A real off day
Posting from home today, as the Dodgers have closed the offices as a thank you to the employees for their hard work. Of course, I had to bring my car in for servicing, so I’m stuck here. But that’s okay.
To answer the question about Roy Smith, Ned has not decided on a replacement for him or if there will be one in that exact position. He’s currently in the process of replacing Terry Collins with a new farm director and we’ll go from there. From a personal standpoint, I know Roy really enjoyed connecting with you guys on the blog during the season and I will certainly miss him at the Dodgers and know he’ll do well, wherever he ends up.
The contest for the World Series predictions is now closed, so we’ll see how it turns out. And congrats to joshiegreer, who also won the final six games contest for four of the aweseome baseline seats to a game next year. Sorry for overlooking it, we’ll be in touch soon.
Finally, I have to pass along a great post from Dodger Thoughts, which most of you probably already saw over there, but which I found to be the perfect guide to the offseason rumor mill. The names you’ll see and hear as rumored future Dodgers are part of what make the offseason exciting, so enjoy them but like the commercials say, please enjoy responsibly. From Jon Weisman:
How To Survive the Hot Stove League Without Getting Burned
1) Rumors are not facts.
2) Teams and agents often float rumors to generate attention or to misdirect rivals. The media will report these rumors without much concern over how viable they are. The rumor is the news – whether it comes to fruition or not is not the media’s problem (or so the media has decided).
3) A report that agents, players or teams "were talking" is meaningless. People talk all the time. It doesn’t mean anything will come of it.
4) Any rumor attributed to an anonymous source is particularly useless.
5) Making judgments about a general manager based on a rumor reflects poorly on the judge.
6) Many deals, if not most, are never rumored, but spring up out of the blue.
7) Many are eager to pass along rumors. If you are planning to post a rumor here, please check to see if it has been posted already. But whatever you do, don’t take the rumors too seriously.
—
And with that, enjoy the weekend!
Inside the Dodgers 
Hey Josh,
We too wish Roy the very best. I just hope this isn’t the beginning of another house cleaning in the front office. What happens up there usually has a rippling effect on the team. We need all our management team in place now so the Dodgers can deal from a position of strength. It’s going to take some very agressive negotiations to land the impact players we need for this team.
One has to LOL when it comes to rumors, but one thing it does accomplish is it keeps the blood moving. As passionate a fan as some of us are, we really want to be heard on what the Dodgers need, so tell Ned to keep an open mind to our suggestions Josh and we’ll be watching in anticipation of the next great Dodger to be !!
Go NED !!!
Go Dodgers !!!
i hope that terry collins and roy smith did not leave on any bad terms, and we fill those positions with smart credible people..
BELIEVE IN BLUE!
My wish list …
1. Gagne
2. Soriano
3. Zito
4. Nomar
http://raysdodgerblues.blogspot.com/
this is gonna seem kind of like a bad comment BUT i really feel like i have to make it, Ned’s pitching choices aside from Maddux were REALLY REALLY BAD! i hope he makes more educated picks this time around.
ps just my pet peeve of the season.
’07 Dodgers here we come.
Pitching is bad but the big minus has to come in the fielding… Maddux and Lowe need great fielders behind them or they do not fare well. The pitchers we have had all lost games due to limited fielding ability across the board.
When we had really great fielders we lost because they did not hit as well as the players we have now. And now we have better OBP players we are weak in Defence which makes the pitching look worse.1b Loney should be a lock he is still coming along and will make a couple errors but I think his glove will save a few more and some runs to boot, Will he hit as well as Nomar? Kid shows sock and ability.2b Kent/Nomar splitshift if we can get Nomar to think and Kent to Agree that they would be a Great team of Halftime players to become a huge HEALTHY force splitting the duties with Pinch hitting on the off nights.Furcal at SS and he HAS to Field at least 3-5 times better this coming year his arm cost alot of runs through errors gotta Catch the Ball Gotta Throw the Ball to the Target.3b Gotta Hit it here Betemit didn’t thrill me on the field and his sock lost wind kinna a beltre looking guy without the Great glove. If Raffy had Great fielders on both sides of him I think he would improve 3-5 fold on his errors.
