http://tinyurl.com/55sh6l

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-sound18-2008jul18,0,4006711.story

http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/la/ballpark/dodger_trolley.jsp

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Hmm, I guess Tony Jackson took the week off from blogging after the All-Star game.

Some of my most frustrating TV moments have come VS that guy.... he just isn't as good as he is… Maybe it's the lounge chair wind-up.

Nomo retired...it was time I guess.

Today is already a good day because I got "Spaced" the entire series (by Shaun of the Dead's Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright) on DVD, out next week, today from Warner Brothers for review. I was going to buy it! Oh man, I can't wait. So many extra goodies, too.

*Kershaw up, Park to pen
*Meloan up, Park stays in rotation

The first option makes the most sense. If they decide that Meloan is more valuable in relief with Saito out, then the second could happen. I don't they'll let Meloan start.

Lets see what Broxton can do as the closer this time around.....I think he will do well this time.

Lets see the offense wake up!

As I said I am definately "feelin it"....too bad I won't be home from work till 7:15, Arizona with their dang 6:40 games!

That is assuming he could put on a Dodger uniform without getting shot.

On the serious side, Bonds would help us and I hope we don't sign him.

....3) baiting other commenters....

Yea, DailyNews... was out last week I was just trying to ignore it....

Juan Pierre, out since June 30 with a sprained ligament in his left knee, is scheduled to travel with the team on the next road trip to Arizona, but might not be activated until the next homestand. Trainer Stan Conte told Torre that Pierre is ahead of schedule on his recovery....

And his arms looked really weak.

http://www.uniwatchblog.com/2008/07/18/brew-crew-bonanza/

And my only response to that is: Yo, barkeep!

Clayton Kershaw's hard work doesn't pay off for Dodgers

By Ez and Dylan Hern

http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/05/sports/sp-kershaw5

51 suggests that Kershaw still has stuff to learn, and should stay in AA or AAA to work on that stuff. This is a reasonable idea. Sometimes you want pitchers to learn this stuff in the minors, because of the luxury of not caring much about Wins and Losses - failure is OK if it's a step to learning.

53 suggests that Meloan's performance has not been adequate to warrant a callup. This is also a reasonable position. But what if Meloan's recent "failings" are precisely because he's working on things and not caring much about outcomes so much as learning?

At the major league level, unless the season is a lost cause, there's a premium on results. For young players, in whom the team has an investment, and for whom the real payout should be in the future, what is the best way to judge readiness? If Kershaw just isn't challenged at AA, then how much can he improve there? How can he practice holding runners if he never allows any runners? Should he be told to walk guys, at the risk of looking, a la 53 like he's "allowing...too many baserunners?"

I guess my real point is not that the balance is impossible to strike, but that it's hard for us as desk-chair analysts to know WHY minor league players, especially those on the cusp, are putting up the numbers they are, and what they exactly mean. On average, we believe that Minor League numbers are meaningful enough that we can produce Major League Equivalents, but in a short time-span, for an individual player, it's hard to know what the numbers mean unless you know what the player and his coaches are really trying to do. I think we all understand this about Spring Training stats (that they're "meaningless" because different players are working on different things), but why wouldn't the same be the case for guys like Kershaw and Meloan who have had a cup of coffee, and been sent down to improve on something?

I think we've discussed how we're seeing this with Matt Kemp this year at the plate. He seems to be working on stuff (particularly plate discipline/pitch recognition, with predictably mixed results as he learns. The unfortunate thing for Kemp (and, maybe, for the Dodgers in the short run) is that he's trying this at the major league level, on television.

If your argument has nothing to do with skill, but just with stamina, then I guess you're right that AA is just as good. On the other hand, if there's anything to the notion of pitchers working harder in higher-leverage situations (e.g., with runners on base and better hitters at the plate) then perhaps stamina might also be a function of the level of the challenge.

And that still raises the question about why AA and not AAA. Wouldn't AAA batters be more likely to jump on mistakes (or take bad pitches), thus accelerating his learning curve? If one can get away with mistakes in AA, then one is less likely to learn how to avoid those mistakes in the future.

three outings with a pitch limit of 70, then three at 80, four at 90, five at 95, and then a few at 100. that would actually make some sense.

That's why he's not there.

* Courtesy of the BBC website which updates every few minutes (I moved to golf shortly before the cricket finished for the day).

http://www.beloblog.com/Pe_Blogs/prosports/mlb/dodgers/

295guys.com

Apparently they design, print and compress T-shirts for $2.95. And the have a live videocam showing their warehouse operations. They're busy little beavers!

Van de Velde is just 5 strokes out!

As for another hard pitch, I think the Dodgers have a philosophy of not teaching their young pitchers sliders unless they already have that pitch coming into the organization. Like Billingsley though, Honeycutt is going to most likely help Kershaw throw the cutter. Hes going to be awesome with that pitch.

John should be at the airport by now.

http://tinyurl.com/6qwlaj

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Andy Laroche can't play shortstop.

I know. I wanted to make a joke because thats how I deal with my sadness.

Nicklaus wonders if money has made golfers soft

Oy vey.

Colletti might, but not Beane.

His homerun rate has really skyrocketed this year.

Has the mainstream media been as blunt elsewhere, or has the extent of it just been Tamba Bay is good and young?

And 3 of them this year came in the first 3 games of the year.

His peripherals still seem very solid, if a little down from previous years.

