LADodgerTalk.com – Matt Kemp, Clayton Kershaw, Vin Scully, Andre Ethier and the Dodgers

Whether tis nobler to sit pat and hope that Bills and Blanton can flash the necessary form to win or whether to pull the trigger and give up the prospects Philly is demanding.  We should know today.  Stay tuned… I think last night’s lineup is the best Donnie can do.  I like that lineup a [...]

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The season started yesterday as Mark pointed out and so far we are 1-0.  The bats are back! If Cliff Lee were to join this team, would he be our #3 behind the rejuvenated Chad Billingsley?  Fear the beard has an entirely new meaning. You can make the argument that Cliff Lee is one of [...]

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The Dodgers have played 106 games and have won exactly 56 of those games.  That means there are exactly 56 more games in the season.  If the Dodgers go .500 the rest of the way, they will win 84 games.  That’s not enough.  They need to win at least 5 or 6 more than that [...]

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There isn’t much to rave about, so please excuse me while I rant. The Dodgers looked like Champs against the Giants and Chumps against the D-Backs. Paul Goldschmidt’s body block of Jerry Hairston, Jr. in the 8th inning of yesterday’s game should be reviewed.  I agree with Hairston that the runner at 1B should have [...]

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The Good As the trade deadline has come to a close, I think that we are all in agreement that our offensive line-up has been significantly upgraded with the additions of Hanley Ramirez and Shane Victorino.  Some think we paid to steep of a price for Victorino and we might have; only time will tell.  [...]

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It was in 2004, that I first really noticed Andy LaRoche.  He was a 20 year-old third baseman who ended up with 23 HR and 76 RBI in A ball.  The next season, he hit 30 HR with 94 RBI and had a slash line of .305/.374/.553.  He had amazing opposite-field power – I said [...]

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Not only did Hanley put the dogs up in the bottom of the 10th on a bomb to left center field, he prevented me from having a heart attack.  “Hanley has lost his mojo”….yaaaa, ok!!!!  He was bored in Miami!  This kid can play.  Clutch hit in clutch times! This game could have easily gone [...]

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Hey there everyone!   Mark has granted me the privilege to post on my personal favorite Dodger blog, so I will try to do my best to keep the blue conversation going.  Most of you probably know me as “the truth hurts” or years ago when I would post under the name “LAdodgerdave”.  My real [...]

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The Dodgers have a penchant for trading for guys with bad attitudes named Ramirez and parlaying that into some sort of “mania.”   Is LA ready for “HanleyMania?”  On May 5, 2102, I wrote this: I know the Dodgers would love to have David Wright.  He may never hit over 20 HR again, but he’s [...]

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Ted Lilly appears to be on track to return late this month or early August. RDLR will be back in the bullpen in September.  The Dodgers will use him judiciously, but he will be back and he should be back.  It will be good for his 2013.  Let him pitch. Kemp and Ethier should be [...]

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The Dodgers Bench is in good hands with Rivera, Abreu, Hairston, Gwynn, Hererra and Cruz.  Great Bench!  Unfortuneately, most have been starters and therein lies the problem.  Note:  Adam Kennedy is not on the list, although he isn’t as bad as some may think. Catcher – The Dodgers need for AJ Ellis to just be [...]

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Junkyard Dogism – def. “The State of being a junkyard dog, that is an under-appreciated, plain and untalented species which on occasion can rise and bite someone in the ass.” Going into the last game before the All-Star Break, the Dodgers can still be in first place if they win or the Giants lose.   Who [...]

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Clayton’s WHIP is higher than it was last year at the All-Star Break, but his ERA is lower than it was at the same juncture last year.  However, if you have been watching Clayton Kershaw as long as I have been watching him, you know that something is wrong and I am going to give [...]

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Realistically, Dee Gordon is out for the year.  Oh, he’ll probably be back but with the amount of time he will miss due to surgery, it’s unlikely he will be much of  a factor.  What should the Dodgers do now?  Herrera is not an everyday Shortstop, neither is Hairston, Jr. and forget about IDJ2 – [...]

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Sometimes, you just need to get lucky and that is exactly what the Dodgers did last night. On-the-job-training is tough.  We went through it with Matt Kemp.  We  we’re tantalized in the beginning by Andre Ethier and watched his softness and moodiness and then watched him mature.  We have seen it with Clayton and many [...]

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Two weeks ago, these Dodgers were playing out the dream and were junkyard Dogs – getting a key hit here and there, out-pitching the other team, coming from behind, scraping and hustling and never giving up.  What a different a few days make.  They are no longer fierce junkyard dogs, but are now Humiliated Chihuahuas, [...]

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Yoenis Cespedes and Jorge Soler were both rated as better players than Yasiel Puig, but they got a lot less money than the Dodgers are giving Puig.  Is he worth it?  Do the Dodgers know something others don’t?  I certainly don’t know.  There’s not a lot of information and scouting reports on him.  Ben Badler [...]

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are averaging 1.5 runs per game over the past 10 games.  Predictably, they are losing most games.  Flash: Ned Colletti says the Dodgers need more pitching.  In those past 10 games, the Dodgers are giving up 3.9 runs a game.  Now, unless the  pitchers the Dodgers get can pitch and hit [...]

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Honestly, this is no time to panic, but I do feel that Kevin Youkilis could have give the Dodgers a shot in the arm.  He’s younger than Pujols and is finally healthy after two unhealthy years.  Just like Pujols hitting .190 was not going to last, Youk is not going to keep hitting .225. (actually [...]

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Walter Alston may have coined the phrase “Punch and Judy.” For sure, the Dodgers have too many “Punch and Judy” hitters, but the biggest is James Loney. In fact, from here on, weak hitters are now called “Punch and Loney Hitters.” I am resorting to insulting James Loney, hoping that will make him mad because [...]

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