A spirited debate…
Based on the comments, it looks like everyone is fired up on Monday morning. Glad to see we haven’t lost our zest for Dodger baseball over a three-game sweep to that team down South.
Anyway, we’ve got to get back on the horse tonight. Here’s the new lineup and a couple of notes, including one that will surprise even the biggest Juan Pierre fans and detractors.
Pierre, CF
Furcal, SS
Nomar, 1B
Kent, 2B
Martin, C
Gonzalez, LF
LaRoche, 3B
Ethier, RF
Tomko, P
WILL BRETT BEAT THE BREWERS? – Since the start of the 2003 season, Brett Tomko is 5-0 with a 3.09 ERA as a starter against Milwaukee. In his career against the Brewers, Tomko is 7-1 (.875), the best winning percentage of any active pitcher with a minimum of 10 starts. Source: STATS, LLC
CHATTIN’ WITH MO – Former Dodger outfielder and current KFWB 980 broadcaster Rick Monday will host a live web chat with Dodger fans tomorrow at 2 p.m. PT. Monday, who will also play in Thursday’s Dodger Dream Foundation Golf Tournament, will take questions for half an hour, becoming the ninth Dodger player, manager, executive or broadcaster to host a web chat in 2007.
WALK LIKE A MAN – Since being recalled on May 6, Andy LaRoche has walked 12 times, the second-most in the NL behind Barry Bonds (17) during that span. He is tied for fourth in the Majors in bases on balls since his arrival behind Bonds, Jack Cust (16) and David Ortiz (13).
KEEPIN’ IT IN THE YARD – The Dodgers have allowed just 24 homers this season, the second-lowest total in the Majors behind the Padres (21). They are on pace to give up just 86 homers on the season, which would be lowest total by a Dodger staff in a non-strike-shortened season since 1992 when they allowed just 82 longballs. The staff will have its hands full this week, as three Brewers are among the Top 10 in homers, including J.J. Hardy (1st, 14) and Prince Fielder (T-2nd, 12). The franchise mark for least homers allowed was set in 1902 (10).
IT JUST FEELS RIGHT – Juan Pierre is batting .306 with a .333 on-base percentage vs. right-handers this season. He is tied for third in the league with 15 stolen bases, 14 of which have come against righties. Pierre has been particularly effective in close and late situations this season, as he has a .435 batting average (10-for-23) in such situations, the eighth-best mark in the National League. Close and late is defined as taking place in the seventh inning or later with the Dodgers either ahead by one run, tie with their opponent or with the tying run on deck.
BEATING THE BREWERS – With a win in the series finale at Milwaukee on April 4, the Dodgers have won 42 of the 64 meetings between these two teams, including 11 of the last 16. In those games, the Dodger bullpen has posted a 3.46 ERA (20 ER/52.0 IP) compared to a 6.75 for the Brewers’ relief corps (29 ER/38.2 IP).
A WIN FOR WIN – Dodger Vice Chairman and President Jamie McCourt will be honored tomorrow in New York by Women’s eNews as one of 21 exceptional individuals who make groundbreaking news by confronting issues of particular concern to women. McCourt, the highest-ranking woman in baseball, was chosen from a reader-nominated list of hundreds of individuals that dedicate their lives to improving and empowering the lives the women. She is being recognized for her efforts to bring more women executives into baseball and to educate women about the thrills of the game through Dodgers WIN (Women’s Initiative and Network).
Inside the Dodgers 
Love this lineup! Switching Pierre and Furcal and Martin finally batting fifth! Even if it doesn’t click tonight, this is the lineup you stick with for a while! Just by making these two changes you increase Pierre and Martin’s value to this team while also increasing Furcal’s because now if Furcal hits a double Pierre can score on it etc… etc… I love these changes!
Also, I like LaRoche batting 7th it gives us a better idea of what he can do.
GO DODGERS!
Like the order of the lineup! Would love to see this being tried out for a while.
I’m feeling fresh and optimistic. The slate is clean, I’m ready to cheer the team.
Let’s go Dodgers.
we know one thing that will happen tonight. Pierre wont pop up with Furcal on base in the first!
but yes I agree with everyone about the lineup changes. Mostly Gonzo being out of the 5th spot. That made my day really.
