True Blue LA: All Posts by Michael ElizondoWhere The Dodger Dogs Are Always Grilledhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49563/truebluela_fav.png2024-03-12T08:49:02-07:00https://www.truebluela.com/authors/michael-elizondo/rss2024-03-12T08:49:02-07:002024-03-12T08:49:02-07:00Crunchtime: Korean snack time with some Dodgers
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<p>Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Bobby Miller, Michael Grove, and Brusdar Graterol had some Korean snacks. Here’s what they ate</p> <p id="G3NhUG">Anticipation for the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>' expedition to South Korea is building as the Spring window down. Who will get the Dodgers’ fifth rotation slot? Who will end up going to Korea? Will Gavin Lux ever right the ship defensively? Will Mookie Betts end up going back to right field?</p>
<p id="amydi6">All of these questions and more...will absolutely not be answered in this essay!</p>
<p id="hnz6lI">Instead, today, we are going to cover snacks.</p>
<p id="rgxerM">As you may recall, <a href="https://www.si.com/mlb/padres/news/petco-parks-barrio-doggs-will-be-served-during-seoul-series-report-ml0802">Barrio Doggs from Petco Park</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/MyKBO/status/1755736248147492931?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1755736248147492931%7Ctwgr%5E0661815e78815c186ac0a6b66bd45b10430e96e4%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdodgersnation.com%2Fdodger-dogs-will-be-served-during-seoul-series-report%2F2024%2F02%2F08%2F">Dodger Dogs from Dodger Stadium</a> will be available for purchase at the Gocheok Sky Dome. For those who go, there is a comfort in having a reminder of home. <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/29/24045688/dodgers-padres-seoul-series-south-korea-travel-cost">But as my plans for Seoul fell through</a>, I would not just settle on what I could get at home.</p>
<p id="kaSVEv"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/authors/michael-elizondo">As True Blue LA’s self-proclaimed, de facto Traveling Correspondent</a>, it is my mission (in part) to visit strange new ballparks to sample the local cuisine of the various ballparks and cities I visit. Some of these cities have food that I could eat all day, every day (<a href="https://www.truebluela.com/22957596/dodgers-travel-guide-pnc-park-pittsburgh-pirates">Hello Pittsburgh!</a>) and some of these cities have food that make me wish that I had stayed at the hotel (<a href="https://www.truebluela.com/22934398/dodgers-travel-guide-great-american-ballpark-cincinnati-reds">...hello Cincinnati...</a>).</p>
<p id="m1N5lU">I would have enjoyed eating my way through Seoul but alas, it was not meant to be. </p>
<p id="y5RneR">On March 11th, the Dodgers released a fun six-minute video on their social media where Bobby Miller, Michael Grove, Brusdar Graterol, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto ate various Korean snacks laid out by <a href="https://x.com/suejo825/status/1767366612116787259?s=20">Sue Jo</a>.</p>
<p id="gmeNJL">The video is well worth your time.</p>
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<p id="M0DDMf">The video was a lot of fun and I never would have guessed that Miller does not like seafood. I understand that people like what they like, but generally <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRB8Jor8tPs&ab_channel=shininginshadows">I have the same reaction whenever someone tells me that they do not like seafood</a>, but that fact generally means more for me.</p>
<p id="NfC2YU">Also, based on the video, someone should clearly check Michael Grove’s palate because his taste profile was all over the place.</p>
<p id="qiT19T">After I watched the video, a question nagged at me, so I rewatched it and confirmed my suspicion. All kidding aside, the video has one, arguably, major flaw when discussing these seven snacks: <em><strong>none of the snacks are specifically identified!</strong></em></p>
<h3 id="t21owo">Time for some “hard-hitting journalism”</h3>
<p id="GZF38O">As a connoisseur of snacks and as someone who has enjoyed the Bokksu snack service intermittently over the past couple of years for Japanese snacks, I am always on the lookout for interesting things to snack on.</p>
<p id="1RRVwh">Not knowing what the quartet of Miller, Grove, Yamamoto, and Graterol ate just would not do. I have plenty of knowledge, but my background is limited to Korean snacks, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ge4vghXQTtQ&ab_channel=BabishCulinaryUniverse">apart from monstrosities like Ram-Don, as popularized from Parasite</a>, is limited. </p>
<p id="3CwefX">Therefore, I had to turn the hivemind of Twitter to answer what exactly the Dodgers ate, especially once the team failed to identify what the Snacking Quartet munched on. Thankfully. <a href="https://twitter.com/eelhannahmi">Twitter user</a> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/hanleephoto">@eelhannahmi</a> grew up with most of these snacks and helpfully identified them so if you were curious about trying the Dodgers had, you would have a point of reference to start.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">1. crunchy tteokbokki snack <br>2. banana kick: banana flavored puffed corn snack<br>3. sae-ooh-kkang: shrimp flavored chips<br>4. ppushuh ppushuh: crunchy uncooked ramen noodles snack with a variety of flavors (they tried the bulgogi flavor) <a href="https://t.co/xwO2oKPEiE">pic.twitter.com/xwO2oKPEiE</a></p>— hannah (@eelhannahmi) <a href="https://twitter.com/eelhannahmi/status/1767337401603772691?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2024</a>
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<p id="iJt8yd">Tteokbokki is pronounced “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSR_A7GWaGc&t=33s&ab_channel=JulienMiquel">Tote-boe-ki</a>” and is essentially a spicy rice cake.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">5.mat-dong-san: crunchy honey peanut snack<br>6.homerun ball: soft pastry puffs with chocolate filling <br>7.shin-zzang: honey rings with roasted black sesame <a href="https://t.co/BBYsbshESb">pic.twitter.com/BBYsbshESb</a></p>— hannah (@eelhannahmi) <a href="https://twitter.com/eelhannahmi/status/1767337816307200154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2024</a>
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<p id="BOTV6j">While the brands may or may not be dead on, the identified snacks look close enough to satisfy my curiosity.</p>
<p id="V3scFI">The chocolate snack is literally called a Home Run Ball, <a href="https://x.com/OgNam213/status/1767368319802511368?s=20">which is apparently better if microwaved for five seconds.</a> </p>
<p id="9UOBID">Would I expect these snacks at Dodger Stadium anytime soon? Probably not.</p>
<p id="gYsalJ">However, if you want to go off the beaten path snack-wise while the Dodgers are in Seoul, these seven snacks should do the job, if you live near a Korean market, the snacks should be available. If one is without a Korean or Asian market, there is always Amazon.</p>
<p id="nqNJ7q">Bon appetite, everyone!</p>
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https://www.truebluela.com/2024/3/12/24098179/dodgers-social-media-korean-snacksMichael Elizondo2024-03-06T12:20:41-08:002024-03-06T12:20:41-08:00Fan awarded $108,500 for 2018 incident with Dodger Stadium security
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<img alt="Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Cincinnati Reds 9-3 on Opening Day during a MLB baseball game." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8vicHKk27HL2tkID08AV9cR9oHg=/77x0:8465x5592/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73187187/1239991961.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>The Dodgers are forced to pay another assaulted fan as a result of the actions of Dodger Security</p> <p id="WHQE7K">While most <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> fans have justifiably enjoyed the offseason and Spring Training, there is a lingering cloud of the multiple, ongoing lawsuits filed against the team and stadium personnel in Los Angeles County Superior Court for a spate of injuries to fans carried out by Dodger Stadium security. </p>
<p id="CX4aSg"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/11/28/23948365/dodger-stadium-security-lawsuits-overview">As you may recall, on November 17, 2023, a jury held the Dodgers liable in a personal injury lawsuit filed by Francisco Rodriguez. The jury levied punitive and noneconomic damages totaling $105,000.</a> </p>
<p id="75iFmb">You may remember the case of Daniel Antunez and the injuries he sustained at Dodger Stadium on April 24, 2018. In this case, Mr. Antunez stated that he went to a Dodger game with friends to celebrate his birthday. <a href="https://aboutblaw.com/bcXu">While at the game, one of Mr. Antunez’s friends, Ms. Vanessa Gonzales, accidentally spilled a beer on a fan in front of her in the Loge section. The fan’s spouse called security</a>.</p>
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<p id="UxoyjX">Security escorted Ms. Gonzales to the Loge concourse and Mr. Antunez accompanied everyone. <a href="https://aboutblaw.com/bcXu">At some point, Mr. Antunez told Dodger Stadium security, including Mr. Danny Choi, Mr. Armando Montalvo, and Mr. Carlos Mitre, that he had to use the bathroom about fifteen feet away from where everyone was standing.</a></p>
<p id="AQzU7A">Around this point, Dodger Stadium Security told Ms. Gonzales that she was going to be ejected from the stadium. As Mr. Antunez walked to the bathroom, the above-identified Dodger Stadium security officers grabbed Mr. Antunez. They tackled him, resulting in a broken ankle for Mr. Antunez that required three surgeries to fix.</p>
<p id="JZyJVl"><a href="https://aboutblaw.com/bcXw">The Dodgers alleged that the force was necessary because they claimed that when Mr. Mitre grabbed Mr. Antunez, Mr. Antunez punched Mr. Mitre and attempted to choke him.</a> Both sets of pleadings do not dispute that Mr. Antunez broke his ankle.</p>
<p id="Fe11mT">During the trial, Mr. Autunez’s attorney Peter diDonato reported to Bloomberg Law that during the trial, <a href="https://news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/los-angeles-dodgers-ordered-to-pay-beaten-fan-more-than-100-000">the head of Dodger Stadium security testified that the security division “does not look into its own uses of force.”</a></p>
<p id="81hEt2">Multiple videos taken of the incident were shown in the initial news report shown above, which support Mr. Antunez’s account of events showing an overzealous response akin to detaining a criminal suspect rather than maintaining order at a baseball game. </p>
<p id="10kc8a">Clearly, a Los Angeles jury agreed with Mr. Antunez. On February 29, 2023, after a trial, a Los Angeles jury held the Dodgers liable in Mr. Antunez’s personal injury lawsuit and awarded him $108,500 for his injuries. </p>
<p id="0aI4wJ"><a href="https://aboutblaw.com/bcYC">Per the minute order of the proceedings, $89,000 of the award was based on past economic damages ($75,000 in medical damages and $14,000 in lost wages). The jury awarded Mr. Antunez $12,000 in physical pain/mental suffering and $7,500 in future noneconomic losses.</a></p>
<p id="MNKqup">Like the Rodriguez case, in this case, the jury did find Mr. Antunez was comparatively negligent in the amount of 35%, which would likely reduce the total award to around $70,525. </p>
<p id="V02AmE"><a href="https://aboutblaw.com/bcYC">Unlike the Rodriguez case, the jury did not award punitive damages to Mr. Antunez.</a> Punitive damages are used to punish an offender rather than restore economic harm.</p>
<p id="bZqmd0">There are no future dates in the Antunez matter. As there are multiple ongoing lawsuits from different plaintiffs against the Dodgers, around fifteen from Mr. diDonato alone, we will provide updates as they become available.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2024/3/6/24087352/dodger-stadium-security-daniel-antunez-court-rulingMichael Elizondo2024-02-20T14:09:13-08:002024-02-20T14:09:13-08:00A look at LA requirements for the Dodger Stadium gondola
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<img alt="The proposed Union Station to Dodger Stadium aerial gondola for Dodgers fans ignites controversy and opposition in Solono Canyon neighborhood." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KIGu6JkLQtfP3SpVcohy5kG4E7I=/0x0:6720x4480/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73152792/1240399686.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>31 demands to secure the Mayor’s support</p> <p id="bJvjZc">The future of the proposed <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> gondola project will reach another inflection point this week. </p>
<p id="W1toTw"><a href="https://metro.legistar1.com/metro/meetings/2024/2/2684_A_Board_of_Directors_-_Regular_Board_Meeting_24-02-22_Agenda.pdf">On February 14, the LA Metro Planning and Programming Committee voted unanimously to move the gondola project to the full Metro Board without a recommendation after three hours of deliberation</a>. </p>
