Public Enemy No. 1

Wow! Kershaw up, DFA'd Bloaiza!! How much better can it get?

Great way to start the day. I'm so happy I have tickets for tomorrow's game! Now of course we have tonight's game, but this is big news!

Finally a move by management that actually makes sense!!!

Great news... Loaiza DFA'd. Nice use of $7+ Million, Ned. At least Ned's learning and willing to admit a mistake and drop dead weight from the club. Hopefully Nomar + Sweeney can suffer the same fate.
Oh yeah, Kershaw getting his first start is great too.
I'm gonna try and get tickets for tomorrow.

jhall1218@yahoo.com At least this is a start, and a move in the right direction. Hopefully we see more of these type of moves. Sweeny and others should also be DFAd

Loaiza DFA is the correct decision, but there should be more to follow. Sweeney definitely needs to be DFA'd as well - he is past all usefulness. Ideally I'd like to see the same for Nomar, but as long as he remains on the DL, it's not an issue. It is imperative that Jones be put on the DL and forced to have that surgery NOW. Once that is done, put him on a combination of weight loss and rehab program, and he may be of some productive use later in the season. Otherwise he is just taking up space and giving Torre an excuse to try to use him when it doesn't make any sense.

Whatever the outcome, it will be exciting to see Kershaw up with the big club. I think his use in Jaxville was ludicrous with the micromanaging from LA as to each inning that he's pitched. I don't want him to get hurt, and leaving him anywhere near Conte is a major risk. If he is the genuine article, now's the time to let him show it and stretch his pitching time in accordance with his stamina. Torre should have some experience with doing that. Good luck with your debut, KERSHAW. We look forward to your Dodger future.

Yeah, the Dodgers definitely have dead weight on their roster, and Loaiza was one of them. I'm thrilled they got rid of him. After last night's debacle, no, I don't believe Jones should be DFA'd (yet) but they definitely need to put him on the DL or something. If he's hurt, put him on the DL. Maybe the lengthy time away from baseball will help; it certainly couldn't hurt! Last night was atrocious. I'm thrilled they're starting Clayton (better here in LA than in Chicago). I just hope and pray that they don't rush him, the way they rushed Edwin Jackson. And yes, as soon as I got that e-mail from the Dodgers saying that Clayton is pitching on Sunday, I bought my tickets right away! I've gotta see this kid in person!

Go Clayton!
Go Dodgers!

Great news & I'm sure the Brain trust will monitor his pitch counts.

I'll echo the sentiments on the calling up of Kershaw and the eating of Loaiza's contract. They didn't have an innings limit on Kersh as much as a pitch count. When he hit 65, he was gone even if it was in the middle of an inning. I've got my DVR all set for tomorrow. No matter what happens, it'll be exciting. It might even be historic if his career takes off, but let's try to keep the expectations down on this poor kid. He's gonna have his highs and lows and there's such a huge learning curve for him. It's going to be fun watching him compete and hopefully grow into a fine player for the Dodgers for years to come. Welcome Clayton, your arrival is the most anticipated that I can recall in a long, long time.

I think that Joe's use of Jones in that spot last night was his attempt at showing confidence in him, hoping to start something. I agree with bigkace last night - his at bats are like Groundhog Day, especially from RH pitching. Falling behind then the 2 strike low and away curve out of the zone. As Chicky used to say, you could call it with braille. Putting him on the DL makes all the sense in the world for two reasons: his physical health as well as mental.

Time for that piano to fall on Sweeney. The PVL club is starting to shrink. Keep it up, Ned. You just might save your job.

I'm glad to see that Loaiza is gone but I have mixed feelings about Kershaw being called up. I share everyone's anticipation of his arrival in the big leagues but I question whether he has the stamina to be a consistent force right now. The last thing we need is another starter who can't give us a consistently solid 6 or 7 innings each start. If my doubts prove to be groundless, nobody will be happier than me. Good luck, Clayton.

-All of a sudden Pierre's OBP is creeping into that 345 area. 203 /.261/.219/.480 with 7 runs scored in 16 games at leadoff for Pierre. He needs to be replaced.

