Weather Day?
Right now, on the field at Dolphin Stadium, there is something called Weather Day going on for a bunch of local youths. Only in Florida can the weather be significant enough to actually attract several thousands kids to the ballpark. In fact, I’m guessing that today’s attendance will actually be better than the last three nights, which is strange given that it’s during the day and most people are working or at school. But, as I type, there’s a local meteorologist down on the field, leading kids in the wave.
If you’re awake, be sure to watch Brad Penny on ESPN’s First Take today at 11 a.m. ET/8 a.m. PT. Then he’ll be on Colin Cowherd on ESPN Radio at 8:20 a.m. PT/11:20 ET. That should be the end of all the national attention for at least another day or so.
Today’s lineup includes an all-Wilson left side of the infield:
Pierre, CF
Martin, C
Nomar, 1B
Gonzo, LF
Ethier, RF
Betemit, 3B
Valdez, SS
Martinez, 2B
Lowe, P
Inside the Dodgers 
Oh my gosh… someone please get Max a Prozac tablet and quick! He’s going to stroke out when he sees Betemit in the lineup today…
Go Dodgers!!
thats hilarious ksspark . . . hey and dont look now but MARTIN IS HITTING IN THE 2 SPOT!!!! Dang i really hope he does well there because if not i dont even know if i want to come here and read all the things that will be said if he has a bad game there! Although even if he has a good game there will be negative comments about Grady and why he hasnt done this to the line-up a month ago. I really think Grady has done a great job of coaching this team so far this year, there have been some weird and confusing moves but after all thats why he is a major league coach, every coach will have his moments be it great or horrible. All i know i stand behind him and his decisions every time the team hits the field! GO DODGERS!!! GO DEREK!! (complete game time!) i wonder what Derek’s stats look like in day games it seems to me he does better in day games than night games, anyone have that stat for me?
Martin needs to stay there.
I will find it interesting to see how Pierre does in the lead-off role. Maybe switching to batting second has messed with his normal batting approach. I don’t expect him to be a lead-off replacement for Raffy, but Raffy probably needs the day of rest to regroup his batting approach. I do agree with people who project Pierre much lower in the batting order eventually.
If Betemit can play some 2nd base and shortstop, and I believe he could, he could be in the utility player mix with Martinez and Valdez. Management probably needs to make a decision pretty quickly concerning Martinez and Valdez, as we should only carry one of them. Martinez is probably the management favorite to keep with the Dodgers, but I like the excitement that Valdez creates when he’s on base and, like yesterday, up there at bat as a bunt threat – just an extra dimension that Martinez seems to lack. I don’t know how the two compare in age, if that is a factor.
ok so i got curious and did some math. in day games, lowe is 3-1 with an ERA of 4.07, 24.33 IP, 11 ER, 11 BB and 16 SO. in night games, he is 2-1 with an ERA of 3.66, 19.67 IP, 8 ER, 8 BB, and 12 SO…mostly what’s bringing his day games ERA up is the 6 runs from opening day
thanks torres!(my last name is torres too) It just seems in his career he has been a better day game pitcher. How about the past 3 years or so do they have those numbers!?
I have not been on here in a while, since the last time I checked in, my boy La Roche made his big league debut, and has showed why he’s our future third baseman. I don’t know why he’s not playing today, I can no longer stand Wilson Betemit. I just hope he doesn’t hinder the team. As for today, I expect Andre Ethier to have a big day. As to will Derek Lowe…. Has anyone notice the similar batting stance that La Roche has with Ron Cey? my dad pointed that out to me…
BELIEVE IN LA ROCHE!
couldn’t they have gone betemit at 2nd laroche at 3rd…for the sake of, ya know, NOT having martinez and valdez in the lineup? well, i guess its all defense all the time behind lowe.
First time posting but read every day. Just thought it was appropriate to let everyone know we had a no hitter pitched yesterday by Marlon Arias of the Inland Empire 66ers. Marlon pitched 9 innings, no hits, 2 walks and 10 strikeouts.
Great win yesterday by the Dodgers Tomko was hitting his spots very well & the Dodgers got timely hitting & a GREAT HEADS UP BUNT BY Wilson Valdez. Hopefully we’ll take the series.
