I am driving to Boston this weekend, from Chicago. I am knocking on wood that my old beater makes the trip before I finally put her out to pasture.

From prev. thread, re: Kemp

394 Or a trade. But Pierre won't be traded (alas). Ethier likely won't either. Gonzo certainly won't since he's only on a 1 yr contract anyway and has been productive at times. So it'd have to be another position player. You're right, basically, there's not room for him right now. I wish there was one more Wilson Valdez we could DFA. ;-) (Well there is Martinez... but they probably like having that extra infielder for safety.)

It seems like Kemp's time is more likely next year, when Gonzo is gone.

I'll start - topics of the day.

1. Which league will win the first interleague go around?

2. Next to be called up?
a. Matt Kemp
b. Yhency Brazoban
c. James Loney
d. Tony Abreu
e. Write-in candidate

3. Next Dodger to hit a home run.
a. Jeff Kent
b. Olmedo Saenz
c. Nomar Garciaparra
d. Wilson Betemit
e. Andy LaRoche
f. Luis Gonzalez
g. Anyone else.

2 If you DFA an infielder to bring up Kemp you have 5 OFers. Kemp won't play.

2 - Gonzo being on a one year contract makes him easier to trade, if anything. He could be a DH in the AL or just a capable hitter for anyone in need. Colletti would have to a) realize that Kemp is a better option and b) see something he wants, to make such a trade, but I don't see how his contract being short keeps him here.

2
Things always change and sometimes it is hard to envision the change. Just look at any Dodger lineup on May 1st and then again on Aug 15th and it is always shocking when you see who is playing and who isn't. My gut still tells me that Kemp will be playing almost full time by Aug 15th.

Yesterday I took my 2003 Dodge Caravan to the dealer because the AC was not working. Turns out it needed a new compressor which costs well over $1,000. Then the guy told me the good news. It was still under warranty (I bought it used). It cost me $65 for a brand new AC compressor installed. I feel rich.

The only way Kemp gets back on the roster (assuming every OF stays healthy) is if Andre Ethier goes into a deep slump.

Pierre/Gonzo/Clark seem locked into their spots no matter what they do.

3
1. Always AL until the NL proves they have gotten better.
2.Yhancy
3. Nomar

3

1. AL
2. B
3. Furcal

The Dodgers have already chosen Kemp over Ethier once this year out of ST, I don't see any reason they won't again if the numbers dictate. Ethier and Gonzo both are serviceable, but neither look irreplaceable at this point. What id love to see is a 4 man rotation in the OF.

LA Times has an article up about Mathews and Pierre, won't make some of the "Bring me JP's Head" crowd happy, but it's a good read.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-freeway18may18,0,2050002.story?coll=la-home-sports

11 Who are your 4? If Kemp is one of them what do you do with Brady?

Is there any chance that Kemp takes Brady Clark's spot on the roster? Clark has only 47 PAs on the year, and Kemp is seemingly better than him in every way imaginable.

I could see Clark departing in some scenario where another team is desperate for outfielders and not all together picky.

Apparently, Oakland doesn't consider itself desperate.

Survey -- Who's got the coolest entrance music?

I think it's got to be Juan Pierre. How many people have their names mentioned in a song?

What's wrong with this bench? Betemit, Olmedo, Kemp, Clark, Lieberthal

Betemit has played short before, it wouldn't kill us if he played there once in a great while. Sure, this could result in some odd defensive alignments if Kent and Furcal get hurt at the same time, but what are the odds of that?

13
He is what he is. A pinch hitter, pinch runner, and defensive replacement. The perfect 5th outfielder.

I also would like to see a 4 man OF rotation with Andre/Pierre/Gonzo/Kemp. There is absolutely no reason any of our current outfielders need to be starting virtually every game.

I still think there is a much better chance for the Dodgers to deal some pitching but it hinges on Jason Schmidt's recovery.

Hendrickson is probably a more valuable asset, he is lefthanded, he is still a couple of years away from free agency, his contract isn't horrible.

Tomko, they would have to probably pay most if not all of his contract plus his buyout and probably get less in return.

It appears that Chad is going to stay regardless of what happens but Kuo could certainly see the lights of Vegas again.

Heck, in an emergency I'm sure Nomar could play short, so the losing both middle infielders scenario still isn't bad.

13

Kemp, Gonzo, Ethier, Pierre.
Clark I think is more of a defensive sub/bat off the bench/occasional starter. It makes a lot of sense to rotate the top 4 guys- based on matchups and get them all 4 or 5 starts/week. I don't think they will put Kemp in Clarks current roll b/c he needs the regular ABs.
Some people seem to think that no matter what Gonzo and Pierre do they will start the whole year, but I don't know if that is the case/not sure where that is coming from. I don't see Grady or Ned married to any one or not willing to make needed changes, even if it takes them a little longer to get there. I guess time till tell.

Oakland could sure use Yhancy or Tsao right now. With Hudson out for two months, JDuch with the bad hip and Kiko just not effective the whole bullpen needs some help for the shortterm and maybe the long term if JDuch's hip doesn't respond to the cortisone shot he just got.

From reading between the lines when Valdez was designated for assignment, I think Ned really wanted to keep him but he just couldn't pull the trigger on releasing Martinez.

17 You have exchanged Kemp for Martinez. Now we have 5 OFer's and Martinez is gone. Are we better? Who becomes our 3rd catcher?

19
I don't agree on Tomko. He is not pitching like Odalis was when we had to make that deal. Pitching is such a mess right now with so many teams I think when he's moved we won't be paying any of his salary. JMO

The Minnesota Twins could use Gonzo. Look at who they have playing LF and DH: complete nonentities. Even Brady Clark would be an upgrade for them.

24 Yes, we're a better team. The worst hitter on the team is replaced by Matt Kemp.

When was the last time the Dodgers needed a third catcher? I'm willing to punt every 500th game if it means the Dodgers have a stronger team.

We're in a stretch of facing 8 straight RH starters which could explain the holdup on Kemp. A string of opposing lefties was the rationale for his surprise add to the opening day roster. Starting next Weds we face Capuano then Rich Hill. Maybe just maybe. Do we know why Kemp sat out yesterday?

20 I think the plan is for Martinez to be the primary backup at 2B/SS, Betemit and LaRoche to share 3B. If something happens to Kent/Furcal, Tony Abreu is going to get the call.

If injuries happen, the call ups will be:

1B: Loney
2B/SS: Abreu
3B: LaRoche (already here)
LF/CF/RF: Kemp, then Loney.
SP: Chad/Kuo (on roster), Stults/Houlton
RP: Brazoban/Meloan/Miller

We may not like everything on the big league club but that is some impressive depth in system

Actually, that probably more like every 3000th game. I don't remember the third catcher for the Dodgers ever being used in my lifetime.

I guess I just didn't see Colletti trading Gonzo unless the Dodgers fall apart, and way out of contention, which I don't see happening either. I'm not saying he shouldn't consider it, I'm just asying I don't think he will.

And there's nothing wrong with that bench 17 - just, again, I don't see the Dodgers going with just one backup infielder. Unless one of the other OFers could also play the infield, but they can't. Kemp is clearly "better" than Martinez but again, the team could leave themselves vulnerable in a long extra inning game if they had only one backup infielder.

I wonder if the Dodgers will get anything for Valdez, or if he'll end up back in Vegas.

26
They need a 3b before they need an upgrade in LF. The normal outfield for the Twins is Cuddyer/Hunter/Kubel and while Kubel started off slow he will outhit any of the Dodger outfielders by the end of the season.
Punto however is a fine utility player who is miscast as a started 3b. That is where they need to upgrade and Betemit would be a perfect fit but the Twins have nothing we need since they will need Baker/Garza/Slowry to replace Ponson(already released)/Ortiz(soone to be released)/Crain(TJ surgery).

