LaRoche. I have made my choice.

Despite Shea's heroics this week, it is unfortunate that Andy LaRoche wasn't available to take advantage of the situation.

LaRöché

LaRoche, with Abreu subbing for Kent during the late innings.

Abreu is having an absolutely sick year at AAA. He's also got the best glove in the bunch. Just sayin.

We are 10-4 with Shea. Maybe not because of him, but I play the streak like we did with Marlon last year.

LaRoche the rest of the way if we fall out of the race for sure, but Shea is my man.

nah, let's go with Andy. I want to see this power everyone speaks of.

Is it too early to talk about tomorrow's game?

I predict at least 5 runs will be allowed by Wells, not sure why, but I have a feeling.

[Dodgers could still win the game though... the Padre bullpen is tired]

What, no love for Wilsón Valdéz?

Abreu will get a start or two at second and perhaps short. I don't see him starting at third.

Nomar and his first pitch fly-outs are rally killers. I personally don't miss his bat right now. If he gets hot, ride him. If not, Shea is my man.

I'm not even sure LaRoche will get a call up.

6 - The difference between the white-plasma-hot-so-bright-you-gotta-use-shades Marlon Anderson last year and the team coincidentally winning while Shea is flailing away is night and day. Go with the hot hand, but not the lucky rabbit's foot.

Ledezma vs. Wells? Is the run line 15? It should be.

So if Hillenbrand had hit better at Portland would he be sharing time with Kouzmanoff at San Diego? And where would Morgan Ensberg be?

Alex Rodriguez.

Oh, you mean this season...

I'm going with picking up Julio Franco. This PVL is not a trifling to be messed with....

Oops. Phillies rallying again. BTW, is it hot enough yet?

The enhanced Gameday today for the Phillies-Mets game has more holes in the time-space continuum than a poorly plotted Star Trek episode.

13 Hillebrand only got a shot due to injury. San Diego made their choice at the time and Ensberg is the guy, but they didn't have injuries like we did with Andy and Nomar.

Our team is finding ways to win while Shea is in the line-up. Perhaps not because of him, but certainly not despite him.

He's made a few great plays with the glove and he had 3 RBIs yesterday including the game winner.

4 hits in two days gents. He is my guy while we are making a run. Ride the momentum.

8-5 Phils with 2 out in the phiphth. They're having a Dodger rally, a walk and 5 singles.

Roster Thoughts.

The Dodgers have 5 players on the 15 day disabled list, 1 of them is going to come off in the next week or so (Nomar), one is not available (Yhency Brazoban) and the other three are in some type of rehab (Tsao, Wolf and Kuo).

Of the players that the Dodgers are thinking of adding to the roster, five of them are not on the 40 man roster (Meloan, Hu, Lindsay, Valdez, and probably another catcher)

So the question for Ned, Kim Ng, DeJon Watson and the rest of the front office, outside of Yhency, who else do you put on the 60 day DL (not necessarily ruling them out for the season, Wolf would be eligible to come off immediately, Kuo in the first week of September, Tsao, who is probably out anyway, not until the middle of September)

In the end, I think we end up just adding Meloan, Hu, Valdez and a catcher to the roster, they DFA Roberto Hernandez, they transfer Yhency and Tsao to the 60 day DL and that wait and see what happens with Wolf and Kuo.

I am only writing about players not already on the 40 man roster, Abreu, LaRoche, Young, Hull, etc. are already on the the roster.

19
The city planners were right. The Portland area was urban planning nirvana!

I also sensed good zoning laws.

He has a line of .255/.271/.382 for a 67 OPS+ with the Dodgers and 1 HR (yesterday) in 55 at bats. We are winning in spite of his black hole presence in the lineup. He makes Wilson Betemit look like Alex Rodriquez.

22 is in reference to 18 and the "he" in question is Mr. Hillenbrand.

18 Are you really suggessting using Hillenbrand over LaRoche or even, well, anyone?

Those four hits in two days has brought his numbers with the Dodgers to .255/.271/.382. He's also a god-awful fielder.

I recommend reading this article on why riding the hot hand is a terrible idea:

http://ussmariner.com/2007/08/20/projecting-future-performance/

Hey everybody, Bob's been to Oregon! Glad you liked it. Did you see that skyway/tram thingy? Our consultant from there was really excited about it.

20 Hamulack, who hasn't pitched since April anyways, will be dumped I would assume.

13 I dont think production was issue with Hillenbrand on SD's AAA team. I think his contract had a 10 day out clause, and once SD picked up Ensberg, he exercised it.

20 The thing is, if they were going to dump Hernandez in favor of Meloan, wouldn't they have done it already? Ever since we got Hernandez poeple have been saying that Meloan would have to wait until the rosters expand to be called up. If we were going to DFA Hernandez anyway what would be the point of waiting until Sept. 1?

Is there any reason why you would DFA a guy in September?

from previous thread:
* 146. Gagne55
130 Ah so it is then. Oh, and accoring to his bio, Hong-Chi Kuo's name is pronounced "kwo." Xeifrank has been pwn3d. *

I've been pwn3d? Is that like being "served"? When I read this, it reminded me of the kids on South Park getting "served". haha!

His last name is not pronounced "kwo". It may be spelled with a "K" in wade-giles, and he may or may not mind it being pronounced "Kwo", just for the convenience of english speakers, but believe me it is pronounced "Gwo". vr, Xei

25 O.k. I just saw Bob's Griddle post about his trip to Oregon. But I could have scooped him 2 weeks ago.

off topic: I had a chance to hear a Demo of the "new" American Top 40 with Seacrest. It's worse than I thought. Interviews? Gossip News? No LDD? No jingles? good lord

In Buster Olney's latest ESPN Insider blog, he speculates that Eric Chavez may be traded in the off-season as a means for the A's to cut their payroll.

"But he would be a very nice luxury item for a large-budget contender -- he bears some risk, but he's not outrageously priced, has loads of big-game experience, and is known as a good clubhouse guy. He would make a lot of sense for the Dodgers, in their never-ending quest for a third baseman; for the Yankees, if Alex Rodriguez decides, in the end, to opt out of his contract; or the Red Sox, if they want an alternative to giving Mike Lowell a three-year deal."

Just throwing it out there since we're talking about the third baseman issue...

29 Only the reason expressed in 20 : to create room on your 40-man roster for September callups.

30 I know you're right about this, but I could only think of this:

Mayor Quimby: Now, Mr. Larry White!
Barry White: Actually, it's Barry White.
Mayor Quimby: Well, it says here 'Larry.'
Barry White: I think I know my own name.
Mayor Quimby: Yeah? Well, we'll just see.

34 Ah, duh.

Can someone clarify?

At what point does a player have to be on the 40-man roster to be eligible for postseason play?

Is it August 31 or September 1?

Regarding the conversation a few days ago regarding managers and statistics, it appears that Cecil Cooper may "get it." A quote on batting Pence lead off from him in today's Houston Chronicle:

"He's a kid that is pretty aggressive," Cooper said of Pence. "His on-base percentage is, I think, near the .350 mark. So you kind of want that guy up there to have an on-base percentage somewhere in that area. He's pretty close to that. He's gotten on base quite a bit for us this year.
"He's an exciting kind of player, so why not give him the opportunity to create some of that excitement?"

He at least mentioned OBP as important for a lead off man. Looking at the Houston roster, especially from an OBP/speed perspective, Pence is easily the best choice (only Berkman has a legitimately better OBP, and as far as speed, you don't want Lee, Lamb, or Scott leading off). Admittedly, Pence hasn't walked much in the Majors, although he did so more often in the minors, and while I would personally probably put Lamb lead off, this is still far better than batting Biggio's .286 OBP lead off.

LogikReader,

In response to your question from the previous post, both Game 6 of the '75 WS and Game 6 of the '86 WS are available on iTunes.

There are a total of 27 classic games available on iTunes at the moment, and they seem to add more every few weeks. I've got to imagine they'll add the 4+1 game at some point.

I visited my local Jamba Juice today. The smoothie formerly known as "Protein Berry Pizazz" is now known as "Protein Berry Workout," minus the "Nike" that is included in the moniker in the Bay Area.

LeeLacy

Very cool! I wasn't aware that non WS games were part of it. I should get an Itunes account... this could be addictive.

D4P, you know, the strangest thing is the Bay Area Jamba Juice stores use PAPER CUPS! bum bum bummmmmm

We do not need a third baseman for the future, we got LaRoche.

No signing a third baseman.

Bob, should we be enjoying this Phillies sweep? On the one hand, the Phils are still in the WC, on the other, the Mets broadcasters must be seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeething.

36 As I understand it, and correct me if I'm wrong, a player needs to be on the 25 man roster at 11:59pm EST on August 31st. However, there's always the Krod loophole.

41
I have only seen styrofoam.

San Francisco proper may be the only participant: I went to a Jamba Juice downtown and received a drink in a paper cup... it was a whole new world for me =)

41
I can't remember whether the JJ in Berkeley used paper or styrofoam. I'm also not sure which is less "green". Paper obviously uses trees, by I think styrofoam is tough to get rid of.

[42 ] two words: a. rod.

47cont.
Can't remember whether the JJ at Westfield Centre in SF used paper or styrofoam either.

-- it was early July when I went, and as I remember it, they barely switched, per a notice on the wall.

43
I've been dipping in, but the Yankees-Red Sox game is the HD one.

However, I'm not smart enough to appreciate Ron Darling.

I just got back from a recent trip to Portland myself. Great town, AMAZING beer.

What Napa is to wine, Oregon is to beer. Take my word for it.

48 Sadly, Loaiza pretty much confirms that we won't be able to afford A-Rod unless we want to push the payroll into the 130 million range.

44
Isn't the "KRod loophole" the fact that he was on the 40-man? So the Angels brought him up in mid-Sept and it didn't matter? Am I way off here?

Obviously, I ask because of Meloan and a potentially similar scenario. Not saying he's gonna set the world on fire like KRod did. But shouldn't the Dodgers at least have this option?