Not only did we know Jones would make out, but we knew how he would. Now that's a whole new low. Seriously he is hitting .030/.214/.030/.245with RISP in 33 trys. The 33rd being a 2 out game winning situation that apparently Torre went all Harry Potter and was gonna cast a magic spell to make him hit but instead used the "repeat as previous 33 times" spell instead. No Mas. Dishes are done.

Kent. Out of clean up. I am sorry that they are all vets, but it's almost June. Were giving games away. He is hitting .228. with a .276 obp. his OPS is 15 points lower than my hero Juan Pierre. Yes you read that right. Juan Pierre.

This is another year where better players are sitting (or in AAA) while we hover around .500.

I'm happy about Kershaw and scared all at the same time. I'm happy for obvious reasons; the same reason everyone's excited. I hope he's ready. I have no confidence in Colletti to do the right thing even though it makes sense. Is that scary or what. Half of me feels that because Ned made the decision to bring him up that it'll automatically turn into a disaster. I don't like feeling that way but Ned's got the Midas touch. Only instead of turning to gold, everything he touches turns into horse $#!+ instead. I don't believe it'll happen in this instance. I trust Logan White and I know he wouldn't give his blessing if Kershaw couldn't contribute. I think Ned knows he's on the hot seat and he'll do anything to save his job at this point. If Kersh performs well Ned looks like a daisy; a daisy that smells like horse manure.
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BTW-DodgerEric, thanks for the support on the previous post. I was so irate that Torre would bat Jones in that situation. Why, with a runner on third and two out, only needing a single, would you pinch hit with a batter guaranteed to strike out? Maza has proven that he makes contact better than Jones does. The whiff machine proved everyone on this blog right. We gave up in a winable game last night. Unacceptable! ;)

Well, one down, one out, and one up. Goodluck Clayton!!

Anyone find that this is a curious time to bring Kersh up though? After all, Park and Kuo made a successful 5th starter. Neither Penney nor Lowe was DL'd. And its doubtful you get any more than 4-5 innings a start out of Kersh the first 3-4 times out. Feel something's odd here that I can't quite put my finger on.

OK, so you DFA Bloaiza and eat his few million, and option Brazobelly. Why then doesn't Ned DFA Sweeney, Nomore and Bennett? (his is really unexplainable.) I don't know if the current moves are really Ned learning, or if its that he stumbles into a right decision once in awhile.

Jones is just the worst piece of dung ballplayer I've ever seen. I've never hated a player before, not even JP, but I do Jones. JoJo's an absolute fool to keep playing him as well. Ned's an idiot for signing him and compounds it by either not DFAing his sorry keister, or at least putting him on the DL where he's out of the way. How much more do we have to put up with here?

Ultimately it's Ned who has to GO!
Frank, just fire the worthless F***!
It'll cost you far less money than DFA'ing Bloaiza.
You have Logan White in place, and even Ng has more baseball sense than Ned (I don't think she's ever been with the Giants to become contaminated).

That Kent OPS stat is ugly. He hasn't been a 4 type hitter for 2-3 years, but has been given that job by default( no other legitimate power hitters).
My Vote:
Furcal
Dewitt/ Ethier 2nd
Loney 3rd
Kemp 4th
Martin 5th.
Dewitt/ Ethier 6th
Kent 7th
Pierre 8th

We have like 8 starters.

CBILL
Lowe
Penny
Kuroda
ChainSHAW
Schmidt
Kuo
Park

WTF happens if Schmidt comes back?

I stayed up an extra hour last night listening to Jeff Kent explain what a humble young player he had been only to see JoJo send Druw up. Ugghh!!
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JoJo's actual mistake came one at-bat earlier. With just DY, Maza, Ardoin, and Druw on the bench, he should have gone ahead and let Hu hit and then gone to DY. Hu is a better hitter than Maza, Ardoin, or Druw, and Hu'd already had two hits on the night. For those Hu (read "who") would have preferred Maza based on his 5-for-11 major league performance up until now, Hu is 4-for-his-last-9.
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For those who have saved this monstrosity of a game on Tivo/DVR, compare DeWitt's 9th inning strikeout with Druw's in the same inning (albeit an hour later). DeWitt's strikeout swing is a nice-looking swing that simply failed to connect. Druw's is a flailing bailout which never had a chance to connect.
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I'm far from an expert on hitting -- sadly I never made it out of the lowest level of Little League -- but even I can see that Jones is consistently bailing out. Maybe he should try a different batting stance. For instance, if he opened up his stance, that would force him to step INTO the pitch instead of away from it as he is now doing. What do you ladies and gents think?

scurtis - the logical and prudent thing to do if Schmidt has anything to contribute in the way of starting is to trade Lowe at the deadline for 2-3 prospects. I'm still not sold on Park's comeback to list him as a real starter, and Kuo just seems too fragile to be a regular starter. Still would be nice to jettison Lowe and get something for him other than a draft pick.

