Rubber game

My favorite memories of the 60's are every time Sandy Koufax pitched a game. We didn't get to see as many games on tv as we do now so it was a rare treat indeed to watch him pitch. I lived in the St. Louis area and it was great to see Koufax or Don Drysdale go up against Bob Gibson. I sure listened to a lot of games on the radio though. I could pick up St. Louis, Cubs, Braves, Cincinnati, Houston and Pirates games on the radio.

Hope Kemp and Ethier both play today!!!

You know that the answer is going to be "Koufax" from just about everyone who was here then. So is Sandy going to be here for this 60s celebration weekend? And who else?

Let's hope Lowe is on today - been a long time since we took a series from the Angels.

Unfortunately I was quite young in the early/mid 60's. I can remember seeing Koufax and Drysdale pitch on TV a few times and the Dodgers winning the 65 WS. That is when they became my favorite team. However at that age I did not have the appreciation for what I was seeing that I would had I been 5 years older or so. The most exciting memory of the 60's baseball was watching the 68 WS and Gibson fan 18 Tigers in one game and the 7 game series with Gibson and Lolich both pitching incredibly. Also, watching Mickey Mantle even if he wasn't near the player he was in the 50's was classic. 70's is when I really got passionate about the Dodgers. Those were the days. Hope we get back to that level again soon.

My memory of the '60s is the pitching of Koufax & Drysdale.
The timely hitting and base running of Wills. Tommy Davis' batting averages. The weak hitting and the 3 world series.
The unforgetable dominating 1963 World Series getting back at a team that dominated us in Brooklyn. The exciting 1965 World Series and infamous 1966 World Series when nothing went right topped off by Koufax's retiring.

The Mick going for his 500th homer was a very exciting 60's memory.

Sure would be nice today regardless of the lineup to have Lowe pitch like a front line top of the rotation guy.

Tommy Davis and Maury Wills!!!! Koufax also.

DH Pierre
LF Ethier
C Martin
2B Kent
1B Loney
RF Kemp
3B DeWitt
CF Jones
SS Hu

Today's lineup from Tony Jackson...
Pierre, DH
Ethier, LF
Martin, C
Kent, 2B
Loney, 1B
Kemp, RF
DeWitt, 3B
Jones, CF
Hu, SS

I can live with this line-up.

Now let's go get 'em boys!!!

Yippee Ty-A Dodger Bleeders!!!!

I can't I am so sick of Pierre and his
.178 .229 .200 .429

as leadoff.

Give DY a shot today.

8 out of 10 times he is out and when they are not outs they are singles.

Yep Jungar, except for that and Kent it is a good lineup. Plug Ferk when healthy in at leadoff and sit Phew and it would be much better. I'd rather have Maza in at 2nd than Kent. He will at least hit .236 and provides better defense.

At least Kemp's back in there jungar.

Don't know which sounds funnier - Jones or Pierre as our designated "hitter." Or it could be Kent as our "clean-up."

Way to go Juan!! If he can't make an out one way, he'll make it another.

One more for Sara!!!

If we tried Young at 2b and Ethier in LF we would be alot better.

Or if we called up LaRoche and played him at 2nd or 3rd (DeWitt maybe to 2nd) and then played Ethier, Young, Kemp we would be even better and a heck of alot cheaper. those guys can go 2 games over 500 in 42 games played cant they?

But whatever. It's game time and pierre already makes an idiotic play. my 6 month old knew he was stealing. he is a selfish player in my observation.

Agreed jungar on both counts.

Thank god no Bennett or Sweeny!! I don't want to see those slugs again. Pathetic that is all Ned could come up with for our bench. What a maroon as Bugs would say.

I'm with you, Jungar!!

OK guys, let's try making Weaver work a little this inning.

Yeah, bennett already had his game of the year. He can't throw (remind you of anyone?) Why not call up Ardoin? He's hitting decent at Vegas and I doubt he has any illusions of playing regularly.

I was around during the 60's and echo those who recall the excitement of watching Koufax, Drysdale and Wills, I do recall vividly extreme disappointment at losing the playoff to the hated Giants in 1962 followed by extreme euphoria the next year with the sweep over the almost equally hated Yankees.

