High Quality Starts
If John Lowe, the writer in Detroit, can come up with a statistic of quality starts, why can’t we come up with another one? If six innings and three earned runs (4.50 ERA) is a quality start, how about a high quality start? That would be seven or more innings and two or less earned runs or a 2.57 ERA at its worst.
Brad Penny, who is tied for the Major League lead with 25 quality starts, has 13 "high quality starts" among them, which is pretty impressive. Peavy has 15 HQS in 25 QS, Dan Haren has 13 HQS in 25 QS, Carmona has 15 HQS in 23 QS and Sabathia has 16 HQS in 23 QS. Just some food for thought to show how good Penny has been (and Peavy and Sabathia, for that matter).
Meanwhile, in regards to tonight’s game, Derek Lowe cannot make the start due to the hand injury he suffered yesterday during pregame batting practice. Chad Billingsley will pitch tonight on normal rest followed by David Wells on normal rest tomorrow. We’ll see where we go from there…
Here’s tonight’s lineup:
Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Kemp, RF
Kent, 2B
Loney, 1B
Martin, C
Ethier, LF
Abreu, 3B
Billingsley, P
If you’re counting, that’s six kids in nine spots, all of whom were developed in the Dodger farm system (with the exception of Ethier, who spent time in the system).
Now it’s off to the press conference where we’ll announce many of the plans in place for next year’s 50th anniversary celebration. Then it’s Team Photo Day where the guys take the photo for the season. More on those events later…
Inside the Dodgers 
Chad is 3-0 against North Mexico right?
Nice job playing catch Lowe!
Great line-up. I would’ve liked to see LaRoach but as long as it isn’t Nomar and Shea then I’m pretty happy. I smell a win tonight boys.
Oh yeah and I’m sorry for the Lowe injury.
Now that’s a terrific line up… If we win tonite, what are the odds that this same line up will be out there tomorrow?? Let’s go Dodgers…
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Nice line-up tonight. I am predicting a big night from Kemp. He hits well at Dodger Stadium and he is certainly rested…
What’s the situation with the radio contract for next year ? Are we staying at KFWB ? Can’t wait to find out the plans for next year on the 50th Anniversary. Keep us updated Josh! Thanks.
Good lineup Abreu, LaRoche, I can live with that.
One day too late though dumba$$ Grady.
We have only seen the beginning of the stars start coming up Kemp, Loney, Martin, Andre, Broxton and Bills. The next wave of guys should start coming around the corner pretty soon. LaRoche, Meloan, X. Paul, Kershaw get the picture, and you do we thank Logan White. See where I’m going with this James Gusssssss.
Posted by: californiaautorebuilder@hotmail.com | September 12, 2007 02:27 PM
Great lineup. Too bad about Derek though. The young ones should do well. Go Dodgers.
Kemp will hit 2 HR today!
i think he is mad for not playing yesterday!
grady’s fault… lol
Germano will be ripped tonight. I don’t see him lasting 4 innings.
Nice line up.
I predict a late-game switch moving Abreu to 2B w/ LaRoche taking over at 3B. Then we’d maybe looking at the 08 team.
Is LaRoche hurt or did he wreck Grady’s motorcycle?
In case there is anybody on this thread that wasn’t in the last who would like to see Logan White promoted to GM of the Dodgers rather than leave the organization for a GM position with another club:
http://promoteloganwhite.wordpress.com/
Yeah I don’t get why Abreu starts over LaRoche…at all. Oh well. Nice job with your hand Lowe. Not like we need your pitching or anything…
I never understood the basis behind a quality start. A 4.50 ERA is a marginal good year in the American League. In the NL, there’s nothing at all special about it…
The biggest rule that bothers me is when a closer gets credit for a win after a blown save. Why should you get a positive stat when you failed to do your job?
http://www.fightingphils.mlblogs.com
Given the past week or so I guess we now have to accept that LaRoche is no longer in the Dodger plans for the future. I think that’s a shame because I always thought he could be the solution at 3B for years to come. Shows you how much I know!
Where will our power come from next year?
Power will come from Matt Kemp, James Loney and Russell Martin. And maybe a free agent outfielder.
different prospective could be that they are showcasing Abreu, remember he is a Boras client.
LaRoche isn’t starting because Germano throws a bunch of *slow* curveballs that Andy has trouble with.
We need a middle of the order “intimidator”. Loney, Kemp and Martin are great assets, but they would be more dangerous with a big stick in the cleanup spot!
My vote goes for Matt Holiday, send Pierre, Abreu, Hendrickson, Olmedo, R. Martinez, Nomar and whoever else we don’t want.
hey momoracci,
You break things down real fine just like Grady.
FIRE GRADY LITTLE!!!!
LaRoche is hitting .197 this year. Abreu is hitting .283. It really isn’t that hard to figure out why Tony is starting.
Unfortunate, but we are probably going to be stuck with Jeff Kent next year. He is no longer a feared hitter in the middle of the order and he is a complete butcher at 2nd base.
Stuck with Nomore also. Thanks Again Ned.
caliautorebuilder, how about a line up of:
Furcal SS
Pierre CF
Kemp RF
ARod 3b
Loney 1B
Ethier LF
Martin C
Abreu 2B
And no Grady in the dugout. That would win a few more games than the Pads and DBacks.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Arod would be awesome but he isn’t leaving NY. They will resign him even if they say they won’t when he opts out of his contract.
James — Nice call if that switch is made to move Abreu to 2B and let LaRouche play. Probably won’t happen unless the Dodgers are crusin’ or losin’ bad.
But lath19 LaRoche is a 3B and Abreau is a 2B .. don’t you try to find a solid 3B of the future or do you subscribe to the Grady theory?
Will be **** near impossible to win a championship or division with Kent and Pierre up the middle.
That would be nice, even though I don’t like any Yankee players, but he would look good in a Dodger uniform, and if he would come here that would mean he wouldn’t be a yankee so I guess I could like him. But not for more than 18 million a year.
There has been some talk about signing a free agent outfielder this offseason. Torii Hunter, Aaron Rowand, and Andruw Jones are all available. Personally, I would go with Jones who I fully expect to recover from his off year (Off year = 24 HR, 85 RBI), and available at a terrific discount thanks to this year. But Hunter is a good choice too. And Rowand is certainly a huge improvement over Popgun Pierre.
Kemp and Ethier would be the guys to play in the other 2 spots. Pierre should go. I’m sure we could unloas him on somebody if we eat about $2 or $3 million per year.
A-Rod would look pretty sweet in the middle of the lineup next year. Too bad it won’t happen. Getting Girardi to manage would be a good start on next year.
Just hide all the blonde shemale strippers first lol
****, give him all the blonde strippers he wants if he hits 50 homers and drives in 150 runs. HAHA
Kirk Gibson, or Davey Lopes would be the first two guys I would interview for the mangerial vacancy.
Hey Kiper, that looks nice. But what do you think of A-Rod at SS and LaRoche at 3B? If LaRoche doesn’t work out, we can move A-Rod to 3B and put Hu at SS
ARod will definitely opt out of his contract, and I don’t see why the Dodgers don’t have as good a chance as any team at getting him. The competition will be between very few teams and alot of money. Let’s give it a shot, with our kids and his talent, the Dodgers would be the team to beat next season. As for our next manager, I would like to see Dusty….
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
thunderbolt, I don’t think it’s a bad idea, but I would be real surprised if ARod would accept or even consider a change back to SS. In getting him, you have to sacrifice something or someone and here it would more than likely be LaRoche. But Hu at SS and Abreu at 2B along with ARod at 3b and Loney at 1B, well, that’s not to shabby, is it?
I like the looks of this lineup. I don’t have a problem with Abreu at 3rd at all, but what is up with Laroche? Has Grady lost all faith in him? Is it back problems, or what?
Boras is talking $30-35 million. All of know that when ARod signed 7 years ago, $25 million was ridiculous. 7 years later, $25 million is STILL ridiculous. And Boras wants $30 million. Whose gonna pay that?
At least Grady might have a clue that Nomar is worthless now..
The Angels will snag Arod!
We should get Garvey to hire the strippers for him when we go after him. HA!
jspelk … I doubt Grady would know if he had a Kangaroo shoved up his …..
Rod,
There are less than 20 games left in the season. I don’t care if Abreu’s main position is 2B or not. He has played at 3B for the Dodgers this year more than any other position. You want to start LaRoche who is hitting almost 100 points lower just because 3B is his best position? Don’t give me the argument that LaRoche is a better fielder at third. Dude has 3 errors in 140 innings, Abreu has 4 errors in 178. Don’t give me the OBP argument. LaRoche has hit 8th in almost every game he’s started while Abreu has hit 1,2,7 and 8.
I wish LaRoche was given more of a chance to prove himself earlier in the year but he wasn’t. If the Dodgers lose the next 2 games the let him play but now isn’t the time to see what he can do.
We’d all love to see A-rod in Dodger Blue! It would be a very co$tly move, and you would wonder who would be given up for him. Not everyone would be happy. Hands off on Martin, Loney, Kemp, Ethier, Billingsley, Broxton, and Saito. Keep Abreu around too.
you don’t give up anything for him, he’s a FREE AGENT!!!!
I still think Nomar’s popularity is baffling — being a cultural L.A. figure should only go so far. Bottom line, he’s been pretty bad for over a year now.
Get rid of these has-beens!
Dusty Baker better not be the next Dodgers manager. Unless you want Billingsley, Elbert, and Kershaw to go the way of Prior and Wood. You can probably thank him in part for Schmidt’s injury problems to. Dude lets starters throw pitches like this is 1923.
lath19-
Abreu has more ABs batting 8th than any other position. And his OBP is far worse than LaRoche in that spot (.355 vs .444).
JJRiley — If ARod opts out, he’s a free agent and no one leaves but it’ll cost major $$. If he stays, Yanks could trade him to us but would cost us players but Yanks / Tex could eat some of that salary.
I think if you choose that second scenario, you’d have to see how many of those young guys you could get back in free agency.
kiper If they have a chance, they have to give up alot to $ign him, which means getting rid of some of what they have now. It’s all going to boil down to who has the fattest wallet when it’s all said & done.
