A Dodger Blue Post Mortem

What a painful experience it was to watch the last out of '09 last Wednesday night. Especially seeing that it was that asshole Victorino getting to catch the ball. It made me wonder if I'll ever live to see the Dodgers win it all again. The Dodgers. The one time storied franchise who were considered, year in and year out, the class of the National League.

It was an odd season. From time to time - especially after they swept the Cards in the NLDS - they made an all too brief believer out of me. I mean, let's face it, they won 95 games. That's a good season in anyone's book. But, to this day I don't believe the 2009 edition of the Los Angeles Dodgers deserved the right to play for the National League Championship. On the other hand, practically all the Dodger teams from 1974 - 1982 seemed good enough and four of those teams went on to the World Series. In 1988 they won their last World Series with a team that was so offensively challenged, this years Padres would've outhit them. But they had amazing pitching and a guy named Orel Hershiser. This Dodger team didn't have anything close to an Orel Hershiser. What they did have was a few good players, a decent bullpen and a lot of smoke, mirrors and luck. A whole lot of luck. Some of that luck was evidenced in Game 2 of the NLDS when Matt Holliday turned out to be the Giving Tree. Also, even though the NL West produced the Wild Card team and a fairly competitive Giants team due to Lincecum and Cain, the Dads and and the Snakes were terrible. The Rockies also stunk the first part of the season and the Blue got a lot of wins against those teams. During the regular season the Dodgers played okay against the defending champ, Phillies, winning the seasonal series, but they stunk against the Cardinals, Braves, Astros and, yes, even the Nationals. I guess what I'm trying to say is, the Dodgers were good, but not as good as their record and, echoing the sentiments of Vin Scully as he called their last out, they were an extremely lucky team who's luck ran out in Philadelphia where they went up against a far superior and much better managed club.

The Dodgers put up some decent stats over the season, and some of those numbers help us understand why they got as far as they did. But it was the glaring things they didn't do, from the field to the front office that led to their repeat failure. Yes, "failure." Look it up in the dictionary. They failed. They didn't win. Sorry, everyone, but unless you look at it that way, you'll always accept second place and I won't do that.

SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS. NOW HERE ARE THE REASONS:

1) Fundamentals. The team, as a whole was one of the worst offensively fundamental teams I've ever seen in baseball. They could neither bunt, nor hit and run, nor run the bases properly. They were oppo-challenged all year and their pitchers walked too many guys when it counted. Much of it was Joe Torre's fault. He managed way too leniently and didn't stress the things that take a team to the next level. (On the other hand, Mike Scioscia did and look how that turned out for him.)

2) Starting Pitching. You can't have a staff full of of number 3 starters and expect to play in a World Series. The only teams to accomplish that feat in my memory are the Big Red Machine squads of the 70's. Can you name one starting pitcher form those teams? Don Gullet? Wayne Simpson? Fred Norman? Pat Darcy? Jack Billingham? Mario Soto? Gary Nolan? Not exactly household names. But they had the best starting 8 in the game for years: Perez, Morgan, Concepcion, Rose, Foster, Geronomo, Griffey and Bench. And they had a reliever named Pedro Borbon. But, alas, that was a different time. No longer can you win without a one and two and anyone who tries to tell me Billingsley, Kershaw or Wolf were bona fide one or two guys, I won't need to hit you over the head because, clearly, someone already has. Nowadays, you need dominant starters who take over a game from the first pitch on. When the opportunity came along to land one of those special arms, Frank McCourt and Ned Colletti dropped the ball. No excuses. E-GM. E-OWNER. The problem with the Dodgers leadership is they make assumptions about pitchers before the fact. They assumed Billingsley would be their ace. They were wrong. Now they assume it's going to be Kershaw. I would agree he has a shot, but maybe not yet. If they can't land Roy Halladay or his equivalent for 2010, look for another year without a World Series at the Ravine.

3) Steroids. My belief is the Dodgers knew or at least heavily suspected Manny was on roids before they acquired him in '08, but they were willing to take the chance because of the revenue he can bring in and the numbers he could put up if he didn't get caught. He stupidly got caught, but, miraculously, Ethier and Kemp began to emerge on their own, Juan Pierre stepped in and did his Mr. Wonderful thing and the team seemed fine. However, when Manny returned after his 50 day suspension, he clearly lost strength, confidence and all his bat speed. In short, he stunk. Instead of a big bat in the four hole he was a big bat in a black hole. It was hard to watch, yet Torre seemed intent on keeping him there and continuing to let Manny be Mario Mendoza. And, to add insult to injury, we got him for another year and we gotta pay him $20 million. But, was Manny the only Dodger who sucked because he was off the juice? Not in this blogger's opinion. Look to our beloved catcher.

4) Russell Martin. He was terrible. He grounded into so many double plays, everytime I close my eyes, I still see Russell Martin grounding into another double play. Most of the time, he simply refused to go the other way. He insisted on being dead pull, even it meant surrounding a pitch a foot outside and grounding out weakly to short. But what happened to his 20+ HR power? Let's put it this way: the ball wasn't exactly jumping off his bat this year the way it has in the past. If I didn't know better, I'd say he looked just like a man off the deca-durabolin. Not only that, he was slower afoot - remember he used to steal bases? - but the main thing is, a worse defensive catcher I haven't seen since the days of Mike Piazza and I actually think Piazza was better at times. Martin was, for the most part, lazy and unorthodox back there and catcher is not a position where you can afford to be unorthodox. He was terrible throwing out base runners, and his pitch calling, in my opinion, left much to be desired. (some of that is the dugout's fault) In 3 years, he went from being one of the top 10 catchers in the game and one of the top 50 young players in baseball to one of the 5 all around worst catchers and one of the most mediocre players I've ever seen. Perhaps he should go away.

