The Dodgers are 3.5 games ahead of the Diamondbacks for first place in the NL West.  3.5 games in first place seems like plenty of room to for the Dodgers to get into the postseason, but it’s not.  They have to keep it going and make sure to finish the season, that way they will have some momentum heading into October. There are only 16 games remaining in the regular season and if the Dodgers keep it going they will find themselves in the postseason for the first time since 2005.  Hopefully if they make it to the playoffs this year they will do better than 2005 when they were swept by the Mets in the ALDS.

The Dodgers started out the 10 game road trip in San Diego and promptly lost the first game 0-4.  These however are not the same under achieving Dodgers from the beginning and middle of the season.  They came back and thrashed the Padres 6-2 and 7-2 in the last two games.  Not only has the offense stepped it up, but the pitching is doing incredible.  It is a big surprise that they have been pitching the way they have been pitching down the stretch. That is just what the Dodgers needed, clutch pitching at the right time to take them to the promise land of October baseball.

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The Dodgers had one of their most exciting series against the Phillies. The four game series ended last night capping it off with a 3-1 win and a series sweep.  The first game the Dodgers played Dodgers won the games 8-6, 4-3 (comeback), 7-6 (comeback) and 3-1.  The Dodgers have caught up to the Diamondbacks and have managed to keep pace with them over these past few games.  They are no in a tie with them and maybe if they keep their winning ways going they might be in first place all alone by the end of the week.

The two middle games of the series were by far the most nail biting games.  In game two the Dodgers were down 3-1 after six innings and were able to mount a comeback at the end.  The game ended when Martin scored on Andre Ethier’s walk-off single.

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Manny Ramirez has been on a tear since coming to the Dodgers.  He is hitting .565, with four homers, nine RBIs and seven runs scored.  He hit his fourth home run in six games with the Dodgers and since acquiring Manny at the trade deadline the Dodgers have gone 3-3.  Still not where the Dodgers would like to be, but at least their offense is consistently scoring runs at around five runs per game in the six games since Manny has joined the team.

The Dodgers started a six game road trip with a series against the Cardinals on Tuesday.  they started the series bad losing the first two games 4-6 and 6-9.  They were in danger of being swept Thursday, bu luckily Kershaw, the young Dodger pitcher, saved the day and pitched a gem.  The Dodgers won 4-1 behind Kershaw’s seven strong innings (7IP, 3H, 1ER) and Manny homered once again to lead the Dodgers to the win.

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The Dodgers were able to pull off a blockbuster trade right before the trade deadline ended and landed Manny Ramirez from the Red Sox. They sent Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris to the Pirates.

Manny Ramirez was acquired to bring a struggling offense a decent clean-up batter and to score more runs. Something the Dodgers offense has struggled to accomplish for most of the season. Along with the great bat that Manny brings to the team he also carries a lot of baggage, something the Dodgers must be willing to put up with.

Manny is probably just a two month rental for the Dodgers for the rest of the season. He has two $20 million options for the 2009 and 2010 seasons that the Dodgers got wavied. Manny will probably be to expensive for the Dodgers and be a free agent after the season.

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The Dodgers have made the first step to making the postseason. Third base was in need of a major upgrade over the likes of Andy “You mean pitching’s different in the Majors” LaRoche and Blake “What’s a bat” DeWitt.

On Saturday, the Dodgers made, hopefully, the first of many moves as the trading deadline approaches on July 31st. Casey Blake was traded from Cleveland to LA for a couple of minor leaguers. Now, he may not be the piece of the puzzle that propels the team to the World Series, but he is a nice upgrade. Blake will hit for power and is the gritty type of player that is needed to keep the offense moving.

Are more trades looming in the future or is General Manager Ned Colletti content keeping this young, underachieving team as is? If the past is indicative of anything, then he will make a few minor moves to maybe bolster the bullpen but make sure to keep the farm system intact.

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The Dodgers started out the All-Star break with a win that propelled them into a NL West tie with the Diamondbacks, but since that win the Dodgers have been a mediocre .500 team. They are now, again, one game back of the Diamondbacks after losing two of three against the Rockies.

The Dodgers offensive spurts continue as the scoring machine team showed up for the first game winning 16-10 at Coors Field. They scored eight runs alone in the first inning and kept it going throughout the game, led by James Loney’s five RBI night. The next two games were a completely different team scoring four runs combined in a 1-10 and 3-5 losses.

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Working in the media definitely has its perks.

Sunday afternoon I had the pleasure of watching the Dodgers rout the Florida Marlins 9-1, directly followed by playing in the media game.

