The Blue are not known for having much success over the years since interleague began play in the mid 90s. So when I last blogged here in this space, the Dodgers were about to dive into the bulk of their interleague schedule with five straight series against AL opponents. Most seasons, that would be a cause for concern for Dodger fans. But so far, they've come out of the first three in pretty good shape, having won two of three in each of three series, at Texas, at home against Oakland, and at Anaheim (who took two of three from the Blue at the Ravine back in May).
Last weekend the Dodgers were here in town in Arlington, and I was thrilled to have finally gotten a chance to see them play, although I wished Manny had played. In any case, it was a good weekend for the Dodgers.
On Friday night, the Rangers beat up on the Dodgers, 6-0, with a furious lightning storm just out behind right field throughout much of the game, followed by a fireworks show after the game. There were no fireworks on the field from the Dodgers on that night. Then on Saturday night, a bank of lights never came on, and a one hour, 40 minute delay ensued waiting for the electric company to fix a breaker that malfunctioned, and halted a scoreless pitching duel through five innings. When play resumed, the fans were treated to free tickets for an upcoming July 5th game against Tampa for waiting out the delay, and the Dodgers would cash in on a 3-1 win, just their sixth road interleague win since 2005. The Rangers lone run came on a solo homerun from former Dodger Andruw Jones that tied the game 1-1 in the sixth inning. Matt Kemp untied with a two-run shot in the seventh inning. And on a blistering scorcher on Sunday afternoon, the Dodgers grabbed the series with a 6-3 win behind Chad Billingsley's ninth win of the season.
The Blue then headed back to LA for a three-gamer against Oakland in a rematch of the 1988 World Series. And just like 1988, the Dodgers would win Game One, 5-4, in walk-off fashion on a 10th inning RBI single from Kemp. The A's then had to hold of the Dodgers to win the second game by the same 5-4 score. But the Dodgers got the last laugh in the finale, holding off Oakland for a 3-2 win, marking the 2,195th career managing win for Joe Torre, putting him 5th on the all-time wins list for managers, passing Hall of Famer, Sparky Anderson.
The Dodgers then traveled south about 40 minutes down I-5 to Anaheim, and capped off the week with the Angels. On Friday night, the Blue held a 4-1 lead before the Angels would tie it with three runs in the sixth. Jose Guillen then untied it with a solo homerun in the eighth inning of Guillermo Mota, enough for a 5-4 win. But the Dodgers bounced right back, and Jeff Weaver outdueled his brother Jered for the Angels last night in the Dodgers 6-4 win. And then tonight, behind a stellar performance from Clayton Kershaw, the Blue took the series with an impressive 5-3 win to even up the season series with the Angels at three games apiece.
Several things of note to mention during this nine game stretch. First, the Dodgers have got to do something about Mota. Everytime this guy comes in to pitch, I cringe. And I'm probably exaggerating here when I say this, but everytime Mota pitches, it seems like he's either giving up a lead, or allowing the opponent to get back into the game. There's got to be someone else they can use instead of this guy.
I've also noticed Russell Martin's struggles offensively. Sure, he finally hit his first homerun of the year last night, but I really think there's something going on with him, and my guess is it's all mental. Earlier in the season, I had heard or read somewhere (I wish I could remember where so I could back this up with a source) that because he wasn't hitting for any power, Martin had it in his head that he couldn't hit for power anymore. Hitting coach Don Mattingly has been trying to remind him all season, or least since that point when Martin felt he couldn't hit for power anymore, that Martin still has the tools to be a solid power hitter in the middle of the Dodger lineup. Mattingly says Martin still has no idea how good he really is, and he's been trying to get Martin to realize that he's a far better hitter than what we've seen so far this season.
And as solid as Juan Pierre has been in Manny's absence, I can not wait until he is out of the lineup again. Pierre has been an unexpected, pleasant surprise, but his outs are still very predictable, and very annoying. The guy's outs are still the same: either pop-up or fly outs to left field, or grounders to the right side, usually second base. Fortunately, because of the balance in the lineup with Casey Blake and Orlando Hudson, and the maturity of guys like Kemp, James Loney, and Andre Ethier, Pierre's outs, when he makes them, don't always kill rallies, or put additional pressure on the rest of the lineup.
It's nice to see everyone picking up the slack when someone isn't doing so well at a given time, and it's even nicer to see someone different be the hero every night. This is a total team effort. And they've more than proven that in the 41 games since Manny's suspension began. So, having said all that, Manny is expected to begin a "rehab" assignment Tuesday with Albuquerque for three games, and then finish up with a few games next weekend with the Inland Empire 66ers, before rejoining the team on July 3rd in San Diego.
