Dodgers Retrospective - Week 24

So, apparently, A.J. Ellis, somehow, became an amazing hitter...

Yeah, I didn't see it coming either. Coming into Sunday, he was six for his last seven with a couple doubles and a walk.

That's why Joe Torre used him to pinch hit in the 11th inning of today's game with the bases loaded. And Ellis came through with his second walk-off hit of the season.

A nice way to salvage a week that was pretty bad. Even with the comeback win, the Dodgers still lost both series this week, and went 2-4 overall.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter, unless you're trying to figure out where the Dodgers will pick in next year's draft. (With the win today, they'd pick 11th, in case you were wondering...)

Anyway, there's not a whole lot else worth talking about this week, as far as on the field play goes.

Off the field, though...


Under New Management

So, obviously, the big news this week came when Joe Torre announced his retirement (from the Dodgers, at least) and named Don Mattingly his successor.

As I said on Twitter at the time, I'm wasn't surprised. Just disappointed.

Not that I don't think Mattingly could be a good major league manager. In all honesty, I have no idea. People are worried that because he learned under Joe Torre, he'll make many of the same mistakes as Joe. And while I'm sure he will make mistakes, I'm at least willing to give him a shot before I dismiss him.

The biggest issue I have is the lack of exploring other alternatives. They didn't interview any other candidates for the job, not Tim Wallach (who admittedly might not be a better manager, again, I have no idea), nor anyone else. They just handed the job straight to Mattingly. I guess, ultimately, going in another direction wasn't really an option as Dylan Hernandez reported that Mattingly signed a deal this offseason guaranteeing him the manager's job if Torre stepped down. It seems like a pretty low reward/high risk deal. Worst case: the Dodgers get stuck with a guy who can't manage a major league team or control a clubhouse. Best case: the Dodgers secure a guy who has never managed a team. I mean, what's the worst that could happen? Mattingly gets a better job offer from another team, and then what? We end up with Tim Wallach coaching? Just ... odd decisions coming from the front office.

Including those of the facial hair variety ... your soul patch is off center! Dammit!

Anyway, the key for me is who Mattingly gets to fill his staff. I get the feeling that if he keeps Bob Schaefer and Larry Bowa around, it's going to be a lot of the same old.

If he brings in some new guys, some people that take a different approach with the players and team, I have hope that he can learn and be a different kind of manager.

I guess we'll see, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit worried.


Smart Trades

I know I've been saying for a while we should've sold, so you'd think I'd be happy to see Octavio Dotel shipped off to the Rockies for a Player To Be Named Later. And, believe me, I am.

But I can't move past how horrid the original trade to bring Dotel here was in the first place.

If you want to do the math, the first trade was James McDonald and Andrew Lambo for Octavio Dotel. Dotel pitched 18.2 innings for the Dodgers (3.38 ERA) and then was swapped for cash and a PTBNL.

So, the final trade looks something like this: McDonald + Lambo = 18.2 IP of Dotel + PTBNL ... which looks absolutely terrible as it stands, until you realize that on the day Dotel was sent to the Rockies, McDonald had his streak of 20 straight scoreless innings finally snapped. Just solid work from the front office.

Totally worth it!

Yeah. If that trade was not the worst of Colletti's career, it has got to be top three, right? (Santana for Blake? Bell for Sherrill? At least both Blake and Sherrill contributed at some point to a playoff race. Dotel did nothing but cost us young players and money to pitch mediocre in a handful of meaningless games.)


Another Take On Manny

Just one last thing, apropos of nothing really.

I was listening to a podcast with comedian/character actor Larry Miller and he started talking about Manny Ramirez and baseball in general.

The whole episode is about 35 minutes and it's all about baseball memories if you have the time to listen to the whole thing, but if you want to jump to the Manny part, it's about 30 minutes in. If you have a little more time, I'd recommend starting at 24 minutes. Larry tells a pretty cool story that kind of leads into the Manny discussion.

Essentially, Larry says that despite the fact it got a little ugly at the end, Manny did something pretty great for this city in 2008.

And he's right. I will always be appreciative of Manny for what he did in those last few months in 2008 and hearing the way Larry Miller talked about it was pretty cool.

Anyway, you can find the podcast here, if you are interested.

... and, uh, I don't really have an interesting way to end this article and I'm tired so ... see you next week?

Dodgers Retrospective - Week 17

So, I'm writing this week recap up now, before the game today for two reasons. One, if I wait until after the game, it tends to mess up my entire night. Two, regardless of whether the Dodgers win today's game or not, this is already a sucky week.

I said last week that the coming week would be big. Either big good, or big bad.

As of today, the Dodgers can only hope to finish this week 2-4 against the two teams in front of them in the playoff race, so I guess you know how that panned out. (Post game update: 1-5 on the week. So. Whatever.)

More importantly, the trade deadline came this week, and the Dodgers, for some reason, decided to be buyers.

Here's the realization I came to this week: if the Dodgers happen to find success this year, they will do so in spite of management and ownership.

I mean, maybe, in the back of my head, I've always known this to be true, but as long as the Dodgers were winning, I was willing to let management slide.

But this week has just been a Doctorate level course in bad management, at both the manager and GM level. So, if you'll indulge me (more than you already are just by visiting my blog), I've got a lot of complaining to do.