<p id="TV1Rpk"><a href="https://metro.granicus.com/player/clip/2951?view_id=2&redirect=true">These proceedings were live-streamed and recorded</a>.</p>
<p id="8PZaGz">Before the subcommittee’s vote, LA City Councilmember for District 1 Eunisses Hernandez spoke at length in opposition to the project. <a href="https://x.com/EunissesH/status/1750344631727055108?s=20">Ms. Hernandez had previously introduced a motion instructing the City of Los Angeles to suspend any actions to advance the gondola project until the Los Angeles Department of Transportation completed a transportation study on the project</a>. </p>
<p id="j6oxnu">Supervisor Hilda Solis (<a href="https://www.dol.gov/general/aboutdol/history/solis">yes, <em>that </em>Hilda Solis</a>) (<a href="https://metro.granicus.com/player/clip/2951?view_id=2&redirect=true">starting at 2:55 of the meeting</a>) described the serious concerns that have been described in detail here at True Blue LA, from the concerns of gentrification as a result of transportation projects in Los Angeles (including the relocation of Chinatown and the destruction of the neighborhoods before the building of Dodger Stadium), to the lack of transparency and clarity behind the rationale of the project.</p>
<p id="IoagOj">Ms. Solis at around 2:56 got to the heart of the matter:</p>
<blockquote><p id="pOL04u"><em>“...What problem are we really trying to solve? Are we trying to address Dodger Stadium traffic or something else motivating this proposal?</em><strong> If it is a traffic concern, then why are we not considering other alternatives? Why not look at expanding Dodger Stadium Express?</strong><em> ... There are many other alternatives out there that we have not even considered, but if there is something else motivating this project, then what is it and why should the public resources go to support it?”</em></p></blockquote>
<p id="xTwpxE">[emphasis added.]</p>
<p id="YUFN6a">Ms. Solis emphasized the need for conditions before signing off on the project, including, but not limited to, senior and affordable housing, making sure that public funds will not go to the project, and anti-displacement funds to prevent gentrification concerns for the affected areas of Chinatown. Ms. Solis stated that she could not support the Dodger Gondola project without these guarantees.</p>
<p id="PUP7jU">It is worth noting that the Dodger gondola project cannot proceed without approval from Metro, CalTrans, and the California State Parks Commission (as the proposed route cuts across Los Angeles State Historic Park) before Metro votes on the project again for final approval.</p>
<p id="SL6KG0">Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times <a href="https://www.latimes.com/sports/dodgers/story/2024-02-17/dodger-stadium-gondola-affordable-housing-mayor-karen-bass">has frequently reported that the Dodgers gondola project was a pet project of then-Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti who was “absolutely confident that this [project] will happen.”</a> Once Karen Bass replaced Garcetti, the question of where the new mayor stood on the project was an open one.</p>
<p id="FJi0Ax">On February 17, Mayor Bass, along with Board Member Hilda Solis, Board Member Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker, Board Member Lindsey Horvath, and Board Member Tim Sandoval, dropped the hammer, by releasing a list of 31 demands that the Dodgers Gondola project satisfy before approving the project.</p>
<p id="t0gK1B"><a href="https://metro.legistar1.com/metro/meetings/2024/2/2684_A_Board_of_Directors_-_Regular_Board_Meeting_24-02-22_Agenda.pdf">The most important of these demands or conditions for approval are as follows</a>:</p>
<ul>
<li id="HdUS5U">Zero Emissions Transit (ZET) shall permanently indemnify Metro, the County of Los Angeles, the City of Los Angeles, CalTrans, California Department of Parks and Recreation, and all other relevant public entities for any and all loss, cost or damage of any kind arising out of the negligence or willful misconduct of ZET in the design, planning, permitting, construction, operating, maintenance, dissolution or other acts in furtherance of the gondola project;</li>
<li id="ZTNQOm">By insurance or escrow policy, ZET is to set up financial arrangements to ensure that if ZET cannot build or operate the gondola, there are funds to dismantle the gondola;</li>
<li id="yUqCaH">ZET is to set up a Project Labor Agreement, <a href="https://sustainabilityreporting.metro.net/economic-and-workforce-development#:~:text=The%20Room%20to%20Work%20program,employment%20in%20the%20transportation%20industry.">similar to the Room to Work program</a>, similar to other Metro projects;</li>
<li id="g2UNJt">The gondola project will not benefit from or compete against Metro, the County, the City, or any other local jurisdiction within the County for state, federal, or other public funds to design, build, or operate the project. The Project will not seek or benefit from direct appropriations and the Project will not seek or benefit from a bond from any of the above-identified entities;</li>
<li id="HXuL79">ZET adopts an advertising display policy consistent with Metro, the City, the County, and the State Park system’s respective advertising policies, including lighting policies;</li>
<li id="5OUvi6">The gondola project does not benefit from the use of eminent domain, and if ZET has to acquire property rights from a public jurisdiction, ZET must offer at least fair market value, including for air and real property rights;</li>
<li id="NiLKrC">If the gondola is not operational by the 2028 Olympic Games, ZET will compensate Metro for any costs related to buses to be used;</li>
<li id="GDn8Nb">Dodger Stadium Express to be made permanent and transitioned to zero emissions vehicles in advance of the project;</li>
<li id="SeqQ5D">ZET conducts any additional studies requested by the City, Caltrans, Metro, or the State Parks in review or furtherance of the Project;</li>
<li id="OCyZ2F">Metro is to provide quarterly updates to the Metro Board as to the Gondola’s progress and financing;</li>
<li id="zz9ouD">Within 180 days, Metro to report back to the Metro Board for other mobility projects that could be used to alleviate traffic; and</li>
<li id="jhMiBh">Metro to include an overriding clause in any future lease at or near Union Station with ZET for the gondola project, whereas any future development near or at the parking lots surrounding Dodger Stadium that does not dedicate at least 25% of the developable space to affordable or supportive housing shall automatically and immediately terminate the lease.</li>
</ul>
<p id="KIwLQ3">For those not legally trained, that is a full indemnity clause, no public funds, no eminent domain, no development at Dodger Stadium without devoting a quarter of the developable space to affordable or supportive housing.</p>
<p id="gLxg8c">As we covered ages ago, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/2/3/23533959/here-today-gondola-covenants-conditions-and-restrictions-of-dodger-stadium-mccourt">the Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions of the Dodger Stadium parking lots only allow development once the Stadium is serviced by mass transit</a>. </p>
<p id="CDNI0P"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2022/12/6/23316048/dodger-stadium-gondola-project-study-frank-mccourt">As I have repeated ad nauseam</a>, the gondola Project at Dodger Stadium makes absolutely no sense as written. Buses could easily do what the gondola proposes at a fraction of the price. But additional bus service will not bring commercial development.</p>
<p id="GZuDYB"><a href="https://johnsonfain.com/projects/architecture/commercial/la-dodgers-stadium-next-50/">But during the McCourt era, the team did commission a development plan called LA Dodgers Stadium Next 50, which included a team museum, commercial buildings, and two 8-level, 900-car parking structures</a>. As you can see, this plan has never been formally rejected or formally abandoned.</p>
<p id="7MiR6Y">As I have previously written, the development of the Dodger Stadium parking lots would make sense under the right conditions assuming all stakeholders were working sustainably together to ensure that marginalized populations were not being shafted in the name of ownership greed. That plan is not and has not been discussed.</p>
<p id="XKGxoc">I do have serious CEQA concerns with this project and concerns about the finances of this project. It is moderately comforting that elected officials are aware and have publicly voiced these concerns.</p>
<p id="p39gaq">As stated, the gondola project is a boondoggle designed to prey upon a community and region that has consistently gotten the short end of the stick. The fact that local legislators of the area where the proposed gondola would be located are starting to line up against the project is heartening.</p>
<p id="QObPbe">If ZET or McCourt or whoever is running this project, which is not as glib as you might think, agrees to every single one of the 31 demands, I could see myself coming around on this project as the public purse is protected and safeguards are put in place to make sure that the citizens of Chinatown and Elysian Park are protected.</p>
<p id="EGlYys">But those safeguards would require McCourt and his ilk to pay up and report what they are doing and potentially lead to less profit in development, never mind that no one involved with the project has any experience designing, building, running, maintaining, or operating a mass transit system of any kind.</p>
<p id="7CBZkT">The LA Times reported <a href="https://www.latimes.com/sports/dodgers/story/2024-02-17/dodger-stadium-gondola-affordable-housing-mayor-karen-bass">that Nathan Click, spokesman for ZET, stated gondola project officials were “reviewing” the list of conditions</a>. Whether <a href="https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2023-04-30/dodger-stadium-gondola-project-frank-mccourt">that statement means Frank</a> McCourt is an open question.</p>
<p id="tPPyqk"><a href="https://metro.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?LEGID=2684&GID=557&G=A5FAA737-A54D-4A6C-B1E8-FF70F765FA94">The Metro Board meetings at 10 am on Thursday</a>. If you wish to submit a public comment to the Metro Board before the meeting, you may email boardclerk@metro.net and <a href="https://boardagendas.metro.net/event/regular-board-meeting-edac8a0799b0/">include the date of the meeting and the agenda item (12. 2023.0743).</a> Comments must be received by 5 p.m. PT on Wednesday.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2024/2/20/24076839/dodger-stadium-gondola-mayor-karen-bass-31-demands-board-meetingMichael Elizondo2024-02-15T09:45:30-08:002024-02-15T09:45:30-08:00Arrest made in Jackie Robinson statue theft & vandalism
<figure>
<img alt="Los Angeles Dodgers Unveil Jackie Robinson Statue" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/RikjrVOQwa_p1Ovz4fznNtjpEIQ=/5x0:2996x1994/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73142013/668942750.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Victor Decolongon/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="vlMSxk"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/31/24056510/jackie-robinson-statue-wichita-kansas-vandalized">About two weeks ago, I documented and opined on the theft and vandalism of a Jackie Robinson statute in Wichita, Kansas</a>. It was a very sad affair.</p>
<p id="obZlkm">The theft of the Wichita Robinson statue provoked strong feelings here and nationally based on the timing and the political climate, and personally, as <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> fans. </p>
<p id="I00Qlc">While baseball celebrates Jackie Robinson every April 15th, it is a point of pride that Robinson was first and foremost, a Dodger, who transcended the game by being who he was.</p>
<p id="wZOkMY">Whether the theft and vandalism were the result of a hate crime or just basic stupidity, <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/replace-our-stolen-jackie-robinson-statue">people rallied to raise almost $200,000</a> to replace the statue <a href="https://twitter.com/boblutz/status/1752820103626871111?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1752820103626871111%7Ctwgr%5E49bb44be2db687d829234a0c9710f258213f1a60%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2024%2F1%2F31%2F24056510%2Fjackie-robinson-statue-wichita-kansas-vandalized">before MLB stepped in</a>. </p>
<p id="fwxWgb">Passions flared and then cooled as they usually do. </p>
<p id="7Az59s">The theft was caught on security tape so it was only a matter of time before an arrest or two was made. On Monday, February 13, the first domino fell.</p>
<p id="2rYzeL"><a href="https://www.kwch.com/2024/02/13/police-provide-update-jackie-robinson-statue-case/">Ricky Alderete, 45, was arrested and booked on multiple charges relating to the theft of the Robinson statue</a>, including allegations of felony theft, aggravated criminal damage to property, and likely unrelated charges of identity theft and making false information.</p>
