Dodger Thoughts, July 19:

In an interview with NBCSports.com this morning, I was asked which Dodger was most likely to have a big stretch run. And I thought, there's Russell Martin, but you'd expect him to taper a bit under his workload by season's end. There's Rafael Furcal, but we don't know whether his ankle will allow it. There's Nomar Garciaparra, who is too due. There's Matt Kemp and James Loney and Andre Ethier, but they're already doing so well that it's almost impossible for them to kick it up a notch.

And my thoughts turned to the pitcher who struggled to get through five innings Wednesday: the one and only Chad Billingsley. He's young but improving. Overall, he's not overworked – in the season's first 95 games, he has thrown 65 2/3 innings and 1,145 pitches. And the closer we get to the end of the season, the more he is going to face NL West teams whose strengths are mostly on the mound and not with the bat.

Not to dismiss the importance of averaging five innings per start as opposed to fewer, but Billingsley is not reliable now. So stipulated. But something more than wishin' and hopin' tells me that he's going to start seeming reliable before the season's out. He's learning, and the difference between him and the likes of Brett Tomko and Mark Hendrickson is, at age 22 23/24ths, Billingsley is already ahead of the curve.

* * *

From my vantage point at Saturday's meaningless game, thanks to great seats passed to me by Dodger Thoughts commenter LAT, Andy LaRoche looked agile at third, and Matt Kemp hustled. Call me crazy.

The crowd seemed like it was ready to fall in love with Chin-Lung Hu. He wins people over: first with his name, then with his game.

* * *

There is no tomorrow:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

* * *

NL Smackdown

Marlins at Mets

Nationals at Phillies

Padres at Brewers

Diamondbacks at Rockies

89-72 Padres
88-73 Mets
88-73 Phillies
88-73 Rockies

The James Loney '84

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

I've decided to go with the apostrophe in the headline this year, although it's legit with or without.

From September 25, 2005:

The last two Dodger games I have attended, a loss and now today's victory, have been the two most pleasant I've been to all season. Both came after the team's sub-.500 status was assured, a condition that seems to have weeded out the high expecters (expectants? expectationers?) who would only be satisfied by a victory. The best that people hope for now is that a baseball game be played. That's all. Throw the first pitch and we've already won. The Dodgers of September 2005 offer no other guarantees, and so we find ourselves at the major league equivalent of Little League, where it's a celebration when someone doesn't fall on his head and it's considered poor form to rain criticism or curb hope. Call it the Losers Dividend. It's a very relaxing, freeing payoff (abetted by the ease of ingress and egress to Dodger Stadium that the smaller crowds provide), enough to make one up and move to Kansas City or Tampa Bay so this can be reinvested and experienced permanently.

There were a couple of people who violated the spirit of the day. They both seem like nice enough people on the outside and seem to not lack for friends, but still they thumbed their portfolios at the Losers Dividend. One was the chap sitting two seats away from me, who couldn't find any redeeming aspect in what lay before him and almost from the opening pitch was trying to hurry the game along so he could get home to barbecue. For those who have criticized Jim Tracy for benching Hee Seop Choi and for those who have criticized Choi's acquisition, you might find it interesting that this fan had no kind words for either. Choi does "nothing" as a player, and Tracy is the worst manager in baseball, according to this fan. Again, his delivery was easygoing and he struck me as the first guy who would help you change a tire if you were stuck on the side of the road, but for today's game, he packed a full kit of contempt. And you just wanted him to let go a little bit like the rest of us, and take the opportunity to let baseball be baseball.

The other spurner was Tracy. With two on and two out in the sixth inning today in a 2-2 tie, Choi stood in the on-deck circle with Willy Aybar at the plate. As Aybar inched closer to a walk, it occured to myself and others that Choi could have the game's make-or-break at-bat. It also occured to us that with a lefthander on the mound, Tracy might pinch-hit for Choi, even though it would be the perfect opportunity in this meaningless game, during a part of the season that Tracy himself has said he's putting people like Brian Myrow in situations to gain information for 2006, to give Choi a key at-bat against a southpaw. A perfect Little League moment.

Aybar walked to load the bases, and Choi took a couple steps toward home plate. Sitting (thanks - seriously, thanks - to some generous seats from an anonymous Dodger Thoughts reader) in the lower part of the Field Level, I could see and hear Tracy yell at Choi to come back. Either Choi had not gotten an earlier message, or Tracy did not counsel Choi that he wouldn't bat against a lefty with the bases loaded. It added insult to insult. Either way, as Tracy sent Jason Phillips up to pinch-hit, it caused me to have my one bad moment of the game and yell at Tracy like I was the protective father of the 10-year-old Choi. This was not what the game was supposed to be about.

My reaction sprung from the assumption that this was a time for the kids, a time to get a glimpse of the future in the present. Upon reflection, I realized that maybe Tracy was Little Leaguing it after all, that he was trying to get as many guys in the game as possible and this was his best spot for Phillips, who in fact hasn't played much lately. No one thinks Phillips has much more of a future in Los Angeles, but of course, perhaps Choi doesn't either. So I'm going to grudgingly, very grudgingly, let Tracy off the hook on this one. And it has nothing to do with Phillips getting a single that keyed the Dodgers' six-run inning. I think it was objectively the wrong move for the organization and personally disappointing, but Phillips is a human being too. I'm not going to stay mad. That would be my waste of the Dividend.

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

U.S. soccer goalie Hope Solo is rational but brash. If you've been following the Dodgers over the past week, you know where that's getting her.

From Philip Hersh of the Chicago Tribune:

Solo, making her World Cup debut, started the first four games of the tournament, allowing two goals in the first 62 minutes and none in the next 298. But Ryan chose Cup veteran Scurry as goalie for the semifinal based on past performances against Brazil in big games, especially the 2004 Olympic final.

"And you can't live by big names. You can't live in the past. It doesn't matter what somebody did in an Olympic gold medal game in the Olympics three years ago. Now is what matters, and that's what I think."

It's Jeff Kent's instigational outspokenness - in a young player! Look out below.

While U.S. women's soccer team coach Greg Ryan admitted that "in hindsight, you can say maybe the easier decision was to do it the other way," that doesn't mean there won't be punishment for the goalie's Sololoquy.

Speaking today at a Shanghai hotel, Ryan made it clear, by implication if not point-blank, that Solo's statements may have cost her not only a start in Sunday's third-place game against Norway but likely jeopardized her status as the U.S. goalie of the future.

Ryan, who became head coach in 2005, said reconciliation is possible if "both parties are sincere." He added, in a hardly veiled threat, "One of the great strengths of American teams is the talent pool of our goaltenders."

Coach made the wrong decision, frustration should have been handled in-house, tensions rise after embarrassing loss, yada yada yada, can't everyone just be smarter next time?

Update: via Bob Timmermann, Solo's apology ... and this Jemele Hill ESPN.com commentary that begins thusly:

U.S. women's soccer coach Greg Ryan has pulled off quite a hat trick. His boneheaded decision to bench young goalkeeper Hope Solo for veteran Briana Scurry torpedoed the United States' bid for a third World Cup, ruined Scurry's legacy and created an unnecessary controversy.

Way to go, coach. Even Grady Little is wondering what on earth you were thinking.

I originally titled this post "The Youth Movement Fights Back," but perhaps that isn't the best terminology. After all, those of us defending the kids aren't doing so simply because they're young, but because they happen to represent a great chance at building a winning team. It's more like, "Rationality Fights Back."

In any case, in the Times today, Grady Little takes the pro-youth platform ...

"We know the course we're on and we're going to stay the course," Little said of the Dodgers' commitment to youth. "The course they've been taking since they won a World Series here in 1988 is not working. This course we're on right now, we're going to try to make it work."

... while Ross Newhan graces us with this (forgive the unusually long excerpt):

Didn't the younger players basically try to carry the Dodgers down the stretch, such as it was?

I say, forget this semi-youth movement and officially make it full-fledged.

All-time Los Angeles Dodger Single-Season leaders in OPS+
Minimum Plate Appearances: 1 Roy Gleason (1963), 769

Minimum Plate Appearances: 2-4 John Hale (1974), 540

Minimum Plate Appearances: 3-8 Pedro Guerrero (1978), 317

Minimum Plate Appearances: 9 Darren Fletcher (1989), 308

Minimum Plate Appearances: 10-14 Cody Ross (2006), 301

Minimum Plate Appearances: 15-17 Tim Bogar (2001), 233

Minimum Plate Appearances: 18-24 Delwyn Young (2007), 213 through Wednesday

Minimum Plate Appearances: 25-73 Marlon Anderson (2006), 207

Minimum Plate Appearances: 74-156 Rick Monday (1981), 196

Minimum Plate Appearances: 157-633 Mike Piazza (1997), 186

Minimum Plate Appearances: 634-657 Adrian Beltre (2004), 163

Minimum Plate Appearances: 658-701 Shawn Green (2001), 155

Minimum Plate Appearances: 702-711 Tommy Davis (1962), 148

Minimum Plate Appearances: 712-714 Shawn Green (2000), 118

Minimum Plate Appearances: 715-730 Brett Butler (1991), 114

Minimum Plate Appearances: 731-736 Rafael Furcal (2006), 107

Minimum Plate Appearances: 737 and up Maury Wills (1962), 99

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

In this kidney stone of a September, let's all take a moment and thank our lucky stars for Russell Martin, winner of the Dodgers' Roy Campanella Award for Most Inspirational Player.

Thanks for everything, Russell.

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Today, I read yet another column scapegoating one of the team's most valuable position players, Matt Kemp, for the Dodgers' fall into fourth place - and going on to suggest that he could be traded, maybe should be traded.

The player is being criticized for a bad attitude, even though he is surrounded by veterans with bad attitudes. Different kinds of bad attitudes, perhaps, but bad attitudes nevertheless.

The player is being critcized for speaking out in the press, even though he did so in response to veterans speaking out in the press.

The player is being criticized for on-field mistakes, even though veterans have repeatedly made the same on-field mistakes.

The player is being criticized for perhaps not being willing to learn, even though the veteran that started this whole thing has been one of the most irascible, stubborn people in baseball, whose baserunning in the past two seasons indicates that he hasn't learned nearly as much as he wants us to think.

Headline from inside today's Daily Irony: Sweeney hopes to stay on as a voice of experience

Yes, Mark Sweeney. The veteran who made the single dumbest baserunning mistake of the year.

I have had it with the utter stupidity that has come out of the Dodger clubhouse and local papers this past week.

Bill Plaschke writes that Kemp's "power and speed have been negated by silly at-bats and baserunning mistakes."

Negated?? Are you serious??

The silly at-bats have already been factored into his on-base percentage and slugging percentage, which currently stand at .364 and .509. Yes, those are the numbers of the irresponsible Kemp.

The baserunning mistakes? What have there been, five? Ten? Let's say the latter. Instead of 198 outs in 294 plate appearances, give Kemp 208 outs in 294 plate appearances. Wow, what a change.

Negated???

