Talking Tommy…
Chance to chat with Tommy Lasorda today at 2 p.m. PT…hope you’ll join in.
And as I posted in the comments of the last entry, there will be no further warnings regarding bad language or quasi-bad language on the site (@#&!). Going forward, anyone who can’t find a way to express themselves without language like this will be locked out of posting on any MLB site by MLB.com. Thanks for understanding.
Inside the Dodgers 
Tommy had a really nice interview with MLB.Com during the draft, looking forward to this chat.
From the last thread , for what it’s worth, I agree with Max. I think the Ds would do better with a differant manager and coaches.
So I guess Tommy won’t be discussing Kingman’s performance.
fliegel i think you need to go back to that thread and read what fansince said about the stats that max (and you) so wonderfully ignored! He is definately the best manager we have had since Lasorda! It’s not his fault the players are giving him lack luster numbers. He has put them in plenty situations this year to win games and we have just blew up some of them. No biggy though becasue our boys know how it feels to get into a winning slump and im sure they never want to feel that again!
LETS GO DODGERS!!!!!!!!!!
I will be listening!
Chris
http://ultimatebaseballcollector.mlblogs.com
patriotacts425, i dare you to ask ’em to loose a few.
but seriously i wonder how the draft was back in the day, i’ve heard Tommy started out as a scout when his pitching career ended.
I think it’s disgusting that Pierre batting in the 8th slot only lasted a few games.
Like fliegel has expressed above, I’m not a fan of our current management either. My take is that for the amount of money we have committed on payroll, we can reasonably expect to get to the playoffs and perform better than we have the last couple of times there. That’s the onus that I’m putting on management and staff for this year. If they’re not able to live up to those expectations with the players that they have assembled, then I will want both Colletti and Little gone. Now, I’m not looking or hoping for that failure. I would gladly see us do well in the playoffs and hopefully in the WS, and I’ll root for both and their staffs to carry on again next year.
Mistakes have been made, and will always be made regardless of who the manager. The trick is in the recovery from those and the pursuit of a good direction for the team. I like the direction on which we have embarked, assuming that it includes continuing with our young prospects and giving them the chance to develop in what I think could be a real Dodger dynasty.
Besides the fact that I think we have some serious deadwood on the team, like Tomko and Hendrickson, the most concerning mistakes that I see are Pierre and probably Schmidt. I don’t understand why Pierre had to be such a “must have” component on this team that we have to be saddled with him for another 4 plus years. Even in our panic situation over the outfield, I think that management could have done better and not tied our hands as it currently seems. The decision to sign Schmidt is even more concerning to me, because, with all the information that has been flowing in about his visible and gradual loss in velocity last year, his signing seems like a high risk situation that is very questionable as to management’s judgment. Consider also what precedent is set by giving out a $16 million salary for someone who may be of no use to us, when at the same time we’re paying Lowe, Penny, and Wolf somewhere between 7.5 and 9.5 million. No wonder that Lowe is already thinking that this free agent market is something to explore. I know that it is a very inflationary market, but this comparison can just make us look totally sick. And that is a management’s challenge and what they get the big bucks for. So, it is only reasonable that management be judged by how it handles it.
Wow, I take a few days off from the blog and miss a big debate yesterday…bummer.
I don’t think Grady’s ability as a manager is even debatable with the facts that 53 threw at us yesterday (good stuff 53). A manager can only do so much before responsibility falls on the players. He has made the moves that all of us have been calling for and people still choose to bash him, why? Baseball is a marathon and luckily for us we don’t have to face the Angels anymore (unless it’s the WS) so stop panicking. We have a great roster right now, one that can go deep into the playoffs without a major trade IMO so enough of all this doomsday forecasting. Also, maybe I blocked it out of my memory because of the pain it caused me but did we actually win a playoff game in the Depo era???
LIMA TIME
Yes i agree that some moves by managment and coaching staff has been iffy but for the most part has helped the team. But messagebear, if the players Grady has been given by this generous payroll dont you think they should be showing more than below average numbers? I mean there has been times when Grady has made the right move and we win the game and it gets un-noticed but when he makes a decision to stick with his player and show that confidence in them and they fail he gets ripped a new one. The players are the ones who are out there playing the game and the Manager can only take them so far.
dahustlasbac; My sentiments , exactly. You said it like it is. Grady, is doing, with what, he’s been given…GREAT post…..