You know…although stats people on here might hate to admit it…JP’s numbers being so far under his career numbers could be in part because he was batting 2nd, not having done so much before. He’s probably more comfortable in the 1 spot…and I’m more comfortable with him there, since Furcal is more patient behind him. When he DOES get on, give him more chances to steal. I’m all for sticking with this alignment for a week or two to see how it goes.
I never thought it made any sense to bat JP second.
Good to see Grady and Ned are willing to make some changes.
I’m with you PuppyHead…
I also think Pierre was uncomfortable batting second..
This could be a very positive change for him & the team…
Now we need to get him in the gym lifting weights to make his right arm stronger..(like that will ever happen)
just read the article on MLB.com about possible all-star catcher and of course martin is only mentioned as a possibility behind Lo Duca, McCann and Bengie Molina. Guess we all need to vote about 1000 times each or hope La Russa doesn’t pick his catcher Y. Molina over Martin
i really hope the linup produces tonight…cause if they don’t little probably goes back to the onld one romorrow night. lets keep our fingers crossed.
lo duca??? are you kidding me…molina
martin starting then mcCann and yadier probably makes it because of tony (sleeping at the wheel while the car is running at a stop light) la russa.
no way! martin definitely deserves to start. i’m so voting 1000 times for martin
Finally!!!I really hope this lineup produces because it makes soooo much more sence.I really hope Furcal knows that this a promotion for both him and JP.They should both be able to steal alot more bases now and get that 1-2 punch going.Gotta get into the pitchers heads like soo many other good teams have done to us.
Go Blue 2007!!!
I don’t know what switching Pierre and Furcal does, but putting Martin in the 5 and LaRoche in the 7 is fine with me.
I like this lineup a lot but not Tomko pitching.
lol left arm strong.
Wow Laroche is 2nd in bb’s. He could be leading the league in bb’s if he was call up sooner or played everyday.
I LOVE IT! I LOVE IT! I LOVE IT!
who would have thought? sometimes us normal non-GMs and managers get our wish.
now, i hope they give this time to work and not switch in 2 days. i could live with this line-up for the rest of the year.
furcal batting 2nd makes sense if you dont want nomar 5th and martin 3rd. furcal will take some pitches and maybe pierre can get stealing like we pay him for…
anyway…i really, really, really hope they stick with this for a couple months. LETS GO BLUE!
Just want to provide some info on a player in the minors. Adolfo Gonzalez is going to be 22 years old, profiled as **** but is playing 3B for Great Lakes. He recently started playing for the team and in 11 games, batting .316, 2 2b, 1 hr, 6 rbi’s. These numbers don’t include a 3 for 3 game today with another 2b. Preston Mattingly is struggling, batting .188 with 112 AB’s and Scott Van Slyke is batting .247 with 97 AB’s and 0 hr’s.
The best move is Gonzalez down in the line up. He has 0 hr’s in May, 2 rbi’s and 1 2b. A little more productivity out of the 5 hole should help tremendously.
nice….a groundball from tomko and a new lineup…..yes!!!! whohoooooo!!!
Nice Pick LaRoche!
wow that was an absolute bomb fielder hit. bomko cant last another start can he 1-4 6 era? yikes
one need not look urther than the matchups on the home page.
way to jinx that groundball graffiti!!
Many teams need pitching right now. We have Tomko. Sounds like we need to make a deal happen. Believe we can throw an outfielder in the mix.
hmmm can this please be Bombko’s last start? please grady!
“one need not look further than the matchups on the home page.”
Help me Graffiti… what are you referring to?
Is there any reason besides plain stubborness by Grady that Bills should not take the next start that would have been scheduled for Tomko. Actually with the pitching needs of some clubs you would hope that we could trade Tomko for some value.
Seriously! Send Bombko to the Cards for So Taguchi or Scott Spezio.
Wow this lineup is sure shook up. I thought moving Pierre to the lead-off spot was a change, but switching Martin and Gonzo too!! Wow, I’m like totally stunned. This is bananas.
Please bat Pierre 8th before I shoot myself.
And listen to the boos….
Wow, that definitely earns a Bomko…his time is running out
BOOOOOOO!!!
Tomko has that reputation of being an inning eater. The only trouble is that the more innings he eats, the further back we fall.
WOO!!!!
GO TOMKO!!!!!
They aren;t boooing. They are saying BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMBBBBBKOOOOOOOO
Tomko’s doing fine. No big multi-run innings so far.
