Third Verse, Same as the First (Two)
The stock market may be down, but the broom market is booming in Los Angeles. The Dodgers capped off their second consecutive series sweep with a 7-1 win over Colorado Wednesday night at the House that Ron Cey Didn't Build But Played Very Well In. Continuing the trend they've been riding the last couple weeks, the Blue had their choice between relying on excellent starting pitching and a productive offense. And, as has been the trend, they decided to choose both. Aaron Sele (3-0) threw seven shutout innings, three Rockies hits and a single free pass the only blemishes on an otherwise perfect night that lowered his ERA to a (frankly kind of ridiculous) 1.69. Afterward, Sele looked about as hyped up as a guy waiting for a bus. He's been around long enough to know that good times come and good times go. "You just try to keep it start to start," Sele said. "Keep it basic, keep it simple. Let the defense work behind you."
Whatever works for you, Aaron.
Granted, if he's going to keep pitching well (and making himself the star of postgame interviews), it's not all going to be smooth sailing. Jose Cruz Jr. caught a glimpse of Sele on the clubhouse TV, and wasn't exactly impressed.
"You're on TV, homie. Get a new hairstyle," Cruz said.
"You didn't know I was that good looking on TV, did you?" Sele replied.
On the offensive side of things, it was nothing but clutch hits for the Dodgers, who scored each and every one of their seven runs with two outs. Rafael Furcal and Jeff Kent each had three hits, making Nomar's two knocks look kinda weak by comparison. C'mon Nomar, pick it up! Russell Martin had only one hit in four ABs, but he made it count with a three-run double in the seventh that put the game out Colorado's reach. Just another day at the office for the offense, who have knocked the cover off the ball over the last week. What's interesting is that the explosion hasn't included a bunch of homers, but plenty of doubles and an entire lineup of guys hitting at a high average.
Even Jonathan Broxton managed to reach base, drawing an eighth inning walk. "The kid's been putting up quite an exhibition all year long when the pitchers are taking batting practice, so that was an opportunity for him to get up there," Grady Little said. "It kind of got everyone excited on the bench to see him get up there and take some healthy cuts." I asked if Broxton had the green light to steal once reaching first, and despite the fact he seemed to be entertained at the notion of the ample young hurler trucking down to second, Little's answer was quick. "No." But as the old baseball saying goes, When you're spending time in your postgame interview talking about a late walk to a reliever, things are going well. "We're playing good baseball right now, and we're getting good results," Little said. "You go through a lot of peaks and valleys during the season, and right now we're at the top of one of our peaks, so we'll just try to stay up there as long as we can."
The only real blemish on the evening? Another miscue at short for Furcal, and the end to Nomar's errorless season when he literally dropped a throw from his shortstop in the ninth. Small potatoes when put up against the team's seventh straight win. They'll have an off day tomorrow before opening a three game set against the Nationals at RFK. Grady Little said, "It was a fun home stand, and we'll look forward to getting back here again."
So do Dodger fans. More on the game tomorrow.
—BK
Subscribe to this Blog | What is RSS?
BK
Thanks for asking Little if Broxton was free to steal 2nd it actually brought a huge smile on my face almost spilling my coffee....
There isn't too much to say after such an incredible homestand, I hope the momentum of these games carry onto the road.
On the Perez issue....Perez'attitude & work ethic have played a large part (his high ERA didn't help) in him being benched. Going back to spring training I believe the dodgers asked him not to participate in the WBC. Perez could not sacrifice that for the dodgers & I think it put a dink in managements thoughts on him.
It's been mentioned before that those that participated in the WBC wacked out their training, especially when coaches were not able to keep a close eye on those that played.
Anyways someone has to take the bait...the guy has pitched ONE inning in THREE weeks & he's NOT injured. I think he got the message. He says he doesn't even know what he did to get benched. OH WeLL!
Go DODGERS.
Posted by: MrsThinkBlue | May 25, 2006 at 06:47 AM
Speaking of the WBC, here's a tale of two players: Odalis Perez defied the Dodgers and chose to go to the WBC and now he's sitting. Catcher Russell Martin chose NOT to go to the WBC because he wanted the new Dodger management to get to know him, and he's the starting catcher now.
I think Perez could use the time off - his arm looks tired. I like him as a pitcher. When he's on, he's tough to beat.
Posted by: Laker Seth | May 25, 2006 at 09:01 AM
Management wanted an excuse to get rid of Perez. You have to admit that the reason for his benching was mediocre. He was a struggling a bit after 3 starts, but that is no reason to bench a starter, especially at the beginning of the year. Don’t get me wrong, I fully endorse the Dodgers getting rid of this guy. I think I have adequately voiced my displeasure for Odalis. There’s been plenty of opportunities to pitch him (hello innings-eater during blowouts), but I think management is well aware of what comes next in the Odalis cycle: malingering. Even though everyone knows he is faking injury clubs will none-the-less use that to de-value him and offer less for a trade. Management is playing it smart by not allowing him to “hurt” himself. Dude is gone! No need to find any more excuses for the guy. The Dodgers don’t want him and they are doing everything in there power to trade him.
As MrsThinkBlue intelligently and exquisitely put it, “Perez' attitude & work ethic have played a large part…in him being benched.”
Posted by: LoLo | May 25, 2006 at 09:39 AM
Being funked out after WBC is just an excuse. Seo played in WBC and his doing fine. Odalis need to go and I thought Dodgers had the best chance with Mets to get rid of him. But with El Duque gone to Mets, I don't know who's left as a suitor for this chump. Lima was horrible but at least he had heart and kept the clubhouse energetic.
Posted by: Ben C. | May 25, 2006 at 10:28 AM
Ben C.,
The Mets weren’t desperate enough (or stupid enough, depending on how you look at it) to take him. We would basically have to pay his entire salary for someone to take him off of our hands. Management is playing it right; keep him on ice, prevent him from getting hurt, and let one of the AL East teams coming knocking on the door down the stretch
Posted by: LoLo | May 25, 2006 at 10:36 AM
No problem, MrsThinkBlue. We're always willing to ask the questions other people won't... because our questions are often kind of stupid (hahaha).
BK
Posted by: Brian Kamenetzky | May 25, 2006 at 12:55 PM
Lolo, I have to agree with you on this one. The Mets seemed to be the only real suitor for Perez, but that's not going to happen now (at least it's highly doubtful). Hopefully someone will want him based on what he's done in the past, because he sure seems like a far cry from that today. Keep him in long relief and see if his attitude ever changes.
As for the WBC, we'll never know if it helps or hurts players. Only those players involved truly know. It seems like if a player does poorly, it hurts. If a player does fine, it helps. Who knows.
Posted by: Aaron | May 25, 2006 at 01:54 PM