OF Eithier has to get over this Mentally spent thing…
Lofton has a great bat.. but it always goes south about oct. and his Defence in CF is a major liability to the pitching. Repko hasn’t really seen a full year yet either players in his way or injured…Drew is doin ok and that has to do with the time he played 1 point for grady. If we can turn over a not so hot rookie or just Sign 1 Hot Slugging catch em all CF and keep K lo for pinch hit and reserve/pinch run work I think we improve.
Bullpen needs alot of work to get back to where it should be Gio is done Thank you very much for the work you have done here in LA and will always remember you good luck in your future,Hendrickson showed something at the end of the season Not sure on his contract but if we have him still he might be something still he did have a couple very good games in th AL.Saito is worth another go around for sure and JB showed some strength but is still young. Kuo is possible as well as stultz and Chad is still working at it.It’d would be great to Sign Gange back as a healthy pitcher as well as brazoban. Mota showed his full strength in NY tonight and coughed it up…
However what I fear most is our coaching staff…Rich Donnally 3b Coach? Dude Review Review Review… Your calls were terrible to say the least from the start of the season til the end.I’d like to see a LRA stuck on basecoaches Lost run avg.Agressive base running is good but you have to have instinct… Gotta work on that Mr. Donnally
Rick Honeycutt… Your Pitchers either walk people or get hit.. even maddux went south in the end but that is also part of the fielding problem. Maury Wills Great job this year with the base stealing and running ability gotta clue Rich in now too as what to do with them on the scoring aspects. Then we have The Manager.. Grady Little who sent Nomar in with bases loaded and a Fastball LHP on the mound with Saenz availble…Granted I understand and agree you want him availible to hit when and where you want him near the end of the game but he was the person you needed to bat there and Nomar could have done the Gibson thing but he didn’t and he wasn’t the best call for the situation…. Then there are the Bullpen Fiascos….Granted yet again not alot to work with but you have to call on your best players when you need them most as the situation calls it.
If The Dodgers are going to continue with the current coaching and manager staff I Challenge Mr Mc Court and GM Colleti To Make Them step it up as is expected of the team
and Make Better desicions. You Can’t have 100M team run by indecive or just plain bad decisions.
The Intangibles are the up coming rookies that we didn’t take under wing in 2006.It seems prudent at this point to sign kick butt homer hitting 3b & CF fielders this year.
Point is that the whole Club can inprove top to bottom inside and out this was a vast improvement over last year but there were setbacks from last as well.
Good Luck and
GOOO DODGERS 2007!!!!!
I can’t help but wonder if there is a reason why Mota, Lo Duca, Encarnecion (Green, too) are in the NLCS, and the guys we got are not. I think it goes to show just how far the Dodgers have come since that meathead disposed of these players.
No to Zito.
I just saw that Steve Lyons got canned by Fox for making fun of Piniella’s Hispanic background. Will that have any effect on his status with the Dodgers for 2007?
Lyons comments were not funny (he rarely is), but they certainly didn’t warrant his firing. America needs to loosen up a bit. (And Lyons should have known better).
We want Zito and Aramis Ramirez.
Piniella’s commmet about the firing “Steve no esta aqui”
Lyons should not have been fired. But he was so whatever. The Dodgers should hire him and keep him under contract. I believe that this is the way it is done with Vin Scully and Charlie Steiner.
The Steve Lyons firing is disgusting to say the least. Would everyone STOP trying to be so damned politically correct! Anybody that’s been listening to Steve Lyons for the past ten years knows what a nut-case he is. He’s a good natured man that likes to have fun. His nickname is “psycho” for cryin’ out loud. His style of broadcasting was a relief to all those freakin’ east-coast homers who dominate the airwaves. His commentary was informative and delivered with humor and insight that not many former players can produce. He is an announcer who is respected by his peers in baseball. Why is it that FOX is really letting Steve Lyons go??
