I'm sure he'll check in later.

It appeared last night that Manny Ramirez jogged in letting a ball roll toward the wall and center fielder Andruw Jones throw it back in for a triple, but Ramirez denied he was dogging it.

"That's a double," Ramirez said. "I'm not going to catch that. Who do you think, I am, Pierre? I don't run that fast."

Manager Joe Torre had this to say...

"By the time I got up and looked, it looked like he was (hustling)."

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

Diamond also has an interview with Manny.

Matt (SF, CA): As a Dodgers fan, are you sad to see LaRoche go? It seemed like he could have had a Dodgers career if he wasn't hurt at the beginning of the year.

Jay Jaffe: As I said in yesterday's roundtable, I'm actually happy for LaRoche, because he deserves to be playing in the majors, in an organization that can appreciate his talent. I predict he'll be raking long after Ned Colletti is nothing more than a textbook example of awful general managing, in a chapter with the Gord Ashes, Dave Littlefields and Chuck LaMars of the world.

And, wow, Bobby Castillo must have been 50 when he pitched for the Dodgers judging by his picture from today.

Didn't admit to having a problem to the Manny/Jones 'triple'.

Thinks Duncan saved Loney last night by taking the bullet.

Pierre will play center "TONIGHT". He wants to see what it looks like and we'll go from there.

He's not burying Ethier and wants to get a feel for what's going on here. He wants to play Kemp. Ethier gives us punch off the bench. He's going to play but he wants to see this first.

Could Ethier play center? Possibly. He did it in spring. But, he'll play right.

Nothing ever materialized on the shortstop market.

Furcal could come back next month and it's a 'possibility'. It would be wrong to count on him to come back.

Was yesterday the last time you'll see Andruw Jones? No. He'll come in for defense in center for Pierre with a lead. He won't defense Manny unless he makes him uncomfortable.

Torre is frustrated with Andruw. He's working but can't relax in the game. Hitting coaches is working with him but it's not translating into the game. He'll be coming off the bench. Torre talked to Jones the other day and it's understood based off his performance.

On Jones being done for this season: He hopes not. He can't give up on him and will continue to work with him.

Kuroda has been working with Honeycutt on his breaking stuff.

Penny will throw 70-75 pitches tonight.

On Cory Wade: He's worked to stay here. He's not bothered by what inning he pitches. He has that effective offspeed stuff. Keeps the batter off balance.

On Manny wanting to be here next season: He hopes so. But, that's after day one. Torre said the same thing on day one. Torre likes it here a lot.

On Kent batting 6th: Based on right handed pitcher and we'll see what it looks like.

Always liked him.

totally. The dude has an ERA+ of 110 as a 20 year old...

Ah Joe, the fellow who signed him up to play there for five years went to the market the first chance he got and gambled $36 million on a replacement. Take a hint.

--

Off topic, but on reviewing Best in Show, I still love it, but I literally can't watch the Parker Posey couple storyline, have to fast forward through those scenes. They were just too much... Even as "villain." Still some classic moments in the movie, though.

The Dodgers made it clear that they would not include outfielders Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp. But the Pirates were OK if they could get a low-level pitcher Bryan Morris, but especially third baseman Andy LaRoche. The Dodgers had all but made LaRoche an untouchable in the past. But the shine on him had come off. The current major league staff wondered if he would ever really hit for the power promised and there were enough injury/off-the-field concerns to make LaRoche available in this package, especially since the Red Sox were paying the freight on Ramirez.

Those pictures are a little sad. Some of those guys have aged more than one might expect.

I'm still trying to figue out what that means.

maybe.

Same here. I remember my mom dropping me off at middle school while hearing the news on the radio. I cried like a little girl. Actually, I kind of looked like a little girl back then, too.

There are many problems. "Insufficient data" is not among them.

Wasn't it actually at Starbucks on opposite sides of the street, and then one day each went to the other's Starbucks?