Is third-base coach Rich Donnelly going to be traded in response to the baserunning mistakes on his watch?

Mustering the resilience to read to the end of Plaschke's column, I found that the nuance of the suggestion is that Kemp be traded for a veteran in his prime that won't be worried about losing his playing time to Kemp and therefore won't be resistant to mentoring him. Brilliant idea - except the guy you're worried about mentoring won't be around anymore.

Here's an idea that apparently isn't good enough for the papers: Why not have the manager and coaches do the damn mentoring? Seriously, what else are they there for? If Grady Little and the coaching staff are too weak to do it, then bring in a drill seargent. Hell, bring in Lou Gossett, Jr. and have him go all Sgt. Foley on Kemp.

Apparently not. Apparently, I'm left to understand that the young brats in the Dodger clubhouse won't heed anyone currently in the Dodger organization, but will pay attention to some 28-year-old, $14 million-earning All-Star to be named later? Apparently, this isn't Plaschke's idea, it's the Dodgers' (though none of Plaschke's sources for it are named).

This is our plan for the future?

Look, I get that every player has his price. There are people out there better than Kemp, and if you can get one of them and keep him, that's great. But that's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about a fundamental misunderstanding of what has happened to the Dodgers this year.

Throw the babies out with the bathwater. That's the operating strategy that has been suggested over the past week. Amazing.

* * *

On Tuesday's pregame show, Rick Monday spent five minutes interviewing Rich Donnelly, with both agreeing that chemistry is overrated and winning takes care of it all.

Donnelly says he believes in "team math" over "team chemistry" - in other words, "the math of a three-run home run."

Today in the Times, Dylan Hernandez writes that according to Little, "results were responsible for the revelation of clubhouse tensions."

"I think every team has them," Little told Hernandez. "We had them last year. We made it to postseason. We had them this year. We didn't make it to postseason. You don't hear about a lot of things when you're able to win and you win through them. When you lose, as a result, then they start getting blown away."

The Dodgers know that tales of bad chemistry are the effect, not the cause, of the team's losing. So why are so many pretending otherwise?

* * *

More fun quotes: It's gotten so bad, this almost qualifies as comic relief. From Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise:

"The way (Russell Martin) plays, he's bound to be hurt sometime."

- Mike Lieberthal

* * *

Update: The following is from former Dodger Dave Stewart, now an agent:

The fact is there are veterans on (the Dodgers) who played adequate at best all season long. They're a year too late and on their way down. Penny's the only veteran starting pitcher the Dodgers could count on. Lowe has more losses than wins, Wolf and Schmidt got injured, and Hendrickson, and Tomko pitched poorly with ERAs of 5.26 and 5.80 respectively. Chad Billingsley on the other hand, who entered the league last season, has been their stopper since he's been in the rotation. Andre Ethier, who also started playing in the big leagues last year, has been a stabling point for them in the outfield. Another young guy, James Loney, has been nothing but good when they've played him. Relief pitcher, Jonathan Broxton, has only pitched 170 career innings so far, but has been very solid this year (80IP, 2.93ERA, 96K, 1.16WHIP). And, this may only be Russell Martin's second season in the majors, but he's already made an All-Star team (.299BA, 18HR, 85RBI, 85R, 21SB). If anything, the Dodgers have waited too long to play their young guys more.

Bottom line... I think the way Kent handled this whole situation is complete garbage. I wasn't in that clubhouse, but chances are he didn't say a damn thing all year long and waited until they got eliminated to criticize and cry like a baby. If you have concerns speak up. Don't wait until September to let your frustration come to a head. Furthermore, if a veteran player doesn't want to play a leadership role, that's obviously their choice. However, if you don't want to be a leader then you need to shut up.

* * *

Update 2: Check out our heroine, Dodger Thoughts reader Molly Knight of ESPN.com, guesting at the Kamenetzky brothers' Blue Notes.

The last time the Dodgers took the field at home, they were serious National League wild-card contenders. Now, the playoffs merely represent the art of the barely possible.

The rookies are under the microscope more than ever from the media's standpoint. Strange, isn't it? Though the season is all but over, though the kids have by numerous measures excelled this season, though they actually deserve the benefit of the doubt because they have the time and ability to improve, the opposite is the case.

Dodger fans, I suspect, are mostly of a different mind. There will be those who only recognize the most recognizable, and will be disappointed to see tonight's lineup missing Nomar Garciaparra, Rafael Furcal and Luis Gonzalez. But more and more people have been exposed to Matt Kemp, James Loney, Russell Martin and friends, and are tantalized by how close the organization is to recreating the mostly homegrown champs of the 1970s and 1980s.

Everyone needs to do their best on the field. That's really the only message that needed to be sent to any player, young and old, in the tumultuous past week. Just do your best on the field. Management needs help, but it doesn't really need the players' help.

There are going to be some big decisions coming up for the Dodgers this offseason. Shortsightedness will be a killer.

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Danny McDevitt, who pitched the last game at Ebbets Field for the Dodgers and threw a shutout, gets profiled today in the Times by Jerry Crowe:

When the Dodgers played their final game in Brooklyn, on a Tuesday evening 50 years ago Monday, the sadness enshrouding Ebbets Field was so impenetrable that not even a five-hit shutout by Danny McDevitt could shake it.

McDevitt, a little-known rookie left-hander on a team littered with name stars such as Pee Wee Reese, Duke Snider, Roy Campanella and Gil Hodges, says he had no idea that game would be the Dodgers' Brooklyn swan song. This may explain how McDevitt, who had made his major league debut only three months earlier, effectively maintained his composure on a gloomy Sept. 24, 1957, pitching the Dodgers to a 2-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates in front of 6,702. ...

Crowe's story goes on to note that McDevitt later directed anti-poverty programs in the Mississippi Delta and Mobile, Alabama, at one point living next to Byron De La Beckwith, who was later convicted in the Medgar Evers murder.

"I'm helping these black kids down there and he's my neighbor," McDevitt says of the Klansman. "I used to go to the backyard and he'd make these wax bullets for his .45. I could outshoot him, so he knew that I was dangerous."

* * *

Though not about baseball, this Times article breaking down the post-injury treatment of Buffalo Bills tight end Kevin Everett, whose life and limbs were in jeopardy following a tackle, might fascinate you as much as it did me. The prognosis for Everett (quadriplegia, breathing from a ventilator) has flipped about 180 degrees, and the medical world is trying to discern what conclusions, if any, it can draw from Everett's treatment. (It helps to have the very best, very quickly - that's for sure.)

Crazy Internet.

T.J. Simers is lecturing the Dodgers and their fans about behavior and respect.

T.J. Simers.

* * *

Here's my latest tour of the National League West at SI.com's Fungoes.

Also, Dodger Thoughts reader Erin Wilson has a new blog going: Blue Thoughts, though she says she will soon change the name because the blog's scope has expanded beyond the Dodgers.

* * *

The California Parks Foundation is having a charity online auction on September 27th and one of the items is a Dodger fan package including box seats to a game. Proceeds will help to protect and preserve California's state parks, but bidders do not have to live in California to bid.

* * *

Update: Mark Whicker of the Register strikes a blow for sanity:

The fact that they're 22-29 since then is a disaster that James Loney, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Russell Martin and Chad Billingsley have done their best to prevent.

It's simple self-preservation. Generally, players get more selfish the older they get and the more often they're traded. Bringing in the Wise Old Veteran only works if the WOV can still play. If he can't, he starts politicking for more innings and that one final contract. You could heat the Yukon with all the deadwood that lives in the Dodgers' room.

It does not make sense to blame a youth movement for a team's troubles:

Happy birthday to my darling girl.

* * *

Tonight's 6:40 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Music by Diamond Leung, Al Balderas, Tony Jackson, Dylan Hernandez and T.J. Simers

Lyrics by Grady Little, Ned Colletti, James Loney, Matt Kemp and Jeff Kent

Call Me Responsible
Everyone has their share of responsibility
I certainly do as the manager
I'm the one who makes the lineups.
I'm the one who pushes the buttons
And waits to see
If it's the right or wrong button
I'm as much responsible as any player we got out there.
I accept all responsibility
I did the best I could
But if I was a fan
I wouldn't blame them for being really upset
What with all the expectations here coming into this season
I think the lineup will be a little bit different this last week of the season

Losing Is For Losers
I know how much Jeff Kent
Wants to win
And hates to lose

Is there any sense of loss?
They don't get it.
There's no sense of failure in here

The Kids Are Alright
So basically the young guys don't want to win the game?
We're busting our (behinds)
We're used to winning
And we're not used to losing (in the minors)
If you want to put the blame on the younger guys
I guess you have someone to put the blame on

Having fun is part of the game
If you came up here
And you were serious all the time
That's not fun.
Joking with your boys, that's fun
It helps you relax
You don't have to think of all the pressures
You think of just having fun
But we've been serious when we get between the white lines

Call Me Responsible (Interlude)
Everyone's got a piece of this
Including me (said the general manager)

Marriage
The results have put
A lot of people on edge
People are bound to speak out
People are bound to be
Frustrated

(Building cohesion) has been something
That in some ways could've been better
We'll do our best for it to be better
The next time the situation comes up
But I don't foresee it coming up like this in my life-
Time

Reprise
I think the lineup will be a little bit different this last week of the season I think the lineup will be a little bit different this last week of the season I think the lineup will be a little bit different this last week of the season I think the lineup will be a little bit different this last week of the season

Tonight's 6:40 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Okay, I've read Bill Plaschke's Times column on the Jeff Kent quotes three times. And as put off as I was by the way it began, it is worth some scrutiny.

It starts off by saying:

This youth movement has officially gotten old.

I thought it would work, I really did, but I admit today that I am wrong.

Right away, you think you know what the column is going to argue. But then, on the third read, I finally focused on a paragraph I was glossing over.

A youth movement works only when the veterans are flexible enough to move. The Dodgers veterans, it turns out, were not.

To me, despite everything else in the column, this means Plaschke is not blaming the youth movement itself. If you read the whole column, he blames - it's hard to say really. Everybody? He seems to be reassert that the team's direction was correct, but within that framework, everyone could have handled things better. And that's a reasonable hypothesis.

Plaschke goes on to assign partial responsibility for this clubhouse combustion to manager Grady Little, a man who earlier this month he said was handling the transition superbly. Now, Plaschke isn't so sure, but goes on to absolve Little by saying he had an impossible task keeping everyone happy.

Was it impossible? I want to think not, but I don't know. In any case, I still think having the right players on the field at the right times is more important than keeping them happy in the clubhouse. Not that the latter isn't important at all, it's just less important.

Anyway, the point Plaschke seems to be going after is subtle - almost too subtle. Here's how the column ends:

Kent's comments show Little has lost a part of the clubhouse he must win back before that can work.

They'd better be.

What exactly is the message Plaschke wants Dodger leadership to get, and how does he want them to react in tangible terms? Am I being dim? I've read the column four times now, and I still don't really know. Is it, "Do the youth movement, but do it right?" If so, I agree with Plaschke - with the qualifier that I still am not completely sure everyone agrees on what "doing it right" means.

