It appears Carroll Rosenbloom will at last get his chance to confront Georgia Frontiere.

Scout school? Sounds like fun. Has anyone here ever been to scout school? Is it just a Dodger training program?
vr, Xei

That's cool. A scout's life is not an easy one but if you like lots of driving, sitting on wood bleachers, and fast food, maybe its the life for you. You really have to love baseball to do that job.

2 Here's a link to a story done for MLB.com in 2003 on "Scout School."

http://tinyurl.com/24hs5r

Here's part of the story:

For several years now, the Major League Scouting Bureau has held "scout schools" where Major League organizations can send employees with an interest in player development to learn to scout. Often they are former players who still want to work in baseball or an employee with an interest in becoming a farm or scouting director.

4 -- Yes, it is place an MLB team, or MLB itself, has to SEND somebody. An average person can't just send in an application like it is a college.

4. Thanks.
vr, Xei

5 Every other year it is held either in Arizona or Dominican Republic, I saw a 2006 story indicating that it was going on Arizona that year so I believe they will do it again in Arizona in September of this year.

I hope Joe gets to stay for more than a day in Beijing, its quite a trip to make for a press conference.

So Beimel is approximately twice as good as Proctor it looks like.

Glad Kemp is happy about the China trip. Wonder how much extra time they have for site-seeing and which places (out of many) they will visit. I would think the Great Wall, but that's a bit of a drive (1-1/2 hours one way). Hope they remember to bring plenty of anti-biotics. Can you say upper respiratory (or sinus) infection? Have fun, it's a great place to visit other than the air pollution.
vr, Xei

9 -- Beimel is only a year away from free agency. I believe this is Proctor's first year of arbitration eligibility.

Will the Rams come back to L.A.?

I was going to say something about the small relative differences between the arbitration offers of the club and the players ($450,000 and $370,000), and then just suggest they split the difference, thinking, "what's $200,000 here or there?"

$200,000... It is still a good chunk of change.

Not sure if anyone else posted this but Goldstar events is selling tickets to the 3/29 Coliseum game already. Goldstar usually offers discounted tickets to plays, concerts, and other shows. They are charging $25 per seat + $6 service fee for "lower bowl" seating. Here's their site:

http://tiny.cc/Vy5An

Even though it sounded like one, I didn't post this as an ad.

Hey, Jon, I believe you said you had a preview copy of the first episode of Breaking Bad? How did you like it? I'm looking forward to seeing it on Sunday.

14 - Time's still TBA, I think.

15 - If you can believe it, I've been sitting on it for two weeks and still haven't watched it. Haven't started watching HBO's "In Treatment" either, and I've had a bunch of those for a week. Just struggling to find the time - even with the strike!

13 Brent Number 2, I think teams hesitate to split the difference so that they don't become known as teams that always compromise to the mean as it would encourage players to always ask for a few hundred thousand (or million) more knowing that they will get half of whatever amount they increase. Was that a long enough sentence? Does that even make sense?

Does anyone know if the service in 14 is legit? Most of the time dodgers are the first ones to sell their tickets except maybe by season ticket holders.

18 Goldstar sells a lot of tickets to sporting events in LA (and elsewhere) at discounted rates so I am guessing that the Dodgers have already told them that they will get a certain allotment of tickets for sale so they are just going ahead and selling them.

They're legit as I've bought tix through them for concerts in the past. They have sold Dodger tix too (usually for games that are not good draws - like vs. the Pirates). I too was surprised to see this game go on sale on their site first.

"Reserve infielder Wilson Betemit and the New York Yankees avoided arbitration, agreeing to a $1,165,000, one-year contract just before teams and players exchanged figures Friday."

BTW, I've already bought 4 tix for the game through them, though they state the $25 is not a discounted price.

Gosh, those Harbaughs are spreading through the coaching ranks like a virus. I mean, cool! ;-) Congrats to him.

15 I'm looking forward to seeing it, too, after my initial "Oh God, not another cable show about an unusual drug dealer" but this one sounds great.

Anybody itching to see Teeth?

24 Not the word I'd use, but yeah, I'm curious, and a little afraid. Freud would have a field day with that plot.

Tonight is Cloverfield, though.

Anybody itching to see Teeth?

I'm chompin' at the bit!

Actually, I have no idea what it is.

I'm just wondering, when she gets old will she need dentures? There could be a whole new market for the Polygrip people.

