Moneyball

Yeah, this is a Dodger Blog, but I wanted to talk about something else today. Perhaps you've heard of the book "Moneyball." It's based on Billy Beane, the GM of the Oakland A's.

Perhaps you've also heard that "Moneyball" was being made into a movie. And perhaps, when you heard that, you thought: "...What?"

The movie was going to star Brad Pitt as Billy Beane, and comedian Demetri Martin as former Dodger GM Paul DePodesta. Perhaps you heard that, and you thought: "...What?"

Yeah, there was lot to be concerned about going into this. I was in the same boat as you. But then I came across the script online. And I actually read it...

And I really liked it...

Yeah... for real...

I think it's got the chance to be a really good baseball movie. And frankly, we haven't had one of those since "The Rookie" in 2002.

In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I'm taking up the crusade to get it made (recently, the movie was put on hold days before shooting was to begin).

Anyway, I wanted to share this with you. You can read the script here.

And if you like it like I did and want to help out, it couldn't hurt to follow @MoneyballMovie on Twitter, or become a fan of Moneyball on Facebook.

P.S. If you have a life, and don't have the time to read an entire screenplay, may I at least recommend the "Trade Deadline" portion of the script (Pg. 88 of the script, Pg. 89 of the actual .PDF file).

At least give it a look, and maybe join the fight. That's all I can ask.

Well, that, or if you're a really rich guy, maybe finance the movie or something. That'd work too...

Week Recap: 06/15/09 - 06/21/09

Ok folks, back for another week recap. Let's do it.

Dodgers started the week at home, taking on the A's for a three game series. They split the first two close games before taking the rubber match to take the series.

They then made the looooooong trek to Anaheim to take on the Angels. They again split the first two games, before coming back to take the third game in the series.

They went 4-2 on the week.

And now, we will take part in Round 10 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE:

COLD:

• Jonathan Broxton - 0-0, 1 save (3 games), 10.80 ERA (4 ER in 3.1 ip), 5 hits, 2 BBs, 3 Ks - Now, let's be clear. I don't mean this to be an indictment of Broxton. I still like him, I still think he's good. This labeling of "COLD" is more like a worried "COLD." He had a good outing against Oakland, but then started having some toe issues. He couldn't pitch in a few games. Then, when he came back in these last two games against the Angels, he was surprisingly hit-able. He still got the job done, but the Angels were ripping a couple hits against him. So again, this "COLD" isn't so much to say Broxton is bad, but more to say I'm worried his toe might cause some problems for us in the near future. Here's to hoping it heals up.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Andre Ethier - .250 (6-24), 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 RBIs, 2 BBs, 4 Ks - Ethier has cooled down a little bit, but I like that the few hits he's getting are clutch hits. He's had some good ones with runners in scoring position, hence the 5 RBIs on just 6 hits this week. I'm really interested to see how Ethier will react to Manny's return in the coming weeks.

• Russell Martin - .294 (5-17), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 6 BBs, 4 runs - Well, at least Martin is keeping it interesting. After starting the week 0-7, then 2-12, he capped off the week going 3-5 with 3 BBs. He also notched his first homerun of the year. He chalked that up to picking up Doug Mientkiewicz's leg kick. Ok. If it works. It's also possible he just nailed a fat fastball for that homerun. Either way. Like I said, this is interesting. We definitely have to see where this goes.

HOT:

• Jeff Weaver - 1-0 (1 start), 3.60 ERA (2 ER in 5.0 IP), 4 Ks - Ok, so Weaver didn't have the best start ever, but he beat his brother. His younger brother. And as an older brother myself, I'm glad Weaver represented. Sometimes, you just gotta show your little brother who's still got the seniority in the family. The only disappointing thing was this wasn't a National League game. I would have loved to see the two Weavers trying to strike each other out. Too bad.

• Casey Blake - .308 (8-26), 1 2B, 5 RBIs, 3 BBs, 5 runs - He led the 1985 Hiroshima Toyo Carp team to a League Title, at the age of 12, because he didn't want a summer job. Casey Blake is... the most interesting third baseman in the world.