So, do they have to get him on the 25-man by August 31?
Or on the 40-man by Aug. 31?
Or on the 40-man by Sept. 1?

42 48 A-Rod is an SS =).

Is it possible that Meloan does not get called up to avoid the service time? I don't think he is on the 40 man roster yet.

37 Garner clearly doesn't value OBP as a trait of his leadoff man. He had Taveras leading off before the Astros traded him.

51

Bob, even if the Phils pull it off (the sweep), I don't think it's anything to worry about. The Phils almost always find a way to blow their shot at the WC.

Joba Chamberlain gets his first major league ejection before giving up a run.

To clarify my position on Shea, I simply mean that he is our guy for now, not the guy in the future.

He plays this weekend on Friday for sure, then we evaluate from there depending on how we are playing and how he is playing. That doesn't mean LaRoche doesn't get a start, it just means that Shea has the job while Nomar is down and the team is winning.

He isn't lighting it up, but he is not hurting us either. He's been solid. You don't have to like the player, you don't have to like the move Ned made, but you have to like how we've come alive a bit since he's arrived. He might have nothing to do with it, but while we are winning, he stays in the line-up most days in my opinion.

Unless we get A-Rod, we aren't going after a third baseman this off-season. LaRoche in our man unless we get A-Rod and then trade him.

58
I would hope that the Phillies would knock the Mets completely out of the playoffs.

If the Mets missed the playoffs, I would be very happy. I would love to watch Baseballprimer melt down.

I would love to watch Baseballprimer melt down.

Beware the dark side, Bob.

If Hillenbrand keeps this up, we could all forget about Tyler Houston.

And wouldn't that be a good thing?

60 How is a guy with a .272 on base and no D not hurting us?

54 I'm not sure if there's a rule for the 40 man roster. The playoff roster is set as the 25 man roster on Aug 31st, and any additions are made using the Krod loophole. I'm sure someone else here would know far better than I do.

Regardless of who should play, is there anyone here who actually thinks Nomar won't get the majority of starts at 3rd in September? Nomar will probably start all but 1 game a week, and Hillenbrand will get the other until we are eliminated/clinch.

62

Sorry, I forgot. I'm not supposed to hate things. I will be taken to the woodshed by a commenter who has the same initials as the Dodgers centerfielder.

54 No. The K-Rod loophole works like this:

If someone on your 40-man roster is on the DL when the postseason rolls you're allowed to replace him with anyone who was in your organization as of August 31. They do not need to have been on your active major league roster at any time, nor do they need to be on your 40-man roster. They just had to be in your organization by 8/31. Also, you can only replace a pitcher with another pitcher and a hitter with another hitter. So in the unlikely event that the Dodgers make the postseason and want to use a nonroster player like, say, the Minotaur in the playoffs, all they would need to do was put Jason Schmidt or Yhency on their playoff roster and then deem the Minotaur as his replacement.

So for Loaiza to be eligible for postseason play, one of two things has to happen:

1) He must be assigned to a minor league roster by Aug. 31 and then can be recalled to the majors at any time after that, or

2) Somebody like Eric Stults must be optioned down and Loaiza must be on the Dodgers' active MLB roster by Aug. 31.

Option #1 is more attractive because it would let the Dodgers keep Eric Stults continuously instead of losing him until Sept. 4. However, it raises questions of whether Loaiza would accept a minor league assignment, even one that was purely procedural.

I think A-Rod for us is a very long shot. We'll have pitching issues in '09 and that money we would have to spend on A-Rod would limit the pursuit of a Johann.

I see standing pat at third and waiting for Nomar's contract to be up. LaRoche would get a shot to make the team but likely be the Loney of '08, having to push himself from Vegas and take Nomar's spot. Abreu is our Ramon Martinez of next year with more starts at second to groom him to be Kent's replacement in '09. Assuming Kent wants to play.

53 - Without Nomar, Pierre and Schmidt the Dodgers could easily afford A-Rod. If they could even find a taker for Furcal (his 13 million dollar contract doesn't seem that bad for one year) then it would be borderline doable. I can't see it happening, but surely there is a way to carve some fat off of this budget.

One thing that people underestimate is that Ned works with a much larger budget than Depo did. Depo never spent more than 11 million on a player and generally kept the payroll under 90 million. Ned signed Schmidt for almost as much in 3 years (51 million) as Drew would have made in 5 (55 million). Not to mention Furcal (39 over 3), the Player (45 over 5) and a few of players making Lowe yearly money over short contracts (Wolf, Nomar, Kent).

I'll confess that, subject to the health of all involved, 66 does seem to have a certain persuasiveness to it.

As much as I want A-Rod, remember this: Pitching beats Defense, when you get right down to it.

I still think it can be done without sacrificing starting pitching.

69 That would certainly be amusing. We need to keep Nomar for 09 so he can block a better player at a third position (2nd?).

70 , on the other hand, seems a bit, well, far fetched. To whom exactly are we auctioning our overpaid centerfielder, our injured third baseman, and our injured starting pitcher?

OF Marlon with a pinch double to make it 8-6 and the bases are loaded for Chavez against Alfonseca in the 8th.

68 I assume there's a reason, but why couldn't Stults be demoted to the GCL, which should finish their season tomorrow? Wouldn't that allow him to be recalled on the 1st?

Or he could just pitch 5 innings on Friday after Boomer is blown out of the game and wouldn't be able to pitch until the 4th anyways.

74
I don't know? The Orioles? They're not picky.

I did mess up the math a little. The Dodgers will come into 2008 with as little as a 93 million dollar payroll, so A-Rod is potentially doable, albeit that would take down the entire budget for the year.

Eights are wild in Philly.

Also, speaking of GCL, they tied their playoff series today 1-1. They won the game 5-0, with big contributions from Withrow, Justin Miller, and Lambo:
Withrow: 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Miller: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Lambo: 2-3, HR, SF

JD Drew has another rough day.

Two of my best friends are longtime members of The Nation. Man they hate me about this Drew thing. First, I told them how pleased they'd be with Drew's basic production. Then, I told them that even if he wasn't hitting, he'd at least get on base a lot (not in the "signing Juan Pierre because he gets on base a lot" sense) and that plus his D would make him valuable. Then, I told them there was no way this awful run could keep up all year.

Now I tell them he must be secretly injured and afraid to tell anyone lest the heckling start up all over again.

But boy are they mad at me.

And it's 9-8 Mets after a stolen base of third and a throwing error by Ruiz trying to catch Reyes.

Alfonseca is horrible, but the guy warming up to replace him is Jose Mesa.

This can't be a good thing.

64
I repeat/defend myself for the final time and I'm willing to on my own in this regard.

Shea has not hurt us. He has helped us. Just like Wells did with his bunt, the energy we didn't have is building. The new blood and desire to win have helped. You cannot measure that by statistics alone.

Plus Shea has smashed a few line drives that have found gloves. He isn't our savior, but I prefer to ride this out with him than to throw in a rusty Nomar. Plus, Nomar hasn't run yet, has he? So the choice is between Shea and LaRoche. Shea's been through a lot these last two years, he has something to prove.

I remind you all that we are on a four game win streak. Be happy for now and let's rally behind the guys on the field.

P.S. I've not worn my Slappy McPop-up shirt in a month.

76 I have no idea. It's possible that there's some sort of rule prohibiting the team from demoting a player of his experience to the GCL, I really don't know. But yeah, the GCL finishes its season tomorrow.

81 Unless "Sam DC" is an alias for "Scott Boras," I don't see how its your fault.

Gameday is stuck again... @#@$%%!

paranoidandroid, don't forget Rule 8...

87
Let's see
Anderson doubled in two
Reyes got an IBB
Chavez singled in two
Reyes stole third and scored on an error
Wright walked
Mesa in to pitch to Delgado
One out, 9-8 Mets in the 8th.

gameday is back... wow this Phillies game is like a repeat of yesterday's Dodger Game

74 - My point wasn't that we can afford A-Rod because we can get rid of those people, more that if we didn't have them in the first place then A-Rod would fit into the budget.

Re-reading it looks like I am calling for dropping that payroll, but I am under no delusions. No one is paying for those players (besides the McCourts that is). Furcal could possibly be jettisoned, and if the gods were very, very kind maybe Nomar retires. More likely though, all of them are back next year.

I would much, much rather vastly overpay for greatness than slightly overpay for mediocrity . Nomar, Pierre and Schmidt took up 33 million dollars in payroll this year, and contributed, well, nothing. A-Rod takes up 25 million, but at least you know what you paid for.

Excuse me, Mesa was pitching to Beltran.

Who walked.

And now Delago is batting with the bases loaded.

53 i'll go on record with saying that i wouldn't mind a $130 million payroll with a-rod. just in case frank mccourt is wondering :)

besides, if picking up loaiza means casting off wolf, then isn't it a wash financially? or do we owe wolf guaranteed money next year. i don't think we do, right?

Reyes stole third and scored on an error

Someone better go check on Joe Morgan.

I think there is a chance that Stults might stick around and Roberto will retire tomorrow. That is my hope. But Loazia will be activated tomorrow and we need to make both a major league spot and a 40 man spot available. That makes Roberto retiring look pretty good as Stults would be sent down, but we still have a 40 man issue.

We would want a back-up to Wells tomorrow, he will have a very short leash. But in a big game, do we want Stults in there anyway? It will be interesting to see.

Prediction: Shea has two more hits tomorrow and a few RBI's. DT posters buy me lots of beers in October.

95 As long as Tim Hamulack is still around, there is no 40-man roster issue.

84 Once again, Shea Hillenbrand is producing nothing for the Dodgers in a tangible sense. Nothing. I don't even know where you think this energy you described is coming from, because it's not like the man has done anything inspirational. He can't hit, he can't catch, he's a terrible player, and you're just inventing reasons why he's useful because there's absolutely no tangible evidence to support you.

Eric Stults could become the right-handed Kevin Beirne.