26 - Its story is probably not the first thing you'd think of.

27 - LOL.

Georgia Frontiere died today.

People think that just because Bob's pretending to be in Europe they can get away with misspelling "champing."

30 - see 1

31
Are you talkada me?

I'm not an ESPN Insider so wasn't able to read the article below:

Will Matt Kemp have a breakout year in 2008? He may if he has a good spring and produces like a middle-of-the-order hitter.

Eric Karabell

http://tinyurl.com/2vcyen

32 Apparently we are supposed to read your comments as well as your posts. Why is it that football owners seem to be more hated than owners in any other sports?

35 - Apparently you've never been to Brooklyn.

Touche, Jon. Being from Los Angeles I've never thought of O'malley poorly, but I don't blame Brooklynites for their anger.

Do you think golf writers have gotten the message about lynching? I have a feeling there's at least one more guy, somewhere, willing to bet his job that his lynching joke really is funny.

35 Will Matt Kemp be productive? He will if he hits.

Evil bugs:

http://tinyurl.com/28hctf

Keith Law, in the chat referred to earlier, said that Jay Bruce is the #1 prospect in baseball, and then later said that he likes Kemp better than Bruce.

So Matt Kemp is better than the #1 prospect in baseball. But is he good enough to start for the Dodgers?

41

Well upper-management really likes Kemp so I think he's got a good enough shot.

Thank you Jon,
I read your email and did what Ken said and it worked! Many thanks

I think Loney has just as good a chance, if not a better chance to have a more productive season next year then Kemp. I say this because I think Loney is more major league ready and I think he probably will get more regular playing time then Kemp(certainly for the first few months). Long term however I would probably take Kemp to have the better career...

*this year

William Katt in Circus of the Stars. I have to say, it was worth watching.

http://tinyurl.com/2c9g66

44 swood;I think then= than:0) believe me I am usually not a stickler.
I hope Kemp and Loney are allowed to just play this year. Karma says that most likely one will play better than expected, and one worse. but I think they should be allowed to progress another year without harrassment. It would be so beneficial if they were left alone to play.

46 But was it like a light of a new day? Did it came from out of the blue? Did it break you out of the spell you were in, did it make all of your wishes come true?

Thing I don't understand about the Goldstar tickets for the Colliseum game is that they don't say where the seats are. I'd almost prefer to wait and buy them as soon as the Dodgers put them on sale so I know where I will be sitting. I don't want to fork out the money and then have no control over where my seats are and end up with something I don't like.
vr, Xei

James Blake fighting in the 5th set down under on ESPN2.
vr, Xei

49

You know what man, that already sounds bad I ain't buying my ticks from them. I wonder when ticketmaster will start selling tickets for that series.

espn.com takes a somewhat odd approach with their obit: "Georgia Frontiere, the St. Louis native who became a hometown hero when she brought the NFL's Rams from Los Angeles in 1995, died Friday."

I guess.

Anyhow, I hope she doesn't run into my dad up there; I am quite sure he would something most untoward.

That's the AP, actually, not an ESPN authored piece, now that I look.

Veteran to fill out the bench?

http://tinyurl.com/2ws7ex

47 I agree with you that it would be great to see them both get equal playing time. The reality is though, Loney will probably see more consistant playing time then Kemp will if for no other reason then our surplus of outfielders. My prediction is this year Loney will be more productive. 5 years from know, Kemp will be.

I'm kind of surprised at Matt Kemp's reaction. I never thought he'd be so eager to invest in the far east. Mind you a) I'm glad he feels this way and b) I'm completely against any trip to the orient for the Dodgers.

The reason I'm against it is because it could hurt the Dodgers long-term going into the season. However, the Mets made a trip like that and went to the World Series the same year. It's hard to say.

---

52

Yay?

What do you do when someone you don't like passes away? It's a tough question. I think the best thing for me to do is respect all the good that Georgia Frontiere did for the Rams, the NFL, and the community.

Any ideas?

What do you do when someone you don't like passes away?

Samething your Mom told you to do when they were alive, "Don't say anything if you can't say . . ."

Aw, who am I kidding? I ignored my Mom in favor of Teddy Roosevent. Go ahead and rip on her. You won't be alone and i'ts not like she's can hear you.

I wouldn't care where the seats in the Coliseum were. They will all be bad. I hope for one as bad as possible. It is all part of the charm.