What Ned does though is another story...

dont be suprised if kershaw struggles. he does have a little command issue but in the long run hes going to be good if not great.

Agreed - Lowe isn't going to take us anyplace, or he already would have in the last couple of years. I hope he has another couple of good outings, because it would drive up his value in a trade. We need to let him go at the trade deadline and get some prospects that will provide some future value. That would be the smart thing to do. Is it likely that Ned will part with him - not at all, because Ned is never proactive. His major personnel decisions have always been knee-jerk, and that's the reason we are where we are.

If we're in the race come the trade deadline, I would not trade Derek Lowe. He is historically a good second-half pitcher, and has performed pretty well in the post-season.
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On the other hand I would have no problem unloading Penny if we could get any return on him. He is a historically poor second-half pitcher, and has generally not pitched well in the post-season.

Wow! I thought this was only a pipe dream but it actually happened! I am trying to get tickets tomorrow. I hope I can!

Should be interesting to see what Ned does.

I agree ML. Especially about letting Hu hit for himself. Jones is just a pathetic waste. Hope he goes on the DL. We will be better off. Addition by subtraction. Also, we need Ferk back and leading off. Phew is not getting it done in the leadoff spot. I would bat Martin leadoff and Phew 9th, like LaRusa does it. Kemp should bat 3rd and if Marty isn't leading off he should bat 5th or 6th. Actually, Kent should bat 6th or 7th and Martin bat cleanup. Of course for some dumb reason, Kent has to bat cleanup. Got to pamper the Hall of Fame baby. Need Penny to get it done tonight. GO DODGERS!!!

Thank god and greyhound Bloaiza's gone. I agree with the above posters on most everything. DFA Sweeny when Nomore comes off the DL. Just use Nomore as a pinch hitter and sub once in awhile for Kent, Loney, and DeWitt. Not very often, once a week. I like the idea of trading Penny or Lowe at the deadline. Maybe we should be shopping them for a shortstop with some pop, high OBP, great defense, and health. I am very leary of signing Ferk with his back issues. Kent needs to sit period. DFA Bennett with Sweeny. Put the tub butt strikeout machine on the DL.

Pierre should not be leading off, Martin or Kemp should.

I would also still be trying to unload Pierre. He has gotten a reprieve with the Ferk injury and Jelly Roll and Kant stinking worse than him. I still don't want him now or until 2011. 2000 freaking 11. How sickening is that thought. Excuse me, I have to go throw up!!!!!

Well the most perminant thing is the DFAing of Loaiza.
Brazoban's pitches were flat again and I think he was the right pick to send right back down.
Good Luck with and to Clayton Kershaw.
GO DODGERS!!!

Ideal lineup until Furcal returns:

Martin
Loney
Kemp
Ethier
DeWitt
Kent (well, DY or LaRoche would be better)
Hu
Pierre/Jones
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But look how much stronger it is with Furcal:
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Furcal
Martin
Kemp
Loney
Ethier
DeWitt
Kent
Pierre/Jones

I'd rather play DY or Repko than Phew or Puff.

Any chance of Furcal playing tonight or being off the DL by Sunday? I wanna see him play in Wrigley, but I hope he is 100 percent before he is back.

Welcome and good luck Kersh!!!!! That is exciting news.

Francouer walk off 2 run HR for Atlanta. Snakes lose!

I need to get a few things off my chest regarding Jones and Eithier.
Jones' bat last night was a joke. The catcher was setting up a target almost a foot off the plate . The pitches were coming and three or 4 inches outside and Jones was fouling them off. Then the catcher went out and talked to the pitcher and I am sure he told him that he really meant it. The next pitch -- 8 inches outside -- Andrew swung and missed.
I was concerned in the past that they were playing with Andre's confidence with the benchings and they succeeded! He doesn't know whether he's coming and going now at the plate. He is now taking good pitches and swinging at bad ones -- something he never did. It's obvious that he is trying so hard to make something happen to win the approval of management, that it's really affecting him. The poor guy looks totally lost. He is my favorite player and it really breaks my heart to see the way they have treated him over the last three years.

