Category: Dailies

Thank you, Dodger fans…

Well, it was hardly the finish we all had hoped for back in February at Camelback Ranch, but it was a great day and hopefully those of you at the stadium or watching on TV enjoyed it.

From Brad Ausmus’ retirement ceremony and two-hit game, to John Lindsey taking out the lineup card with Joe Torre and even getting in the box score with a pinch-hit appearance…and from Hong-Chih Kuo setting the record for the lowest single-season ERA in franchise history, to Joe Torre’s farewell speech and ceremony, it’ll actually be a day to remember for many Dodger fans who have supported this team all year.

I know that more than 15,000 people left the stadium with some sort of gift (one of which took home a Hyundai Sonata), while David Hasselhoff’s rendition of God Bless America was a huge hit (as was his cameo in Don’t Stop Believing).

On behalf of everyone at the Dodgers, we truly thank you for your support this season. You all come out, win or lose, through thick and thin and for that, you have our deepest gratitude.

Keep checking back at the blog all winter, as we’ll be updating regularly. And have a safe Fall…

Sports Illustrated on Vin

Plenty of people write features on Scully…few hit the nail on the head as well as SI’s Joe Posnanski did with this piece.

And thanks to everyone for their input on the last post…we’ll take it to heart and see what we can do for the blog next season (and during the offseason).

Hope to see some of you out here for the final weekend…it’s sad to say that, as we’ve all gotten used to the postseason around here these last couple years, but such is life.

 

Apparently, LA needs some air conditioning…

From all we hear, it’s about 115 degrees back home in Los Angeles, which seems unfathomable for the last few days in September. Here in Denver, it’s a nice 75 degrees but I’d bet if we check back with them in a few months, they’ll be wishing they had the sun and not the snow.

Not a whole lot to report from Denver…and clearly not a ton to report from Arizona, either. It dawned on me that part of why I’ve posted less regularly this season is the growing volume of great Dodger blogs that are out there right now for everyone to read.

When we started this blog five seasons ago, I’m pretty sure there were only a few blogs that were widely read that covered the Dodgers on a daily basis. Now, it becomes harder and harder to come up with unique content on top of all the great work that already gets done at dodgers.com through Ken Gurnick and his colleagues, as well as through all your sites.

So, for 2011 (and what’s left of 2010) we’ll try to come up with a fresh twist on the ITD blog. Not exactly sure what that will be, but we’re certainly up for suggestions. Posting lineups doesn’t make much sense anymore, nor does the “news.” By the time we get to sit and post something, it’s already spread around the Internet so fast that all we’re doing is recapping what you already know.

In the meantime, keep checking back regularly…we’ll keep trying to come up with fun things to post while we figure out the best way to communicate with an ever-growing fan base online. 

Campy, CSUN and the DDF

It was a great afternoon on the field at Dodger Stadium, as the Dodgers, the Dodgers Dream Foundation, the Campanella Family and Cal State Northridge announced a partnership to keep Roy Campanella’s legacy alive for years to come. You can read the details here but equally as cool were some of the great items we brought out from the archives, including his original wheelchair, his shin guards from Brooklyn and the contract he signed to play for the LA Dodgers just weeks before his accident.

Jamey Carroll, meanwhile, was voted the Campanella Award winner by his teammates and you can tell he was truly humbled by it. And well deserved. Turns out, he was an exercise science major at Evansville and did a lot of physical therapy studies along the way, so it couldn’t have fit together more perfectly. Photos of the event are here. 

And of course, Bill Plaschke wrote a column about the Campanella legacy in today’s Times. Plenty more coverage that you’ll find tomorrow, I’m sure.

It’s a bright spot in a tough week for the team but with tonight’s win, the team avoids a sweep and heads to Arizona in an hour or so.

Will post from there tomorrow.

 

Rest in Peace, Al LaMacchia

It’s a sad day in the Dodger organization and throughout baseball today, as Al LaMacchia passed away this morning at his home in San Antonio. Al has been with the team since 2003 and most of you probably know that he was the scout who recommended that we trade for Andre Ethier back in 2005. But that was just one of countless recommendations during a career in professional baseball that spanned eight decades as a minor league player, Major League player and scout.

Of course, those who knew him knew that he was more than just a baseball scout – a good family man, a WWII veteran and great person. We issued this release a little while ago and found a couple of other unique stories about him courtesy of Fred Claire.

A Teammate Recalls Pete Gray

Bradley/Ethier linked by Notable Trade

Our thoughts are with Al’s whole family and those who knew him. He will certainly be missed.

 

Filming at Dodger Stadium

Ever wonder what happens at the stadium when the team is on the road?

Well, in addition to planning for the upcoming homestand and dealing with any number of business issues that come up on a daily basis (the same as any company, really), Dodger Stadium has been a favorite spot for filming movies over the years.