That wasn't such a good inning.

Let's hope the Dodgers don't catch the strikeout bug today.

How long do you suppose Torre will keep Kent in the cleanup slot just because he's a future HOF'er. If he can't even hit anymore, we should let Maza show what he can do. Could be no worse than we're getting from Kent at this stage.

"bout as long as he let's Jones hit his way out of his "slump" bear.

Lowe's not even hittin 90 on his fastball. Remind you of a DL'd pitcher of ours?

Hu wasn't even on the bag, that throw might not be on Loney it was on line as opposed to yesterday when it went over Hu's head.

Well, Loney threw the ball where he should have. Maybe a little wide but Hu slow in covering.

.
I knew we were in trouble when the first man walked.

Lowe needs to get his **** together

That hurt.

It's amazing how quickly Lowe folds under pressure

Well, SOS from Lowe. When do we get some new starters?

I've already had enough.

Lowe absolutely stinks. The way Weaver pitched the last time out, we are out of this.

Trade Lowe. He's worthless

Rats!!®

What a t*rd!!

Lowe looks like he's throwing batting practice. He has nothing..

Too early to give up but Lowe has been disappointing. The error set the tone no matter who made the bad play.

I really have no faith in Lowe's pitching. I hope we're rid of him by July and can get something in trade for him from one of the contenders.

As for Loney, I'm wondering whether things have come just too easily for him this season. He seems to be letting up and taking it too casually. His hitting is way below his potential, and now he's becoming very sloppy with his throws around the infield. Wish we had somebody legitimate to contend with him for his slot on the field. It's time for Bowa to chew his a** something fierce.

Well, its early. Let's claw our way back in this one.

Sit him a couple of games when Nomore comes off the DL. That will wake his ___ up.

The great Steve Garvey had trouble making throws; he was a scatter arm when he came up as a third baseman. In fact, Garvey was reluctant to even make those throws to second base and usually recorded the easy out first. As I recall, Garv had trouble gripping the ball. Hopefully Loney will learn to make these throws.

Bowa needs to chew several As*** Weaver is making the hitters look pathetic. Jones missed the third pitch a mile

I am glad I went to the game yesterday instead of today. And I should have benched Lowe today like I did when he pitched in Colorado. Rats, rats!

Of all the stadiums I have attended, my friend and I found Anaheim ballpark the one with the unfriendliest people working there. It had been a few years since I visited that stadium.

Freaking Weaver's dealing!!

Lets not get hysterical and think Nomar over Loney for even one game is a good idea. Today's throw was more on Hu. Regardless Loney needs to work on that play...but he knows that.

Need to make the son of a _____ throw alot of pitches these next 2 innings. Get his butt out of there.

'Bout time Jeffy.

Come on Loney, Let's see some of that power today.

Way to go Mr. Leadership! Way to go Joe calling the doulbe steal. Kent brings in two.

Come on Kemp, the ducks are on the pond.

Ned, the sooner you can trade Lowe, the better I'll feel. Any decent AAA starting pitcher would be a resonable swap. Can we trust you to be able to do that much?

Well, How many pitches before AJ strikes out, I say 6

At least make Weaver work a little AJ

Make the bum throw some more pitches you freaking idiots.

Geez Lowe, you're not fooling anybody.

With AJ's decline, I can only picture that next season his avg. should get down to around .120. Of course Torre will still be waiting for him to turn it around.

Blowe bites!!!

Hey messagebear, they'll want to sign AJ for a couple more years till he gets in the groove.

Yep, Mendoza will be off the hook. There'll be a Jones line at .150.

Damn Martin you just cost Ethier of an assist.

Lowe looks like Bombko. Now we have Blowko.

Well, we aren't the comeback team down 5 runs, this is over, I'm going to go barbecue.

.
Rats

I've just come to the conclusion that we suck. No sense in playing vets if we are rebuilding. The Dbacks are a great example of this, look how its working out for them.

I don't blame you Bob.
This is UNACCEPTABLE!!™

I agree. Realistically, with two bad pitchers 1 and 2, kent and jones not likely to be substantial contributors, what are we really hoping for. I don't want Kershaw to come up before September and risk injury. Coletti has alot of work to do. We are looking at another two years when Kershaw and one of the other kids coming up to pitch to join Bills and Kuroda.