I agree RinTin. Ethier was in a great groove before the benching for a week. Andre is also a favorite of mine. I think he could develope into a great player if they play him everyday. .300 hitter with 20 homer power.

I would also get rid of Proctor and Kent. Kent is history. He used to be Mr. Clutch and can't seem to do that any more. The Dodgers should trade for a solid defensive and offensive 2nd baseman. Until that happens Kent is just a liability at 2nd base. He should retire.

S.O.S, S.O.S. To The People who Write on the Our Los Angeles Dodger Website After Wins OR Loses. Arrogance has no place in The Future World Series Champions! Therefore if Our Los Angeles Team beats their opponent Three Times In A Row, we don't have to get arrogant and mention sweep or brooms! Let's just say we won without the extra arrogance! Yes, We want to win, but always,always, always respect your opponents! Cincinnatti Reds, if we were arrogant forgive us! We always intend True Sportsmanship, which is the Most Important Thing. As a big Dodger Family, I am saying this in Love and True Sportsmanship. Let us be Perfect, as our Heavenly Father is Perfect! Let our praise and cheering continue until Our Seventh World Series Championship is Won in 2008!

Look, there are plenty of things to complain about, but if they just designated Esteban Loazia for assignment and are calling up Clayton Kershaw, you have to think that management is getting it. This is a HUGE move. We're on the hook for a big amount of salary, and are nevertheless going to blow it off in favor of a youth movement. Even if Kershaw ends up going back down this season (not impossible--though, if he pitches the way we think/hope he can, it's unlikely), it's a huge move.
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I'm going to the game tomorrow. Who's coming?

IMO, Kent too needs to go at the deadline. No need to trade for a 2B if they'd just start giving LaRoche some playing time there at Vegas. There's you're power and defense (we'll at least more D than Kent provides.) Flipping Kent ia a win-win-win situation - Kent gets to go to a contender for his last shot at a title; LaRoche becomes our power hitting 2B; and we get a prospect or two for for old Jeffy.

The sooner we unload the dead [horses] weight, two things happen. 1. We replace old vets with young talent. 2. We give them all 2/3 to 1/2 year to gain experience. The fact that we're this close to AZ playing half a decent line-up means going to all youth isn't throwing in the towel on this season, it actually gives us a better shot. How many on here believe Nomore, Kant, Swooney, CC®, BLowe and Pierre are going to lead us to victory? Name one of them that we can't replace with a better younger player.

C'mon Ned, follow through all the way. Bloaiza was a good start. Don't stop now. We might even write you a song...

No, a good one.

Wow I have not posted or visited in a week and I could not remember my password...man getting old really blows!!! Great news about Loiaza, only 4 months late but they finally grabbed their kahunas and made the right decision...

Kershaw, boys you are in for a treat, his curveball is mesmerizing...I hope he comes out smoking!!!! I am excited, Kershaw, Billz now show the vets how it is done....Two power arms in the rotation, it has been a while since we have had that....Ok, relax Dodgerboy he is only 20, but he gets the juicies running!

The boys have been hanging tough and that is a good sign. Hopefully Furcal will be back soon and Kent will hit. If Kent does not hit, I would explore a trade to get Brian Roberts. He is a good OBP leadoff batter with speed a little pop....I am not sold on HU!

Trade Lowe and get prospects...he would look good in pinstripes.

Lets go Dodgers!!! Beat the Redbirds and gain a game!!!!

PS...Wainwright has a heck of a curveball!!!

josh's line up has maza and no kent.. but according to tony jackson, the lineup has been updated with kent back in it. apparently, kent came to the park expecting to play, so he is going to play. i wish that worked for all the other players.. all the other players, meaning, all the young players..

oh, and i will most definitely be there tomorrow rooting on the dodgers and clayton kershaw.. can't wait to see the kid in person.. hope he doesn't feel too much pressure, and he can just do what he does best..

WHY IS our 2nd best hitter batting 7th? Is Hu going to protect him?

