Dodger Thoughts

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

Page 158 of 381

Video: Bryan Cranston is the one who knocks, and Vin Scully answers

SAN DIEGO PADRES VS LOS ANGELES DODGERS

Watch as “Breaking Bad” star Bryan Cranston fulfills a lifelong dream of meeting Vin Scully, only to have Scully respond with another surprise.

— Jon Weisman

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Greinke’s elbow could further test Dodger depth

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All Wet

The Dodgers might well have caught a break Tuesday from the Wrigley Field grounds crew, whose struggle to effectively put down a tarp during a 10-minute rainstorm left the field unplayable, causing the Giants’ game against the Cubs to end after 4 1/2 innings in a 2-0 loss. There is talk of a protest, but at least for now, San Francisco fell to 4 1/2 games behind Los Angeles in the National League West.

By Jon Weisman

Teams don’t win or lose, organizations do.

Maybe that’s just a matter of semantics, but the point is, every aspect of your organization, top to bottom, plays a role in the fortunes of the team. And sometimes, you need the bottom to carry the top. Or, depending on your point of view, the middle.

That’s what the Dodgers face right now, given the possibility that Zack Greinke will become the fifth Dodger starting pitcher sidelined for at least the short term, following Chad Billingsley, Josh Beckett, Paul Maholm and Hyun-Jin Ryu.

And yes, I think it’s important to include Billingsley in these lists, because when the season began, he was considered likely to be in the rotation in the second half of 2014, certainly more likely than Beckett or Maholm.

Here’s the latest on Greinke from Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:

Greinke is only a “possibility” to make his scheduled start on Thursday, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said after Tuesday night’s 8-6 win over the Padres.

Greinke has been dealing with a tender elbow for the past three weeks, bypassing regular bullpen sessions to throw on flat ground, which puts less of a strain on the arm.

Mattingly would not elaborate on Greinke’s condition or who might replace him, although the Dodgers have few options besides rookie Carlos Frias, who pitched four innings in relief of Dan Haren on Sunday. …

If Greinke misses a start, that would mean each of the Dodgers’ six primary starting pitchers this season has missed at least one turn in the rotation, although Haren’s was outwardly labeled a rest stop.

And so the Dodgers have needed to step up in other places. They’ve made trades to bring in Kevin Correia (who was rocked for three runs before retiring a batter Tuesday, then held San Diego to one run over his next 19 batters) and Roberto Hernandez. They called up Stephen Fife and Red Patterson early in the season and now perhaps will use Frias as a starter as well.

About the only thing that hasn’t happened yet is a sustained turn in the rotation from a minor-leaguer, in part because someone like 2011 first-round pick Zach Lee, who turns 23 next month, hasn’t come on the fast track. Not that he’s been slow. Lee had made midseason leaps to the next level in 2011 (high school to Single-A Great Lakes) and 2012 (High-A Rancho Cucamonga to Double-A Chattanooga) before spending full seasons at Chattanooga in 2013 and, up to now, Triple-A Albuquerque in 2014.

Lee has struggled somewhat predictably in his first Pacific Coast League season (a league Clayton Kershaw bypassed on his way up). It would be nice to see the Dodgers get a youthful infusion in their rotation, but the timing might not be right for Lee. Maybe it will be the 24-year-old Frias, who retired the final 12 batters he faced in long relief Sunday after allowing a solo home run.

Happiest of all would be if Greinke wakes up healthy this morning or the next. But if someone takes Greinke’s turn Thursday, that pitcher will be the Dodgers’ No. 11 or No. 12 starter this season. You’re not expecting someone like that to dominate; you’re hoping he keeps you in the game enough for your offense to step up, as it did Tuesday, behind Carl Crawford’s three singles, walk and home run and the pairs of doubles from both Matt Kemp and Justin Turner. One player acquired by trade, one player acquired through the draft, one player a savvy pickup by the front office from the discard pile. Because, like we said, you win or lose with your entire organization.

We know Arruebarrena can field — can he hit?

Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

By Jon Weisman

For now, Erisbel Arruebarrena is simply joining Miguel Rojas in holding down the fort at shortstop until Hanley Ramirez returns from the disabled list, as early as Monday. Ramirez was taking grounders at shortstop during batting practice today and looked fairly loose.

It’s no secret how good a fielder Arruebarrena is — his fluidity makes him about the only guy in town that Rojas wouldn’t take to school on defense.

