Just a laundry list of a few things I expect to see this year:

• A healthy Rafael Furcal who is 100% physically and (most importantly) mentally (it takes a while to recover mentally from a surgery) regains his form and is again one of the elite short stops in baseball.  This alone makes a huge difference for the team.
• Blake DeWitt wins the 2B job and hits 18 HR’s silencing his critics, while playing a good 2B.  (Make No Mistake – the Dodgers want DeWitt to be the 2B).
• Reed Johnson and Jamey Carroll (who have been much maligned) become two important components of the team (THESE GUYS ARE BALLPLAYERS) and contribute mightily.
• Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw become Co-Aces.  Bills is in the best shape I’ve seen him.
• James Loney will hit for more power, as will Russ Martin – I can’t tell you what they will do, but I expect better results.
• George Sherrill will not do well this year – I would love to see the Dodgers trade him.  I can see an ERA of over 4.00.   Pull the trigger, Ned!  Just do it!
• There WILL BE a significant trade this Spring involving the Dodgers.
• Brian Giles will retire by next weekend.
• Ronnie Belliard will be insignificant and ultimately be released.
• Who will step up – Hu?
• Opening Day Lineup:

1. Furcal  SS
2. Kemp  CF
3. Ethier  RF
4. Ramirez  LF
5. Loney 1B
6. Blake  3B
7. DeWitt 2B
8. Martin  C
9. Kershaw  P

Televised Game Today at 12:05 PDT or 3:05 EDT

By actual count, the Dodgers have 32 pitchers in Spring Training Camp who are vying for 12 spots.  I cannot see any way that Joe Torre decides to go with 13 pitchers.  With the off days and all, I think he will break camp with 12 pitchers.  That means that 20 have to go.

There are 11 Non-Roster invitees:

Also on the 40 man roster are McDonald, Link. Zerpa, Wade, Schlichting, Leach and Elbert as players who have a shot at making the team.

The way I see it, unless Stults and/or Haeger really mess up or get traded or go on the DL, they will both make the team.  That would make 11 pitchers.

Monasterios has a shot unless the Dodgers want to lose him (I have never seen him pitch, so I have no clue).  Then there’s Wade (remember how good he was in 2008?), Weaver (great swingman), Miller (solid), Gagne (no way?  way!) and McDonald and Lindblom (the future, who could all go to AAA).

The Dodgers have plethora of arms.  Who will win the arms race?

It should prove to be interesting.

DODGERS TALK:

• According to Steve Dilbeck of THE LA TIMES, the Dodgers are steamed about Ronald Beliasrio.  Sometimes things like this end badly for a player:

“I think it’s a problem now.  The pitchers need all this time. Of course, he did play winter ball. But I can’t really tell you [his condition]  until I see him.”

• Dylan Hernandez and Bill Shaikin report that Garrett Anderson is a Dodger.  This should prove to be interesting as Mientkiewicz, Giles and Anderson compete for one spot.
• Jay Jaffe of Baseball Prospectus writes on ESPN/LA’s Pay Blog that Clayton Kershaw’s new Slider Makes Him a Cy Young Candidate (Thanks to Jon Weisman)
•  Tony Jacksonreports that Ned Colletti is not happy with Belisario either.  I am beginning to think the guy is a knucklehead!  Tony also reported this:

 The situation ultimately could cost Belisario a considerable amount of money, as well. He has only one year of big-league service time, meaning he will have a split contract with a major-league salary of no more than about $415,000 this season, and he won’t even get that much if he is in the minors.There also is a provision, known as Regulation 6, in the current Basic Agreement between owners and the players’ union that would allow the Dodgers to suspend Belisario without pay and require him to stay behind in extended spring training when the team breaks camp if he doesn’t report at least 33 days before the start of the season.The Dodgers’ season opener is April 5 at Pittsburgh, meaning Belisario already has missed that deadline and the Dodgers already have that option.”In the event of the failure of the Player to report for practice or to participate in the exhibition games, as required or provided for,” the regulation reads, “he shall be required to get into playing condition to the satisfaction of the Club’s team manager, and at the Player’s own expense, before his salary shall commence.”The phrase “to the satisfaction of the Club’s team manager” means the length of such a suspension would be entirely at the Dodgers’ discretion.

Our 2010 Starting Rotation

Well, if you ask me… and you didn’t (but I’m going to tell you anyway), it’s Young Clayton.  Maybe it’s a rush job, but maybe it’s not.  Maybe he’s ready.  Not “maybe” – he ISready!   I think it’s likely that Clayton Kershaw will be even better this year.  His ERA might not reflect that, but he will pitch deeper into games and flirt with 20 wins this year.  After Clayton, will come Chad Billingsley, followedby Hiroki Kuroda and Vicente Padilla, with the 5th Spot being Eric Stults to lose.