<div id="nYdqse"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iLR4EORjBN4?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"></iframe></div></div>
<p id="Yo6Q2u">Wichita police reported that they uncovered no evidence suggesting that the theft of the 275-pound Robinson statute and corresponding vandalism were racially motivated. Instead, the police reported that the primary motivation for the theft of the Robinson statue was based on the value of the metal it was made of, <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39518858/police-make-arrest-theft-destruction-jackie-robinson-statue">primarily 95-percent copper</a>.</p>
<p id="swHmsw">Witchita police vowed to arrest the other individuals documented in the statue's theft, as the police department believes that at least three people were involved in the theft.</p>
<p id="ouqpjl"><a href="https://www.kansas.com/news/local/crime/article285426862.html">The suspected truck used in the theft was found on January 28 and does not belong to Alderete</a>. It is worth noting that Aldrete was not charged with the statue’s destruction but rather its theft, which leads to the inference that those responsible for actually destroying the statue are still at large.</p>
<p id="YeWk18"><a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39518858/police-make-arrest-theft-destruction-jackie-robinson-statue">Bob Lutz, executive director of the League 42 Foundation stated </a>“we’re feeling good that someone is being held responsible, and I do believe that all individuals involved will be apprehended.”</p>
<p id="ekA3mV"><a href="https://www.kansas.com/news/local/crime/article285426862.html">Lutz also disagreed with the Witchia Police’s assessment that the theft and vandalism was not racially motivated</a>:</p>
<p id="fxM8Hh">“It’s an iconic African-American person, baseball player [statue], that was destroyed,” Lutz said after the news conference. “That’s a racial crime as far as I’m concerned.”</p>
<p id="LQ3eVw"><a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39518858/police-make-arrest-theft-destruction-jackie-robinson-statue">The replacement statue will be completed, based on the original mold, by the middle of this coming summer</a>.</p>
<p id="bm1QlF">Lutz stated that League 42 will work with the city on security measures for the replacement statute. </p>
<p id="WWkvna">“We’re not going to fence it off. The beauty of the Jackie Robinson statue is for people to be a part of it, and approach it and love it the same way we do,” Lutz said. “Our kids are enthralled by Jackie Robinson. We’ve created a whole new generation of interest in a player who hasn’t played in major league baseball in 70 years.”</p>
<p id="UXP3xU">Regardless of the motivation, the community of baseball fans in Wichita and nationwide banded together to show that vandalism of the Robinson statue will not be tolerated or go unanswered. As I stated last time, the spirit of Jackie Robinson lives on in everyone who does not give up and does not back down.</p>
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https://www.truebluela.com/2024/2/15/24073641/jackie-robinson-statue-theft-vandalism-arrest-wichitaMichael Elizondo2024-02-14T08:06:23-08:002024-02-14T08:06:23-08:00Farewell to the Dodgers' awful city connect jerseys
<figure>
<img alt="Miami Marlins v Los Angeles Dodgers - Game Two" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/YJ_558WtTLiN_iMOS4966ovC_PM=/0x0:6000x4000/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73138949/1638858369.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Harry How/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>LA will have new city connect jerseys in 2024. Good riddance to the old ones</p> <p id="dCDVkM">In case you missed it, recently and inexplicably, the <a href="https://www.federalbaseball.com/">Washington Nationals</a> announced recently that the team would “retire” their excellent city connect jerseys after the coming season.</p>
<div id="cD8ZJW">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Nationals will retire their City Connect uniforms at the end of the 2024 season<br><br>One more year for the cherry blossoms <a href="https://t.co/AU4743NSBk">pic.twitter.com/AU4743NSBk</a></p>— MLB (@MLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1751311789331976380?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2024</a>
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<p id="QjLD9P">My initial reactions to the news were two-fold:</p>
<ol>
<li id="zmF4YP">
<em>That retirement is a shame, those jerseys were nice, unlike the replacements they announced. </em><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2024/01/26/nationals-new-uniform-set-features-pullover-redesigned-road-grays/"><em>Yikes!</em></a>
</li>
<li id="EBeJ4F"><em>Wait, teams can retire city connect jerseys?!?</em></li>
</ol>
<p id="mZE60L">I think you can see where my mind is heading with this one.</p>
<h3 id="smdJEc"><a href="https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/graphic-design-is-my-passion">Graphic design is my passion</a></h3>
<p id="srHPCN">It is hard to oversell the hype that the announcement of the NBA-like city connect uniforms being introduced to baseball starting in the 2021 season. The <a href="https://www.overthemonster.com/">Boston Red Sox</a> had the first city connect jersey to be revealed and introduced. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/red-sox-city-connect-mlbs-nike-partnership-2021-4">The jersey was bold, entirely different from what the team is known for but the jersey is appropriate for the team</a>.</p>
<p id="ocNC1q">Then near the conclusion of the 2021 season, the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> made their announcement.</p>
<div id="kynx7K"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Y1llSXTSA-E?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"></iframe></div></div>
<p id="Ksmmm0">Woof. </p>
<p id="iBX4uB">Personally, while the idea behind the theme of the jerseys is sound, the Dodgers’ execution gives major “I bought knockoff gear at the flea market” and “check out our amateur recreation league jersey” vibes.</p>
<p id="1TMxur">While you might think that opinion is harsh, the Dodgers traditionally have had one of the best and most iconic jerseys in all of sports. And when allowed to do something new, something different, <a href="https://www.fanatics.com/mlb/los-angeles-dodgers/los-angeles-dodgers-nike-alternate-replica-team-jersey-royal/o-2354+t-92662111+p-14948620643+z-9-4069910354?_ref=p-DLP:m-GRID:i-r16c2:po-50">the team produced a worse version of the spring training jersey</a> <a href="https://www.fanatics.com/mlb/los-angeles-dodgers/los-angeles-dodgers-nike-city-connect-replica-jersey-royal/o-4521+t-47114399+p-04336158251+z-9-3098641593?_ref=p-DLP:m-GRID:i-r6c0:po-18">while charging a premium all the way to the bank</a>.</p>
<p id="Qnt8on">Honestly, the original “Los Dodgers” hats and the blue pants were the worst parts and were quickly changed out. Now, the Dodgers use a standard cap and white pants and no longer look like plumbers who have snuck onto the field or a beer league softball team.</p>
<p id="KnSb0z">The Dodgers currently wear their city connect jerseys at various home games but have been known to wear them in San Francisco on occasion. During the past season, the Dodgers primarily wore their city connect jersey when now-disgraced and former Dodger Julio Urías started.</p>
<p id="SaqFJj">As Urías is now gone, the Dodgers’ decision to shelve the city connects and do a brand new relaunch is welcome, and a chance to do something new. The Dodgers are one of nine MLB teams that will have new city connect jerseys in 2024, the league announced on Tuesday.</p>
<p id="Dawd32">If you actually like the Dodgers’ old city connect jersey, I am not mocking you. I am sure that there are fans of Nickelback or those who do not mind rain on their wedding day, or perhaps a free ride when they have already paid.</p>
<p id="jedZdh">Those scenarios are not actually ironic as they are coincidental. and<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7tiIWIm8Ys&ab_channel=itsthevoiceman"> are not the use of words other than their literal intention</a> — actual irony. </p>
<p id="5gElg8">Maybe for version two, the Dodgers could try something in red and gold and with Art Deco lettering. Honestly, the <a href="https://www.gaslampball.com/">San Diego Padres</a> city connect jersey, <a href="https://www.mlb.com/padres/fans/city-connecthttps://www.mlb.com/padres/fans/city-connect">while a bit goofy</a>, is along the lines of what I expected from the Dodgers to no avail.</p>
<p id="8zlUb5">Watch city connect version 2.0 be just as terrible as version 1.0, but for today, let us bask in the glow of hope that comes with the advent of a new jersey. Or that sentiment is what I would say under normal circumstances.</p>
<h3 id="VMYj17">Unwelcome changes in the home jersey</h3>
<div class="c-float-right"> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt="MLB: Los Angeles Dodgers-Press Conference" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2WJcS1aXSD1_lSz3PeuQIPQ4b9M=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25266743/usa_today_22105590.jpg">
<cite>Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports</cite>
</figure>
</div>
<p id="QLDdf4">Shohei Ohtani is a Los Angeles Dodger. That statement is not news, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2022/8/1/23284121/shohei-ohtani-trade-rumors-not-dodgers-yet">as of August 2022, I considered the current state of affairs quite unlikely</a>, but it is still an unfamiliar sentence to write. I suppose I will have the next decade to get used to it.</p>
<p id="V4UYIr"><a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2023/12/20/24009313/nike-changing-mlb-uniforms-2024">Eagle-eye watchers of Ohtani’s first press conference noticed that the Dodgers jersey was wearing looked different</a>. Your eyes were not deceiving you, unfortunately.</p>
<p id="LOgaDF">Nike is currently the main manufacturer of jerseys in MLB. This season, all teams will have uniforms based on a unified template. Nike has outsourced the manufacture of jerseys to Fanatics, an American manufacturer and online retailer of licensed sportswear for the MLB, MLS, NBA, NFL, NHL, NASCAR, Formula 1, WWE, and NPB. </p>
<p id="KCKXog">And if you went, “wait, aren’t those the people who make lousy, shoddy gear?” then you know where this essay is going.</p>
<p id="kGgqMy"><a href="https://uni-watch.com/2023/12/15/ohtani-presser-shows-first-view-of-dodgers-jersey-in-nikes-new-template/">Paul Lukas of UniWatch published an excellent article documenting the new changes to the Dodgers’ jersey based on the new Nike template. Lukas documented the exact changes</a> to the Dodgers white home jersey:</p>
<ul>
<li id="ZMiVnX">The number on the front of the jersey is much smaller</li>
<li id="KpvrzB">The number on the front of the jersey is now perforated</li>
<li id="5fwm2k">The script of “Dodgers” now splits at the front of the lower-case “d” rather than between the “o” and the “d” as previously done</li>
<li id="wCVzJB">The MLB logo on the back of the jersey is now much lower, closer to the player’s name rather than closer to the collar</li>
<li id="Vuvn3l">The player name font is smaller</li>
<li id="nsJoGv">The number on the back of the jersey is now perforated</li>
</ul>
<p id="M8HMwR">Why make any changes at all, you might ask. Lukas covered that question as well. The jersey placket (where the buttonholes are) on the new jersey template is narrower than in the old jerseys by approximately half an inch to an inch. </p>
<p id="wCJOLc">Imagine if you were printing something on a different set of margins. The Dodgers had essentially two options: have the logo be off-center and preserve the same split or be fine with the split occurring elsewhere on the logo. </p>
<p id="9cqc5y">For instance, take <a href="https://www.batterypower.com/">Atlanta’</a>s jersey, which makes an interesting choice of where to split due to the new template.</p>
<div><div id="b1nGbR">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here's a side by side comparison of the front of the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Braves?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Braves</a>' jersey. The left is from 2023, the right is the updated version for 2024. They've also shifted the front logo which causes the "a" in the team name to overlap the piping. Not sure why anyone would do that. <a href="https://t.co/oe3CKnKnWE">https://t.co/oe3CKnKnWE</a> <a href="https://t.co/1spKYgnEBJ">pic.twitter.com/1spKYgnEBJ</a></p>— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) <a href="https://twitter.com/grantmcauley/status/1753102623648207098?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2024</a>
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<p id="gNnBtT">Woof.</p>