The looks on the employees' face were hilarious.

http://tinyurl.com/yshxym

Hu is the prospect in Vegas, he is just coming off the DL

Time is now for Dodgers to make push

>> PHOENIX -- Proving yet again that baseball isn't run by math teachers, the Dodgers will begin what is officially considered the season's "second half" tonight when they open a three-game series at Arizona. <<

http://www.dailybreeze.com/ci_9917102

In the rain out he went 3.2 innings and still threw 83 pitches. Against the Rocks he went/threw 5/102, the only other time he went over 100 he threw 104 against the Cards and went 6. Against the Pads he went 5.1/95, Det 4/65, Cle 5/85, WSox 4/69 and Stros 5.2/90. That tells me he lost his control before/at around 80 or in some cases around 55-60, and was sent out or left out to see if he could re-gain it, which he didn't. Assuming that his loss of control is because he got tired than yeah, his stamina/arm strength comes into question.

86. Cutter, slider what ever as long as they get him to learn another hard pitch. Anything except a splitter, which is hell on shoulders and elbows and what I think is what happened to Penny.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pi/psplit.cgi?n1=kershcl01&year=2008#situa-innng

For what little it's worth, his walk rate is worst in the 3rd and better in the 4th than in any of the first three innings. He did pitch in full 4th inning in all but one game, 2/3 of the 4th in the other.

"Somebody from the West," Bowa said, "will be in the playoffs."

???

http://insidethedodgers.mlblogs.com/archives/2008/07/your_chance_to_congratulate_ru.html

Feel free to leave your congratulatory messages here for Russell and I'll pass along the stack when I see him next week. While I can't make it a habit of bringing messages to the players every day or my entire day would be spending doing so, I think this is a special occasion and he deserves to know what you all think.

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It's a little early for the line-up, actually. Should check back in an hour or so.

The funny part was, he specifically ordered it without cheese. Because that would be, you know, extra calories.

138. I'm not that big on the transfer market, so it's a pretty boring time right now.

Most of you have no idea but it was a happening ice cream parlor once upon a time.

D4P feel free to post how he's done and you knew it and you don't understand how anyone could not have seen it coming.

Same with Swensen's. I loved that place as a kid, but they're extinct. I wonder if it was the frozen yogurt era that was the death blow to ice cream parlors.

I worked at In N Out in high school, and the largest burger I ever saw someone order was a 6x6. It wouldn't fit in a wrapper, so it had to be just placed in a small cardboard box.

They would also often have "hamburger" and "burger" on the menu -- the difference: the "hamburger" came with a slice of ham on it!

149 I had a friend in high school who routinely ate a Zoo all by himself. He also once ate nine BigBoys in one sitting.

I've had the egg on the Fatburger. It was good...in the late 70s / early 80s...when I was a high-metabolismed college student.

In what respect is a new season starting for Jones tonight?

I believe it's a Sizzler now.

Also, a couple of guys I used to work with each got an 8x8 one day for lunch...plus fries! They went home early.

What would happen to the bloke who could not finish the meal and had no money?

The original Swensen's on Russian Hill in San Francisco is still going strong. I live nearby.

Then I'll have a big bowl of chocolate ice cream.

See: 189

http://www.fuddruckers.com/locations.php

There is an abandoned Fuddruckers on the corner of Haster and Katella in Anaheim near Angels Stadium, and apparently an active one near Knott's Berry Farm on Beach Blvd. in Buena Park. But they're a lot fewer in number now than they used to be.

This is quintessential WhoseToSabrMetricism. "If you suck for an entire season and a half, maybe four days are all you need to completely turn things around. Who's to say it won't happen?"

Ugh. There's pretty much nothing sadder for me than losing a pet. It doesn't seem fair.

Must be a new one. All those years going to Cal Lutheran and I don't remember a Fuddruckers on the main drag. Memories...

I will tell ToyCannon to abandon it. I saw a sign in Latin about it somewhere.

I am in shock.

Martin, Hu, Abreu/DeJesus and Kemp up the middle, Loney at first are the core position players. Ethier, DeWitt, LaRoche, Pierre are the tradables and Jones is the dispensable(so far).

Kuroda, Billingsley, Kershaw, Elbert are the core pitchers and maybe Broxton, Miller, Kuo as well.

Is this confirmed though? I can't find it anywhere?

Now he's been removed on both counts.

Seriously, can we just DFA Mark Sweeney already? Two-thirds of a season is enough to confirm beyond any reasonable doubt that he's no longer good at baseball.

As a hitter even! (Sorry, okay, that joke has probably run its course.)

188 Now you're talking! McConnell's, best ice cream there is. I'm going to go have some now right from my own fridge.

Woo!

The first part of 224 needs to be deleted.

Kemp, RF

Ethier, LF

Martin, C

Kent, 2B

Nomar, SS

Loney, 1B

Jones, CF

DeWitt, 3B

J Johnson, P

(JUST Kidding... it's Kuroda)

Unless... well, see 224 .

I'm calling it right now: Kemp does something huge in his first at bat.

Will the WBC affect spring training next year? Russ play for Canada? Anyone else?

vs. LHB .281 .344 .445 .789
vs. RHB .267 .349 .408 .757

Fixed.

Agreed

Milo Ventimiglia discusses 'Heroes,' Mideast trip

Will he have a position paper out after the trip?

Park will be replaced in the rotation by veteran right-hander Jason Johnson, whose contract was purchased from Las Vegas earlier today to take Takashi Saito's roster spot.

Hopefully Torre will align Johnson's starts with Kuo's pitching days, so that a Johnson start equates to Kuo coming in in the fourth inning and blowing the other team away for a while.

Or do we think Kuo is the new setup man?

"To make room for Johnson on the 40-man roster, Yhency Brazoban was transferred from the minor league disabled list to the major league 60-day disabled list."