Update: The copy editors of the Times didn't quite get the subtlety, either. Their print headline for the column's jump: The youth movement is a flop.

Jeff Kent had a fine offensive season, but next to him, Takashi Saito and Brad Penny, it was the kids who kept the Dodgers in contention.

Apparently, that's not how Kent sees it, according to Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise:

According to Kent, one of the problems was the amount of young players on the team.

"I'm angry and disappointed and perplexed and bitter."

Dodger Thoughts commenter BHsportsguy offers this reaction:

I have heard him say that he thinks there a lot of good young players that can play too (on his Prime Ticket interview).

All this being said, I think it is a poor choice of words and is something that should have been kept in the clubhouse.

I agree that the Dodgers, young and old, probably have lots of steam to let out over the team's late-summer collapse.

Still, Dodger rookies have my permission to sit the next hazing ritual out.

Update: Ken Gurnick has more at MLB.com:

"Right now, I can't give an answer to the future. I'm trying to get through the emotions of the season right now, rather than about the possibility of next year.

"It's professionalism. It's manufacturing runs, keeping your emotions in it. Experience can pull you through more than inexperience, experience helps more than inexperience. It's hard to give experience, just like that," Kent said, snapping his fingers.

Kent seems to be saying that the kids are talented but misbehaved - kind of like my kids. Perhaps the kids aren't respectful enough; perhaps they aren't suffering enough, feeling enough disappointment. Still, I wonder, considering how well the kids performed, how much they contributed to the cause, why is he pointing the finger only at them? And certainly, has the effort of the core kids been any less at all than that put out by the grownups?

Update 2: Al Balderas' version of Kent's quote in the Register:

"How do you teach the young kids?" Kent asked. "I don't know if the older guys said that about me when I was a young kid, too. I don't know what it is. Especially when you have a lot of them, it's hard to influence a big group of them. We've got some good kids on this team. Please don't misinterpret my impression of them. But as far as trying to translate experience, I don't know why they don't get it."

Update 3: And now Kevin Baxter in the Times:

"You can use all your fingers on your hand and point around," he said. "There's many, many things that have happened that are perplexing. Many things that have happened that are curious. Many things that have happened that are unfortunate.

But as the Dodgers' postseason hopes began to fade, costing both the 39-year-old Kent and 40-year-old Luis Gonzalez what could be their final shot at a second World Series, the tension has bubbled to the surface.

Okay, here it is. It's nothing definitive, other than to remind people that the possibility that sacking the manager is a frying pan-into-the-fire situation. But for SI.com, a column I've written on Grady Little:

The easiest thing to do in baseball is to blame the manager. The hardest thing to do is find someone who can do the job better.

With the Los Angeles Dodgers tumbling from first place in the National League West on July 29 to fourth place on Thursday morning, despite the highest payroll and arguably the most contributions from the farm system of any team in the division, some Dodgers fans aren't looking for someone to blame. They've already found their man, and folks in the Northeast will probably recognize the name.

If Grady Little hasn't worn out his welcome in Los Angeles yet, he's worn it down. Thanks to the development of sassily talented young players such as James Loney, Matt Kemp, Russell Martin and Chad Billingsley, there's plenty of hope for the Dodgers in 2008. But after a honeymoon in 2006 that saw Los Angeles reach the playoffs, there's also plenty of doubt as to whether Little is the right manager for the job. ...

* * *

Tonight's 12:05 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Still?

Perhaps one of the biggest disappointments of 2007 is how little progress the Dodgers have made in reducing their macho, injury-inducing culture.

From Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise:

(Jonathan) Broxton revealed he's had some soreness in his right arm after appearing in his 80th game -- the fourth-highest total in franchise history.

"I won't back down," said Broxton, who surrendered his second homer in as many days and his fifth this month. "I'll go until I get hurt."

This, a day after learning that Rafael Furcal's back problems are the result of him compensating for the bum ankle he hasn't rested in months.

Sheeeeeesh.

There's a powerful story on the death of Rockies coach Mike Coolbaugh in this week's Sports Illustrated.

* * *

The Dodgers might take a Spring Training trip to China next year, reports The Associated Press.

Tonight's 5:35 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

There's so much I could say now, though most of it would be obvious and therefore pointless.

On a personal note, I do keep thinking about that error Rafael Furcal made 11 days ago in San Francisco. The team was on such a roll before that inadvertent stumble. For me, so much changed from that point on. It's been uphill ever since.

And the Dodgers' rivals keep winning.

Who better, in a way, than Takashi Saito to give up the crushing home run tonight? Someone whom we couldn't possibly be mad at. Someone who falters so rarely that when he does in a critical moment, one strike away from victory, resignation opens the door for you with utter grace. I'm enough of a sap to only tiptoe in, but I'm not looking back.

It's been a schizophrenic year. It's been a year of transition, a year of potential, and it has just gotten away from us. Everyone will have their opinion of what went wrong. It will be interesting to see how the Dodgers assess it. Some mistakes, like a Furcal error or a 1-2 pitch from Saito to Todd Helton, just happen. Some mistakes don't need to be repeated.

* * *

I've had to come to terms with something recently. I tear up at movies. Like, pretty often, not just Brian's Song often. A movie hits me in a certain way, and I'm hopeless. It's the wife and kids that did it to me, and it's done.

And there is no crying in baseball, not for me. There's moaning and groaning and cursing, but no crying. I've invested ... well, I've invested every day since the 2006 season in this 2007 season, and yet nothing in a day like today moved me as much as the movie I saw for work this morning. Completely off guard, I was forced into surreptitiously wiping at my eyes.

I used to wonder whether I could ever be as happy when the Dodgers won as I was sad when the Dodgers lost. Not anymore. In all these years since 1988, I've changed. I've learned how to treasure the good in baseball, and fear the worst elsewhere. I'll remember last year's September 18, not this year's. And so even on a day as depressing as today was for the Dodgers, I'm going to keep the faith. I'm still looking forward to when they win.

Today's first game (12:05 p.m.):

Gameday

Retro Gameday

* * *

Today's second game (5:35 p.m.):

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Rafael Furcal is day-to-day (or, for the realists out there, season-to-season) with lower-back tightness, reports Kevin Baxter of the Times.

September 18, 2006:

Your Evening Sedative

Tonight's Game

Not to be fatalistic, but if the Dodgers led the National League West by 1 1/2 games after tonight's contest, you probably wouldn't feel completely secure about their chances of holding that lead. So no reason to despair if Jake Peavy and the Padres push the Dodgers down by that much.

No doubt, a win tonight would be a huge boost for Los Angeles going forward. And I wouldn't dismiss the Dodgers' chances of defeating Peavy tonight. The NL West has been particularly persistent this year in humbling those who think they've got things licked.

In any event, contrary to popular belief, nothing gets decided tonight except one game.

Wild one tonight in Philadelphia, home of the Dodgers main wild-card rival. The Phillies are trying to make magic after falling behind to the Cubs, 8-0. A grand slam by ex-Dodger Jose Hernandez boosted Philadelphia to six runs in the bottom of the fourth, but Ryan Howard struck out with the tying runs on.

2006-09-18 22:34:06
561. Benaiah
Well, our strategy of using their offense to induce inferior relievers has worked at least.

2006-09-18 22:34:24
563. ninjavshippo
kent is one of the few blue men with a pulse tonight...

2006-09-18 22:34:39
565. Steve in Rochester
Jeff Kent, are you kidding?

2006-09-18 22:34:56
566. MSarg29
I have to be at work in less than 8 hrs and I'm just sick to my stomach. I wont even get any sleep.

2006-09-18 22:35:00
567. JoeyP
Adkins just pulled a Lance Carter.
Nice set up job.

2006-09-18 22:35:10
568. Bob Timmermann
Condition yellow on the cycle alert.

2006-09-18 22:35:49
570. ninjavshippo
note to self: curb your enthusiasm.

2006-09-18 22:35:57
571. Xeifrank
Is Kent teasing us?
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:36:03
572. underdog
Well, this makes the 3 spot given up in the 9th even more painful.

Wait, I was supposed to stop watching this game. What's wrong with me?

2006-09-18 22:36:18
574. Steve in Rochester
what the????

2006-09-18 22:36:38
575. JoeyP
Back-back.

This is even more excruciating.

2006-09-18 22:37:10
576. underdog
LOL. I'm sorry, this is hilarious. Even on GameDay it's hilarious.

2006-09-18 22:37:14
577. Xeifrank
A little late for back to back solo jobs.

vr, Xei
2006-09-18 22:37:23

578. Vaudeville Villain
J.D. Drew and Jeff Kent stop getting my hopes up!

They're destined to come agonizingly close and then be unable to come through.

Also, Lugo gets to bat. Blah.

2006-09-18 22:37:34
579. ninjavshippo
maybe hoffman trips and tweaks an ankle on the run from the bullpen to the mound?

2006-09-18 22:37:34
580. StolenMonkey86
I like this hit the ball out of the park idea. We should do it more often

2006-09-18 22:37:37
581. Benaiah
Hmmm... very interesting. If Saito... no I don't even want to say it.

2006-09-18 22:37:40
582. Gagne55
I can't believe Little used Broxton this game. His arm is hanging on by a thread at this point. Nice way to blow it, Little.

2006-09-18 22:37:59
583. underdog
578 Against Hoffman no less. Whee! Back to NBC with me.
2006-09-18 22:38:09

584. Bob Timmermann
19 baserunners for the Dodgers tonight. 21 for the Padres. That's made this game into a Yankees-Red Sox like affair.

2006-09-18 22:38:10
585. joekings
This is just making it worse.

2006-09-18 22:38:26
586. ninjavshippo
581 - i blame grits for using saito in a non-save situation! ;)

2006-09-18 22:38:26
587. micktissue
ugh ... I mean yea!

2006-09-18 22:38:26
588. RELX
As frustrating as those last two homers were, if Saito hadn't given up any runs, Adkins would not have been in the game.

2006-09-18 22:38:38
590. Xeifrank
I don't think Little had anything to do with blowing this game and I'm usually the 3rd person to point out such a thing.
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:39:10
592. ninjavshippo
WHOA! okay, now i can't help myself.. i'm PUMPED!

2006-09-18 22:39:33
594. Vaudeville Villain
Martin hits it out!!!

Oh for the love of your preferred celestial power!

2006-09-18 22:40:11
596. micktissue
oh my ...

2006-09-18 22:40:16
597. StolenMonkey86
Go Russ!

2006-09-18 22:40:30
598. Vaudeville Villain
OMG

Marlon Anderson!!!!
2006-09-18 22:40:32
599. capdodger
WHAT??

This is what happens when I turn Mosaic off...

2006-09-18 22:40:33
600. Benaiah
Restrain you yourself...

2006-09-18 22:40:33
601. underdog
Um....

What the heck. I think I'm on drugs -- or the Dodgers are.

2006-09-18 22:40:40
602. Bob Timmermann
Umm....