It's been too long since the Rams left. I've lost my hatred for Georgia.

As fans of a team uprooted from a city for a perceived lack of support and decreased chances to make money, I do not get angry about the Rams playing in St. Louis.

It is what it is. I am not going to be like one of those Brooklyn zealots. The Rams ceased being a big part of LA's sports scene after the move to Anaheim.

As for Ms. Frontiere was she truly a bad person or did she just do things we disagree with?

Man, is anyone watching this Tipserovic match? Beyond riveting!

Wow, that's why I shouldn't have tried to spell that from memory. Of course, I meant the Janko Tipsarevic match.

There once was once upon a time where a person married an older man who soon drowned. His son had been working his way up in the father's business and ready to run it when his father passed. The son was fired and dismissed by the widow that inherited the father's business and wealth. Money was given to the opera instead of investing it in the business and when the business was about to fail, the widow inherited another fortune and moved the business to be near her benefactorers.

It keeps getting more bizarre. After reading todays article in the LATimes I realize how screwed up spring training is going to be, inevitably hurting both the team and Vero Beach.

64 I assume that at base most of these stunts involve the McCourts wanting to spend as little time as possible in Vero. It's like walking the longest possible way home to avoid running into your latest ex. And I agree that at best it does not help the team.

65

Why did it have to end so badly though? one would think things could have been handled better. I see a trend in the McCourts...

1 You assume they went to the same place.

RIP, Allan Melvin

http://tinyurl.com/3xauhn

67 - No mixing? No socials?

"socials?" You're 40, Jon, not 70.

re: Kemp's reaction to going to China
Why is it, more and more, I'm seeing our young guys as more mature than our older, supposedly stable PVLs? Martin, last year, seemed far above the fray, the place where true leaders reside. Same for Loney, who also seems articulate, something you can't say about all our PVLs. And, today, Kemp's reaction to going to China is something along the lines of "hey, cool, I get to see part of the world I've never seen." Meanwhile, unnamed PVLs are grumpy. (Hmmm... wonder who that is.) For my money, a desire to see the world is a good thing. And, even if he's ignoring the obvious strain a China trip will put on the team, Kemp is wise to find the positive. In baseball, optimism (and a willingness to travel) are helpful.

69 You think heaven could afford her?

Carrol was no saint, they may be in the same place*

* The concept of heaven/hell is for entertainment purposes only.

Yeah!! Just got invited to UCLA/USC game. It pays to be the only person with nothing to do on Sat so your avaialable for a last minute invite.

I consider the signing of Proctor and Beimal very important to this team I hope they win their arbitration and are happy individuals. Our bullpen, in my opinion, is the core of this ball club and at the moment is the most important thing to keeping it competative. The scouts are doing a good job. I only wish they can bring in more offensive power. Right now the offense looks pretty good but only time will tell.

71. I was thinking about that too, but I think it also has something to do with relative age and wealth. Jeff Kent has more money than he needs, so he probably figures, "heck, I can go to China or anywhere else any time I want, so why screw up the preparation for what might be my last season?" Kemp isn't yet used to having gobs of disposable income, is young enough not to have done much traveling at all (except by bus in the minors), and has his whole career ahead of him, so it's an opportunity that has never presented itself before.

Also, age probably matters. Yeah, even old players aren't that old in real-person years. But still, I think a lot of us would agree that being 40 is very different from being 20. Jet lag sucks more. Traveling, especially for work, is at least as much pain as adventure.

So, in this instance, I wouldn't chalk up Kemp's excitement and PVLs' grousing to an odd distribution of maturity points - more to station in life. Does that make any sense?

75 Our bullpen, in my opinion, is the core of this ball club.

Huh? Could you elaborate on this idea a little? I'm not sure how this could EVER be true, but it seems an especially odd sentiment with a team full of young offensive players and an impressive rotation.

Maybe what you meant was that the bullpen is the wild card that will either put the team over the top or else doom it? That the rotation and offense are set (for better or worse) and pretty predictable, but that the 'pen is the are for greatest marginal improvement/comparative advantage? I'm not sure I even believe that, but in any event, I'm interested in what you meant to say.

Not trying to be snarky here - just trying to get your drift.

75
Joe I agree with you completely. The bullpen is one of if not the most underrated part of a winning baseball team, which is why I think its very important that we resign Seanez and work everything out with Proctor and Beimel.