Blue Crew!
i must say that 1-2 tandem looks darn good! Although i would rather it be Raffy and Martin but Pierre is the fast and better base stealer!
wow max and kssparkuhl in a heated 3b discussion….me like. i loved betemit coming into this year, but hes done nothing since september as max has stated, no winter ball, no spring training, nothing….how long do you ride him before he literally gets booed out of town. yeah i know the m.o. on most dodger fans is they leave early and dont really care in the end, but i think those days are gone, with that payroll we have players have to start being accountable, grady really rides his guys when they are struggling, but you can only watch so much before he starts giving you a stomach ache….it was laroche’s turn. why did it take betemit riding the pine for 3 nights to start swinging the bat? the fact is he got some early fastballs, although one homer was on a hanging curve, we already had leads in the games, maybe he cant handle the early game pressure with runners on. is this a modern day dave wallach right before our eyes?? this is the lineup that was doing so well for us with raffy out so lets keep it up. and what do you know chin lung hu is absolutely on fire after being moved to the leadoff spot down on the farm…….gosh i hate how juan pierre put a roadblock on our farm, in so many ways its sad…he better have a career year.
excuse me dave wallach.* dont know where that came from.
geez again i meant tim wallach.*
excuse me no cafe’ yet…..; >….i love lowe’s sinker i have such a crush on it.
hahahaah i just totally mixed up tim wallach and dave hanson, i actually tried to make a dave hanson/wilson betemit comparison but totally had a brain fart. excuse my silliness.
are you ok Jennifer?.. it took you 5 posts to make your point, lol…
Heated 3rd base discussion? Maybe it is for Max… for me it’s luke-warm.
I really don’t get all the “Wilson didn’t hit in winterball” stuff when LaRoche has NEVER hit in spring training… so you can throw that argument out the door. And all the home runs he’s hit… well… that’s great. How many did he hit against MLB pitchers? You can name all the stats you want about Andy LaRoche… and again… if the kid does well at this level, then goodie for us… but name all of LaRoche’s stats you want… they are all still minor league stats… and folks… minor league stats DO NOT COUNT at the major league level. It’s going to take about two full months to see if Andy LaRoche will adjust or not. The question is if Grady is patient enough to stick with him through the inevitable slump that most rookies go through. And if Betemit continues to stroke the ball the same way of late… Grady might not be so patient.
The fact that Betemit is in the lineup today is more about getting the kid a little rest before the long home-stand, and NOT about playing Betemit ahead of him. But it will be interesting to see how this all plays out… right? It’s sure to be fun to watch… maybe not so much fun for Max… but I’m liking it a lot! : )
Go Dodgers!!
Go LaRoche!!
Go Betemit!!
Go ANYONE Who Can Become Our Every-Day Third Baseman AND Hit For Power!!
(Ron Cey was a LONG time ago… don’t you think it’s time?)
Have I recently mentioned how much I love Martin’s cannon arm??? And he’s only going to get better… that’s a scary thought!
That double play was uggla alright…
hahaaahah lol ray. yeah im alright, didnt get much shuteye last night, but im functioning. barely. hehehe.. how about those jacksonville suns ray!! you see how my starters did yesterday ray?? wow. that was a covina dodgers type pitching performance, except for mariano rivera!!! jk hehe
yeah, I dont’ know what to do with Rivera, he’s killing me…Who did you pitch?
LaRoche has never hit in Spring Training? How about that grand slam, 6 RBI game in 2006?
And it’s plainly obvious that LaRoche will flat out smash Betemit in the OBP department at the Major League, yes *Major League* level.
is anyone else excited about grady talking about bills returning to the rotation? cause i know i am…
Wow, another K for Betemit. What else is new?
if you call that luke warm then I cant wait to see a heated discussion on here kssparkuhl. fact is we needed a change, whether it was giving Laroche the job or bringing him up to light a fire under him either way, LaRoche is definitely the higher ceiling guy and you know john schuerholz saw something in him he didnt like, maybe he had a man crush on willy aybar, or maybe he wanted to get rid of betemit, because he knew he wasnt capable of playing 3rd everyday. im starting to think the latter. if Laroche pulls a bad matt kemp and Betemit is still choking, then what do we do sorry i like to think ahead a little bit. is it gonna be tony abreu time ? because its not looking like nomar can handle 3b.
abreu has to play 2nd base in 2008. hang em up kent.
Both pitchers cruising right along here. Four and a half innings in the book and this game’s barely an hour old yet. One might think this was a get-away day or something…
i had matsuzaka, wainwright, mussina getting wins for me, with shields pitching 9 innings ND, as well as saito and myers picking up saves for me. not too shabby…..i still cant believe you pulled off that Hudson MattKemp deal, that was pure genius ray. that was a sell high if ive ever seen one.
graffiti… I think I have a crush on you… you seem to have a grasp on my whole argument… and YES it is scary if they both don’t pan out. Let’s hope we don’t ever get to that point.
Then again… perhaps that “big trade” looms right around the corner…
that trade was borderline veto material ray but no one caught it.
Derrick is on fire… good call zobeida…
ksspark man i get no credit!? (although i did say Complete Game!)
yeah the statue of liberty that is jeff kent needs to DH somewhere next year if he doesnt hang em up? oakland interested in making a deal for harden? I would do that in a second.
