I just saw the lineup on ItD and thought the same thing. Why not throw Tiffee out there if you're going to give Loney a rest? I liked Maza at second yesterday - at short - not so much. Would Kent have had those two popups in short right yesterday?

So maybe his low BABIP is a function of his decreasing ability to drive the ball.

Have since found the real thing and am relinking it here on Memorial Day since the subject matter ties in somewhat with that--even though it was written about Christmastime, 1945.

In my original post on this I said probably not too many DT readers had seen it. Also, it's a serious debunking of the idea that sportswriters can't write other things well. Anyone with a sense of history and appreciation of good writing, which quite a few DTers have, probably will enjoy it.

For those who may have read it the first time--or tried to--this original version is worth a reread because it's actually the whole thing, including the ending, which I think particularly appropriate today.

http://tinyurl.com/5rpjzq

The item appeared under a heading of "Wild Thing...you make everything groovy."

I think Williams went on to try the pro bowlers tour after baseball, where he wasn't totally embarrassed but also didn't win much money, IIRC.

James Loney's season to date:
.276/.332/.438
And some really bad defense.

1. Vin Scully
2. Don Drysdale
3. Jerry Doggett
4. Charley Steiner
5. Rick Monday
6. Ross Porter

No need to say more on Vin. He is slowing down some, but still the best even in his 80s. I thought Drysdale was underrated as an announcer. He added a spark and obviously knew a great deal about the game as a former player that none of the previous announcers had. I actually like his rarely played call of Gibson's home run even better than Vin's or Jack Buck's who were doing it for national audiences.

Doggett was fairly solid, and had such an easygoing and pleasant style in calling the games. I didn't like the Steiner signing much, but he has grown on me a bit. Monday knows the game as well as anyone, but his monotone broadcasting voice and style just seems to turn me off no matter how much I like the guy.

Ross Porter called the game a little more smoothly and natural than Monday does and was an overall nice guy. Not sure I can ever forgive McCourt for how poorly they treated him in getting rid of him in his 28th season. He was a class guy, but I think he really knew very little about the game despite giving off those horribly inane and meaningless stats every game about the Dodgers being 12-2 in one run games played on astroturf on Saturday games during the year.

.262 5 27 .348 .415...why are these numbers worth trading young talent for?

But signing him as a free agent is absolutely the right move. Over the next 5yrs, the only advantage Loney will have is he's cheaper.

Teixeira will likely be the better player. Loney would be a fine backup though.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/l/loneyja01.shtml

I will admit this much: PECOTA hates him (RR):

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/pecota/loneyja01.php

Most of his comps are on a downhill slide, but that said, PECOTA tends to get lost in the early part of careers when all you have to go on is minor league numbers. Further, I point to the career of one Paul Konerko, whom the Dodgers threw away in his age 22 season for the privilege of watching Jeff Shaw close their games for one good and two mediocre years. What fun that was! (And that's without mentioning Tommy Lasorda's screwup on Shaw's contract!)

http://www.baseball-reference.com/k/konerpa01.shtml

Pierre or Soriano?

Pierre or Soriano?

...especially with Kent batting.

Five years from now he will be 33 years old.

Derek Lee is crazy strong.

He has 9 runs scored in 18 games.

Brett Butler is a long ways away.

In another Month JP's numbers will be where they have been the last 3 years...

We'll talk then.

Just look at the drop off between him and Furcal..

The Cardinals have always been at war with the Cubs.

Part of the reason is career record was not that great was the lack of run support. But basically James concluded that Drysdale was (1) one of most famous pitchers of his time, (2) He had an impact on a number of pennant races, and (3) helped his teams win.

I also forgot he was slugging .321.

He certainly is going to be playing while Jones is out and he is going to bat leadoff until Furcal comes back.

But everyone knows that but yet they complain.

Other Dodgers with streaks of 5 straight games with hits to start their career:
The black Mike Ramsey
Don LeJohn
Doug Camilli
Don Sutton

There could have been a longer streak earlier.

LaRoche could very easily be called up and play LF.

This game is starting to look eerily reminiscent of Lowe's last start: one bad pitch for two runs, Dodgers still lose.

