Game of the Week: August 18: LAD @ CHC

[Commissioner Erick]

Los Angeles Dodgers (73-53) @ Chicago Cubs (61-63)


LAD: Luis Ceja (0-0, 0.00)
CHC: Daniel Poncedeleon (5-7, 5.93)



The Chicago Cubs have had catastrophic injuries to their staff all season long. The Dodgers are starting to understand what that feels like.

Two rookies will be facing off today when Luis Ceja and the Los Angeles Dodgers face Daniel Poncedeleon and the Chicago Cubs for the Game of the Week.

The Dodgers suffered a major blow to their championship hopes when Eduardo Rodriguez noticed discomfort throwing his changeup in the second inning of his last start. Diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff, he’ll miss the rest of the season. With Corey Kluber out for the year and Steven Matz wildly underperforming, the Dodgers went from a club that may have been the favorite to win the NL pennant to a team that may not be able to make the playoffs.

That may be a reason the Dodgers are bypassing safer options to take Rodriguez’ spot in the rotation, rolling with top prospect Rebel Ceja instead. Ceja has been no worse than a Top 30 prospect since being discovered in The Dominican Republic back in 2019. Only 22, Ceja features a high-90s fastball that he pairs with a circle change as a lethal one-two punch. He also has a serviceable slider that can still be tightened up, and a different grip on a changeup that’s been slow to come around. He also has a curveball, but it’s a big looper that doesn’t fool many hitters. The fastball-circle change combo is terrific and if the slider comes around, Ceja will have a strong arsenal.

The Dodgers also lost Mike Serrano to elbow ligament reconstruction surgery. Serrano has fantastic stuff, but allowed 19 homers in 71 innings this year. With a deep pen, losing him may be addition by subtraction for the Dodgers this year. With the addition of Kenley Jansen, who has only thrown 2.1 innings this year, no other Dodgers reliever has an ERA above 4.14. Four have marks in the 2s.

That pen will be challenged by a Cubs offense that’s second in the league in runs, second in homers, and first in virtually every other offensive category. The team has struggled against a brutal second-half schedule, but it’s not the fault of a lineup that keeps on rocking. Francisco Lindor leads the league in WAR and may earn a third MVP to go in his trophy case. His shelf for his Platinum Stick awards is also getting full, he should take that home for the eighth time in nine seasons this fall. He’s batting .336, the best mark of his sensational career, with 21 homers and a career-best .419 OBP. His next run scored will be his 100th, as continues yet another remarkable season in a hall of fame career.

He also has a +12.9 zone rating and has a chance at a sixth career Gold Glove. He leads all NL Shortstops in range factor and is second in defensive efficiency and zone rating. Plus, while he’s not as fast as he used to be, he’s still been able to steal seven of eight bases.

He’ll be a huge help to a rookie pitcher who needs all the help he can get. 33-year-old rookie Daniel Poncedeleon. Has pitched in the Pacific Coast League every year of his career. He had a negative WAR last year, but due to Chicago’s catastrophic injury situation, he’s been forced to make 24 starts. He’s been exactly replacement level as even though he’s done a respectable job of keeping the ball in the park, he’s allowed 68 walks in 98.2 innings with a .349 BABIP. He has a good ground ball rate, but doesn’t have the goods to not be hit hard. In an ideal world, he’d be continuing to battle Ryan Williams for the all-time top spot in Pacific Coast League innings, and building on his al-time Pacific Coast League strikeout lead, but desperation has pushed him into service.

Chicago is also dealing with injuries to Joe Caulder and Zach Britton, as a strong bullpen is being whittled away. Bonkers Carrizales and rookie Bobby Gibson are the only arms with an ERA under 4.24. The Dodgers are only seventh in the league in offense, but they should be able to do damage against a staff under this much distress.


Questions for the GMs:


For Ben Vincent, why did you decide to call up Ceja for this start?

How are you going to replace Serrano in the bullpen?

You’ve had some time now with Amir Valdez batting leadoff and Alex Verdugo in the seventh spot. How has your offense fared since the change?

For Brandon Hillebrand, how are you going to replace Caulder and Britton in the pen?

Freddie Freeman will miss today’s game with a virus. Who will replace him in the lineup?

Your staff has been terrible all year. Is Bryce Bence’s job safe this offseason?


TRIVIA: Daniel Poncedeleon leads the Pacific Coast League in career innings. Which pitcher, who has 65 career PBA starts all for AL East teams, has the most innings all-time in the International League?

