Dodger Thoughts

Jon Weisman's outlet for dealing psychologically with the Los Angeles Dodgers, baseball and life

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From bums to dreamers,
your 2018 Dodgers

Matt Kelley/MLB.com

Four weeks ago today, with two outs and two strikes in the top of the 12th inning, Arizona utilityman Daniel Descalso lifted a three-run home run over the right-field wall at Dodger Stadium. Minutes later, the Diamondbacks wrapped up their 24th victory in the first 35 games of the season, bolstering their position atop all teams in the National League and kicking sand in the face of the Dodgers, nine games behind.

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Entering the home stretch
for my moment in the sun

Me and four cool guys — Brent Knapp, Phil Gurnee, Craig Minami and Joe Bernardello — June 3 at Common Space Brewery!

Hopefully, folks will be purchasing copies of Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition until the end of time. But as far as its birth in the marketplace as a new release, we are close to finishing a spring full of promotion.

In fact, the last guaranteed event — perfectly timed for your Father’s Day needs — arrives at 2 p.m. June 9, with a signing and Q&A at Barnes and Noble in Burbank. I would love to see you come by and get your signed copy while getting a chance to chat about the book.

A day ago, several people came by to the Common Space Brewery signing, which was great fun. Brent Knapp (friend of Dodger Thoughts and True Blue L.A.) and his crew were terrific hosts — in fact, I really recommend you stop by Common Space any old time for beer and hanging out.

A final signing event is scheduled for June 18 at downtown’s The Last Bookstore, but that gathering is predicated on achieving a certain number of pre-sales. If you do want to come, let me know.

Heading into this big final stretch, I did a whirlwind of interviews last week, the most visible perhaps being my national TV appearance on MLB Network’s High Heat with Christopher Russo — and let me tell you, man, it was a hoot.

I also did radio hits on KPCC 89.3 FM’s AirTalk with Larry Mantle, and on AM 570’s Dodger pregame show with David Vassegh — I think both give you a nice taste for what’s in the book.

Finally last week, I stopped by the home office of the legendary Pantone 294, where I did a lengthy podcast in which I spoke with Álex Soto, Desiree García and Matt Barrero about my entire career leading up to Brothers in Arms. You can find the audio here, and I’ll add the video when it’s up.

This entire process, dating back to the first announcement of the book, has obviously felt more than a little self-indulgent, but I’m not above admitting I’ve gotten a kick out of it. (Ideally, it’s a good thing that I really enjoy talking about the book.) In any case, I truly thank everyone for indulging me through it all, and for your support.

Who will represent the 2018 Dodgers at the All-Star Game?

A year after they sent six players to the MLB All-Star Game, it’s more likely than not that the Dodgers will rely on the “every team gets a guy” rule simply to get one player to Washington D.C.

We still have nearly two months before the game is played (so you can question why I’m even writing about this right now), but if I were to make a prediction about who the 2018 Dodger All-Star will be, I might just pick a guy who has played in only seven games so far this year: Clayton Kershaw. To bet on him, you can go to sites like 해외배팅.

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Unhappy anniversary:
One month since the Dodgers’ last three-run homer

I’ve been tracking the Dodgers’ bizarre inability to hit a three-run home run for the past week, and in that time the problem has only grown worse.

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Presenting the heart-stopping, game-dropping, low-flying, win-defying, mental-lapsing, season-collapsing, legendary 2005 Los Angeles Dodgers

They are the touchstone for Dodger failure in the 21st century.

They are the team of Oscar Robles, Jason Repko and Norihiro Nakamura, of D.J. Houlton, Scott Erickson and Steve Schmoll. They are the team that inspired “The Losers (apostrophe optional) Dividend.”

They are also the team that stumbled so badly but with enough good timing to give the Dodgers a draft pick to use on an 18-year-old lefty from Highland Park High School in Texas named Clayton Kershaw.

They are, of course, the 2005 Dodgers, and 13 years after they shook out the bandwagoneers from the fan base, separating the weak from the chafed, they are surprisingly, almost shockingly relevant again today.

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The Bizarro Dodgers

Juan Ocampo/Los Angeles Dodgers

On April 24, the Dodgers were …

  • 11-10 (.524), in second place in the NL West
  • winners of seven of their past eight games
  • leading the Marlins by one run in the eighth inning
  • putting Clayton Kershaw (2.45 ERA, 0.97 WHIP) on the mound the next day.