My favorite memory of the 60s is driving in the car with my brother and my dad, and my dad slamming the roof of the car when the "powderpuff" Dodgers (as he used to call them) would scratch out a run. Is it any wonder my life is wacky and I had my account denied???

Ned's put together a real powerhouse here, huh?

Loney has to find a way to stop hitting into DPs.

Good stuff Kahli. Not going anywhere when one of your supposed top 2 pitchers blows!!!

Dr Procto, bend over!!!

Yeah, well, we suck big time. Cardinals just won their second game in a row on a comeback in the bottom of the 9th. We just are not a team that's able to do that at this point. May be some time.

We need Lugo and Betemit. HA HA

I wish we had Edwin Jackson back another good performance and TB bullpen blow it again.

My greatest moment at the park. I saw Sandy pitch a no hitter and Big Frank Howard hit a 3 run shot. 3-0. Somebody legged out a KO when Johnny Roseboro fumbled a third strike pitch. What a Game.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

The list of players we need to trade is bigger than the ones we would keep. Proctorologist sucks...

Greatest moment! in Saw Sandy throw a NO Hitter. 3-0 Shut out.

new lineup with furcal is back:
Furcal SS
Martin C
Loney 1b
Dewitt 3b
Kemp CF
Kent /Young 2b
Ethier LF
Pierre RF

Rotation Penny, Bills, Kuroda, Park, Kuo

Padodgers, my snores were meant for this game, not your post!

We sure know how to make other teams players really look good.

Don't move Pierre to RF he suited for LF.

Where's Kemp. He needs to play. He may make some mistakes but he has the potential. Loney and Either are good average players like our team. Marty and Kemp are in a different class. Dewitt may be there. Lets move Pretty boy Either out .

Jones need to sit down for a couple of days orput himback at batting 2nd.

If you talking about Mike Napoli he was always good so don't started with him looking good.

You can get Jones out no matter where you throw the pitch. He's pathetic. Sent him somewhere, we don't care if he gets picked up on wavers. I would tell him he's going to AAA till he starts hitting

Gosh I wish there was an edit feature in here.

Shad, we know what you mean. I know Napoli is good, we just make him look better.

Joe, it's really hot. Get your good players out of the game. Andruw and Pierre and Kent can stay in. They need the work and the heat will do their aging bodies good.

Sent Blowzoban back down.

Jones can't go to AAA, but I agree he should be released. Ned should admit it just didn't work out. I would say Jones is a victim of the post steroid era, but he's not exactly slim.

He hasn't been the same since 2004

That sick 10 homeruns in 88 AB's for Napoli.

Opps and he only played in 27 out of the team 46 games.

Scioscia will be gracious: "We were able to put a few balls in play today and take advantage of some scoring opportunities..." Translation: We lit up their sorry a** pitching. I wish they were in our division..."

Why doesn't Young ever get a chance to play? He can outhit several who are playing regularly and his defense isn't that bad. He's just wasting away on the bench when we are in desperate need of some hitting. He could have DH this series, but no such luck. I'll bet that the most productive outfield we could field would be Young, Kemp, and Ethier. And that would have cost milllions and millions of dollars less. Instead, Ned wastes the money and Torre plays the waste while talent wastes away on the bench.

worst game of the year

The good news is we didn't have to use Beimel in that inning.

That's a lot of "waste" words in your post, redfox, but understandable in connection with Ned and Torre both.

Gosh Torre rest Jones for a week or maybe 2 to 3 weeks.

A fitting end by A**H*** Jones. Sweeney also excelled in his cameo appearance. Thanks for all the stiffs, Ned - you're the biggest A**H*** of them all.

It's getting booring trying to see HOW Andruw will strike out. You know he will , but how will he look.
He flat can't hit.
Got to turn the page on this one.
Which isn't too hard.

andruw is going to laugh his fat *** all the way to the clubhouse buffet and destroy it.