Now you tell me honestly if Steve Lyons meant any derogatory harm to, of all people, Lou Piniella with what went down. FOX should be ashamed of themselves.
“DETROIT — Fox baseball broadcaster Steve Lyons has been fired for making a racially insensitive comment directed at colleague Lou Piniella’s Hispanic heritage on the air during Game 3 of the American League championship series.
The network confirmed Saturday that Lyons was dismissed after Friday’s game. He has been replaced for the remainder of the series by Los Angeles Angels announcer Jose Mota.
Piniella had made an analogy involving the luck of finding a wallet, then briefly used a couple of Spanish phrases during Friday’s broadcast.
Lyons said that Piniella was “hablaing Espanol” _ butchering the conjugation for the word “to speak” _ and added, “I still can’t find my wallet.”
“I don’t understand him, and I don’t want to sit too close to him now,” Lyons continued.
Lyons claimed he was kidding.
“If I offended anybody, I’m truly sorry,” Lyons said in a phone interview. “But my comment about Lou taking my wallet was a joke and in no way racially motivated.”
Steve Lyons should not have been fired over his joke. I have always thought he tries too hard to be funny. Maybe that is because he can’t think of anything else to say. There is a lot of pressure to fill the airways and if you are part of a broadcasting team, you better have something to say. Still, I think his attempts at humor and his references to what a lousy player he was were a little lame at times.
If they wanted to fire him, make it for trying too hard to be funny, not for some questionable non politically correct remark.
Fox must have had some other reason to fire Steve Lyons. Not a good reason, their reason. I just don’t see how his comments were racially unacceptable. They were aimed at Lou, not Hispanics. They were meant to be funny, not caustic.For all his bravado, Lou surely isn’t thin skinned. We’ll see as the Cub manager. Kevin you are right -this politically correct stuff is costly in may ways. In Canada it is only OK to be critical of middle aged white men (who are a minority) and Christians. Didn’t mean to get political.
And America just loves Charles Barkley no matter what drips from his fat pie hole!!!
Lyons is a fixture for Dodgers Live on FSN Prime Ticket but doubtful he is allowed to return to that duty and work for the cable FOX channel. Dodger road games on KCAL where Vin doesn’t make the trip is where I see Lyons from now own calling the game with Charley.
BRING BACK PSYCHO!!!
Lyons should sue FOX and bring Piniella along as his chief witness.
Lou was actually laughing along with the rest of the booth over this seemingly innocent remark!! For all the **** FOX puts on during primetime, how is this unacceptable??
Lou isn’t an innocent observer anymore. His refusal to say anything other than “He isn’t here” is as disgusting as the firing. He should be a man and call out FOX. he has no loyalty to them and he should know that this firing was horrible.
Also, JOSE MOTA? What the **** are they thinking he’s worse than thom brenneman.
Lyons getting fired by FOX for his stupid attempt at trying to be funny is a crock. Half the things that come out of his grill are lame. My question is….When is Charlie Steiner goin to get shown the door? Please don’t make us have to endure another season with that horses’ rectum doin the games.
If FOX can fire Lyons for that statement then it was going to happen anyway. FOX just chose to use this statement to cover their butts. Fact is it was a poor attempt at a joke and no one was hurt. I personally feel that Steiner has done far worst and I agree with qban90277, get Steiner out of LA. This was one of the greatest years to be a Dodger fan and yet I couldn’t stand listening to a Dodger broadcast if Steiner was on the air !!
Go Dodgers !!
Mr. McCourt, it’s time to listen to your loyal Dodger fans once again. You listened to us, and the names on uniforms are coming back, Thank You. Now please listen to us again and get rid of Charlie Steiner.