But oh dear, that single little infield hit the Dodgers has …
The clean slate’s still there. The Dodgers aren’t writing anything on it yet.
It seems to be last year again, And I have to jump aboard. we need loney at first and kemp in left field
a lineup like this is coming
furcal ss
martin c
loney 1b
kemp lf
ethier rf
LaRoche 3b
abreu 2b
pierre cf
bills sp
the future is near, maybe 08 for this lineup, but we need some excitement to watch on our computers.
We will be shut out tonight.
go dodgers
Arizona is leading in their game. I guess that is good. The sooner the Dodgers fall out of first and hit .500, the more hope we have that maybe something *real*, like the composition of the lineup, will chang …
Darn, I said I’ll be positive until the end of the week! Mea culpa. I’ll try harder!
Hey, griffon – that’s not negative. That’s exactly what it will take, and it will be for the good – so, that’s positive!
At least Andy got a good swing at it!
Unbelievable! I can’t believe he’s letting Bombko go out there for another inning. Please God let him get torched so Bills can come in! PLEASE!!
😀 messagebear.
I’ve been a little uneasy about this team all year long, feeling that some just in time hitting and really good pitching were masking some flaws – like a rather thin and old lineup.
Unfortunately, now it seems those pigeons have indeed come home to roost, and leave droppings all over the high hopes of many a fan.
The season is still young and all is not lost. Hopefully, there won’t be a lot of sitting on hands going on while all is not yet lost. Forget the good start, looking at the here and now the trends are rather alarming. Yet, I’m confident the front office knows and is planning. These guys didn’t get into the front office of a major league club by being clueless. Whether they’ll be able to do anything depends on the willingness of other teams to trade. And remember, in the real world no GM is going to trade a good outfielder for Tomko. Trades are not nearly as straightforward as they look.
I hope we go after good outfielders next year, and package Pierre to somebody, eating salary or some such just to get away from him. If we sign Gonzalez again, for instance, you’ll find me stomping on a effigy of Ned and eating my Dodgers hat out of sheer frustration. But hey, I’m getting waaayyy ahead of myself, here 😛
What’s the recent status of Kemp? I sort of lost track because I knew it was hopeless, Gonzalez and Pierre are cemented into their spots. Bigbie I thought have fallen off badly of late – but he’s still batting around .371. Maybe some fresh blood is needed in the outfield. Call him up, light a fire under … sheesh, I suppose Ethier. Gonzalez isn’t moving! And strong throwing arms! I am in despair at the little girly throws from left and center, pretty much 😛
DING DONG BOMBKOS GONE!!!!!
How is he 7-1 against this team and were losing? Our offense is bad.
i’m watching the game in HD and the difference in pitch liveliness between Bills and Bomko is astounding.
This guy needs to start ASAP!!!
Ballgame 😦
This is Tomko’s last start, I believe.
Some deja vu from last year?
Going into tonight’s game, Tomko’s slugging pct against was .444. He gave up 2 bombs and some doubles? No WAY Grady starts him again. If Grady starts him 1 more time, it’s only because Schimdt is coming back 10 days from now. Schmidt had a long bullpen yesterday, and could realistically throw a simulated game in 5 days and start in Tomko’s slot in 10 days…Hendy becomes the 5th starter.
Dear Grady,
Tomko is not a starter.
Bills is not a reliever.
Get it???
hmm Tomko leaves with 1 out 3-0 now its 8-0 with 2 outs….yeah that ball is live all over th field in HD…..
lol…like i said, Bills is not a reliever.
and 3 of those runs belong to tomko
Yeah, Bills looks like a pitcher, not a wanna-be who’s actually a has-been.
Remember though, that Bills’ WHIP last year was 1.67 and his strikeout to walk ratio was 1-1. That means that some luck was also involved in his good stats. He looks better this year and certainly looks to improve overall, though.
sl7180 – remember that things like lifetime stats against a team is virtually meaningless in the free agent era. It is a different team you play each year.
Ned was impressive last year in his willingness to get rid of bad blood ( Baez et all ). It is time for the pruning shears this year, too. Wins before sentiment, please.
And here’s to hoping tomorrow is the day the team starts to turn it around. The hitters need to give themselves clean slates, to just go out there and simply “See ball, hit ball”. Sometimes you can over-analyze and gameplan yourself into a corner.
is it june yet………….
