Mailbag Monday: What's wrong with Mookie?
Answering your questions!
Happy Monday, everyone!
Hopefully you all enjoy the next few days without Dodger baseball. I think this is the perfect time to get a little break from them!
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Joshua Child — For the love of all things holy, WTF is wrong with Mookie? Dare I say, he couldn’t look any worse than the first half of this season … but what are the odds that he’s completely lost it and he’s done? If we have 7 more years of this … I won’t be able to handle it.
I don’t think Mookie has completely lost it, but I do think the days of him being one of the best hitters in baseball are behind him. The reason for that is the fact he’s lost his bat speed and doesn’t hit the ball hard anymore. It was a trend last year, but his numbers hid the issues. This year, they’re more than evident.
We have a large enough sample size in 2025 to be concerned with his advanced metrics. His bat speed is 11th percentile. His hard-hit rate is 20th percentile. His average exit-velocity is 28th percentile. Those aren’t recipes for success. Luckily his walk and strikeout rates are fine, so that’s actually preventing him from being even worse.
I don’t think this is the weight loss playing a role. I think this is just the kind of hitter Mookie is now. Yes, I know he was great for the Dodgers in the postseason, but that was about a 9-game stretch where he got hot. When looking back to his 2024 numbers, the final few months were a bit concerning. Over his final 40 games last year, Mookie hit .245 with a .766 OPS. While bad by his standards, I think we would gladly take those numbers this year.
While I don’t think he’s going to continue to post an OPS below .700, I do worry that this may be the kind of hitter he is now. If he’ll be playing shortstop for years to come, I guess an OPS of around .750 would be acceptable, but considering his contract and what the team is paying him, any OPS under .850 is really, really disappointing.
Gary Trujillo — New closer please 🤦
I agree! I defended Tanner Scott as much as I could over the last few months, but he’s been arguably the biggest disappointment of the year so far. He was paid $72 million to be a dominant closer and he leads all of baseball with seven blown saves. Not sure what the issue with him is, but I just don’t trust him pitching the ninth anymore.
OhioDodger — How much longer do we have to endure Scott as the closer? He clearly needs to be taken out of the closer role.
Do you think it would be better for Mookie to play 2B?
I think because of all the injuries, the Dodgers don’t really have another option right now. My best guess would be Alex Vesia if they wanted to give someone else the nod. The issue with making Vesia the closer is the fact he’s been so good in his current role this year, where you can use him in any inning to face the heart of the lineup. I really hope the Dodgers make a move at the deadline to acquire a reliable closer (Clase or Duran specifically)
I really don’t know how I feel about Mookie defensively anymore. He actually grades out as one of the better shortstops in baseball this season. Having him there is valuable. Plus, Kim has shown second base is his best position as well so I’m fine keeping him there. Maybe in a year or two I’d like to see Mookie slide back over to second, but for this year I’m fine keeping him at shortstop.
Alex Khalifa — Is it just me, or is there even less method to the All-Star selection madness than there used to be?
It’s all a joke. I understand the fan voting. Let the fans choose who they want to see in the game since that what the game is all about. But everything else is a joke. Personally, I hate the rule that every team gets an automatic All-Star. An undeserving player usually takes the nod from someone who is more than deserving. There are also so many snubs that make no sense (Tatis over Pages, specifically Soto is one of them). Don’t even get me started on Jacob Misiorowski making it after only five starts. I don’t know how they are making these decisions but this year seems like it has been the worst I’ve ever seen.
Tom — What relief pitchers should be available at the deadline? They need to address the bullpen if they want to repeat. Maybe the Nats closer?
Some notable names I’ve seen thrown around include Griffin Jax, Jhoan Durán and Emmanuel Clase. Maybe Kyle Finnegan is moved as well, I know he’s been a name Dodgers fans have wanted for quite some time. Aside from those names, it’s tough to tell who will be available. With so many teams in playoff contention, fewer teams are going to be willing to sell. Personally, I’d be all over any one of those three names mentioned earlier, specifically Duran or Clase. I know the price will be high, but the Dodgers’ bullpen has way too many question marks at the moment. They need a reliable closer they can trust and Tanner Scott hasn’t proven he can be that guy yet.
Peter Zales — Do you see the Dodgers ever changing up the batting order when Ohtani pitches? At least moving him down to the two hole for Mookie to lead off?
I don’t see the Dodgers ever doing that. I think Ohtani wants to continue to bat leadoff. I wish they would change the order, at least at home. On the road he can continue to hit leadoff because it doesn’t make a difference. I know it’s cool to see him come off the mound and get ready to hit, but I really think he’s rushed. The results also haven’t been great when he leads an inning off after pitching. If he came to them and said he’s fine moving they’d definitely do it, but unless that happens I just can’t see it happening.
Travis — Snell and Treinen are both due back shortly after the break. Who will they replace? Will Klein is obvious for Treinen. But what about the spot for Snell?
Btw, my previous question does not take into account all returning injuries. It may be August, but Kopech will need a spot. Maybe Sasaki if he can get back in August or September. Maybe Brusdar? And does Diaz ever get a shot? Some of these guys won't make it back, some will have setbacks, etc. If it happens, I guess it's a good problem to have.
By the time those guys make it back, we’ll have something like this:
Rotation: Yamamoto, Glasnow, Snell, Kershaw, Ohtani, ?
Bullpen locks: Banda, Scott, Vesia, Yates, Treinen
With the rotation, I’m not sure what they do with the sixth spot. Emmet Sheehan looks way too good to send back down to OKC. Dustin May hasn’t looked good for most of the year, but I’m not sure if they want to try him in the bullpen. With May, and I think I’ve said this before, I could see them trading him. If he doesn’t want to pitch in relief, they can ship him to a team who needs a starter for a couple of lower tier prospects. He’s a free agent at the end of the year and I don’t think there’s going to be a role for him on this team for the postseason.
In this scenario, there are three spots available in the bullpen. I think Dreyer stays. I also think Casparius stays as a bulk guy, plus a high-leverage righty. That leaves one current spot. Personally, I’m done with Lou Trivino, as I don’t think he offers any upside. I would much rather see the Dodgers go with someone else. Edgardo Henriquez still hasn’t been given a shot, for whatever reason. You do have the Alexis Diaz experiment they have yet to try out. Will Klein has actually really impressed me as well and I think he’s worth a few more looks.
Obviously you expect to get Kopech and Graterol back at some point towards September and they can be options as well.