Extra! Extra! (7.29)
Grady Little said it would happen again. The players said it would happen again. The fans said it would happen again, if simply by the law of odds. But nonetheless, the Dodgers 13-1 win over the Nationals initially prompted more shock than fist pumps. But once that understandable reaction wore off, hard not to get stoked (or in Tommy's case, down to some serious eating) over starting a series with a good old fashioned thumping. Chad Billingsley may have thrown his usual gazillion pitches per outing, but at least he had something to show for the effort. The rook put a second "W" next to his name, and more importantly, found himself with plenty of teammates getting his back in said quest. The whole damn squad, more or less. And watching Andre Ethier, Cesar Izturis, and J.D Drew swat balls out of the park, you'd wonder why this squad ever hit such skids in the first place. Or why similar box scores have been more rare than undercooked sashimi.
It may not have been the blockbuster trade fans had been looking for, but the Dodgers front office did a little wheeling and dealing before the game. L.A. sent relief pitcher Danys Baez, infielder Willy Aybar and moolah to the Braves for versatile third baseman Wilson Betemit. The move was in part to make room for Brett Tomko's return from the DL, but Betemit is a player Colletti can easily envision looking good in blue for years to come. The kid's been touted for a while and hopefully will find himself living up to the hype while playing on the west coast. This may not be the only trade going down before July 31 expires, a hypothetical discussed among Little and his players.
Today's game: Is a two game streak in the works? Ask Derek Lowe, who could use a good game even more than his team. Although it's a toss up whether he needs the win more than counterpart Mike O'Connor.
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It's amazing what a total-team explosion can do for one's confidence. I'm actually looking forward to today's game, and not because of the lip-gloss giveaway.
Posted by: wmm | July 29, 2006 at 11:52 AM
I just took a quick look at a Braves Blog on the Atlanta Journal Constitution site, and liked what I saw. No one in Atlanta seems to like the fact that Betemit was traded away, and the general consensus seems to be that Schuerholz messed up big time.
Posted by: Makoto Ueno | July 29, 2006 at 12:07 PM
BK,
Do you know if Drew's contract has any no trade clauses. I'm sure that it is since Depo was "Depoed" * into offering that stupid contract.
* Any stupid trade or signing from now on will be known as a "Depo".
Posted by: LoLo | July 29, 2006 at 12:25 PM
I know it's close to blasphemy in this present company, but I've been watching the Angels play this morning. Young Weaver is a stud, and the Angels offense led by Chone Figgins is great fun to watch. Mike Scoscia is playing an exciting brand of baseball down there in Anaheim, and I think with the current Dodgers lineup, Grady Little can learn a lot by watching our neighbors to the south.
Posted by: Makoto Ueno | July 29, 2006 at 12:40 PM
o.k. so what's lip glos? it's not lip stick right? what is it??
Posted by: bluebleeder | July 29, 2006 at 12:45 PM
So is Betemit 26 or 25 years old? And if he was indeed born in 1981 instead of 1980 as it is listed everwhere during his entire career, why the certain revelation? And who will be traded next? Is it Izzy, Furcal, Nomar or Kent?
bleeder,
Lip-gloss makes your lip glossy as if you dipped it into a bowl of Mazola... don't ask me why.
Posted by: Ben C. | July 29, 2006 at 01:03 PM
Looks like today is going to be a real pitcher's duel. Let's just hope our bats can stay one step ahead of theirs.
And as to the lip gloss question, gloss is more transparent than lipstick - makes your lips all shiny.
Posted by: Jen | July 29, 2006 at 01:45 PM
What do the Braves know that we don’t? On the surface it seems we got the Betermit of this deal. Or do the Braves see something in Aybar we don’t?
It’s a shame Baez didn’t work out. On paper with Gagne’s status it looked like a great move at the time. I have a feeling it was something mental with him. He’ll probably pitch great for Atlanta.
I was hoping Either would stay in the game. With a HR and a triple, I wanted him to have a chance hit for the cycle. That would have been sweet! (yes, I’m dreaming)
Maybe this game will be the wake up call that kick starts something positive. Right now I’d settle for winning 4 out of 10 games. That’s how bad it’s gotten…
Posted by: Andy B | July 29, 2006 at 02:23 PM