<p id="igVznH"><a href="https://uni-watch.com/2023/12/19/exclusive-why-the-dodgers-script-breaks-so-awkwardly-in-nikes-new-template/">Lukas notes how other teams are in the same boat as the Dodgers with mixed results</a>. The Giants appeared to have improved their jersey by adjusting the kerning (the spacing between letters) and arching of their logo.</p>
<p id="Vtiqdu">Lukas notes that the last change in the uniform template is that white jerseys are no longer pure white but rather a very subtle off-white. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AD5N-le_1es&ab_channel=Movieclips">At the risk of channeling Patrick Bateman in American Psycho</a>, sometimes white just needs to be white, not bone, not pale nimbus, and certainly not eggshell.</p>
<p id="yDq54Q">As if on cue, these new jerseys have been seen in the wild and reviews are absolutely terrible. </p>
<div class="c-float-left"><div id="wXXwVP">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Last year vs this year’s replica jersey offerings from the fine folks at MLB, Nike & Fanatics. Last year’s being on the left and this year’s on the right.<br><br>I have a lot to say, so bear with me here.<br><br>Let’s just rip the bandaid off right away with this year’s new jersey offerings <a href="https://t.co/3IShhlj0nL">pic.twitter.com/3IShhlj0nL</a></p>— Bobby Mullins (@TheBobbyMullins) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheBobbyMullins/status/1756487355719201117?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2024</a>
</blockquote>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">This is what the back of the white jerseys look like with the new template. Players are pretty unhappy. Miles Mikolas says they also don’t fit right; pants are no longer as customized, and the fabric is a very different consistency. <br><br>“They look cheap,” another player said. <a href="https://t.co/UoH4vVHTfd">pic.twitter.com/UoH4vVHTfd</a></p>— Jeff Jones (@jmjones) <a href="https://twitter.com/jmjones/status/1757410006247342288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 13, 2024</a>
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<p id="2jyp1M"><a href="https://x.com/jmjones/status/1757430698670002307?s=20">MLB issued a hilariously timed press release to coincide with all this negative press</a>. Jerseys will now fall under three categories:</p>
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<p id="bJwnvv"><em>Nike Vapor Premiere Elite Jersey: authentic jersey, as worn by players on-field</em></p>
<p id="7XK6Rz"><em>Nike Vapor Premiere Limited Jersey: inspired by the on-field jersey, featuring an embroidered Nike Swoosh, heat applied twill logos and a woven, heat applied jocktag, heat-applied sublimated twill player name and number</em></p>
<p id="RVdYHI"><em>Nike Vapor Premier Game Jersey: Replica player jersey, featuring silicone printed [sic] heat transfer front wordmark, Nike Swoosh and Silhouetted Batter, screen-printed back player name and number, heat-applied jocktag and back neck label</em></p>
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<p id="O5hUf3">For the record, a jocktag is a little piece of material at the bottom of a jersey.</p>
<p id="j4ayTU">Needless to say, it feels like Fanatics is trying to bilk the baseball jersey-buying public into purchasing a vastly inferior product.</p>
<p id="697Ecg">As if to demonstrate my point, the Dodgers published a video with Jason Heyward extolling the virtues of the new jersey with the same energy as a hostage video.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The new threads are Jason-approved. <a href="https://t.co/FdRoD7iYvz">pic.twitter.com/FdRoD7iYvz</a></p>— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) <a href="https://twitter.com/Dodgers/status/1757513806304227545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 13, 2024</a>
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<p id="mCxu7o">What is the difference between heat transfer printing and sublimation printing, you might ask. I looked into it and heat transfer printing is far cheaper than sublimation printing. With sublimation, the printed design becomes part of the fabric rather than a layer on top, which feels better and has better durability. Heat transfer printing creates a layer on top, which can get cracked or faded after multiple washes. </p>
<p id="OLkrZv">If you are thinking “If I am buying a Nike Vapor Premiere Limited Jersey, and it has so many heat-applied elements, won’t it disintegrate in the wash? Won’t I have to buy a jersey that much quicker? Why am I paying so much for a clearly inferior product?” </p>
<p id="uPYmdR">That question is a good one. </p>
<p id="yzr4wR">I would recommend tracking down old blank jerseys and modifying those if one was dead set on getting an Ohtani, Yamamoto, or Glasnow Dodgers jersey.</p>
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https://www.truebluela.com/2024/2/14/24060933/dodgers-new-city-connect-jersey-changesMichael Elizondo2024-02-03T10:03:00-08:002024-02-03T10:03:00-08:00MLB economic reform committee is a sham
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<img alt="MLB: AL Wild Card-Tampa Bay Rays at Oakland Athletics" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/pVDlIW_eNj60euILuAxOzk-jF2Q=/0x0:4023x2682/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73109447/usa_today_13452048.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>A healthy sport would not tolerate John Fisher or Rob Manfred. So why did the Dodgers enable them?</p> <p id="Pw5uEk">In the predawn hours of November 16, an inevitable result finally, horribly, came to fruition: the owners voted unanimously to allow the <a href="https://www.athleticsnation.com/">Oakland Athletics</a> to relocate to Las Vegas. </p>
<p id="cZUaT5">To add injury to insult, the owners waived the relocation fee for the A’s and did not even turn off the spigot of revenue-sharing money.</p>
<p id="5OjTZC">I have covered this story since practically my first days formally writing for True Blue LA, and what strikes me are two things. First, the sheer defiance of the Oakland faithful. Ever since the Nevada legislature approved public funding for a baseball stadium on the Las Vegas Strip (on the same day as the reverse boycott, no less), this issue has essentially been a <em>fait accompli</em>. </p>
<p id="5zYp0T">Like Clayton Kershaw getting shelled while recording one out in Game 1 of the 2023 NLDS, the writing has been on the wall for a while. for the soon-to-be Las Vegas A’s. And yet unlike the 2023 <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> in the NLDS, even when all hope was lost, the Oakland faithful just kept fighting and embarrassing the league and Oakland ownership at practically every single opportunity from the 2023 All-Star Game onwards.</p>
<p id="oge338">Did the public shaming work? Oh of course not, but it was not for lack of trying. </p>
<p id="HVnfX3">Sadly, we have been forced to live through a live-action adaptation of Major League, except unlike the movie, the bad guys won, the team is getting moved, and baseball is likely permanently leaving Oakland as long as the current leadership exists in MLB.</p>
<p id="dUojLC">It will be odd to see the kelly green of Oakland in Las Vegas. It will be even odder to see the Athletics roam Sacramento or San Francisco or Salt Lake City for the next couple of years once their lease expires at the Coliseum. But that sad epilogue is one for another day.</p>
<p id="t7JfAu">It is important to compare the ongoing farce in Oakland with the recent death of Padres’ owner Peter Seidler and realize one fundamental truth: there is a lie that baseball fans have been asked to accept. </p>
<h3 id="NnQ6mW">Oakland is not a small market team</h3>
<p id="GxArPo">As you may or may not know, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/1/27/23574302/mlb-regional-sports-networks-local-television-sinclair-bally-sports-bankruptcy">the regional sports network model is dying</a>. The problem is as old as time: buying at the wrong end of a bubble, and even worse, an increasing market share of a dwindling market.</p>
<p id="LYBrxu">Believe it or not, this problem has gotten worse as the 2023 season went on, with regional networks dropping teams from coverage. With all that said, much ink was spilled about how much the <a href="https://www.gaslampball.com/">San Diego Padres</a> and the <a href="https://www.amazinavenue.com/">Mets</a> were spending on free agents in the 2022 offseason.</p>
<p id="AKFlUh">Frankly, the spending of the Mets and Padres in 2023 did not work — at all, to almost comedic effect, but that failure was far from guaranteed.</p>
<p id="lZbiTv">One might wonder what Commissioner Rob “<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maurybrown/2022/02/11/inside-the-numbers-manfred-claims-investing-in-stock-market-better-than-return-on-mlb-club-sales/?sh=3bc6f0387d3b">Owning an MLB team is a worse investment than the Stock Market,”</a> Manfred thought about all the Mets’ spending. Around the time of the peak agita from the spending, <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F4026971%2F2022%2F12%2F22%2Fmets-steve-cohen-spending%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2024%2F2%2F3%2F23648034%2Fmlb-economic-reform-committee-sham-athletics-mets-padres-dodgers" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">the Commissioner had the following to say</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p id="vBxMn0"><em>“I think everyone in this room understands that we have a level of revenue disparity in this sport that makes it impossible for some of our markets to compete at some of the numbers we’ve seen,” commissioner Rob Manfred said generally at the Winter Meetings earlier this month. “</em><em><strong>And, you know, that’s not a positive. It’s like everything else in life, there’s good and bad in it.</strong></em><em>”</em></p></blockquote>
<p id="cMWGxa">(emphasis added.)</p>
<p id="5QMNLM">The commissioner said something that ultimately does not mean anything? It must be a day ending in “y.” Snark aside, I figured the rage about the Mets’ spending would subside, as even writers like Evan Drellich did not take the idea of a 2026 Lockout seriously. </p>
<p id="HBQleA">What a difference 90 days made.</p>
<h3 id="JB7v9H">The Economic Reform Committee of Major League Baseball</h3>
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<img alt="Spring Training Grapefruit League Media Day" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3cW685GjQbdeQnT-767oaaXm-Hk=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24463904/1247341798.jpg">
<cite>Photo by Mike Carlson/MLB Photos via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption><strong><em>Commissioner Manfred, February 16, 2023.</em></strong></figcaption>
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<p id="L6T0jT">On February 19, 2023, the League announced the creation of an Economic Reform Committee. Commissioner Manfred said that the committee, made up entirely of owners, was formed to <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F4226341%2F2023%2F02%2F19%2Fmlb-economic-reform-committee-mets-bally%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2024%2F2%2F3%2F23648034%2Fmlb-economic-reform-committee-sham-athletics-mets-padres-dodgers" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">address several issues</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p id="yVjIIO"><em>“It came out of a recognition of a couple of issues — one new, one old — that were particularly acute for us,” commissioner Rob Manfred said. “</em><em><strong>The new one’s the local media situation.</strong></em><em> I think that people see it as an opportunity to rethink the revenue side of the house a little bit, which has been hard in our sport. People entrenched in their local (media dynamics).”...“We got to find a new model,” Manfred said. “Maybe we ought to be driving the boat, what that model looks like. So, that’s the new challenge.”</em></p></blockquote>
<p id="vvjVNp">(emphasis added.)</p>
<p id="5qSoxU">This argument might be dismissed as cynicism but the committee is not a serious attempt to address any economic issues in baseball. In 2000, Major League Baseball published a report from its blue ribbon panel, consisting of club representatives plus former Federal Reserve Board chairman Paul Volcker, political columnist George Will, former U.S. Senator and <a href="https://www.usip.org/public-education-new/george-mitchell-building-peace-northern-ireland">broker of peace in Northern Ireland</a> George Mitchell, and Yale president Richard Levin that said the following: <a href="http://roadsidephotos.sabr.org/baseball/2000blueribbonreport.pdf">combined the teams lost $1 billion from 1995 to 1999.</a> <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/s/2000/0719/641139.html">This report was viewed with skepticism based on the alleged amounts and the fact that the teams’ books remained closed</a>.</p>
<p id="N7xfRx">This time, the gathered representatives are foregoing the paneer of independence by having all the members of the committee be franchise owners, <a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/02/mlb-creates-economic-reform-committee.html">chaired by Dodgers chairman Mark Walter</a>. </p>