On a positive note, it is nice to see a couple of guys who are just proud to have made it to the big leagues and who are putting out all they've got to relish that opportunity, even if it may be a brief one in some cases. I like Maza, who's trying to prove something and beat the odds that have defied him for eight years, and we've, of course, got Blake who's hopefully is going to make it last. These are the kind of guys that you can cheer and who make up for the disappointments of some of our highly paid slugs. My hat is off to them, and I enjoy watching you, you underdogs!!!

Well, we know Ethier will be back on the pine tomorrow...

Note to DB & JoJo - The Curacao Cow ain't gonna get any better. Neither is Sweeney. Neither is Trigger. Neither is Lowe. Neither is Kent (2 RBI or not.)

The sooner Frank fires Ned, hires White and accepts that we're rebuilding, the sooner we'll have a winning team. My guess 2010/2011. Keep going Ned's way, never.

i know you can't just send a. jones to the minors, but couldn't they exagerate the injury (like they do in the NBA) that forced him to DH this weekend. this guy really, really needs to spend 15 days working on his timing somewhere, plus a little humility in AAA or AA might be good for him.

personally, i just think he doesn't fit here. it seems practically every week (day) there is something going on with him... he had allergies, then we hear he is homesick for Atlanta. they checked his eyesight, then something came up this weekend...the guy should go back to Atlanta...let the team pick up half his salary, give us Kotsay, and we'll call it even.

of course the obvious is - he is overweight, losing bat speed and quickly getting on the fans nerves with his lacadasical style and constant smile.

regarding Sweeney - just cut him loose. his pinch ABs can be absorbed by D. Young and Nomar. make Nomar your super sub/pinchitter. he can back up Loney and DeWitt.

Loney is a good, not great ball player. its seems the knock/concern on him coming up was his concentration and that seems to play out with his throws and other errors. he does have a soft glove and good foot work, but he not the Gold Glove first basemen the media and fans think he could or should be. maybe it will happen, hope so.

derek lowe is another guy that will hopefully warm up and get better as the season goes along. he too has concentration issues and really bothers me that a veteran pitcher still would let fielding problems get to him. plus how many times has he gotten the team in a 2-0 or 3-0 hole this year?!?

Fire Coletti.

Its like jungar's always said, they're paying all these huge contracts whether they perform or not, so why not play the better men?

Trigger's no lead-off man. It doesn't take a genius to see that. Andruw, Sweeney, Nomore and to a lesser degree, Kent are all used up - doesn't take a genius to see that either. Lowe's had it or is hiding an injury (obviously for the selfish reasons of another big payday) - and guess what, it doesn't take a genius to see that either. Why have them embarrass themselves and the Dodgers on the field?

That can only lead me to the conclusion that DB and JoJo are complete embiciles and that the lunatics are running the asylum. Quite a shame for a once proud organization.

they really should think about trading lowe prior to the deadline.. he's only been getting worse.. and they know they're not going to resign him (nor should they try) so why not get some prospects and a middle reliever for him.. plus, kershaw will probably be up by that time..

Dudes, speaking of the fire-colletti band wagon, but how bout that gary bennett acquisition? This is TWO days in a row now he can not make the simple throw to complete the strike out at first. This is insane. The ONE job of back up catchers is to provide competent defense when giving the starter a day off. Bennet cannot even do this. Why is he still on the team? How much worse could the AAA catcher be, or even Lucas May who's lighting up the Southern League at age 23? Honestly, Colletti is so far gone in my book, besides the JOnes, Pierre, Schmidt, Norma, Kent situations... Bennett signing just looks mroe and more dumb each passing day. And to top it off, he's a steriod abuser.

How can Ned keep his job after another blown year made worse in the offseason?...This is not just one mistake anymore, but Andruw Jones is the straw that broke the camel's back...Jones, Schmidt, Kent, Nomar, Proctor, and now Yancy.....it's really an embarrassment...The only way it will change is if the Dodger's stay this bad all year...Otherwise nothing will happen and Ned will go on making mistake after mistake...oh and as Jspelk says...Bennett....Ned can't even get a decent back up catcher.....

