Baseball Toaster was unplugged on February 4, 2009.
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TV and more ...
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
Have you noticed it's been nearly a week since I wrote anything meaningful about the Dodgers?
It's not for lack of thinking about them. I'm juggling concerns and hope. I have lots of thoughts, and I hope you don't mind if I let them percolate a little longer. (Not trying to make these thoughts seem bigger than they are – just trying to give you a little update.)
* * *
Tonight's 4:05 p.m. game:
Update: What a lost year for Willy Aybar. David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:
Willy Aybar had surgery Tuesday to repair a broken hamate bone in his right hand, abruptly ending the troubled Braves infielder's tumultuous season before it every really began.
Aybar spent three months in a substance-abuse rehabilitation facility in South Florida, after opening the season on the disabled list with a hand injury and being suspended April 15 for skipping injury rehab.
Aybar, 24, is expected to be out 6-8 weeks recovering from surgery on the broken hamate, an injury that usually occurs when a player is hit by a pitch or takes an awkward swing. The Braves expect he will be ready to play winter ball, and tentatively plan to bring back Aybar next season.
The injury is in the same area of his right hand he hurt playing last winter in his native Dominican Republic, which sidelined him much of spring training following his late arrival for visa issues. ...
On his blog, O'Brien adds much more, which I would strongly urge you to read. The section on Aybar begins partway down:
If you don't want to hear sympathy for the kid, if you think he should just go away and that the Braves should cut the cord, I understand. I really do. So maybe you should just skip the rest of the blog. Not a problem.
If you're still here, here goes ...
Update 2: Randy Wolf "is pain-free and is hopeful of resuming throwing on Wednesday," reports Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. Gurnick adds that "Wolf said he does not expect to start another game for the Dodgers this year, but is hopeful he can return in a relief role."
Also, Gurnick writes that Andy La Roche, "nursing a back disk problem, has missed two weeks of games at Triple-A Las Vegas, but is expected to return to action this week."
Update 3: The Dodgers benefit from the Phillies' misfortune: Cole Hamels (3.50 ERA) is getting an MRI because of elbow soreness and will miss his Wednesday start, reports Todd Zolecki of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
"No boy! Stop! It's too low! Your backbone can't take it!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRlfmV9nkvA
You're either in or you're out.
Except for Purgatory, but that's more like a waiting station.
I hope someone tells Dante about this.
The Penny on 3 days rest baffles me now, why not pitch Tomko at Dodger Stadium instead of him pitching at home run friendly Philly? then we'd have a starting 3 (at Philly) of:
Penny
Lowe
Bills
ps am I missing something here?
Also, maybe thinking too much about this but Ned going to see McDonald pitching twice in a month sure seems to be a hint on what could be happening sooner rather than later.
Maybe Jon is trying to procrastinate as long as possible so he can determine whether a "this ship is sinking" post or a "we've got a pennant race here" post is more appropriate.
I seem to recall that the Dodgers were on KMPC their first couple of years in L.A., in those pre-Angels days, but I could be mistaken. I will try to research that.
Last thread's comment 41- "Kemp has gone 8 for his last 20 with 5 RBI and 2 HR... let's pencil in LuGo instead!"
If a Dodger youngster gets into a game--or a groove--and does well, odds are pretty high he'll be right back on the bench, maybe the next day (maybe even in Las Vegas), or at least out of the lineup as soon as a veteran "needs" to play. It's happened several times. It will again. And if you're a young Dodger and mess up much at all, grab a bone on the way to the dogouse, and beware of fleas.
I try not to get too carried away about this stuff, since it's typical of old-school, long-established, barnacle-covered organizations like most of MLB. You know, x-number of years of tradition totally uninterrupted by that progress thing...
But this from Dodgers.com after Sunday's game made me roll my eyes so far back in my head that they got stuck and I was temporarily blinded. (OK, maybe beware of rule 6 there.)====
"Martinez, who has struggled all season, hitting .180, stood at the plate with an entire stadium rallying behind him. The veteran did exactly what veterans do -- he took a pitch and collected his nerves before smacking a fastball into right-center field to drive in Ethier and Martin and put the Dodgers up, 4-3."
ARRRRGHHHH!
Let's see. Is losing track of both where the ball is and how many outs there are (see Sweeney) also doing "exactly what veterans do"? How about going 0-fer at cleanup Sunday (see Hillenbrand) after being put there following his four-hit game Saturday? Is doing a gas can impersonation as often as not (see Hernandez) "exactly what veterans do"? And how, pray tell, do other grizzled veterans (see Tomko, Hendrickson) come through so often? What, "exactly," is their secret?
I know Martinez has been hurt. But he got the .180 BA the old fashioned way...he earned it. At least Dodgers.com got the "struggling" part right. It is great that Martinez came through, but still...
