Not that there was any concern, but thank god 'Dre is back in the lineup tonight. It's amazing what a game winning hit will do for someone..

When was the last time a Dodger All-Star batted 8th in the season that they played in the game?

Was it Bill Russell (or maybe Mike Sharperson)?

It's awesome when you look at line up and think, welp someone has to bat 8th..Why not the all star....?

I was thinking like you BH.

Brad Penny should be batting 8th!

Countdown to Juan Pierre publicly demanding a trade in...

I pitched the idea of batting 8th to Nomar, but he didn't swing at it because it wasn't a slider three feet outside.

Nomar is such a wild card, sometimes he looks like he's got it all figured out, and other times he just turns into garciapopup. I really hope he's able to give us some solid hitting for the rest of the year, or however long he's around until the next stint on the DL.

you know, that line up isn't exactly unimpressive. i think i'm drifting toward the camp that says resign manny and blake. second and short remain issues, but I think there are in house answer (Hu, DeWitt, DeJesus, Abreu). If Blake goes, I'd consider going after Hudson, but I think it's time for Furcal to move on.

2.
Juan Samuel?

7
{rimshot}

If Martin can accept hitting in the second cleanup slot, then Pierre should have no problem hitting in the second leadoff spot ... assuming he ever sees the field again.

There is a report out that Chad Johnson is legally trying to change his name to Ocho Cinco.

Dumb.

0
Jon, just wanted to let you know how much I'm really digging the lineup box on the gameday chats. Please make this a permanent remodel.

You know, you joked last night about making DT your homepage, and with the lineup info right there for everyone to see, I could possibly comfortably do that.

13 - that's the kind of news story that would drive a guy to drink. heavily.

When was the last time Joe Torre batted an All-Star eighth?

Oh, yeah. Right. Alex whatshisface.

One way to boost Juan Pierre's OBP is to bat him 3rd. Just a thought.

8 Yeah, sometimes Nomar looks like shades of the all-star he once was. Other times, he's barely better than Berroa.

Tonight's lineup splits since the All-Star break:

.363/.409/.569/.978
.235/.297/.368/.665
.310/.370/.452/.822
.418/.516/.734/1.250
.314/.355/.453/.808
.318/.361/.568/.929
.310/.344/.690/1.033*
.244/.347/.268/.616

* - Nomar's are small sample size

16 I remember going to Game 3 of 2006 NLDS and seeing that A-Rod was batting 8th and said to my friend, the Yankees are about to lose this game.

14 - Thanks. Feedback and suggestions are always welcome.

18 I rather take Nomar's madly inconsistent play over Berroa's madly consistent play.

OMG this is the lineup I envisioned.

.235/.297/.368/.665

Ethier is only OPSing .665? Are we drinking some kool aid with Ethier?

17. How do you figure? If it's true that pitchers throw him nothing but strikes because he has no power, then batting 3rd wouldn't make any difference. Batting 8th, he might get walked more, but of course, unless they were true IBBs, he'd probably still swing.

21 Donations are too. See the "Paypal" box on the right side bar ============>

3. Fully agree. And Mikey told me he likes it.

24 Since the AS break. But since becoming a starter again (last six games): .292 .370 .458 .828

25 'twas a joke, but if you want a somewhat serious discussion, its because both Kemp and Ethier will be on base forcing Juan Pierre to not swing at everything and try to bring in that run. Juan tries to swing at grounders or he weakly flys to right center because he thinks he can outrun any play. If we force him to think like a run producer, we can remold him into a run producer.

24
It's a tasty Kool-Aid.

22 That was somewhat the point.

Yeah, the lineup box is awesome. And so is the lineup itself. Rather than complain about Martin batting 8th, I'll note that today's lineup is the most impressive Dodger batting order since ______.

With ______ probably being sometime in the mid-1950s.

Would Nomar accept a bench role when Furcal comes back? Or do we play musical chairs with Blake, Furcal, and Nomar and Loney?

If we force him to think like a run producer, we can remold him into a run producer.

Wait, I thought you promised a somewhat serious discussion.

19 Can you believe that slugging percentage for Martin? He's had two extra-base hits in the last month, both doubles.

34 I lied! So sue me! (Please don't sue me. :( )

33. How many folks actually think Furcal will come back before Sept 1? Sept 15? Oct 1?

I think he's done for the year, and if that if he does try to come back, it will be a short-lived attempt.

35 Martin's still getting on base on a fairly healthy clip though. He might be an option batting 2nd when Ethier doesn't play.

I kind of like tonights line up.

Martin has been our worst offensive player for a month. I love the guy but he should be batting eighth for now.

Me thinks Martin needs a rest.

32 You don't think some of those 70's lineups were stronger? Garvey, Cey, Baker, Smith, Lopes, Monday, Yeager - with Russell as a weak link.

I don't wanna make to much of Penny's start today but I feel we will get a better picture of what he is gonna bring to the dance tonight. Veremos.

35. That reminds me of something I noticed at the Angels game on Sunday. Chone Figgins has a SLG that is 55 pts LOWER than his OBP. (Looking it up as of today, it's a .374 OBP and a .319 SLG). I'd seen guys with lower SLG than OBP, but never that big a gap (his career SLG is 35 pts higher than his career OBP).

And it puts the lie to the claim by Pierre defenders that guys with no power can't walk. Figgins has 47 BBs in only 81 games. If he can lay off junk, why can't Juan the Outmaker?

33 When it all comes down to it, he's contractually obligated to accept it whether he likes it or not.

You have to give Nomar credit; he's taken the constant position changes as gracefully as can be expected. None of the changes have ever involved him sitting on the bench, though. He might not like that too much, but he talks ad nauseam about being a "team player," so I doubt he'd raise a huge stink over being benched. That would make him look like a huge hypocrite.

But really, what Nomar thinks and feels doesn't much matter. It's a team game. If he's benched for the good of the team and he takes it well, that's great. If he raises a fuss, then he should be released. The welfare of the team matters more than the feelings of one player. And hopefully Torre is stronger of spine than Grady Little, who allowed himself to be bullied into playing veterans who didn't deserve to play. What works in Torre's favor is that Blake and Furcal are veterans too. The only one who needs to watch his back is James Loney.

Of course, all this may turn out to be moot since whether Furcal will play again is extremely up in the air .

41. Me too. I love tonight's lineup as the default, but I think I'd like it even better if tonight, Ardoin were batting 8th.

44 Chone Figgins is a better player than Juan Pierre. Although Figgins having 41 walks is surprising, since the Angels are hackers though and though.

I agree with 41 Martin seriously needs to rest if he wants to be a force come crunch time.

Chain him up if you have to man!

42 Perhaps, yeah. But Yeager was most definitely a weak link too, since I was talking about the batting order from an offensive standpoint.

If you wanted to make a case for a seventies lineup it probably would have to be a late 1978 lineup with Ferguson catching, or a lineup from 1977, which was Yeager's one decent year in that era (with the bat).

49 Also complicating matters is that Monday was lousy in 1977, while in 1978 Baker was mediocre and Billy North was worse.

44 I like to use Brett Butler and Bill North as the counterexamples.

As I head off to the game I'm liking this lineup. I don't think Martins problems are weariness, he's just pressing, trying to impress the ManRam and Scott Boras.

But aren't Kent and Nomar mediocre this year? I'm curious about how the lineups compare with league/era/position adjusted numbers. Say '77 v. tonight.

51 written before seeing 50. Independent Bill North references in back to back posts - as a Dodger: .371 OBP / .266 Slg!

For 15 games in 1979, the Dodgers fielded this lineup: (with OPS+)

C. Ferguson 131
1B. Garvey 130
2B. Lopes 128
3B. Cey 142
SS. Russell 80
LF. Baker 117
CF. Thomasson 108
RF. Smith 125

I'd say that's more impressive than today's lineup.

Matt Kemp, CF 112
Andre Ethier, RF 102
Jeff Kent, 2B 89
Manny Ramirez, LF 256
James Loney, 1B 106
Casey Blake, 3B 118
Nomar Garciaparra, SS 111
Russell Martin, C 105

However, the worst hitter in the 2008 lineup is better than the worst 1979 hitter, and the best player in the 2008 lineup is far better than the best one in 1979.

