By the Skin of Their Teeth...

Series Recap—Dodgers at San Diego

4/27: Dodgers 6, Padres 5

Down two in the top of the ninth, Nomar and Martin ruined Trevor Hoffman's day, literally, as the Bums scored off of him.. It was Trevor Hoffman Day at Petco, the Pads honoring Hoffman before the game for passing Lee Smith as the all-time saves leader. There were even commemorative clocks given to the fans in attendance. So it goes.

Hendrickson pitched well again, but Billingsley had a rough inning. Seanez picked up the win, his first in a Dodger uniform in twelve years.

4/28: Padres 3, Dodgers 2

Tomko got the first eleven batters he faced out, then gave of three runs on four straight hits, then got the next eight hitters out before finally running out of gas in the seventh. Those three runs were all that the Pads got, but Greg Maddux was his usual efficient self, so it was all they needed.

4/29: Dodgers 5, Padres 4 (17 innings)

Grady outmanaged Bud Black in the marathon, helped by a bullpen that only gave up one hit over 10 2/3 innings. As the game got late, Black used up both his bench and his bullpen, so that by the 13th he had to call on rookie Justin Hampson to go as long as possible, and on Pete LaForrest to play first. Sampson pitched well, all things considered. Meanwhile, Grady still had a rested Billingsley available, with Valdez still on the bench for a double switch. It paid off as Billingsley remembered how to pitch (and probably could've gone longer), and Valdez scored the go-ahead run after LaForrest's error put Valdez aboard.

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The boys didn't hit much, but then nobody hits much in Petco. It was good to get out with another series win. Now the Dodgers play the Dbacks, who are coming off a sweep of the Jints.

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Swept Away...

Series Recap—Dodgers vs San Francisco

4/24: Giants 5, Dodgers 3
4/25: Giants 6, Dodgers 4
4/26: Giants 5, Dodgers 4

Not a lot to say because I only got to watch or listen to the first few innings of each game. The good was that the games were close, and the Dodgers had opportunities to win all of them. The better is that they were able to rally back when Wolf gave up four runs before even recording an out in the second game. The bad was some lackluster pitching by both the starters and the pen, plus the continuing antics of Juan Pierre, who is so bad he'll get his own post soon if I can stomach it.

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Gather Round, Lads and Lasses, Gather Round...

Series Recap—Dodgers vs Pittsburgh

4/20: Dodgers 10, Pirates 2

I took advantage of MLB's 5 day free trial to actually watch some Dodger games, something that's very hard to do here in Red Sox nation. As much as I love listening to Vin Scully describe the game on the radio, there is no substitute for seeing what's happening. That Vin did the telecasts is a bonus. Alas, it's only for five days.

After a bit of a wobbly first inning, Randy Wolf cruised (10 strikeouts in 6 innings), and hit two doubles besides as the Dodgers crushed the Bucs 10-2. A six-run third put the game out of reach, and after that it was fun just to listen to Vin talking about stuff like the proper pronunciation of "Xavier". Another thing he mentioned was Freddy Sanchez's change of position fron third to second after Sanchez couldn't make a play on a Juan Pierre grounder in the first:

When we were giving you the lineups, we talked about Sanchez playing second base. Well you know they statiscalize everybody in this day and age, and as far as the Pirates are concerned they're making a big risk moving Sanchez from third base to second. They figured out last year at third he saved 21 more runs per year than the average third baseman, but 13 runs worse when he moves over to second base. Wellp, a hard ball just got by him, and the Dodgers now first and third, nobody out, and the batter is Nomar Garciaparra.

"Statiscalize" is my current most favorite word ever. He also went on to talk about how a player waiting "in the hole" to hit is a corruption of "in the hold," which is where someone waits to follow the man "on deck." I never knew that.

That last wasn't the biggest surprise I got during the game. The biggest surprise was the discovery that John Wasdin is still on a major league roster.

4/20: Dodgers 7, Pirates 3 (10 innings)

Sloppy game by both teams. Brad Penny pitched okay, except for the third, which hearkened back to last year's second half. The key difference, though, was that he displayed remarkable composure, even when Joe West called a ball on a pitch to Adam LaRoach that looked an awful lot like a strike. Grady got himself tossed questioning the pitch call, in one of calmest manager-umpire conversations resulting in an ejection that I've ever seen. Neither Joe nor Grady appeared particularly exercised as they chatted, nor even particularly angry. Nothing personal; just business.

