Crowded at the Top

Behind a truly dominating performance by an absolutely filthy Hideki Kuroda, your Los Angeles Dodgers are now tied atop the NL West. It wasn't exactly how we planned it, hasn't exactly been beautiful but it's nice to be looking down on the rest of the division (and looking sideways at Arizona).

Great win tonight featuring two defensive gems (both made the Web Gem list on BBTN) courtesy of DeWitt's ridiculous barehand pickup and throw in the 7th to keep the perfecto intact and an insane play deep in the hole by Berroa to start the 9th (despite the great play you know your 6 hole is shaky when Angel Berroa is your defensive replacement for Nomar Garciaparra) but the real story was obviously Kuroda's bid for immortality.

Big night at the Ravine which probably would have been a little more memorable had our power not gone out for the 5th day in a row courtesy of the Gap Fire in the fourth inning, forcing me to go old school and turn on Jessica's old-ass battery powered radio. Jessica was also pretty excited about the evening, managing to stay awake all the way to the third inning. Nice having you, Jess.

Is Dream Weaver Back?

Watching Jered Weaver in his last three outings for Anaheim reminds of me of his college days, when the SoCal kid mowed down the first 10 hitters he faced in a game – not once, but twice during his junior year at Long Beach State.
The Angels starter has a 1.45 ERA in those three outings, giving up two runs on six hits over 7 1/3 innings in Friday’s win over the Blue Jays and tossing six no-hit innings a week earlier against the Dodgers in that crazy not-so-fast-that’s-not-a-no-hitter game.
The lanky right-hander hasn’t seen a dominant stretch like this since his brilliant rookie campaign with the Angels two years ago, which came shortly after his historic season with the 49ers in 2004. A 15-1 collegiate campaign that saw him strike out 10-plus batters 14 times en route to Player of the Year honors.
“When you look back on it, it’s almost holy,” Long Beach State pitching coach Troy Buckley told me four years ago. “What we're seeing here is probably never going to happen again.”
Well, the Halo hopeful are hoping Weaver can duplicate even half of that dominance in his third year in the majors.
While hitters across the league have adjusted to that Dizzy Dean windup of his, Weaver’s arsenal of pitches is still lethal. The real problem the past two years stems from the location (or lack there of) of his pitches. When he gets the ball up, major leaguers – who aren’t intimidated by his velocity of wacky windup the way collegiate hitters were – make Weaver pay.
When he hits his spots and keeps the ball down like he’s done in his last three outings, he’s as tough as anyone.
So he has the stuff, but does the shaggy haired one have the mentality he needs to prevent duplicating his brother Jeff’s nine-year rollercoaster in the majors (speaking of which, the former Fresno St. Bulldoggy got picked up by Cleveland over weekend if you can believe that)?
Well, if Jered attacks hitters with the same me-against-the-world determination he had in college he will.

Long Beach State has had an impressive run of young stars in majors the past few years (we won’t mention Jason Giambi): Bobby Crosby, Oakland Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Jered Weaver, Anaheim

“I’ve never seen a pitcher who can just shut down an opponent like he does,” one MLB scout said of Weaver during that dominant run in 2004. “It’s like the guy gets even more pissed off when runners get on (base), turns it up a notch and becomes unhittable.”
That’s how can be in the majors, too.
While many major league averages skyrocket with runners in scoring position, opponents are hitting .244 with runners in scoring position (six points less than they are for the season) against Weaver. And Weaver is averaging 8.25 K/9 innings in those RISP situations as opposed to 6.79 for the season.
So he’s shown glimpses of that same shut-it-down mentality in the big leagues, at least when runners are on base.
Maybe Weaver needs to heed his own advice, and pitch like that for an entire game like he used to do in college.
“To me, the mound is like sacred ground,” Weaver said in 2004. “You don't want anyone to walk on it.
"I'm a mellow guy, but when I get on that mound I'm the biggest competitor in terms of trying to keep my team in the game. It doesn't matter who you're playing or what their record is.”