First runs allowed for Chad since Apr 27. Chad was just getting his ERA down too.
Extra base hits produce runs much more often than singles does.
Pity we hit so very, very few of them. Kent must have half the extra base hits of this team. He probably has a third of the home runs!
Kent’s bat coming alive will definitely help things out in the coming weeks… we hope.
Go Dodgers!!
hahaah kassparkuhl i was referring to the home page of dodgers.com. where it says jeff suppan 5 and 2 4 or 5 whatever era vs brett tomko 1 and 4 5.91 that is a bit higher right about now. how many times do we trot him out there, do we let him keep going to like 1 and 8……wouldnt doubt it.
Yeah Griffon I know that but someone better tell that to Grady and Ned. I really hate Ex SF pitchers. Was Tomko pitching that game at Dodgers stadium when Cody Ransom made that error and Finley hit that game winning homerun.
Yeah that was the same person
furcal and kent seem to be our two studs right now at this point in the season, we need a better player than juan pierre at the top of order, plain and simple. the offensive emergency brake that is juan pierre needs to bat eighth and quick, let him have his money ned, just put him where he is supposed to be would you!!!! we all know gonzo is stinking it up, and its time for his veteran leadership to come off the bench. matt kemp time i dont care if he hits 235 he will hit homers, he will collect extra base hits, and the sky is the limit. most likely wont see him until the as break though sadly.
Don’t say that! It gives me the willys just thinking that Grady might pull another Hendrickson with Tomko this year…
…or that he might pull another Hendrickson with Hendrickson…
It will be good… if he’s 100%… to get Schmidt back and then hopefully Bills might get his dream shot again.
also he can run, and very fast. and he can also throw really fast too. seems logical to me.
Come on Ned/Grady dfa Tomko now. You did it with last year.
nice lineup by the way up there frankjhalstead…..right on the money.
oops with Carter last year.
its time to chalk up neds good old plan b as a total loss…….
Does Ned realize how pitiful this offense is right now? Today is the first time all month Kent has had more than 1 rbi in a game. Ethier is leading the team with 11 rbi’s in May, Nomar has 1 extra base hit in May and Gonzalez has 2 extra base hits, 0 home runs and 2 rbi’s in May. Did I mention that Pierre has only scored 6 runs in May and on his way to double his strikeouts this year?
Grady if you have a brain pinch hit for Pierre! please don;t let him kill this rally with a double play ball to second! PLEASE!!!
ah yes. First pitch swinging ground out. Vintage Pierre.
I think if Bill’s has any chance of anything this year he needs to go back to Vegas to get his Stamina and confidence back to be ready to start this year.
…and Betemit has the second most rbi’s this month. Where would we be without Wilson?
Dang Betamit and Grady leave him on the bench to PH please.
Juan Pierre = Pathetic.
Can anyone tell me what these players have in common: Mueller, E. Davis, Valentin, Hundley, Dreifort, C. Perez, K. Brown and our very own Pierre?
they are all overpriced piles of POOP!
Did you guys really like that lineup switch today? Pierre should not be leading off… he should be batting 8th. His OBP is killer. We need to give him as little plate appearances as possible.
Furcal
Martin
Nomar
Kent
Loney
Kemp
LaRoche
Ethier
…and a lot of extra money to sign Andruw Jones or A-Rod… how sweet would this have been?
Nomar isn’t patient enough to bat 3rd. He never will be. Or plan of speed on top will NEVER WORK with nomar batting 3rd!
Furcal
Martin
Ethier
Kent
Nomar
Kemp
LaRoche
Pierre
our*
Wow, guys, don’t pitch to Fielder. Just don’t do it! :-Q
Okay, loss or not, the team showed a bit of fight today, after being pretty flat while under Tomko’s pitching. There’s hope yet. If the timely extra-base hits keep coming.
Man… Fielder puts a ton of hurt on the baseball.
was at the game tonight…couple of observations.
bomko was getting booed early and often tonight…people are getting fed up.
pierre put some absolutely pathetic swings on same balls and was also recieving some unwanted attention…and should have caught that ball in between him and ethier.
bills- i hope this outing doesn’t delay his return to the rotation.
the fly laroche hit was almost out—died at the warning track. his defense looked solid.
nomar was particulary useless tonight but the crowd still loves him.