Yes, I’d be the first to agree that Grady can only manage the personnel that he has been given. I have to believe, however, that since he was hired by Colletti, he’s also been in the loop on making or approving those decisions that shape this team. That means that the choice of signing Nomar and extending Kent’s contract, and even adding Pierre and Schmidt were not actions done in a vacuum. Where these people bat in the lineup, or when they are rested or substituted is clearly Grady’s decisions, and we can debate those up and down. But I’m not willing to let him off the hook, as if all these trouble spots have been inherited by him without his consent. In that respect, while he may subject to the usual amount of good and bad luck, he can’t disown the responsibility that much of this team’s makeup is his just as it is Colletti’s.
Yes i agree i didnt understand the signing of Nomar with loney tearing up the minors and the kind of spring he had showed he had the job to loose but i think it was more of a McCourt signing more than a Colletti and Grady signing, Nomar is very marketable in LA, as we can so obvisouly see but he had a decent season last year and this year has been slow but i think Grady was doing a pretty good job of subing Nomar and Kent with the kids for about a week or two but now that Loney is banged up a bit it will be intersting to see how he will fit him in!
Hey charris1010321 – Those were only Grady’s Major League stats. His Minor League stats are even more incredible:
http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/team/coach_staff_bio.jsp?c_id=la&coachorstaffid=427305
It is refreshing to see that we can agree to disagree on this stuff in a civilized and respectful manner. (Man, I love you guys – but not in a man-crush way – LOL!).
GO DODGERS!
GO MARTIN!
GO PENNY!
Thanks for stepping in again JOSH.
When I was raised, I was taught that if you could not express yourself without using foul language, you were either not educated or you did not know what you were talking about, therefore you were to be ignored.
GO DODGERS
Hopefully both Nomar and Kent will come back closer to the norm of their last year’s performance. If they do, we will probably pull out in front of our competition, and everybody on this forum will be happy. I must admit that Gonzo has been a pleasant surprise so far in that respect, and early on I did not think that it would happen. So, there is still plenty of time, but I think we have to start showing a reversal of fortune at least in respect to our inter-league play right now.
nice stats refference fansince. And yes i must agree that it is definately a great seen that we can state our points to each other without trying to down talk each other. We all valued points to make and the funny thing is no matter how bad you think the other person is off in the back of your mind your sitting there saying “hes got a point there” thats one reason i dont see why most on here have to have it there way or the highway, its like they dont want to be wrong. Hopefully this doesnt turn back into another episode of “As the Inside the Dodgers Blog Turns”
Actually I’m anxious to see today’s lineup including who our DH is going to be, so we can then take the whole discussion in another direction.
Hahaha yeah definately it will be interesting but i think its going to be Olmedo the Killer Tomatoe and then Martin one or two games there (most likely one seeing as how Martin hates being on the bench) Or maybe Grady will surprise us all and make Loney or Ethier the DH. What do you think about Loney in the DH maybe to give his knee some work but not the full work of an entire game?
charris1010321: “…did we actually win a playoff game in the Depo era???”
Yes. As momoracci accurately pointed out, the Depo Dodgers won game-4 of the 2004 NLDS at Dodger Stadium against the St. Louis Cardinals with the animated Jose Lima on the mound. It was a fun game, but sadly, the only post-season win for the Dodgers since 1988.
I went to game-5 the next day, which the Cards won to take the series. What I remember most about that game is that Jim Tracy and his Dodgers walked out onto the field and shook the hands of the Cardinal players, much like a hockey game. That was something that I had never seen before, nor since. It was one of the classiest moments in Dodger history and one reason why I will always respect Jim Tracy as a person.
GO DODGERS!
GO MARTIN!
GO PENNY!
Here’s another direction messagebear:
Chad Billingsley, SP LA
News: Chad Billingsley, not Mark Hendrickson, is the likely replacement starter for the Dodgers’ Jason Schmidt (shoulder) on Thursday, according to MLB.com and the Los Angeles Times.
Thanks 53, those years really tested our resolve as Dodger fans but I’m somewhat ashamed that I FORGOT a good moment in an otherwise forgetable era.
wow kss losing it. that was some funny stuff. serious guys its hard to argue with max sometimes, i know you older guys are a little more stubborn, but you guys have really short memories. grady has been making questionable call after questionable call. look no further than the biggest headscratcher of the year, the florida marlins debacle. not walking the bases full. incidents like that one have become a grady little trademark. letting tomko and hendy just completely crash and burn two years in a row, as if ned held a gun to his head. its just impossible to justify batting JP anywhere but 8th so i wont even get into that……and yes if neds signings hamper us to where we miss the playoffs with a 120 mill payroll he should be on a very short leash if not fired. over the last year he has aquired two of the statistically worse baseball players in the game, last year we were forced to stomach watching julio lugo in the 3 spot, this year we are consistantly giving our worse hitter significant AB’s in the 2 hole. its scary because nomar in the three hole is looking more and more like julio lugo last year except nomar doesnt whine and slam his helmet when he grounds out.