5) The Corners. Pedro Feliz is an ok hitter as the third baseman for the Phillies. Normally, you need a pretty big bat at that position and most champions have that bat there. But the Phillies can afford to have Feliz there because they have 3 game changers at 1st, 2nd and short. The Dodgers, on the other hand, do not have game-changers anywhere on the infield. So, having two slightly better than average players at traditional power positions like first and third greatly weakened their batting order. Neither Loney nor Blake hit with enough power to justify the position, though Loney, a fairly solid player at times, did manage to drive in 96 runs. But, as I've stated in the past, many of Loney's RBIs were tack-ons late in ball games. There were a couple of months during the early summer when James was on fire and sparked the offense. Still, no power. Blake, meanwhile is a great fielder, but he's a dead pull hitter who hits too few home runs to justify his many, many strike outs. Now, look at the production from the corners on the other teams in the NLCS and ALCS. Ryan Howard for the Phils, Kendry Morales and Chone Figgins - no pop, but adds so much more with his high average, OBP, and speed - for the Halos and Teixeira and ARod for the Yankees. Not to mention Youkilis and Lowell for the Bosox. Other clubs? Pena and Longoria for the Rays, Derek Lee and Aramis Ramirez for the Cubbies. Morneau for the Twins. Pujols for the Cards. Fielder for the Brew Crew. At least one of those positions needs to go to a big time power/production guy. (Wish we could land an Adrian Gonzalez.) As there are no future plans for Loney or Blake to go elsewhere, look for more of the same impotence in next year's lineup.

6) The Middle. For most of the season, Furcal stunk and the O Dog was just pretty good. Hudson's skills waned so much toward the end of the season, however, (so, apparently, did his attitude) he was replaced by jounrneyman, Ronnie Belliard, who still may be in the Dodger's plans for next year. Furcal made some dazzling plays but he also made a host of errors, some of them costly. He finally came around offensively at season's end, and for the NLDS. He was god awful, however, in the NLCS. Truth be told, it was a good enough middle infield to not keep the team from going to the next level, but it sure wasn't Jeter/Cano or Rollins/Utley. It may be time to start looking for a shortstop unless, Dee Gordon, the 2009 Midwest League Prospect of the Year, is soon ready to go. But we all know how the Dodger organization overrates their prospects. For all we know, Gordon can end up being another Jose Offerman or worse. As far as second base, it looks like Blake De Witt will finally get his shot to at least platoon with Belliard. I've always had high hopes for DeWitt. I think he's a pro. Not a game changer, but a pro.

7) Joe Torre. I'm sorry. I know it's blasphemy, but I just don't think he's a great manager. I think he's a great baseball man, a great human being, a great clubhouse diplomat and a great nurturer, but I think as a field skipper, he leaves much to be desired. He proved to be way too lenient with the guys and his handling of the bullpen is legendary for it's mistakes. Ronald Belisario is simply not one of the best right handed relievers in the game but Torre used him like he was the second coming of Mike Marshall. (1974 reference) Belisario was okay, I guess, but any idiot knows you can't tax a guy's arm like that and expect him to remain healthy and effective throughout a long, grueling season. Torre's constant juggling of the batting order left guys wondering what the hell their roles were and didn't allow them to get comfortable with any spot in the lineup. Sometimes that stability is what a team needs, but Torre never let them have it. He was soft on Manny. Too soft. I was also surprised, having been a great catcher for most of his career, that Torre didn't look for a replacement for Martin by midseason. And his decision to let Kershaw stay in during that horrific 5th inning of Game 1 of the NLCS set the tone for the rest of the series. I wonder what Bowa, a firebrand, could do at the helm, or even Mattingly. With the young, overly cocky guys in that clubhouse, they need someone with less patience, not more. But Joe didn't kill us and he has won in the past with some amazing Yankee teams. One more year, I guess.

8) Ownership & GM. Now we get to have a winter wonderland of fun with the McCourt Divorce reality show. I don't like those two, but here's hoping Frank emerges the winner in this one, otherwise we're in for some very lean years. McCourt's decision to cut payroll cost the Dodgers dearly. The decision not to pursue C.C. Sabathia or A.J. Burnett (who would've had an even better year in the NL) in the offseason and, instead, go to the Costco of free agents by signing Randy Wolf could have been the difference maker. There was no attempt to acquire Teixeira or anyone who's salary would've have taken the Dodgers payroll out of McCourt's comfort level, but would have gone a long way toward a World Series appearance. And when push came to shove and it became apparent that the only thing needed to practically ensure a trip to the Fall Classisc was an available number one caliber starter, McCourt held on firmly to his wallet and Colletti, no doubt, overrated more prospects that he was unwilling to part with and made inadequate offers to Toronto for Halladay and to Cleveland for Lee. (In Ned's defense, I'm still not sure what Toronto wanted, but I'm sure it was too much. Cleveland, on the other hand, would've taken less) Once that deal didn't go through, you'd think they'd grab up Jake Peavy or Pedro. Didn't even do that. Not even any mention of it. They let Peavy go to the White Sox for Clayton Richard and didn't even make an offer to Pedro. Instead we got Padilla and Garland. Padilla turned out to be a surprise, but give that credit to Bowa, who lobbied for his services, not Colletti. Colletti didn't want him. Colletti has had as many misses as hits - Jason Schmidt & Andrew Jones to go along with last year's Manny deal and one year deals to Hudson and Wolf. I guess we'll see how great these prospects turn out to be that he refused to sacrifice for a championship this year. That is, if we ever find out who they are. As an owner, McCourt is perfectly happy with second place and has no burning desire to win. In fact, I'm sure he'd be fine if the Dodgers missed the postseason altogther for a year or two, because he can always talk about how he got them back there in '08 and '09 and how they actually won some playoff games. With 3.6 million fans a year, he's still more concerned about his public image and his profits than he is about getting to the World Series.