47. But defense notwithstanding, Figgins is better than Pierre BECAUSE he walks so much. His BA is .278. 0 HR, 1 triple, 11 doubles. It's all singles and walks. Pierre is all singles. In fact, look at this. THe comparison is uncanny.

stat J.P C.F
Gms 089 081
ABs 319 320
Hts 089 089
2bs 009 011
3bs 002 001
HRs 000 000
BBs 018 047 <-- !!
AVG 279 278
OBP 324 374 <-- !!
SLG 320 319

I guess I'm comparing tonights lineup as it would look over a whole season to the stable 77 lineup. I would expect Nomar (and Manny obviously) to fall off to some degree.

56 Sorry about all the extra 0s. That's my best try at making things line up. I can't get over how similar their numbers have been, with that one glaring exception. Someone send this to Plaschke, Colletti, and Torre.

I really hope that Pierre's benching lately is because Torre has figured it out, and not just to punish him for spouting off. Well, as long as it lasts for 50 more games, I guess I don't care why he did it.

58 "I really hope that Pierre's benching lately is because Torre has figured it out, and not just to punish him for spouting off. Well, as long as it lasts for 50 more games, I guess I don't care why he did it."

I agree with this, with the exception that I'd add an extra "5" digit in front of the number.

I don't think Martins problems are weariness, he's just pressing, trying to impress the ManRam and Scott Boras

Martin has been on a decline since April.

The Rockies have the first two on for Holliday in the 1st inning. No Score.

if management didn't think much of the Borg to begin with WHY did Torre use him so much. sigh.

I have to admit, every time I refresh the screen & see Falkenborgs name I get a little upset.

1-0 Rockies RBI single Matt Holliday.

58 Chone Figgins hold on 3rd base is tenuous with Brandon Wood moving either him or Izturis off of SS. I wouldn't be surprised if the Angels move Figgins for a Starting Pitcher next year.

62 I'm not upset by the number of appearances Falkenborg had but by the situations they came in. Torre treated him like he was Jonathan Broxton.

He wasn't.

2-0 Rockies on a throwing error by Stephen Drew.

62 the apposite of an Angel getting there wings if you will...

64. I wouldn't be surprised if the Angels move Figgins for a Starting Pitcher next year.

I would. Figgins is a super-sub, since he can play about 6 positions competently. I can't see Scioscia willing to give that up, or any other team valuing Figgins as highly as the Angels. He may lose his starting spot (he should lose it), but he could still play 100 games.

OK, I really need someone to acknowledge how eerie that comparison between Figgins and Pierre is. It looks made-up. A little awe is not too much to ask.

CUE D4P: "Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww"

As I type I'm sitting on the Dodger Trolley. Good air conditioning.

Ahhhh i feel relieved, been reading for awhile and now I can comment to more than myself. I TOO throughly enjoy the lineup on the page, helps me the fantasy player as you are quicker than yahoo. I think this has been a very stange year for the Dodgers, but as always im enjoying it, I just hope we can make some very smart decisions this offseason to bolster what is a good team to a GREAT team. GO DODGERS! Thanks JON!

69 Not really. Both the Angels and Dodgers both value the gutty little Bruin mentality, that Figgins is basically a Juan Pierre with superior defensive abilities and who can actually take a walk.

The only real difference is that the Angels are paying Chone Figgins $4.75 million this year to play to the Dodgers $8 million to Juan Pierre. Figgins is also a FA this off season so the Angels won't have much heartache just plugging Brandon Wood at 3rd base next year.

My wife thinks Kerri Walsh has a "cute little butt" and she wants to adopt Shawn Johnson.

I think we need to take a break from the Olympics tonight.

My wife thinks Kerri Walsh has a "cute little butt"

I'm pretty sure a lot of people think that.

Nick Hundley has added importance this evening.

The medals, which were supposed to be made entirely of gold, were instead found to be composed of 99% lead alloy and coated with a gold-colored lead-based paint.

So wait, the Chinese spend billions staging the games, and they get cheap with the gold medals?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andy-borowitz/chinas-gold-medals-found_b_118664.html

26

It's Think Cure Time!

Here is a good Karma suggestion:

Donate to Think Cure - even if it's only $1

And ...

Make a matching or greater donation to DT!

This is a more than a double win!
Your Think Cure donation might be a help to you or a loved one in the future (or now) - you will be helping others who do have a big need now for sure ... and you help Jon and DT at the same time!

Why not give it a try? (I just did)

Just a thought ...

P.S. Tony Jackson has a great entry re: Think Cure so you can easily know how to do the right thing d:-)

Unless I'm mistaken, the sound system at the Walsh-Treanor match was just playing Europe's "Carrie", one of my all-time favorite Power Ballads™.

76 ...lead-based paint.

There's a lot of surplus from the toy factories.

78 I think admitting that you can distinguish amongst and rank "power ballads" requires you handing in your man card.

76
I'm guessing that gold medal article is a spoof. The Clue? The Michael Phelps rhetorical quote "How am I supposed to stop being so awesome?"

80
My age during the 80s ranged from 5 to 15.

Europe has more songs than just the Final Countdown?

80 81 Yes, I just checked myself after reading the whole article. Or as the Venture Brothers' Grand Galactic Inquisitor would say:

IGNORE ME!!!

81 Or perhaps this part, "China's hopes for winning more medals in women's gymnastics were dashed when one of their leading gymnasts vanished down a bathtub drain on Tuesday."

80 Peter Cetera of Chicago is on line 1.

84
Nice, a Venture Bros reference.

82 I was 15 for most of 1976 but I can no longer distinguish amongst nor rank disco records. (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

83
They had an entire cassette tape worth of songs in addition to "The Final Countdown". Which I owned, BTW.

This however is real:

WASHINGTON - Famed chef Julia Child shared a secret with Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg and Chicago White Sox catcher Moe Berg at a time when the Nazis threatened the world.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080813/ap_on_go_ot/spies_revealed

This is one of Torre's best lineups.

Hope the Dodgers score like crazy tonight.

The 97 Dodgers had way more holes than the current lineup, but it also had some much bigger threats. This lineup was probably the best they had from a pure offense standpoint

Cedeno 104
Gagne 76
Piazza 185
Karros 110
Mondesi 140
Zeile 121
Ashley 94
Cromer 113

Borowitz is a comedian. He's responsible (with his wife) for the Fresh Prince of Bel Aire. So, that'll be on his conscience for ever.

Ooh. Misspelling Bel Air. Not the way to go.

93
Don't tell me you hate the Carlton dance.

Will Smith peaked with "He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper".

95- I had a love hate relationship with that show. On the one hand, there was Nia Long. On the other, there was everything else about it.

I appreciate the offensive potential of today's lineup, but a defense with Nomar (at ss), Kent, Manny, and even Blake, is one designed to break our hearts. At the very least, Bowa should recalibrate the windmill. Here's hoping we score a lot.

Rockies lead D'Backs 3-0 in the top of the 5th.

Blanton - Penny's stunt double!

97
Tyra Banks too. I liked Tiffany as well.

Ethier shows that he can catch a ball.

A question directed at no one in particular: Has Blake made an error as a Dodger? From the games I have seen he has done a great job defensively. Just curious. I hadn't seen him play much before the trade and from a lot of comments I expected much worse.

90
Yeah - the defense is not a strength - but what's thae alternative given what's on the bench?

Great D by Ethier at the wall BTW

Tyra Banks was insufferable on that show.

105
Is she ever sufferable...?

Manny pay back on Utley?

See? Bowa was right--just don't get hit in the head, like a jerk, and everything's fine.

Penny shouldn't be flyballs.

Penny shouldn't be flyballs.

And Penny commits a rule one violation. And KCAL airs it uncensored.

103 I seem to recall Blake's defensive numbers took a hit when Kuo was unable to strike out the side the other day.

106- I don't know. The only thing I've ever seen her in was that, I'm pretty sure.

Yes, Blake has one error...the costly one in one of our losses this past weekend that could have ended the game.

