That brought up Oscar Robles, a fast runner, with the painfully slow Phillips on second, but in a move only a true National League purist could appreciate, Robles was given a bunt sign. The result was an easy force of Phillips at third.

"The bunt has to be absolutely perfect," said Tracy, offering what would seem to be a perfect argument against doing it in the first place. "I'm not saying it was a bad bunt. But (Cormier) was able to take the play. We wanted their third baseman to have to field that ball."

Then again, maybe I don't want to watch this one.

How much more time do you think it will be before Erickson is pitching tonight?

WWSH

Yeah, by something I meant both Lowe's disastrous outing just when we actually scored some runs and today's first inning. Halsey's struggled as of late, though, and if DJ can recover to avoid us having to go to Erickson, we can still pull it out.

WWSH

WWSH

Note: I used the formula (expected-observed)/SE with SE being the square root of: (BARISP)(1-BARISP)/(ABRISP)+(BA)(1-BA)/(AB) and then found the p-value.

Yep, horrible, horrible base-running when you need five more runs.

WWSH

Good news is, I might hit for the cycle tonight...

WWSH

He made yesterday's start by Lowe look good.

Our season's done is if our pitching goes through another bad stretch like we had in May. It's not like the offense is going to just explode at any point.

WWSH

Is Jacksonville playing tonight? That might liven things up. I probably wont' hang around the whole time--I've got more sorting out to do in my new place, and it's awfully late back east. Didn't you also just move into a new place SB?

WWSH

WWSH

a) smaller
b) less rent and
c) much brighter, thanks to incoming light which was missing from the last place which resembled a very large cave.

And I got a dog, Wayne. A terrier mix, rescue project... it's like having a second kid.

How's the new place working out for you? I didn't know you were moving...

WWSH

Yep, I've had my own weird month of transition. I was in New Haven but am starting a new teaching job at the Naval Academy this fall so I've moved down to Maryland. I've spent the last month moving stuff down, getting things wrapped up in New Haven, and I was in LA the week before visiting folks. It hasn't helped that my movers also lost a big chunk of the stuff I was shipping down from New Haven.

I can understand the lack of internet access. I was hanging out at Panera way too much for a while to use the wireless internet.

Arghhh--if Drew's flyball had gone out, we'd be within 2 runs. Nothing's working for us.

WWSH

Izturis made the All-Star team. The voting players save his trade value. Thanks, guys!

That last one we can chalk up to bad luck. Would've gone out yesterday in the day game.

WWSH

Probably a play Green wouldn't have made in Dodger blue. Don't get me wrong--I thought Green was a great guy, but his defense really did seem to decline in LA in the OF.

WWSH

Drew hit a ball to the warning track. I was referring to Green's throw to the cutoff man which lead to Edwards being out at 3B.

WWSH

Flied out to center to the track.

Russell, Wills, Reese(?), Offerman...

WWSH

WWSH

Trace may actually admire Edwards' "aggressiveness." Unlike the passive Choi.

I don't think I'm quite as bitter as I was in 2003 when we wasted that fantastic pitching, but this is certainly a trying season. At least we stink all-around--less disappointing that way.

WWSH

WWSH

Of course, that fantastic start at the beginning of the season now seems especially cruel.

I actually still have hope for the season. I'm definitely a pretty optimistic fan, but even I feel glum right now.

WWSH

Well, Green's bad shoulder I suppose was the major injury that year. I he'd had hit 49 HR, who knows how that season would have gone.

Phillips seems to be hitting the ball hard as of late, without much to show for it until now. If Drew's long flyball had gone out, we'd be tied. 4th inning--if our bullpen can survive, we might actually win this game.

WWSH

WWSH

110 -- He could have batted for Erickson, rather than trying to squeeze one more inning out of his dead carcass.

WWSH

Wasn't Burnitz supposed to be the offensive solution that year? Boy did that not work out.

WWSH

Yeah, with Quantrill, our pen still would've been awesome. I liked Evans, but if DePo had been GM, we might have won it all that season.

A. Perez barely misses another one, at least according to Gameday and Steiner. Arghhh...

WWSH

Hopefully I'll be pleasantly surprised tomorrow morning!

WWSH

X, Y, Zed,
Hit him in the head!
8, 9, 10,
Do it over again!

That much, I did see. It was not pretty.

Now I can get back to being upset about poor play, as opposed to stupid play.

