UCLA could have used that advice yesterday.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/rankingsindex

What time's the game? Gameday isn't loading yet.

So I had to watch him play.

It took five years of intensive psychotherapy to recover from watching Jack Haley play center.

On a related note, does anyone have a feeling like Loney and/or Kemp could be potential triple crown threats in the near future?

TIE GAME!!!!

TIE GAME!!!!

TIE GAME!!!!

My sunday game is at 3 o'clock which is an awkward start for us, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna arrive a little late to my game.

Hope this doesn't deter him from finding the real killers.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/law/09/16/oj.simpson/index.html

I'm not sure that Loney will ever win a homerun title. But I've been a die-hard Dodgers fan since 1949. And in all those years Matt Kemp is the most talented position player to come up through the Dodgers system, IMHO. He has all five tools; power, avg, speed, arm and defensive ability that should improve with playing time. The only other Dodgers non-pitcher I can think of in all that time who might enter the HOF is Piazza and he only had two tools. I expect Kemp to be a 40/100 guy for years. But I'm just a fan, so who knows.

28 I'll buy everyone on this site a gold iPhone case if Loney ever leads the league in home runs. And while I think Kemp could someday lead the league in HR or BA, I don't think a Dodger will ever again lead the league in RBI. And if they do, it won't be while Juan Pierre is under contract.

28 - I'm in the group that believes Piazza is a first ballot hall of famer.

The Astros are ahead of Pittsburgh 13-2.

58% say power hitting third baseman. 19% each for starting pitcher and out fielder. the other 5% have not been following the team this year.

I voted for the 3rd baseman, if only because this last week has me worried about LaRoche's work ethic. Plus, I would really like to see A-Rod in Dodger Blue.

But why would a Dodger never again lead the league in RBI. We have some really talented youngsters. I expect Kemp to be the Dodgers cleanup hitter for years. And he could have both Martin and Loney hitting ahead of him.

And, as for Pierre, Ned says he gets on base an awful lot. :-)

Who the heck is Greg Dobbs?
Who the heck is Greg Dobbs?
Who the heck is Greg Dobbs?
Who the heck is Greg Dobbs?

Not a demanding schedule.

Only one Dodger has led the league in RBI since Dodger Stadium opened. And that guy did it with the league MVP batting in front of him.

I'm in that group also. The only catcher with better numbers than Piazza is Josh Gibson. Although most Josh's numbers didn't count.

Which of course has me wondering, if the Dodgers were to break ground on a new stadium this off season (purely hypothetically), what kind of team would you build it for? Obviously, Dodger Stadium was built with Koufax and Drysdale in mind (much as Yankee Stadium was built with Ruth and Gerhig in mind).

Then again, didn't expect the Dodgers to sweep the DBacks. Not that they've done so yet, but regardless, I didn't expect it.

To be honest I was pretty happy Ned semi acknowledged Pierre was having a disappointing season (on a radio station interview a few months back) Pierre's had a great Aug & Sept though, but still. I bet Ned deep down inside knows he made a mistake signing a SINGLES HITTING CF, but that's just me, for all I know he's probably patting him self in the back by signing him.

When I said we have some very talented youngsters I didn't mean just Kemp and Loney. I was considering the other talent we'd have out there in front of them.

>> Only one Dodger has led the league in RBI since Dodger Stadium opened. And that guy did it with the league MVP batting in front of him. <<

I see Loney and Martin as future MVP candidates and both could end up batting in front of Kemp.

Anyway, I'm not a big believer in building stadiums custom-made to the strengths of a particular player. The stadium ends up lasting a lot longer than the player, and then you're stuck with it. And really there's no precedent for this in baseball. Even the supposed "House that Ruth Built" was actually much worse suited for Babe Ruth's hitting than the Yankees' previous park.

Byrnes fly ball wasn't cool though.

!I Viva Mexico! some of the words the president of Mexico will be hollering tonight.

But it's a chicken-and-egg thing, I suppose.