LaRussa will be thinking...we are going to face Dewitt and his .315 AVG...or pitch around him to face Hu, who is batting .205 and then the pitcher....tough choice.

Give the most ABs to the BEST hitters. It is so simple.

Also, since JP has only reached 5 out of 17 ABs, borrow a page from LaRussa and drop him to 9th, so Kemp has more people on base to drive in and the top 3 get the extra AB JP would just waste.

OB% / AVG
Martin .426 / .311
DeWitt .368 / .325
Kemp .368 / .325
Loney .345 / .288
Ethier .355 / .283
Kent .276 / .228
Hu .284 / .205
Pitcher
Pierre .345 / .275

Personally I think that Kent was hitting the ball real well last night, mostly right at somebody.
Contrary to some I feel we haven't seen the last of him.
He will still be an asset.
The D'Bags lost and we have a chance to close the gap if Penny can show he's his old self and the offense can handle Kyle Lohse.
LETS GO!!!!!!!!!

Just heard the news; Andruw Lunchtruck is going to have surgery. Is this divine intervention or what?

While Ned was working for the Cubs media relations department he wrote a book about then General Manager Dallas Green: "You Gotta Have Heart: Dallas Green's Rebuilding of the Cubs."
http://www.amazon.com/You-Gotta-Have-Heart-Rebuilding/dp/0912083115/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211680548&sr=8-1

The Cubs record under GM Dallas Green: 463-504. Only one winning season, 1984, and Ned idolizes this guy.

I have a title for a book about Ned.

"You Gotta Be Incompetent: How Ned Colletti Squandered Hundreds of Millions on Washed Up Veterans"

Must be kace - sure isn't Ned and JoJo.

That is great news Kace as well as the sensible thing to do.

rintinjim,
In regards to Andre, I couldn't agree with you more. He was one of my favorite players when he first came to the Dodgers, and now, since spring training, he has become my favorite. It's kind of like the underdog syndrome - I want him to prove everybody wrong. I really thought this was going to be his year after beating out Pierre for the job - nothing was going to stop him from doing what I know he is capable of, but then all h*ll broke loose so to speak. I think he is in a no-win situation, and his only saving grace right now is that Andruw is not playing. He seemed to be doing pretty good until we started reading about Andruw's possible return. I think the frustration showed pretty clearly after that second strickout last night because in his head he has got to be thinking, "now I'm going to be benched over a guy who is batting .165". Anyhow, he is in the lineup tonight, and he definitely has the fans on his side - you can hear them on the tv loud and clear.
GO ANDRE AND GO DODGER BLUE!!!

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Dodgereric - got your message on previous thread, and yes, I still want those pictures. I will get you the info on how to get them to me - thanks!!!

Furcal will not be going to Chicago with the team. Dru will be having surgery on his knee and be out 4-6 weeks. Nomar is going on the 60-day dl and being replaced by Terry Tiffee. CHCHCHChanges!!!

KACE - GREAT NEWS!!! THANKS!!!

I'm still wondering if I got the correct lineup.

Terry Tiffee - what about poor LaRoche?

Why is it I sense the kids get us to August and September, then Ned pulls old Nomore and Jones out of the dung heap to "get us over the top"?

Some kinda weird schat is going down...

I think Ethier is really going to show what he's made of now. Without the pressure of having to hit .400 to stay in the starting lineup, he won't press so hard. Andre just needs to slow down and play good solid baseball; he no longer has a dead horse breathing down his neck.

Look at that, great hit Andre!

I think we're primed and ready to make a run. The roster's starting to fall into place by default.

Maybe the reason that Laroche is still in Vegas is that Ned's looking to package him in a deal?

That would be a shame.

I agree but it would explain why he's still there.

I know I am late with this, but great hit Andre!!! Opposite field baby!!! I think you are right Kace - I think the relaxation alone will do wonders for him.

I can't see anything wrong with Kent's hitting.
He may have to change his approrach like going to right field or try to hit more on a line.
I hope he hasn't lost his power like NOMAR did last year.
He's hitting the ball hard but it's not going anywhere.

Could be right seesky - Ned hasn't done a panic move yet. Hoping he doesn't either.

We need Furcal back. Hu doesn't anything except make outs 95% of the time. I give him some credit for last nights triple. I am sorry if my comments are late but the game is blacked out where I live and I can only watch on my computer.

