Week Recap: 08/03/09 - 08/09/09

Whew. That was not a good week. Let's take a look at it.

The Dodgers started the week splitting two with the Brewers, before losing the third game, and the series.

They came back to win the first game in the series against Atlanta, in walk-off fashion. Then, they proceeded to lose the next three, and the series.

The Dodgers went 2-5 on the week.

Wow, we're already to Round 15 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE. Time is just flying by.

COLD:

• Guillermo Mota - 0-1 (4 games), 9.00 ERA (4 ER in 4.0 IP), 5 H, 3 BBs, 3 Ks - Is this it?! Is this the meltdown?! I knew it was coming!!! Ok, I'll calm down. I'm not saying Mota is regressing. I'm just upset that I was finally starting to trust him, and now he's gone and abused my trust. Still, it was a bad week, and I'm willing to forgive. I just need an performace upgrade from Mota.

• Ramon Troncoso - 0-1 (4 games), 27.00 ERA (6 ER in 2.0 IP), 5 H, 1 BB, 1 K - Hey, guess who else had a bad week? Yeah, Troncoso got lit up this week. You have to wonder if this is a sign that possibly Troncoso has already been used too much this year.

• James Loney - .125 (3-24), 1 2B, 2 RBIs, 4 BBs, 7 Ks - Loney didn't hit this week. There you have it. Ok, let me rephrase. Loney hasn't hit since Wednesday. 0 for his last 13. 1 for his last 20. Those are just some ugly, ugly numbers.

• Jason Schmidt - 0-1 (1 start), Bad. - Schmidt is gone, almost as fast as he came. On the DL with bad.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Andre Ethier - .241 (7-29), 2 2Bs, 1 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBIs, 5 BBs, 5 Ks - Ethier has certainly slowed down. That's not to say he's come to a halt. Despite the .241 batting average, he still had an OPS of .854. Plus, 6 RBIs on 7 hits? He's getting the hits when they count. That includes getting the big three run, game winning homerun in the first game against Atlanta, which eventually turned out the be the only way we avoided a four game sweep against Atlanta.

• Manny Ramírez - .320 (8-25), 3 2Bs, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 2 BBs, 7 Ks - Sure, .320 doesn't look to bad, but it's all in context. Manny had three good games this week, and three bad games. And in between it all, he managed to leave 14 runners on base during the week, so the 4 RBIs does seem kinda weak in comparison.

• Clayton Kershaw - 0-1 (2 starts), 2.45 ERA (3 ER in 11.0 IP), 7 BBs, 16 Ks - Again, all in context. Kershaw had a bad start this week, only going 4.0 IP, while giving up three runs on four hits and SIX walks. He did rebound, however, and go seven scoreless innings against Atlanta, walking one, and striking out 10. I've explained this before, but just to remind you: Good start + Bad start = Room Temperature week.

HOT:

• James McDonald - 0-0 (3 games), 0.00 ERA (6.1 IP), 4 Ks - A nice week for McDonald, which is good because he hasn't had a lot of those this year. Also nice: He hasn't surrendered a run in his last 9.1 IP.

• Casey Blake - .375 (9-24), 3 2Bs, 1 HR, 6 RBIs, 3 BBs, 1 SB, 1.054 OPS - The real reason Prince Fielder charged the Dodger clubhouse? Casey Blake slapped him across the face with a white glove and challenged him to a knife fight. Fielder would get a knife. Blake would use his hands. This all happened because Blake felt Fielder gave him a weird look after Blake drew a 6th inning walk, and that is something that you do not do. Casey Blake is... the most interesting 3rd Baseman in the World.

That's how bad a week it was, only two people in the HOT column. This week is a big one for us. Three games in San Francisco against the Giants, who now find themselves 5.5 games back in the division. A series win would be a nice showing. A sweep? That would be a Casey Blake white glove slap to the face.

Who's ready for a knife fight?