Better yet if he could pitch like Kershaw. As a pitcher, he makes a hell of a nice hitter.

Why is there this insistence that a player who has played nothing but 3B can now play major league level outfield.

Its also Dodger Mgmt decision that Pierre bat leadoff.

Just because "we know its going to happen" doesnt make the decison any less wrong. And this is a baseball blog that discusses both good and bad that goes on with the Dodgers.

Should power producers coming out of the ped generation be subject to careful evaluation?

Or possibly "The Nostrum."

95 - Never mind...

What is the status of the condition of LaRoche's right thumb? Has he regained full strength?
Could this be hampering his ability to throw the ball and to swing the bat?

I don't have a lot of sympathy for them.

They lost to Fullerton all three times this season.

121
The pitchers are a lot better for one thing. And the Japanese play in a lot of domed stadiums and nearly every domed stadium in Japan gives up a lot of homers. Fukudome's home park, the Nagoya Dome, has been a good home run park.

121 - Japanese stadiums are on average smaller then ML ballparks.

119 -- On Gameday, Chad's fastball velocity appears normal: mostly 91 to 93 MPH. He throws his cutter a lot, at 89 or 90, and maybe you are thinking those are fastballs.

Kent, Dewitt, Hu/Furcal, Laroche (once)
Loney, Kent, Hu/Furcal, Dewitt (four times)
Loney, Dewitt, Hu/Furcal, Laroche (twice)

You give Kent two days off per week, try Dewitt out at second, and Laroche gets three starts per week plus ph duty.

From what I've read recently your better of trusting Gamedays gun.

Then he hit an breaking pitch for a hit, took the extra base, and they were forced to admit "nice baserunning there by Kemp."

Guess I'm too used to Scioscia running games.

Those pitchers end up coming to the U.S.

Instead there are a bunch of guys who throw lots and lots of offspeed stuff. Either they hang a curve or finally have to come over the plate with an 85 mph fastball and then
祖母はライムギパンを得る。

It was awesome BH thanks for the ticks, you really notice the tailing action on fastballs from that location & you also get to appreciate defense from that view point.

Yay for RBI infield singles!

he wasn't convinced though, lol

hehehe, that was a good one

Is Pierre the small fish and the pond the baseball free-agent pool?

Now, it is just implied.

Hence, I am always hungry.

Or buying fish at the market.

the first two games of the series looked to significantly uglier, though.

That will be a very tough regional.

They both seem very impressed with him, especially the former Giants catcher his name escapes me right now, but he really seems to like Billz.

I think he was always around 92-94 with the fastball. I could be wrong.

Against Ryan Dempster? Unheard of.

I don't even know where Southern Californians go to fish. Pyramid Lake? Lake Arrowhead?

Not that I'm complaining about going the other way mind you, just it seems he's incapable of it at this point.

No, I never did. I'm really not an avid fisherman, so I'm working with some small samples sizes.

But I did go on one of those boat trips around Catalina a few years ago and swear that I was the only person to not catch anything.

2007 ABS: 292 BBS: 16

2008 ABS: 165 BBS: 12

His slugging percentage is way down this year, so far, though.

And I'm always amazed at the people who speak during moments of silence.

Yeah, that's wrong.

Absolutely! In an alternate universe.

Seriously, that logo is terrifying.

I wouldn't take out Acey Acerton just yet.

No one thinks this is a bad idea taking Bills out here.

Soriano just had 4 great takes imo. Other two hits weren't hit that well. Fukudome had teh hardest hit and it was a DP. And Chad would get to face the bottom of the order...

But Tiffee? blah.

Babelfish is often really off for Japanese-English translations.

Why do they call the Cubs singers "Guest Conductors" instead of singers? Do they tend to wave their arms around a lot?

http://tinyurl.com/54uweb

Yes. The Dodgers have 9 games with 1 run exactly. (I'm assuming by "manufactured", you meant "scored")

http://www.bb-ref.com/pi/shareit/vSG3

Snarl.

The bottom line is that the best way to create runs is to get on base and hit for power

If you go further back than that, it becomes problematic. I mean, fine to say he should never have been born, but that's true of everyone.

