Ely's Comin'!

Hide your heart, girl!

Is John Ely the answer? Well, let's not get too carried away, I don't think he's the next Fernandomania object or the next Bulldog, but he sure has helped fill that 4 spot in the rotation. I love his approach, his poise, his pitch selection and his ability to change speeds. He's no fireballer, however. Still, at times, he's appeared dominating. And, yet, we must take into account the teams he's gotten to face. Obviously, the jury is still out, but ya gotta like what you've seen thus far.

Sorry I've been away. I had a deadline to meet and there will be more, so enjoy my occasional absences. To be honest, I was so in shock at the Blue's resurgence, I didn't really know what to say.

Now to all this silliness over this 9 game winning streak that ended last night in a 10-5 clubbing at the hands of the Daddy-o's. The Dodgers got some damn fine pitching, which they desperately needed. Pitching that can actually give us a little hope. Kershaw has been lights out, Ely, of course, Hiroki Medio-Kuroda is becoming slightly better than mediocre and even Chad Billingsley has looked sharp. Not only that, but before he fractured his pinkie Andre Ethier was singlehandedly dismantling the National League. At least the NL West. He's on the DL now and he's going to be sorely missed. Let's face it. Matt Kemp hasn't been the same since Colletti opened his mouth. He's starting to hit a little, but where did all that power disappear to? And when will Manny start hitting the long ball again? Loney and Blake have been hitting a little, so, even without Ethier, they should find ways to win a few games, but let's try to put things into perspective before we let ourselves get too excited. The 9 game winning streak the Dodgers enjoyed wasn't a fluke but it was against some of the worst teams in the NL. Don't know why, but the Snakes aren't really hitting and their pitching has been atrocious. Even Dan Haren has been lousy. I think they're a better team than their current record and I think they'll rebound at some point. They still worry me a little. If they don't rebound soon, you can probably say bye bye to A.J. Hinch. The Dads are in first place in the West and have been for some time, but don't expect that to last. They have some very strong young pitching in Wade LeBlanc, Clayton Richard and Matt Latos. John Garland and Kevin Correia have also been pitching well. I don't think that's going to last all season. I like Le Blanc and Richard. Still not sure about the other two, though people seem to think a lot of Latos and also, Chris Young is due back at some point. But, outside of Adrian Gonzalez and, maybe Will Venable and Chase Headley, they have an AWFUL OFFENSE. An offense that their pitching will not be able to protect for much longer. I still pick the Dads to finish last or 4th. San Fran and Colorado are just too good. So, the Dodgers swept SD down in SD. Not the huge feat the media might have made it out to be. The Dads can't hit. As far as their knocking the 'Stros around, that means very little. The Houston Astros appear to be the worst team in the league. And, word has it, their long time ace, Roy Oswalt has said he's willing to waive his no-trade clause. Wonder what excuse McCourt and Colletti will come up with for not acquiring HIM.

So, let's enjoy the fact that our beloved Blue, owned by the cheapest of cheapskates, are now a few games over .500 and back in contention. I just wish their players weren't made of the finest Japanese porcelain. Ethier fractures a pinkie simply hitting. He's gone for at least 2 weeks. Furcal's tender hammie has him out of commision for a month! (Nice job by Jaimie Carroll as his replacement, but I'd still rather have Raffy in there) Vicente Padilla, who never looks like he wants to be out there anyway, is in no hurry to come back from a nerve problem in his forearm and Manny can't avoid bangng his foot against the trainer's table while stretching. I definitely see the DL in Manny's future again. If this team does get the pitching they need, a few things are going to have to happe for them to win:
1) They're going to have to be less fragile and actually play in the games.
2) Torre is going to have to say adios to Ramon Ortiz and hola to Carlos Monasterios.
3) George Sherrill is going to have to get his act together. He started to, until last night.
4) Matt Kemp is going to have to find his swing.
5) They may have to find a way to land Roy Oswalt, perhaps at the expense of a James Loney.

First, let's see if Kershaw can have 3 strong starts in a row.