By Jon Weisman
Vidal Nuño, a 29-year-old left-handed reliever, has been acquired from Seattle by the Dodgers in exchange for catcher Carlos Ruiz.
By Jon Weisman
Vidal Nuño, a 29-year-old left-handed reliever, has been acquired from Seattle by the Dodgers in exchange for catcher Carlos Ruiz.
By Jon Weisman
It’s a small change in the batting order, but at the same time, the Dodgers’ most significant of the postseason.
Against Cubs lefty Jon Lester tonight, Dave Roberts has moved Kiké Hernández to the leadoff spot, with Carlos Ruiz batting fourth, Howie Kendrick fifth, Yasiel Puig sixth and Adrián González seventh.
In his first postseason appearance of 2016, Hernández walked twice and lined out against Lester in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, and Roberts said he liked the quality of his at-bats.
“And I think that since he’s come back for this series, his pitch recognition is much better,” Roberts added. “I feel comfortable with him trying to get on base instead of worrying about trying to drive runs in — and also to put Howie in the middle of things. I think that to be able to get a hit with guys on base, I feel very comfortable with that.”
Ruiz is starting at cleanup for the first time as a Dodger and the first time at all since May 16 with Philadelphia. Ruiz is 2 for 7 with a homer in the playoffs, including an 0-for-2 start against Lester.
By Jon Weisman
Carlos Ruiz and Kiké Hernández will make their first 2016 postseason starts for the Dodgers, on a day the team confirmed that Clayton Kershaw will be the starting pitcher in Sunday’s Game 2 and Rich Hill in Game 3 at Los Angeles on Tuesday. To bet on that game, click here.
Ruiz had a two-run homer and RBI single off the bench in the National League Division Series, while Hernández will be making his 2016 postseason debut, taking the Chase Utley/Charlie Culberson spot at second base.
Dave Roberts cited Hernández’s athleticism, versatility and “the potential slug” for bringing him back into active duty.
“It was a tough decision with Charlie, but I think (Kiké) could pay a huge benefit for us,” Roberts said.
Otherwise, the Dodgers have their regular postseason lineup against a left-handed pitcher, with Yasiel Puig and Howie Kendrick subbing for Josh Reddick and Andrew Toles.
By Jon Weisman
Kenta Maeda will start Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Saturday, Dave Roberts confirmed, with Clayton Kershaw looking likely to make Sunday’s Game 2 start.
Kershaw was in good shape after Thursday’s late-night bullpen session that climaxed with the final seven pitches of the Dodgers’ National League Division Series clincher over Washington.
By Jon Weisman
You are dry. You are bled dry, you are bone dry, you are a body crawling across the desert toward paradise, and not until the last reach of the arm, not until the last extension of the fingertip, not until the last grain of sand was behind you, did you know if you had reached a mirage or the Promised Land.
You open your eyes, and it’s paradise.
In the most epic Dodger playoff game in a generation, in the longest nine-inning playoff game in postseason history, the Dodgers found the buried treasure of a four-run seventh-inning rally, then watched Kenley Jansen and Clayton Kershaw drag that golden chest to glory, defeating the Washington Nationals, 4-3, to advance to the National League Championship Series.
Jansen, whom Dave Roberts boldly put into the game with the tying run on base in the seventh inning, threw a career-high 51 pitches — four fewer than Dodger starter Rich Hill — to get the Dodgers within reach of victory.
Kershaw, the 19th Dodger to play in the game, got the final two outs, two nights after he threw 110 pitches in the Dodgers’ Game 4 victory — instantly recalling Orel Hershiser’s extra-inning save in the last playoff series the Dodgers came from behind to win, the 1988 NLCS.
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Could not be prouder of Clayton!!
— Orel Hershiser (@OrelHershiser) October 14, 2016
The winning pitcher was none other than Julio Urías, who became the youngest pitcher in MLB playoff history to get the W.
It was the victory of a generation. It was a victory that seemed to take a generation.
By Jon Weisman
In the ninth inning today, the Dodgers trailed 4-3, the exact deficit they faced in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.
But this time, they had already used their pinch-hit, two-run home run. And this time, the ninth-inning home run was hit by the visitors. And that wasn’t all.
Putting its foot down with a four-run top of the ninth, Washington won, 8-3, leaving the Dodgers with no choice to save their season but to win Game 4 of the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday and then Game 5 at Washington on Thursday.
Despite Carlos Ruiz hitting the first pinch-hit playoff homer by the home team in Los Angeles since Kirk Gibson, the Dodgers lost the first home playoff game since the retirement of the man who called Gibson’s homer, Vin Scully.