29 I brought that up because I've booted Martinez off the team in my ideal lineup.

30 - Other than the rare times when the Dodgers carried three catchers, the only time I can think of the Dodgers truly using an emergency catcher in my 30+ years of watching was Derrel Thomas.

25 Could be, but he will still be owed above 2 million at the deadline plus a buyout.

Of course if the Dodgers decided to pull the trigger now due to encouraging reports about Schmidt, Brazoban's effectiveness in Vegas and Chad's and Kuo being already in LA, then I think they would probably not have to pay as much salary because they would be dealing from strength.

saying, not asying, which sounds dirty.

Also, Abreu > Martinez, too, but that wouldn't open up a spot for Kemp.

I wonder who the Dodgers would want back from the A's if they did trade a reliever to them. Bring back Antonio Perez! :-/

31
I thought it was a lousy article and could have been so much more if the writer really wanted to delve into it. That is the problem with major LA newspaper sports articles, not enough depth or research.

Seems like Todd Helton hasn't had a hit since Jon lead off a column about his glossy AVG.

31. Jon Weisman (edited)
12 - People discussed that last night. I haven't linked to it for what I think are obvious reasons, but this is the quote that bothered me the most.

"I don't understand," he said. "I worked my butt off for it. I know a lot of people think I don't deserve it. It doesn't matter to me what they think. Guys make twice as much, and nothing is ever said about their contracts."

I mean, I understand why he says this - he's got to stand up for himself, but it's just so problematic.

Earlier, there's this from Shaikin:

"Yet, if you base the early returns on the standings, the investments are paying off. The Angels are in first place with Matthews, the Dodgers are in first place with Pierre, and isn't that the point?"

The Dodgers are in first place with me as a fan and my kids waking up feisty and the skies being hazy this morning. There's stuff that's relevant, and stuff that's irrelevant. Pierre is not relevant to the Dodgers being in first place this year, and part of the reason the Pierre harangues never shut down is because this is what they come up against.

In 190 plate appearances, Pierre's TB + BB + HBP + SB - CS are 72. That is an objective negative. You can touch it up with sacrifices or running from first to third if you want or his general good-guyness, but I'm pretty convinced there are other good guys that can do better. His EQA is .240. It's just not good. An article like this only serves to rejuvenate the anti-Pierre campaign.

I've never felt that Pierre would make or break the Dodgers this year, but to credit him for being in first place, or for him to say people are picking on him unfairly - I just can't get on board. The criticisms may be all too frequent, but they're not off target.

39 - Yeah, I noticed :(

Jon, you apologizing for lack of compelling content is like Bob Dylan apologizing for not putting out enough in the 21-month, 4-album stretch from "Another Side of Bob Dylan" to "Blonde on Blonde". No apology necessary.

That being said, I hope your "car trouble" isn't serious or analogous to Dylan's "motorcycle accident" after releasing "Blonde on Blonde".

Yes, you could make the argument that the Dodgers are in first despite Pierre rather than because of him.

3
1. AL - because ToyCannon 9 is right.
2. Kemp - LuGo's slump is lengthening with his slugging down to .402. Ethier's is .433. Kemp made the club in the spring and was playing and producing when he was hurt. Unless his shoulder isn't consistently healthy yet [knock wood], they can't keep him down much longer, can they?
3. Betemit - Angels' pitching very right-handed and Wilson has to start one or two of these games, right?

42 - Can I call you "my blue eyed son" instead of Philosopher King then Jon? Bob Dylan is my holiest of holies, but the comparison is apt.

42 - It was $800 and some quality time lost ... life goes on. Of course, we also have some big holes in our ceiling thanks to a plumbing leak that I'm currently repressing.

31 Juan Pierre has been able to provide critics of the deal more factual evidence of why it was such a bad signing.

But he has also pretty much done what he has always done, so to say that Ned and the Dodgers didn't get what they paid for would be wrong. His numbers are not off what his career numbers project.

Now, do most people think that athletes are overpaid regardless of performance, sure a lot do. Does the fact that the guy works hard and doesn't seem to get into any off the field incidents matter, some but not enough to counter the original criticism.

I thought Ned made an interesting point when he said that the Giants bid up both Matthews and Pierre, in otherwords, inflated the CF market and so even he thought the price was high.

Jon

31

Fair enough about starting the war drums 'a beating for the head of JP, no need for that. He's here to stay for the rest of the season for sure.

As to the article being discussed last night, I did not wade through the threads before posting ...apologizes if this was not "fresh grist for the grinder".

One comparison which would be interesting on a what impact to the club would be today without JP here, how is Kenny Lofton doing over at Texas?

Hmmm... .238 with 3 HR's, 9 RBI, 19 Runs and 12 SB.

47 What the beat writers (who are left) fail to call him on is the onslaught of FA CF's this November.

47

Yea, I thought that was interesting also. No question being blindsided by Drew and Kemp and Ethier ending 2006 in tail spins made him panic somewhat. The other interesting thing will be to see how it plays out from here.

48 - No apologies necessary. Just in case people didn't jump in to talk about the article, I was lettigg you know why.

Lofton has better stats than Pierre thanks to his walks, power and stolen-base success rate. Plus, if you factor in that others like Kemp would be playing in the time he sits on the bench, I would say that the Dodgers' CF situation would be stronger (and cheaper) with Lofton.

48
Lofton .306 OBP, .354 SLG 12/13 SB
Pierre  .304 OBP, .313 SLG 15/20 SB

43 I think that is bit harsh. The only player on the two teams playing tonight in Anaheim where you can point to and say that is why they have as many wins as they do is Vlad Guerrero.

I think the hole at 3B for the better part of the season as had more effect on the offense than Juan Pierre's habit to ground the ball to second once or twice a game.

47 - This would easily be the worst year of Pierre's career with the bat:

2007: .278/.304/.313/.617
Career:.302/.349/.375/.723

That is 24 points of average, 44 points of OBP, 62 points of SLG and 107 points of OPS. Overall, his OPS is about 15% lower than his career averages. Now, I didn't expect him to hit those averages anyway, but this is on the low end of my expectations.

47
Everyone I know who applauded the Pierre move has been aghast at his defense so I'm not sure if they are getting what they thought they were getting. Plus his OBA is about 50 points below his career and that is a huge difference for where he's batting. Just saying I don't think he's "pretty much done what he has always done".

In 190 plate appearances, Pierre's TB + BB + HBP + SB - CS is 72.

In 130 plate appearances, Lofton's TB + BB + HBP + SB - CS is 69.

48 Increasing the manual glue production, but:

Pierre: 5 years $44 million
Lofton: 1 year $6 million

Who would be easier to move to 8th so, say, Martin could hit #2 ? Who would be easier to bench for, say, Kemp?

49 Again, I think the plan was, however flawd, was to get Soriano and then maybe Carlos Lee, once those deals fell through Ned needed to find someone to play outfield and to play it more than 120 games a year.

... aaand we are back to the third rail of Dodger debates.
Dang-it.

Is it too early to start arguing over the All-Star teams? Or perhaps who will make this year's unexpected '06 Twins/'05 Astros second half surge?

I would help out but I do have to, yknow, go graduate from my college in a couple of hours....hopefully by the end of the weekend i will be re-caught up on DT also!

51

Sure, not spending money is good, maybe could of should have kept from raising the parking fee by not picking up Pierre...?

Or use the money saved to hire someone to come up with a traffic flow pattern in and out of Chavez ravine that actually works.

Nahhhhh

One comparison which would be interesting on a what impact to the club would be today without JP here, how is Kenny Lofton doing over at Texas?

Not to mention Cruz Jr. and Ross, which I did the other day. Ross doesn't have much of a track record yet, so who knows what will happen to him. But Cruz has established his superiority to Pierre, at least in my book.

60
Congratulations. I don't think I would have graduated if DT existed 25 years ago.

So where are all those injuries that were supposed to happen for our young players to get a chance? [knock wood]

The players with the best cases for moving up are, in order:

1. Kemp
2. Bigbie
3. Brazoban
4. Loney
5. Abreu
6. Meloan

Kemp will likely find his way back when we return to 11 pitchers. Bigbie will probably be released/traded. Brazoban will likely step if/when Seanez falters or Tomko is traded.