THE WORLD SERIES

I was surprised how poorly Scioscia's Angels played in the ALCS against the Yankees, but, clearly, the Pins are the best team in the league and probably the best team in baseball. Their lineup is frightening in their professionalism and is just scary overall. The Phillies, I believe, have slightly better starting pitching and an equally scary lineup, except they don't have a Hideki Matsui to DH in Yankee Stadium. They'll probably go with Ben Frencisco, Dobbs or Stairs. Both teams are extremely well-managed. The Yankees bench is better and their bullpen, though they performed poorly against the Angels, is markedly better. Lee could potentially shut the Yanks down, but Sabathia may be able to do the same to the Phillies. I think both lineups will hit the likes of Burnett, Pettite, Pedro and Hamels. However, if the Yanks can get into the Phils' pen, they'll do much better than the Dodgers did. The Yanks should not take the Phillies lightly. For the first time in years, I actually think the 2 best teams in baseball are playing in the World Series. I'll take the Yanks in 7.

So, that's it for the Dodgers in '09. It was a strangely trying year for a team that finished with the best record in the NL. They still seem so far away from accomplishing what the Phillies have accomplished. As always, I hope I'm wrong.

2nd Inning Obituary

You can't keep awarding everyone first base. I've never seen anything like it in my life. The entire staff. Too many walks, too many runs, too many losses, too many 2nd place finishes, too many years of futility. This is torture. The death watch conitnues.

ADDENDUM: Colletti Is Rewarded?

I have no idea what the Dodgers actually offered for Cliff Lee, only rumors and only that they were willing to let Lee go for players other than Kershaw, Ethier and Kemp. I did hear that the prospect the Indians so highly coveted turned out to be a piece of crap, and I know Colletti SAYS he made a better offer, but what was it? In other words, I want to know exactly why Philly is going to the World Series again and we're staying home? And what excuse for not signing Pedro, if for any reason, only to keep Philly from getting him? Let's face it. Colletti's acquisition of Padilla was made because Kuroda got nailed in the noggin, the Dodgers needed another body on the mound and Bowa wanted him. Colletti was, in no way, interested in Vicente, but I'm sure he's taking the credit for whatever successes they're having with Padilla. As far as Colletti was concerned, Padilla was just supposed to be an innings eater who wasn't even expected to make the post season roster. It was an accident that he turned out to be any good. Meanwhile, Ruben Amaro Jr didn't wait for any happy accidents. He got the two arms he knew he needed to take into the post season: Cliff Lee is a stud and everyone knows what Pedro has accomplished in October. Colletti, meanwhile, went the bargain route (and in Pedro's case, the stupid route, because Pedro came fairly cheap) and now we're all paying the price. And today, Colletti was handsomely rewarded for another failure, another 2nd place finish. Not such a great fall anymore, is it?

Agenda For 2010: We Need A Real Closer

Did ya ever have someone break up with you one night, then you wake up the next morning, realize she's/he's really gone, and you feel like puking? That's how I feel this morning and I'm sure many Dodger fans feel the same way. I know what you're thinking. There he goes again with his negativity about a team that advanced all the way to the NLCS for the second year in a row. To be honest, I'd rather we never even made the Playoffs than suffer this repetitious indignity. And to know that we could've actually gone to the World Series had we a GM or owner with any balls. (or, if in fact, Jaimie is the actual owner, then we'll use the word, "chutzpah.") If Cliff Lee and Pedro were wearing Dodger blue, like they should've been, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Bill Plaschke has been right on the ball the last couple of days. Who, dear God, WHO, did Ned Colletti feel was so worth hanging onto that we couldn't have acquired Lee? Billingsley? Broxton? No, I would not have dealt Kershaw, but I'm convinced the Tribe would've taken less. I want to know who we felt was so valuable that we couldn't let go. The Dodgers, for as long as I remember, have overrated their prospects. Remember Greg Brock? Mike Marshall? Jose Offerman? Andy LaRoche? Russell Martin?

But, since the 2009 season, for all intents and purposes, is over for the Dodgers, and since we ARE having this conversation, we may as well finish it. Jonathan Broxton did not exactly blow the heartbreaking game last night. The Dodgers incredibly weak offense blew it by not tacking on more runs when they had plenty of opportunities to do so. Once again, Matt Kemp hit a very important homer, only to follow it up with lousy at bats. (I won't even mention the piss poor umpiring behind the plate in this series, because that would seem like an excuse and there are none) Lousy at bats by Manny and Blake and an extremely lousy at bat by Hudson contributed. They had their chances, but let's face it. This is not a real good hitting team, I don't care what the team BA is. The Phillies, on the other hand, are the most potent team in baseball next to the Pinstripers. You just can't get through that lineup. They're heads and shoulders better than the Dodgers' lineup. Awful, undisciplined, unfocused at bats tells me Mattingly is not terribly effective as a hitting coach but may be more effective as a manager. Who knows? But what's plainly obvious is this team has no plate discipline and cannot perform the fundamentals.

Should they still have won? Yes. Jonathan Broxton clearly does not have what it takes to be a closer in the big leagues. He's not lights out and he does not have a lights out mentality. He has no confidence in his stuff and he is way too easily intimidated. Matt Stairs beat him a year ago with a towering home run that put Game 4 on ice. So what? A real closer can't wait to go up against him again and redeem himself. What did Broxton do? He got scared. Like a Little Leaguer, he got scared. With the game and the series and the season on the line, he pitched around an old, fat pinch hitter who hadn't moved the entire game and hadn't done a thing the entire series. It's not Ryan Howard. It's not Chase Utley or Jayson Werth. It's not Raul Ibanez. It's not Rollins or Victorino. It's freaking Matt Stairs! Go get him! Nope. Broxton was afraid the big, bad veteran pinch hitter was going to hurt him again. So he ran and hid. Where have all the Gagnes gone? The Gossages? The Lee Smiths? That's what we need. A real closer, not a scared, oversized kid. Broxton will have more chances, but probably not with the Dodgers. I think it'll take a trade to finally light a fire under his ass and make him mad enough to want some payback. Meanwhile, his market value is still high and for 2010 the Dodgers need starting pitching desperately, a first baseman with power, a catcher who can take charge behind the plate, maybe a second baseman and maybe ... just maybe... a left fielder.

