The Dodgers have a problem. Last year, James Loney was the Minor League Player of the Year and batted .383. When they brought him up, he batted over .280 with power and helped the team make the playoffs. This spring, he batted over .400 and they still cut him back to Triple-A Las Vegas, where he promptly sent the first minor league pitch that he saw into orbit for a 440ft HR. Now his agent is demanding a trade and I can't say that I blame him. Even Grady Little didn't blame him when the kid dismantled his office on the way out the door. Loney looks like Willie McCovey to me, so I say make room for him... The Dodgers are having problems at 3rd base too. Wilson Betemit is supposed to be a switch hitter, but he's batting less than a buck-fifty righthanded. Don't be surprised to see the Dodgers trade Betemit, La Roche (or even Loney) and some of those many pitchers for some power at 3rd and in leftfield. Its not a secret that they covet Colorado's Matt Holiday and Garrett Atkins... The current roster is loaded with talent at pitcher, middle infielders and lefthanded hitting outfielders right down to the Double-A level. The missing pieces of the puzzle are power players, which makes the demotion of Loney even more mysterious. Its almost as if they're holding him as an insurance policy...waiting for Nomar to get hurt again.
The Rangers need pitching, but have some sticks - maybe Tom Hicks will free up some European soccer money, and make a deal with the Dodga's... (If the Rangers EVER traded for good pitching, it would be a sign of the apocolypse, so don't expect it any time soon!)
The Dodgers even have guys down at Triple-A like DJ Houlton who was a starter for them two years ago, but who has failed to make the roster out of spring training two years in a row. He's still in his twenties and there are others I could mention. I don't understand the point of just sitting on these guys when the team needs more power and deals could be made... I watched the Rangers on TV today and they look pretty good, but you're right. I think they'll need more pitching if they want to hang tough with the pitching-rich Angels and A's...
You are dead-on DD. The Rangers best seasons have come because of heavy lumber, and always ended because of a lack of pitching. The ownership refuses to lay out the cash needed to get a pitching staff deep enough to be a serious contender. Sad... but it's been that way forEVER.
Yeah, actually it's a picture of a couple of the Mariners in Jacobs Field in Cleveland on Sunday... The tribe was one pitch away from an official game win Friday night when Mike Hargrove convinced the umps that his batter couldn't see the ball and they called it.
Well I see that we've had our first meltdown and its only April. Cubs manager Lou Pinella blew up and melted down after the Cubs blew a huge lead. Get used to it Lou. This has been happening since 1908...
BTW- The Dodgers look pretty good. They've won 7 of 8 and they got Rafael Furcal back tonight. This gives them two wabbits, Furcal and Pierre leading off and moves Russell Martin (.308) back to 6th, where he can protect Luis Gonzalez... Starting pitching has been outstanding, as have the role players like Brady Clark and Ramon Martinez. This team has so much talent, that they keep cutting good players that they have no room for and the minor league teams are stocked to the max... So far, so good...
Let's keep Martin productive, he's my fantasy league catcher. We picked him up last year when he came up and he was a real boost to our team.
Hey DD I see your favorite closer (Gagne) got his first save in nearly a year last night for the Rangers. I wonder if 1)he's truly healthy and can stay that way and 2) can he regain the dominant form he had when he was on that streak with the Dodgers.
re: Martin Hang on to Russell Martin. He has become the heart & soul of the Dodgers. He's not just a .300 hitter and amazing defensive catcher, he's also stealing bases, hitting behind the runners and leading the clubhouse. Watch the older players and pitchers cluster around him in the dugout. He's the emotional leader of the team. The only other ones like that out there are Varitek and Pudge Rodriquez. Russell Martin is a special player for the Dodgers... re: Mighty Gagne. I'll always be a Gagne fan. Nobody has better stuff if he's healthy. When I see him, I'll post a comment here. Since he's in the American League, I hope he mows down everybody... .................DD
The Dodgers were beaten tonight when staff ace Jason Schmidt was blown out in the second inning. Radar guns have shown his pitches getting slower and slower with each start since the beginning of spring training, yet he insists that there is nothing wrong. That's what Gagne used to say... In tonight's game, Schmidt's "fastball" was clocked at 85mph and his changeup at 83mph. This is high school level velocity and that won't cut it. Schmidt doesn't even throw a sinker... My son-in-law Grady was brave tonight. He took 5 young boys to the game. (You young fathers don't try this at home.) He wound up buying a fortune in hotdogs as his son (Brendan) followed the camera around trying to get on TV so that I could see him... Tomorrow is Jackie Robinson Day at Dodger Stadium...
