• http://www.facebook.com/Vashkan Anthony Forkush

    Now that the Oswalt sweepstakes are over, does anyone have recommendations as to what the team should do now that Lilly is down for an indeterminate period, Capuano may have an aggravated oblique I heard, and Billingsley’s struggles continue. Is the promotion of Eovaldi going to be enough to “hold the fort”? Is anyone else concerned about the long term prognosis of the starting staff? Also, how are Dodgerthoughts commenters feeling about Loney and Gordon at this point?

    • Anonymous

      I’m an Oswalt skeptic, primarily because I don’t think signing one injury-prone pitcher to replace another makes sense. With Kemp in the lineup, I think the Dodgers can live with Loney, but I’m not sure Gordon is ready yet. Still, I’ll cut him slack as long as he’s hitting eighth.

    • Anonymous

      Right now Loney’s defense and what he gives on offense is better than the options.  I don’t know who is annoyed more when watching Loney not do as well as he could — a Loney fan or a Loney hater.

    • Anonymous

      I haven’t seen anything about Capuano and a strained oblique.  Where did you find that?

    • Anonymous

      The obvious (pitching) targets this off season should be Cole Hamels and Zack Greinke.  Either one could be up for trade this season, but the Dodgers shouldn’t give up the farm for a 3 month rental.  Hamels is widely rumored to want to test the free agent market, so there might not be much advantage in trying to trade for him now.  Greinke is the better option IMO (likely cheaper, and of similar or better quality), but the Brewers are unlikely to be sellers until the trade deadline is close, if at all.

  • Anonymous

    Another marketing gimmick huh?

    • http://www.dodgerthoughts.com/ Jon Weisman

       That tends to be what marketing departments specialize in.

      • Anonymous

        I don’t recall these kinds of tactics 20 years ago. But that doesn’t mean they didn’t exist of course. Maybe the marketing dept has evolved into a lean, mean gimmick machine. Didn’t they try this concept when the Yankees come to town?

        • Anonymous

          The Dodgers know that people will REALLY want a Vin Scully bobblehead. They will spend extra for it on the secondary market. So, if there’s a sharp demand for these objects (and a limited supply), the Dodgers are trying to maximize the revenue they can get out of it.

          If any schmoe off the street could buy a ticket for the Scully bobblehead game, then they would all be bought by ticket resellers, who would make so much money off the game that they could bathe in Dom Perignon while eating truffles and bonbons.

          • Anonymous

            So it’s a revenue battle between the ball club and the ticket resellers. With the ordinary schmoes (i.e. people like me) stuck in the middle. We still fork over big bucks (in theory). Its just a matter of to whom. In reality I just get priced out of the market :(

          • Anonymous

            I don’t see anything more sinister going on here than what Adam Smith talked about in “The Wealth of Nations.”

          • Anonymous

            Tickets for the Vin Scully bobblehead night are currently available on Stubhub starting at about $50.

        • Anonymous

          20+ years ago there was Hollywood Stars night with Bob Newhart usually being the pitcher for the Stars.

          Then there used to be the relay throw with each team throwing the ball into the catcher from the outfield.  The team that made three throws to the catcher first won.

          Then there were egg toss events where groups of 4 to 6 players in two man teams tossed eggs to each other and after each catch took a step back.  Break an egg and get eliminated.

          Way back one could bring an instrument and get in free.

          etc.

          • Anonymous

            Whatever happened to old timers games.  I remember in the early 70′s, seeing Satchel Paige pitch in one of those.

    • KT

      There is always stub hub

  • foul tip

    Vin checks in with #18 on this list of 25 examples of the “wit and wisdom” of baseball.

    Some of these are pretty obvious.  Some others, maybe not so much.

    http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/1004/mlb.baseball.wit.and.wisdom/content.1.html?sct=mlb_bf4_a6

  • Anonymous

    The bobblehead looks quite nice. I wonder what book is on the desk.

    • Anonymous

      It’s probably a media guide and a scorebook.

  • http://www.dodgerthoughts.com/ Jon Weisman

    Tonight’s lineup:
    Gwynn LF
    De Jesus 2B
    Kemp CF
    Ethier RF
    Hairston 3B
    Loney 1B
    Ellis C
    Gordon SS
    Eovaldi P

    • Anonymous

       Any reason as to why Abreu and his .451 OBP isn’t playing? Apologies if it was mentioned elsewhere already. Or is Gwynn playing just because “he can lead off”?

      • Anonymous

        I don’t think Mattingly wants to use Abreu every day because of his age. And Abreu isn’t exactly the greatest fielder either.

        • Anonymous

          True, but a great catch the other day though!

        • http://www.facebook.com/people/Terry-Pruett/1707390003 Terry Pruett

          Left field is primarily an offensive position. I expect to see Abreu out there most days.

