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Also ...
A Season in Savannah (Stanford Magazine)
Five Questions: Los Angeles Dodgers (2005) (Hardball Times)
Rick Monday (Baseball Analysts)
Baseball's Odd Couple (Baseball Prospectus)
Five Questions: Los Angeles Dodgers (2006) (Hardball Times)
Five Questions: Los Angeles Dodgers (2007) (Hardball Times)
Dodger home record: 39-30 (.565)
When Jon attended: 5-3 (.625)
When Jon didn't: 34-27 (.557)
Dodgers at home: 745-600 (.554)
Jon attended: 293-233 (.557)*
Jon didn't: 457-374 (.550)
* includes road games attended
Current Roster with Estimated 2008 Salaries
(updated March 28)
Most figures are estimates (some are wild estimates) but will be updated as information comes in. Corrections welcome.
More contract details here.
Starting Pitchers (5)
$12,300,000 Hiroki Kuroda
$10,000,000 Derek Lowe
$9,500,000 Brad Penny
$7,000,000 Esteban Loaiza
*$500,000 Chad Billingsley
Total: $39,300,000
Bullpen (6)
$2,000,000 Takashi Saito
$1,925,000 Joe Beimel
$1,125,000 Scott Proctor
*$500,000 Jonathan Broxton
$500,000 Chan Ho Park
*$400,000 Hong-Chih Kuo
Total: $6,450,000
Starting Lineup (8)
$14,100,000 Andruw Jones
$13,000,000 Rafael Furcal
$9,000,000 Jeff Kent
$8,500,000 Nomar Garciaparra
$8,000,000 Juan Pierre
$500,000 Russell Martin
*$400,000 James Loney
*$400,000 Matt Kemp
Total: $53,900,000
Bench (6)
$875,000 Gary Bennett
$600,000 Mark Sweeney
$424,500 Andre Ethier
$391,000 Delwyn Young
$390,000 Chin-Lung Hu
$390,000 Blake DeWitt
Total: $3,071,000
Disabled List
$12,000,000 Jason Schmidt
*$400,000 Tony Abreu
*$390,000 Andy LaRoche
Total: $12,790,000
Also Paying ...
$1,000,000 Brett Tomko
$750,000 Odalis Perez
$540,000 Yhency Brazoban
$500,000 Randy Wolf
$487,500 Jason Repko
$135,225 Rudy Seanez
$100,000 Mike Lieberthal
$50,000 Ramon Martinez
Total: $3,562,725
Working total: *$113,268,725
*Rough salary estimate
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1) using profanity or any euphemisms for profanity
2) personally attacking other commenters
3) baiting other commenters
4) arguing for the sake of arguing
5) discussing politics
6) using hyperbole when something less will suffice
7) using sarcasm in a way that can be misinterpreted negatively
8) making the same point over and over again
9) typing "no-hitter" or "perfect game" to describe either in progress
10) being annoyed by the existence of this list
11) commenting under the obvious influence
12) claiming your opinion isn't allowed when it's just being disagreed with
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For more information, please visit the Fairpole blog, or read the FAQ.
In defense of my prediction that Andruw Jones would be benched when Juan Pierre returned, I didn't know that Pierre would be back a week before the end of July. So the trial period for Jones that I described isn't over yet. The benching of Jones could still happen by the time I suggested it would.
In the meantime, I'll say this. Yes, Jones could still improve this season. But what are the chances that he'll improve to the level that already being offered by Andre Ethier, who is benched for tonight (against a left-hander, for what it's worth)?
Tonight is one game, and we'll see what happens after that. But what Dodger manager Joe Torre is doing isn't right, for team performance or for fairness. Ethier has worked too hard (that's what they want, right?) and been too effective to be cast aside. Jones isn't going to hit a homer every three games this year. He is not the player they thought they were getting. He has a long way to go just to match Ethier's performance when other people said Ethier was slumping. Let Jones work his way off the bench like the other Dodger outfielders did.
It's one thing not to make lane changes willy-nilly, but Jones is a SigAlert in the fast lane, an overturned big rig in rush hour. It's time to go around him until AAA doesn't need to tow him.
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Nationals at Dodgers, 7:40 p.m.
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There will be non-permanent layout experiments at Baseball Toaster this weekend. We invite you to roll with it.
