NOT IN OUR HOUSE...

Barry Bonds came into town looking to make history. So far he's 0 for 2. I was there sitting in the loge level, looking on as the Dodgers beat the San Francisco Miniatures. The sad thing was that to some people the fact that we won was an afterthought. But I guess that's what we get with so many trendy Dodger fans. Barry stepped up the plate tonight and went 0 for 3, with a walk. I almost thougth that Barry had hit number 755 in his first at bat. I literally threw my Dodger Dog as I saw the ball leave his bat. But, to the joy of most of the people at the game, it was not to be. Surprisingly Mark Hendrickson pitched decently, although he did not get the win. He went 6 plus innings, giving up only 3 runs. But, despite his good pitching performance, going into the bottom of the 8th the Dodgers trailed 4-2. Seeing how the Dodgers offense underperformed last night, things did not look good. But, the Dodgers managed to tie the game at 4 with a clutch hit by Luis Gonzalez. Nomar then comes up and hits a big shot into the left field pavilion. How bout' that? I can only hope that Nomar has found his power stroke, and carries the offense for a bit. Maybe he found his Poncho. I just hope he keeps it going.

The trade deadline came, and went. Wilson Betemit was traded to the New York Yankees for the rubber arm Scott Proctor. On paper the move makes sense. It gives the Dodgers another arm in the pen, but why would the pitching starved Yankees give up one of their best arms in the pen? It all points to injury. Hopefully I'm wrong, and Proctor goes out and fortifies the pen. Also, Wilson Betemit is gone!!!

D'BACKS 60 49 -

DODGERS 58 49 1.O

PADRES 56 50 2.5

ROCKIES 54 52 4.5

GIANTS 46 59 12.O

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CHANGES?...

It's loud, and clear. The Dodgers need pitching help. The Irony is that coming into the season, that was the strength of the ballclub. But, with injuries to Jason Schmidt, Hong-Chih Kuo, Yhency Brazoban, Randy Wolf, and Chin-Hui Tsao, the Dodgers have been forced to trot out guys like Eric Hull, D.J. Houlton, Eric Stultz, and Ramon Hernandez. You don't win Championships when your relying on these type of players. Not to mention the fact that Bret Tomko, and Mark Hendrickson are back in the starting rotation, and Brad Penny, and Derek Lowe have had an injury scare recently. It's obvious that they need help, but it's not obvious on where they are going to get it. Right now, we hear that the Dodgers are in the running for Octavio Dotel, Scott Proctor, and I even heard that they are looking at bringing in Troy Percival. All of these names don't do anything for me. I guess they might help solidify the bullpen, but they still need help. They need a starting pitcher. The guys out there are either going to cost the farm, or are just awful. I read a rumor that Ned Colletti is talking to the Oakland A's about bringing Joe Blanton to Los Angeles. I like the idea, but Billy Beane is asking for Andy LaRoche, Tony Abreu, Chin-Lung Hu, and John Meloan. This is outrageous. If this move winds up being made, I'm turning in my Dodger fan badge. We will have to wait and see what happens. I'm just hoping Wilson Betemit gets traded.


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SO FAR, SO GOOD...

We have reached the half way mark in the 2007 season. At this point, I'm semi pleased with the play of the team. The Dodgers sit at second place behind the San Diego Padres by one game. There have been many positives to talk about this Dodger team. One huge positive has been Brad Penny. Penny has gone 10-1, and has kept his ERA in the low 2's all season long. Although I'm still not sold on Penny, he is showing that this is a different Brad Penny. One who is relying more on his defense, rather than trying to strike every batter out. Hopefully the old Penny does not show up. If he continues, I see no reason why he can't win the Cy Young Award.

You can't talk Dodger positives without mentioning Russell Martin. The "speed limit" has simply been amazing. He has been the driving force behind the Dodgers offense. I am concerned with the amount of games played that Grady Little has ran him out there. I really don't want Russell to wear out like Captain Red Ass himself (Paul Lo Duca) used to every second half.

