Still haven’t lost three games in a row this year and if we want that to continue, we’ve got to win tonight.

Here’s the lineup in St. Louis (I’m actually not on this trip, so stuff might come a little slower)

Furcal, SS

Hudson, 2B

Manny, LF (as many of you probably saw, we’re doing a second Manny bobblehead by popular demand…Sept. 16 so it’s a good reason to skip school or work! Not that I’d ever advocate such a thing…)

Ethier, RF

Blake, 3B

Loney, 1B

Martin, C

Kemp, CF

Billingsley, P

And by the way…are all the glitches fixed on here? If not, let me know and I’ll hit up the good folks at MLB.com.

Tonight’s game is a little earlier than originally scheduled, as ESPN has picked it up (outside of LA). For those here, still tune into Prime Ticket tonight at 4:15 p.m.

Here’s the lineup:

Furcal, SS

Hudson, 2B

Manny, LF

Ethier, RF (named Player of the Week today in the NL)

Blake, 3B

Loney, 1B

Martin, C

Kemp, CF

Wolf, P

Guess who is taking batting practice out on the field now, on an off day, before 10 a.m.???

Yep, it’s Manny Ramirez, whose dramatic homer last night was easily one of the coolest things I’ve ever witnessed as a Dodger fan. And while my prediction was that it would be a pinch-hit, walk-off homer (see the post below), there’s no way anyone could have predicted what truly happened last night. A True Mannywood Story is the headline on dodgers.com, which is perfect!

It was a special moment that’s already being compared to Kirk Gibson’s homer by fans and media alike, though obviously this one didn’t come in the World Series so it’s hard to lump them together. But given that Manny had been hurt the night before, wasn’t expected to play, and hadn’t taken BP or even taken a swing off the tee, what he did last night on his only swing of the evening was nothing short of magical. When he emerged from the dugout to pinch-hit, I turned to someone in my office and said, “this must have been what it felt like when Gibby was coming up.” Little did I know that he’d then homer and send this place into pandemonium and help the Dodgers move 27 games above .500 for the first time since the end of that ’88 season.

If you were here, and you want a memorable keepsake (in addition to the bobblehead), come back out on Aug. 5 for the Mannywood poster which will commemorate last night’s game. In fact, if you weren’t here, that’s all the more reason to be here for that game…this was one night to remember.

Manny is still day-to-day but not in the lineup on his bobblehead night, which is surely a bummer for the fans. But obviously there’s not much we can do in that regard. Perhaps he’ll pinch-hit and hit a walk-off homer…you never know.

Here’s the lineup:

Furcal, SS

Hudson, 2B

Ethier, RF

Blake, 3B

Loney, 1B

Kemp, CF

Martin, C

Billingsley, P

Pierre, LF

Brutal headline. I know. Couldn’t come up with anything better for tonight’s game. Been running around the Westside all day for Chad Billingsley’s hospital visit and then a guest lecture at UCLA…just getting to the stadium now.

Here’s what Joe had to say pregame today:

On how Schmidt felt after last night:

He seemed to be fine. A big load off his mind. It’s expected to be a little jittery. I’m happy for him. I felt we were throwing every pitch with him. I’m under the assumption we’ll send him out there again.

On Broxton being available tonight for the 4th night in a row:

I would say no. But I was happy with the last two days. He seemed as good as he’s going to be.

On Kuo:

Kuo was good. And he’s going to do it again tonight. If all goes well, he’ll pitch again Friday. And then he’d go on the next trip.

On Wade and Belisario:

Wade and Belisario threw bullpens, and they’re doing well.

On Mientkiewicz:

I think he’s going to Arizona today or tomorrow and I think he’ll start some rehab stuff. He has really come a long way. I think he’s on this team (once he’s ready to be reinstated). He gives us a little more flexibility.

On Paul:

He’s a way’s away right now. I think realistically he’s a month away, yeah. Chances are he’d go to the minor leagues (when he’s reinstated). He’d probably be a September 1 guy (call-up).

On how DeWitt is handling going up and down:

He’s a tough kid. He’s just one of those kids who deals with whatever happens. But he needs to play more baseball. We’ll address that coming up. The kid’s a ballplayer.

And here’s tonight’s lineup:

Furcal 6

Hudson 4

Ramirez 7

Ethier 9

Blake 5

Martin 2

Loney 3

Kemp 8

Wolf 1

In case you haven’t seen it, the Dodgers Media Network page on www.dodgers.com/dmn has all sorts of awesome videos that get hidden sometimes in the media player, but one of the latest that has been added is the newest episode of the Jr. Dodgers Show. When you’re hanging out online with time to kill (and you’re not already killing time on this blog), check it out.

Meanwhile, tonight is going to be very interesting with Jason Schmidt returning to the mound. Obviously it’s hard to know what to expect from someone who hasn’t pitched in the bigs for two years, but if he can do the job as the fifth starter, what a huge boost that would be…I know how badly he feels having been hurt for the majority of this contract and there is no better time to come up big than over the next few months.

Here’s tonight’s lineup…

Furcal, SS

Martin, C

Manny, LF

Ethier, RF

Blake, 3B

Loney, 1B

Kemp, CF

Castro, 2B

Schmidt, P

 

 

Nice to see that the team avoided losing three straight again yesterday…time to start up a streak of the other kind, now. What a performance by Clayton Kershaw, who is coming into his own before our very eyes. It’s been an impressive six-week run he’s been on.

We also just announced a sellout of Manny bobblehead night on Wednesday but plenty of other games still with tickets left for this homestand.

This Thursday is James Loney’s bowling event, too. If you haven’t been at this in the past, it’s an impressive turnout. Probably more of our players than any other event that we have all year and it raised money for the Dodgers Dream Foundation and Childrens Hospital, which is why the price tag is a little steep. I hope some of you can make it out there.

Here’s the lineup

Furcal, SS

Hudson, 2B

Manny, LF

Blake, 3B

Ethier, RF

Loney, 1B

Kemp, CF

Ausmus, C

Kuroda, P