Since debuting the mailbag, the Los Angeles Dodgers have responded with a strong stretch of play that has them back in the hunt in the National League West.
As always, you can send your questions via Twitter to (@JeffSpiegel), post them on the DodgerBlue.com Facebook page, or leave them in the comments below and we’ll do our best to get to as many as we can.
“Any update on Andrew Toles? And when he’s better will we see him at Dodger Stadium?” — @ripster818
The good news for Toles is that just a few days ago, general manager Farhan Zaidi indicated that he was “ramping up” his activity and getting closer to a rehab assignment. Toles has been sidelined for the entire month of May.
As for the question of whether his return will eventually lead to seeing him in a Dodger uniform, the answer for now seems to be ‘no.’ With the emergence of Max Muncy — which has pushed Cody Bellinger to the outfield against right handers — it means there’s less need for help in the outfield, despite Chris Taylor’s move to shortstop.
As long as Muncy is hitting, it’s hard to imagine Toles getting much playing time for the Dodgers.
“Which position has been the most impressive in May? Some would say the bullpen, but I would say the rotation.” — Matthew King
It’s hard not to be impressed with the Dodgers starting rotation right now. In the month of May so far, they have posted an ERA of 2.86 over 24 starts (125.2 innings) with 10.46 strikeouts per nine innings and just 2.15 walks per nine; both of which rank third in all of baseball.
The fact that they’ve done this on the backs of Ross Stripling, Walker Buehler, Kenta Maeda and Alex Wood makes it even more remarkable. The question is, is it sustainable?
Honestly, I think the answer is yes. Clayton Kershaw returns this week, and the peripherals of the rest of the bunch indicate this isn’t just a short-term fluke.
With all that said, I believe the bullpen does deserve a little bit of credit. Over the past 14 days, they’ve posted a 2.35 ERA (sixth-best in baseball) and have begun to look more and more like the group we expected to see at the beginning of the season.
“Do you the see Dodgers going on a run over the next six weeks? I do! ” — Richard Lopez
Currently playing their best baseball of the season, it’s interesting to look at who is on the horizon for the Dodgers through the end of June. Here is the list of teams coming up on the schedule: Philadelphia, at Colorado, at Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Texas, San Francisco, at Chicago Cubs, at New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Colorado.
Yikes.
With the exception of the Rangers and Giants, every single one of those teams is currently over .500 — with the Braves and Rockies both leading their divisions. And yet, here’s an interesting nugget: coming into the week, none of those teams had a record better than 5-5 over their previous 10 games.
If the Dodgers wanted to make a statement, this next stretch of games will be the perfect opportunity — they can gain ground on Colorado, bury the Giants and establish themselves as the team to be reckoned with in the division and NL as a whole.
Last week, the Dodgers were +300 to win the NL West, +1200 to win the NL Pennant and +2500 to win the World Series. (For the non-gamblers, that meant for every $100 you bet on each of those lines, you’d win $300, $1,200 and $2,500).
Now, those lines have all come down to +220, +1000 and +2200, respectively. It’s to the point where the Dodgers are actually back to being the favorite in the NL West again. Is this recent run a sign of what’s to come? We’re about to find out.
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