Dodgers: Matt Beaty Shares Frustration with Being Sent Down to the Minors
Few teams have as much depth as the Dodgers, but that can sometimes cause just as many problems as solutions. It can lead to inconsistent playing time for role players, which is the case for utility man, Matt Beaty.
While many had Beaty penciled in as a constant bench player for LA, he has spent some time in AAA Oklahoma City this year. This is by no means due to a lack of production, but the team has felt that he would benefit more from consistent at-bats in the minors compared to an unpredictable role in the majors.
To his credit, Beaty has handled it extremely well. He’s gone about his business every day and remained a positive clubhouse presence. This past week, however, he opened up on how being sent down has affected him.
I’m just going about it day by day. Obviously, it was a little frustrating going down, but [I’m] just happy to be back with the team and trying to help the team win a ballgame.
Beaty is having the most efficient season of his career thus far, getting on base 36% of the time with a .262 batting average. While he hasn’t had the same power stroke that he had his rookie year, he’s been reliable when called upon.
With the departures of Kiké Hernandez and Joc Pederson over the winter, many thought that Beaty was due for a bigger role with the Dodgers. Instead, the team has somehow gotten even more depth, once again relegating Matt to a bench role.
Related: Tony Gonsolin Set to Return to the Starting Rotation
Frustrations with his demotion aside, Matt Beaty has embraced the type of player this team has asked him to be. He knows how important it is to be effective off the bench, and he believes that he has gotten back to being that kind of player.
I’m kind of fitting back into my role like what it was before I left, and that’s be a bench bat, come off the bench, and have good at-bats. I’m starting to find my rhythm again.
Every game has significantly more importance at this point in the season, and the Dodgers will need Matt Beaty to be the same player he’s always been. They’ll need him to battle in tough counts and produce in big moments. And from the sound of it, Beaty is up for the challenge.
NEXT: How Max Scherzer has Surpassed Walker Buehler for Postseason Game 1 Nod
The Dodgers are lucky to still have Matt Beaty to still be interested in this team. “Few teams have as much depth as the Dodgers” ( I guess Mckinnley’s 170 avg Bellingers 158 avg and Souza’s 180 avg is all that depth) “Beaty is having the finest season of his career with a 262 avg and 36% of the time On Base ” And isn’t considered by DRRRRRRRRR’s deserving to start in front of those other players that “Few teams have as much depth” Give us a break.. Beaty isn’t a Rookie, and if anyone needed more AB’s in the minors it was “All that depth few other teams have” ……Now due to the failures of “All that depth” Beaty is expected to just step in high pressure situations and deliver. So question? : When?
Agree Kirk, I would not often say this, but I hope he gets a chance when the time comes to sign elsewhere and comes back to shove it up Robert’s a**. It is beyond belief that Roberts sticks with the likes of McKinney and Souza and the idiocy of the constant playing of Bellinger. If his injuries are such that he needs time, then why in the H is he even considered to be placed in the lineup. Guess in Roberts’ mind, the harder he swings the quicker his shoulder will improve. Going to be interesting who makes the playoff rosters for the Dodgers.
Yeah Harry, this has been the only “Big” issue this 21 season. “If” we would of actually had “All that depth” that few teams have, then Bellinger and the 158 avg would still be a mystery, but add in Mckinnley’s Flop, Souza,Mckinstry all flopping along with bellinger, then that “Depth” excuse is 100% laughable. Friedman saw how bad these guys were and saved the team by grabbing Trea and Sherzer to make up for the loss of Bauer and the lack of production from his 6-8 line ups. He did this out of necessity because the guy is giving “EVERY” resource possible to DRRRRRRRRRR’s to go after another title. We all understand the bench and a few other players as mentioned above flopped this season, and it wouldn’t be a Main topic on these boards “IF” the manager would have helped the situation by putting his best options in the line ups. Instead we all know the rest, and then when we demand DRRRRRRRR’s plays Beaty to help the problem, we get accused of not being fans, or whiners and negative. I personally am grateful for Andrew friedman trying to provide “ALL That Depth” when he realized he didn’t have it. I am down on Roberts for playing favorites and compounding the problem at the expense of the entire team by holding players like beaty back, and coddling Bellinger.