Back to tonight's game: Ryan Howard can hit the ball far.

114
Didn't catch that game. Thanks for the info.

103 - Well, there was the ninth inning Sunday ...

I don't know if he's had an error assessed to him, but Blake has botched a couple of plays. On balance he's looked much better than I expected. I don't expect that to continue.

No, I agree that its probably the best line-up that we can put together at this point, it just needs to live up to the offensive potential. Blake has only one error, its more his range and that of Nomar and Kent that is worrisome. Even Manny can catch balls that he gets to.

Oops. No defense for that.

Penny is meat.

I don't know what to say about Penny at the moment, but is is possible these things happen. But given our roster this is a good line-up, and it good be a great line-up.

I had a fantasy or dream last night---never mind we could be done.

Dear Brad Penny. No more flyballs please.

Please. Make it stop!

OK, I'm on board with the Penny doesn't have it meme.

Mr McDonald ... Pagiing Mr. McDonald ...
please report to the big club.

Didn't catch that game.

Lucky you.

Alert to Penny: The Phillies are not the Giants. Please proceed with caution. Over.

--

Alright, back to the DL with ye, sir.

Brad Penny doesn't have dreadlocks, and that is the reason why he can't pitch.

I was just relaxing and watching Penny who looked like he was throwing BP and thinking "This guy is going to get lit up." One out later, TWO homers! His shoulder must still be "stiff."

You know, this really is a good line-up, they could score some runs off Blanton. They'll need Penny to, you know, not average 4 runs allowed per inning from here on out, though.

Horrible call.

Whoa, that was a high strike. So high it seemed out of the strike zone.

Blake only has one error. Only it was the kind where--never mind, that is probably not fair.

That was so high. And apparently so is the ump. Oh well.

Looking it up, Banks was in Love Stinks (with Michael Bluth and Kelly Kapowski), which was a much better movie than it gets credit for. In fact, looking that up, I see the writer/director hasn't really worked again since. If Steve were still around, there'd be a note of interest in Jeff Franklin's IMDB profile.

Even the Phillies announcers said that was not a strike.

Should be loaded.

Okay, this is going to be high scoring game.

Note to ump: any time the catcher has to move the caught ball at least six inches, it's not a strike.

pennys fastballs look like batting practice, straight over the top no movement, bad location.

Great, they walked Manny!

And they walk Loney. RBIs are great.

Look ma...no black hole!

#7 James Loney - Follows the Plan ...

Note to Penny: this ump has a high strike zone. But I'm not sure that's a good thing for us.

Gameday gives me the impression that 3 of the "balls" to Loney were strikes.

seems like a lot more check swing strikes this year... or is it just this series?

Casey Blake handles curveballs poorly.

They're going to walk Nomar, to disrespect Russell Martin!

The last three pitches to Loney all looked like traditional strikes at the knees. What did Gameday say about the 3-2 pitch to Bison?

wow, Nomar's not even swinging on the first pitch

Holy crap: the 3rd pitch to Nomar was not a strike. Geez.

A reminder for those interested: the live net broadcast of the USA's imminent demolition of the Netherlands in Olympic baseball has begun.

That should've amounted to more than a run. Ah well.

dammit nomar, that pitch was a cookie.

Tim Tcishida might be a bad ump. The funny thing is that we were praising him for the last two nights as he constantly made calls that favored the Dodgers.

Let's see if this is Gritty Penny. As I recall, he won several games where he was rocked early but then settled down.

Penny deal'in to Blanton - They look like twins.

is there anything more annoying in baseball than your team leaving the bases loaded?

gary matthews is loaded out in the left field bleachers.

Who is this Phillies announcer and why is his voice so familiar?

158 Having them kick the game-ending out and then losing?

160 Harry Kalas (sp?) perhaps?

158- Watching your pitcher walk in a run is, for me.

penny...sucks.

That was not entirely unexpected.

ok who's gonna pitch now?

Sorry Penny - You're done for the evening.

that was not a curveball, just a ball that spun.

Ba da ba ba baaaaa....

Where's McDonald?!?!?

not exactly pitching again SF tonight brad... mix in some location.

Ahh, the beauty of an absolutely straight 90 mile an hour fastball down the middle.

Ja(y)son Werth.

That is all.

Ugh. Penny is not looking good out there.

152 The US will probably destroy the Netherlands as expected, but the way they self destructed against Korea this morning does not bode well for their chances at gold.

Dude has no movement on his pitches, to me it is as if Penny needed one more rehab assignment. His speed is up from what it was in SF, but he has no movement on his fastball tonight.

Can I assume Jason Johnson is up in the pen?

Okay, he's down to 2 runs per inning. Much better! :-/ Next inning will be just one run.

If Kuo was starting, this wouldn't be an automatic out.

152.
Maybe its the camera angle, but both of those pitchers seem to have some sick movement of their pitches.

Nice walk Martin!

no. we can win this game. get penny out of there.

JJJ doesn't show commitment. He just pitches middle relief and then gets shelled when he starts.

And Matt Brown goes deep.

1-0 USA

This poor Phils pitcher is going to face a pretty good line-up and long stretches sitting on the bench. It really wouldn't be so bad if Penny didn't insist on walking someone, or hitting someone before he grooves one.

How the heck does Blanton have 4 strike outs? He's pitching like garbage!

Young McDonald is down on the farm, EI, EI, OOOOOOOOO.

179 Why wouldn't we just save the bullpen then?

This is pretty harsh for a guy that pitched pretty well his last time out.

What happened to Howard? His numbers have taken a nose dive this season, despite the 33 HRs.

151

This umpire has a weird strike zone from what I see.

Penny is our 5th best pitcher. He is what he is, and coming off an injury. We shouldn't be surprised that he got lit up by a high powered offense like the Phillies.

I just came back from the sporting goods store with the Whiffle ball stuff, good to go.

Ethier needs to dive for that, and Kent needs to clear out of the way.

189 We have reinforcements down in Vegas so I'm not to worried.

or should I?

One thing, if nothing else, is that Penny's fastball is solidly in the 90s, according to the scoreboard. I'll not comment on his location.

Having two outs is like Green Kryptonite to Penny.

192 McDonald, and on the team already Chan Ho Park, and JJJ.

Well, that's Penny's last inning. JJJ is warming up.

There hasn't been a HR in a while.

191

Icaros do whiffle ball bats look like regular bats? the one I bought looks just like a regular black wooden baseball bat except it's made of plastic.

I've seen yellow plastic bats that's why I'm asking, any rules for that or what?

Penny's gopher hasn't eaten for awhile, so he's feeding it tonight.

ugh, this game is not looking so good. looks like penny could have used another rehab start (or three).

in other news US and Serbia 0-0 at the end of the first in men's water polo.

195

it's comforting to know that... you just can't count on Penny the last half of the season the last for years. sigh.

Even when he was pitching apparently while injured he was still getting steam on the ball, as I recall. Location was the problem back then as well, and getting behind in the count.

Pattern dictates that Penny allow negative-two runs next inning.

And Penny escaped damage. Now the Dodgers will score 10 runs in the bottom of the 3rd.

198

You have to get the skinny yellow bats. I used to put electrical tape around the barrel, sometimes the ball, too, but that can be dangerous.

You never know though, I hope Penny bounces back like a champ. Veremos.

203
Unless it's a 3-inning pattern...

Don't want to spoil anything, but man, I hate NBC's coverage of gymnastics. I know the Japanese, Chinese, and the Americans are the favorites, but how bout some coverage of the other countries? They treat it like the competition only has athletes from those three countries.

203 maybe he's doing a symmetrical pattern, and he'll allow 2 runs and then 4 runs the next two innings?

205

That's what I asked the dude but he said it doesn't matter. I'll get the yellow bat better on friday.

210

At least he didn't try to sell you one of those Flinstones big bopper bats.

I'm staying tuned Blanton isn't exactly fooling my blue crew.

Go Dodgers!

Manny always knows. MANNY ALWAYS KNOWS.

WHOO HOO!!

MANNY RAMIREZ.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YES!!!
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

197 Never mind!

No way did I think that was gone.