Unless Charlie Haeger is a disaster during the spring, he will battle Jeff Weaver for the “swingman” spot in the pen.  The rest of the bullpen is less clear.  We do know that Jon Broxton, George Sherrill, Ramon Troncoso, Hong chih Kuo and James McDonald will probably all make the team barring injury.  I just can’t see Weaver and Haeger both making the team, as they are competing for the same position, but if it comes down to it, they will keep Charlie and send Jeff to AAA (at least for a few weeks under the guise of building arm strength).

That leaves a lot of pitchers up for grabs, including Ronnie Belisario, whom Joe Torre may want to demote for a while after his Visa problems two years in a row.   We also have Cory Wade, who could flat-out make the team out of Spring training, and Carlos Monasterios (who could be bought or have another player sent to his former team, and demoted).  Lindblom, Zerpa, Miller, Towers and Elbert all seem slated for AAA.

While it would be a “feel good” story and great if it happened, the odds are against Eric Gagne making the team.  Would he accept an assignment to AAA?  Maybe for a few weeks, but hey, this is Spring – anything can happen.

Let’s not forget, however, that there is always a pitching surprise.  Belisario was the big one last year.  Who will it be this year?

Rants & Raves

• I keep thinking about it and I can’t see Brian Giles or Doug Mientkiewicz making the team, especially if Xavier Paul has a rousing Spring
• Ronnie Belliard has to weigh below 210 pounds tomorrow – if he doesn’t, is he off the team.  At any rate, I don’t see him as a starter.  He’s a role-player (like last year).
• Russ Martin will be the All-Star Catcher in the NL this year – Write that down!
• Oh, and in case you don’t understand – I still say Clayton Kershaw will be our Opening Day Starter.

The Dodger roster is finally coming together and now the discussions are changing from where is the rest of the team to why did they sign these slugs.  For the 2010 season the Dodger management, more than ever, must attempt to simultaneously win the NL West, delay the major league start dates of the future prospects (and their higher salaries), and have a fresh batch of players ready to graduate from the minors to the majors in case any of the players on the 25 man roster go on the DL for any significant length of time.  This is no small task to simultaneously accomplish these, and possibly other, partially contradictory objectives.

Most of us are of the opinion that the Dodger management is behaving as if without trading a player like Sherrill, the Dodgers do not have the budget, or the prospects, to go out and find replacements during the 2010 season.  Supporting this view is the Dodgers stockpiling of veterans on the 25 man bench, has beens in AAA, and prospects in AAA and AA.

In my opinion this is the correct approach for the 2010 season.  One factor is the increasing salary of the Dodger’s young stars.  Even with Manny, Kuroda, Padilla, and a few others probably not coming back for 2011 or 2012, the Dodger projected player salaries for those two future years is already more than $80 mil. With a 2011 team salary of $85 mil that is missing at least 2 starter pitchers, 1-2 position players, and several bench players, I conclude that the Dodger’s organizational Budget and Payroll is going to be a major issue for several years. 

Therefore, the Dodgers can no longer afford to sign multiple free agents.  Now they must develop the young players.  This approach may cause consternation among those of us that hope for a World Series title this decade. The current economic reality is the new reality and I for one will not be an ostrich and pretend otherwise.  (I am not a Politician) Maybe we can hope for another season with players who play most of the season in the zone like 1988.  Who will rise to the top this year?  Will the Coaches allow the players to pace themselves in 2010?  Will the pitchers learn how to trust their stuff, use the same correct pitching motion more than 50 percent of the time, and will the starters be forced to maintain a level of endurance that is necessary for them to actually make more than 90 pitches in a game?

Considering the Dodger’s unfunded future payroll obligations I am content with the following pitching plan for 2010:

Starting Pitching

1. Billingsley
2. Kershaw
3. Kuroda
4. Padilla
5. Stults

Long Relief

1. Weaver (Add to 40-man roster at the end of spring training)
   1. Heager
   2. Monasterios or Zerpa (Waive one of them at the end of spring training)

Short Relief

1. Broxton
2. Sherrill  (Candidate for a Trade)
3. Belisario
4. Kuo

Starters building innings at AAA or AA for 2011 rotation opportunity

1. McDonald
2. Lindblum
3. Troncoso
4. Elbert
5. Link

Starting Pitching alternatives in case of a starter going on the 15 day DL

1. McDonald
2. Troncoso
3. Elbert
4. Link

Starting Pitching additional alternatives in case of a starter going on the 60 day DL

1. Josh Lindblum
2. Russ Ortiz
3. Ramon Ortiz
4. Alberto Bastardo

Relievers building experience for 2011 bullpen opportunity

1. Wade
2. Schlitling
3. Leach
4. Jensen
5. Guerra

Reliever alternatives in case of a reliever going on the 15 day DL

1. Wade
2. Schlitling
3. Leach
4. Jensen
5. Guerra

Reliever additional alternatives in case of a reliever going on the 60 day DL

1. Justin Miller
2. Luis Ayala
3. Francisco Felix
4. Josh Towers

After the addition of Vicente “Gunsmoke” Padilla, Ned Colletti said that it was unlikely that the Dodgers would sign another starter.   Why would they want another starter?  If they can’t get a 5th starter from this list, then they should just quit:  Charlie Haeger, Scott Elbert, Eric Stults and Carlos Monasterios.  I won’t stoop to including Russ Ortiz in that list, although I imagine he’s got a real long-shot at it.   I think it will boil down to Stults and Haeger, but you never know what can happen in the Spring.