<p id="t9HkGu">Once the headlines from the committee’s formation faded away, as if on cue, the committee disappeared into the ether, never to be heard from again.</p>
<p id="6qRgst">As has been discussed elsewhere, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/1/27/23574302/mlb-regional-sports-networks-local-television-sinclair-bally-sports-bankruptcy">including by Eric — quite adroitly</a>, Sinclair’s regional sports networks, more commonly known as Bally Sports, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/diamond-sports-bankruptcy-bally-sports-network/">went bankrupt on March 15</a>, 2023. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bally_Sports">Considering that 14 teams (!) (the Diamondbacks, Tigers, Marlins, Guardians, Royals, Cardinals, Twins, Reds, Padres, Angels, Braves, Rangers, Rays, and Brewers)</a> rely on Ballys as a revenue generator, the bankruptcy could prompt significant change in the sport.</p>
<p id="Ab3YBA">As an aside, YouTuber Steve Linkowski published an excellent summary of how the regional sports network model was on borrowed time until the pandemic accelerated that decline. This essay does not focus on the death of the regional sports network because as Dodger fans, it is not as pressing an issue (although the diminishment of television-rights-money will likely be an ongoing issue for many teams.)</p>
<div id="p9lDAe"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4KR-ESyH_Gg?rel=0&start=18" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"></iframe></div></div>
<p id="NFBXVt">And if you want an example, you need to look at the owner of <s>Little Brother</s>, the <a href="https://www.gaslampball.com/">San Diego Padres</a>, Peter Seidler.</p>
<h3 id="IFVU9Q">Little brother no more</h3>
<p id="4xlWko">Peter Seidler did what an allegedly small market owner is not supposed to do: he spent trying to win. Did it work? No — it did not, but before the 2023 season started just about everyone (including me) was proclaiming them as NL West Champions to be.</p>
<p id="2xSDsc">This essay does not focus on the failure (as I already covered that part) but rather the demolishing of a lie, or more accurately the underlining of a truth that all baseball fans need to understand:</p>
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<img alt="MLB: Winter Meetings" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8cdBIA87FbDDahEEuxaivVBHVK0=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25091564/usa_today_19580930.jpg">
<cite>Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports</cite>
<figcaption><strong><em>The late Peter Seidler</em></strong></figcaption>
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<p id="iMpFD4"><strong>All American baseball owners are rich beyond the dreams of avarice. </strong></p>
<p id="9AnAIH"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2022/3/11/22941907/its-not-my-moneyball-part-3-the-art-of-the-financial-tank">Even with outdated figures from a couple of seasons ago</a>, the gaps between the teams that are trying and the teams that would relegation-bait in any non-American sport continue to coast along, bleeding their respective cities of money and hope leaving mediocre baseball and apathy in their wake.</p>
<p id="ZnCJLd">(Unless your last name is Castellini, then you’re just obscenely wealthy).</p>
<p id="WsG3jF">While the Padres failed, we should not mock the effort of actually trying. Yes, Siedler died, but before his death, he did what most fans of baseball clubs other than the Dodgers, Mets, and <a href="https://www.batterypower.com/">Atlanta Braves</a> try to do: <strong>he tried to actually win</strong>.</p>
<p id="pDF0DK">It was noble. Snark aside, I can applaud the attempt. Moreover, I do not fault the failure of the Padres on the attempt, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/10/5/23598884/san-diego-padres-collapse-aj-preller">I fault the architect who someone manages to keep screwing up and keep his job without as much as a public reprimand</a>.</p>
<p id="EEvaih">Yes, the Padres overreached, <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/padres-took-out-50-million-loan-to-help-cover-payroll-per-report-could-juan-soto-trade-help-cut-costs/">even needing loans to help cover payroll at the end of the 2023 season</a> and the Padres are in the process of losing Blake Snell and <a href="https://www.si.com/mlb/padres/news/mlb-world-reacts-to-padres-trading-juan-soto-to-yankees-ml0802">traded away Juan Soto for pennies on the dollar</a> to the <a href="https://www.pinstripealley.com/">New York Yankees</a>.</p>
<h3 id="oVyWS3">The Dodgers help enable the lunacy of moving the A’s out of Oakland</h3>
<p id="oTf3jq">On the one hand, we have teams that were trying but did not quite nail the execution, mistaking brand names for an actual team, and on the other hand, we have the patron saint of bleeding a city dry of both money and interest before seeking another, smaller host.</p>
<p id="mnSG9O">Clearly, John Fisher must have a bounty of charisma and <em>joie de vivre</em>. You can judge for yourself in the literal first press conference he had as an owner the day MLB’s owners approved the relocation.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here are A's owner John Fisher's entire comments from the MLB Press Conference in Arlington. <br><br>"Today is an incredibly difficult day for Oakland A's fans. It's a great day for Las Vegas." <a href="https://t.co/VZAe1ele8v">pic.twitter.com/VZAe1ele8v</a></p>— Casey Pratt (@CaseyPrattABC7) <a href="https://twitter.com/CaseyPrattABC7/status/1725247208306667990?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 16, 2023</a>
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<p id="4s44ci">Imagine if the only time that the Dodgers saw Frank McCourt was the day he took the team into literal bankruptcy. Honestly, with the drama that unfolded, that scenario might have been an improvement.</p>
<p id="csXfVj">Maybe the owners were swayed by the renderings of the stadium to be built in Las Vegas...<a href="https://www.si.com/mlb/athletics/relocation/as-las-vegas-ballpark-renderings-release-party-put-on-hold">except the renderings were delayed</a>...<a href="https://www.si.com/mlb/athletics/column/how-the-as-can-make-a-splash-with-their-las-vegas-renderings">and delayed</a>...<a href="https://x.com/LVSportsBiz/status/1750270624730329478?s=20">and delayed</a>. Your guess is as good as mine as to what the Las Vegas stadium is going to look like or any basic features (like a dome...in the desert...).</p>
<p id="u086Rv">And the Dodgers ownership, having access to the same lack of information that you or I do, approved the move. I get the Giants pushing the Athletics out of the Bay Area to have the region to itself. This fact is quite galling when one considers <a href="https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/as-situation-similar-to-when-giants-almost-left-sf-ex-mlb-team-president-says/">the team still talks about the time that Oakland pushed for the Giants to remain in San Francisco when the team threatened to move to Tampa Bay in 1992</a> on the Oracle Park tour.</p>
<p id="rskrDy">What was the Dodgers' excuse? </p>
<p id="cnBQ9B">What sane person looks at this entire process, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marge_vs._the_Monorail">this terrible off-Broadway homage to one of the best Simpsons episodes of all time</a>, to have the prospect of another homeless, hapless team for at least two seasons after 2024, and approves such a farce?</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The emcee tries to get the Vegas business folks hyped over the Las Vegas <a href="https://twitter.com/Athletics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Athletics</a> and has to check their pulse.<br><br>That, my friends, is the sound of a relocation landing like a dud. <a href="https://t.co/S2UN4N2qf8">pic.twitter.com/S2UN4N2qf8</a></p>— Matt Ortega (@MattOrtega) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattOrtega/status/1750238352379666434?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 24, 2024</a>
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<p id="gDbrzG">A picture is worth a 1,000 words and it is worth noting that said audience in the video paid actual money to be there. A healthy sport would run a fraud like John Fisher out of it on a rail. Shame on the Dodgers for enabling this farce.</p>
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https://www.truebluela.com/2024/2/3/23648034/mlb-economic-reform-committee-sham-athletics-mets-padres-dodgersMichael Elizondo2024-01-31T14:58:54-08:002024-01-31T14:58:54-08:00Jackie Robinson statue stolen, destroyed in Wichita
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<img alt="A statue of Jackie Robinson in Wichita, Kansas was stolen and destroyed during the last week of January 2024." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MeerdRaCQmFeJjGUv4F6URHXiLU=/94x0:769x450/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73101164/jackie_robinson_statue_base_wichita_013124.0.png" />
<figcaption><em>From </em><a class="ql-link" href="https://twitter.com/KTLA/status/1751706692595671466" target="_blank"><em>KTLA</em></a></figcaption>
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<p>The Legacy of Jackie Robinson is more important than ever</p> <p id="TSampm">Every April 15, <a href="https://www.mlb.com/mlb-together/jackie-robinson-day">MLB celebrates Jackie Robinson Day</a> with every player wearing the number 42 as the league celebrates the ongoing legacy of Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier.</p>
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<p id="TCHuKC">There are incidents like the one that occurred last week that emphasize how necessary the annual reminder of Robinson’s legacy is. Last Thursday, it was reported that a Robinson statute was cut off at the literal ankles and stolen from a Little League baseball field at McAdams Park in Wichita, Kansas.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Absolutely heartbroken for my friends at League 42 in Wichita after the heinous destruction & theft of their beautiful Jackie Robinson statue that welcomed kids and fans to the baseball complex! I was in Wichita to support a fundraising event for League 42 in April 2022! <a href="https://twitter.com/KSNNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KSNNews</a> <a href="https://t.co/5qSm845feH">pic.twitter.com/5qSm845feH</a></p>— Bob Kendrick (@nlbmprez) <a href="https://twitter.com/nlbmprez/status/1751005464765075479?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 26, 2024</a>
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<p id="M3f4s8">As you can see, the vandals were quite thorough.</p>
<p id="ZgzfNa">But simply reporting the theft of the statue undersells the impact of what happened. Reporting from <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F5239831%2F2024%2F01%2F30%2Fjackie-robinson-statue-destroyed-wichita-baseball-league%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2024%2F1%2F31%2F24056510%2Fjackie-robinson-statue-wichita-kansas-vandalized" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">The Athletic puts that impact in perspective</a>:</p>
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<p id="aZ6yCv"><em>“It was around noon last Thursday when Bob Lutz walked outside of his work and headed home before the start of his daily radio show. He looked across 17th Street in Wichita, Kan., from the offices of League 42, the nonprofit baseball league he founded in 2013. On a rainy, overcast day, he gazed over toward the Jackie Robinson statue the league had erected in 2021. The statue was a symbol of hope and resilience. Lutz, though, could not see the bronze depiction of the man who broke baseball’s color barrier.</em></p>
<p id="QXcXgm"><em>For a moment, Lutz wondered if it was covered by fog. He blinked. Looked again. Doubting himself, he called an assistant out of the building to join him. The woman looked and also could not see the statue.</em></p>
<p id="BZGAVA"><em>Soon they were across the street, where the odd hallucination of a missing statue turned to reality. Jackie Robinson was gone, cut just above his shoetops.</em></p>
<p id="07QVX8"><em>“The emotions,” Lutz said, “were overwhelming.””</em></p>
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<p id="xVl0HU">This story would be bad enough, but like with most terrible acts of stupidity, the story gets worse. On Tuesday, Witchita Police responded to a morning call in nearby Garvey Park. Police reported a fire in a trash can, in which the dismantled and burned portions of the Robinson statute were found. Surveillance video has led to a truck involved in the theft.</p>
