You win some you lose some, that’s the nature of the beast. Teams expect to lose games in a 162 game season, that’s a no brainer. They just hope that they win more than they lose. At some point in the season your team is going to have winning streaks and losing streaks there’s nothing much a team can do, but go out and play. Eventually things will square away.
That seems to be the case for the Dodgers right now. They started out great, then they hit a bump in the road, then they went back up winning seven games in a row. Now they seem to be hanging in there, winning and losing evenly. Such was the case with the last two series.
The Dodgers started the weekend facing the Angels having lost 7 of the last eight games against them. They didn’t fare much better this time around. They faced Joe Saunders in game one and lost 4-2. Kuroda actually pitched well enough to win, but things came apart for the Dodgers when Bennett threw the ball all the way to the warning track, on what should have been the last out of the 4th inning, allowing a run to score. The Angels never gave up the lead after that. The second game the Dodgers won 6-3 behind Dewitt’s 2 run home run, four shut out inning by Kuo and Saito saving the game in the 9th. It was only the second win in eleven tries against Angels. The third and final game they lost 10-2, thanks to Lowe giving up seven runs in five innings.
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Tags: Reviews · Sport Report
After winning eleven of their last fourteen games, the Dodgers came into Wednesday game against the Brewers on a five game losing streak.
They were swept at home by the Astros handily. They lost the first game 7-1 behind a lousy pitching performance from Lowe and a lackluster offense. They were able to avoid the shut out by scoring their lone run in the ninth inning. They were unable to score a run in the second game losing 5-0. Billingsley struggled giving up all five runs in the first two innings, he settled down after that, but a struggling Dodgers offense couldn’t come through with any run support. The closing game against the Astros was the most competitive, but it still ended up as a 8-5 loss. The Dodgers had a three one lead going into the eighth inning, thanks to an outstanding pitching performance by Kuroda. The bullpen gave the game away though by giving up six runs in the eighth. If losing wasn’t bad enough, Furcal was put on the 15 day DL with a bad back, but is eligible to come back May 21st.
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It is early in the season, but early troubles are hard to get over sometimes. Fans can sense when their team isn’t doing great and start to get worried no matter how early in the season it is. Fans can only hope that their team has a turn around and the faith from the fans paid off.
What a difference a week makes. The Dodgers after struggles on the mound and the plate have had quite a turn around. They had a winning streak of eight games and kicked off the home stand by taking two of three from the Mets. Now they are sitting three and half games out of first place. Much better than being second to last in the division.
The Dodgers started the home stand on Monday against the Mets. They took the first game 5-1. Rafael Furcal started things off with a bang hitting a lead off home run and the rest of the offense followed. Kemp and Dewitt also hit home runs to back Billingsley to his second win of the season. The Dodgers took the second game 5-4. Blake Dewitt hit an inside the park home run (one of the most exciting plays in baseball) that put the Dodgers ahead for good. The Dodgers received a great performance from their reliever Kuo who struck out eight and kept the Mets bats in check. The Dodgers were all ready to sweep the Mets in the third game with their ace Penny taking the mound, but it wasn’t meant to be. Brad Penny struggled and gave up ten runs in what eventually was a 12-1 shellacking.
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Looks like all the Dodgers needed was a good tongue lashing from me. They straightened up and started to fly right, well at least this week. Hopefully they can keep it up for the rest of the season or at least until the All-Star break.
The Dodgers ended the week off on the right foot, sweeping the series against the Rockies. The Rockies had been struggling going into the series and the Dodgers took advantage of it. They beat them 8-7, 11-3 and 3-2. The first game went a lucky 13 innings with the Dodgers winning it on a walk-off sacrifice fly from Russell Martin. The second game in the series was an easy win for the Dodgers. Brad Penny turned in one of his best pitching performances (7 innings/3 earned runs). He was backed up by 10 runs in the first inning, with four of those runs coming on Matt Kemp’s first career grand slam. The third game in the series needed extra inning , James Loney drove in Rafael Furcal with the winning run in the 10th inning.
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What once started as a promising season is now turning into a glimpse into the future, if the Dodgers don’t make a change for the better.
The Dodgers are 22 games into the season and are a sub .500 team, 409, to be exact. They don’t look so good right now. In fact they’re so bad that the lowly Giants are 1.5 games above them. The Giants were predicted by many to finish last in the NL West, but so far it looks like the Dodgers (if they don’t improve something) will be near or at the bottom of the division.
I think that more than anything, the Dodgers need to improve their starting pitching. Penny and Lowe are the only two of the five starters that have a winning record. Even Penny (3-2) and Lowe’s (2-1) records aren’t that good. Teams expect more out of their top two starters, especially from their ace.
Many will be quick to point to the offense as the problem; how they haven’t been scoring all that many runs. Even though that is a good point, of the 13 loses they have only scored 1+ runs 6 times, less than half. But, in those loses the Dodger pitchers have given up 85 runs. Do the math, 85/13=6.5 that’s a 6.5 ERA, high for any team. It’s hard to stay in the game if your team is almost always trailing from the start. The Dodgers will need to fix the pitching and that’s the bottom line. [Read more →]
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In 1947, the number 42 wasn’t all that special for baseball, it was just another number.  It was one of many possible double digit numbers that a MLB player could wear. It wasn’t special when they gave it to Jackie Robinson either, he was what made the number special. As soon as Jackie stepped onto the Dodgers baseball field on April 15th, 1947, it ceased being a number and more of a symbol. Now the number 42 in baseball means courage, strength and perseverance.