Loney appears to have no spot waiting for him until Saenz departs, and Abreu & Meloan (as well as the unnamed others) will have to wait for next year.

Then there are the limbo-like D. Young, Houlton, & Stults, who seemed destined to toil away in the minors until we eventually cut them loose.

16 Last Friday night Russell Martin came up t o bat to the pounding rhythm of Led Zep's "Immigrant Song" - that was cool. "He comes from the land of the ice and snow, from the midnight sun...". Of course the song is actually about Vikings.

61 You use that money to load up the Brink's truck for the likes of Andruw Jones next off-season.

It's likely that Pierre will be more productive going forward, but his OSP+, so far, is identical to his 2002 one, his worst full season in the big leagues; it's twenty points lower than his career average. His sOPS+ for CF is 68; he's been a significantly worse than average offensive CF. Pierre's RC/27 is a point and a half lower than his career average, and nearly a full run lower than his 2002 one.

Mathews's OPS+ is thirty points higher than his career average, and most of ten better than his career best, last year. His sOPS+ for CF is 122; he's been a significantly better than average offensive CF. His RC/27 is more than a run better than his career average.

60 What 63 said. In all respects.

67 Mmmmmmm, human growth hormone, mmmmmmm. [/snark]

62 Cruz is having his best year hitting LH plus he does extremely well in April, in May he has cooled off a lot.

Did everyone just forget how lost he was at the plate last year and how he was strictly a RH hitter.

No one was upset when Ethier eventually replaced him last year.

I think a lot of heads would have been turned had the Dodgers turned around in the off-season to sign him back as starting CF.

64 Bigbie will become a free agent at the end of the month.

54

JP 1st 12 games of 07 .180/.192/.200/.392
JP since 1st 12 .317/.362/.357/.719
JP Career .302/.349/.375/.723

If you give him the first 12 games with a new team to find his way he has been pretty close to his career average since.

I don't think I have seen this on the Toaster yet:

http://www.laobserved.com/sports/2007/05/bill_plaschkes_new_book.php

Plaschke has a book coming out about Tommy Lasorda.

Trenidad Hubbard caught the last three innings of this game, in 1999

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/LAN/LAN199907110.shtml

60 It may be too early to start talking All Star teams, but its not too early to advise me on my All Star party menu. This year is SF, so what shall I serve?

Rice a Roni?
Burritos with weird things in them?
Chowder in sourdough bowls?
Roast squab in a port/fig reduction sauce served over organic field greens?

72
I had seen it, yet had somehow suppressed it, feeling that if I ignored it would go away just like this funny-looking mole on my arm.

60

Congrats, I walk tomorrow morning at 8:30. I personally want to wring the neck of the idiot who thought that all the graduating engineers would love to be awake at 8:00 in the morning on a Saturday.

71 I think his fielding has improved also. Last Friday night, I thought Juan Castro's drive to CF would reach the wall, but Pierre got a good jump from a shallow initial position and ran it down, straight back, on the track. Yeah, he fell at the end, but because he had to make a slight adjustment and twist further at the end of the play.

There, I said something nice about his play.

His two-run, line-drive single last game was a very good PA as well.

73 So my once every 3000 games estimate was right.

72 Oh boy. This could be better than "3 Nights in August." Makes me wish there was a DT book club.

77 Actually it was a one run scoring play but then a Juan Pierre RBI should cherished like a multi-run Dodger home run.

See I can be critical of Juan, I just try to be funny too.

Jacob L - Are you familiar with The Antiplanner blog?

Pierre does have a .920 zone rating, one of the best in baseball. He has less ground to cover in Dodger Stadium, which helps, but in the end Pierre has been getting to most of the balls hit towards him this season.

78 - Yeah, but that 3000th game could be tonight! Or tomorrow! It could be any night. Better safe than sorry. That is why I think we should have a designated bean ball pitcher on the team. It hasn't ever come in handy, but it might any time now.

75
Just no one worries, I really don't have a funny-looking mole on my arm.

I'll start - topics of the day. From post {3}

you forgot one more question, who does Scareduck/Rob root for during the freeway series??

Well said (I think), ESPN:

"Ryan, PA: Hey Jayson, As a Dodgers fan I would prefer to have Loney, Kemp and Ethier in the OF rather then Pierre and Gonzo. I think they could have saved alot of money and just played the talent they already had. I think the kids would be better both offensively and defensively.

Jayson Stark: (1:31 PM ET ) The Dodgers' philsophy in signing Pierre and Gonzo was, they didn't want to force their young guys into spots where they HAD to produce in a pennant race. The reason Gonzalez only got a one-year deal was that he was supposed to serve as a bridge to the next generation. Pierre's contract is another story. There's a lot to like about Juan Pierre. But I think most people in baseball feel they gave him too many years. At the time, though, they essentially had NO outfield, and he was the best option on the market. So he's there. It will be interesting to see how his role plays out over the life of this deal, don't you think? "

74 Definitely rice-a-roni should be a side dish. Dessert could be something with Ghiradelli chocolate. I can't think of anything else that's SF-centric other than sourdough bread.

70
No just D4P. I think he is the only one beating the drum for Jose Cruz.

88 I did suggest acquiring him this off season, if only because he wouldn't be worse than Pierre for 1/45th of the cost.

79 Where would meet, The Dugout (I think that is the name) on Sunset, maybe on weeknights when the Dodgers play a West Coast road game.

Books we will not be discussing:
Anything by Kevin Kennedy, Steve Lyons or anyone else affiliated with Fox Sports.

60

congratulations das411

81 No, but I just spent the last 5 minutes looking at it. I'm acutely aware of our profession's foibles (today especially!), and there's nothing wrong with airing them. The overarching critique is more than a bit off base, IMO.

86

Basically the Dodgers and the D-Backs took opposite directions/philosophies. So far edge LA, check back in Sept.

86 I knew someone could put my thoughts into words.

60 - Congrats!

74
Dim sum?
Some Italian dish that evokes North Beach?

I did suggest acquiring him this off season, if only because he wouldn't be worse than Pierre for 1/45th of the cost.

I'd like to see someone present a case for Pierre being better than Cruz, using whichever criteria they wish to use.

82
Dewan's book also said Pierre was above average. I used that to try to half heartedly try to support the JP signing. He has looked better but only relative to how bad he looked in the beginning. I have zero faith right now in Dewan and Zone rating. My eyes are old but I've seen enough baseball and JP is not an above average CF.

The other two emergency catchers in the last thirty years (it looks like) are Ted Sizemore, who caught one full game at the end of the year, and the last two innings of an extra innings game in 1976, and Derrel Thomas, who caught the last three innings of April 15, 1980, then the next four games, before Scioscia came up to restore order.

Worlds are colliding.

http://www.laobserved.com/sports/2007/05/bill_plaschkes_new_book.php

92
It's kind of a fun place to hang out. I figure if I'm going to waste time on The Internets, might as well waste it on something germane. I believe that the author of the blog is a staunch libertarian, and so a big part of his opposition to planning is ideological.

72/100 - Wow - I got nailed on that one.

Last Friday night Russell Martin came up t o bat to the pounding rhythm of Led Zep's "Immigrant Song" - that was cool. "He comes from the land of the ice and snow, from the midnight sun...". Of course the song is actually about Vikings.

That was really cool.

102 - Jon and Bob in the same day... wow. I glowing here.

104

Are you pregnanat?

103 When Saito was soliciting suggestions for his song, I suggested "Your Song."

I'll put up 5 of my own dollars to any Major Leaguer willing to adopt that tune. Maybe others want to pitch in.

I seriously dislike interleague play.

