Alright, last award, the big one: M. V. P.
Now, before I get into this, I want to preface it with something. I love stats. I really do. I like looking them up and examining them.
It used to be RBIs and Wins. Nowadays I'm working on learning newer ones that better explore and explain the game. I'm working on learning different kinds of Sabermetrics, figuring them out. I know I'm late to the game, but I'm getting there. I really like WAR.
All that being said, I'm going to work away from the stat books for this one.
And why not, it's all meaningless opinion anyway.
On a pretty mediocre 2010 Dodger team, there were still a few standouts. Kershaw, as well as Kuroda and Billingsley were a great three man pitching rotation. Hong-Chih Kuo had one of the best seasons for a reliever in recent memory. Rafael Furcal, when healthy, was an excellent addition on offense and defense.
All these men would be worthy picks for MVP of this team, but I really got to go with my gut (ugh) on this one.
So, the winner is...
Jamey Carroll.
Maybe you agree. Maybe you don't. (Carroll's WAR was 2.4 this year, 6th on the team in case you were wondering) But here's where I'm coming from.
When Carroll was signed this previous offseason, I was pretty blasé about it. Then, we added Ronnie Belliard, and I started wondering what the point of having both players on the roster would be. I wasn't really comfortable with the whole setup, and frankly, I was thinking: "We have Belliard, why do we need Carroll?"
Either way, the season began. In the first month, Carroll made sporadic appearances, coming in for defense, starting here and there at 2nd base or shortstop. Then Furcal got hurt.
Next thing you know, Carroll was starting everyday at shortstop. Then Furcal came back. And Carroll slipped back into the spot starter role. He made starts at shortstop, 2nd, and 3rd base this time. This utility role continued until early August, when Furcal was hurt again.
And Carroll stepped right back into the shortstop role. Then September rolls around. Furcal is back. Some kids are up. Carroll goes back into the utility/spot starter role.
I know I went on too long with that, but the point I'm making is, Carroll filled a lot of roles this year (including playing a little left field) and he never complained. He just did his job and he did it well. He filled in when he was needed, or he sat on the bench when he wasn't. And over this whole time, he still posted a .379 OBP, good for first on the team (minimum 300 plate appearances).
And look how David Eckstein trembles beneath him.
So, for being that guy, Jamey Carroll is your "J's Dodger Blog 2010 MVP"
Alright, I'm gonna jump into these awards with the Reliever of the Year. Historically (all of two years), I've started with Comeback Player of the Year.
This year though, not a whole lot to go on. If it means anything, Jay Gibbons. And he had all of 80 plate appearances this season, so, there you go.
...and provided Jeter-esque Gold Glove defense in left.
On the other hand, whatever the opposite of Comeback Player of the Year is, there were a handful of candidates for that.
Anyway, let's talk Reliever of the Year.
It's Hong-Chih Kuo.
Yeah, I'm not screwing around.
Well, I mean, I started this blog post with the intent of naming a bunch of candidates and their qualifications but, uh, looking at the stats and refreshing my memory of this season I realized what a miserable bullpen we had this year.
Kuo was pretty much the one bright spot. 60 innings of 1.20 ERA baseball.
So, for that, he wins the "J's Dodger Blog 2010 Reliever of the Year."
I don't know about you, but this week was kinda weird for me.
It felt like a pretty good week, right? And yet, I take look back at past seven games and see the Dodgers finished just a game over .500 (4-3).
Still, the Dodgers will head into the All-Star break 10 games over .500 and two games back of the Padres in the NL West, tied for the Wildcard lead with the Rockies, which ain't a bad place to be with half a season to go.
Today, We Spell Redemption: K-U-O.
A quick note before I jump into it this week, congrats to Rafael Furcal and Hong-Chih Kuo for making it into the All-Star game as reserves, replacing Jose Reyes and Jason Heyward, respectively. Doesn't really make up for the fact that Reyes shouldn't have ever made the team in the first place or that Heyward shouldn't have been voted in by the fans as a starter, but I'm done complaining about that. Better late than never. It's a nice thing for a couple of guys who've been through a lot.
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The retrospective this week is actually more a retrospective for the first half. I'm not going to go crazy in-depth into it, but I just wanted to touch on who I felt were the top 3 and bottom 3 MVPs of the first half.
First Half Anti-MVPs
3. Tie - Ramon Ortiz and Russ Ortiz
Oh yes, I haven't forgotten. I've covered my extreme dislike of the Ortizes several times on this blog, but I'll just remind you of some of their numbers. Russ Ortiz: 7.0 IP, 8 ER, and a sweet, sweet 2.143 WHIP. Ramon Ortiz stuck around for 30.0 IP over 16 games and posted a nice 6.30 ERA.
2. George Sherrill
He doesn't have the worst ERA of all the pitchers the Dodgers have used this year, but of all the pitchers, Sherrill has been, by far, the biggest disappointment. He has struggled to get outs all year and as such, has affected the entire bullpen.
I mean, could you imagine if Joe Torre had Sherrill in his bullpen pitching like he did last year. Imagine if he trusted Sherrill enough to use him when he's overworked Broxton. Then he could use Hong-Chih Kuo more sparingly. Wow. The idea having more than two go-to guys in the bullpen makes me doubly sad when I'm confronted with the reality of the situation.
1. Garret Anderson
Hey, maybe it was obvious, but how I can I not give it to him?