Make no mistake. The reason for the Dodgers failure falls squarely on starting pitching. Other than Vicente the other day, they have no one who can regulalry step on the mound and shut the opponent down. The Dodgers' future was mapped out when they failed to acquire Lee, Halladay, Peavy and Pedro. They don't have decent starting pitching. They have WEAK starting pitching. I don't care how good your bullpen is, you can't go to the World Series with weak starting pitching. The Dodgers would try to make you believe Randy Wolf is the red haired version of Ron Guidry, but he's just okay. Kershaw isn't there yet. Billingsley could be done. Kuroda is too inconsistent and injury prone and should be traded. Garland is terrible. Padilla is now their ace. What does that tell you about your staff? The Phillies starting staff is better than the Yankees staff. That's why they're going to the World Series and the Blue are coming back to LA to get their things. Another long winter. If only McCourt(s) and Colletti understood the importance of starting pitching the way O'Malley and Campanis did.

BTW, tried to listen to the Angels' LA radio network, 710 AM the other evening, but the ALCS game was preempted for Trojan Talk. The USC football postgame show and call in show were more important than the Angels/Yankees ALCS game?? What is this thing people have with college football? USC got punked by Washington a few weeks ago. Their season is over. They have 0 shot at a National Championship. Ya think we can get baseball history being made on their flagship station? Jesu Cristo!

Worse Than Even I Could've Imagined - Phils In 5

We're done. Why Torre started Kuroda, I have no idea, but the two of the guys who've shut us down should be wearing Dodger Blue. I don't see us bouncing back from last night. Down only 2 games to 1, some say it was just one game. It wasn't. It was a death blow. Humiliating and demoralizing to both the team and the fans. More later. Hope I'm wrong ... again ... but the Dodgers will only be coming back to LA to get their stuff.

Holding Serve Would've Been Better. Don't Like Our Chances.

What a great win Friday and what a great at bat by Andre and an even greater performance by Vicente Padilla. Maybe the best performance by a Dodger starter since Ramon Martinez struck out 20 Braves one night. (I think it was 20) But, for 7 innings, Pedro Martinez, an ex-Dodger and a guy who should've been a Dodger again, (instead, we got John Garland who didn't even make the roster for the NLCS) makes the Blue look like a bunch of tee-ballers. That's bad. Ya gotta figure their ace, Cliff Lee, who tends to have 5 great games followed by 2 weak games, is going to shut us down tonight. He's right in the middle of a hot streak and if they can't touch Pedro, who hadn't pitched in nearly a month, they oughta have a really hard time with Lee, last year's AL Cy Young recipient. Meanwhile, Matt Kemp looks like Moe/Shemp from the Stooges Three at the plate, flailing and pratt falling with every pitch. He's obviously nervous and excited and falling back into his old habits. Speaking of habits, and, in spite of Manny's heroic 2 run dong off of a low 80's Cole Hamels change-up in Game 1, he's clearly lost his mojo completely. Off the juice, he can simply no longer turn on an inside fastball. And, knowing he's off the stuff, he no longer has the confidence in being a superman and no longer trusts his hands to get through the hitting zone in time. But he still thinks he can hit it out. So, he compensates by torqueing his body too soon, bending his back knee and swinging upward in an attempt to lift the ball over the wall in left. It's obvious to everyone watching but Manny and it's awful and he's terrible. The only way he can help the team is to concentrate on hitting line drives and going oppo. Only then can the home runs come back naturally. If only Manny Would. Until then, he's an out smack dab in the middle of the lineup where they need someone who can drive in Ethier and Furcal. He's killing us.

Speaking of killing us, let's talk Joe Torre and the ownership. First of all, Joe Torre should admit he blew Game 1. Clayton Kershaw, our ace of the future ... (I said, THE FUTURE)... fell apart like a kicked down sand castle on a beach full of bullies in the 5th inning. It was clear, it was obvious, and, once again, it was awful. His whole facial expression and demeanor changed. Personally, I think he was rattled by plate umpire Randy Marsh's atrocious ball and strike calls during Ryan Howard's at bat in the 4th. Kershaw clearly had Howard struck out twice and the ump instead awarded him first base because ... because... he likes Howard? Who knows? Next batter, pitch up in the zone to Jayson Werth who almost hits it out. Then he goes out in the 5th and tried too hard to please Randy Marsh's queer eye and he falls apart. He gives up a solid hit to Ibanez, walks Feliz on 5 pitches, and, following an ineffective trip to the mound by Honeycutt, he falls behind on Ruiz, then gives up the 3 run blast. THEN, he walks the pitcher, Hamels, on 4 pitches. Joe, he's done. You got Scott Elbert warmed up, you got Troncoso loose, the kid has clearly lost it, SO, FOR SHIT'S SAKES, GO GET HIM!!! No? You're NOT gonna pull him? You're going to leave him in to pitch to Rollins, Victorino, Utley and HOWARD??? Well, you all saw what happened next. Instead of a decent shot of going into the bottom of the 5th, only down 3-1, they wind up down 5-1. What was the difference in the game? 2 runs. The Dodgers lost 8-6. Could very well be the worst piece of managing I've ever seen, next to Charlie Manuel's decision to remove Pedro after the 7th inning. Then, I thought it was odd Torre chose to start Padilla, a righty, in Game 2 instead of Wolf, but he proved me wrong there. Torre's the best.