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<p id="gIOYCK"><a href="https://abc7chicago.com/statue-of-jackie-robinson-stolen-wichita-kansas/14372791/">The Wichita Fire Department reported that the statue was “not salvageable.” As of now, the motive for the vandalism is unclear</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p id="kLGYDb"><em>“If it turns out it was racially motivated, then obviously that is a deeper societal issue and it certainly would make this a much more concerning theft,” said Bob Lutz, Executive Director of the Little League nonprofit that commissioned the sculpture. “We’ll wait and see what this turns out to be.”</em></p></blockquote>
<p id="mYQHNA"><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/jackie-robinson-statue-found-burned-pieces-theft-kansas-park-rcna136446">League 42, a youth baseball league named in honor of Robinson, erected the original statute at McAdams Park in 2021.</a> League 42 raised $50,000 for the life-sized statue. Before the statue was found destroyed, <a href="https://www.kake.com/story/50389173/city-of-wichita-offering-dollar5000-reward-for-recovery-of-jackie-robinson-statue">the City of Wichita was offering a reward of $5000 seeking the safe return of the statue</a>.</p>
<p id="ZWyf44">The investigation of the theft of the statute, the subsequent arson, and whether all of it was a hate crime are open questions as of this essay.</p>
<p id="daHu17">Dodger fans around the world have heard the call to action and efforts to try and restore the statute started gaining serious momentum on Tuesday after word of the destruction of the Robinson statue got out.</p>
<p id="FM9E3m"></p>
<p id="O7vZ3q"></p>
<p id="53ZFiv">A <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/replace-our-stolen-jackie-robinson-statue">GoFundMe has been set up by League 42 Foundation to replace the statue</a>, and as of Wednesday morning has raised over $134,000, nearing its $150,000 goal. Any surplus funds will be used for the operations of the foundation. </p>
<p id="GjGf2s">While it is tempting to view the theft and destruction of the Robinson statute as an isolated incident, <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F5239831%2F2024%2F01%2F30%2Fjackie-robinson-statue-destroyed-wichita-baseball-league%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2024%2F1%2F31%2F24056510%2Fjackie-robinson-statue-wichita-kansas-vandalized" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">The Athletic also reported in 2021 that vandals had desecrated a history marker that commemorated Robinson’s birthplace Cairo, GA with shotgun fire that focused on the words “Negro American” and “baseball’s color barrier.”</a></p>
<p id="EUT3tk">In 2022, <a href="https://www.wtxl.com/news/local-news/birthplace-of-jackie-robinson-rededicated-in-cairo">MLB, through MLB Charities, assisted with both the replacement of the marker and making an inaugural donation to the Jackie Robinson Fund, an endowment to provide for the perpetual care and protection of the historical marker.</a></p>
<p id="S2fzC0">If the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> or MLB wanted to earn some easy publicity for what is now a national story, especially on the eve of Black History Month, it would not take much financial effort to show these vandals, whatever their motivation, that their efforts are in vain.</p>
<p id="od68NW"><strong>UPDATE</strong>: on Wednesday, MLB <em>did</em> pledge support. From founder and executive director Bob Lutz:</p>
<div id="AxS36E">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Commissioner’s Office and the 30 Clubs have committed funding towards the costs of replacing our Jackie Robinson statue and providing other means of support of League 42.</p>— Bob Lutz (@boblutz) <a href="https://twitter.com/boblutz/status/1752820103626871111?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2024</a>
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<p id="YZRpaE">Regardless of the motivation for the theft and destruction of the Robinson statute, Jackie Robinson’s legacy has been bigger than baseball for a long time. Dodger fans, baseball fans really, will continue to outlast these vandals because all they offer is wanton destruction.</p>
<p id="FBQQnR">Robinson’s legacy cannot be torn down through a shotgun blast or a torn down and burned statute. All these vandals are accomplishing is strengthening the resolve of those who would honor and revere Robinson’s legacy.</p>
<p id="gi8RCi">In Wichita, the community continues to rally behind League 42 and those who would honor Robinson’s legacy. Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City, MO (<a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/6/30/23553319/dodgers-travel-guide-kauffman-stadium-kansas-city-royals">a place that any baseball fan or traveling Dodger fan should visit</a>) said it best, per The Athletic:</p>
<blockquote><p id="stBETd"><em>“You can steal the statue, but you cannot steal the spirit of what Jackie represented,” Kendrick said. “I think what you’re seeing from the public at large is a Jackie Robinson-like resolve for good to overcome evil. </em><em><strong>And so every time that you’re ready to give up on humanity — and we know we can’t give up on humanity — humanity steps up to the plate and reminds us of what we already know: There are more good people than bad people.</strong></em><em> Always has been, always will be.”</em></p></blockquote>
<p id="VsuH82">[emphasis added.]</p>
<p id="F8yoO6">The spirit of Jackie Robinson lives on in everyone who does not give up and does not back down.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/31/24056510/jackie-robinson-statue-wichita-kansas-vandalizedMichael Elizondo2024-01-29T10:04:00-08:002024-01-29T10:04:00-08:00Logistics of going to Korea for the Seoul Series
<figure>
<img alt="FTX MLB Home Run Derby X" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2dU_WQ6Lc_lfYoL4qAfvSj_K6pc=/0x0:5502x3668/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73094367/1243313055.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Lucas Stevenson/MLB Photos via Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="XjQBgE">The 2024 <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> are less than two weeks away from opening starting spring training.</p>
<p id="r2xNeF"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/17/24041850/dodgers-spring-training-2024-reporting-dates-early-start-south-korea">The team is starting early because the Dodgers are starting the 2024 season in Seoul, South Korea</a> where they will play a two-game series against the <a href="https://www.gaslampball.com/">San Diego Padres</a>, where each team will play once as the home team.</p>
<p id="ARh3rQ">Normally, this sort of thing is exactly what I travel to as the site’s de facto Traveling Correspondent. In fact, for most of last year, the plan was for me to go to South Korea. But then, I lost my day job, then I had to move back to the Central Valley, and finally, my dad took a turn for the worse and passed. (Rest in power, Dad.)</p>
<p id="JVkEbO">Naturally, something had to give, and dreams of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NWDgMpQvu8&ab_channel=Apostolski">cosplaying M.A.S.H.</a> went out the door — at least for now. To add insult to non-existent injury, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/mlb-paris-canceled-9cf046396393387cd6ddca01f9e07a9c?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email">MLB gave up on trying to schedule a regular-season series in Paris in 2025 for want of a sponsor</a>. I adored Paris and would easily spend a week lounging in Paris, covering Dodger baseball and reliving my halcyon adventure days — preferably without the pneumonia I caught in 2016, but that story is one for another day.</p>
<p id="pZmqrz">But as the date of the Seoul Series got closer, my natural curiosity kicked in and I got to wondering, as I have a gift for logistics, what would it take to get to Seoul for these games.</p>
<h3 id="f6cebS">How I would go</h3>
<p id="OyvHFV">Now, if you do not already have a valid U.S. Passport, you can skip right to the end of this essay because the turnaround time for that document is a minimum of six months. </p>
<p id="ufjmP9">If one does have a passport, then read on.</p>
<h4 id="1BF4Qa">The Flight</h4>
<p id="FtWqZV">The next thing I would need is to secure a roundtrip flight. I would expect to spend $1,500 round trip assuming that I was flying from a major city like San Francisco or Los Angeles. For purposes of this hypothetical, let us assume that any would-be traveler would be flying out of San Francisco International as that airport is two hours away from me on any given day.</p>
<p id="cCaZQn">But another major concern logistically is how much time one would need to fly to and acclimate to the time change. We are not discussing a flight that one just can just do the night before on a redeye, do the games, and fly back immediately after. With that fact in mind, since the games are on March 20 and 21, I would fly out on Saturday, March 16, and return on Friday, March 23.</p>
<p id="O3HhOW">South Korea is <em>seventeen hours </em>ahead of California time, so buffer time and hydration are essential. I speak from experience going from California time to Cambodian time (sixteen hours) in one fell swoop without preparation drove me a bit mad for a few days upon arrival.</p>
<p id="teKQQH">With these facts in mind, several nonstop flights fit the above parameters. With long-haul flights, you get what you pay for. I would personally pay extra for a nonstop route and probably upgrade to business class or at least premium economy if able.</p>
<p id="KyJ6tX">I have flown from San Francisco to Cambodia (by way of Taipei) in coach. Nothing really prepares you for sixteen hours of flying, but it can be done comfortably and affordably, especially if one uses an aggregator like Kayak.</p>
<h4 id="lOpXVm">The Lodging</h4>
<p id="9TGVQQ">The United States Dollar is quite strong against the South Korean Won so obtaining lodging should be less expensive than the flight. Just a quick check on hotels.com shows a wide gamut of options ranging from hostels costing virtually nothing, even for a week, or high-end luxury options rivaling what you would find in the United States.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/zjr4_gbMO6Btw-Ag2FBAqPiePvk=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25240881/Screenshot_2024_01_21_180513.png">
<cite>Courtesy of Google Maps</cite>
<figcaption><strong><em>Not very many options are near the venue.</em></strong></figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="fs9UbU">As you can see, the stadium is by a subway stop and not near many hotel options. The indicated mark on the screenshot is the subway stop. So all anyone would have to do is find a hotel on the number 1 line, which is served by the subway stop.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/A-QhP9dFjAQVwg1boIujWcVMN_c=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25240985/Screenshot_2024_01_21_180857.png">
<cite>Courtesy of Google Maps</cite>
<figcaption><strong><em>Numerous options exist by the 1 line and other subway lines</em></strong></figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="plxO6I">Based on the above, numerous hotel options are near the subway line and are quite affordable. Finding a hotel would be the easy part of attending the Seoul Series, and the currency exchange would leave me feeling comfortable about spending money.</p>
<h4 id="o53xFE">The ticket</h4>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ZuhBEoavZUpAQYQMX_fQ-cx5tTk=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25240991/cts3272_img.jpg">
<cite>Courtesy of Guro District Official Website</cite>
<figcaption>Gocheok Sky Dome</figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="nU25B4">Gocheok Sky Dome has a maximum capacity of 16,744 for a baseball game, which is borderline shocking for a major league game. I had a joke cued up citing the size of Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark, but the home of the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate only has a regular maximum capacity of 9,000.</p>
<p id="uDUgkj">Prices just came out, and all things considered, they are not bad, with the major assumption that one is able to buy one.</p>
<div id="6VQVYc">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center" data-conversation="none">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Also, prices are out.<br>Wheelchair accessible seats are cheapest at 50,000 KRW each ($37.45)<br>Table seats on Level 1: 700,000 KRW (approx. $525)<br>Level 2: 600,000 KRW<br>Infield reserved seats: 180,000KRW ~ 500,000KRW<br>Outfield reserved seats: 120,000KRW~200,000KRW</p>— Jeeho Yoo (@Jeeho_1) <a href="https://twitter.com/Jeeho_1/status/1750378168937296274?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2024</a>
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<p id="VScJow">And if I was tossing shade at Oklahoma City for having a stadium that barely has three times the capacity of my hometown’s football field (Claud Herbert Field of Dinuba, CA), I suppose it would go here. The Double-A affiliate of Tulsa has a comparable capacity stadium.</p>
<p id="qUB8f0">The digression as to Gocheok Sky Dome’s maximum capacity is to relay my shock as to how tiny the venue is for a city of almost ten million. I suppose in my head I was expecting a venue at least comparable to the Tokyo Dome’s 55,000 maximum capacity.</p>