[Ben_Dodgers]

My first impulse was to call up Matt Trask to fill the hole in the rotation. But Trask pitched yesterday. Wentz started yesterday on short rest in place of Rodriguez, and we don't have any days off this week, so I didn't want to put the whole rotation on short rest. Ceja is rested, and honestly, I think he's ready. I've seen steady development from him this year, and I think he needs to face better competition to really reach his potential. He's got a tough assignment debuting against the Cubs lineup, and then pitching in Coors this weekend. But we're in the middle of a pennant race, and if we're going to get deep into the post season we need everyone to step up, including the rookies.

The other reason I decided to call up Ceja is to see if he'll be able to hold down a rotation spot next year. We'll have a pretty similar lineup next season, but Kluber and Rodriguez won't be able to contribute until late, if at all. I need to know if we can plan around Ceja, or if I need to shop for a starting pitcher in the offseason.

I called up Trask anyway - for now he'll take Serrano's spot in the bullpen. I'll probably shuffle the roster a bit next week, so I can make sure to have another hitter eligible for the playoffs.

I think Valdez has done well in the leadoff spot over the last month, and Verdugo has been improving from his slump. We're 21-9 since the All Star Break, so it seems to be working.

[Commissioner Erick]

Dodgers 14 - Cubs 6


WP: M.Caldwell (2-0)
LP: G. Gallegos (7-3)


The Los Angeles Dodgers powered past the Chicago Cubs, 14-6, at Wrigley Field. Amin Valdez was 3 for 4 with 2 home runs and 3 walks, while scoring 5 times and driving in 5, to lead the charge. The victory gives Los Angeles a record of 74-53.

Los Angeles took the lead in the top of the fifth when Valdez hit a 3-run home run. His 16th home run of the season made the score 8-5, Los Angeles.

"I like seeing our guys get a return on what they've put in," said Los Angeles manager Ben Vincent.


Questions for the GMs:


For Ben Vincent, How did Luis Ceja look in his first outing. What went wrong for him?

Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless inning in a relatively high pressure outing. What did you think of his performance with your team short-handed?

You made a controversial decision earlier in the year to bat Amin Valdez leadoff, a move that paid off handsomely yesterday when he tied the Dodgers record for runs in a game. He's been huge batting leadoff for you. Outside of Francisco Lindor, are there any Shortstops you feel are better two-way Shortstops than Valdez?

For Brandon Hillebrand, rough outing for your shorthanded team. Do you feel like it's time to start playing the youngsters?

Luis Al. Gonzalez had two hits and a walk. Is he a part of your club's future?

Gregory Polanco had another huge game with two homers and five RBIs but his defense continues to be a problem. Are any of your veterans going to be on the trade block to get more defense on your team next year?


TRIVIA: Which pitcher has allowed the most stolen bases against him in his career?

[Ben_Dodgers]

For Ben Vincent, How did Luis Ceja look in his first outing. What went wrong for him?

Well, he struck out the best player in the league, so that's a good sign. But he was pretty wild. 4 walks in less than 2 innings is not great, but an explosive offense like Chicago's will really take advantage of that. He still has some work to develop his control, and maybe better pitch selection.

(I've never been sure how the game handles pitch selection, especially when a player has such a wide range of pitch quality. I'd prefer that Ceja never use his curve because it's not really a major league caliber pitch. But does the game use it? I have no idea, and there's really no way to influence it as far as I can tell. It would be nice to have this as a strategy setting).

Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless inning in a relatively high pressure outing. What did you think of his performance with your team short-handed?

He did fine, and I'm grateful for that, but also annoyed that the manager bot once again ignored his programming.

You made a controversial decision earlier in the year to bat Amin Valdez leadoff, a move that paid off handsomely yesterday when he tied the Dodgers record for runs in a game. He's been huge batting leadoff for you. Outside of Francisco Lindor, are there any Shortstops you feel are better two-way Shortstops than Valdez?

I didn't realize it was controversial. Valdez hit leadoff for a while last year too. Based on performance earlier this year, he was a good fit at the top of the order.

I hadn't really thought about the two-way question. I think Valdez is just average defensively, but looking around the league, it seems most shortstops skew very strongly to one side of the ball. I guess Valdez's stock improves because he's not a defensive liability. As for others... Brice Turang lacks power but is otherwise pretty well rounded. Eric Drouet is a great hitter who isn't a liability with his glove.

[Commissioner Erick]

Matt correctly guessed Gerrit Cole