First, you have the manager. Much has been made about Joe Torre's managing style, especially his mismanagement of the bullpen (which is terrible*) but at this point, I almost don't even care about it so much. Yeah, really.

*Long aside: another shining example of which came on Thursday. Dodgers vs. Padres, 9th inning, tie score, and both Jonathan Broxton and George Sherrill warming in the bullpen. So, who comes in to face a righty heavy portion of the San Diego lineup? George Sherrill, of course, who, by the way, can't seem to get anybody out, but especially can't get out right handed hitters. Shocker upon all shockers, Sherrill loses the game. Broxton, meanwhile, stands in the bullpen waiting for a save opportunity that will never come. Ok, his terrible bullpen management still does make me miserable, but...

At this point, I'll take any manager, bullpen mistakes or not, who is able to make roster moves that aren't mind-numbingly stupid. I mean, for God's sake, why is Sherrill still on this team? And why the Hell is Garret Anderson still allowed to eat up a valuable roster spot? And who's bright effing idea was Jack Taschner?!


All I really want is someone who is willing to give Sherrill and Anderson their walking papers. Or someone, who, when presented with the idea of bring Jack Taschner up to the major league roster, stops for just a second and thinks: "That's a terrible idea. Absolutely not."

Seriously, why is this so damn hard? If we are so dedicated to winning this year, why are we not filling our roster with the 25 best players we can?

... which brings me to the General Manager.

Ned Colletti had one hell of a trade deadline this week.

Colletti completed three trades this week. Lucas May and Elisaul Pimentel for Scott Podsednik. Blake DeWitt and pitching prospects Brett Wallach and Kyle Smit for Ted Lilly and Ryan Theriot. And finally, right before the deadline, Colletti swapped James McDonald and Andrew Lambo for Octavio Dotel. Now, before I break down these trades, I need to address whether or not the Dodgers should have even been buyers.

There's a good argument to be made that the Dodgers should have sold at the deadline. Hiroki Kuroda, Manny Ramirez, and Vicente Padilla will be free agents this offseason. Also, one or two of the handful of young players who will look for raises in the offseason could have also been on the move. Any of these players could have been shipped out for what would likely be a good return.

The counter-argument to this, though, is that the Dodgers were still within five games of the Wildcard when the deadline passed on Saturday.

Add to that the fact that most Dodger fans would have revolted, and I could see how it would be difficult justifying a fire sale.

So, you have two other options. You can do what the Dodgers did and buy ... or you can stand pat.

Personally, I would've have done nothing. I can see how this method also might have it's issues. Again, you deal with the fans who see this as waving the white flag. Also, you probably end up getting nothing for leaving veterans like Kuroda, who will most likely not receive an offer for arbitration in the offseason.

But, I'm sticking with this as having been the best choice. I see it like this, aside from the starting pitching, the Dodgers are playing far below their potential. When the Dodgers scored five runs on Friday, it was only the fourth time since the All-Star break that the Dodgers scored more than three runs in a game. (Ironically, they are 0-4 in those games, so, yes, the only time the Dodgers can score runs is when the pitching is giving up even more.)

What is it going to take for the Dodgers to reach the postseason? The regulars need to show up. Casey Blake and Russell Martin continue to fade offensively (though they might never turn it around). Matt Kemp, meanwhile, needs to pull out of his long, long slump. Rafael Furcal, who was so vital to the Dodger offense for the first half, has only been hitting .263 since the break. Worse off is Andre Ethier, who is hitting .135 (.507 OPS) since the break. If the Dodgers hope to have any success this season, these guys (plus Manny) have to return to form.

So, what did the Dodgers do? They added Scott Podsednik, who, admittedly, could be a nice complementary piece, but isn't going to be the difference maker in the race for the pennant.


They added Ted Lilly, who fills the gaping hole of #5 starter, and Ryan Theriot, an offensive downgrade at 2nd base to both Blake DeWitt (now on the Cubs) and Jamey Carroll (now warming the bench).

Then Colletti finished his tour with the addition of Octavio Dotel, who, again, could be a nice complementary piece, but isn't a game changer with his shiny 4.28 ERA (his 3.84 FIP is nicer but not more so than the man he's replacing ... Travis Schlichting has a 3.16 FIP in only 18 less innings).

In case it wasn't obvious, I'm not a fan of these trades. And I have four reasons to back this up.

1. We are buying when we shouldn't be. To rehash a previous point, we really should have sold or stood pat, just given the growing improbability that we actually make the playoffs.

2. Almost all of these trades were severe examples of overpaying.

Look at the Podsednik trade. Didn't we have the leverage? The Royals are going nowhere and Podsednik is a free agent at the end of the season. What were they going to do, keep him? Did we really need to send both our last bit of catching depth (May) and a promising young pitcher (Pimentel)? It really feels like one or the other should have been enough. If the Royals demanded more, then just say no. We really needed Podsednik that badly?

The Lilly/Theriot trade was more fair in terms of returns for each team. Don't get me wrong, it's a bad trade in it's own rights (Lilly is unnecessary and Theriot is a downgrade) but as far as one young 2nd baseman and two low level pitching prospects for a solid left handed pitcher and extremely average major league 2nd baseman, it's about even.