      • Anonymous

        I would submit it’s Loney that should be sitting, not Gwynn. He is the best OF we have defensively, and it’s not close IMHO. When he’s hitting he should get the time. Loney is a late inning replacement in BruceWorld.

    • http://www.facebook.com/Vashkan Anthony Forkush

      Under the current setup, I see this as the everyday lineup that Mattingly will most likely go with, particularly Gwynn 1 and Gordon 8. Frankly, I like this better as it returns Abreu to the bench, where I really feel he can do the most damage coming off of. Question is, what do you do when Rivera returns? Does he also come off the bench? Until Gordon shows more patience and a better eye, Gwynn has to stay in that spot, I think.

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Terry-Pruett/1707390003 Terry Pruett

        So, you think Abreu can do more damage in 1 at bat per game rather than 4? Interesting…

      • Anonymous

        I agree except for Herrera should be there at 2nd until Ellis returns. He has been great for us

  • http://www.linkmeister.com/wordpress/ Linkmeister

    I owned an LA Rams bobblehead (generic, back then — no specific player depicted, although he/it was white) 40 years ago.

  • http://www.dodgerthoughts.com/ Jon Weisman

    In a world where, say, 35,000 people who aren’t season-ticket holders can get the Scully bobbleheads, why shouldn’t the Dodgers give priority to fans willing to buy tickets to more than one game?

    • Anonymous

      It’s all about the dollar.  If we want the owners to spend them, then they have to be allowed to make them.

      • Anonymous

        Raise those parking rates!

    • KT

      The buyer can get inflated ticket prices through Stub Hub

  • http://profiles.google.com/michaelgreen327 Michael Green

    I’m not griping about the season ticketholders, et al., getting priority for this.  But now I know what to ask my wife to get me for Christmas.  It looks good.  Now if they could figure out how they screwed up on the Jaime Jarrin bobblehead.

  • Anonymous

    I think Abreu is just getting a breather, since he can’t play everyday, but I don’t expect him to ride the bench more than a game or two.  His bat is too good of a weapon for Mattingly at this point to ignore and bench.  I think he will soon move Dee back into the #1 spot, because of a lack of alternatives.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Terry-Pruett/1707390003 Terry Pruett

      The alternative is Abreu, who should be our leadoff hitter.

  • Anonymous
  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Terry-Pruett/1707390003 Terry Pruett

    Abreu should be playing 2 out of every three games as the Dodgers leadoff hitter. He is the Dodgers’ 3rd or 4th best offensive player, and he’s better than Tony Gwynn, Jr. every day and twice on Sunday. I sincerely hope this is just a day off.

    • Anonymous

      I despise interleague play and the DH but, at least with Abreu on the roster, the Dodgers have a good option for those games.

  • http://twitter.com/chimprilla chimprilla

    Yesterday, when I first saw the announcement about the lack of individual ticket sales for the August 30th game, I went on StubHub and bought Infield Reserve seats for well-below face value (after fees it ended up being about the same price as getting them off Ticketmaster).  I saw tickets available for as little as $5, which are probably terrible seats but if your main draw is the bobblehead that could be okay.  Might be a reasonable alternative for people who can’t do the 10-game plan (unless the prices have spiked since then)?

  • Anonymous
  • http://profile.yahoo.com/QS65RUAIXMIFXIHZCC6I54NQW4 Paul

    Jon, it wasn’t a matter or question of good or bad, simply surprise. Knowledge is power. Oh, and good to see Hairston, Jr., hitting 5th.

    Lastly, re the matter or question of who leads off, don’t see why they have to have a “traditional” lead off hitter, I mean, if Carlos Pena can lead off for the Rays… The OBP is rather more valuable to have at the top than a few random stolen bases, unless of course, in addition to bunting the man over to 3B there early with 0 outs, you also like give extra at bats to the fellow more inclined to make out. I mean, if you look at Mark Ellis, he certainly isn’t lighting the world on fire with his speed, yet he’s scored 27 runs, thanks to that 370+ OBP hitting in front of Kemp.  So they might have tried AJ Ellis hitting lead off.  He might have had 40 runs scored by now, given that his OBP is still above .400. 

     

  • http://www.dodgerthoughts.com/ Jon Weisman

     NPUT

  • Blue-eyed Gal

    I have a ticket to the bobblehead game, and I don’t even collect bobbleheads. But…Vin. (My almost-all-Sundays Dodger ticket package included that as the only evening game. Apparently someone was thinking ahead: the Sunday crowd tends to be an older crowd.) 

    However, the last time I went to a giveaway, I arrived just as the game was starting (thanks, Dodger Express), and there were no Mother’s Day goodies left (then again, the MD giveaways never seem to be targeted to my demographic). Yet the stadium must’ve had 20,000 empty seats. They only stock a limited number on each level and don’t bother to schlep any upstairs to the peons if there’s still unsold seats down on the field boxes.

    Lesson learned: arrive at least an hour early, you idiot. (that’s to myself.)