Dodgers-Giants Recap

The Dodgers managed to take 2 out of 3 from the Giants, falling to the mighty Barry Zero and then coming back today and jumping all over Matt Cain. Baseball makes no sense sometimes. Actually, most of the time. Few notes from the Dodger games:

• Batting Matt Kemp lead-off is effective: he reached 6 times (2 steals) and looks more selective at the plate.
• Saito is not a shut-down closer anymore.
• Hung Chih-Kuo is flat out dirty.
• Giant fans will take any excuse they can get to chant "BEAT LA".
• B Zito is not quite dead yet.
• Furcal is never, ever, ever going to play again.
• Nomar scares me at short.
• I'm not scared of the Padres, Rockies or Giants at this point and only like 61% scared of the D-Backs.
• 1/2-game back, baby.

NL WEST	W	L	PCT	GB	HOME	ROAD	RS	RA
Arizona	44	45	.494	-	27-19	17-26	393	390
LA Dodgers	43	45	.489	.5	22-20	21-25	365	356
San Francisco	39	50	.438	5	17-28	22-22	367	408
Colorado	37	52	.416	7	25-21	12-31	402	471
San Diego	35	54	.393	9	21-26	14-28	329	416

Welcome back Andruw!

Andruw . . . has it really been so long? Welcome back, big fella. Looks like you've picked up right where you left off, huh? 0-for-5 with 4 Ks? Must have been some sort of rehab assignment to get back in game shape so quickly. Luckily, the Beefcake had another big day and the Dodgers rallied thanks to some shaky Giants D and horrid relief pitching.

You know what's concerning? Big Jon Broxton continues to be a high-wire act and only a lucky double-play ball off the bat of the Artist Formerly Known As Rich Aurilia kept the damage to one run. Dan Haren and the D-Backs take on the Pads tonight at the BOB, so we'll have to hold our noses and root, root, root for the Madres. Happy 4th everyone.

With Friends Like These...

Well, looks like the NL West is ours now. All you other teams might as well start waving your white flags and preparing for 2009. Hello postseason.

Mini Update

So the fires and the power outages have got me down but I was able to go old school and catch the tail end of the Dodger game on a battery powered radio last night. Another good result for the club and Kuroda was downright dirty. I'm putting together some All-Star Game and NL vs. AL thoughts and should have that post up this weekend. Big ups to the firefighters and Baldo in particular, keep it real brother. And try to keep my cable from going out again, will you? Dodgers are now only 1.5 behind the D-Backs, and the whole NL West is now officially under .500. Gross.

Waving the White WCBias Flag

I give up. It seems like every blog I’ve written this week has backfired.
First, I punch out a take on how Baron Davis “wants to be in the Bay,” citing his own blog, and that he’ll probably remain in Golden State despite becoming an unrestricted free agent. (Hours later, reports have him flying south to L.A. to play for the Clippers).
Then I cite an ESPN.com/AP story reporting the Hall of Fame isn’t going to take up pub hound Marc Ecko on his Barry Bonds asterisk ball loan. (Hours later, ESPN and AP backtrack and report the Hall of Fame has come to an agreement with Ecko and is accepting the ball after all).
I guess that’s the 24-hour news cycle for you … and the beauty of the Internet, which allows you to quickly revise your copy in seconds and prevents you from having to steal every newspaper out of every newsstand in town when you make a gaff. It’s just too bad the major mainstream media organizations are more hungry about getting the scoop than they are about getting the story right the first time.
That’s also the problem with blogs, especially when their bread and butter is tearing takes from the day’s big headlines – whether they’re true or not. The blogosphere is a crazy, convoluted universe that’s filled with nebulous reports and editorials that are produced largely by non-journalists on Kool-Aid-stained keyboards in mommy’s basement.
That’s also why I was once against blogs. But like many things in my life (i.e. fly-fishing, golf, running), blogging has grown on me and become quite addictive. Plus, what’s a 30-year-old journalist to do over the latter half of his career if he’s stuck on the inverted pyramid in a dead-tree medium and doesn’t know a thing about HTML?
At the same time, we need to have the same accountability and principles when it comes to what we report on the Net, which is why we’ve tried to keep the content on this site newsy or just plain funny and have done our best to avoid the crude, sophomoric posts and pics you’ll find orbiting a majority of the blogosphere.
That being said, it’s about time for me to write some glaring inaccuracies again in hopes that the following comments will also backfire and force the exact opposite to come true:

• I will be writing dozens of blog entries instead of taking the next few days off because I’m not going to win the lottery on my way to the beach tomorrow.
• I’m not going to go fishing and catch the biggest bass of my life this weekend.
• That Yoda-looking dude waving the white flag isn't really a leprechaun poised to lead me on an week-long adventure to find his secret pot o' gold.
  