I’m wondering if any of you have read the article by Jon Heyman on SI.com about the “Seven trades that need to happen before the deadline.” The first one he lists is Scott Rolen to the Dodgers and then mentions our prospects, specifically Andy LaRoche and our young pitchers in return. What do you all think about that?
I think giving up prospects for Scott Rolen might be right up Ned’s alley. A declining, proven major leaguer that might fill a gap for a season or two, while blocking the progression of potential farm hands in the process. I don’t like the idea at all… and we’ve seen the lunacy of having Pierre/Gonzo instead of Bigbie and Kemp. Also, where do we put James Loney??
Free James Loney!!
Free Matt Kemp!!
Liberate them I say!! To the big club with them!!
Go Dodgers!!
Trade Talk
1) Scott Rolen would have to be about the stupidest move the Dodgers could make. The guy is aging and injury prone, and the Dodgers already have TWO THIRD BASEMEN AT THE MAJOR LEAGUE LEVEL! If you must take an aging Cards player, Jim Edmonds would work if we traded off our current CF.
2) Colletti’s pattern is most often a move that is entirely unexpected, but makes sense from his perspective after it is done. Mark Hendrickson, Julio Lugo, Greg Maddux, Furcal, Bill Mueller, Nomar at first, Jae Seo, blah blah blah. This makes me feel confident that he won’t actually pull the trigger on Rolen, but he could still do something bad.
3) If you asked me for players I would trade for, they would be outfielders: Andruw Jones, Adam Dunn, Torii Hunter, Carl Crawford, Pat Burrell, and about the only 3B guy I would go for would be Miguel Cabrera. What these guys have in common is they actually fill needs the Dodgers have, namely power and presence at positions which aren’t particularly stong (like LF, CF).
4) IF you’re going to trade for someone that will be a free agent next year, get someone you’d actually want to keep on the club, so that you have reason to offer arbitration to him.
5) Just imagine what would have happened over the offseason had we traded Brad Penny for Scott Rolen. The Cardinals actually turned down Penny, and now they’re tied for last place in the division, thanks to the worst rotation in the league.
NO on Rolen!
YES on Cabrera if available at any point. Otherwise, bring up Abreu after LaRoche has had the chance to either prove or disprove himself.
NO on Andruw Jones – see a very negative attitude article currently running, and he has Boras negotating for him. Crawford OK, if we can trade Pierre. Others mentioned above probably will not provide longer term help in OF.
Would we not be equally well served this season if we brought up Houlton and traded Tomko. Also, Hendrickson would have one more chance to start if it was my call, and then he would be back in the bullpen.
Nobody is taking on Pierre’s contract. You are crazy to think the Dodgers will unload this guy. I would love to see him on the bench but it isn’t going to happen. Little just needs to nut up and bat him 8th. It’s the only reasonable solution.
No on Rolen. The last thing the Dodgers need is another overpriced aging vet blocking a position. Not to mention the fact that his power numbers are on the decline. He wouldn’t be an upgrade over LaRoche at this point. If Andy isn’t ready and a trade for somebody like Cabrera isn’t going to happen the other option is to move Nomar to third and bring up Loney. Not a great help in the power department but it would improve the offense.
In short, here is what needs to happen.
1. Pierre to the 8 spot.
2. Bills/Kuo out of pen.
3. Lurch/Bomko into pen.
4. Fix the hole at third.
Here is what I want to see happen:
1. Pierre to the bench, Kemp in CF.
2. Schmidt off DL.
3. Bills to the rotation.
4. Ethier to left, Loney to RF.
5. Cabrera at third.
Yah, I’m dreaming but so what.
Don’t be negative,
Don’t be negative,
Don’t be negative…
Let’s see; How can I say this without being negative…, I know… I’m POSITIVE that Juan Pierre su cks. Ya, that’s the ticket. And, in spite of hitting his first home run in nearly a month, I’m positive that Luis “Short Pop Fly to Left” Gonzalez is pretty much done, too. (Time to take a seat in the booth Gonzo).********, I miss Kenny Lofton, who, by the way, has four home runs and is 14 of 17 in stolen bases [82%] so far this season (compared to Pierre’s ZERO home runs and 16 of 21 in stolen bases [76%]). The sad part is that we are stuck with “Juan for Five” because NOBODY will want him. Uggh! Oh well.
OK, no more negativity from me (for today).
