Thanks for the new thread. The one below was the pits. This race is going to be a "barn burner" to quote one of this towns least favorite ex coaches who won a national championship.

1 Ha. I you're referring to Jim Harrick, he sort of mangled that phrase.

He called it another type of burner. A burner that would hurt very much. A really bad burner.

Jim Healy played the clip all the time.

So I never complain about The Player, I assume he is what he is and doesn't make or break the team and so I let it alone. But lately he isn't what he is. I wonder why he rarely steals and is pretty much station to station on the bases. Something isn't right- im not sure its where hs is in the line up or confidence or base caoches or what. If we are going to play him, it seems like we should be able to get more out of him than this.

Ole Jim Healy, that was the time when I actually listened to sports talk radio. Him and Bud Furillo.

If the Doctor is complaining then the illnes runs more then skin deep.

Keith Law actually responds to the people that comment on his articles at ESPN. He's the first writer at the WWL that I've seen do that. Actual responses in the comments section.

New post at Screen Jam.

Keith Law was the only analyst I saw this winter who thought the Dodgers signing of Wolf was a great deal for us. His quote was something to the effect that Wolf would outpitch Zito. So far so good.

some trade chatter regarding Teixeira from www.nypost.com:

"[T]he Rangers are shopping him due to a rift between Teixeira and first-year manager Ron Washington . . . The Rangers are looking for high-end pitching . . . and outfield help . . . for a player who makes $9 million this year and is eligible for arbitration after the 2008 season."

now, i know speculation gets old after a while, but does anyone think colletti ISN'T at least listening to trade offers?

based on what texas might want and what we have, i'd guess at a texas demand of loney, kemp, & bills/elbert.

in my opinion, that's too much. if we could talk them down to loney/either/elbert, would you do it? (i don't see this offer being enough for them--i think they would demand at least kemp or bills, maybe both.)

i'm just throwing this out there. i know the nomar situation confuses things, as does the boras angle, but i just think if a power guy is seriously on the market, colletti would have to be aware.

9 The Angels seem like a better fit but of course are within the division. He did play 30+ games in the outfield in 03/04. If Dunn and Ramirez can make a living in the OF, this guy can.

Elbert is probably too far away from the bigs, and maybe hurt to boot. What about Kuo? I wouldn't trade Kemp and Billingsley, but you'd almost have to be willing to part with one of them to get a guy as good at Teixeira. Then again, he's only 2 years away from FA, right? It may not be worth it, considering how long we have the young guys under control.

If you give up Loney, then you have to re-sign Teixeira. And Teixeira will get near 100 million. Boras and his glossy portfolio will make sure of that.

Loney, Ethier, and Kuo would probably make that deal happen. But there is a lot more than just giving up players. You have to then re-sign Teixeira. I don't know.

5 2 4 9.

No trading Loney!

With Giambi down for probably the year I expect the Yankee's to be making the play for Tex. He's an East Coast guy so I wouldn't waste my time trying to trade for him based on signing him to a long term deal. If we just want him for this year and next year(14Mill in Arb in 2008 very likely) then I'd make a play. He has stated many times that he wants to go back home which is why Texas is not able to get anywhere on an extension and I don't think anyone on the West coast will be anymore successful. The Yankee's finally have the depth of minor league pitching where they should be able to make a deal if they want him.

Texas needs are pitching, 1st base if they trade Tex, temp 3b with Blalock out, and more pitching. Any offer from us based on 1 1/2 service of Tex has to include Loney/Betemit. The real question is how much pitching would you be willing to offer for a 1 1/2 rental. And what do you do with Nomar. As much as I like Tex I just don't see a fit based on how Ned has built this team.

12 I don't think resigning Tex is a huge necessity. One of the benefits of first base is that almost anyone can play there, so if the Dodgers just go out and get the biggest bat they can find, then figure things out from there it should be okay.

While Teixiera is probably the best available player in free agency come 2008, right now there are tons of great bats that will be available after the 2008 season. The Dodgers could pick up Delgado, Sexson, Hafner, Thome, Glaus, Ensberg, Chipper Jones, Burrell and others to fill that hole. I'm sure some of these guys will get extended contracts, but at least a couple of them will hit the open market.