I like stadiums suited for pitchers, as a fan I think you appreciate a well pitched game a lot more, but if your gonna hit a HOME RUN as a FAN you want them to be legit, don't get me wrong I like dingers as well but a well played game (looking at you Mets) is always a lot more appreciated.

Exactly. That same goes for "clutch". If you could truly hit better under "pressure" (presumably by changing your approach), why not just use the altered approach all the time?

he has back problems (disc I think) if he heals we should be o.k. with him, but I hear your what your saying.

How long before people call for Charlie Weis' head? And if this were Ty Willingham's team, wouldn't he be gone already?

But, if I've got a stadium first, say, I take over a franchise that is not doing well. I would absolutely look at how the stadium is built when building the team. If I've got a short porch in right, I'd want more left handers who pull the ball or right handers who can go the other way. As an example, let's say I had a team that played in a stadium built like the old Polo Grounds... there is no way I would even think of signing a center fielder like Juan Pierre.

Unfortunately, few teams have a lasting philosophy any more, changing GMs like I change my underwear. Also, I'd point out that the A's approach of late has worked in part because of they way their stadium is set up (ton of foul territory, 330 down the lines, etc)

C Martin/Liberthal
1B Loney/Sweeney
2B Kent/Abreu
SS Furcal/Martinez
3B Nomar/Hillenbrand
CF Pierre
RF Kemp/Ethier
LF Pasted Prime Veteran
SP Penny
SP Billingsley
SP Lowe
SP Loazia
SP Schmidt
CL Saito
SU Broxton
RP Proctor
RP Beimel
RP Seanez
RP Hendrickson

I should go for a jog or something.

C Martin/Leiberthal
1B Loney/Sweeney
2B Kent/Abreu
SS Furcal/Hu
3B LaRoche/Nomar
LF Ethier
CF Pierre
RF Kemp
OF Young
SP Penny
SP Lowe
SP Billingsley
SP Wolf (assuming he is healthy)
SP Kuo (assuming he is healthy)
CL Saito
SU Broxton
RP Meloan
RP Hull
RP Beimel
RP Proctor

That guy is NEVER gonna be 100% for a WHOLE season, I really hope we show case him & hopefully get some value for him, you can bank on that.

There's a good chance 3 runs won't be enough to win this game.

And all the stands there are metal.

I love the way Vin is not subtle about his opinion of Loaiza and even Grady's impression of Loaiza. The fact that I can spell Loaiza this soon is very bad.

Yup....

You never make the 3rd out at third Kent, you guys see him looking at Loney like it was his fault! SIGH!!

Sure, it seems obvious but how often have you heard the phrase "pitching to contact?" I hear it a lot.

I miss that game.

'Course, it also meant he would start damn near anybody at anytime. Didn't seem to hurt him, though.

And yet, next year, Loaiza will be our fifth starter and will go 1-8 before we replace him with McDonald. It's as plain as day. You just wish that Ned could see that having won 20 games or hit 50 home runs five years ago means nothing if all you've got left is an 81 mile-an-hour fastball.

The solution to this is of course firing Ned.

Being mediocre like everyone else is what got the Dodgers into the mess they're presently in.

And the Dodgers call in Eric Hull, who is who they should have had starting anyway, who would have been a lot cheaper, and about as good as Esteban Lousy to begin with.

181 - The Brooklyn Dodgers never won any such games, which probably says much about their respective parks, abilities, and eras.

I was at that game! I always knew it had historical significance.

Nice suit, too.

we can't...

okay, who wants to complete the analogy? I'm stuck.

burns is on deck.

It was a hit and run. snyder would have been going to third against anybody.

For now, it appears this treatise is superfluous, what with another DBack run coming home.

But 140 Herm has got me thinking,although it won't be a coherent thought till arter the game.

Ugh.

I'm just sayin'.

I'm lost.

This season has been so much fun, hasn't it?

Why do people make blanket statements like "Grady Little never calls for the hit and run" or "Broxton can't pitch with runners on base" when they are patently false?