I'm beginning to believe in post 142...

We've got it in the bag now, boys...

The umpires seem to be really bad across the board this year. They are making a good case for instant replay in baseball.

This game looks like the weather here in Tokyo.

I will be at the Tokyo Dome tonight for the game between the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters and the Chiba Lotte Marines. Today I like domes. I like domes a lot.

Can someone fill me in on the beanball situation in this game?

And , oh by the way, dad was a better player.

I assume Bob's kidding, but if there has ever been a time when blood and bone fragments were called for. . . When does Counsell bat next?

The Arizona bullpen has blown bigger leads.

I don't like him.

And this game's end is pretty high in bitterness.

RDGC will return tomorrow, July 5. The day so nice, I will live through it twice!

Little disappointed in our offense the last 2 nights though. AZ bullpen is supposed to be terrible but they are pitching terrific against us. I think we have losing record only to AZ in our division.

Maybe this will give them closure and things will turn around.

Or maybe not...

We're sellers.

We are cursed.

This really isn't funny anymore.

I WANT MY MOMMY!

I mean, this is just nuts...

Werth, Repko, Grabowski??

Before the Drew injury we needed another bat in the OF, now we need two? And on top of the Izturis is day to day. Would be nice if one of our extra 3Bs could play LF, perhaps someone like Perez, then put Saenz at 3B (if he's healthy).
vr, Xei

Drinking out of the strangest looking water bottle I've ever seen, he said that it's definitely a break, it's not going to be a 15-day DL thing (longer) and he looked, frankly, like a guy who just had his car stolen.

So, there's that...

Why wasn't it Erickson who got hit with that ball!!!! Why! Why! Why! Waaahhhh!!!
vr, Xei

Las Vegas 51s (AAA):
The 51s lost 4 - 2 to Portland.

Willy Aybar, Norihiro Nakamura, and Brian Myrow each had 2 hits on the evening. Willy Aybar started at 3B and was 2 for 3 with a double, walk and an RBI, increasing his average to .306. Nakamura started at 1B going 2 for 4 with a double. Dioner Navarro was 1 for 4 with a run scored.

Derek Thompson pitched 7 quality innings, especially considering the hot and dry Las Vegas air. He allowed 3 runs (all earned) on 6 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 3. Over 12 innings pitched in AAA, he has yet to allow a homerun.

Jacksonville Suns (AA):
Let's play two!

In the first game, the Suns lost 4 - 1 to Carolina in a shortened 7 inning game.

The Suns lone run came in exciting fashion when Todd Donovan led off the game with an infield single before proceeding to steal second, third, and then home! At 26 years old, Donovan is not a prospect, but he sure is fast. He stole another base on the night, extending his league-leading total to 44. The next highest total is Marland Williams of Tennessee with 26. Delmon Young is 4th in the league with 24 stolen bases. On the night, every Suns position player struck out at least once, totalling 13 strikeouts in the game. The Suns only managed 4 hits in the game, all singles, one each by Todd Donovan, Andy LaRoche, James Loney, and Russell Martin. Todd Donovan, Delwyn Young, and Tydus Meadows each drew a walk on the night.

Edwin Jackson started off with a solid pitching performance, holding Carolina scoreless through 5 innings on 3 hits and 2 walks, while striking out 5. Unfortunately, he gave up the lead on a solo homerun to the first batter in the 6th. After walking the following batter, he left the game for Jonathan Broxton. Broxton, the Suns recent closer, added fuel to fire, allowing 3 more runs to score before closing out the inning. Of the 3 runs, 1 was charged to Jackson (unearned) and only one was earned. Broxton hurt himself defensively by missing a throw on a force attempt.

In the second game, the Suns lost 8 - 7 to Carolina in the 8th inning (extra innings) of another shortened game.

Carolina ran wild on the Suns backup catcher, Eric Langill, stealing 6 bases without being caught, en route to their second win of the day. The Suns offensive attack was again built on singles (6) and walks (7). The only Sun with an extra-base hit on the night was Delwyn Young, who went 1 for 4 with a double and an RBI. Andy LaRoche went 1 for 3 with a walk and 2 strikeouts, scoring a run. James Loney also scored a run, going 1 for 4 on the night. Neither Joel Guzman or Russell Martin started the second game, though Martin grounded out as a pinch-hitter in the 7th.

