Friday: Red Sox @ Angels, 6:30pm
Saturday: Cubs @ Dodgers, 7pm
Sunday: Cubs @ Dodgers, ???pm*

*if necessary

Let's go dumb luck let's go! (clap clap).

Interesting analysis on the roster. I still have a suspicion that Torre will pick Sweeney (over DY or similar). If he does, I'll lose my trust that I've given him as a manager. It already wore thin with the benching of Ethier.

I'm not convinced about Furcal, but he'll be an upgrade over Berroa. I'm worried about his swing, though. It hasn't looked the same since he got back. Hopefully he'll be getting a lot of cage time.

The only thing I keep telling myself is, does Torre really want to show October audiences that he's using a .127 hitter? I do think the presence of Garciaparra, Kent and Furcal could be a gamechanger with Sweeney.

Good analysis of the roster. Like everyone else I have questions about Furcal and actually would have loved to seen him or Kent pinch hit for Berroa in the 9th on Sunday. I know why it didn't happen, but the Giants took yesterday's game very seriously, and would have been interested to see how Furcal reacted. Kent as well especially since both maybe coming off the bench in the series.

I think the DY decision is such a no brainer for three reasons: he is a switch hitter, as a PH which is what he would primarily be in the series, his OBP is 393 and he is hitting 292. Stats are far higher than Sweeney, and whatever his defensive shortcomings he can play multiple positions, Sweeney can't.

The Cubs scored 38 more runs in one less game. Their line was .273/.346/.443, It must also be noted that the Cubs did go into playoff management a week earlier than the Dodgers and were nursing injuries in this period.

The Dodgers had the 4th best OPS in the NL after the ASB (3 teams tied for first including the Cubs). The Dodgers line was .279/.350/.434.

Both teams continued to pitch well in the second half.

No question adding the best hitter in the NL from August 1st helps these numbers (and Ethier's numbers from that time are no slouch either).

Given how poorly the rest of the offense did in our series without Manny, we have to be worried a bit. If Manny is the only one hitting, he'll be pitched around the entire series. Obviously, a lot more has changed since then (Ethier in the full lineup, Furcal back perhaps, Dewitt swinging a much hotter bat), but I'm very curious to see how we do against this pitching. The kids are going to need to step it up, because if we can get them to their bullpen (which is poor compared to ours) early enough, I like our chances.

I'm more surprised that it took 37 HRs to lead the league.

He's gone from pitching in the playoffs, to pitching in the instructional league in front of maybe 50 people.

Also, when is the deadline for setting the 25 man playoff roster? If a player gets hurt during one of the games, can that player be replaced by someone not on the original roster?

If Saito had not come back I'd be very worried about the middle relief since Park/Proctor/Beimel would have had to pitch more then I want. Our bullpen has been our strength but without Kou I'm not sure if we can call it a strength right now. I've felt Wade was pitching with mirrors all year and it would not surprise me if those mirrors crack in the playoffs at an inopportune time.

http://tinyurl.com/4wgwg5

Perhaps more likely is that Manny's 59 postseason walks place him in 4th place, 13 free passes behind all-time leader Larry Jones.

http://www.vegasinsider.com/mlb/odds/futures/

Players with Exact HR Total Four Straight Years (3+ HR)
Dunn (40), 2005-2008
Ken Boyer (24), 1961-1964
Fred Lynn (23), 1984-1987
Curt Walker (6), 1925-1928

Al Evans hit 2 HR for six straight years (1945-1950).

Luke Sewell (1932-1935) and Jimmy Austin (1910-1913) hit 2 HR for four straight years.

>>The return of shortstop Rafael Furcal would go a long way in stabilizing the Dodgers' infield; Shortstop Angel Berroa is erratic and, according to one N.L. scout, is not manager Joe Torre's most trusted defender. Furcal has been back only a week after missing four-plus months because of back surgery, but he was making long, back-stretching throws from the hole in workouts over the weekend.<<

The article seemed fair 'nuf but lost some credibility with this: "The Dodgers are paying outfielders Andruw Jones and Juan Pierre a combined $17 million this season, and neither will see much, if any, action in October." Uh, Jones definitely won't see any action.

http://tinyurl.com/3gsk9t

Are Pierre and Jones giving some of their money back? Because I think the total is more like a combined $26 million.