• My wife will still hate my guts every time I tune her out to post another inaccurate blog on WCBias.com.
• The site won’t crash because this post won’t receive a record number of hits today.

Bonds Ball HOF Bound after all

It appears Barry Bonds may have to boycott the Hall of Fame after all.
After initially refusing the Barry Bonds asterisk-branded 756th home run ball, the Hall of Fame has now accepted the donation from Ecko Unlimited founder and PR stuntman Marc Ecko.
Ecko bought the ball for $750,000 last September, wanting to brand the historic pearl with an asterisk in response to the allegations of Bonds’ steroids use.
Initially, the HOF was hesitant about accepting the ball.
“The owner's previous commitment to unconditionally donate the baseball has changed to a loan. As a result, the Hall of Fame will not be able to accept the baseball,” the Hall told The Associated Press early Tuesday.

That vague statement left us at WCBias.com scratching our heads. So we did some digging and came up with some reasons Cooperstown might not want Bonds’, make that Ecko’s ball in the Hall:

10. Bonds said he’d boycott the Hall of Fame if it accepted the ball, and the Hall doesn’t want a class act like Bonds on the outside looking in.
9. The crusty old men at the HOF think Ecko’s clothes are "too hippitty hop."
8. Innocent until proven guilty – a failed drug test, hundreds of media reports linking him to performance enhancers, Game of Shadows and the Mitchell Report aren’t nearly enough proof.
7. Who needs the ball when you have Bonds’ size 22 cap?
6. Ecko got flaxseed oil on his hands and dropped the ball in McCovey Cove.
5. The Hall was afraid Ecko might tag their hallowed walls worse than Air Force One.
4. The Hall is holding out for the real Bonds’ souvenir – the syringe.
3. Jane Forbes Clark, Chairperson of the Hall’s Board of Directors, is hoping to sign the free agent Bonds to the company’s co-ed softball team.
2. There isn’t enough room for a ball with that ginormous bronze bust of Bonds’ dome on the way.
1. Because of steroid use, the ball has since shriveled up into the size of a raisin and is now useless.

Freeway Series Comes to a Close

Yesterday I saw some kid rocking a Dodgers shirt and Angles hat while I was out walking my dog, apparently the only person in Santa Barbara with conflicted feelings about the Freeway Series. In any event, the Angles returned the 1-0 favor to the Dodgers today, blanking Joe Torre's crew behind yet another phenomenal performance by John Lackey. Go on ahead and take a look at the Angles' BP page, how dirty are those top 3 starters? A combined VORP of over 66? Sick.

We find ourselves in what has become our default position, firmly entrenched at 2.5 games behind the D-Backs and 5 games under .500. Own it. Also ESPN has done a nice job of including the run differential for the mathematically challenged...one could be an optimist and say the Dodgers should have a better record than they do based on the positive differential, if one were so inclined. Good God the Madres are bad.

WEST	W	L	PCT	GB	RS	RA	DIFF	STRK	L10
Arizona	41	41	.500	-	366	359	+7	Lost 1	3-7
LA Dodgers	38	43	.469	2.5	331	328	+3	Lost 1	5-5
San Francisco	36	46	.439	5	335	372	-37	Won 2	5-5
Colorado	32	50	.390	9	341	417	-76	Lost 7	2-8
San Diego	32	51	.386	9.5	302	390	-88	Lost 8	1-9

sports sports sports sports sports

I haven't blogged since Wednesday and I forget how to do this. How do you do hyperlinks? How do I upload pictures? It's like I have to retrain myself on everything all over again. I got buried at work Thursday and Friday and then yesterday I ended up swimming at Red Rock for the majority of the day and if it weren't for a call from G Slim I would have missed the last inning of the Dodger game last night. Good thing he called too as you don't see many no-hit-but-win-anyway-wins. As Tim Kurkjian pointed out on BBTN immediately after the game ended, it wasn't officially a no-no since you've got to go a full nine to qualify for immortality but it was still cool and Chavez was rocking.

