Outman. Since the start of the season, Outman has hit .311 with seven home runs and 19 RBIs. He has struck out in 34% of his at-bats. Outman also throws out base-runners from the outfield and moves up and down the lineup without losing productivity.
Watching homegrown players leave the organization is painful. Fans are attached and follow the careers of players like Cody Bellinger and Corey Seager since they were drafted into the organization. When the homegrown players leave to make room for other homegrown players, it makes saying goodbye a lot easier.
James Outman’s game is making me question why the team didn’t let Bellinger go sooner.
Outman started the season with a bang. On Opening day, he went 2-for-3. He scored two runs, walked once, and hit his first home run in front of the Dodgers Stadium faithful.
Since then, Outman’s productivity has been masking my feelings towards Chris Taylor’s horrible start. Each home run he hits helps me forget that the Dodgers starting rotation needs a lot of improvement. Whenever Outman makes an outfield assist, he helps me forget how heavily the team relies on home runs to score.
The Dodgers famously develop players to excel in the majors. They have had several players win the Rookie of the Year award, which is named after a Dodgers player — Jackie Robinson. The last two players from the organization to win the award were Seager and Bellinger.
At the moment, James Outman is putting together numbers that make him the leading candidate for the NL Rookie of the Year award. The season he’s putting together thus far gives fans hope that the Dodgers can repeat as National League West champions. His ability to consistently hit is making me wonder why the team doesn’t call up more of the home-grown players in the system.
Let the kids play. The front office should showcase the kind of players the Angels have. A player like the legendary Shohei Ohtani can fix a lot of the problems the Dodgers face, as long as the front office doesn’t include James Outman in that package deal.
He’s here to stay, despite his ironic surname.
Anthony Solorzano II was born and raised in Pomona, California. He blogs about the Dodgers and the LA Galaxy to overcome the anxiety the teams give him. Find his work on thesquib.org.
Cleaning Up
Little Ozzie Albies Carries a Big Stick
By Dan Schlossberg
Ozzie Albies is the National League’s answer to Jose Altuve.
A second baseman of slight stature, he’s the shortest man in the league but never sells the team short when he comes to bat.
Entering play Wednesday, he not only led the NL with 23 runs batted in but actually had more home runs (7) than any of Atlanta’s big sluggers, including Austin Riley, Matt Olson, and his bosom buddy Ronald Acuna, Jr.
That’s pretty impressive for a guy who missed most of last season, first with a fractured leg and later — two days after he came back — a broken pinky that resulted from an ill-advised head-first slide.
A Curacao native who speaks four languages, Ozzie is also one of the most good-natured players in the game. Always smiling, he has eschewed controversy during his seven years in the major leagues.
After playing shortstop in the minors, Albies shifted to second because the Braves decided to leave Dansby Swanson (now with the Cubs) at short.
The move worked out well, since Albies has been an All-Star twice and is likely to get there again — possibly as a starter for the first time if the voting fans pay attention to his performance.
Generously listed at 5’8” tall — two inches more than Altuve — Albies has won two Silver Sluggers and a World Series ring. His resume even includes a 30-homer, 106-rbi season (2021). In addition, he’s hit three post-season home runs.
Albies made his debut at age 20 on Aug. 1, 2017 and led the league with 189 hits four years later. He has a seven-year batting average of .270, not bad for a second baseman but not nearly in Altuve territory.
Simply put, Albies needs to show more patience at the plate. He strikes out too often and walks too little, especially for a player blessed with his ability to steal bases (he had a career-best 20 in 2021 but should do better this year now that the distance between first and second has been shortened by bigger bases).
He’s a stud defensively too. He has twice led NL second basemen in turning double-plays and is tops in that category this year too. He has good range and good reaction time, though his diminutive stature makes it tough for him to make leaping grabs of liners hit in his direction.
Signed to a team-friendly contract that pays him “only” $7 million a year, Albies can’t test free agency until 2026. But the Braves aren’t likely to let him walk, especially because of his close relationship with Acuna. The two are inseparable.
One of these days, Albies should add a Gold Glove to his Silver Sluggers. He might even enter the conversation for Most Valuable Player.
The Braves certainly think so.
Former AP sportswriter Dan Schlossberg of Fair Lawn, NJ has been covering baseball since 1969. He’s now on a book-signing tour following publication of Baseball’s Memorable Misses: an Unabashed Look at the Game’s Craziest Zeroes. Email him at ballauthor@gmail.com.
Timeless Trivia
“After four years, I think he realized that being a shortstop and being an executive are two totally different things . . . and that being a pitch man for Subway was probably going to be more up his alley than running a team every day and being accountable for that.”
— Former Marlins president David Samson on Hall of Famer Derek Jeter
Although players remain on the current Hall of Fame ballot no more than 10 years, it wasn’t always that way. Players who needed more than 10 tries before winning election were Duke Snider (11); Dizzy Dean, Gabby Hartnett, Harry Heilmann, Bob Lemon (12); Ralph Kiner and Bruce Sutter (13); Bert Blyleven, Rabbit Maranville, and Bill Terry (14); Jim Rice and Red Ruffing (15); and Dazzy Vance (16) . . .
In 15 of the last 21 elections, at least one player has been elected in his first try . . .
Tony Oliva, enshrined in 2022, is the latest of 56 Hall of Famers who played for only one team . . .
Ichiro and CC Sabathia are virtual locks to win first-time election with the Class of 2025 . . .
Twenty-eight Hall of Famers won election by 10 votes or less, with four squeaking in by one-vote margins: Wee Willie Keeler, Al Simmons, Ralph Kiner, and Fergie Jenkins.
Know Your Editors
HERE’S THE PITCH is published daily except Sundays and holidays. Benjamin Chase [gopherben@gmail.com] handles Monday and Tuesday editions, Elizabeth Muratore [nymfan97@gmail.com] does Wednesday and Thursday, and Dan Schlossberg [ballauthor@gmail.com] edits the weekend editions on Friday and Saturday. Readers are encouraged to contribute comments, articles, and letters to the editor. HTP reserves the right to edit for brevity, clarity, and good taste.
Always enjoy this weekly wrap up. Interesting on Tony Oliva being the 56th HOFer to play his career entirely for one team. There are 270 players (plus execs, Managers and Umpires to total 342) in the HOF. That means more than 20% of the players played for one team only. Does that enhance a player's chance to be elected? On our podcast my son and I think that's true. We're going to dig deeper on this. Thanks.