But all that is ruined with the Dotel trade. If Colletti had just sent James McDonald (a cheap, young pitcher who has shown a lot of promise in the past) to Pittsburg for Octavio Dotel (a 36 year old reliever), the trade would have been a win for Pittsburgh.

But. But... For some reason, Colletti threw into the trade, one time highly rated prospect Andrew Lambo. Yes, Lambo has had some issues in the minors with substance related suspensions. And, yes, he has struggled so far to adjust to high minors level pitching, but he's 22. He's got time to adjust. And he's got a high, high ceiling. So, why in the world was he sent to Pittsburgh for a 36 year old relief pitcher? I mean, if I had to guess, it'd be because the Pirates are paying the $500,000 remaining on Dotel's contract, but that's not really what I'm getting at.

What I'm saying is, when Dotel's name was brought up for trade consideration, why, when the Pirates asked for both McDonald and Lambo didn't Colletti just say no. It's so easy...

"You want Dotel. We want James McDonald."
"Eh, ok."
"And we want Lambo."
"You do realize Dotel is a 36 year old relief pitcher? And he's got an ERA over 4.00? So... no."



3. The returns the Dodgers received for all the players they gave up was overall, probably a lot less than it could've been. This is related to overpaying. This has been covered by several other blogs, but I think Jon Weisman tweeted it best:

"If you package Pimentel, May, McDonald, Lambo, DeWitt, Wallach and Smit together, I think that gets you something nicer."

Yeah, it probably does. If we were willing to send off all of these young players for a handful of average players, some of which we really didn't need, couldn't we have turned these young players into a really good player that we could use?

4. Finally, these trades didn't need to be made. At least, not now. Not at this point in time.

Look at it like this: with the exception of Ted Lilly (maybe), do any of the players the Dodgers acquired become off limits past the July 31st deadline?

Was Scott Podsednik really not going to clear waivers? Or Theriot? Or Dotel?

Couldn't we have waited another two or three weeks and saw where we were in the standings before we pulled the trigger on a trade that sent away a bunch of prospects. Two weeks from now, if we were still in the race, couldn't we have then called up the Royals and asked about Podsednik? We were really that worried someone else was going to win the Octavio Dotel sweepstakes?

And, by the way, these players would most likely come cheaper the later into the season we acquire them.

What's the downside? Two less weeks of Ryan Theriot?

It's just frustrating.


It's so, so frustrating.

J's Dodger Tweets - August Edition

I'm back with another look at some of my best tweets from August, just in case you haven't been following me on Twitter.

• Some of the pitches [Jair] Jurrjens threw that inning were fatter than a chubby child going to work on a chocolate cake. Also, probably as ugly.

• Realized I've neglected talking about the Claudio Vargas trade. I'd say the biggest factor behind this decision would be that I don't care.

• Jon Miller's egg yolk shirt is really disturbing me.
  
  
  
  

• Interesting to note that Schmidt was put on the DL today with Terrible-initis. It's not known if there is a cure...

• In my opinion, and I can only say this because I'm not affiliated with MLB, is that homeplate umpire Mike Reilly sucks.

• Aww. Puns? Don't do this to me. RT @DodgertownUSA Garko hits one into the Castro District to end the game. #Dodgers win game one vs #Giants.

• [James] McDonald should actually bean [Pablo] Sandoval now. I want to see Sandoval explode into a hundred angry bits of Orange Chicken. (Panda? Get it?)
• In retrospect, that last tweet was in poor taste. (Taste? Chicken? Get it?) But still, I'm actually not sure if I got the connection I made.
  
  
  
  

• Just a thought watching baseball highlights last night: Adam Dunn hit his 31st HR (86 RBIs), maybe we should've signed him this offseason. [Dunn currently: 35 HRs, 91 RBIs]
  

• Plaschke on ESPN says Dodgers are in trouble because they didn't add a starting pitcher. Most runs by a Dodger starter in last 10 games: 4.
• In fact, in all of August, no Dodger starter has given up more than 4 runs. [Dodger starter ERA in August: 3.33]
  

• Online banking site asked me if I wanted to try Giants Banking (checks with the SF Giants logo and whatnot). I almost canceled my account.
  

• BEES! That's horrifying. That would ruin the game for me. I hate leaving early, but being attacked by a swarm of bees might be my exception.
  
  

That's all folks.

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?

Week Recap: 07/16/09 - 07/26/09

Hey everybody. Welcome back. I've been on a little extended break, and I figured doing a week recap on just the four game series against the Astros might not be entirely worth it. So I'm back for a Week (and a half) Recap.

Let's do it.

The Dodgers split their first four games out of the All-Star break, losing the first two to the Astros before coming back to win the next two games. They followed that up by beating down the Cincinnati Reds in a three game series. Finally, they finished off the homestand on a particularly weak note, losing two out of three games to the Florida Marlins.

The Dodgers went 6-4 over that span.

And now, we shall take a look back at the people who made a difference this last week, be it good or bad. It's Round 13 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE:

COLD:

• Juan Pierre - .105 (2-19), 3 Ks, 1 GiDP, 0-1 SBs - I understand how it can be difficult to play periodically, coming off the bench to pinch hit or spot start. A lot of players have problems with that. But this is really bad. Not that it's surprising. Pierre has been fading for a little while now. He's got a .243 average in July.