Umm....

Uhh....

What?

Huh?

Whaaa?

2006-09-18 22:40:43
603. MSarg29
oh my god

2006-09-18 22:40:43
604. Xeifrank
Gameday seems to be broke. It keeps on saying every Dodger hitter is hitting a home run. Major software bug or something.
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:40:43
605. joekings
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

2006-09-18 22:40:43
606. Andrew Shimmin
Learn your lesson!

2006-09-18 22:40:58
607. Steve in Rochester
this can't be happening.

2006-09-18 22:41:04
608. gibsonhobbs88
521 - Murphy's Law rules when the Dodgers play the Padres this year. No matter what we do, the dice keep coming up craps. I wonder if there is a little voodoo lady living in SD with pins in Dodger dolls somewhere. She only does it when the Padres play the Dodgers to not arouse suspicion.

2006-09-18 22:41:05
609. capdodger
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

2006-09-18 22:41:18
610. Benaiah
OH MY GOD!!!

2006-09-18 22:41:29
611. underdog
OMG.

Tell me this isn't a dream.

2006-09-18 22:41:29
612. JoeyP
I dont believe what I'm seeing.

2006-09-18 22:41:32
614. micktissue
And my wife is asking me to come to bed now! She just doesn't understand ...

2006-09-18 22:41:47
615. skybluestoday
Pinch me, I'm dreaming.

2006-09-18 22:41:54
616. Bob Timmermann
I would bet sizeable amount of money that in the history of baseball, no team has ever rallied from a 4-run deficit with 4 consecutive home runs.

Ever.

2006-09-18 22:41:55
617. Johnny Nucleo
I will never forget this. Never.

2006-09-18 22:41:57
618. MSarg29
Gameday is screwing w/ us? Is this really happening?

2006-09-18 22:42:06
619. Suffering Bruin
OH MY GOD!!!

I can't believe I was watching the Daily Show and missed the first three homeruns.

2006-09-18 22:42:12
620. capdodger
I think I'm about to combust.

Or get arrested because, to the neighbors it sounds like something horrible is going on here.

2006-09-18 22:42:13
621. Greg Brock
What the hell did I miss.

Whatever it is, I'm going to keep missing it.

2006-09-18 22:42:38
623. Xeifrank
I am going to start watching on the tv now, so I can jinx this. vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:42:39
624. Benaiah
Wow. This blows the Finley home run straight out the window.
2006-09-18 22:42:58

625. trainwreck
Doing my best not to swear.
2006-09-18 22:43:18

626. Jon Weisman
I've seen multiple no-hitters, but that may be the most incredible thing I've ever witnessed at a baseball game.
2006-09-18 22:43:21

627. RELX
FRUSTRATION OVER! Bring on Hamulack, this game is blessed/cursed, i don't know which.

2006-09-18 22:43:51
628. micktissue
TEST THEIR COFFEE!
2006-09-18 22:44:08

629. Bob Timmermann
That was just the fourth time a team had ever hit four straight home runs.

The last time was by Minnesota at KC on May 2, 1964 in the 11th inning.

2006-09-18 22:44:25
630. Vaudeville Villain
621.

4 consecutive home runs to tie it up.

Jeff Kent, J.D. Drew, Russell Martin, Marlon Anderson.

2006-09-18 22:44:31
631. Greg Brock
We're doing this because I'm not watching.

I swear to G-d.

2006-09-18 22:44:45
632. ninjavshippo
jeez... if we find a way to lose this game, i will be more crushed than ever... but if we win.... (!)

2006-09-18 22:45:17
633. Johnny Nucleo
Um, anyone watching on TV see something come down that looked like the hand of God?

2006-09-18 22:45:24
634. Bob Timmermann
May 2, 1964.
http://retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B05020KC11964.htm

2006-09-18 22:45:27
635. JoeyP
This is more improbably than Gibson's homer.

I dont think I've ever seen anything so unbelievable.

2006-09-18 22:46:21
636. Vaudeville Villain
And Furcal...Just...Missed it.
2006-09-18 22:46:26

637. Xeifrank
I just turned the tv back on and saw the three outs in a row. Jinx! vr, Xei
2006-09-18 22:46:30

638. RELX
Does it even matter if we win this thing anymore? Moments like these are why it is great to be a baseball fan!
2006-09-18 22:46:36

639. Benaiah
This is the coolest thing I have ever seen.
2006-09-18 22:46:50

640. Gagne55
OMG, i go to the bathroom, come back, and it's tied. Hoffman's first blown save against the Blue since i think 2001.

2006-09-18 22:47:11
642. underdog
Yeah, I think if they lose this game now, it's going to be particularly cruel. But I'm sure freaking out in a positive way at the moment.

Btw, this is all because I stopped watching the game on MLBTV on the net, and just followed it on GameDay while watching TV. So you can thank me in part.

2006-09-18 22:47:12
643. Linkmeister
Er, Holy Cow!
2006-09-18 22:47:19

644. Uncle Miltie
what the heck...wow. This game is really distracting me. I'm supposed to be studying for a geology midterm!
2006-09-18 22:47:56

645. underdog
Did Furcal just miss it? I couldn't tell from GameDay. That would have been miraculous.

2006-09-18 22:47:57
646. Bob Timmermann
Aaron Sele - the buzzkill.

2006-09-18 22:48:01
647. JoeyP
The Dodgers have hit 6 solo homers tonite.
Back-Back-Back-Back in the 9th inning.
Unbelievable.

Marlon Anderson is 5-5 with 2HRs tonite.

2006-09-18 22:48:28
649. Johnny Nucleo
Needless to say, all thoughts of going back to thesis-writing have gone by the wayside.

2006-09-18 22:48:51
651. ninjavshippo
647 - this has to go down in history as the "Marlon Anderson" game.

2006-09-18 22:49:09
652. RELX
Because it looks so good, here is Gameday instant replay, brought you to by all the Dodger fans awake at 2AM on the east coast!

Bottom 9TH B:1 S:0 O:0
Jeff Kent homers (14) on a fly ball to center field.

Bottom 9TH B:2 S:1 O:0
J. D. Drew homers (17) on a fly ball to right field.

Bottom 9TH B:0 S:0 O:0
Pitcher Change: Trevor Hoffman replaces Jon Adkins, batting 9th.

Bottom 9TH B:0 S:0 O:0
Coaching visit to mound.

Bottom 9TH B:0 S:0 O:0
Russell Martin homers (10) on a fly ball to left field.

Bottom 9TH B:0 S:0 O:0
Marlon Anderson homers (9) on a fly ball to right field.

2006-09-18 22:49:15
653. Gagne55
647 And all the DT posters were hollering for Andre Ethier. Looks like Little got something right at least.

2006-09-18 22:49:16
654. JoeyP
Put it this way.
Tonite is baseball history.

Its lkely you'll never see something like that again ever.

2006-09-18 22:49:21
655. Bob Timmermann
The only NL team prior to tonight that hit four straight home runs was the Braves.

They lost the game

http://retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B06080CIN1961.htm

2006-09-18 22:49:37
656. Xeifrank
645. Furcal hit it near the edge of the warning track. vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:49:58
657. underdog
Crap, and the hurting begins anew. I'm scared - somebody hold me.
2006-09-18 22:51:03

658. StolenMonkey86
no, that's Manny Alexander on deck, not Mike Piazza.

2006-09-18 22:51:04
659. Xeifrank
655. So you're saying we got a shot!
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:51:06
660. Linkmeister
If it's gotta be extra innings, at least it's at home.

2006-09-18 22:51:08
661. Bob Timmermann
My feelings transcend any thesaurus now.

2006-09-18 22:52:02
665. JoeyP
Even if the Dodgers lose, it doesnt take away the awesomeness of the 9th ining.

Baseball is supposed to be enterainment, and that was one of the greatest things i've ever seen.

I dont care how the game finishes at this point. I really dont.

2006-09-18 22:52:52
669. Vaudeville Villain
When I said Marlon Anderson was redundant, I was obviously on crack.

There was no on else like him alive.
In his day, he was the mightiest man on earth,
highborn and powerful.

Beowulf appropriation.

2006-09-18 22:53:18
671. confucius
I swear to god if the Dodgers bullpen blows this game...

2006-09-18 22:53:32
672. underdog
That's true Joey, it really is. I just think I'll feel a weird sense of frustration if they lose now given the miraculous comeback. But win or lose, it really is unforgettable.

2006-09-18 22:54:06
675. joekings
I think I'm going to be sick.

2006-09-18 22:54:37
676. underdog
{{cursing quietly to self at home}}

2006-09-18 22:55:08
677. Xeifrank
oh well, better luck next ....
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 22:59:36
684. Xeifrank
ok, back to backs to win it.
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 23:00:17
688. Bob Timmermann
681
I don't believe anyone has been retired in order tonight on either side.

2006-09-18 23:00:55
689. das411
WOW. Just scrolled through the last hundred or so comments....wow. Things like this are what makes baseball great...unbelieveable!

2006-09-18 23:01:14
690. capdodger
At least the only have to get one back this time. And against Seanez...
2006-09-18 23:02:06

691. Jon Weisman
Aaron Sele finished the 10th with the Dodgers' 200th pitch.

2006-09-18 23:02:18
692. Telemachos
I'm sorry, everyone. I've jinxed the Dodgers.

I tuned out in the top of the ninth, to do some work.

Finished up, thought I would check the GameDay score, and saw 4 consecutive homers.

Um, WHAT?

Checked the TiVO and sure enough, it had stopped recording, so I couldn't flip back and watch them.

So I immediately turned to Prime Ticket and set up recordings later for the replay.

No sooner did I do that then Sele gave up the run.

sigh.

What a game.

2006-09-18 23:03:35
695. Johnny Nucleo
Looking at the title of this thread, I have to laugh.

2006-09-18 23:03:35
696. scooplew
The Seanez I remember throws a straight fastball. We should be able to do something with it.

2006-09-18 23:03:38
697. DeucesAreWild
Nomar's up. I know what you are thinking. Don't say it!

2006-09-18 23:03:43
698. KG16
I haven't really been paying attention the last week or so (in my defense my baby sister got married over the weekend), so let me ask...

Have I missed anything?

2006-09-18 23:03:49
699. Jon Weisman
Walk's as good as a hit, batter.
2006-09-18 23:04:15

700. confucius
Oxygen!

2006-09-18 23:04:43
701. Greg Brock
The greatest game ever played.

2006-09-18 23:04:47
702. KG16
Just in time...

2006-09-18 23:04:51
703. StolenMonkey86
NOMAHH

2006-09-18 23:04:54
704. Telemachos
OMG.

OMG

OMG!!!!!

2006-09-18 23:04:57
705. Linkmeister
OMG!

2006-09-18 23:05:23
707. micktissue
wow

2006-09-18 23:05:26
708. trainwreck
To beat a dead horse...

NOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAARRRRRrr!!!!!!!!!

2006-09-18 23:05:37
709. Uncle Miltie
WOW!

