Great stuff Jon.

I truly believe that Nomo deserves something from the Dodgers. He was our ace...twice.

So great to finally see the boys string something together over the weekend.

Hideo Nomo was one of a only true Dodger brights spots in the 90's My late grandmother and I watched his Coors Field masterpiece and she never stopped talking about it. I would love a "Hideo Nomo Day" at the Dodger Stadium.

I think we need a Buckner-esque Piazza Day before Nomo Day. McCourt has no idea that a Piazza farewell tour would have gotten more pub in town than the Green Necklace.

Agree about Nomo Day. Perhaps a question for Josh and company?

Piazza should be the backup catcher.

Nomo was a pioneer for Japanese baseball and holds a little more significance in that sense.

2 - Not to mention he was the only bright spot in 2002-2003. Those years were before Beltre's monster year, before Gagne's streak, and as Green started to decline. I think I recall a game in which Nomo pitched a complete game and drove in the winning run. Anyone help me out?

0 Part of what makes baseball great is its combination of randomness and skill. Much of what decides the game is overall skill -- we all want Martin catching the majority of games and Penny pitching every 5 days. But a lot of individual moments come down to randomness -- did the bat hit the ball a little off-center? Did the batter swing a little too early, or did the pitcher leave the ball a little up? You never know what you are going to see.

Both deserve the honor of a day. But while Nomo seems done, surely Piazza would be an upgrade over Passed Ball Bennett.

8 Would it really be any fun to see Piazza play once every two weeks? Would he want to?

Back in Aught Three, Nomo had just one game where he drove in any runs. He drove in three against the Redbirds on July 17 in a 6-3 win. It inlcuded a homer.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/LAN/LAN200307170.shtml

really nice read Jon & great weekend for my Dodgers!

I've never understood the point of the pre-game ceremony. The place is half-filled, everyone is milling around getting food, or visiting, and the last thing they pay attention to, is the pre-game ceremonies.

The 7th inning stretch when the place is at peak capacity makes more sense to me. A nice collage of his greatest Dodgers moments, a walk to the mound, an ovation and then back to the game. He gets a real send off instead of tepid acknowledgement by the pre-game crowd.

John Philip Gurnee

9 - I think between spelling Martin and Loney, Piazza could probably get a game or two a week. Plus, there will be the stretch when he can DH in interleague play... and again in October.

I agree with 12 , although I don't think the players would enjoy stopping play mid-game for a ceremony.

12 - Well, that'd be fine with me - except there's a time limitation there unless you really intend to throw the pitchers off their games. But I guess it'd be worse for the visiting pitcher, so count me in, JPG.

8

I had a very proud moment this weekend when my wife and I were watching the highlights of Friday night. After the passed ball, she asked me, "What happened to Lieberthal?" I mean, my wife likes to watch the games with me, but to know our backup from last year, I was impressed. Sadly, I couldn't explain to her why we didn't resign Lieberthal.

To get a big crowd for a pregame ceremony, you have to hold it at the scheduled start time and then delay the start. Just tell the pitchers, so you don't get an incident like Mike Mussina in Toronto complaining about a pregame ceremony for a beloved deceased announcer.

How would people feel about renaming the "ceremonial first pitch" the "ceremonial first catch"...?

Would it be impossible to sign Piazza to join the team when rosters expand in September? If we were playoff bound we could use his help.

19
Do you think Piazza would still be in shape after taking that much time off? I would like to see Piazza end his career in a nice way and not leave us with the memory of Eddie Murray from 1997.

Just don't delay the start for a Brad Penny game. And if you're gonna, let me know. I'll sit in right field with my glove on waiting to play catch.

Any chance a contact w/ the Dodgers will secure the text of Vin's speech at Pepperdine and post it somewhere? Jon, do you have a contact you could ask?

9 13 19 Piazza, if he's kept in reasonable shape, would be an upgrade on Bennett, certainly as a DH but even as an occasional backup. Yes, he would cost more, but since when has Ned been a good steward of McCourt's money? Martin might be more inclined to sit a bit if it's for Piazza. I don't see any negatives in at least offering to let him finish his career in LA.

19

That was a really cool story. How fun would that be?

23

Big lead late in a game, Nomo throwing to Pizza....what a way to close the book on both of them.

That would be class.

If Plaschke threw a fit when Brad Penny refused to give up #31 for Greg Maddux, what will he do if Penny doesn't give up the number for returning hero Mike Piazza?

This issue needs to be dealt with and resolved before any further discussion about Piazza's return to the Dodgers can take place.