Notice in Atlanta they got Kotsay to replace Andruw...who do you think is doing better??....not to mention one of my fav Dodgers from a couple of years ago, Jayson Werth..always liked him...just because he broke his wrist they threw him away.....great fielder and just hit 3 home runs in one game...........why does Ned always think you need a "used up Name" player?.....go for younger and less discovered...or just keep the players you have and forget it....I predicted all along that Andruw wouldn't get better and I feel this will last all year....he's slow, terrible at the plate and just a terrible terrible signing...!!!!!...Ned should be ashamed of himself for thinking that someone like Andruw who has been getting worse year by year , would somehow pick it up and return to form....!

The wheels are falling off. But every loss brings us closer to Ned's departure.

How long is it going to take Joe to realize that the players he's managing are not the Yankees? His constantly changing lineups are not working and are just creating tension, pressure, and confusion. Pierre is not the answer. Jones is not the answer. Kent is not the answer. Sweeney and Bennett are not the answer. Hu needs more time in AAA to develop his skills. In the meantime, good hitters like Young and LaRoche are not even given a chance and are wasting away for no good reason. Give Young a chance. Call up LaRoche and play DeWhitt at 2B. The Dodgers have good hitters available but unfortuately Joe and Ned refuse to give them a chance. What a sorry state for a once proud and honored franchise!

Wow! I didn't get to see the game today, but from the amounts I got to see via my phone, and your comments, I guess I didn't miss much (anything positive anyway). My husband had a great day. He has Napoli on his fantasy team, and my team did well because my competition has Dodger pitching.

I admit I supported the Andruw Jones signing as I thought last year would be a fluke, but it now appears that last year was the beginning of the end for Andruw. Joe needs to set a deadline for Andruw, and if not reached, you either push to release him, or put at number 25 on the depth chart.

Which outfielder will sit Monday? Since we know logic won't be used , one would have to assume Andre will sit. Andruw's 0 for 4 day with 3 strikeouts overrules Andre's 0 for 4 day with 1 strikeout (that throw to home was very impressive as always and eventhough it didn't get the out, it should deserve some credit, but we all know it won't). Pierre and Kemp both got their one hit so they are probably safe for another day (well, we all know Pierre is safe until Furcal comes back). However, stranger things have happened this season already so maybe we will all be surprised when we see DY in the line up instead.

There's cetainly no joy in Mudville lately, and other than an 8 game stretch, none all season. A quarter of the season is gone, and here's what we've learned from JoJo:

1. 4 outfielders is a good problem to have. (Well, no it isn't when neither Andre or Matt can't have an off game without riding the pine the next. One can't relax and concentrate when your're always looking over their shoulder and can't make a mistake.)
2. Its a long season. (and getting longer everyday.)
3. We need to get Andruw going. (After a year and a quarter "slump", we need to get Andruw gone.)
4. I'm still learning my players. (Watching the same thing over and over again and not putting two and two together isn't leaning. Its called Altzheimers.)
5. I liked the way Pierre was hitting the ball at people. (he must really be enjoying JPs game now.)
6. Nomar will get a chance when he comes back. He was really starting to hit the ball. (At a .226 clip, its easy to see why he favors Jones and Sweeney too.)
7. I want to get Sweeney some extra swings to get him going. (see #3)
8. Andre Ethier's my Paul O'Neil. (Explains why Andre sits so often - O'Neil's retired and he confuses the two - see #4.)

Has anyone seen any difference between JoJo and Grittle? I don't buy the argument that he's playing what he has so that the failures are on Ned (who's a long post unto himself.) This is a HOF manager (my behind) who was brought in to supossedly win, so not playing your best players trying to prove a point seems totally illogical. Not playing your best players because you think its still New York and the vets are going to magically turn it around is just ignorant.

Fire JoJo, Ned, Andruw, Sweeney, Nomore, Bloaiza, and Bennett. Get whatever you can (if anything) for Kent, Lowe and Pierre. Hire White and let's start to rebuild properly and with a clean slate.

(Cue the Battle Hymn of the Republic) This way to Freedom boys and girls...

Enchanted's truth goes marching on!! Glory, glory, Ned is gone.

Hey, enchanted -
I was reading the posts from Saturday, and when you said you lived in the desert, I just assumed California - sorry for the assumption.

I have lived in many hot places, Las Vegas, Memphis (humidity!!) and the central valley (Merced), but it was the earliness of the high temperatures that were making me cranky.