Jackie stood up to so much hate and racism during that 1947 season. He could have easily quit and walked away from the game, no one would have blamed him if he did, but he endured. He found a way to remain cool and composed during hard times. Not to fight back with words, but to show doubters, that no matter what his color, he belonged out on that field. And boy did he ever prove it.
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Tags: General · local news
The first two series for the Dodgers started out well. They won 2 out of 3 against the hated Giants to start the season. As good as starting the season at home was, the Dodgers went on the road for their next series. They were off to San Diego to face the Padres.
Joe Torre called on Kuroda, the Japanese rookie, for his first start of the season. The Dodgers won the first game 7-1 behind Kuroda’s quality start (one earned run, 3 hits, no walks and four strike outs). The second game pitted Penny against Peavy, in what ended up being a great pitching dual, but a 4-1 loss for the Dodgers. Penny gave up all four runs in the first inning. The Dodgers haven’t won a game started by Peavy since 2003 and he made sure they didn’t win again, giving up only two hits in a complete game effort. Derek Lowe pitched the closing game and won 3-2 thanks to a Chin-lung Hu’s game winning single in the 9th inning. [Read more →]
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The Dodgers came home for opening day and won their first series against the rival Giants and their first 2 out of 3 games. Not a bad way to start the season. It was a packed house, it was a sea of blue and when the fans did the wave it actually did look like the ocean (if the water here was clean and blue that is).
The Dodgers won on opening day 5-0 behind a strong pitching performance from Brad Penny (6 2/3 scoreless innings), a two-run home run from Jeff Kent and Furcal chipped in with 3 hits and an RBI. The stadium was sold out and the energy was strong, the way opening day should be.
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The Dodgers are on a roll, just not the kind of roll they would like to be on. They have lost four out of their last five games and the other game was a tie. The Dodgers need to get something going before the season starts, yes, yes, it’s only spring training, but they need to be heading into the season with some momentum. It’s never good for a team to start the season with a losing streak, even if the games mean nothing.
The NL West figures to be one of the toughest divisions once again with the Dodgers, Rockies, Diamondbacks and Padres all in the mix. The Dodgers need to get off to a good start right out of the gate to have a chance to win the NL West.
The Dodgers still have unsolved gaps in the roster (outfielders and injuries) and with only four days left until opening day many fans are hoping Torre comes up with some solutions soon. The good news is that they seem to have a strong starting rotation with Brad Penny, Derek Lowe and Hiroki Kuroda all having good spring training. Rafeal Furcal (featured) was the best player for the Dodgers last year and is on track to have yet another great year. All the young players for the Dodgers Russell Martin, James Loney, Andre Either and Matt Kemp, are all having very successful spring trainings. Lets hope they can keep it up during the regular season.
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Tags: General · Sport Report
With the MLB regular season only about a week away the Dodgers, just like every other team, are playing their final spring training games and trying to figure out who is going to be on their 25 man roster to start the season. The latter is easier said than done. The Dodgers have an abundance of outfielders, Andrew Jones will be the starting center fielder for sure, but choosing between Pierre, Kemp and Ethier (pictured) for the two corner spots is proving difficult for new skipper Torre. Torre hasn’t decided yet making it more than likely that it will come down to the wire.
Third base is one of the biggest problems that the Dodgers have yet to address. Nomar and LaRoche, the two player that were supposed to be battling it out for third base, are both injured. LaRoche had surgery on his right thumb, while Nomar has a broken hand, neither will be ready for opening day. The only logical solution is for the Dodgers to trade for someone that will really help them at the corner. Loretta from the Astros is a name that has been thrown out there along with Belliard from the Nationals. Both would be within the Dodgers price range and both are excellent defenders with average offense.
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Do you remember what it was like to get bullied in high school? You don’t? Well watching “Drillbit Taylor” is just the thing to help you remember. If you were a nerd, geek or just plain weird in high school then you will be able to relate (I know I did). *SPOILER ALERT*
Wade (Nate Hartley) and Ryan (Troy Gentile) think they’re prepared to embark on the journey of high school, but they have no idea what lies ahead. The day turns bad before they even get on the school bus, Wade and Ryan end up wearing the same shirt with no time to change. Of course that leads to ridicule for the rest of the day from students and teachers alike.
To top things off they get on Filkin (Alex Frost), the school bully’s bad side when they attempt to stop him from shoving a kid, Emmit (David Dorfman), into a locker (Emmit becomes friends with Wade and Ryan). With that one little act of defiance, Filkins has made it his job to make high school miserable for Wade and Ryan. Of course when they go to the principal, he ends up being an idiot that won’t help them. They would have been better off being home schooled.
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Tags: Film · Reviews
After an 18+ hour flight that spanned 7,500 miles, The Dodgers landed safely in China. They are set to play the San Diego Padres in Beijings Wukesong Stadium on Friday 1 a.m. Eastern time. Wukesong Stadium will also be the stadium where baseball will be played during the 2008 Olympics. The Dodgers and Padres will be the first ever MLB teams to play in China. Commissioner Bud Selig and the MLB are hoping that this leads to more games in China and other places around the world.
The split squad Dodgers had a chance to practice on the field and so far reviews of the stadium have been positive. The grass was a little to short and fast, but was deemed playable by most of the team. Torres split squad consists mainly of prospects and non roster invitees. The only big names that are really there for the Dodgers are Andrew Jones and Matt Kemp; Nomar Garciaparra was a late scratch because of injuries.
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