As for disappointments, how about Jason Schmidt. The supposed Ace on the staff only made it out to the mound five times. Nice investment. I wont dwell on Schmidt too much, I don't want to go into a heavy depression. Other disappointments include Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent, and the black hole at third base. If Nomar, and Kent could only step up their game, this team will take off. But, at this point that's a big if.

Lets pick it up in the second half. We open up at San Francisco on Friday. Hopefully the boys are ready to play.


BELIEVE IN BLUE!

BOYS OF SUMMER...

I have not posted in a while, about two weeks. This being due to the fact that Verizon Internet sucks! Get it together man!.... As for Dodger news, On Saturday the Dodgers, and Tampa Bay Devil Rays Celebrated the "Boys of Summer". Duke Snider, Carl Erskine, and Don Zimmer where among the players honored. To celebrate the Brooklyn Boys, the Devil Rays, and Dodgers wore throw-back unis. Frankly, I have never seen a worst sight than Olmedo Saenz in his throwback uni. Something was just off. But that's beside the point. The reason I bring up the Boys of Summer is because HBO made a Documentary about them. The movies is entitled Brooklyn Dodgers: The Ghost of Flatblush. I am counting down the days until I am able to watch it. Anyway, that's about it for today. I am using a borrowed Laptop to post this, and I can already see the borrower giving me the look for using it to long...


BELIEVE IN BLUE!

JUST WHAT THE DR. ORDERED...

The Dodgers entered tonight's game needing a big time performance, and that's exactly what they got from Jason Schmidt. Jason showed us why he's worth the Forty-Seven million dollars he got in the off season to be the staff ace. Although his velocity was still something left to be desired. Schmidt went six strong innings, and held the San Diego Padres at bay for the entire night. Despite the strong outing, I'm still not sold on him. His shoulder history is scary to say the least, and of course he's 34 years old. Hopefully Schmidt will keep it going for the rest of the season.

As for another problem I have, why is Chad Billingsley not in the rotation? Get him in there Grady!
I'll leave it off early today. As for future posts, I think there will be a drought on them. Sorry fellas...


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SOMETHING MISSING?...

At this point, it's just sad. That's how I feel when I see Nomar Garciparra come up to bat. He looks lost, confused, and beaten at the plate. Nomar came into the game tonight with ONE home run! this was supposed to be our three hitter. I have been thinking about this all season long, and trying to come up with a conclusion on Nomar's power drought. My best answer: he's done. It pains me to say it, but it's true. He seems to have lost the sweet swing that brought him two hitting titles. Unless Nomar can somehow find or solve whatever might be wrong with him, the Dodgers need to move him. Nomar who is now being played at third base might be better suited to come off the bench as a super utility type player in the Tony Phillips mold. But, he can no longer be an everyday player. I recently saw We Still Believe: The Boston Redsox Movie, this is a documentary done about the 2003 Redsox. Nomar of course, was a main player during that season. To look at him killing the ball, playing with confidence, and scarring the hell out of the pitchers... made me long for that Nomar. It's just sad how low a player can fall..


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COME WITH SOMETHING BETTER...

The ninth inning had been something of a spiritual, and emotional tradition at Dodger Stadium for the past four years. This was because Eric Gagne was "entering the jungle". Countless times, Eric strolled out from the bullpen onto the mound while electrifying the crowd. Eric would then go on and thoroughly embarrass the opposition. As for this year, Takashi Saito has been mowing down hitters a-la Gagne. He is about to make his first All-Star game, but still... something is missing. That my friends is a decent entrance song. Saito has been coming into games while "Bad to the bone" plays on the stadium speakers. The song is simply dread full. Get with the times, and pick something better. I get no rush of emotions when I see Takashi stroll in. I do have some suggestions. The first being "Empire" by Kasabian. If you listen to the song, you know what I mean. My second choice is "Hang me up to dry" by Cold War Kids. Simply awesome tune. At this point I'm willing to take a cheesy 80's Hair metal song.

BELIEVE IN BLUE!