• James McDonald - 0-1 (3 games), 10.12 ERA (3 ER in 2.2 IP), .333 BAA - Come on, James. It seems to me that the Dodgers are trying to showcase you, and you're responding by getting beaten up. How can we convince other teams that getting a package of you and Blake DeWitt is almost as good as anything they'll find on the market when neither of you are performing?

• Jason Schmidt - 1-1 (2 games), 7.88 ERA (7 ER in 8.0 IP), .323 BAA, 1.045 OPS against - I don't know if we were expecting anything more from Schmidt, but this is what we got. Maybe we should just be happy we got one semi-productive start from Schmidt and call it a career. My favorite stat from his two starts? Take it away Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports: "That’s two outings spent on the bat barrels for Schmidt, who in those starts has thrown 142 pitches and gotten exactly seven swings and misses." I'm not sure who that's more embarrassing for, Schmidt, or the unlucky few who missed a Schmidt pitch.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Manny Ramírez - .250 (7-28), 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 8 RBIs, 8 Ks - Manny's not getting a lot of hits, but when he does, he's coming up big, with, of course, the highlight of all this being the Manny Slammy, or whatever the hell people are calling it. Still, the semi-slow start out of the All-Star break is a little disappointing.

• Chad Billingsley - 1-1 (2 starts), 9.39 ERA (8 ER in 7.2 IP), 7 Ks - You might question why I would not label a guy with an above 9.00 ERA as "COLD" but I do this because that ERA doesn't tell the whole story. His first start out of the All-Star break was horrific. 1.2 IP, 9 hits, 6 ER. His second start was worlds better. 6.0 IP, 2 ER, 7 Ks. And that's how it happens. A "COLD" start and a "HOT" start equals a "ROOM TEMPERATURE" week.

HOT:

• Jonathan Broxton - 1-0, 3 SVs (5 games), 0.00 ERA (5 IP), 8 Ks - I just want to give Broxton some quick acknoledgment for bouncing back from his handful of awful outings. He hasn't been as dominant as he was earlier this year, but he has shut the door, and that's what counts.

• Clayton Kershaw - 1-0 (2 games), 1.38 ERA (2 ER in 13.0 IP), 11 Ks - Kershaw continues to make people who've suggested trading him look like idiots. He is putting it together in front of our eyes. If he figures out how to consistantly limit his walks so his pitch count stays down, he could become one of the best pitchers in the league, and soon.

• Orlando Hudson - .412 (14-34), 2 2Bs, 2 3Bs, 2 RBIs, 1.017 OPS - I like to see Hudson turning it around. He was slumping pretty bad going into the All-Star break, but in the second half so far, he's been back on his game.

• Claudio Vargas - 0-0 (5 games), 1.29 ERA (1 ER in 7.0 IP) - I got to give Vargas some credit. I didn't think much about this signing in the offseason. But he's appeared in seven games so far this season, and he's only given up one run. Whether or not he can keep this up is a different story, but for now, I'll enjoy the fact that he's contributing.

• Guillermo Mota - 0-0 (4 games), 0.00 ERA (7.0 IP) - Another good week for Mota. Do I trust him yet? No. I don't think I will until the season is over. But giving up just one earned run since May 22nd is definitely a good start.

• Andre Ethier - .485 (16-33), 5 2Bs, 2 HRs, 6 RBIs, 5 BBs, 1.371 OPS - It's good to see Ethier start hitting well again. Ethier really appears to be a streaky hitter. When he's down, he's really down. But when he turns it on, he's scary. And for his excellent hitting, he was awarded the National League Player-of-the-Week award for the second time this year.

Interesting week coming up. The trade deadline is coming up Friday. Meanwhile, the Dodgers take on the Cardinals in St. Louis for a four game set. The on to Atlanta for three games. That's a tough road trip. It would be a nice message to send to the rest of the league if we went over .500 this week.

Week Recap: 04/27/09 - 05/03/09

So, I had an illusion snapped yesterday. I mentioned on this blog a couple weeks ago how I had enjoyed the Jr. Dodgers broadcast.

It seemed like such a cool idea, let two kids into a press box and allow them to call a Dodger game to be broadcast on the internet.

I thought the idea was so cool, in fact, that I was even looking forward to listening to it a little bit during Sunday's game.

So I tuned in, and to my surprise, the same kid who was calling play-by-play two weeks ago was doing it again. Interesting, I thought, why does he get to do this twice? So I did some digging and found a Dodger press release about the program:

"The play-by-play duties will be split amongst regulars Nick Berman and Jake Reiner, while the analyst position for the two-person team will feature a rotation of Jr. Dodgers Kids Club members."

Really? How do I become a "regular"? How did these two become "regulars"? It continues:

"Berman is a senior at Harvard-Westlake High School...

Reiner is currently a senior at Los Angeles' Wildwood High school."

And this is where my illusion was shattered. For those of you that don't know, Harvard-Westlake High School is an incredibly hoity-toity school. I mean really hoity-toity. One of the top hoity-toity schools in the state. Top 3 in hoity, at least top 5 in toity. The hoitiest of the toitiest. You get the point? Berman's family has got to have money.

Well, what about Reiner? Does that name sound familiar? Like Rob Reiner? You know, incredibly rich director and Dodger season ticket holder Rob Reiner? Yeah, that's his son.