And the ownership. This bullshit about the McCourts' split should've waited until after the Dodgers season was over. Inexcuseable. MLB should NOT allow married couples to buy teams in states where there is community property. It's not fair to the fans. If they have to sell the team because Frank can't wrest control from Jaimie, we'll all become children of divorce, costs will be at an absolute minimum and we'll be in for some very lean years at the Ravine.

If the Dodgers lose tonight, they'll have a very tough road ahead. The key is to GET INTO THE PHILLIES BULLPEN ASAP.

Wrong Again and Loving It!!

Well, I've got 2009 Dodger blue-dyed egg in my face again and I couldn't be happier. I'm a bad prognosticator of doom and I'm a bad fan. But I'm also a loyal fan. I love my Dodgers even when I hate them. Understand? Vicente Padilla pitches a gem in the most important start of his unheralded, somewhat controversial, never-been-much-of-a-factor career. Kemp finds new and unusual ways to stink, but still scores the first run of the game after reaching base with a swinging bunt on a pitch he should've taken. His subsequent 4 K's become irrelevent, however, because, as it turns out, Furcal, Ethier and Manny are studs again. This is what happens when a few key hitters and a couple of pitchers get hot in the post season. You win. Albert Pujols is neutralized, Holliday is still in shock and our Los Angeles Dodgers sweep their way through the NLDS against the favored Central Division champ for the second year in a row!! This, time, however, I'll put myself on the line. THIS TEAM MEANS BUSINESS! I still don't think they're that damn good, but ya know what? They ain't that damn bad either. They keep coming back from the dead time and time again and prove me wrong and, this time, after an entire season of skepticiosm, pessimism and cynicism and other isms, I'm finally a believer. Can they advance to the World Series? Sure. Will they? YES!!! Can they win it all? Why not? (Oh yeah, the Yankees and Angels) Aww, so what. This team finds ways to win when it counts. They simply shut the Redbirds down and, as the bottom of the 9th transpired, I raced upstairs to listen to Vinny's call. After Broxton's strikeout of Rick Ankiel, Scully described it as putting a ribbon on the package.

Of course, I'd rather play the Mountains than the defending World Champ Phils (we beat the Rockies 14 out of 18 this year) and, yeah, I'm a little worried about the layoff and about Matt Kemp's new found stinking, but I'm far more hopeful than I was last year. Then, I'm worried that could be a jinx. Maybe I should remain negative to help ensure the first trip to the Fall Classic for our blue since the Year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundered and Eighty-Eight, in which the event that provides this blog's namesake took place. Overall, you gotta love the way the team has played and as confidence builds, they should only get better. This is October baseball, and after many years of futility and a brief taste of it last year (here's hoping we don't repeat the NLCS the way we just repeated the NLDS) I think the Dodgers may finally be getting an idea of what it's all about.

And congrats to the Halos!! Next to the Dodgers winning, I like nothing more than to see the Angels win, and, almost as important, to see the Red Sox lose!!! What a comeback! 2 down in the top of the 9th, their hated, but reliable closer, Papelbon on the mound who's NEVER given up a single run in postseason play, 2 outs, no one on, 0-2 to Erik Aybar, and he gets a line drive base hit to center. This is followed by a great AB from Figgins who draws a walk, then the "Nation" under God becomes divisible to all, as Abreu doubles off the monster, they intentionally walk Torii Hunter and Vladdy drives in the tying and go ahead runs. How do ya like that, Fenway? I got your "Beat LA" right here.

And was it just me, or did anyone else notice the somber tones of TBS play-by-play announcer, Don Orsillo, WHO HAPPENS TO BE A RED SOX ANNOUNCER, and Buck Martinez. They were clearly pissed off when the Angels came back to win that game. Real professional. I hope they cry in their New England Clam Chowder. And shame on TBS for allowing a Bosox announcer to do a series in which the Bosox are competing. That being said, I sure wish Vinny was doing the games instead of Dick Stockton, who calls a catcher's mitt a glove and recently had this brilliant comment during Thursday's 3:00 PM start at the Ravine: "In about an hour and a half, the shadows are gonna get really bad for the hitters, so the first few innings, both teams are gonna try to score as many runs as possible." Ya think?

SO, are we on a collision course for a Freeway World Series? Well, we've never been closer. But the Yankess don't look too beatable these days. For that matter, however, neither do the Angels or the Dodgers. Baseball wise, I feel a little like Humpty Dumpty. I'm having a great Fall.

Hallelujah! It's a Matt Holliday Miracle!

Unbelieveable! Is it Scenario #3? Is the impossible happening? I mean, first we beat Chris Carpenter the other night, granted he wasn't himself, but that's exactly what we hoped for. Weaver, Belli-sorry-o, Kuo, Sherrill and Broxton did the trick and the Blue's bats did just enough damage. What a game by Furcal!

Then, last night, as Saddam Hussin would day, was the Mother of All Games. I still believe, deep down, we don't belong on the same field with St. Louis. Why? We have no Chris Carpenter. Nothing close. We have no Adam Wainwright. Nothing near. (Kershaw will be better than both, I think, but not yet) We have no Albert Pujols or Matt Holliday. The closest thing being the memories of what Manny was and the futures, perhaps, of Ethier and Kemp. But what we do have, it seems, is a bullpen and a lot of luck. Wainwright pitches a gem, his only mistake, one fat pitch to Andre. Kershaw pitched just fine, but not good enough to win, it seemed, until 2 outs, no one on, down 2-1 in the bottom of the 9th, when Matt Holliday loses a low Loney fly ball in the lights in the dusk and has it hit him in the belt and bounce away from him. Suddenly, the tough got going and if there's one thing this Dodger team can do, it's take advantage of a team's mistakes. An AMAZING at bat by Casey Blake in which he drew a hard earned walk, kept it going, then enter superstars Ronnie Belliard and Mark Loretta out of Santa Monica High. Bellyache hits a shot scoring pinch hitter Juan Pierre and Mark Loretta, the Samohi Viking, drives in the winner having us all sing Holliday carols.