2006-09-18 23:05:37
710. JoeyP
That was unbelievable.
Whatever bats the Dodgers used during the 9th/10th innings, they need to keep using those.

Wow.

2006-09-18 23:05:45
712. underdog
Guys, I don't know you very well, but I think I want to hug all of you right now very very much. I'm both extremely happy, and not a little scared that the end of the world may be nigh.

2006-09-18 23:06:28
715. DeucesAreWild
My head exploded.

Yours,

Arms, Legs, and Torso.

2006-09-18 23:06:59
716. StolenMonkey86
What a game!

2006-09-18 23:07:32
717. DeucesAreWild
My head exploded.

Yours,

Arms, Legs, and Torso.

(p.s. I think we broke The Toaster.)

2006-09-18 23:07:49
718. confucius
Go crazy!!

2006-09-18 23:08:16
719. StolenMonkey86
What a game!

2006-09-18 23:09:04
722. Bob Timmermann
Win #8 for Aaron Sele.

2006-09-18 23:09:46
723. capdodger
So I went upstairs for a blue gatorade and came back down to "Nomar Garciaparra homers (18) on a fly ball to left field. Kenny Lofton scores."

Even though it is but salt, sugar, and filtered water I think that it will have to be savored.

2006-09-18 23:11:29
726. Johnny Nucleo
712-Yes, I feel that a group hug is in order.

2006-09-18 23:11:54
727. scooplew
I saw my first game on July 3, 1955, at Ebbets Field. I was 7. I am in my 52nd season of being a Dodgers fan. I just told my daughter, who is 19, that tonight's game may have been the greatest game in major league history.

2006-09-18 23:11:58
728. micktissue
701.

That was definitely the most amazing game I've ever, uh, heard

2006-09-18 23:11:59
729. Xeifrank
Best Dodger game since the Gibson HR.
vr, Xei

2006-09-18 23:12:20
730. underdog
Highlights on Sportscenter - NOW.

2006-09-18 23:14:00
733. NPB
This is the second-greatest moment in Dodgers history. And that may have been the greatest single baseball game of all time. It was certainly the greatest comeback of all time. Oh man.

2006-09-18 23:14:27
734. Steve in Rochester
this I can say is unequivocally the greatest experience of my sports watching life.

2006-09-18 23:14:33
735. Bob Timmermann
The Dodgers are no longer last in the NL in home runs.

Last time the Dodgers hit seven home runs at Dodger Stadium.

http://retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B05250LAN1979.htm

2006-09-18 23:14:51
736. Blue in SF
I am moving back to LA...
2006-09-18 23:15:00

737. Uncle Miltie
Just saw the highlights. Incredible.

2006-09-18 23:15:11
739. Greg Brock
No words...Should have sent a poet.

Plus, I think the hamster that powers the Toaster just died of exhaustion on the wheel.

2006-09-18 23:15:17
740. MSarg29
I cant believe it. Before I got word on Gameday, my Mom called me to give me the news. Gotta love that she is up in NJ watching the game. Unbelievable!

2006-09-18 23:15:44
741. confucius
That was the best game I'll ever watch.

2006-09-18 23:16:06
743. towerofpower
Wow.

Wow.

Wow.

2006-09-18 23:17:20
745. Benaiah
I think that if I jumped off a building right now I would float down as softly as a feather. After all, I must be dreaming.

2006-09-18 23:17:29
746. Ken Arneson
The next time the Dodgers to a comeback this crazy, y'all need to warn me so I can adjust the server settings for the traffic spike.

2006-09-18 23:17:38
748. Linkmeister
739 You thinkin' WH Auden's "the center cannot hold?"

2006-09-18 23:17:50
749. underdog
I think we're overloading the DodgerThoughts server and causing it to implode with our group hugging.

2006-09-18 23:18:26
751. das411
OK, that was officially insane. Live it up guys, if ever a group of people deserved a game like this it was you DTers. You'll forever savor the Dodger legends of Jeff Kent, JD Drew, Russ Martin, Marlon Anderson, and Nomah Garciaparra :)

2006-09-18 23:18:43
752. ninjavshippo
still stunned

2006-09-18 23:18:51
753. Bob Timmermann
Hold #30 for Scott Linebrink.

2006-09-18 23:18:58
754. confucius
I just got text messages from everyone I know.

2006-09-18 23:19:01
755. Benaiah
I want to see the Win Probability Added stats for this game.
2006-09-18 23:19:11

756. RELX
739. Yeats said that--but he never hit four straight HR's to tie a game!!
2006-09-18 23:19:19

757. micktissue
I'm going to do something I thought I'd never do. Because I don't have cable and I have to listen to all the games via mlb.com.

I'm gonna buy that game!

2006-09-18 23:19:36
761. ninjavshippo
751 - here here. as weird as it is to say, since i couldn't be with my local contingent of dodger crazies, i wouldn't have wanted to share it with anyone other than the DTers.

2006-09-18 23:20:28
764. RELX
I want to play another game--NOW! Start Hamulack--we have no fear!

2006-09-18 23:22:44
767. Nick Iyengar
I remember that a while back we were talking about how Jose Valentin managed to create a few memories in a Dodger uniform during his short stint in L.A., but Marlon Anderson has topped him by far. As strange as it is, it'll be a long time before we forget that Marlon Anderson was once a Dodger hero.

2006-09-18 23:24:17
769. RELX
I watched Anderson play with the Mets last year, and he was a clutch player. I think he has earned another season in Dodger blue. Oh, and another start tomorrow night.

2006-09-18 23:33:28
777. popup
What a gem of a game.

Stan from Tacoma

2006-09-19 01:34:33
787. spacebrother
Doing my part to run the comments to 1000-

I was actually there tonight. Throughout the game, I kept telling my sister (a Padres fan) not to worry, the Dodgers would find some way to lose. I felt that, if I truly kept up this attitude, they had a chance, but I would have to TRULY believe that they would tank.

My season tickets are shared with another guy, and he had the tix for tonight, so I bought some in section 52, next to the Pad's bullpen. Hoffman and the other guy (who was it that gave up the first 2 homers?) were warming up and with each hiss of the incoming ball and subsequent "thwack!" I saw the Dodgers going down.

I even told my sister not to worry after the back-to-back-to-back-to-back. Our Dodgers would find a way to tank. When Sele came out in the 10th, and gave up the run, I was SURE of my prediction.

Like one of the other posters said, a thesaurus does no good at times like this. Maybe I won't have to return all those post season tix I bought after all.

Did anyone hear Nomah on KFWB after the game? He was right on the edge of tears. Listening to him brought me there too.

Thanks to everyone and Jon for all the great stuff on this blog during this season. It always brings a smile, even when the Dodgers are falling by the wayside.

2006-09-20 09:15:08
790. Blaine
I know that since this is at the end of this thread which is a few days old that no one may ever read this.

I read through this thread a couple of days after the fact. What an awesome read. I love the comments about how worthless Nomar was early in the thread. I also loved how many times people gave up and vowed to watch a different TV show. I wonder how many people will regret watching the premiere of a TV show that will be forgotten in 10 years versus watching probably the greatest regular season non-pennant deciding game in Dodger history.

It was funny to watch all of the fans in the parking lot trying to get back into the game when they heard the continual roar of the crowd from inside the stadium. It was just as amusing seeing the comments of people who went to have dinner, fell asleep or put the kids to bed to come back and realize that they missed a piece of history.

On the game, this was my second greatest Dodger moment ever. I still vividly remember watching the Gibson homerun with my church youth group and how huge that celebration was. This time around, I was alone at home. My kids were in bed and my wife was on the computer (which is why I read the thread later) and she couldn't understand why I was yelling in the living room about something that "I have never seen before."

While many DTers missed the heroics, my story is in reverse. I checked out of school a little bit early tonight and came home just in time to watch the most magical three innings that I had ever seen. The rest of my classmates were stuck in a classroom watching the big giant "homerun" come across their computer screens.

Haha (say it quick, rather triumphantly.)

What a game.

Almost ... Almost ... YES!

It has been a Friday night and Saturday night combined emotionally, but now it's starting to feel like Monday. ...

This crowd is beside itself with joy. You can come down the wall now. ...

A lot of the folks that left have decided to come back, so welcome back. ...

...

A high fly ball to left field - it is a-way out and gone! The Dodgers win it, 11-10! Ha ha ha - unbelievable!

...

...

I forgot to tell you. The Dodgers are in first place.

- Vin Scully

* * *

The most intense game of the year, the most incredible game of many a year, ends in elation ... almost.

The Dodgers exorcise the ghosts of April 30 ... almost.

Down four in the ninth, four consecutive home runs - a first by a major league team since 1964, according to Vinny on the broadcast. And all it is is ... almost.

Exactly 200 pitches thrown by Dodger pitchers and still alive ... almost.

Rafael Furcal, Jeff Kent, J.D. Drew and Marlon Anderson all OPSing over .950 in September, and ... almost. Hold the Padres to two runs on Sunday, score nine runs on Monday ... almost.

Almost nothing. YES!

Perhaps the greatest game at Dodger Stadium since, or including, the September 11, 1983 game. The moment doesn't surpass Kirk Gibson, maybe not even Steve Finley, factoring in context. But the game surpasses their games. The game was stunning.

Seven home runs, tying a Dodger Stadium home record - practically a footnote.

How can you not be trembling?

Remember your evening sedative? You may need to induce a coma to calm Dodger fans now.

SD 400 000 023 1 - 10 15 0
LA 112 000 014 2 - 11 19 2

More memories provided by Ramona Shelburne of the Daily News.

* * *

Back to the present. Dylan Hernandez of the Times and Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise each have features today on James Loney.

From Al Balderas of the Register:

Most of the players who received their September promotions are spending more time trying to find ways to keep themselves busy, fresh, in shape and ready. ...

The Dodgers bullpen and dugout might be at standing-room-only levels this time of year, but Little can be sure his seldom-used players will be ready to answer the call — whenever it might come.

The team's top two position players and top starting pitcher in September are 23 or younger. And so, of course, MLB.com gives us the following headline:

"Dodgers rely on vets in stretch run"

And, of course, Roberto Hernandez (eight outs recorded this month) gets mentioned in the second paragraph, which asks the question, "So what will prevent this team from fading into obscurity as the season winds down?"

And, of course, Luis Gonzalez is there in the fourth paragraph to make like Clarissa and explain it all:

"Playing long enough, you can see when the rope is slipping away. Guys start pressing and trying to do too much," said Gonzalez, who was eliminated from the playoffs last season in September as a member of the D-backs. "That's where you hope that experience that guys have takes over, because those guys have been there before and learned from it. That's what carries a team down the stretch."

And, of course, though the contributions of less experienced players are mentioned, Hernandez is able to put it all in perspective:

"This is where veteran guys like Nomar, Jeff Kent and Gonzalez step up and lead by example," said veteran reliever Hernandez, who has been to the playoffs four times in his career. "The good thing about the young guys is that they're hungry. Those kids are excited and this is their first time experiencing this. You can feel the energy."