Oh well, I could not talk or talk forever and still find things to not talk about.

Hilarious.

would you take Manny for 3 more years or the two draft picks?

Do you think the Pirates would have just given us Jason Bay for LaRoche, Morris, and Ethier?

A. He leads off, making the offense worse.
B. He plays over Ethier, making the offense worse.
C. He plays CF, forcing Kemp to RF, making the defense worse.

One bad dscision can really hurt a baseball team in all facets.

Lets say, its 3 years 55 mil

Manny for 3 yrs 55 mil or 2 draft picks?

I thought they got two prospects from Boston. So instead of four prospects, they could have three prospects and one proven Major Leaguer.

Remember, Bay is signed next year for pretty cheap.

Or is signing Manny the only thing the Dodgers would be able to do this fall?

Paying that much for Manny's 36-39yrs seems awfully dangerous in the post roid era.

Furcal
Martin
Loney
Manny
Ethier
Kemp
Blake
Hu

Maybe not. What if they actually became a good team in two years?

Alas, my advice to the front office is rarely heeded.

Plus, Manny's a free agent anyways.
Dodgers could have signed him in the off-season especially since Bay has a low contract for 2009.

"He knows how to handle a pitching staff and plays the game the right way," said GM Ned Colletti. Colletti indicated the Dodgers would move C Russell Martin to solve their longstanding problem at 3B.

No, I'm assuming Colletti was never born. It goes down easier that way.

Here's to hoping Torre will come to his senses before it's too late and play Ethier, Kemp and Manny as the every day outfield. I'm not holding my breath though.

http://www.vimeo.com/1431471

Kemp
Martin
Drew
Bradley
Loney
Kent
LaRoche
some SS

That lineup scores like 1,000 runs and is under control till like 2013 or so.

I'm told right or left means spoken for or single, but my friends didn't know for sure.

77 We're better now!

78 I do! Scary, I know.

Up to this year I always believed that the most talented - especially the clearly more talented- player would play no matter the salary. This has been a sad year for me.

There were some elderly virgins there, then.

85

Absolutely not. There were plenty of them at this event. It was for Pacific Islanders in general.

Can't wait!

He has that #1 prospect vibe right about now.

His answer...Matt Kemp!

Huzzah!

And Bowden wanted us to give him DeJesus for Jon Runch, the punk.

If Manny wants to retire a Dodger, I hope he has the good grace to do it after the 2009 season.

Very enjoyable.

I am about 1/2 mile from the LHC as I write. Yes, it's early

Big noise coming soon after 20 years.

Then retirement

Go Dodgers

http://tinyurl.com/5gqggb

As for what they do, well, nothing really.

http://tinyurl.com/287dlc

http://www.beloblog.com/Pe_Blogs/prosports/2008/08/dodgers-notes-minor-league-edi-4.html

I feel lied to.

Nice.

Very nice.

183 That's a genius idea. Maybe Cirque Du Soleil can be involved.

Speaking of going to a game, for our friends up north, how difficult is it to get tickets to Giants-Dodgers at Phone Co Park on the day of the game?

vin never fails to bring a smile to my face.

And wooooooooooooooooo, Casey Blake homers.

Another person here must have sold their soul to the Devil.

But I am too!

Home run for Zoot the Muppet!

Why so serious?? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!

You know if Pierre hits a homer this game, I'll buy into the soul / devil theory.

197 For Giants-Dodgers games in the Bonds days it was harder - though still possible - to get day of game tickets, especially at the park. I would imagine now, even for an LA series, it would be pretty do-able.

I must have never woken up this morning.

MEMO
To: Ned Colletti
From: Dodger Thoughts
RE: Why So Serious?

Andruw Jones. Mark Sweeney. Gary Bennett.

Wow, the balls are jumping out of the park tonight. Time for the sun to go down. C'mon sun!

I just want to watch the world burn.

God, sounds nice!