What are the odds that Padilla has a better year than Wolf?  Pretty good, I predict!  Padilla has every reason in the world to act right, train hard, pitch good and step up.  If he wins 12-15 games with a sub 4.00 ERA, he’ll be in line for a bigger payoff next year.  It is in situtaions such as this that starters like Padilla can put up their “career year.”

It appears to me that James McDonald is going to pitch out of the pen this year.  I thought that there might be chance that Troncoso would be given a shot at starting, but with the wave of youngsters we have at A headed to AA and beyond (Withrow, Martin, Miller, Eovaldi, Gould and others), McDonald, Troncoso and even Lindblom could be slotted as relievers. 

George Sherrill is still a candidate to be moved – probably in the Summer when someone needs a closer. 

As for me, I’m rooting for Eric Stults.  Indiana Boys have to stick together.

At the age of 24 J.A. Happ of the Phillies was in AAA where he complied a 4-6 record with a 5.02 ERA.  At the age of 25, also in AAA, he improved to 8-7 with a 3.60 ERA, and also had a “cup of coffee” with the Phillies where he went 1-0 with a 3.69 ERA in 31 innings.   However at age 26, he had his “breakout year” and went 12-4 with a 2.93 ERA while pitching more innings that he ever had (166).  

I point this out because 2009 was Happ’s 6th season in the Phillie system.   2010 will be Scott Elbert’s 7th season,  Eric Stults’ 9th, James McDonald’s 6th (as a pitcher), Charlie Haeger’s 9th professional season, and Carlos Monasterios’ 5th pro season.  It’s not foolish or wishful thinking to believe that one, maybe two of these guys could step up and fill a rotation spot.  I’m sure that the Dodgers would rather not COUNT on this, but the fact of the matter is that one of those pitchers could easily step up and make it happen. 

I would guess that Charlie Haeger would be the top candidate for the 5th spot, but who can deny James McDonald’s outstanding stuff?  It could be his time to” go J.A. Happ!”  This is what makes baseball so much fun – just when you think you have it figured out, YOU DON’T!  These kids just have a way of stepping up when you least expect it.

I am going to go one step further and say that I still believe there could be a three or four-way trade involving Russ Martin, Jon Broxton, George Sherrill and prospects, which would net us a Top Starter.  If his market stays suppressed, the Dodgers could then sign Molina to a two-year deal.

Around the League:

• The Giants got the LH power bat they were seeking by signing Aubrey Huff (be still my heart).  He is capable of having a very good year now and again, but he’s a journeyman…
• The Reds allegedly have signed Aroldis Chapman.  Hummmmm…

• It’s still about 14 degrees out – who was the genius who picked Indy for the Winter Meetings?  I’ll bet he’s fired!
  

  De Jon Watson

• We are editing the Logan White/De Jon Watson interview – I hope to have it up tomorrow.
• Hey, how come nobody says anything when the Dodgers have 2 other teams pick Rule 5 players for them and then the Dodgers purchase them for cash, but the Dodgers are unwilling to pay Hoffman?
• The last time the Yanks took a Rule 5 from us it was Bubba Crosby and they kept him all season. Maybe they will keep Hoffman, but I doubt it – he’ll be back!
• The Dodgers were blasted for trading Steve Johnson and Josh Bell to the Orioles for Georgous George Cheryl (Sherrill), but the O’s thought so little of Johnson they didn’t protect him in Rule 5 and the Giants took him.  Go figure!

I am not going to mention any names (Gammons, Rosethal, Stark, Heyman, Morosi, et al), but I am convinced that some (most or all) of these guys sniff around all their contacts every day and when they hear “Well, we have some interest in so-and-so,” they conclude it’s a done deal.  Most of the rumors the above Alleged “insiders” propound are rubbish.  They have a “feel” for what might, could, will happen and they just extrapolate that into more fact than fiction.  RUBBISH!  Journalists?  More like “National Enquirer Shock Journalists.”  I have seen and heard enough to smell doo-doo when I see (hear) it.  That’s why I typically to refuse to publish such drivel.

Now, I have told you for months that the White Sox would be a good destination for Juan Pierre.  That rumor is flying around the Winter Meetings, but it’s old news.  Even Ray Charles can see the ChiSox would be a good match for Juan, but will the Chi-Sox give up a pitcher for him.  Who could that be?  I don’t have a clue…

Ken Gurnick  (of www.Dodgers.com, who is a great guy by the way) writes that Ned Colletti says that the Dodgers are not shopping Sherrill and that the payroll will not likely go down (this is a good read -I have highlighted important stuff):

INDIANAPOLIS — Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti on Monday disputed reports that he’s shopping reliever George Sherrill at the Winter Meetings and said the Dodgers’ planned payroll for 2010 hasn’t dropped from 2009.