He finished his first half batting .179. And not just in 30 something at-bats. He went 24-134. That's twenty-four hits ... in one hundred and thirty four at-bats. He's also drawn three walks. I can't help but smile as I write this because that is so ludicrously absurd. It's insane. He can't hit and he has no patience. He can't play defense. He can't run. I just... I start talking about how bad Anderson is and I begin to ramble because there's so much ground to cover. My thoughts are rapid firing from one reason to the next as to why Anderson should have been released months ago. I'm want to express myself but I can't. I feel like I need to get a canvas and just start painting my feelings. Yes, Garret Anderson is so bad, he's inspiring me to create art.
To be honest though, I can't help but enjoy watching Anderson play. At this point, I almost don't know if I want him gone because I have to know how bad he can be. Mike at MSTI broke down Anderson's numbers to show that he's having one of the worst seasons in Dodger history. He might not have the worst season ever, but at this point, I kinda want to see how close he can get.
"Only three walks? That's hilarious! Manny had three walks in one game a week ago!"
First Half MVPs
3. Andre Ethier
Ethier is second on the team in batting average, leads the team in slugging, and is second in OPS, just four points behind Manny, but in almost 100 more at-bats. He's got 14 homers on the season, and, oh yeah, a starting job in the All-Star game. I have to wonder how good Ethier's season might be if he didn't break his finger when he was his hottest (.392, 1.201 OPS when he went down). I know expecting that kind of play over a full season is unrealistic, but when you are on a crazy hot streak, you got to ride it out.
2. Clayton Kershaw
Remember when Jon Heyman said Kershaw was regressing? Ha-ha-hah-ha-ha.
Kershaw in 18 starts: 112.1 IP, 2.96 ERA, 128 Ks. For record junkies, that translates to 9-4.
He polished off his first half with an excellent 8.0 innings against the Cubs on Thursday, striking out 12.
1. Rafael Furcal
Furcal leads the team in average, and more importantly, heart. That's right. I found a way to measure it. Still working on scrappy-ness, but that's for another day.
Seriously though. Furcal returned from family tragedy and started putting it all out on the field. Since June 23th, Furcal has been hitting .397, with a 1.109 OPS. He's hit six doubles, a triple, four homeruns, and has driven in 14 runs over the 17 game span. More importantly, though, for a leadoff hitter, he's scored 21 runs in those 17 games. Oh, and he's also stolen five bases.
All this is for a guy who was already hitting .305 coming in.
Furcal is playing out of his mind, and when he plays like that, the Dodgers play like a different team.
...and so, for all that, Furcal got named to the All-Star team.
...and for all that, he's my first half MVP.
Technically, this is supposed to be a week recap, but I really only want to talk about one game this week ... I think you know which one.
I don't know about you, but for me, there seems to be a time every year where I just want to throw out everybody. GM, coaches, players. Everyone. I want to get rid of them all and start over.Eventually I settle down and come to my senses ... but Jesus, has this past week in a half been a punch in the gut. Or really, several punches.
Pictured: Gut punch.
Today's loss was so brutal because it was a game the Dodgers needed. I mean, I guess there really isn't such thing as a must win game in June, but taking two of three from the World Champion Yankees would be a step in the right direction for a team that's reeling.
Instead, a four run lead is blown. Then the rest of the bullpen serves up the game to the Yankees on a silver platter. And here we are, five games back of the Padres.
And I'm pissed.
And so, while I'm not going to throw out the whole Dodger organization, we do need change. Just a handful of things I want:
Move 1a. Ramon Troncoso to DL with anything. I don't care what it is, something is wrong with Troncoso and he needs to be on the DL. Honestly, it's probably a combination of overuse and Troncoso not really being as good as we once thought, but he has been horrible since April when he was used in 15 of the first 22 games of the season. Whatever the reason, since the beginning of May (and not including today because Baseball Reference hasn't been updated yet), Troncoso has a 6.86 ERA in 20 games. Opposing batters have hit .300 off him in that span and for a .889 OPS.
Move 1b: So, again, Troncoso to the DL. Bring up Travis Schlichting.
Move 2a. DFA George Sherrill. He's done. Everyone has figured him out. I mean, come on, he's giving up homeruns to lefties. If he's supposed to be able to get anyone out, it's supposed to be a left handed hitter.
Pictured: Not. Doing. Your. JOB.
Move 2b: Bring up Jon Link or wait for Carlos Monasterios to come off the DL. I realize this leaves just one lefty in the bullpen, Hong-Chih Kuo. Now, if you feel that he's too valuable to just be a left handed specialist, and you absolutely need one, then replace Sherrill with Juan Perez. Who?! Yeah, I don't know either. But scanning the Albuquerque roster, he's got a 3.19 ERA and 32 Ks in 31 innings, so he's not horrible. Admittedly, his stats against lefties aren't fantastic, but we're working with a coaching staff who insists on the lefty/lefty matchup rather than going with the most effective reliever at the time, so as long as he throws with his left arm, he should do the job for Torre and co.
Pictured: Lefty/Lefty matchup working out the right way.
Move 3a: DFA Garret Anderson. He still can't hit. After a good week, he reverted back to his old self with a 1-9 week.
Move 3b: Xavier Paul.
Move 4: Use Jonathan Broxton only when he is needed. (Broxton, by the way, isn't absolved of all blame for this recent incident, even with the overuse coming in.) Here's the thing, and maybe I just don't understand because I've never been a major league reliever, but does Broxton absolutely need to get his work in? If he doesn't pitch for four games, can't he throw a light bullpen session to keep the rust off? I mean, again, maybe I don't get it, but I just don't feel like Broxton is going to forget how to throw a fastball if he doesn't do it for a handful of days.