<p id="jm3McB">But I could not recommend going to Seoul for this series for the likely difficulty in obtaining tickets as documented below.</p>
<div id="bPp9XQ">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">IMPORTANT UPDATE on tickets for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MLB?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MLB</a> 2024 season opener between <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Dodgers?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Dodgers</a> & <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Padres?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Padres</a> in Seoul:<br>1. Tickets ONLY available on Coupang Play website to Coupang Wow (paid subscription) members<br>2. No plans for Coupang to open separate ticketing site for foreign residents</p>— Jeeho Yoo (@Jeeho_1) <a href="https://twitter.com/Jeeho_1/status/1747076511545643386?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2024</a>
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<p id="zRLSaw">If accurate, one needs to be able to navigate a Korean-language website with a paid subscription to get tickets to such a limited-size venue. It seems unlikely that MLB would not provide an alternate method for foreigners to buy tickets to the Seoul Series but it might be far easier to watch the Seoul Series from the friendly confines of home.</p>
<p id="Cx20KI">As if to illustrate my point, <a href="https://x.com/DanielKimW/status/1750889047478980609?s=20">tickets for Game 1 went on sale on January 27 and sold out within minutes</a>. Dear Baseball — pick a bigger venue next time!</p>
<p id="72n4aP">If this essay prompts interest in what kit I use to travel, I am more than happy to share that information at a later date.</p>
<p id="Az5bjX">What if you wanted to meet up with other Dodger fans though? I might have a solution for that question.</p>
<h3 id="fgEP9r">The proposed True Blue LA fan meetup</h3>
<p id="bgTT9v"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/20/24045386/tbla-meetup-st-2024">Long-time commenter Urbino created a FanPost to try and corral discussion about TBLAers meeting up in Phoenix.</a> I would heartily encourage such an endeavor. Unfortunately, I have a work-related conference that I have scheduled that mandates my attendance and attention. </p>
<p id="Hg171c">That said, I do plan to finalize my 2024 itinerary soon if anyone cares to meet Adric and me while we are on the road.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/29/24045688/dodgers-padres-seoul-series-south-korea-travel-costMichael Elizondo2024-01-09T09:49:08-08:002024-01-09T09:49:08-08:00The Dodgers are not ruining baseball
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<img alt="MLB: Los Angeles Dodgers-Press Conference" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/y39V9eROpk8dydQY-fbhPqz5tCs=/351x0:8001x5100/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73038850/usa_today_22106386.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Michael Elizondo is out of cheese to go with all this whine</p> <p id="dfCvA7">And now a trip in the way-back machine with an essay discussing baseball’s finances. It has been a bit since a proper entry to this series. Previously, this series covered a lot of ground describing the dishonesty of the majority of MLB owners, which came to light during the 2022 lockout. </p>
<p id="LiOhOq">A lot has happened since the last true update in this series. But even with the Athletics’ imminent departure from Oakland, and the rise and fall of the heavy-spending Padres and <a href="https://www.amazinavenue.com/">Mets</a>, the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>’ plan heading into this offseason with a single goal: to sign Shohei Ohtani and/or Yoshinobu Yamamoto.</p>
<p id="41yego">I remembered a quote from Andrew Friedman as reported by Andy McCullough in 2016:<br><a href="https://twitter.com/ByMcCullough/status/806277985535922176">“If you’re always rational about every free agent, you will finish third on every free agent.”</a></p>
<p id="HkLqFa">Before this offseason, the Dodgers had flexed their financial muscles in spurts or strategically. After all Anthony Rendon, Bryce Harper, Gerrit Cole, and Corey Seager went elsewhere, whereas Trevor Bauer was signed. Still, it was not all bad, after all, the Dodgers were opportunistic in extending Mookie Betts and signing Freddie Freeman.</p>
<p id="YWuROS">Still with all that history in mind, I had resigned myself to Ohtani being a Giant and Yamamoto being a Met. I had this doubt that Ohtani would be wearing black and orange for the next decade, which would feel lousy. Then there was the great Toronto freakout.</p>
<p id="LcMLZX"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/1/24021158/dodgers-shohei-ohtani-yoshinobu-yamamoto-tyler-glasnow-josh-hader">I was dead wrong.</a></p>
<p id="XoiGNH">The Dodgers committing over a billion dollars certainly shut me up as I freely admit that I did not think the Dodgers had it in them. The sleeping giant has certainly awakened and frankly, it’s amazing how much motivation two consecutive embarrassing playoff flops will create. </p>
<p id="Ue9Jp9">To summarize things to this point, the Dodgers have obtained the best free agent, the best pitcher available by signing, <em>and </em>the best pitcher available by trade — in about two weeks. At this point, I half-expect Friedman and company to be waiting outside the Giants’ executive offices with the sole purpose of giving them a swirly.</p>
<p id="ZYlVDR">In two weeks, the Dodgers went from punchline due to the last two NLDS faceplants to the unanimous villain of the sport.</p>
<p id="SInP9B">From “Haha! The Dodgers lost again!” to “The Dodgers are ruining baseball!” </p>
<p id="hZIiIm">Said lamentation is nonsense. </p>
<p id="lw97rm">For starters, while the Dodgers have committed to an additional $1.2 billion in new contracts (<a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/7/24029401/teoscar-hernandez-dodgers-contract">give or take; thanks Teoscar</a>), they have not actually spent the money yet. The Dodgers’ projected payroll is not even tops in baseball in 2024 so far, as of this essay, it’s the second-highest in the sport behind Steve Cohen’s Mets.</p>
<p id="j2LYTg">Before showing why the griping is just sour grapes in a series of short essays, it is worth starting this examination by examining the true depth of failure that occurred in Anaheim.</p>
<p id="79VUeQ">In the six years that Ohtani was with the Anaheim Angels, the Angels couldn’t even get within a plausible possibility of a playoff spot, much less achieve a .500 record.</p>
<div id="6nr6SJ">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Two cities, four first-place teams.<br><br>For the first time in MLB history, all four NY and LA teams are leading their divisions. <a href="https://t.co/lwWEhSMkfG">pic.twitter.com/lwWEhSMkfG</a></p>— MLB (@MLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1521515244639641604?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2022</a>
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<p id="5a7pwr">For about six weeks in early 2022, it looked like the Angels had finally figured something out, but that success turned out to be a flash in the pan. However, the 2022 Angels were different in their incompetence. The absolute failure of the Moreno ownership is a bit personal for me because I cannot think of the Angels and not think of my law school friend, Neil, and his wife, Aimee.</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KinHXMh4Wpd8hXDsc4yIt69oISg=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/23885924/OGu6lkt.jpg">
<cite>Michael Elizondo / TrueBlueLA (used with permission)</cite>
<figcaption><strong><em>They deserve better. Angel Stadium. July 15, 2022.</em></strong></figcaption>
</figure>
<p id="ktBLxj">They are arguably as passionate about the Angels as I am about the Dodgers. My friends are diehard Angels fans. These guys were at Reid Detmers’ no-hitter in 2022. Admittedly, they have envied my nomadic lifestyle. But the fact remains that they have been steadfastly loyal to this organization, which has not rewarded them in any meaningful even with two generational players on the roster.</p>
<p id="ZK5GHV">At the beginning of the 2022 season, for a fleeting moment, I thought maybe we were seeing another statistical fluke, maybe the Angels were actually going to be a contender this time. </p>
<p id="044QsX">Maybe my friends’ faith would be rewarded! </p>
<p id="3yyKM2">By mid-June of that year, the Angels season was over in humiliating fashion. When Ohtani signed with the Dodgers, I sent my friend a two-word text to convey the inadequacy of my sorrow: “Sorry buddy.”</p>
<h3 id="AMWQo9">One billion dollars — poorly spent</h3>
<p id="J2A8nc">I remembered seeing a video essay about Arte Moreno done by YouTuber UTree about the Angels some months ago. For me, the Angels being good is akin to a 107-win Giants team, theoretically possible, but quite unlikely. So imagine my shock when they were good for about a month in 2022 before collapsing.</p>
<p id="del1tH">And then the Angels managed to empty their farm system in 2023, and waited a week, before collapsing again.</p>
<p id="2uBQJj">For those who have been paying attention, the gimmicks of the Angels were not exactly hidden information. Generally, the Angels have engaged in flashy spending combined with inefficient dumpster diving, set to repeat over and over as the organization seems hellbent on wasting two concurrent generational talents.</p>
<p id="1pDSxo">For a committed billion dollars, the Dodgers got Ohtani, Yamamoto, and Tyler Glasnow. The Angels were not so lucky.</p>
<div id="Youcau"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Pc1ZcJY3oFo?rel=0&start=62" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture;"></iframe></div></div>
<p id="h48oeQ">I will give Arte Moreno credit in the following respect: at least, he tried, I guess.</p>
<p id="hB86fI">However, as shown in the 2021 video, the Angels had spent <em><strong>just over a billion dollar dollars </strong></em>on player contracts and the team did not come within sniffing distance of a playoff spot, Mike Trout, once the arguable best player in the sport, has literally played in <em><strong>three playoff games for his career, which is three more than Ohtani.</strong></em></p>
<p id="5SM4ik">The men were being Dan Marino’d before our very eyes; no wonder Ohtani fled. At least Angels’ fans got this moment at the 2023 <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/world-baseball-classic">World Baseball Classic</a>.</p>
<div id="vMRAEb"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NMfBdEV03j8?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"></iframe></div></div>
<h3 id="wgpfxP">Final nail</h3>
<p id="ns5Sw3">Contrary to popular belief, even while the Dodgers have currently committed over $1.2 billion in contracts for player salaries this offseason, the Dodgers have not been overwhelming the field in retaining Ohtani, Yamamoto, and extending the acquired Glasnow.</p>
<p id="kXTBr5">As has been widely reported, Ohtani offered multiple teams the same massive deferred contract of 10 years, $700 million, including the Giants. It was reported that the Angels when allowed to match the Dodgers’ best offer, <a href="https://go.redirectingat.com?id=66960X1516590&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheathletic.com%2F5139257%2F2023%2F12%2F15%2Fshohei-ohtani-angels-offer-decline-dodgers%2F&referrer=sbnation.com&sref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.truebluela.com%2F2024%2F1%2F9%2F23072506%2Fshohei-ohtani-yoshinobu-yamamoto-dodgers-offseason-angels-failure" rel="sponsored nofollow noopener" target="_blank">the Angels declined</a>. Moreover, with the structure of Ohtani’s deal, the Dodgers basically used the savings to sign Yamamoto.</p>
<p id="17iEj3">You can hear the screaming from San Francisco from here but that’s a topic for another day.</p>
<p id="ScALft">Instead of trading Ohtani in 2022 for a Juan Soto-esque haul or even trading Ohtani in 2023 for a better-than-Justin Verlander-esque haul, the Angels end up with a single compensatory draft pick.</p>
<p id="XdSzr4">I hope my pity for Angels fans like my friends seems justified now.</p>
<p id="cHmRXu">Ohtani chose to play for a proven winner here in Los Angeles. Ohtani said something that stood out to me during <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/24002268/shohei-ohtani-dodgers-press-conference">his initial press conference with the Dodgers on December 14</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p id="L0yDEg"><em>“When I had the meeting with them, the ownership group, they said when they look back at the last 10 years, even though they’ve been to the playoffs every single year, won a </em><em>World Series</em><em> ring, they consider that a failure When I heard that, I knew they were all about winning.”</em></p></blockquote>
