I really scratched my head when Griffin joined the Dodgers. I didn't scratch that much until the Dodgers acquired Juan Samuel. The thought of Juan Samuel makes me agitated.

Random Dodger game callback

June 6, 1940

The Brooklyn Dodgers kept up their hot start to the 1940 season with their fifth straight win, earning a series sweep over the Cardinals with a 9-5 win at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Dodgers were now 26-11 and 1 game behind leader Cincinnati. A crowd of 1,802 looked on.

Player manager Leo Durocher drove in three runs, an impressive total for the weak-hitting shortstop, who drove in only 14 all season. (Eventually, Durocher would realize that his best shortstop was a rookie from Kentucky named Pee Wee Reese.) Center fielder Dixie Walker homered and first baseman Dolph Camilli drove in two runs. Luke Hamlin picked up the win with help from reliever Newt Kimball.

The Cardinals got a home run from first baseman Johnny Mize who belted 43 for the Cardinals to lead the National League in 1940. Mize also led in RBI with 137. Cardinals manager Ray Blades, a shrewd judge of talent, had Mize batting seventh that day. Blades was fired by the Cardinals the next day. Blades would later be an interim manager for the Dodgers in 1947.

Six days after the game, the Cardinals sent outfielder Joe Medwick to Brooklyn along with pitcher Curt Davis in exchange for Ernie Koy, Carl Doyle, Sam Nahem, and Bert Haas. Medwick would hit 14 of his 17 home runs on the season for Brooklyn and soon became a fan favorite in Brooklyn.

Durocher had a good pitching staff, but had a hard time finding a rotation that stayed both healthy and effective. The Dodgers used 12 different starting pitchers. Whitlow Wyatt was the best of the bunch going 15-14 with a 3.46 ERA. In just 20 games, veteran Fred Fitzsimmons went 16-2 and 2.81.

After the sweep in St. Louis, the Dodgers headed to play the defending NL champion Reds at Crosley Field. The Dodgers could only manage a split of the four game set, including a 23-2 defeat. The Dodgers and Reds jockeyed back and forth for first, but the Reds went 20-8 in August to pull away and win the National League by 12 games over the Dodgers and the World Series over the Tigers in seven games.

The 1940 Dodgers were actually better on the road than at home. Brooklyn went 47-28 on the road and only 41-37 at home. The Dodgers also brought up rookie Pete Reiser in midseason, who would be a key player in 1941. One Dodger who got lucky in 1940 was seldom-used outfielder Jimmy Ripple. After playing just seven games with Brooklyn, the Dodgers sold Ripple for the waiver price to Cincinnati. Ripple managed to get into 32 games in the regular season for the Reds and then played in all seven games of the World Series and batted .333 with a homer and 6 RBI, patching up a hole that the Reds had in left field for most of the season.

Thanks to the New York Times, BaseballReference.com and Retrosheet

I was at that game and the ball landed about 6 rows in fornt of my uncle, cousin, and I in the LF pavilion. Since I was a smallish child, I thought Joey Hamilton must be an awesome player. After all, he hit a GW HR. I grew up, discovered Retrosheet, and realized that in the context of his career, it was probably the greatest thing he ever did on a baseball diamond.

SecAvg is: (TB - H + BB + SB - CS) / AB

vr, Xei

Best baseball town in America, huh? Maybe now, but apparently not then.

molokai, a lousy buck for a ticket? I'd never have thought of looking on E-bay for a ticket.

Molokai had a ten game losing streak beforelast night. Don't make us come looking for you, Molokai!

But the Cardinals only drew 324,000 in 1940.
The Dodgers had the highest attendance in the NL at 975,000.

The Yankees drew about 10,000 more and Detroit topped a million.

Depending upon when school let out, I realized that my mother might have been at that game. She was a "Knothole Gang" member for the Cardinals.
And I know she saw Johnny Mize play in St. Louis.

And then not again until 1967-68. And again in 1987, 1989, and 1999.

The Cardinals had the 6th best attendance in the NL last year.

1. Dodgers
2. Giants
3. Phillies
4. Cubs
5. Astros

Carrara at least has a track record of being respectable at times. Erickson is done. Carrara is just mostly done.

"No, Alan, you can't use a DH."

"Hey Jim, Choi can't play third base."

Repko is batting 2nd and playing RF.

Dmitri Young is going to be playing 1B instead of DH for Detroit.