Great post up above - wish everybody would think like you!

Seven weeks and counting............

Yesterday's game was a huge bummer. Offense imploded and pitching exploded. It really bites when your top two pitchers are in the tank. Not going anywhere with Lowe and Penny pitching like Bombko and Bloaiza.

Before we get to a new thread and leave the subject of the 60s, I was 7 when the decade started and had just become a Dodger freak due to the '59 Series. My favorite memories are:
1 - Listening to Vin and Jerry calling the night games on my little transistor radio in the fake leather pouch hanging on my bedpost while I was supposed to be sleeping. My dad would come in most nights to shut it off, but he never did it if I was still awake, even if it was late. He'd just leave the room with a gentle reminder if I had school the next day. God bless him for that.
1a- Mr Koufax (Two and two to Harvey Kuenn........)
2 - Mr Wills (He's stolen it.........)

Non-baseball (you didn't designate, Josh, but in case you care):
1 - the moon landing, of course

jhall, didn't Torre claim that he'd make decisions on the starters after two months?

I think the combination of Park and Kuo performed quite well on Saturday and should be tried again - doesn't matter which one starts. In the long run, if he maintains his health, Kuo should build up his strength to become a regular starter for us. With that in mind, I think we should cut Lowe as soon as possible, and by that I mean a trade for some prospects of our chosing from one of the contending teams. Lowe won't be around next season, and it doesn't look like he would be much help to us this season. Park and Kuo could replace him, and you could even throw Cory Wade into that mix, since he also has performed well. We're also awaiting Kershaw to get his chance presumably in the second half of the year. So, let's go for it, and make that pitching change now.

As for enchanted's post above, I think most of us bloggers have been in agreement with those positions all along. It's the damn ownership that doesn't have a clue, and consequently the management that has been screwing things up whether it was Grady on the field or the high profile Torre now. I'm sure that Torre won't be the one to go, but changing Ned for Logan White couldn't happen too soon.

I think he alluded to a 2 month window. Joe and Ned's statements have been somewhat hazy and pretty much non commital in my opinion. They blamed the first month on the fractured Spring Training and now it is spilling over into May. I'm not sure what they are thinking and I don't think they really have a plan as Enchanted has pointed out. They're just winging it right now.

Yankees may have some interest in Lowe about now and in last place they may be desperate enough. They need pitching if that is what you want to call what Lowe has been doing.

messagebear, I'm in total agreement with you and jhall and enchanted and everyone else that's frustrated with the lack of management's vision with regards to the roster and the starting lineup. If we were merely getting beaten with our best on the field, I could take that. But we're not.

As a means of explaining why, I offer the following evidence:

2008 - Attendance

RNK TEAM GMS TOTAL AVG

1 NY Yankees 20 1,027,774 51,388

2 NY Mets 21 1,042,140 49,625

3 LA Dodgers 20 930,669 46,533

4 St. Louis 27 1,111,449 41,164

5 Chicago Cubs 27 1,083,899 40,144

6 LA Angels 25 994,996 39,799

7 Philadelphia 24 940,486 39,186

8 Detroit 20 754,525 37,726

9 Boston 22 826,749 37,579

10 Milwaukee 20 676,449 33,822

So.........management is thinking........

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

or

"There's a sucker born every minute"

Good point Eric. If the fans just keep blindly streaming in and Frank is making money, he clearly won't get the message that anything is wrong.

Not sure how close dodgers where to signing Adam Dunn this ofseason. But i do recall how many did Not want Adam Dunn because he struck out to many times. Well who was out there that is a power hitter that did not strike out alot?
Well as far as Adam Dunn he does strike out alot but as far as his HR's and RBI numbers have always been consistant.
These are his numbers for now .221 avg. 10hrs 26 rbi SO 35
Andrew Jones .167 avg, 2 hrs, 7 rbi, 44 SO and a big smile to go with it.

Carcyn, I believe most people were not opposed to getting Dunn because of the strikeouts. Most 40 HR/100+ RBI hitters do strikeout alot as you pointed out. I think the asking price in our yound talent was very high and was the stumbling block in that venture.