>>Ellis, a September call-up from Class AAA Las Vegas who projects as a major league backup, had previous appeared in two games as a defensive replacement. Ellis will travel with the club during the playoffs in case an emergency catcher is needed, but he won't be on the roster.<<

But I can't find anything official on it.

--
But it could be referring to between series, if they make it that far? Or to help out away from the game? Not sure. I feel like this would make sense, though.

>>Until 2007, teams could not replace players on their playoff rosters in the event of an injury and had to play out the series shorthanded. Starting in 2007, an injured player could be replaced by another player not included on the initial 25-man roster, but the injured player is no longer eligible for the next round of the playoffs should his team advance.<<

Is that true?

Young is the emergency catcher and therefore might make the team instead of Sweeney.

I don't think both Furcal and Kent should be on the team due to risk of injury.

Torre should be loyal to the players that got them to the playoffs and not to players at the end of their careers. This means Loney plays and does not get platooned and Nomar pinch hits, and Kent doesn't get near first base.

Hu should be on the team.

Furcal could have used Sunday's game to sharpen up and with him not playing, begs the question as to how many innings he will be able to play in a 5 game series.

http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_10585922

"Los Angeles City Councilman Ed Reyes last week asked the city to seek federal legislation that would declare the area around the stadium as 'Dodgertown.'"

"Hu should be on the team ..."

I'm with you in spirit, but I think there's a slight contradiction here.

In any case, Torre should be loyal to who will be the best going forward into October, not looking back.

Or does Councilman Reyes want the Board of Geographic Names to add "Dodgertown" to the map?

I may have to settle for listening to Steve Stone and Ed Farmer.

Sadly, I don't get ESPN360 at home. Just at work. And I have the day off!

Oh cruel fate!

This leads me to believe that Washington State is not very good this year.

Well, then I don't have to choose between the debate and the game.

http://tinyurl.com/3j5d8p

Too bad for Andruw

I'm expecting Kent on the bench for game one with Lowe pitching so that we go with the Furcal/DeWitt keystone combo.

In other news, ESPN has an article up about the big drop in MLB power numbers in 2008.

Torre (watching shiny object move back and forth): "Every day in every way you're getting better and better..."

Hu is their best defender and appears to be hitting the ball now. As soon as Nomar is forced to play defense he is lost for pinch hitting.

GMac in the 909, Penarol916, Doctor, Brent Knapp, dzzrtRatt, and El Lay Dave can all blame their loss (they picked 85 wins) on Nomar's bad managing! :)

"Judah Friedlander and Norm MacDonald are now friends via the People You May Know tool."

That way you will know ahead of time when Mark Sweeney is in the on deck circle. There will be swearing.

• That scout also worries about the Dodgers' bullpen. Jonathan Broxton is a "cardiac closer,'' the scout said.

• As for Manny, one executive noted, "the Dodgers are almost forced to bid on him now.''

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/jon_heyman/09/29/monday.scoop/1.html

http://www.myp2p.eu/index.php?part=home

Click on the "Live Sports" link at the top to find out what's playing right now.

(NOTE: As far as I can tell, there's nothing illegal about this, and the website is SFW).

I guess you really are from Oklahoma...

I agree, obviously.

I want to give up on Heroes, but I don't know if I can.

Even if they are strong, it's really hard for an arm to really matter unless you're Soriano.

But it was interesting to actually see Paul Newman in something other than "Road to Perdition".

I think there may be some CHUDs.

Joe Torre can address the crowd from the back of the train.

We'll throw confetti, yell "Huzzah!" and then throw our straw hats in the air.

http://tinyurl.com/3qs6td

I'll plan on it.

That is my problem. I already re-watched seasons 1 and 2, but the premiere left me with a mixed feeling about it all.

http://defamer.com/5056438/is-michael-cera-two-or-three-steps-from-being-over

On another note ... I spent the summer watching all of Battlestar Galactica, seasons 1-4.1 (thank you Netflix and itunes). What is it about these shows slumping for part of the third season before picking it up again? You guys did warn me. What a great joy to watch without huge breaks ... but now I'm going to have to hope season 4.2 episodes will be on the internet.