Indeed, as the article goes on to concede, "The youngsters have provided a boost as well."

Is it not safe to say that the Dodgers wouldn't even have a stretch run to contemplate if not, first and foremost, for the September efforts of first- and second-year players Kemp, Loney, Billingsley and Takashi Saito?

There's actually a story here. It's not that some of the veterans aren't helping, but it's that the kids are clearly leading the way. But why report actual news when you can pass along a cliche?

At Fungoes on SI.com, I almost went as far as to hand the Arizona Diamondbacks their playoff spot.

Those Arizona Diamondbacks are wacky, but they're about to have the last laugh.

Sunday in Los Angeles, Arizona starting pitcher Edgar Gonzalez threw 58 pitches but got the victory -- the fewest pitches that any winning starting pitcher in baseball has thrown this season (verified by Baseball-Reference.com).

In fact, the Diamondbacks have three of the five unhardest-working winning starting pitchers on the list. Randy Johnson is No. 2 with 61 pitches on May 30, and Gonzalez is No. 5 with 63 pitches on June 16.

It's all part of a season in which, as has been well-documented by now, Arizona has been outscored but is within .001 of boasting the best record in the National League. As recently as Sunday morning, the Diamondbacks looked like they would finally be heading toward their comeuppance after losing to the Dodgers twice in a row. But a 6-1 victory over Los Angeles moved Arizona much closer to its taste of the postseason since 2002.

The Diamondbacks have a 3 1/2-game lead over the second-place team in the NL wild-card race, Philadelphia, with 12 games to play. As Jack Magruder of the East Valley Tribune wrote, "The Diamondbacks can differ on the importance of their Sunday victory over the Dodgers, but the fact that they could debate the point made their plane ride home so much more palatable." ...

* * *

Quick thought about Esteban Loaiza: It's entirely possible that he's going through the dead-arm period common to pitchers in April, and that he'll make a triumphant return to adequacy. It also seems almost certain that unless he were truly injured, he is going to get his next start, because it's a little too soon for Dodger general manager Ned Colletti to concede a problem in his $8 million acquisition.

But the Dodgers shouldn't act as if there are no alternatives to Loaiza. Neither Eric Stults nor D.J. Houlton has pitched as poorly for the Dodgers this year as Loaiza in his past two starts, and the pair could easily combine for six innings.

Update: On the eve of the anniversary of the 4+1 game - or as True Blue L.A. calls it, Sean's game - a must-read remembrance.

The last thing I expected to read in the Ned Colletti cure-all era was that the Dodger clubhouse has poor chemistry, but Paul Oberjuerge of the San Bernadino Sun levies the charge:

Watch this team interact. On the field and off. Ask people who spend time with them on a daily basis. And the analysis is pretty much the same.

And, anyway, perhaps all they might agree on is this: They have little respect for management.

Oberjuerge moves on from this to question whether team chemistry actually leads to more victories, which of course, is eminently worth questioning. It's one of the oldest axioms of Dodger Thoughts: Winning breeds chemistry.

Despite Colletti's reputation for emphasizing chemistry and character, we've all seen him bring in players who strike you as something less than Mother Theresa - yet, he's gotten about a hundredth of the attention in this area that his predecessor received. Still, I can't say I'm not surprised by the piece - a pretty broad broadside it be. Widespread animus, widespread disrespect for the bosses? We'll see if denials or confirmations follow.

Update: Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise disagrees with the notion that the Dodger clubhouse is unhappy:

A recent article claiming the Dodgers have an unhappy clubhouse has come to my attention. That same article also claims that Cantonese is one of the numerous languages spoken in that unhappy clubhouse. Since I'm the only Cantonese speaker in that unhappy clubhouse, I wonder if I've said something to myself out loud that would lead someone to believe that the clubhouse would be unhappy. Probably not because I don't believe it to be true. Then again, what do I know? I'm a writer who actually walks through that unhappy clubhouse and talks to the players nearly every day.

I hear Spanish-speaking players unhappily joking around with English-speaking players. Some of them even speak both languages! I see Mandarin-speaking Taiwanese players unhappily playing cards and speaking English with Dominican players and American players. I've seen a Japanese closer communicate through the universal language of showing off a sword. I've seen Spanish-speaking players try their hand at the Japanese puzzle Sudoku.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sam Anderson in New York Magazine has had enough of Brooklynites mourning the departure of the Dodgers to Los Angeles:

The story of the Brooklyn Dodgers is very likely the most mythologized nostalgia bath in the entire 400-year history of New York. The official version—a legend you've probably fallen asleep to during late-night documentaries or wondered vaguely about while barreling down the Jackie Robinson Parkway—goes roughly like this. A hundred years ago, Brooklyn was the meltiest part of the New York melting pot. In Bay Ridge and Crown Heights and Midwood, mustachioed fathers with giant Old-World biceps gratefully worked themselves to death so their newly American kids could play stickball and mainline egg creams. The only force strong enough to unite all of the fractured cultures was baseball ...

Fortunately, revisionism turns out to be fairly easy. ...

Countdown to 81 wins: just two more.

Today's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Countdown to 81 wins: just three more.

Today's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Countdown to 81 wins: just four more.

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

In 1973, the Dodgers suffered a profoundly disappointing September collapse, not completely different from the bad August stretch the 2007 team had.

The '73 Dodgers lost nine consective games and 11 of 12 from August 31 to September 12 to blow a four-game lead in the National League West. It was a year in which Davey Lopes and Ron Cey played their first full seasons as starters, and Bill Russell his second. Steve Garvey finalized his transition to first base.

In 1974, the core of the 1970s Dodgers began playing together in earnest, winning 102 games and the National League pennant. Except for center fielder Jimmy Wynn, the entire starting lineup consisted of homegrown talent.

Here's how the '74 Dodgers compare to the prospective 2008 Dodgers.

Position/Year	1974 starters	1974 EQA/ERA+	2008 starters (?)	2007 OPS+/ERA+
Catcher	Yeager/Ferguson	.283/.305	Martin	.296
First base	Garvey	.294	Loney	.295
Second base	Lopes	.295	Kent	.296
Shortstop	Russell	.265	Furcal	.250
Third base	Cey	.282	Garciaparra/LaRoche	.243/.266
Left field	Buckner	.285	Ethier	.275
Center field	Wynn	.317	Pierre	.253
Right field	Crawford	.298	Kemp	.302
Starting pitcher #1	Messersmith	132	Billingsley	143
Starting pitcher #2	John	132	Penny	160
Starting pitcher #3	Sutton	106	Lowe	118
Starting pitcher #4	Downing/Zahn	93/168	Loaiza	103
Starting pitcher #5	Rau	92	Schmidt	71
Relief pitcher #1	Marshall	141	Saito	356
Relief pitcher #2	Hough	91	Broxton	188

Statistics courtesy of Baseball Prospectus and Baseball-Reference.com.

Comments:
Catcher: Yeager and Ferguson combined for a great offensive year, but Martin certainly stands tall alongside them.

First base: Loney has been out of his mind lately, but he's certainly within the ballpark of the '74 NL MVP.

Second base: The two look even on paper, but Kent will be 11 years older than the '74 Lopes.

Shortstop: Although Furcal appears to lose this battle, there's little reason to think he won't be better in '08 than the'74 Russell.

Third base: Huge advantage for the '74 Dodgers assuming that Garciaparra gets the Opening Day call, but Ned Colletti might make a move here.

Left field: Not much potential difference here.

Center field: Another huge advantage for '74.

Right field: Kemp will need to stay on his game to keep ahead of Crawford, who was in his prime.

Pitching: The 2008 Dodger pitching looks potentially superior, but keep in mind that Dodger starters in '74 pitched a higher quantity of innings.

I could take this analysis a lot deeper, but all in all, the 2008 Dodgers really just need a toy cannon to emerge.

Whether we're talking about the final 16 games of the 2007 season or the first 162 of the 2008 season, Andy LaRoche is going to have to convince the Dodgers of his resiliency – physically and mentally

From Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise:

LaRoche joked on his 24th birthday (Thursday) that he felt old. The way his bad back has acted up of late would seem to support that notion.
LaRoche blamed the latest flareup on a day off. He said he spent Monday "laying around" and neglecting to do the 30 minutes of exercises his back requires every day. He aggravated it Tuesday fielding grounders in batting practice.

"I don't feel anything at all," he said.

The Dodgers are a team that will use any excuse, real or invented, to reduce the playing time of any player not named Juan. Baseball doesn't offer many days off, so I understand the whole lying around thing, but to not muster the energy for half an hour of physical effort, with so much on the line for himself and the team, is worthy of some concern. If there is work to be done at this time of year and you can do it, you should do it.

LaRoche made a mistake. Moving forward, the key question is whether the Dodgers will compound that mistake. If LaRoche does do the work moving forward, if he makes amends, how quickly will the team respond by getting him back in the lineup? Will they be slow to use him, then regret not going to him sooner – the same regrets they should have with a number of younger players whom we were told earlier this year, incorrectly, weren't ready.

This goes back to the fundamental question I asked earlier this month, which I still don't think has been answered:

Is the way the Dodgers limit the playing time of their young players at the outset of their careers an actual contributor to their ultimate success? Or are the Dodgers just missing out on opportunities to cash in on their prospect fortune?

LaRoche has to do his part, and the Dodgers have to do theirs. And then, either way, we'll start all over after the season.

* * *

It's exciting to see the Dodgers get off the mat. But this weekend, they play a first-place team while the Padres play a last-place team. The pitching matchups might actually favor the Dodgers, but you know that looking good on paper doesn't mean much in any given moment. You need to perform, and you need luck.

Countdown to 81 wins: just five more.

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

* * *

Update: For those not watching in the bottom of the third inning, with James Loney on second and Jeff Kent on first and one out, Luis Gonzalez singled to left-center field. Scott Hairston had to range to his left to get the ball, meaning that Loney, even with his slowness, could score easily. However, it was also clear that Kent should not be trying to go from first to third. Nevertheless, there was Kent, stumbling toward third, ready to kill the inning for no reason. Only a terrible throw from Hairston enabled Kent to reach third base safely. He would have been out by 15 feet otherwise.

On the next play, Kent was thrown out trying to score on a fly ball to short center field by Russell Martin. Mike Cameron broke the wrong way on the ball, thus enticing Kent to go, but still threw him out easily.

Even on a night in which the Dodgers have started out wonderfully, leading 4-0 against Greg Maddux, we can't escape that there is something simply fundamentally wrong about how they run the bases. It is not just Matt Kemp. It permeates the entire club. The coaches and the baserunners just can't seem to grasp the obvious.

Meanwhile, James Loney's career OPS as I write this, at age 23 and after 414 career plate appearances, is .904. Astonishing.

Update 2: In the bottom of the fourth, Kemp was on second base when David Wells singled. Kemp was looking down to make sure he touched third base and ran through Rich Donnelly's proper stop sign, only to jam on the brakes and scramble back to third. Kemp is no saint on the bases, to be sure. But he fits right in.