98
I mean left-handed Kevin Beirne. I was looking in a mirror and got confused.

93 I think it is a 500K buy out on the option of 9 million.

93
Good chance Ned keeps Wolf or keeps Hendrickson or adds someone, because he is not going to depend on Schmidt.

95 The 40-man issue was solved the other day when Repko was moved to the 60-day DL, which opened up a spot for Loaiza.

Kevin Beirne is there with you?

93 We have to buy him out, so we save 1.5 million in the end. The difference is that we weren't guaranteed to owe Wolf any real money (even though it was inevitable we would pay him).

101

starting pitching next year, sans wolf:

lowe
penny
bills
loaiza
[schmidt]
[kuo]
[stults]
[hendrickson]
[macdonald]
[elbert]

don't we have enough 5th starter candidates without throwing $9 million at randy wolf?

103
Yes, Kevin Beirne broke my chair.

What has happened to Hamulack anyways? He hasn't pitched since April, yet he isn't on the Las Vegas roster. I'm guessing he's hurt and MiLB.com just doesn't list players on whatever the extended minor league disabled list is (or is the 7 day the only one?). Anyone know?

107 He had Tommy John I think.

108 You appear to be correct, Thanks.

The Mets are trying to use Wagner for a 2-inning save today.

He has not had one that long since 1999.

And it's now 10-9 Mets after a Burrell homer.

[110 ] well, he's had several days of rest, so hopefully he'll be up to the task.

Howard to the plate!

97 I respectfully disagree and will not attempt to sway you as you don't understand my point. It could be the Hawthorne effect, it could be that just an association of him arriving and us winning again, but my opinion is that when we win 10 out of 14, the team is not being hurt by the new guy regardless of his production.

I'm not sure how you consider him a bad glove, he's looked solid to me. Limited range, not an historically good fielder, but he has not hurt us in the field. He also has a power bat potential and has worked at-bats better than Nomar has all year. His average isn't much lower than Nomar's and he has the same number of homers (4) as a guy who led our team in homers last year. My point is that Shea shouldn't grab a seat in the midst of a pennant chase that we are gaining on when a rusty Nomar shows up or an unproven rookie who is the future of the team, but not the present.

I think Grady will see it my way. We'll see. I've been wrong a lot of times in my life.

If we make the playoffs, Nomar and Shea are on the roster and Olmedo isn't I think.

108 I hope they attached Tommy John's arm to Hamulack, he hasn't impressed me.

I'm just glad Shea Hillenbrand has a Marching and Chowder Society already.

I think Juan Pierre has a Stumbling and Bisque Society.

The Mets announcers are speculating that Wagner is just in to pitch the 8th when the Phillies had their meat of the order up and then use Heilman in the 9th.

I'm skeptical that Willie Randolph thinks outside of the box that much.

"Stumbling and Bisque Society."

HA

95 ... Roberto will retire tomorrow. That is my hope.

We can't let Roberto go now. The team is on a winning streak and has had a lot more energy since he got here. Gotta stick with the guys on the field while we're winning, no? :)

117 A team using their closer in a high leverage situation instead of a save opportunity? Blasphemy!

119 oh, i see what you did there. you took the uh, and you uh, turned it around on.... very clever.

114 Don't you agree that a team could win even with one underperforming player? When the Dodgers went on a tear in April and Juan Pierre was useless, was he not hurting the team?

He has the reputation of an awful fielder and had to be move to first after 2002 because he couldn't field the position. In the small sample when he's been with the Dodgers he has only a .727 zone rating which means he's only caught 72% of the balls near him, a terrible number.

I could see arguing for Shea if he was actually doing anything, but you don't think Andy LaRoche could match his nill production?

119 - Shea has actually had crucial RBI's where Roberto has allowed crucial RBI's against the Dodgers.

Though they both suck the suckiness of Roberto is alot more damaging than the Shea's suckitude.

117 It seems even more unlikely since it was 2 runs when Wagner came in. Even if Randolph were inclined to do what the announcers are suggesting, would he pull that out where he had a two run lead? Seems to me such an approach would be more likely in a one-run game (where the riks of Utley, Burrell, and Howard, tying the game with one swing would be greatest).

The Phillies will have Werth, Ruiz, and Nuñez batting in the bottom of the 9th.

No one is warming up for the Mets.

105
I do not know if that is enough for Ned. Plus, as I said yesterday, we should not count on Loaiza. He has a spine condition, he has lost his velocity, and he has not really pitched well since he joined the A's.

123 Sure, and Roberto has gotten crucial outs while Shea has made crucial outs.

I cringe when I see either one in a key situation, and that's about the only situation we have these days.

The thing is, if they were going to dump Hernandez in favor of Meloan, wouldn't they have done it already? Ever since we got Hernandez poeple have been saying that Meloan would have to wait until the rosters expand to be called up. If we were going to DFA Hernandez anyway what would be the point of waiting until Sept. 1?

I think we all collectively thought R. Hernandez would be DFA any day with all the bad outings he had but I guess he's sticking around (mop up duty?) all year long. what ever, I just can't wait to see Jonathan Meloan pitch in a Dodger Uni.

I do not expect Ned to count on Stults, MacDonald, or Elbert.

Comparing Andrew Lambo's season to other Dodgers who started in the GCL, these stats do not include his 6th home run that he hit today in the 2nd game of the playoffs.

Lambo .343/.440/.519 5 HR 29BB/34K 210 PA
Kemp .270/.298/.346 1 HR 7BB/25K 166 PA.
Bell .318/.399/.395 1 HR 20BB/33K 177 PA
Martin .286/.412/.357 0 HR 23BB/18K 149 PA

Andrew Lambo will be among the top 5 if not top 3 GCL prospects and we will have to watch him closely next year at either the Great Lakes or Inland Empire clubs.

"Though they both suck the suckiness of Roberto is alot more damaging than the Shea's suckitude."

Can I get a ruling on the usage of "suckitude" vis-a-vis "suckiness"? I tend to use them interchangeably but if there are situations in which I should be using one over the other, I'd like to know about it.

I should probably add Kuo to that list.

I think Ned sees those guys as non-factors that only step in if there are injuries.

Is that one of our Jasons on first in the Mets game?

It's a Jayson!

128 Based on need, the only players the Dodgers would add to the 40 man roster would be Meloan, Valdez and a catcher.

If Hu comes up, it would be only as a spectator, pinch runner capacity so do you want to waste an option on him now when you have to add him anyway in November.

Meloan is in a different place since he will not need all of his options and while you don't have to add him to the roster until after next year, I believe Meloan is in their plans anyway for next season.

Jayson,Jason at one point they were all ours.

I remind you all that we are on a four game win streak.

I doubt three 1-run home victories against the NL's worst team will do much to change the overall opionion of the team on this blog.

Jayson steals second and third!

135 Hu wouldn't lose an option, he wouldn't get sent down this year.

123 - This research neglects the opportunity cost in both cases. Roberto's job is run prevention, we all expect he will give up some runs but will he give up more than his replacement (Meloan probably)? Hillenbrand's job is run creation, surely he will create some runs, even I would eventually get an RBI if given enough at bats, but is he producing more than his replacement (Abreu, Loroche, Hu et al)? In both cases the answer is that they should probably be replaced, but if you only look at it as hitters produce RsBI, while pitchers give up RsBI than hitters will always look more valuable.

How I always envisioned our Jayson-Power and speed.

Tens are wild in Philadelphia.

What a game.

Maybe they should have sent Heilman out there.

141
Actually, Werth hit a bloop single and stole two bases when the Mets didn't pay much attention to him.

Over/under on number of items of dugout equipment that Billy Wagner smashes today?

Iguchi steals second and Lo Duca is throwing like Jason Phillips on a bad day.

Rollins gets an IBB to bring up Utley.

Another stolen base!

10s would be wild if it was the 10th inning

an intentional walk to GET to Chase Utley?

149
How about the Phillies and Mets rolled a hard 20?

Works for me... I take it Met fans have a Grady Little kind of relationship to Willie Randolph

150 Well, in fairness, with one out in the bottom of the ninth tie game and a runner already on second, it's more of an intentional walk to set up a double play. You're not going to win without getting through Utley anyhow, barring unusual transpirings.

139 That makes sense :).

btw, this game is 4 hours in, and still in the 9th inning!

147 And on a good day, who does he throw like?

135 "Based on need, the only players the Dodgers would add to the 40 man roster would be Meloan, Valdez and a catcher."

Completely disagree with that. Among the guys you left off are Abreu (a demonstrably better utility man than Martinez), LaRoche (a demonstrably better 3B than anybody on the active roster), and Hull (a demonstrably better mop-up man than Hernandez).

You do have a point that Hu isn't really needed; however, in a game like yesterday's he might prove useful, and there's nothing wrong with covering all your bases. Same goes for Houlton.

There is absolutely no downside to calling up Hu, as he needs to be added to the roster anyway and he would not be losing an option year.

gah, stupid mets.

126 how many major league teams have anywhere close to that kind of depth? even the yankees were trotting out the likes of shawn chacon and aaron small not too long ago.

157 Those guys are already on the 40 man.

I thought it would be a baseball-less day, but what a game. And sometimes you find out who you are really for as you are watching the game. Hey, I'm a Phillies fan and I didn't even know it.

153
Maybe they're counting on Wagner getting two pickoffs.

In his career, he has seven.

But it mattered not.

ThePhillies win! Theaaee Phillies win.

What will be the bigger headline in New Yor, Yankess sweep Red Sox or Phillie sweep Mets?

All of Werth's homers (he has 6) have come on the road, despite playing home games at CBP.

I am very disappointed that we got rid of him, and I hope him the best. And I really hope Ned stops his constant tinkering for marginal improvement (almost all of it in PVL, rather than actual value). I know guys like Werth, Betemit, Ruggiano, Jackson, Guzman, Ross, etc. wouldn't be significant contributors, but it sure would be nice to not have dealt/cut them all for nothing.

159 I completely misread that comment. It says 40-man but I thought 25-man. I thought he was trying to say the Dodgers shouldn't call up LaRoche.