These are just a few things that could be changed immediately and improve the team. Some of this is with the front office, some of this is with the coaching staff.
Speaking of, I'm on the fence with Joe Torre. He obviously misuses the pitching staff, and he has such an unreasonable trust of aging veterans that it becomes increasingly more difficult to defend his choices.
On the other hand, he has led the Dodgers to two straight NLCS, which is impressive considering our playoff highlight reel before Joe Torre featured only Jose Lima and then JD Drew and Jeff Kent getting thrown out at home on the same play.
On the third hand, you have to wonder how much of our recent success is his influence, and how much is just the ability of the players. How many fewer (or more?) games would the Dodgers have won if the players just coached themselves? Torre might be gone when his contract is up at the end of the year, and at this point, I don't know if I'll miss him.
Anyway, I'm probably rambling. I'm tired, it's late, and I'm frustrated. Sometimes, it's just hard to be a fan.
Award season continues at J's Dodger Blog, as we move on to Reliever of the Year. There are four big candidates for this prestigious award.
And the nominees are:
George Sherrill
-Ok, granted, Sherrill only pitched in 27.2 innings for the Dodgers. But what a fantastic 27.2 innings those were. A 0.65 ERA! That's two runs. Two runs spread out over thirty games, while holding opponents to a .192 BAA. He also picked up 11 Holds over that span, putting him fourth on the team behind only Hong-Chih Kuo, Troncoso, and Belisario.
Jonathan Broxton
-The big man in his first full season as the Dodgers' closer wasn't bad. He picked up 36 saves over the course of the season, but more impressive are some of his other numbers. Just look at this stuff: 2.61 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and a .165 BAA. Plus: 114 strikeouts in 76.0 innings. Broxton's 114 strikeouts was good for fourth place on the entire team, and he did it in less than half the innings the starters did it in. That's just impressive.
Ramon Troncoso
-Where'd this guy come from?! He debuted in 2008 and posted a 4.26 ERA over 38 innings. It was unimpressive to say the least. Then, suddenly, this year, Troncoso appears in 73 games, pitching 82.2 innings, and posting a 2.72 ERA over that span. That, my friends, is a nice turn around.
Ronald Belisario
-Remember when I asked where Troncoso came from? Remember how I pointed out that he seemingly appeared from nowhere, the depths of mediocrity to become one of our best relievers this season? (I just wrote those things, you better have not forgotten by now.) Anyway, Ronald Belisario looks at Troncoso's surprising rise, and scoffs. MSTI wrote a pretty good piece summarizing the main question people had coming into the season: who the hell is Ronald Belisario?! He's had a sketchy baseball past to say the least, and his career stats weren't promising, so, it really is quite odd that Belisario posted a 2.04 ERA in 69 games for us this season. I mean, come on, those are some pretty great stats for a guy who almost literally came from nowhere.
...and the winner is...
Jonathan Broxton.
Sherrill was good, but didn't make enough impact over the full season. Belisario and Troncoso were both surprisingly excellent, but both suffered from fatigue late in the season, and saw their stats start to slide.
That's not to say Broxton didn't have his own struggles as well, but darn if I can't ignore how good his numbers are. 114 strikeouts?! A 0.96 WHIP?! Those numbers ain't right!
Unfortunately for Broxton, most people choose to ignore how great he was this year and focus on the blown saves. And yes, a closer's job is to get saves, but I think Broxton suffers for people's selective memories.
I mean, Broxton did pick up two big saves this postseason, but in the end, all people will remember is the one blown one.
Ultimately, that is part of being a closer. You are the easiest person to blame because your failures are so memorable and take place with you positioned on center stage.
That's why, I propose this to all Dodger fans, or baseball fans in general. Don't make any decisions on the team after a blown save. Those blown saves are the hardest to take, and you are often so emotionally charged after the game that your opinions and views are skewed. Take a couple of deep breaths, wait a couple days, then revisit it.
...that's why I'm rewarding Broxton with this award. Because if you step back from the emotion of the blown save and just look at Broxton's numbers, you realize how very good he was this year.
So, for all that, Jonathan Broxton is the "J's Dodger Blog 2009 Reliever of the Year."
The Dodgers acquired George Sherrill earlier today from the Baltimore Orioles for prospects Josh Bell and Steve Johnson. Let's look at the trade.
Things started off interestingly enough. Rather, infuriatingly enough. Original reports said the trade sent Bell and Scott Elbert to the Orioles for Sherrill, which would have been... terrible. Frankly, a trade of Scott Elbert straight up for Sherrill would have been terrible.
But then reports updated to state that the Orioles would be acquiring Bell and Johnson for Sherrill, which led me to breathe a sigh of relief.
Don't get me wrong. I liked Josh Bell. He was turning out to be a pretty solid prospect, but I don't know for sure if I was sold on him. I guess we'll see in a few years how that turns out.
I hadn't heard much on Johnson. He's had his ups and downs in recent years, but recently did put up some nice numbers in AA Chattanooga. I think he was fairly low on even the Dodgers Pitching Prospects chart and I'm not sure if he ever had a place in his future with the big club.