Yahoo previews the Cubs-Dodgers series

I think he is too talented to be type-cast. Yes, for a little while he will and it does not seem to help that he is choosing movies like Extreme Movie, but I think he will move onto different roles eventually.

Until today, I did not know that there was a pitcher named Courtney Duncan.

I'll take this first round series with drilled onions, Manny and Casey instead, thank you very much.

It's still a short series so anything can happen, but things are in the Cubs favor.

Jim Caple is the lone voice against the madness. Jim Caple is an admitted Dodgers fanatic.

If that's the case, wouldn't it be more like he's the lone madness against the voices? ;-)

Bullpen: Us! Our bullpen is rock solid compared to the Cubbies.

Starters: toss up. Both staffs have rather remarkable ERA's, strikeout numbers, and other periphs.

Lineup: Dodgers are Manny and mostly raw youngin's. Cubs have about 4 All Stars in their lineup with Soto, Lee, Ramirez, and Soriano.. and if you really want to, Edmonds.

Intangibles: Probably favor the Dodgers, there is 3x as much pressure on the Cubs to get to the World Series. Then again, Chicago has an intimidating home field advantage.

Conclusion: Chicago in 4 or 5

Does that sound about right?

Will the real underdog please stand up?

http://deadspin.com/5056083/nlds-preview-cubs-vs-dodgers

I would think that if Kemp, Ethier, Martin, and Loney qualify as "raw youngin's" that Soto should fall into that category as well.

Obviously anything can happen in a five game series, but I think our lineup is actually quite good. With DeWitt swinging again, Berroa seems to be the only hole, and that hole might be plugged by Furcal.

THE CHICAGO CUBS AT HOUSTON ASTROS GAME HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO THE HOUSTON ASTROS BEING ELIMINATED FROM PLAYOFF CONTENTION.

I know it was a make-up game so it's not "important" ... but by the logic of the above sentence, we could have canceled a lot of games by now.

Its pretty crazy he's 20yrs old & will be playing a 14yr old.

Eventually.

It's old school 90210 math.

2:10 p.m.

NLDS*: 4-6 (*includes 1981 NLDS Series against Houston)
NLCS: 9-8
World Series: 14-6

My ears have started bleeding and he's not even talking yet.

The sad will taste like sad if the AD movie doesn't happen because he's not on board.

I actually will be switching to a 9/80 schedule shortly, allowing for a day off every two weeks. I'm eagerly awaiting it, though I wish it would have come before the playoffs. Ah well.

Cera can actually act.

Some people think he's just being himself. Granted, himself is funny and endearing, but it's still kind of ridiculous to get paid millions for it.

Dodgers (2-3)
2006: Game 3
2004: Games 3-4
1995: Game 2
1988: WS Game 2

Angels (0-1)
2005: ALCS Game 5

I did get to see a team clinch a series/pennant in 2005 so that was kind of cool.

My Dad was at that game, I think!

1. I don't think I would have had the "connections" to make it big

2. I don't want to be an actor

Such as, how is "Fireproof" with Kirk Cameron #4 at the box office?

I kept planning to go to an Angel playoff game in 2002 but just never got around to seriously trying to buy a ticket.

Please stop laying down and dying. I know that you really want to go home and I understand that, but you should at least try to win this game.

I will be rooting for you next year, but only if you show effort in this game.

Sincerely yours,

Humma K.

*Yes, I had to look that up.

I'm going to guess Anaheim Ducks.

But I don't do it to scam people into thinking I'm cooler (and thus more worthy of money) than I really am.

One of the videos is them bringing a gorilla onto a plane, but since gorillas are not allowed on planes and act crazy, therefore humans did not come from apes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Monkey_Suit

Ugh. Butterflies have wings. Caterpillars do not have wings. Therefore, butterflies did not come from caterpillars.

I don't see anything wrong with having the Sox and Twins settle this face to face tomorrow.

By the way, I am not saying that you HAVE to win in order to gain my loyalty for the 2009 season. It's baseball -- any team can win on any given day. And the White Sox are better than you are this year, making the White Sox's victory probable. But you must try to win, or else... I won't root for you!