The Dodgers used 21 players — tying the team record for a playoff game and setting the team record for a nine-inning game — in the longest nine-inning playoff game in franchise history (4:12).
Game 4 of the NLDS will take place at 2:05 p.m. Tuesday if the Giants defeat the Cubs in San Francisco tonight, or at 5:08 p.m. if the Cubs eliminate the Giants.
By Jon Weisman
As part of Team Photo Day on Friday, the Dodgers indulged in a fantasy — that everyone in the world could be as wonderful as Vin Scully.
Of course, there really can only be one Vin Scully, as a close examination of the above image will reveal. (Click to enlarge.)
Here are some other recent items of note …
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By Jon Weisman
As expected, Carlos Ruiz is in the starting lineup for his Dodger debut tonight, with Shawn Zarraga being optioned back to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Zarraga, as you can see in the video above, did enjoy the thrill of being an official Major Leaguer, however briefly. He arrived Thursday via private jet, as Michael Clair notes at MLB.com’s Cut4.
As the newest big leaguer told MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick, “It was a 12-seater and it was just me and the pilot, but I got to sit next to him and that was cool.”
In addition, the Dodgers have recalled Brock Stewart from Triple-A. Stewart, who was optioned August 15 to make room for the activation of Casey Fien, threw five innings of shutout ball August 19 for Oklahoma City.
So, how are the Dodgers making room for Stewart on the roster this weekend? They have optioned Kenta Maeda — yes, that’s right — to the Rookie-level AZL Dodgers, whose season concludes on Sunday. That means he can be recalled immediately after that day, without a 10-day waiting period.
As Dave Roberts said today, the plan is that Julio Urías will start for the Dodgers on Saturday and Maeda will take the mound Monday in Colorado, leaving Sunday as TBD.
Andrew Friedman, on the decision to trade A.J. Ellis to Philadelphia in a deal for Carlos Ruiz (via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com):
“It was a tough decision on a personal level,” Friedman said. “From a baseball standpoint, we felt Carlos fit our team extremely well. I can go on and on about A.J. and his attributes and what he brings to a team, and if Carlos didn’t possess similar things, we wouldn’t have made the move. In terms of leadership ability, ability to call a game and run a pitching staff, Carlos rates extremely well in those things and has experience in what he brings to the lineup against left-handed pitching, which (we) focused on as an area we wanted to improve.”
Read the entire story here.
— Jon Weisman
By Jon Weisman
In an exchange of catchers that will mark the end of an era in Los Angeles, A.J. Ellis has been sent to the Phillies in a trade for Carlos Ruiz.
Ellis, minor-league pitcher Tommy Bergjans and a player to be named later or cash considerations will go to Philadelphia in exchange for Ruiz and cash considerations.
You don’t set out to lose a game, but it’s hard for me not to take a game like Monday’s 7-0 loss to Cliff Lee and the Phillies as a write-off. When Lee is so dominant that he can retire 20 guys in a row, my first thought is … hopefully, the Dodgers will have their answer soon in Clayton Kershaw.
What happens when three old friends in crisis fall into an unexpected love triangle? In The Catch, Maya, Henry and Daniel embark upon an emotional journey that forces them to confront unresolved pain, present-day traumas and powerful desires, leading them to question the very meaning of love and fulfillment. The Catch tells a tale of ordinary people seeking the extraordinary – or, if that’s asking too much, some damn peace of mind.
Catch ‘The Catch,’ the new novel by Jon Weisman!
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August 31, 2023
Fernando Valenzuela: Ranking the games that defined the legend
August 7, 2023
Interview: Ken Gurnick
on Ron Cey and writing
about the Dodgers
June 25, 2023
Interview: Ron Cey talks about the experiences that led to his new memoir, Penguin Power
June 22, 2023
Thank You For Not ...
1) using profanity or any euphemisms for profanity
2) personally attacking other commenters
3) baiting other commenters
4) arguing for the sake of arguing
5) discussing politics
6) using hyperbole when something less will suffice
7) using sarcasm in a way that can be misinterpreted negatively
8) making the same point over and over again
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10) being annoyed by the existence of this list
11) commenting under the obvious influence
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1991-2013
Dodgers at home: 1,028-812 (.558695)
When Jon attended: 338-267 (.558677)*
When Jon didn’t: 695-554 (.556)
* includes road games attended
2013
Dodgers at home: 51-35 (.593)
When Jon attended: 5-2 (.714)
When Jon didn’t: 46-33 (.582)
Note: I got so busy working for the Dodgers that in 2014, I stopped keeping track, much to my regret.
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