“The way he’s played, he makes everything look pretty easy,” Don Mattingly said of Arruebarrena. “He’s one of those guys that you catch people just kind of watching him take ground balls.”

Mattingly thinks that Rojas has more versatility at second base and third, but Arruebarrena has more potential on offense — with the caveats that Mattingly hasn’t seen much of Arruebarrena at the plate in game action.

“I think he could hit a little bit,” Mattingly said. “The ball comes off his bat well. It sounds like in Cuba, he didn’t put a whole lot of emphasis on his hitting — it was all about defense. We feel like there’s some upside there with his bat.”

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Dodgers flip Truinfel for Arruebarrena on active roster

LOS ANGELES DODGERS VS PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

Padres at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, CF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, RF
Carl Crawford, LF
Justin Turner, 3B
Erisbel Arruebarrena, SS
A.J. Ellis, C
Kevin Correia, P

By Jon Weisman

In an exchange of backup shortstops, the Dodgers have optioned Carlos Triunfel and recalled Erisbel Arruebarrena to and from Triple-A Albuquerque.

Triunfel had been brought up Saturday when Juan Uribe went on the disabled list. At the time, Arruebarrena was on the Isotopes’ DL with right shoulder inflammation and rehabbing with the Dodgers’ Arizona Rookie League team. He played rehab games Saturday through Monday, going 4 for 11 with two doubles, two homers and four RBI.

With Albuquerque, Arruebarrena has a .400 on-base percentage and .452 slugging percentage in 95 plate appearances. As a Dodger, he is 5 for 16 with a double, a walk and a .728 OPS. He is a more highly regarded fielder than Triunfel, who hit a comebacker for an out in the only at-bat of his recent recall.

ThinkCure! Weekend is coming Saturday and Sunday

Think Cure Logo copy

RAYS AT DODGERS Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers

Think Cure logo2Today and every day in Los Angeles, one hundred families will learn that a loved one has cancer. ThinkCure! takes on the fight to stop this.

ThinkCure! Weekend at Dodger Stadium arrives Saturday and Sunday, when the Dodgers host the Mets. An official charity of the Dodgers, ThinkCure! pushes toward a cure for cancer with teamwork and entrepreneurial philanthropy — investments in high-risk, high-return cancer research projects that would otherwise go unfunded.

All support to ThinkCure! goes to City of Hope and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Text “CURE” to 50555, and don’t forget to confirm your donation by entering your zip code when prompted. Or, donate online.

There’s plenty more information — to see it, please visit thinkcure.org.

Do regular-season matchups predict playoff results?

By Jon Weisman

Below is a list of every team the Dodgers have played in the regular season and again in the postseason or in a tiebreaker situation. This is to answer the question, “Do regular-season matchups predict postseason results?”

Regular season vs. postseason

In 23 playoff matchups involving the Dodgers, the team that won the regular-season series also won the playoff series all of eight times.

I refer you to 1988 and 1983 for the most powerful examples. If you’re fretting about what the Brewers’ 5-1 record against the Dodgers means, if the two teams play in the postseason, guess what? Fret no more …

Dodgers RBI receives $35,000 — keep it going by tweeting #Whiff @Dodgers

LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM VS LOS ANGELES DODGERS

By Erin Edwards

As you might know, Head and Shoulders has partnered with MLB to create a healthy competition between teams that benefits the community — and you can participate.

Each time a Dodger pitcher strikes out an opposing player, tweet “#Whiff @Dodgers.” The teams with the highest number of tweets each month earn money for their RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) team.

Two weeks ago, Sam Riber of Head and Shoulders presented a check for $35,000 before that night’s game to support Dodgers RBI to Dodger outfielder and RBI alum Carl Crawford and Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation executive director Nichol Whiteman.

Dodgers RBI is a comprehensive, urban youth baseball program for boys and girls, ages 5-18. Working together with local organizations, parents and volunteers, Dodgers RBI offers 2,400 youth the opportunity to learn and enjoy the games of baseball and softball with special emphasis on education, recreation and healthy habits for young people. Dodgers RBI is a cornerstone program of the LADF, the official charity of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The LADF provides uniforms and equipment, recruitment assistance, cash grants and education/health resources to all teams.