P.S. I forgot the other reason I hate the White Sox: Hawk Harrelson. He is the anti-Vin. I wonder what would happen if Vin and Hawk were ever in exactly the same space at the same time; perhaps the world cannot imagine the annihilation.

While I understand such arguments (and ultimately accept the logic), I think they can be used as a ruse to ward off critical discussions about how our society prioritizes and rewards different kinds of behaviors and services.

It made Leonardo DiCaprio.

That appealed to the Catholic audience too.

I went to his website, and now the Growing Pains song is in my head. I want someone to be held accountable for this!

Just because some things that we think SHOULD be worth millions are underpaid doesn't mean that others who do earn millions aren't worth the money they're paid.

Say a movie studio invests in a movie star in the hope that people will go see that movie because he's in it. He is being paid to lure people to the theater and, as a result, pay off the investment of the studio. That leads to a successful business that employs thousands and makes money for its shareholders.

Recently, Cameron has made a few television appearances. She appeared on I Love the '80s and I Love the '80s Strikes Back as a commentator, and was the host of 50 Cutest Child Stars: All Grown Up on the E! network. In 2006, Cameron guest starred on the sitcom That's So Raven.

Currently, she stars in The Wager with Randy Travis. She recently finished filming Moonlight & Mistletoe, a TV movie with Tom Arnold that will air November 28, 2008 on the Hallmark Channel.

I just walked up and bought a ticket.

All the Blues fans were given towels to swing. The people on either side of me were shorter than me. So when I stood up to swing the towel around the first time, the guys on either side kept whipping my face with their towels.

I didn't stand up after that.

One side says that people whose activities net millions should receive the lion's share.

The other side of me tries to consider the importance of different activities to humanity. This side tells me that garbage collection is more important than acting or playing baseball, or at the very least, that acting/playing baseball aren't many times more important to humanity than things like garbage collection. (I understand the arguments about skills and such, and how "anyone" can collect garbage but not everyone can act/play baseball).

...will...to...live..............

................failing..........

.................................

Did the guys whip your face on purpose or was it a coincidence. Did they stop after they realized they were hitting you?

Hard to imagine, if so.

There is usually crickets whenever I bring it up.

The TV guy or the Radio guy? Neither one desirable.

Growing up, I thought "Hawk" at had good baseball knowledge, but he practically defined the term "homer."

Re-signing Manny has to be the #1 priority.
If that falls through, I'd sign Teixeira, & deal Loney for prospects.

Nor were her parents inclined to let me figure out how to do it.

The TV guy we usually hear is Dan McGlaughlin, who works with Al Hrabosky. They aren't overly homerish.

The body of Jay Randolph does some games on TV.

Old friend Ricky Horton also works for the Cardinals.

My other brother left me alone with his four kids from ages 6 to 11 back in August. He didn't seem to worry.

His instructions were, "Just make sure no one kills anyone else."

Dodgers, C students of the postseason

Hilarious

baseball's nothingdictorians

that...just...doesn't work.

It seems obvious they will explore signing him, and it seems obvious that it's completely up in the air at this moment how high they would go in their bid. I could be wrong, but I'm struggling to imagine a scenario in which Frank McCourt has decided on the eve of NLDS Game 1 that he wants to break the bank on Manny.

We toyed for months about what we were going to do about the fact that Spawn of Kavula wouldn't sleep. Read book after book. Finally, we did just what you did (with one small concession -- we'd go in after 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, to remind her that we were still there, we love her, and that we'd see her in the morning).

Now she sleeps 11 hours straight through the night.

I'm jealous! :)

One day he'll be able to sleep through the night. And he'll stop biting my feet.

But I will tell you this: since it started working, daddy is happier, mommy is happier, and baby is much much much happier, since her sleep is no longer interrupted half a dozen times a night.

Eric, remind me -- how old is your baby? I will add that this didn't really work until Spawn was eating quite a bit of solid food during the day and especially for dinner -- 9 months.

He said he stopped being a Dodger fan after Walt died, and that he really disliked Tommy Lasorda and stopped being a Dodger Fan after Tommy became manager.

Tommy's tenure ended when I was eight, and while he's obviously regarded as a local dodger hero, I've heard people that don't really care for him. but I cant really imagine why someone would disown their team because of one man..

