It's Giveth And Taketh

Quite a game tonight. It sure is exciting having Manny in the lineup, but they’re now 21/2 back of the Snakes. Couldn’t believe they came back from a 4-0 deficit in the 9th, of course, only to lose in the 11th. What a great 0-2 pitch to Pujols by Jason Johnson and what an awful, awful, awful pitch to Ryan Ludwick by Johnson. Why give him a chance to beat you? He’s an MVP candidate. In fact, if the season ends today, who besides Ryan Ludwick do you give the NL MVP to? Ryan Braun? Hanley Ramirez? Chase Utley? Lance Berkman? Chipper? Soriano? Wright? Ludwick’s numbers are up there with the best of them. Better than most. Without him, the Cards are done.

The Redbirds have that 1-2 punch of Pujols and Ludwick. The Dodgers have that 1-2 punch of Manny and a double play. James Loney has got to be more selective and stop grounding into so many DP’s.

You win as a team and you lose as a team, but if I had to place blame for the loss tonight, I’d place it on the shoulders of 3 guys. God, Torre & Martin. God caused the 2nd rain delay that knocked Chad Billingsley out of the game. Thanks a lot, God.

But, Joe, why are you using Brian Falkenborg following the rain delay? It’s like having Chevy Chase out there against one of the better hitting teams in the NL in a pennant race. Why are you relying on a guy like Falkenborg at this point in the season? I swear, he looks like Fletch out there on the mound. Or Maxwell Smart. Or my accountant. He loads the bases and sets up the Beimel 0-2 pitch into the tush of Ankiel. Nice pitch, Beimel. Falkenborg is not a big leaguer. Please make him go away.

Not to minimize the awesome effects of God and Joe Torre, the main blame goes to All Star, Russell Martin. Martin giveth and he taketh away. Lately, however, he’s been takething away a lot more than he’s been givething. What the hell is the matter with him lately? His 2 strikeouts on awful pitches – one on ball 4 – took the wind out of their sails. TAKE SOME FREAKING PITCHES, Russell! You need to get on base, you shmuck. You got Manny hitting behind you. The last K just killed them. It was a 2-2 pitch in the dirt with one out in the 10th and runners on the corners. They intentionally walk Manny (it’s weird that the Dodgers actually have someone now that could be intentionally walked) and Loney lines out. Torre has got to take Russell out of the 3 hole. He’s terrible there. If you must have a right handed hitter in front of Manny, then your man is Casy Blake right now. Bat Martin second. Bat Martin second. Bat Martin second. There, I said it 3 times. The power of suggestion.

Some thoughts:

* Should we be worried about Stink’s pinch hit HR in the 9th? Does this mean Joe’s gonna start him tomorrow? I’m worried. Funny thing is, Stink actually looked like the old Andruw Jones on that swing.

* If Charlie Steiner would talk less, he’d make fewer mistakes and it would also make the viewing more pleasurable for the fans. Hey, Charlie, how about a little dead air? Please? I hate having to wear Hearos during the game.

* Speaking of silent announcers, condolences to the Carey family. Harry's son, Skip Carey brought National League baseball into our homes via the Braves and TBS since the early 80's. Though he was a homer, I appreciated his knowledge of the game and his humor. He was a class act and he'll be missed.

* The Dodgers have GOT to win these next 2 games. They have a tough schedule and the DBacks have an easy one. They can’t let themselves get too far behind. The Cardinals are a very beatable team. They have no bullpen.

* I want to give a shout out to KFWB sportscaster, Bret Lewis. Bret emailed me the other day to tell me he’s been enjoying this blog and I feel quite honored. For you Angelinos, you may remember the gentleman Texan (and Longhorn) was the sports anchor for local Channel 2 News. He also played a sports reporter in that memorable DeNiro/Snipes film, The Fan. Bret is knowledgeable, witty, clever and an all around nice guy. His quotes and quips often show up in the Morning Briefing of the LA Times sports sections. As far as I’m concerned, he should be a top dog at ESPN or Fox Sports, but he seems happy where he is. Thanks for all your good work, Bret. Any chance you could take over for Steiner?