Now that's what we refer to as a "good start"

Loney took a bad fastball, then proceeded to crush a hanging changeup to dead center field.  That granny not only put the Dodgers up 4-2, but changed the game's complexion, shifting the box score mo' clearly in the Dodgers' favor.  Everything felt entirely new, and in a good way, if you're the type of blue bleeder whose squad has lived on both coasts, but never in the middle of the country.  And for the Dodgers, a win in the books is not just a unique feeling-  perhaps you've heard about their 1-12 playoff record since the '88 title- but proof positive that they're capable of taking a series off the National League's Finest.  "It does a lot for our confidence," affirmed Joe Torre. "We know how good Chicago is.  We know how consistent they've been all year, and to have them get a lead and for us to just maintain our patience, it's important."

The breakdown is below.

The Good

• Derek Lowe: He got off to a good start after Alfonso Soriano chased a sinker for a third strike and, save one inning, Lowe neither looked back or even needed to.  The toughest of his rare tough spots came in the second inning when Jim Edmonds notched the type of hit you can live with, a very low, difficult pitch stroked off Raffy Furcal's mitt and deflected into center.  Unfortunately, the outfielder was on base when Mark De Rosa followed up with a long ball down the right field line that Andre Ethier could only watch sail out and create a 2-0 Chicago lead.  From there, Lowe not only saw his team regain the lead, but he managed to scatter four hits over the same amount of innings in "no harm, no foul" fashion."  In his mind, the toughest spot he faced came in the sixth with Geovany Soto at the dish and Aramis Ramirez having lead off with a two-bagger.  Cue mound conference and thoughts about whether or not Lowe was fading.  The answer was "not" as the probable NL ROY went down swinging and Lowe regained enough momentum to keep the Cubs at bay. 
  
  "Derek was great," praised Torre.  "He's got that preparation look in his eye, very focused early on.  Tonight was huge.  When you have a young club and you come into a foreign ballpark, just to get off to a start like this and give us an opportunity to win, just keeping the score 2-0 is as important as any start he's had for us."
  
  In the meantime, Sir Sinker Ball helped his "Boost the opposing dude's pitch count" cause by drawing two Dempster walks.  I guess Chicago's scouting reports read something along the lines of "Don't let the .138 batting and slugging averages fool you.  This man can rake, so we can't let him hurt us.  Instead, pitch to that Loney fella." 
• James Loney: It takes a lot to silence a crowd so rowdy as Wrigley's.  Loney's swat, however, did just that.  "The atmosphere here was real quiet as I was going around the bases," said the first baseman of the vibe upon unleashing that deadly swing.  Perhaps his auditory perception was just a matter of proximity.  "I thought (the stadium) went really loud, because our dugout went nuts," grinned Martin of the volume ringing in his particular ears."I screamed so loud I got light-headed."
• Manny Ramirez: It was expected going into the series that Man Ram wouldn't see a ton of quality pitches.  In the seventh inning, he took that lousy selection and made lemonade from it.  Utilizing a swing more "Calloway Iron" than "Louisville Slugger," Ramirez muscled a very low pitch from Sean Marshall into the left-center stands.  Barely a split second passed before that ball left the yard.  Safe to say, this was not a feat your average (or even considerably above average) big leaguer could pull off, unless afforded certain allowances.  "I used to that when I was in high school with aluminum," laughed Matt Kemp.
• Dodger Eyes: Eight walks drawn, seven charged to Dempster.  Sure, his lack of sharpness made it easier, but bad pitches often get swung at, regardless of what the pitcher is doing.  At the very least, the quality peepers helped wear down Dempster.  At best, that discipline meant the free passes for Raffy Furcal, Manny and Ethier that rattled the Chicago starter and set the stage for Loney's game-altering long ball.   
• Casey Blake: His eighth inning single to bring Blake DeWitt home for the Dodgers' sixth run basically iced the contest....
• Russell Martin ...And Martin's 9th inning solo shot truly iced things. 
• Dodger rookies: Matt Kemp made his playoff debut, but given he's in his third season and was at least around for the 2006 series, he had a pretty good idea of what's up.  Cory Wade and Blake DeWitt, however, weren't expected to contribute in '08, and there was some curiosity as to how they'd handle postseason pressure. Judging by Wade's vital scoreless seventh, when the Cubs were still within three of tying it up, and DeWitt's 2-4 evening, they have no problem jumping into the fire. 

The Bad

• The Dodgers win their second playoff game in twenty years against 2008's best NL team, in the enemy's house to boot, and you really expect me to harp on the negative?  I'll save it for a less favorable day, thank you very much.

The "Might take a game or two to get used to it"

• Greg Maddux pitching a ninth inning of relief: A serious "there's something you don't see every day" scenario. 

AUDIO

• Andre Ethier: Download andre_ethier_ladchc_1_10.1.08.mp3
• Russell Martin: Download russell_martin_ladchc_1_10.1.08.mp3
• Cory Wade:  Download cory_wade_ladchc_1_10.1.08.mp3
• James Loney: Download james_loney_ladchc_game_1.mp3
• Matt Kemp: Download matt_kemp_ladchc_1_10.1.08.mp3

AK