I wonder if Ardoin had to take over Bennett's hotfoot duties.

I'm laughing again. Thanks.

I doubt there are many Malibu beach front homes next door to a Carl's Jr.

you know how long I've been trying to make that joke work Andrew!!! that was priceless LOL!

Wait, I sound like a Bond girl.

...

Thank you.

It should be 2-2.

Let Bowa assume some more blame.

This has been a tough game. Good at bat by Pee Wee.

I bet he eats CJ.

He probably thought there were already 3 outs.

Scott Proctor is the Sweeney/Saenz of pitchers. Kuo continues to sit.

especially cause the D-Backs have been playing bad for about a week now, sigh. [puts face in forehead & shakes it east to west]

On the other hand, the Dodgers will get to see Kerry Wood, so this could go to extras.

Willie Davis 6' 2" 180 lbs.

Matt Kemp 6' 2" 230 lbs.

Similar speed, The Bison has the power that Three Dog always wished that he had.

As much unclutchy hitting we've seen today, we've seen some spectacularly Houdini-like pitching.

Til Procter v. Ramirez anyway.

I'm thrilled to see Billingsley pitch so well. Seriously. And that last DP he threw, caught and threw was a memorable play.

Chad Billingsley pitched well and Matt Kemp wiped the drool off his sleeve and didn't run into the foul pole. That's all I care about.

2008: Sweeney
2007: Saenz
2006: Lugo
2005: take your pick...

Furcal
Ethier
Martin
Kent
Loney
Kemp
DeWitt
Pierre
Pitcher

...will not often leave so many RISP.

430 Hu appeared like could have scored on Kemp's double, but was held up and died on third. Of course, Proctor soon rendered that irrelevant.

Jesus.

Dodgers just are so dependent on long sequence innings of hits/bbs to score runs. And some of that is just luck.

Some days, the 2 out hits will drop. Other days they wont.

to date...

Kent...4
Kemp...3
Martin...3
Ethier...4
Jones...2
Loney leading the pack with 5

exactly my thought, I like my team as a whole though, I just can't stand his approach at the plate BUT that's his game though, shame on Ned.

446,

True dat. But they should have a bunch of guys with 15-20 HR power. If Kent and Druw didn't suck, Kemp and Loney had more power, Raffy came back, and we called up Laroche then we wold be fine there. Its kinda like the perfect storm of all those things going wrong though.

But when his coach becomes a pumpkin, I trust Torre will drop him back where he belongs. Or if Jones comes back and can mash with a fixed knee, Pierre can take a spot on the bench.

And i absolutely hate hearing the dumb Cubs announcers celebrating and this song they're playing is just embarassing.

Good timing, too, since Sam Zell wants to sell them.

Now, Raffy wasn't going to keep that up all year but it was a pretty big hit on the lineup.

Billingsley and Kershaw as two young co-aces.

Lowe maybe motivated to have a great second half.

Penny, we'll see.

Kuroda, seemingly more consistent now.

Schmidt perhaps back.

Furcal returns.

Jones who knows.

Kent seems to be breaking out of his slump.

A role for LaRoche as a masher off the bench, pushing both Dewitt and Loney.

I think I'm going to enjoy this season more than last, even if we aren't a playoff team yet.

Its melodrama at its height but there are a lot of nice moments in it.

freakish circumstances. This is the Cubs. They own the all time record for freakish circumstances.

This two week stretch is important. Dodgers face the Cubs (7 more times), Mets (4 games), and Rockies (3 games).

Dbax get the Giants (3 games), Nationals (3 games), Brewers (3 games), and Pirates (4 games).

"and the team's fans have no right to gripe about the absence of power", what are you kidding me?

1) Why was Hu held at third in the eighth?
2) Why did Bills not once attempt a suicide squeeze in the fifth? Kemp has good speed... is Bills a lousy bunter?

As for what I would have done today, with Loney sitting (and he really did need the day off) I would have put Ethier at 1B and Young in RF. Wasn't Torre having Ethier taking ground balls at 1B earlier in the season just so Ethier could sub for Loney occasionally?

But clearly Young is never, ever going to start a game in the outfield if Torre has anything to say about it. Torre's love affair with Sweeney is approaching a firing offense, as far as I'm concerned.