97
It would be easy. Jose only hits LHP right now and can't play CF very well. He would make a great platoon partner for JP but as an everyday CF like JP is, he doesn't cut the mustard. He has gotten off to a nice start in SD but before long you will see that he and Sledge will be in a strict platoon and that will keep his % numbers high due to the fact he will only be facing LHP. Jose Cruz has plenty of attributes but being a full time outfielder is no longer one of them. He doesn't stay healthy enough and he doesn't hit RHP at a decent enough clip.
More telling and not backed up by any statistical evidence is the fact he was released by the Dodgers even though he was doing his part in clubbing LHP and while many teams needed a spare part not one team picked him up after we released him. Depo gave him another chance but no one else was willing to. I found that odd.

107
Then here's what you need:
https://griddle.baseballtoaster.com/archives/665327.html

I actually said before the season that I would have rather we just signed Cruz to a one year deal and use him and Repko in CF instead of Juan.

108

2007
Pierre
vs. RH
.316/.341/.353/.694
vs. LH
.163/.196/.186/.382

Cruz
vs. RH
.277/.342/.477/.819
vs. LH
.333/.415/.611/1.026

2004-6
Pierre
vs. RH
.298/.342/.396/.738
vs. LH
.298/.347/.352/.699

Cruz
vs. RH
.226/.330/.415/.745
vs. LH
.291/.392/.493/.885

Your point is that Cruz has a bigger platoon split than Pierre. That's true. My point is that Cruz roughly as mediocre as Pierre vs. RH, but much much better versus LH.

Interleague by series
CWS vs CHC - advantage Chisox, probably 2-1
FLA vs TB - Marlins 2-1
ATL vs BOS - I'm gonna go with the BoSox 2-1
BAL vs WAS - Orioles 2-1
CIN vs CLE - Injuns 2-1
STL vs DET - Tigers 3-0
TOR vs PHI - Phillies 2-1
NYY vs NYM - Mets 3-0. Stay away from Bronx Banter
Min vs Mil - Brewers 2-1
Tex vs Hou - Well someone has to win, so Astros 2-1
KC vs COL - Meche going Saturday, Royals 2-1
LAD vs ANA - Dodgers 2-1
SD vs SEA - Padres 2-1
SF vs OAK - A's 2-1

I'm going with an overall draw.

110
That would have been preferable to 5 years of Juan but not realistic since Ned had already released Juan last summer.
I like to work with scenarios that are probable based on the GM's history and while his history is short, no GM has ever released a player during the summer and then signed him over the winter to be a key component of his team.

Way back at 52, there was some discussion of Lofton. Here's his home/away splits:

Home: .257/.350/.400 and all 3 HR
Away: .217/.250/.300

I say the Dodgers would be getting something like .240/.300/.350 out of him with questionable defense.

112 - Of course, since even the best team loses 30-40% of the time against the worst team a 3 game series is prone to so much luck that I wouldn't be surprised in half the favorites lost. Besides, I bet the DRay and Yankees will surprise you.

114 - Rob, do you have anything to add about your email conversation with Josh R? It came up the other day, but you weren't around (or maybe I missed it). I understand he won't give you permission to post the emails (though I don't think you need permission) but could you give us the gist of the conversation?

85 - this is established. I root for the pitchers.

116

1) the Times has unfairly reported on the Dodgers in the past.
2) refusal to address issues regarding handicapped people (presumably with the right placards/license plates) being shunted away from the correct parking area
3) no, you can't publish our dialogue on this matter.

At some point it just becomes talking to a brick wall. I like Josh personally the time or two I've met him, but honestly this kind of stonewalling is just too typical of the McCourt-era Dodgers.

118 - From what I understand, any email conversations can be released by either person in the exchange. The downside being, Josh might be upset and you could lose access. I am a little surprised that he would talk to a member of the press (independent press, but still, thousands of Dodger fans read your writing) and then attempt to suppress the conversation.

103 Martin is the third Dodger this year to have "Immigrant Song" used as his batting music (after LaRoche and Gonzalez). This leads me to believe that it's not those players but the Dodger Stadium DJ who is picking the song, and just can't decide which player to use it for. It would be most appropriate for Martin, of course, especially given that the selection of songs they wanted fans to vote on for him were 100% pure crap.

I like Ethier's song but I don't know what it is.

The Curtis Mayfield/Kanye West medley that Martin used last year (and occasionally this year) is good too.

118 - Well, if someone goes out of his way to say this is off the record, then you tend to want to respect that, whether or not you like it.

I'm not clear about whether it was originally on the record or not, though.

New post at Screen Jam.

If you give him the first 12 games with a new team to find his way he has been pretty close to his career average since.

The problem is his career average really isnt good either. I dont really think you can throw out the first 12 games, or 20 games, or whatever place you want to start counting stats. They all count. Pierre has hit with the same approach in the first week of April, as he's doing right now. The short term results will vary since his production is based almost soley on BABIP.

Some weeks his bunts and dribblers will find holes, other weeks they wont. But we know he wont hit for power nor walk, so essentially Pierre is a volatile stock.

Or Junk bond (without the high yield of course).

120 - "Forgot about Dre" or "Still D.R.E." are the two Ethier comes out to most often. "Forgot about Dre" is a good song, Eminem raps on it, but it can't compare to "Still D.R.E."

Doing the math, from 1976 to today the Dodgers have played 4773 games, eight of which saw emergency catchers for the Dodgers, for a rate of an emergency catcher appearing about once every 597 games. If you start with 1977, instead, it jumps to once every 1,537 games.

In any event, if either Martin (Choi forbid) or Lieberthal gets hurt, Colletti has to get another catcher. So, the value of having Martinez catch the last couple innings of one horrible game over anybody else's doing it seems pretty small.

Both songs are from "The Chronic: 2001" which is one of the five or ten best rap songs of all time.

I would have preferred Lofton, as Jon said, and Repko (of course, forgetting he'd inevitably get hurt) or Kemp over the Pierre long term deal. If they'd signed Pierre to a short term deal a la Gonzo, I would have been less depressed by it. But my problem was they signed both Gonzo and Pierre. But Stark says it well, and at least Gonzo is only signed to that 1 yr deal. I also do expect (not rooting for it mind you) Gonzo to get hurt at some point. Kemp did win that job so I feel bad that now he's stuck, but he'll get his licks.

I still wish we could petition the league to have someone play the role of pinch-thrower, or literally have a 4th OFer out there. Despite Pierre's slight improvement, between he and Gonzo I still worry greatly.

123
So true.

You know when we signed him I wasn't happy because of the length of the deal not because I didn't think he'd be okay for us for 2007. I thought I'd enjoy watching him play because I do love to watch speed in action even though I was warned by my Cub fan friends that I was due for a frustrating season. I figured they were frustrated just because they were Cub fans but after watching him for 40 games, there is nothing about his game I enjoy. I thought I'd be watching a Micky Rivers clone playing CF but for some reason I can't get behind him. On the plus side at this exact same time last year I thought Furcal was a total loss based on his defense and offense and now he's my favorite player so I still hold out hope that JP is just having a tough time though I don't really believe it.

126 - "song" should be "albums"

Is Juan Pierre really that much worse than JD Drew? ... Pierre 10RBI + 26R = 36 ... JD Drew 13RBI + 18R = 31. ..Keep in mind Drew faces bad pitching of the AL East ... Not so for Pierre.
Gonzalez has the same problem as Drew ... Not driving in runs. But ...
Looking at the overall picture this year..
Pierre > Drew
Gonzalez > Lofton

121 Any remotely competent PR person would be operating under the assumption that his exchanges with media (or really, with anyone) are on the record unless specifically stated otherwise beforehand. Since Josh did not (as far as we know) specify this, this would make his actions bewildering at best.

Intimidation and/or trying to order people around is not usually the MO of a PR spokesperson. It's generally only a last resort after gentler measures have tried and failed.

Legally, I'm fairly certain Rob is under no obligation whatsoever to withhold the dialogue. Ethically, he's under no obligation to withhold it either, unless Josh asked him beforehand to keep it private.