“We’re not shopping anybody,” Colletti said. “I think George Sherrill pitched great for us. He gives us the same component he gave us last year, somebody who can close, can pitch late in the game. He’s a left-handed compliment to the right-handed [Jonathan] Broxton.”

Reports earlier in the day had baseball officials claiming the Dodgers were redirecting other clubs toward Sherrill, who is likely to receive a salary around $4 million through the arbitration process.

Responding to speculation that the divorce of owner Frank McCourt was having a financial impact on player decisions, Colletti said each year’s payroll is impacted by many economic factors. The Dodgers’ payroll last season was around $100 million.

“We’ve got a general idea,” he said of a working 2010 payroll. “This year or 20 years ago in my career, a lot of it depends on how winter unfolds with revenue and different things. You see good signs, it goes up. You don’t see good signs, it probably doesn’t go up. It also depends on the players we’re talking about.”

Asked if next year’s payroll could go down from this year’s, he said: “Not at the moment.”

As for Sherrill, Colletti said the bullpen was one of the team’s strengths in ‘09, and he’d prefer to keep it that way rather than deal from that strength.

“[Dealing Sherrill] would be a rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul type of decision,” he said.

Colletti said there are young relievers in the farm system, but that the club plans to have Scott Elbert and Josh Lindblom open the 2010 season as starters, with James McDonald a possibility for either.

“From time to time, we put starters in the bullpen to help us on the Major League level, but you can’t always rush them,” he said. “You have to have the patience to develop them into starters. We’ll try to maintain patience with Elbert and Lindblom and develop them into starters. Will it work? I can’t tell you that. But the first week of December, that’s what we’re thinking.”

Colletti said he remains focused on adding one or two starting pitchers, a second baseman as security if Blake DeWitt doesn’t pan out and rebuild the bench.

He said the only free agent from last year’s roster that he’s talked to is Brad Ausmus, who hasn’t decided if he will retire. Colletti is interested in bringing back Ausmus as Russell Martin’s backup. He said pitcher Eric Milton, whose season ended with back surgery, would not return. The Dodgers also are in no hurry to sign any free agents coming off a significant injury, but that could change later in the winter.

And Colletti said he’s not alone in taking a patient approach to free agency. He said the players are too, based on what he’s heard from their agents so far.

“They’re not showing me their cards,” he said. “From what I’ve been seeing, it makes [a free-agent signing this week] unlikely.”

Colletti said he spoke to outfielder Juan Pierre (owed $18.5 million for the next two years) about his future. He said Pierre had softened his desire for a trade from a year earlier and told him he would be open to moving him to a team where he would play every day — and likely bring a starting pitcher in return.

“I think he’s in a better place in his own mind about his role and we’ll see what happens,” Colletti said. “He’s someone we’d talk about in the right situation for us and him.”

Also, Gurnick reports that the Dodgers are talking about extending  Joe Torre to manage through 2011 and the presumably take over for Tommy in 2012 (the Big Dodger in the Sky will get him sooner or later).  Interesting….

It was funny to watch Tommy and Ozzie Guillen interacting today….  Two drama Queens!

Maybe some deals tomorrow… or maybe not!

I have been at the hotel for a couple of hours and this I know:

1. Several teams are trying to get Juan Pierre, but they are wanting the Dodgers to pick us a substantial portion of his contract.  That won’t happen.  If the Dodgers have to pay to get rid of him, they will keep him.
2. The Dodgers are entertaining offers for Pierre and George Sherrill (who could make a combined $14 million in 2010) and would be willing to take on another bad contract.  Aaron Harang makes $12.5 mil this year with a $2 mil buyout next year.  Pierre is set to make $8.5 million in 2011, which isn’t as bad as $10 mil this year.  The Reds clearly won’t take on this kind of payroll, so it would take a 3rd team to get involved.  Stay tuned!
3. There Dodgers payroll will not be over $90 million next year as they are “cash poor.”  It may be less!
4. Eric Stults will be sold to Japan (what will he bring?).
5. The Winter meetings are just what I thought – a bunch of old baseball guys standing around lying to each other.  It is funny.
6. The rumor involving the Tigers and Cabrera is fiction – the Dodgers have no interest in Cabrera, and Dee Gordon is at least 18 months away!
7. Josh Lindblom is COVETED by lots of teams!  This guy will be a stud!  You have heard that from me for a while…
8. Congratulations to Doug Harvery and Whitey Herzog for their election to the HOF.
9. You know, if Frank McCourt would just come out and say “I’m sorry, but we are going through some tough times and I have have to keep payroll down this year“, I would be fine – JUST TELL US THE WAY IT IS!  NO SPIN, FRANK!
10. Peter Gammons says “HI.”

• I think that Frank and Jamie McCourt need to learn that hate is not the opposite of love, because right about now they are loving to hate each other.   When you get to
  

  His Game IS Over...

  apathy,  then you are at the opposite of love.  Look, I don’t know who did what to whom… and I don’t care.  Move along.  Get on with your lives and quit acting like idiots.  It’s all very boring to most of us.