Of course, with numbers like that, I assume that several teams have won 88 games and got out homered.

At some point, with a stacked farm system, the team is going to have some good players that are probably good enough to be playing everyday, on the bench.

they did it in the early 60's, this day and age u need to have a masher in your lineup, look what happened in 2003, we had the best pitching in baseball, could'nt score runs, even the teams that supposedly dont have power all have some boppers, the marlins got uggla, the whitesox got konerko and dyle, and thome, the angels got vlad. we got kent, who if you ask me has lost his bat speed and should probably call it quits. you need at least that one bat in your lineup that can change the game with one swing, we dont got it.

On some level, the whole thing is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

I just noticed my last two prospects are named Andrew, to some extent.

You can say the same thing about any terrible player. Which doesn't mean you should go around looking for terrible players to test the hypothesis.

If you have choice between "terrible" and "not terrible," as the Dodgers do, why would you ever choose terrible? What possible benefit comes from it?

The warm embrace of lowered expectation.

I also worry about the mentality in the Dodgers' organization that says a guy on the bench belongs on the bench. Newtonian physics and things at rest staying at rest, and all that. I don't feel pessimistic about LaRoche's future in this organization as long as the Dodgers seem to care enough about him to want him playing everyday. Hu's future with us I AM worrying about, even though he is in the majors. I fear he is getting pegged as a utility infielder, and am almost desperate to see him demoted to Vegas.

"Mmmm...terrible..."

So you watch only the channel the Dodgers appear on for the entire day? That's a dedicated fan.

So will you, if you know what's good for you.

You are both right, this is not a very good team.

Florida and Tampa Bay.

When you think about it, it's not so surprising that teams who routinely accept a bunch of good prospects in return for overrated/overpriced veterans would eventually experience success.

It's pretty darned moving. Teresa Wright is a darling, of course (though I think her most achingly poignant role is as the younger Charlie in Shadow of a Doubt).

The scene where Dana Andrews is roaming the bomber graveyard and gets into the plane remains to me one of the most indelible images of 1940s Hollywood.

Even though he is a 1b now, Ive read from Callis that he is Athletic enough to play RF where his arm would play tremendously.

thats pretty cool. Analysis of Kershaws start using pitchfx stats.

Kershaw is still debating which college to play for because many, including Baylor, UT, Arkansas and A&M, have recruited him, but is strongly leaning towards Stanford (which has a nationally ranked baseball team), who gave him a great scholarship offer. The 2006 professional draft will take place in June.

''I'm not sure when I'm going pro,'' Kershaw said. ''But whatever happens, happens.''

http://hs.hpisd.org/paper/Article.cfm?ArticleID=252&Number=19&P=

I mentioned the two problems since with the SLG as deficient as it is, well, we can't have outs scattered throughtout the lineup. Kent hitting the way he is in the 4-hole is by far the worst circumstance. Toss in an Andruw Jones hitting 7th and a Hu hitting 8th, and with and after Kent's PA we don't have the greatest shot at scoring and it showed.

Furcal
Ethier
Martin
Kent
Loney
Kemp
DeWitt
LaRoche
Pitcher

...and then what if we gave Kent his gold watch (a little early) and put Hu at second (for defense):

Furcal
Ethier
Loney
Martin
Kemp
DeWitt
LaRoche
Hu
Pitcher

How's that lineup. Huh? Huh?

But in real life, since I know the Dodgers won't meet Boras's price, if Hosmer is still on the board after 14 picks, no way do I want the Dodgers picking Hosmer. It would just end with him going to college.

By the way, are you going to be back from your vacation before draft day?

With Jamie Moyer, the crafty lefthander, getting the win.

The same could be said for Cubs fans at Wrigley and Cardinal fans at Busch. The minor exception was when Andre Ethier hammered Ryan Dempster, as did the Cubs fans, last year with a three-run homer in the eighth (the highlight was shown in today's game) to overtake the Cubbies.

