My Dream Trade...

Ya ever wake up nervous and even though there are a million reasons to be nervous, you’re not sure which one or ones is responsible for your nervousness? I think it’s called being in the TV and film industry. The Flintstones is on Boomerang and that, along with the solace that the Dodgers are tied for first place now, only a game under .500 soothes me… slightly. Just the sound of Fred and Barney yelling in the background gives me a sense of comfort. It’s the one where Wilma gets a job as the Happy Housewife for Rockenspiel and has to go on a TV cooking show while Fred starves at home. For Flintstones aficionados, the first 4 seasons are the best. After that, the animation got cheaper and the aesthetics took a dive.

Well, I guess we saw which Hiroki Kuroda showed up last night. What a performance! It was the best pitched game I’ve seen by a Dodger pitcher in years. Better, even, than Nomo’s no no in Colorado in ’96. Kuroda, with the exception of the fastball he got up to Texiera in the 8th, was unhittable. Now, as long as Brad Penny stays away, we may actually have a chance at this thing.

Chad Billingsley, clearly the team’s new ace (as I predicted he’d be – not a hard prediction) goes up against Jair Jurrgens tonight. Jurrgens shut the Blue down in April and, the way the Dodger bats looked last night, (they managed only 5 hits of their own) there’s no reason to believe he won’t do it again tonight. However, they do have a little momentum and the Braves, who normally own the Dodgers no matter where they play, have been awful on the road. Brandon Webb goes against a weak DC Nationals team and lefty, Odalis Perez. Remember him? One night, when he was a Dodger, I saw him standing outside a nightclub the night before he had to pitch. I said, “Odalis, what are you doing out so late? You gotta pitch tomorrow.” He looked and sounded a little inebriated when he responded, “I’ll be okay.” He wasn’t. He got knocked out before the 4th inning. Needless to say, the match up is in the DBacks’ favor and they should remain at least tied for 1st for one more day.

Gotta love what Brewers’ owner Mark Attanasio is doing. He knows they’re going to lose ace Ben Sheets to free agency after the season (not a bad guy for the Blue to sign) and their only chance of winning anything is THIS YEAR. So, he parts with some prospects and rents CC Sabathia (Sabathia has already said he's going to test the free agent market after the season, so he'll be gone too) for the second half of the season in an attempt to win NOW. Why? Because he says it’s been too long since Milwaukee has won anything and the fans deserve a winner. Wonder if Ned Colletti read that. Sure the Dodgers could’ve used Sabathia, but believe it or not, starting pitching is not their biggest problem. They need 1) a power hitter, 2) a leadoff hitter, 3) a viable shortstop. But according to Colletti, his first priority is getting a shortstop. That’s why I should be GM over him, because he’s an idiot. (Although Kuroda made him look pretty smart last night) A Jack Wilson from Pittsburgh or a David Eckstein from Toronto, both of whom I like very much, will help but will not ensure them a playoff spot. They need a freakin’ POWER HITTER. When your cleanup hitter is 40+ year-old Jeff Kent, who’s lost most of his power and bat speed, you’re in big trouble. Even if a miracle happens and Andruw Jones (who has lost a lot of weight by the way. Good for him.) returns to his old form, they still need a big bat. Now, because Nomar WILL hurt himself again and Kemp is no leadoff hitter, you still need a shortstop and table setter. But a power hitter should be their priority.

Heard an interview with hitting coach, Mike Easler on KABC on Sunday. Seems like a great, positive guy. He was saying how much better Kemp's swing looks. Is he kidding? THE MAN HAS LOST ALL HIS POWER!! My dream trade? Matt Kemp, Andy LaRoche, Delwynn Young, Brad Penny or Derek Lowe & Scott Elbert to Colorado for Matt Holliday and Garret Atkins. Then work on turning Blake DeWitt into a second baseman. THAT will give them the West and a shot at winning the pennant.

Every potential playoff contender and most teams in general have 3, 4 and 5 hitters who can hit the crap out of the ball except the Dodgers. Examples? The Mets – Wright, Beltran, Delgado. Philly – Utley, Howard, Burrell. Cubs – Fukudome, Lee, Ramirez. Cards – Pujols, Ludwick, Glaus or Ankiel. Brewers – Braun, Fielder, Hart. Marlins – Cantu, Willingham, Jacobs. (For some reason, their best hitter, Hanley Ramirez, leads off) DBacks - Byrnes, Upton, Reynolds. Rockies – Holliday, Hawpe, Atkins. Bosox – Drew, Ramirez, Big Papi. Yankees – Abreu, A Rod, Matsui. Tigers – Guillen, Ordonez, Cabrera. Rangers – Hamilton, Bradley, Murphy. Rays – Pena, Longoria, Floyd. Houston – Berkman, Lee, Tejada, and the list goes on.

Dodgers - Martin, Kent, Loney???? That’s 25 homers combined. Throw in Kemp’s 7, Ethier’s 10 and Jones’ 2, you have 44 home runs from the middle of your lineup. That’s 19 home runs more than Chase Utley has. Again, the Dodgers priority should be acquiring a power hitter. (and NOT Adam Dunn)