York

Will the Phillies or Padres ever lose another game? Jeez.

163
The Yankees will be a bigger story. They always are, no matter what the Mets do.

The Dodgers get top billing in the LA Times over the Angels most of the time despite the AL team having a much better season.

Could someone explain (or provide a link to an explanation of) options? All this discussion about them today has revealed a rather glaring weakness in my baseball knowledge.

165 No, I was just talking about adding guys to the 40 man, Young, Abreu, LaRoche, Hull, Houlton, Stults (if he gets sent down) should all come up to the team.

Going to be a crowded dugout in September.

164--Exactly.

Ruggiano, Werth, Ross have all had really good years. Discard those guys for nothing, and all the sudden you're on the hook for 5/45 of the Player.

The Padres and Diamondbacks now have the 2 best records in the NL.

Will the Phils or Pads lose a game? Ask the Dbacks

168 Why did Wagner pitch 2 innings?

This is 8 years old, but the part on options is still correct I believe.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/s/1999/0908/46397.html

174
Check BTF and read the Mets-Phillies game thread.

There should be plenty of insight.

And lots of #######

I think these things happen, that is trading youth for PVL, because the LA Beat Writers and Columnists are not hard enough, or smart enough, on Management. Sports writers here in LA are just wannabe comedians. Certainly they aren't as rough on the higher ups the way New York Media is... and of course I mean rough for the right reasons.

-- or wannabe poets, in the case of Plaschke. I still can't believe someone like Cowherd thought he was a great writer. I can write in fragments too.

175 Thanks, Bob.

164 I would like to think from a few comments I've heard that Colletti has realized he only has to make a trade in which he wins. He did give up Denker recently, but thats about the only guy, and many question if he will be a regular player at all. I don't know where all the money is coming from, but we are one of the top 5 natural franchises and maybe that's enough. We have the fortune to be able to build a good team from our own org. with a few key FA additions. Many smaller outfits have to get rid of prime players with high
salaries. Its pretty obvious-they have to trade-we don't. In this position most GMs should win.

Here are Jayson Werth's 2007 stat before the All Star games (42G, 98PA) .235/.333/.353.

Prior to today's game, this is his stat line for August 2007, .392/.484/.608 (26G, 92PA), by far his month in his career.

Again, whose to say which is the real Jayson Werth but I think one hot month does not mean that he is becoming a solid regular player.

Isn't it true that this is NedCo's first gig as a GM? If that's the case, he's not really doing quite so badly, as long as he's learning.

Dwight Schrute asks...
Question: Whatever happened to John Hart?

I'm evaluating Werth on how he looked in 2004/2005 for the Dodgers as well.

In 2004, he showed some nice power.
In 2005, the wrist killed his power but he also developed more plate discipline.

Seems 2007 he's putting it altogether, and the stronger his wrist gets the better player he'll become.

The question isnt whether Jayson Werth has ascended to some certain level---its whether he's better than Jason Repko or Juan Pierre. Ned evaluated those players as being better than Werth, and it was a dumb mistake. No hindsight needed. It was dumb then, and dumber now.

181 I forgot the word "best".

The question isnt whether Jayson Werth has ascended to some certain level---its whether he's better than Jason Repko or Juan Pierre

Not to mention salaries.

JoshR posted his last entry from a boat off the coast near San Diego.

Who knows? Is Jayson Werth really worth all this discussion?

I think I, you, and the Dodgers management all agreed that Jayson Werth had a lot of talent. But before you crucify them for not resigning him, I think it's only fair to realize how much of the time he spent with the Dodgers he was on the DL. He had almost non-stop wrist problems and we never really got to see him do what he can do full time. The Dodgers paid for him to be on the DL for a good length of the time he was with them. They probably felt like it was too risky to invest in him yet again without knowing when he'd be ready to play. I, too, wish they'd been able to make room for him and take on that risk, but really don't blame them at all for cutting ties with him.

As much as I like Jayson Werth's tools I think his risk is in being frequently injured and that he very likely won't be a regular player one way or the other. At some point an organization must cut ties with certain players for both party's good. I'm afraid this is also the case with a guy like Jackson, just because of too much hype, even if he is young and needs more time.

188 I wrote this before reading yours>

181 Werth's line for the year is .311/.406/.476. That's the line that matters. Parsing it by month, particularly when those months have wildly varying numbers of plate appearances, only serves to mislead people and cloud the issue.

There significant sample size issues even with his yearly line. Is it too early to condemn the Dodgers for getting rid of him? Of course. Is it too soon to wish we had a guy like that playing in the outfield right now? I don't think so.

157. I respectfully disagree that LaRoche and Hull are "demonstrably" better than anyone on the current roster. Neither has really had enough major league playing time to prove anything. LaRoche was putting it together at Las Vegas, then went out with another of his seemingly interminable injuries. He is playing again. Hope he can get back to where he was.

Hull was with the Dodgers for a very short time. Would love to know the book on him, though he is not considered a prime prospect. Anyone have it?

I do agree that either Abreu or Hu should replace Martinez. And I never understood why Meloan is still not with the big club.

I guess the topic of Jayson Werth turns all into Jim Tracys.

OT: Funny Thing

Did anyone notice after the game on Sunday (i think) they ran a special on the coloring book the Dodger wives are selling. The two women interviewed were Mrs. Repko and Mrs. Tomko. This was right after Tomko was DFA'd and I think after Wells pitched.

I am not positive if it was Sunday, but it was definitely after Tomko was gone.

192 Your definition of "demonstrably" and mine may differ, then. I, and many others, believe that minor league performance is meaningful. It has been shown that those stats can be translated into major league equivalents, not in a foolproof manner certainly, but with at least a certain degree of accuracy.

So I consider somebody tearing up Triple A to have "demonstrated" something, until they prove otherwise by failing over an extended period of time at the major league level.

Also, setting aside the minor leagues for a moment, those players I mentioned have generally outperformed their counterparts when in the major leagues as well.

If Meloan does get his contract purchased, he has to be added to the 40 man, correct?

He would have to then replace someone on the 40 man and the most logical replacement would be Roberto, no? Unless we cut loose a Houlton or something, I don't see how we keep a roster spot for Roberto if we are adding another pitcher to the 40 man.

It is still the move I think we'll make since we would want Stults to back up Wells tomorrow night I think. Unless Loazia is ready to go tomororow in a relief role. I hope Grady isn't counting on Big Bird to back up Boomer.

The more I think about it, the more logical it is that Roberto is gone. Grady wouldn't go to him yesterday, he feels about him the way I do, he is a mop up guy only, and we can't waste a 40 man spot on him at this point.

anybody know the name of Brad Penny's horse that is racing at Del Mar today? vr, Xei

Call ups I foresee on Saturday: Delwyn, Abreu, LaRoche, Hull, Houlton and perhaps Meloan.

I don't think we've seen Meloan yet simply because we don't want to rush him to the bigs and will only risk this move if we are truly in this thing. He can be our FRod, but if we are not in the thing, we don't want him in such a pressure situation as his first taste of the bigs.

I also don't see room for Hu on the 40 man this week. We could move Yhency to the 60 day DL I suppose. Maybe that is how we'll get Meloan and keep Roberto.

Oh yeah, Chad Moeller is coming too. Maybe a Wilson Valdez of Ruan if we make roster spots available.

I still think Roberto is toast.

164

That's a major pet-peeve of mind with Ned but I guess I shouldn't be to surprised.

188 I understand their argument, and while I don't agree with it, I can't really fault them. I've liked Werth for awhile, plus we share a birthday which make him better, and I hated to see him go, but it's not just him.

Management doesn't seem to care for Werth's type of player, as they've also dumped Ruggiano, Pedroza, Ross, and Denker, and I tend to expect Young, Raglani, and Hoffman will join those players fairly soon. Trading these guys is fine, they're probably not starters in the majors, but some value would be nice (and I don't mean PVL value).

I'm very curious to see what happens with Repko. He's in a position very similar to Werth, out for a year, has dealt with numerous lingering issues, and is up for arbitration. I'm going to be very upset if we keep Repko, not because of Repko himself (who is a very good 5th OF if healthy), but because it just shows that Werth was dumped not because of his injury situation, but because of player favoritism.

Those of you who are Faux Dbacks fans should take offense at Mark's latest post on Bad Altitude. Even I stood up for them.

198 I agree. That's what I expect, too, and think they could move Yhency over to the 60 day like they did with Repko this week. But DFA'ing Hernandez would make more sense since Grady obviously has no interest in using him unless in a total blowout at this point. Yhency would probably pitch better with a hurt arm from the 60 day DL.

192 Sure, Abreu and Hu could replace Martinez. But as long as Colletti is in charge, nobody replaces Martinez.

202 I think Roberto should try to throw with his left arm. Then could I call him "Reversa" without getting any grief?

Maybe we do call Hu up. I would think Abreu is for sure but I'm not sure Hu fits into next year's plans and they might want to save his option years until 08 in case Furcal re-ups.

188 yeah, but investments and risk are about how much you're gaining as opposed to how much you're losing, right? jayson werth's salary is not all that much, and his potential contributions vastly outweigh the cost of his salary. meanwhile, dodger management has no qualms about making such risky, high dollar "investments" as nomar and schmidt and wolf, all of whom we are paying significantly more to sit on the disabled list than we would've paid jayson werth.

i would love to see someone do a regression of "injury-proneness" done by injury type and injury frequency. from what i remember, jayson's injuries were all contact injuries from crashing into walls and being hit by pitches and stuff. nothing chronic like ligament sprains or anything.

Has the topic of the alleged side-deal with the A's been resolved?

To me, this is absurd. Wouldn't it violate an MLB rule? It's essentially a circumvention of the various deadlines and waiver procedures. If the A's get someone off our 40 man roster for essentially nothing this winter, I would think the other owners would have grounds for complaint, since they could have stopped such a deal during the August 1-30 period, and would have done so if what we were offering was an inexpensive prospect.

But what do I know?