So... how in the world did these two end up as regulars?

And they get to call all Sunday Dodger home games this year? Totally unfair. I'm going to start a protest.

My only other route into this is color commentator and the color commentator is always a kid from the Dodgers Jr. club, a club open only to kids 14 and under.

I'm furious with envy. I need to follow up on one of my two plans: get rich, or find a convincing way to make myself seem 14. Both seem easily doable.

Anyway, enough with my complaining, let's get to recapping.

The Dodgers started the week by losing a three game series in San Francisco to go 4-5 on their road trip.

They followed that up by coming home and sweeping the Padres in a four game series at home.

It was the first ever four game sweep of the Padres in Dodger Stadium, and with those four wins, the Dodgers have started the season 10-0 at home. Nice.

The Dodgers went 5-2 for the week.

Round 4 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE? Yes, please.

COLD:

• James McDonald - 0-0 (1 game), 16.19 ERA (3 earned runs in 1.2 innings), 2 hits, 4 walks - A pretty bad start (an 8-5 win, April 30th against San Diego) and now a demotion to the bullpen, McDonald's had a bad week. Jeff Weaver, who relieved him in that game is going to take his next start against Arizona on Tuesday. Let's hope a trip to the pen will do McDonald some good.

• Matt Kemp - .190 (4-21), 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 walks, 2 RBIs, 9 Ks, 1 Caught Stealing - The grace period for Kemp is gone. Sorry. I allowed last week's poor performance to go because of the residual heat coming of the week prior to that. But the second bad week in a row for Kemp gets him a bump down to "COLD". That, and more strikeouts in less at-bats. Yeesh.

• Russell Martin - .182 (4-22), 2 walks, 1 RBI, 4 Ks, 1 SB - Martin has really been slow out of the gates. He showed some signs of life a couple weeks ago, but he's since faded. The weird thing about this week? Three of those four hits this week came in one game (the 2-1 win, May 2nd against San Diego). Otherwise, Martin didn't collect a hit in four straight games (an 0-14 stretch). Double yeesh.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Rafael Furcal - .240 (6-25), 1 2B, 1 RBI, 4 Walks, 4 Runs, 7 Ks - Furcal has been consistently "ROOM TEMPERATURE" all year. I felt, though, like this week has been a good microcosm of his season. He's scoring runs, but he's been hovering in the mid-.200s all season. He has more strikeouts than walks, and very few extra base hits. Luckily, Orlando Hudson has been picking up the slack (more on that later).

• Casey Blake - .208 (5-24), 1 HR, 3 RBIs, 1 Walk, 7 Ks - Speaking of "ROOM TEMPERATURE" all year and microcosms... Blake's been in the low .200s all season. He's had a bunch more strikeouts than walks this season. He has been driving in runs, however, with the occasional homerun now and then. Seriously, though, .222? Blake's never been a high-average guy, but this is ridiculous. You know who's been out hitting Blake the last couple weeks? Andy LaRoche (.321, 7 2Bs, 10 RBIs since April 16th). No I still haven't forgotten and no I won't let it go!

HOT:

• Orlando Hudson - .300 (9-30), 3 Runs, 3 2Bs, 1 HR, 7 RBIs, 1 Walk - I have to reiterate what a pleasant surprise Hudson has been this year. I thought he'd be good, but he's been one of the best hitters, consistently, on the team this year. He's scoring runs, he's driving in runs, and he's still playing solid defense. Gotta like that...

• Chad Billingsley - 1-0 (2 games), 2.51 ERA (4 earned runs in 14.1 innings), 7 Walks, 16 Ks - And now for the most consistently good pitcher on our team. Billingsley has really stepped into the role of Ace for our staff. He has been excellent. Six quality starts in six appearances. He's keeping his walks down, and he's striking out a ton of guys (42 Ks in 40.2 innings). His five wins are first in the National League, and tied for a first in all of Major League Baseball. Gotta like that...

Alright, four weeks in... a whole bunch to go. I think I'm settling into this, getting into a groove. It's good. We're good.

Dodgers have another seven games at home now, where they are "HOT". Let's see how long this streak can go.

Week Recap: 04/06/09 - 04/13/09

I was debating when to start recaps, either after the end of the Diamondbacks series or the odd off-day today (or the normal off-day on Monday's). I'm thinking of doing it on Sunday's, after the weekend series ends (only issue would be four game series that go into Monday, but I guess I can work around that?). I don't know, I'll work it out.

In any case, let's recap the week that was with the Dodgers.

The week started out pretty good, with the Dodgers beating Jake Peavy and the Padres, but turned sour after they lost two of the next three to split the four game set.

The Dodgers then traveled to Arizona, where they lost their first game on Friday, before coming back to take the next two to win the series. And especially of note is the odd four-out play that occurred in Sunday's 3-1 win.

Finally, the Dodgers really put on a show for their Home Opener, beating down the Giants 11-1 to win their third straight.

The Dodgers went 5-3 for the week.

And now I present the first ever:

HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE.

COLD:

• Russell Martin - (For the week:) .207 (6-29), 5 RBIs, 9 Ks - Russell's been struggling, despite going 2-5 with two RBIs in Monday's game. That's not to say there isn't some improvement on the horizon. It's been a bad week, but he is riding a four-game hitting streak. That streak, admittedly, has gone like this: 1-5, 1-4, 1-4, 2-5 (Monday), but a streak's a streak.