As for Sherrill, I do like the pickup, especially if Hong-Chih Kuo is back and healthy, which so far, so good (1.2 IP in 2 games, 1 K). Sherrill has been excellent against lefties. That means if a situation comes up in the 6th or 7th and Torre feels he needs to use a lefty to get out of it, he now has two excellent options out of the pen. And he still has another bullet in the chamber for later in the game, should the need arise. Plus, Sherrill has been a closer in Baltimore, and should be able to step into that role for Jonathan Broxton should Broxton need some rest.
I guess what I'm saying is that I really like Sherrill's versatility. I think there's a number of situations he can be used in, and he should provide quality relief in those various situations.
Overall, I'm a little sad to see Bell go, but I'm still happy with the trade.
Let's talk about a couple things.
First of all, in not very good news, Hong-Chih Kuo has arm issues. That's putting it lightly. That same arm that's had four, count 'em four, surgeries on it, is not feeling good. Kuo's on the DL now and they say he's just going to take a week off from throwing and then assess the situation. That's better news than hearing he's going to need his third Tommy John surgery, but it also doesn't necessarily mean he won't. I suppose we're in a wait and see period, but I'm just not holding a lot of high hopes that we are going to see something pretty.
Secondly, why the hell do we have an instant replay system if things like what went down in the bottom of the 7th inning of last night's game are allowed to happen.
If you missed it, Casey Blake laid down an excellent bunt down the third base line with the intent on legging it out for a single. Kevin Kouzmanoff charged, barehanded it, and made a nice throw to first to make it a close play, but it was fairly apparent Blake was safe. 1st base ump Jeff Kellogg disagreed though, and called him out.
Still, I guess we won the game, so maybe I shouldn't complain. All's well that ends well I suppose...
Wow. Ok, so that was a pretty bad call, but I guess in the scheme of things...
Oh Sweet Jesus! How do you botch a call that badly?!
Look, I understand baseball is a subjective sport when it comes to umpires. Balls, strikes, check swings (which by the way, I learned today there is no rule in the rule book on, it's entirely the umpire's choice as to whether or not it's a swing), these are all the umpire's calls. I don't want to take that away from them.
But a bang-bang play at first like last night is not subjective in the least. Either the throw beat him, or it didn't. In this case, it REALLY didn't.
So if we are going to have instant replay, we should at least give the managers a challenge flag or two like in football, or have someone in the booth watching the game who can make a call down to the field and tell somebody that the man was safe.
I mean, for God's sake, the man was safe! Dammit! Listen to me! He was safe! Soylent Green is people! You maniacs! You blew it up! The man was safe!
I wish Charlton Heston was still alive. The man knew how to yell a shocking truth like no other. But I digress...
And finally, in some almost sad news. Tanyon Sturtze was released. Look, I do feel bad for the guy. He's just chasing a dream, trying to make it as a pitcher in the big leagues again, working his way up from the minors. It's a nice thought, and I wish him well.
That said, I am soooo glad he's gone. I know he's not causing us too much trouble in AAA, but as long as he was there, and Joe Torre was here, managing, there was always a lingering possibility of hearing the news that Sturtze was called up to be in the pen.
But he's gone now. That threat is gone, too.
And the (Dodger) world is a safer place...
Hey everybody. I'm back from Vegas and turns out, nothing great happened while I was gone, which is really kinda odd. I had a pretty good streak going last year where every time I left the city, something good happened for the Dodgers. This time... eh...
Anyway, let's take a look at the week.
It started pretty badly. The pitching fell apart and the Astros took the first two games of the series, handing the Dodgers their first series loss of the year.
The Dodgers came back, however, and won the next three games. That winning streak was snapped on Sunday, though, when the Rockies were mean to Dodger pitching, and beat us to avoid their 2nd sweep in just over a week.
The Dodgers went 3-3 on the road trip for the week.
And with that, let's do Round 3 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE.
COLD:- Hong-Chih Kuo - 1-0 (1 game), 1 blown save, 18.00 ERA (2 earned runs in 1.0 innings) - What is going on with Kuo? Or with Torre's usage of him for that matter? Kuo made one appearance this week, which is weird because there was more than a few occasions where he could have been used. And what did Kuo do in his one appearance? He gave up a two-run game tying homerun to Clint Barmes. And then he hit a batter. Uh-oh.
- Clayton Kershaw - 0-2 (2 games), 15.00 ERA (15 earned runs in 9.0 innings), 6 walks, 7 Ks, 3 homeruns, .432 Batting Average Against - Oh Clayton, what's happened to you? After the best performance of your young career, you follow it up with your worst performance. And then you follow that performance, with an even worse performance (though admittedly, three runs were allowed once he was out of the game in the 10-4 loss to Colorado, April 26th). His ERA jumped from 1.50 to 7.29 this week. Plain and simple: he got lit up. I mean, I know it's a lot of pressure to put on a 21-year old in his first full season in the majors, but we need him this year. He's our number three starter. No more of these kinds of starts, please.
ROOM TEMPERATURE:
- Matt Kemp - .182 (4-22), 1 3B, 3 walks, 1 SB, 7 Ks - I was debating with myself whether or not to drop Kemp to "COLD" or not. It's been a pretty bad week for Kemp following a pretty great week. I'll say he's "ROOM TEMPERATURE" just due to the residual heat from last week. His hitting streak got to 14 games this week before being snapped, and then he fell into an almost immediate slump, highlighted with an 0-5 night with three Ks and seven runners left-on-base (a 6-5 win, April 24th in Colorado). Kemp cooled off quick, so maybe there's hope he'll heat up quick as well? Who knows...