• Matt Kemp - .429 (9-21), 1 2B, 2 RBIs, 3 runs, 4-5 SBs - Not much else to say. Kemp's been hitting the ball. Been stealing some bases. Been scoring some runs. Been good.

• Clayton Kershaw - 1-0 (2 starts), 0.00 ERA (0 ER in 12.2 IP), 13 Ks - Remember Kershaw's worst start of the year (2.2 IP, 3 ER, 81 pitches against San Diego)? He responded this week with two excellent starts. He gave up no runs over 5.2 IP against Oakland and struck out eight. Then he followed that up by going 7.0 scoreless innings striking out five against the Angels. The interesting thing is that Kershaw gave up 8 hits and 7 walks over the two starts. That's right, he allowed 15 runners on in 12.2 innings. And he didn't let one score. I think that really speaks to some maturity. He got in trouble, but he didn't lose control of the game. He stayed focused and got out of jams. A great example was in the 5th inning of yesterday's day against the Angels. Kershaw loaded the bases with nobody out. He then settled down, and induced a double play and a pop out to get out of the inning harmlessly. That's a lot of control for a 21 year old.

Alright, that's it for this week.

Hey! We're actually doing well in Interleague Play. The only series we've lost is against the Angels last month, so with the revenge we extracted this weekend, we've brought our Interleague record to 7-5. Not great, but not bad.

Just six more Interleague games. Three in Chicago during the week, then we come home for three against Seattle. I think we can definitely finish this year well over .500 in Interleague play. That'd be pretty good.

The Trouble With Mota

I want to take you back a few weeks. It was during a Week Recap I had this to say about Guillermo Mota:

"...So, now the question becomes: What to do with him? I mean, I feel like we all know he has more than a couple bad outings left in that arm of his, and they are bound to show up sooner or later. But how do you get rid of a man who's pitched 9.1 scoreless innings in his last 8 games? I just hope when the inevitable melt-down occurs, it's not in a big game. Who knows, though? Maybe he's turned the corner... (Nah...)"

Flash forward to tonight. Now granted, since that time Mota has added another three scoreless innings. But I feel like I've created a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Tonight, he served up the game-winning homerun to Juan Rivera.

I know, it's just one run. One in a month. Everyone gives up runs. Chad Billingsley gave up four tonight.

But I think this is what I always worried about.

Joe Torre is confusing pitching good with being a good pitcher.

Guillermo Mota has been pitching good this last month.

He is NOT a good pitcher.

I go back to what I said before, about the inevitable meltdown. It happened exactly where I hoped it wouldn't. An important moment during a big game.

Mota should not be used in the 8th inning (or later). And really, for that matter, if possible, he shouldn't be used in the 7th.

But by pitching well this last month (following a month and a half of bad pitching), he's lulled Joe Torre into a false sense of security. And because of that, Torre has slowly allowed Mota to enter games at later and later points, until he put him in a place where he could blow a game. And Mota obliged.

What I'm saying is, Torre needs to remember that Mota is a bad pitcher who has been pitching good and should be treated as such.

I'm not calling for his head (his scary... scary head) like I was a couple months ago.

I just don't want to see him in any inning that begins with a number higher than seven.

Otherwise, things could get ugly...

Week Recap: 06/08/09 - 06/14/09

Ok, folks. I'm back.

I won't lie to you, I've been a little distracted.

First and foremost, the Dodgers are my #1 love. I'm a baseball fan and a Dodgers fan. They are my team.

However, the Lakers are a pretty close second. And in case you weren't paying attention at all recently, the Lakers won their 15th NBA Championship yesterday. And I've been pretty invested in their journey.

Hence my distraction.

But now that's all over. The Lakers played, the Lakers won, the playoffs are over. The Lakers are World Champions. Hoo-rah.

...and now I can focus on baseball again. Not to say I haven't been paying attention this last week. In fact, I'm ready for another week recap. So let's talk about this.

Dodgers started the week with a two game series against the Padres that went, well, less than ideal. A split with the Padres? Come on...

We did follow that up, though, by beating the AL West First Place Texas Rangers, two out of three games in Texas. Nice.

Dodgers went 3-2 on the week.

HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE. Round 9. Start!

COLD:

• Russell Martin - .167 (3-18), 3 BBs, 2 Ks - Russell! Russell! What is going on?! Russell was already struggling coming into the month of June. How's he doing in June? He has four hits. That's it. Four hits in the whole month of June. That's good for a .111 average. I have to believe something is wrong with him health-wise. I have no other explanation for what he's doing (or not doing) this year.

• Mark Loretta - .125 (1-8), 1 BB, 1 run - After starting the year doing so well off the bench for us, Loretta has really seen his numbers drop. In fact, remember how bad Martin has been in June? Loretta has been worse. He's 1-22 in June (.045).

• Clayton Kershaw - 0-1 (1 start), 10.13 ERA (3 ER in 2.2 IP), 4 BBs, 5 hits, 81 pitches - If I could use one word to describe Kershaw's start this week, I think I'd use ineffective. He couldn't find the strikezone, and when he did, he gave up hits. He threw 81 pitches and couldn't make it out of the 3rd inning! I mean, wow, Kershaw. Where was almost no-hitter Kershaw from the Marlins start from three weeks ago?

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Juan Pierre - .200 (4-20), 2 BBs, 3 SBs, 4 runs - My second week in a row of just one Room Temperature guy, and this week, Pierre fits the bill. Now, granted, Juan is still fourth in average for the National League (.343, good!), but he's actually been fairly pedestrian in June (.260, meh!) and this week has been his worst in a long time.

HOT:

• Chad Billingsley - 2-0 (2 starts), 3.55 ERA (5 ER in 12.2 IP), 8 Ks - Sure, this hasn't been Billingsley's greatest week, but his two wins this week placed him first, atop the National League in wins (tied with Matt Cain). Very nice.

• Casey Blake - .368 (7-19), 3 2Bs, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 3 runs - I think, instead of posting nice stuff about Blake when he does well, I'll just make a the Most Interesting Man in the World quip. When he swings his bat, he generates a lot of power with his legs, and even more with his beard. I hope Blake keeps it up so I can do this again.

• Ramon Troncoso - 0-0 (4 games), 3 Holds, 0.00 ERA (0 ER in 4.1 IP) - I don't know how he does it. He's given up almost as many hits as innings pitched (37 in 41.2 IP), and his strikeout-to-walk ratio is only 2:1, but he's still posting a 1.51 ERA on the season, and he hasn't given up a run since May 24th, and only two since May 8th. That's fantastic.

• Jonathan Broxton - 0-0 (3 games) 3 saves, 3.00 ERA (1 ER in 3.0 IP), 6 Ks, 1 baby - Broxton gave up one run this week, but it was a gimme-run. He had a three run lead and wasn't holding runners, so I'm not really counting it. With the three saves this week, he brought his total up to 16 on the season, tied for third in the National League. Also, he had a baby this week, so congrats on that. I haven't heard much about the baby, but just basing it on the fact that Broxton is his father, I'm guessing the baby was born weighing 40 pounds and throwing a 85 MPH heater.

• Rafael Furcal - .313 (5-16), 2 2Bs, 2 RBIs, 3 BBs, 3 Ks, 1 SB, 1 run - Ok, so this wasn't the greatest week ever. And it probably wasn't even the best week on the team. But for Rafael Furcal, it was a sign of life, and that's good enough for me. Furcal was bumped down to the 7th spot in the lineup earlier this week, and responded by stringing together a nice little hitting streak (it's up to 8 games). He's not striking out as much, he's drawing a few more walks, he's got a couple extra base hits, and he's even driven in a few runs. I got to give him props. I just hope that this is the beginning of getting better for Furcal, and not just a blip of "HOT" on an otherwise "COLD" season.

Ok, so we got more interleague, nice. I still enjoy this stuff. Some people say it has run it's course but I (and attendance at the games) disagree. And as much as I despise the DH, it's still fun to get to use one every now and then.

A's and Angels this week. See you then.

Week Recap: 06/01/09 - 06/07/09

Woo... busy day, sorry for the late post. Let's do this:

Dodgers started the week losing the first game to Arizona before coming back to take the next two and the series.