• Rafael Furcal - .226 (7-31), 6 runs, 4 Ks - For a guy who started last season by tearing up the league in April, Furcal's start to 2009 has been a bit weak. He has scored six runs, which is his job, but that comes after he's only reached base 10 times this week. But, man, if he kicks it into gear, our offense will be even scarier.
  
  
• James McDonald - 0-1, 19.29 ERA (5 earned runs in 2.1 innings), 3 walks - A pretty bad first start for McDonald, and the biggest shame is that he was dealing through two innings on his April 10th start in Arizona (a 9-4 loss). But he all fell apart in the 3rd: A homerun, two walks, a hit batter, another walk, and another hit, and McDonald's first start that began so nicely (retiring six in a row) ended so poorly.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Manny Ramírez - .304 (7-23), 4 RBIs, 11 walks - Question: When do you rate a guy who's batting .304 as average? Answer: When he's Manny Ramírez. Now, a .304 average is nothing to look down upon, but when you are paying a guy $25 million, you'd at least expect a homerun or two, or at least more than four RBIs. Still, Manny can't be faulted too much. It's obvious through this first week of the season that a lot of teams have decided they aren't going to let Manny beat them, so he's been getting more than a few unintentional-intentional walks. Manny did win a game for us already (a 5-2 win, April 8th in San Diego), so that's pretty good, but it's starting to look like we aren't going to be able to lean our offense on Manny much anymore. And he's going to have to make more out of the opportunities he does have to swing the bat.
  

• Randy Wolf - 1-1 (2 starts), 3.65 ERA (5 earned runs in 12.1 innings), 8 Ks - After a weak start in San Diego (4 earned runs in 5.1 innings during a 4-2 loss, April 7th), Randy more than redeemed himself on Saturday's start in Arizona (a 3-1 win, April 12th). At one point, Randy retired 16 batters in a row on his way to a 7.0 innings, one run performance. Which Randy will come out for the next start is yet to be seen, but I liked what I was seeing on Sunday.


• Andre Ethier - .250 (7-28), 2 homeruns, 8 RBIs, 7 walks - After going through the first seven games batting .208 with only one extra base hit (and getting demoted from the clean-up spot to the 6th spot), Ethier really came back with a strong performance on Monday. His game high four RBIs brought his total to eight for the week, and his two homeruns were well-hit. It's good to see some signs of life coming from Ethier after a pretty comatose start to the week.

HOT:

• Matt Kemp - .357 (10-28), 1 homerun, 5 RBIs - The only Dodger to collect a hit in every game this season, Kemp's come out of the gates strong. Again, admittedly, he's had a few 1-4's during the streak, but again, a streak's a streak. Add to that a couple of really nice defensive plays, and a monster homerun off Jake Peavy, and Kemp's had a pretty good week.

• Orlando Hudson - .333 (11-33), 2 homeruns, 5 RBIs, 7 runs, 3 stolen bases, 1.086 OPS - How do you make a good impression on the fans of your new team? Well, not only do you tie for the most hits on the team during the week, you complete the first cycle in almost 40 years by a Dodger, as well as being the first Dodger to hit for a cycle in Dodger Stadium history. At the HOME OPENER. Against THE GIANTS. Nice way to introduce yourself to the home crowd, Orlando.
  


• James Loney - .355 (11-31), 5 RBIs, 1 K - Not only did Loney tie Hudson for most hits during the week, he did it without striking out. One strikeout, Monday, 3rd inning. That's putting the bat to the ball. And he's not doing it against nobodies. The Dodgers have faced more than a couple quality pitchers this week (including Former Cy Young winner Jake Peavy, eh? Eh???) and Loney's done well against them. He's currently riding a four game hitting streak.


• Chad Billingsley - 2-0 (2 starts), 2.08 ERA (3 earned runs in 13.0 innings) 15 Ks - Billingsley showed this week he's ready to take on the season as a top of the rotation starter. While his start in San Diego was pretty strong (6.0 innings, 2 earned runs in a 5-2 win on April 8th), his start on Monday was downright impressive. He went 7.0 strong innings, giving up just one earned run while striking out 11. That includes striking out five Giants in a row at one point.

So there you have it. The first ever J's Dodger Blog Week Recap (Weekap? I don't like it). I'm thinking the next one will be coming after Sunday's game versus Colorado, but don't hold me to it.

I don't know what I'm doing...

Have We Found A Winner?

This race for the 5th starter is slowly starting to come to an end.

After already eliminating Jason Schmidt and Jeff Weaver as possible 5th starters earlier this Spring Training, Shawn Estes was eliminated early this week.

The big four contenders left were: Eric Stults, Claudio Vargas, Eric Milton, and James McDonald.

Stults (12.96 ERA in 8.1 innings) and Vargas (8.22 ERA in 15.1 innings) have had awful Springs so far. Stults has apparently had some bad personal issues off the field, but unfortunately, the fact remains, he's been really bad.

So it's really come down to Milton and McDonald. Well, both pitchers pitched today. Let's see how they did:

James McDonald - 3.0 innings, no runs, three strikeouts, lowered his ERA to 4.70. Not bad.