Here is how I see the NL's most TALENTED(not necessarilly who I think will finish with the best record) right now:

1. Dbacks
2. Mets
3. Rox
4. Dodgers
5. Cubs
6. Phills
7. Madres
8. Brewers
9. Braves
10. Cardinals
11. Gnats
12. Astros
13. Nationals
14. Reds
15. Pirates
16. Marlins

Now this probably won't be where the teams end up record wise because of the unbalanced schedules. IT's just my take on talent level going into ST...

I think the underrated part of a team is the ability to score runs.

78 I think its very important that we resign Seanez and work everything out with Proctor and Beimel.

Proctor and Beimel are both contractually obligated to the Dodgers for 2008, regardless of what happens in their arbitration cases.

Also, Beimel lost his arbitration case last season and had a fine season, so that's not an issue. Looking at the initial figures, I'd guess the Dodgers will win both cases if the two sides don't agree to a contract before the hearing.

I wouldn't say it's important to sign Seanez. He was walking a tightrope all season and is bound to be nothing better than the many options we already have in house.

Well, Proctor and Beimel aren't going anywhere - the Dodgers own their rights. If you think the fate of the team rests on Rudy Seanez, I can assure you that's not true. And if you think it rests on Beimel and Proctor not pouting after losing an arbitration case (which, after all, Beimel lost last year), I can assure you that's also not true.

Good time to read this article:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/jon_weisman/07/17/relievers.random/index.html

As you can see from my list I think very highly of the west with 4 of the top 7 teams being from the divison.

78 A team needs good middle relief to win a championship but theres no way to plan on having good middle relief.

83 Why are the Rockies more talented than the Dodgers?

81
I disagree on Seanez. I thought he was very important to the 'pen last season, on the field and with the young guys. I understand he got himself into trouble sometimes but he was at his best when it mattered most and was able to get out of many jams. Who are the in-house options who you think are better then him? Melonan maybe but I don't know if he is ready to be a full time MLB reliever... Anyway, I think it would be a mistake not to resign Seanez. Reguarding Proctor and Beimel, I know they are obligated to the Dodgers, I'm just hoping nothing happens that will effect their on field performances.

86 There's absolutely no guarantee that Seanez will repeat his performance from last year.

I think the Rox postion players are better. Its a rough estimate at this point. I think the Rox young starting pitching will make or break their season.

86
This is true. But, I still think its worth resigning him.

* 87

The only thing that will affect the on-field performances of Beimel and Proctor is that they are both, at best, mediocre pitchers.

And Seanez is another Gio Carrara waiting to happen. He could potentially be replaced by anyone from Eric Hull to Greg Miller.

82 Jon I think you may have misinterpreted my comment. I don't think the fate of the team rests in Seanez by any means. I just think he would be a valuable part of the 'pen...

I think it's pretty much guaranteed that Seanez will not match last season's performance. It was a miracle he pitched as well as he did last year, and he's now what, 41? Count your blessings and cut him loose.

From MLB.com:
"Seanez made 73 appearances with a 3.79 ERA and was willing to be abused as a multiple-innings reliever. He'll be 39, but his fastball still can hit 93 mph. He had almost a 3-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio."

91 Greg Miller might be stretching it, but the point is that with the exception of 25-30 guys, relief pitchers are pretty interchangeable. The only reason I would support getting another one is just so we have more in reserve, not because they'd be better than Eric Hull.

Look at Joe Beimel for proof of this. His peripherals were actually much better in 2007 than in 2006, enough so that I no longer actively hate him, but his ERA was almost a run higher. Relief pitchers pitch so few innings that they can be an actively bad pitcher and still give you a good season.

Seanez 2007 was essentially a hot shoe. We all got 3 or 4 blackjacks, are up a few hundred bucks. Now is the time we must choose to to walk away from the table.

Plus, I think I saw Seanez in September clap his hands together and turn them to signify it was time to change the dealer.

96 LOL
95 Why did you hate Beimel in 06? I thought he had an ok year...

95

I threw Greg Miller out there because I see the odds of him finding his command and becoming an effective major league pitcher this year about equal to the odds of Seanez pitching another season like 2007.

When are the minor league NRIs going to be announced?

97 Because he had the track record of a bad pitcher, and he did absolutely nothing that year to make me think he wasn