Last week and this week, Moneyball was being taped here and it’s just the latest in a long line of movies filmed at the stadium. The woman who handles the coordination of all these tapings sent a list of all the movies and shoots that have taken place at the stadium, which I found interesting and thought you might all enjoy it, too. The list is below.

By the way, one of our longtime Dodger scouts and a truly tremendous person, Artie Harris, actually plays a scout in the upcoming Moneyball film. He has a few scenes with Brad Pitt and said he was really great to work with. And as you might know, Jonah Hill plays the Paul DePodesta character, though not of the same name. Yahoo’s Tim Brown had an interesting article about that, in case you missed it.

And northstateblues – thanks for your honest feedback. All I can tell you is that I truly don’t consider us a PR machine. The best we can do is try to explain the decisions we make and hope that fans understand them, while knowing that not all fans will agree with every decision. But the next time you’re at the park, please do let me know, as I’d love to fly by the seats to say hello.

Anyway, here’s the list of those movies and TV shows dating back to mid 80s…and it doesn’t even include the dozens of shows that have used the stadium as base camp but not actually filmed on site.

Better Off Dead – 1984

Mask – 1985

Fletch – 1985

52 Pick-Up – 1986

Naked Gun – Police Squad – 1988

Talent for the Game – 1990

Sandlot – 1992

“Hart to Hart” – 1993 (TV episode)

The Scout – 1993 (trailer scenes)

Strange Days – 1994

The Fan – 1995

Kate Spade – 1996

“In the Zone” – Children’s Baseball Show – 1996

Molly – 1998

Life – 1998

“Arli$$” – 1998 (TV show)

A Tribe Called Quest – 1998 (music video)

Bounce – 1999

For Love of the Game – 1999

The Core – 2002

Matchstick Men – 2002

American Idol – 2002 (TV show)

“Fastlane” – 2002 (TV episode)

“Curb Your Enthusiasm” – 2003 (TV episode)

“Fear Factor” – 2004 (TV show)

Be Cool – 2004

“Superman” – 2005

“Numb3rs” – 2005 (TV episode)

Rocky VI – 2005

Fast & Furious – 2006

Star Trek – 2007

“Stunt Junkies” – 2007 (TV episode)

“Light it Up” – 2008

“The Bachelorette” – 2008

“Chef Jeff Project” – 2008

“Modern Family” – 2009

“The Lamas Family” – 2009

“NCIS LA” – 2010

Joel Osteen – 2010

“Edgar Floats” – 2010

“Reinvent the Wheel” – 2010

Moneyball – 2010

 

Ask and ye shall receive…

In the last post, I mentioned how much I would have loved to have witnessed the conversation between Tim Wallach and John Lindsey, telling him he’s reached the big leagues. Well, as it turns out, you can!

Apparently Ned Colletti gave a heads up to the Dodgers Media Network and they filmed the conversation. It’s cool behind-the-scenes stuff you just can’t get anywhere else.

So check it out…and keep rooting for Big John. Hopefully he’ll get to debut in front of his family in Houston, have a big month, and earn himself a big league gig somewhere in 2011.

Need a feel good story?

After 1,570 games at the minor league level, John Lindsey has reached the big leagues. He’s among the five callups that Joe Torre just announced and it couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.

He started his minor league career in 1995 with the Arizona League Rockies and has since been at Portland, Asheville, Salem, San Bernardino, San Antonio, New Jersey, Jupiter, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, New Orleans, the Arizona League Dodgers and Albuquerque…not to mention the Dodgers’ trips to China and Taiwan, which is how I’ve had the chance to interact with him.

I’m happy for all of our callups – John Ely, Jon Link, Chin-lung Hu and Russ Mitchell, who will be making his big league debut. They all deserve it but imagine giving 15 years of your life to something and wondering if you’ll ever make it to the big leagues. I would have loved to have witnessed the conversation between John and Tim Wallach.

And the best part is, no one can accuse this guy of not legitimately earning it – he hit .356 with 25 homers and 97 RBI after going .316-26-100 for Triple-A Las Vegas in 2008.

There aren’t many people with whom I’ve visited the Great Wall of China (Beijing) and the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial (Taipei) but I’m proud to have done so with Mr. Lindsey.

 

Touring the stadium…

Thanks to those of you who made it out today…it was a fun afternoon tour and given that we only had about 20 total people on hand, we took some detours into areas that we’re not normally permitted to go. A peek inside the clubhouse, inside the weight room, up the clubhouse tunnel and into the area where Kirk Gibson got loose before his big homer in ’88. We even ran into a few different Dodger folks who were kind enough to say hello, including Manny Mota, who spent a good amount of time with the group.

Series finale is tomorrow night on ESPN, so it’s a 5:10 game…hope we’ll see some of you out here again.