Ok, how 'bout Milton?

Eric Milton - 2.2 innings, six earned runs, raised his ERA to 7.27.

Wow Milton, you trying to catch Vargas there? This comes after Milton gave up eight runs (one earned) in his last appearance.

So were does that leave us?

Well, Pedro still hasn't signed anywhere. But other than that, it's starting to look more and more like we ought to turn it over to McDonald.

He's young, he's got some good stuff, and most importantly, he's our best option.

And I'm pretty comfortable with that.

Player Profiles: Relief Pitchers - James McDonald

Player: James McDonald

2008 Stats: 0-0, 0.00 ERA (4 games)

2008 Analysis: McDonald looked pretty impressive. He came up as a September call-up and pitched six innings at the end of the season. He gave up no runs and five hits over that span, while striking out two, but looked impressive. So much so, that he was put on the playoff roster. He pitched an additional 5.1 innings of shutout ball in the playoffs while striking out seven.

2009 Outlook: McDonald should be a good part of the 2009 team. I'll say this, I expect McDonald to be a part of the rotation at some point next year. Recent news is saying that McDonald will start the year in the bullpen, but I don't expect him to stay there long. We'll see, but I'm fairly sure McDonald will have some impact on 2009.

Phillies 5, Dodgers 1

The Phillies capitalize on Dodger errors to win Game 5 and the series.

Cole Hamels got the win, he goes 2-0 in the NLCS. Chad Billingsley took the loss, he goes 0-2 in the NLCS.

Chad Billingsley got into trouble early and was pulled quickly. He gave up three runs in 2.2 innings. Greg Maddux gave up two unearned runs in the 5th, due in part to three Rafael Furcal errors in the inning. James McDonald pitched two scoreless innings in relief. Joe Beimel and Cory Wade combined to pitch a perfect 8th, and Hong-Chih Kuo pitched a scoreless 9th to hold the Phillies to five runs.

The Dodgers failed to mount much offense against the Phillies pitching staff. Manny Ramírez went 2-3 with a walk and a solo homerun, accounting for the Dodgers' only run. James Loney went 2-4 and Matt Kemp went 2-3 with a walk. Other than that, there was not much to speak of.

With the win, the Phillies win the series 4-1 and move on to the World Series.

Opinion: It's hard to be upset. Don't get me wrong, I am. But I kinda figured coming in that we didn't have much chance to come back. Chad Billingsley, who hasn't really been lights out since September, obviously was tired. His fastballs didn't have the same umph they had earlier in the season. His breaking balls didn't have as much break. This is only his third season in the majors, and coming into the playoffs, he'd already pitched 50 more innings than in any previous season. He was just not ready yet. The offense meanwhile, didn't offer much in support. The Phillies for the most part, pitched around Manny, and the Dodgers couldn't make them pay for it. The players sandwiched around Manny went 0-12. The two in front of Manny couldn't get on for him, the one behind him couldn't bring him in. It does tell me one thing, and with Manny, we need another bat. That's all stuff to be decided in the offseason... which I guess is now? So with that, I say adieu to the Dodgers' 2008 Season. 2nd Place in the National League, 1st Place in the NL West, 1st Place in our Hearts... Seriously, thank you Dodgers. It was a fun ride. We'll see you in Spring.

As for the blog. I'm going to take a break now and prepare for the offseason. I plan to do player profiles, free agent and trade analysis, and other such things. I'll see you all after the World Series...

Phillies 8, Dodgers 5

The Phillies have two big innings to score eight runs and beat the Dodgers for the second game in a row.

Brett Myers got the win, he's 1-0 in the NLCS. Chad Billingsley took the loss, he's 0-1 in the NLCS. Brad Lidge picked up his 2nd save in the NLCS.

Chad Billingsley got lit up. He made it only 2.1 innings, giving up eight runs (seven earned) on eight hits and three walks. The bullpen held the Phillies scoreless the rest of the game, but by then the damage was too much. High notes for James McDonald, who went 3.1 scoreless innings in relief, and Clayton Kershaw, who went 1.2 scoreless innings.

The Dodgers scored all their runs in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th innings, but were shut down by the Phillies bullpen for much of the rest of the game. Manny Ramírez went 1-4, but had a three run homerun in the 4th. James Loney went 2-4 with a walk and an RBI. Similar to yesterday, there were then some assorted hits and walks here and there, but the Dodgers couldn't capitalize enough to comeback.

With the loss, the Dodgers fall down to 0-2 in the NLCS. They now travel back to Los Angeles to play game three, starting at 5:22 L.A. time on Sunday.

Opinion: That was ugly. Chad Billingsley seemed like he couldn't get a pitch near the zone in the 2nd and 3rd innings without it getting whacked. He's going to definitely need to bounce back from this one if we can continue on in these playoffs... And another thing, how many hits were we going to give up to Brett Myers. He's the pitcher! He had three RBIs and two runs scored today. He was the difference in this game. There is a reason the pitcher bats ninth and is consider an automatic out. It's because he is!!! Geez... It's hard to feel good about these last two games, but I do have some good points. For one, we now have three games at home, where we swept the Phillies earlier in the season. We need to capitalize on this, and put the pressure back on Philly. Secondly, it's not like we are being beaten handily. We've caught some back breaks. Yesterday, in the first inning, when Manny hit that ball to the deepest part of the park and it bounced off the top part of the highest wall, he only got a double. If that had gone out, the Dodgers would've had the extra run they needed. Today, Casey Blake sent another ball to the deepest part of the park that was caught at the wall for an out in the 7th. He put enough on the ball that if he just pulled it some more, we could have tied the game. I feel like these games were both winnable, we're just hitting the balls in the wrong places. So... let's just hit them in the right places. Easy enough, right?