The Euro Cup comes to a close today at 11:30, so be sure to tap into your inner football fan and tune in.

Also time is running out to vote for the All-Star game, make sure you get your picks in before Tuesday. Yes, the AL is leading the NL in interleague matchups once again this year but go and look at your all-star options and tell me the NL doesn't have better talent. Note: I voted for Soriano assuming he would be back from his injury and didn't vote for Ortiz for the opposite reason.
My votes:
AL Starters NL Starters Advantage
C: Joe Mauer C: Russ Martin Push
1B: Jason Giambi 1B: Lance Berkman NL
2B: Ian Kinsler 2B: Chase Utley NL
3B: Alex Rodriguez 3B: Chipper Jones AL
SS: Mike Young SS: Hanley Ramirez NL
OF: J Hamilton, M Ordonez, Ichiro OF : R Braun, Holliday, Soriano Push

While the AL will undoubtedly beat the NL yet again in the All-Star Game what this little list won't show you is HOW BAD SOME OF THOSE AL OPTIONS ARE. The first basemen in the AL are atrocious and the SS position is probably the weakest thing I have ever seen. Also the D-Rays are probably going to be woefully under-represented and you COULD make a good case for Navarro as the starting catcher, Upton and Crawford in the outfield and Kazmir on the mound. Probably not going to happen but what a tremendous story.

Allison, Wonderdogs keep hope alive

Just when you thought there was no good news coming out of the West Coast baseball scene, along comes Clayton Allison and the Fresno State Underdogs Bulldogs.
Fresno State right-handed pitcher Clayton Allison, a Dodgers draft pick who battled shoulder tendonitis throughout the postseason, shut down North Carolina on Sunday and sent the Bulldogs to the College World Series championship series.
Allison (4-5) hadn’t pitched since Game 2 of the Super Regionals because of the sore right wing but allowed only a leadoff double and five singles in the 6-1 victory.
The 29th-round pick would’ve notched a shutout if not for a bases-loaded walk in the fourth inning, striking out six and walking three.
Now Allison isn’t a sure-fire big leaguer by any stretch, but he’s got the Bulldogs feeling like they’re underdogs no longer. And as BG will tell you, those left-for-dead Dodgers could use a couple gamers like Allison in their dugout.
“It was a gutsy performance when we needed one the most,” Bulldogs coach Mike Batesole said. “That was a mental win. It didn’t have much to do with what he had physically. That was a mental battle, and he won it.”
The Bulldogs (45-30), the first No. 4 regional seed to make any kind of run like this in the CWS, faces Georgia (44-23-1) in a best-of-three series beginning Monday.

How do you have a job Yankees radio clowns?

I was bored of West Coast sports Friday night and did the unthinkable, tuned in MLB.com to hear how GSlim’s idol Jay Bruce was doing against the ol’ Yankees in interleague play.
Bad idea.
Well, good idea if you’re struggling for stuff to write about and need another idea for “How do you have a job?”
WCBS, the New York Yankees Radio Network, is just plain brutal.
More Homer than Simpson.
I mean every time the Yankees made a routine play, it was “amazing” or “terrific.” Lazy fly balls hit by the Bronx Bombers were “going, going … caught short of the warning track.”
But they did come up with great insight like “I’m not sure the last time WE played the Reds,” as if they’re wearing pinstripes themselves.
Calling players by their first names, as if they’re best friends, which leaves non-regular listeners wondering who the hell they’re talking about half the time.
Sorry I don’t know who your BFF Chad (third-string catcher Moeller) is.
And we haven’t even got to the crying.
Yes, Suzyn Waldman actually began sobbing last year after the Yankees were knocked out of the playoffs and it became evident Joe Torre’s time in the Bronx might be coming to an end.
Dude, there’s no crying in baseball.
Thank god, Waldman didn’t join Torre when he made his move out West.
Not that Waldman’s partner in crime, John Sterling, is any better.
During one of his homer plugs for the local car dealership, Sterling came up with this great sell:
“Are you looking for a new car? … well, I wish I didn’t throw that card away. … Well, you could find used cars on the Internet.”
Thanks for the tip there Einstein. Oh wait, you guys know him as Albert.
Brutal.
Say it with me y'all: "How do you have a job Bozo Yankees homers?"
Now you know why they call it WC-BS.