As I said, sloppy. The Bucs got their first run when Chris Duffy singled, went to third on Penny's wild pitch which Martin then chucked into center field, and then scored on a ground out. It was Martin's second brain spasm this week. Not good. The Dodgers had plenty of opportunities to score, but had only cashed in two runs by the bottom of the ninth. Then the Pirstes returned the favor the Dodgers had given them in the first. Ethier opened the inning with a walk, but Valdez laid down a terrible bunt, forcing Ethier at second. With Olmedo Saenz at the plate, Torres threw a wild pitch that Ronnie Paulino then chucked into center a la Martin, Valdez to third. Two pitches later Torres handcuffed Paulino, the ball got by him, and Valdez scored on the passed ball, tying the game. Russell Martin atoned for his mistake by hitting a walkoff grand slam in the bottom of the tenth to win the game.

4/20: Pirates 7, Dodgers 5

Another sloppy game. Tomko pitched well enough, but there were three errors behind him. The top of the first was almost a duplicate of the night before, with Martin chucking yet another ball into the outfield when Duffy attempted to steal second. Pierre continues to be a nightmare in center, dropping one easy fly ball, and allowing Bautista's sharp grounder in the second (which barely got by Furcal) roll all the way to the wall for a double. Bautista got another ball past Pierre later for another double. I'm not sure I can take five years of this. The Dodgers did get the tying runs on in the bottom of the ninth, thanks to a Pirate error, but couldn't plate them this time. Bother. The defensive highlight for LA was Joe Beimel faking a pickoff on Jason Bay at second, only to discover that Bay had lit out for third. An easy throw to Valdez sent Bay back to the dugout.

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Up in the Thin Air...

Series Recap—Dodgers at Colorado

4/18: Rockies 7, Dodgers 2

Wow, DeLo sure has problems with the guys in the middle of the Rockies order. I mean, they're good hitters anyway, but it was like Lieberthal was telling 'em what was coming. Grady had pretty much decided to concede this one by sitting Gonzo, Kent, and Martin anyway.

4/19: Dodgers 8, Rockies 1

Given that the Dodgers had already lost the first game of the mini-series, a well-pitched game by the much maligned Hendrickson was an especially nice surprise. I know that Vin keeps reminding us that Hendrickson has pitched well out of the pen, but I keep reminding myself of all the bad starts last year. I think Grady remembers, too, because he yanked Hendrickson at the very first sign of trouble. I was kind of surprised he went to the pen so soon.

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Pierre seems to have put his hitting slump firmly behind him, but now he seems to be in a base stealing slump, having gotten caught twice in three attempts in the series. Meanwhile, Betemit is showing signs that he may be about to bust out, going 3/10 with 3 walks on the trip.

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Short and Sweet...

Series Recap—Dodgers at Arizona

4/16: Dodgers 5, Diamondbacks 1

The third consecutive good start for Brad Penny. He hasn't been overpowering, but boy, has he been effective. The Bums move into first place with the best record in the majors.

4/17: Dodgers 6, Diamondbacks 4

Tomko regressed to the mean, but didn't completely blow up, so the Dodgers have that going for them. Juan Pierre appears to have finally started hitting during the series. He had two weakly hit singles in the first game, but last night he scorched a double and a triple. If nothing else he sure does run fast.

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Jason Schmidt had an MRI, and wound up on the DL with shoulder bursitis. It was mentioned over at DT that he's had this before, and it didn't cause him to miss many starts. Tsao was recalled from Vegas to take his place. Hendrickson will probably get Schmidt's next start.

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Speaking of the DL, Colletti has some decisions coming up. Kemp is rehabbing in Vegas, Yhency Brazoban is rehabbing in A ball, and Kuo is throwing bullpen sessions in preparation for a bullpen session.