Double from Inge brings in the tying run in Chicago, 1-1.

But to some, Tommy will always be brussel sprouts (which I also like now but didn't for the longest time).

Man, just READING that phrase exhausts me. I could NEVER be a parent.

If I had a baby I would put him in a sound-proof room at night, and then go sleep in my own sound-proof room just to be sure I couldn't hear him. No sound, no guilt. Because whatever happens, he's not going to DIE overnight. (Unless he was sick, then I wouldn't do this).

Its good that the Rams waited until the Cardinal season ended, otherwise firing their coach would have not have made the first page in tomorrow's paper.

Hmmm, okay, Tommy is a acquired taste like sushi, there are some who will never eat raw fish and others who think it is the ambrosia of the gods.

That is maybe the funniest comment I've seen on this board in some time, and I've seen some funny, funny comments.

"Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is a medical term that describes the sudden death of an infant which remains unexplained after all known and possible causes have been carefully ruled out through autopsy, death scene investigation, and review of the medical history. SIDS is responsible for more deaths than any other cause in childhood for babies one month to one year of age, claiming 150,000 victims in the United States in this generation alone - 7,000 babies each year -nearly one baby every hour of every day."

Held over for one more year!

I think it is safe to say that one's idea of parenting changes drastically when you have your own child. It would be hard to not check on your own baby. Whether or not you leave the baby there crying is one thing, but I think you would find it difficult to not check in from time to time.

Oh don't get me wrong, 281 is at best a violation of Rules 3 and 7, but still, just a joke.

I think.

Frip, help me out here. That was just a joke, yeah?

I'm actually going to call myself 15-time uncle* because one of my nieces already has 2 boys, and great nephews count!

271
TC, I have changed many a diaper in my day, but I was always fearful that I wouldn't have the diaper tight enough (afraid it would fall off) so I probably did more harm than good by restricting blood flow with my super tight diaper technique. :)

*I like to think of this the same way someone calls Oscar de la Hoya a 5-time world champion or something like that.

As for being critical of people's spelling and grammar, you are mistaken. If anything I am critical of those who get all flustered and self-conscious about such status signifying trivialities.

Er, Ryan Raburn.

Yeah, that's the guy.

I anticipate that day with dread, but I realize that I cannot stop its coming. I might as well shout "Stop!" at the tide.

This would be cool if the Twins/Sox can decide this between themselves two days after the season ended.

Does checking in on a child help prevent SIDS? The initial back-and-forth was regarding the question of whether or not one would leave a child alone overnight. I understand the unwillingness to do so. However, would checking in on an infant over the course of an evening prevent SIDS?

If not, would Frip's claim be so erroneous?

I promise: I will root for you in 2009. You are the official AL Central team of Humma Kavula. Accept no substitutes.

"Slow down!"

296
That is possible. I took them from a SIDS site and was astounded myself at the number. Tough being a parent these days. First you hope for a healthy baby, then you hope they survive the SIDS time, and then you have to hope they are not autistic. Then you get a break for 8 years before they hit the teens and after a few tough teen years, you hope you don't have a ...rule 5 violation...

As soon as I let the Tigers off the hook, they test my patience.

There is a debatable point mentioned above about reassuring them that mommy and daddy are still here. I've found that just causes them to freak out more and cause the process to restart.

I am losing interest in this one, leaving work, going to the gym. Go Tigers.

If it is the real young ones, I have no choice but to watch Hannah Montana.

Ever artistic idea with this franchise is terrible.

http://www.nba.com/thunder/

Is that really necessary? Can't you just tell your listeners that they're putting him on, let them know when he's been put on, and use the rest of your time to say something else or be quiet?

On another note, who's up for a bases-clearing WP followed by two throwing errors?

6-2 Sox on a GS by Alexi Ramirez.

There's your drama! Welcome to October two days early!

That said, watching the Tigers next year is going to be mighty disappointing if they can't improve the pen.

Are you heading to Chicago soon?

http://tinyurl.com/3zuvsr

My kids, under the influence of their mother, listen to John Mayer, Jack Johnson, Leona Lewis, et al. Under my influence, they listen to 80's alternative. Due to exposure with their friends, they like Queen and anything that comes from Guitar Hero.