On the positive side, we’re still in first place (barely)! Also, my buddy Ron (another one) caught Jeff Kent’s home run ball last night. Way to go Ron!
GO DODGERS!
Hopefully the dodgers can pick it up and get out of this slump. I have 2 of the loge dodger seats that were replaced when all the seats were changed to the original bowl color. If anyone is interested please email me or check out this link.
http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lac/fur/336061890.html
We can say, “but we’re in first place,” as many times as we want. It ain’t gonna change the fact that the Dodgers will be three and done in the LDS again this year unless we make some changes. Winning the West isn’t enough.
Betemit has shown he can pinch hit. LEAVE HIM THERE!!
Pierre…..nothing new to say. Same goes for Gonzo. THEY ARE NOT AS GOOD AS THE PROSPECTS WE CAN PLAY IN THEIR PLACE!
Thank god our pitching has been good. Even Tomko and Hendy. Our pitching has kept us in first place this year. Nothing more. With or without Schmidt, the Dodgers have one of the best pitching staffs in the majors. Their offense, on the other hand, is nearly the worst.
Does anyone here agree with me
I love furcal. He has stepped it up, but He is NOT 100%. He
does not attempt to steal anymore ??? He’s had many chances, but he’s being reluctant ?? Unless Grady has
him on hold. I’m unable to figure it out. 5 SB’S,??? You
tell me ?????
Furcal isn’t getting any stolen bases because when he batted leadoff Pierre averaged 3 pitches an AB and Nomar averaged 2.8. Thats why our offense isn’t working! We have speed but not patience.
wow fansince53 with some negativity…the funny thing is the only thing we have to be positive about is a few pitchers, martin and furcal, maybe kent, but hes reminding me of Arod hitting all those homers when it doesnt count for beans. of course were gonna get pitches to hit when were down 8 zip. ned yost wanted to get back to the hotel. our offense stinks, if we could pry crawford fromm tampa bay that would be awesome, but im pretty sure he already tried, and they said take baldelli. at 3rd no rolen, i will become a cardinals fan if that happens. lets do a blockbuster for miggy or nothing, he’d crush some fielder type monsters for years, but the asking price has to be astronomical. at least bills, laroche maybe meloan. who knows its nice to dream though.
maybe we could pull pierres boy the d train and miggy for like 7 prospects and wilson betemit.
even if we get a power hitter, its still likley that nomar and gonzo and pierre will still be playing everyday. they haven’t been horrible, but they’ve been inadequate. i really think at least one of the three needs a phantom dl trip. but, since kemp and loney aren’t forcing the issue, they remain starting.
this stands in stark contrast to betemit, who was horrible and inadequate and was “benched” (even though he still starts sometimes) for laroche even though he was not forcing the issue in LV either. funny how that works.
Yeah, I’m beginning to tire of the average to slightly-bad veterans clogging up the lineup. I guess they get to coast freely for a few years before retirement, resting on their laurels as their bodies can’t do what they did in their youth anymore. Pity we have some on our team! I suppose that they remain borderline just-good-enough so that a GM would feel dishonorable replacing them with a younger player, but they still hurt the team by playing at average or slightly below.
Maybe Stan Conte was a bad signing too. The durability of the team has been spectacular so far, but this is the year we need those vets breaking down so the kids can come carry the team with youth from time to time.
No, I don’t really think Conte was a bad signing. I think it is marvelous that this team doesn’t lead the DL stats anymore. I just wish he was taking care of better and younger players.
Well, let’s go Dodgers! Tonight isn’t going to get any easier, except that there’s not a absolutely certain washout on the mound. You gotta win the games remaining in the homestand!
You can’t touch NOMAR, of course, because he seems to be such a fan favorite at the ballpark. He, no doubt, was instrumental in bringing us to the playoffs last year, but he was probably equally instrumental in our early departure from the playoffs. Loney should have been playing in his place, because Nomar by later admission was not 100%, but wouldn’t bow out of the lineup. I have the impression that the same sort of thing may be going on now – how else do you account for the total loss of power from his bat. With Saenz slumping with his average, in my mind Nomar should be sitting on the bench as the premier right handed pinch hitter to give Loney a chance to show if he can do reasonably well at the major league level.
GONZO, of course, gets such good press, at least for his clubhouse character, that it will be difficult if not impossible for Grady to bench him. So, if we bring up Kemp, it will likely be to platoon with Ethier rather than spell Gonzo.