12 - i could live with a loney/ethier/kuo package.

as much as i like ethier, the biggest advantage to trading him is that it opens up a spot for kemp.

obviously, we risk trading a future batting champ in loney and a potential solid starter in kuo, but loney's blocked anyway and kuo's injury history is well-documented.

even if we never re-signed tex, we'd have him for two years without giving up the whole farm. btw, are they getting rid of draft pick compensation for free agents?

17 Heck, looking at the list of free agents in 2008, I wouldn't mind if the Dodger punted next offseason to save for next year. Look at some of the names available:

Crawford, Baldelli, Santana, Sheets, Peavy, Sabathia, Lackey, Furcal, Vlad, Wily Mo Pena, Oliver Perez, plus the guys I mentioned above.

Again, this will probably get paired down, but if even half these guys become available it will be a great free agent class.

15
Can't see how Delgado, Sexson, Thome, Ensberg, Chipper Jones will be worth much by the end of the 2008 season. 3 of those 5 should be on their last legs and 2/5 aren't worth much now.

18 Very true. Read guys off that second list.

By the way the LeBron James performance last night was just awesome. I turned on the game with 5 minutes to go and watched one man beat a group of 5 very good basketball players.

19
If you think Wily Mo Pena is going to be worth something by the end of 2008 shouldn't we go get him now when he could be had cheap?

21 Yes. If we got Wily Mo Pena now, I'd be the happiest boy on Earth.

I have already suggested a few things regarding Teixiera and I am sure they were scoffed at by most everybody in DT. Just the same I think Tiexiera is nothing more than a rental and adds $9 Million of payroll that the Dodgers would want to offset with payroll going to Texas.

Texas also wants to move Gagne and Lofton. The Dodgers want a third baseman and not a first baseman. If the Dodgers can trade Pierre and Tomko, the later as a closer, to Texas as part of a three way trade involving Tiexiera I think they will try to do it.

I don't think the Yankees want to trade their pitching prospects as long as Cashman is calling the shots but I do think the Yankees want Tiexiera and want him badly.

Laugh at me some more but I think there is a better chance AROD will be playing for the Dodgers than there is for Tiexiera.

Willy Mo has got to be the Player Most Likely to Be Traded on the Sox right now. I would imagine they trade him for whatever spare part they need for the stretch run, which is probably bullpen help. But if that's the case and we make an offer, Im sure Crazy Theo will be asking for nothing less than Broxton.

Unfortunately, Pads have an 09 option on Peavy for 8 mil.

Potentially a bit of heartbreaking news, for those following the story of the trapped whales up by the S.F. Bay Area:

"A 50-foot dead whale was spotted not far from the Golden Gate Bridge on Friday morning, the U.S. Coast Guard confirmed. Officials were investigating and said it was too early to determine if the animal was one of the two whales that recently visited the Delta."

http://tinyurl.com/2arubz

23 I'm pretty sure Jon Daniels won't accept trash in exchange for his best player. Especially since one of those pieces of trash is a more expensive, worse version of what he currently has.

27 I don't disagree so that trade is not likely. But because Tiexiera is a Boras client and soon to be a free agent, I don't expect the Dodgers to try too hard to get him.

I was going to do a two month summary but since we are at the 1/3 season summary (which I guess makes sense since the season is 6 months long), I thought I would wait until after today's game.

Quick thoughts, outside of Jason Schmidt, no injury impact to the season thus far.

And related to that, since there have been no injuries to the position players, the arrival of guys like Loney and Kemp has not yet happened. Wilson Betemit's cold start caused the only two call ups from the system in LaRoche and Abreu.

One other quick thing, the last time the Dodgers won 15 or more games in each of the first two months of the season was back in 2002.

27 - If the Dodgers believe Schmidt will be able to pitch effectively this year I can see a Penny for Tiexiera trade as part of a three way trade.

30 I was about to bring up Penny. The quote in 9 says, "The Rangers are looking for high-end pitching". Assuming that's true, I read high-end as an established starter that immediately enters the rotation as a 1, 2 or maybe 3. Penny is the most likely Dodger that fits that definition.