But the hit by Wells is the 10th off Greg Maddux in 3 1/3 innings, and he is knocked out of the game.

Update 3: .907!

Derek Lowe will pitch no sooner than Saturday, according to The Associated Press. But there is doubt as to whether he could make the start, leaving open the possibility of the return of Eric Stults or some other audible.

And finally, an answer on Andy LaRoche - and new news of an injury to a minor leaguer - from Tony Jackson of the Daily News:

LaRoche is limited to pinch hitting because his chronic back problem has become an issue again. LaRoche is unable to bend over to field ground balls and thus hasn't appeared in a game in a week.

DeJesus, 20, was the Dodgers' second-round pick in the 2005 amateur draft. He had a solid year with the 66ers, batting .287 with 22 doubles, 52 RBI and a .371 on-base percentage, and could be in line for an invitation to big-league camp next spring.

Countdown to 81 wins: just six more.

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

The Dodgers have begun preparing for next year's 50th anniversary celebration of the team's first season in Los Angeles. Click the link for lots of details. Of course, it will also be the 20th anniversary of the team's last World Series title, unless there's a nifty comeback in the next 18 days.

* * *

Derek Lowe will miss tonight's start as a result of Tuesday's pregame hand injury, according to Inside the Dodgers. Chad Billingsley will take the mound on four days' rest.

Andy LaRoche has been disappeared (figuratively) without explanation. Tony Abreu will start at third base.

Hu, SS
Young, LF
Kemp, CF
Loney, 1B
Ethier, RF
Martin, C
LaRoche, 3B
Abreu, 2B
Stults, P

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Originally published September 11, 2003

Twenty years ago today, Dodger Stadium hosted its greatest game.

It began swathed in bright blue skies and triple-digit temperatures. When it ended, 228 crazy brilliant minutes later, shadows palmed most of the playing field, and every Dodger fan who witnessed the spectacle found themselves near joyous collapse.

The game was between the Dodgers of Steve Sax and Pedro Guerrero, of Greg Brock and Mike Marshall ... and the Braves of Dale Murphy, of Bruce Benedict, of Brad Komminsk.

In the end, however, it came down to one man. A rookie named R.J. Reynolds.
Continue reading...

For fun on an off day, here's a clip from the opening scene of an episode that I wrote for the Disney Channel series So Weird back in the late 1990s. In this scene, you'll see a fairly accurate depiction of the most unusual play I ever witnessed in person at a baseball game. (The real-life version was the final play of a 1989 high school playoff game I covered in Palo Alto.)

* * *

At U.S.S. Mariner, David Cameron assesses Seattle's Adrian Beltre signing, nearly three years later:

Obviously, that first year was rough. He couldn't have started his Mariner career any worse. His first two months in Seattle, he received 199 at-bats and hit a staggeringly terrible .236/.264/.357. Since most of baseball was already convinced that his 2004 season was a massive fluke, the early struggles simply fit into the already written narrative about a bad player who had a contract year and was now one of the worst free agent signings in baseball history. The story of the Adrian Beltre contract was written two months into a five year deal, and in general, the national perception of the contract hasn't changed much at all, as Beltre is often referred to as overpaid or disappointing. MLB.tv users will remember the last Rangers series in Texas for Tom Grieve's constant whipping of Beltre in particular.

Adrian Beltre is a star, an underrated asset whose remaining two years on his contract are nothing short of a bargain. ...

Yep, the Dodgers had a winning week, but oh, what might have been. From SI.com's Fungoes:

Injuries rocked three of the four National League West playoff contenders over the past week -- but the one club to make it through unscathed could only take partial advantage. ...

Takashi Saito has committed to returning to the Dodgers for another season instead of retiring, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:

It might have been more negotiating ploy than anything, but a year ago Takashi Saito was noncommittal about returning for his second season in the Major Leagues.

"I'll let my agent handle the contract," Saito said. "Last year, I hadn't talked to my family about returning. I've already had that conversation this year. So if the Dodgers want me to play, I want to play." ...

Saito has been just remarkable this year, allowing eight runs in 57 innings (1.26 ERA, 355 ERA+), striking out 71 while walking 10. Though this should be taken with a grain of salt considering his short MLB career, it's fun to note that Saito's career major-league ERA in 135 1/3 innings is 1.73, the lowest in Dodger history for anyone with 135 or more innings, according to Baseball-Reference.com. (Saito's career ERA+ of 263 is by far the best in Dodger history for someone with 135 or more innings, and it's second-best in MLB history behind Boston's Jonathan Papelbon.)

Is the way the Dodgers limit the playing time of their young players at the outset of their careers an actual contributor to their ultimate success? Or are the Dodgers just missing out on opportunities to cash in on their prospect fortune?

Once promoted, Russell Martin was thrown into the starting lineup without hesitation, but James Loney, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and Andy LaRoche (not to mention Chad Billingsley) each have had to claw their way into their starting roles. We know why Martin was treated differently - the Dodgers really had no other catcher to turn to - but would Loney et al (and, in turn, the Dodgers) have suffered if they had gotten the Martin treatment? It's a valid question, though I have my own suspicions about the answer.

LaRoche is the person in this group whose playing time is most in question right now. The occasional day off for LaRoche, who only recently suffered from disk problems in his back and may still be learning to manage them, doesn't bother me. But when he doesn't start for two days in a row, one has to wonder about the rationale.

Is any other third baseman on the Dodgers better than LaRoche at:

Today's 12:55 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

For all the consternation that one might have about some of Grady Little's decisions, for me Friday night's game was all about pure baseball highs and lows: The exhilaration of James Loney's second home run, tying the game in the ninth inning, nearly offsetting the spirit-melting depression I felt when Rafael Furcal made his seventh-inning error. I can't remember the last time I felt so knocked off my feet by a misplay - I guess I had gotten caught up in the fever of the Dodgers continuing their comeback up the standings this week and the sublime pleasure of watching Loney, Matt Kemp and Chad Billingsley put the Dodgers in position to move another step closer to the wild-card lead. But with that low Furcal throw that Jeff Kent couldn't handle, everything seemed to just fall apart; MacArthur Park melting in the dark, all that sweet green icing flowing down. Not even Dan Ortmeier's game-winning homer for the Giants in the bottom of the ninth felt worse; that didn't take away a game the Dodgers had in the bag. The error, the error.

Today, Variety launched Season Pass, a new blog devoted to thoughts and musings about television, particularly prime-time series. I'm proud to be one of eight contributors (perhaps more later) to the new site.

To commemorate the launch, we put together a chart with our initial thoughts about the new shows for this fall season. If you scroll your cursor over some of the ratings, which range from two thumbs up to two thumbs down, you'll also see brief comments about the shows. But we'll get to expand on these thoughts in the main blog.

The presence of Season Pass solves one of my ongoing problems with Screen Jam, namely finding time to post on it. That's because I now am compelled to contribute TV-related blog posts to Season Pass, so there's really no choice in the matter. For now, I'm going to keep Screen Jam alive for posts related to entertainment (including TV posts that don't fit the Season Pass mold), but it's possible that down the road, I might just consolidate my personal blogging back into Dodger Thoughts. (I experimented with allowing some film chat on Dodger Thoughts Thursday night, just to begin to assess the impact.)

In any case, I am hoping that many of you will check out Season Pass and bring some of that Dodger Thoughts community over there in the comments section. Of course, some of you will be limited in your input before the new fall season officially begins, but I do look forward to seeing your thoughts on the web pages of Variety.

Warning: The first person who mentions Juan Pierre at Season Pass gets a paddlin'.

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Regular season tiebreaker scenarios involving the Dodgers, courtesy of the MLB Coin-Flipping Department and reported by MLB.com:

NL West
Dodgers at Diamondbacks
Padres at Dodgers
Dodgers at Rockies

NL Wild Card
Dodgers at Padres
Phillies at Dodgers
Dodgers at Rockies
Cubs at Dodgers
Dodgers at Brewers

I'm not sure why there's no scenario for the Diamondbacks and Dodgers being tied for the wild card, let alone why there is Dodgers-Cubs and Dodgers-Brewers but not Dodgers-Cardinals. And MLB was really not inspired by the Braves' rally over Philadelphia the other day.

The Houston Astros asked permission to interview Dodgers assistant GM of scouting Logan White for their vacant general manager position.

- Diamond Leung, Press-Enterprise

"I broke a tooth playing tag in fifth grade in France, where I went to school for two years," he says. "I fell right on my face and broke my tooth. I had to get it glued back together, and I have had to have it redone two or three times since. But I have never really minded. I would rather break my tooth than get tagged."

- Russell Martin in Sports Illustrated

Dodgers lead, 2-1, top of the seventh inning, two runners on, two out, starting pitcher Derek Lowe due up.

From Dodger Thoughts, June 3, 2005:

Let me say this again: The starter who was a better pitcher than the reliever when the game began, who was a better pitcher than the reliever in the second, third, fourth and fifth innings, in most cases goes from better to worse as the game enters the final innings.

So the bargain you strike when you let that starter pitch in the late innings - trying to eke out another effective inning from the guy who has already thrown five to seven, trying to spare your bullpen an extra inning of work, is like blowing your bubble gum past its breaking point. Your starting pitcher might not make it through his next inning, you'll have to go to your bullpen anyway, and you're facing a larger deficit - one sticky mess. If you sacrificed a pinch-hitting opportunity in the process, call up Don Rickles so that he can add the perfect insult to your injury.

As it happens, Lowe (Mike Fontenot single, Cliff Floyd walk) and Jonathan Broxton (Alfonso Soriano three-run home run) have combined to nullify James Loney's homer/double/two-RBI heroics, and the Dodgers trail Chicago, 4-2, entering the eighth.

Update:
Hallelujah!
Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah!After Matt Kemp homers in the eighth, Russell Martin and Loney single and pinch-hitter Andre Ethier hits a three-run homer in the ninth to put the Dodgers up, 6-4. Takashi Saito then closes out a 7-4 victory, moving the Dodgers within 2 1/2 games of the Padres in the wild-card race.

Loney, Kemp and Ethier homer. Oh my.

Russell Martin has a sprained left knee and is day-to-day, with that day perhaps being today. Tony Abreu makes his first start since his recall, giving Jeff Kent a rest.

Rafael Furcal, SS
Juan Pierre, CF
Matt Kemp, RF
Luis Gonzalez, LF
Russell Martin, C
James Loney, 1B
Andy LaRoche, 3B
Tony Abreu, 2B
Derek Lowe, P

* * *

Today's 11:20 a.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Update: Meant to mention this earlier, but the Dodgers have not homered since August 29.

It happens: Philadelphia blew leads of 8-2 in the eighth inning and 8-6 with two out and the bases empty in the ninth, losing to Atlanta and falling a half-game behind the Dodgers in the National League wild-card race.

A victory tonight would put Los Angeles within two games of the wild-card lead. Colorado, hosting San Francisco later this evening, could move within three games of a playoff spot.