She likes Ella Fitzgerald.

At least -- every Saturday night until I discovered that my parents wouldn't get too mad if I watched Saturday Night Live.

http://www.drdemento.com/

I will also say that at one point I decided to memorize "New Math" after taping it off of Dr. Demento. Mrs. Kavula is a lovely and patient woman, but nothing gets her hotter than me saying, "You can't take three from two, two is less than three, so you look at the four in the tens place..."

I mean, we were at Chuck E. Cheese yesterday. We are not role models.

And you know why four plus minus one plus ten is fourteen minus one....

....'cause addition is commutative! Right!...

..so now that's fourteen tens and you take away seven and that leaves five....

Good deal for the Cards, outside of the no trade clause. I'd think Lohse could have gotten an extra 5 million at least if he signed with another team.

http://rotoworld.com/content/playernews.aspx?sport=MLB

Good deal for the Cards, outside of the no trade clause. I'd think Lohse could have gotten an extra 5 million at least if he signed with another team.

http://rotoworld.com/content/playernews.aspx?sport=MLB

Conference...?

There's nothing wrong with going to Chuck E. Cheese! After two days, the tinnitus you get is so constant you'll hardly notice it.

Do you like conferences? I'm still in the stage of my "career" where I really like them. It's fun to go to different cities and see people that I haven't seen in a year and go to sessions where I learn about other people's research.

True. And in your case, it's not like you can bring them all with you...

Are you presenting?

But man does he have some great plumage.

I love McDonald's unquantifiable ERA+, but lets be realistic, the guy got lucky in a couple of his outings that he didn't give up a run. His outfielders saved his butt a couple of times(And that what they should do.) But McDonald wouldn't be necessarily be a better option over Park this year. Next year? Most likely, but not this year.

Not.

He's got range!

http://www.insidesocal.com/dodgers/2008/09/flying-really-s.html

---

Anybody know the name of the song in the Bud Light Lime commercial?

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3617200

Ugh.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I just found out Manny lives on my street.

Payroll amounts as of 4/1/08.

4. Boston Red Sox $133.4M
5. Chicago White Sox* $121.1M
6. LA Angels $119.2M
7. Chicago Cubs $118.5M
8. LA Dodgers $118.5M
13. Philadelphia Phillies $98.2M
15. Milwaukee Brewers $81.1M
24. Minnesota Twins* $62.1M
29. Tampa Bay Rays $43.8M

*Teams tied for AL Central Title, will play one game playoff in Chicago on Tuesday. This does not include any in-season roster moves. The Angels went up a bit, while the Dodgers may have changed only a little.

Who the heck can predict that?

Tim Kurkjian previews the Dodgers-Cub series.

Before (Manny) Ramirez arrived, the young Dodgers hitters were often undisciplined at the plate. Plus, said a club source, "they were more concerned about their statistics, not whether we won or lost the game.''

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3617255

454 - yeah, it's not like Black was making terrible decisions regarding the everyday line up or strategic moves during the course of games. I was surprised, however, with how quickly the Padres fell off - I thought they had one more year to compete in the division before becoming who they are

...Kent is a glass half full guy? Really? Seriously?

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dodfyi30-2008sep30,0,4533314.story

>>The Dodgers have two nights in this party town with nothing to do before Game 1 of the National League Division Series, but don't worry about Joe Beimel. He's placing himself under protective custody.

"First, I'm going to buy a straightjacket and chain myself to the bed and hang out," he said. "I'll watch a few movies. I'm not going to take any chances of something stupid happening."<<

On the other hand, Peter Gammons picks the Doggies.

Tony Jackson does a Kuroda story.

Also, everyone channel the reverse lock theory. A LOT of people are picking the Cubs. I believe that means the pressure falls on the Cubs. That and 100 years. 100 years

in 2008?

In 1932, the Cubs fired Hornsby in mid-season again and he was operating as a player-manager, although he didn't play much. And nobody liked him.

Don Kessinger was player-manager for the 1979 White Sox and he was replaced by Tony La Russa during the season.

So Taguchi and Yadier Molina restored my faith in humanity.

http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/the-dodgers-have-the-best-offense-of-any-nl-playoff-team/

It's not how you start, but how you finish. People saying the Dodgers will get clobbered simply haven't been watching them play for the last month.

