June 7th, 2021 at 9:00 am 
by 0799291000348 You’ve seen them, MLB teams with high energy on the field and in the dugout. The players are visibly involved in the game, even if they are not in the lineup. They are exhorting and encouraging their teammates, motivating their cohorts to their best level of performance. Watch the San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, Atlanta Braves, and others play the game – they have “it!”
You may call “it” team chemistry, or esprit de corps, or camaraderie, the intangible that cannot be quantified but is essential for teams with championship aspirations. The 2020 Dodgers had “it,” the team had a synergy that took them further than their individual statistical performances. When the team was losing late in games there was the confident expectation that they would find ways to win.
The 2021 Dodgers are still searching for that special energy. After winning 13 of their first 15 games, the team has a losing record in its next 44 games (21-23). The players appear to go through games as though they were a group of suits rather than a team in a three-hour athletic competition. This team is so laid-back that, on occasion, it appears that players are disinterested.
(Video capture courtesy of SportsNet LA)
(Photo credit – Ronald Martinez)
Every team playing the Dodgers takes their game up a notch or two, looking to knockoff the reigning World Champions, and the Dodgers have failed to match their opponents’ intensity consistently. The team has 103-regular season games remaining in the 2021 season, enough time to find “it,” but the elusive quality will require on-field leadership from the manager, coaches, and veteran players to develop, cultivate, and nurture.
The 2021 World Series depends on the Dodgers developing “it” sooner than later.
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So far I’m still keeping an eye on our own division, hoping to catch the Giants and the Pods but I’m also hoping not to fall further back out of contention, watching the other teams in the other divisions win and loss records.
You and Dave Roberts have something in common — hoping for better results.
Whenever I hear the terms ‘hope and wish’ (which I do quite often from OBF), I am reminded of something that my father taught me at a very young age:
“Wish in one hand and spit in the other, and see which one fills up first.”
(I modified that a little).
Play to win, don’t hope/wish to win.
In all seriousness, I have been witnessing this lack of enthusiasm and “disinterested” cavalier attitude since Day-1 of the 2021 season.
There is zero doubt that this current Dodgers team, including those on the IL, is absolutely positively among the best and most talented that I have seen in my entire life, and that is not just hyperbole. The problem is, and I see it as the root of the problem, the Dodgers think so, too.
Now this most definitely is not a bad thing, however, I sincerely believe that a good many of the current Dodgers, especially the youngsters, think that just because they are the defending World Series champions, this automatically makes them the best team out there. A serious, and very dangerous, spin off of this is that it really pisses off the other teams; especially those in the same division as the Dodgers.
The most obvious result of this (and again, I use the word) ‘cavalier’ attitude is that the other teams, regardless of what division or even what league they are in, begin every game with an enormous chip on their respective shoulders – i.e., they begin every game against the 2020 World Series champion Dodgers (in the past tense) already very pissed off.
The Dodgers need to get, stay, and play mad; and this starts at the top. When was the last time you saw Dave Roberts chew one of his players’ asses’ for something that they seriously needed an ass-chewing for? I can answer that without even looking it up … NEVER.
Oh sure, we obviously do not know what goes on behind closed doors and it’s hard to believe that he hasn’t ‘talked to’ his players after screwing up. But how far would it go and what message would it send if he occasionally did a finger-pointing ass-chewing in front of the entire team – a la Tommy Lasorda?
I certainly understand the value of positive reinforcement – what I call “fluff.” But an occasional red-faced good old-fashioned ass-chewing every once and a while could do wonders for this blatantly obvious “disinterested” (and cavalier) Dodgers team.
This one is entirely on you Doc. Either ‘spit’ or get off the pot. There are A LOT of extremely talented former players, even former Dodgers who make outstanding managers.
…Chase Utley, to name just one.
Fire away.
I would love to have Utley as our manager. Roberts is not very good.
Doc has done a fabulous job…of course mistakes have been made. But he commands the club in a professional manner. Every season he has them in the hunt. I would assume that Utley would have some skills as you say.
But there ain’t a whole lot wrong with Doc. You know this Wally.
Sheesh!!
This isn’t all on Roberts. There are veteran players on this team (Bauer, Betts, Kershaw, Pollock, Pujols, Turner to name a few) who need to exercise leadership beyond their on-field play. And, dare I say, this team misses Kiké Hernádez enthusiasm and exuberance, whether he was in the lineup, or on the bench.
This group of players (not yet a team) needs an old fashioned player only meeting (no coaches, no manager, no leaks to the press) to light a fire that will become an eternal spark for the remainder of the year.
maybe they had “an old fashioned player only meeting (no coaches, no manager, no leaks to the press)” but how would you know?
Doc, is exactly the manager they want him to be. he certainly doesn’t manage the way he played and i suspect that if Chase were here it would only be with the same understanding. personally, i believe that one run losses are on the management and we have way too many of them.
I was thinking that it was too much pressure that was put on the Dodgers, to win it all, but now I’m hoping you guys are right.
In this case, I hope I am wrong and once the Dodgers get 100% healthy the become the juggernaut everyone predicted.