Giants 6, Dodgers 5 (10 innings)

The Dodgers fall in extra innings to lose their second game in a row.

Tyler Walker got the win, he's 5-8. Jason Johnson took the loss, he's 1-2.

Derek Lowe started for the Dodgers and went three scoreless innings. The start was short, of course, to not overwork him before the first game of the playoffs. The Dodgers used eight different pitchers throughout the game. James McDonald relieved Derek Lowe and pitched two scoreless innings. He's now pitched six scoreless innings over four games to begin his major league career. Chan Ho Park gave up two runs in 0.2 innings of relief. His ERA has risen almost a full point from 2.48 on August 24th to 3.23 today. Jonathan Broxton blew a save by giving up an unearned run in the 9th, and Jason Johnson got only two outs in the 10th before giving up the winning run.

The Dodgers used 27 players in the game today. 17 different players had at-bats in the game. There isn't too much that stands out offensively in the game. Manny Ramírez went 2-2 in his only two at-bats in the game. Jeff Kent went 1-3 with a homerun, two RBIs, and a run scored. James Loney went 1-4 with his only hit coming on a solo homerun in the 9th inning. Russell Martin had a pinch hit two-run homerun to give the Dodgers a 5-4 lead in the top of 9th, which they then proceed to give up in the bottom of the 9th.

The Dodgers will play the second game in this weekend series, starting tomorrow at 6:05 L.A. time.

Also: With the loss, the Dodgers fall back to six games over .500 (83-77)... James Loney's homerun gave him his team leading 90th RBI.

Opinion: Russell Martin giveth, Russell Martin taketh away. Thanks to Russell Martin's two-out top of the 9th inning homerun, the Dodgers were able to take a 5-4 lead. The Giants, thanks in part to Russell Martin's throwing error, were able to tie the game at 5-5... Whatever, this weekend is pretty much a throwaway weekend. I mean, it's kinda lame to go into the playoffs a 83-80 team, but I'm not sure anyone really cares... One last thing, so is Jason Johnson Joe Torre's "Abort" button. He's thinking: "Hey, we came into town early this morning, didn't get a lot of sleep, I gotta end this game. Hey, Honeycutt, get Johnson up in the pen. This thing is over by the 10th!" Johnson is 1-2 in the season, both losses were extra-inning away games. His first loss was an 11 inning game in St. Louis on August 5th. "I don't want to carry this game on by throwing a good pitcher out there to keep the game tied. I'm tired. Let's get some rest. Unleash Johnson on them!" Ok, I'm done. I'm tired. I'm pushing the Jason Johnson button on my night. I'll see you all tomorrow.

Dodgers 10, Padres 1

The Dodgers score 10 runs to beat the Padres in the first game of the three game series.

Chad Billingsley got the win, he's 16-10. Wade LeBlanc took the loss, he's 1-2.

Chad Billingsley seemed a little shaky. He went six innings and gave up only one run, however, he also gave up nine hits and two walks over that span. James McDonald, Ramon Troncoso, and Scott Elbert added a scoreless inning each.

Offensively, the Dodgers did much better than they did Sunday. Eight of the nine Dodgers in the starting lineup collected a hit, seven scored a run, and four had RBIs, even Chad Billingsley added a hit, a squeeze bunt, and two RBIs. They had a big 1st inning, in which they batted through the lineup and scored six runs in the process. The top three performers in the game were probably Russell Martin, Nomar Garciaparra, and Blake DeWitt. Russell Martin went 2-3 with a double, two walks, and a run scored, Nomar Garciaparra went 1-2 with a walk, a homerun, three RBIs, and a run scored, and Blake DeWitt went 2-3 with a walk, a homerun, three RBIs, and two runs scored.

The Arizona Diamondbacks lost today, so with the win, the Dodgers move back to a three game lead in the NL West. The Dodgers will try tomorrow for their second straight win, and a chance to knock another point off the Magic Number. The game starts at 7:10 L.A. time.

Also: With the win, the Dodgers move back up to seven games over .500 (82-75)... With the win and the Diamondbacks' loss, the Dodger Magic Number is now 3... With their 82nd win, the Dodgers guarantee themselves a winning season... Chad Billingsley's win is his 16th, good for first place on the Dodgers.

Opinion: This was a pretty good statement win. After looking a little lackluster in the weekend series, the Dodgers came out firing. I like it... In any case, now that my last prediction (the one about us clinching on Sunday) was obliterated, I'd like to make a new one. We have two more games against the Padres, the Diamondbacks have two more against the Cardinals. Our Magic Number is three. My prediction is simple: we clinch it at home on Thursday. Hopefully, the Cardinals will keep up their end by causing the Diamondbacks trouble in St. Louis. I'm fairly certain that if we keep playing like we did tonight, our end shouldn't be a problem. I guess we'll see. 3 and counting...