Arod may be off the hook, and a freak of nature. His number are just sick. But NO ONE is worth 30 million a year!!
Lath19,
You’re probably right but my agrument(if you can call it that) is based on a solid 3B of the future. We seem to have played a 100 guys there in the last few years without coming up with a consistent starter. I, like some others, had thought LaRoche was the 3B of the future but it is painfully obvious now that I was wrong. I just hope the organisation doen’t ruin Abreu by turning him into a utility.
jiriley, i agree with you, no one is worth 30 million a year. That is why I said no more than 18 million a year, and sign him for no more than 5 years.
Great line-up! Tonight we start our 12 game winning streak!
GO BILLINGSLEY!
GO DODGERS!
Arod is worth it. We will see how badly McCourt wants to win if Arod opts out.
Geez rodmky, we have had a carousel of guys at 3B, bill madlock, bill mueller, nomar, p. guerrero, i could go on and on. Ron Cey looks like he can still play!!!!
californiaautorebuilder@hotmail.com .
Isn’t that what I said .. or does Australian translate differently in SoCal.
Based on this year I don’t see that LaRoche will not be given a shot. He just needs to stay healthy. He is as good as Kemp/Loney/Martin.
McCourt would never pony up 25-30 million a year for 5 years for A-rod. Why should he? Fans will show up and be happy with mediocrity and he will make more money the way it is now. I mean were going on 19 years here and attendence is not hurting. Sure he wants to win, but this is a business first.
LAROCHE got game winning hits the lsat 2 games he played. Why is everyone so certain he’s not good. He’s better than noma or shea!!!
FIRE GRADY LITTLE
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We gotta return the favor against the Pads today
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PLAY LAROCHE
FIRE GRADY LITTLE!
Jungar — I hope someone doesn’t bring in the fact that McCourt is renovating the stadium at $70 million and say we should use that for ARod.
Let’s just win tonight, and Grady just sit in the corner, and don’t move let the coaches coach, and listen to what they have to say. Or better yet let the AAA manager manage this game, he’s already in the dugout with you, he could only do better than you, and for sure not any worse.
YES USE THE MONEY FOR AROD and HIRE NEW WORKERS( I think some of them had special ed in high school) THAT WILL SHORTEN LINES!!!!!!!
FIRE GRADY LITTLE
IF NED WON’T FIRE GRADY, THEN FIRE NED TOO
FIRE GRADY LITTLE!
I agree 100% scott!
FIRE GRADY LITTLE
IF NED WON’T FIRE GRADY, THEN FIRE NED TOO
I’ve got to believe that his back is ailing LaRoche again. Otherwise, why not give him even an occasional try? Of course, this management wouldn’t give you the truth either way – just like real politicians.
And to think next year will be twenty years that the dodgers last won a world series.
arod is the best player in baseball. but no way in **** would i want him on the dodgers. if the dodgers got him i would really be pissed! how many rings does he have? thats rite none! how many rings does bonds or griffey have? having the best player in baseball doesnt mean your gonna win the world series and history has proven that. you win championships and have dynasty by having a bunch of really good players who have great chemistry and like playing together. thats how you win.
You win with talent too dude!
were not saying trade ALL the young guys and get Arod. You don’t think adding the most prolific power hitter in baseball would help our team????
scurtis
so our young guys have no talent?
bill, I’m with you I don’t really want A-Rod but Pujols (who’s still the best in my opinion) won it all last year.
It doesn’t hurt to have great pitcing also Bill 1234.
messagebear,
You’d have to think that either LaRoche is hurt or the Dodgers have given up on him and I agree you’ll never get a straight answer from the Front Office.
Have Colleti FIRE GRADY LITTLE.
Then have McCourt FIRE COLLETTI!!!
Actually I’d like them both burned at the stake set up on the pitcher’s mound – let’s make that a special promotion event the day after the Dodgers are mathematically eliminated. That’s sure to draw a maximum crowd and probably get national TV coverage. Let’s even put it on Pay Per View – it’s bound to raise enough money to finally get a top rate starting pitcher, plus a big bat.
I would look forward to it as the event of the season.
we were 4-0 with LaRoche starting at 3b in September. On that alone I wouldn’t mess with it, even if you thought he was worthless out there which diehard obviosly proved he wasn’t. I am guessing with positive optomism that LaRoche is hurt and they don’t want to take the chance of him getting hurt long term. Plus, hey let’s be honest there were 5 guys at third this year and none exactly claimed the job, LaRoche included.
Yeah orth things like stadium improvements and stuff are all in order for the McCourts to make more money down the road when they sell the team. Building the brand as much as possible. He can control that aspect of improving the franchise.
To be fair I am sure it’s a totally different budget. I think McCourt spends good money on the team, but I don’t see him locking into a major contract due to cost certanty.
If ARod is available, the Dodgers should absolutely try to get him. If they don’t that’s OK, but I would really be disappointed in the organization if they didn’t even make an effort. Anytime the best player in the game, and arguably one of the 3 greatest of all times, becomes available, you have to explore the possibilities if signing him. Ken Griffey Jr. in his prime never hit the free agent market, Barry Bonds, regardless of what we think of him is one of the greatest, hit the free agent market once in his prime, so an opportunity like this does not present itself too often. In signing ARod any team gives itself a fighting chance at going to the post season, with the talent on this Dodger team due back next season, he would be get them over the hump and into the next level, NLCS or World Series and really, isn’t that what we all want for this club? Go after ARod or Hunter or Jones, but put the team in a position to win.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
MAN
There are some great post today GOOD JOB GUYS!!!!
FIRE GRADY LITTLE
Kiper well said, give them a chance to win day in and day out. No more Gonzo like signings.
I don’t want andruw Jones he’s getting fatter, imagine with LA’s great food and big contract. I’ll take Hunter but Arod would be GOD in LA!!!!
I really doubt that Ned will sign many more questionable veterans considering the predicament that he put the team in this year (Gonzo, Wolf, Schmidt, Pierre, Saenz, Tomko….etc.)If he does go that route again, well it’s time to turn over the GM job to swood. LOL…
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Shut ’em down again Bills.
P.s. Fire Grady Little
diehardblu, I’ve been thinking that all along, but with so many ARod haters here, I didn’t say it, but he would be GOD in LA!!
Very well said.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
I think Vlade is a perfect example of what Kiper is saying. The angels have not been THAT much better than us. What they have had is a consistent MVP candidate in the middle of their order that could make up and buy them time to make the other things work. Imagine if we had gotten him.
Does anybody here wish that McCourt or Colletti or even Grady, would read this blog? I would love it, especially today with all the FIRE GRADY!!!! going on. Keep it going and I’m sure Josh will bring it to their attention..Go Dodgers!!!
FIRE GRADY!!!!!!
I don’t hate A-Rod, I hate the thought of $30 mill a year.
Hey diehard it caught on from the other night…
FIRE GRADY!!!
If we raise enough money for a new motorcycle, maybe Grady will just walk away from the team.
charris what’s worse
Pierre 9 mil a year
or
Arod 30 mil a year?
best team in the NL. World Series revenue!!!!
FIRE GRADY LITTLE
Jungar — I still think that the $$ should be spent on pitching and getting the kids into 4-year contracts as soon as the kids are able and offering them the average of what their MLB position counterparts are making at the time.
Young guys have talent + Arod = a **** good chance to win a world series.
diehard, they are both bad IMO, Pierre because he doesn’t give you anywhere near the value and A-Rod because he would chew-up about 25% of our payroll. He isn’t even the best hitter in baseball.
I blame Grady for my lack of fun at the game last night.
FIRE GRADY LITTLE or give me a refund.
FIRE GRADY!! FIRE GRADY!!
FIRE GRADY!! FIRE GRADY!!
FIRE COLLETTI! FIRE COLLETTI!
FIRE COLLETTI! FIRE COLLETTI!
Were the LOS ANGELES DODGERS our payroll should be like our attendance TOP 3. that’s 150 million -30 mil. we have a GREAT farm system and 120 mil to play with is that too much to ask???
charris, look at this way, there is speculation that Torii Hunter is going to command around 20 mil per year. If he’s worth that much isn’t ARod worth the 30? Look it’s ridiculous numbers, but MLB and all pro sports have raised the bar, we might think 30 mil is to much, but the Dodgers are one of the few organizations that can afford a 120 to 125 mil a year payroll, and if that is what it takes to win these days, then somewhere along the line McCourt is going to have to ante up. How is he going to recoup his 120 million dollar investment that he’s put into Dodger Stadium? By selling tickets and the more tickets he sells the quicker he recoups and moves on and the more you win the more tickets you sell and ARod will help do both, win and sell tickets. The bottom line is ARod will cost more but also generate more…
Kiper — If the Dodgers are averaging 40K a game, are you saying ARod might bringin, say, 50K a game?
Who would pay Toruu $20 million / year?
Arod with the Dodgers would be a HOTTER ticket than becham or kobe!!!!! easy
kiper, I don’t think Hunter will get $20 mill a year but we’ll see, hey if the market is going that direction then good move but I still don’t think any one player is worth 20-25% of an entire payroll. That alone will cause tension in the clubhouse. What if Kemp breaks out and starts averaging 40 HRs a year? You better believe he’d demand that A-Rod size contract from us if he’s putting up comparable #s.
charris I would LOVE to have that problem!!!!!!
FIRE GRADY LITTLE!!!
good call charris^
I am saying that if you’re showcasing the best player in the game, and you’re in first place you will have increased attendance. Why not average 50K a game? There was an article on Fox Sports a few weeks ago where they state that Hunter’s agent had notified the Twins that there would be no hometown discount and the Twins were looking at offering between 16 to 18 mil, what does that mean? Well, that he’s going to want around 20…
I hope the Padres sweep the dodgers. Why would you want the dodgers to make the playoffs? If they make the playoffs they are going to get swep anyways in the NLDS, and that means GRADY LITTLE will be back. If they missed they playoffs than there is a better chance that McCourt will fire both LITTLE and COLLETI. Bring in Dusty Baker in 08 and let the young players play.
charris, i think you’re a little more intelligent than that. If Kemp can break out, like you said, and hit 40 HR a year for 11 or 12 straight years, yeah he should demand ARod money. I think we’re talking about 2 different animals here, one who is a certain hall of famer and may be the greatest home run hitter in the history of the game withing 7 or 8 years and a kid who has the POTENTIAL to hit 30 or 40 HR’s but has actually only hit 17 in his young career. I could be wrong, but I don’t think that you worry about what or how much a player may demand 4 years down the line when you’re trying to win. Like I said, I could be wrong and I don’t pretend to know much about the game or its economics.
im telling you guys arod would be a terrible move! we have plenty of good young players who can put up great numbers!! we dont need to waste our money on him. and if we do what happens wen our young guys do really well and become free agents. we wouldnt be able to keep many of them and then once arod (who is 32) is done then we have to start all over again…and for wat MAYBE one world championship compared to MULTIPLE?
Decent point eduardosoto…no way is Grady back if they miss the playoffs.
Fire Grady Little.
bill, this is an organization that has not won a World Series in 20 years and only 1 playoff game in that same period. They should jump at the opportunity of winning “one world championship” as you stated. The young guys are full of potential, there is no certainty in what they can do, ARod or even Tori Hunter have proven what they can do. In the end you may be right though, maybe Kemp and Loney and LaRoche and Ethier will hit 30+ HR’s and drive in 100 runs, maybe, they have potential. No doubt.
JOSH***I really wouldn’t look for High Quality Starts, I simply think it’s too much to expect on a regular basis. I would instead look for more runs scored by the offense. I fiqured Lowe wouldn’t start when I read about the accident. I always considered Ethier one of us even though he isn’t “home grown”. I don’t recall him ever appearing in a major league game with any other team. Did he ever? I think we are starting to get a glimps of next years lineup. Yesterday’s game was very forgetable, TODAY WE BEGIN AGAIN.
ya i would love to see torii hunter on the dodgers. but no arod. i like arod but i dont see him as the piece to us winning that world series. i would give up winning one year for the chance to win multiple years in a heartbeat.
no way is dusty baker the answer. this man gave neifi perez like 500 ab’s or something a few years back. and bill since theyre already spending alot of money and blocking our young players, we might as well spend money on a player that is worth it. and to me one world championship would be worth it because how many times in baseball do teams actually win multiple titles in an era?
Right on ladodgerbluefan. This city needs a World Series winner now.
P.s.s. I forgot….Fire Grady Little.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
p.s.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
After all the dodgers are tied for the third most WS titles in baseball history, and they have only won 6 in over one hundred years. so yes one title is absolutely worth it
ladodgerbluefan, thank you!!!
ya but do you guys realize whats happening in baseball???
baseball is different now then it was 10-15 years ago. wen was the last time a bunch on free agent signings helped somebody win a championship. or the last trade that happened to win a championship?? its been awhile and why is that?
well it started back in the early 90’s with the cleveland indians. they built their team up with young guys for their system and prospects from other systems. and they went on a string of division titles..granted they choked int the world series and playoffs multiple times…but i think they had the rite idea. then in 2000 the a’s came out of nowhere and went to the playoffs for a couple years straight. and how did they do it?? YOUNG DEVELOPED TALENT! same thing with the twins a couple years later.
now the past couple years have been a couple of the slowest trading dealines in history. why is that?? because teams are looking back at these teams with small markets that are winning! the dodgers with one of teh biggest payroll in baseball just sat there wondering why the twins were winning and they weren’t.
teams are staring to think this all around the league. the diamondbacks, rockies, us, brewers, devil rays, twins, a’s, rangers, indians, tigers. they are all doing it. nobody wants to give up their prospects anymore because they realize that they have a better chance of winning if you build through your sysytem
and if your wondering if any of these teams that have been building through their system have won any world series?? the angels and marlins
The Marlins bought a lot of players too and then got rid of them after they won the World Series.
ladodgerbluefan
the reason they have only won 6 titles is biggest they have the mind set of “one title is worth it”
how bout we ask some white sox fans if one title is worth it?? they are gonna be rebuilding for the next 4 years!
What a glorious year that would be though!
Cody Ross has quietly snuck into the everyday center field role for the Marlins, starting each of the team’s past seven games there, six of them against right-handers. He had long been a quality platoon mate against left-handers, batting .388 with a .483 on-base percentage and .776 slugging percentage this season, .293/.362/.641 for his career, but his .304/.375/.587 rates against right-handers this year back up the idea of him playing regularly.
—
Traded by the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Cincinnati Reds for a player to be named later. The Cincinnati Reds sent Ben Kozlowski (June 1, 2006)
bill, I guess i’m missing something here, you keep talking about giving up our prospects and everybody else is talking about signing ARod, like I said i don’t know much about the game, but i was not aware of the fact that you have to give up players to sign a free agent. Obviously you got it down better than me. Thanks.
not in 2003 they didnt. guess who their starting pitching consisted of
becket
burket
penny
d train
oh and miguel cabrara ,mike lowell and derek lee as well.
all came through the system of theirs. then they let wat could have been a dynasty go
i am all about the dodgers playing their young up and coming stars. believe me… i cant make that point any clearer… the point is we are LA, the second biggest market, we draw like 3.7 million (second highest in baseball) and we already are spending alot of money as it is, so why not spend it on greatness rather than mediocrity. pierre + nomar + schmidt= 32 million or so a year. To me id rather have a consistent power threat and arguably the best player in baseball for about 32 million than underproductive players. and you can then use kemp in right loney at first ethier in left and martin behind the plate.. not to mention billingsley in the rotation with kershaw on his way and broxton and meloan in the pen. all of a sudden you have a mix of good young players and good free agent signings.. our problem is that we have spent money to just spend it.. rather than having foresight and waiting to spend it on the right player(s)
kiper
i dont really understand wat your saying there
bill, I’m sorry…. but Penny was originally drafted and signed and then TRADED to the Marlins by the Az Diamondbacks. OK, but other than that you’re right about everything. Oh and Mike Lowell came from the Yankees, but other than that you’re right…
and derek lee from the padres… and d train from the cubs
true. i was thinking of 1997.
Pierre was on that 2003 team wasnt he?
Thank you again ladodgerbluefan…I see bill’s point, but I gotta agree more on your view.
Fire Grady Little
I agree with ladodgerbluefan also, excellent point.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!!
ladoderfan
ya and if we get arod we will have forgotton to for see the fact that martin loney kemp and bills and all the other young guys will be gone in a couple years, cuz we dont have enough ,money to keep them all…cuz we got a FACE OF THE TEAM player in arod. we would even be the dodgers anymore..we would be ARODS TEAM just like texas was. and it didnt work out for them..just ask their fans
Martin after all star break
.283/.384/.446/.830
Navarro after all star break
.313/.363/.527/.890
im not trying to be a smart *** im just saying that great teams are a mix of homegrown talent and smart free agent signings or trades
ladodgerbluefan, I agree, again.
to everybody really
ya ino that penny lowell and a couple other guys came up through other organizations. but so did ethier for us and we still consider him an oragnization player rite?? those guys made names for themselves as MARLINS not any other team. exactly why teams are not trading their prosepects away anymore
all the young guys are here at LEAST 4 more years.
well the business side of baseball is that half of our young nucleus (martin,kemp,broxton,loney,billingsley etc) at least will probably be gone when they are eligible for free agency. you cant assume we will have them forever. why not win while we have them and worry about all that other stuff later rather than assuming they will all stay in dodger blue for their entire careers
diehard
ya they are and they’ll all be gone once they start the prime of their careers as well
ladogerblu is on the money again!
this team will be average again next year if this is the lineup.
furcal ss
pierre cf
kemp rf
kent 2b
loney 1b
martin c
ethier lf
laroche 3b
that is average!
Bill the problem with your theory is the person in charge is throwing away our young kids for garbage. Not the core kids of course, but guys like Guzman, Ross, Navarro one day will come back to bite us because we will look around and be the Giants all of a sudden with no orginizational depth.
well this is a gang up lol
but ok we’ll see if we get arod and then we’ll see who kemp goes into the hall fame as..a dodger? or another team? and we will see how many world series we have 20 years from now. i guessing that if we go with the way most of you are think that…we’ll have ONE! just liek we do now :]
Finally, a good lineup.
http://mikesciosciastragicillness.com/
Martin after all star break
.283/.384/.446/.830
Navarro after all star break
.313/.363/.527/.890
jungar,
i know youre probably just pointing out because its interesting but its way too small of a sample to make an actual judgement. navarro for the year is still sub 300 OBP and like 360 SLG
NAVARRO SU CKS!!!!!
he is not the baserunner,defensive,power,disciplined player that martin is.
Matthew your blog is hilarious.
“Just look at the sidebar here You have 15 pitchers”
lol
agreed diehard
i miss cody ross.
no, no, no u get me all wrong…my point is fine trade him, Martin is way, way better….but he is a 23 year old catcher with a decent minor leauge history..trade him for something good or hold on to him. God forbid something happened to Martin this year we would be playing two old men. But then, hey that’s how we roll.
ok just making sure… i agree, when ned has traded prospects he hasn’t exactly gotten much for them.. lugo for guzman, tiffany and jackson for carter and baez, and hendy and hall for navarro and someone else i dont remember off the top of my head. D rays have gotten a decent little group of players off our hands
wow Matthew… great narrative in your blog. Grady Little(brain) could take a point or two from your last post.
Finally I can agree with Diehard. Navarro does ***** and anybody who would rather have him instead of Martin is crazy. I heard Tampa’s ERA is around 7 when Navarro starts but when their backup catcher(josh paul) starts their team ERA is around 4. I feel that is a very telling stat. Our team had a terrible record when Navarro started behind the plate.
O Jungar I didn’t see your most recent comment… I understand what you are saying now. We traded Navarro for ****(aka Hendy and Toby Hall) we should have gotten more from him considering he was a good minor league prospect. I think we got Navarro from AZ for Sean Green who got him from the NYY for Randy Johnson.
*for
I just thru $148 down on the moneyline tonight. COME ON BLUE!
The dodgers MUST add a big stick for next season. Looking at our roster, the only possible fit would be 3B or corner outfield. It’s hard to find big pop in a centerfielder and I don’t want Boras’ overpriced Jones. Besides, we can slide Kemp over there. Not too many attractive power-hitting free agents, though, so you just might have to part with LaRoche or Hu or Abreu or Ethier or even Pierre (pipe dream, but I can wish, can’t I?) to get some REAL pop. I would NOT trade any young pitching, but if someone wants Lowe, hey, thank you very much. And before you all jump on me, Abreu is a second baseman…and you never place huge premiums on them (they can be easily found). The Dodgers learned THAT hard lesson in the DeShields/Pedro trade.
And oh yeah, I’m with all of you…most anyway. As nice a gentleman as Grady is, we need a new direction in the dugout next season.
Chad Billingsley has 5 “High Quality Starts” out of 16, plus a 6 IP, 0 R where we was lifted out of a laugher, and the 6+, 1 ER start last Friday where Grady ridiculously yanked him after the leadoff single to Barry “Greatest Hitter of All Time (‘roids notwithstanding)” Bonds. So that’s like 7/16. Not bad for a barely 23-year old, along with his 140 ERA+ (3.22), 1.251 WHIP, 8.6 K/9, and 3.5 BB/9.
If it were up to me, and since I know we can’t get rid of Pierre, I would trade Ethier for something useful and sign Hunter/Jones or find some way to snag Alex Rios (maybe for Hu/Abreu and some other prospects, maybe DLowe since he’s in his last year). Crazy? Maybe, but we need more power and Ethier hasn’t shown any power than he had last year.
The whole point w/ Navvarro is to show that he’s not completely worthless and Ned practically gave him away instead of using his value to get something decent.
I hail thee Reese! Hodges!
I call on thee Drysdale! Robinson!
Thy heathen, Satan Angels have disrespected God Lasorda! Stolen Saint Scoscia, kidnapped Mickey The Hatcher!
Do you not hear my plea O’Malley? Those false priests of Diego! They must be smitten down by your trolley! All that is Holy, the snakes of the valley are encroaching!
All that is Sandy, Maury, Willie and Duke. Dusty, Garv and Gabarkowitz! Fergie rids a Penguin tonight! Tonight the pagan priests do fall! The fruits of victory!
When did we become the SF Giants?
Say what you will about Grady Little but he is not the overwhelming problem, it is philisophy.
The fans have become impatient (and who wouldn’t after 20 seasons) and management is trying to quick fix this ship with low grade duct tape.
I for one would be much more patient if I heard or saw a plan. We have a model, one that other clubs have used efficiently and the Dodgers used it as well when they were successful. GO WITH YOUR OWN!
Win or lose I would cheer for this lineup (not in batting order) next year:
Martin C
Lonney 1B
Abreu 2B
LaRoache 3B
Hu SS
Young LF
Kemp CF
Eithier RF (I know he isn’t completley homegrown but he was a traded for prospect)
Trade Furcal for pitching propects. Pierre I no idea what to do with him because I doubt anyone would be dumb enough to take his contract off of our hands (do the yankees need a pinch runner?), Nomar who is here next year (for $9 mil. which makes him like Pierre) will be the rusted sports car that we keep in the garage as a utility player, Our pitching is set thanks to contract status.
Yes this team will take it lumps but at least it shows a course of action instead of the CYA course that the organization has taken.
Why can this organization not have a platform and stick to it? Unless that platform is inconsistency… if that is the case then they are doing a great job.
Sincerely,
A fan of leadership.
Let’s Go BILLLLLLLZZZZZY
as long as he throws strikes, I think we’ll be o.k.
Horrible inning for us. 3 bad at-bats. Not making Germano work at all.
Four comments about off-season moves. I fear them. I fear the management making the trades in the off-season that they would not make at the deadline. Sure, a free agent signing is fine, but there are very few premiere free agents out there.
Also, the discussion about finding a new outfielder is not good. It would mean Ethier becomes excess. We could deal him, and I understand that if there was a corner outfielder we could get that would be a big impact, but I don’t like it that much.
The idea of getting a new centerfielder might be fun to dream about, but it’s not going to happen. Even Logan White as GM is not going to trade or release Juan Pierre, and even Kirk Gibson as manager is going to play him most days. And Pierre has never played a position other than Center Field. We could debate Pierre’s value all day, and carp about whether he’ll be in there, but the reality is that he’ll be in there, so the idea of signing Tori Hunter of Andruw Jones is nice, but never going to happen.
Fourth, everyone keeps saying that we need to sign a big power bat. Why? Is Matt Kemp’s power not enough? Let’s face it–Willie Mays, Hank Aarron, Manny Ramirez, Vlad Guerrerro were all rookies or second year players once. But there is every reason to believe that Kemp can be that power hitter. There has to be one or two that come of age every year, why do we think that with the best farm system in baseball, we have not developed one of them. Heck, we might have a few good power hitters–after all, can we all agree now that the idea that Loney will never hit home runs has been debunked by the fact that he’s hit 10 as a rookie despite only getting to play about half a season?
Tough inning pitchwise for BILZ.
what did vinny say about kershaw. i missed it.
My Loney has a first name,
It’s J-A-M-E-S
My Loney has a second name,
It’s L-O-N-E-Y
I love to watch him every day
And if you ask me why I’ll say
‘Cause James Loney has a way
With H-I-T-T-I-N-G!
GOOD GOING MARTIN AFTER LONEY’S TRIPLE. That’s the way to do it.
Vinny said Kershaw is GOOOD
Make that a double & error adds up to the same thing.
Vinny mentioned the story that was in some new reports today that Kershaw had played catch with the Padres’ Chris Young, who called Kershaw’s arm “electric.”
The full story is here: http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/padres/20070912-9999-1s12padnotes.html
The more we see of James Loney, the more obvious it becomes that sending him back to the minors at the start of the season was a HUGE and COSTLY mistake!! I still can’t believe that management did that.
Bills has now thrown 54 pitches in 3 innings. Way too many pitches. In other words, Bad Chad has shown up tonight (perhaps because he was planning on going tomorrow).
That being said, we are now entering an era where even Bad Chad can shut teams down.
P_I_E_R_R_E
Through three innings, Billingsley has thrown 54 pitches and Germano has thrown 37. Both are throwing about 56% strikes.
So is Germano and his 4.35 ERA better than Bills and his 3.14 ERA? Are the Padres hitters, who only have two guys hitting better than .260, and no one better than .290, better than the Dodger hitters?
Or, have the Dodger coaches placed less emphasis on a fundamental like plate discipline and working the count than the Padres staff has?
BILZ Is struggling and Pads know it.
He has to challenge them a little more, they are very patient.
This game is a lot like last night.
Smart Padre run
I think if the Dodgers were more silective at the plate instead of just swinging at pitches that are somewhere around the plate they’d score more runs.
Kemp looked like the Bison he is when he slide into second. I thought he was going to kill Greene.
My Loney has a first name,
It’s J-A-M-E-S
My Loney has a second name,
It’s L-O-N-E-Y
I love to watch him every day
And if you ask me why I’ll say
‘Cause James Loney has a way
With H-I-T-T-I-N-G!
JAMES LONEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is great. I’m listening on the radio, and Charley and Rick were extrapolating Loney’s stats into where he would be if he had a full year, since he’s played basically half a season, and were mocking the claim that Loney would not have power.
O_H _L_ON_N_E _Y
LONEY POWER!!!
FIRE COLLETTI AND LITTLE!!!
What a thrill seeing the power of Kemp & Loney, they’re still young yet but they show oh so much promise.
2008 Lineup
1. Furcal
2. Pierre
3. Martin
4. Kemp
5. Loney
6. Ethier
7. Laroche
8. Abreu
If we DO go after a power bat this off season, it better be AROD or nobody. We have enough power in the lineup with Kemp and Loney next year. I think if they play everyday they will both have 25+ homers each.
NOW THAT’S YOU BIZZIE HE proberbly relaxed with the 3 run lead.
SHAKE THAT MILK YOU SOUND RIGHT
Pierre has no power, but bash him all you like, We need him , we need his STYLE of play, we got enough power. We just got to get it togeher.
man tony’s getting eaten alive my Greene
So… Lowe-Brow gets injured playing bare-handed catch catch with a 300 lb fireballer. Shades of Beimel’s bar fight during last year’s playoffs. Can’t the Dodgers afford to buy Lowe-Life a glove? Kiss the postseason goodbye.
why Tony Abreu over LaRoche? Play the **** kid.
Do you guys think its unreasonable to expect improvement at of Pierre next year? He has had a year in LA and has looked better in the 2nd half, do you guys think he will improve any or just stay at his averages? Furcal will drastically improve next year, esp. because of his contract year. So if those two guys can really get on base next year with Kemp and Loney and Martin coming up (all with a year of experience) we could really do some damage.
LaRoche is limited to pinch hitting because his chronic back problem has become an issue again. LaRoche is unable to bend over to field ground balls and thus hasn’t appeared in a game in a week.
“It’s not serious,” (Dodger manager Grady) Little said. “He seems to be OK swinging a bat, but fielding ground balls is a little bit of a bother right now, so it will probably be a couple of days before he is available (defensively).”
Per Daily News
atta boy bills
Wow–Billingsley is an escape artist. It helps that the Padre offense is not exactly the ’27 Yankees.
But still a good job despite short notice and clearly not having his best stuff. Even Bad Chad wins.
I am assuming that he is done for the night.
Barrett took a pitch that was so close to being a strike, you couldn’t come closer. But he took it. It seems I very seldom see the Dodger hitters take pitches like that.
leekfink:I find myself giving more criticism than complements, a tendency I regret. One day recently, I wrote a complementary note to you on your posts but it was so out of character for the blog that I could not bring myself to post it. Now I come to criticize.
Germano is much more around the plate than Billingsley so Billingsley’s pitches that are not strikes are easier to lay off than Germano’s are.
SD has an older line-up with ages 36,34,34,31,30,28,26,25. ours is 39,30,30,25,24,23,23,23.
Many of the players in their line-up are the type of player that must learn to take pitches to stay in the ML,many of ours are not that type of player.
Without knowledge of the situation it is unfair to lay the blame on the Dodger coaches.Also such claims only play into the mob mentality that has virtually taken over this board as is.
Outstanding Mr. Kent! That’s number 20!!!!
K_E_N_T OLD RELIABLE Another 20 HOME RUNS The meat & potato man.
If BILLZ comes in I wonder what happens if he give up a hit.
screw the 27′ yankees.
M_A_R_T_I_N slammin it nice 6-1 lead, we got a chance to bring one home tonight.
how olmedo saenz is still on the roster today boggles my mind.
the lardo almost made me eat my words.
Fat, slow and worthless – SAENZ.
Saenz has been really hitting the ball lately, but right at someone. Boy when things go bad…..
The Tomato has to go…
Okay here we go PROCTOR starts off with the bases empty.
Scott & Joe and away we go.*********Com’on let’s break this thing open.
Sit Down Mr. Spiccolli!!
Miketink–Now I really wish you had posted that compliment earlier! But, you come to bury Ceasar not to praise him.
I am only watching the game on the radio, so I trust what you’re saying about Billingsley being wild. It certainly sounds that way (even though, he got through it).
You’re right about the age (and I assume therefore the experience/maturity) of the Padre hitters vs. the Dodger hitters. And you’re also right in that our guys have such talent that they have not had to learn to work the count.
NEVERTHELESS:
1) It’s still critical that our guys take better at-bats. I’ve talked about that all year long. Both the veterans and the kids. Every team has 3-5 guys that can start a game OK. Every team has someone who can pitch the 9th inning. Almost no teams are comfortable with their long and middle relievers, and a lot of teams don’t even have good 7th or 8th inning guys. So the best chance of scoring is the middle innings against middle relief. And if you can make the starter work, you will get to that soft spot in the bullpen earlier. Even really talented players will do better if they can get there.
2) I have had more and more concerns with the coaching philosophy as the season has progressed–not just lineups (which can be befuddling, but also show a resistant to letting our quality young guys play). But also a lack of aggressive baserunning, not manufacturing runs with hit and run plays or bunts, and poor fundamentals defensively. And not working the count fits into these concerns.
3) I don’t mean to blame the coaching staff too much, because it’s tough to teach the young guys these things, and it’s really tough on the fly during the grind of the regular season. It’s the kind of thing you have to do in Spring Training. So I don’t mean to come down too hard on the coaching staff. But, I still think that more needs to be done. And when you have a young team like we do, it means that you’re going to take extended batting practices, and you’re going to make guys take infield practice. I remember years ago being at a night game at Dodger Stadium. It might have been an early start, and I don’t remember who we played or who won. But we were sticking around at the end of the game, waiting for traffic to clear out, and the centerfield fence opened up and they drove in the backstop and set it up. Tommy Lasorda then came out in his uniform pants and undershirt and started throwing batting practice to a bunch of guys. I had never seen that before (or since), but it was typical of Lasorda to order extra practices to work things out, and given that in 20 years he managed 9 rookies of the year, he had a knack of working with young players.
It’s a high standard, I admit. And, I don’t mean to call for heads on this basis alone. But these are the things that we are missing. It could be that the coaching staff is doing a whole lot of this which we don’t see yet, and it will payoff when we when the 2008 World Series.
But I’m pretty concerned about this because it’s been like this all year long. And while I often don’t understand some of the lineups, or the constantly shifting nature of the lineup, or some of the in-game moves, I consider this a far more important issue. If this is going on, we will see it payoff next year in spades, because we know that the players we have are talented–if they can start doing the little things right, they will be unstoppable. But if not then the calls for new field management that have been overwhelming the board lately absolutely need to be heeded.
Miketink–just a note–even though the post is long, I don’t mean to take any offense at your post–it was appreciated. I just tend to be loquacious.
Brox seemed to labor a bit there, but I’m glad he got through it.
Good Young BIg Bad Jonathan
Com’on RUDY send us home.
Just look who our kids have for veteran examples of plate discipline. Nomar, Gonzo, JP, Kent. I hope we do not end up regretting having these veterans in front of the kids. Sometimes you have to get the right people… or at least know what who the right people are.
EYES ON THE WILD CARD
It’s turning into a log jam in the wild card race here……..
2 1/2 out… freaking teasers.
I can’t believe I watched the whole interview with James Loney.
Isn’t it good to be in that log jam????
I can’t believe Adrian Garcia still has a job.
What’s wrong with Adrian Garcia?
I think Michael Eaves is terrible.
First time in the comment column and I’m a first year Dodger fan. I think Billingsley is a stud and I agree that Grady and Ned need to go. I’m late with that info.
Teix Who?Told ya Loney is the man an will only get better!
leekfink — I agree that the Doders need to take a LOT MORE pitches. However, that logic may not apply — or at least applies less — when playing the Padres because they have a very deep and talented bullpen. Getting to the Padres bullpen is not nearly as useful as getting to most pens.
Great win last night guys. Lets keep this train rolling. A win tonight and I think we’ll be sitting pretty.
Finally we get word on LaRoche, and it doesn’t sound good. I agree with all of those who see the great potential in Andy, but a back problem that has plagued him seemingly all year at his age portends only badly for him. I don’t see any other great 3B prospects for us out there, and I don’t want to rely on Nomar another year, even though he will necessarily be on the roster for next season. Sounds like Rodriguez timing would be right, if he opts out of NY for a new deal. I personally am not for signing Alex at that record-breaking dollar amount, because those type of over-commitments rarely work out. I also wouldn’t want to create the clubhouse situation where one player has a quarter of the whole team’s annual salary – I don’t think that situation plays well, no matter who you are. It didn’t in Kevin Brown’s day, and it won’t today. I’m more intrigued at the Atkins FA possibility in the off-season, although I’d like to make a closer examination why his season numbers are so much below last year. Anybody got some insights?
I’m hoping that there is a logical and permanent answer to LaRoche’s back problems. I’d even feel better if they determined a treatment course that required off-season surgery. I don’t have much confidence in Conte’s judgment about anything or anybody, so I won’t accept that all Andy needs is to rest it. That sound like – O.K., but when is the next time coming. He’s just been bothered too much at too young an age.
Grady said that all he wanted was to be in contention this late in the season to keep the turnstiles turning. Translation is as long as the Ds make money we don’t care if they’re mediocre. Get rid of this management and their thinking and bring in people who care first about winning. If you win the money will follow.
The stadium improvements are not really for the fans, they’re for Frank to pull in more cash from the fans. Would the fans rather have a new restaurant in Dodger stadium or a winning team on the field. My vote is for the latter. And don’t get me started on the Ds proposed float in the parade. If you want to spend money Frank , spend it on improving the team and start with getting new management.
Absolutely right, fliegel!
We need to start fresh and build a new WINNING attitude.
FIRE COLLETTI AND LITTLE!!!
fliegel, the improvements are for the Dodgers, if the game experience is more comfortable for the fans, more fans will come out either as new fans or repeat fans but more will come out and ultimately create more revenue…. More money, better players….
FIRE GRADY!!!
The Dodgers have more money than any other team in baseball except maybe NY and Boston. The money’s not the problem. The problem is our management doesn’t know how to spend it. We have all the money we need but haven’t spent any of it on a top layer. The only top player we have is Martin and we drafted him. We have one of the best closers and we got lucky and found him. We need to start spending our money on players like A-Rod, Santana, Hunter, Jones and other players in the elite class.
Great win last night. I just can’t help to think what would have been if we just had loney starting in April. He would be having and Adrian Gonzales type year. 20 bombs and 90 rbi. While Nomar was hitting 306 in april with 19rbi we went 15-11. Wilson hit .125. If nomar was just at 3b I have to think we would have been more stable in April and May and therfore just a bit better.
Kiper more money does not equal better players.
We would be better today if we did not sign 120 million dollars worth of players in the offseason.
The proof is in the pudding.
Loney at 300k is better than Nomar at 10 million
Any replacement level CF at 300k is better than Juan Pierre at 9 million (Kemp, Ross-heck Repko who was hurt after the JP signing.)
We spent 22 million in this year salary on two arms (schmidt, Wolf) not pitching for us anymore…
Gonzo at 8 million? Dewlyn Young or Kemp/Ethier could probably do what he did for 300k.
So no I belive as Bill and others do, build from within. I think that’s the way things will go from here on out. This years excuse was we needed to bridge the gap to the kids are ready. They are ready and everyone knows it now.
That said, your idea of A-rod, if available…I can see them pursuing..otherwise next years team is pretty much set. Possibly CF Hunter and moving Pierre to left. If Pierre scored 90 runs this year, he let in 50 with his CF play and that has to stop to be a true contender.
So it’s not money, McCourt has ponied up every year…it’s how you spend it.
It is pretty annoying that a Television company can change the time of a game I bought tickets for over a month ago. Real nice tribute to the fans.
September splits:
.375/.408/.861/1.269 loney
.389/.421/.556/.977 kemp
.242/.286/.364/.649 ethier
.190/.205/.190/.395 furcal
.278/.409/.500/.909 gonzo
.282/.317/.513/.830 kent
.278/.308/.389/.697 martin
.333/.375/.444/.819 pierre
Great job Pierre in raising his game..I am tough on him, but for him, he is doing all that is expected of him on offense if not more. Of course keep it up James and Matt. Furcal, shake yourself. let’s go.
In a way it’s hard to complain about Pierre. He gives you all he’s got, he’s able to play everyday, he just isn’t the center fielder we need. We’ve gotten just about everything you could exect him to do he just isn’t the right guy for the Dodgers.
cameron, I’ve believed all along that Colletti signed Pierre almost as a “I have to sign somebody” type deal. He had just lost JD Drew, he was unable to land Soriano or Lee and he couldn’t swing the trade for Manny Ramirez, it was like he felt obligated to the fans to sign a free agent. If he would of let it go and rolled the dice with he had, it may have worked out better. Now he has Pierre for 4 more years and I really have to believe that Ned has to sit up there in his suite every night and cringe every time a ball is hit to Pierre. He will never admit to it, but I can bet that Colletti regrets that signing. He’s a good player, but not a marquee player and certainly not one worth the money he’s getting paid.
Actually I find it very very easy to complain about Pierre, and precisely because he isn’t the right guy for the Dodgers. And theres only one person to blame. It hurts us now and it hurts in the future in terms of trades/free agents we could or should be looking into. I know its like a broken record by I really think our GM needs to be gone, along with the manager.
Also, Pierre plays EVERY game, which makes it worse. He does good things but he is not a game changer or an impact guy. Maybe when the kids come into their own and start hitting for power, Pierre’s shortcomings will be minimized. If this team was more offensively minded, Pierre would be a great compliment, and maybe next season that will be the case.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
cameron,
No offense, but Pierre plays everyday is a meaningless stat as long as Grady is manager. How in the heck do we know who “could” play everyday or not? Why wouldn’t Loney, Kemp or Ethier be able to play every day as guys in their eeeeeearly 20’s? Now, Martin is a STUD for playing everyday and through pain. Standing out in CF everyday for 9 mil is no huge feat although I don’t blame JP for the contract. Cheers for JP for raising his offensive numbers, but unfortunately, a single to CF still drives in the slowest runner in baseball from 2B.
Can I FIRE GRADY ahead of time today since we know the lineup is likely to $uck tonight?
I’m not saying Pierre is a great player or anything. I’m just saying you can’t really blame him for the way things are going. He’s doing almost exactly what he’s done his whole career. Do I think we should have signed him? No. He plays hard and he shows up everyday ready to help. The problem is that he isn’t that good.
scott, he can start Pujols at first, Arod at third and Ichiro in CF you can still call for his firing because he’d blow with those guys too!!!
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Actually GRADY SHOULD BE FIRED because we’re not 3-5 games out in front of the division. He’s had better talent available all season than AZ or SD; he just doesn’t know how to use it, or refuses to use it properly.
COLLETTI SHOULD BE FIRED after this season is over, because he’s wasted so much money in the wrong places starting right after the end of last season. I wouldn’t trust him to make any off-season moves again this year. I don’t believe that the idea of not trading any of our main prospects is a credit to him – I think that after some of his off-season experiences, McCourt drew some guidelines for Colletti concerning who was not to be traded.
FIRE BOTH COLLETTI AND LITTLE!!!
Hey, the perfect scenario, the Dodgers make the post season, go the NLCS and then….they still FIRE GRADY!!!!!
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
If we make the playoffs there’s no way anybody gets fired.
true, cameron, JP doesn’t make out the lineups and he gives us what little he has to offer.
kiper,
If Grady was managing the Cardinals he would sit Pujols if he was 0-3 previously against the same pitcher even if he hit 3 bombs the night before. Just think of all the great 1st years of players that would’ve never been if Grady had managed them. Pujols, A-Rod, Fernando, etc.
scott, I agree.. and you know what really gets me, he took Kemp and Loney out of the running for Rookie of the Year by not giving them the opportunity to put up numbers.
messagebear, I think you’re right about McCourt telling Ned not to trade the kids, probably on Logan White’s advice and Grady surely has had his head up his *** with the stuff he pulls.
Cameron – if we want to win in the long term, do we need to root for no postseason then so that these bozo’s get fired? I still think Grady will keep screwing with the lineups the rest of the way and ruin any chance of momentum or consistency and keep the team from making the playoffs.
all ino is that if the lineup is different from today. im gonna be sooo pissed! it worked yesterday, anybody with even a little knowledge of baseball would put that same lineup out there. im not much of a match up guy…who gives a **** wat gonzo or nomar did in the past against mad dog..they cant do it anymore grady!!
I want them to win now but you can’t have both. If we win then Grady is not going anywhere. He may not go anyways but if a manager is putting his team in the playoffs then he’ll still have his job. That’s the way sports work. If you win you stay if not you go.
cameron
not always…grady got fired after he took his team to the ALCS! it happened before and it can happen again
Grady got fired after taking his team to Game 7 of the ALCS…That one move didn’t make or break him though, they wanted him out of there long before Pedro. Because he’s a horrid manager.
and do you guys know wat happened the year after grady got fired?? yep the red sox won it all. maybe history can repeat itself?? if we dont win it this year
Good points guys!
I believe that if the Dodgers make the playoffs, it will be in spite of Grady, so there is a chance that he can get fired. The Dodgers should not be fighting for their playoff life, they should have been setting their rotation and roster right about now. The reason the Dodgers are still fighting, and barely at that, is because of Grady Little putting them in this situation. In my opinion he’s cost the Dodgers at least 8 to 10 wins by his terrible decision making, including 3 in the last week. If you do the math, they’d be in first place by 2 games or at worse tied and 2.5 up on the wild card. Thanks Grady.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
So yes, they can get in and still have Grady Fired!!!!
Yeah I know but now he’s got excuses he can use like the pitching staff wasn’t healthy and the vets didn’t contribute down the stretch.
He’s had plenty of options with the young guys that he didn’t take advantage of but I still think if he makes the playoffs then he’ll no doubt be back.
I agree – I think that the episode with Grady leaving Martinez in too long was only the straw that broke the camel’s back, etc. Boston knew that his management style was all wrong for their future, and we should know the same thing after his constant screw-ups and screwing around with lineups in these two seasons. If we make the playoffs, Colletti will no doubt stay, but McCourt should still insist that GRADY MUST GO.
and remember many baseball experts picked the dodgers to go the world seies this year
Yeah I said before the season that it would be LA and NY.
wouldnt it look weird in the playoffs..where usually a team sicks with one lineup the whole way…that we would have like a different lineup for every game lol
If Grady gets fired, we could also clean out his staff, especially that worthless 3B Coach that’s been costing us games for two seasons now.
I bet Gonzo and Nomar would play every game though.
personally im still hoping for an angels vs dodgers world series…and ive been calling that for the past 5 years lol. but if that ever did happen..it would be soo SICK down here!! and id like to kick the angels ***!!
Grady will be gone after this season. His style is just not conducive to what the Dodgers are trying to do and that is go young. Little is obviously a guy who leans toward veteran players, he prefers them over the young guys and the proof is that Gonzo and Saenz and Hernandez and Pierre and Etc…
continue to take away precious at bats and innings pitched from the young guys.
As for him using injuries as an excuse, I don’t buy it, he’s been given plenty of pitching help when he’s needed it. The Dodgers can go as far as we all hope they do or they can not go at all, the bottom line is, Grady Little is not the right fit for this teams future and I hope that Frank McCourt sees that for himself. He has a manager who is keeping his team from playing to their full potential. Maybe now we know why Grady was a minor league manager as long as he was and why nobody else came knocking when the Red Sox fired him.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
martinloneykemp–you’re right that the need to take pitches against the Padres is much less because their bullpen is so good. In fact, with Germano, I would probably rather hit against him than some of their relievers. But it still holds true to some extent–most starting rotations are better than their bullpens, and I would rather hit against the Padre bullpen than Peavy. Of course, tonight, we’ll see even fewer pitches, because Maddux throws strikes almost exclusively.
Gotta get those veterans in there with all of their wiley experience.
Kids: “Hey Gonzo, tell us the ‘how I hit 57 HR on roids story’ again.”
Man, how bad is Donnelly coaching 3B when he makes us forget about that Padre loving Hoffman?
Just was on an ESPN chat with Keith Law and he answered a question about the Dodgers saying…Dodger fans should be very worried if they lose Logan White…..I AM WORRIED.!!
I’m worried too because Logan is the reason we have so much talent.
I am not a Grady fan (I am indifferent) but lets look at this..Now of course the disclaimer is he could change the roster but I think Coletti and Ned are together on this..Meaning, would Grady really bench a 14 million dollar SS or a 9 million CF or a 10 million Nomar?
projected starting lineup
our 1-2 hitters are both below avg on base percentage guys this year
our 3-4-5 hitters are in their late 30’s and 2 are now part time players
our fielding has been weak. Grady can’t teach Pierre and Gonzo to have strong arms. He can’t make Kent move more than 3 feet etc, etc, etc..
we lost 2/5ths of our rotation by the All Star Break. We lost our best arm (allegedly) after 3 starts
He really only has 3 bullpen guys he can trust.
So I dont know guys, all in all it’s almost a miracle we are still in it.
From SI:
It probably doesn’t matter becaise club owner Drayton McLane likes to call the shots, anyway. One baseball executive said he thought Dodgers assistant GM Logan White (“one of the best guys out there — he sees the big picture,” another GM said), Cardinals assistant GM John Mozeliak and Phillies assistant GM Ruben Amaro Jr. were among the Astros’ more inspired interviewees.
Its really ironic and sad that Ned will stay with the team while White will go on to a greener pastures. McCourt should just make the switch now if he was smart.
1 Yes vote for Logan White
1 Nay vote for Ned Colleti
jungar, I disagree, they’ve had some tough luck, but at the same time the ERA has been pretty darn good as a staff and if you’re struggling with your pitching then you need to score runs. The opportunity for the team to be more offensive oriented has been there. They have had a chance to start Loney, Martin, Kemp, Ethier, Young maybe Abreu and LaRoche, both have been hurt at times, but were available for a large part of the season. They also could have dumped Saenz and Martinez, who combined are the worst 2 hitters of the bench in MLB this season and they could have not given Tomko the 20 starts that he got. I don’t buy, they are not “a miracle we are still in it” club they should be running away with the west. No excuses!!!
And what I am saying Kiper and we can agree to disagree was that most of your post (agree with all of it BTW) falls -to me anyways- in the Ned camp, more than the Grady camp.
I do wonder about some of Little’s decisions at times, but I don’t think he should be fired. I think he’s done a decent job in a transition year. I’d keep Colletti too, unless his leaving was the only way to keep White.
we have GOT to keep white! he is the one who got all these young guys. and ive said it before and ill say it again…building through your system is the way baseball is turning to. and that really truly is the way to go i believe. plus baseball is the ony sport where you can build your team…cant do it in football or basketball. plus if you give up some years to rebuild…you should run off (with the right players) a string of very competitive years
jungar,
I guess we really don’t know how much in cahoots Ned and Grady are, but who is benching Kemp one day after getting 3 hits? Man, if Grady is just Ned’s tool than this whole organization just stinks to high heaven IMO.
Unless Grady’s hand is being forced, which I don’t think it is, then he should be gone. Ned should be gone because of all the stupid pickups he’s made. Shea and Roberto for starters. All Ned did was prolong the success of our younger guys. We have enough arms in the pen to bring up a young guy to get experience instead of signing Roberto. And we’ve got enough gloves on the farm too to be signing Shea. All in all they both have made some stupid and costly moves.
Scott I agree, we don’t know but Pierre is not coming out and that the other three will platoon for fairness based on match ups. My guess is that if Gonzo was not on the roster, Kemp and Ethier would never come out. Or if Pierre wasn’t etc..
Now of course Grady can say to heck with Gonzo but Gonzo hasn’t done anything that shouldn’t have been expected production wise..so I don’t know…
Grady has said the responsibility is his so I’ll shut up about it.
“Grady has said the responsibility is his”
Here lies the problem.
With all the great “clubhouse” veterans we brought in, how come the whispers around baseball suggest the Dodger clubhouse is a mess? Other than questionable managerial moves, I think this is the real problem with 2007.
Because all of our vets are big freakin cry babies. Obviously the don’t remember that years ago they took someone elses position just like someone is taking theirs. I guess that they played too long and alzheimers is kicking it.
Do you guys ever listen to Dodger Talk after the games? Whoever is doing the show is the first guy in a long time who talks about it from the fans perspective and isnt a homer for the company. I remember him saying in April the Dodgers made a mistake by not promoting Loney.
You guys realize tonight Gonzo will start because of the sucess he’s had against Maddux.
In my opinion the only real vet that the kids look up too is Jeff Kent. Jeff Kent is the man. He’s the only vet that plays with passion and plays with cojones. I truly believe the kids look up too Jeff Kent.
Jeff Kent should be looked up to. You can say what you want about him, and the media does not like him, but he plays hurt, he plays hard and he doesn’t raise much fuss about anything. He can still hit, 20 HR’s again, and although he’s not the greatest 2nd baseman in baseball, he wasn’t even during his prime, he still battles every night. He is a leader and a guy who the Dodgers will probably bring back for one more season.
Here is the lineup I would start tonight:
Furcal SS
Pierre CF
Kemp RF
Kent 2B
Loney 1B(Keep up the hot hitting)
Martin C
Ethier RF
Nomar 3B
Pitcher P
This could be a good night to start Nomar because he comes up to the plate ready to swing every time and Maddux likes to throw alot of strikes and get ahead of hitters early which is why he hadn’t walked anyone in 200 batters. VAMOS DODGERS!!!!
I just know that Grady will start Gonzo today.. It’s so frustrating, but it is what it is. Nomar, OK, I can see it, LaRoche is hurting, again, Shea is struggling and Nomar is a notorious first pitch swinger but I know Gonzo will be in.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Kiper- I would love to see my man Kent come back for one more year. He is a middle of the order bat when he’s healthy and even though he’s weak defensively he is the best team leader we’ve had since we let Maddux go in the offseason. VAMOS DODGERS(para todas las personas quien hablan espanol) lol!!!!!!
Kiper- I would love to see my man Kent come back for one more year. He is a middle of the order bat when he’s healthy and even though he’s weak defensively he is the best team leader we’ve had since we let Maddux go in the offseason. VAMOS DODGERS(para todas las personas quien hablan espanol) lol!!!!!!
oops didn’t mean to post that twice…
swood
As long as we’ve got Abreau then Nomar doesn’t need to play. They just said that he won’t be 100% at all for the rest of the season.
kiper
Kent is looked up to in the clubhouse. The young guys love how he takes care of his business on the field and keeps his mouth shut after the game. He never complains like the other vets and teh young guys respect that.
Kiper, I see nothing wrong with bringing Kent back for one more year. Honestly I see the way the kids are around him, I really believe they look up to him.
CalAuto do you speak spanish?
Swood, what are you taking spanish 2 in high school.
cameron Abreu would be fine at 3B tonight also… but the odds are that Grady will start Nomar if nothing else because of the pitcher we’re facing.
No calauto spanish 4. I know alot of the slang though because my best friend who I have grown up with is Columbian and he has taught me alot.
si guey, hablo y escribo el espanol muy bien. Mis padres son de Sonora, tierra de Fernando Valenzuela.
I’m not sure well see Nomar anymore this year except for a pinch hitting role.
I like Ethier as much as anyone, but if Dumba$$ Grady insists on playing Gonzo tonight he better not sit Kemp because of some rght handed matchup bull$hit.
I agree cameron, I was at the game on tuesday night, and he just looked really slow at the plate. Peavy looked like he was throwing 100mph to Nomar.
Maybe the rookies should do some hazing of the vets. Like maybe locking up Gonzo at his house so he won’t make it to the stadium tonight.!!!!!!
I think he and Grady both know that he can’t help the team for 9 innings right now. I think you’ll see alot of Abreau the rest of the way. Some Shea thrown in there too, probably tonight, but I hope not.
ya nomar should NOT start tonite or the rest of the season for that matter. he couldnt even catch up to bret tomko’s fast ball lol. aberu and laroche fer sure should be playing.
calautorebuilder, Yo tambien soy de Sonora, del valle del yaqui, de adonde es Fernando Valenzuela, nacido en Etchohuaquila, Sonora..
Swood and James — I have a feeling, based on Grady’s history of not consistently keeping a steady lineup) that he will go with Gonzo and sit Kepmp (going with the matchup scenario).
Remember what he said a few days ago about playing one of the kids against Peavy “He doesn’t have a history with him”. How can you have a history if you don’t play him. He may think the same thing about having Kemp go against Maddux. Kemp may be young, but he’s hitting like a mother and you need him (Kemp) to get the experience of facing veteran pitching.
if we’re gonna start talking spanish then lets go get out own blog guys.
Hendrickson on the hill tonight.
Kiper, what part of Sonora you from.????
Calautorebuilder, born in Northern Sonora, Nogales, right on the border with Arizona. Familiar with the area?
You just don’t sit guys with Kemp’s overall numbers unless you’re a complete imbecile.
Nomar couldn’t hit Hendrickson’s fastball right now.
Advice for Nomar:
Stick to carne asada night.
yes sir I am, my parents are from Aguapreita.
You just don’t sit guys with Kemp’s overall numbers unless you’re a complete imbecile.
scott, you said it… GRADY!!!!
Hey Mexicans,
My wife is from Guanajuato for what it’s worth.
Back to Dodger baseball talk, guys.
calautorebuilder, up the road a bit, Agua Prieta is on the border with Douglas, Az. we’re about 2 hrs west in Nogales, Az. I was a high school teammate and good friend of Gil Heredia, who is the only person ever out of our hometown to reach the major leagues. He pitched for the several teams including the Giants and at the end of his career he had 2 very good seasons with the A’s, 2001 & 2002….
orth, sorry to have bothered you. We didn’t think we were inconveniencing you.
I remember him, do you go back often?
I’m here buddy.. still in town.
if you are talking to me i was kidding.
not you manfromchina, ur good, I was talking to orth..
And your not a dback fan, that’s awesome.
do you no Zuly’s?
Wells scratched…Hendrickson to start tonight. At this rate Kershaw will be starting by this weekend.
nope, for a long time this whole area, southern Arizona, was had a huge Dodger fan base, because of proximity and the Dodgers penchant for latino players. Ever since the DBacks came into existence alot of people have changed colors, not me, I bleed Dodger blue.. forever!!!
Zula’s restaurant??? Wow!! Still here. If that’s what you meant.
p.s. I hate the DBacks!!!
where is this info coming from, chingon28
Please tell me Hendy isn’t really starting?
Hendrickson starting? Probably Gonzo and Nomar too. Season over.
Zula’s rest. My cousin was married to the owners daughter. My cousins kids live right there in Rio Rico. His ex-wife is border patrol in Nogales.
Regarding Tomko. I watched his profile the Dodgers do (Before they were bigs, or something like that) and I never knew that I drove by his old high school and parents / childhood home. I remember wanted to egg that house everytime he blew a game.
What happened to Wells? I can’t find the pitching change on any of the websites. Where is the info coming from??
orth that’s classic.
Maybe the rookies should do some hazing of the vets. Like maybe locking up Gonzo at his house so he won’t make it to the stadium tonight.!!!!!!
Posted by: californiaautorebuilder@hotmail.com | September 13, 2007 01:47 PM
Nos todos esperamos.
just a gut feeling
calautorebuilder, was he a cop??
Your cousin?
Yes he was, in Nogales. Now he’s US customs in Aguaprieta.
You know you can just call him calauto… its much faster…
chingon28, so you’re making it up? Are you part of Grady’s coaching staff? Come on man, we have enough problems with Grady, then you throw this at us…
FIRE GRADY!!!!!!
FIRE CHINGON28!!!!
Furcal
Pierre
Loney
Kent
Gonzo
Martin
Ethier
Abreu
Hendrickson
Kiper lol. hahahah. funny. chigon where are you getting this from???
*chingon
chingon28 almost started a revolution.
FIRE CHINGON28!
FIRE GRADY!
Chingon, seriously, are you making a wild guess to what will happen tonight or are you getting that info from somewhere???
Scott… Kiper just said that…
swood
I’m seconding kiper is all.
Let’s hope chingon28 is full of it or season’s over because Wells has actually been really good for us.
O ok, I didn’t know what you were doing Scott. lol. It was pretty funny. I think chingon IS full of it and our season’s still over. lol.