As a lifelong Dodger fan, it seems that the fan behavior is becoming increasingly worse. It also seems that security does not intervene until things have gotten entirely out of hand. At a Sunday game against the Astros I watched security laugh at a very drunk patron who was yelling profane chants, gesturing to his genitals, and basically being an idiot. I actually had to tell the usher and security guard who were standing together, "Come on guys, you've got to do your job."

Upon my return, I've been catching up with postings and just read many of the thoughts regarding Piazza being booed. It also broke my heart when he said that Mets fans were the greatest in the world; however after seeing yet another example of well-behaved, enthusiastic fans who aren't just there to get loaded, I can understand where he is coming from.

This is not to stereotype the many great Dodger fans such as those who post at Dodger Thoughts. Unfortunately, there are enough of the other kind floating around to put a damper on visits to Dodger Stadium. We shouldn't have to call the danged number to report behavior that gets out of hand, but maybe if more of us do so, maybe the rest of us will return to being the greatest fans in the world.

Thanks for listening.

Dodgers opponents until the All-Star break:
Cubs, Mets, Rockies, Cubs, Padres, Tigers, Reds, Indians, White Sox, Angels, Astros, Giants, Braves, and Marlins.

What if Furcal can play?

The addition of Kershaw is huge. What would the Dodgers need to give up in a trade to acquire a pitcher like him? Boom, here he is in the rotation.

The Dodgers can contend. For the World Series.

Stephen 'Tin Tin' Duffy, Hold It, 1983 or thereabouts.

Awful, awful stuff.

(just kidding. the real answer is the rotation got pretzeled around by the Billingsley rain delay game and by the flop of Lowe for Penny last weekend. 1, 5, 3, 4, 2 is where we are now, I believe.

"Loaiza was selected off waivers by the Dodgers from Oakland on August 29, 2007 in one of the biggest gifts ever bestowed upon A's GM Billy Beane. Los Angeles agreed to pay $1.17 million of Loaiza's remaining 2007 salary and assume responsibility for his $7M salary in 2008 plus the $7.5M option or $0.375M buyout in 2009. As such, the Dodgers paid the 36-year-old righthander $8.545 million for 46 2/3 innings, 50 hits, 36 runs (all earned), 21 walks, 24 strikeouts, 12 home runs allowed, and an ERA of 6.94.

What makes the Loaiza acquistion even more troublesome is the fact that the Dodgers drafted Kyle Blair, a righthanded pitcher out of Los Gatos HS (Los Gatos, CA), in the fifth round last June and failed to sign him. A first-round talent, Blair reportedly was seeking a bonus of $2 million. The Dodgers supposedly offered him a million. As the deadline approached last August, it was said that Blair had lowered his demands to $1.5M. However, L.A. chose not to meet him in the middle and let $500,000 stand in the way of inking a highly regarded prospect. Two weeks later, the Dodgers picked up Loaiza off waivers and are now stuck with a bill that will cost them more than $7M above and beyond what it would have taken to sign Blair, who has posted a 7-4 record and an ERA of 4.12 with 90 Ks in 67.2 IP in his freshman season as the third starting pitcher for the University of San Diego."

I like the way this team is constructed for the most part... my concerns are second base and left field. The other six starting spots are solid, the starting rotation is pretty darn good, and the bullpen is probably one of the better in the majors. But if we figure that Pierre isn't going to be traded, and that no one is going to take Kent for the remainder of the season, what realistic move can be made to improve the team?

More importantly, can McCourt/Colleti/Torre have the patience to allow this young core full year together, playing everyday, before going full blown PVL?

I had the opportunity to photograph him a few years ago at an AFI function and found him to be a straight-up guy. I asked him about his (recently deceased) friend Kubrick and he gave a deeply felt, sincere answer. Really cool guy.

I'll miss him.

I stopped paying attention to anything else after that.

I probably liked him better as an actor than a director, actually. Tootsie is a masterpiece, but I just didn't connect with stuff like The Way We Were and The Firm. But he really had an outstanding on-camera presence.

Mike Barnacle: "Chuck Todd, as always you're here to explain and educate, and sometimes even entertain."

Chuck Todd: "Well I hope I entertain, I've sort of felt like the Dodgers lately."

Barnacle: "Well, at least they have some good kids."

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tennis/news/story?id=3412363