Questions, questions, some second guesses and more questions: The main one being, should LaRussa have allowed Wainwright to go the distance even though he'd tossed the ball to home 114 times and lefty Andre Ethier was leading off the 9th? Many think he should've. Instead, however, he decided to have lefty Trever Miller face lefty Ethier and it worked. Then he brought in his shaky ZZ Top closer, Ryan Franklin, who eventually coughed it up, thanks in part to his left fielder.

Worries: Matt Kemp's first at bat Wednesday night was a huge 2-run blast that put the Dodgers ahead for good. Since then, he's looked like crap, both at the plate and in the field. His ABs last night were atrocious, particularly the one in the bottom of the 8th with the bases juiced. Is he gonna get it together?

Is Manny done? He sure looks like it. A Manny revival would be major right now.

Even though we've guaranteed home field advantage and a trip back to LA for Game 5 if necessary, I feel like the Cards are still very much in this. If they can win the 2 games at home, which is viable considering how weak the Blue's bats looked last night, (albeit against a high caliber ace) behind the reliable Joel PinIero and then Smoltz or Lohse, they get to come back to the Ravine for Game 5. But does anyone really think the great Chris Carpenter will have another offday in the NLDS? Highly doubtful. He'll come with his A game and if the Dodgers are down, they could likely stay down. They really need to find it in their hearts to win tomorrow behind Padilla and call this thing done. Should be very, very, very, very interesting.

It was nice to see Phhilly drop a game at Citizens Bank Park to the undedog Rockies. Can you imagine if we can hold on and eliminate the Redbirds and if somehow the Mountains can upset the Phils, we'd be playing a team we beat 14 times this year for a trip to the Fall Classic? The Yankees, meanwhile, are LOSING TO MINNESOTA IN THE 8TH as I write this. If I'm a Yankee fan, I'm still not too worried. The Angels dominated the hated Bosox in Anaheim last night and it was a pleasure to see. I'm still thinking it's gonna be a Cards/Yanks series. I know I'm wrong, though, and that's a good thing. Just trying not to get my hopes up too high. It's been wayyy too many years of disappointment.

GAME 1 NLDS: IN GAME RUNNING COMMENTARY

Here it, is everyone. Thought I'd give you all something new. My in-game thoughts as it happens, 1st few innings in depth.

Top of the 1st Inning: Man, Wolf looks shaky. Way to walk the lead-off guy, numb nuts ... And a double down the line by Brendan Ryan with a mustache from the 70's. Even silly-looking men can get ground rule doubles. ... right move to walk Pujols but I don't see this ending well... I can't help noticing the Cards have the bags juiced with no one out. ... Lousy AB by Holliday. HUGE OUT!!! ... Jeezo Peezo! Nice at bat by Ludwick! YES!! Easy pop up to short center. We're gonna have -- WHAT???!??!?? HOW DOES MATT KEMP NOT MAKE THAT PLAY???!!!?!?!?!?!? 1-0 Cards and that could be your ballgame, folks. ... How many pitches has Wolf thrown, 100? Oh my! What a fine play by Belliard to turn the pair! I thought for sure that was going through for another 2 runs.

Bottom 1: GOOD piece of hitting by Furcal! If he's truly back, look out! Here comes Kemp, the goat. He should be wearing black zig zags on his shirt because he looked like Charlie Brown out there in center field. ... JESUS! THAT BALL IS DRILLED TO DEAD CENTER!!! IT'S OUTTA HERE! 2-1 Dodgers and it's the Day of Atonement for Kemp. What a blast! Charlie Brown is the hero! Wow, Carpenter doesn't look as sharp as normal. ... Here's Ethier... Nice of Andre to tap out weakly. Man, he's stunk for a while, now. We really need him to start hitting again. Here comes Manny... hard hit ball to the right side...! DAMN! Pujols is a better fielder than he is a hitter and that's saying a lot. What a play! Here comes the unfocused one, James Loney. ... Bay Hee! Loney gets a hit! Carpenter seems shaky and flakey. ... Hey! There's another bay hee by Blake! ... Can Belliard drive in some more runs? Can we possibly chase the great Chris Carpenter in the 1st? ... not so much. My lord, what an awful looking swing by Belliard.

Top 2: Solid bay hee by DeRosa. Gotta tell ya, Wolf doesn't look like he's long for this game... Rasmus now ... Behind on every hitter is Wolf ... lots of foul balls. Can't seem to find an out pitch. Wolf may well throw his 90th pitch by the end of this inning. (If he gets out of the inning) ... 3-2... liner to Blake! DP? NO! DeRosa dives back well in time. Blake got rid of it quickly, but it seemed like the throw was weak. ... Carpenter's gonna try to lay one down ... and fails miserably. 2 down. Ground ball with eyes by Skip Schumaker. Nice range by Belliard. 1st & 2nd with Ryan up ... Jesus. I thought that ball was going over Manny's head. Phew!

Bottom 2: Martin leading off... He shaved ... The thing to do is get Carpenter to throw a lot of pitches and get into the Redbirds pen ... so much for that. Martin being Martin. Typical weak ground out to the left side on the 2nd pitch. One out ... Wolf now... at least he hit it harder than Martin. Not saying much. 2 down. Furcal again... Man, he's on fire! That ball is smoked! STAND UP TRIPLE DOWN THE RIGHT FIELD LINE!! Kemp... Ks on a slow change. Now we have Pujols, Holliday and Ludwick to deal with in the 3rd.