I don't know if trading Penny is that good of an idea. He seems to have finally developed some pitching sense, and there's a club option on him for 2009, isn't there? It would be great to have him for two more years while he's pitching what would likely be his last prime years.

Ask me again about Penny after the All-Star break, though!

The thing that I try to keep in mind when imagining trades is this: if there's a player I don't want, then it's unlikely that anybody else wants him, either.

I would imagine that it would be very difficult to trade Pierre, Hendrickson, or Tomko. No team wants to take these guys.

It's not impossible, of course. If the Dodgers gave up, say, Kemp or Billingsley, they would have some more leverage to force a trade partner to take Pierre/Tomko/Hendrickson as well. But by themselves... I can't imagine they have any value.

As always, I could be wrong.

I think if the Rangers wanted one of our pitchers, it would be Lowe. He costs about the same as Penny, and his ground ball tendencies would play well in Texas.

I've floated the Penny/Lowe and Loney for Teix, a couple times. Might need to throw in a low end prospect like Zach Hammes to make that deal work.

29 - Just FYI, I'll be doing the same.

"Texas also wants to move Gagne..."

Really? Why? What's changed? He's still what he was, a great pitcher prone to injury. It seems like he's met expectations precisely.

Followup to David Price mention yesterday. More on why he didn't sign when drafted==

"When the decision was made three years ago for Price to eschew offers from Major League Baseball teams, who considered him worthy of a first-round draft pick, and to attend Vanderbilt the feeling at the family home in Murfreesboro was that the hard-throwing 6-foot-6 left-hander was physically ready for a life in professional baseball but definitely not mentally ready for the lifestyle.

"Puppies can't play with dogs," Bonnie Price said. "... We looked at it and talked about it. We live on a busy highway ... you have a grown dog and a puppy — a big dog can get across the highway; a puppy's going to get run over.

"If he'd have gone right into pro ball, he'd probably be sitting at home right now because he was just not mentally ready."

Arf, arf, I guess.

http://tinyurl.com/2qcjep

Was LaRoche pulled for any health reason yesterday in that double-switch with Tomko? If not it appears he's really getting jerked around. He had 2 pa's Sunday vs. a LHP and was hit for (granted that was Ethier's HR), and 2 pa's yesterday. With 3 lefties going this weekend he deserves to get 3 starts and 12-15 pa's.

I see more dead dogs on Victory then puppies but maybe they grow them smarter in Murfreesboro.
Whole street came to a halt yesterday when a peacock decided to see what the big street was all about.

36
They thought they had a contending team and then reality smacked them upside the head. He's an expensive part on a last place team. Can't say much for a GM who goes after a closer when they already had one and ignores the rotation which everyone knew was the problem except for Joe Sheehan. Doesn't help any that M Young has completely tanked after signing his extension.

38 Don't think it was a jerk-around, pitcher's spot was due up first when Tomko came in for Brazonban - notice that Grady didn't do the 2 for 1 when Yhency came in. When he had to change pitchers again, he wanted to get more than 2/3 inning out of the next guy, Tomko. Given the number of 3B on the roster, La Roche made more sense than Ethier who was in the 8 slot.

29 Admittedly minor points, but Anderson was injured (position player - bench), with LaRoche getting his spot. Tsao and Kuo were call-ups.

BTW, if the Padres claim Bocachica a day or two before Bigbie is going to come available, does that indicate very litte market for Bigbie? No interest wouldn't surprise me.

More reaction to 29: Perhaps the biggest injury impact is Kemp's shoulder and his subsequently getting stuck in AAA.

35 I will then wait and comment on your analysis. :)

Who cares if Laroche is being jerked around.
He is a rookie- who may or may not even stay with the big club much longer. He will get a shot at some point, but he isn't entitled to playing a set number or games/ABs.

42
I can't believe that if he's proven himself to be healthy he can't land a job as a 4th/5th outfielder somewhere.
Toronto is playing Matt Stairs in LF
Nat's are playing Nook Logan
Florida is playing Abercrombie
Padre's are playing Termel Sledge
WhiteSox will be playing either Owens or Terrero in CF
WhiteSox are playing Podboy

I could go on and on but Bigbie should be able to get a major league job unless no one wants to free up a spot on the 40 man because they feel he'll just get hurt again and he's not worth the effort.

