August 10th, 2018 at 8:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka Anyone who has been around the game of baseball for any period of time knows that it is a confidence-based game at every level, from tee-ball to the MLB. The primary job of coaches and managers is to constantly encourage, support and complement their players in hopes of helping them keep a positive attitude and, in turn, get the very best out of them. Simply put, there is a lot of fluff in the game.
On the other side of that coin are the beat writers, reporters, analysts and even broadcasters who, knowing full well about that confidence and fluff thing. generally stay away from bringing up or asking about the negatives that are inherent in the game.
I can absolutely assure you that if you approached Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw (for example) after a bad outing and asked him why he served up a fastball right over the heart of the plate to, say, a guy like Paul Goldschmidt or Brandon Belt, or why he walked the opposing pitcher (etc.), you would probably be escorted out of the clubhouse and have your media credential pulled. In other words, it is generally a good idea to avoid asking negative or uncomfortable questions.
The problem with this, of course, is that the difficult questions that fans, readers and listeners want answered, usually go unasked in the interest of fluff (and keeping your credential).
Enter SportsNet LA’s Alanna Rizzo.
Make no mistake about it, Rizzo is as professional and as nice as they come, and she treats everyone she interviews with the utmost respect, courtesy and dignity. But the three-time Emmy Award winning sports journalist knows what the fans want to know and she isn’t afraid to ask questions that are less than comfortable to both ask and for the interviewee to answer.
Enter 30-year-old Dodgers right-hander Pedro Baez.
There isn’t a Dodger fan on the planet who isn’t familiar with the struggles that the Bani, Dominican Republic native has gone through during his five seasons with the Dodgers. We’re talking about a guy who has given up bases loaded walks more than any other Dodger pitcher in recent memory. We’re also talking about a guy seems to frequently give up key hits late in games that have led to his career 13-13 record and his career 3.20 ERA.
You can certainly argue that a .500 record and 3.20 ERA over five seasons isn’t that bad, but the painful truth is that it isn’t the losses or the earned run average that are the problem, it’s how the losses occurred and how the runs were scored that has elevated Baez to the top of every Dodger fan’s least-favorite-Dodger list.
As he seemingly always does, Baez turned a 3-1 Dodgers lead after a stellar 6-inning performance by Dodgers starter Ross Stripling on Thursday night against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field into a 5-3 deficit, thus costing Stripling what should have been his ninth win of the season.
He did so by loading the bases with one out in the seventh inning, with the first run scoring on a passed ball by Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal. Baez then served up a 96.8-mph fastball right down Broadway on a 1-1 count to Rockies catcher Chris Iannetta, which he promptly deposited over the left field wall for a devastating 3-run home run to give the Rockies a 5-3 lead and a blown save for Baez; not to mention a dagger through the heart of Ross Stripling.
Baez threw a cookie right over the middle of the plate that Chris Iannetta did not miss, turning a 3-2 Dodgers lead into a 5-3 deficit. (Video Capture courtesy of SportsNet LA)
The problem is, everyone knew it was going to happen; not by any supernatural powers or clairvoyance, but simply because that’s what Pedro Baez does. In a heartbeat, he allowed four runs on three hits, with a walk and a strikeout in one-third of an inning, while making a total of 27 pitches of which 16 were strikes. This equates to an earned run average of 108.01.
But perhaps of even greater concern than his ineptitude (if that’s even possible), is that after coughing up the three-run blast to Iannetta, Baez (who has a perpetual smug expression on his face) was seen on the television broadcast repeatedly tossing a (new) ball in the air and catching it as if he was in complete control and everything was fine.
Needless to say, this immediately projected a ‘who cares if I just blew the game’ attitude. And to make matters worse (if that’s even possible), he did so as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was making his way to the mound to take the ball from him … albeit one batter too late.
Seriously, Pedro?
(Video Capture courtesy of SportsNet LA)
Fortunately, the Dodgers mounted an exciting (yet typical) Coors Field comeback when Dodgers first baseman Cody Bellinger slugged a two-run home run in the top half of the eighth inning to tie the game 5-5. Dodgers center fielder Chris Taylor then led off the top of the ninth with a solo home run and Dodgers new second baseman Brian Dozier slugged a two-run home run to give the Dodgers an 8-5 lead and the eventual final score.
Which brings us back to Alanna Rizzo.
During the postgame interview, Rizzo threw fluff aside and went right for the juggler, asking Roberts about Baez’s epic failure, in spite of his team’s eventual come-from-behind win. To his credit and for the first time on record, Roberts let the chips fall where they may.
“Baez has had three or four days off,” Roberts said of his decision to bring in the oft-criticized right-hander. “That’s a spot for him where he’s got to go out there and get outs. The last couple outings, he’s thrown the ball pretty well. … But you’ve got to go out there and get outs.
“This is a game about results. You get opportunities and you look at the guys in our ’pen that have pitched well in big spots. … When he gets opportunities, like everyone else, you’ve got to capitalize,” Roberts added.
So much for confidence, encouragement, support and compliments. And judging by the look on Doc’s face when he answered Rizzo’s less-than-comfortable question that absolutely positively needed to be asked (and answered), there is a very real possibility that Baez’s 96.8-mph fastball right over the plate to Chris Iannetta may have been his last pitch as a Dodger … fluff be damned.
Posted in 
Enough is enough…
But now with the rumors of Jensen out for a month…would that be another life support line for Baez?… hope not
WOW this is not any kind of news, that a Dodger fan wants to read. This really changes things from here on out.