Winner gets a copy of `The Ministers Quartet- Let Me Touch Him'.

For that level of softball, 5-0 is like 15-0.

If you're a fantasy player, I say invest in Travis Lee. He's next!

It is really weird watching the Angels play in Atlanta. It seems so out of place.

And he's good at getting hit by pitches.

The Miami Heat currently have the #1, 2 and 3 picks from the 1992 Draft on their roster. Believe this is the first and only time this has happened.

Reminiscent of the early 90s when Al Davis went nuts trying to sign every Heisman winner he could.

The all time leader (it was kept from 1980-1988) was Keith Hernandez.

The last GWRBI awarded in baseball was in Game 5 of the 1988 World Series. And its owner is none other than Mickey Hatcher.

Game 1 was Gibson of course
Game 2 was Stubbs
Game 3 was McGwire
Game 4 didn't have one. The Dodgers first runs scored on a passed ball.

As are the Tigers overall.

vamos azul! vamos a ganar!

I like that Vinny's not a homer the way so many announcers are, but come on...

Will Hee Seop eat meat tonight?

Another blown call? Well, the umpires made a hash of the Cards/Red Sox game today, and so it goes, with the umpires devolving into drooling zombies before our very eyes.

Speaking of meat, good to see the Rev. Horton Heat's outstanding "Eat Steak" getting some deerved recognition in a commercial. In a just universe, "Bales of Cocaine" will be next, reworked as "Bales of Rogaine," perhaps.

I just looked the quote up - Gibson said something like "I'm retiring to my family."

On Drew's triple, Steiner called it a home run at first.

Uh, I'll get back to you on your prize :)

He has zero walks in his last 44 plate appearances.

He has three or more at-bats in 11 of the last 16 games.

He's awesome.

Senor Kent esta en fuego. (Forgetting the accents).

Isn't "en fuego" a temporary condition? Like being happy or sad or sick?

A primal scream if I've ever seen one...

Well, we're hoping that from now on it will be a permanent part of Kent's nature and not a temporary thing.

I would endorse F-ing JT at the end of the season. Although he has points of excellence, his maddening managerial decisions do warrant action. He does not seem to get the point of DePodesta's team assembly philosophy. It's time for DePo to pick his own guy. But doing that now would put this season off course at minimum. And who knows, maybe Tracy can win it all this year and save his job. Last year, the sword of Damocles got our third baseman to hit 48 home runs. The prospect of a hanging concentrates the mind.

But the rest of the time, the writer calls them "los lupulosos"

I'm open for suggestions. It seems to always refer to teams from Milwaukee.

You're still talking about firing, right?

Or is everyone still too mad to comment?

They weren't.

He still has not touched third base.

What happened?

He once turned water into wine.

Milwaukee at +1.5 today paid -115 (lay 115 to win 100).

STL at -1.5 paid +135 (lay 100 to win 135).

I've never seen a X.5 for innings pitched. I do see it for hits/rbi's/runs all the time though.

I would've liked an insurance run or two, but we're ahead and Drew/Kent are up next inning.

Look, it must be tough for GMs with managers who manage away from the team philosophy. But maybe he could start leaving articles from Hardball Times under his office door anonymously. Someone could write a treatise on when to bunt and when not to, and it could accidentally on purpose wind up on Tracy's windshield.

Wow. The Brewers were favored to beat the Yankees?

Nope, they were dogs. +1.5 means they can lose by a run or win in order for the bet to cash in.

With bullpens blowing leads with regularity this year its sometimes beneficial to take the one run cushion.

But now I am.

I HATE IT! I have tickets, but I work until 6, so I will miss the excitement of seeing Jimmy Kimmel play softball.

When I was younger, Hollywood Stars Night drew people like Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau.

Now, they advertise Kevin and Bean.

This is not a McCourt thing. Or even a Fox thing. The game started its decline when Lasorda hitched his wagon to prime force of evil in the world:

TONY DANZA

I also have tickets, although I dodn't realize it was HS night.

I don't really care about the 'stars' at all, considering they include Jon Lovitz, but you get to walk onto the field to watch the softball game.

I think the chance to be on the field at DS would be totally awesome; to see what the stadium from a player's perspective is something I've never done.

Well, I'll just have to be content with Kobe not making the playoffs at all this season.

Nice escape, Derek!

