Thursday, May 23, 2013

Ethier & Mattingly Both Seemingly on Their Way Out

by Kevin Zeni

After holding a healthy Andre Ethier out of the Dodgers' lineup on Wednesday afternoon, manager Don Mattingly simply explained his reasoning as wanting to put out his "most competitive lineup" that would "fight the hardest." He later added, "All grit and no talent isn’t going to make you successful. But all talent and no grit is not going to get you there, either."

With the Dodgers off to a dismal 19-26 start that has them sitting in last place in the NL West, it would appear that a change must be made to turn this so-called "All-Star team" into one that can legitimately contend for a title. After hearing Mattingly's comments, it has become clear that Ethier should no longer be the Dodgers everyday right fielder, and that despite his best efforts, the Dodgers need a manager that is better able to get a team of All-Star personalities to better co-exist in the clubhouse.


There are reports that the Dodgers have already internally discussed calling up top outfield prospects Joc Pederson or Spring Training sensation Yasiel Puig, who are both playing well at Double-A Chattanooga. While Pederson has better numbers, he has played in 12 more games than Puig, who missed time earlier in the season due to injury, and is two years younger than Puig. It stands to reason that Pederson should play another full season in the minors to better learn professional pitching and how to consistently make adjustments at the plate. Both men fit the grinder-type mentality that Mattingly is looking for, but Puig should be the guy to get the call having already proven what he can do in Spring and his familiarity with the Dodgers staff.


As for what to do with Ethier, I have perused every Major League roster and determined the two best landing spots for him would be the Boston Red Sox, who he has expressed an interest in playing for in the past, and the suddenly contending Kansas City Royals. Ethier would provide a platoon partner for Jonny Gomes with the Red Sox or Jeff Francoeur in Kansas City, giving either team a lefty-righty punch at the position.

Dodgers GM Ned Colletti could look to pry away Sox third base prospect Garin Cecchini or Royals lefty prospect Chris Dwyer in a deal. Cecchini would provide a future third base option to compete with last year's first-rounder Corey Seager, a spot that has given the Dodgers fits since Adrian Beltre left following the 2004 season, while Dwyer would give the Dodgers another left-hander that they can employ either out of the rotation or the bullpen.


Meanwhile, the Dodgers have internal options to replace Mattingly in third base coach Tim Wallach, who I believe would have first crack at the spot, and bench coach Trey Hillman. While Hillman has past managerial experience with the Kansas City Royals, it appears that Wallach's personality would better allow him to take command of the clubhouse and find ways to make this roster mesh in a more seamless fashion. Wallach also has managerial experience at the Minor League level and has interviewed for several managerial openings over the past couple of off-seasons.