The Philadelphia Phillies Don't Care About You Or Your Feelings
Which is why they beat up on the Marlins, which is why the Dodgers can't screw around with the Snakes tonight. After all, they do control their own destiny... sort of, at least. If the Dodgers win out, they can do no worse than tie for the Wild Card. That assumes the Phillies and Pads do the same, which is unlikely (about as unlikely as the Dodgers winning the rest of their games, too, but we don't want to dwell on that). Basically, you're talking about three teams that are essentially tied for the final playoff spots. Which means there's some pretty intense scoreboard watching. "Sometimes I stare at it and pray, like I do sometimes when there's a hitter at the plate with a runner on second and third with two outs," Little said.
Despite a bang up job on Thursday, the bullpen was again a topic of conversation. Given where they are in the season and the personnel available, Little says it's in many ways simply a matter of running guys out there and hoping for the best. "There's no quick fix," he said. It wouldn't hurt for starters to hang around until the seventh or eighth every so often. "It's a situation that we have and try to deal with the best we can," Little said. "It's not something we can have a team meeting where we can say, "Go deeper into the game," and they'll go deeper into the game." One hopes, at least. Because if you could have that meeting and it would work, there's really no excuse for not doing it.
As for those starters, they'll likely be moved around next week as the Dodgers try to set themselves up to make the playoffs. Hong-Chih Kuo will start on Sunday, and Little confirmed that at least one rookie will start next week at some point, but beyond that, don't be surprised if the vets go on short rest. "We're gonna do a little bit of juggling around, and we've got some ideas on paper, but we've got to talk about them with the pitchers before we make them public," he said.
Despite all the pressure, grief, second guessing, and angry bloggers, Little enjoys the atmosphere of the pennant race. "Being involved in it is the most fun. Having to look at the scoreboard, having to get up early in the morning and read the paper, go over in your mind the standings. That's fun," he says. The extra attention that every move brings isn't an issue. "When you do what I do, you're in a fishbowl every day."
TONIGHT'S LINEUPS- Andre Ethier returns, replacing Marlon Anderson. It's a matter of history, really. Anderson has none against Arizona starter Claudio Vargas, and has generally struggled against the Snakes. Ethier, on the other hand, is 2-5 against the righty and has generally tattooed Arizona this year. Nomar is back, too. Basically day to day with his bum left leg, today must be a good one.
DODGERS
Furcal- SS
Lofton- CF
Garciaparra- 1B
Kent- 2B
J.D. Drew- RF
Betemit- 3B
Ethier- LF
Martin- C
Lowe- P
DIAMONDBACKS
Counsell- 3B
Hudson- 2B
Gonzalez- LF
Byrnes- CF
Tracy- 1B
Estrada- C
S. Drew- SS
Quentin- RF
Vargas- P
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woot! i'm the 1st on to post on this topic.
i glad little admit theres a problem with the bullpen. i would be even happier if he had a solution. but i guess the 1st step to solving the problem is admitting that you have one. right? i need some affirmation.
Posted by: sok | September 22, 2006 at 07:49 PM