Gregg, I haven’t heard Charlie Steiner as an announcer so can’t comment. I am howver a dissenting voice re: names on uniforms. I much prefer the uniforms as they are with no player names on them. Guess that is a carry over from my Dodger days starting in 1952. I also like “Dodgers” on the away uniform instead of Los Angeles. Everyone seems to speak of the DODGERS when referring to this team. However, the posts on this site seem to overwhelmingly prefer the player names on the uniforms.
hi gtuys, just showing my son in-law how this works. hope you all are o.k.
i also like the dodgers on away unis look harold…. and on the steve lyons thing, i come from mexican heritage, and in no way is whatlyons said is even remotely ofensive… fox needs to re-hire this guy.. even though he is not that good..
BELIEVE IN BLUE!
yeah i am also of Mexican heritage and i wasnt offended…i mean its not like Steve called Lou a *******
I was out of town (again) this past weekend and missed the Steve Lyons incident. But based on what y’all are saying (and from what I have read about it), it sounds as if Fox dumped Steve in a feeble attempt to appear “sensitive” and “Politically Correct”. And, as euhlman and kday01 (and others of our generation) will tell you, PC is a bunch of ****! Fox Sports needs to grow a set!
This past season I ran into “Psycho” a few times at Dodger Stadium and he was always more than willing to chat with me for a couple of minutes. Sure, there are better sportscasters out there than Steve, but he would always stand up for the Dodgers when the others in the booth with him would try to trash the Dodgers, and I really appreciated that about him.
Unfortunately, because all of the televised Dodgers games are (in one way or another) linked to Fox, there is no way that the Dodgers can keep him on board. I believe that the only way that Fox might reconsider this situation would be if Lou Piniella were to come out publicly in Steve’s defense – and I just don’t see that happening.
I have already expressed my disapproval of the Steve Lyons firing to Fox Sports via their website at: http://msn.foxsports.com/feedback. Perhaps if enough people do so, they might consider bringing him back. Even though this may seem futile, I did it anyway.
With regards to the uniform thing, I have mixed feelings. In the old Brooklyn days, the Dodgers did not have the players’ names on their uniforms. When the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles in 1958 (or shortly thereafter), they started doing so. That I am aware of, last season was the first time that the Los Angeles Dodgers went without the players’ names on the uniforms (but I could be wrong about this). What I liked about not having the names on their jerseys was that it helped to identify the TRUE Dodger fans – Those who did not need to see the names to know who the players were.
While going back to having the names on their jerseys will help (less than true) Dodger fans identify the players, I have to believe that the REAL reason that the “Los Angeles Dodgers LLC” is doing so is to help boost retail sales of Dodger jerseys and T-Shirts. (LOL).
GO DODGERS!
51 – good job getting your son-in-law on the site. My son-in-law is from Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory. He doesn’t even like baseball. Oh my. Good post 53. I expect you are correct about why the names are going back on the uniforms. You are also right also, when we watch our team, we can identify players simply by how they wear their uniforms, walk, run, hit, throw, etc. I read this on another site:”The Chicago White Sox, under the direction of Bill Veeck, were the first to put names on the back of jerseys and the Dodgers followed suit in 1972.”
Everybody knows Steve Lyons is a horse’s behind but then so is Thom Brennaman and I notice FOX hasn’t fired him. Whatever, I heard Lyons’ “wallet” remark to Lou and thought it was tacky (can you imagine Vin Scully saying such a thing?)but I agree something else was going on.
Does anyone know who is going to the All-Star series in Japan? I heard Brad Penny was going, but he isn’t on the partial roster released by MLB. And is Furcal going?
Hey clreissie – I have to agree with you in that something else must have been going on with Steve Lyons. I’m guessing that both he and Brennaman received a royal butt chewing over their comments about the apparatus being worn by the blind Mets fan. I’m betting that they were both told one more screw-up and you’re out, and Lyons’ wallet comment (although not racial or insensitive in my book, but, as you said, a little tacky) was the last straw for him.