5 teams in baseball have scored less runs than us. If we dont score tonight and if three of those teams score more than 4 runs, then we will be 27 out of 30 teams in runs scored. How about that for a top 5 payroll.
We are last in all of baseball in homeruns. The New York Yankees have more steals then us. And they dont have two slap hitters at the top of the order.
We are middle of the pact in OBP with no power.
Our slugging is third worst in baseball.
We have 35 more errors then the Padres.
Thankfully we have the third best ERA (thanks to Lowe/Penny/Broxton/Saito/Bill)
what is scary is the era that this GM brought to the mix: 4.2 for wolf, 4.6 tomko, 5.5 hendu, 6.3 schmidt)
I am sick of blaming individual players or lineups. We have a GM who has put a crappy team on the field.
Why any of you would have faith in a GM who has never won a WS in any orginizattion he has been in is beyond me. The facts are all right above you as to why you shouldnt
beautiful stats jungar , they dont like it when you post stuff like that, stop being negative. its funny because without looking at the stats i already knew pretty much all that. it is totally obvious that our pitching is our life jacket right now.
graffiti i think pointing out that situation in FLA is kind of weak seeing as how …. well just read the first 6 paragraphs of this article and you will realize why they call Grady a players manager:
http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/gameday_recap.jsp?ymd=20070510&content_id=1956422&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=la
Grady put the game in Lowes hands and Lowe wanted the ball and missed his location. You can argue up and down about this but the fact is besides this situation Grady hasnt been in to many situations like it after. You have to insure that the player knows you have confidence in him to get out of a jam and if he doesnt then you remember that when the situation happens again.
dahustlasbac you cant win that argument, you are going against the grain. once again lowe is a sinkerball picher you load the bases and go for the grounball DP bottomline.
Its all about trial and error and beside i feel pretty comfortable with where we are at: with all those stats that you just mentioned jungar how about putting our record to the test we have the 6th best record in the majors out of 30 ball clubs! No what does that say about a team that is struggling to get better numbers…..?! We are still winning games and we knew we werent going to have the numbers of the elite clubs in the majors but I think those numbers will improve dramatically in the near furture!
I wish they were beautiful, they are UGLY. Those are just facts and you can’t be negative with facts, they are what they are.
The part about Ned being a crappy GM is negative but I have been saying that since last year and will keep saying it until he is gone. His big three offseason signings just prove it even more (Schmidt, Pierre, Nomar)
your right about not winning the arguement graffiti but not because i am wrong or right but becasue you refuse to say that it could have gone either way! What happens when he intentionally walks him then Boone comes up and smacks a single or a double or even a homer then what do you say? “Grady should have pulled him earlier!” we cant always be right and things go the way they do and we cant stop it so to say that you are right and everyone else is wrong shows to me that you are seeing things your way!
We will see how long that record last my friend. You keep believing it will. We are just showing you why we think it won’t.
The dodgers are 24-19 in May and June. If you think we will the division going 24-19 over our next 43 games then your crazy.
All it takes is one 10 game stretch where our pitching dosen’t carry us and our season could be in real jeapordy. Wolf seems to regressing and Tomko/Hendu are usless. So without Schmidt and putting Bills in the rotation that could be a plus, but a minus in the pen (Bills should start)and that could hurt us. And as good as Penny and Lowe have been do you guys expect them to throw another 200 innings of combined 2.50 era? I don’t.
Can we please stop talking about this topic? Goodness, it comes off like some of you want this team to fail so you can come back here in October and say you were right. Now, I’m sure that’s not true, but it definitely comes off that way. Here’s the point, I truly believe that a lot of us are scared because we love this team so much that the idea of going through a rollercoaster season and coming up empty makes us all sick. So, some of you are lashing out blame to management in the hopes that they will make the necessary changes so we feel confident that we can win. Now we just swept the Mets, which felt really great and then lost two of three to the Angels, which well did not.
Now, I can see both sides of the argument, I think the problem with some of you is that you’re going to believe whatever you want and there is no middleground. So whenever Grady makes a mistake you’re all over him, whenever Pierre grounds to second you’re all over him. Whenever Kent/Nomar pops up on the first pitch etc…Here’s where the issue lies a lot of the same people who do that never post when Grady makes a great decision etc… This blog has turned into the center of pessimism, now I’m trying my best (as are others) to bring some sort of balance. When bad things happen by all means I expect to read posts that express why it was bad. Not just “GRADY IS AWFUL…among other uninteresting, unhelpful, non-productive posts. But, when good things happen I expect people to hop on here and express their happiness. And then gives props to the person who made the good play/hit etc…some of you have done so lately, but the perception is still there that you don’t nearly do enough.