Not sure if this has been pointed out before, but Jones leads the team in P/PA with 4.5- well above his career avg. He's actually 3rd in the league behind old friend Werth and F-Dome (Ethier and Martin both are in the top 11). I've noticed lately he's waiting for a strike to take the bat off his shoulder. He's let a few cookies go by on 2-0 counts. It was the Herges AB in the 8th yesterday that sent me hunting:

Ball, Ball, Strike looking, Strike looking, Jones struck out swinging.

Overall his selectivity is a good sign. But during this AB with Dewitt/Pierre due up, the Steve Lyons voice in my head was calling for some "situational hitting."

Any rebroadcast or retransmission of the accounts and transcripts of Vin Scully's commencement address at Pepperdine without the express WRITTEN consent of the President of Pepperdine University is strictly prohibited.

In addition for a Nomo Day or one day contract, what might also be considered is a real role in development or scouting. He was a definite trailblazer, persevered and reinvented himself at least twice. I have to think that would add some serious cache to Dodger efforts in Japan. I still have a Dodger Nomo shirt with his first number from the Dodgers

6
Not to mention he was the only bright spot in 2002-2003

I have to disagree here. Nomo was great, but the entire pitching staff was outstanding in 2003. Some highlights:

Brown - 211 IP, 169 ERA+
Nomo - 218 IP, 130 ERA+
Alvarez - 95 IP, 170 ERA+ (totally unexpected from a minor league FA)

The bullpen:
Gagne - 82 IP, 335 ERA+ (Cy Young; 55 for 55 in saves)
Mota - 105 IP, 204 ERA+
Quantrill - 77 IP, 231 ERA+
Shuey - 69 IP, 134 ERA+
Martin - 51 IP, 114 ERA+ (best inherited runner strander in LAD history - http://www.bb-ref.com/pi/shareit/PcYa)

The entire pitching staff had a 128 ERA+ in 2003. Nomo wasn't the only thing memorable.

One of the more memorable moments of 2003 was when Brian Jordan obliterated future Dodger and then Padre Gary Bennett at home plate, introducing him to the world of NFL-caliber hitting. (http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/LAN/LAN200304160.shtml)

Oh yeah, also in 2002, Odalis had the two near no-nos.

26 What would have happened if both Maddux and Piazza were on the Dodgers this year?

29 cache -> cachet

Times are desparate in the land of Brown and Gold Taco

Found this note in a SD Union column about Jake Peavy's game on Sunday.

Friday, Peavy was moved to lobby for the 40-year-old Kenny Lofton as a means of infusing the Padres' lineup with some of the speed it so plainly lacks.

Before anyone gets any ideas, I don't think they are willing to take the Dodgers' number 4 outfielder.

32
Computer geek!

31
Then we'd have 2 more HOFers to add to the current group of Kent, Martin, Loney, Kemp, Billingsley, Kershaw, and Broxton! :)

(These are just the no doubters, by the way. I'm not including the fringe candidates.)

Just a thought, isn't it possible that Piazza is done. Its going to be May in a few days and if every AL team passed on him, why does anyone think he could play anymore.

It's like John Shelby never existed.

33
I don't know if it's especially prevalent here in SD, or if it's a trend in most MLB cities, but I've heard a lot of complaints about the Padres lack of speed from their fans. It's like the first thing they bring up, followed by the strikeouts.

37
Ha! Is T-Bone the only 31 to win a world championship with the Dodgers?

This sounds like a Baseball Almanac question. To the bat cave!

30 - Fair enough. I guess I just had some fond memories of Nomo really gutting it out for us back then. Thanks for the stats, how quickly we forget. Especially with as much turnover as we have had the last 10+ years.

36 - I think that's possible. I think it's just more the idea that he'd be more fun to have around than Gary Bennett and not much less productive, if at all.

But I'm certainly past waiting for it to happen.

38
So you're saying that Padres fans are all slow? Do they make them race at the end of the game or something like that?

23 - reading the latest column in the Times about Martin taking days off (I think it was Helen Elliot), I doubt Martin would be willing to take games off if the risen Roy Campanella was the other option.

That said, I've always believed in letting legends finish their careers on their terms. So, whatever Piazza wants to do, I'm fine with it, I just hope it's playing in a Dodger uniform.

26 - I was always surprised that the Dodgers let Penny wear 31, I always figured it'd be an unofficially retired number until Induction Day, when it would be formally retired. But then I remember that was the old Dodger way.

30 I was gonna say you forgot Darren Dreifort but checking Baseball-reference dot com he was pretty average in '03

33. I know you didn't want this to lead into this discussion,(a buddy of mine and I had this conversation yesterday) but JP would be a good fit for SD. With the huge outfield and big gaps, that park would use more of his abilities. Edmonds is a time bomb and would be a nice 4th outfielder for them. Then, you throw in the fact that Giles would hit right behind him, and the Padres really seem to be a good fit, except for his weak arm.