- Orlando Hudson - .280 (7-25), 2 2Bs, 4 walks, 2 Ks - Hudson, like Kemp, has cooled down. Now, mind you, .280 ain't bad. It ain't great, but it ain't bad. It's "ROOM TEMPERATURE." Ahhhh, see what I did there? Anyway, point is, Hudson's not raking like he was last week.
HOT:
- James Loney - .375 (9-24), 5 2Bs, 4 walks, 5 RBIs - The resurrection of James Loney! Ok, too dramatic, but Loney's had a nice week. Still waiting on a homerun, a little power would be nice, but if he can keep driving in the runs, I can live with a little lack of power.
- Manny Ramírez - .333 (7-21), 2 HRs, 6 RBIs, 7 Ks - Even with his nasty 0-5 day with 3 Ks (a 6-5 win, April 25th in Colorado), Manny's continued to hit and drive in runs this week, even though he is striking out at a high rate.
- Ramon Troncoso - 0-0, 1 save (2 games), 0.00 ERA (0 runs in 5.2 innings), .052 BAA - What? Troncoso? Yeah Troncoso! Ramon Troncoso has been on this week. Not just on, he's been clutch. He came in in the bottom of the 6th inning in the April 21st game (an 8-5 loss in Houston) with the bases loaded and one out. Not only did he get out of that inning unscathed, he pitched another clean inning in relief. And how did he follow up that performance? He went 4.0 scoreless innings in relief in the 6-5 win on April 25th in Colorado. That's right, he had a one run margin to protect in Coors Field for almost half a game and he dominated the Rockies. He's been a real nice surprise out of the bullpen so far this year.
- Chad Billingsley - 1-0, 0.00 ERA (0 runs in 7.1 innings), 5 Ks - Yeah, Billingsley only had one start this week, but boy was it a good one. He put an end to the two-game losing streak we were on by completely stopping the Astros offense, who had given us trouble the previous two games. And by doing that, he picked up the win and brought his record to 4-0 (a tie for the major league high).
- Jonathan Broxton - 0-0, 2 saves (2 games), 0.00 ERA (2.2 innings), 4 Ks - Ok, so Broxton hasn't had the most amazing week ever. He's been good, but I have to acknowledge how great he's been this year. 1-0, 6-6 in save opportunities, 0.96 ERA, 15 Ks in 9.1 innings. On top of that all, he's picked up a couple of 1.0+ inning saves. He's been very good this year, even better than expected.
Alrighty then. That's actually a lot of "HOT" players for a team that went .500 during the week. Let's hope for a few more wins out of those "HOT" players this week.
I like doing this on Monday, I think I'll stick with it.
Let's see if I make it for next week.
Anyone else listen to the Jr. Dodgers broadcast during the game today? It made me jealous, but I was enjoying it.
In case you didn't, what happened was the Dodgers gave two young fans, who I believe joined some Dodger youth club or something, the chance to call a game from a press booth that would be streamed online on Dodgers.com.
I was listening and I was kinda into it. It was cool.
Well, check that. I was really into it, that is, until the 8th inning when Matt Kemp hit his second homerun and the call was something to the effect: "Deep to centerfield, Mama's calling for dinner, but this one is not coming home."
That was the most cringe-inducing thing I've ever heard watching a game. And I watch a team that has Charley Steiner, Rick Monday, and Steve Lyons employed as announcers.
I believe the Dodgers are going to be doing this every Sunday home game. If you check out Dodgers.com/jrdodgers, I think it'll be archived there soon.
Anyway, let's get to the week that was with the Dodgers.
Last time I recapped a week, the Dodgers were in the midst of a three game winning streak. They've since turned that streak into an eight game winning streak.They completed their sweep of the Giants with a comeback win on Wednesday, and a beat down on Thursday.
The Rockies came into town for the weekend series and following a second comeback win on Friday, the Dodgers flexed their offensive muscles on Saturday and Sunday, and swept the Rockies.
They went 6-0 on the homestand and now leave for a nine-game road trip, starting with a three game series in Houston on Tuesday.
And now, I present to you: Round 2 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE.COLD:- Hong-Chih Kuo - 0-0 (2 games), 54.00 ERA (2 earned runs in 0.1 innings), 2 hits, 2 walks, 1 hit batter - Kuo only made two appearances this week, but didn't fare well in either. He came in in the 8th inning of the April 15th San Francisco game (a 5-4 win) and hit a batter and gave up a single before being pulled. The two runners later scored. Then he came in in the 8th again, this time during the April 17th game against the Rockies (a 4-3 win). He gave up a double before recording a ground out, and then walked the next two batters before being pulled for Jonathan Broxton. If our bullpen is going to be a success this season, Kuo's got to be a big part of it. Appearances like those he had this week are no good.
- Cory Wade - N.A. - Cory Wade didn't actually appear in any games this week. He went on the DL instead. I don't suppose this is really an instance of "COLD," but I'm putting it here as basically a way of saying: "This is troublesome." This is the third time Wade's had shoulder issues in the last year. His shoulder flared up in Spring Training, but that was apparently settled in time for the season to begin. This week, however, he ended up back on the DL for shoulder bursitis, which isn't as horrifying as it sounds. Still, like Kuo, Wade's an important part of this bullpen. If both he and Kuo have easily hurt-able arms, and we can't pitch them that often, we are really going to have to start looking to other places for help.