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Jackie Robinson Weekend

Series Recap—Dodgers vs San Diego

4/13: Dodgers 9, Padres 1
4/14: Padres 7, Dodgers 2
4/15: Dodgers 9, Padres 3

The Dodgers took two out of three similar blowouts. In all of them the losing pitcher didn't make it out of the third inning, whilst the winning pitcher cruised along. The good news is that LA did well against a team that manhandled them last year. The better news is that the Dodgers bullpen outperformed the Padres vaunted bullpen despite the fact that it was Hendrickson and Seanez who got most of the work.

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Jason Schmidt was awful in the loss, pretty much throwing batting practice to the Padres. He was better in his first two starts, but nowhere near what was expected, even off of last year's performance. Is he hurt? Is it mechanical? Curt Schilling had a similar outing Opening Day, but bounced back strong in his recent starts. Schmidt's next turn comes on Thursday against the Rockies.

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Some of the bats looked good. Martin and Gonzo continue to pound the ball, Nomar has started to come around, and Ethier finally seems to have busted out last night, including a two-run homer off Scott Linebrink. OTOH, Pierre and Betemit continue to slump. Betemit at least walks once in awhile, but as someone over at DT noted, Randy Wolf had more walks in yesterday's game than Pierre has had all season.

It's tough to know what to do about Pierre. Clearly Colletti spent too much to get him ($44M for 5 yrs.), but he's certainly can't be as bad as he's shown so far, both at the plate and in the field (another error last night). He's got the second longest consecutive game streak going in the majors, a streak he wants to keep alive, even though a rest might do him some good. There are already signs that Grady is thinking about it. He didn't start him Saturday, although he brought him in later, so the streak remains intact. If it were me filling in the lineup, Pierre would be batting eighth until he demonstrates that he can do something other than hit weak ground balls to the infield. If Ethier is getting out of his slump, then maybe Brady Clark can get a couple more starts in center.

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Wilson Valdez had another good game last night, and I have to wonder how he's suddenly blossomed at age 29. Is he just an anomaly? Is he using something? Did he lie about his age when he was originally signed, and is actually 27? It's not just that he's hitting like he never did before, but he's hitting with power. Very strange.

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Next up: Arizona

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Life, the Universe, and Everything...

I don't know if Douglas Adams was a baseball fan, but I suspect it's highly improbable that he was. Still, I think he'd smile if he knew how many baseball players will be wearing number 42 upon their backs today. They'll wear it to honor Jackie Robinson, who first wore it before Adams was even born. It's funny how a particular number can become associated with a person. Sixty years ago today, when Robinson first walked out to first base at Ebbetts Field, I doubt many in attendance gave his uniform number much thought. As Bob Timmermann noted the other day over at the Griddle, it's likely that 42 was just the next uniform available when Jackie made the team. If, however, everything Adams said was true, then it was a clear sign from the cosmos that an event of great significance was taking place. So it goes.

I've never been especially happy that MLB decided to retire 42 across the entire league. Part of that is Dodger fannish possessiveness, feeling that since Jackie was a Dodger, it should be the Dodgers that honor him in that way. There's also this nagging feeling that it was all just a marketing stunt on MLB's part, cynically calculated to cash in while patting itself on the back for something that most of the Lords of Baseball were opposed to when it happened.

On the other hand, I do like the fact that many players, and some entire teams, will wear number 42 today to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Jackie's first game. I think Ken Griffey's original idea to do it was a terrific one, and I salute the individual players who decided to follow suit. The cynic in me does wonder about the entire teams that decided to wear the number, whether it was the players who decided to do it, or just that the marketing departments that saw a golden opportunity, but I'll just let it pass and assume the best. If nothing else, it means I get to see the Dodgers on TV for the first time this season, and that's always a good thing.

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Meanwhile, the Onion has their own take the subject.

Jeff Kent To Wear No. 42 To Honor Mariano Rivera

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The Last Best Player

When Vin Scully mentioned the other night that Chris Ianetta, the Rockies' catcher, was from Providence, something clicked in the back of my memory, and it dawned on me that he was on the Chatham A's team that was chronicled in The Last Best League. He is now, AFAIK, the third member of that team to make it to the bigs, after Tim Stauffer and Chad Orvella (now both back in the minors).

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On the List...

