Dodgers Web musings: Can Clayton Kershaw do it again?
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Short answer: Not likely.
At least not at the same glorious heights he pitched during his 2011 Cy Young season. ESPN/LA’s Jon Weisman examined the top pitching seasons by pitchers 21-25 years old since 1958, using ERA+ (earned-run average adjusted for the type of ballpark pitched in).
Of the top 50 performances, only four showed a slight improvement the next season. The rest dropped off fairly significantly.
Also on the web:
-- Here is a video of Kershaw’s acceptance speech for the Cy Young award last week.
-- Former Dodgers managing partner Bob Daly had a lot to say to The Times’ T.J. Simers on Frank McCourt: ‘The man got a gift from God and unfortunately blew it, and blew it on his own personal craziness.’
And this wise word for McCourt’s successor: ‘Here’s the test to see if we get a smart or stupid owner. If you make a deal and allow McCourt to keep the land and parking lots, you are out of your mind.”
-- The Times’ Bill Plaschke thinks the Dodgers’ main priority now should be signing Kershaw to a long-term deal.
-- USA Today’s Bob Nightengale examines the pros and cons of each group reportedly bidding on the Dodgers, as does blogger Chad Moriyama.
-- Thanks to blogger Roberto Baly of Vin Scully Is My Homeboy for pointing out this roundtable segment on the Steve Mason and John Ireland show on ESPN 710-AM called ‘Meet the Bidders.’
-- Hall of Fame baseball writer Ross Newhan said of all the groups interested in the Dodgers, only three or four may actually have the equity to purchase the team.
-- Andre Ethier ‘punked’ his good friend, Red Sox Dustin Pedroia, on a WEEI sports show, actually getting him riled when he pretended to be an irate Boston fan unimpressed with Pedroia’s talents.
-- Ethier is also scheduled to appear with Mark Willard on Saturday at 710-AM, but a release of the interview includes this comment: ‘I’ve kind of dealt with this knee thing for the past two years, put it off for one off-season and then last season it just became a thing where a lot of things started multiplying and getting worse and something where I couldn’t quite get back my swing.’
-- Forbes’ Mike Ozanian writes Stan Kroenke’s bid for the Dodgers implies he’s bringing the Rams with him.
-- ESPN’s Buster Olney looks at the legacy of McCourt (Insider status required), and it ain’t pretty: “Frank McCourt will be remembered as the Richard Nixon of baseball owners, as someone who inexplicably squandered enormous opportunity and went out the door in shame.”
-- Safe to say, Yahoo Sports’ Tim Brown is unimpressed with the Dodgers’ off-season, ranking them 19th best team in MLB.
-- Steve Dilbeck