45 I feel that statement lacks a certain big pitcure quality to it. Our management has done nothing but jerk around our young players and those young players should be the foundation of future dodger teams. I look at the orginization as a big company. If Loney was called up and didn't have more than 2 extra base hits in the 3 hole in a month, I doubt he would still be on the roster. If Billingsley were starting as he should be, and decided to throw up an era of over 6.00 for a month I doubt to he would get another start.

I kind of agree with Doctor. La Roche can handle being jerked around, he is just happy to be up in the big leagues.

47

Yea, I dont see it that way. I see the big picture is whether the team wins the baseball game, not how many ABs a rookie hitting 0.200 gets in any given game. Guess we just look at it differently.

If the WhiteSox felt that an outfield that had Podboy and Erstadt in it was a good idea then they might be the only team that might think Juan Pierre and Podboy would make an excellent outfield besides our GM. This WS team has some injury holes. I think an offer of JP to the WhiteSox for Jermaine Dye is in order as Dye is a FA and they are not expected to make an effort to resign him. Sure you say but they could have signed him as a FA last year but they went with Erstadt instead. Now with all these injuries they might be thinking they need a guy who will play 162 games, steal 60 bases, and lead the league in outs because he never takes himself out of the lineup. Their used to wimpy armed outfielders as the Podboy's arm is a dead ringer for Gonzo's. Guillen has always been upset that his sluggers kept knocking in his small ball boys before they had a chance to do the small ball thing. This way they remove the guy who stops rally's and they can string together multiple singles and stolen bases and it will be small ball heaven in South Chicago.

damn, my quote from The Apartment was wasted there at the end of the last thread. Ah well. I'm glad people have moved on, though.

---
Larry Bigbie picks up the glove in the field where a game has been
Lives in a dream
Waits at the window, wearing the face that he keeps in a jar by the door
Who is it for?
All the lonely fringe players
Where do they all come from?
All the lonely fringe players
Where do they all belong?

42 SD probably wanted a righty. They already have a left handed 4th OF named Jose Cruz.

LaRoche is not Alex Gordon who has no competition for his spot and is going to get the whole season to figure things out and is playing on a last place team.
Grady needs to put out the lineup that he thinks will result in a win. If La Roche or Betemit or Abreu take offense when benched, that is okay with me. If they pout I think Gonzo, Nomar and Kent will deal with it. I'm just not sure who will deal with Gonzo or JP or Nomar if they get benched periodically for the good of the team on certain days and pout.

Agree- I loved seeing Gonzo pinch hit for last weekend with Kent in a big situation VS a lefty ( I didnt see if he pouted, but i don't think he did). Grady benched Pierre once, but then that game turned into a disaster so its wasn't really talked about much (Schmidt-> DL, blown out by SD). Hopefully he will do it again at times.

53 I'm not advocating LaRoche getting 162 games to prove himself nor am I worried about damage to his psyche in being pinch-hit for in the 5th. My concern is that Abreu is taking ab's away from LaRoche vs. LHP. Even if Abreu and LaRoche are near equals the Betemit/LaRoche platoon was working fine in May. Then consider that Abreu is taking a potential roster spot from Kemp. Also I'm concerned Abreu is getting PT because of a few batting avg points. His .408 BABIP in Vegas, LaRoche's massive walk rate and LaRoche's future role at 3B should be enough evidence to tip the scales to LaRoche.

For some reason, Betemit continues to be better off the bench as a PH rather than when starting. Maybe that will eventually change but for now the Dodgers seem satisfied having him come off the bench and have Abreu and LaRoche battle for starting 3B. They both have had their moments at the plate but Abreu to my eyes right now looks a lot less tentative. Still, I'd like to see LaRoche get a chance, or have him go back down and start full time. I'm sure he understands the situation and isn't moping much about it. He's probably looking forward to unexpectedly seeing his brother in Pittsburgh this weekend.

It seems like LaRoche stands too far away from the plate. I find myself leaning forward when he is being pitched to.