ROOM TEMPERATURE: - Russell Martin - .333 (4-12), 1 2B, 5 walks - Martin has picked it up a little bit in this last week. No RBIs is kinda a bummer, but he's doing a better job of getting on base, so things are starting to look up for him. I would like to see a little more power, though.
- James Loney - .176 (3-17), 4 RBIs, 4 walks - After I dubbed James Loney to be "HOT" last week, he responded by going 3-17 in his next five games. I almost would have to bump him down to "COLD" if not for the fact that Loney found a way to get more RBIs this week than hits. This included drawing two bases-loaded walks, one coming at the end of the game to win it for the Dodgers (April 15th).
- Casey Blake - .363 (4-11), 1 HR, 3 RBIs - Blake has done a better job this week of getting some hits. He's still not lighting the world on fire, but he, like Martin, could be rounding a corner. Also, he, like Loney, is doing a good job of collecting RBIs for the amount of hits he is getting.
HOT: - Orlando Hudson - .474 (9-19), 5 walks, 5 runs, 3 RBIs - Hudson was hot last week, and he's staying hot. I'm really liking this late off-season pickup so far, even if he did cost us a #16 pick in the Draft this year.
- Manny Ramírez - .350 (7-20), 2 HRs, 3 RBIs, 3 walks - Manny continued getting on base like he did last week, but added some power. Two homeruns in Saturday's game (a 9-5 win over Colorado) were a much needed power boost.
- Andre Ethier - .368 (7-19), 2 HRs, 2 2Bs, 8 RBIs - Ethier has had an excellent week. Another two homerun game on Saturday (which he collected four RBIs in) and a three RBI game Sunday. In fact, Ethier has been so good, he's moved into a first place tie atop the entire league with 16 RBIs this season. And that would probably be good enough for the best week on the Dodgers if not for:
- Matt Kemp - .421 (8-19), 2 HRs, 1 3B, 3 2Bs, 3 walks, 3 SBs - What a great week for Matt Kemp. He's getting walks, he's stealing bases, he's collecting extra base hits, he's driving in runs. He's doing it all. And he's extended his hitting streak to 13 games. And his 14 RBIs have him tied for third in the entire league (though admittedly with a handful of people). In any case, Kemp is on fire, and that's a good sign for the Dodgers.
Ok, there's Week 2 in a nutshell. I'm heading off to Vegas for the week, so probably no updates, though I will be back for Week 3 in a nutshell. I think I've also decided to do recaps on Monday for the previous week. Again, still figuring this out. Bear with me.
Anyway, see you all then.
Player: Cory Wade
2008 Stats: 2-1, 2.27 ERA (55 games)
2008 Analysis: Those would be great stats for a veteran reliever, which makes it more amazing that Cory Wade debuted in April jumping straight up from Double A.
And he was just plain good. He kept his ERA below 3.00 for most of the season, and only gave up more than two runs in an appearance once during the year. He was versatile, too. Sometimes, he came in to close out innings, sometime, he came in to pitched a solid 7th, and sometimes he could be used for a couple innings in a longer relief role.
Oh, and he won the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Rookie of the Year" award.
2009 Outlook: Cory Wade should be a solid part of the Dodger bullpen in 2009. He could again be the 7th inning guy, and should Hong-Chih Kuo go down to injury (not that I'd want that, but would you be surprised?), he would do well filling in as the set-up man in the 8th.
Player: Hong-Chih Kuo
2008 Stats: 5-3, 2.14 ERA, 96 Ks (42 games, three starts)
2008 Analysis: I think Dodger fans always knew that Hong-Chih Kuo would be something special if he could stay healthy. He proved us right in 2008 (although he was injured by the end of the season).
His ERA was only about 3.00 for a few games early in the season, but for most of the season, he was in the 2.00 ERA range and even had a good two and a half months where he was under 2.00. His WHIP was 1.01, and he racked up 16 more strikeouts than innings pitched. It was a pretty good year.
Plus, he won the "TYIB Setup Man" award, and more importantly, the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Reliever of the Year" award.
2009 Outlook: Well, if Hong-Chih Kuo can remain healthy, he'll be excellent in our bullpen in 2009, as either lefty reliever, setup man, long reliever, or even closer. The key words there being "if Hong-Chih Kuo can remain healthy."
The nominees for the 2008 Dodger Cy Young Award are:
Derek Lowe
-After a mediocre start (an above 4.00 ERA for most of June), Derek Lowe really kicked it into high gear. In his last 10 starts, he went 6-1 with a complete game and a 1.27 ERA. He finished the season 14-11 with a 3.24 ERA in 34 starts.
Chad Billingsley
-Excellent throughout the year, Billingsley really blossomed into the player Dodger fans have been hoping to see. He went 16-10 with a 3.14 and 201 strikeouts and he collected the first complete game shutout of his career. His ERA was good for 7th in the league, his 16 wins tied him for 7th, and 201 strikeouts placed him 5th.
Hong-Chih Kuo
-Well, on top of all the good stuff I've mentioned he's done this season in the previous awards I've given out, he's also the winner of the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Reliever of the Year."
...and the 2008 Dodger Cy Young winner is...
Chad Billingsley
Hong-Chih Kuo was good, but nowhere near as good as the two starters on the list. Yes, this was mostly a two-horse race.