Here's the list of luminaries:
Jimmy Kimmel - Jimmy Kimmel Live
Adam Carrolla - Jimmy Kimmel Live
Neal McDonough - Walking Tall, Minority Report, Medical Investigation
Sean Astin - Lord of the Rings
Mackenzie Astin - Facts of Life
Jesse Metcalfe - Desperate Housewives
John Silverman - Weekend at Bernies
Jen Finnigan - Crossing Jordan
Jon Lovitz - Saturday Night Live
Sarah Silverman - Comedian/Actress
Rob Schneider - Longest Yard
Carson Daly - Host, "Carson Daly Most Requested", former host, MTV TRL
Jeff Probst - Survivor host
Julie Berry - Survivor Vanuatu
Tony Todd - Little Big League
Michael Clarke Duncan - Daredevil, The Green Mile
Bryan Cranston - Malcolm in the Middle
Jennie Finch - USA Softball, ESPN
Michael Rosenbaum - Smallville
James Van Der Beek - Dawson's Creek
Tom Jane - *61, The Punisher, The Sweetest Thing, Dreamcatcher
Patrick Wayburton - Less Than Perfect, Seinfeld

From the Jimmy Kimmel Show:
Uncle Frank
Cousin Sal
Cleto Escobedo
Super Dave Osborne

Former Dodgers:
Ron Cey
Sweet Lou Johnson

Emcees:
Kevin - KROQ
Bean - KROQ
Money - KROQ

First Pitch:
Tyler Patrick Jones - Bad News Bears

Bat Girl:
Vanessa Lengies - American Dreams
Kate Linder - The Young and the Restless

What is so silly about having the pitcher bunt with a runner on second and no outs? Unless that hitter is Dontrell Willis, I'm pretty sure any manager would do this 99 times out of 100. It's not his fault Phillips is a menace on the bases.

As for yanking Lowe after 7 innings, that would be pretty stupid. He had only thrown 72 pitches and retired the last 10 in a row. Plus, Brazoban has pitched in 8 of the last 11 games so it would be nice to give him a rest when we can. I was hoping they would let Derek go the distance, but I guess the fans will get to hear some GnR next inning.

Really, if Lowe had made just a fewer lesss in the 8th I'd have let him go out to pitch the ninth too. This certainly isn't a clear cut case as we usually see.

Anyway, a pitching change by Detroit threated to set back this game's otherwise breakneck pace (in terms of time per inning)

And it's also Patrick Warburton.

Come visit me during the game. Blue Section 19, Row S.

I'll be the grumpy one.

lú·pu·lo
m. - hops

from
http://ar.education.yahoo.com/search/se?lb=e&p=num%3As14169

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!

I don't mind being made fun of at all, but you make no sense.

Who are the starting pitchers? We need an over/under from Xei and some comparative VORC (Value Over Replacement Celebrity) analysis.

I can see that with anyone but the pitcher up, but what can you really expect from him? Yeah he got a little bloop single, but more often than not he would strike out or hit a little dribbler that would not advance the runner. This late in the game I think you go for the one insurance run, assuming that Izzy would be able to score the runner some way.

I can't imagine why you would save Gagne for save situations, then not use him when they come up.

It was pretty brutal. Erstad knew he was gonna be out by a mile so he prepared for the collision about 10 feet up the line. The ball came low and to Estrada's right so he didn't really see the hit coming. Erstad basically form tackled Estrada and his neck got a big whiplash. He might have been concussed, but that's about it.

It was pretty brutal. Erstad knew he was gonna be out by a mile so he prepared for the collision about 10 feet up the line. The ball came low and to Estrada's right so he didn't really see the hit coming. Erstad basically form tackled Estrada and his neck got a big whiplash. He might have been concussed, but that's about it.

And his brother is a hobbit.

And is down with the LBC.

(1) Phillips isn't fast enough to score from 3rd on an Izturis fly ball, since he generally doesn't hit them that deep

(2) Phillips isn't fast enough to score from 3rd on an Izturis ground ball.

(3) Lowe has a good chance of getting a hit - he actually got one, but this is unlikely amd should not be the basis of strategy.

Either way, it's pretty speculative.

I'm the Sam that bags on Choi. I don't hate him really. I just think it's funny that no matter what he does, people on this site continue to back him and blame everything except Choi for being so bad.

Sam confuses Jim Tracy with Barry Bonds.