Jeeze, I need help... ;)

When was the last time there was a three-way tie for first in the division?

Anyway, the NL West has been the best division in baseball this year by a huge margin. Our division is a collective 21 games over .500. Next best in MLB is the NL East at 10 games over.

I guess I just look at it like if anyone should get the longer leash it should be the younger players, not the older players. Now, I want our MLB team to win to. I don't even care if we have young players on the roster, but if they are on the roster give them some consistent opportunities and some rope or move them to AAA where they will play daily.

47 As long as they don't trade their young players precipitously, they can "jerk them around" all they want. The rigors of staying in the big leagues, staying in the starting lineup of a contending team, require development of a mental toughness that you don't get if someone just hands you the job and says, "Take as much time as you need to get oriented, kid, we don't really care about winning here." These kids all know they are climbing up a slippery competitive pyramid. If they're actually feeling "jerked around," that's an attitude that will stand in the way of their success.

I would have much preferred it if the Dodgers had "jerked around" Paul Konerko and Pedro Martinez than what they ended up doing with them, trading them away.

Totally off topic but just a comment on something else.

I did not see the interview so I can't speak to it directly and this may also be totally sexist or even prudish but if you are going on national tv and you are apologizing for possilby starting a serious health crisis, your hot young blonde wife should not be dressed like some beautiful nurse. When I saw the picture, I thought it was some type of file photo from some ad not a screen shot from their appearance on TV this morning.

Hey James, thanks for hitting .380, thanks for the 9rbi game, thanks for a great spring training now do us a favor (we signed Nomar you know) and take your great defensive glove to the OF so maybe you can make the team is not a good thing for anyone. Or strike that, I guess it is for us cause it will make him tougher?

I just realized that I fell a week behind on my Cardboard Gods reading, looked over there, and found I have a vertitable novel to sit down with.

60 Again by "jerking around" I mean at the team's expense not the player's. I think of Justin Morneau rotting in AAA behind Doug Mientkiewicz in 2004. LaRoche has more power than Abreu and consistent playing time is the best way to gauge his ML readiness.

Speaking of "who's on first?", I wonder if Olmedo starts tonight, given his lofty numbers vs not just the Pirates but Zach Duke in particular. I hope so.

63 I'm waiting for the movie to come out.

64 True, but ultimately that didn't work out too badly for the Twins, did it? They were patient, maybe too much so, but didn't trade him, gave him his shot finally and now they're happy.

61 - If you're talking about the screen shot on Defamer, I think that's misleading compared to the videoclip I just watched.

62 that's not it. Based on last season, Nomar was a better bet to start at first, and given that, Loney's willingness to try another position was a good thing.

Now, Nomar's not playing so well. He'll be given some leeway due to his track record, as he should be. But eventually, if his performance doesn't revive, he'll sit, and Loney will have his chance.

You have to ask yourself, if they truly had no plans for Loney other than to jerk him around, why didn't they trade him? His trade value might never be higher than it was last winter or this spring. You don't think Colletti got offers for Loney almost every day?

The solution to our short-term third base problem is immediately at hand if we were willing to part with Loney and others like him. We haven't done that. Do you think that's just because Colletti's lazy?

Very unfortunate for the team that Nomar got the 1B job b/c it was thought that he had more power than Loney, but so far neither guy has more taters than Jason Schmidt.
Hitting 0.450 WRISP is keeping Nomar from being a disaster, but I get the feeling if either guy started putting the ball over the outfield fence they would be starting at 1st more often than not.

66 But it probably did work out badly for the Twins. Having Morneau a year or two earlier could conceivably have been the difference between making the World Series and, well, not.

Unless you buy the idea that there was never a chance they would keep him after free agency, and they suppressed him so that the six years they were getting would be his prime years.

im in the process of making my 177 player big board for sundays mock draft. any draft favorites from anyone here?

this is hard.

71 I expect you to get us McGeary, Smoker, and Heyward. Anything less would be a failure. ;)

72

i was thinking more of of brett cecil, james simmons and brad mills...