Manny being awesome.

CUTS IT IN HALF, YES!

Off the bat/swing, I honestly thought that was going to be a bleeder in no-man's land between 2nd base and the CF/RF.

Wow.

Well bless your dreadlocked heart!

He done hit that one good.

Hey Icaros, the balls are yellow & have holes, that's cool right.

Anyone ever play whiffle on tennis courts as a kid? That was our favorite way. Pitcher in front of the net, one fielder behind. batter at the baseline. a folding chair for a strike zone. OTL-ish rules for hits -

over the net- 1b
past opposing baseline- 2b
off the fence- 3b
over the fence- hr

good times!

Yes!

C'mon Dodgers! This is my last Dodgers game for awhile, 'til Monday, unless I can pick up a game on the radio at night in the wilderness. But last game on TV for awhile so make it good!

Casey is pressing.

222 - Uh, all whiffle balls have holes. That's what makes them whiffle.

What exactly is a whiffle?

I've always thought of Blanton as a cute little version of our Brad Penny.

225 Casey is also facing a guy he never hit. He's 1-18 against Joe Blanton, proving that even if a guy sucks, guys who struggle against him will struggle nonetheless.

Hahaha, Utley double clutched that.

That looks like a slump buster to me. Sometimes that little bleeder falling in is all it takes.

224
Where are you going? I've picked up games in lots of wildernessy spots.

Serbians lead 2-1 at half time, all three goals came on the 6-on-5 (power play)

I'm impressed with how well the Americans have been playing recently, especially against the top teams in the world.

Sweeney, just be ready for the change and make solid contact.

222

The official Wiffle ball is white with vents on one side. Your salesman should have his ID badge confiscated.

228 I agree, except for the "cute" and "little" part.

225

He just sucks against Blanton.

Why do pitchers try to pitch to Manny? Its getting to the point where he's going to get the Barry Bonds treatment.

Its actually a wiffle that whiffles.

223

when we were kids (summer) we played against other streets, for instance I lived on Winter ST. so we would go play against kids from Blanchard street or Hicks street etc.

Good times!

Folks, there is no "h" in Wiffle Ball.

Manny's agent to Torre, "We'll not talk about hair again - right?"

Brad Penny has a .385 OPS on the year, Sweeney a .377 OPS. I would have let Penny bat first.

240
At least not where you'd think.

http://tinyurl.com/553tsw

I found my new fav. Olympic sport. Female Field's Hockey. What? There's a men field hockey team? Who the heck cares!

243

Huh?

Anybody else just have the longest cable and internet outage ever? It was approximately two hours over here in West LA.

Nomar has some range.

It is still tide up in Colorado [4-4] but the Rox have a runner on 2nd with NO OUTS.

8th inning.

I've been watching the USA - Netherlands game online and it's kinda interesting to see the crowd reactions. I saw an older Chinese couple full of smiles after a US hit. Later, I saw a Chinese father explaining what was going on to his son. I think that's really cool.

245
Tell me you've watched Arrested Development...

2 run HR for the Rocks in the bottom of the 8th

Brad Hawpe homers. 6-4 Colorado.

Good job JJ.

252 Woo hoo, double bonus! I have both Hawpe and Buchholz (now in line for the win) in my NL-only league!

man, Jason Johnson looks pretty darn good in the early going.

JJJ shows that with command, you too can be a darn good pitcher.

Gigantor helping out the Dodgers!

So what was Penny's problem tonight? Vin mentioned on the radio that his velocity was better than his last outing, but it didn't seem to help. Still not fast enough? Bad location?

Matt LaPorta helping out the USA.
(3 run HR)

Jon, I'm reading your Manny vs. J.D. Drew article you wrote a while ago. It'll be cool if you did an update to it in the off season.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/jon_weisman/11/30/manny.drew/index.html

258

He served up some meatballs. The homerun to Werth was a cb that didn't curve and just spun up there for him to uppercut. Fastball to Dobbs was in the sweet spot in the zone. Didn't see Howard's homerun.

250

I have, but it's been awhile, and there are episodes I've missed. I fail.

258 Penny was throwing high heaters with no movement. Ryan Howard knows how to hit fastballs.

Woohoo!

Ethier hits a HR!

3.5 Power!

Big Mac might have been able to lift it, but I used to throw a pretty mean drop ball playing wiffleball that none of the kids on my block could get.

Atta boy, Andre!

Baby face! so good!

Andre!

Ethier!!
freakin awesome

Best part is that the pitch was low and outside of the strike zone, and Ethier just golfed that out of the park.

Andre not being Juan.

If it weren't for his goatee, there would be no distinction between Joe Blanton's head and neck in his Gameday photo.

Ethier almost looked like Kirk Gibson lunging out to get that one.

Dre as well, I guess.

Ethier's been good when ever he gets a chance. good job!

Kent continues to rake!

261 So a combination of poor command and diminished velocity? Sounds like he's still a bit rusty if not still hurt.

huh, I'd have expected Manny to have more home runs to left, playing in Boston and all.

279 He's not hurt. Penny just had a bad night.

Kent seems to invigorated these days.

Blanton's trying to hit Manny!

it's amazing how quiet it gets around here when Manny is up.

Jason Johnson just needs to keep the Phills at bay & hopefully we keep plugging away.

This game is shades of game one.

281 Well he sure looked bad when I watched him last week, but I didn't get to watch him this time around. In his last outing it looked like his shoulder was stiff because he didn't seem to have full range of motion (and thus less velocity). I wouldn't be surprised to hear him say it's still not 100%.

Trouble brewing in Colorado...

Does anyone here have any idea why Sweeney is still on this team? I really cannot understand how they continue to essentially waste a roster spot on him. No disrespect intended, but he's been a complete disaster. I realize he was never intended to be a high-impact player for the team, but this has been the most perplexing thing to me.

Can anyone enlighten me?

Arizona scores, with runners still on 2nd and 3rd, 1 out. 6-5

And now Fuentes is trying to blow the game against AZ

That looked foul.

289 He's been hitting better since he got activated.

What are the odds of Manny overtaking Ethier for the team home run lead by the end of the season? Could happen?

and he strikes out SCY!

Hah. One of JJJ's sleaves are ripped for some reason.

Gotta walk Conor Jackson here

The AZ/COL and PHI/LAD are synchronized!

In Colorado, bases loaded for Dunn.

JJJ gets 4 strike outs. Perhaps we started the wrong person tonight.

Johnson restores order.

Rockies win!

Arizona loses!

Adam Dunn sucks.

I'm sure you guys all know the Snakes just lost. :o)

Rockies win!

Good job Rockies!

Any updates on Rockies v. D-backs?

Blanton's back for more?

Damn Blanton is owning Casey.

Could Penny and Blanton anchor a bowling team?

PARK warming up? Oh, no...

XBH!

Martin's out of his hitting slump!

Martin delivers.

I give all the credit for Martin's night to Joe Torre.

310

"The term is 'ownage,' meat."

-Mike Krukow

Why in the hell are they not pinch-hitting here?

317. Heh, I forgot.

318 So Johnson can go 4 innings of relief instead of two.

I'd gripe about that, but would it really have been better to send Berroa up there?

318

Was wondering the same thing. How much longer is Johnson going, anyway?

we seriously need to get to Blanton, hopefully by next inning we will score at least one more run against him that is if he is still around.

I wonder if the Phillies have a good pen.

bah! serbia holds on 4-2. good defensive game, US needs to win against either Germany or Croatia to get into the quarterfinals. Germany should be beatable.

321

Gulp...Pierre?

Rockies win!

321 Pierre wouldn't have sucked.

316
Torre is creating an old school catcher.
Very foolish of me to question his methods. Ha!

too early for juan to pinch hit?

at least Jason Johnson has a pretty good cut up there, he looked pretty good.

326 Say hello to 302 -308

Torre has officially become a stupid manager in my book. How can you let Jason Johnson bat in this situation? Torre has seemingly never heard of a double switch, and in an RBI situation you have to get a hitter up there. It's simply stupid managing.

Yes it would have been better to have Ozuna or whoever rather than Johnson. It is throwing away a scoring opportunity, and last I checked you need runs when you are down by 2.