And while Derek Lowe might actually be a better candidate for MVP considering how well he pitched down the stretch, if you consider the Cy Young Award to be the award given to the best pitcher, then Chad Billingsley definitely wins, as he bested Lowe in both wins, ERA, and strikeouts.
So, for his statistical dominance of the pitching staff, Chad Billingsley wins the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Cy Young Award."
There are six players up for Reliever of the Year:
Chan Ho Park
-4-4, two saves, 3.40 ERA in 54 games (95.1 innings).
Joe Beimel
-5-1, 2.02 ERA in 71 games (49 innings).
Hong-Chih Kuo
-5-3, one save, 2.14 ERA in 40 games (80 innings).
Cory Wade
-2-1, 2.27 ERA in 55 games (71.1 innings).
Jonathan Broxton
-3-5, 14 saves, 3.13 ERA in 70 games (69 innings).
Takashi Saito
-4-4, 18 saves, 2.49 ERA in 45 games (47 innings).
...and the Reliever of the Year is...
Hong-Chih Kuo
It came down to three players for me. Joe Beimel, even though he had a very impressive ERA, had some issues with letting inherited runners score. Cory Wade was a close second, but Hong-Chih Kuo had a better ERA in more innings.
On top of that all, Kuo was 5th on the team for strikeouts, trailing only four Dodgers starters, who of course, had more innings under their belts.
So, congratulations to Hong-Chih Kuo for winning the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Reliever of the Year."
Now that all the awards have been given out in baseball, it's time for me to give out my rewards, so we'll take a quick break from Player Profiles to hand out some rewards. First up: Comeback Player of the Year.
Just three nominees for the Comeback Player of the year:
Ángel Berroa
-After playing only nine games in the majors in 2007 and being sent to the Kansas City Royals' AAA team, Berroa was picked up by the Dodgers midseason. He then proceeded to start 64 games at shortstop for the Dodgers. He hit his first homerun in two years and played solid defense down the stretch.
Chan Ho Park
-Playing on three different teams after leaving the Dodgers before the 2002 season (including playing only one game in the majors in 2007), and not having an ERA below 4.80 over that time, Chan Ho returned to the team that first signed him. He made 54 appearances in 2008 (including five spot starts) and went 4-4 with a 3.40 ERA.
Hong-Chih Kuo-Kuo made it into only eight games in 2007, posting a 7.42 ERA while struggling with injuries throughout the year. Always an injury threat, Kuo made it through most of the 2008 season, appearing in 42 games (including three spot starts) and went 5-3 with a 2.14 ERA.
...And the Comeback Player of the Year is...
Chan Ho Park.
Ángel Berroa was a solid enough replacement at short stop, but not incredibly impressive. Many always knew Hong-Chih Kuo was a good pitcher but just needed to stay healthy, and when he did that, he proved how good he could be. His comeback was not nearly as good as say...
Chan Ho Park, on the other hand, had a great year for someone who's career was looking in question coming into the season. Despite his dropoff near the end of the season, Chan Ho still had his lowest ERA since 2000. In fact, if not for a handful of bad games near the end of the season, Chan Ho had an ERA below 3.00 for most of the season. He played three different roles out of the bullpen (spot starter, short reliever, long reliever) and did it all well.
So with that, Chan Ho Park is the "J's Dodger Blog 2008 Comeback Player of the Year."
The Phillies come back to beat the Dodgers in the first game of this seven-game series.
Cole Hamels got the win, he's 1-0 in the NLCS. Derek Lowe took the loss, he's 0-1 in the NLCS. Brad Lidge picked up his 1st save in the NLCS.
Derek Lowe made two mistakes in the game. Two bad pitches that equaled three runs. He went 5.1 innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on six hits and a walk. Chan Ho Park got the final two outs in the inning. Greg Maddux and Hong-Chih Kuo each added a scoreless inning in relief.
The Dodgers weren't able to mount much offense against Phillies pitching. They scratched across two runs in the first four innings, but were shut down the rest of the way. Andre Ethier went 2-4 with a double and a run scored. 
Manny Ramírez went 2-4 with a double and an RBI. Other than that, there were a few other assorted hits and walks, but not much to speak of.
With the loss, the Dodgers fall to 0-1 in the series. They'll play game two tomorrow starting at 1:35 L.A. time.
Opinion: This was a tough loss, but foreseeable. Giving up the lead was tough, but if you had to look at the schedule for this series and pick a game that we would probably lose, this would be it. We've seen Cole Hamels three times (twice during the season, and now once in the playoffs). All three times, he's gone seven innings and given up just two runs. We definitely are going to need more than that to be the Phillies. Luckily, Hamels is easily the best starter for the Phillies. We should do better. Hopefully... One thing I did like though, is that in the 9th inning, against Brad Lidge, even though he retired the side, the Dodgers did hit the ball pretty hard. Even though Lidge was perfect in save opportunites during the season, that doesn't mean he can't be beat. We have to remember that, in case we end up in a situation like tonight again.
The Dodgers failed to complete the sweep of the Rockies and see their winning streak snapped at four.
Manny Corpas got the win, he's 3-3. Hong-Chih Kuo took the loss, he's 5-3.
Greg Maddux had his best start as a Dodger this season. He went seven innings and surrendered no runs on only two hits while striking out three. And he did this all on 68 pitches. Cory Wade pitched two perfect, scoreless innings in relief. Hong-Chih Kuo came in and gave up the winning run. He got only one out while giving up a run on four hits.