70 Maybe, that's sort of speculative, you know? Plus they had a pretty good squad last year with him and looked like a World Series candidate before choking in the playoffs. And yes, it's kind of cynical but I do sometimes think there's something to that notion - that teams sit on young players as long as possible, so they can keep them under contract as long as possible. Anyway, their timing may not have been perfect but they did ultimately make the right decision and Morneau seems no worse for the wear, was my main point. If I had one.

Boys and their games.

I don't really know how to answer. No I don't think Colletti is lazy. I don't think the plan was to jerk loney around, either. I bet the plan was to have loney play 1b and have Drew in RF and when Drew opted, Ned panicked. I totally see your point though. I bring up loney as an example, but I am perefectly fine with him being in triple A all year too, as a first baseman. (Because he is a really good 1b man)

I think your comment about Nomar being a better bet to start at 1b based on last season could be wrong though and not just in hindsight. To be fair, I too going into the year would have rather had Nomar than Loney to start, but others might not feel that way.

Nomar hasn't really played well since last July so how much leeway does he get? I mean at this point I just want him out of our 3 hole at the very least. Maybe go Martin, kent, Gonzo, Nomar..

I really belive from hearing Ned that he dose have faith in our kids and that's why he hasn't traded them and that is cool. So I am obvioulsy backing down some.

On that note, you guys who really know baseball as players or coaches, what is wrong with Nomar? I mean I root when he gets the ball out of the IF now even if its an out. Is it injury, mechanics, no enhancers, what is it? He is such a fun hitter to watch when hitting well.

The kid who won the spelling bee last night was a hoot. He could barely high five his last competitor and when he walked he looked like he would fall over. I was thinking Martin Short in the high pants when I saw him and then he kicked Stewart Scott's butt in the post interview and quickly became a cult hero in my mind.
Did anyone think Black Belt when they saw this kid on the podium? My wife who is about the least cruel person I know couldn't stop laughing at him. Sitting on your Mama's lap at 13 on a nationally televised event probably won't help him with his peers when gets back home but his refusal to give into Stewart Scott should tip the scales in his favor.
This was probably all talked about in the Bee thread but I didn't see the end until last night.

The kid who won the spelling bee last night was a hoot

He composes music, and has even written a piano concerto.

76
The power outage around all of baseball has to be getting noticed. Nomar is at the extreme end but lots of hitters who historically hit the long ball are finding the walls a bit longer in 2007. At first we blamed the weather but May has been warm and many hitters are still finding a stiff wind blowing in on them whenever they lift the ball.

78
Yes, alot of talent was wrapped up in that awkward body.

80
It's kinda nice to see what else the kids can do other than spell. You know that they've gotta be pretty smart, but being able to spell well isn't all that exciting and doesn't really show what they're really all about.

LaRoche is very likely the best third baseman on the team. Playing somebody else might be fine, if there's a point to it (like a platoon, or preserving his service time by keeping him stashed in AAA), but the only reasons I've seen given for doing it now is that he's hitting .200 in his 37 ABs, or that Abreu looks less tentative. The first would seem to give way too much credence to a tiny sample, and the second seems to be a function of Abreu's not having taken a walk yet, much less fifteen. His OBP is .261, in 22 PAs.

82

Stats from the 51's this year are probably also a factor.

83 Right- I get the feeling that if LaRoche homers today he would buy himself another 2 weeks and if Abreu goes 3-3 one game then LaRoche may be Vegas bound. It seems that simplistic from the outside.

84

Yea, when there isnt a clear choice they are playing the hotter hand at the time.

84

Yea, when there isnt a clear choice they are playing the hotter hand at the time.

79 I was noticing yesterday https://dodgerthoughts.baseballtoaster.com/archives/678693.html#34

NL
Year HR/G Slg%
2007 0.893 .402
2006 1.097 .427
%decrease 18.6 5.9

AL
Year HR/G Slg%
2007 1.026 .418
2006 1.123 .437
%decrease 8.6 4.3

I don't know if those changes are that significant without trending over more years - not enough time right now, but at glance 2005 looks somewhat similar to 2006 - but gut feel is that an 18.6% decrease in HR/G is notable. ("Game" is team-game, twice the number of actual contests.)

87
Yeah I saw your numbers which is what I was referring to. After 1/3 of a season I think it is very notable. What has been the effect on scoring per game?