Serious pitching issues!!

Can't wait to see Kershaw tomorrow!

Cursed Penny. I'm so sick of him not showing up this season.

Penny's a ****. And not even a floater.

Penny looked more like a slug in the 3rd

4 runs on 3 hits. Sounds like little league Penny.

Should put Tiffee at 2nd and DL kent too..

Pierre caught stealing!

Everynight there's another one.
Tonight it's Kyle Lohse.
For the Dodger's he's like the great iron wall.

I just hope people keep their expectations under control re: Kershaw. He was drafted only 2 years ago out of high school, hasan't pitched a great deal as a professional, and is going to learn on the job at the big league level. I still think he could have benefited from a full year of starting every fifth day at AA or AAA. Having said that, I'm as excited as everyone else and looking forward to seeing how he does.

I think everyones's expectation of Kershaw will be as that of any new player. I think the frustration is with the current pitchers and what is expected of them (ie. Penny and Lowe).

You've got that right, dnelson. Penny seems to have lost his command and the life off his fastball. 24 earned runs in 18 innings is graphic illustration of that fact. Lowe was better last night. Without a doubt, we need more from those two if we're going to be in the hunt at the end of the season.

dnelson, I put the photos in my briefcase and will mail them from work when I get the info. Perhaps directly to your school would be a good idea. It will be a good-sized envelope. They include Jim Brewer, Don Drysdale, Jim Lefebvre, Ted Sizemore, Tommy Davis, Wes Parker, Ron Fairly, Saaaaaaandy Koufax, a shot of Maury Wills stealing his 104th (against the Giants, don'tcha know), and a team photo of the soon-to-be World Champions in 1965. You can see the tape marks on the back from when I had them on my walls as a kid.

Matt is swinging at those outside pitches again - not good.

That right there was a big league play by Juan Pierre!

Of course I want Kershaw to succeed but I am being open-minded about it. I don't want him to struggle but...He is only 20 and pitching is more that just having a great curveball it's also a mental game. Yes he showed great composure and maturity in spring training but....how will he conduct himself in pressure situations? Spring training is nothing like a late season pennant race. I hope for good things for Kershaw.

Nomar going to the dl for 60 days and Laroche still in Vegas makes it clear that Dewitt's place in the lineup is secure. Not that there should have been any doubt. Dewitt, All-Star write-in.

Eric,
I will send info as soon as the game is over. I am on my home computer, and it's not able to multitask like my computer at school. I can't do blogging and send e-mails at the same time, while on mlb.tv. sounds great - thanks!!

Referring to Kershaw, I think bigkace said it the best - we're excited and scared at the same time.

dnelson, you are most welcome. Anyone with enough guts to not only carry the Dodger banner in NoCal, but to create new Blue fans as well, gets any support that I can give.

I would think that Kent is the kind of guy who would hang 'em up if he thought he was done.

Good news****Lohse is nearing the 100 pitch count.

Kent doesn't look anywhere near done.

Then why is there a fork sticking in his sorry a__!!!

On a positive note - Andre is swinging the bat much better tonight - seems more like himself. Vin mentioned Andruw's surgery - He will be out 4-6 weeks

I want to believe you, PierreEMW. I really do. But he's reached the age when it can just leave without any warning.

LOL, jhall!

Need to get a couple of runs here, we're running out of time.

Will they bring someone up to replace him? If yes who will it be?

PENNY is the 4 straight Dodger starter to go through the 7th.
We're facing a different pitcher.
I know it didn't make adifference last night, but maybe tonight.....

That really is a positive stat, Pierre. If Penny hadn't temporarily lost control walking those 2, we'd have a better look at this game. What our problem is AGAIN is HITTING!

Why does Torre insist on letting Hu play? He doesn't do anything. I am tired of him.

He's seems more like he's hitting into bad luck, Dodgereric.

jegiboney, they've brought up Terry Tiffee from Vegas. He'll PH. That's about it for him, I think. I was just looking at his fielding and 3B is all he does. He started DHing when LaRoche started his Vegas stint. A couple of 1B appearances.

The way they're handling LaRoche is very puzzling, isn't it?

I am impressed how Penny settled down(I was worried it would get out of hand again). I just wished we could have helped him out in the hitting department.