38 - station-to-station baseball is boring.

One of the things I've loved about the Dodgers so far is the fact that they're willing to run a bit more (except Loney needs to stop) and are constantly trying to stretch singles into doubles.

36 41 Piazza in 2007: 8HR/44RBI/.275/.313/.414. Bennett: 2HR/17RBI/.252/.286/.335 (and this year .143/.143/.143).

If Piazza was the backup catcher and Martin got hurt, would Piazza then be able to catch 75% of the games? Could his body handle it? And can he still throw out runners? Just asking.
vr, Xei

42
So you're saying that Padres fans are all slow?

Put it this way: I beat a few of them in a 5k.

46
Haven't all (or all but one) of Loney's CS been busted hit & runs?

48 I don't think so, but I also don't think Bennett would catch 75% if Martin went down. Surely Torre would transition to May pretty quickly.

46 - Furcal and Kemp are aggressive on the bases. Martin is somewhat. Putting aside the busted hit-and-runs, who else in the lineup is? Certainly, I don't think this team is more aggressive on the bases than past Dodger teams.

47 Piazza was just a DH last year.

Piazza is just not a viable player to have on NL team anymore because you can't use him as a PH because you can't burn the backup catcher, so you have a player that might play 5 games a month.

I think the Dodgers have 9 games where they can use a DH, so ultimately the most games he probably plays is around 30-35 games.

Would Piazza settle for that type of season?

If Piazza was the backup catcher and Martin got hurt, would Piazza then be able to catch 75% of the games? Could his body handle it? And can he still throw out runners?

Can Bennett throw the ball to the pitcher's mound...?

By the way, today's the last day of classes for me, so to celebrate, I bought a gnome. Had to go to E-bay though...Dodger Shop is sold out of gnomes.

37 ,39
Dodger champs to wear #31
1965: 3B Don LeJohn
1988: CF John Shelby

52 - I seem to recall Ethier and/or Jones stretching a couple of singles into doubles, same with Loney.

Might be faulty memory on my part.

53 Bennett's only played in three in April, so he may end up playing 30-35...Lieberthal got into 38 last year. Piazza might get you 45 DH-ing against the AL. Now would he want that, I don't know. His options seem limited, and he might want to play in DS again. It's all theoretical anyway; like Jon, I don't expect it to happen.

57 - I'm sure they have - but it's not as if that kind of thing hasn't always happened.

BH has it right. I know Bennett looks bad behind the plate with his passed ball the other night and his "I'm saving my arm" on his weak tosses back to the mound but I've heard that he calls a pretty solid game and is generally a capable backup, whereas Piazza is literally not capable of catching - neither throwing out runners nor calling a game well - and don't think any of the Dodger coaches would be confident in him coming in there. I think if Golden God forbid Martin got hurt, they would probably call up someone like May to backup Bennett. (Or heck, re-sign Lieberthal, which is what I'd hoped they'd do in the first place.)

59 - I dunno, just seems like it's happened a bit more frequently this year.

The heck with Piazza. Wake me on Chad Krueter Day.

Since conventional wisdom says that you can't put your backup catcher into the game for any reason, Piazza wouldn't be able to play first or DH.

I really do want to know what the odds of two specific players getting hurt on the same day is. I imagine it's quite low.

Hmm, on the other hand, the Yankees could use more catching depth these days... Gary Bennett to the Yanks for.. uh, cash considerations? Call up Lucas May. Done!

63 - What if the two players are Darren Dreifort and Nomar Garciaparra?

60 I thought Piazza's only weakness was his arm. I don't remember any complaints about weakness in other areas of his game.

Doesn't one of the coaches call the game anyway?

Bucs Dugout Semi-Finals
(Worst GM contest)
#1 Sabean vs #4 Bavasi
#2 Wade vs #3 Colletti

Bavasi currently leads Sabean. Colletti's match hasn't started yet. vr, Xei

One of the things that stood out to me from yesterday's game was Cory Wade's outing. His curveball is excellent, he appears to have outstanding control, and he doesn't look afraid to throw his fastball for strikes. Granted it's the smallest of sample sizes, but I really like what he adds to our pen. I could see him sticking around as a durable and dependable middle inning option.

Pepperdine has an archive of five, non-consecutive commencement addresses. Vin's isn't one of them; at least not yet.

http://www.pepperdine.edu/pr/speeches/commencement/default.htm

I sent CSPAN an email, a month or so ago, begging them to record Vin, and show his speech when they do their big weekend of commencement addresses, but never heard back. They were in town for the LA Times Festival of Books, anyway, though. So, fingers crossed.

67 WE for Colletti? :)

67 Wade should destroy Colleti, thankfully.

Inability to call a game has never been a standard criticism of Piazza as far as I know.