If I remember correctly, it was a 3-1 count on Iannetta and I was thinking that, Baez was thinking that, he couldn’t afford to walk another batter and load the bases again. I had a feeling the next pitch would be right over the plate. Sorry to say I was right and the rest was history, until the Dodger offense righted the ship and we won.
You did not remember correctly:
Pretty rough Ron.
We all know Baez really can’t be relied on when we need him most. Me along with everyone else here was screaming for Roberts to pull him (prior to the homerun). But, I don’t believe what you saw was a “smug” look on his face or that “repeatedly tossing a (new) ball in the air and catching it as if he was in complete control and everything was fine”.
I gotta believe those were the actions of a 30 year old guy who knew he just blew it. A guy who knows he just let his teammates down big time, in front of millions of people, a guy who wanted a hole to crawl into with no hole available. Someone on the bubble, who knows his livelihood is slipping away (along with his dreams). We all react differently in difficult situations.
Baez with his “96.8 mph” fastball combined with all his other stuff has all the talent in the world. His problem is between his ears, a lack of confidence in this “confidence-based game”.
Bottom line, I hope Dodgers can put someone out there BETTER. Baez is not getting the job done. Hoping for Fields and Ryu to get back soon and Baez being optioned. Maybe we’ve seen the last of Baez, but with Jansen out, Baez and his 4.14 ERA, combined with Yimi Garcia’s 5.21 ERA, Stewart’s 6.11 ERA and Axford’s 162.00 ERA maybe not.
C’mon, already! Show some balls and DFA him, already like we did with Hatcher before he costs us, again!!!
The front office are to blame for not strengthening the bullpen in pre-season after losing Morrow and others. Baez was poor last season and has had more than enough chances. It’s now starting to catch up with them as Jensen is lost for a month. Hopefully something can be done or someone else comes through to maintain the momentum with a troublesome Arizona not yet fading away.
I understand the context, but can’t really agree with all the bashing of Baez. He has a career 3.20 ERA with the Dodgers. While he may give up frustrating performances, that would discount the collective performance that he gives the Dodgers. Is he a 8th or 9th inning guy, I would say probably not. But do 3.20 ERA guys have value? Absolutely. I’m sure most teams around the league would have a spot for Baez. He’s more of a 6th inning, eat up innings up until he gets his confidence back. And to compare to Hatcher I do not believe is accurate. Hatcher seemed to never have an ERA under 5.00. THAT IS BAD. With Baez struggles last year, giving up something like 20 runs in 20 innings, he still finished the season with a more than respectable ERA. I think expectations should be changed. Just because we see closer “stuff” from him, Upper 90’s FB with potential for a complimentary secondary pitch, he’s not there. And the more we can accept that, the easier it will be to take Baez for what he’s worth.
Looking up his Stats, his FIP this year is at 3.42 meaning that he’s actually been Unlucky.. lol, I’m sure that’s not going to sit well with people. And he ended last year with a 2.92 ERA. I’m not sure about you, but that’s is far from a poor performance. If anything, I think Baez would be excellent trade bait at some point, someone is going to fall in love with his “stuff” and actually extremely solid baseball resume. By comparison, his FIP this year is his second best of his career. The only trend I see is that he needs to command the ball better as that’s what is holding him back. But he has a career 1.18 Whip. Not bad at all.
EVERYBODY KNEW WHAT WAS GOING TO
HAPPEN, EXCEPT EVIDENTLY OUR MANAGER.
THIS GUY NEEDS TO BE CUT IMMEDIATELY!
This is all on Roberts! Roberts continues to call upon Baez in high leverage, late inning games when it is clear that he does not have the mental toughness to handle those assignments. Dodgers have the reputation of relying on stats for matchups, but Baez splits clearly show that this season he cannot be trusted when called upon after the 5th inning, but quite effective when used before the 6th inning. By no means should Baez be DFA, too much talent to simply cast off. Use him in the right situations for the rest of the season then trade him in the off season — considering how ML teams scramble for BP help throughout the year there is no doubt in my mind that there will be teams happy to have Baez for what he is.
Was going to write a follow-up article, but decided to just add this here:
With Kenley Jansen now on the disabled list for an irregular heartbeat, it is now unlikely that the Dodgers will DFA Pedro Baez … at least for the time being.
However, with Josh Fields, Hyun-jin Ryu, and Julio Urias likely to be activated from the DL in the (very) near future, somebody has to go. And to be brutally honest, Baez has more than earned the first ticket out.
As for other MLB teams who would be “…happy to have Baez for what he is,” who cares! He has cost the Dodgers more games over the years than he has helped them win. He is an absolute liability to the team. I would be more than happy to see him succeed elsewhere.
I would keep Baez over Rosscup and Venditte with the caveat that he is not used in late game situations. OH YES, I care if there are other teams that want him and willing to send a prospect back in return.
So, how we feeling about Baez now?….. Lol.. I see him as a 7th inning bridging gap to an 8th inning established set up. I feel we need 2 lights out relievers. 1 establish and 1 flyer. I believe that with extra cap, we are able to. I fully believe that this past years WS team will be our weakest, since we could not hold onto our bullpen pieces nor address our weaknesses. I feel we will have our best foot forward this year, look to pick up a few exciting options in the bullpen and some brilliant trade moves. If we could reach the WS this year essentially without much of any improvement in the off-season, lost Morrow, the leftie who signed with the Giants, and not address our bullpen which was out weakest link, I’m more than excited for the Dodgers moving forward.