What a special day for the baseball team from Gabrielino High School. Grandson of Jaime Jarrin plays a stellar second base for the Eagles. The team had a special pre-game visitor to give a motivational talk and was amazing (according to my son - a 2005 grad). Tommy and Jaime sat through most of the game -- autographing stuff and just being the grand ambassador of the game we all love.

http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/preps/ci_5924339

130 Pierre > Drew

Wow, I greatly disagree with you.

130

you cant use RBI and RS stats to measure two players in two totally different scenarios.

If Pierre's bunt hit rate and infield hit rate were inline with his career averages, he'd be hitting .313, this year.

you cant use RBI and RS stats to measure two players in two totally different scenarios

You can if you're trying to stir up the pot.

.... Ahhh ... but the object of the game is to outscore your opponent ... Therefore .. bringing in players who cross home plate quite frequently would be advantageous to one's organization ... Hence we see Mr. Furcal and Pierre.

130

First, completely wrong method of comparison.

Pierre: 176 AB

Drew: 120 AB

134
Don't bother Nate, as D4P said he's just here to cause problems. Don't waste any bandwith on him.

I like Andre's song the best. Mostly because it is Andre walking up with Dr. Dre.

I do miss Kent's heavy metal. The other night when we lost to the Cardinals, the songs were all off. Sounded like they were trying some new stuff out. I definitely blame the DJ for the loss. It threw off the hitters.

136 That really had me laughing out loud.

If this conversation is for real and continues the believe the pot is about to over flow.

137- There are better ways of measuring a player's contribution to the production of runs than RBIs or Rs. Both of those numbers require (outside of solo home runs) the contribution of other players. So, you're crediting, or debiting, the player for things outside of his control. Also, since they're counting stats, as 138 points out, the players are already not comparable directly.

Comic Relief never felt so good on a friday afternoon.

What many fail to realize is that a the well timed single is more valuable than the home run.....

For example.... a solo home run is less valuable than the run scoring single... The home run leaves the bases empty ... the run scoring single results in a man on 1st base.

144 - The single couldn't score the run without the earlier hit, so what you are saying is a double followed by a single is more valuable than a home run. I don't really buy that either, but it is closer to true.

144- Maybe there are such people, but probably not many. The scenario's you describe are what make win expectancy numbers, and linear weight numbers so much fun. Using the latter, as of last Saturday, Pierre has been worth -5.444 runs this year.

When discussing Juan Pierre's production as a Dodger, nothing is funny. Not to me atleast.

Ew. I hope Pellam doesn't see that extraneous apostrophe.

147- I found his defense hilarious for the first couple of weeks. But it's gotten boring lately, which is probably for the best, but less fun.

145 - Regardless of the circumstances, a HR is better than a single. I can imagine no scenario in which, following a HR, I might think to myself, "Gee, I wish that had been a single."

144 Steve Lyons might agree with you but that is about it.

A home run is always better than a single under the same circumstances. But a bases loaded single will often score more runs than a bases empty home run. It's putting one's thumb on the scale, to be sure, but it's not exactly wrong.

The problem is not simply that Pierre doesn't hit home runs. He doesn't hit anything other that singles all that much. Last year he had 48 XBH (32 doubles, 13 triples, 3 home runs) in 699 at bats. Drew had 60 XBH in 494 at bats. That lack of power, of any sort, is why Pierre's SLG% is so low.

153 He also doesn't hit singles often enough. He could get away with his screwy defense and his lack of power and few walks if he hit .360.

On the other hand, he's a tailor-made subsitute. Putting the ball in play? Speed on the bases? Sure -- at 120 AB a year.

152 it's not a false statement as much as it's false logic in believing the 2 scenarios are equal. Given equal scenarios, a home run will always score a minimum of 1 run more than a single.

154 - It is the Ty Cobb versus Babe Ruth debate almost 100 years later. Of course, no one we are talking about is as good as either, but you would think this would be old news by now.

156 I can easily agree with this statement: Juan Pierre is not as good as Ty Cobb.

There is (however un represented by his stats) some value in Pierre bothering the opposing pitchers on the base paths. It's somewhat mitigated by the odd arraignment with Nomar hitting the first pitch in the 3rd hole behind him. I think that needs to be re-thought at some point.

156 - exactly

It seems we have another Mark Garber situation. Folks, if you just ignore it, it will go away.

157 But he's a heckuva lot nicer.

161 And more handsome. And richer.

Definitely not richer, probably without even taking inflation into account. Cobb was an original investor in Coca-Cola, remember.

162 And not dead.

Say, isn't a Drew vs. Pierre comparison an apple vs. oranges discussion anyway? They're so dissimilar as to what they bring (or don't bring) to the table. Oh, God, why am I being sucked into this conversation! I'm going to lunch...

While Lineups in general are not supposed to make much of a difference I'd rather see Martin hitting either 2/3/4/5 rather then 6th. Until Nomar regains some measure of power he is ill suited for the 3 hole for both his current lack of power and his afore mentioned plate discipline. Martin has both right now, let's utilize it if your going to put rabbits at the top of the lineup.

As Tommy says ... "Revel in the fruits of victory" ... '89 - '05 are history.

164 ooh- lunch. Good call. Otherwise, I'm going to get very guilty of an 8 violation.

160 Weren't you the one who originally outed Mark Garber?

168 Yeah, that was me. His neophyte act wasn't really fooling me so I checked the IP addresses. His matched that of another longtime BTF poster.

158

Having a runner on first with less than two outs is already an enormous disruption on the defense. Although Pierre's speed can cause the illusion of affecting the pitcher, in the end a player who gets on base more will have a much larger effect on the defense.

169 You're definitely immoral.

But then, you knew that.

Anyone have a prescription to Baseball America?? If so, they have put out their first mock round 1 for the upcoming draft and I was curious who they think the Dodgers may get.

My HMO won't prescribe Baseball America. It's been a real pain.

172 Anyone have a prescription to Baseball America??

Take two of these and call me in the morning.

12 seconds! Drat!

172 - I didn't know you needed a doctor's approval to get Baseball America. :)

173 - You should go PPO, the costs are more, but you don't have to use the knockoffs like minorleagueball.com and the hardballtimes.

For people who don't speak BTF:

http://digamma.net/btfwiki/Mark_Garber

172 "20. DODGERS (from Red Sox). Los Angeles would love for one of the top high school pitchers to fall this far. If that doesn't happen, the Dodgers have hit with first-round prep lefthanders Scott Elbert and Clayton Kershaw in the last three years and could go that route again. Georgia's Josh Smoker and Nathan Vineyard, and Massachusetts' Jack McGeary all fit the L.A. mold.

• Projected Pick: Josh Smoker."

(Jonathan Broxton should have been named Josh Smoker.)

11 Doctor
The Dodgers have already chosen Kemp over Ethier once this year out of ST, I don't see any reason they won't again if the numbers dictate.

The way I remember it is that Ethier was starting ahead of Kemp out of ST but Ethier wasn't hitting after the season started. Kemp was getting more and more playing time and it looked like Kemp was slowly taking over until he got hurt giving Ethier time to get on track.

179 - Josh Smoker is a borderline porn star name. You have to be really, really good to live that one down.

They have Moustakas going to the Brewers at 7 and Dominguez going to the Blue Jays at 16.

For some reason they are listing Moustakas as a 3b/C even though Matt Dominguez was the 3b all year at Chatsworth. Moustakas played SS and Pitched but maybe he caught once in a while or is projected to catch. Seems curious.

178
Thanks, I had no idea what you all were talking about.

40 Jon Weisman

I debated whether or not to read that article because they never have anything interesting say. I see that others feel the same way.

DT and Screen Jam favorite Jenna Fischer broke her back in four places falling down some stairs at a bar in New York.