• Old friend Jonathan Figueora died at age 26 of lupus, according to Diamond Leung.  You just never know…
• Diamond Leung also reports that Eric Gagne wants to come back – maybe with the Dodgers and that he’d be open to a minor league deal.  Well, I’d sign him to that and it  sounds nice, but Game Over’s game is over!  Too bad!
• I don’t put much stock in the George Sherrill for Edwin Jackson rumor, although the Dodgers would do that in a second.  I can’t see the Tigers doing it straight up.  I’d trade James McDonald AND Sherrill for Jackson in a heartbeat!
• Ditto on the AJ Ellis for Alberto Callaspo.  Why would KC do that?  I doubt that AJ Ellis can hit .150 in the majors, and even I can run faster than him.
• Scout Mitch Webster left the Dodgers to become scouting director for the KC Royals.  Read the full story

The Dodgers have improved over 2008.   They won more games, but they still couldn’t get past the Phillies, and the Phillies will still be good next year.  I suspect that Raul Ibanez had his career year and will slip back to reality next year and the Phillies will have some holes to fill, just like the Dodgers.  Like the Dodgers, the Phillies have a former ace who needs to come back and I believe both will.  It would not surprise me to see either one win a Cy Young Award in the future, even as easly as next year.  I fully expect Hamels and Billingsley to both win 16-18 games next year.  Both pitchers have too much talent.

Manny will return as Manny, because he’s playingfor Manny,  and the Dodgers should benefit from his quest for a new contract, in what will certainly be his last year as a Dodger.  Look for Manny to hit .320+ with 35 HR and 130 RBI.  I look for more growth by Kemp and Ethier as both become perennialAll-Stars.   Russ Martin?  He’ll be back with a vengeance!  Count on it!    I do see two areas in which the Dodgers need to improve:  They need more power from 3B and 1B and they will get it from James Loney at 1B, who I believe will hit around 25 dingers.  He has shown he is capable.  3B is another issue.  Casey Blake had a better year than I expected, but he’s still a journeyman at best.   We need a big HR bat at 3B and will will get robbed if we try and trade or one.  Here’s what we do:  Sign Adrian Beltre!  Sign Adrian Beltre.   He loves LA and is a cinch to hit 30 for the Dodgers.  Yeah, I know you don’t believe me, but he will!    If you want to look at stats, then I’ll use the year he hit 48 HR as a stat!  He’s young enough that we can sign him to a 5 year deal.   That means we need to dump Blake, and we can do that in a deal for Roy Halliday. I purpose that we trade Jon Broxton, Casey Blake, James McDonald, Ethan Martin,  and Chris Withrow to Toronto for Roy Halliday (pay a lot, get a lot).  I am not a Blake hater, but we need to get younger and better at 3B! Read the full story

 This team is far from needing rebuilding, but any good team needs to ”retool” every year.  Last year, the Phillies won the World Series with Pat Burrell in LF.  They evidently decided

Must Be A Padre Fan...

 that he wasn’t the answer this year, so they signed a guy even older who ended up having his career year.   The Phillies may yet be sorry that they signed Raul Ibanez, but right about now, that move is looking pretty good.    They added Shane Victorino and Jason Werth in 2005 and 2007 as key pieces to the puzzle.  How did they get them?  No Big Blockbuster Deals, just incidental signings, which turned out to be pretty good.    I don’t think we need to rebuild – the core of the team is in place, but re-tool, we must!

I have taken the 40-Man Roster, plus some others who are technically not on it and divided them into three (3) groups:

1. Core players who we need to keep – in BLUE;
2. Players who we needs to keep under the right conditions – in BLACK; and
3. Players we need to try and lose, trade, release or not sign – in RED.

It’s not hard to see that our core is young and will get even better.  I have Jon Broxton on the BLUE list (even though I have serious doubts about him), because we don’t currently have better options (that too could change).  Now, I am not saying that I wouldn’t trade Broxton or some of the others, but it would have to be a trade that we would make from a point of strength.  Read the full story

Some people have said that you have to get Carpenter early or you don’t get him.  Not true – for the past three years, the league is hitting .305 against Carpenter after 61 pitches. The Dodgers need to be patient… and then NAIL Carpenter.  POUND him!  HAMMER him!  SAW him off!  SCREW him!  If that doesn’t work, then  try something else.

Question:  What do the Dodger Starters for the first three (3) Playoff Games all have in common?

Answer:  None of them (Wolf, Kershaw or Padilla) has ever started a playoff game.  Billingsley is slated for Game 4, unless he is used in relief which he will be.