Well said Kirk, who would we rather have coming off the bench as a RH bat, Peters or Souza and we had a super utility player (Kike) who McKinstry is supposed to be his replacement. Which one would we rather have? I realize that hindsight is 20/20, but we let the wrong people go elsewhere and in both cases of Peters and Kike we had superb defensive players. If Kike had been playing second in the Giants series, the play where McKinstry missed the force by not stretching would have been an out and a Dodger victory, not the loss it turned out to be. I just hope if we get through the upcoming playoffs that the front office takes a real hard look at the ineptness at the managers position and does something about it. I for one am tired of talking about how nice of a man he is. HIS JOB IS TO MANAGE THIS TEAM AND WIN. To H with this nice guy crap, the players are not stupid and and he may loose this clubhouse if he continues along his path of stupidity. How many times do you think there was a collective sigh of the wind going out of their sails when Bellinger swung out of his spikes and either struck out or popped up with runners on base. Don’t have the number in front of me, but I would hate to see how many runners he has left on base because of his approach at the plate. Roberts has been able to win because of the talent he has, he abuses his pitchers and has all but forgotten that playing small ball wins games. One final thing we still have a super utility man who is in the final year of his contract and if CT3 walks that is going to be a huge jolt to this team.
Harry your on top of it for sure. CT3 has been a savior this season and I truly hope he sticks around in the future. I think now that the dodgers finally have addressed the Bellinger issue, they can settle in with Lux and Beaty. The team hopefully will get SOME sort of a consistent line up, players may even FINALLY know their roles. Equal and fair opportunities are HEALTHY for any team, and this negative favoritism of certain players should disappear now Bellinger is out of the way for the teams progress with the offence. I’m relieved this dilemma is gone…Let’s hope Friedman put his foot down with Roberts and now the team can flex it’s full strength instead of 3/4 like it has been for 2 months..Go Dodgers…
Harry, I’m amazed Roberts allowed Bellinger to keep on with his misery. If bellinger get’s the 501 AB’s necessary to qualify as a batting candidate like they use for batting titles, then Bellinger will be in line to have the “WORST” avg in the history of MLB….Let’s all let that sink in…..Chris Davis in 2018 has the MLB record hitting 178 “The ALL TIME” record. Bellinger has a 158 and sinking avg. So we all know Bellinger is Roberts favorite and friend, I would think Roberts being his friend, would save them both that title for eternity…..
Hello, Kirk. I read your response concerning Joe on the page about Lux. For one thing Bellinger’s defense cannot save too many games if the offense lays an egg and there’s 2 or 3 players batting below ,170 in the lineup, thereby taking the spots from more deserving players such as Beaty. I got to tell you that I can’t wait to see DRRRRRR’s lineup in Coors tonight. If he puts Bellinger back in CF and sits either Lux or Taylor then there’s something truly wrong with Robert’s mind set here. Is Freidman directing him concerning Bellinger? IDK Bottom line is Dodgrrs MUST put the best lineup possible out there for these last 12 games, no questions about it.
Paul, finally the dodgers put bellinger on the injured list…..Time For the REAL 2021 Dodgers to stand up now!!!!!! What a relief!!!! GO DODGERS!!!!
Completely agree. just another example of Roberts inept managing as Beaty still sits. Roberts playing a player with a 159 avg over one with a 262 avg is mind-boggling.
Thats Roberts for ya.
Good reply. Bellinger is the one that should go down. Maybe he can learn how to hit again1
I think the analytics nerds the Dodgers employ do not like Beaty’s Defensive abilities at all! Of course they don’t actually watch the games so they can’t see that when Bellinger is in the lineup the offense is flat and listless. Maybe that’s because besides being a huge hole in the batting order, the other players know Bellinger shouldn’t be in the game either?
We don’t know the real reason Beatty was not playing over the others , something personal with Robert’s…Who knows ? Beatty is back up now and DEFINITELY he should be used in the most beneficial way to make the Dodgers better ! If there was any grievances in the past or for whatever reason , now is the time … NOW … to put them aside and hopefully the Dodgers can play good Baseball and surpass the Giants and continue to be in the Big Fall Classic .
The Padres are arguing in frustration , the Giants just lost two in a row ! The Dodgers now , need to really pull together as a team , Dodgers opponents know what the Dodgers are capable of and can take over and win the division, this is what is going through the Giants minds , knowing that they ( Giants ) have been in first place most of the season and now the Dodgers are coming , this time now for sure .The thought is dont let Dodgers take over , not now! the pressure is being applied and hopefully again the Dodgers will prevail !!!!
Beaty should be the guy getting more playing time, instead of the others like McKinney and Souza and for goodness sake Bellinger. If the Dodgers get “what a mole’d” out of the playoffs quickly, perhaps the FO will re-evaluate their on the field manager’s terrible handling of the team this year. It seems Roberts is like some sort of high school guy who has his “in crowd” buddies on the team and irrespective of how bad they perform, they get to play. Special treatment for special people disconnected from on the field performance is not a professional way to manage a team.
Exactly! But it’s pretty obvious that Roberts does what he does because he IS A PUPPET. If ya can watch tonight’s game against the Rockies, look for those strings affixed behind Robert’shead
We need a new manager. Roberts the Clown is a …!@#$%^ clown!