185. Where were you yesterday on Screen Jam when that was reported by Bob?

185 - She fractured her back, which I guess is technically the same thing, but supposedly she will be fine in 4-6 weeks. Still, very scary news for (from what I hear) a wonderful person.

Dang, I was going through both DT and Screen Jam looking to see if anyone already posted that. It must have been in the original Office thread.

188 - There was an entire thread up about it:

https://screenjam.baseballtoaster.com/archives/663962.html#comments

Aww, my mistake was looking inside the recent threads.

190 - Screenjam is hopping these days, you have to watch it like a hawk or you will miss out.

I guess one of her kids must have stepped on a crack. But I'm not sure if she has kids.

183- Neither did I. And I probably wouldn't have figured it out w/o the clue in 169.

All news reported at Screen Jam must be attributed to Bob, no matter who actually posts it.

164 underdog
Say, isn't a Drew vs. Pierre comparison an apple vs. oranges discussion anyway? They're so dissimilar as to what they bring (or don't bring) to the table.

Yeah, Pierre doesn't get hurt.:)

186
Now that's a very inside joke.

Or he's just wrong.

Just some recent info on Smoker from BA. A strikeout pitcher named Smoker would be cool and he hails from the the plantation world of Georgia. He moved up from 22 to 16 on the May 9th list.

16. Josh Smoker, lhp, Calhoun (Ga.) HS (22)
Like Vitters, Smoker has been under the weather and suffering from bronchitis. It didn't matter in his last outing, as he went the distance and struck out a career-high 20, allowing one hit against Dade County High (Trenton, Ga.).

195 - This is how Bob's legend grows. At this point all knowledge is rooted in Timmerman. I wouldn't be surprised if the tree of Good and Evil was planted in Bob's backyard.

As much as Pierre has been a disappointment defensively, Lofton would be worse.

Josh Smoker would be fine i guess. Where does BA have Todd Frazier going in their first round?

So, all the talk on this site got me to watch "Office Space" (which I enjoyed) just so I'd understand all the references. Now I will have to start watching "The Office" too. I just added season 1 to my queue. Any other office-related titles that I should pick up while I'm at it?

131 - I have as a general rule (you can see it right on my sidebar next to my e-mail address) a policy that all or any e-mail may be published unless the sender requests. I asked Rawitch if he would allow that, because it wasn't clear to me at the time of our exchange that he knew of that policy.

I don't especially care about access, as others have suggested; it's meaningless to me, because I don't get press passes and the like in general. (I've only done so once, at a minor league game two years ago, Jered Weaver's inaugural professional start.) But I do consider it a point of honor to keep private at least the literal text of those things that should be or should have had the expectation of being private, even in the case of my e-mail exchanges of Rawitch, a person whose job it is to maintain relations with the press. But because of that status, it doesn't bother me too much to mention facts already in public evidence.

197
I live in an apartment.

199 They don't have Frazier as a first-round pick. They have McGeary to the Yankees at 30.

203

I think i still like McGeary better then Smoker at this point. While both are comparable, Smoker throws a tick harder but I like Mcgeary's delivery and secondary pitches better.

202 - Um, it is a potted shrub of Good and Evil then?

200)

Eric, you need to see Gross Pointe Blank. It doesn't have much of an office feel to it, but that is what I thought of right away.

200 - Let me warn you Eric, the first season of "The Office" it was still trying to find its feet. The first episode and the (I want to say) last episodes are decent, but the overall quality isn't up to par. I tell people to start with Season 2 (since you aren't missing anything) because it is genius from start to finish and then once they are hooked, Season 1 will be more entertaining.

190 Have you seen the recent chatter that a certain point/off guard may be committing to the Bruins in the next month or so.

I'll put it this way, this is the same kind of stuff I heard prior to Kevin Love committing.

208
Oh yes! All my dreams are coming jrue.

Basketball teams still only get to play five players at a time, right? I haven't followed these subplots closely, but haven't, like, thirty-eight people committed to play for the Bruins next year?

206 Been there, enjoyed that.

209 Cute.

210 Actually this would be for the class of 2008. UCLA will lose to graduation or leaving early at least 2, likely 3, possibly 4, worse case is 5 players.

And then in 2009, just by graduation, at least 3 more players depending on who is still left and there is also the possibility of others leaving early too.

207 Thanks. I will get Season 2 instead.

UCLA is going to try to take 5 recruits this year and 4 or 5 next year.

204. Canuck posted over on Big Blue Wrecking Crew's prospect board that the only rumor he has heard is that the Dodgers are very much after McGeary and have some kind of connection to him.

Chin-Lung Hu now has 17 doubles on the season and is batting .361. At what point will he have crossed the line from "Iffy Hitter Having a Flukey Year" to "Genuine Grade A Prospect"?

(That last part just to keep Pellam appeased.)

UCLA is already looking at back-to-back #1 classes in 08' and 09'.

And they already have the studly James Keefe on the roster!

Is UCLA's "Pac-10 Player of the Year" returning for his senior season?

Nope, he is gone.

whos the PG thats going to committ? Drew Jr?

Nope, he is gone

That's too bad. He probably had the second best season of any player in the entire conference last year.

The Pac-10 Player of the Year was only the second-best player on his own team anyway. The real Pac-10 Player of the Year will be back.

222
Jrue Holiday.

It is also too bad, because AA will probably go second round or maybe even undrafted.

AA will probably go second round or maybe even undrafted

I can't see Aaron Brooks going very high either.

I suppose it goes without saying that 2008 commits are all still very iffy at this point, so I wouldn't start dancing in the streets until November 17 when the kid actually signs on the dotted line.

Hu's BABIP is .401, while his LD rate is 12.9%.

227
I have heard that Brooks and Nick Young have been impressive in workouts, especially Young. Young probably moved himself into the lottery.

I would prefer Smoker over McGeary. They are both very polished for HS pitchers, with three-pitch repetoires, but Smoker's fastball is 89-93 MPH while McGeary's is 87-91 MPH.

179 And shouldn't Nathan Vineyard be the one from Massachussetts?

224
I'm pretty sure Aaron Brooks will be in the NBA next year :)

Brooks doesn't have ideal NBA size but he'll likely go toward the top of the 2nd round just because of his quickness and shooting. Second round isn't necessarily the consolation prize it has been in years past due to the depth of this years' draft class.

217 I assume the Dodgers are in no hurry to move Hu up to Vegas any time soon, but it would be fun to see he and Abreu reunited. (And maybe eventually again on the big club, though with Furcal likely around for awhile, Hu's place would be more likely as a backup. Will be fun to watch him as he continues to grow though.)

235 Why the assumption that Furcal may be here a long time? He's only signed through next year.

236 Is he? Why did I think it was one more year after that...? Well, then! I could seriously see an Abreu-Hu combo after then unless somebody else is acquired (possible) or moves more quickly through the ranks (doubtful) . So, cool.

236 Furcal's a popular player. I'm not saying he'll be re-signed, but I'd be shocked if Colletti doesn't see him as the long term solution at short. I think he'll get extended during the offseason.

And the first DH is, well you knew it was going to be the Killer Tomato.

From Josh R.'s ITD:

Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Garciaparra, 1B
Kent, 2B
Saenz, DH
Gonzalez, LF
Martin, C
Ethier, RF
LaRoche, 3B

Brad Penny is on the mound.

Maybe Andy will get some pitches to hit with Furcal batting behind him.

These would have been the perfect games to move The Player down in the order, because he'd be batting 9th instead of 8th and you could throw him the bone of being the "second leadoff hitter."

239 "Maybe Andy will get some pitches to hit with Furcal batting behind him." Good point - this is one of the few times when I actually like the DH. I like this line-up! (Mostly.)

Josh Smoker is such a great name the Dodgers have to drafty him.