I guess I'm just being stubborn but I don't see how La Roche is clearly superior to Betemit at this time.

There is a clear choice. You can't go far wrong laying the best player. Platooning him if you think it's worth it can be a good choice, too. Starting a utility infielder because he was hitting way over his head in AAA, way over any previously indicated ability, and way over what anybody actually expects from him is not a good choice, hot hand or no. Hotness is fleeting.

Anybody want to predict that LaRoche really does hit .200 this year? In any level, or combination of levels?

87 Are the 2006 stats for the whole season or only through the end of May? If it's the former, they are essentially meaningless. You've gotta compare apples to apples.

For those who follow the Times coverage of the Dodgers, Steve Henson ends his last report as follows:

>>> Please send future questions to kevin.baxter@latimes.com or to ben.bolch@latimes.com, the reporters who will be picking up Dodgers coverage until The Times hires a replacement for me. <<<

http://tinyurl.com/2tgckj

It's too bad about Henson, because he had really improved the quality of his coverage over the last couple of years. (He was unusual in that regard too. Most beat writers seem to go in the opposite direction -- they burn out after a certain period of time and then just go through the motions.)

Furcal, SS
Pierre, CF
Martin, C
Kent, 2B
Saenz, 1B
Gonzo, LF
Abreu, 3B
Ethier, RF
Wolf, P

90

I believe Abreu is considered a candidate for the future 2B after Kent at this point- is he not?
I wasn't aware that he was a utility player at this point.
Its pretty tough to argue that there is a "clear choice" at 3rd this year for the D's IMO.

89- I don't say LaRoche is clearly superior, this year, just likely. PECOTA and ZiPS and CHONE all projected him to be better. I'm fine with platooning LaRoche and Betemit, or with starting Betemit, and returning LaRoche and Abreu to the minors. I'm not particularly happy about allocating 1.25 spots worth of PAs between three people, one of whom doesn't belong in the equation, just because Colletti won't make up his mind.

95- There are two 3Bs who are very likely better than Abreu this year. Both the SS and the 2B are better. I'm not saying that utility infield is his ceiling, or that it's his destiny. I'm saying, it looks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, right now.

Abreu's IsoP of -12 (that's negative 12) is the smallest I've ever seen.

94 Figures. I guess Abreu's double yesterday was more impressive than LaRoche's single. Duke is one of the worst LH starters around. Would have been nice to see what LaRoche could do against him.

984 Well, I got my wish for Saenz. Not a big surprise. Let's see if I can keep up his numbers vs Duke and Pitt.

Oops, I meant 94, of course. And I do agree, I would've liked to have seen LaRoche in there again today.

I wonder how many teams have corner outfielders who bat sixth and eighth. I realize Gonzo usually bats fifth, but he shouldn't.

Question: Why do Dodger players always do so crappy in All-Star voting, as compared to attendance? Year in, year out, we have what I would guess is the worst ratio of all-star votes to fan attendance of any MLB team. Mets players often win in a landslide even though they get fewer fannies in the seats than we do. This was true before the online voting thing started, and remains true now. So what's the deal? Do Dodger fans just not care enough to vote? Do voters from other teams hate us disproportionate to other teams? Do they not pass out enough all-star ballots at Dodger Stadium? All of the above?

Martin running 4th in the voting is a travesty. (That is, if anything related to a silly exhibition game can be important enough to be called a travesty.)

There's no issue with ballot distribution or access. Dodger fans just don't care enough to vote. Sadly, I know I don't.

Note that both Martin and Garciaparra were fourth at their positions.

So it's all Jon's fault, then. Well, at least we've identified the source of the problem.

71 - even though we are usually focused on h.s. lefties, i'm interested in adding a power prospect (don't care the level).

if bumgarner or smoker is there, we probably have to take him, but mills and laporta are attractive as well--especially if we trade loney for tex ;)

98
Your basing that on the smallest sample size ever quoted here at DT.

La Roche should really be playing today. Even if the Tomato should be playing it is a revelation that he is playing. Tomato needs to start earning his pay as a lefty whacker.

Maybe the flailing Astros will draft Bumgarner as a hint to their embattled manager.