Oh man, what at awesome story by Vin.

327- That would have been the best possible option, I agree. When Pierre's bat is your best possible option, I don't gripe about what ever actually happens.

I would prefer to not have Park pitch against the Phillies.

how can it be that in southern california, i'm the only one around here that cares about water polo results?

317 "the term is 'pwnage,' blogger."

- one of those blog dudes

336

Just too high to care.

337

I've never understood what the "p" was all about.

332 You let Johnson bat because Penny was terrible and departed way too early, because Johnson has been pitching very well, and because the Dodger bullpen is tired, it's still early and I'm not sure Cory Wade can pitch all that much today. Also the Dodgers bench stinks. Other than that, I dunno.

339 it's a typo thing, you wouldn't understand

320 4 innings eh?

Joe with the Grady move of letting your pitcher bat with a runner in scoring position, then removing your pitcher in the next half-inning.

Of course just as I say that, Beimel is coming in now. I figured if it was the 6th inning they would've pinch hit for him but the 5th seemed too early.

Um...well, I would've liked to at least get a full inning out of him if we're going to leave a guy on second for him to stay in.

It's a comedic typo. The P is next to the O key. It's like inserting 1's into a string of exclamation points. I think.

you gotta wonder if management will have Penny on a short leash knowing his passed tendencies of tiring in the 2nd half, I sure hope they at least monitor him very closely.

That was kind of Grady-esque, although if it was Grady he would've pinch hit for Johnson and then brought in Broxton for 4 innings. Or was that Tracy? No Tracy would've pinch hit with Mike Edwards, and then brought in a disabled woodchuck to pitch the next inning.

340 Only Beimel and Kuo pitched yesterday so you would have to assume everyone else is available unless some are still sore (Broxton and/or Wade). Troncoso and Park could easily go 2 innings each if need be.

Pwned, it's a computer gamer geek thing.

Damn it Biemel.

I'd say he "got" Utley.

Beimel likes to hit people. Its odd, Beimel keeps on getting called as the Tough lefty but is constantly left in as he does more damage like hitting people in the batting box.

348
Grady did this exact move several times last season. Of course, Joe is hampered by the lack of hitters on the Dodger bench, but this is one case where Pierre hitting>>Johnson hitting.

349

if Bluebleeder was the manager he'd bring in Troncoso.

That looked like a balk.

336 - I never liked playing in a regulation pool, because you couldn't get any purchase off the bottom. Now at home you could really get up in the air (in the shallow end) and dunk over the goalie.

353 He's hit 2 other batters this year.

This is excessive worry about runners. Good lord.

it almost seems like Beimel is pitching around Howard.

They're calling in Chan Ho on bases loaded? They should have just brought him in when Utley was hit.

Well, lets see what Park has tonight.

I'm really getting tired of Joe Torre.

I'm kind of expecting Chan Ho to serve up one of his specials.

personally I would have brought in Troncoso but I can understand this logic

Wow, that was only his second walk to a left hand hitter.

if Park keeps the ball down he should be o.k. it's when he leaves them up when he gets in trouble.

uneducated guess here but if your gonna come in on Burrell you better come way up & in.

nothing down the middle.

it looked like a swing to me, come on blue!

Good job park.

down & away = K

Right on Park.

And Chan Ho wins again!

That was precious.

Lets get a win for Park today!

I'm pleased to admit that I was wrong

Beimel just needs to have another bobblehead night before he can come in again.

375 In Beimel's defense he was pitching on the 3rd day in a row.

Not Bison day.

That was a bad strike out for Kemp. That's three K's for Kemp?

No, 2.

Dodgers lineup really rolled over there.

379 my sentiments exactly.

Penny really had a horrible game today. can you guys remember him any worse?

382 From April to when he was DLed in June.

Manny has been playing o.k. D if you ask me.

383

hehehe your bad Tripon. [chuckles]

I'd like to see Chan Ho get another start. I'd trust him more than JJJ or Penny at the moment.

o.k. boys in blue destiny is calling.

357 - the pool at Occidential College was very strange, one end was like 3 feet deep. this makes for an interesting game when only the goalie is allowed to push off the bottom (that's an actual rule in water polo, for those wondering).

boy CHP looks sharp tonight

Demolition Man is becoming real life, huh? somebody's giving out tickets for violating Rule 1... I'd be in the poor house.

I'm comforted in finding out Kuroda pitches tomorrow for us, traditionally he pitches well in Dodger Stadium.

The Philly pitcher is all ELBOWS & KNEE CAPS.

Huh, Manny strikes out twice.

argh i can;t believe he chased

Man those pitches were nasty.

Time to put Nomar in the 8th hole instead.

Man, If I could pay for gas with the shirt off my back, I would totally do it. What's a 5 dollar shirt to $30 bucks worth of gas?

397 - $30 of gas? you ride a motorcycle?

It's funny, before Manny I would have thought a 6-1 game in the 3rd was already over considering our inability to score runs. Now, I'm content knowing that Manny (even having K'd twice) is still going to bat another time in this game and that our line-up is a lot more formidable with he and Casey Blake in it and JP and Druw out of it.

I don't think LaRoche was too high a price to pay for even 2 months of Manny considering the excitement he brings to this team and the fanbase.

398 A 2009 Toyota Matrix. Although I fill up twice a week. You too can get a new car if somebody totals your 2006 Civic.

382 Pretty much every start in 2006 post allstar break

Martin makes those plays look very easy.

If Martin had stepped on that bat, I'd have been rooting for Utley to get the HBP hat trick.

Penny's costing himself $6 million by pitching this poorly. Dodgers might just bite the bullet and take the buyout for $3 million and just have McDonald and Kuo and Chan Ho Park fight it out for the last two starting spots.

Hard to argue with 2 months of 1.000 OPS versus a guy that you were jerking around anyway (he brought it up!). {cries over spilled Andy}

Wow...amazing calls there by Tschida. The 2-0 and the 3-1 looked like strikes.

Would you feel better if it was Carlos Santana traded for Manny instead of LaRoche?

And Manny can play defense.

404 That would be a very, very bad idea. Do you really want to go into next year giving a spot to Chan "(fill in name of any Dodger pitcher who's had a mystical year lately, let's say Jose Lima)" Ho Park?

Did you guys see my dorky Manny article on espn.com? I got an email from a guy in my freshman dorm, so I guess it's up.

408
Considering Penny's ERA beginning in the second half of the 2007 season, I'm not sure he'd be a great bet to be effective in 2009.

408 Oh, I think a fight between Chan Ho, and Kuo would have Kuo come out on top by say, mid May. But I figure you owe to the guy to give him a chance considering he answered the Dodgers faith in him by not sucking.

408 Actually his first name is Chan Ho, so you'd insert the "Insert any Dodger who's had a mystical year" between Ho and Park. :)

Your alternative is Chan Ho Park.

408

this is were somebody like you comes in handy about decisions like that (if I were the GM) I mean seriously it's just frustrating watching year in & year out Penny costing us games late in the year. I think he's had only one good 2nd half sense he's been a Dodgers.

Mid May at the latest I mean.

Perhaps, but I would have felt even better if we had traded Generalissimo Santana for Manny.

I think Martin is out of his slump! hopefully.

somebody mentioned it earlier today but it looks like Martin is out of his slump.

2 legit hits tonight.

411 You'd need to use two of those guys if you got rid of Penny. Plus it almost guarantees Stults would have a substantial role next year.

409 We did! It was very good.

Good to see Russ having some better at bats the last couple of days.

Pierre walked? I don't believe it!

wow, Pierre walked!

409 It was great Molly, well done! My only complaint was that there was no explanation as to who is in charge of flame-torching the front of Manny's new helmets.

dubee.

Gameday must be broken. It says Pierre took a four-pitch walk.

Grabowski.

418 3 hits

NBC is showing a snapshot of every Phelps gold right now.

408 I think only a serious injury would keep the Dodgers from picking up Penny's option. They should continue to pile up the NRI's to give the rotation (and bullpen) some depth though, we seem to be really good at making those work.

