Dodgers Nation: Blue Heaven Podcast

The cheating Astros came and went in Los Angeles, giving Dodgers fans their first opportunity to really show some love since the sign stealing scandal broke early in 2020. We look back at the series and discuss whether it's now finally time to start moving on or very much not. In more important Dodgers news, Max Scherzer absolutely shoved for 7 innings in his debut at Dodger Stadium. As much fun as that was, it also provided a reminder that the LA roster is very much hurting. With Clayton Kershaw and Tony Gonsolin sidelined with injury, Scherzer became a need more than a want. Plus what does phormer Philly Cole Hamels bring to the table for the Dodgers? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Houston Astros are coming to Los Angeles and all hell is about to break loose at Dodger Stadium. With fans in the stands for the first time since the news broke that the Astros cheated during the 2017 World Series, we wonder how many fights might break out at the ballpark. Beyond the frivolous topics of fans and booing and fighting, the Dodgers have a lot to prove in this series. Namely, can they beat good teams? LA's season record of 21-24 against teams with winning records brings that question into focus. Next, Clayton Kershaw's return is now up in the air after he missed a planned simulated game on Sunday. Should we be concerned? And reliever Corey Knebel is on the mend and looking to be a big part of this bullpen in October. But the big one... the elephant in the room... When Trea Turner joins the Dodgers off the injured list, what does it mean for Cody Bellinger? Plus, does the trade for Turner reduce the chances that Corey Seager re-signs with LA in the offseason? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The rumors, the rumblings, the sources have it! According to reports, the Dodgers swoop in under the Padres and swing a trade for three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer and All-Star shortstop Trea Turner. The deal sends four LA prospects to Washington, including Keibert Ruiz and Josiah Gray. We break down and react to the deal and share our thoughts on the outbound talent that includes a friend of the show. Beyond Max and Trea, the Dodgers swung another deal that became official when they plucked injured left-hander Danny Duffy from the Kansas City Royals for a player to be named later. With these moves come questions: Where does Turner play? Where does he hit? How does Duffy fit in to the pitching staff? Are the Dodgers done? Next, we touch on the ugly series in San Francisco and Brook rants about Cody Bellinger's hall pass among Dodger fans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's the week of the MLB trade deadline and rumors are starting to heat up for the Dodgers. We take a dive into every name big and small that has been linked to LA and give our takes on whether or not they could actually happen. Much of the focus has been on improving the starting rotation, but when you look around this team, there might be a whole lot more help needed. Case in point, the bench depth options are so bad, the team opted to play a man down for nearly a week rather than call up a Triple-A role player. We also take a look into Zach McKinstry's struggles since returning from the injured list and wonder if some extra seasoning in the minor leagues could help the young utility man. Plus, we touch on some trade options that would absolutely improve the bench. Finally, we look ahead to the series with the Giants, the most important series of the season... this week. Play the new DN Chancer game for a chance to win a $200 Fanatics gift card! Download the app or play online for free now! Visit chancerhq.com/dodgers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The series against the Giants has not gone well for the Dodgers. Losing 2 of the first 3 games, seemingly everything that can go is going wrong. The biggest examples being that Mookie Betts has sat out the series with an untimely injury, and Kenley Jansen blew his biggest save of the season. That latter problem lead to the LA closer getting booed off the field and once again sparking debate about whether or not that's cool or not. We discuss the boo birds flying at Dodger Stadium and take opinions from the live stream audience. Next, Jansen's blown save also sparked conversation about whether the Dodgers should look to make a move to solidify the backend of the bullpen. The biggest name on the trade market is, of course, Cubs star closer Craig Kimbrel (which isn't overly likely to happen). Plus comments from Andrew Friedman have us questioning what the club may be thinking about the status of embattled starter Trevor Bauer. Finally, we share some thoughts on the Yermin Mercedes situation and trash Hall of Fame manager Tony LaRussa. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Dodgers just miss out on sweeping the Rockies in Colorado. That lone loss, however, exposed a few recurring concerns with this 2021 version of the team. Defensive issues lead the way, but there are some bullpen issues and Cody Bellinger issues mixed in there. Joined by our friend Doug McKain, we dive into the biggest questions on our minds heading into a huge series with the division leading Giants.  In greater Dodgers news, things were busy on Monday with Mookie Betts being scratched, Gavin Lux hitting the injured list for what sounds like a while, and some other moves and notes. We look at what's on the horizon roster wise with Corey Seager, Josiah Gray, Jimmy Nelson and more. Getting deeper into the Giants series, we talk about how real San Francisco is and how Farhan Zaidi likely built something he didn't expect with this team. Finally, some trade deadline outlook where we discuss whether or not we think the Dodgers will actually make a big move before July 30th, or something less bold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The unofficial first half of the season has come and gone and, all things considered, things turned out fairly OK for the Dodgers. Again, all things considered... They lost several key players for long stretches of time and worked around some underperformance to still pull it together and have the second best record in baseball. But first, we talk about our new Dodgers Nation fan app that we really, really hope you enjoy! Plus, the Dodgers have an upcoming roster crunch that you probably haven't really thought about until we bring it up and it could leave Gavin Lux in a precarious spot. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Clayton Kershaw now hitting the injured list, the Dodgers are down to three healthy starters. With 70+ games left in the season, that's a problem. We dive into the deepened rotation woes while realizing our divine cosmic powers as a podcast. Last Thursday, we praised Kershaw's health in 2021, calling it one of the surprises of the season so far. One week later, he hit the IL with a forearm issue. With the help of Dave Roberts, we determine the severity of Clayton's injury. Next, with another starter out of the rotation, the Dodgers are left with no choice other than to listen to us again... Dave Roberts begrudgingly revealed that David Price will be eased into the starting rotation. With that, the bullpen loses a versatile arm. And with guys like Edwin Uceta, Mitch White, and Alex Vesia proving they can't be relied on at the big league level, it may be time to really start digging into the trade market. Prognosticating on some trades, Clint and Brook each present one hypothetical trade package that the team could make within the next few weeks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A weird weekend in DC caught up to the Dodgers on Monday. After winning 9 straight, the boys in blue finally lose a game to the lowly Marlins by a final of 5-4. While it's easy to point to the bad lineup Dave Roberts rolled out on Monday, or the rough bullpen choices, or the less-than-great defense the team has been playing of late, there's only one true answer as to why they lost. The Bob Nightengale curse. Friend of the show Bob tweeted something about the streak LA has been on since being no hit by the Cubs, and 9 hours later, they fell for the first time in July. Beyond the single game, the Dodgers have a bigger issue looming. With Trevor Bauer likely out of the rotation for the foreseeable future, there's another pitching issue on our doorstep. We discuss the internal options of prospects Josiah Gray and Ryan Pepiot, seeing where they're at. But we also wonder aloud why Dave Roberts is so reluctant to move 2021 AL Cy Young award winner David Price into the rotation. Next, we look at external options on the trade market and remind fans to exercise caution when looking at one-year wonders. After a quick giveaway plug, we dive into the flawed MLB All-Star voting process and slam baseball for the snubs of Walker Buehler and Kenley Jansen. Finally, we play with the new Chancer app and make some predictions for the upcoming final series of the first half against the D-backs at Dodger Stadium. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode sucked the life out of us by the end of it. You don't even read these summaries anyway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dodgers play-by-play man Tim Neverett joins us in studio to talk about the team and his new book about the 2020 championship season for Los Angeles. First, we look back at a much needed series win against the Chicago Cubs that featured former Dodger and friend of the show Joc Pederson returning to LA for the first time, and a vintage performance from Clayton Kershaw. Coming off a sweep and being no hit, taking three in a row was clutch. Next, we start diving into some of the topics covered in Tim's upcoming book titled "Covid Curveball: An Inside View of the 2020 Los Angeles Dodgers World Championship Season". Tim chats about deciding to write to the book, challenges working during MLB's pandemic season, and praises the foreward written by Orel Hershiser for his book. We also touch on Tim's career and his secret, championship power. Plus he shares his thoughts on the state of relations between MLB and the player's union as it heads toward a potential lockout. Finally, we look at the series with the rival Giants. Pre-order Tim's new book -- https://amzn.to/362iKr0 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Dodgers were flat out embarrassed by the Padres in San Diego and we've got to talk about it. The boys in blue were beat in every facet of the game this week. It was clear that one team wanted to win this series... And it wasn't the Dodgers.  We talk about the perceived lack of intensity from the LA side of the rivalry and welcome ESPN's Buster Olney to chat about where the Dodgers are at coming off that sweep and examine trade possibilities Plus, Buster dives into the latest with MLB's sticky stuff enforcement and what it could mean for the future of baseball this winter with an expiring Collective Bargaining Agreement. Next for this week's throwback Thursday segment, presented by Vintage Brand, we look back at some of our favorite Joc Pederson moments from 8 seasons in Dodger blue. Joc and Cubs are in Los Angeles for 4 games this weekend. Visit VintageBrand.com and sign up for their newsletter to save 40% on your first order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Dodgers sweep the Diamondbacks and we all learn a thing or two about some potential weak points on the pitching staff. With Tony Gonsolin's shoulder issues resurfacing and the bullpen lacking anyone that can eat innings in blowout wins consistently, it's time to reexamine the bullpen and maybe finally look at moving David Price into the rotation. Or maybe it's time to start combing the trade market in earnest. We discuss the rough parts of the pitching staff and what approach could work best. Next, the boys in blue head to San Diego to face the Padres. We set up the series and wonder if this series has as much meaning as we all want it to in June. Finally, the post sticky stuff era is here in baseball and we dive further into how much Major League Baseball messed this up ahead of a potentially bloody battle with the MLBPA this coming winter. We hear some thoughts from ESPN legend Rich Eisen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The wins keep coming in at a steady pace for the Los Angeles Dodgers as they find themselves a game behind the Giants for best record in the National League. And the wins keep coming despite another wave of injuries to key players. We talk the latest on Dodger injuries and Clint doubles down on his prediction on when Corey Seager will return to the lineup. Plus we introduce a new segment where we highlight one player that may be struggling or perhaps the weakest link on the team at the moment and decide whether we’re going to let him play or send him packing in "let him play or DFA." One of the bigger storylines in LA and around baseball right now is the sticky stuff. Since the rumors broke on new rules coming, Trevor Bauer's performance has markedly slipped. The question here is whether the two are related or if the 2020 Cy Young award winner is just in a slump. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Dodgers pull off a sweep of the Pirates in rainy Pittsburgh -- a mop, if you will -- and move closer to first place in the NL West. We talk about Justin Turner's good series and mini hot streak, angry Kenley's All-Star chances and more. Plus, with a 4-2 record on the road trip, we wonder if the boys in blue are reversing their early-season woes on the road. Next, we bring back a favorite segment of ours, our poor man's knockoff of Pardon the Interruption where each topic gets 1 minute of argument. Today's topics: Are we worried about Clayton Kershaw? Is Phil Bickford earning our trust yet? Will Mookie Betts figure it out? Is the sticky stuff as big of an issue as it’s being made out to be? Should MLB stop with these YouTube broadcasts? Finally, the Dodgers head home to LA for a 6 game homestand starting with the lowly Texas Rangers. Visit VintageBrand.com and sign up for their newsletter to save 40% on your first order! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices