All-Stars Among Us…
I’m sitting in our Philly hotel room at the end of the “off day” which we used to get here. Looking forward to facing the defending World Champions tomorrow, but in the meantime, there’s a really cool opportunity right now for all of you so please take a minute to read this…
Major League Baseball has launched the PEOPLE All-Stars Among Us campaign and you have a chance to make a huge impact on the program and on the life of someone you know. And it’ll only take a couple minutes.
MLB and People magazine are inviting you to nominate the individuals who have gone above and beyond to serve their community. Maybe they helped save a neighbor’s home from foreclosure, donated their time and efforts to a charitable organization, or have been an unsung hero in your life and you’d like to see them recognized. Well, now’s your chance.
All you have to do is visit this website sometime between now and May 22.
You’ll be asked to upload a photo of them and explain in 50 words or less why they deserve to be one of the three finalists for the Dodgers. From there, one winner will be chosen to represent our team at the All-Star Game in St. Louis. And one of those 30 team nominees will actually be featured in PEOPLE magazine!
Please take a moment to forward this along to the people you know and hopefully take the time to nominate those around you who are so deserving.
UPDATE: Tonight’s lineup
Pierre, LF
Furcal, SS
Hudson, 2B
Ethier, RF
Martin, C
Loney, 1B
Kemp, CF
Blake, 3B
Kershaw, P
Inside the Dodgers 
Thx Josh
That is very cool Josh!!!! Another reminder of what is really important in life, and as much as we love our beloved Dodgers, it’s the real people heroes in life that need to cherished.
Great idea!
I think that’s a great idea Josh! I know a couple of people who would qualify for this, but either one would probably kiss my butt for nominating them. That’s just what makes ’em tick.
I got new-posted while I was ranting. Thanks for the heads-up, Junie! Was your rim destroyed by that flat tire yesterday?
Greetings, ITD! Been a while for me as I’ve been a little busy. I’ve read through all of this thread and will cruise through the previous couple of days to make sure any songs get posted, but I’d like to put my thoughts out there with yours.
First, let me compliment most of you (all but one actually, whom I will never refer to nor read its posts, for obvious reasons). Your opinions are most interesting and thoughtful.
As I mentioned a couple of days ago (and also in a conversation with sara when we signed him last year), I’ve been pretty conflicted with my own hypocricy regarding Manny. But when he was energizing the team with his tremendous bat and work ethic, I was willing to compromise my morals to some degree in exchange for a few wins. I mean, we all have to compromise somewhat in real life, right? Do we see our parents as much as we should? Do we spoil our children more than we should? Do we agree with our boss more than we want to? Do we apologize to our spouses when we don’t really mean it to keep the peace in our marriage? Do we pull the lever in the ballot box only for someone we agree with 100% of the time? So why not in Life’s Toy Department? What does it really hurt?
“It appears my hypocrisy knows no bounds.” I stuck that quote from “Tombstone” in my last post back on Friday. But it doesn’t really. It has bounds. This situation is pretty much settling it for me. But here again, it seems to involve compromising.
I believe in second chances. I believe that you need to come clean, explain yourself and apologize to those you’ve harmed in order to receive that second chance.
I believe in forgiveness. I think that, in holding a grudge, you’re only harming yourself. The person you’re holding a grudge against couldn’t care less that you’re doing it, especially when that person doesn’t know you exist.
I think what I want Ramirez to do is this:
1) Admit the truth, whatever it is
2) Apologize and explain himself to his teammates live and in person
3) Apologize and explain himself live and in person to baseball fans in general and Dodger fans in particular
4) Tell everyone that steroids and PEDs are cheating
If he finally does this (and the time for it has already passed, IMO) and is convincing that he’s sincere, I for one will accept his apology and continue to cheer for him and the Dodgers. That is a compromise for me.
If he tries to go the path that most everyone else seems to do these days – that is, to come up with one of those “my dog ate my homework” excuses that we all will see through (“I didn’t inhale” comes to mind) – and the Dodgers continue to play him, I don’t think I’ll be able to watch them play as long as he’s on the field.
That is not something that I say easily, nor is it the first time. The Lakers have been my second sports love (until I found NASCAR 5 years ago) and I didn’t watch a single minute of their games while Dennis Rodman was wearing their uniform. My dad couldn’t believe I carried it out, but I did.
I also know that no one but me really cares what the hell I do. The world just keeps on a-spinnin’. But my hypocrisy does have bounds.
And when he’s gone, I’ll be back. We’ll see.
LOL!!!! No, but there are four new tires being ordered and will be in next week. Bill, Mariya and I can’t thank you enough. How is your arm? cell phone? (I still can’t believe that – amazing!!) How was Lucy?
BTW – God does have his moments you know. The tow truck driver got called on another call while servicing our car. It was a car on the road going to Glacier Point that had a deer through it’s windshield. All the cars up there were stuck, as the accident took up both sides of the road. Then as we were driving between Oakhust and Mariposa, there was head-on collison that had occured moments before we had gotten there. So, once we heard and saw that, we weren’t so upset about an hour and half delay getting home. I hope your trip home was a good one. I heard you and Matt saw the new Star Trek movie …………………was it good?
…also I heard Matt is no longer in need of appointments. Is that true? If so, that must be a relief. I don’t know if you know this, but I am going to tell you anyway. Matt gave Mariya a copy of his essay he did for his AP History class about his surgery. It’s an incredible story, which I knew from your side, but to read it from his perspective as well, just made it even more remarkable. A very moving and touching story, which deserves an A+ in my book, which doesn’t count for much seeing how I read 3-5 sentence stories for a living 🙂
Hey Dodgereric and Nelly. Hope you had a good Mother’s Day. I have a feeling the team is going to have a great road trip and get back on track. I think it might do them good to get away for a bit with all that’s gone on the last week or so.
Good Evening bluecrewgirl – I had a great Mother’s Day!!! – thanks for asking:) I hoping they have a great road trip as well. Nice post on Andre’s blog the other day. I am sure he needs it these days. I didn’t watch too many of his at-bats this weekend, but it didn’t sound good at all.
I think Andre is pressing a bit the last few games and swinging at bad pitches instead of being patient and waiting for his pitches like he has been. I’m sure that he feels like a lot of weight is on his shoulders now, but he’ll get it figured out and adjust his mental approach for the current situation. It just bugs me, and I am sure it bugs you too, how some people make such a big deal out of it every time he has a rough few games. Other players can have a prolonged slump and nothing much is made out of it. I’m not saying it should be, every player should be allowed to have their ups and downs during the season as long as their end results are consistently good, which his have been. Maybe I’m being overly sensitive, but it just seems to me he is held to a higher standard and expected to be perfect all the time. Maybe because he holds himself to such high standards that attitude rubs off on some of the fanbase, lol.
I am not sure either bluecrewgirl. I tend to pull for them even more when they are struggling. I am sure he is seeing his role completely changed in a matter of hours. He goes to bed on Wednesday, being a protector of Manny to the next day morning the one who is being protected (to some degree). Like you said, he will figure it out………he always does. Loney, Kemp and Ethier all had 0-fer days yesterday so something was up yesterday…….it wasn’t just Andre, and I am tired of him getting singled out as being the only one with bad days. However, there are a few around here who are trying to figure out why James is having such a slow start.
dodgereric – to address your post. It is truly amazing what you had to say, and I certainly hope Manny does the right thing because I would hate to think of you not watching this team, but I completely understand. I am not sure what to think still. I think in my own head I am just waiting to see what he has to say. I think he has already waited too long in my opinion, but I will try and wait it out to see what he has to say.
James tends to be streaky, but in the end his #s are usually good. He definitely isn’t hitting for as much power so far this year. It does seem like they are all stuggling a bit right now. I haven’t really sorted out how I feel about the whole Manny saga yet, but I do feel disappointed at how he let all the young guys down. They were all starting to come into their own and his mentoring helped them a lot and now the rug has been pulled out from under them. I think they have been just a bit shell shocked the first few games without him, but they’ll be fine. It will make them stronger in the long run. I do think he owes it to them to come talk to the team and hopefully to work out with them and make himself available to them.
I hope you don’t decide to stop watching them too, Dodgereric. I do think PED’s should be banned, not only because they give an unfair edge to some players, but because of the physical harm they can cause down the road. As for the players that supposedly took them before the league came up with a testing poliicy, I can’t technically say that they cheated because it wasn’t really against the rules. I blame MLB for waiting so long to put a policy in place. As for Manny, I have enjoyed him during his time with the Dodgers, but he made a stupid mistake and I hope he owns up to it and does the right thing. Right or wrong, I couldn’t stop watching the Dodgers because of it. When I am upset with a particular player or don’t like a particular player, I just kind of ignore them and focus on the team and they players I do like.
Hi bluecrewGIRL! How ya been?
Junie, questions, questions!
My arm is just fine. Lucy did worse!
My cell is fine. I bought the proper cable to transfer the photos from the car/plane show to the laptop. I send them your way asap, but probably not tonight. It’s getting late, Maddy just got home and we had a good talk, and I still have to get my NASCAR stuff out.
Lucy is a pain. Maddy changed the gate location on Sunday to ‘give her a little more room’. Criminy, she has the whole back yard already. Anyway, Lucy was able to access the bathroom after Maddy went to work Sunday. We had a ton of magazines in there. Had. Had a new roll of toilet paper. Had a brand new box of Kleenex. E-V-E-R-Y-W-H-E-R-E. Inside and out.
Amazing story about yesterday! Looks like your guardian angel was working overtime on you guys! I still have a bad taste in my mouth over leaving you.
Star Trek was better than good. I’ll be seeing it again soon, I’m sure. I’m a pretty big fan of the original series (no, I don’t have a shirt or Spock ears or even know how many decks the Enterprise has) and I thought it was pretty faithful to the show.
I think there was a misunderstanding about Matt. Although he was clean as a whistle again, he’s going back in 6 months. I think he probably will until he’s 18 or even 20. Have Mariya say, “Up your nose with a rubber hose” to him. I’ll bet he laughs! LOL!! Yes, he told us he was going to give Mariya a copy of his story. It is quite a story. I wonder if he knows about my crying at his bedside when I saw that he was breathing through his nose for the first time in weeks.
Before I go, I can’t thank you and your wonderful family enough for this weekend. I’ve been treated to great hospitality before, but that was ridiculous! Opening your home, feeding us like kings …….. I have more good friends than a man has a right to, but the list is longer than ever now.
just for comparison reasons, I tend to watch Grady Sizemore from Cleveland. He is only batting .225, with 6 HR and 23 RBIs, with an OBP of .310, and not too many are complaining because their fans know he will be there when it counts.
As compared to Andre who is batting .285, with 6 HR and 27 RBIs, with an OBP of .399 and it seems to be not good enough right now.
Very good point, Nelly. He’ll make them all shut up before all is said and done. I’d better hit the hay. Great talking to you, as always.
You have got to stop worrying yourself over that. Mariya and I had some girl time while we stayed back and waited at the hotel. Your son made quite an impression on her friends, which is a very good thing. I know I can’t pick her friends, but sometimes I wish I could. He is quite the dancer if you did not know that. As for your time here, it was absolutely fabulous, you are most welcome and anytime. I don’t know if he knows you were crying at his bedside, but he thinks the world of you two, but you already know that. Also, shhhh……but he was crying as Mariya was reading the story. Mariya was teary-eyed too if you must know 🙂
Good Night bluecrewgirl!!!! It was great talking to you, and let’s hope our boys go into Philly ready to kick some butt.
…………sorry to hear about Lucy and her love of toilet paper continuing. I am sure it was worse because you had left her 🙂 ……and yes,I did hear some of the story about Maddy and I can imagine some of that trust bubble just got deflated a bit. I will have to go see Star Trek since the old ones were the only ones I watched.
Good night, take care and God Bless to you and your wonderful family.
eric ~ I completely understand how you feel and I went through a similar time with baseball and the Dodgers 30 years ago. As a junior and senior in high school I got my dream job working for the local minor league team, the Ogden A’s. The rookie league Ogden Dodgers had moved a couple of years earlier and a gentleman brought in a AAA team. I was so excited to get to know guys who were one step away from the big leagues and even a few who had already played in them. Well, a very long story short, I learned that a large portion of them were dirtbags as human beings. A large portion of even the married guys had a different girl in every city. There were a few who seemed to be wonderful people, but the jerks and immoral ones put me off so much I stopped watching all sports for a few years. I actually missed out on the fun of the 1981 WS win by the Dodgers and the Rams run to the Super Bowl in the 1979 season…
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I finally came to the conclusion that I watched sports in general, and baseball in particular, because I loved watching the best players in the game compete in the greatest game ever invented. And that humans were flawed as am I. So I came back just in time to experience the miracle of 1988!
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As I grow older I have discovered every aspect of life is littered with greedy and mean humans and to avoid them is impossible, short of moving into the wilderness and living off of the land…which my wife and I joke/think about often…
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As for Manny, he is a cheater. No doubt. But he will pay his penalty which is a pretty steep one, however not as severe as I would prefer. But I wasn’t fond of him to begin with. I still think his shoving the elderly traveling secretary of the Red Sox to the ground is far worse than his cheating baseball.
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In the end, I will root for him as he is a Dodger, but I will be happy to see him leave when that day does comes.
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I am not trying to change your mind; I am just sharing my story. My life is far different than yours, as far as I can tell from this forum. We don’t have children and a lot of my time, and the time we spend together, is done watching sports. Although we discussed other things we could do with our time, we decided we could not avoid the failings of humans no matter what we did and sports brought us great fun and shared experiences.
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I hope Manny comes clean and you remain watching this team which I think can have an amazing run over the next 5 or 6 years. But I understand how you feel.
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Best wishes and God Bless.
Nelly ~ I have no idea what you should tell your students. It is a tough one. Maybe a lesson on how cheaters eventually get caught and the punishment they receive is not even close to the embarrassment and loss of respect a cheater gets from others…I don’t know, but I feel for you.
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My job with the age group of my students is quite different. I have to try to convince them how terrible cheating is. Teenagers seem to think it is worth it in the end…I knew I shouldn’t have taught them about Machiavelli…
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Take care and God Bless.
Good morning ITDland ~ Good posts Dodgereric. I’m glad you and your family made it home safely. My dogs used to tear things up when we left them alone too. I think it’s their way of telling us off!!!!
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Digthedodgers ~ I am a Dodger fan and, although Manny has cheated (and will have served his time) I will root for him when he returns. That is, only, as you and Dodgereric have stated, if he apologizes to his teammates and the fans.
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GO DODGERS BEAT THE PHILLIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Some interesting, and possibly maddening, facts are coming out concerning the Manny testing. I didn’t know that the initial suspiciously high testosterone readings were determined as early as in the first two weeks of April. His testosterone measured 4-10 times higher than the normal range, wherupon a more elaborate test was done and determined that the testosterone was indeed synthetic. When Manny and his team prepared for an appeal, they were apparently going to claim that such a high reading could simply be produced by Manny having taken DHEA, which is not an MLB prohibited substance – never mind that this contention would subsequently be determined to be an outright lie. I’m reproducing here what I picked up from a San Diego newspaper report: “In their appeal, Ramirez and his representatives planned to argue the testosterone indicated the presence of DHEA, a steroid precursor banned under Olympic rules but not under federal law or baseball’s drug policy, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.” It was only when a copy of the prescription for the HCG (the female hormone) drug showed up that Manny and his people knew that the game was up and there was no purpose in the appeal.
That certainly brings several questions to mind:
When did our management first know about this potential problem? Where they advised as early as the first two weeks in April and just sat on this matter in complicity with Manny? Did we conduct any drug tests on Manny ourselves, which could have included the testosterone levels. Is Frank expressing his shock at the drug revelation falsely? How about addressing that with the fans, Josh!
Since the early April test revealing the unduly high testosterone level, has Manny then stopped taking the HCG drug, or did he just continue taking the drug all along figuring that his team would confuse and avoid the issue, even when he knew his appeal claim was false.
I leave it to you whether to believe anything that Manny or his team, or possibly even our own management can say about this situation. When there is enough money at stake, cheats and liars will surface, and I’m now reluctant to believe anything that comes from Manny’s camp no matter how innocent or contrite it sounds. It will be interesting to see the further details on this.
I’m going to make this post short and sweet:
GO DODGERS!
GO KERSH!
JOSH – That is a wonderful thing – name your hero. I will be looking into that. Thanks.
JOSH in another note, I thought the whole MANNYWOOD was a great idea but now PIERREWOOD….NO I’m not agreeing with it…it is taking it to far (I know you have nothing to do with this). Can we start making the Dodgers feel like a team instead of making ONE player be the HERO….DODGERTOWN! If a section needs to be created to get more ticket purchase then I suggest creating a section that will be geared towards the kids. Make it fun for kids and parents. Summer is coming, and the Dodgers are getting hot; create a “WET” section, hey each time the dodgers scored a home run and a run have employees spray the kids and surrounding adults with water or something like that. Or if you really want to sale tickets for that particular section a Dodger should come out during the 7th inning stretch a hang out. But I wasn’t excited to hear about PIERREWOOD. And if it’s the media creating all this then someone needs to tell them otherwise. PIERRE has been doing good. GREAT JOB PIERRE KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. TEAMWORK! But hey if they want to create a section for Pierre, how about calling it Pierre’s Circus – tuuuuturuuututu….JUST KIDDING – JUST KIDDING – PIERRE IS DOING GREAT!
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Well we get to face the Phillies again and they are the defending champion. Dodgers have a tough games against the Phillies. We need our Pitchers to really step it up a notch. PARK is great, wish him well, but I do wish the Dodgers will crush him…sorry PARK. So KERSHAW come on let’s brake your own record….14 is the NEW magic #.
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LET’S GO DODGERS – LET’S GO!!!!!
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ROSE
Eric,
Like I told someone else in my blog that said that A-Rod and Manny should be banned for life, I believe in giving second chances and I think the suspension and humiliation is punishment enough for his first time. But just like I said about A-Rod & Bonds that what they did should hinder their chances at the Hall of Fame, this also apply to Manny.
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I think the names on the list that they have should be released. Not releasing it is covering for those people.
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Having said all that I love the Dodgers, I love Baseball, I love the game! Like Vin said “no one man stops baseball.”
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Emma
http://crzblue.mlblogs.com/
messagebear ~ from the reports I read, the Dodgers were not alerted until last Wednesday night because of confidentiality rules. The team in the report was referring to Manny, Scott Boras, and his other advisers.
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What I took from that ESPN.com article is that Manny and Boras were going to lie as much as possible to get out of the suspension; and the new investigative unit of MLB, started because of the findings in the Mitchell Report, are really working hard to out the cheaters. And, to be fair, I’m glad the players association allowed, or had to, give the investigators the access to the documents which cornered Manny and Boras.
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I just want year round testing and harsher penalties to offer a better deterrent against using the PEDs.
I think that so much stink has been stirred up with the couple of leaks and speculation that it’s only fair that the entire Mitchell Report list be made public. Nobody on that list deserves protection – understanding for what was going on in a different era, yes; forgiveness, fine – hiding the damn bast***s, NO.
Josh,
I’d like to nominate the priest from the movie “Bluetopia” that helps former gang members and other kids stay clean.
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Anyone here seen the movie?
Emma
http://crzblue.mlblogs.com/
Although there was agreement that the list remain confidential, I agree with bear and several others here that it be made public. The MLBPA could and SHOULD waive the confidentiality clause.
When a forest becomes clogged with old pine needles and dried brush too many trees, nature takes over and burns it all away so that it will start all over again – new and fresh. That list could be the lightning strike we as fans need to start anew.
Clean Out The Cheaters!
Clean Out The Cheaters!
Clean Out The Cheaters!
I agree with EMMA & MESSAGEBEAR the list should be made public. If those players are being protected then why is Manny & ARod being punished, they should keep playing if they other guys are still playing. BUT THEY SHOULD ALL BE PUNISHED and this should be put to an END! I have a feeling owners of clubs or just MLB itself is paying not to release the list. Releasing the list will be a big negative impact on MLB or certain teams. Now somebody was probably mad that the Dodgers were doing soooo good, so they spilled the beans on Manny. I’m sure a movie will come out and istead of “8 Men Out” it will be like “8×8 Men Out” LOL
Manny cheated, plain and simple. Obviously has been for several years or he wouldn’t have needed the PED to compensate for the steroid use. Void his contract and be done with him. I’m with Kahli on this one. You can’t condemn it with Bonds and condone it with Manny. I can’t stand hypocracy, and neither should the Dodgers. Its just another black eye for a magagement/ownership that doesn’t know its *** from a hole in the ground.
Also, if Frank doesn’t void his contract, does that mean we’re stuck picking up his player option for next year? To that point I think we’ll figure out rather quickly how much hypocracy dwells upstairs at the stadium as well.
And why is it that all of the big time juicers are Boras clients? ANYONE that signs a Borass client ought to have their head examined.
I’m beginning to wonder just how much it’s worth supporting this franchise in its current state of ownership. It may still say Dodgers across the front of the jersey, but its so far removed from what that name’s supposed to mean, that it’s nothing more than a hollow shell – just a brand name to bring in the big dollars.
Think I’m gonna take a break for awhile. Its not worth the aggrevation.
Clean Out The Cheaters!
Clean Out The Cheaters!
Clean Out The Cheaters!
MAKE IT A FAIR GAME!
The list of positive tests in 2003, of which A-Rods name appeared, was supposed to be confidential because those testes were conducted before there were even rules against steroids. I’m not saying the other names shouldn’t be released too, just that it is very different than Manny’s situation.
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Manny tested positive this year when there is explicit rules against steroids and other PEDs.
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If the Dodgers release Manny when he returns, they will owe him the rest of this year’s salary and the $20M for next season if Manny decides to take the option…which I’m sure he will now. The Dodgers cannot void the contract; they could release him when he returns, but not without paying him.
Hear, Hear, enchanted! Great to hear from you on this issue, and I hope you stick with us in the forefront instead of taking a time out. These people, including our management especially, need to have their cages rattled constantly. I personally think that our management is being duplicitous and hiding from the issue. I can’t believe that nobody from Frank to Ned had any clue about what’s been going on with Manny. It was just convenient to look beyond the signs when they had every opportunity with required medical tests, etc. to discover that something was at least suspicious. There’s more behind this story than Frank or Ned will own up to – why else was nobody else really interested in signing this guy even when he became available for just a year or two.
My poll question for the ITD fans concerning the Manny affair:
Are Frank and Ned – AOK
Ignorant
Incompetent
good morning/ afternoon to some.
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I feel positive today about our team. I want to beat those Phillies today. Does anyone else find it strange that we are pitching against Park?
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Have a great day today all!
AMY – Hey how are you? Well we had Beimel the other day. But like I said earlier – PARK is great, wish him well, but I do wish the Dodgers will crush him…sorry PARK.
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ENCHANTED – We need your Lyrics – Wear a brown paper bag but stick around! Let’s keep cheering for the rest of the team!
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MESSAGEBEAR – Management & Coaches they just want a winning team (some regardless if it’s a clean team or not). Most Owners they just want $$$ regardless
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LET’S GO DODGERS! It will be an exciting game tonight and Dodgers will kick some butt….they had their day to have the talks they need.
I used to give my brother-in-law **** about his excuses for Bonds, but now the shoe goes on the other foot. To my mind Maris and Aaron still hold the the home run records which makes me wonder: if the Dodgers do well the rest of the season and Manny is instrumental (not hard to imagine) in their success, will I take seriously? I guess things were going to well.
Hi Rose– yes, the Beimel thing was a little strange to watch, that is for sure. Park was also our friend and now I want him to get the ‘L’ tonight.
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I am well. Just working hard and dealing with life.
How’s your cute little family?
I think we have very good management with the Dodgers. They have made many mistakes, but overall I think they have the franchise turned in the right direction and we are on the cusp of another Golden Age in Dodgers History.
digthedodgers – It has been relatively calm here today. It’s been mentioned, but not with the questions I thought might come of it. I did use the concept of cheaters do get caught eventually. It may not be for a while, but it will happen.
messagebear – some great questions, which need to be answered by our organization.
dodgereric – great analogy!!!!
enchanted – I think messagebear is right. We are the ones who can give a voice to the fans who care about this team the most and really want Frank, Ned and the rest of this organization to know how we feel. You, enchanted, are an intragul part in that voice and I would hate to see you, or any others, to step back know, when your voice is needed most.
As for me, I am thinking the further it drags out about Manny not talking to the team is reason enough for me to say, “it’s not worth it anymore”. I was thinking that back in February when everyone was still laboring over how Manny should be paid, or if we should pay him at all, and in the midst of all that, Andre was about ready to go to court over a mere $500,000. I know hindsight is 20/20, but maybe Frank should have paid Andre what he wanted and been done with Manny because we are without him now anyway.
AMY- My family is doing great. My son loves playing t-ball. His favorite positions are Catcher, Pitcher & 1st base in that order (they get the ball more). When they put him someplace else, then he starts looking for bugs in the grass…boys will be boys. It’s good to hear from you.
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NELLY – I agree with you, it’s not worth it. Manny will have to earn his respect back. But life goes on and Dodgers are still playing and playing very good. But we knew from before that our pitching was going to be a bit of a problem.
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LET’S GO DODGERS!
ROSE
digthedodgers – we’ll find out just how good this current management team is in the next few years all right. Let’s see how hard they try to hold on to our youth as they hit their free agent years. I have no confidence in them. I will maintain my stance that they “support the youth movement” only as long as they come cheap until they prove otherwise. So until then, I vote on bear’s poll as:
Incompetant
Turning back to the games, which after all is our main purpose, this is bound to be a tough road trip facing some of the best of the tough Eastern division. I would be real glad to come away with a 3-3 split, and even a 2-4 outcome would not be devastating. The main thing to watch is how our team plays. The time for Manny reaction should be over. Furcal and Ethier need to ease up a bit and just be themselves. Martin has been showing signs of getting back into stride – probably needs to concentrate a bit on hitting the other way instead of pulling the ball. Kemp probably needs to relax some as well. Don’t know about Loney – he’s spraying the ball around, but there’s got to be a power stroke in there someplace – get Mattingly to help you, although I wonder what he’s really capable of, same as Honneycutt.
In a nutshell, GO DODGERS and come out fighting – let people concentrate on what you’ve got, not what you’ve lost.
LET’S GO DODGERS, LET’S GO!
were is Dodgers4life
LET’S GO DODGERS, LET’S GO!
LET’S GO: ETHIER, KEMP, MARTIN, KERSH, PIERRE, FURCAL, HUDSON, LONEY & BLAKE LET’S GO!
I certainly hope they win a few games on this road trip. Philly, fan wise, is just going to be a nightmare I would imagine. I would love to get Park tonight to start it off.
Bear ~ My answer to your poll question is: INCOMPETENT !!!
Dodgers management? – DISINGENUOUS, INCAPABLE, and INEXCUSEABLE.
With any pitching this team is 3-1 without Manny rather than 1-3. That said, we’ve got yet another buffoon as a field manager who has a 13 man pitching staff to overmanage (like Sunday’s game and the last one against the Nats.) If he could use Brox to pitch the 9th and 10th on Sunday, why not bring him in with the lead and let him pitch the 8th and 9th instead? Mota’s another worthless ‘roider who should be released. More ammunition to prove my hypothesis above.
It used to be amusing to poke fun at the front office’s shortcomings.
Now its just pathetic.
I gotta stick to my guns and boycott for awhile.
At least until JP screws up so I can rub someone’s nose in it.
Enchanted ~ Please, please, please don’t boycott!
digthedodgers is right…you can’t just void Manny’s contract unless there was a written morals clause…which I doubt there is. So Manny, here’s what you do:
1) Admit you cheated big time.
2) Give us ALL the facts, as grimy and unappetizing as they might be.
3) Donate ALL of your salary, minus whatever the major league minimum may be (you can keep that piddling sum, Manny, though it’s probably more than I’ll make in a decade) to charity or Frank McCourt or to me or to whoever you want.
4) Dump Boras for even considering weaseling out of this mess.
The ultimate outcome will be to elevate the Dodgers to the top of the baseball mountain, with a loud message: The Dodgers stand for a hell of a lot more than the Yankees, Giants, and the rest of the phonies!
Good afternoon ITD, Dodger Faithful…….. I dont really have anything to add to the Manny situation, I wish him the best outcome possible, as I too have had my share of problems in the past. I do think that the best result can only be achieved through coming clean, first of all with yourself, then the people around you that this has affected the most, and distancing yourself from anything that leads back to the root of the problem to begin with. I believe in a bad situation, and moving foward will will be a positive step to a happy solution.
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We have been having a great time this year…. 22 – 11 ~ .667 win % ~ .500 on the road ~ 6-3 in 1 run ball games, and the best record in baseball as of today.
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Lets Stay Together…………..
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lus8OTnLo7w
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Were a TEAM BABY!!!!! and a darn GOOD TEAM!!!!
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So………. LETS GO DODGERS, LETS GO!!!!!!!
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ROCK ME BABY, LIKE MY BACK AINT GOT NO BONES!!!!!
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4OXrmxDp44
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BEAT THE PHILLIES!!!!!
GO DODGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!
BRING THE RING TO L.A. IN 2009!!!!!!
On our poll as to how ITD members regard the Dodgers’ management, here’s what we show so far:
1 – AOK
2 – Incompetent, with one of the incompetent in all caps.
1 – impromptu response as follows: DISINGENUOUS, INCAPABLE, and INEXCUSEABLE
My question was really related to management’s knowledge and handling of the Manny affair, but some of the poll answers may be taking the question to wider boundaries of management action, or inaction, as the case may be.
That should say….I believe that in a bad situation, less is more, and that moving foward will be a positive step towards a happy solution.
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I BELIEVE IN THIS TEAM!!!!!!
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GO DODGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am still very bugged that he hasn’t addressed the team yet. Monday would have been the perfect day before the team flew out to Philadelphia. All I have got to say is this better be one hell of a convincing speech because that right now has got me more bothered than the issue itself. At minimum this team,who has done nothing but welcome him into their clubhouse in August and show him they wanted him re-signed in February, deserves this at the very minimum.
With that said – GO DODGERS!!!! GET THOSE PHILLIES!!!!! WE HAVE FAITH IN YOU!!!!
Who’s cheating on the Giants?
Who’s cheating on the Padres?
Who’s cheating on the Rockies?
Who’s cheating on the D’backs?
Who’s cheating on the Angels?
Who’s cheating on the Mariners?
Who’s cheating on the A’s?
Who’s cheating on the Rangers?
Who’s cheating on the Cubs?
Who’s cheating on the Cardinals?
Who’s cheating on Bud’s precious Brewers?
Who’s cheating on the Reds?
Who’s cheating on the Astros?
Who’s cheating on the Pirates?
Who’s cheating on the Tigers?
Who’s cheating on the Royals?
Who’s cheating on the Twins?
Who’s cheating on the White Sox?
Who’s cheating on the Indians?
Who’s cheating on the Braves?
Who’s cheating on the Mets?
Who’s cheating on the Phillies?
Who’s cheating on the Nationals?
Who’s cheating on the Marlins?
Who’s cheating on the Blue Jays?
Who’s cheating on the Red Sox?
Who’s cheating on the Yankees?
Who’s cheating on the Rays?
Who’s cheating on the Orioles?
Who’s cheating on the Dodgers?
Because I know who else is cheating the fans… BUD SELIG. DONALD FEHR.
BUD SELIG AND DONALD FEHR ARE CHEATING THE BASEBALL FANS.
BUD SELIG AND DONALD FEHR ARE CHEATING THE KIDS OF AMERICA.
BUD SELIG AND DONALD FEHR FANCY THEMSELVES BIGGER THAN ALL OF BASEBALL.
THIS ISN’T A SCUFFED BASEBALL.
THIS ISN’T AN 18 INCH MOUND.
THIS ISN’T A SPITBALL.
THIS ISN’T A CORKED BAT.
This is baseball’s “best” choosing to inject themselves with ILLEGAL drugs to get an edge and a few more millions to put their names in the record books.
This is baseball’s mediocre just trying to make it out of the Minors and hang with the Big Leaguers for a season or two.
This is particular (not all) baseball players who are killing themselves. As well as showing the kids how they, too, can kill themselves for a few spins of the globe on top of the Baseball world.
This is a boulder, not a grain, of salt that all baseball fans have to slowly choke on each time they watch a Major League Baseball game.
How much longer will we legitimize it?
How much longer will we condone it?
I loved Manny Ramirez as a player. But what he did to my team, as a player who made a stupid decision, has tarnished not only himself, or his team, or his team’s fans, but EVERYONE who has ever looked at a Big League game with interest.
What does this tell kids aspiring to be baseball players?
Or even kids who want to be fans of the game?
GET BUD SELIG AND DONALD FEHR OUT OF BASEBALL, so that we can start anew with executives that bring with them a clean slate.
GET THE OPPURTUNISTS OUT OF BASEBALL.
You don’t need steroids to level the playing field.
I hate that Bud Selig, Donald Fehr and the users, aiders and abetters have made me question the game that I love.
I hate the snickers from those who consider themselves bigger NFL fans, who are ignorant or accepting of their own sports’ drug problems, where a user can not only go up for awards and all-star status (until recently), but will be considered to be cover boys for video games.
I WANT to like Manny still. I liked him since he was in Boston, found myself enchanted by “Manny being Manny”, and with every trade rumor since 2003, found myself hoping to find him in a Dodgers jersey, patrolling our outfield.
Guess I should’ve been careful what I wished for.
As a person, I may find his story inspiring, depending on how he deals with it and how he comes out of it.
But as a player, after this… I don’t know.
I will still root, root root for the Dodgers. But… it’s time to clean up the game. Somehow. Even though HGH isn’t detectable, the drugs they use to end the cycle obviously are. Test them year round. You’ll catch the HGHers just like you caught Manny.
I’m still a baseball fan. I’ll always be. This is just the point before we (to borrow from Terrance Mann) have to erase the blackboard before we write on it again.
And Bud Selig needs to get out of the sport, because he either:
A.) is TOO STUPID to know what’s going on in his own sport, or
B.) is so deadened to it, he doesn’t even look up from counting his money.
Either way, he’s selling out the kids of America, and shouldn’t be surprised, if the status quo goes on, if the stadiums across America are a little emptier as time goes on.
(No, really, who IS using on Bud’s precious Brewers? Inquiring minds want to know.)
Good to see you back, D4Life 🙂
northstateblues – impressive as always!!! ……..and it’s good to see you as well 🙂
NSTATE – Nicely said! Welcome Back!
Hiya Everybody,
Did you see where the Mets gave Santana low run support again and on the other side was Derek Lowe, who hardly ever got much from the Dodgers and is now enjoying plenty from the Braves?
Oh Well it’s spilled milk now.
The Dodgers will go on to play 3 of the best teams in the N.L.,
The Phillies, The Marlins, in the east and then go back to LA for the Mets and to top it off, without Manny.
These games will surely tell us were we stand without him.
GO DODGERS**********************************
Thanks North….Applause, Applause, Applause…… on your post as well!!!!
NSB and dodger4life ~ well said. I have nothing else to add at this time. I am waiting for Manny to address the team.
TRU – Hey were have you been? Yes same here, I have nothing else to say regarding Manny…but just got one thing to say LET’S GO DODGERS! LET’S KICK SOME PHILLIES’ BUTT!
Good one, NSBlues!!!
It is time for the fans to rise up. Why can’t we get some of the main line media behind the message with a passion like some of us have displayed – that just might shake up the baseball establishment to do something about this situation, and Manny is obviously just the tip of the iceberg.
How should have the front office improved our pitching in the off-season?
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Joe Torre made the playoffs all 12 years he was manager of the NY Yankees. The Yankees made the playoffs ONCE in the 14 years previous to Torre taking over the reigns. They won 4 World Series Championships under Torre; 1978 was their last WS win prior to Torre taking over. Last year while Torre’s Dodgers made the playoffs and won a post-season series for the first time since 1988, the “fiery genius” Joe Giradi failed to make the playoffs.
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Go Dodgers!!!
Kahli – Your list of what Manny should do is wonderful. No, the Dodgers can’t just void Manny’s contract, but Manny can do each one of your four points.
D4L – Thx for your positive post! As much as I want to stay positive, I have a hard time doing so. I’m normally a very positive, very optimistic person, but this Manny c*ap and his actions and inactions are just eating me up.
And Nelly – I too am still bothered that Manny hasn’t addressed the team yet. I heard that he may when the Dodgers play Florida; you know, in Manny’s backyard.
Hey Manny – this isn’t something that you should do at YOUR CONVENIENCE. I hate to say it, but grow a pair (if the ‘roids will let you) and GO SEE AND TALK TO YOUR TEAMMATES!!!
GO DODGERS!!!
GO KERSHAW!!!
LOL!!!
Very nice CP.
Ya know digthedodgers, before my post yesterday, I have been largely silent on the Manny cr*p. And perhaps I will get silent again, just because this isn’t me. This isn’t like me to unload like this. But that so-and-so (there I go, trying not to mention his name) has got me so upset, I have no choice but to say something. And believe me, if I had it in me, I could use, oh how does enchanted and eric say it, more “bombastic” words. But I’m not going to do that. All I want is for the game that I love to get cleaned up. Is that so much to ask???
Oh, and I didn’t mean to leave you out, but NSB your post was terrific!!!
This sums up my gloom pretty well:
http://www.dailynews.com/dodgers/ci_12348210
CP – Not at all. I agree with you.
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At this point I put most of the blame on the players union. Everyone was to blame in the ’90s, but now the players who don’t use have to demand changes to the testing program and its penalties.
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Because of this ugly era, every player is suspected to be guilty until proven innocent, and it is almost impossible to prove themselves innocent given all the current loopholes in the testing. They need to demand year round testing and more of it. They need to implement HGH testing as soon as it is available, and I think they need to stop their locker room “code” on this issue and report users they know about. Otherwise every player will always be under suspicion. Imagine if Pujols is actually innocent, although I can’t imagine; most people, like myself, assumes he is using…but if he is clean, it is a tragedy to him.
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The players union shouldn’t use this issue as a bargaining chip and get something done.
Kahli ~ I love the last part of the article….We can love him, still support him, and cheer for him when he hits a homerun. but it can never go back to the way it was.
I agree with you who blame all this mess on the PU (players union).
Kahli – That is a perfectly-written article and says what everyone else is feeling. Many of us wanted to and did fall in love with Manny, his self-deprecating style, his humor. And now, he and the rest of LA, heck the rest of baseball can never go back from this. Unless, like NSB so eloquently stated, “GET BUD SELIG AND DONALD FEHR OUT OF BASEBALL…” If that happens then, perhaps, we have a chance…
CP – the Florida series is a little late for me to be honest. It will have been an entire week since this incident. It’ shouldn’t be at his convenience. It needs to be done two/three days ago minimum.
Wow Kahli!!!! ………….that about says it.
CP – “Manny, grow a pair”. Brilliant. Perfect. As jhall would say, “magnifique, splendide, superbe”
dig, we wouldn’t be straining the scenario by saying that we could have signed these two guys for approximately the same money:
Juan Cruz – $6 mil for 2 years
2009 so far: 2-0, 1.88 ERA, 1.116 WHIP
Joe Beimel – $2 mil for 1 year
2009 so far: 0-1, 1.74 ERA, 1.355 WHIP
I’d like to plug them into our roster and remove:
Mota – $2.35 mil for 1 year
2009 so far: 2-1, 7.42 ERA, 2.175 WHIP
Ohman – $1.55 mil for 1 year
2009 so far: 0-0, 4.66 ERA, 1.345 WHIP
……..and then put poor Brent Leach back in the minors and get another position player up here for the bench (take your pick here) to end this absurd 13-man pitching roster.
Again, not a stretch and more than a couple of us were screaming for Ned to make those moves. This is not sour grapes or 20/20 hindsight. And please, no one tell me that Cruz is not worth a #2 draft pick.
Now Torre. Yes, he won 4 WS championships in 5 years with the Yankees. But if he’s such a genius, why did he:
1) Get fired as manager of the New York Mets after 6 seasons of never finishing above .500?
2) Get fired as manager of the Atlanta Braves after 3 seasons getting worse each year? (.549, .543, .494)
3) Get fired as manager of the St Louis Cardinals after 4 full seasons (and portions of 2 others) of mostly retreating?(.414 – partial, .519, .512, .537, .465, .426 – partial)
4) Fail to win the Series again even once in his last 7 seasons with the Yankees, despite having the highest payroll in baseball?
By the way, I’m not one of those who feels that it’s a successful year if you just make the playoffs. I’ve never considered 1966 or 1977 or 1978 successful seasons, nor any other season that didn’t end in a Series victory. Perhaps I’m in the minority here, but it doesn’t change my mind.
Nelly – You know me, I wholeheartedly agree. The report that he was going to talk to his teammates in Florida just eats me up. I mean, A-Rod only waited a couple of days after news was first published to speak up in public. No, when I heard that report, I was just ready to chew nails.
I think we are getting a nice taste of what some of those Boston fans felt when they had had enough.
Well it’s always a great time talking here on ITD! Perhaps the subject matter can be a little lighter, a little less gut wrenching, but I love my time on ITD! I’ve gotta head; want to watch the game! And again…
GO DODGERS!!!
GO KERSH!!!
I’ll catch up with y’all later…
Great points, dodgereric, especially the Cruz, Beimel/ Mota, Ohman comparisons. Management was just sleeping through the off-season and didn’t care about building the team unless his name was Manny. And, if I say so myself, I said a number of times during the wait for Manny that the team who got him would come to regret it. I didn’t quite expect that it would happen this soon or in this manner, but we’ll be screwed by having him around through 2010.
eric ~ Fair points on Cruz and Beimel, although I do understand not wanting to give away a 2nd round draft pick for a guy who had not been all that great. But his stats so far this season proves me and the FO wrong so far.
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More fair points regarding Torre’s career. I just think it is unfair to call him totally incompetant when he does have an amzing record over the last 13 seasons. And the Yankees have had the highest payroll every year since the mid-70s, not just the 12 seasons Torre was there.
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I think Torre is really good at managing the locker room and is especially good with lots of talent. I disagree with a few of his moves too, but he makes 1000’s of decisions and he is there with full knowledge of every minor physical and psychological ailment each player has which we are seldom privy to…so I tend to cut him a lot of slack.
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My philosophy as a fan is much different than yours, which could easily explain our differences of opinion, i.e. our different expectations. If I was a player, owner, GM, or manager of the Dodgers I would only be completely satisfied if we won a World Series. But as a fan I have zero power to make the decisions to help win the WS, so I just expect the team to be competitive for most of the season and do their best to try to win. In 106 years of WS play the Dodgers have won 6 WS titles and just 5 in the 50 years in LA. I need to be happy a lot more than just one year out of ten.
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Although the Dodgers current management has made some big mistakes, they have made me very happy, for the most part. I think they are trying to win and have built a great young core which could make for an amazing 5-6 years ahead. Also, there is only one team’s management where I think has done a significantly better job in the last 5 years than the Dodgers…the Red Sox. And the Dodgers never treated a player as horribly as they did this last off-season with Jason Varitek. He was their team leader and captain for both of their recent WS titles, yet was jerked around to save a few bucks…
Way to go JP!!
OOODAWG
Pierre’s hitting like he’s on a mission.
I’m glad Ethier got a hit.
Me too Joe Pierre (the original JP!!)
Thanks everyone, there’s been a lot of great writing today, and since all of this went down. It feels like history. Dirty, no good, ugly history, but still history nonetheless. Everyone liked him so much, and we were 13-0, that was a huge jolt to deal with all at once, and for me, it was really tough to put those words down earlier, but it’s how I feel.
Blinded by the rage, though, and after reading the LA Daily News article that was just posted, I want to add something I might have missed.
I realize the users are human. And I’m in favor of second chances, especially to those who admit their flaws (hint, hint, Manny), instead of choking on their own hubris and denial (a la Bonds, Palmerio and, before our eyes, Roger Clemens). Like the article says, it wouldn’t be the same, but it would be better than turning your team’s fans into a culture of deniers.
After all, the after effects of those drugs are so destructive, perhaps just staying fit would be an uphill battle (have you had a look at McGwire when he comes out into the public for 30 seconds every year? Yeesh).
It would greatly behoove Baseball and the Players Union to agree on a clause that if a player is caught using a PED and is suspended, they forfeit their salary and accept the league minimum for the affected years. Probably would be a huge lawyer fight, but would be worth it.
That would be a huge deterrent for any users looking to capitalize. And would go a long way towards getting stability in the game, before we have to start dealing with the Cybernetic Era.
After all, unfortunately, cheating is as old as the game itself, as old as we’ve been around. And it’s wrong, I’m not trying to legitimize it. It’s how baseball deals with cheating throughout time that is the reason for its resiliency. Sadly, I think that Bud Selig is too busy capitalizing to realize that by cleaning up the game, the fans will be back, and in droves.
People would come, Bud. People would most definitely come.
nsb ~ great post.
Bud Selig has been a poor commissioner as far as us fans are concerned, but the owners didn’t want a “Commissioner” as was proven when they fired Fay Vincent and hired one of their own, Selig. And if Congress hadn’t scared the anti-trust out of the owners, nothing would have happened even now.
An interesting point, digthedodgers. Never made that connection like that.
Makes perfect sense.
Way to go Kersh………keep it going!!!!
Way to go Kershaw…just 20 pitches through 2 innings.
As least they scored first, which is usually a good sign for them this year.
Horrible pitch selections this inning…
Walks kill you everytime. He’s pitching to the bottom of the order. Let’s get these runs back. We don’t seem to be able to do much in the middle innings lately.
Good job, Matt!
MARVELOUS MATTY puts up by 1.
Indeed…Marvelous Matt!!!
Russell’s roll into 2nd kept the inning alive…
They were saying the Kershaw is second in pitches thrown per batter. He is loaded with talent, but he still throws way too many pitches right now. They don’t need another game where they have to go to the BP early.
Are we asleep. Come on LA, play heads up.
Kershaw hasn’t got it tonight. We’re in trouble.
Come on Kershaw, you act like you’ve never pitched before.
How long is Joe going to stick with him? He still doesn’t have an out. It’s too early to give up on the game.
Going to be a long 50 days before Manny is back. Think what you want about Manny, but we need him.
I agree blue, get him outta there.
20 pitches the 1st 2 innings, then 57 in the last 2 innings…
Good hustle though!
red pen = 67 pitches the last 2 innings
Well, we’re playing very pathetic. Can’t even get a loud fart.
Just think, if the Dodgers avoid being swept on this road trip they can still have a decent 2-4 record.
Can’t we get a pitcher who can throw strikes for God’s sake.
Boblee, on a positive note, it sounds like Kuroda might be pretty close to returning. That would definitley be a boost.
We definately need Kuroda and if Stults continues his good pitchiong, we’ll defianately be better. I’m at a loss as to where Loney and Martin’s power has disappeared to.
Kershaw threw a lot of strikes except he had trouble when he got to 2 strikes.
Oldbrooklynfan ~ I’d take 2-4 right now. I set goals for the Dodgers each year so I don’t get too disappointed during the difficult stretches. Here are my goals for this season in order to achieve a 94-68 record:
With the first depressing loss of the season under our belts I am going to list my goals for each homestand and road trip. I set this year’s goal at 94-68 which should certainly get us into the playoffs. Heck, 84-78 won the NL West for the Dodgers last year.
This puts each game in the long marathon into perspective for me. It makes a tough loss a little easier to take.
@ SD (4), @ Ariz (3) = 4-3 Actual = 4-3 (E) Total = 4-3 (E)
SF (3), Colo (3) = 4-2 Actual = 6-0 (+2) Total = 10-3 (+2)
@ Hou (3), @ Colo (3), @ SF (3) = 4-5 Actual = 4-5 (E) Total = 14-8 (+2)
SD (4), Ariz (2), Wash (2), SF (3) = 8-3 Actual = 8-3 (E) Total = 22-11 (+2)
@ Phil (3), @ Fla (3) = 3-3
NY (3), Ana (3) = 4-2
@ Colo (3), @ Chic (4) = 3-4
Ariz (3), Phil (4), SD (2) = 6-3
@ Tex (3) = 1-2
Oak (3) = 2-1
@ Ana (3), @ CWS (3) = 3-3
Sea (3), Colo (3) = 4-2
@ SD (3), @ NY (3), @ Milw (3) = 4-5
ALL-STAR BREAK
Hou (4), Cin (3), Fla (3) = 7-3
@ St. L (4), @ Atl (3) = 3-4
Milw (3), Atl (4) = 4-3
@ SF (3), @ Ariz (3) = 3-3
St. L (3), Chic (4) = 4-3
@ Colo (3), @ Cin (3) = 3-3
Ariz (4), SD (3) = 5-2
@ Ariz (3), @ SF (3) = 3-3
Pitt (3), SF (3) = 4-2
@ Wash (3), @ Pitt (4), @ SD (2) = 6-3
Colo (3) = 2-1
That was copied from my blog.
our pitcher and catcher aren’t in this game. We look totally flat. 45 games after tonight.
CRAP!!!!!
Martin sure isn’t in this game. Totally unacceptable.
That’s enough for me. I’m out of here. I’ll be back july 4th when Manny is back.
Well.
LETS GO DODGERS, LETS GO!!!!!
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LETS GET BACK IN THIS GAME !!!!!!!
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RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!
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SCORE SCORE SCORE!!!!!!
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COME ON BOY”S!!!!!!!!
Digthedodger: eh, I don’t think it work that way.
obf ~ I’m not sure what you mean.
ThatWAS a good AB for Odawg.
Funny how things go, Chan Ho Park could be the winner and Jayson Werth steals 4 bases including home.
Like an ex-Dodgers celebration.
Digthedodgers: You can’t just write it down and figure it out the way it’s going to work.
There are a lot of unexpected things that happen during a season.
Only God knows.
I would have thought that the Dodgers could win this matchup. I won’t build that anticipation again with Kershaw pitching. He doesn’t seem anywhere ready to pitch in the major leagues. No doubt that he’s got some good stuff, but don’t even mention Koufax in the same sentence with this high school dude. No comparison. You would think that having him with the major league ballclub would give him the advantage of being with the best pitching coach that the organization has to offer, but can anybody think of one of our pitchers that Honeycutt has helped. The organization might be better off sending Kersh down to AAA to have him spend a year or two there to learn how to pitch in the professional leagues. He may have the stuff on the ball, but he is not a winner – no brain, no guts, and no heart. Sorry to have to say that.
Oh, I know that. I just set it up that way so a really bad road trip, for example, doesn’t ruin MY outlook for the whole season. It isn’t meant to predict the season, just keep it in perspective for me.
NICE AB for LONEY.
LORETTA nice hitting.
Darn.
Turn the page.
We’ll get ’em tomorrow.
Go Dodgers!!!
C L O S E almost got back in he game.
I like that Lyons keeps it interesting.
The Dodgers have to take these games in stride and not let it get them down.
Just keep playing hard like they did tonight.
These teams are tough.
Good Evening ITD readers and writers!!!! Looks like I just got home in time to see us lose 😦 There’s always tomorrow. Pitching seems to be the main concern still IMO. I realize we didn’t score but two runs, but that 4th inning was not good for Kersh, and it made the difference in the game IMO.
Messagebear:
I disagree
Kershaw is OK in our division all he needs is more outings against most of the more advanced teams in the other divisions.
Joe Pierre
I also would like to add that Kersh had a bad night, If his stuff was better he would’ve done a lot better.
oldbrooklynfan – I didn’t see the game, but by what you said, at least they are still fighting to win in the end, and that’s all we can ask for. Like you said, these teams are tough, and it will all even out when the gnats come out and have to face these teams as well.
You know, for me, a real key moment came in the first inning when O-Dog got nailed between 1st and 2nd on the throw to the plate that scored Pierre. This is major league baseball. I’d like to know how many times already this season our base runners have run us out of innings on BASE HITS! We just seem to get thrown out at 2nd base with regularity–and the plays aren’t even close, not by a mile. I don’t like the Dodgers’ intensity right now. They’re still staggering from Manny and someone needs to administer a cold, hard slap!
oldbrooklynfan – these teams are tough and everyone in our divsion has to play them also. So, it will all get sorted out in the end, and the Dodgers should be just fine within their division.
Nelly: Nothing has changed, tonight was just another night.
okay – my 7:16 post wasn’t there just a minute ago, so I retyped another post only to find the original there……. not complaining, just explaining.
And good evening from Dana Point, my friends!
,
IMHO, Kershaw hasn’t developed the “killer instinct” yet. By that, I mean the ability to get outs after getting two strikes on batters. That was his problem tonight, resulting in too many pitches. It’d be great if he could have stayed in the minors to develop a bit more, but that’s hindsight. Thankfully, Kuroda seems to be getting closer to returning.
Good Evening Sparkleplenty!!!! Kersh has had several games where we knew right away it was going to be a tough outing for him, and this seemed to be one of them.
Hi Nelly!
It’s getting close to the end of the school year, isn’t it? Are you looking forward to your move?
I always respect your opinion, Joe Pierre, and I hope that Kersh can mature at the major league level. Somebody called it the “killer instinct”, and that’s what I think Kersh is lacking. I don’t know how to instill that in a pitcher, but I think that’s exactly what’s missing here. If you extrapolate the season that Kersh has had so far over the entire season, he’s not going to contribute much at the major league level, so some real improvement must come soon. I’m frustrated because Honeycutt doesn’t seem to have much to contribute either in developing young pitchers, and that isn’t right.
Sorry for the hit and run – pardon the pun, please! May be back later . . . .
I’m breaking my vow of silence just long enough to agree with Bear. Kersh hasn’t progressed, he’s regressed and will continue to do so unless he can get someone to help him along. That leaves out Honeycutt. McDonald has regressed also, and who did he finally go see? Charlie Hough. FIRE HONEYCUTT.
For that matter, Martin and Loney have regressed also. After a month and a half and they’re still tied with JP in HRs?? That’s pathetic. FIRE MATTINGLY.
Manny’s gone for 5 friggin games and this team has taken back the personna of its fearless leader JoJo the Clown. We’re exactly where we were middle of the season last year, except this year, we don’t have any pitching to keep us in the game. FIRE JOE.
In conclusion,
Fire Manny.
Fire Honeycutt.
Fire Mattingly.
Fire Joe.
Fire Ned.
Sell the team Frank.
Now you all go back to what you were doing – nothing to see here. Move along, nothing to see here…
That was a disappointing loss. I still think they’ll get back on track and start winning again without Manny. This whole thing has just thrown their whole chemistry off and it’s like they’re searching for their identity and trying to do too much instead of just playing their game and playing to their strengths. They need to break it down to the basics and just start focusing on executing the fundamentals well and having good patient at bats. I think they’re focusing too much on the big picture now. Manny’s going to be gone for awhile and they just need to forget about him for now.
Nice to see you enchanted. You know you can’t stay away 🙂
I feel your frustration, enchanted, but we’d miss you if you weren’t here ):
LMAO ~ Enchanted!!!!!
enchanted……………….where are you? enchanted………….come out, come out wherever you are. You know you can’t stay away enchanted 🙂
bluecrewgirl – no strikeouts for Andre and a double – definitely sounding better. I didn’t see him bat so I am only going by boxscore.
He tagged the ball on his double and he made contact every time. I’m not worried about him. He’ll be fine. He did seem more relaxed at the plate tonight than he’s been the last few games.
sparkleplenty – I just saw your question up top. I am sooo looking forward to the end of the school year. This class has been one of the most challenging I have had in a long time in terms of behavior and academics combined. The academics is mostly motivational – could care less about quality of work and it goes as far down as just coloring and art. Now, with that said, they have come together nicely on some class projects for a certain ITD blogger (dodgereric) who they still ask about daily, but other than that, they just never had that “team” chemistry that I was hoping to get. However, I must say………………..this class LOVES baseball to where they are buying baseball cards, going to games, playing t-ball and softball and buying baseball themed stuff for their rooms. As far as moving………….I just have to move classrooms, but not sure where yet. However, I am at the same grade with 24 students instead of 20. Thanks for asking 🙂
That’s good to hear bluecrewgirl. Like we said last night, he will figure it out like he always does.
I was just called and told I am moving from room 5 to 10,which is great!!! Why you ask? ………..because it was either room 10 or room 9, and I think I am a little tired of the #9 to be honest 🙂
Room #16 wasn’t available? LOL.
LOL!! No, but I have been in that room before. It is across the courtyard from me so I do have a view of it if that counts 🙂
enchanted, I’m not quite as ready to push the old panic button…but I would place Honeycutt on the DL (Defecit Learning), effective last year. As for Loney, I’m at a loss. At least Martin is getting on base every blue moon…but he’s still a LoDuca rerun for me…you know, bright meteor that quickly burns out. Maybe he’s off roids???? Mr. Loney should go to a sports psychologist, and he can take with Wolf with him.
fridayjoe, wherever you are, Pierre may be on fire, but he is caustic to the Dodgers winning. It’s like a bad Twilight Zone. As he goes, the Dodgers go in an equal and opposite direction. Maybe I’ll start calling your hero “Sir Isaac,” or, better yet, just “Newton,” after the third law of motion. The Dodgers can call the new left field fans “Fake Newtons.”
The damn gnats just beat the Nats with a walkoff homerun by Sandoval…………………..winning 9-7, crap 😦
Two outs, nobody on, no less…losing pitcher, Mr. Beimal. Hey, the Gnats aren’t going away, but they’ll start playing real teams again, too.
LMAO!!!! Now that is funny Kahli!!!!!
I am sure I am about to bring on some Andre bashing, but I don’t care. Andre~ I am sorry, but I am sooooooooooo damn tired of JP’s face and name popping up all over the homepage like he is our savior for this team. We can have an actual Garden Gnome out there and still be where we are right now. Yes, he has played better than “JP” normally does, but we all know it’s only a matter of time before he goes back to being the “normal” JP. He sure as hell doesn’t bring the word excitement to my thoughts as he is coming up to bat, as opposed to any player on the starting roster, including some of the pitchers. IMO the only reason he is playing better is he is the ONLY one who has benefited from Manny being a cheater. So, not only has Manny dug himself a nice big hole, he has also guaranteed that most of us will have to suffer 45 more games of JP batting lead-off. I am thinking DodgerEric needs to think about taking “I’ve Got You Babe” off the DodgerLyrics shelf, dusting it off and playing it for the next 45 excruciating days. Once again, bring on the Andre bashing…………I am ready for what’s to come because I am an Ethieraholic and proud of it!!!
You are right about that Kahli. Like I said earlier, they will have to play these east coast teams too, and it will all balance out in the end with the Dodgers out in front hopefully.
Someone mentioned “The Sounds of Silence” a little while ago. I’m sorry, but this is all I could come up with ………….
Hello baseball, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds of players cheating
But they’ve no fear of reprisals by the law
I drop my jaw
The union’s sound of silence
In restless dreams they all take home
Endless vials of testosterone
‘Neath the halo of a strong union
A hundred year’s hard work is coming undone
The commish’ner turned a blind eye to the cry
He told his lie
He liked his sound of silence
And in the naked light I saw
Ten billion dollars, maybe more
Players taking without remorse
Stuff you wouldn’t give a near-dead horse
People writing songs of protest on ITD
It cannot be
They like the sounds of silence
“Fools”, said I, “You do not know
The players come and players go
Hear my words that I might teach you
Stop taking crap that you know is taboo
But my words, like silent raindrops fell
And echoed
In the sound of silence
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said, “The fans like the numbers, shrinking testicles won’t bother you
Then you can sue”
And whispered in the sounds of silence
🙂 Wow!!! That song came out of leftfield (LOL), meaning I didn’t think anybody was in a song writing mood, but I guess you proved us all wrong. That song says a lot =,
I think that was northstateblues who mentioned the sounds of silence. That was the day he was able to just here the noise of a baseball game without the gnat announcers doing their usual bantering.
So, how many spreadsheets are we working on tonight?
I was talking to Jill (my neighbor teacher)on the phone earlier this evening because she was not at school today. She was not feeling well on Thursday when I had left at the end of the day, and I wasn’t there Friday or Monday, so I called to make sure she was okay. She came down with Legionairres Disease. Is that something or what? She must have caught it early enough because she avoided a hospital stay, but kind of scary nonetheless. The doctor figured her immune system was compromised probably due to undue stress, which makes sense because she was one of the teachers on the possible displacement list. Which didn’t happen, but last week was when all the decisions were made.
Four. I have them all done now and emailed out, but I still need to complete the NASCAR one from yesterday…..or is that the day before now?
Well, isn’t that a coincidence? Legionaire’s Disease? She’s lucky they caught it early. I’m assuming you told her our story.
No, I haven’t……..but what a coincidence. I will definitely tell her she’s lucky they caught it though because of what you had to go through. I had only heard the term up until a few weeks ago. BTW – did I tell you her cousin was the recipient of the Angel’s pitcher’s liver and lungs. It can’t be made public unless his parents tell the story, but maybe someday 🙂
Get back to work on your spreadsheets 🙂
Yes, you mentioned it.
I’m done now and more than ready for bed. Good night Junie! God Bless!
Well, look at the bright side… It’s still basketball season…
Good Night Dodgereric/Ward Dear……… I am finishing up one more thing and I am off to bed myself. Take Care and God Bless to you and yours 🙂
I am stunned, and saddened, that so many Dodger fans can be so negative.
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I have no idea if Rick Honeycutt is a good coach or not without being around him every day, but you all rip him for the lack of progress with Kershaw and McDonald, yet not one of you have mentioned how much Billingsley and Broxton have progressed in the last two years.
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Everyone, myself included, assumed that pitching was going to be our downfall if we failed, and it still may be. But the Dodgers are 1st in the NL in pitching as of this morning. FIRST. It won’t last, but I feared they may be close to LAST, so anything above the middle of the pack and I would have to give some of the credit to the coach….
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I have discovered that my half-glass full attitude is not what message boards and forums are about. I wish you all the best though, because you all seem like wonderful people, just a lot more negative than I am when it comes to the Dodgers.
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Best Wishes and God Bless!!!
Wake up Russell Martin, wake up
Wake up James Loney, wake up
Your playing isn’t so hot
You haven’t got much of a swat
The season’s moving
You’re all we’ve got
Your skills are looking so shot
Wake up Russell Martin
Wake up James Loney
You’re worse than even the Gnome
Very well put, kahli.
Seems to me like a couple of guys who feel too comfortably entrenched in their major league roles. They may be forgetting that as quick as they got to the major leagues, they can depart just as quickly as some other good talent arises and proves to be a bit more hungry than these guys. Some of the young guys seem to get spoiled real fast and seem to be concentrating more on the models that they’re dating than throwing out guys trying to steal a base and hitting a home run or two.
Good Morning ITD readers and writers!!!!
digthedodgers – but you bring that wonderful balance that this board needs. That’s what makes this ITD board unique, all the different personalities. I can only speak/write for myself but I think it’s just frustration for the most part, for me anyway, stemming from the Manny news. Just thinking about the different reactions that this board has had since hearing the news about Manny, can you imagine what his team must be thinking, varied just like us I am sure. You are right, we can only second guess what is actually being said and done, and like many have said, if we didn’t care about the Dodgers this much, we wouldn’t be here in the first place. I know many of us value your opinion on things, whether we agree or not, and I have told many, but I think your fan blog is one of the best around because it’s not all about you, it’s about the Dodgers and your love for them. So, please check in every once in a while. Your comments will be missed by many 🙂
Teammate Andre Ethier told MLB.com that he doesn’t take anything for fear of accidentally ingesting a banned substance.
A smart move, but also noteworthy – baseball players aren’t doctors and can’t be expected to know everything a doctor does. What Manny should have done, as Ethier also advised, is go to the team doctor.
http://www.dailytitan.com/sports/tanking-a-swing-at-manny-ramirez-s-suspension-1-1.1748321
I think the team really needs us now more than ever. If we are feeling lousy about the way things are going, how do you think the players are feeling? It is still very early in the season and we are still in first place. I know I have been very critical at times of the way things have developed but, I love my Dodgers and want the best for them. I will continue to cheer for the team and will try my best to be positive……….just like Dcollins, Dodger4life and digthedodgers.
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GO DODGERS…………BEAT THE PHILLIES!!!!
Nelly, that is a wonderful article. Thank you for sharing it.
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Let’s go Dodgers – your fans love you!
Good morning ITD, Dodger Faithful,
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Digthed’s I for one enjoy your positive and informative attitude towards our Boy’s on the field. I can understand your frustration towards the negativity, and second guessing that is displayed towards the events that transpire between the lines. It is always easy to second guess the decisions made on and off the field, I for one am guilty of bashing the McCourts, and in retrospect have tried to change the way I display my criticism. I don’t always agree with the decisions the ballclub makes, and I reserve my right to pass along my opinion. That is my right as a fan of the game. When Don Newcombe spoke of Dodger Pride to the kids at the Caravan event, and that when you put on a Dodger Jersey you were playing and representing the name across your chest, I made a decision to steer my feelings for the team in that manner as well. I think that is also a good mold to follow in life as well.
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If anyone who has put in their dues as a player, manager, owner, fan are reading my comments, I would like to think that they can and will be proud of the way I displayed them,
whether it be in a positive or negative light. These are just my feelings and in no way am I trying to impose my will towards the will of others… to each his own. I have been proud of many of the comments on this blog. We are a team, and a darn good one. Top 100 last season, and since have had many new comers, that is a positive and a darn good one.
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It will be a long season and I’m sure many changes will take place along the way, some good and some not so good. Keep the faith everyone, continue to vent your frustration’s and concerns, as long as your love for the Dodgers. Remember the ones who came before you and the ones who will come after. Grab your hat put on your jersey and wear it with dignity and pride. We are the keepers of the Dodger name after all. I would also like to thank the likes of Don Newcome and all of his fellow teammates old and new for giving me this wonderful oppourtunity to ba a part of something so special. You are a true inspiration.
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Now as far as the team goes, we have seen better day’s, than the game played last night, no excuses. It is time to get back on track. Not to dwell on one particular event, as it was a team loss, just as much as it will be a team win tonight. Go out and battle hard, continue to fight, continue to represent this wonderful organization, as it was meant to be represented. Lets get back to enjoying the game and the people we share the expierence with.
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GO DODGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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BRING THE RING TO L.A IN 2009!!!!!!!!!!
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Enjoy your day everybody, See ya at game time!!!!
I fully agree with you Dig…
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I’ve been having a hard time with some things as well. I often agree & always like everybody here (Except for a moon or 2), but don’t agree with bashing the coaches with their moves or seemingly lack of them.
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They get bashed for the moves that don’t work out but they make many more that do and nothing is said. I sometimes don’t don’t agree with their moves but I see more good than bad.
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I mean the other day everybody was complaining that they pull the starters to soon but yesterday people were wanting Kersh pulled in the 4th inning (From what I was reading as I was at my game).
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The Dodgers leading the league in pitching is news to me but that shows that maybe Honeycut isn’t that bad. I’m sorry I can’t agree that Kersh is not a winner – no brain, no guts, and no heart. I don’t know him and so I can’t agree with that statement. He is a young player that is learning to pitch. He get’s 2 strikes on a guy and then nibbles and isn’t able to finish him off. Ala Bills & Brox in years past.
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My biggest complaint is the lead off walk. Kersh is constantly guilty of this. I’m sure H-Cut coaches this as well. But sometimes players don’t perform. I get annoyed at Kersh for this not H-Cut.
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The last I saw we were pretty high in the league offensively as well. So why fire Mattingly. I know Martin & Loney’s HR’s are non-existent but I’m thinking Martin is really pressing as usual and Loney is still hitting the ball he just is going to LF more than usual.
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I think we here as well as the players need to take a breath and relax.
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The players seem to be trying to do to much at times (Like cutting cut down @ 2nd on throws to home) and at other times aren’t paying attention or seem to have their brain elsewhere (Such as Martin letting home be stolen last night).
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So my point is now isn’t the time to freak out & jump ship. We all wanted the kids to play & most of them are.
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Let’s enjoy the season. If we win awesome. If we loose we loose. Let’s get them tomorrow.
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Tru – thanx for noticing that I try to be positive.
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I’m off to Sacramento to see the Isatopes play the Rivercats. Hopefully I’ll get to see our AAA team get a W tonight!
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Go Blue!!
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Bring the Ring again to LA in 2009!!!
POSITIVE DODGER FANS WANTED
THE MORE THE MERRIER
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TO: All the ITD bloggers from this morning (too many to list) YOU ARE AWSOME AND THANKS FOR STAYING POSITIVE
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As a recall last year Dodgers were going through a winning Streak then boom went back down to a loosing Streak. And I remember visiting ITD and hearing a lot of negativity, fans lost hope. Then as history recall we came out of that streak and won the NL West. Hey it was a fun roller coaster ride. I still have faith on my boys in blue and we ARE still #1. They are human and the need to re-energize
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LET’S GO DODGERS, LET’S GO!
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I have faith that both LONEY & MARTIN will get HRs soon.
I have faith that our pitching will improve.
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LET’S GO DODGERS, LET’S GO!
GO OUT THERE AND ENJOY THE GAME!
AND GOD BLESS OUR BOYS IN BLUE
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ROSE