It's entirely different than pitching around a guy, where you're not giving him anything to hit, but hoping he'll swing at something and not get all of it.

Generally they are pitched around or IBB'ed to set up a DP or a FO, but that isn't always the case. Think of the countless times we walked Barry or the times Pujols gets walked simply with 2 down and no one on first.

Even when a player is being walked to set up a DP or a force or to face the weaker batter behind him, I can't see penalizing a player in that situation.

Great question. I'm sure the fine posters on here will convince me.

"How you gonna dance around this one, Julian? Dirtily?"

"I feel at home already," responded Manny when I wondered how long it'll take for his situation's newness to wear off and he can feel totally comfortable in L.A. "You're home," insisted a next-locker-over Mark Sweeney (fairly happy go lucky in his own right). Manny smiled, then told Sweeney to give him a hug and the two embraced in front of the lockers.

http://sportsblogs.latimes.com/sports_baseball_dodgers/2008/08/the-manny-show.html

On a final Manny note, I've never heard a player offer to let a journalist sit in his lap while firing off questions (as you'll hear in the audio). But again, I've never been in a clubhouse featuring Manny Ramirez.

THIS IS THE TWILIGHT ZONE.

Actually, that would be embarrassing infield defense.

It would be a plague of broken legs.

What is Loney doing? Why do we always have guys trying to take an extra base when the ball is in the infield? Is it th base coaches or the the players being stupid? Its ridiculous.

There was no CS, since Berroa K'ed.

It was actually a called strike three at the plate, so no CS for Bob's cat.

That'll get you down.

He's not alone.

Me
---

Round 1: James Earl Jones
Round 2: Indiana Jones
Round 3: Marion Jones

Him
---
Round 1: Jenny Jones
Round 2: Tommy Lee Jones
Round 3: Adam "Pac-Man" Jones

Who do you think got the better of the draft?

His bunting prowess sets up his slappiness. Yes, it's a word.

309 not even close; you by a mile. i can't even imagine a better 1-2 of joneses than indiana and james earl.

...maybe a little shock for swinging at ball 4 too

Thanks. I just traded Indiana for Roy Jones Jr. and a Jones to be Jones'ed later.

We're setting up a 5x5 roto league. Spots still available.

You're brother. He got Pac-Man. (Cowboys fan)

PacMan's Value Over Replacement Jones (VORJ) is through the roof.

Hong Chi!

Let's Guo Dodgers!

I'm collecting trademarks this week like trophy wives.

Heh, you're right.

I know, I was just being snarky because of Kent's error. It was the right call.

Honeycutt: "Come on! Manny's always gonna be Manny. You got to be "Kuo being Kuo."

"Is there zero interest in Barry Bonds?"

and why does Dodger closer Jon Broxton look much smaller and more lefthanded than I've been lead to believe by all you DTers?

Hrm, why not Broxton here?

Fingers and toes are crossed. Prayer beads are out.

Gotta say, not a big fan of this move. Why wasn't Broxton up? I love Chan Ho, but he's always been a guy who's allowed a few long balls.

I really need to get cable.

We win!

Does Park get a save?

Good game for Kuroda.

Ahhh and there's the Randy Newman and the "Goodnight, everybody," how did people ever survive before MLB.tv?

Well, that's what I'm going to do anyway. Cheers!

Ned should give him one less pitcher, though, since Troncosco and Beimel never get enough work. (Send down T, keep B)

Mets and Yankees would be the biggest competitors for Manny.

But, I don't really know if Manny would go to New York, its a bigger media circus than Boston.

I think Manny stays!

Whether you like the trade or not, there is no denying that he brings excitement to the park. Economically this has already been a good trade for the Dodgers. Hopefully it carries over to the field.

Finally, it was good to see D. Young in the dugout. I haven't seen him for a while. I hope they can find a way to keep him, but his long-term Dodgers prospects seem bleak.