I did not see this coming. I didn’t see a lot of this coming. I didn’t see two 1-0 losses to the Giants to open the season, and just when things truly seemed to be falling into place, the white-uniformed cream rising toward the top, I definitely didn’t see 13 losses in 18 games coming — turning those 11-10 Dodgers into these 16-23 Dodgers.

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Interviews and a request: Leave an Amazon review
for Brothers in Arms

Hi everyone — I have two more Brothers in Arms interviews to share with you, each with old friends.

Remember that there are three upcoming booksigning events:

I’ll end this quick post with one request: If you have the book (and especially if you enjoyed it), it would really mean a lot if you could rate the book and leave a review at Amazon. It doesn’t have to be a long review —  even one sentence can make an important impact. I know it can be like doing homework, but I would truly appreciate it.

Thanks, and my goodness, let’s get the Dodgers winning again.

The Last Bookstore sets up June 18 Brothers in Arms event

Update: This event has been canceled

UPDATE: This event has been canceled

The Last Bookstore has offered to host what could be the last booksigning event for Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition — scheduled for 7 p.m. June 18.

I’m planning to do a Q&A on the main stage of the humongous store, located at 453 S. Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles, and sign books thereafter. Information about directions, parking and public transportation can be found here.

One caveat: The Last Bookstore asks for a certain number of people to commit to buying the book in advance, otherwise the event is subject to cancellation. So if you’re planning to come and buy a copy (for yourself or as a gift), please indicate as much by going to the Last Bookstore website and pre-purchasing the book. (Note: There’s an option to reserve a seat for an additional charge, but I don’t believe that will be necessary. Unless I hear otherwise, buying the book should be sufficient.)

The Dodgers will be out of town that night, so here’s a chance to catch up with some fellow fans at a great setting.

The Last Bookstore event is one of three remaining on the Brothers in Arms calendar, following June 3 at Common Space Brewery and June 9 at Barnes & Noble (Burbank).

Hope to see you!

Still more chatter on the Dodgers and Brothers in Arms

Here are a couple of fun items. First, Dustin Nosler and Jared Massey were kind enough to have me as a guest on the Dugout Blues podcast, and we had a fun conversation, first about the Dodgers in general, then about Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition.

Similarly inspired, in case you missed it, was my chat Monday on Reddit, where I spent an hour answering all kinds of questions about the book and the team.

I think you’ll enjoy both, so go pay each a visit …

Ask me anything at my AMA on Reddit, Monday at 12 noon

Hey everyone — as part of the Brothers in Arms global/digital book tour, I’ll be doing an AMA (that’s Ask Me Anything to the uninitiated) on Reddit at 12 noon on Monday. Come on by!

Walker Buehler’s Day On
the Despicable Me 3 no-hitter

Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Tonight was the annual FamFest outdoor movie at 10-year-old Youngest Master Weisman’s school. That meant I could not be in front of the television during tonight’s Dodger game. I could not be in front of the television. 

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Walker Buehler’s time arrives for the Dodgers

Walker Buehler has a 2.00 ERA with 11 strikeouts in his first 10 innings for the Dodgers this year. (Michael Urakami/MLB.com)

Seems like Walker Buehler can take Rancho Cucamonga hotels out of his favorites on Waze.

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New interviews about the Dodgers and Brothers in Arms

As I noted on Tuesday’s official launch day, there’s been some nice coverage for the release of Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition, including opportunities for me to chat about the book, as well as the Dodgers in general.  In the past 24 hours, two more went live:

Enjoy checking out both, and hope to see you at the first signing Saturday!

**Spread the word!**
Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition official release date arrives

Today’s the day — the official launch day for my book, Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition.

Today’s the day, if you are willing and able, to …

*buy the book if you haven’t already — for yourself or as a gift (birthday, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, etc.)  in bookstores as well as online at the following links. Do it today if at all possible. Links to order …

*leave a review — a few words and a positive rating can make a big difference!

*spread the word about the book — on social media or via old-fashioned word of mouth.

*follow @dodgers_tradition on Instagram — the official account for both Brothers in Arms and Dodger Thoughts. 

*plan to attend a signing — get your new or previously purchased copy of the book autographed, hear me say a few words about it and make Brothers in Arms come to life.

*check out the coverage if you want to learn even more about the book.

From my perspective, it feels like I’ve been promoting the book with somewhat nauseasting relentlessness, but every day, I encounter friends and/or Dodger fans who haven’t heard of it. So I would love your help in getting the word out!

What Seager’s lost season signifies for the 2018 Dodgers

Josh Barber/Los Angeles Dodgers

Let me start by saying this isn’t a “Remain calm, all is well” post.

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