It should be interesting!  Very interesting! Read the full story

1. If there was any doubt, it is painfully apparent that Chad Billingsly has deep-seated psychological problems.  Fear of
   

   Temporarily Impaired

   success can be just as paralyzing as fear of failure. Many people fear success because it tests their limits and makes them vulnerable to new situations. Even worse, success can expose weaknesses and force people to deal with their flaws.  Success is scary because it involves change. Success can be intimidating and hard to handle. With success comes more challenges and responsibilities – and that can be threatening.  Sometimes people fear success because they don’t know if they can live up to their achievements. They don’t think they’re good enough or smart enough. They’re afraid they don’t have what it takes to rise to the challenge, and they don’t know if they can sustain their success.And that’s where self-sabotaging behavior comes in.   Self-sabotaging behavior is an obvious “call for help.”  Was Chad traumatized as a child?  Does he have a complex that doesn’t allow him to achieve a degree of success?  What is it?  I haven’t a clue,but he gives up just one hit in hit stint and allows 3 runs with it.   It’s time to look at his “inner child.” I mean, the guy was absolutely dominant the first five innings.  Then, he walks 2 batters and blows the game. He sabotaged himself (subconsciously, of course).  Change his thinking and you have an ACE!  I am not saying this to be mean or disrespectful and I believe that Chad will overcome this.   He could actually do it pretty quickly, but he has to seek help.  Maybe he already is…  Again, I think he will overcome it and we will be none the wiser…

2. Stick a fork in O-Dog – Just like I predicted, he will not finish the season.  Nice guy.  He’s a fragile individual.  Now you know why Ned got Ronnie Belliard.   They say he’s not hurt – I don’t believe Read the full story

“We know we are a good team.”- Andre Ethier

Just shut up and do it!

“The one thing I found out about them, is every time they’ve been tested they’ve done all right.” – Joe Torre

“We’re just going through a bad stretch right now.”  – Russell Martin

“We’re all right.  We’ll come back tomorrow and have a better game.” – Matt Kemp

“We have more games to play.”- Ramon Troncoso

I DON’T WANT TO HEAR THE RHETORIC!  QUIT TALKING AND START CHALKING. 

If you are a good team, step-up and show it. 

If you are a bad or mediocre team, shut-up and go home, you bunch of losers. 

The time for talking is over.  Someone needs to pitch a shutout, someone needs to hit a 3-run homer.  Read the full story

I know that we are in the midst of a pennant race, but it always is important to look ahead, and plan ahead.  I have a few ideas as to how the team will look next year and I’m sure Ned has some of the same thoughts, but first:  Ronnie Belliard for Minor League pitcher Luis Garcia and another Minor Leaguer to be named later?  I don’t get it!  Belliard is essentially Mark Loretta.  Ned has lusted after him a a couple of years now and I still don’t get it.  Garcia isn’t really considered a prospect  and I still don’t get it.  Belliard isn’t a bad player, but he’s not a SS, and I still don’t get it.  No matter how I look at it, I still don’t get it, and then we have to lose someone from the 40-man roster and I really don’t get it!   Joe Torre said that Belliard will be used primarily to back up second baseman Orlando Hudson.   Now, I really, really don’t get it!

Did I mention that I don’t get it?  Maybe they just like the sound of “Belliard and Belisario.”  That sounds like Dewie, Cheatham and Howe.

OK, that is reality, now back to fantasy! Read the full story

It no secret that Jon Broxton has been my whipping boy lately, but it’s only because I think he can be so much better than he is.  In fact, we saw how good he could be in the 8th inning yesterday.  It was a smart move to bring Broxton in to face the heavy RH middle of the Cubs lineup in the 8th followed by George Sherrill in the 9th.  That strategy was sound in itself, but it also served as a message to Broxton that he could be replaced.  Now, I don’t think Joe is going to do that right now, but faced with the same situation, he’ll do it again in heartbeat, and I believe Broxton is the kind of guy you have to light a fire under from time-to-time.   I’ll not beat this horse, but let’s see if Joe’s strategy works long term.  This may well be the wake-up call Big Jon needs.

Big Bad Jon

Rants & Raves

• Charlie Haeger?  WOW!  He was aided by the high-humidity, but it’s humid lots of places.  He was awesome.  I pronounce him our 5th Starter, which leaves Padilla where, when Kuroda returns?
• What a blast by Kemp!  This guy will be scary good in another year!
• We need to find our bats!

Minor League Recap – 8/22/09 by Jared of  http://thinkbluela.blogspot.com/
Albuquerque won 8-4

Jamie Hoffman – 2 for 5, RBI, R, K (.296 BA)
Chin Lung Hu – 0 for 1 (.288 BA)

Vicente Padilla – 5 IP, 3 Hits, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K’s (3.60 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/nzk8fv
Chattanooga lost 7-1

Trayvon Robinson – 1 for 4, RBI, K (.167 BA) Read the full story

Choked Again!