Plus, the idea that the double-secret-PTBNL would be a LaRoche or Kershaw? I'm sorry, but I am not that cynical about Ned. I think this is just A's fans going through the stages of grief, dealing with the fact that Beane is just another GM.

196 I'd say 40 man spots open up in this order: 60 day DL Brazoban, then Tsao, then dump Hamulack, then dump Roberto. However, I doubt we add 4 new players to the 40 man roster. More likely, we add Meloan, and maybe Valdez or Lindsey, and we're done with it.

Speaking of Valdez (who also shares my birthday), the guy we traded to get him, Jarod Plummer, is a 23 year old in AA, putting up these stats:
79 IP, 3.08 ERA, 13 HR, 16 BB, 90 K
The homers are really bad, but really, would you prefer this guy or a quad-A utility man?

I think Repko is the reason Werth isn't around. If we offer Werth arbitration, it is to fill the fourth outfield spot and that was Repko's to lose, which he did due to yet another injury.

We knew Kemp was right at the door and I think we figured that Nomar was our first baseman and we'd give Loney a chance to play some outfield.

It was a numbers game on Werth. If Werth had options left, we'd still have him. If Cody Ross had options left in '05, he might be starting in our outfield right now.

206 I can't believe there's any merit to that theory for many of the same reasons. If we were going to give up Laroche, we'd just deal a PTBNL and announce him in November. MLB wouldn't mind that (or if they did, nowhere near as much), and after the Blair no-deal, it's pretty obvious that McCourt doesn't want to draw Selig's ire.

208 I have a feeling this is going to be a refrain for the next few years. Too much talent -- we've got no room for it all!

Maybe the Dodgers should split into two teams. Think of it! Six outfield spots! 10 middle relievers!

206 What side deal? What player to be named? For Esteban? He didn't cost us any players or deals, just a boat load of dollars. Like a "yacht" of dollars.

208 Repko has options left. It's not like stashing him in AAA this year would have hurt.

206 A's fans are delusional and think that someone would give up valuable young talent for Estaban Loaiza.

208 Good point. And what about Repko, anyway? I don't see him on many of these hypothetical 2008 rosters. Are we just assuming he'll go the way of Wolf and Hendrickson?

A team can't comfortably go into a season with their 3, 4, and 5 hitters being oft injured ala, Drew, Nomar, and Werth. I think Werth's ability to stay with the Dodgers was negatively influenced by the injury prone Drew and Nomar and not because Werth lacked promise.

212 Maybe the A's fans are delusional, but the delusion was being stoked by the media in the Bay Area and by some of the A's blogs. See comment #29 on the Ross Porter thread.

It might just be one dumb reporter falling for a line and then a massive blogospheric echo effect.

Repko: I think we have to offer him arbitration and he is out of options. Did he surface in '04 as a Sept call-up? I think so.

If that is the case, then he has to make the club out of spring training or we have to release him. I don't know if we'll gamble on paying him more than we'd pay a Delwyn Young if we can't be sure he'll be/stay healthy.

I think Repko '08 = Werth '07

I'm just not sure I have the timeline correct. I might be wrong on this one.

I used to like and pull for Repko and now I am too concerned he will crash into somebody to relax and enjoy him play. I have played with guys like him and I felt I was in an on-the-field zoo. Like playing on a freeway, etc.

Jayson Werth is the ####. That is all there is to it.

160 - Welcome aboard! Plenty of room on this bandwagon for one more phan...just be aware (cough cough, 2003, 1993, 1964, etc) of what you're getting into here...

Public discussion Q though: was there a better deadline deal anywhere (yes, even including the Teixiera trade) than the Phils picking up Tad Iguchi?

210 This is a significant problem, and a good one to have.

However, NedCo decided that Wilson Valdez (who was added to the 40 man before the Rule 5), was more important than Werth. Werth has a base salary of $400K (and he won't be earning his bonuses), so essentially the same as Valdez. Valdez was out of options, just like Werth. The team decided that Valdez was more valuable than Werth, which to me is insane. Of course, the fact that they were afraid that Valdez would actually be taken in the Rule 5 is ridiculous, so who knows what they were thinking.

213 My hypothetical roster (what I think will happen rather than what I want)

Martin
Loney
Kent
Furcal
Nomar
Ethier
Pierre
Kemp

Penny
Lowe
Schmidt
Billingsley
Loaiza

Young (out of options)
Repko
Lieberthal
Martinez/Valdez
Professional pinch hitter (Sweeney?)

Saito
Broxton
Proctor
Meloan
Kuo (out of options)
Hendrickson (despite yesterday's discussion)
Middle reliever

214 That's a false dilemma, I think. There are plenty of choices that fall somewhere in between "write him down in pen as your #5 hitter" and "dump him for nothing."

Is Delwyn really out of options? My goodness, that was fast.

What I have never understood is why the Dodgers are always so reluctant to rush anyone to the majors. We seem to coddle and nurture each and every prospect, while it seems that so many other teams bring up their stars and they succeed. I don't get it.

220 how much are we paying nomar next year?

how much are we paying nomar next year?

Too.

222 I'm pretty sure he is, he was on the 40 man in 2004.

221 - If the plan is bench Werth because the team can't afford another injury risk starter, how do you keep him on the bench, sign Gonzo, Pierre, keep Repko who wasn't hurt yet I believe, and have spots for Ethier, maybe Kemp, and even Loney as an outfielder?

2254 $8.5 mil, plus a $2.5 mil signing bonus to be paid in separate installments in 2009 and 2010.

225 well, yeah.

225 - As it looks today--way too.

228 oof.

223. It may have something to do with high payroll vs low payroll teams. Then again it might not... You know, high priced players signed for long-term deals blocking the youngins. vr, Xei

As far as I am concerned, Nomar is financially set for life and career wise able to perhaps enjoy doing PR.

227 Expect an injury, and don't expect Loney to be an OF. Or just don't sign Gonzo/Pierre.

223 Under this administration, at least, I don't think it's an unwillingness to call guys up but an unwillingness to trust them once they are here. Ethier, Martin, LaRoche, Loney, Abreu, Kemp, Billingsley, Broxton, and perhaps Hu and Meloan, all got called up before playing a full season of AAA. The problem is that if you're a young player on the Dodgers, performing well at the major league level only earns you a seat on the bench or a ticket on the shuttle.

231 Don't worry, the Pirates need a 3B and have money to spend. We just need to convince Ned to deal him.

Maybe LA needs another high-priced hitting coach next year.

If you were Loney, Martin, or Kemp would you sign a 15 year $45 million no-trade contract?

I don't know much about what to expect for 2008. But here is one thing we can probably bet on:

Delwyn and Repko both show up to spring training out of options, and battling each other for the fifth outfielder's role. Although Young outhits him, Repko's scrappy-doo demeanor and defensive ability win him the job. Forced to get rid of one or the other, the Dodgers lose Delwyn on waivers to [insert team of your choice here]. Young quickly wins a platoon job as a DH or corner outfielder, goes on to post 9 seasons with an OPS+ over 100, and retires in 2020 with 284 career home runs.

15 year $60 Million?

15 year $75 Million?

Perhaps Mueller will be fired in midseason 2008 and Nomar will replace him as hitting coach. Then the Dodgers will go in search of another injury-prone batting-title-winning Red Sox infielder to serve as their next hitting coach after Nomar gets done teaching Kemp, LaRoche, and Martin to flail at everything low and away.

We need a game to focus on today. These days off give us too much time to think and obsess!

Garvey had a good career flailing at balls in the dirt low and away.

238 When Pierre is making that in 5 years?

Maybe something along the lines of 15 years, $3 mil per base, and they can make as much as $9 mil with PA escalators. Paying them $9 mil a year doesn't seem so bad, and we only pay it if they get the PAs. Plus maybe add in a option to void the contract if the player misses a full year of ABs.

239 I'm not fully versed on the option rules, but I think Repko still has options. He had them last year, and he didn't go down at any time.

242 Well, we could probably focus on our respective jobs.... but who are we kidding?

after Nomar gets done teaching Kemp, LaRoche, and Martin to flail at everything low and away

That's fine, as long as doesn't teach them all to readjust their batting gloves a million times per plate appearance.

241 Mike Lowell is available this winter!

injury-prone batting-title-winning Red Sox infielder

It's a stretch to call him injury prone, but what's Wade Boggs doing these days?

Sign a decent long term contract now and miss those pre arbitration years, miss the arbitration years, and have guaranteed security and play for one team for entire career. Not so bad.

248 Lowell's got to show me a batting title or I show him the door.

Hang on just a second, though. I have a Mr. Boggs on the line.

The Players Association would never approve that contract.

Hello Eric, this is Wade. I understand you want to talk with me.

237 /241 - 249 /251

Ok, Enders, get out of my head!

If Garvey had been a pitcher, the only hitter he could have struck out would have been himself.

Now Mo Vaughn's on the phone. He says that .002 back in '98 doesn't really mean anything.

If Lowell were in the NL, he'd have a legitimate chance for the batting title. Plus he'd still play for us the requisite year, whereas I think Boggs may have a hard time playing. I'm guessing he would be the first actual HOFer to play after his induction, so there's that though.

Okay. One of my editors has asked me for a list of the best baseball names ever. I figured you guys can help me do the work. Nothing vulgar, though. Kent Biggerstaff need not apply.

Rip Repulski
Coot Veal
Jigger Statz
Razor Shines
Coco LaBoy
...?

The DRays have retired Boggs' #12.

Why?

242 ,246

[Laughs out Loud] this is partially the reason why my girl thinks I'm slightly crazy!

258 Milton Bradley?

261 There ya go. Stuff like that.

258 http://tinyurl.com/3y3dbf

I like how Dick Pole's name is censored.

Enders: If you believe that we should bring up any and all who are "tearing up" the PCL, then Lindsay should be brought up immediately as he is far outhitting LaRoche and has a higher average than Hu.

I seem to recall that Lindsay was a castoff from another team's system used as a fill-in when Loney was brought up.