240 That's true too. I wonder if they'll ever , ever be "courageous" enough to try that.

Jeff Passan's Jekyll and Hyde for each team in a rivalry match-up this weekend:
http://tinyurl.com/22xo4s

Dodgers' Jekyll: Power stuff on the mound. Their 315 strikeouts are the most in baseball, and six of their pitchers – starter Randy Wolf, relievers Chad Billingsley, Jonathan Broxton, Rudy Seanez, Chin-hui Tsao and closer Takashi Saito average more than 7.5 Ks per nine innings. Just on the cusp: Mark Hendrickson, who, with a 2.61 ERA, has been quietly excellent.

Dodgers' Hyde: They hit like Little Leaguers. Of the Dodgers' 372 hits, 272 are singles. Only the Cardinals, Nationals and White Sox – do we see a recurring theme here? – have less extra-base hits than the Dodgers.

Does everyone here have an AL team? I have been trying to decide which team I would most like to see in the WS against the Dodgers. I think a Dodgers-Angels series would be a lot of fun, but I think a Dodgers-Yankees series would bear the most intensity in the media and among fans. I would love to hear the terrible things east coast fans would have to say about Dodger fans. I also have come to enjoy the Indians, mostly because I get their games in HD, but also because they seem to be well-managed.

244 I think the strikeout total is misleading to the extent that only Wolf is currently a strikeout pitcher.

Don't get me wrong, a few years of Jeff Shaw "closing" the door by getting guys to hit the ball at someone makes me very happy to see the current crop strike guys out.

But I just think that total is not giving an accurate impression of our staff.

245 The Red Sox are my most despised team, so I'd like to see the Dodgers beat them in the series.

I'd like to see the A's in the World Series just so all the Joe Morgans of the world would shut up for a while.

245 - I'm rooting for the Mariners now (my new local team) but the words "World Series" don't come up very much 'round these parts.

246 It's not just Wolf. Broxton and Saito have added lots to that strikeout total.

246 I don't understand. Did you mean the rotation only? Because I don't see how one could argue that Broxton, Saito, or Billingsley is not a strikeout pitcher.

I will post this here because there was a discussion about media access and because this is the only site I post on so I want to rant somewhere.
The MSM is so manipulated by the access issue. Everyone is afraid to ask the tough questions or be critical for fear of losing access. I spent the last three days involved in a situation that was covered by a number of media outlets. Both the LAT and Daily Journal got the facts wrong. Worse yet, they report things they know are confidential and should not be published. They allow themselves to be manipulated through "leaks" and will even report inaccurate information to preserve their access.

LA is 2nd in the NL in starter K/9 at 7.17 (behind Cole Hamels and the rest of the Phils) and 2nd in reliever K/9 (behind Houston) at 8.5.

245 The traditionalist that I am, compels me to root for WS against Yankees or Red Sox.

I believe we went through this last year but the only team from the original 8 AL teams (and their siblings) that the Dodgers have not played in the World Series is the Detroit Tigers. And they have not played any of the "expansion" franchises.

251 I am just talking about starters, though I do think that for Hendrickson and Tomko to be effective, they need to strike out a few guys.

If and when Schmidt, Kuo, and Chad move into the rotation, our starters will be much more of a strikeout variety.

The Dodger bullpen has 3 pitchers who strike out more than 25% of batters faced: Billingsley, Saito, Broxton. Make it 4 if you throw in Hendrickson's bullpen stint. No other NL team has more than 2 such pitchers, though the Brewers have two guys who strike out more than a third of batters faced. Tsao and Seanez each strike out more than 20% of batters faced. Only Beimel wrecks the Dodger K-happy pen. He strikes out about 11% of batters faced.

Edwin Jackson gives up a second inning slam to Aaron Boone at Tropicana as the Marlins lead the Battle of Florida, the most exciting of all the interleague matchups!

257 - Ah, the ol' "Battle of [fanbases] who could care less".

Are they back at the DRays regular home stadium?

Nice note in Tony Jackson's blog about Greg Miller's outing last night. Apparently, they think it is all mental with Miller so he will work on his control while pitching out of the pen so it appears starting is still in Miller's future.

258 - And I see they are indeed back at Trop after their Disney vacation.

257 You think that tops Rockies/ Royals?

254
Even though the Giants have won 20 NL pennants (if you go back to the 19th century), they've missed the Tigers and Orioles of the "Original Eight" in the AL.

The Cardinals have 21 pennants (not all in the NL) and have missed the Indians and White Sox.

3 hours to 1st pitch ... Brad Penny could start an all-star game for 2 consecutive seasons ... I can't recollect that ever happening ... though I'm sure it has.

I must give the Dodgers FO credit for not trading Penny after he faltered last season. Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don't make. That's what seperates the good teams (Sabean & Co.) from the great teams (Colletti & Co.)

256 I am pleasantly surprised to see that stat for Billingsley. Last season we were concerned about his low Ks, and consequently his high pitch counts.

257 lol Edwin Jackson lol

Randy Johnson started the All-Star Game for the NL in 2000 and 2001

The pitcher to start two consecutive games for the AL was Dave Stieb in 1983 and 1984.

Edwin Jackson has to be the worst pitcher in the Majors ... I pity the Rays.

262 The Yankees have played all 8 of the original NL teams, the Braves was the only team they never faced in their original settings.

The Yankees have also played 4 of the 8 teams to have joined the NL through additions from expansion.

267 Don Drysdale craps bigger than Stieb. He started two All-Star Games in 1959 alone.

Once again, I repeat, changing your screen name does not entitle you to return to the site after you were suspended. If you want to participate, send me an e-mail first.

271 I really wonder if it is even the same guy as bluetahoe and tskent. His modus scribendi seems different. It's the same pathos, though.

What's the prob with Edwin Jackson? I'm not rooting for him to fail just because the Dodgers traded him away. He certainly hasn't done enough to make us feel we missed out on a lot but I don't feel like rooting against him. Wait, why am I even bothering about this? never mind.

270 Thank you, Artie. (Rip Torn)

modus scribendi

Kinda rolls off the tongue.

269
One of my Yankee fan friends was very upset about the Astros going to the World Series because that meant that there was an NL pennant winner that had played in a World Series and NOT played the Yankees.

He gets upset about very odd things.

268 - Jeff Weaver scoffs at your assertion.

274 Forms of the future-passive variety, ending in -ndus are the most pleasant in the Latin language.

272 - Note the almost perfect timing between when I banned him (shortly after my comment) and the slurs at Inside the Dodgers.

The punctuation, while peculiar, is different, and there isn't any baby talk, yet. Doesn't seem interested in conversing, though. You can practically hear the, "Goodnight now!" at the end of each comment.

Someone needs to go to riverside and watch James McDonald pitch and report back. I would do it myself but i fear i might not be in socal soon enough to catch him before he is promoted to AA.

I want a scouting report on him!

I personally dont think its the same person but whatever.

Didn't notice the ItD comment. Classy all the way. Sorry I didn't listen to the chorus earlier.

279 The sort of blind and deaf attitude is common in most places on the internet. This is one of the very few fora in which people seem to respond to each other. So I don't think that's evidence in favor of this guy's being one of our former trolls. (Did I say that right, "trolls"? I've only ever read it in books.)

282
The best part about it is that it's almost always the same comment.

278 --- Inside the Dodgers needs to put an IP ban on him ... if they can, or care. As bad as his current comments over there are, they aren't even as bad as the last round of filth he posted after being banned.

By the way, I have tried to work things out with this person mulitple times via e-mail, and gotten rebuffed every time.

284 I'm not quite sure what we're talking about here. Are we talking about the "All 800 or better OPS lineup" post?

At least people there at ItD are being good at ignoring him. Hopefully Josh will delete that sort of nonsense.

Meanwhile, while I will worry quietly about the game tonight but will be at the movies and out so I'll miss most of it. Buena suerte.

Its the same dude.
One way to correct this problem would be to have everyone's IP address show up beside their screenname.

I think its the same guy thats caused some problems at the BBWC site in a thread about the Tampa Bay trades. Canuck put that guy in his place and he (Bluetahoe aka tskent aka...) was pretty much ignored off the site, but then he comes back here apparently bc he didnt get enough attention there.