Series Recap—Dodgers vs Colorado

4/6: Rockies 6, Dodgers 3

The home opener wasn't very homey as the Bums lost both Matt Kemp and Jason Schmidt to injuries. Schmidt says it was just a leg cramp, and he'll be ready to go next start. Kemp has a grade 1 shoulder separation, ligaments stretched but not torn, and was placed of the DL. Chin-hui Tsao, a right-handed reliever, was called up from Vegas to replace Kemp. Rafael Furcal is due to come off the DL tomorrow, and it will be interesting to see who Colletti keeps on the roster. The original thought was that Wilson Valdez would be the one to go, but he is out of options, so sending him down would require him to clear waivers first. The same would apply to Ramon Martinez. Now, Ned could send Tsao back down, or else he could send down Rudy Seanez, whose ERA in three appearances this year is 13.50.

4/6: Dodgers 2, Rockies 1

The best game pitched by a Dodger so far this season. Brett Tomko, of all people, was brilliant. 6 IP, 0 runs, 1 hit, 3 walks, and 9 strikeouts (game score of 76). There wasn't much offense, and really, apart from the rout Sunday in SF there hasn't been much all season, but there didn't need to be.

4/6: Dodgers 3, Rockies 0

Remember how I said I was skeptical of Brad Penny? During the first inning last night when Penny ahad walked three consecutive batters to load the bases, I thought "OMG, here we go." But he managed to wiggle out of it with no harm done, then settled down, allowing only two hits and no runs in 6 1/3. The bullpen was aces, too, and the offense scored enough to win.

Considering how bad things looked Monday, winning two of three looks pretty good. The lack of offense is worrisome, but Furcal should be back tomorrow, and that's got to help.

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I'll Take Original Recipe, Please...

During the Dodgers 2004 stretch run, I became addicted to Gameday, mlb.com's play-by-play web app. I hadn't yet sprung for the MLB Audio package, so it was the only way a cheap- skate like me could hang on every pitch thrown in my out-of-market team's games. Other sites have similar apps, all differing slightly in presentation and data provided, but I got used to Gameday. I started subscribing to the audio package in 2005, but I would usually have a Gameday window open, as well, for quick access to stats and game status. For one thing, Gameday tends to be a pitch ahead of the audio call, so it's a bit like peering into the future. Anyway, it may not have been perfect, but it worked.

MLB introduced "Enhanced Gameday" during the playoffs last year, offering 3D pitch graphics, with (allegedly) much more precise pitch locations. The pitch locations on the original version tended to be located more by the umpire's call rather than their actual location in physical space. Either that or Vin Scully (and all the other announcers) was completely lying when he described their locations. There were some other new features, and it was all sorts of snazzy looking, but after an inning or two, I clicked on the option for "Classic Gameday."

This year, MLB was proud to announce that they had not only combined the "enhanced" and "classic" versions together into one nifty new Franken-app, but also completely removed the option to use the old version. The new version is a monstrosity, a triumph of gee-whiz over function. It takes up more of the screen, yet gives far less useful information. It's low to update, and freezes far more often than classic. Worse, rather than just freezing in place when it hits a glitch, it tries to muddle through, usually by combining the results for two players into one, much to the befuddlement of the fans. It provides way more information than one needs to know about the path of each pitch to the plate, including the angle and distance of the break and a variable called "pFX" that no one seems to know the definition of, and yet if you want to know what the batter did last time up, it's not there. Mind, the new version shows you the pitch locations and ball/strike calls for all of the batter's previous at bats right under his picture, but it doesn't say anywhere what the end result of all those pitches was. And don't get me started about the big honkin' ad in the lower right that reduced the space available for the box score and lineups by half.

Needless to say (it being on the internet and all), there was a pile of criticism heaped upon the folks who foisted this on the fans. They listened politely, and then completely missed the point, adding a couple of useless options, but no option to get the original version. One wonders if they erased the code.

It looked grim. I didn't much care for the other gameday type apps I looked at, and it was just easier to click on the Gameday icon on the same site that I was going to for my audio feed. But then Rob McMillin of 6-4-2 stepped up to the plate. creating a gameday app that looks and works (mostly) just like the original. It's just neat. (The picture of classic posted up top is actually Rob's version.)