I still don't have any info on Hull except his minor league stats and the fact that he never made any top 30 Dodger prospect surveys. Does anyone know much about this guy? What does he throw? What kind of pitcher is he?

I don't see how Homer Bush would be a derogatory name.

263 - Why is "Ken Phelps" on a list of best names?

264

Sounds like a job for NatePurcell Dodger Jack, I've personally never even heard of his name.

258 Actually one of my favorite funny player names, even though it's real, would probably be censored here, too.

Razor Shines was always my favorite.

Of current players, I don't see how you could overlook my favorite breakfast cereal-slash-player, Coco Crisp.

Mitch Jones is batting .170 in Japan.

264 We signed Lindsey out of the CanAm League (an indy league), where he had been for 2 years, but he was essentially just a fill-in like you said.

264 Lindsay has zero track record of success outside of this year. 30 year olds in AAA are not at all exciting.

261

Tankersley!

Coco Crisp!

I was always partial to Sixto Lezcano. (To be honest, throughout my elementary school days I thought he had 12 digits on his feet.)

Does Yorvit count?

Rob Bell is the second victim from the Orioles' 30 run loss. Both he and Paul Shuey are available if Ned wants to add whatever PVL value they may have.

He was in this past draft, but Sequoyah Stonecipher is a great name.

Zoilo Versailles

Thanks guys, these are great.

I almost forgot my favorite one, The Only Nolan. Although I really can't imagine anyone calling him that to his face.

Jeremy Jeffress, who I believe was somewhat high on Logan White's draft list last year (although I could be wrong), has been suspended for 50 days due to a drug violation. However, this is of the mind-altering variety rather than the performance enhancing variety.

Alas, I can't include Stonecipher, because for whatever reason he ended up going undrafted.

That list in 263 reminded me of this guy: Mark Lemongello

Are we being restricted to Major League names only? Or are the likes of Alberto Bastardo, Ronnie Prettyman, and Nathan Panther also worth adding?

279 Wow, that's too bad. Jeffress had been kicking some major butt lately, as is LaPorta, who plays on the same team.

282 I'm trying to stick to major leaguers unless the name is really, really good, like Wonderful Terrific Monds III.

280 You know, I'd been wondering about that for awhile. What the heck happened to Sequoyah Stonecipher anyway? I thought he was a highly rated prospect, sure to be drafted, and then, nothing, zip. Either he broke all his limbs, or was adamant he was going to college (and even then somebody would have drafted him), or something else we don't know. A real mystery. Anyone know?

I'm just here to vote for Sloppy Thurston.

Here are Jonathan Meloans #'s [ http://tinyurl.com/27vt6f ] plus the dude in my opinion looks very intimidating when he's pitching of the mound, & from what I remember he's got Chan Ho Park type strong legs, tree trunks if you will!

So, I can't remember -- is the cheeba now part of MLB's new testing program, or did Jeffress test positive for some harder drug?

258 - Is Guy Bush vulgar? Dick Hoover is very vulgar.

Anybody know what Mark Sweeney's salary is this year?

I think the problem with Meloan is his face. He doesn't have "the good face" that scouts like. Same thing with Greg Miller. No hitter is going to believe Opie can strike them out.

last thought on 287

You look at those #'s & you wonder why he isn't helping the major league team yet or earlier but I guess they're bringing him up nice & slowly I don't mind but the #'s sure jump out at you.

No list is complete without Rusty Kuntz

I thought the problem with Meloan,Miller and MacDonald was that their last names started with Ms and a vowel.

294 Worked out okay for Mueller.

Do they have to be real players names? I like Gil Gamesh.

295 Same with Martin and Martinez

On the subject of names, when I was a kid I thought the "Alkaline" that they were putting in batteries was some powerful chemical named after the Tigers' powerful Al Kaline.

293 That was the name I was discreetly alluding to in 268 I guess I should've just come out and said it!

Haven't checked the phone book but in all my years this is the first "Malone" spelled "Meloan" (sounds more like a very primitive advertising slogan for a lender).

Enders: You are right about Miller's face. But this guy is about 6'5", as I recall. His face is too high up for the hitter to discern.

Check out the latest post at True Blue LA

I don't even know how to describe it

Some names...

Stubby Clap

Ambriox Burgos

John Jaha

Kirby Puckett

Kent Hrbek

195 Demonstrably better based on AAA numbers? You mean as was the case with Greg Brock and Franklin Stubbs? Oh, sorry, almost forgot, Candy Maldonado, another can't miss prospect of ours who missed. So I will have to disagree that anything has been proven re AAA stats translating to MLB, as it certainly didn't for Greg Brock, Franklin Stubbs, and Candy Maldonado. And not so much with Candy, but certainly so with Brock and Stubbs, yes, we did indeed allow them sufficient time to stink up the joint for purposes of demonstrating that their AAA stats meant nothing in terms of their MLB performance. As to why we allowed them do so, you put the rationale best when you said: "So I consider somebody tearing up Triple A to have "demonstrated" something, until they prove otherwise by failing over an extended period of time at the major league level." And so we gave Brock and Stubbs an extended period of time to prove otherwise, and they did, and we lost Garvey to the Pads and he took them to the World Series.

301 Oy vey.

291- Orel Hershiser was a real intimidator.....

let's give guys like Miller and Meloan nicknames like

Jon "Murda One" Meloan

and Greg "Lil' Half Dead" Miller

301 - Wow. That is absurd on so many levels.

"She must have the hots for Meloan. I've heard he's ripped but that is why you don't let gays or skirts into the front office. The hormones get in the way."

Wow. I kind of love it, I am kind of appalled, I am totally blown away.

301 - I'm now convinced Cannon has a source in the Dodger's front office.

300

You can't help but giggle every time you see that mug though.

301 TC is a cool cat I'm pretty sure he's just venting there, I've sat next to him many a games, really nice guy plus plenty of that stuff is true.

303 Greg Brock and Mike Marshall performed in the majors almost exactly as their minor league numbers projected they would. The high expectations and subsequent disappointment were mostly a function of people not understanding ballpark effects, both the Albuquerque ballpark and Dodger Stadium.

Stubbs did have somewhat of a disconnet between his ABQ and LAD stats, but (a) the disparity is not as big as you think it is, and (b) as I already noted, nobody claims the translations are foolproof. They have essentially the same predictive value as previous MLB performance does.

303 Also, if you genuinely believe that Steve Garvey during his Padres career was a better player than Greg Brock, then you need to look at the numbers a lot more closely.

mean while in the little series that could 1-0 Brewers in the 1st inning with runners on 2nd & 1st & 2 outs.

258
Anyone mention Van Lingle Mungo?

Vida Blue

Macky Sasser

does anybody else have difficulty logging on to True Blue L.A.? I can't seem to long on over there.

so andrew lambo is awesome?

315 And he'd be the first to tell you. ;)

Would Withrow rank in your top 12 based on projection and the "i am a first round pitcher picked by logan white" status?

cause basically, you know you're going to be good, you just have to get through the injury thing.

Hey everyone.

Just had some KFC chicken. It was AWFUL, just horrible. Then I figured it out. I haven't had KFC since they switched to Zero Trans Fat in April.

FREE TRANS-FAT!!!

another name: Julio [hoooch] Lugo

David Wells ERA 5.46

Ledezma ERA 5.68

Something tells me it will be a high scoring game tomorrow, in the rumble down in San Diego.

303. Of course, you are correct. If minor league records were dispositive of a player's talent, Lindsey would be our first baseman and Young would never have been sent back down.

Maybe someone can help me with this recollection, but I remember an Albuquerque Dodger player who sometime over the last 25 years hit a full-season .400 BA. Wish I could remember his name. He may have been brought up for the last week of the season or so, but he was released that winter. Seems to me that he was either an outfielder or a catcher.

319 Looks like we have a new entrant in tomorrows bout. (from rotoworld)

The Padres will recall right-hander Jack Cassel to start Friday against the Dodgers.

The 27-year-old Cassel made a relief appearance for the Padres earlier this month. A strong showing could make him the Padres' fifth starter the rest of the way, but he's not a very good bet.

has anyone brought up this name?

grant balfour.

AND he's a pitcher, i think.

319 Unfortunately Ledezma is not starting tomorrow. Fortunately, it's Jack Cassel, who isn't much better.

wow, i just read the true blue la piece.

serious lols. nice work, toy.

321 - Maybe the Pads are betting on the Dodgers lack of luck against people getting their first start against them.

321 ESPN has Joe Thatcher listed as the pitcher tomorrow...Probably wrong though. Anyone know anything about Cassel or Thatcher?

Does the True Blue LA piece offend royally? Or does it touch the face of G-d?

I can't decide!

320 "I remember an Albuquerque Dodger player who sometime over the last 25 years hit a full-season .400 BA. Wish I could remember his name."

The last minor league player to hit .400 in more than 300 at-bats was Aaron Pointer, who hit .402 with Class D level Salisbury, North Carolina, in 1961.

Does the True Blue LA piece offend royally?

I was trying to figure out if it's more, less, or equally than/as offensive as "Roberta". The implicit consensus around here appears to be "less".

328. Not the same guy. Maybe my guy was just under .400 at Albuquerque season's close. Tried to google it, with no luck.

BTW, what ever happened to Aaron Pointer? His stats, at least, did not translate to major league equivalent.

I just pulled the following off the web regarding Jack Cassell of the Portland Beavers:

2006 Season:
Team League W L ERA G GS CG SHO SV IP H R ER HR BB SO GO/AO AVG
POR PCL 3 5 6.48 18 11 0 0 0 76.1 96 60 55 12 28 44 3.37 .306
MOB SOU 6 3 2.29 12 12 1 0 0 78.2 66 30 20 3 18 75 3.56 .224
Minors 9 8 4.35 30 23 1 0 0 155.0 162 90 75 15 46 119 3.46 .266

Biography:
Re-signed a Minor League contract with the San Diego Padres, November 2006. ... Selected by the Padres in the 25th round of the 2000 First-Year Player Draft. ... His younger brother, Matt, is a backup quarterback with the NFL's New England Patriots. ... Another younger brother, Justin, is a pitcher in the Chicago White Sox organization.
Awards/Honors:

07/11/2007 PCL Mid-Season All-Star

TC's article is Simmers on steroids. I mean that as compliment. (I actually like Simmers). Not withstanding the tounge 'n cheek nature of the piece much of it is undeniably true. Nice work TC. I enjoyed it.