The Suns pitching staff combined for a lackluster performance. Kuo struck out 4 in 1.2 innings of relief, but was tagged for 3 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits and a walk to pickup the loss. William Juarez, tonight's starter, is a 24 year old right-hander obtained from Arizona in the Shawn Green trade. He seems to be competing with Eric Hull for the 5th starter slot in the Suns rotation. Tonight's performance certainly did not help his cause, as he only made it through 4.1 innings, allowing 3 earned runs on 4 hits (1 homerun) and 4 walks, while striking out 4. Juarez was pulled after allowing a three-run homerun to Jeremy Hermida with one out in the 5th.

Vero Beach Dodgers (High-A):
The Dodgers lost 5 - 3 to St. Lucie.

All three of the Dodgers runs came by way of the long ball. Outfielder Anthony Raglani hit a solo shot in the 2nd, his 7th of the year. At 22 years old, Raglani may be a marginal prospect with a .281/.386/.412 batting line, though he is likely behind two of his outfield teammates, Justin Ruggiano (age 23) and Matt Kemp (age 20). Ruggiano went 1 for 4 on the night and scored a run. Among Vero Beach regulars, Ruggiano leads the team in on-base percentage (.398) and slugging (.521) and is second in batting average (.312) to Tony Abreu (.323). Kemp went 2 for 4 and crushed his 15th homerun of the season in the 4th to account for the other two Dodgers runs. Matt Kemp has tremendous power (.271 ISO), but his lack of plate discipline is killing him (60 Ks and 11 BBs in 211 ABs). Coming into the season, Xavier Paul (16th) was ranked ahead of Matt Kemp (29th) according to Baseball America. After this season, those rankings will certainly change as Paul hasn't done anything on the year (.222/.302/.320).

Julio Pimentel pitched a good game, leaving with a 3 - 2 lead after 5 innings, but Beltran Perez gave up 3 runs (all earned) in 2.1 innings to take the loss. Pimentel gave up 5 hits (all singles) and 2 walks while striking out 5. Starting the season as the Dodgers 13th best prospect, at 19 years old, Pimentel has put together a great season so far. In 77 innings, he has struck out 74 batters and walked 31, while only allowing 4 homeruns. He is behind his teammate Chuck Tiffany (10th) on the Dodgers prospect depth chart. Beltran Perez was acquired from the Diamondbacks in the Shawn Green trade.

Columbus Catfish (Low-A):
The Catfish lost 5 - 2 to Greensboro.

Right-fielder Ryan Russ went 3 for 5 and fell a homerun short of the cycle. At 24, with a .270/.319/.423 batting line in Low-A, he is not on the list of Dodgers prospects. Second baseman Travis Denker went 2 for 2 with 2 walks, but he was left on the bases all four times. Denker was not on the Dodgers top prospect list prior to the season, but will certainly be joining the elite club after his performance this year. He's batting .273/.393/.469 on the season. He still strikes out too often (65 Ks), but he is leading the league with 57 walks in 271 at-bats. Blake Dewitt went 1 for 3 with 2 walks and an RBI. The walks are a nice touch, as he only had 18 walks in 303 at-bats coming into the game.

The overall mediocre pitching performance was led off by starter Brandon Weeden, the third piece in the Kevin Brown - Jeff Weaver trade. Weeden pitched 5.2 innings giving up 4 runs (3 earned) on 6 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 5. Weeden's performance on the night is representative of his season overall. In 74 innings pitched, Weeden has a 4.74 ERA with 63 Ks, 39 BBs, and 9 HRs. At the high end of 21 years old in Low-A, Weeden needs to turn things around quickly. All four of his rotation-mates (Christopher Malone, Blake Johnson, Scott Elbert, and Javy Guerra) are likely higher on the Dodgers prospect charts.

Ogden Raptors (Rookie):
The Rapors lost 6 - 0 to Casper.

The Raptors scattered 9 baserunners, 5 singles and 4 walks, over the course of the game. First baseman David Sutherland, outfielder Sergio Pedroza, and catcher Juan Apodaca each reached base twice on a single and a walk. Shortstop Shane Justis, second baseman Jesus Soto, and DH Jason Mooneyham represented the other Raptors baserunners.

Kristoper Krise had his third poor start since joining the team. By allowing 4 runs (all earned) over 4 innings, Krise dropped his ERA to 11.68. Of the 6 hits Krise allowed, 2 of them left the yard, and he only struck out 2 batters.