Yes, he needs to work on the profanity and scatology or I'm going to get bored over there.

264 ---

Here are Billingsley's walk and K rates in terms of batters faced in 2006 and 2007:

Year -- SO% -- BB% -- ERA -- Batters Faced
2006 -- 14.6 -- 14.4 -- 3.80 -- 403
2007 -- 27.7 -- 11.7 -- 3.80 -- 94

Wow, same ERA, but night and day with the strikeout and walk rates. Of course this year is a smaller sample, and in relief which is probably an easier environment to strike out lots of hitters. Yet I'm willing to go out on a limb and say he's improved a significant amount from last year.

I think his next step to becoming an elite pitcher is cutting down more on the walks. That, and getting back into the rotation.

For what it's worth, I believe the same person is visiting the Outwatch.

The difference is that the Outwatch is so obnoxious by its very nature -- I mean, I'm counting outs -- that I feel I have to welcome everybody, no matter how little they contribute to the conversation, and no matter what unspeakable acts they imply I like to do with my mother.

Whether or not it's the same person, it's still a troll.

292 I hate it when people talk about not contributing to a conversation as a prerequisite for participation, because I have never contributed positively to any conversation, and particularly not here, where everyone is smarter and more informed than I am.

294 That is, of course, to say that I hate it when people suggest that contributing to the conversation is a prerequisite for participation. I'm sorry I make so little sense.

294 Well, you would be welcome at the Outwatch, so long as you have nothing nice to say about Juan Pierre.

It just blows my mind that someone has both the time and the inclination to troll message boards about how one GM is king among men. Its like single white female.

Quite a pitcher's duel going on in Cleveland, Indians-Reds. Lohse couldn't even make it past the 2nd inning.

296 I have to admit that I love the way Pierre looks on the field. He just looks like a ball player, if only he would play like one.

292 I haven't looked at your site in a couple weeks (sorry), but I'm loving your exchanges with our little friend.

71and91: #^@#^ %^#@$%^ @!!^ and ^#@#%^
Humma Kavula: Thanks for the comment! All the best.

280 I did get to see him pitch last weekend, but I can't give a full scouting report because I didn't realize he was a prospect at all (so I wasn't watching too close) and I was helping watch my niece and nephew.

From what I saw he has a pretty live fastball, probably 92 or so, and a pretty sharp slurve (bites like a slider but has more of a diagonal movement than a normal slider). He has somewhat of an unorthodox arm action, it reminded me a little bit of Ramon Martinez in how stiff it looked. He pitched really well when I saw him, only allowing a few hits and no runs, even keeping Justin Upton hitless.

Sorry I can't give anything more detailed.

Is Atlanta/Boston rained out again?

302 He was drafted in 2002, first pitched in Rookie Ball in 2003, this is first year up in High A ball so I don't think he will get to Jacksonville soon.

He does however need to be added to 40 man roster at the end of this season since this is 5th year of pro ball and 6th draft since he was drafted.

302 Well it is rained out for today with a doubleheader scheduled for tomorrow, Boston is supposed to be in NY on Monday so there will be no time for any make-up games in the near future.

Endy Chavez gets the better of Andy Pettitte in Queens.

301

thats good enough, thanks overkill.

304- I thought they'd been rained out yesterday, but that was Wednesday against the Tigers, which was made up yesterday.

294 You comments are always insightful ! Heck I'm only good for corny jokes and Vegas updates .

Just thought i'd give a shout out to Dodgerama they have a nice breakdown of the Angels.

297
It just blows my mind that someone has both the time and the inclination to troll message boards

My theory is that it's Plaschke. It takes him half the time to write a column than everyone else due to all the whitespace, so he's still got time to troll.

308 That is very nice of you to say. I always expect Jon will say one day: "You don't know anything about baseball and you contribute nothing to this conversation. You are banned."

What's the Dodgerama link? Don't see one on the sidebar here...

Ah, here it is. http://dodgerama.blogspot.com/

Will be nice if they can win tonight because I don't like that Hendrickson-Weaver matchup tomorrow.

I thought I'd figured out who he was, when he started ending each post with the cryptic CQH. There's a photographer in Maryland who uses that tag in a couple of places on line. I was dissappointed when he explained that it meant Chuckling Quite Heartily. At least I hadn't paid for the Ebay pipe bomb, so it only hurt my feedback rating.

310 Plaschke's columns are inscrutable (exhibit a: "the scroll wheel on his baseball iPod").

On the other hand, it's very clear what the commenter is trying to say. He may not have tact, but he does write clearly. There is only one thing that can be implied by a four-letter word.

Plus, in order for it to be Plaschke, he would have to use a comp-yoo-turr.

278 --- Inside the Dodgers needs to put an IP ban on him ... if they can, or care.

I see what you mean. I've been ignoring the comments section on ItD because this blog is so much better. I just took a look and saw this post:

Posted by: jjweisman@dodgerthoughts.com | May 18, 2007 04:31 PM

Is it considered an insult to one's veteran status if you're put in the 9th slot? Seems like its a perfect fit for Pierre. Or so I'm told. I only watch a handful of AL games a year.

Humma K, it's up to you of course, but as a blogger myself I really think you ought to consider banning or banishing that 71and91 guy, he keeps talking about trolls but he really is one himself. The type who can singlehandedly lower the level of conversation in a comments area - making people feel less comfortable, or more wary, of posting and reading there. Just mho. I appreciate that you're trying to be open and democratic, but... man, that guy's pushing it.

317 With the DH, though, wouldn't Pierre's batting 9th almost make him like a lead-off hitter again? Or maybe that'd only be once or so times a game so it's not worth thinking about. Still, I'd almost put him in the 8th slot. Even now.

ITD used to be a very good blog, but IMO its been over run by Pierre bashing and griping about Gradys line up 24/7.
It's literally all that is discussed there, and considering im here saying that- that's saying something. About what I have no idea.

318 Believe me, the thought has crossed my mind.

I just think it would make me a hypocrite to post obnoxious ideas under a false name -- it's true, my name is not really Humma Kavula -- and then ban others from posting whatever they like.

Besides, it's not like there is an ongoing, vibrant discussion that he's ruining. It's usually just me, jimbilly4 (who I happen to know in real life), and ArtHTracy chiming in with the out leaders...

In order to keep my tiny point alive, I think it's best to keep this going as it is and see what happens. He got bored once and it's likely to happen again.

247 The Sox are my most despised team, too, but I prefer that they not make the playoffs at all, especially if it's something really gut wrenching that keeps them out.

Speaking of the Sox, because of the rain out, NESN is airing a rerun of the Dodgers-Sox game from June 11, 2004. Odalis Perez and Derek Lowe are both throwing pretty good games. 0-0 in the sixth.

50 Schrute-bucks says LaRoche gets his first home run tonight.

An interesting article about dealing with trolls:

http://tinyurl.com/3cnqry

I particularly like the idea of disemvoweling, although it's probably more trouble than it's worth.

321 Okay, just let us know if you need help. ;-)

323 I've got a hundred Stanley nickels that he hits a double but not a homer. But will be happy with either.

321 There's a difference between obnoxious ideas and obscene insults.

Stats 101 continues:

Stats 101: Reyes of sunshine

>>> Stat/Run Value
Stolen Base 0.185
Caught Stealing -0.45
Single 0.46
Double 0.75
Triple 1.03
Home Run 1.40
Unintentional Walk 0.30 <<<

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6818648

Triple 1.03
Home Run 1.40

that doesnt make sense to me...

Watching the Mets/Yanks game and they just showed a clip of Roger pitching in the minors today. Looks like he hasn't missed too many meals. Healthy sized mid-section. Maybe thats just where he's keeping all the cash.

Game thread is open.

Oh, LAT ...

Agree on batting Pierre 9 in the AL.
I don't think the Orioles were an original AL team. Weren't they the St. Louis Browns?