I didn't find it offensive in the least. It's virtually impossible for satire to be offensive. I found it a little too over-the-top to be funny, though.

Houlton starts today for Vegas, LaRoche, Hu and Abreu are starting although Hu is at 2B, Abreu at SS. Wilson Valdez is in CF.

Since Houlton is starting, he will probably called up after the Vegas season is over since he won't be able to pitch until then.

Tomorrow, if you don't see the same players in the lineup in Salt Lake City, you will know why.

332 he reached a little but i think the really over-the-top parts put it in good perspective. sometimes if satire is too subtle it doesn't work as well.

320/328: Did a little more googling. The player was a designated hitter/outfielder named Tack Wilson. I then used the Dogpile search engine and came tantalizingly close to finding confirmation for my recollection that he hit .400 during a full season in AAA. Here is what I got (but, doggone it, the site listed is now apparently inaccessible):

10. Tack Wilson
Tack Wilson Batting Coach. Click Here For Tack's Competitive Edge Baseball Web Site ... His league best average in 1982 remains the highest ever. After being traded to Minnesota in 1983, he...
www.digitalblair.org/Storage/tack_wilson.htm [Found on Windows Live]

322 Has reminded of the name: Bob Walk

Doesn't pass the rudeness test, but, given my lapses into the humor level of a nine-year old, this is the best MLB name ever:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/d/dicksjo01.shtml

According the the New York Times of June 5, 1983, Tack Wilson won the PCL batting title with Albuquerque in 1982 batting .378. He had been batting well over .400 midway through the season but fell off in the second half.

----------------

In his seventh season in the Dodgers organization and his third with the Dukes, Wilson was hitting .426 last season when he was benched. After the Dodgers sent outfielder Ron Roenicke down to Albuquerque for a few weeks, he took over Wilson's job. ''It's not a thing you can easily deal with, being benched when you're hitting .426,'' Wilson said with a shrug.

That was the latest in a series of disappointments for the 27-yearold. Despite an excellent minor-league record, he had never been invited to spring training with the Dodgers or made the 40-man spring training roster, where the top prospects in the organization are put.

Wilson was one of the most popular Dukes, playing the game with a boyish kind of hustle and excitement. He seemed to have a knack for hitting in the clutch, for stealing second when the Dukes needed a runner in scoring position, for firing up the team. His progress had been slowed by problems with his throwing arm; because he doesn't hit with power, American League clubs had shown no interest in him as a designated hitter. His accomplishments may have impressed the fans but not big-league scouts.
...
Wilson was sittng in front of his locker in the Dukes clubhouse, a carpeted, comfortable facility. A 5-foot-10-inch, 180-pounder from Oakland, Calif., he is built as solidly as a fireplug. ''I was told by Crandall and the Dodgers farm director (Bill Schweppe) that they don't figure I'll be a big-league player,'' Wilson said. Wilson earned only $11,000 a year in Triple A, not much to build a life on. Not surprisingly, he was thinking of retirement. ''If something doesn't happen for me this season, that'll be it. At my age it's do or die. A person can only take so much.''

Names

These are nick names but Oil Can Boyd and Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown are great ones. Speaking of nicknames, today is Teddy Ballgames' birthday.

I thought Rudy Law had some outrageous season near .400.

336- That's just great.....that name will find a place somewhere...maybe i'll put it in a skit on the radio show...beautiful...

337- I hate baseball politics sometimes......guy wasn't even given a chance, yet Roger Cedeno, Karim Garcia, Billy Ashley etc are given shot after shot.....David Eckstien has two rings....when will clubs figure it out....

322 - AND he is a devil ray!

Just because of who he is, does that mean that Chase Utley is not a great baseball name?

Houlton out of the game after 45 pitches for no apparent reason. Pitched 3.1 innings, gave up 2 hits and struck out 3.

Where is everyone? Isn't anyone watching the two teams we have to beat to get into the playoffs? All I can say is: wear out the bullpen snakes and give us a little bit of a leg up manana!

342 And to add to Houlton's line, he gave up a run (or to be specific, he left with a runner on base and Chris Fussell is really bad)

343 They're doing a pretty good job, Young has made 74 pitches after 4 innings.

The Padres, however, are not making Davis work. It's early, but rather interesting.

326 It's safe to say Joe Thatcher is not starting tomorrow, he's in the current game, trying to save Young. Bases loaded, one out.

Repko has 3 years in the Majors 2005-2007, He will be eligible for arbitration in the off season.

346 Guess ESPN got the memo, they now have Cassel listed as the starter

Awesome. Young is out and the bullpen will get a little work tonight. This series is the extremely important. If the Dodgers can even take 2 of 3... But a series loss would be devastating. And a sweep... let's not think about it.

As far as Dodgers go, I always liked the Three Dog.

Chris Young had 6, count 'em, 6 BB and 1 bean ball.

For what its worth, it looks to me like the Padres have a tougher remaining schedule than Arizona. They have more road games, and they finish the season with a 4 game series at Milwaukee, while Arizona finishes with 3 games at Colorado.

The Dodgers need to win at least 2 games this weekend, and go 7-3 or better on this upcoming road trip.

My guess is that 90 wins gets you into the playoffs. For the Dodgers to do that, it means we need to go 20-9 in our remaining games. So we need to win two out of three in every upcoming series. I think we can do it.

I know its Wells v. Cassel on Fri. What are the Sat adn Sun match ups?

If anything we'll be gaining a game on the Padres tomorrow & it looks like there bullpen will be kind of tired as well.

353

I have no clue LAT but if I were Grady Little I'd give the ball to Derek Lowe on short rest if I had too, why not!!? it's crunch time.

Sat. Lowe vs Peavy
Sun. Billingsley vs Germano

ESPN has Lowe v Peavy tomorrow, and Bills v Germano Sunday

Even if we only win 1 out of 3 against the Padres, I have faith that the Diamondbacks are going to crumble in September and as long as we have a pretty good month (16-11 or so) we can still take the wild card (if the Phillies will ever lose).

Arizona has 6 runs on 3 hits, nice work SD. Wonder if Young's back was in worse shape than he let on?

In my simple little mind, Chris Young's (tall version)recent struggles and injuries are cosmic retribution for the shenanigans he and the Pads pulled with his suspension. He dropped his appeal after his start the Saturday before tha All Star break, so he didn't really miss anything. Serves him right.

Those are two pretty good match ups.

The Padre bats are quiet tonight lets hope its a sign of things to come.

I'm watching the SD/AZ game on EI. Its the SD feed and they just showed a "Beat LA" commercial.

The Padres always play up the LA rivalry. They really haven't drawn big crowds for Arizona, even though the games are more important.

Steven Drew has and 2 runs scored and an RBI tonight...with no AB's.

Drew actually has one AB. He got a hit.

I guess Murray State thought their football season didn't start 'til next week. Tough to go against a possible top draft pick at QB in your first one.

---

Dbacks all over Padres tonight. Good. Or whatever. I guess it doesn't matter much.

360 As a fan of the team that signed David Wells, are you sure you want to be casting stones at the Padres regarding suspension-avoiding shenanigans?

There's a nice Herald Raynolds interview with Logan White (MLB.COM Multimedia)

366 No caps please. Beltre hasn't done all that well in Seattle. Though I suppose he's playing better these days.

The Padres are offering some all you can eat tickets later this year. The Braves had a section too although I don't think it was for every game.

Gluttony sells.

366 - Let me point about, before anyone notices, you misspelled "defense" it has an "e".

366 The Dodgers' best years were hitting, hitting and more hitting (1950s).

Their second-best era was pitching and kinda OK defense (1960s).

Their third-best era (late 70s-mid 80s) was pitching, above average hitting, and god-awful defense.

Kirk Gibson loved to shout, we all know that. But his electronic alter ego doesn't need to. We get the point.

Welcome, though.

361 My coworkers (I live in San Diego) were surprised today when I told them that the "Beat LA" chant did not originate in San Diego.

367 Are we pulling shenanigans with Wells? He will miss the games at some point right?

380
It actually started in L.A. A guy in the WGA got it copyrighted and receives a royalty everytime a team chants it.

The same guy also wrote "Air ball! Air ball!" and "Darryl! Darryl!"

378 WELCOME TO DODGER THOUGHTS, BUT HONESTLY THE CAPITAL LETTERS ARE KIND OF ANNOYING.

use them for emphasis if you must, but seriously, less is more with the caps lock effect.

Oh great, this won't help turn Bob's opinion about Bay Areans.

Dude, welcome to post here. But turn the caps lock off or you'll be erased from here. Pretty please?

And yes, I'm a NorCal Ron Cey fan myself. I just say it quietly.

375

oh man LOL, Kudos brotha!!

Oh young grass hopper you maid me little belly ache.

375 You spelled "bee" incorrectly.

383 Is that the same guy who wrote the "Happy Birthday" song, too? That guy's family still lives off that one.

383 i was under the impression it originated in boston, with celtics fans, at some celtics-76ers game.

375 It's possible to be both...

388 Eh? What's that you say, sonny?

391 i'm both! :D

389 and he originated the term "Three-peat". Oh wait, that was Pat Riley, wasn't it?

Please stop typing in all capital letters immediately.

396 thank you. i'm not a fan of more rules generally, but that's a "thank you for not..." i could totally get behind.

The Padres are trying their best to keep Arizona's Pythagorean record poor. It's 8-3 DBacks now.

Oh man, it would be sweet if the Padres sustained this rally.

Bell and Meredith and Hoffman and whoever must all pitch tonight!

Actually, I think it's spelled "losing"

Well, it was nice knowing that guy...