While I'm ranting, Dodgers.com lately also has mentioned that when hitting third Kemp gets better pitches and more fastballs because of the rabbits ahead of him. Gee, do ya think ? At least one post on DT mentioned that might happen months ago with Kemp third.
Note to Grady: lately Ethier has been about as good a hitter as the Dodgers trot out day-to-day. Might it be a good idea to bat him fourth (being LH, even) behind Kemp's power RH bat, at least good enough to try? You know, that could have happened Sunday and not caused all that "nerve-collecting" by wily old vet Hillenbrand. Too many "nerves" for young Either to handle? Right. Ethier couldn't possbily have matched that veteran 0-fer. Not a chance.
And who will bat cleanup next? I know--Juan Pierre! It makes perfect sense. If Saenz and Hillenbrand and whoever else can hit fourth, why not JP? I mean, he's a veteran and he's in there every bloomin' day. He probably could "do what veterans do." Or, why not Martinez at cleanup next time he plays?
I will now exhale. And try not to write a short novel next time. Carry on.
Mostly, I know what I want to write about, but I haven't had a good chunk of time to think through what I want to say.
Limbo indeed!
Just as long as it involves Juan Pierre because that is where the thread will end up anyway.
And Jon, if I took time to actually think through what I said here, I would use the "edit" function more often.
I usually use it to correct spelling errors so I don't get ridiculed by others.
Of course, getting ridiculed for what I say is a right of passage here on DT.
For my divine penance, I will now read all of Dante's Inferno, followed by the Bill Plaschke archive at latimes.com. I doubt I'll be escaping purgatory anytime soon.
The team we've got now is pretty much the same team we had when we had the best record in the NL, minus Betemit and Wolf, plus Proctor, Sweeney, Hildegard and Stults. It wasn't the best team then and isn't now, but it is capable of passing bubble-burst Arizona.
This isn't the same denial vs. acceptance debate of 2005. Denial had potential consequences that some of us wanted to see avoided. This year, I'm pretty much okay with whatever happens, except I don't want another massive slump. If they get close, but fall short, hey, I got my money's worth.
Besides, I'd rather see the Mets lose to the Angels in the World Series than the Dodgers.
April 8, 1959 -- The Los Angeles Dodgers will televise all 11 games against the Giants from San Francisco on KTTV Channel 11, according to Walter O'Malley. "It is being done as a public service," said O'Malley. "The Dodgers will derive no revenue from the telecast of these games." Broadcasters Vin Scully and Jerry Doggett handled the 11 televised games, as well as all games on KMPC Radio AM 710.
As the Dodgers did not change stations after 1958, their first year on the West Coast, this confirms that KMPC was their first flagship station in L.A.
3-0 Mississippi, top 1st
Nice, thanks for the link. I learned more about Wily in that link that I ever did when he was in the Dodger organization.
And Gonzo drives in run number 2.
Maybe hold off on that crap till Hillenbrand is hitting, what do you say?
Thanks,
Andrew Shimmin
Maybe we don't want him to give the score.
Tomko got 'em out 1-2-3 this inning. Is it a good omen for the entire game?
Er, yeah.
FIRST INNING
triple
walk
walk
strikeout
strikeout
seeing eye single, X. Paul throws ball into the stands
strikeout
SECOND INNING
strikeout
strikeout
walk
single
popup
On Willy Aybar, I certainly hope no matter what happens on the ball field, he has his life straightened out, I will be rooting for him. Thanks Jon for the link.
I think all of the announcers are having a hard time believing what's going on.
Another 1-2-3 inning by Tomko.
Who would have believed it?
I never thought I'd type that. But there's a first for everything. I'm liking this game so far. So far! (he adds, ominously, with a thunderclap in the background, worried about jinx)
I'm guessing I'd be passed out by the third inning.
D'oh!
if anything root for him to straighten out his personal life, nice touch to it BHSportsguy, & thanks for the link Jon.
Not to be a stickler, but a walk is a plate appearance, not an at bat. {ducks}
Yeah, his sedate style is more appropriate to a sport like golf
Wow.
Or really, anyone else.
Well, this was fun while Tomko was throwing a no-hitter. Oh well, time to comeback!
bluto!
2 run homer by Rowand
Ground out to 1B
Walk
4-6-3 double play
after 4, 4-3 Phillies.
I totally agree, I think many younger fans won't realize what they have in Scully 'til he's gone. Recently I had a #50 Scully jersey made up and have started wearing to every game I attend. Since the Yanks are in town I was forced to listen to Rex Hudler yesterday and I nearly fell out of my chair when he said, "And the pitch went right where he threw it."
Incdentally, I recently found a Steve Lyons baseball card in my childhood collection. Think I should try to get it signed next time I'm at the stadium? ;)
For the record, I just defended Juan Pierre and criticized Russell Martin.
Was it on Rowland's second pitch?
bluto!