68
A quick search of Wade's minor league numbers shows very good control there as well: 2.03 BB/9 and a 4.11 K/BB ratio over 386 minor league innings. Granted, he does seem to have been old for his leagues (this is his age 25 season, and he only spent a partial season as high as AA), but control is definitely a part of his game.

A pretty interesting Live Chat just finished up over on ESPN dot com with Jayson Stark. They were debating the worst free-agent pitching contracts of all time. The debate starts with Zito vs. Hampton. But two Dodgers get special memtion. Never guess which two...

74
Speaking of bad pitching contracts, there was a story in Dodgers magazine about Chan Ho Park and Greg Miller, and the circle of baseball life or something like that. Miller was drafted with the compensation pick received by the Dodgers when Park signed with Texas.

According to Bill James Online, the Dodgers top 11 players (4 outfielders, 6 infielders and Martin) have had 34 opportunities to score from second and they have scored 23 times.

The Dodgers propensity to hit ground balls (1.4 ration of ground balls over fly balls), hurts them as they are among the league leaders in GDP.

Not only are the Padres old and slow but their two best prospects are flailing in AAA.

Headley is doing a 2007 Loney AAA act after being sent down even though he was probably the best offensive outfielder they had. Antonelli isn't doing any better.

69
Andrew don't get all supplicant with C-SPAN. It's beneath you. You can't let Brian Lamb boss you around.

The Baseball HQ minor league analyst had this to say when I asked him about Wade and if he could have a role in the Dodger bullpen in 2008.
" perhaps in a match-up role, but he doesn't have enough fastball or quality complementary stuff to hold-down a more responsible role."

77 I thought the initial reviews of Antonelli were mixed at best. However, the inability to hit in the PCL can be considered a definite problem.

78 I thought he left C-SPAN.

I guess Zito's contract is worse than anything Ned has done. But maybe not - cumulatively, Ned has spent more on his bad signings than what SF spent on Zito. And so we end up with more mediocre players on our roster, blocking the development of guys like Repko.

77
The two local sports radio stations have abandoned their usual blind support of the team this season and have been openly critical of the Padres. The city is awash in a sea of panic right now, and it's quite refreshing for me.

78- I did throw in a shot about their thinking that Pat Morrison is the only L.A. resident of any importance.

The problem with C-Span is that there's no leverage--they not only don't care about ratings, they refuse to submit to having their audience measured. So, the only tools left are self-abasement or threatening physical violence. And you have to do those in the right order. . .

Did anyone hear my daughter's radio debut Friday at 7:35 p.m. on 710 AM?

Just to add to the 2 1/2 year old debate on Jayson Werth and center field.

From Rotowire:
"Jayson Werth (OF) PHI 4/28/2008
Shane Victorino, whom Werth has replaced in centerfield, is expected to return back from the DL on Tuesday, the Philadelphia Daily News reports. Manager Charlie Manuel has been impressed with the way Werth has stepped up in Victorino's absence and has said he will find a way to keep Werth in the Phillies' lineup. Though Werth likely won't play everyday, Geoff Jenkins struggles present Philadelphia with the option of keeping him in center and moving Victorino to rightfield, where he played last season."

66/72 - You might be right about that. I was thinking more about the more recent Piazza rather than his history in general, and even that might not be fair. And based it on opinion/scouting pieces on the web that may not be fair. (There was also a piece posted on Dugout Central recently about how Piazza wasn't as bad defensively as some may think. So there are arguments for both sides. His arm was never his strong suit, shall we say.) But scouting reports vary on his game-calling, and some feel like that's overrated anyway. But how comfortable pitchers are with a catcher isn't overrated. At any rate, I always dreamed of him coming back to the Dodgers, too, but like you guys, have basically given up on it.

You know what's funny? I'd completely blocked out that he ever played with the Padres until now. It's like it never happened.

82 You cannot go into the season with no LF, a walking poster for the DL in center and declining skills aging RF and believe that you will score enough runs to win.

It also sounds like the team is beginning its annual blast at Petco Park's effect on their offense.

79 That report on Wade just sounds wrong to me, though granted I'm basing my feelings on him on small sample size of seeing him in spring training and then his few appearances so far in the games that count. As well as his minor league stats which show good control. Guess we'll see, but I feel better about him helping the team than the BHQ guy.

84 I have not yet (as I was at the game with Greg Brock), but here's a link to hear a podcast.

http://tinyurl.com/53ku7f

86 - How about his hallowed Florida career? Twelve percent of his career triples total came with the Marlins!

The Roger Clemens story just keeps getting weirder.

90 But I don't loathe the Marlins!

It's up there with Orel pitching for the Giants. Every time someone te