<p id="G3btgq">Technically Ohtani is right. Most other franchises would do just about anything to have a run of success like the Dodgers have had over the past decade. In some respects, the Dodgers have generated a positive spiral: all the winning helps the attendance and ticket sales; the attendance and ticket sales help the revenue; the revenue helps support the winning.</p>
<p id="3rjNiq">And on and on the merry-go-round goes as the best offseason for the Dodgers in years continues. But Dodger fans should not feel overly smug. As to why not, that question is one for another day.</p>
https://www.truebluela.com/2024/1/9/23072506/shohei-ohtani-yoshinobu-yamamoto-dodgers-offseason-angels-failureMichael Elizondo2023-12-29T09:27:00-08:002023-12-29T09:27:00-08:002023 review: Mookie Betts
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<img alt="Los Angeles Dodgers v Boston Red Sox" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/P428Rvy6WxtbaVlcO8M_si2yTp0=/0x435:3923x3050/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73007474/1652792195.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Déjà vu during year four of the Mookie Betts Experience</p> <p id="jnm4kz">Mookie Betts has been a Dodger for four seasons. This year-in-review essay could bombard you with statistics but a much simpler way to think about Betts’ 2023 campaign is as follows: he was spectacular — except at the end.</p>
<p id="uA1dj6">Betts had a runner-up National League Most Valuable Player campaign where he played <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/5/22/23730745/dodgers-rookies-mookie-betts-shortstop-punchless-outfield-michael-busch-jonny-deluca-andy-pages">and excelled at</a> second base, shortstop, and his customary position of right field. Betts was a model of durability missing only 10 games all year, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/4/20/23689212/dodgers-roster-mookie-betts-activated-evan-phillips-paternity-list-yonny-hernandez-andre-jackson">with three of those games being time spent time on the paternity list in April.</a></p>
<p id="wfBxpk">He was second in the majors with 8.3 Wins Above Replacement, <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/war/leaders">beating everyone, including NL-MVP Ronald Acuna Jr</a>, except unicorn superstar and now teammate Shohei Ohtani.</p>
<p id="H54IjD"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33jNvKW6AJ8&ab_channel=MLB">Betts led the majors in leadoff homers in 2023 with twelve</a>. Betts had multiple games where he went at least four for four at the plate, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/8/24/23844454/mookie-betts-five-hits-dodgers-guardians-rain-suspended">even going five for five in the Game That Would Never End in Cleveland on August 23/24</a>.</p>
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<img alt="Betts going five for five in Cleveland. Progressive Field. August 24, 2023" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/NbJkfJoUR_k-2VZSB8O9QCWUoWE=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25170693/iaUR6tc.jpg">
<cite>Michael Elizondo / True Blue LA</cite>
<figcaption><strong><em>Betts going five for five in Cleveland. Progressive Field. August 24, 2023</em></strong></figcaption>
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<p id="xX8CZH"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/11/9/23954182/mookie-betts-silver-slugger-award-dodgers-2023">Betts won his sixth Silver Slugger Award in 2023</a>. Betts was named to the All-MLB team, f<a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/12/16/23954164/mookie-betts-freddie-freeman-shohei-ohtani-all-mlb-team-2023">or the fourth time in the five years of the award</a>. Betts had an exceptional regular season in 2023, finding moments of occasional peerlessness in August. </p>
<p id="jAODfZ">True Blue LA covered how Betts was finding success in early September <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/9/6/23857327/mookie-betts-justin-turner-fenway-park-boston-dodgers-red-sox">when Dodgers’ announcer Joe Davis made the following call</a>:</p>
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<p id="WO6z2b"><em>...We’ve talked about how much J.D. Martinez has meant to Mookie Betts. And [Betts] pointed to a couple conversations with J.D. The first one that he had with J.D. that led to his MVP-calibur season came right after Martinez signed with the </em><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/"><em>Dodgers</em></a><em>. They hopped on the phone and J.D. said “I’m coming there and you’re going to win MVP.”</em></p>
<p id="X6DqcO"><em>[Betts replied] “Yeah, I love it. I love the sound of that. [J.D.] said “No, no, let me hear you say it. [Say] I’m going to win MVP.” Betts humored him and said “Okay, I am going to MVP.” J.D. said “Alright good. To do that — we are going to </em><em><strong>grind every single day.</strong></em><em>”</em></p>
<p id="QQiyDK"><em>And Mookie said “Yeah, of course, we are.” J.D. said “No. You’re not like Freddie [Freeman] where you can just roll out of bed and hit. Do you remember how hard we worked every single day in 2018 [the year Betts won MVP]?” Mookie thought about it and he said “You know what, I guess maybe after [2018], I did rely on feel and leaning toward trusting [myself] too much and drifted away from hard, diligent, pointed work.”</em></p>
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<p id="aPzirh">Davis at this point, pointed out that no one is saying that Betts has not worked since that date as Betts puts in as much training time as just about anyone. Davis continued:</p>
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<p id="o6BAoI"><em>J.D said “Let’s not forget what made you the MVP in 2018. I’m coming there and we are going to work and work and work the same routine every single day.” ... And, so from the moment J.D. Martinez arrived, these guys have had this routine together to get ready for their hitting, every single swing throughout the day has a purpose.</em></p>
<p id="zcmH2i"><em>And when so Mookie gets to the game, he’s no longer searching for anything. It used to be he was looking for a feel, hoping that he had it on a given night, because he’s so athletic, he often would. </em><em><strong>But he said there’s none of that anymore</strong></em><em>, he doesn’t wonder if he has gonna have the feel. He has put the work. He trusts that he will and then goes out, has simple thoughts and has fun.”</em></p>
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<p id="iKK15R">[emphasis added.]</p>
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<p id="44sGRc">One cannot discuss Betts in 2023 without discussing Betts’ return to Fenway Park, his first games at Fenway as a Dodger since being traded by Boston in 2020. <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/9/6/23857327/mookie-betts-justin-turner-fenway-park-boston-dodgers-red-sox">I can attest that this weekend was emotional</a>, capping an offensive explosion of a week where Betts won both <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/8/28/23849644/mookie-betts-national-league-player-of-week-dodgers">player of the week</a> and <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/9/3/23855788/mookie-betts-national-league-player-of-month-august-dodgers">player of the month honors</a>. </p>
<p id="WOrk4U">Betts’ return to Boston was cinematic and had I not seen it for myself, I would not have believed the poetry and the emotion of it. One could arguably sell that script and make it into a movie tomorrow. </p>
<p id="firstHeading">Looking over <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2022/10/29/23409637/mookie-betts-2022-dodgers-review">the 2022 year in review essay for Betts</a>, one can get overwhelmed by a sense of <em>déjà vu</em>. Baseball excellence is what Betts does at this point and he’s so good, it’s tempting to take that excellence for granted.</p>
<p id="4YhNIG">So we are not, and by examining the things that were not as exceptional, we can appreciate the exceptional even further.</p>
<p id="qJAGek">Betts was a middling baserunner in 2023, stealing only 14 bases in 17 attempts. </p>
<p id="R3vEnJ">But if one is being honest, there is one notorious incident on the basepaths, which Dodger fans will likely get to see perpetually played for as long as the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> play the <a href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">San Francisco Giants</a>. On June 16, on Pride Night at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers and Giants ended up going into extra innings. </p>
<p id="sszKR5">In the bottom of the eleventh inning, all hell broke loose with Betts having a TOOTBLAN moment for the ages in a game that the Dodgers would ultimately drop.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here's Jon Miller's incredible radio call of Friday's incredibly bizarre play in the 11th inning <br><br>"Man, that was just disgraceful!" <a href="https://t.co/MdQUxMjAxl">pic.twitter.com/MdQUxMjAxl</a></p>— KNBR (@KNBR) <a href="https://twitter.com/KNBR/status/1669958892951044096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 17, 2023</a>
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<p id="YPoVYb"><a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/10/27/23478917/dodgers-2023-season-postmortem">For the second year in a row, Betts had a stellar August, a pedestrian September, and completely disappeared offensively in the postseason</a>. Betts went hitless in the postseason, as the Dodgers were quickly swept by the soon-to-be-NL-champion <a href="https://www.azsnakepit.com/">Arizona Diamondbacks</a>.</p>
<p id="aNLjbW"><a href="https://www.mlb.com/dodgers/video/betts-on-postseason-elimination?partnerId=web_video-playback-page_video-share">Betts acknowledged that he did not help the Dodgers win and owned up to his poor performance against the Diamondbacks</a>. <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/10/31/23939874/mookie-betts-trevor-bauer-dodgers">As if his postseason was not bad enough, Betts gave a full-throated defense to disgraced former Dodger pitcher, Trevor Bauer</a> to the Los Angeles Times.</p>
<p id="r8SZ1y">Apart from the ignominious and baffling ending, Betts had a spectacular 2023. If he could save his best baseball for September and October, the Dodgers' prospects are likely to be bright in 2024, even before considering the addition of Ohtani. </p>
<p id="vPe4Yj">Now with the addition of Ohtani, Betts and the Dodgers are out of excuses to not hit in the postseason. Stars are meant to shine and the Mookie Betts Experience needs to be known for more than just a summertime experience. But as summertime fun goes, Betts tends to deliver, both on and off the field.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">In a <a href="https://twitter.com/SlangsOnSports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SlangsOnSports</a> special, Mookie Betts plays catch with a fan in Cleveland. How can you not be romantic about baseball, <a href="https://twitter.com/truebluela?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@truebluela</a>?<br><br>Baseball really is the best. <a href="https://t.co/HqrAG6qH1G">pic.twitter.com/HqrAG6qH1G</a></p>— Michael Elizondo (@elidelajandro) <a href="https://twitter.com/elidelajandro/status/1694157291098923237?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2023</a>
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<h3 id="zBymt8">2023 particulars</h3>
<p id="S8OyJn">Age: 30</p>
<p id="OvAaYO">Stats: .307/.408/.579, 167 wRC+, 152 G, 39 HR, 126 R, 107 RBI, 14 SB, 8.3 fWAR & bWAR</p>
<p id="UaTccz">Salary: <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/4/5/23559682/dodgers-opening-day-payroll-2023-luxury-tax">$20 million</a>; $8 million of Betts’ salary was deferred, and he was paid $5 million of his signing bonus, making for $17 million in total payment to Betts in 2023</p>
<h3 id="TCZ1Zx">Game of the year</h3>
<p id="fo453w">Betts had many show-stopping games and stellar moments throughout 2023. There is not really a wrong answer to this question. On June 2, <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2023/6/2/23747389/mookie-betts-clayton-kershaw-dodgers-home-runs-yankees">Betts went 4 for 4 against the New York Yankees</a> at home with two home runs and a stolen base feels pretty definitive, narrowly edging the Game That Would Never End. </p>
<div id="uHV3Vi"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/m/mookie-betts-four-hit-game" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"></iframe></div></div>
<h3 id="u3hUhZ">Roster status</h3>
<p id="VDYJDG">Betts <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/2020/7/24/21334589/mookie-betts-contract-details-dodgers">is under contract through 2032</a>. He has a $25 million salary in 2024, of which $8 million is deferred. Betts will also be paid $5 million of his signing bonus on November 1, making for a total of $22 million paid to him in 2024. </p>
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https://www.truebluela.com/2023/12/29/23963538/mookie-betts-2023-dodgers-reviewMichael Elizondo