The only worry I have now is that MLBAM will attempt to squash him like a bug for having the temerity to do this.

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Bob Timmermann wrote about this over at the Griddle, too, here, here, and here.

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Sweep!

Series Recap—Dodgers at San Francisco

4/6: Dodgers 2, Giants 1

I'm skeptical about Brad Penny. If you had asked me last weekend who would be the first Dodger pitcher to pitch into the eighth inning of a game this season, well, I don't know who I would've picked, but it wouldn't have been Penny. He's looked so bad since last year's All-Star game that going into Friday night's game I was just hoping he'd get through five innings only down a couple three runs. He pitched way better than I expected. He only struck out one, but he only walked one. He gave up ten hits, but he scattered them effectively, inducing some double plays to take care of the resulting runners. He also had lots of help from the Jints, who kept running on Russell Martin and Ramon Martinez and losing. I'm still skeptical, but it was a good first step.

The Dodger offense continued to struggle, but got lucky when Matt Kemp scored on a busted play that the Giants managed to botch.

4/7: Dodgers 4, Giants 1

Derek Lowe pitched like Derek Lowe, and Russ Ortiz pitched like Russ Ortiz. If you can't beat Russ Ortiz, who can you beat?

4/8: Dodgers 10, Giants 4

Randy Wolf survived two shaky innings by the thinnest of threads, then settled in and shut down the Giants. Meanwhile, the Dodgers teed off on the Hundred and Twenty-Six Dollar Man, and Luis Gonzalez confounded all expectations by hitting two homers in the rout.

The Gonzo and Pierre Show

One of them is named for a muppet, the other one looks like a muppet, and they both have been fielding with the manual dexterity of muppets. Every day has pretty much seen the same schtick from two thirds of the outfield—misjudged or dropped balls followed by poor throws. Gonzo, at least, has been hitting well, but Pierre has been a bad caricature of himself so far, exagerrating all of his worst traits as a player. I know he'll regress to the mean eventually, but it's a tough listen right now. The only silver lining so far is that the Giants have similar problems of their own, as evidenced today when Jeff Kent went first to third on a weak single hit to Bonds.

Valdez!

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. In 182 previous at bats with three different major league teams over the last three years, Wilson Valdez hit .209/.250/.291. Now, after going 6 for 10 with a double and a triple in his first two games as a Dodger, some otherwise sensible folk are touting him as a potential savior, as if he somehow just learned how to hit at age 29. Small sample size much? Sorry, but I was fooled two years ago by Oscar Robles. I'll enjoy it while it lasts, but I'm not biting again.

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Third Time's the Charm...

Series Recap—Dodgers at Milwaukee

4/2: Brewers 7, Dodgers 1

Opening Day! It wasn't even as close as the score indicates. Ben Sheets was brilliant, throwing a two-hit complete game (game score = 82), Luis Gonzalez lost a fly ball in Miller Park's Windows, and Milwaukee's rabbits ran and ran on Juan Pierre's arm. The only bright spot was Jeff
Kent's solo shot in the second.

Derek Lowe has now started three straight Opening Days for LA, and is 0-3. In 16 innings pitched over the three starts, he's given up 25 hits, 8 walks, 3 homers, and 15 earned runs.

4/3: Brewers 4, Dodgers 3

The Bums had a lead on Russell Martin's tie-breaking homer in the fifth, but Randy Wolf coughed a two run shot to Kevin Mench in the sixth, and that was that. Once again Gonzo's defense was an issue when he couldn't get to a Johnny Estrada fly ball that got past him for a double.

"I just couldn't get to it," said Gonzalez. "It's no secret, I've been playing 17 years. What you see is what you get. I'm not 21."

Matt Kemp got the start in right field over Andre Ethier. Here's hoping Gonzo gets some days off, too.

4/4: Dodgers 5, Brewers 4

It took three tries, but the Dodgers finally won a game this season. Jason Schmidt made his debut, and pitched well until he ran out of gas in the bottom of the fifth, walking the bases loaded with two outs. Fortunately there was no harm done, and he ended up with the win.