Jon Broxton is a big, big man and has proven to be an excellent set up man, but I’ll just get right to the point:  Jon Broxton is not a very good closer.  Case in point was again last night.  Given a two run lead, Broxton coughed up back-to-back home runs and for the fifth time this year and  twenty-forth time in his career, he choked and blew the game.  Face it – he’s a guy with a good fastball who can set up, but he can’t close!   You are insane if you continue to do what you have always done and think the results will be different.  Joe Torre is insane when he says Broxton is still his closer.  George Sherrill may not possess a 100 MPH fastball, but in a new league, he a better closer, right here, right now.  How would you like to have the five wins that Broxton blew back right about now?  The Dodgers would be looking pretty good with those 5 more wins.  We’d be looking at a 9-1/2 gme lead instead of a 4-1/2 game lead!

 Here’s the bottom line:  Jon Broxton has a career 65% save percentage and George Sherrill has an 81% save percentage (by contrast, Mario Rivera has a 92% save percentage).  If you continue with him as your closer,  the Dodgers will go home for the playoffs.  It’s your call, Joe!  We also have a guy at AAA (Josh Lindblom) who has the guts of a cat burglar and whom I believe was born to be a closer.  Jon Broxton has the guts of a purse snatcher!  Kensai at Memories of Kevin Maloneargues (very lucidly) that Broxton’s stats indicate he IS clutch.  All I can say is “Scoreboard”  – a 65% closing percentage is unacceptable!

DODGER NOTES:

• After getting hit above the right ear with a line drive in what was sickening to watch, it is amazing that Hiroki Kuroda is reported to be OK after spending the night in the hospital (he’s evidently a “hard head”);
• Charlie Haeger is allegedly going to get the start Monday (I said “allegedly”);
• It’s up to Randy Wolf to shut down the D-Backs today.  It would be good if Broxton didn’t pitch.

Minor League Recap – 8/15/09 Compliments of Jared at http://thinkbluela.blogspot.com/
Albuquerque won 4-2

Tony Abreu – 1 for 3, 2 BB, K (.347 BA)
Blake DeWitt – 1 for 5 (.254 BA)
Chin Lung Hu – 1 for 3, 2 RBI, CS, E (.283 BA)

Josh Lindblom – 2 IP, Hit, 0 R, BB, K (2.89 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/qy9mqf
Chattanooga played a double header

Game 1 – Chattanooga lost 2-0

Lucas May – 1 for 3, CS, E (.293 BA)
Andrew Lambo – 0 for 3 (.259 BA)

Chris Withrow – 5 IP, 6 Hits, ER, 0 BB, 4 K’s (4.72 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/oluxwo

Game 2 – Chattanooga lost 5-2

Andrew Lambo – 1 for 3 (.260 BA)

http://tinyurl.com/orzybz
Inland Empire won 8-1

Scott Van Slyke – 2 for 3, HR (21), 2 RBI, 2 R, 2 BB, E, OF Assist (.293 BA)
Steven Caseres – 1 for 4, HR (12), 2 RBI, 2 R, BB, K (.265 BA)
Preston Mattingly – 1 for 4 (.235 BA)

Tim Sexton – 7 IP, 6 Hits, R (0 ER), 2 BB, 3 K’s (3.17 ERA)
Kenley Jansen – 1 IP, 0 Hits, 0 R, 2 BB, K (9.00 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/rb4faw
Great Lakes won 7-5

Dee Gordon – 2 for 5, 2B, RBI, R (.303 BA)
Kyle Russell – 0 for 3, RBI, BB, 2 K’s (.269 BA)
Alfredo Silverio – 1 for 4, R, 2 K’s (.284 BA)
Jerry Sands – 1 for 3, RBI, R, BB (.237 BA)
Mario Songco – 1 for 4, 2B, R (.154 BA)

http://tinyurl.com/pny44a
Ogden lost 8-7

BCG – 2 for 5, RBI, R, 2 K’s (.341 BA)
JT Wise – 2 for 4, R, K (.283 BA)
Blake Smith – 1 for 4, RBI, 3 K’s (.210 BA)

http://tinyurl.com/qcg6pe
AZL lost 10-4

Jonathan Garcia – 1 for 4, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 K’s, 2 E’s (.284 BA)
Jan Vazquez – 2 for 4, 2B, R, K (.193 BA)

Amauri Guzman – 1.1 IP, 0 Hits, 0 R, BB, 2 K’s (2.61 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/p2yra2
Players of the Day – Chris Withrow, RHP and Tim Sexton, RHP

Both 2007 draft picks had disappointing 2008 seasons but have really turn things around this year. Each of them started the year back in High A Inland Empire after struggling to perform, be it due to poor production (Sexton) or lack of playing time (Withrow). Chris is now in Double A at the ripe old age of 20 and, after a rough debut, has allowed just 1 earned run in his last 10 innings. Sexton has been one of the best pitchers in the California league, placing 4th in the circuit in ERA. Both have established themselves as top pitchers in the Dodgers’ system and are only a year or two away from the major leagues.