Check out these September #'s:

D. Lee: 7R 2HR 13RBI .353OBP .435SLG
Aramis: 12R 3HR 12RBI .359OBP .518SLG

Manny: 20R 10HR 30RBI .491OBP .828SLG
Ethier: 20R 3HR 20RBI .523OBP .682SLG

What if they got Beltre back... at lower than his last absurd rate? Good defensive infield with Beltre, Hu/Berroa, DeWitt and Loney with Nomar as the fill-in.

Derek Lowe: 4W 21K 0.50ERA 4QS
vs.

Ryan Dempster: 2W 27K 3.00ERA 3QS

Billingsley: 4W 30K 3.09ERA 4QS
vs.
Zambrano: 1W 16K 7.08ERA 1QS

Hiro Kuroda: 2W 18K 2.96ERA 2QS
vs.

Rich Harden: 1W 14K 2.65ERA 2QS

Lowe and Billingsley have pitched better down the stretch than Dempster and Zambrano, respectively. Kuroda and Harden have similar numbers. To say the Cubs rotation is far and away better is a bit much.

As for the pitching matchups, I think Harden is the big key. Zambrano's mechanics are crap right now and I dont think he will give the Cubs a solid start. i'm thinking we take the Zambrano game and go back to L.A 1-1. Harden in his last start was sitting in the mid-80's, which is far under what he usually throws. Who knows if he is hurt or just tired, but a less than 100% Harden is a huge advantage for the Dodgers. If Raffy can play the bulk of the series, my prediction is Dodgers in 4.

I'd rather be misunderestimated.

If they win 11 games, there will be plenty of time to present algorithms of inevitability.

The lineup we threw at him back in May at Wrigley was:

Pierre, Ethier, Martin, Kent, Sweeney, Kemp, DeWitt, Maza and Billingsley.

Replace Maza with Furcal, Sweeney with Loney, Pierre with Manny and Kent with Casey Blake.

Totally different team!

Carlos Zambrano is a giant wild card as he's looked just awful in his last two starts. Plus, he scratched himself from his final start because he wanted to throw in the bullpen rather than in a game. Zambrano threw an incredible game against Houston for his no-hitter but in doing so may have crippled the Cubs' chances at a title. We'll see but to me he's the key.

Rich Harden scares me as he is super good. But, he'll be facing 56,000 rabid Dodger fans as well.

Brian Sabean as the Seattle GM. We might find a place for JP yet.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/dodgers/la-sp-dodgers30-2008sep30,0,3138981.story

Tom Hoffarth writes the connection between Ken Levine and the Albuquerque Isotopes. (Ken Levine co-wrote the ep where the Isotopes were created way back in season two of the Simpsons.)

I also like the shelbyvillians hah..

Red Sox/Angels: Chip Carey, Buck Martinez and Craig Sagar.

Dodgers/Cubs: Dick Stockton, Ron Darling, Tony Gwynn and Tom Verducci.

Twins OR White Sox/Rays: Don Orsillo, Harold Reynolds and Marc Fein.

Brewers/Phillies: Brian Anderson, Joe Simpson, John Smoltz and David Aldridge

When the Dodgers signed up with their new AAA home, the former team packs up the players that they have rights to (anyone outside of minor league free agent) and their coaches, so that the Dodgers can start planning their 2009 AAA roster.

"Whatever fears I had about my elbow are gone," said Saito, who was out for two months with a sprained elbow ligament. "My mechanics are what I was worried about. I was wondering why it was taking so long for that to come around, but I think I'm where I have to be."

Though Torre made a concerted effort to get Saito ready to pitch the ninth inning in the playoffs, he hasn't said whether he would make Saito his closer again or whether he would stick with his replacement, Jonathan Broxton.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dodfyi30-2008sep30,0,4533314.story

Also, helps having the best player(s) in the world on your roster.

I had a dream that the Dodgers won 5-3 in Game 1 with Manny hitting 2 bombs.

Now I'm staring down the real possibility of not being able to watch game 1 or 2 'cause I'll be on a train back from Philly.

Hopefully I can expense it, but I'm not sure the explanation will hold up.