Hey flyangel420 – I had heard that Furcal was on the Japan bound All-Star roster but not Brad Penny. Here is the article that ran on mlb.com a couple of weeks back: http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061010&content_id=1707274&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
GO DODGERS!
fansince53 – isn’t the story that O’Malley didn’t put the names on the back of the uniforms because he wanted to sell more programs?
No one likes tradition more then I do, and I agree that the travel uniforms should say Dodgers. But in this era of ever changing rosters I have to go with the names on the uniforms. I understand the reasoning by McCourt & Depodesta, they were attempting to rally everyone behind the team and not the individual. But lets take this year for example, from the first day of the season to the last, the roster was almost completely turned over !! And the bullpen was completely turned over !! Add to that the revolving door of rookies this year, plus players changing numbers like Tody Hall, it’s a wonder the players knew who each other were !! When the average fan or kids go to the ballpark or watch a game on TV, they need to know the players a lot longer then the diehard fans do to relate to them. I say go with the names on the jerseys, it’s a small price for tradition to pay but well worth the fans attention.
Go Dodgers !!
patriotacts425 – You are probably correct about the O’Malley program thing. Walter O’Malley was a very shrewd businessman (and the most hated man in New York for moving the team to Los Angeles. He frequently received death threats for that).
I was a bit surprised that it wasn’t until 1972 that the names were put on the jerseys, but I certainly trust euhlman’s words. I seem to recall seeing “Drysdale” and “Koufax” on the backs of their respective jerseys while they were still playing, but both were already out of the game in 1972. Because of this, it must have been fans’ jerseys in the stands with the names on them that I recall seeing prior to 1972.
I also agree with garysmith. Having the names on the jerseys does make for quicker recognition for everyone and I am ok with it. Here is a case in point:
When James Loney was with the big club on opening day (playing for the injured Nomar), he wore number 27. He went back down to Triple-A Las Vegas when Nomar returned to the line-up. A few weeks later, Matt Kemp was brought up from Double-A Jacksonville and wore number 27. A couple of weeks later Loney came back up to the big club, now wearing number 29. While all of that was happening, Jose Cruz Jr. was released from the club (phew!) and Toby Hall gave up number 26 (which he got when Jae Seo left) for Cruz’s old number (22). Number 26 was later taken by Einer Diaz during the September call-up. When Sandy Alomar Jr. was traded, hitting coach Eddie Murray gave up number 33 and took number 25…and so on…and so on. So, if this doesn’t drive home garysmith’s point, nothing will. (My head hurts – LOL).
GO DODGERS!
Thanks 53, a much better explanation then mine. I was too lazy to lookup all the names and numbers. Just goes to show you that as much of a diehard fan as I claim to be, it was even hard for me to stay current over the course of the year !!
I’m really looking forward to seeing Ned deal for the few pieces we still need for 2007.
Go Ned !!
Go Dodgers !!
Why is it that most want to change a long-standing baseball tradition of having the city’s name on the away jersey? It’s also a Dodgers tradition as well. Look at the Brooklyn jersey for instance: Why did it say Brooklyn? They were the road uniforms. I was very happy about the “Los Angeles” script going back on the road uniforms, and it should stay that way. Think about it. We’re all here stating our disappointment about the prevalent “east-coast” bias that permeates the media. What a better way to promote the great city of Los Angeles than to have more MLB fans remember which city is kicking their butts on the road! I believe that Frank McCourt is committed to winning and it will be in the best interest for our “west-coast” credibility for the “Los Angeles” script to remain on the road jerseys.
As for the names on the back… I like it the way it is now. It’s all about the name on the front of the jersey, and that’s the way it was for the Brooklyn Dodgers as well. You want to know who’s playing? Buy a freaking program! And if you’re Vin Scully (which I’ve heard his complaints were the main reason McCourt is now switching back again), get better binoculars. đŸ˜® )
Believe in the name on the FRONT of the Jersey!!
