Dodgers Team News

Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw Has Some Thoughts on the New Baseball Structure

When Major League Baseball decided to change the structure of the ball this year, there were mixed reviews. Dodgers fans in particular worried that their homer-happy offense wouldn’t be able to adjust and would come up short trying to adjust. 

That appears to have been the case. The Dodgers are down a tick in their power numbers and that might be part of the reason the offense has been slow to come around. But pitchers have to love that the ball isn’t flying out as often. 



Clayton Kershaw is a guy that has been a victim of the longball over the last few years. The Dodgers hurler talked on the broadcast this week about the new deaded ball and how he’s seeing it early on in the season.

We’re not hitting as many homers as a team, it doesn’t feel that way. It’s May, it’s not warm yet, and this place in the Summer the ball really goes, so maybe it” make up for it in the Summer. But it doesn’t feel like we’re hitting as many homers or giving up as many homers. 

Kershaw has allowed 3 homeruns in 44.2 innings of work in 2021. That’s about half the rate he was giving them up over the last 2 seasons But a few players on the Dodgers offense have seen their power numbers dip. 

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Will Smith seems to be a guy that has fallen victim to the new ball most often. He’s hit the ball hard a lot of the time but has just 3 homeruns to his name. He seems to be the Dodgers player that ends up at the warning track more often than anyone else. 

If the ball is that different and it’s not just the cold weather, the Dodgers are going to have to make some adjustments. 

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6 Comments

  1. Concentrate on making contact and the homers will come, even if less than previous seasons. The offense struggles because of contact failure. Lessen the launch angle and hit the ball. Hits, not homers, is what will get the offense going.

    1. This deadening ball is just another example of what this spineless Manfred and MLB have done to take offense away at least in part and stick their noses up on the fans. Does Manfred care about fans? NO HE DOES NOT. And I hope what he’s done somehow alienates enough fan support to facilitate some change. Remove the DH from the NL was truly a huge blunder on the part of MLB because most teams and fans don’t watch or attend games to see a pitcher batting. But this deadening the ball was not necessary, along with these defensive shifts are what makes the offense decline IMHO. And neither is good for the game.

  2. Hit line drives instead of trying to launch satellites into orbit. Go the other way, especially against the shift. Drop some bunts. Play some small ball.

  3. They should learn how too play small ball… Roberts does not know how too coach…Look at S.F..they play small ball especially when they play extra inning they bunt the guy on second base too third ..Learn too coach Roberts

  4. If MLB sticks with deadened ball, players are going to have to throw launch angle into the trash. Either that or use the data to match their launch angle to the pitch angle!

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