PIERRE is going to remain a fixture, especially since he never misses a game. Hopefully, he can recover some of his stride by being left in the lead-off position for a while. Going by his performance, he should be batting eighth.
Two more management “sacred cows” are TOMKO and MARTINEZ, probably going back to Ned’s San Francisco days.
I guess it was easy to bench BETEMIT, because he did not have the same management attachment.
Maybe it was easy to bench BETEMIT because he was batting .125…hmmm….
BREAKING NEWS!!!! Tony Abreu is on the active roster. Kuo is gone.
I don’t think the Dodgers will be able to vastly improve their offensive situation this season. However, I think if Coletti plans for ’08, he could have the strongest NL team by far.
Hear me out:
Keep LaRoche at 3b until July. If he’s doing well, use him to trade for a high-quality reliever, possibly a long reliever.
Bring up Abreu to man 3b, with Betemit staying as the backup/PH.
IF Abreu hits well:
Release Kent after the season, slide Abreu to 2b, sign A-Rod NO MATTER THE COST.
If Abreu doesn’t work out:
Release Kent, slide Nomar to 2b, bring up Loney at 1b, sign A-Rod NO MATTER THE COST.
Combine this infield situation with Matt Kemp in LF instead of LuGo. Any other trades, involving Betemit and especially Loney, need to net a high-quality starter.
Note that I really want A-Rod at 3b next year. Dodgers need a great 3b with power, so that Kemp can come up in LF and develop that swing of his. I’d prefer it if the Dodgers didn’t sign a power OF, unless Pierre were traded, so that Ethier and Kemp have spots in the corners.
Abreu is up.
laroche for a middle reliever? uhhh…
If his value is high and Coletti feels he can offer A-Rod a contract he’ll accpet, then middle relief is one of the areas that needs to be addressed for ’08. The back end of the bullpen is great. Or, if not a great 6th-7th inning reliever, then get another solid starter for him. You can never have enough of those.
Then, if a great 3b can’t be obtained, have Abreu play 3b in ’08, with Nomar and Loney at 2b and 1b, respectively.
puppyhead01 – You bank on A-Rod being signable, and I think the chance of that, and the chance of him being signable by the *Dodgers*, is less than 0.5%. I’ll print out this post and eat it if the Dodgers do sign him, of course 😉
Playing guys out of position will not help our error totals improve, either.
I’m more or less OK with the infield. Nomar is sad, and Kent is only signed for this year, right, with an option for next year perhaps. It is the LF and CF positions that pains me most.
I expect Kent to get better as the year goes on. Don’t ask me why, it flies in the face of reason.
Goo news nkirby. I wonder what role Abreu will play…maybe he and LaRoche will share 3b while Betemit stays down on the bench? Perhaps he’ll spell Kent when he needs a day off?
griffon,
I expect Kent and Nomar to both improve as the year goes on. Kent still has a good swing, and Nomar will find his.
Although CF pains me, Pierre’s here to stay. That said, a power 3B is the best option with our current and future personnel (with Kemp in LF).
I wonder why Abreu is listed number-less and under the pitchers? Maybe somebody just made a typo and Abreu is actually still in Vegas.
I’d wait till he’s not in the pitching category on the active roster before saying anything 😛
But, where will he play? This effectively makes Betemit a Pinch Hitter, but this also means LaRoche’s playing time may be decreased at third base. I love Abreu on the roster, but LaRoche and Abreu need to be playing everyday and that’s just not possible. Also, Abreu can give Kent a day off. Perhaps LaRoche will get work in the outfield…we’ll see. I want to hear why this move was made. Assuming the move was actually made…Josh we await your next post.
Go Dodgers!
ok yes clearly Arod would be wonderful but I think you have to get more for Laroche then a middle reliever. Also, Abreu is not a 3b. He might play there for the time being but its not his future.
I think w/ Abreu up and LaRoche up LaRoche will play some LF because that was mentioned as a way to get him and Meat at bats. I think Abreu was brought up b/c he’s been hot lately and maybe that will carry over.
On the other hand though, the 51s roster now has Kuo on it and Abreu off of it, and they’re playing right now, with Abreu not in the lineup. So okay, it may be real.