It’ll be Wells tonite, there is nothing that I can find, looks like chingon28 pulled one over on us.. Well guess what chingon, Hendrickson for us Tomko for the Pads.. should be a 1-0 ballgame, what do you think???
Kiper lo conoces?????
Dammnit Too bad we didn’t get a shot at Tomko this series.
calauto are you asking him if he’s farmiliar with chingon?
calauto, I know who he is because I know his ex-wife and her sisters.. I remember her being married to a cop.
Please don’t start second guessing me. I’m not a major league manager.
We should confuse the heck out of them and start Juan Pierre at SP and Wells in CF.
Actually that wouldn’t really confuse anyone. nevermind.
Es miedo mamon el guey, my cuz. Her parents are super nice people. La rego el baboso.!!!!!
!Me gusta chicas sin ropa!
Kiper — With Hendrickson and Tomko pitching, maybe the Dodgers can break the 30 runs scored by Texas earlier this year.
Or better yet…go for total runs scored in a game by both teams.
Maybe we’d just better call the game batting practice.
lol swood
Hey, Hu already hit his 1st MLB HR off of Bomko in game 1…crappy Bomko.
Jungar — At least having Wells in CF would give us a better arm in that position. I say let JP pitch, hopefully just keep Wells perched in one spot so he doesn’t have to run too far left or right and if he does, he can just “pitch” the ball in to Furcal (cutoff man) and Furcal can gun it to home.
Scott — does hitting a HR off Bomko count as a HR? I mean, when Hu looks back and says, “My first HR was off a guy named Tomko”, people will either look up Bomko’s stats or remember Bomko and say, “Well, that’s not saying much to get an HR off him”. Kinda sad almost. Better to say, “My first HR was off of Maddux, Glavine, Peavy, Sabathia, etc.”
calauto, I remember that, and you’re right, that whole family is very nice.. good people.
kiper if you don’t mind how old are you?
Hu looks like the oriental guy from the Ocean 11 movies.!!!!
calauto.. 42
hopefully he’s as agile as the guy from the Ocean’s movies…
lol orth.
Tonight’s lineup:
Furcal SS
Nomar 3B
Gonzo LF
Kent 2B
Saenz 1B
Wells CF
Lieberthal C
Ethier RF
Pierre SP
Was Marcus Giles yelling and cursing at Russ last night after Russ smoked Blum in the ribs with the pickoff throw to first?
Kiper — I’d be real funny if he talked like the guy from Ocean’s 11……”Where the f*** you’ve been?”
Scott — I see that it’s Old Timers night tonight
What we’re looking for is playing the guys with the most ab’s against Maddux in their career. That way the veteran experience can just shine through and lead the way.
orth was that his only line in english in all three films. My memory says yes, but not sure..
I was just seeing the pitching match ups for the weekend against the DBacks, we don’t get Brandon Webb. I like our chances against the DBacks, but we need it to start tonite against the Pads. The Dodgers need to get on roll, no more win one, lose one. It’s time for a 7 game winning streak. I got a good feeling about this next week.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Player to watch
Jeff Kent is hitting .321 (26-for-81) with five homers, five doubles and 13 RBIs in his career against Maddux. In two games against Maddux this season, Kent is 5-for-6 with a homer and a double. Kent hit his 20th long ball of the season on Wednesday.
This is encouraging… Kent will lead the Dodgers!!
Scurtis, yes he was, but i don’t think anyone heard him, because if they had heard him, kent would have shoved his cleat up his ***
Kiper, I have alot of family in Tucson also. Someday i plan on retiring in Sahuarita.
calauto, sounds good, Sahuarita is growing like crazy, it is now, essentially, a suburb of Tucson. Nice town with all the amenities, but still a small town feel. You would be 35 minutes up the road from us…
You know, Grady is such an idiot.
I feel better now.
FIRE GRADY!
kiper I agree it’s good they won’t see Webb. I just hope they do better against junk ball Davis. They couldn’t do squat aqainst him last time. No worries on Hernandez.
I just hope the younsters tonight know they’re not going to get cheated tonight against Maddux. His numbers speak volumes on what to expect. They know he throws strikes, so they will be 1st pitch swinging, and hacking away.
Yeah I thought I saw that during that inning. I think he called him a f***ing fa* and told him to sit the f*** down.
Yeah Im sure no one heard it or saw it, but the tv picked up on it. It would have been nice for Vin to say something! lol
1 or 2 “youngsters” will most likely be on the pine tonight thanks to Grady.
FIRE GRADY!!!
I enjoy going to Dodger games in Ariz. ’cause all those Latinos that turn out in blue. Some switched over to the D-backs, but a bunch stayed with the Dodgers.
The Sonoran desert is a great place in the winter time. Anybody ever eat at La Indita in Tucson?
I found this searching the web…there’s also remnants of one from the Red Sox when Grady was there.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/FireGrady/index.html
Kent (26 for 81 5 HR’s) and Gonzo (34 for 108 10 HR’s) absolutely destroy Greg Maddux, so they’ll definitely be in there. Aside from that it should be relatively normal. Kemp probably will start although he’s never faced Maddux, Ethier may get the start (1 for 5 against Maddux. Furcal and Nomar have bad numbers against Maddux. Loney has never faced Maddux. Pierre has also done very well against Maddux (11 for 32) but a big stat is 10 SB’s in his career against him. So, if Pierre gets on it’s an automatic double. That also applies to anybody who gets on with any speed whatsoever…Steal second base!
Look, if Gonzo doesn’t hit 2 hrs tonight with his great “career” numbers meaning Ethier or Kemp sits, there will be **** to pay!
When you go to a Dodger game at Chase Field (Az) you see all these Latinos wearing Valenzuela 34 Dodger jersey’s.. At the beginning, the DBacks early years, you would see about 60% Dodger fans, now it’s about 30% maybe a bit more. The problem with Arizona, the state, is that everybody is from somewhere else, so the real DBack fans are mostly kids and the rest are bandwagon fans, based on their attendance which is horrible. If you go to a Cubs game in Phoenix, 70% Cubbies, seriously.
Ethier should get the start over Kemp
The only way Kemp gets in there is if Kent instructs him on how to approach him.
Big Game James will take us to where we need to be!
I wonder if Loney would have started the year on the big league team would he have hit the wall like Andre did last year?????
Kiper what kind of name is Kiper?????
just a nickname, sort of a play on words…
Ethier didn’t hit the wall, he had a bum shoulder he didn’t tell the team about.
I’ll take my chances with Kemp. He’s not some .260 hitter with power, but .330!!!! Give him a chance dammit.
Does Kemp qualify for ROY.?????
Kiper can you get your hands on some bacanora?????
calauto, even if he did, he doesn’t have the numbers. I mentioned yesterday on this blog that Grady had cost Kemp and Loney an opportunity at ROY by his shuffling of the line up. I may be wrong on Loney, as far as being a rookie, but if he is…
Thanks Grady!!
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Again another reason to FIRE GRADY!!!!!!!
I have a guy who works for me, he gets bacanora from a family member in Mexico. Let me ask him and yeah, i’ll let you know.
HIRE DUSTY!
jk
Sweet, that stuff is good, but it sneaks up on you really fast.
where’s the line up?? I’m going to the game tonight I need to know if gonzo is in???
I don’t care about Noma or gonzo’s career stats!!!!
oops forgot…
FIRE GRADY!!!!!
Grady is playing hat shuffle with three different line ups!!!!!!
Anyone but Grady, or Dusty.
If Dusty comes in, this pitching staff will be run into the ground.
Kiper, do you get to come out to Dodger Stadium much????
Philly or Colorado to lose tonight?
I’d like to see Colorado win
Rationale: sSnce it looks like Philly is on a losing streak and Colorado is playing well, at some point, Colorado will go back on its losing streak and, hopefully, the Dodgers are at teh beginning of a (somewhat) long winning streak (which they need to have at some point).
Hull is better than Proctor.
proctor is better than blowberto, seanez, or lurch.
calauto, I try to come out there at least once a season, try to catch 2 ball games. I was there in May and saw the Cubs. I do see the Dodgers, pretty much every series they play in Az at least 1 or 2 games. I will be in Phoenix next weekend Sat and Sunday to catch the Blue. I love Dodger Stadium and my son, who is 12, is a HUGE Dodger fan. Actually my whole family.
Hull is better than Proctor.
Posted by: momoracci@yahoo.com | September 13, 2007 03:49 PM
That’s a NO BRAINER! Proctor may have more velocity, but you never know which Proctor you’ll see. Sometimes he comes in, throws strikes, and does well. Other times he can’t find the strike zone. Hull had definately done better. Better control.
Just think guys, right about now Grady is thinking real hard as he puts the finishing touches on tonight’s lineup.
Ego’s be damned!
Out of date splits be damned!
Play the kids!
FIRE GRADY!
Arriba los dogers.!!!!
seriously where’s the line-up??????
Kiper, in two years you will have them close by for spring training!!!
Fire Grady Little!
Grady’s taking his sweet time with the lineup flipping coins on decision making, or he could be having one of his alzheimer spells.
*** knows….
Or maybe Josh has better things to do…calm it down
Maybe they locked Grady in the maintenance shed and Lasorda is filling in tonight.
Grady figures the longer he waits to post the line up, the less time we have to catch on to what an incompetent manager he is…. sorry Grady, no delaying the inevitable, you are the worse manager in the bigs.
FIRE GRADY!!!!!!
BTW, I wasn’t around to blog during the game last night, but watched on my DVR. Loney is really something special, his biggest question was always his power. He’s answering all his critics the right way, on the field. He’s LOCKED IN right now. BTW Adrian Garcia, there’s someone who needs to go. Loney acted far better than most would have after Garcia’s stupid questions.
Grady starts out by telling himself:
“Ok, no Kemp or Abreu tonight for sure. Now, should I play Shea or Olmedo at 3B? Maybe I should put Sweeney at 1B and rest Loney for tomorrow. I think Ramon has played some outfield against Maddux…hmmm…this is so tough!”
Hey Alex,
I was at the game last night so I don’t know what happened during the interview. Mind filling me in on it? thanks.
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itt up.