Does anyone know of a method for estimating how many runs a team is likely to lose by starting a 646 OPS player over a 781 OPS player over 52 games?

"You're probably wondering about Jonathan Broxton, who wasn't brought in even though the Dodgers entered the ninth with a save situation and even though Hong-Chih Kuo couldn't get through that inning. Turns out Broxton has a bit of a tired arm. Although he had pitched last night, he hadn't pitched for several days in a row. But Torre surmised that it might be because he HAS warmed up several times in recent days."

The problem with something like this in baseball is that there's a handful of teams that have 140 years of history, and there's a lot of players that can fill that role.

I think having a long history makes it more interesting. Trying to choose between Carl Crawford and an aging Wade Boggs for the Rays probably isn't nearly as compelling.

how is he not?? he's 35 years old and his career numbers are: .266/.336/.446 for an OPS of .782. that's a career OPS+ of 106. he's a slightly above league average player, to say nothing of where he ranks at 3rd base, which is generally a premium offensive position. and we traded away two decent players to rent this guy for two months?

Blake is hitting like 340 playing good D with the DOdgers and was actually a good pick up.

thats how!!! :)

Pierre is 11 for 26 lifetime against Doug Davis. Throw the exact same lineup out there tomorrow.

I'd go with Zach Wheat, Drysdale and Koufax.

If I could choose Vin Scully I would have because he is a Dodger if ever there was one.

>> "I've already made $160 million," he said. "I like it here. I'm looking for peace. I want to stay here. At the end of the season, if the Dodgers want me to end my career here, we'll sit down and talk. Time will tell." <<

http://tinyurl.com/5jhqbc

Anyway, more about that later.

The announced crowd was a little more than 54,000 and I would say there was at least 50,000 in the park if not more. I was telling my friend after the game that I think the Dodgers may make an extra $500K this weekend on the count of the Manny deal.

They already have Ramirez t-shirts on sale with the no. 99 printed on them.

I cannot remember the last time when someone came up in the first inning and the crowd was so excited. And when Manny hit that ball, the crowd was just exploded.

Kuroda had his pitches working tonight, I have seen him pitch some good games at home and this was similar where guys were missing his fast ball or just hitting little ground balls.

Casey Blake has had a really good first week as a Dodger.

I saw Broxton during batting practice standing in the outfield with the rest of the pitchers so when he did come in, I thought it was for the reason that Tony Jackson reported in his blog.

I hope the Dodgers can pull out a win tomorrow and then hit the road.

>>Honeycutt chats with his pitchers regularly, and he appreciated Broxton's honesty about his tired arm.

"No one needs to be a hero," Honeycutt said. "It's too early to do that. If he's not 100 percent he could possibly not help the team later. He's not going to say anything unless he needs it."<<

AHEM.

Furcal [steals 40]
Kemp [steals 50]
Martin
Manny
Loney
Ethier
Hudson [hits .285-.295/.355-.370]
DeWitt
Pitcher

Pee Wee
Pierre
Ardoin
-some PVL who might hit for some power [Pee Wee can serve as the "we just need a single" PH]
-IF 1
-IF 2

Sabathia
Billingsley
Kershaw
Penny
Kuroda

Sammy
Brox
Kuo
Wade
Beimel
Johnson

Nomar pays for Orlando, Manny partly pays for himself [the extra income not realized if he's not here], Lowe's and Kent's money goes for Sabathia and if there's any left over, for Manny too. Given his history and his stated desire to stay, Raffy should be happy with a repeat deal. And what with the extra income and all, and over some years, the team "accepts" sunken cost and so goodbye to Andruw. And if the team can find a super INF 1, who puts the U in Utility player by playing 2B, 3B, and SS, then there's the option of no INF 2 and instead another pitcher.