McKenzie Astin will always be remembered for his touching portrayal of eternal youth in "The Facts of Life"

Why shouldn't one back a player one thinks is good? How is he a bad player? Seriously? He gets on base, he hits for power, and he does it for under $400,000. He slumps, which makes him like just about every other player in baseball. And he gets the quickest hook of any Dodger position player. So why shouldn't people back him?

You preach faith in Tracy through thick and thin - a perfectly legitimate position to take. Why are you so surprised that Choi earns the same respect?

There are many who find the image of LoDuca hitting for zero power in a Marlin uniform akin to watching one's former significant other go to the prom with someone else.

Hey Xei, I posted a summary of one of the articles you were interested in on the Jim Tracy thread.

Maybe if he was under-sized and phyically challanged, he'd be playing more regularly.

Choi is an easy target because he's slumping so badly but the next HR he hits; I suspect that the bandwagon will fill up

Again, if it's illegal in football, I find it beyond the pale in baseball. Football is all about hard-hitting contact, after all, none of those guys are wimps, but there are still some rules to protect the players. The days of beating up the QB on every single play are long gone.

i think he said once he like guys that remind him of himself

Perhaps he's bitter for never having a manager who gave him the chance to exhibit his scrap factor.

Big, strong guys like Choi are the types who kept Trace from his dream of big-league success, and he's not going to let the same thing happen to Oscar Robles if he can help it.

That's my conspiracy theory for the evening.

5.2 IP; 9 Hs; 8 Rs; 8 ERs; 4 BBs; 2 Ks; 3 HRs

My suggestion would be to either move him down to Jacksonville to find his groove or trade him, as he's certainly not close to ready to pitch in the majors.

I know my position on Choi irks people, but look at the facts:

His batting average as a Dodger is under .240.

His OBP this year is now at .327.

He is averaging one home run every 23 at bats.

He hasn't drawn a walk since May 15.

He's gotten three at-bats or more in 12 of the last 16 games. He's getting a chance to play.

This has nothing to do with age either, because Werth established himself in sporadic playing time last year. And it's not about money because Saenz makes $650K and people have an aneurysm every time he's in instead of Choi. This even though Saenz gets on base more often and has more home runs in fewer at-bats.

The distinction between Choi and Tracy is one of results. I have reasons to back Tracy. Specific and articuable reasons. What reason is there to back Choi? What has he done to justify the faith?

Champion of Choi, you've made my Works Cited list.

I really think they need to send him back down to Jacksonville. It can't help his confidence having to pitch in all those hitters parks. It's not like he'll be too old for the league either, isn't he still only 21?

Here is what they have:
Los Angeles Dodgers
1S---40---Tyler Herron, RHP, Wellington, FL HS
2---51---Vance Worley, RHP, McClatchy HS, Sacramento CA
2---74---Jeff Lyman, RHP, Monte Visa HS, Alamo CA
3---106---Scott Van Slyke, OF, St. Louis Missouri HS
4---136---Ryan DeLaughter, OF, Corinth Texas HS
5---166---David DiNatale, OF, Stoneman Douglas HS, Parkland FL

And, I have to know, is Scott Van Slyke the son of Andy? He did start his career in St. Louis.

I'm sorry, but I don't think you know what circular logic is. Kent had nothing to do with what I was saying.
The argument for Choi was that he hits for power and gets on base. The numbers show otherwise. The argument is that he needs more at-bats, but he's getting at-bats. The argument is that he needs to play more regularly, but he has started 12 of the last sixteen games. Please let me know how I am using circular logic.

230 -- I think you misunderstand. Those of us who worship at the altar of Choi (though like any good ecumenical, I invited Saenzian teachings into my worship) practice nothing but faith. Faith is the belief in things one cannot see. Sometimes it's blind. Combine it with hope, and you have a deadly mixture.

Choi's 2004 OPS was the same as Werth's: .819 vs. .824.

Choi has had positive results wherever he has played. His success at this stage of his career, his first 3 seasons plus two months, is comparable with Tracy's first three seasons plus two months. Good years with slumps, with still more to shoot for. The main difference is that Tracy didn't get injured or traded.

It's late on the East Coast. Gauging from the vague hostility in your posts today, I assume you've had a rough one. You're lashing out and projecting your own insecurities onto Choi.

Take a breath and call it a day, bro.

Just admit you don't know what circular logic is. ;) Then I'll go to bed.