Kevin, as passionate as you seem to be on this I just can’t agree. Tradition in LA has always been Dodgers on both Home and Road and far as the names are concerned I think Vin has the better feel for the fans !!! Tradition is good to a point, but this game will never be what it once was. Free agency and big money has changed that forever !! Baseball will continue to evolve and so must we !!! I’m more concerned with getting rid of the DH and standardizing the strike zone then I am about names on jerseys !!
Have a great day guys !!!
Go Ned !!
Go Dodgers !!
I’m not sure it’s a big LA tradition or not. In LA “Los Angeles” was on the front of the road uniforms until the 70s, then of course the names came on the back. My understanding was at home you represent the team, on the road you represent your city. I love tradition and fans having the knowledge of it, however, I must say I’m a fan of the name on the back. I’m 42 and I guess I’m still holding onto the day when my name might be on one. đŸ™‚
lohmeyet@fleishman.com If you live out your fantasy then I will change my stance on the name on the back of the uniform. Happy to do so. Gary I too don’t like the DH because it takes so much decision making and strategy out of the game. However, my interest in uniform signage for the Dodgers is because they are my Dodgers too, as little as I can contribute to them. I know what free agency, advertising, steroids, etc have done to the game. I long for the “Good Old Days” and will never get that image out of my mind.
Much appreciated euhlman. I believe your stance is safe.
What a long for, and sorry to say as well, “the good old days”. A commanding strike out pitcher. An infield that stays together for more than two years. And, a skipper that’s here for more than ten.
Regarding the uniforms, I recently read or heard that the Rockies have 5 road uniforms…FIVE. Atleast the Dodgers haven’t sunk to that.
I hear ya Harold, I yearn for the good old days too !! A wise old man once told that change is the hardest word in the dictionary for us to accept !! Yet change is inevitable. In business if you keep doing what you’ve always done you’ll never have more then what you currently have and your competition will have the next generation of products. This is a changing world, baseball is going international !!! Player movement is at an all time high and it’s not going to slow down. In this market, at this time it’s far better for the casual fan to relate to a team player in a shorter period of time. Otherwise a player comes and goes and some people never even know them. From a marketing point of view this is a disaster in the making !! I have LoDuce, Piazza, Gagne shirts in my closet. Next year my kid will have to have a Martin jersey or I’m a dead man walking !!! It’s the way of the times and I think we have to accept it or forever be frustrated over it.
Stay warm Harold, Winter is coming !!!! It’s down to 78 here !!!
Go Ned !!
Go Dodgers !!!
Yes I know Gary – but there is one constant that will never change – “DODGERS” -as much as I look back, I look ahead. I do hope for a team that fields young players who are together for a few years before the free agent market kidnaps them. And yes, lohmeyet, a dominant pitcher, stability in the infield, strength up the middle, and stability in management for a few years. That’s what makes this winter so intriguing, besides the prospect of a cold winter – trying to imagine what Ned has in mind.
Gary the past few years we have had very mild winters, settling in only after Christmas. Hope the trend continues although it is hard on those who make a winter living – ski slopes, winter sport sales etc. You are right. Go Ned!! Go Dodgers!!
I know Harold, I look everyday to see if something has happened and I know nothing can happen until after the WS, MLB won’t allow it !!
Go Ned !!!
Go Dodgers !!!
I’d love to see the board with all the options on it that Ned has conjured up. I bet he has his phone on speed dial ready to go. Seems unfortunate that Roy Smith and Terry Collins aren’t on board to assist. I do hope we are still in a youth movement when things heat up. I just got more and more impressed with James Loney. I really like his plate discipline and his confidence.