SS Furcal (1 yr/14.5 mil)
CF Kemp (4.5 mil/arb)
C Martin (6.5 mil/arb)
LF Manny (3 yrs/60 mil)
1B Loney (4 mil/arb)
RF Ethier (3 mil/arb)
2B Hudson (4 yrs/32 mil)
3B DeWitt (1 mil/arb)

OF/2B D Young(1 mil/arb)
OF Pierre (10 mil)
C Ardoin/PVL (1 mil)
OF Jones (17 mil)
Berroa (Free)

ACE Sabathia (6 yrs/100 mil)
ACE Billingsley (5 mil/arb)
ACE Kershaw (1 mil/arb)
SP Penny (8.75 mil)
SP Kuroda (15 mil)

Sammy (1 yrs/4 mil)
Brox (3 mil/arb)
Kuo (2 yrs/5 mil)
Wade (1 mil/arb)
Beimel (2 yrs/4 mil)
Johnson (1 mil)

=

151.75 million

=

:(

Obviously can't sign Hudson. If they can somehow get rid of Pierre and Jones, they could easily sign both Manny and CC. WIll never happen though. Those two contracts sitting on the bench along with Kuroda's 15 mil due next year in the #5 spot do not look good. Not using your resources very efficiently when your own farm has past up those positions.

Also I have no clue about arbitrations out there. Those are just some random #'s. Please correct me if something is really wrong.

The young players are not going to be making that much. All of them except maybe Martin are all going to be under 1 million.

As for Manny I wonder if he'd back down on the whole not picking up his options and would just settle for us picking up both options at the same time.

You can knock like 20 million off your payroll based on how much you overshot the young players. If we decide to not bring back Sammy, we got around a $120 million payroll with what you got there.

I'm almost starting to hope the Dodgers trade Ethier this offseason, so he can have a chance at a normal career, like LaRoche.

http://tinyurl.com/55hy2s

McCourt also went over Neds head to get Torre.

Ned is TOAST

Pretty sweet. It's only too bad it can't last forever.

I think Ned's going to be selling woks pretty soon.

There could be a company picnic with softball game. I wouldn't go to that one, either, but it might still be nice for him.

In the Shakin post, Boras mentions that he envisions a Dodger outfield of Manny in left, and Jones in center. Boras hasn't given up on Andruw Jones playing for the Dodgers, for better or worse.

Thinking about that hurts my brain.

That's like saying a RH hitter will see a drop in doubles going to Fenway because he pulls a lot of fly balls.

.265 /.298 /.295 /.593 from leadoff.
In 57 games h has 25 runs scored.
And 26 steals for those who think they mean something.

Also, I looked at Juan Pierre's stats and was surprised that he was called up to the majors after only two years in the minors in the Rockies system. He was only 20 when he was called up. No wonder he didn't learn how to walk, and never seem to make the most of his limited abilities, he was fast tracked to the majors.

Would AZ trade Drew for Pedroia for the same reason--to return Pedroia to his home town and reunite the the Drew brothers?

Remember two guys that came home to LA to play for the Dodgers in the mid 90s, guys by the names of Daryl Strawberry and Eric Davis.

Doesn't always work out well.

I would like to remove the distraction of any competition for playing time that would exist if Nomar and Kent were to be re-signed.

501 That's disturbing. Btw, I wonder if Mike Myers will ever make another movie without him in it? He's still under the impression that you can "put a 'midget' in a movie and get instant laughs!"

Will be interesting to see what sort of waiver wire, post-deadline deals are worked out or attempted this month.

"Little person" or "Dwarf," Dude.

Also, when it comes to Mike Myers, the midget is not the issue.

Poor guy.

By the way, an actor of short stature who is so good that he's no longer just getting roles because he fits that is Peter Dinklage. Great actor. Now no one cares what his height is. Or less than they did. Maybe he'll open up some doors.

c. jackson away '08 .309/.405/.489
m. kemp away '08 .302/.369/.473

conor jackson is 3 years older but can play 3rd base.

perhaps mcdonald is too much but no, i'm not kidding. kemp wouldn't get him and ethier would be laughed at.