And while Manny is making his tour with the Dodgers West Coast affiliates for about a week, the Dodgers head off to the Windy City for an interleague series with the White Sox beginning Tuesday night before heading back home to wrap up their interleague schedule with a three-gamer agianst the Mariners. Then the red-hot Rockies arrive in L.A. for three games before the series in San Diego, marking Manny's return.
Last weekend the Dodgers were here in town in Arlington, and I was thrilled to have finally gotten a chance to see them play, although I wished Manny had played. In any case, it was a good weekend for the Dodgers.
On Friday night, the Rangers beat up on the Dodgers, 6-0, with a furious lightning storm just out behind right field throughout much of the game, followed by a fireworks show after the game. There were no fireworks on the field from the Dodgers on that night. Then on Saturday night, a bank of lights never came on, and a one hour, 40 minute delay ensued waiting for the electric company to fix a breaker that malfunctioned, and halted a scoreless pitching duel through five innings. When play resumed, the fans were treated to free tickets for an upcoming July 5th game against Tampa for waiting out the delay, and the Dodgers would cash in on a 3-1 win, just their sixth road interleague win since 2005. The Rangers lone run came on a solo homerun from former Dodger Andruw Jones that tied the game 1-1 in the sixth inning. Matt Kemp untied with a two-run shot in the seventh inning. And on a blistering scorcher on Sunday afternoon, the Dodgers grabbed the series with a 6-3 win behind Chad Billingsley's ninth win of the season.
The Blue then headed back to LA for a three-gamer against Oakland in a rematch of the 1988 World Series. And just like 1988, the Dodgers would win Game One, 5-4, in walk-off fashion on a 10th inning RBI single from Kemp. The A's then had to hold of the Dodgers to win the second game by the same 5-4 score. But the Dodgers got the last laugh in the finale, holding off Oakland for a 3-2 win, marking the 2,195th career managing win for Joe Torre, putting him 5th on the all-time wins list for managers, passing Hall of Famer, Sparky Anderson.
The Dodgers then traveled south about 40 minutes down I-5 to Anaheim, and capped off the week with the Angels. On Friday night, the Blue held a 4-1 lead before the Angels would tie it with three runs in the sixth. Jose Guillen then untied it with a solo homerun in the eighth inning of Guillermo Mota, enough for a 5-4 win. But the Dodgers bounced right back, and Jeff Weaver outdueled his brother Jered for the Angels last night in the Dodgers 6-4 win. And then tonight, behind a stellar performance from Clayton Kershaw, the Blue took the series with an impressive 5-3 win to even up the season series with the Angels at three games apiece.
Several things of note to mention during this nine game stretch. First, the Dodgers have got to do something about Mota. Everytime this guy comes in to pitch, I cringe. And I'm probably exaggerating here when I say this, but everytime Mota pitches, it seems like he's either giving up a lead, or allowing the opponent to get back into the game. There's got to be someone else they can use instead of this guy.
I've also noticed Russell Martin's struggles offensively. Sure, he finally hit his first homerun of the year last night, but I really think there's something going on with him, and my guess is it's all mental. Earlier in the season, I had heard or read somewhere (I wish I could remember where so I could back this up with a source) that because he wasn't hitting for any power, Martin had it in his head that he couldn't hit for power anymore. Hitting coach Don Mattingly has been trying to remind him all season, or least since that point when Martin felt he couldn't hit for power anymore, that Martin still has the tools to be a solid power hitter in the middle of the Dodger lineup. Mattingly says Martin still has no idea how good he really is, and he's been trying to get Martin to realize that he's a far better hitter than what we've seen so far this season.
And as solid as Juan Pierre has been in Manny's absence, I can not wait until he is out of the lineup again. Pierre has been an unexpected, pleasant surprise, but his outs are still very predictable, and very annoying. The guy's outs are still the same: either pop-up or fly outs to left field, or grounders to the right side, usually second base. Fortunately, because of the balance in the lineup with Casey Blake and Orlando Hudson, and the maturity of guys like Kemp, James Loney, and Andre Ethier, Pierre's outs, when he makes them, don't always kill rallies, or put additional pressure on the rest of the lineup.
It's nice to see everyone picking up the slack when someone isn't doing so well at a given time, and it's even nicer to see someone different be the hero every night. This is a total team effort. And they've more than proven that in the 41 games since Manny's suspension began. So, having said all that, Manny is expected to begin a "rehab" assignment Tuesday with Albuquerque for three games, and then finish up with a few games next weekend with the Inland Empire 66ers, before rejoining the team on July 3rd in San Diego.
And while Manny is making his tour with the Dodgers West Coast affiliates for about a week, the Dodgers head off to the Windy City for an interleague series with the White Sox beginning Tuesday night before heading back home to wrap up their interleague schedule with a three-gamer agianst the Mariners. Then the red-hot Rockies arrive in L.A. for three games before the series in San Diego, marking Manny's return.
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