Abreu continues to start only about 50% of the time in AA. Is it punishment? Evidence that the lingering injury was real? The desperate need to get at-bats for Marshall McDougall?
Yahoo's Gamecast has similarly stalled.
Curiouser and curiouser.
bluto!
121 He sucks but their options are pretty limited. I wouldn't mind them giving someone in the minors a chance - though they're already doing that with Stults. Maybe McDonald or someone. But there aren't many choices, with Wolf (probably) and Schmidt gone for the year especially.
Makes me want to hyde, too.
5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
Miller in to pitch now, and walked a man in his first inning (although he struck out 2 guys in an otherwise uneventful inning).
So, was that Veteran play by Hillenbrand or Kent?
I'm sure this has been stated already....
Ned, Ned, Ned....
Never should have been signed in the first place.
Are you Canadian?
;-)
Now, Miller goes out last time at AA as a starter on Friday night, pitches 5 innings, giving up two runs, striking out seven and most importantly not walking anyone. Now here we are five days later and instead of building on that we have pitch in relief again. It is completely infuriating.
Also Tomko should go on the 60 day DL for the rest of the season, with "general suckiness."
#1. Orenduff
#1A. McDonald
#2. Houlton
{This is a recording{ {beep!}
Oh, and I wouldn't mind moving to Vancouver. :)
Of course you can go from unknown possibility of suceeding to known quanity of mediocrity really quick.
3 injuries to his starters have made it difficult to not start him right now.
Last month I wrote Vin Scully my first fan letter, to anybody, ever. Here it is for your enjoyment:
Dear Mr. Scully,
On a career-counseling questionnaire I took a long time ago, one of the questions was to name the four most influential people in my life. Your name appeared as #4 on my list, behind JR Richards, my summer camp mentor, Danny Kaye, and Deb Johnson, my best friend.
"What could possibly be in common between a summer camp director, an actor, your best friend and a sports announcer?" the counselor asked me.
"They're all great storytellers." I answered, realizing only at that moment that I wanted to pursue a career in writing and storytelling.
Mr. Scully, I don't know how much longer you're intending to broadcast the Dodgers' games. I do know that I've always wanted to tell you how much I've learned from you.
I grew up in Santa Barbara, you see. I remember weekend gardening with my dad, the radio tuned in to the Dodgers' game. I remember secretly listening to you, buried under my blankets, when I was supposed to be asleep. I remember attending the Sandy Koufax no-hitter in '65, wondering how on earth my Dad could hear you on his radio's earplug over the deafening roar of the crowd. I remember wanting to try Farmer John pork, even though I'm Jewish, because you made it sound so tasty. ('The Easternmost in Quality and the Westernmost in Flavor"). Most of all I remember loving your anecdotes so much that I didn't care what happened on the next play, so long as you'd return to the story.
Please know I am listening to you, still, way over here in Israel, thanks to the wonders of Internet and MLB.TV.
With gratitude,
Channa Coggan
I'll just back away and let the chips fall where they may after reading that.
Houlton
Hull
Mcdonald
But when you get Tomko and Hendrickson in the same inning, you should go for the throat.
Now that was an amazing, clutch pitching performance from Hendrickson. You have to give him credit. WOW.
(pause)
I checked. Tomko beat SF on July 15th to go with his May 9th victory. He never struck out 13 in a game.
Loney Bomb!!!!
I wonder if Keith Hernandez is upset that a lowly NL West team is battling a macho NL East team.
I think Tomko's got a fear of success. Tonight, for example, he got the side out 1-2-3 in the first two IP, then he self-destructed. His last outing was similar.
His self-destruction is fascinating to me, though I hate what he's doing to the Dodgers.
When Tomko pitches
There is never any doubt
As to what happens
And yes, it has been raining this hard here all weekend, why do you ask?
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/LAN/LAN200204210.shtml
I've thought for a while that if you could take Tomko's stuff and pair it with Hendy's improved mental game, you'd have a top shelf pitcher. Too bad "if" can't happen sometimes.
Hendrickson gets about all out of his ability that could be expected, IMO. He just doesn't have a whole lot of ability, sad to say.
http://tinyurl.com/yru2xq
You're even more complicated than I'd assumed. As long as you're sexy I guess that makes it OK for people.
Brett Tomko is one
Hendrickson is another
Dear God, please help me
Note this generally works much better if the object of the sentence is a woman.
Hendrickson, Olmedo
Does Ned want me fired?
j/k I'm not on the Rest Martin bus.
267 - http://thegoodphight.com/story/2007/8/20/12538/0247
Who delivers a sac fly to put the Padres ahead 6-5.
Fire Ned!
Rule 7 say hello to herm
He's "painting" this beautiful game (even a no-hitter for a few innings a couple times), and all of a sudden one rude batter after another comes along and messes up his masterpiece. Then the "artist" falls apart.