The #whiff competition is far from over. The Dodgers and their fans can still score thousands of dollars in donations through September. Continue to include “#Whiff @dodgers” in any tweet after each strikeout for the rest of the season. Tweet away …

 

 

How easy the Dodgers’ remaining schedule is — and does it matter?

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For photo highlights from Sunday, visit LA Photog Blog.

Pullquote:
The Dodgers have 36 games remaining; 21 of them are at home and 27 of them are against teams with losing records. That’s right: Los Angeles has only nine games remaining against winning teams all season — and only three road games against a winning team (San Francisco, September 12-14).

By Jon Weisman

The most challenging part of the Dodger season is over — on paper.

In reality, every day is its own special challenge.

Los Angeles came out of the All-Star Break having to play 29 games in 31 days, 18 of them on the road, 26 of them against winning teams. That’s a hell of a tough run, and despite the weekend sweep by Milwaukee, the team went 16-13 (.551), an 89-win pace over a 162-game season against some of the best baseball had to offer.

At least in the short term, the Dodgers’ performance did little to support the idea home games are more valuable than road games (Los Angeles is a .500 team at home but has baseball’s best road record, 40-26, and went 11-7 on the road against the above-.500 opponents), or that strength of schedule affects performance.

Against the team that now has the best record in baseball, the Angels, the Dodgers won three out of four. Los Angeles performed its worst against teams that are now No. 1 in the National League (the Brewers) and No. 14 (the Cubs, who beat the Dodgers two out of three.)

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At Carne Asada Sunday, Andre Ethier discusses playing first base

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By Jon Weisman

It was an unusual day for Andre Ethier, but one that ended pleasantly enough with him greeting approximately 150 fans at his Carne Asada Sunday, presented by Chef Merito.

Ethier, who has had to adapt to a reserve role in the second half of this season, played first base for the final innings of the Dodgers’ 7-2 loss to Milwaukee, the team’s third straight to the Brewers.

“It wasn’t a very happy day to start off,” Ethier told his interviewer, Dodger team historian Mark Langill. “Not too good of a series by us.”

It was the second action at first base of Ethier’s career. Previously, he played the ninth inning of an August 5, 2010 game after a double-switch removed James Loney.

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Fun before the game with Hanley Ramirez, Yasiel Puig and Jessica Alba

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By Jon Weisman

Admittedly, the start of today’s Dodgers-Brewers game wasn’t pretty for the hometown fans, not with Jonathan Lucroy driving in five runs in the first two innings to power Milwaukee to a 7-0 lead over the Dodgers after four. But it was plenty festive inside Dodger Stadium and at Viva Los Dodgers at the historic 76 station beyond center field.

Hanley Ramirez, Yasiel Puig and first-pitch tosser Jessica Alba were among those who put on a show before the show …

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Troop reinforcements in two weeks?

MILWAUKEE BREWERS VS LOS ANGELES DODGERS
For more photo highlights from Saturday’s game, visit LA Photog Blog.

Brewers at Dodgers, 1:10 p.m.
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, CF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, RF
Carl Crawford, LF
Justin Turner, 3B
Darwin Barney, SS
Drew Butera, C
Dan Haren, P

By Jon Weisman

It’s been a frustrating 40 hours, with two defeats compounded by the recognition that practically every day, the Dodger roster gets thinner and thinner because of injuries. But in two weeks, the pendulum could swing the other way.

Hanley Ramirez, Juan Uribe, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Josh Beckett, Paco Rodriguez and Chris Perez will all be eligible to come off the disabled list before August 31, and while not all figure to, enough could to make a difference.

The following day, team rosters expand to up to 40 players, enabling the Dodgers to improve their overall depth. This could not only mean adding a third catcher like Tim Federowicz or extra arms in the bullpen, there could also be another bat off the bench like Alex Guerrero (though Guerrero has only OPSed .545 since his return from the minor-league disabled list).

Speedly slugger Joc Pederson is where the most intrigue for a September callup probably rests. Pederson offers multiple tools off the bench, though he isn’t currently on the 40-man roster.

For now, the Dodgers will hope to stop the bleeding — figuratively and literally. The team remains 4 1/2 games ahead of San Francisco in the National League West heading into play today.

* * *

Saturday, the Dodgers sent infielder Jesmuel Valentin, the 51st overall pick in the 2012 draft, to the Phillies as one of two players to be named (or cash considerations in lieu of the second one) in the August 7 trade for Roberto Hernandez. The 20-year-old Valentin had a .349 on-base percentage and .430 slugging percentage with 24 steals in 31 attempts for Single-A Great Lakes this year.