Penny like Lowe, last night had one bad inning.

Thank you. I wasn't aware they brought up Tiffee. I am sorry if I sounded mad. I'm sorry if I offended anyone. Any updates on Furcal's status?

If we could get some hits with RISP, we'd be talking about how great those two looked.

lol!! So true, dodgereric!! We are not finding any holes tonight.

That's OK jebiboney, you can get mad. I don't think Torre has many options, and Hu is playing the position well.

We can expect Fercal back when Josh puts his name up top. He worries me. Out the last 12 games last year. Now he's out since when, May 5th, right? I've known a few guys with bad backs like that, and it can be a scary thing.

It'11:30 where I live so I say goodnight. Go Dodgers

Without Ferk, when we play a pretty good team, our offense tanks. Very disappointing. I agree Eric, the handling of LaRoche has me miffed. I'd like to see JoJo try something different tomorrow with the batting order. Kent probably play the day game after a night game so lead off Kemp and bat Marty cleanup. Geez, can't do any worse. I hope to god we don't see Bennett tomorrow. With Kersh going, I would certainly hope not. Tomorrow should be very exciting. Have fun those of you attending the game tomorrow. I'm sure you will. Eat a Dodger Dog and drink a brew for me please.

It looks like we don't need Kershaw.

Kent probably won't play tomorrow.

Back problems are usually chronic and don't go away or get much better. Especially as one ages. I hope Ferk is doing better than we think and this is mostly precautionary.

We can't do anything right against the Cards. 7-23 record starting tonight...sort of like the Reds when they play us....If we hit, we can't pitch and vice versa. Explains our record in a nutshell.

three strikeouts for James - not good!

Boy, Loney is really struggling right now.

You're right, jhall. Backs are bad news. That wasn't good, hearing that he has the onset of that whatever degenerative thing was.

Rats!!!®

Matt with strikeouts tonight, too - not good either. I guess he doesn't have to worry about riding pine though.

Shutout, broken hearted, again...
Good luck tomorrow Kersh!!!!

Penny actually pitched a very good 6 2/3 innngs. He just had an inexplicably bad 1/3rd of an inning with 2 outs in the 3rd.
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You know, that all started when he lost the strike zone after nicking the home plate umpire. Meanwhile, Penny has not been the same pitcher since he knocled out Kerwin Danley. His velocity seems the same--could it be mental?
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jegiboney--I understand a certain frustration with Hu. It's not his fault. He's supposed to be in AAA--he was in AA, but Tony Abreu is injured and they have no one else to play in Furcal's place (the next best option in the system is Ivan DeJesus, who is in AA, after playing in A-Ball last year).
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For the LaRoche fans, Tiffee is coming up because he is basically a utility player. LaRoche is, right now, only a third baseman, and if he's not going to start (and with DeWitt playing as well as he is, he's not), and we need players who are versatile, and don't want LaRoche sitting on a bench.
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I agree with everyone who thinks we need to start trying to use LaRoche or DeWitt at 2B to see if they can do it (I think DeWitt is the more likely option, long term--but as long as Andy is in the minors, why not experiment with it a little). But until the piano falls on Kent's head (as it has with Nomar and Jones), we're unlikely to sit Kent other than for a day here and there.

LOL Eric!!

Day game tomorrow and Kershaw pitching - going to be an exciting game either way. Have fun if you are going to the game!

I think it's going to be very hard for Kershaw to win his first game since he's pitching against the Cardinals who apparently have our number.
Unless we luck out and Todd Wellermeyer or whoever pitches in a Cardinal uniform, male or female has a bad night.
Good Luck Kershaw!!!!!!

You kill me, jhall.........

I think I will console myself and look at 69 Chevelle's some more. Thanks for that link Eric...

I think I dislike the Cardinals more than the Puds now...

Let's get positive about tomorrow. We're due to start hitting. If we get a decent 5 out of Kershaw tomorrow, Park can pick up for him and get us to our short guys. The pitching has been good lately. If Lowe and Penny can build on the last two games, and if Billz and Kuroda can continue their good work of late, and if Kershaw can be ANYTHING like we all hope.......and if the piano can continue to hit the right people (don't look up, Sweeney) maybe we can get something going.

Leekfink
Penny picthed a complete 7 full innings.