Remember when the Dodgers' biggest problem was runners left on base? Now it is runners getting thrown out on the bases. This too shall pass ... to make way for another problem to overcome. It's baseball, folks.

* * *

Update: Russell Martin is not starting tonight. From Inside the Dodgers:

(Martin) went for a precautionary MRI on his left knee because of the way he went into home plate yesterday, but we still have no results. From what it sounds like, no one seems terribly concerned, but since Grady was planning for an off day tonight, it made sense to make sure everything is ok in there.

Without explanation, Shea Hillenbrand is batting sixth.

Update 2: I have to say, I am having nervous thoughts about Martin. I'm glad the Dodgers are having the MRI instead of just wondering about the knee, but I don't feel it's really in their history to run an MRI unless there's more reason for concern then they're letting on. Just have to hope.

Update 3: Randy Wolf did have a frayed labrum, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports. The good news is that it wasn't detached.

Disabled pitcher Randy Wolf underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left shoulder Wednesday, and doctors debrided frayed labrum and cleaned scarring on the bursa. The bursa scarring was anticipated. The labrum issue did not show up on previous MRIs, however, it is relatively minor compared to detached or torn labrum. Frayed labrum is usually trimmed, but detached or torn labrum requires anchors or sutures and a longer recovery.

Where Wolf will be in Spring Training is an unknown. The Dodgers have a $9 million option on Wolf that can be bought out for $500,000.

* * *

Tonight's 5:05 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Brett Tomko is heading to a more hospitable pitching environment in San Diego. We'll see if it helps.

And now you know the rest of the story.

* * *
September Dodger Roster
Catcher: Russell Martin, Mike Lieberthal, Chad Moeller
First base: James Loney, Shea Hillenbrand, Olmedo Saenz, Mark Sweeney, Ramon Martinez, Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent
Second base: Jeff Kent, Tony Abreu, Ramon Martinez, Delwyn Young, Chin-Lung Hu, Wilson Valdez
Shortstop: Rafael Furcal, Chin-Lung Hu, Ramon Martinez, Wilson Valdez
Third base: Andy LaRoche, Nomar Garciaparra, Shea Hillenbrand, Tony Abreu, Ramon Martinez, Olmedo Saenz, Wilson Valdez
Outfield: Juan Pierre, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Luis Gonzalez, Delwyn Young, Wilson Valdez, Manny Mota
Starting pitchers: Brad Penny, Derek Lowe, Chad Billingsley, Esteban Loaiza, David Wells (when suspension ends),
Swingmen: Eric Stults, D.J. Houlton
Bullpen: Takashi Saito, Jonathan Broxton, Joe Beimel, Rudy Seanez, Scott Proctor, Mark Hendrickson, Roberto Hernandez, Jonathan Meloan, Eric Hull

* * *

Tonight's 5:05 p.m. game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

* * *

Update: Notes from Diamond Leung of the Press Enterprise reiterate that Garciaparra is only available to pinch-hit for now, and add that Hong-Chih Kuo had a throwing session scrapped today because of elbow soreness. Also, Tony Abreu appears to be completely healthy but asked for a day before talking to the press about it.

Go to Leung's blog to read one more amusing note concerning the perils of roster expansion.

Andy LaRoche will need to be diligent in taking care of his back problems for the remainder of his career, writes Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise:

LaRoche suffered a partially protruded disk in his back this season, an injury that he will have to monitor for the remainder of his career.

LaRoche said a minor back issue he thought he had dealt with during the spring worsened during a season that saw him receive his first major league call-up in May and end up spending time on the disabled list after returning to Class AAA Las Vegas.

Pedro Martinez struck out his 3,000th batter Monday. I don't know how this didn't merit a headline in the Times - but it's a big deal, and I congratulate Los Angeles' Mr. What Might Have Been.

MLB ERA Leaders, age 25 and under, minimum 80 innings pitched:

1) Chad Billingsley (age 23), 3.30

* * *

Today's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

The career of Juan Encarnacion, who played for the Dodgers in 2004 (it seems so long ago now), may be over after he was hit in the eye by a foul ball. From The Associated Press:

The damage a foul ball did to Juan Encarnacion's left eye was the worst the St. Louis Cardinals' medical director has ever seen to a baseball player.

Paletta said the eye socket was essentially crushed on impact, comparing the injured area to the disintegration of an egg shell or ice cream cone, and that the optic nerve had sustained severe trauma. Reconstructive surgery may not take place for several days while doctors wait for swelling to subside. ...

Wishing Juan all the best. The Dodgers know on-deck circle injuries, of course: Steve Yeager was nearly killed when shards of Bill Russell's shattered bat lodged in his neck. Yeager later invented the now widely used catcher's throat guard to protect himself.

Update: Ross Porter e-mails to say that it was former Dodger trainer Bill Buehler who actually created the throat guard.

Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Kemp, RF
Kent, 2B
Ethier, LF
Martin, C
Loney, 1B
LaRoche, 3B
Billingsley, P

Today's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise says it's "official" - joining the Dodgers from Las Vegas today are infielder Chin-lung Hu, pitchers D.J. Houlton and Jonathan Meloan (finally) and catcher Chad Moeller. No Andy LaRoche. Not even to pinch-hit.

The Moeller callup, by the way, frees Mike Lieberthal to pinch-hit before the 16th inning.

Update: In a bit of unexpected news, David Wells tonight began to serve the seven-game suspension he kept putting off as a Padre. The Dodgers have no off days this week, so they're going to need a starting pitcher Wednesday. (Esteban Loaiza is scheduled to pitch Monday.)

No announcement was made immediately, but Eric Stults will be back on the roster by then.

Update 2: According to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, Grady Little said LaRoche and Tony Abreu "were not promoted with Saturday's group to allow them a few extra games and innings in the remaining games for Las Vegas." If you say so ...

* * *

Tonight's game:

Gameday

Retro Gameday

Be fair. Just be fair.

Twenty players in the National League have more walks as a No. 8 hitter in the lineup than Andy LaRoche.

LaRoche has 24 plate appearances with the Dodgers this year as a No. 8 hitter. The fewest plate appearance for someone with more walks than LaRoche as a No. 8 hitter is Rickie Weeks, who has 86.

Not a single No. 8 hitter in the NL has walked at a higher rate in 2007 than Andy LaRoche.

LaRoche won't continue to walk at this rate no matter where he bats in the lineup, but I remind you that to conclude his walks are a product of his batting in the No. 8 slot is a complete fallacy.

From Dodger Thoughts, May 19:

As more people have become aware of Andy LaRoche's preternatural walking ability since arriving in the major leagues, more people have written it off under the assumption that pitchers are working around him to get to the pitcher's spot.

So what's the explanation for LaRoche walking more often than any other No. 8 hitter in the National League? ... Take away LaRoche's four intentional walks, and he'd still have five walks in 19 plate appearances at No. 8 - and three walks in nine plate appearances as a No. 6 hitter. The guy's a rookie who was batting .235 in AAA - with 11 walks in a little more than 100 plate appearances. Is there a reason opposing pitchers would be more careful with him than any other No. 8 hitter? Why doesn't Andre Ethier, usually batting No. 7, have more than 10 walks in 138 plate appearances?

It's not as if LaRoche's ability to walk came out of nowhere. LaRoche walked 66 times in about 500 plate appearances in the minor leagues last year. That doesn't make him Ted Williams, but it counts for something.

In addition, the No. 9 hitter isn't always a Dodger pitcher - sometimes, it's Olmedo Saenz or red-hot pinch-hitter Wilson Betemit. Overall, Dodger No. 9 hitters are fifth in the NL in OPS and OBP, so there isn't much more reason to pitch around the team's No. 8 hitters than any other team's.

So let's not be in such a hurry to write off La Roche's walks. Yes, batting slot has played some part, and he won't maintain a .488 on-base percentage for the season, but the walks are something legitimate to tout. After all, he could be chasing bad pitches rather than taking those jogs to first.

Nomar Garciaparra is ready only for pinch-hitting duties at best; his attempts to run "have been met with sharp pain," according to Diamond Leung of the Press-Enterprise. Shea Hillenbrand has shown average-to-below-average range at third base while posting a .271 on-base percentage and a .382 slugging percentage. Hillenbrand has had a few big at-bats for the Dodgers, but fewer than we have a reasonable reason to expect from LaRoche.

Let's not waste any more time. Let's give LaRoche his shot - the shot that will not only give him a head start into 2008, but that will also give the Dodgers more of a chance of salvaging 2007.

(I should note that Tony Abreu has a .397 on-base percentage and .518 slugging percentage for Las Vegas.)

* * *

Be fair. Just be fair.

In the top of the first Friday, Jeff Kent broke a baseball custom by making the final out of the inning at third base. In the bottom of the first, Kent could not get a glove on a slow-rolling Adrian Gonzalez grounder to right field, a play that if made would have forestalled Juan Pierre costing the Dodgers two more runs by losing a pop fly in the nighttime sky.

His presence in the first inning helped bring the Dodgers one run and cost them three. And the team lost by two.

I point this out not to denigrate Kent, who at age 39 1/2 has the second-highest OPS+ and VORP of any Dodger hitter this season. I point this out because the Dodger beat writers did not. Yet those same writers are all over Matt Kemp whenever he makes a mistake.

To excuse them in part, it might be because Dodger manager Grady Little and some of the coaching staff indulge them with numerous quotes about how much work Kemp has to do (though maybe the Dodgers are just trying for some tough love with a young ballplayer).

In any case, the perception from inside the Dodgers that Kemp is not a complete ballplayer has apparently prevented the offensively challenged team from playing its best hitter every day. He does play most of the time, now, but is there any reason to rest him at all?

Choose your weapon. No Dodger (other than Delwyn Young with 14 plate appearances) has a higher batting average, slugging percentage, EQA or OPS+ than Kemp. Heck, even if clutch hitting is your thing, no Dodger has more RBI per plate appearance than Kemp, and only James Loney has a higher OPS with runners on base.

Kent has been thrown out more than once on the bases this week. Kent was one of two runners thrown out on one play at the plate in the opening game of the 2006 playoffs. In general, Kent's declining physical ability fills most of his baserunning and fielding attempts with unpleasant suspense. Whatever limitations Kemp has in his running and fielding, Kent has more. This is an objective fact. It is also true that Kemp's baserunning outs have been characteristic of a bad week or two but not of his play the entire year.

And Kemp is the better hitter. Today.

We forgive Kent because the good still outweighs the bad. Can the press and the Dodgers themselves finally begin to do the same for Kemp?

Pierre flubs, however innocently or sweetly, and he's a lock to be in the lineup the next day - despite an EQA that, even with Pierre's recent hot hitting, is still 49 points below Kemp's and a batting average that is 40 points lower. Citizen-hero Luis Gonzalez sighs about being phased out by Kemp and Andre Ethier, and he's back in the lineup the next day.

Matt Kemp, the Dodgers' best hitter, gets thrown out on the bases, and he's the one who has to prove himself all over again.

Be fair. Just be fair.