Top 3: Thank God Wolf got Albert to ground out weakly on the 1st pitch. Holliday now ... Line drive bay hee to right. Wolf in trouble again. Walk on 4 pitches to Ludwick. Wolf will be out of this game very soon if this keeps up. I really wanna get a pitch count here... Molina... drive to right! There it goes...! Oh, wow! Nice play by Ethier at the wall. Phew! again. That ball just kept carrying. DeRosa now ... PHEW! AGAIN! Nice one hopper to Furcal and Wolf lives to see another inning.

Bottom 3: Here's the chance to get some huge insurance runs against the surefire NL Cy Young winner... Ethier, Manny, then Loney. Let's go! ... Man! Guys are taking that slow 12-6 curveball like they're mesmerized by it... ETHIER'S HIT ON THE FOOT! Lead off man on! (Seems like the only way Andre's gonna reach base these days but I'll take it) Manny now ... Still doesn't look like Manny. They're going right after him. ... 3-1. Wonder how many pitches Carpenter has thrown? ... Who's gonna be who? Is Carpenter gonna be Carpenter or is Manny gonna finally be Manny? ... BALL 4! 1st & 2nd, no outs! James DP Loney up... Fly ball to right, well hit??? ... not really, but deep enough to get Ethier to 3rd on the tag. 1st & 3rd, one out, Casey Blake up... please no DP's. We need the run. ... 3-2 again. Lots of pitches thrown by Carpenter. That's a good thing... SMASH DOWN THE 3RD BASE LINE!!!! ... Smothered by DeRosa! ... He THROWS IT INTO RIGHT FIELD!!! ETHIER SCORES!!!! Boy, did he uncork one, waayyy over Schumaker's head! 1st & 2nd, still one out, 3-1 Dodgers! Belliard now ... wow, Belliard's just swinging wildly. ... Strike 3 again on 3 pitches. Belliard looks awful. Just awful. He's left 4 guys on base and it's only the 3rd inning. 2 outs and Martin coming up... 3-1. May be pitching around Russell to get to Wolf ... Ball 4. Carpenter's thrown 61 pitches and it's only 2 outs in the 3rd. Wolf up with bases juiced ... Popped up. Damn. Sometimes wish we had the DH. Least we got a run.

Top 4: Rasmus leading off, then Carpenter, then Schumaker. Wolf needs to be sharper in this inning. ... Crap. Looked like Wolf got him looking with a pitch on the outside corner. Terrible call. Wolf got screwed. Ball 4. Here we go again with Wolf. Damn, he looks shakey... Carpenter now ... obviously gonna try to bunt again ... this time he got it down. Rasmus on 2nd with one out, top of the order up ... double down the 3rd base line! 3-2, now. Wolf is gonna be done soon. Weaver warming up. So much for Wolf being the ace. He looks terrible. Here's stupid-looking Brendan Ryan. Schumaker on 2nd. Only one out. Wolf behind on the count yet again. Pujols on deck. Popped up to Loney! Now the worst Pujols can do is put the Cards up by one... They're gonna put him on and pitch to Holliday. Wow. Not sure how I feel about that. Holliday hit a frozen rope his last at bat... 1st & 2nd, 2 outs ... big swing and a miss! 0-1... This is scary... fouled off, 0-2 ... fastball high, 1-2 ... uh oh. Holliday says he was hit on the right elbow ... and he was. Bases juiced with Ludwick up... this doesn't bode well... get 'im out of there, Torre! ... and he does! Wolf is gone! Enter Jeff Weaver... Line drive... foul! Phew! ... little dribbler to the left of the mound... Weaver's got it! We're out of the inning! Stays 3-2 Dodgers, it's only the bottom of the 4th and I can't take it anymore.

Okay! Okay! I Was Wrong!

And thank God for it. Congrats, Dodger fans! We've won the West! The Blue have once again come back to life. Though they're nowhere near as alive as I'd like to see them and nowhere as alive as they're going to need to be to somehow miraculously get past Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday and Ryan Ludwick. The Blue scored 5 runs in the 7th the other night and broke the spell, the trance-like mesmerization that oppoising pitchers had over them for the last 7 days. The alarm has gone off and the nightmare is finally over, perhaps just before it became a reality. Matt Kemp wound up hitting under .300 but had a fine year, as did Ethier. Martin and Loney still stink and Hudson is still fairly ineffective. We need Belliard. And we need Furcal to keep banging and Pierre to be ready, as always. Belisario should not be allowed to touch the ball again, but I assure you he will. So, here's what we have.

The 3 Scenarios:

The Likely Scenario:

Now, the new reality is afoot and it's the same reality that has haunted the Dodgers since they failed to land a top of the line starting pitcher before the trade deadline. They simply do not have arms to match those of - as far as I'm concerned - the NL's 2009 co-Cy Young Award winners in 19 game winner, Wainwright and 17 game winner, Carpenter. The Dodgers' bats? They've NEVER beaten Carpenter before and the way they're hitting of late, there's no reason to believe they'll beat him now. Unless, of course, the long dead bat of Manny is resurrected and his juiceless body rejuvenated. Too many things have to go right for the Dodgers. They simply must get into the Cardinals bullpen to win. Kershaw pitched a mountain of a game Saturday against the Rockies. He's going to have to at least duplicate that performance this week against the Redbirds. And Randy Wolf is going to need to pitch the game of his life on Wednesday in the opener at the Ravine. If these two guys don't throw shutouts, the chances are the Dodgers will lose because I just don't see their weak bats coming alive enough to overcome the likes of Carpenter and Wainwright. Down 2 games to zip and heading back to St Louie, I see the Dodgers folding up their tent at the new Busch and closing down their 2009 season. Cards in 3 or 4.