They followed that up by splitting a four game set against Philadelphia.

They went 4-3 on the week.

And now, I'm going to hit you with Round 8 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE. Get ready:

COLD:

• Orlando Hudson - .143 (3-21), 1 2B, 2 RBIs, 1 run, 3 BBs, 3 Ks - Oh, Orlando, what has happened to you? You haven't really stood out much in the last couple weeks, but you've still been solid this whole year, and then... this week? Come on, Hudson. 3 for 21? Sheesh...

• Russell Martin - .056 (1-18), 1 BB, 6 Ks, 1 GIDP - A bad start to the month of June for Martin, who was "HOT" just a couple weeks ago. Last week, he cooled down to "ROOM TEMPERATURE." Now, just plain "COLD." One hit this week. One.

• Randy Wolf - 0-1 (2 starts), 8.03 ERA (11 ER in 12.1 innings), 3 BBs, 5 Ks, 3 HRs - Talk about cooling down. Wolf was "HOT" last week? What happened? He had his two worst starts of the season this week. He's been hitable this week, 15 hits in 12.1 innings.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Matt Kemp - .292 (7-24), 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 7 Ks, 1 SB, 1 GIDP - Just one "ROOM TEMPERATURE" guy this week: Kemp. He had a hitting streak snapped this week and struck out almost as many times as he got on base. Still gotta give him some credit though for the .292. 'Tis ok.

HOT:

• Hiroki Kuroda - 0-1 (2 starts), 1.64 ERA (2 ER in 11.0 innings), 11 Ks, 6 BBs - Not a bad return for Kuroda, even with the loss. He hasn't thrown too many innings in either of his starts (5.0 and 6.0) because of early high pitch counts. The three walks per start didn't help. I'll chalk that up to rustiness coming back from injury, and so long as he's keeping that ERA low, I'll be happy.

• Guillermo Mota - 0-0 (4 games), 0.00 ERA (0 ER in 5.1 innings), 3 Ks - I don't want to take too much credit for this, but Guillermo Mota hasn't given up a run since I labeled him "COLD" three weeks ago (a week after called him "replaceable.") I'm going to go ahead and say that lit a fire under him. So, now the question becomes: What to do with him? I mean, I feel like we all know he has more than a couple bad outings left in that arm of his, and they are bound to show up sooner or later. But how do you get rid of a man who's pitched 9.1 scoreless innings in his last 8 games? I just hope when the inevitable melt-down occurs, it's not in a big game. Who knows, though? Maybe he's turned the corner... (Nah...)

• Jonathan Broxton - 1-0 (4 games), 2 saves, 0.00 ERA (0 ER in 4.0 innings), 1 hit, 8 Ks - Broxton just continues to be lights out. 8 of the 12 outs he got this week we're by strikeout. And guess how many of those were swinging? ...All 8. Broxton has nasty stuff, and he's figured out how to locate it. Hitters are in trouble.

• Andre Ethier - .370 (10-27), 3 2Bs, 3 HRs, 5 RBIs, 5 runs - How do you not label a man "HOT" who won two games in a row with walk-off hits? It's no secret to anyone that Ethier has struggled in the last month or so. But here's to hoping this week was a sign of good things to come. Ethier was significantly involved in three of the Dodgers' four wins this week. He's got some power going, he's hitting for high average, he's scoring runs. He was just doing things right this week. Please keep it up. Please.

Alright. Weird week coming up. Just five games? I'm going to need to find my sports fix elsewhere I guess.

Maybe in the loving arms of a basketball team heading for a championship? Sounds pretty good.

Don't Panic

Look, I don't mean to panic. We still have 37 wins, five more than any other team in the league.

But the other teams are gaining on us. And our play is starting to slow down.

Since the Angels series (May 22th-24th), we've only been playing slightly above .500 ball.

We're 8-6 over that span, and the only reason we're over .500 is because we swept the lowly Rockies.

Ultimately, there's some good and some bad.

The Bad: We can't win a series against the Angels and the Cubs, who've really been .500 teams the season. And this first game against the Phillies was unimpressive.

And this is mainly because the offense is prone to spans of not... doing... good.

