"Gullible Bill" McGullibleson and the Dodgers

[jaa36]

The Dodgers open the season on an ominous note as someone named Nick B. Green throws a perfect game against them. Nonetheless, they bounced back to a 22-24 record a quarter of the way through the year. Randall Grichuk did in fact complain about his role and was installed as left fielder and cleanup hitter. The strategy to improve home runs has not gone terribly well, as Grichuk and Smoak are both hitting below .200 and have hit a total of eight homers between them.

On the bright side: pretty good pitching! Way to go, Yadier Alvarez!

[jaa36]

The Dodgers have been- kinda OK overall. Starting pitching has been their saving grace, a Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May and Yadier Alvarez have all been terrific. The bullpen hasn't been too shabby either.

Joc Pederson demanded a trade, and he and his $122 million contract were sent to the Giants for a minor league pitcher. The Astros traded Mike Lamb and cash to the Dodgers for two minor leaguers; Lamb is hitting .186, so should fit right in.

Magic Johnson is undecided about Gullible Bill's performance. He likes the attendance bump. Unfortunately, the team is falling short of the home run goal.

[jaa36]

The Dodgers finished 73-89 overall. The hitting was pretty horrible across the board- though they were tenth in home runs! Alex Verdugo was pretty good though, hitting .293 with 15 home runs and 67 RBI. The pitching was really good, especially Clayton Kershaw and Yadier Alvarez.

No other major moves. Justin Turner got upset and demanded to be back in the lineup. Hyun-jin Ryu wanted another extension, but the team's $45 million budget shortfall from slashing ticket prices made that impossible. The team did draw 54,000 fans per game, so that goal was met!

[jaa36]

Just down the road, the Padres won the World Series.

Magic Johnson was very pleased that Bill brought in locally popular player Jake Lamb, who hit .220 with 10 home runs on the season. He was also very pleased with the attendance numbers.

Caleb Ferguson inked an eight-year extension worth $106 million.

Robinson Cano did Bill a solid by retiring rather than forcing him to fork over $40 million over the next two seasons.

[jaa36]

Magic Johnson wants the Dodgers to have more homegrown players, and to improve the farm system to top 6. Right now it's #30 so Gullible Bill has a ways to go there.

There was no money for free agents this year. Bill jacked ticket prices back up to $35.

Trades this offseason:
-Jeren Kendall to the Phillies for two minor leaguers
-Mitchell White (would have been third starter) to the Cubs for a minor leaguer
-Julio Urias to the Red Sox for two minor leaguers

The Dodgers are projected to finish 76-86. Magic expects a winning record and is getting upset.

[jaa36]

The Dodgers keep plugging along, at 26-26 overall. Alex Verdugo is playing well, hitting .317, and Jonathan Schoop leads the team with 14 home runs. The pitching has been pretty good yet again, with new closer Marshall Kasowski particularly impressing (0.93 ERA, 12 saves).

Justin Smoak demanded to be put in the starting lineup. Randal Grichuk will miss a good chunk of the season.

A couple of trades:
-Yadier Alvarez to the Rays for minor league infielder Taylor Walls
-Jeter Downs (one of the Dodgers' few prospects) and another minor leaguer to the Diamondbacks for a minor league first baseman

[jaa36]

Still hanging in there at 49-55. Venerable Clayton Kershaw was the team's sole All-Star.

Trevor Rosenthal demanded a trade and was sent to Arizona for catcher Pedro Pages, who was installed in the starting lineup. San Francisco sent outfielder Roman Quinn in exchange for Jonathan Villar and a minor leaguer.

Justin Turner demanded to be put into the starting lineup. For $47.5 million a year I suppose Bill should see what he can do.

[jaa36]

By some miracle, the Dodgers finished 80-82. I have no idea how, with this team. Marshall Kasowski was pretty good as the closer. Kershaw was good again. Other than Alex Verdugo, Jonathan Schoop and Pedro Pages, the lineup was a toxic sinkhole.

Not much else happened. Ross Stripling demanded to be in the rotation, and then asked for a two-year extension. I think the ongoing budget shortfall has kept other players from making requests.

Magic Johnson remains upset, but I'm not sure if this season was quite bad enough for Gullible Bill to get fired...

[jaa36]

Gullible Bill was not fired, and was brought back for one year at $1.2 million. Good work if you can get it.

Oddly, the Dodgers' market size increased (to ASTRONOMICAL) despite the franchise's recent travails. Next year, they're expected to play .500 ball, increase profit, and find a top prospect.

Justin Smoak executed his player option.

[jaa36]

The Dodgers head into 2023 projected for a 68-94 record.

Bill traded away closer Marshall Kasowski and a minor leaguer to Washington for third baseman Gilbert Lara, and Dustin May to Arizona for a backup catcher a minor leaguer infielder. Infielder Dansby Swanson and outfielder Franchy Cordero were both signed to one-year deals as free agents.

The opening day roster is hamstrung by trying to carry both Justin Smoak and Justin Turner as reserve. This team is Justin trouble.

[jaa36]

Again, this team just seems to have difficulty being as terrible as I expect it to be. Alex Verdugo is having another good season, hitting .294. Randal Grichuk demanded to be back in the starting lineup and leads the team with 41 RBI. Justin Smoak demanded a trade which brought back old friend Kenley Jansen from the Cubs.

[jaa36]

Gullible Bill was unceremoniously fired as general manager of the Dodgers. They ended up finishing 68-94.

It turned out that Gullible Bill's style was looked on favorably by at least one team, though. The 76-86 Brewers were looking for a hand...

[BleedBlue]

This is hilarious! It's amazing the different concepts people on here come up with to play this game. Nice to know that Magic is running 2 franchises into the ground instead of just one.

[mirrf]

Originally Posted by jaa36

Gullible Bill was unceremoniously fired as general manager of the Dodgers. They ended up finishing 68-94.

It turned out that Gullible Bill's style was looked on favorably by at least one team, though. The 76-86 Brewers were looking for a hand...

By the rules of this thread, Gullible Bill *has* to take the offer, right? This thread should not die....

[Amazin69]

Yes, GulliBrewers, please! I'd love to see more of this thread, if you feel up to it.

[jaa36]

Hmm... I'll pass, thanks. It turned out to not be terribly fun just do whatever people wanted- I'm glad people enjoyed it though!

[DD Martin]

It was a fun read, thanks