Wow dont look now but Pierre is having a pretty darn good game!
jp leadoff single!!!! not a popup, you go pierre. now steal second.
dahustlasbac i never look when pierre bats, too painful, i just cross my fingers and hope he gets on somehow someway.
no better yet steal third! Great game Pierre!
or third i guess. nomar is due if any player has ever been due.
Pierre 2-2, BB and 2 SB. Finally something to be happy about!!!
but of course nomar wouldnt let us be happy about JP’s good game.
i really dont get what Nomar’s problem is this year. It seems to me he just doesnt have the fire as he did last year! (maybe it has to do with his new twins!?!)
Well, I knew that buhrle’s no-no was just a flash in the pan. But I got lucky on the return. I hope we seriously win it all this year, then kent can retire,and abreu will take over. But, I dont know what were going to do with Chin Lung Hu, this guys has the best glove in the minors, but is blocked. But then again, so did Juan Castro. So we might be able to carry him on the bench…
BELIEVE IN A BIG 6TH INNING!
By gosh, maybe Pierre is really a lead-off guy who is just lost hacking away in the second slot. He’s even taking pitches. Can’t fault him in this game.
I am not sure how we expect this lineup to be productive. Going in, bottom 4 are a combined 34 for 170–a .200 average. Today a combined 0-7
Hey Derek onyl with 61 pitches through 6 innings. Nice pitch efficiency!
the bottom of our lineup is so horrible to look at. its hard to make a case for valdez on this team, let someone else grab him ned, especially a division rival. get kemp up here fast. sure he killed spring training pitching but hes looking overmatched.
Gotta love Valdez’s production today. He is still with the Dodgers…why??
There is no way to sugar coat this one: When are the Dodgers going to rid themselves of Wilson Betemit? He obviously cannot hit, he strikes out on bad pitches, his body language is all negative…shall i go on? Andy LaRoche looks like if given playing time he will hit, so Betemit has to go.
Gee whiz… I dunno. Perhaps the pitchers are throwing too well?
Very well said, kiper04.
mitre gets killed by left handers usually…that is not the case today.
Let me spell this out for those of you who just don’t get it: C-O-N-S-T-R-U-C-T-I-V-E C-R-I-T-I-C-I-S-M! Use it or nobody is going to care what you write cause we’re becoming numb to the same old stuff being said over…and over…and over…and over…and you get the point. Or at least I hope you do.
mitre is 0 and 2 era not too bad but we can beat willis and not him. just a bad lineup today, lets not act like mitre is unhittable.
Let’s hope the Dodgers don’t blow this gem being pitched by Lowe.. Hey, maybe Betemit can win it for us…lol
Be careful what you wish for kiper04… you might just have your wish come true.
alex41592 the be all end all judge and king of whats constructive. come on now, thats not a valid point? betemit is struggling mightily when hes not pinch hitting……?? how else do you explain it alex? give me a hypothetical post that would fit your standards regarding criticism towrds betemit. no need to sugarcoat everything, thats not reality. unless you consider MTV reality.
Let’s give credit where its due. The other pitcher is pitching well…Dudes on the Florida boards are probbably saying..Let’s hope the Fish don’t blow this gem being pitched by Mitre.
I am happy to see the nice game by Juan Pierre..right now the dodgers offense is in trouble because Nomar (3 hole)and Gonzo (5 hole) are slumping. More so than anything Pierre is or isnt doing from day to day…
Yeah… these hitters all stink today. I couldn’t be the fact both pitchers are throwing lights out today… nahhhh… it couldn’t be that.
alex, well said these guys don’t get it that the constant ragging gets old. as i said earlier they would rip Sandy Koufax for losing one after his perfect game. GO BLUE
The pitchers are throwing a terrific game, but, when you have a lineup like the Dodgers, you better get creative when you put a runner on. They squeezed a couple of times yesterday, nice, but it’s tough to depend on the steal, bunt, squeeze everyday…
maybe we can get to their bullpen here! Strange move to hit for their pitcher he was pitching a solid game!
whats up with the dodgers wrapping themselves up with tape? does anyone know?
man well does this count as a complete game for lowe still if they pull it off in extras?! lol
Seanz pinch hit for Ethier? Uh… okay Grady…
what the heck?? i thought that was betemits spot. i dont know what the deal is with that ray, but I love the childish behavior between furcal and penny, good to see chemistry wise.
Ray… it seems that Furcal started that during the marathon game in the 17th inning. The camera had his isolated and he was wrapping his head like a mummy. Vinny was beside himself with laughter. Perhaps it’s the “wralley mummy”.
He was going for lightning in a bottle with a lefty on the mound with Saenz’s power. Didn’t work out…
Ethier was not seeing the ball well and not making very good swings and Seanz hit a bomb on this game last night didnt he! In my opinion it was a good move jsut not good swings!
I mean come on Grady… it’s not like we won’t need Andre’s help in say… the 17th inning again. I’d be happy if any team would score…
…oh no… here come the Betemit haters…
omg….that could be it.
Thats why betemit should not be playing, messed routine maid double play
Wilson Betemit with the error in the bottom of the ninth…So it’s not only his bat, at least he’s consistent.
Please don’t let it be a fly ball to Gonzo or Pierre… especially Pierre.
****!
Someone tell Charlie EinSteiner that Orlando Cabrera plays for the Angels…thats twice already! Its Miguel Cabrera you donkey!
I HATE WILSON BETEMIT!
horrible managing…someone stick up for grady there. why would you not walk the bases loaded right there? groundball pitcher with the game he had? wow that is the definition of a head scratcher.
Yep… Betemit sure grooved that pitch to Willingham… it’s all his fault.
Dust it off and come back tomorrow guys…
It’s been fun…
Gotta get back to work…
See ya!!
Go Dodgers!!
Damned if you damned if you don’t
Damned if you do damned if you don’t*
If he walked the bases loaded it would be to easy. Brady, wants to give his pitchers challenges that will make them stronger for the stretch drive… Yeah right!!
Thumbs up to Grady Little for a well-managed game.
Poor much-despised Pierre ( by me, too ) was the only bit of offense the Dodgers had, and they just couldn’t get it done.
From that perspective the loss is not just Little’s fault. But what is done is done.
Lowe haven’t had 100 pitches yet, but you can only get through the lineup so many times.
Again, well-managed Grady.
fun game to watch, let’s play 2 tomorrow GO BLUE
Willingham should have been walked to setup the double play with Aaron Boone coming to the plate.
no alex. i know we already ruined one dp that inning but grady should have walked the bases full and took his chances there. especially with lowes sinker working like it was….. until willingham that is. makes no sense, none. they got him hitting behind cabrera for a reason, because he can hit…..oh well the lowe leadoff walk didnt help either, but im sure he was relying on doubling uggla which didnt happen thanks to the deadweight that is wilson betemit right now. mark hendrickson needs to refer him to that ” sports psychologist ” he saw, worked wonders for him.
This game pretty much summed up Wilson Betemit in a nutshell: He is not an everyday player. Period.
Normally one walks the bases full there and takes their chances with Boone.
Of course either way, all it takes is a shallow fly to left or a very shallow fly to center to win.
You know you are destined for defeat when the only hitter in your offense who really did anything was Juan Pierre. Way to go Dodgers. In typical Dodger fashion you managed to make Mitre look like a CY Young candidate and wasted a solid effort from D-Lowe. Too bad Betemit’s fat belly didn’t allow him to field what shouldve been pretty much a routine doubleplay ball. It just goes to show that lead off walks and fat guts will kill you in the long run. What shouldve been a sweep is a split and a long plane ride home.
grady is still afraid of aaron boone?
Old Fogey, you’re right about a fly ball to center or left winning it but you have to play the odds. Walking Willingham would have allowed Lowe to get out of the inning with a chance of throwing less pitches then if he had tried to get both Willingham and Boone out. Lowe was already close to his limit and walking Willingham would have allowed him to possible cut down on his pitch count and with the way he was getting ground ball outs the odds of Boone grounding into a double play was good. but whatever.
watching that was not cool but it happens man. hopefully the team will be better off because of it, “let’s get ’em tomorrow.”
“It just goes to show that lead-off walks and fat guys will kill you in the long run.”
****
It is really disappointing and frustrating to see great pitching performances from the Dodger starters go to complete waste.
Man… you guys are harsh. Dude committed only his second error of the season, which by the way is less than six of the Dodgers starting eight position players this year. Yeah, by all means, blame this one on Betemit. He made the choice not to walk the bases loaded and he certainly did groove that pitch to Willingham, didn’t he? I’d hate for you guys to be my team-mates. Just like you’d think the team might pick up a player if he ever made an error, you guys are absolutely ruthless when a guy makes even one mistake. I didn’t hear anyone calling for Russell’s head when he made those four errors in that one stretch last week? As if the guy wasn’t trying… ****… even the Florida announcers thought that play at third was a tough call to give Betemit the error… but you Betemit haters all know better, don’t you?
Fine, get rid of Wilson Betemit… but you all just better hope the kid does well and doesn’t get injured or else we’re back to where we started… without a legitimate third baseman.
nice grady little/aaron boone joke jpelk. they definitely have a history.
Nobody calls for Russell’s head because he’s a good player…unlike Betemit.
KS, I guess that was the reason Max didn’t posted today.
I guess he did posted after all.
Why Lowe would’ve gotten out the inning if he wasn’t for Betamit. Why should he loaded the bases? This wasn’t Lowe or Grady fault anyway. It was definitely Betamit fault for the error.
lol 1st error all year and it was a huge one.
I’ll take it back. The lineup he made was Grady fault but in the 9th innings is wasn’t his fault.