The Dodgers looked terrible this weekend – but the Giants looked worse. While Arizona is an object closer than it might appear in the rear-view mirror, you can read about the end of the 2012 first half at Los Angeles Magazine’s CityThink blog.
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Anonymous
I still expect the Dodgers to win the division, but the Snakes are a greater concern than the Gnats.
Anonymous
This last month has shown just how important these players are to the Dodgers. With the exception of the pitching staff, which has done very well, the other 12 (or whatever) could be exchanged with an equal number of players from any other team and produce the same results. Ned should hang For Sale Signs on all of them.
Anonymous
I think Herrera, Gwynn and Hairston acquitted themselves reasonably well as non-starters worth a spot on the bench. Uribe, SVS, Kennedy and he-who-I-pledged-not-to-bash showed that they just aren’t big league players at this point, and, in the case of half, age means they’re probably done as athletes.
Anonymous
The NL is down this year. Waaaaay down. God have mercy.
Anonymous
I obviously enjoyed the Giants’ last week, but, let’s be fair: crossing the country to face two young, hungry division-leading teams in 100 degree 90% humidity (with fully half of those games in the day) isn’t the easiest task.
Anonymous
I believe the Nationals and Pirates played in the same weather.
Did anyone buy the Dodgers excuse that they didn’t hit in Oakland or San Francisco because they weren’t used to the cold?
Anonymous
Nats were coming from Atlanta, Bucs’ previous series was at home.
This heat wave has broken all-time records, killed a few dozen people. The comforts of home and lack of travel probably mean a little more than usual. Having Timmy start the trip didn’t help either, of course. Bochy should probably have given him a couple of weeks in San Jose.
Anonymous
I think the weather wasn’t as much of a factor for the Giants as possibly that the Nats and Bucs were better.
Anonymous
I agree with timmer that the Nats and Bucs are significantly better than the Gnats. As for Timmy, he’s the new Dontrelle Willis and, like Dontrelle, he’ll probably bounce around for a few years more before becoming a spokesman for unconventional medical substances.
Anonymous
I liked the D-train! He also had some scary occasional pop as a batter in his prime.
Anonymous
He was always far more likeable than Lincecum.
Anonymous
Though I missed today’s game, AZ played like the hungrier team all weekend. I think we let them back in the race.
Michael Green
Frankly, the team that was on the field today wasn’t a first-place team, but that isn’t their fault. This simply isn’t a first-place team without Kemp and Ethier, and we’re lucky the team didn’t disappear without leaving a laundry mark–I think D. Baseball has gotten as much out of this group as he could.
I also wonder whether the pitchers are pitching with the thought that they have to be perfect and, the second they aren’t, they know they’re finished. Not that it’s conscious. The exception would be Billingsley, who should be our sixth starter. And, yes, I do mean in a five-member rotation.
Jon Weisman
How were the Dodgers not hungry this weekend?
Friday and Saturday, they took a lead and even after falling behind kept putting baserunners on in an effort to come back.
Sunday looked worse, though mainly this was a case of Dodger starting pitcher not being as on his game as he has been typically this year. And, a hot young pitcher who was due for a good game found a lineup that, frankly, is not the most challenging.
Arizona had reason to be hungrier because they were seven games out. But calling them the hungrier team just seems like extrapolating from the runs column and ignoring everything else.
Anonymous
Kirk Gibson thinks the Diamondbacks were hungrier because he didn’t give them any lunch.
And you’re supposed to be hungrier then.
Anonymous
They were the hungrier team precisely because they were 7 games back and needed something like this to keep them in the race. They hit Kid K, they hit Bills and they hit Capuano. I’m not looking strictly at the run column. They outplayed us. They got the hits with runners on base, they turned the DP’s, they got the key strike outs (Loney, Hairston), and looking at Parra they had more energy.
If you want to say they didn’t out play us that’s fine. But what on earth are we ignoring when we lose 3 out of 4 to a division rival?
KT
I hate ASB for the fact that I have to wait 5 days to see Dodgers baseball
Can’t wait until Saturday when my daughter and I take in out only game of the season @ DS
Anonymous
Is Kemp actually playing?
KT
Kemp and Ethier will be off the DL…
Now since they both will have their 1st game Friday, will they both be playing Saturday?
That I can’t tell you
Anonymous
Yeah… I watched the games….well, most of them…I didn’t add anything the last couple of days because… what was there really to say? and … the D-backs pitched their way out of jam-after-jam. Good for them.
….
Sunday Notes:
1. I said 3 seasons ago (when the Pirates’ McCutecheon) was a late-season call-up, that the Dodgers should stop at nothing to trade for him, and make him one of the pillars of their club. Now, the All Star and MVP candidate would demand more quality (in terms of players) than the Dodgers even have and would require budget-crippling dollars even in free agency. If I had been the GM, I would have made it happen. (You need to buy-low)
….
2. Nice clutch hit by Raffy to seal it for the Cards today.
PS – If you watch that play, watch how the catcher’s own left leg (extended to block the bag?) actually prevented him from applying the tag on the winning run at home plate. (all about footwork)
….
3. Another guy I would have traded for? Miguel Tejada. When I was up in dental school in the Bay Area, I watched this guy in Spring Training for the A’s…. Yes, before he was even designated as their starting SS. I said the Dodgers should trade for him. Even heading into his first season as the A’s starter, I said the Dodgers should be willing to part with Karros, Zeile, Hollandsworth, etc. And, I would have kept Konerko (who at he the time was a 3B for Albequerke) and moved him to 1B.
….
Am I just “blowing smoke” … (there’s a copy and paste opportunity if there ever was one…)
If you’d spoken to me at the time…..that’s what you’d have heard.
Pointless is this posting? Perhaps. But, it was therapeutic for me…..
Maybe.. “there-peuk-ic” for you? :-)
Have a great All Star Week guys!
Anonymous
On the other hand, we also did the Ethier/Bradley trade not long after Miggy emerged as a star.
Beane is a genius with pitchers, but often has bad judgement with offense.
As someone who followed the team up in the bay in the “moneyball” years, seeing chavez follow swisher on the yanks this year is a little painful. I do enjoy seeing ellis here – his injury really was the deciding factor in their inability to do anything with the tigers, IMO.
Anonymous
Yup! You’re right “ILN” … :-)
The Ethier/Bradley deal as a good one for sure.
I guess we did, years later, in the form of Andre Ethier and now, indirectly with Ellis get some quality players from Oakland.
….
PS – From what I read at the time, the Dodgers actually had Eric Chavez in for a workout prior to passing on him…. I suppose Ned had his “thinking cap” on as he knew he needed to preserve 3B for Juan Uribe….. :-)
….
Have a great night… I”m outta here!
Jon Weisman
NPUT