I completely agree with you. Someone like Mike Sciosa who has managing experience and is also a former Dodger would make better decisions than stupid Roberts. I’ve been saying this many times.
It is unfathomable that Beaty would be sent down when we have guys on the team barely batting a buck fifty. I’m routinely flabbergasted when Roberts won’t demote Kenley from the closing role because he’s too afraid he’ll bruise the guy’s ego, but has no problem sending someone who is batting almost .270 down to the minors. Beaty has earned his time. Let him play.
as long as d.r. is MANGER THE DUMB THINGS THAT HAPPEN WILL NOT STOP.IT IS SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND A.F. & STAN LET D.R. SCREW UP THE BEST BUNCH OF PLAYERS IN BASEBALL. PLAYERS ARE NOT GOING TO PLAY HARD FOR THESE TWO.D. R. DOES NOT DESERVE TO HAVE SUCH A GREAT BUNCH OF GUYS TO MANGE. YES KIKEI IS BETTER THAN A BUNCH OF PLAYERS ON THE DODGERS A.REAL F—=K UP YO LOSE HIM GO GET HIM BACK. I LOOK FOR DODGERS TO LOOSE N.L.W.
Why all the CAPS, Jim? Just a typo or are you that angry?
If Dodgers lose the wild-card game, the season will not be lost that day, it was lost for several weeks when Roberts rested key players, often without regard to left/right opposing starters, while playing McKinney and Bellinger, who were in fact hitting far below their current “official” averages during that stretch–more in the .100 range. There can be no doubt that this cost the team a few wins in close games. I understand that Bellinger can’t be sent down for contract reasons, but it’s easy to manufacture an injury that puts him on the IL while his time in the minors counts as “rehab.” I sat next to a Dodger scout during a game, and asked him about Belli. He said they’re working on it every day behind the scenes, but after another pathetic strikeout, he mumbled, “this is painful to watch.” In other words, it’s a tragedy for everyone involved, and no one seems to have a clue how to fix it.
The fact is that this shouldn’t come to being painful to watch had DRRRRR been wise enough to see that for the rest of this year Bellinger has NO PLACE AT ALL in the starting lineups from here on out this year. Period!.
It seems that over the years, quite a few players have continued playing hurt, thus adversely affecting their performance, and ultimately badly affecting the performance of the team. The question is whether they have told their manager or trainer, and why, if not, they have placed their egos and assumed bravado ahead of the best interest of the team. I go as far back as Eddie Murray back in the ’90s, playing injured and batting poorly to Bellinger now, playing with broken ribs for a couple of days, before knowledge of the injury came out. This attitude costs a number of lost games, which should have been won!
No doubt Bellinger is going to get labeled as “fragile”. Shoulder surgery didn’t heal quickly, then fractured tibia, hamstring, and now ribs. Huh? He needs to shut it down for the season, go on a long term, off season transformation, like gain some weight, put on some muscle, and start trying a lighter, fatter bat. Its hard to watch how badly he is missing the ball. I remember when Al Davis picked up Jim Plunkett, he told him to practice and concentrate on recovering from the beating he took all those years in New England. After a year to get healthy, he took them to a super bowl victory, maybe it was two? Belli aint coming back to form this year, time to deal with it logically. Shut him down, get him healthy physically and mentally.
Here is hoping, at first chance, Beatty tells Friedman to stick it up his ass to sign with another ballclub.
He was manipulated by Friedman, plain and simple.
LUKE F_______ING RALEY starts………. Beaty sits_____________________________________!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!ROBERTS IS A IDIOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kirk, I just got home from swimming at my gym pool and just saw the lineup and the fact that Bellinger is now back on IL. Nobody wants him or anyone else to get hurt but it’s about time common sense prevailed and he should take the rest of this year off. As far as Raley goes? IDK, except since Lux has LF and Betts is good enough to play CF, I can only think that Dodgers may not be comfortable or sure Beaty can handle RF. What they could have done, even though the COORS outfield is huge, is start Beaty there and then replace him in the later innings but IIWII. BTW…..
That’s Roberts for ya….
If it’s even possible, Luke Raley is just about as bad as Bellinger and he’s in the lineup. An investigation should take place to determine what Roberts has against Beaty. Roberta has his head so far up his ass it’s affecting his brain!!
Thanks for putting into words, how many of us (out there) feel about “Matty”!!!
Spot on synopsis!!
My brother & I, follow Matty, daily.
Our hope, is that Matty finds a team, that allows him to “flourish”.
Matty & Company (wife & home town) are what matters to him the most.
This speaks highly of Matty & Company!!!
We are ALL IN for MATTY!!!!!