Update: Testy Torre (via Ken Gurnick at MLB.com).
Juan Pierre was back in the Dodgers' lineup Friday night, but so was Andruw Jones, which got the media asking pointed questions about Andre Ethier being the odd man out, which got manager Joe Torre a little testy.
"Because that's the way I wrote it down," Torre said, when questioned why Jones and his .166 batting average were in the lineup for the opener of a 10-game homestand and Ethier, batting .277, was not.
When it was suggested that Jones, who volunteered to return early from knee surgery, could return to a Minor League rehab assignment, Torre said: "When you get your team you can run it your way. For now, we'll do it our way."
Torre's brief annoyance with the line of questioning quickly shifted to a reasoned explanation focusing on the fact that Washington was pitching left-handers John Lannan on Friday night and former Dodger Odalis Perez Saturday night. Jones is batting .186 against lefties, Ethier .205. ...
Torre said he met with Ethier and asked for patience. At least for the first two games of this series, Ethier lost his job to a player (Pierre) returning from injury that he originally beat out in spring competition for the Opening Day job, while Jones remains in the lineup despite being a season-long disappointment. Matt Kemp, hitting .290, has pretty much been a starter since Spring Training.
"I told [Ethier] to just bear with me," Torre said. "I also told him how proud I am for how far he's come and just bear with me while I get a feel for how long it's going to take. It can't take a month. We have to make up our minds in smaller increments.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117989527.html
So you decided to tell the one other viewer of that show?
How about if I get you "Mr. Peepers" on DVD and we call it a day?
NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That really sucks. My wife and I have been so looking forward to season two, and I've been looking for updates every few days or so (to no avail). That's a major bummer, though I must say, I always thought they might struggle to figure out where to go from where they left off, so I'm not surprised when I hear
Series creator/exec producer Cynthia Mort said in statement issued Friday afternoon that she and others were "unable to find the direction of the show for the second season,".
When it comes to TV shows, only the good die young.
I've done something to anger HBO.
It was so real, man. So real...
I watch the show for the articles.
http://tinyurl.com/58svv3
Kwame Brown may be next.
http://tinyurl.com/583odl
Optimism is great.
Its just too bad there is none around the Dodgers currently.
Not sure how I feel about the Sasha deal. Offer seems pretty high, and he didnt receive much interest around the league. But I'd rather have him than a Smush Parker type that could have been the replacement.
106-61.
138 The Czechs had a penchant for tossing people out windows that they didn't like.
What didn't they like about the windows? Was it the [lack of a] view? ;)
And yet extraordinarily uninteresting and not salacious.
I came out against the brawl on BTF and ticked off people because I violated Rules 2, 3, 6, and 7 in just two comments.
42 - i maintain that the dodgers will rue the day they let Ethier go.
That Nationals are starting Paul Loduca, he of the .607 season OPS, at 1st base.
He threw 165 pitches.
Martin plays all the time
Loney plays all the time
Kemp plays all the time over the past month+
*Special added bonus - LaRoche is starting
This represents the majortiy of the Hot Stove League wish list.
Grady Little and Jim Tracy would have done the same thing.
I don't have any questions I could pass on without violating the rules of Dodger Thoughts, unfortunately.
There is one price for the Dodgers, and a much lower price for everybody else. Maybe other teams wouldn't find us "difficult" to deal with if they weren't always trying to screw us nine ways from Sunday.
Huzzah!
The trade was for Matt Kemp and Chad Billingsly for Jack Wilson, according to Jason Stark.
With that statement and the one a few days ago concerning having to face Brandon Webb that went something like, "that's why we play the game" I like your attitude.
Torre is banking on Jones playing poorly to solve his problem for him. But maybe he won't. Slumps do end, sometimes.
Let's say pigs fly.
Thanks Fallout - Maybe someday we'll get everything that we want.
got to love Vinny
My, that was fun. Let's do it another 300 times before the season is over, shall we?
http://www.segway.com/
We've all moved on.
Thank God.
Ian Snell has been maybe the worst starter in baseball this year. Craazy difference from last year.
Thats an out with Raffy.
If you submit and get into it - you may be doing it 36 million times.
Get 'em on
Get 'em over
Get 'em in
We can do that at least once!