It’s good that we have a nice lead, because we might stumble a little down the stretch, but did it ever occur to you, that with the extra days of rest in the playoffs,  this team is built for just such an occasion?  As it stands right now, Clayton Kershaw would probably start game #1 of a playoff series followed by Kuroda and Billingsley.  Randy Wolf would probably work out of the pen, where he is exceptionally tough on LH hitters.  We would drop the 5th starter and have a pen of Kuo, McDonald, Troncoso, Belisario, Mota, Sherrill and Broxton (Wade, Weaver and Elbert would also be options if anyone was hurt).  In the playoffs, it becomes a different game.  The pen can be used much more because of the additional rest days.  Now, if we can just get to the finish line without having any arms fall off…  Speaking of arms falling off, Ken Gurnick of Dodgers.com writes about the possibility of just that, and says that Kuo is not just game-to-game, he’s pitch-to-pitch!

I believe we will also shine offensively in the playoffs.  We have some vets who are role players who can step up at the right time, with Manny at the top of that list.  However, Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier have matured immensely and James Loney is always dangerous in the clutch.  Raffy can play the game and is dangerous in a short series, even if his numbers are down for the year.  O-Dog just needs to stay on the field and Casey Blake will be Casey Blake, which bring me to Russell Martin.  He is having a down year, but is many respects, this Dodger team is rapidly becoming “Russ Martin’s” team.  How can it become your team when you are having a down year offensively?  Respect from your teammates, that’s how!  Dylan Hernandez of The LA Times writes an insightful article about Russell Martin.  No comment by me is necessary.

“I know people say his offense isn’t where it’s supposed to be, but his impact on the defensive side has been larger than what it would be on the offensive side even if he had his best year,” says 40-year-old backup catcher Brad Ausmus, who was signed in part to mentor Martin.

Ausmus calls Martin the most athletic catcher he has ever seen and, like Torre and Mattingly, sees him as a potential .300 hitter. He says that his clubhouse wrestling matches with Martin have him convinced that Martin — 5 feet 10, 210 pounds — hasn’t lost his strength.

Rants & Raves

• Adrian Beltre defied the odds and came back 5 weeks after shoulder surgery, but THIS give a whole new meaning to foul ball.  Ouch!
• It’s a big series for us this weekend, but also for the Rockies who play the Marlins, who are 3 games behind them in the Wild Card.  Root for the Marlins!
• Someone asked about a knuckleballer pitching both games of a doubleheader.  The last time it happend was with Wilbur Wood of the White Sox.  From 1971 to 1974 Wood threw 85 complete games and threw over 300 innings each season, including a high of 376 2/3 innings in 1972 when he went 24-17.  Wood might best be remembered for being perhaps the last pitcher to throw both ends of a double-header, a feat he accomplished twice in 1973.   The first began with the completion of a suspended game but the second was a true double-header against the New York Yankees in which he started and lost both games.
• Kershaw & Haren tonight!

Minor League Recap – 8/13/09  by Jared at http://thinkbluela.blogspot.com/
Albuquerque did not play
Chattanooga lost 5-3

Andrew Lambo – 1 for 4, 2B, RBI, K (.263 BA)
Lucas May – 1 for 3, RBI, HBP (.293 BA)

http://tinyurl.com/qdffcz
Inland Empire did not play
Great Lakes won 6-4

Dee Gordon – 3 for 4, 2B, 3 RBI, R, SB, CS (.300 BA)
Kyle Russell – 0 for 3, BB, 2 K’s (.270 BA)
Mario Songco – 0 for 4 (.155 BA)
Alfredo Silverio – 1 for 3, R, BB, 2 K’s (.284 BA)
Jerry Sands – 1 for 3, 2B, R, K (.194 BA)

Cole St Clair – 1 IP, 0 Hits, 0 R, BB, 2 K’s (3.18 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/qhqcwz
Ogden won 10-1

BCG – 2 for 5, 2B, HR (12), 3 RBI, R, K, HBP (.337 BA)
Nick Akins – 1 for 4, R, 2 BB, K (.250 BA)
Kyle Orr – 2 for 5, 2B, 2 RBI, R, 2 K’s (.239 BA)
JT Wise – 1 for 5, 2B, RBI, K, E (.273 BA)

Javier Solano – 2 IP, Hit, ER, BB, 3 K’s (3.60 ERA)

http://tinyurl.com/q9fxqn
AZL did not play
Player of the day – Dee Gordon, SS

Today’s effort doubled Dee’s hit total over the past 10 games. He’s been slumping in August, batting just .204, possibly seeing the long grind of a full season test his endurance. He also stole his 63rd base, which places him among the minor league leaders. Gordon’s season has been an undeniable success, and while he still needs to polish certain aspects of his game, the sky’s the limit for Flash Jr.

We didn’t get Cliff Lee or Roy Halladay, or for that matter Jared Washborn, but we did get George Sherrill.  Big deal you say?   I am going to suggest that it is bigger than the Phils getting Cliff Lee – here’s why:  The Phillies are heavily left-handed and another solid lefthander on our pen, who can also close, IS HUGE!   In a playoff game, Randy Wolf will be in the pen and lefties might as well leave their bats on the bench when he’s pitching.  Kuo and maybe Elbert will also be in gthe pen, so we are in a position to handcuff the Phillies LH hitters. Read the full story