Dodgers beat the Pods 9-3 on Jackie Robinson Night. What a history we have here! The Dodgers changed the world... Wilson Valdez is beating out Wilson Betemit for his starting position and its not close. The Valdez situation reminds me of when Maury Wills first came up. Both guys had spent a lifetime in the minor leagues and there was nothing left to do with them except cut them or play them. Since Valdez went into tonight batting .417 with a .526 slugging average and perfect fielding, it looks like they'll be forced to keep him and shop Betemit around... Juan Pierre has been a major disappointment so far. He can't field flyballs or grounders, he looks lost in centerfield and he's batting .222 with many strike outs... Either is finally getting untracked after a slow start. He homered tonight... On to AZ and a chance to see the Dbacks new gay uniforms... ............DD
Dodgers cruising with the best record in baseball, and their amazing bullpen leading the way. The Dodgers are now 10-1 when they have a lead...any lead. One of their pitchers, 22-year old Jonathan Broxton hasn't been scored on since last September. His scoreless streak is now at 15 games... Lots of talent that must be traded or cut as players like Yhency Brazoban return from the DL... The only obvious team weakness so far is outfield defense when Pierre is in center and Luis Gonzalez in left. Neither can throw... Russell Martin went into today leading the league in hits...
Poor Jim Tracy brought his hapless Pittsburgh Pirates into LA tonight and it wasn't pretty. The game was over in the 3rd inning and the score could have been much worse than the 10-2 final. The Dodgers stopped stealing bases at that time and even held up runners at third base like a friggen Little League team to try to hold the score down. Most regulars were pulled from the field after the sixth inning. Randy Wolf looked like Sandy Koufax with 10 Ks. The Pirates are not good... Ned Colletti and Grady Little have designed a good team here. With Furcal and Pierre batting 1-2, the Dodgers are able to put wabbits out on the bases with less than two outs. This forces the pitchers to throw more fastballs to the following hitters in order to keep the runners from stealing, but throwing fastballs to Garciaparra, Kent, Gonzalez and Martin is a recipe for disaster. Garciaparra alone is batting .585 with men in scoring position... Its early, but the team looks good. The only real question mark is Wilson Betemit at 3rd base... ............DD
We got some serious mojo goin on now. In the bottom of the 9th inning at Dodger Stadium tonight, with the Dodgers trailing 3-2, Wilson Valdez, who had failed to advance the runner on a sacrifice, moved to 2nd on a pitch in the dirt and then to 3rd when the catcher threw the ball into centerfield. When the catcher (Paulino) melted down entirely and failed to hang on to a curve in the dirt, Valdez came home to tie the score as the crowd went wild. The amazing Dodger bullpen continued to hold their opponents scoreless all night and Jonathon Broxton pitched a scoreless 10th. In the bottom of the 10th, the Pirate bullpen loaded the bases with one out. Pirate manager Jim Tracy pulled an old Branch Rickey trick by setting a defense with five infielders and only two outfielders in an attempt to cut down the winning run at the plate or get a double play to end the inning. That was creative, but the fun came to an end when Russell Martin clubbed a walk-off grand slam to end the game...
It was 131 years ago today that Major League Baseball began with the opening day of the National League in 1876. The very first game was the Philadelphia Athletics versus the Boston Red Caps...(Braves) The Lastros will have to wait their turn. After a day off, the Dodgers will first welcome their old pals, Balco Barry and his San Francisco freak show...