To complete my long-distance, rank-amateur Tomko personality analysis, I wouldn't be surprised to find he's a perfectionist who gets rattled when he loses his (relative) perfection--which also means he has lost control of the situation. Usually, a perfectionist's losing the control he thought he had is about the worst thing that can happen to him mentally. So the problems build and get worse.
I won't be hanging out my shingle anytime soon. Still, I wonder...
Arizona and Colorado have given thier young players a chance through thick and thin...I believe that the Dodgers have equally talented youth....but they ride the pine...and remember that if it wasn't for a hand injury, Russel Martin would not be this far along....
I'm sorry, but what am I supposed to know about Ryan Zimmerman?
Oh, I see know.
Orange Alert! Orange Alert!
It would take a lot more from us to get him.
We actually talked about this last year and most of us seemed against it, because of what he did to his wife.
Hillenbrand didn't lose the game by himself. But he didn't help. Tomko needed all the help he could get,as usual.
Good thing I don't live near any cliffs.
The story I read said the docs in England hadn't seen it happen before in a soccer match. And it wasn't because of contact. McBride hurt his knee right after scoring.
318- Brett Myers is FAR from a character guy...
Definition of patella dislocation:
http://tinyurl.com/yrkx33
We like Mark Sweeney that much already?
Last week, we were going to string up him up from a yardarm that may or may not have been the highest available.
It just blew!
It was a glitch!
Or aren't we building up quality people? We insist on character, you know.
where? Sorry; Good night.
I still have wire floating around my kneecap. It was a single piece once but has since broken into four parts (kinda like Gaul). One of these days I'll have to have it removed.
Unsolicited tip: don't try to get sympathy from people using that line ever again.
Very sad story.
When he was sober, Eddie Griffin was described as a beautiful human being by those who knew him--coaches, teammates, family members. Echoing the piece Jon linked to above, the degree of sympathy you have for Griffin probably depends on your view of alcoholism as a choice or a disease. I hold the latter view. Eddie Griffin, 25 years of age... rest in peace.
To me, it's the same thing as letting football players skate through college. These athletic abilities should give these kids ample opportunity to break free from their circumstances and become better people, but we generally only care about how many points they can score, or how many yards they can gain. It's a real shame. Wherever he is, I hope he finds more peace than he ever did here on earth.So many of these athletes are like an open nerve- too much gets to them too quickly, with no insulation from the very people who should be able to insulate them. It might not help them as athletes, but it for sure could help them as people.
On Sunday Abreu was lifted for a pinch hitter in the 6th inning and hasn't played since. I haven't seen any announcement by Las Vegas or the Dodgers concerning what happened with him. I'm just assuming he's hurt again until I hear otherwise.
Yeah, here is a guy who clearly drank as a form of medication because of his depression and I just wonder how much effort his teams put in to get him some real help. Not just their dumb idea that putting his locker next to Garnett's will change everything.
Well today Sapp told Warren to just come in and work and he can prove himself, so he backed off his comments a bit. Warren said the first thing you are told when you go to Broncos headquarters is that the game with the Silver and Black has extra meaning.
I did not want us to draft Jamarcus, so this just makes me more irritated. I think he will eventually sign when they realize he won't get as much money if he enters the draft next year.
Not so fast. This would only be win #74 for the Angels.
Until I see an '82' in the win column, I'm not giving the Angels credit for anything.
The Bronx Banterers really hate the Angels.
Ummm, yeah, lots of hate there. I tried reasoning with them on a thread earlier today, but they weren't amenable to reason.
Kiffin called him out this week saying he needs to play like the number 7 overall pick.
On a side note- Chad Johnson just sent me an email on yahoo, telling me to draft him, and to play fantasy on yahoo. Can we get a dozen DTers to throw down a fantasy league (this goes out to everyone, duh)?
I was wondering if we were going to have a fantasy football league.
Huff in college was a ballhawk, and a big hitter. Now he's not either of those, and he was never a great tackler. I read, going up to the draft, that he was a corner/ safety, which is crap. Whitner and Jason Allen were also called that coming out the same year, as were Michael Griffin and Brandon Merriwether this year. It's never a good idea to move a college safety to corner. Ever. (note- Michael Griffin is not good).
Are you a Longhorns fan?
Cubs are going to win.
Not only will we battle in the AFC West, but when Colorado moves to the Pac-10 we will have it in college too.
Jim Bottomley/Mark Whiten Alert for Anderson!!
The game is not on the line.
D-backs, Braves, Pads all lost, so Dodgers lose an opportunity to gain on all; and the Rockies won pull back into a tie with LA.
that's it- I'll setup a fantasy league tomorrow.
368 Anything from Broken Lizard is stupid funny.
I liked Supertroopers and Club Dread more, but I think it is a solid comedy.
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