That’s all I’ve wanted from the beginning because I know we all love this team, because we all make a point to visit this blog and post every day. But, there are two sides to every coin and with some of you I’m only seeing one side, I’m sure there’s much more from all of you to be seen and read. Now the firing Grady/Ned posts need to stop. We’re 1 1/2 games out, second best team in the N.L, ahead in the wild card. You know when you start talking about firing the manager/GM, when you’re the Giants (10 1/2 games out) or the Orioles who actually did fire their manager. And I think it’s safe to say NONE of us want us to come close to that, but that doesn’t mean we’re not scared of it happening.
GO DODGERS!
VOTE FOR MARTIN!
New Topic!!!
What can we do to change the type of fans we have at Dodger stadium? We tend to only chant negative cheers about how much a team stinks, we boo our own players for making mistakes, and we care more about beach balls and fights than the game right in front of us.
Oh, and please start Chad!
For the farm we have, the money we have, the current payroll number we have, the fan base we have and the history we have we shouldnt be content with maybe making the playoffs. Thats my point Alex and you keep making it.
alex face it, the mets were REALLY struggling when they came to town. beltran must be playing with an injury or something because he has been playing absolutley terrible the last month or so.
Chad taken out of the pen shouldn’t be too much of a problem once Tsao comes back. Then later on, Jon Meloan.
Ummmm i think going 24-19 for the next 43 games isnt great but i think it will put us in a position to make a run at the division seeing as how for the past 3 years our division has been winning with a lesser winning percentage:
’06 – SD & LA 88-74 .543
’05 – SD 82-80 .506
’04 – LA 93-69 .574
if we went 24-19 for the next 43 games that would put us at:
63-49 .562 with 50 games to play i think that would be a pretty good position to be in.
Yes our offense needs to kick it into gear and i must agree that our pitching will not carry us forever! but we have players that are contributing.
Yes you can complain all day about how bad the signings are but hey we have to deal with it and hope for the best. I think all who are so persistent at wanting to get rid of our staff of players managers or coaches should all have a chance to fil those positions and see how they do?! i think it would be a real reality check.
i just wish people were smart enough to hit the beachballs backward. its not fun when people keep hitting them forward. and it is a drag whe they get on the field, but its only for a sec. i went to petco lasst year and that was by far the most pathetic wave ive ever seen, it didnt even go around once.
I agree Momoracci but the key word is “shouldn’t” since April, Chad is filthy. An ERA at 1.00 whip .75 and BA Against at .150
Thats just insanely good and he better be in that rotation!!
Go to a playoff game in October, you’ll never feel a bigger rush in your life. I will never forget Game 3 last season. We were amazing that night against the Mets. And I will cherish the moment when I feel that again. And that’s when I knew that the Dodger fan stereotype was just that…a stereotype. I wasn’t there for the Lima game. I was there in Anaheim in 2002 for games 6 and 7, because I wanted to go to a World Series and watch the Giants lose. I can still hear the thundersticks ringing in my ears 5 years later.
and we showed , its much easier to beat the mets if jose reyes isnt on base.
Well I will shut up. If we gave the Padres 40 million more dollars to spend along with our deep farm system, we would have no chance at our division. So thankfully were able to spend that much more than them (and the Diamondbacks) so maybe we can make the playoffs.
I was there for the Lima game and yeah that was the best day in the last 15 years as a dodger fan. easily.
i had tickets for game 4 last year well we all know what happened but i was bummed about not getting to go, even though it wasnt a WS game im sure it would have been amazing.
And I have absolutely no problem with you jungar, you seem like a very intelligent person. You’re using facts to back up your opinion which makes this feel productive. And you have a right to be frustrated because it’s June and we still haven’t played our best baseball. Maybe i’m in the minority and I think I’ve read a few others say this. But, something inside of me really truly believes Nomar is going to light it up very soon. Now, that may be blind faith, but I can’t shake it. Nomar is going to break loose soon. He’s too good to be playing this poorly. Just don’t give up on him quite yet because I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Long way to go.