Oh yes. Go Ned!! Go Dodgers!!
fansince53- actually that was Mariano Duncan who took #25
Right you are patriotacts425 – My brain knew that, but my fingers typed Eddie Murray instead of Mariano Duncan. Mariano wore number 25 during his four-year stint with the Dodgers (1985-1989). Sorry for the error – It truly is a b_tch getting old.
Harold, I, too, was extremely impressed with James Loney during the final two weeks of the season (a good 9-RBI day will do that for you). He will be our everyday first baseman from here on out. I believe that he will give us 20+ homeruns next season, with the potential to hit over 30 in subsequent seasons. (I just hope that he gets there before we lose him to free-agency, as you noted).
Like most of you, I have complete faith that Ned Colletti will go out and get us the “tools” that we need to win. This truly is a very exciting time for us Dodger fans!
GO DODGERS!
well, I read in the paper this morning that the DODGERS did the right thing and kept Steve Lyons on their DODGER broadcasts. I do agree that Chumpy Charlie should be released.
In todays LA Times, http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/dodgers/la-sp-lyons17oct17,1,605096.story?coll=la-headlines-sports-mlb-dodger&ctrack=1&cset=true, Dodgers hire Lyons back part time. They say he was making about $500K on both Fox and Dodgers and now he’s below $200K. That’s an expensive slip of the tongue !! Now if we can only get rid of Steiner !! That would make my day !!
Go Ned !!
Go Dodgers !!
I am of Mexican heritage, and I think Lyon’s firing was uncalled for. I mean, if they fired him for making that blind guy wearing the GEORDI (which, with an eye care professional who sells the product living in my house, I was quite disgusted), then fine, but Fox shouldn’t fire him for his banter with Pinella. FOX looks especially stupid for firing him when compared to that announcer Lamar Thomas who called the Miami-Florida International brawl last weekend (“You don’t come into the OB (orange bowl) and disrespect the U like that. They should be waiting in the tunnels for them after the game. If you come into the OB to play the U, you will get your ***** kicked… etc.” [approximate quotes]). Then again, maybe Lyons should take comedian Ron White’s quote to heart: “The next time you have a thought, let it go.”
On the Jerseys, I like them just as they are, except the numbers should be bigger. Of course, I can sympathize with those who want the names back, since in the 50’s through ’72, a player stayed on the team they played for a lot longer than the revolving door ball clubs have become today. Hopefully that won’t be the case in the future with the Dodgers and the talent they have comming up, but we all know how things go.
The away jerseys, I like how they are. They were originally “Los Angeles”, then changed to “Dodgers” in the 70’s. I like the “Los Angeles” a lot better, as I like the “Brooklyn” on the old Dodgers away jerseys. On the road, it is tradition to represent your city. Plus, I think that the Los Angeles script looks as classy as the Dodgers script.
Call me crazy, but I’d like to see Jason Schmidt in blue next year, **** of a good picture, and another reason to give the gnats fans ****. If Ned wants him, he can get him. Schmidt is definitely more reliable than Tomko, as far as ex/free agent Giants pitching goes.
drinkinmercury79, Zito or Schmidt would look good in a Dodger uniform, but free agent starting pitching is not going to come cheap this year. Given our bigger need for a HR hitter and bullpen help I think Ned is going to be more successful looking at a trade instead. I think a HR hitter or long reliever is money better spent !!
Go Ned !!
Go Dodgers !!!
http://raysdodgerblues.blogspot.com/
if arod or soriano were on the market last year, you wonder if the nats or yanks would have taken a package of navarro, guzman, ed jackson, +/- other. instead of sending them off piecemeal, i would have loved to have seen a big deal go down, instead of sending them off one by one for failed pitcher after failed pitcher.
having said that, i think we’ve sold off enough pieces and would rather just spend the $$ to bring in soriano instead of trading for a guy like arod. that’ll give us a lineup like this, which is certainly an upgrade…
S Furcal – SS.
L Loney – 1b
R Soriano – LF. 6y, 90m?