Is that JP's first walk since May?

419- Since it's been established that he's constitutionally incompatible with the job, you could convert Broxton into a starter. Billingsley, Kuroda, Kershaw, Park, Broxton. There, now everybody's happy.

perranoski.

damn it really not Bison day. :(

Kemp's been jammed all day long.

Bison 0-5?

Golden opportunity presents it self... please Kent!!

Pierre walked on August 6th in a PH appearance.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN200808060.shtml

Time for red-hot Kent to tie this baby up

C'mon just extend this inning for Manny. Driving in the runs would be better, but DON'T MAKE AN OUT

I'm really surprised Manuel didn't bring in Lidge for the 4-out save here...but I'm not complaining!

430 I agree, the starting depth chart is really short for 2009. Something like Bills, Kuroda, Penny, Kershaw, McDonald, Kuo, Stults which gives us only seven reasonable starters for 2009 right now (we've got Schmidt and Orenduff too but I don't see them doing anything).

It's a pretty far cry from this yer.

that was a strike it's o.k. 2-1 count, let's go Kent.

yes, yes, yes!!

yyyyyyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssssss!!!

JEFF KENT!!!

408 -- Sheesh, will you drop the hatred of Park already? Depending on what it will take to keep him beyond this year -- in terms of money and years -- I am very much interested in bringing Park back for 2009. Penny -- we would be morons to NOT cut ties with him. Give me Eric Stults over Penny. You seem to have no concept that baseball is all about TIMING, and the sun rises on some guys' careers just as it is setting on others. Success in baseball management is about getting the timing right.

yeah, ALRIGHT!!

Kent you da OLD MAN!!!!

Maybe Colletti could make an offer on Durbin, and get him into the rotation.

Fresh from the wayback machine, it's Jeff Kent.

mustache!

All these late-inning pinch-runners for Kent really screws up my fantasy team - it's a dead heat in the runs category!

I kinda hoped that Kent only got a single. Manny keeps on walking.

IBB to Manny coming right up.

Durbin's now one of my favorite non-Dodger pitcher!

yes! kent is back!

Yippee! Thanks Kent and thanks Durbin!

Whew, I thought that one was caught for a split second.

Kent is loving batting in front of Manny.

So is Lidge hurt or something? Haven't seen him all series. Not that he comes in in the 8th anyway, but just wondering.

483 - OK, and before that?

Anyone else feel a Loogy coming on for Loney?

Ugggh, stop taking out Kent for Ozuna. We don't even have the lead!

Kent's been channeling the Kent of old instead of just old Kent since Manny got to town... He looks pretty great in that third slot so far.

Durbin came into this series with a sub-2.00 era. and the Dodgers induce a blown save on him twice!

454 Kent should've stopped running after he rounded first..

Make that 438

458 - Lidge is a closer - we see him if the Phils are up by 1-3 runs in the 9th.

459 Are you Nostradamus? ;-)

459 Ooh. A prophetic post reference.

447 Yikes, calm down man. While I'm a Park supporter, its reasonable to be skeptical that this is only a one time thing year before he returns to be a pumpkin. Not that I think Park's going to regress to his San Diego and Texas days, but he's not going to be as good as he is this year.

447 Okay, so where the hell do we get another starter for six million? You can't go into the year with only seven viable starters (and calling Stults and Kuo viable is stretching it) and a set of NRIs.

I'm not confident in Penny either, but he can't be replaced easily.

Vintage Grumpy fastball swing. Yes, 441, I'm surprised too, but I guess the Phillies aren't involved in a pennant race. Maybe Charlie thinks that Lidge has already pitched too many innings this series.
/zero

It's also pretty rewarding knowing we're being very competitive against a great team.

464 I don't get that. If Kent on first, Manny at the plate is better than Kent on second, Manny on first, Loney at the plate, it would be irrational for the Phillies not to IBB Manny anyway.

447. I disagree completely on Penny. I think we should definitely pick up his 2009 option. It is $9.5M and for 1 year. If he pitches decently for a few months we can trade him if McDonald proves himself capable. If not, we can trade him. We would eat $3M to buy him out. For $3M we can keep him for a month or two and see how much trade value he has versus just letting him walk. It would seem quite ludicrous to just let him go without seeing what he can bring next year in terms of either prospects better than what we would receive as FA compensation, trade, or performance.

447 - I take this as a very good sign that Penny's going to come around to bite Canuck in the posterior. Just like the pronouncement from on high that DeWitt had clearly surpassed LaRoche, twenty minutes before DeWitt quit hitting. Let's just hope it's a reverse jinx, this time (that Penny gets good, again), and not a straightforward Park gets awful again jinx.

470 Why do I feel a Greg Maddux acquisition isn't far behind?

469 I'm hoping he settles into "good" if he can't maintain the "unexpectedly fantastic" performance he's been putting in this year. I wouldn't be surprised if he remains an effective reliever/spot starter next year.

Osuna has a better chance of actually scoring.

470 when he's pitching like that he can be.

If Bowa doesn't get tossed over this, he's dead to me forever.

WHAT HECK! he was safe!!!!

Aw, that was safe!

I'll just keep my mouth shut. Nice heads up play by Rollins though, wow.

great play by the MVP

Damn, I really thought he was safe there but that last replay proved me wrong. The ump did screw up by almost putting out the safe sign first.

We're getting close to the visionary 483.

I thought tie goes to the runner?

Wow. That was close. Did he come off the bag? Otherwise I thought he was safe.

OK, with Osuna we got Joe off the bench to argue. That's something.

476 Maddux might sign here in the off season(if he doesn't retire). There's rumblings that San Diego is going to slash payroll and cast away any high priced vet.

Manny is out of the game? I don't get it man.

Ozuna runs the bases for Kent, so he runs the bases like Kent. :(

Manny's out of the game!

Manny and Kent is out of the game. Wow,just wow.

476. I am all for getting Greg Maddux. I don't really care that much if we lose Troncoso or Jason Johnson for a few weeks. Obviously I prefer it be Johnson but I don't really care. Maddux is a control pitcher and almost like having another pitching coach. I think it would be good for some of our pitchers like Troncoso, Kuo, Broxton, Bills, and Kershaw to be able to talk to him and have him give them some tips on their mechanics and other things. I just don't see a real negative to having him on the team. He can still be effective for 5+ innings and he controls his pitch counts well. I think the vets would love the acquisition as well. Just a no-lose situation if Maddux pitches the way he can and our offense produces for him.

I don't get how you can take Manny out in a tied game

That was simultaneous. The ump missed it, he was out of position, but it's such a rare play that you can't really be in position. Great play by Rollins and the 3B to get in position.

487 - That didn't last too long.

Sabathia only went seven? What a wimp.

Wow, Martin's around the horn toss really threw me for a loop before I realized the crazy shift was on

491 Hopefully his spot in the order doesn't come up ... in a good way.

Nice strike out by Broxton.

487 no such thing as a tie. sorry pet peeve of mine.

490 That's what I'm thinking too, but the fact remains if San Diego lets him go, ala a mini-"lets get a couple of prospects--WAY TO GO BROX!--and viola! We have a somewhat decent starter that isn't going to beat us the last the stretch.

That's it Bull! Two more like that.

Broxton looking good.

499 Beats Penny's three. :-(

There goes Broxton relying too much on that slider again ;)

no more MR. nice guy says Broxton!

Brox is a beast with no save on the line. I haven't refreshed in several minutes and I predict I'm that 5th guy to say this...

Just when you think Torre is getting smarter, he continues to baffle.

First, he continues to take out Kent too early for a guy who is not even a good defensive player. And now he is taking out our best player for Juan Pierre. Unbelievable.

Can somebody explain to me with the potential of an extra inning game, why we have taken out our best power hitter, I sorta understand why Kent went out, but this is a bit strange.

Wow. Sure hope Ox doesn't throw that same slider to a lefty. Burrell was guessing something else.

Nope! I was the first. Wow. My radar is way off.

on the replay it looked like Ozuna led his slide with his right hand, which never touched the bag. By the time his left hand finally touched, the ball was in the glove.