His batting average as a Dodger is under .240 (ranked 16th, ahead of LaRoche, Thome, and Mientkiewicz)

His OBP this year is now at .327 (ranked 15th, ahead of LaRoche, Nevin, Mientkiewicz, and Tracy)

His Slugging this is year is at .417 (ranked 14th, ahead of Helton, Bagwell, Snow, Mientkiewicz, and Thome)

He is averaging one home run every 23 at bats (ranked 13th, ahead of Overbay, Mientkiewicz, Nevin, Johnson, Tracy, Bagwell, Helton, Thome, Snow, and Casey)

His stats this year are essentially equivalent to Adam LaRoche, who is only 6 months younger, and gets a lot more props:

LaRoche (25): .242/.313/.446
LaRoche (career): .266/.327/.470
Choi (26): .245/.327/.417
Choi (career): .237/.352/.428

I just don't see what's not to like about a young player who's contributing a positive VORP and under team control for another 3 years.

How often do you think Choi should play?

And if he goes into a prolongued nasty slump, should he be pulled back?

I'm seriously asking, no rhetoric here.

RE: HS and College draftees:

I read Jany Jazayerli's recent pieces on the draft too and found them intersting, but it got me thinking that the relative value of HS and college picks is not the same for each team.

Let's assume that the values of college players are relatively well-known because of their larger performance record against superior competition. Thus, a pro team's scouting dept can make an evaluation based on a large amount of data and select which players they want the scouts to take a closer look at.

Let's also assume that ML-quality HS players are more difficult to identify because they play fewer games against inferior talent and the larger database of performance history isn't available. In these cases, scouting plays a much larger role in picking who the top players are, especially beyond the first or second round of the draft.

Thusly, if a pro team felt it has generally better scouts than the other teams, it might be able to glean a competitive advantage by selecting the best HS prospoects from an otherwise unremarkable pool of similar players. A team without much faith in its scouts might want to stick more to college players.

Much has been made about the relative value of HS and college players recently, but all the data I've seen has been broken down into large decade-wide aggregate chunks. It would interest me to see how successful different teams are at identifying and developing HS talent above a baseline.

RE: Erstad. Estrada blocking the plate as an excuse is hogwash. There was more than enough room for Erstad to do a sweep slide. He made up his mind rounding third that he would go in hard. I know it is a legal play, but I can't believe that he is getting a free pass on this. Imagine if our boy Milton did it.

RE: Edwin. If we traded him right now wouldn't we be selling pretty low? I can't imagine that his poor performance for the past year would simply be overlooked, even though he is still a high prospect. Send him to Jax. And on that note, why the heck isn't Laroche in Jax yet?

First, Bagwell and Thome have been hurt so I don't think it's right to include them. But anyway, it seems like you're saying that it's good that the Dodgers have the 13th best first baseman in the league. It also seems that you're saying that Mientkiewicz stinks. Man, what lousy numbers!

Well, there's no denying that Saenz has been hot. I guess I'm someone who is skeptical that it will last, but I guess you can ride that horse for a while, especially against lefties. But basically, I don't think it will be long before Saenz comes back to earth, to his solid but unspectacular 2004 level, and Choi should then get the bulk of those at-bats.

So if you're not opposed to the Choi/Saenz platoon, how is Choi not getting enough at-bats? Again, asking.

All professionals go through prolonged slumps. For a prime example take a look at Kent's numbers in May (.200/.241/.330 in 100 ABs, 39 less than Choi has had all season). Choi has a very long track record of success in the majors (.236/.351/.426 in 734 ABs) and in the minors. If Choi were to OPS below .700 for 200 ABs or so, I would be concerned. But if he continues to produce at or above his current season averages, I'm happy.

The second paragraph, that's where you lose me. How are those numbers a very long track record of success?

255 -- if a player is hot, why sit hit him in favor of one who is slumping?

http://espn.go.com/page2/s/hottest/female/finals.html

E Jackson can't be that bad. He must be injured but won't admit it.

Always excited about the draft but we have no 1st round pick this year and because Seattle was so bad we don't even get their plum pick but a damn supplemental. I love what Logan White has done but before we annoit him into Dodger sainthood, some of his picks have to actually pan out. Being a good minor league prospect doesn't mean squat until something happens at the big league level.

I like Choi but I see no reason to bench our hottest hitter(before Kent went off) until he cools off. He's been hitting right and left handed pitching during this hot stretch. Choi will get plenty of chances after Saenz cools off.