The Dodger offense, meanwhile, struggled to score any runs against Rockies' pitching. They collected eight hits and a walk, but grounded into two double plays and had a run get caught stealing. The best offensive player for the second day in a row was Ángel Berroa, who went 2-4. Six other Dodgers collected one hit each, and Nomar Garciaparra collected the only walk. The Dodgers also failed to collect any extra-base hits or advance a runner past 2nd base.
As of this writing, the Arizona Diamondbacks are trailing 1-0 to the Cincinnati Reds after four innings. With the loss, the Dodgers' lead in the NL West is reduced to four games. The Dodgers will now travel to Pittsburgh to face the Pirates for a four game series starting Monday at 4:05 L.A. time.
Also: With the loss, the Dodgers fall back to five games over .500 (76-71).
Opinion: A pretty ugly offensive game for the Dodgers. I think it really shows how important a hot Andre Ethier is to our lineup. The offense looked like they were fighting an uphill battle all day. Stranded runners, rally-killing double plays. We were falling right into Aaron Cook's (starting pitcher for the Rockies) trap. He's a sinkerball pitcher, and go the Dodgers to roll-over into 17 groundball outs through eight innings. In any case, we still won the series, and as long as we keep doing that, we'll glide right into the playoffs.
EDIT: The Cincinnati Reds beat the Arizona Diamondbacks in extra innings for the second day in a row. Arizona remains 4.5 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West race, but the Dodger Magic Number is now 10.
The Dodgers complete the three game sweep of the Diamondbacks for their eighth win in a row.
Hong-Chih Kuo got the win, he's 5-2. Jon Rauch took the loss, he's 4-6. Jonathan Broxton picked up his 13th save.
Clayton Kershaw didn't have a good start. He made it only four innings, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out four. He gave up two solo homeruns in the game. The bullpen then combined to pitch the next five innings. Though they were shaky (four hits and three walks), they managed to keep the Diamondbacks from scoring any extra runs. Jonathan Broxton struck out three in the final 1.2 innings to close the door and get the save (due in part to help from Nomar Garciaparra, who made a great diving catch to end the game).
Offensively, the Dodgers had a pretty good game. James Loney went 1-3 with a sac-fly and three RBIs on the day. Manny Ramírez went 2-3 with a double, a walk, and a run scored. Andre Ethier went 2-3 with a walk, an RBI, and two runs scored. Nomar Garciaparra came in in a double switch late in the game and had a tie-breaking sac-fly in the 7th inning.
With the win, the Dodgers increase their lead in the NL West to 1.5 games. The Dodgers will now travel to San Diego to begin a three game series there, tomorrow at 7:05 L.A. time.
Also: With the win, the Dodgers move to three games over .500 (73-70)... James Loney's three RBIs give him a team leading 79 on the year.
Opinion: It's good to not rest on your laurels. We could have come out today and given the Diamondbacks back a game, leaving the weekend in 2nd place again. And at one point, it looked like it was going to happen (six consectutive Dodgers struck out in the 4th and 5th innings while the Diamondbacks held on to a 3-2 lead). But the Dodgers came back, and firmly established themselves as the first place team in the NL West. Now, we have to keep it up. This was a great week, and now we're going into San Diego now, which always seems to be a tough place for us to win. We won't face Jake Peavy or Chris Young, however, and we've got some momentum. We've got a 1.5 game lead now in the NL West. We are in first place. I say we keep going and never look back. This is the final push to the playoffs... Let's do it.
The Dodgers beat the Padres to take the first game of the three game series and extend their winning streak to three games.
Greg Maddux got the win, he's 7-11. Chris Young took the loss, he's 4-5. Jonathan Broxton picked up his 11th save.
Greg Maddux had a good start, though he didn't go too deep into the game. He went 5 and 2/3 innings, giving up two runs on six hits while striking out four. Hong-Chih Kuo pitched two scoreless innings in relief, striking out three. Jonathan Broxton gave up a hit in the 9th, but struck out two batters to close out the game.
The Dodgers didn't score too many runs, but they were able to plate five. Five different Dodgers had an RBI each (four different Dodgers scored a run). Andre Ethier went 1-2 with two walks, a stolen base, and a run scored. Manny Ramírez went 1-2 with a walk, a sac-fly, and an RBI. James Loney went 2-4 with an RBI. Casey Blake also went 2-4, with a homerun, a stolen base, an RBI, and two runs scored.
The Arizona Diamondbacks came back to beat the St. Louis Cardinals, so with the win, the Dodgers keep pace. They'll remain 2.5 games back in the NL West race. The Dodgers will try to carry on their winning streak tomorrow at 7:10 L.A. time.
Also: The win today brings the Dodgers back to two games under .500 (68-70)... Greg Maddux's win today gives him 354 wins for his career. That ties him with Roger Clemens for eighth place on the all-time wins list... James Loney's RBI today brings his team-leading total to 74 on the year... Loney's two hits today extended his hitting streak to 12 games.
Opinion: Good job today in keeping that momentum from the last two games of the Arizona series. So often do I feel like we have momentum going into a series only to have the series blow up in our face (see Colorado series two weeks ago). I don't want to put too much stock into the game. The Padres are an awful team. They don't have much hitting, and beyond Jake Peavy, they don't have much pitching. Still, a win is a win, and we face the Padres eight more times before the end of the year. Things will be a lot easier for us if we can handle them.
And look how David Eckstein trembles beneath him.