I’ll wait for Vinnie to tell me what’s what tonight ;-P
The reason for no number is because he wasn’t even on the 40 man roster, so essentially he had no number, but he’s definitely there now, so it can’t be a mistake. I would assume he’s taking Wilson Valdez’s spot on the 40 man roster.
Furcal & Abreu at the top of the order would ROCK. Probably not happening, though.
the only reason they signed nomar (and the reason they continue to play him despite the fact he swings and fields worse than his wife) is to satisfy their huge mexican fan base.
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I was playing EA SPORTS MVP Baseball 2005… I started off playing every game with the Dodgers, obsessing over every player’s stats. After a few hours I realized was more invested in finding the perfect way to squeeze every penny I could out of the fans by adjusting prices for tickets and concessions.
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Now I know how the McCourts feel.
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It’s not about fielding a winner. It’s about keeping doofuses like Nomar around so fans will come to the park and spend $5.75 on a Super Dodger dog and $7.50 on the sneakily shrunken Camacho’s Nachos.
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yeah KIRBY, i thought tony abreu’s name on the active roster was a typo. awesome.
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luis gonzalez is a woman. he needs to eat a little pine.
Gotta love the .397 OBP from Abreu, he’d be a perfect #2 guy. With Abreu on the team, I am jumping on the bandwagon for Pierre to be dropped to #8. His errors could be a problem, but he’s got a great bat.
Furcal
Abreu
Nomar
Kent
Martin
Gonzo
Ethier
Pierre
After living overseas for many yrs, I just moved back and become re-addicted to the Dodgers. Is it just me or are players wimpier these days? Garvey, Russell, Cey, Lopes, Sax, Dusty — those guys played 9 innings of every game, didn’t get injured so easily, didn’t need to rest the last 3 innings every other day. And pitchers — sorry, but 6+ innings was not a “solid” performance. 8 innings was solid and a complete game shutout was a a “great” performance — Sutcliffe, Welch, Orel, Fernando, Reuss, Hooten, Sutton, etc.
Official:
http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070522&content_id=1979412&vkey=news_la&fext=.jsp&c_id=la
griffon,
A few reasons why I think A-Rod is more like a 5-50% than 0.5% chance to sign with the Dodgers, if they offer him the money.
1) Playing for the Yankees, he hasn’t performed well in a city where his every move is scrutinized/criticized. In LA, if he even hit 30 homers a year the fans would love him, and would certainly not criticize him like the NY fans do.
2) He wants to be recognized for the talent he is. (See #1.)
3) He would love to be some team’s savior after his (unbelievable) “mediocre” NY years. What better team than one with great talent and pitching that lacks power and has the potential payroll to continue to improve?
4) Hollywood. He’s a good-looking, rather personable guy, and would love the star attention he’d get. He’d be an all-star in a city of stars. (See: David Beckham)
Those are my thoughts. I’ll shut up about A-Rod for now.
i drool over furcal and abreu one two, but at this point it might also be time to move nomar “the slumping single machine” garciaparra down a little too, he needs to see more pitches .
Furcal
Abreu
Martin
Kemp
Loney
Roach
Ethier
Pierre
What a great ’08 lineup. Forget A-Rod and Miggy.
puppyhead01 – that’s the thoughts I have, too, when I hope he may somehow find his way here. But then I remember that yes, A-Rod wants to be recognized for the talent he is – but on the biggest stage. He wants to be the best. Being the stud of the Yankees is being the best in popular baseball view. Playing for a west coast, NL team won’t be, not in his eyes. And that’s why I don’t think the Dodgers will get him. That, and the fact that Boras is his agent. Ned may have cooled down a little after the Drew fun and games, but Boras will try for another 250 million contract for A-Rod. Only this time, it will only be for seven years. And I hope we don’t pay that!
puppyhead, take your crush on A-Rod somewhere else.
Dodger fans would be just as harsh on A-Rod as NY fans were.
Any guy that gets paid 25 million a year is expected to hit .345+ 50+HRs.
arod would take us to the promised land, but ned doesnt sign top players for one, and im sure hes still bitter at boras for the judy drew thing. pipe dreams.
“puppyhead, take your crush on A-Rod somewhere else.”
Why? Don’t you want the best offensive 3B alive to play for the Dodgers? Why dream of anything less?
Dodger fans aren’t even being very harsh on Jeff Kent. Why would they be harsh if A-Rod doubled his production?