Complete-game loss is first of Kershaw’s career

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By Jon Weisman

Clayton Kershaw walked none and struck out 11 in a five-hit, 97-pitch complete game, but somehow, for the first time in one of his starts since May 28, he and the Dodgers lost.

A two-run home run by Ryan Braun just over the right-field wall in the fourth, followed by a solo shot by first-pitch-swinging Carlos Gomez in the sixth, poked the holes in Kershaw’s seemingly immortal summertime run, lifting Milwaukee to a 3-2 victory Saturday.

For Kershaw, it his sixth complete game of 2014 (most by a Dodger since Ismael Valdez in 1995). But it was the first complete-game loss of his career and the 11th by a Dodger pitcher this century — and just the second by a Dodger at home, joined only by Derek Lowe on June 9, 2007.

The only time Kershaw has thrown fewer pitches in a nine-inning complete game was his memorable Opening Day 2013 shutout of the Giants, which he finished in 94.

The Dodger offense rarely troubled Yovani Gallardo, who scattered six hits and a walk over eight innings. Los Angeles scored its only run off the Milwaukee starter when Justin Turner singled home Carl Crawford, but Turner was tagged out trying to go to second on the play.

After Kershaw walked off the mound in the middle of the ninth to a standing ovation, Matt Kemp thrilled the crowd by slamming a 3-2 pitch far over the short wall in left field for a leadoff homer. But that was all the Dodgers got.

Kershaw’s ERA rose from 1.78 to 1.86, but he now has 174 strikeouts compared to 19 walks in 2014 — a 9.2 K/BB ratio. Los Angeles had averaged 4.9 runs per game in support of Kershaw this season before tonight.

Tonight’s game was the first time that Kershaw had been charged with a loss after a Dodger loss in the previous game since June 21, 2013, the night before the Dodgers’ 42-8 run began.

The game lasted 2:28; the only nine-inning game that the Dodgers have played more quickly this season was a 6-0 victory at Arizona on April 11.

Uribe becomes seventh Dodger to hit disabled list in August

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Brewers at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m.
Kershaw CCII: Kershawrk Passage
Dee Gordon, 2B
Yasiel Puig, CF
Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
Matt Kemp, RF
Carl Crawford, LF
Justin Turner, 3B
A.J. Ellis, C
Miguel Rojas, SS
Clayton Kershaw, P

By Jon Weisman

The starting left side of the infield is now on the disabled list, alongside five other Dodgers, with Juan Uribe landing there today with a right hamstring strain suffered in Friday’s game.

Dodger manager Don Mattingly told reporters that the team was taking the cautious approach with Uribe, hoping to prevent what happened earlier this season, when he seemed ready to come back within a week but then aggravated the injury and missed more than a month’s worth of games.

Mattingly did say he believe Hanley Ramirez would be ready to come off the disabled list when he’s eligible on August 24. And Adrian Gonzalez, who left Friday’s game with slight back stiffness, was ready to go today.

Carlos Triunfel has been called up to take Uribe’s roster spot. Triunfel has a .568 OPS with Albuquerque this year along with a single, a walk and a home run in 15 plate appearances with the Dodgers this season.

Dee Gordon, Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp pour themselves into ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

Dee bucket

By Jon Weisman

Some Dodgers have taken on the ALS Ice Bucket challenge, to fight what’s commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Having donated money and my 1985 Scirocco to the ALS Association myself in the past, I’m happy to see it.

Above: Dee Gordon. Below: Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp.

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Kemp bucket

Sympathy pain? Uribe leaves loss with hamstring flare

By Jon Weisman

For the second time in three nights, the Dodgers might have lost more than a lead and a game. After Hyun-Jin Ryu was hurt in Wednesday’s 3-2 loss at Atlanta, Ryu’s pal Juan Uribe had to leave tonight’s 6-3 defeat against Milwaukee with tightness in his right hamstring — in the same area that caused him to miss 34 games earlier this year, as Ken Gurnick of MLB.com notes. For now, Uribe is listed as day to day.

In the past two weeks, Ryu, Hanley Ramirez, Josh Beckett, Paul Maholm, Chris Perez and Paco Rodriguez have gone on the disabled list.

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