At the risk of hyperbole, it's the most important three game series since baseball was base ball
Okay, maybe that's a little much, but without a doubt the trio of games the Blue will kick off tonight against San Diego constitute the most important set of the year. Two teams in a virtual tie for first in a division where one loss can actually send a squad down to third. The Dodgers are looking for a little payback after the Friars swept them early this month down in Gas Lamp Country. Toss in a couple compelling pitching matchups (featuring Saturday's marquee quality Brad Penny vs. Jake Peavy tussle) and it's fair to say this is the sort of thing Abner Doubleday had in mind when he woke up one morning, poured himself some coffee and declared, "Screw this cricket B.S! To hell with rounders! We can do better!"
Unfortunately, Marlon Anderson won't be around to soak it in. The Dodgers, hurting for arms in the bullpen, activated Chin-Hui Tsao and designated the classy left-handed pinch hitting specialist for assignment. "We've got a real need for another pitcher on the staff right now, and at this point in our season we were finding it a tough time to get Marlon enough at bats," Grady Little said. "We needed to go to twelve pitchers, and to do it we had to take away a hitter. It was a tough decision for us, because what Marlon Anderson did for us last fall during the month of September, you can't say enough about the job he did."
Some might have expected Tony Abreu to be sent back to Vegas, but he's played well enough to stay. Toss in the need to rest Nomar at third, the questionable health of Rafael Furcal's ankle, and the desire to give Jeff Kent some down time- three positions Abreu can play- and it's not that surprising to see him stick around. Plus, he switch hits, which is always useful. What'll be interesting is to see what happens when Ramon Martinez's back heals up enough for him to play. While Martinez is only a few days away from heading out on a rehab assignment, Little made it clear the Dodgers were in no hurry to rush him back to the bigs. "He's been out long enough now that he's kind of gotten himself into a position where it's like spring training for him again. He needs to get some at bats and get back into the flow of the game."
If Abreu keeps playing well, there's no guarantee Martinez will be back long term, either. His incredibly solid glove and ability to play just about anywhere gives him value, but given his weak stick, it's hard to argue that the Dodgers are a stronger team with him on the bench as opposed to Abreu. I think it comes down to how many ABs they think Abreu can get going forward. If the answer is "enough," he'll likely stick around.
Fun Stats Department:
Given his 2.08 ERA, it's not surprising that Padres starter Chris Young has had some serious success against L.A. bats. Nomar is 1-14 career against the lefty. Furcal, 2-20. Kent, 2-15. Pierre, 1-13. Gonzo is the closest thing to a juggernaut, at 3-9. In hindsight, this is not such a fun stat. Should have gone in another category.
Here's a better one: No team in the NL West has played fewer home games (36) heading into tonight's contest than the Dodgers. Considering the Blue are a robust 16-7 at home since May 1, that's a nice bit of news. Halfway through the season, the Dodgers have some home games to spare.
LINEUPS:
Dodgers-
Rafael Furcal- SS
Juan Pierre- CF
Russell Martin- C
Jeff Kent- 2B
Luis Gonzalez- LF
Nomar Garciaparra- 1B
James Loney- 1B
Matt Kemp- RF
Hong-Chih Kuo- P
Padres-
Brian Giles- RF
Marcus Giles- 2B
Adrian Gonzalez- 1B
Mike Cameron- CF
Michael Barrett- C
Khalil Greene- SS
Kevin Kouzmanoff- 3B
Jose Cruz, Jr.- LF
Chris Young- P
BK
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1st inning 2 steals. Well 3, gotta like the aggressiveness. Of course it helps they suck at throwing out stealers lol.
Posted by: Faith | June 29, 2007 at 08:02 PM
Another weak performance in the field by the supposed captain of the outfield, Pierre. Vin several times described Cruz' ball as a "fly ball triple" and even suggested that it was hit so high that "you would figure it would be caught".
Dump Pierre.
Posted by: Dodgerdog | June 29, 2007 at 08:35 PM
When are we going to get a decent start from Kuo? He's killing us everytime he pitches now. Cruz's triple is meaningless after Kuo's performance.
Posted by: Butch | June 29, 2007 at 09:03 PM
This is not good. Down already and their pitcher is pitching well.
Posted by: Faith | June 29, 2007 at 09:04 PM
Dodgerdog-
Vin is wise. It absolutely should have been caught by someone.
BK
Posted by: Brian Kamenetzky | June 29, 2007 at 09:04 PM
My call at the beginning of the year on Kuo being a rock star is not going well. Just goes to show you should never believe anything you read on the internet.
BK
Posted by: Brian Kamenetzky | June 29, 2007 at 09:06 PM
Well, at this point (6--2) it is bed time here on the East Coast. You guys give me a call if we mount a comeback!
Posted by: Butch | June 29, 2007 at 09:08 PM
I am very concerned with our pitching situation. Schmidt has not helped us because of his injury. Bad luck or poor management decision. We should have kept Maddox. Kuo has been a disaster, with an ERA close to 8. When he is ptching you can count on a loss. Little needs to try someone else.
Posted by: Loyal Dodger Fan | June 29, 2007 at 10:24 PM
Dodgerdog --
While Cruz's ball should've been caught, I wouldn't lay all the blame on Pierre. It looked like a little miscommunication out there, and if Kemp hadn't been so overeager to get everything and just let Pierre (who had the better read) handle it, it probably would've been caught. Between that and Loney's silly throw to the backstop, it shows the dangers of playing the kids so much -- getting burned by stupid rookie mistakes.
Of course, even if those two plays hadn't happened, the Dodgers would still be in a hole, thanks to Kuo' pitching. He just seems to be getting worse and worse with each outing. What he needs is a nice long stretch in the rotation in Las Vegas to get his game straight. Unfortunately, that doesn't seem like an option right now with the Dodgers' rotation the way it is, so we just all have to suffer through his growing pains.
Posted by: Eric B. | June 29, 2007 at 10:33 PM
Butch, comeback! Comeback!
Wake up!
Posted by: Faith | June 29, 2007 at 10:42 PM
Little is worried about more pitching? How long do we wait to wake up and start thinking about getting some hitters instead? We keep trading them away and then wonder why we lose. Then we sign guys whose best years are behind them (Gonzo, Nomar, Pierre, etc) and the timely hits don't come. Hey, maybe we could sign Yogi. He used to be a clutch hitter once.
Posted by: WAYNE RYDBERG | June 30, 2007 at 10:50 AM