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.

Taboo?

Sorry to bring this up, but did anyone see Kershaw's performance last night? Look, I realize he's only 22 and he's had just a little over a year and a half in the bigs, but with all his incredible potential (and I know the whole Koufax story) should he still have so little composure every outing?? The walks? The hit batters? The falling behind and being forced to make fat pitches? And let's take a look at Billingsley. What about all that potential? He's really not too good, considering how high his ceiling was/is supposed to be. At times, both pitchers are just horrible.

I guess what I'm getting at is, we hear so much about what an amazing job pitching coach and ex-big league catcher, Dave Duncan is doing with the Cardinals pitchers. Look at what he's doing for rookie, Jaime Garcia and look what he's done to resurrect the careers of Kyle Lohse, Chris Carpenter and Brad Penny. So, that being said, is Rick Honeycutt, as much as we love the guy, maybe NOT the guy for the job any longer? Of course the staff likes him, but pitchers always speak glowingly of their mentors. It just dosn't appear that the Dodgers are getting the most out of the young arms they bring up through their system once they get to the big club. True, Jim Colburn did little for Edwin Jackson who wound up becoming a disaster until he left for greener pastures. Colburn, I thought, was slightly more effective than Honeycutt and I was sorry to see him go. But, to further drive home my point, look how terrible James McDonald has become. Look how Broxton is still having some command problems and see how awful George Sherrill is now that he's become a Honeycutt disciple. I'm just saying, when looking at Kershaw, Billingsley and McDonald, it just seems like it may be time for a change at pitching coach. Take into account that, since the Dodgers don't seem too interested in or willing to pay for an established, top flight arm who wouldn't really need Honeycutt's tutelage, it appears they're settled on making the youthful Kershaw and the less youthful Billingsley their core arms. Those are the 2 guys they're building their staff around. So, hadn't they better get someone to work with them that may be more adept at recognizing mechanical problems more quickly and efficiently and perhaps squeezing out better results?

Maybe, like Jim Tracy, Rick is just not the right guy for that particular team or those particular personailites, but may do better elsewhere, like he did in Oakland. Anyway, just thinking out loud. Sorry, Rick.

Unconscionable

"Unconscionable." That was the appropriate word LA Times baseball writer, Bill Shaikin used to describe the Dodger ownership's lack of spending when they LED, not were among the top, but LED the Majors in attendance last year, (that means they outdrew the Yankees in their new stadium) while their ticket, concession and parking prices are through the roof. Shaikin's interview with Dodgers scouting director, Logan White was less than telling as far as I'm concerned. Logan White responded to Shaikin's questions about why the Dodgers no longer spend money on free agents, draft picks or international signings by playing the role of company man. "Since I've been here, I've always had the amount of money I need to spend," says White. Yeah, right. White contends that paying a lot of money for prospects is the wrong way to go. That you run the risk of guys ending up not reaching their potential and then you've wasted all this cash, I imagine, because he believes it could be spent better elsewhere. Ok. Where? I don't see Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee in Dodger uniforms. The Dodgers pitching is so thin, it's barely visible. So, then where does all this extra cash go that they haven't spent on huge signing bonuses and international talent? I wonder... This organization used to be based on their pitching prowess. What happened? Frank McCourt happened.

But then, what else is White supposed to say? I mean, there's actually a chance, if McCourt cares enough, that he'd read this article. White is afraid for his job, I'm sure. McCourt probably pays him a lot of money and is no doubt looking for a cheaper option at scouting director. How about me? I'll do it for less than half of White is making and when Shaikin asks me tough questions, I'll also tell him the thrift is my idea, not McCourt's. Shaikin is a very smart man, so I'm sure he doesn't think White is going to complain about having his hands tied by his employer to the press. But then, why even pose those hard questions to him? Shouldn't those hard questions be posed to the suddenly elusive McCourt?

The Milwaukee Brewers, who have a higher payroll than the Dodgers, hit town tonight. Sure, I'm happy the Blue have put together a little 3 game winning streak against the lowly Buckos, but it doesn't much raise my hopes. The Pittsburgh Pirates could well be the worst team in the Major Leagues and, yet, they certainly have a payroll that McCourt aspires to. I like McCutcheon and Doumit, and I thought a lot of Garret Jones but his swing has more holes than a bowl of Cheerios. Their pitching staff is simply muy, muy malo. Jeff Karstens is still in the Majors? Why? So, I take Andre Ethier's stellar weekend with a grain of salt, not to take anything away from him. I think he's great and I think his career is en fuego. He's going to have a fine season. In fact, right now, numbers-wise, he's the NL MVP. Wondering what happened to Kemp? Think he got his wittle bitty feelings hurt when Ned Colletti trashed him last week? Maybe. Or maybe it's the fact that he suddenly appears to be trying to hit everything in the air to right field instead of just putting his bat on the ball wherever it was pitched like he was doing most of April. Typical for young players, when they have a little success going oppo, to fall in love with it and lose their stroke. Anyway, the Brew Crew should give the Blue Crew a much more difficult time than the Bucs.

Mildly encouraged by the outings of Kershaw,, Billingsley and their new ace, Hiroki MedioKuroda. Kuroda is actually pitching real tough. Wonder how long that'll last and wonder when he'll go back on the DL. Kershaw is still a deer in the headlights early in games and it costs them. Billingsley is pitching better than he was, which is nice. And, maybe it's time to get excited about young Carlos Monasterios. Can you imagine if he actually pans out? That would make McCourt and Colletti look like a pair o' geniuses. Not thinkin' that's gonna happen, though. At least we no longer have to suffer through the starting pitching stylings of one Charlie Haeger. On top of all this rejuvenated greatness, no errors recently. In fact, that play at 3rd base by Belliard going into left field with his back to home plate ala the Say Hey Kid and turning and doubling up LaRoche at 1st was tres amazing. (Laroche was safe, but I'll take it.) Also, Loney and DeWitt are even hitting! But, don't get too excited yet. The pen still looks wobbly - George Sherrill - and they have Raffy back on the DL, where he must be really beginning to feel at home. Most importantly, let's wait and see what happens now that the Pirates will no longer be involved in the Dodger season. That's right, they're all done with the black and gold and it's only May 4th. I'm not so sure the Blue will perform as well against other colors. All I can say is Joe Torre sure has his work cut out for him compared to other teams in his division. With no starting arms like a Lincecum, Cain, Zito, Sanchez, Ubaldo Jiminez, Dan Haren or Wade LeBlanc, (that's right, WADE LEBLANC!) the Dodgers couldn't possibly pull this off.