The most notable thing about the game was the Dodger fifth, when Martin, Nomar, and Kent each made out on the very first pitch thrown by Jeff Suppan. Three up, three down, three pitches. I realize they had to catch a plane for San Francisco, but jeez. Worse, it was part of a pattern. Through the first three innings, the Dodgers had made Suppan throw 63 pitches. In the next four innings, Dodger hitters viewed a grand total of 27 pitches:

	4th Inning
		Martinez	3 pitches	grounded out
		Schmidt	3 pitches	struck out
		Pierre	1 pitch	grounded out
	5th Inning
		Martin	1 pitch	grounded out
		Garciaparra	1 pitch	flied out
		Kent	1 pitch	flied out
	6th Inning
		Gonzalez	2 pitches	doubled
		Betemit	1 pitch	flied out
		Ethier	1 pitch	flied out
		Martinez	4 pitches	grounded out
	7th Inning
		Kemp (ph)	1 pitch	doubled
		Pierre	2 pitches	sacrifice bunt
		Martin	5 pitches	walked
		Garciaparra	1 pitch	lined out, DP

I mean, I don't have a problem with a guy swinging on the first pitch if he's looking for a particular pitch and gets it. It just that when you have the pitcher on the ropes and the first two guys in the inning are gone on two pitches, you might want to think about trying to work a count.

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Opening Day

Okay, technically Opening Day was yesterday, with the Mets at the Cardinals, but 'most everyone else is starting today (except the Giants and the Padres who will wait until tomorrow). The Mets looked good last night, cuffing around the World Series champs with timely hitting, aggressive base-running, and Tom Glavine's crafty¹ pitching. The Cardinals did not look as good, running into outs with over-aggressive base-running and timely strikeouts. What in the name of the Wide World of Sports is Tony LaRussa (The Smartest Manager in Baseball™) doing batting Yadier Molina (.216 avg/.595 OPS) fifth? If Molina's the best hitter he has for that spot, the Cardinals are in a heap o'trouble.

The Dodgers open in Milwaukee with Derek Lowe making his third straight opening day start versus Ben Sheets. Vin Scully is actually making the trip (he usually only goes on the road for division rivals these days), so Gameday audio will have Vin today for three innings anyway, whoot! Lowe and Jeff Kent will be the only players starting this year's opener who started for last year's.

LA went into the spring with only two main questions to be resolved, who would be the fifth starter, and would James Loney make the team. For the first, Bret Tomko got the job almost by default when Hong-Chih Kuo (the favorite) came up with a sore shoulder, and Chad Billingsley was sent to the bullpen to work on his command.

As for the second question, the answer was one that almost nobody expected. Going into the last weekend of training, it had come down to James Loney versus Larry Bigbie. Loney led all the minor leagues last year by hitting .380, tied a Dodger record by getting nine RBI in a single game once he was called up, and hit .405 for the spring. Bigbie, in camp as a non-roster player, is a guy with talent, but he also has a history of injury which has kept him from becoming the player many had predicted. Loney is by far the better hitter of the two, but he plays first base, a position currently occupied by Nomar Garciaparra. They tried playing Loney in the outfield, but he was very good. Bigby is a decent outfielder, and has an escape clause in his contract that allows him to become a free agent if he doesn't make the team, so it looked like, barring a trade, he would make the team to avoid the chance of losing him.

Then Grady Little surprised everyone Saturday night by announcing that neither player had made the team. Instead the Dodgers kept Matt Kemp, a terrific, albeit somewhat raw, young power-hitting outfielder. The Dodgers don't have a whole lot of power in their lineup, particularly in the outfield, so Kemp should help with that. He is an exciting player. Unfortunately, this means Loney will open the season chasing fly balls in Vegas, which is a shame because he has nothing left to prove in the minors.

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¹ The adjective "crafty" as it applies to pitchers is almost exclusively used for left-handers, and only those with less than first-rate stuff. Randy Johnson, although a lefty, would never be called crafty. For that matter, Glavine wasn't usually referred to as crafty when he was younger, but at age 41 he relies more on guile and smarts than he had to back when he was winning Cy Young awards in the 90's, much like his old friend Greg Maddux, who has always been the smartest pitcher on the planet. Maddux, however, is right-handed, so would never be called crafty.

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