L Drew – RF
R Kent – 2b
L/R/R Ethier/Repko/Kemp – CF
R Martin – C
S Betemit – 3b
Pitcher
betemit better light a fire under his backside this year or he’ll become trade bait, too.
as for pitching, who wouldn’t love adding zito, a true ace, and a lefty to boot? but bidding is going to be tight. likewise for matzuzaka. both are young and would really solidify our staff, but stealing schmidt from the giants would just be too sweet.
wonder if there is enough cash available to add 30m in payroll. we’re finally free of the dreifort deal. i don’t think we owe any more green money.
penny and broxton both need to lose 20 pounds this offseason. have gagne teach them how to throw an offspeed pitch. give gagne a couple million and the chance to stay a dodger for life.
http://raysdodgerblues.blogspot.com/
BELIEVE IN BLUE!
Ray,
Great site. I left you a comment or two.
Yes. Believe in Blue!
I personally would pick Soriano as a first priority out of the group of free agents for the clubhouse factor. The guy’s work ethic is amazing. What I also like is that he’s played in Japan before, and knows a bit of the language. Unless the Dodgers think Abreu is the second baseman of the future, sliding him back to the infield when Kemp is ready may be just the ticket, provided that they don’t move either Laroche or Betemit to second base.
As for the bullpen, I would go with retaining Gagne, maybe a 1 year deal or something and keep him if he’s healthy, work on keeping Saito for a year or two, and then go with Brazoban and Broxton. I think Hendrickson could be a really good lefty reliever if Beimel’s gone, possibly going multiple innings, and Tomko is a pretty good one inning guy (when all is said and done he was pretty good overall in relief), and Dessens can be the long man. You look at the Mets and the Tigers, and what you see is that they’re particularly dominant because their bullpens are just so good.
As for a starter, I’d say ride the status Kuo. Hong-Chih Kuo is the biggest wild card in the rotation. On the one hand, he’s got excellent stuff and he’s a lefty starter, but on the other hand, he has so much of an injury-riddled past, his value might be so high now that trading him may not be a bad idea if the return is a power hitting third baseman, and if the Dodgers are prepared to bring on a free agent to replace him. The problem is that this limits what the team will be able to do because they go from a $400,000 pitcher to a $10 million pitcher, that’s money that can’t be spent elsewhere, or that pushes the team towards the luxury tax line. The net effect is that it’s a good idea to keep Kuo. Besides that, retain Greg Maddux. The fact of the matter is, though, that the Dodgers’ starters in the rotation at the end of the year (Lowe, Penny, Maddux, Billingsley, Kuo) over the course of the season averaged something like 5.91 innings per start, and Billingsley could improve to the point where that reaches 6. With a healthy Brazoban, Broxton still there, retaining Gagne and/or Saito would make the game a breeze after the 6th inning. Colletti made plenty of changes, and it’s time now to let this team develop a bit.
Enjoyed this blog for the first time today. I would like to make my own comments to areas you are discussing.
Eliminate the DH; fat guys who can hit a ton but nothing else are supposed to be softball players. Eliminate interleague play (so the Dodgers will come to Houston again). Make the playoffs more than just a tournament. Use electronic technology call strikes (ala tennis). I’m tired of watching Tom Glavine be congratulated for a wonderful performance, when he doesn’t have to throw the ball near the plate to get called strikes. Unfortunately, that would include Maddux. I like the names on the back of the Dodgers’ uniforms because of all the new players during the year. I’d like to see Loney have a chance to play for more than a couple of weeks at a time this next year. I can’t for the life of me understand why Kent’s contract was extended instead of Nomar. Nomar is the better player and a much better ambassador for the Dodgers with their fans. I would like to see someone in right field who is not afraid to leave his feet to save a no hitter or win a game. Drew and Kent can hit but they cost us so much in the field. Hopefully a well Furcal will improve at SS since we traded away the best glove man in Izturis. Pitching is still the key and I sure like Zito.