GCL Dodgers (Rookie):
Did Not Play

Do you think the Dodgers are done this year and not trade top prospects and wait till next year. Drew's injury is killer. We've had too many injuries to compete this year. I know it's painful and frustrating but I guess we'll have to experience growing pains.

After tonight's game, the Dodgers are 5 games under .500 and 6.5 games back of the Padres. The Padres are starting to get healthy again, and the Dodgers are not. We're not done yet, but there are definitely forks on the horizon. At this point, I wouldn't do a trade strictly for this season, but anything like the Lo Duca trade last year would be fine.

I stated this before, but if this season is a bust, I wouldn't rush to bring up minor leaguers. As long as the players can continue to improve in the minors, it's better to let them do it there, instead of starting their arbitration clock early.

Prior to Drew going down, I was suggesting trading for Matt Lawton, because he wouldn't require as significant of prospects as Adam Dunn and he can play all three outfield positions well. But, Lawton is only signed through this season, and since this season is looking like it's going to be scrapped, I wouldn't trade for him now (perhaps with an extension).

My feeling has been that in the next offseason the three primary goals will be A) a good starting pitcher for 1 - 2 years, B) a young, left-handed, slugging fourth outfielder for 2 - 3 years, and C) a third baseman / utility infielder for 1 year. If we can fill either of the first two now, I would go for it, even if it means giving up major league talent in return (Izturis, Saenz, Brazoban, Weaver, and Saenz are possibilities).

#240: For Choi's sake, of course we should give Choi an extended opportunity! We have very little organizational depth at first base, and if this season's shot, we should give Choi every opportunity to lock up the starting job for next year. I'd rather not hear any more "arm angles" or "0 for 10" garbage from Jim Tracy.

As far as positional prospects, we don't have much that's major-league ready. Catchers Dioner Navarro and Russell Martin are the closest, but there's probably not enough difference between them and Jason Phillips at this point. Andy LaRoche and Joel Guzman can probably hit major league pitching a bit, but both of them need to work on their defense.

Hong-chih Kuo left the game in the seventh inning because he heard a pop in his arm.

career might be over for kuo. which is a shame, he had billy wagner type cieling.

but we shouldnt jump to conclusions, it might be nothing and kuo is just paranoid. no MRIs have been done yet.

http://www.jaxsuns.com/games/070405012606.shtml

I'm wondering if there's any more information out there.

ddger, I think pretty soon we won't even be able to see AZ's taillights. We will be playing to finish ahead of the Gnats. That's all.

Whenever one drifted petal leaves the tree-
Though white of bloom as it had been before
And proudly waitful of fecundity-
One little loveliness can be no more;
And so must Beauty bow her imperfect head
Because a dream has joined the wistful dead!

--Dorothy Parker
http://plagiarist.com/poetry/1862/

Thanks, Fearing, for the great report. Never celebrated Christmas growing up, but the name "Kristoper Krise" just makes me smile anyways.

I'm going to the Nationals Mets this afternoon. Old friend Kaz Ishii goes for the Mets, so I've explained to my friends that he'll either throw a no hitter, walk 9 and lose, or both.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO ALL

(I'll take my medicine now, Jon.)

I'm still pissed.

Timmerman came for blood last night. The Dodgers would've joined him if they knew about Drew.

There was a time we had the OPS one
But now we're the sad and lonely ones
lonely

We were gay
to make trades
but we're sellers now, not buyers
'Cuz we're through

Phillips, Bako, Choi, Saenz, Izturis, Valentin, A.Perez, Werth, Repko, Grabowski, Ledee, Weaver, O.Perez, Carrara, Sanchez, Brazoban, Alvarez, Houlton.

Just sell.

Drew hurt, Kuo's career perhaps over.

Sigh....

My motto now is sell, sell, sell. What contender needs a good shortsop? If Weaver has a nice run, we might also get something for him if a team desperately needs another starter. I also think Saenz would have good value, and that would force Tracy to play Choi regularly. I also think we should bring up Chen from AAA and settle once and for all how he'd do in the bigs. I doubt he'll succeed, but what's the downside now? Ledee's a known quantity, and IMO, Repko has had enough ABs to show he can't cut it. Spread the playing time around with Ross, Repko, Werth, and Chen, and see who does the best?

WWSH

Regardless of what you think of Drew, this injury has nothing to do with "heart." I think even LaRussa would agree with that.