Cruz got out of the inning. I assume Kevin Cameron would be the next guy in.

Meredith has already pitched. And not well.

To be fair to Meredith, he faced just three batters. But one of them (Reynolds) had a bases clearing double.

Ooh, a Doug Brocail sighting!

Davis, who pitched like a skinny David Wells... okay, a skinny David Wells in his prime... completely shut down the Padres and made several of them look bad.

Is that a good sign or is it bad that the Padres will be seeing soft tossing lefties on consecutive nights?

So Ledezma's working out of the bullpen now and is equally ineffective there. Cool. Yeah, hope this game blows through both teams bullpens!

Oooh, The Navigator (Buster Keaton) is on TMC. I'm leaving so I can go from being shouted at to a silent film.

405 Sherlock Jr. is on after that.

406 {sets TiVo}

406 Seriously, people. Go watch it. The single greatest comedy ever made.

bullitt is on AMC, i believe, in case anyone here is a fan of car chase scenes.

Padres on the march!

409

"Bullitt" is why nobody drives in San Francisco anymore.

Every time I've tried to drive there I've been chased by a cop in a really cool Mustang.

Losing 9-6 in the bottom of the 9th, the 51s have mounted a comeback against Tacoma. Now it's 9-8 with still nobody out. LaRoche has a hit, two walks and three runs scored. Abreu and Hu both 0-4.

wheres that logan white interview?

San Diego has the tying run on deck with one out.

Poor Pythagoras.

Abreu batting with two outs in the bottom of the 9th, tying run on third, winning run on first.

I love Bullitt, but there's a horrible continuity mistake in the chase scene. He passes the same green VW bug at least three times during the chase through the Frisco hills.

Abreu ties the game with a double!

Hu's on 3rd and Tony's on second as Delwyn goes for the win.

Brian Giles batting as the go-ahead run with the bases juiced.

And it's 8-6 in San Diego now. Two on, two outs for Brian Giles facing Doug Slaten.

Bullitt's still a great movie. Michael Mann basically copied the ending of Bullitt for Heat.

419
Eric likes to juice the bases more than I do.

The chase scene in Bullitt had a lot of continuity mistakes. In fact there's a great song that refers to them:

Bullitt was my favorite movie that I'd ever seen
I totaled my go-cart trying to imitate that chase scene
That Duster had six hubcaps, know what I mean
and I love the way they all flew off when it landed in that ravine

http://www.drivebytruckers.com/lyrics_gb.html#steve

Not to go all College Foobaw Yeah! on everybody, but the freshman saftey from Mississippi State got lit up like a pinball machine tonight, and I felt I just had to acknowledge it to the world.

He got destroyed.

422 I got carried away there. I wrote the post on 3-0 thinking he would walk. And then he didn't. Jerk.

I spent this week in Vegas, watching Dodger games with a very beautiful Giants fan who now splits time between Arizona and San Diego. There were at least five times in each game that I thought, "hmmmm, I wonder what everyone is saying at Dodger Thoughts."

That aside, what's the prognosis for the San Diego series? Anyone still hopeful that the Bums can take the division?

Bullitt rocks. Steve McQueen rocks.

I noticed that same continuity error last time I watched it Marty. That movie actually made me disappointed about driving in SF, which can be scary, but generally not as exciting, and there are too many annoying police around if you want to speed down curvy Lombard.

Maybe I'll watch Bullitt, since I've seen Sherlock Jr twice, too, and there's an annoying silent film with annoying guy VO happening before it.

Oh wait, Mad Men's on. D'oh.

---

Okay, now that the Padres are coming back, I'd like to see them tie it and then lose. In the 12th inning.

Speak of classic movies, in Vegas I had access to TCM, caught a couple of great Roy Rogers movies, as well as some young John Wayne flicks. I don't have it here in Cali, that is kind of a bummer.

And that car's no Duster. It's a Charger.

Also, I see somebody had a love affair with a caps lock key earlier this evening. I'm sorry I missed that.

I bet you all wish you had.

TCM in my opinion is the best channel on TV.

Yellow alert for Mark Reynolds.

431 - I forgot what basic cable was like without commercials. I remember when we first got cable as a kid, no commercials between innings was just a really cool thing.

432 - stand down

434
I haven't given the order yet. There could be extra innings.

432 Was it Triple Red Alert or Home Run Based On Likelyhood type of Yellow Alert.

436 Grr. I meant Triple Yellow Alert or the home run thingy.

This system is too complex.

Most of the time, a yellow alert is for a triple. I would say 95% of the time. Maybe 99%

HR by old friend Milton Bradley, 8-7 in the bottom of the 9th

437
It's no more complex than a Bill Belichik offense.

438 I want a colored diagram. Or a map.

I'm guessing I'll have to make one then.

It's all on the bat of Mackowiak, pinch hitting for Cameron.

Luis Maza singles in LaRoche and the 51s win it in the 10th, 10-9. Four runs scored on the evening for Andy.

Valverde is a goof.

All over in San Diego

That was a ball, outside. Oh well.

Who's this McDougall guy who hit 2 home runs and a double for Vegas tonight? I keep seeing him tearing it up in box scores, but assume he's not much of a prospect.

Since we've discussed the possible players who will get a call up this weekend, how about the players who we're pretty sure won't: Start with Lundberg, Spike; Fussell, Chris.

447 Marshal McDougall had quite an amazing game in college. Google it. Or check BR bullpen.

But make sure you spell his name correctly when you do. Marshall McDougall. Stupid extra letters.

Superfluous letters are a beign. I'm sure Bob would agree.

Spelling "bane" as "beign" is unique.

450 I'd add that I also have superfluous extra letters in my last name. So it's more commiseration than a jab.

Then again, I cannot spell simple words.

452
I wouldn't dane to make fun of your name.

453 Check your email, sir. And touche.

That's actually what I had on the brain when I spelled that word. I am a buffoon. As you know.

448 Wow. The Florida State grad "will perhaps always be most famous for his performance on May 9, 1999 where, against the University of Maryland, College Park Terrapins, his 7 for 7 performance at the plate with 6 home runs, 16 RBI, and 25 total bases shattered NCAA single game records in all three categories." (wikipedia) Why is not talked about as much of a prospect?

---

Watching some of the Bronx is Burning tonight. Game 6 of the 77 WS. Didn't realize there were death threats vs Garvey and Lopes before the game. I forgot how unexciting Burt Hooton was as a pitcher.

I wonder if John Turturro's prosthetic ears will go up on ebay soon.

Hilarious, too, to see the footage of Lasorda on the mound, talking to Hooton, debating, even agonizing about whether to take him out or leave him in - most amusingly, even asking the umpire what he would do if he were Lasorda. Classic.

Comment 451 deleted by request of the person who posted it.

Nothing to see folks.

Move along.

Um, sorry to interrupt, but I just saw that Chad Billingsley has a blog(!)

http://yardbarker.com/author/column/12219

(Courtesy Diamond Leung)

Might want to check it out.

The "Bronx is Burning" made the 1977 Dodgers out to be the equivalent of the 2005 Astros. That team was very good.

The Dodgers used just 14 pitchers that year. They've used 21 so far this year.

The Dodgers actually hit home runs back then. They even had the most in the NL!

459 Yeah, at least they actually showed highlights of their game 6 rout. Where they showed quite a bit of that power. Their starting pitchers were really solid, too. Their bullpen was a mix of very good and... very iffy. Anyway, at least they do leave the Yankees every once in awhile but as a Dodgers fan the series is less interesting than I'm sure it is to a Yankees fan.

Game 5 rout, that is.

458
My friends and I were watching MMA fights on the computer and there was an ad for Billingsley's blog on the website.

Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday dear Hall of Famer, first African American manager, and He Who Shall Not Be Named by The Griddle
Happy Birthday to you.

Eric Enders: Thanks for your excellent research re Tack Wilson. An interesting story.

BH, I have a Mr. Chiles on the line for you. He says he represents Mildred and Patty Hill.

464 I had forgotten all about Tack Wilson. I remember him having outstanding numbers in the Dodger farm system when I was a kid, but I didn't know any of the backstory before.

466 Additional on Tack Wilson.

He did eventually get two small cups of coffee in the bigs:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/w/wilsota01.shtml

This year, Tack is the AAA hitting coach for the White Sox affiliate in Charlotte. He was last year also, for manager Razor Shines. Razor and Tack, gotta love it.
http://tinyurl.com/2mswpy

Eric, any chance you could post the list of the great names your putting together?

Our visitor last night kgibson would probably nominate CAP ANSON.

>> The 51s (64-76) will travel to Salt Lake for a four-game series from today through Monday to wrap up their 25th Triple-A season in Las Vegas.

• NOTES -- Lindsey doubled and scored in the sixth inning to extend his season-high hitting streak to 18 games and was presented with the Mayor's Trophy, which is voted on by the fans, after the game. Lindsey is hitting .342 with 19 homers and 81 RBIs in 73 games with Las Vegas. ...

Delwyn Young was named the team's Most Valuable Player. The outfielder is batting .334 with 17 homers and 89 RBIs and leads the Pacific Coast League with a franchise-record 50 doubles, 72 extra-base hits and 103 runs scored in 117 games. <<

http://www.lvrj.com/sports/9492027.html

Morning all!

All set for the Labor Day weekend? Big series coming up here tonight.

I wonder how the Dbacks will fare against the Rox?

I hope the Dodgers and Pads get their bullpens ready for tonight.

My Tack Wilson memory was in Rob's comments:

http://6-4-2.blogspot.com/2006/05/pickoff-moves_16.html

New post up top.

If we've got Nomar starting and Hillenbrand backing him up, why pursue another player who can play 3rd?

Andy LaRoche is supposed to be as good a 3b prospect as the organization has had, and with Abreu a capable alternative, why would Ned Colletti go looking for another third baseman??

Why is Mr. Colletti calling Colorado? Is he really enamored with the idea of having Garrett Atkins in a Dodger uniform???

I just can't figure it out.