496 Well, its sort of a gamble, but I could see where Torre is tightening up "D". Still, now you have Kent out, Manny out and your hoping Blake gets a magic hit.

Thats the Broxton I know and love.

O.K. boys lets see what you got.

495 I agree about the positives about having Maddux around in general. He's a great influence. I'm just not sure he can pitch very well at all anymore outside of PetCo. (Inside of PetCo it's too dark too read.)

On the other hand he'd likely outpitch Penny right now.

I think it would have been a better move to remove Loney, move Garciaparra to 1B and Berroa to SS personally. Heck even Blake to 1B, Martin to 3B, and Ardoin to catch would have been better. I don't see the logic of removing Manny after you just removed Kent. Weird.

That's Broxton in a tie game

Brox seems so much better in non-save situations ;}

i think the double switch happens because otherwise you're going with a pinch hitter with two on and two out in the next inning. of course, the alternative is Juan Pierre in the same situation, so the improvement is marginal. basically, unless you go to extra innings, Manny doesn't get another at bat anyway.

520 The point of that move is to improve the defense.

I particularly don't understand taking out Manny when I doubt that Broxton will pitch more than one inning so the double switch doesn't steal an extra inning of relief. Maybe I'll be proven wrong since he only threw 11 pitches. Hopefully it'll be irrelevant

520 This gives the best chance of winning the game in the ninth. Hurts if it goes extras though.

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't this about the only inning Manny's had off since he arrived? Still, I sort of agree - if the Dodgers were winning going into the 9th I'd understand the move more. Sort of like making the assumption they'll score in the bottom of the 9th. Otherwise we'll miss him in an inning or two.

Dodgers and Angels, the last ones to finish tonight.
vr, Xei

So much for the magic hit....

well Blake didn't stick around. sigh.

702 I think they don't want to have Kuo work today. Hopefully Tron can get out of this.

Come on Nomah!

nomar ftw

Nomar's done zip since coming back. This would be a good time to make us forget that.

Nomar!

Nomar!

Well look at that.

Nomar!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MAGIC!

Yes!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

1ST!!!!!!!!!!!!

And Nomar shows he's a better player than Berroa! We're tied with the D'Backs!

Nomaaahhhhhhh!!!

1st Place BABY

511 - I agree, except I'd rather have someone on second with a little bit more speed than Kent representing the go ahead run.

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

UNBELIEVABLE. Nomar!!!!!!

Careful in there, Nomar.

wow, i love this team

WE WIN!!!

Nomahhhh!

Line shot too, I love it.

NOMAR!!!!! FTW!!!!!!

Hah hah!

Thanks for listening Nomar!

Yes!

Nomar! My hero.

NOMAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE L.A.!

Shades of 2006!

I don't have Vin tonight, but this 2-year old quote is appropriate:

"I forgot to tell you...the Dodgers are in first place."

Nomar!!!!!

the reaction of the guys in the pen is the best.

yes!!!i called it!!! nomar for the win!!!!!

Wow, this is fun!

What a series. What a way to follow up the disasters in SF.

4+1 revisited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't hurt him in the scrum! I know you guys were all thinking the same thing...LOL

way to go dodgers. very scrappy tonight.

NOMAH!!!!!!!

This whole win it in the ninth thing makes the "who will close" problem moot.

I love em too!

Also, this puts us two games over .500. Lets get to ten games over 500!

I want to reply to the people who replied to my comment about Penny and Park, but while the game is on there is no time to write anything that takes any amount of time. I hope we can continue this discussion AFTER the game.

WOW!
NOMAR looks alright after that "celebration" at the plate. lol

567 - only in home games. still an issue on the road.

(tied for) First place! For at least a day!

6 run come from behind win, man, that's just crazy.

All wins are big, this one is bigger this year. The right line up started the game and Nomar finished it!

569 -- And obviously while I was writing that, we won!

559 I know, that was my favorite part, too.
"Now is the time when we dance."

Btw, I think I heard about a hundred rule 1 violations from a couple of Phillies blogs just a minute ago.

Did we just sweep the Phillies? For real?

Like, what?

Dude, we get to face Bret Myers tomorrow!

BOOM! OUTTA HERE!!!

Night guys! Pleasant dreams! I know I'm going to sleep good!

577 Dodgers still has a game tomorrow against the Phillies, and then its the Brewers.

Incredible come from behind victory. Great job by the guys who came in in relief.

577
Molly can see the future!!!

Game 4 tomorrow afternoon. :)

577 I was going to say yes but then saw 578. Not yet.

is it possible that the winner of the NL West will actually end up with a better record than the winner of the NL East?

Nice to see us benefit from a violation of the "just get the out" Rule. Amazing that we haven't had to face Lidge in the series. Particularly can't believe that he didn't come in to face Kent with the tying runs in scoring position.

Manny and Nomar (our recent additions) hit home runs, Adam Dunn makes an out with bases loaded, two outs and down by one in the 9th.
Take that Diamondbacks! :)
vr, Xei

p.s. kent's avg. is now up to .273

Awesome...Nomar's HR sent both the NL West and NL East races into ties.

Ah, I knew a sweep was too good to be true.

5 game win streak headed into the picnic?
vr, Xei

Wow, I thought Torri had that ball! Angels down 3.

Watching the gymnastics final, and again I won't spoil anything, but that terrible announcer just said after a gymnast's father gave his son a hug after a bad routine that "a hug from dad does not matter after that routine." I hate this guy.

589
...yet!

582 ESPN says it's a 10:10 (which means 7:10) start. Arizona plays at noon though.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6864

Brett Myers current stats. He has a 5.09 ERA, but he was just recalled from Triple A, and he pitched well in his last start.

594
You are correct. I assumed a getaway day early start, but I forgot the Phillies just have to travel down to SD for the weekend.

Brewers-Padres play a day game tomorrow though, because the Padres like to have a "businessman's special" on Thursdays.

Aside from the insensitivity, I think the announcer might have a point: I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to hug my dad if I were wearing a leotard.

597
A corduroy leotard.

So do you give Martin a day of rest or let him build on today's performance? I say give him the day off, keep him fresh for the weekend series. Kent I would let start tomorrow though, he's just too hot right now.

Great come from behind win for the Dodgers.

Great lineup and great hitting.

Great pitching from Johnson, Park, and Broxton the Closer.

Nomar! Kent! Manny! Ethier! Martin!

I'm ready for a not so modest four game win streak.

Think Cure

595 Never trust a former all-star to continue sucking.

601 Can we apply that to Penny?

597 So...

you prefer to be a nude gymnast.

599 Everybody plays.

Going for First!!!

GO Dodgers!

DeJesus homered tonight. His season line:

.309/.409/.399/.807 OPS

This is from a 21-year-old in an extreme pitchers' league. Very, very impressive.

If a pitcher blows a save, then plays another position for an inning, then his team takes the lead, can he move back to the mound and earn a save?

Nomar! Nomar! Nomar! Nomar!!!!!!!!!!!!
4+1 indeed!
Wow! Just awsome.

Hey everyone, been reading here for years, haven't posted before.

I was listening to the radio and Steiner never mentioned that Manny was pulled from the game. Yet, I read here that he was replaced.

Did Vin give an explanation?

603- That's as close as written English can come to replicating the video of the weightlifter blowing out his elbow. Well done, good sir.

601 A pitching match might just break out.

Gosh, for as bad a day as I had yesterday, today was incredible. I got to see my favorite band Wilco a mile from my house, and I come home to watch the Dodgers come back and win.

Life is good.

Dodgers Magic Number: 43
vr, Xei

And slide into first place, to boot!

608 Defensive replacement. I think Pierre took his place in Left Field, but I don't think it mattered. No ball went to left field.

614 Nor did either line-up spot come up

615 Well, Pierre pitch hit in the previous inning. Its weird, Pierre usually averages a hit every start, and goes 1-5, but when he pitch hits, he tends to get to get a hit or like tonight a walk. Its like he's made to pitch hit.

616 - Pierre being Manny (Mota)?

558 Got in just in time to watch the last four batters of the game. Vin did say something like "and the Dodgers are tied for first place" as Nomar approached home.