The Hoped For Scenario:

Carpenter and/or Wainwright do not toss as expected and Eithier gets hold of one. They manage to get a big inning in one of those games, their bullpen is able to hold down the lead and they manage to beat Piniero in Game 3 or Smoltz/Lohse in Game 4 and they come back to LA for a deciding Game 5. Seeing Carpenter one more time, they manage to eke out a win and move on to the NLCS. Dodgers in 5.

The Unlikely Scenario:

The Dodgers, suddenly and inexplicably running on all cylinders, bang out of the gate, give Carpenter a rather rude welcome and carry that momentum into Game 2 against Wainwright, along with gems by Wolf and Kershaw. They take that momentum to the Gateway to the West and Billingsley or Padilla pitches the game of his life. Dodgers in 3 or 4.

Let's see what happens and, Go Dodgers!!!!

The Nightmare on Elysian Parkway

Ever had a lot of stress that's led to a week of bad dreams? Weird, inexplicable nightmares where the worst just keeps happening no matter what you do or where you turn? You're hysterically running away from something, someone, yourself, maybe. Abandonment, perhaps. Your wife or girlfriend has left you for someone clearly better and it's in your face. You're a kid and your parents leave without so much as a goodbye and you're all alone. Apocalypse, maybe. Everyone you know and love dies, the world crumbles beneath your feet. Disaster to the nth degree, mayhem.

Now, let's put this nightmare in a baseball perspective. Your team makes the playoffs even though, by virtue of the way they've been playing the last 3 months of the season, they really don't deserve it, but for some inexplicable reason, they're there. The team gets all cocky. The owner starts talking about giving the GM a huge contract extension. People buzz about your right fielder as an MVP candidate. But all along, deep down, you know something isn't right - something doesn't make sense, but you try to ignore the feeling. Now, your team is only 1 game away from wrapping up the division title, playing against three of the worst teams in the league. But they never do win that one game. Their closer blows a 3 run lead in the 9th. They just keep playing worse and worse and worse. There's all this champagne in the locker room that never gets opened. Suddenly, even though they weren't hitting very well before, now they don't hit at all. They don't pitch, they don't field, their best player, a sure Hall of Famer until his steroid use was exposed earlier in the season, strikes out every single at bat. Doesn't even come close to making contact. And the team that was 15 games behind you in early June is about to sweep you and take away your division title. Then, suddenly, YOUR TEAM is the Wild Card team after leading the division the entire season. Your team's unspeakably awful play leads them into Philadelphia where they lose 2 quick ones and end up getting shut down at the Ravine in Game 3. Man, dreams are weird! It's ok, though. Let it ride. I mean, it's just a nightmare. It's not really going to happen. You're gonna wake up, right? ... Right? ... Right?

Told Ya So...

What can I say? This team stinks in ways I can't describe and Manny is the worst. 5 more to go and our misery, pain and suffering is over. Joe Torre should be canned for playing Manny over Pierre.

Welcome to the Wild Card!

That's right, folks. Your beloved Blue, our mighty Dodgers have transformed practically overnight from one of baseball's best teams to the absolute worst team that's ever set foot on a big league ball field. They are atrocious from the bottom up and conveniently right before their guaranteed appearance in the 2009 Playoffs. Ya know who just plain stinks? Russell Martin! He's horrible defensively and a disaster at the plate. He's killing us. Ya know who sucks? Andre Ethier. He's 1 for his last 30, can't hit lefthanders to save his life and has proven beyond a reasonable doubt that he's amazing only at times, horrid at most others. Not sure if that kind of inconsistency is worth what he'll be asking in salary arbitration. 31 HRs, 105 RBI aside, I think he thought the season ended a couple of weeks ago. Don't look now, but he'll be hitting in the .260's after tomorrow's loss to the Rockies. The .260's! Wanna know who's terrible? James Loney. Waste of space. Too many DPs. No pop, lazy bat, all his RBI were in the 1st half. We need to try to get Adrian Gonzales in the offseason. Know who's putrid? Orlando Hudson. He should retire. He's clueless out there. And ya know who's the worst? That Manny guy. Jeez! What a difference a hypodermic makes. They should gently persuade him to walk away at season's end, but with his performance, who else is crazy or stupid enough to pay him that 20 million? And wanna know who can't pitch anymore? The Dodgers. Garland is piss poor. Kuroda is awful, Billingsley could be done and God forbid we see Broxton tiptoe to the mound again.

No, folks, the way the Dodgers are playing, it's hard to imagine them winning another game in '09. They're not even close to scoring a run. I see the inspired, flaming hot Rockies sweeping the three at the Ravine and the Dodgers losing to Philly in 3 without so much as a whimper. I've been wrong before, but, unfortunately, I feel so right now. And let's say they do win tomorrow or the next day or Sunday. If you're Joe Torre, do you still let them pour the champagne and celebrate like they actually won something? I sure don't. I tell them to get dressed, go home and think about what the hell they did to get them there in the first place and try to find it before they embarrass and humiliate themselves in front of 50 thousand nasty Philadelphians.

And what is this talk about extending Colletti's contract? Proves my point that all the McCourts care about is beating the Giants, the Mountains, the Dads and the Snakes. Is finishing ahead of 4 lousy teams that much of a feather in your cap? Okay, so Colletti brought us an extremely effective, steroid-enhanced Manny and a bearded, fairly solid third baseman in Blake. I guess acquiring Belliard is working out. But Garland stinks, getting Thome was a joke and Padilla is clearly my third choice in the available "P" pitchers, behind Peavy or Pedro. And, besides, McCourt, you jackass, they haven't won anything! Wonder how McCourt'll feel if and when they wind up choking the division title on Sunday. As Charlie Brown used to say, I can't stand it. I just can't stand it.