To start the day off, I viewed the game from the press box. My first experience there was very interesting. I have seen numerous games Chavez Ravine, and the atmospheres could not be more on different ends of the spectrum. In the stands, people are either having family fun time or let’s get hammered time with your friends. In the box, it is all business. You are not allowed to root for either team and the writers/broadcasters discuss the issues on each team in a calm manner. However, the food is free and I took major advantage. Dodger Dog here, nachos there. I’ll end up blaming the food for my play later, just wait.

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With only three games left before the All-Star break The Dodgers find themselves one game back (from four and a half games a couple of weeks ago) of the first place Diamondbacks. What a difference pitching makes. With the Dodgers offense being so erratic it’s the pitching that has kept them in the win column and in a first place tie with the Diamondbacks.

As of right now the Dodgers are one game back of the Arizona Diamondbacks, but they have crept up by winning seven of their last ten games.

The last series win was against the Atlanta Braves in which the Dodgers won two out of three with a 3-9 loss and 3-0, 2-1 wins at home.

The Dodgers just started a four game series against the Florida Marlins yesterday, but they lost the first game 4-5 in extra innings. The Dodgers were down 3-4 in the sixth when Russell Martin (2 for 4, HR, 2 RBI) hit a solo home run to tie the game.

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The Dodgers took 2 out of 3 this weekend from their hated rivals, the San Francisco Giants. In doing so, they are now only a half game out first place in the NL West despite the fact that they are two games below .500.

With the All-Star break coming up, that fact got me thinking: Will they stay the underachieving, boring to watch team that put them in this position? Or can they right the ship and become a team to reckon with?

Let’s take a look at each scenario individually and come up with a conclusion from there.

This Dodger team is harder to watch than “The Bill Engvall Show.” The offense is stagnant. Nobody can hit in a clutch situation. And can someone please hit a three run homerun? Oh wait, that would mean there has to be baserunners.

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After getting swept in Detroit it didn’t look very good for the Dodgers heading into the next series against the Reds. Good thing the Reds were in a funk of their own. The Dodgers ended up sweeping the series 3-1, 6-1 and 7-4, thanks to great pitching. The Dodger pitchers Billingsley, Lowe and Stults gave up only six runs in the three games. The Dodgers offense finally came alive for more than one game and scored sixteen runs.

The series against the Reds ended a nine game road trip for the Dodgers. They are back home in L.A. to start a nine game home stand against three American League teams. They face the struggling Cleveland Indians tonight for the start of a three game series. Then they will host the red hot Chicago White Sox, who lead the AL Central, for a three game series. The last series against the AL is a good one, as the Los Angeles Angels come to the face the real L.A. team. The Angels will be at Dodger Stadium for the last three games series. As expected many Angel fans should be there, but nothing good comes out of visiting fans being in Dodger Stadium. Especially since the Angels are doing so well and the Dodgers continue to struggle. We shall see what happens.

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The Arizona Diamondbacks are struggling as of late, losing twelve of their last 16 games. It should be a great time for the Dodgers to catch up to them, but the Dodgers have been struggling themselves. They have lost eleven of their last fourteen games coming into Fridays second game against the Cubs. The Dodgers continue to stay within striking distance of the D-Backs, but can’t seem to get past the hump. They keep hovering at around three to four games back, but can get no closer.

Their latest series didn’t help them get any closer. They ended up losing three of the four games against the Mets. Winning only the second game of the series 9-5. It looked as if the offense was clicking after that game and they would have some momentum, but it was not to be. The struggling offense started, well, struggling again. They lost the remaining games 2-3 and 1-6. The Dodgers were out scored 16 to 22 in the series.

The Dodgers came back to Dodger Stadium after the 1-6 road trip to face the Rockies. It seemed like all the Dodgers needed was to be in front of their home crowd because they were clicking again and won the first game of the series 8-2. It seems as though when the Dodgers score runs it takes a lot out of them because all of a sudden the next games the offense was gone, once again. They lost the next two games 0-3 and 1-2.

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THEATRE

• Show Girls presented by Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre | Thursday, May 5, 2008 | 9:30 p.m. | $5 | UCB Theatre - Map | Writers Jackie Clarke and John Flynn take you inside “Showgirls,” with a staged reading, an “Inside the Actor’s Studio” bit, this is comedy you won’t want to miss.

MUSIC

• Arturo Sandoval | Thursday, May 5, 2008 | 10 p.m. | $25-35 | Catalina Bar & Grill - Map | Grammy award winning trumpeter Arturo Sandoval performs some Latin Jazz at Catalina Bar & Grill.

SPORTS

• Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Chicago Cubs | Thursday, May 5, 2008 | 7:10 p.m. | $13-130 | Dodger Stadium - Map | Have you seen the Dodgers yet? This might be your chance, as they go head to head with the Chicago Cubs in this MLB regular season game.

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