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=jp-marshall051007&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Russell needs rest, but not today. He needed rest consistently throughout the season which he did not get. You just cant rest one of your best players in an important game against the division leader.

"There's no glory in it. You don't gain anything from it. You look foolish. Oh, some people will cheer ... I never could understand it."

Given world enough and time, I'd write why.

Next year, with more talent, he can rest more.

We won't win them all. If we lose today to the division-leader, it will be complicating for our chances, but not exactly a surprise.

I just want to see the Giants show a little pride in San Diego. No way should we have to figure on a team in our own division going to sleep in a pennant-affecting series. Likewise the Mets. Getting swept in Shea? What kind of "best team in the NL" does that?

Like I said, I think he would get hired but by his own reckoning, he would be a pain in the kiester to work with.

Thats not true. Lieberthal is a fine backup, but he's had what, 70 AB's this year? He is a fine backup, a guy who you can plug in there once a week and have him not hurt the team. Theres a reason why you have him on the team. You plug him in on a day game agains the Nats or getaway day against the Pirates. You play him once a week so Russell gets enough rest that he doesnt have to sit out in an important game such as this.

The Dodgers would not be NLCS virgins.

Can we trade one of them for a real leadoff man, then?

I have discovered a wonderful proof of this, but the margin is too small to contain it.

I like Lieberthal. Heck, I interviewed him 18 years ago (Westlake High School). But the difference between Russ and Mike is huge.

Next season, we gotta cure that. We have to have some damn good regulars in the lineup. It's why we've been screaming for the youngstah's since April. Loney will be great, Kemp hopefully will be and maybe--just maybe--we can get a sluggardly slugger, too.

But you and nofatmike are clearly correct. I just remember it as a nice luxury to have Chad to stop the bleeding. I would never want to have him back in that role.

Really?

a) we like Loaiza as much as you do and
b) we've seen Nomar's medical history and
c) we like to know our third baseman can bend over in the future (we've already got Betemit!) and
d) we've read the threads on DT. We know what Pierre is like!

Thanks for calling..."

c martin/lieberthal
1b loney
2b kent/abreu
ss furcal
3b laroche/nomar
lf young
cf kemp
rf ethier

pierre becomes a highly paid pinch runner.

but most of all ...

SOMEBODY BESIDES GRADY LITTLE AS MANAGER

Did the D-Backs decide at some point this year, if not from the beginning, that they would dump the kids in the deep end of the pool and see what happens? It's worked obviously but I want to know how it happened. Was it by design? Necessity?

And most importantly, are they doing what we could have been doing?

I'll be honest... I don't even know what I'm asking this point. This game has got me bumfuzzled.

I guarantee you the Fox guys would talking about damn near anything else.

Or even the hitting coach.

I expect frogs to fall from the sky any second now.

...???

Now we lead off with Loney in the 9th...maybe Kemp will bat for Gonzalez.

Fan touched the ball.

http://tinyurl.com/29lt6b

They've managed to right the ship, but the fans still haven't come out as much as they did back in the heyday of Tony Womack and Jay Bell.

And breadth

http://tinyurl.com/233lgh

It's been fun, kids. I'm going to our new house to paint a wall. Whee.

At BTF the other day, in reference to the Cubs' 2004 season in which Chicago had a game and a half lead in the Wild Card and ten games to go against mostly sub-.500 teams, somebody called Dusty Baker the Winburglar. Seeing that from Grady makes me wonder if the sobriquet might apply to him, too.

There is much fear and loathing at DL's house right now.

I've heard that WAY too often lately.

386 No, he caught for an inning on the 11th.

In each case, the starter got knocked around early. One of them was a 19-11 win in Colorado.

Playing Hulls and Houltons is too much in line with the philosophy of the previous administration, and is interpreted by too many fans as "not being willing to spend money" and/or "not committed to winning". Plus, it can get you fired if it fails.

Edit: I forgot that the Padres series put the Dodgers back up to 1.5. Somehow I thought we were at 3.5 now.

ps: Thanks for nothing, Giants.