Thanks Alex, I like you too and appreciate the ying and yang. if everyone thought like me, this would be a terrible place to visit. I realize sometimes I vent instead of adding something productive. I just want people to demand more of our team. They demand more of us. Parking has gone up from like 6 bucks to 15 and we have 1 playoff win during that time. Now I realize life is more exspensive in general (heck bad movies cost 10+ bucks to see) but my big frustration is that i finally felt like things were really heading in the right direction, we had gotten rid of bad contracts, our farm was rebuilt and we had been to the playoffs 2 of the last 3 years and right now, aside from the potential of the kids things seem stagnant. I root my butt off for these guys and do nothing but cheer during the game. I will be rooting for Nomar as hard as you are, your right, we do need him.
You look at the statistics where we are last in slugging, HRS whatever, and then you look at our win record, which is good. I’m not sure what our run differential is but I have to think its not good. Your run differential will come back to haunt you. Our offense simply MUST get better or there’s no way we will remain atop the division. To see SD performing as good or better than us with a significantly smaller payroll is disturbing. Additionally, they have had expceptional luck with picking people off the scrap heap (Bochachia, Germano, Cruz, etc.) and having them perform well while paying almost nothing for them. We’re the opposite of that—too many players getting paid way too much and not contributing enough. Now I don’t know whether that has to do with the SD front office or whatever, but it would be nice if we were that efficient with our use of money, considering we have so much of it to spend.
Yes i agree with ya alex! We have a long way to go… i had to keep reminding myself that after this weekends series with the OC boys, especially because i had my OC born cousin in my ear this whole weekend!!! But the season isnt even half way over yet so i made sure to remind him that we were still only a game and half back of SD.
LINEUP PREDICTION:
Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Nomar, 1B
Kent, 2B
Gonzalez, DH
Martin, C
Kemp, RF
Ethier, LF
Abreu, 3B
Let me ask you guys this: what you think is most likely to happen? which would u want to happen? )
1. Nothing significant, we play with what we got going forward
2. We make some small trades that may reshuffle some things, hope to catch a big second half from someone, but basically dont trade our prospects.
3. We make a franchise changing trade. Which most likely means top prospects gone, but maybe for someone of a legit 3/4 hitter in his prime.
i would love for pierre to be moved to 8th. i think dodger fans as a whole would love that.
jungar, i think that will have a lot to with how well/badly the kids do in the next month or so and how well/badly the vets do.
#2 is the most reasonable from jungar’s list.
there arent really any options for your third question jungar. if we could get a cabrera/teixera guy then yeah, but outside of ichiro there arent really that many franchise guys. and the way andruw jones has been playing no thanks. also ill go get some numbers, but i was looking into why vernon wells was doing so horribly this year. he doesnt see more than 2-3 pitches per AB most of the time, and hes just not squaring the ball up, similar to nomar. lets hope wells stays chilly, and nomar starts heating up, because we are facing some tough pitchers.
hey it could be worse i guess, we could be the white sox. all those power hitters in that bandbox, someones on the hot seat.
As much as i would like to say #2 jungar i would have to say #1 i dont think the team we have is bad at all, i think this team can win and win big. The thing about this team is most of them are proven ball players aside from the outstanding rookies our team has playoff experience, now as for how much weight that carries into the actual playoffs we will see but i think with the numbers so low now we can only improve with players like Pierre who has proven he gets better as the season goes on. I really hope Nomar gets it going and Kent would keep trucking along untill his motor completely stops that way we can put in Abreu were he should be for the next couple of years! Thats also another reason why i dont want to unload our kids because they will become our dynasty type team in the future!
Alex,
I agree the fans at game 3 were great in terms of pure volume, but it didn’t even compare to the experience I had with the fans and team at the 4+1 game…I know that is not a fair comparison.
When Kent hit the homerun to tie it in game 3, my ears were ringing afterwards,…that was worth the ear piece I will need in the future.
To your question, jungar, I would go with No. 2 option. The mini-trades on my part would deal off Tomko and Hendrickson. I would also want to see how our youngsters and Nomar, Kent, Gonzo perform over the next month or so before making a decision on how to go the rest of the season. If we’re not up in the standings by All Star time, I would opt for turning the game pretty much over to our young talent – that would mean that Loney, Kemp, and Abreu play at least as much as Nomar, Kent, and Gonzo/Pierre. If we go to that extent, I would cut management some slack for the sake of our development toward next year. If they opt to continue with the veterans through the rest of the season, then I think their futures have to ride on that decision – if we don’t perform reasonably through play-offs, we should have a new management team carrying forward next year.
momoracci:
I would love to try that lineup today. No sense about arguing where Pierre should fit, but I would seriously consider putting Gonzo in the cleanup slot and dropping Kent to #5. Just to break up the Nomar, Kent combination and intersperse a lefthander in between.