We went 1-2, scoring only three runs in the first three games of the Cubs series.

We're 2-2 in our four games, with run totals of 2, 6, 1, 0. And that one run we scored in the 1-0 win against the Diamondbacks on Wednesday was kind of a gift run.


The Good: (and the reason not to panic) We're 5-1 against NL West teams in the last couple weeks (the aforementioned Rockies sweep, and a series win against the Diamondbacks).

And we still have an eight game lead on the second place Giants.


So, we're not playing great, but it's not the worst news in the world.

But in case you're still not happy, just remember this. Manny is only about a month away from returning.

Week Recap: 05/18/09 - 05/31/09

...and we're back. Took a week off there, but I'm back now and ready to jump into a good old recap.

To start, we swept the Mets in a three game series in Dodger Stadium, and followed that excellent series by losing two out of three to the Angels.

The Dodgers then went into Colorado and swept a three game set there before going into Chicago, where they split a four game weekend series.

The Dodgers went 10-4 over the two weeks.

And with that, let's do Round 7 of HOT, COLD, or ROOM TEMPERATURE:

COLD:

• Jeff Weaver - 0-0 (3 games, 2 starts), 6.23 ERA (6 earned runs in 8.2 innings) - How did Jeff Weaver respond to losing his spot in the rotation? Badly. 1.1 innings, 2 earned runs. 2.1 innings, 3 earned runs. The ERA is rising. Not good.

• Andre Ethier - .189 (7-37), 3 2Bs, 1 RBI, 4 BBs, 6 Ks - The slump continues. One RBI in two weeks isn't good. Here's the good news, Manny's suspension is almost half-way through.

ROOM TEMPERATURE:

• Russell Martin - .250 (12-48), 3 2Bs, 5 RBIs, 5 BBs, 7 Ks, 2 SBs - Martin was showing some signs of life for a little bit, but he's gone back average-ness. Oddly enough, he's still probably in the top 5 catchers in the National League.

• Rafael Furcal - .294 (10-34), 2 2Bs, 1 RBI, 3 runs, 5 BBs, 4 Ks - He's hitting a little better, but he's still hovering around .250 for the season. His OPS on the season is .613, not pretty.

HOT:

• Ronald Belisario - 0-0 (7 games), 1.04 ERA (1 earned run in 8.2 innings) - Belisario had a pretty good week, but what I like to do is give people credit when they've been consistently good all year. Belisario has been a workhorse in the pen, and a quality workhorse at that. Here's to hoping he keeps it up.

• James Loney - .333 (18-54), 4 2Bs, 11 RBIs, 7 runs, 2 SBs - Loney has really been knocking them in these last few weeks, without the use of the homerun. That means he's coming through a lot when given the opportunity. And that's good for us.

• Matt Kemp - .360 (18-50), 2 HRs, 5 RBIs, 8 runs, 4 SBs - Kemp flashed a little power this last series with the Cubs. He's definitely got the potential to hit a ton of homerun, but his patience needs a little work. His over-agression at the plate does cost him a little (10 Ks in 50 at-bats).

• Juan Pierre - .316 (18-57), 10 runs, 2 2Bs, 2 3Bs, 8 RBIs, 3-4 SBs - Pierre is not playing out of this world like he has been (He's 1 for his last 13) but he's still contributing with a nice mix of RBIs and runs scored.

• Casey Blake - .389 (14-36), 5 2Bs, 1 HR, 10 RBIs, 6 runs, 5 walks - Blake has had some hamstring issues the last week or so, so he has missed a few games, but in the time he has played, he's made an impact.

• Randy Wolf - 1-0 (3 starts), 3.00 ERA (7 earned runs in 21.0 innings), 13 Ks - Wolf hasn't had his best stretch these last couple weeks, but this "HOT" is awarded in part for his week, but more for the year. When we got Wolf, I was just expecting him to be a nice number four starter, but he's really turned into a solid number two guy behind Billingsley. His 3-1 record doesn't nearly reflect how good he's really been.

Alrighty then, Dodgers are back home for a 9 game homestand. First game is tonight against the D-Backs.

I'm feeling good about this.