Dodger management is stupid, there's no other way to say it. They probably cost us the pennant. We'd be 5 games in front now if they would have let the best players play.

The problem is its hard to know when the Buc's are tanking it and when the just plain stink.

That is completely outrageous.

As a Devil Rays fan, I'd like to thank the Dodgers for giving us some winners(even if it's the minor leagues)

Won't be surprised if a trade involving the Dodgers and Rocco Baldelli happens this offseason, so I won't be a stanger.

What exactly would Jim Tracy do to have the Pirates "lay down"? Would he read up on the 1919 World Series? Would he tell Freddy Sanchez to stop hitting? Would he tell his players to bunt with two outs?

I don't get it. When I read substandard ramblings in 414 from people I thought I had respect for, I just wonder what we've all turned into.

I think the Pittsburgh Pirates players are owed an apology. I think Jim Tracy is owed an apology. That guy has been accused of the one unpardonable sin according to many of us: HE DISAGREED with us.

I can not believe that any manager, coach, or player would even think of throwing a game. When teams lose games, managers tend to lose their jobs. The players are playing for new contracts or to hang on to what many of us would call The Greatest Job In the History of The World™. So, no, they are not going to tank the games, they're going to play, for pride and for money and because it's their job. They might not win, because relatively speaking, they aren't very good, but they aren't going to purposefully lose.

2. Players and managers have thrown baseball games before, including the World Series. More recently, managers have bet on baseball games. Even more recently, basketball players and referees have been caught shaving points. It's not something that's 100% out of the realm of possibility.

3. While I too find it laughable that a manager would intentionally lose games out of spite, I don't find it implausible at all that a manager would "try less hard" -- i.e. make stupid moves or put lousy players into the lineup -- for tactical reasons, such as getting a higher draft pick. That's happened in the NBA, probably. Why not baseball? The Expos owners (that is, the other 29 owners) clearly tanked a couple of seasons in Montreal to make deserting the town more publicly palatable.

Shouldn't Jim Tracy just as much hold a grudge against the Special Assistant to the GM of the Padres as he does toward the Dodgers?

Is there a hierarchy of grudges that people operate on? If so, can I utilize this information to make big bucks in Vegas?

Did Brett Tomko pitch well for the Padres Saturday because he wanted to harm the Dodgers or did he just happen to pitch well against not a particularly good team?

Is David Wells trying to get back at his old team?

I think equating Jim Tracy with Pete Rose is hard for me to accept.

Clearly LAT hit a sore spot, but look, LAT is apologetic so all is well. Let's all have a group hug.

May the Dodgers sweep their next two series.

Obviously, the three next weekend with Arizona will be critical as those are the only one's left against a team ahead of the Dodgers. But other than winning those three, what do the bums need to do the rest of the way?

I'm thinking they've got to play about .800 baseball (win 10 of 13 or so). That seem about right to anyone else? Obvious we'll need help from San Fran, Colorado, the Brewers, and the Pirates.

But I'll bow out of this and get back to write my post for tomorrow about a truly dreadful team.

I just don't do anger well.

Maybe I'll go find a recording of the UCLA-Utah game to calm me down.

Barring a complete collapse by both the Padres and the Phillies, our next loss is probably our last.

What we need, probably, is to add Kirk Gibson, Bobby Thomson, Doug Flutie, Dwight Clark, and Anthony Atkinson to our roster.

Ok, not nearly that good, but still, good.

I am not even sure why I subject myself to watching football anymore.

53 days until UCLA basketball starts.
66 days until Jrue and the rest sign their LOI.

I have to admit, having gone to a school that doesn't have a team and not having an NFL team in the market, football really is third on my interest list behind baseball and basketball.

I'd say something about the football team but I refuse to think about it until Friday.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pi/shareit/xceg

"People want to talk stuff about our offense," [the elder] Giles quipped. "They move the fences back, they take steroids away, what do you expect?"