When Manny batted the first time, Vin noted that Manny had the dreadlocks and said something like, "hasn't cut his hair. Big deal."; those last two words being a direct quote.

And last night I got the TV on in time to see the last three pitches of the game.

Tomorrow I get to my third game of the season. Coincidentally, all have been Kuroda starts.

469 -- Tripon, I don't see why Park can't continue to perform well in 2009. No hint of an arm injury, and he is pitching -- now -- with real STUFF: his fastball reaches the mid-90's with movement, he has good secondary offerings, and he has nice command over the whole repetoire. He is not getting by on smoke and mirrors the way Lima obviously did. I want him back in 2009. However, if we have to give him a contract that keeps him around much longer than that, I walk away.

470 -- Regfairfield, who says we have to get another starting pitcher for $6 million? I haven't ruled out the possibility of getting either Sabathia or Sheets, and I don't think the Dodgers have either. It will depend on how much money we spend on position players, and it is far from clear what we are going to do in that department. We are going to have to trust some "unproven" players either way, so if we pour money into position players, I can live with Billingsley, Kershaw, Kuroda, Park, McDonald, Stults, and Elbert as starter options. I think more highly of Park and Stults than you do, and I firmly believe Penny is a MAJOR risk to produce an ERA of 6.00 in 2009, or miss the year entirely because of injury. He is a bigger risk than Park, I'm sure. I think 2009 Stults will be a better pitcher than 2009 Penny, frankly. Health trumps MLB track record.

470 -- Andrew Shimmin, you have me confused with somebody else if you think I elevated DeWitt over LaRoche as a talent. I stayed mostly silent in the whole DeWitt vs. LaRoche wars, saying I was for both of them and would wait to see who prevailed in the end. I said DeWitt was getting unfairly maligned when he was doing well, and that we should wait till he stops doing well before dumping on him. And I allowed that he could hit a wall, which he did. Torre stuck with him far too long, as far as I'm concerned. I still believe DeWitt has a decent future. He was 22 this year, and it may well be another couple years before he is MLB ready.

I expect C.C. to be wearing the Yankee pinstripes next year. No way we would win a bidding war with them.

620 -- Oops, Andrew Shimmin's post was 475, not 470.

621 No way the Yankees pick up Texiera, C.C., and Manny in the same off season.

621 -- And what of the reports that Sabathia doesn't want to live in New York, and wants to be in the NL, because he likes to hit? I think we are most LIKELY to sign him, rather than invest heavily in position players in the off-season.

By the way, Trainwreck, since we last talked about Ken Finkleman's stuff I have not met with the friend who is willing to make disc copies for you. We don't live that close to each other, and that is why this project is going to take time. But it WILL be done, eventually. Just not quickly.

Seen anymore Canadian stuff?

620 I distinctly remember you saying DeWitt was the better prospect.

I'd really like to believe that Chan Ho can suck for five years then suddenly figure it all out again, but it just doesn't happen when a guy's in his mid 30s. Even with him pitching out of his mind right now his FIP is still 4.25. If his skills slip a bit next year, he's back to being Chan Ho. If we can toss him another NRI or under million, sure, why not take the chance, but he's very much a backup plan kind of guy. Even if we get Sabathia or Sheets (which I'm seeing as less and less likely the more Manny rakes/do rags that get sold) we have to make Chan Ho the six or seven starter, a big part of next years plans.

With a team that's probably going to be offense starved next year, we need amazing pitching, Penny at the very least is one more guy we have to use before we start dipping into the NRI pool.

624
I have not seen any of those reports, but I am skeptical when tons of money is thrown around.

Cool, thanks.

No, been watching British shows lately like the IT Crowd, Spaced, and The Mighty Boosh. Is that Rent-a-Goalie show good?

625
In defense of Canuck, I do not remember him saying DeWitt was better just that it was not out of the possibility that DeWitt could be better and maybe the injuries were catching up to LaRoche.

I also think he said DeWitt has proven more in the majors than LaRoche has.

Here's an obligatory "I'm so stoked about this win I can't sleep because we're in first place and I feel like this team is gelling together so great I smell World Series greatness" post.

The JD Drew and Juan Pierre contracts were the biggest deals we have given out in the McCourt era at $55 million.

Most of our other deals were done because of how much we loaded the short contracts. I can't imagine more elite players will do that, so I do not see us signing any big names, unless we get lucky.

630 McCourt will open his wallet for Manny to keep up his Red Sox fetish. C.C. isn't a Red Sox, so McCourt only looks at his stats with indifference.

625 -- I NEVER said DeWitt was a better prospect than LaRoche. The only negative thing I said about LaRoche was that he is having a hard time staying healthy, but I still didn't rate him lower than DeWitt. But I think it is undeniable that the Dodgers, or at least certain people in the organization -- like Torre -- think more highly of DeWitt.

On Penny vs. Park, we just completely disagree about how good we think they are going to be in 2009. I think Penny will be crap. I think Park is going to be, at worst, decent. You seem to believe the opposite. But I notice you don't seem to be factoring in health in your analysis either way. You are ignoring the role of bad health in Park's last five years, and Penny's arm has been showing signs of breaking down.

626 -- Trainwreck, if you are into British comedies, check out Black Books. All three seasons are available on DVD in the US. It is comparable to Spaced, and was on the same channel in the UK.

Best game I've ever attended. Hands down.

You won't be hearing me make fun of veterans anymore.

632- Still looking for the quote. But I have as distinct a memory of it as Other Andrew. I've been waiting for an opening to rib you over it; waiting so long I forgot where it was.

The moral of the story is: take your cheap shots as soon as it occurs to you to do it. Lash out violently, without provocation, or you may lose your shot.

633
Yeah, I have seen that show. Dylan Moran kind of annoys me for some reason. I do need to watch more episodes.

I was pretty much raised on British comedies.

636 -- Have you seen Father Ted? I love that one too.

Just got back from Tito's tacos with a little celebratory postgame meal after seeing that game live. Tremendous comeback and our bullpen was amazing. Penny could become a big problem but we'll deal with that another day. Great night and ice cream tomorrow!

637
Yep, brilliant show. I think it was the most offensive show I had seen as a pre-teen.

In fact, Graham Linehan the writer and creator of the IT Crowd was a producer on Father Ted and a writer on Black Books.

From my memory Canuck is exactly right. He didn't think you should be bagging on DeWitt while he was doing well but I don't ever remember saying he thought DeWitt was better then Laroche, only that DeWitt was probably better then you believed.

Glad I went tonight and stayed.

639 -- Are you able to play UK DVD's (Region 2) on your DVD player (some North American machines can do it, some can't)? If you can, I would recommend getting the British DVD of Jerry Springer: The Opera. THAT may truly be the best thing I have ever seen on TV. It was on the BBC originally.

I have seen Nomar hit 3 walk-off home runs at Dodger Stadium:
1. 4+1
2. Walk off grand slam on last game at home in 2006 (started 7 game win streak to close out the season).
3. Tonight's line shot into the bullpen.

So GB, I only missed most of the first inning, I got there to see Blake strike out and Nomar to fly out to end the first.

So I saw the Dodgers win the game 6-2.

Seriously, the ball was flying out of the stadium, Manny's ball just went into a jet stream to right center, and Ethier's ball was so well struck that Jenkins and Werth had no time to get back.

Blanton did not look good, not as bad as Penny but he was all over the plate. I thought this was one of those games that whover replaced their starter first would win.

Once Manny made it a 3 run game, I felt like the Dodgers had a chance.

Key plays of the game, 1A. Kent's double in the left. 1B. Park's striking out Burrell in the 6th.

So no getting into any debates on who should pitching in 2009 for me, tonight it is all about a 5 run comeback, Kent and Martin getting hits, the bullpen tossing 6 shut out innings and Nomar hitting a walk-off.

Good times at Dodger Stadium.

NPUT

614 I could not understand doing that in a tie game. I just looked at it with incredulity and said "man, I wish Joe Torre wasn't managing the Dodgers. I've seen enough." How can you take out your best hitter, your hottest hitter, the one who's making all the havoc, in a TIE GAME?