Since August 23, the New York Mets are:

2-0 vs. Los Angeles
5-1 vs. Atlanta
1-19 vs. Everyone Else

This is the team the Dodgers need to beat Florida this weekend.

3.00

If the Dodgers play 72 more innings in their final eight games this season, they must hold the opposition to 15 earned runs to go below the 3.00 mark. A season-ending total of 486 runs allowed would leave the team with an ERA of 2.9945.

A 16th earned run allowed - meaning a 2.00 ERA over their final eight games, would put the Dodger season ERA at 3.0007.

Behind, Behind, Behind

The Shawn Green-Alex Cora-Paul Lo Duca relay to save Eric Gagne and the Dodgers on Thursday is the play of the year for me. I nearly threw my shoulder out in a Tiger Woods fist pump after it happened. Too bad it didn't kick off a weekend surge...

Philadelphia and Florida left the door open with 1-2 weekends, but the Dodgers banged their heads against it anyway. They may be only two games back in the loss column - and with wins by the Dodgers and Braves tonight, it might only be one - but with the remaining schedule, a postseason appearance really becomes a miracle now...

Is everyone out there disgusted and appalled? I'm disappointed, but not disgusted. I think of myself as a cynical guy, but am I the only one who thinks there is long-term hope if they take the positives out of this season? I'm willing to air opposing views...

Will all be forgiven if the miracle occurs? If you're writing, answer that one too...

Odalis Perez is scheduled to return tonight after a week of attacks on his character. If he does well, the Times will probably attack him even more for missing his start last week. The paper's writers refuse to entertain the possibility that it might have been a prudent decision. I'm still amazed by the idea that it was better for Perez to gut out a poor performance rather than let the Dodger who had the best chance of pitching well pitch...

Of course, with teammates and managers like the Dodgers and Jim Tracy, who needs the press to add to Perez' angst? Tracy told Ken Gurnick at MLB.com, "There have been a lot of words thrown around the past few days, let's see some action," said Tracy. "He has an opportunity to make a statement for himself without a lot of explanation. Actions speak very loudly, and in a lot of cases, a lot louder than words." I can't for the life of me figure out what the statement is going to be...

Tracy made the correct decision benching Paul Lo Duca on Saturday, whatever Lo Duca's physical condition was. Right now, David Ross may be the better hitter, especially considering Ross' power...

Tracy does many things well, and some things not so well. For some people, this is an extraordinarly difficult concept...

Clay Landon passes along Peter Gammons' notebook item from ESPN.com that "there are just two many reports of friction between Jim Tracy and Dan Evans to dismiss them." Was the use of the word "two" a typo, or a subliminal indication that two reports would be too many? We're still waiting for the first person to go on the record with this. I think it's to the point where someone can do a full story on the rumors themselves and their implications for the future of the team, instead of just passing it along as "heard on the street" material...

In our 22nd year with season tickets, we finally won on Fan Appreciation Day - "we" being my brother, since I did not attend the game. He walked away with a $50 gift certificate to Albertson's and a promisory note (literally) for a Farmer John ham. My timing was indicative of a season in which the Dodgers played .500 ball with me in attendance and .593 ball without me. It was my worst season since 1999...

I can't talk about the parking lot shooting. I can't think of anything intelligent to say. I want to say that people should try to be nice to each other, but maybe that isn't intelligent. At Saturday's game, a guy stood up in front of us, looking toward the stands. After a couple of minutes, my Dad said, "Excuse me..." and gestured calmly so that the guy might duck or sit down. The guy responded with a sarcastic remark designed to make my Dad the villain in the situation. In society today, it seems like you often have only two choices: if you don't suffer in silence, you put yourself at risk. The stadium shooting is newsworthy for where it happened, or why it happened, but it is nothing, nothing new...