No. 1 pick Zach Lee makes strong professional debut
For those who like to look down the road, cross fingers and dream of better days … Zach Lee had a fairly impressive professional debut Friday in Midland, Mich.
The Dodgers’ No.1 draft pick last June, Lee threw four shutout innings for the Great Lakes Loons, holding the Lake County Captains to two hits. He struck out five and walked three.
The Loons -- don’t you love minor league nicknames? -- eventually fell, 2-1.
Lee was the supposedly unsignable, 6-foot-4 right-hander who had already enrolled at Louisiana State to play quarterback. The Dodgers fairly shocked baseball by signing him to a $5.25-million bonus, easily the largest in their history.
In another minor league note, the Dodgers have re-signed Preston Mattingly, their former No.1 pick who was released last week by the Indians.
Mattingly, the son of Dodgers manager Don Mattingly, was assigned to the Dodgers’ Arizona camp for extended spring training.
-- Steve Dilbeck
That's a nice start by Lee, who I read he pitched out of a couple of jams but didn't give up a run. It must be good to get that first one out of the way.
Posted by: OldBrooklynFan | 04/08/2011 at 09:11 PM
But all i've been reading is how they have no minor league strength. It must be all in the hitting. But they have little major league hitting. So the criticism is confused. Their strength, major and minor, is in pitching, their weakness major and minor is in hitting. They have a future in their pitching, only. And because their drunken sailor owner, who we must push out by not attending the games, has no money to spend on the hitting, they will be mediocre, playing perennial never-weres in the field, losers who make our boycott easier.
The stars are in alignment. McCourt is going to go. The first time a city has forced out an owner.
As Nancy Reagan might've put it, Just don't go!
Posted by: Native Angeleno | 04/08/2011 at 09:11 PM
I keep hearing about all these phenoms that the Dodgers have. Where are they? Oh, they need more experience.
Geez, the Giants bought up Posey last year and Belt this year. Any young player is going to have to take his licks, except if he is really exceptional, when he comes up to the bigs.
Kershaw took his lumps but he got the experience at the major league level. He wouldn't be the pitcher he is today if he was treated like the other so called phenoms that the Dodgers have.
Occasionally pitch hitting and playing and being up/ down numerous times tells me that these guys are not that good or that the GM and manager can't recognize talent.
Posted by: StanL | 04/09/2011 at 04:48 AM
In light of the threats to life and limb, along with a limp team, staying away from Dodger Stadium is like asking a vegetarian to give-up meat.
Boycott.
Posted by: Striker | 04/09/2011 at 07:18 AM
For all the whining about the ownership, this was a real long-term commitment of cash for Lee.
Posted by: Tom Daniels | 04/09/2011 at 08:17 AM
kudos to "duds" as the signing of Lee still abt THE only positive thing they accomplished over past 12 mos.
& youngster-ma-teen-glee a bigger waste than his olde-man!!!!
& speaking of wastes, another former #1 pick, pitcher Withrow, continues to just flat-out-suck!!!!! (got hammered once more in his latest outing, just a couple nites ago)
Posted by: NoMorMaTeenGleez | 04/09/2011 at 08:36 AM
I was also impressed by the final score. Looks like we've got some sluggers coming along, too.
Posted by: Since '58 | 04/09/2011 at 09:21 AM
"In another minor league note"
- B flat contrabassoon (dudgers version of a clarion call)...
"the Dodgers have re-signed Preston Mattingly, their former No.1 pick who was released last week by the Indians."
- Baseball America ranked the dudgers minor league system 11th in baseball this year; the cleveland indians ranked 7th... eh, what do they know.
Jr. turns 24 in 2011, he hit .194 in A ball for the dudgers in 2010 (5th year minors) & bears an startling (if not baseball striking) similarity the dudgers current manager don mattingly.
Sorry, that was a low blow.
Lemme try again.
On a high note, the dudgers spring training phenom Hector 'Jose' Gimenez is now batting .143 after he (here comes the positive spin) struck out again in last nights game (he does that 43% of the time making him one of the most consistent players on the team.)
In related news, AJ Ellis and his .1000 batting average is expected to be optioned to the minors soon to make room for Dioner Navarro, who like Mattingly also batted .194 in 2010.
Unger
Oveur
Oveur
Dunn
Posted by: 16blows | 04/09/2011 at 10:59 AM
Why don't they have this guy play with the Quakes? The Quakes could use the help!
Posted by: Steve Wimer | 04/09/2011 at 04:58 PM
Let's not get too excited over P. Mattingly's reappearance in the Dodger system. That's strictly a nepotisctic gesture to Donnie B. They know he sucks, hence the 1-A assignment at 24.
Now if Uribe and Loney would only join him...
Posted by: Labeldude | 04/10/2011 at 08:37 AM
Pretty much rowing the same boat as 16 blows for once. How ever, i would like to point out that Baseball America and Prospectus rank systems heavily on volume, which is good for trades but says little about a system's ability to produce ML players. If Coletti hadn't blocked our prospects by signing marginal vets the last few years i suspect we might have a few more guys from the farm making an impact at Chavez Ravine. In addition the prospects rags are almost always unanimous in listing D. Gordon as our #1 when i got Sands, Robinson, De Larosa, and Lee making more of an impact. Gordon can play SS all day but after 3-4 yrs in the system has never shown the ability to make plays in the field routinely nor hit consitantly. Speed is great but he seems 1 dimensional at this point. Dejesus looked like crap last week but his overall game might put him ahead of Gordon as well.
Posted by: N.P.Krohn | 04/10/2011 at 02:25 PM