105 Jon's lack of voting helps explain it, but also remember that Dodger games are typically only watchable by West-coast fans, while the entire country gets to see Mets, Yankees, Sox, et al at a reasonable hour, plus the highlight shows are all editing together by the time the Dodgers take the field. West coast teams just don't get national exposure.

I don't vote either, because I think the whole thing is silly. But because I see no reason to assume that the distribution of All-Star Fever levels is different for Dodger fans than for other fans, we still need an explanation for Eric's observation.

How about this for a partial explanation: every team's home fans "do their job," so the difference between getting elected or not comes down to reputation in the rest of the country. Here, the West Coast thing probably matters. Over and above any East Coast bias in reporting, fans East of us rarely get to see WC teams play, and they go to bed before WC highlights make it to SportsCenter. Unless a player established a reputation in the East (e.g., Vlad Guerrero) or is SO much better than anyone else that obscurity is impossible (Bonds) or is a media darling for some reason (Ichiro), I imagine a lot of talent out this way is relatively unknown back East.

One test of that idea would be if the votes/attendance ratio is also lower than average for other WC teams.

Eric - you're in NY, right? Does any of that ring true, or is all hogwash?

I vote on-line, why take the time to do the printed ballot when it only counts once. I remember in 2005 when Izzy was blazing hot and I decided to fill out a zillion ballots while at the game. By the time the all-star came Izzy deserved to be there about as much as Mike Sharperson did. That was the most embarrassing year I lived through as a Dodger fan. Mike Sharperson representing us at the all-star game. Unless it was Jeff Shaw.

Note to self: Don't ever fall behind on Cardboard Gods again. I really missed some great chat threads.

98 I think Alex Sanchez was lower at one point.

Yeah, or what 109 said. Serves me right for writing a novella.

I love the all-star game. Just wish they let me pick the players instead of the fans or players. I basically want to be the Baseball Dictator who will listen to everyone and heed no one.

Off topic, but I'm watching the England-Brazil soccer game right now (England's up 1-0), and David Beckham is clearly the most important player on England's team today. Did the L.A. Galaxy somehow pull a quick one on the Europeans? And if the Galaxy can use L.A. (and a good amount of money) to attract top talent, do they become relevant? Relevant defined as what you wish the L.A. Kings still were.

God bless Mike Sharperson.

94 - martin's batting 3rd! there is hope after all.

With no desire to reopen the A-Rod discussion from last night, I present the following great read:

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=6300

115. To me, the All-Star Break is the worst 3-4 days in American sports every year. Only one baseball game, and it's a meaningless on. Basketball and hockey are finished. Football hasn't started yet.

On the flip side of the coin, it's a nice break from the action, and a good chance to give the TV a rest and get some chores done.

Who had Eric Hull in the Friday callup pool? Anyone? Anyone?

121- Really?

Wow.

I haven't seen that posted anywhere on Dodgers.com or ITD. Is this true?

New post up top.

I no longer live in NY, but I think there's a lot of truth to 109 and 110. Even the serious baseball fans out there really don't know the Dodger players (or other west coast players). It's like the East Coast is on a two-year time delay. It took a couple of years before they knew who LoDuca was, and realized he was good. Maybe it's the same with Martin.

That would also explain why Nomar is one of the only Dodgers doing well in the voting, even though he, well, stinks.

One would think the East Coast effect would be mitigated a little by the Japanese voting. From what I understand, a not-insignificant portion of the online ballots come from Japan. The Dodgers not only opened the door for the influx of Japanese players, but have had at least one Japanese star on the team almost continuously since 1995 -- and then there's the proximity factor. All that would ostensibly work in the D's favor. But it doesn't appear to be happening.

Strange that Tony Jackson beats ITD and Dodgers.com. Good for him.

103)

I have voted about 100 times and still going. Although, I almost think Russell could use the time off (but I love his work ethic and passion for the game). I just want him to receive respect for the great catcher he is. I hope to still see him at Chavez Ravine 6-8 years from now.

1, 2 & 4

Thanks for the laugh.

For those who remember:
http://www.johnspeedie.com/healy/ballburner.wav