Dead and Burried

According to Dos Equis’ “Most Interesting Man in the World” it’s never too early to start thinking about your obituary. With that in mind, I’m going to write about the demise of the 2008 Dodgers, even though it’s only mid-June.

After being swept by the Tigers and dropping their last 5 straight, the woeful Dodgers have fallen 5.5 behind the stunningly mediocre Diamondbacks and look absolutely dead in the water. There’s no real mystery to the team’s struggles either—they’re currently 22nd in the league in runs per game and 25th in defensive efficiency. Russell Martin, the only Dodger playing worth a damn, is surrounded by a few guys who are essentially league-average players (Loney and the Beefcake) and a bunch of stiffs. The prolonged absence of Furcal has crippled the Dodger “attack” and exposed us all to the offensive black hole combo of Berroa and Hu. Furcal, who has been out for more than a month (and figures to not play until after the ASB) is TIED for the team lead in runs scored (with Martin) with 34. Take a second and wrap you brain around that.

From a pitching standpoint, Brad Penny has flat out sucked this season. No other way to put that. Scot Proctor has also been a silent killer, matching Penny’s negative value on the mound. What is sickening is that the Dodgers’ best pitcher has been reliever Hong-Chih Kuo, who Torre seems inclined to use only in mop-up duty and blowouts. Meanwhile in a tight ballgame he has no qualms about ushering in Proctor who is currently sporting hideous numbers out of the bullpen. Does Torre have these stats on hand? Who is his computer tutor, John McCain?
So what to do? I’ll tell you what not to do: trade Kemp. The Dodgers aren’t winning this year so don’t get rid of a guy for a half-season rental of Jason Bay or Adam Dunn, they’re not making a difference and besides, is ANOTHER outfielder really the answer? Haven’t we been down this road before? Play LaRoche at third (or even second if/when Kent needs a day off) and prepare for 2009.

Dodgers are Impotent

By my math the Dodgers have scored either 0 or 1 run in 12 of their last 22 games. No positive way you can put a spin on that, my friends. I watched most of the game at a sports bar downtown in hopes of taking a drink every time they scored a run off of Detroit's Armando Galarraga. And I stayed sober just like the old nun.

On the heels of this current slide comes word that the Dodgers may be looking to shop Matt Kemp. I'm pretty sure if they keep him he never reaches his potential and ends up playing in Japan by 2012. If they deal him however he will go 40/40 every year as a perennial All-Star. Out of the list of names Rosenthal lists as potential suitors for Kemp, Matt Holliday is the only one who appeals to me (yes I know his OPS is way better at home)--Jason Bay has been barely above average for 3 straight years before putting it back together this season and while I love Magglio Ordonez he probably only has another 2 great season left in him before beginning the twilight of his career. Who knows what Neddy is thinking though. The lesson, as always, never trust a man with a mustache.

2008 NL West Standings

TEAM	W	L	GB	RS	RA
Arizona	37	31	-	324	284
LA Dodgers	31	36	5.5	281	280
San Francisco	30	38	7	278	313
San Diego	30	39	7.5	258	314
Colorado	26	41	10.5	284	352

Like You Need Another Reason to Start Drinking

I spent the better part of today thinking of Dodger Drinking Games. Why? Because I was at work, that's why. The following are the best that I could come up with, along with pictures of how you will probably look if you play.

1. Every time Matt Kemp strikes out, drink.

2. Every time you think about packing in the season and becoming an Angels fan, take a drink.

3. Every time a runner is left in scoring position, drink.

4. Every time you go to the waiver wire to see which free agent pitchers are going against the Dodgers the next day so you can spot start them in your fantasy league, drink.

5. Every time Scott Proctor puts the leadoff man on, drink.

6. And finally...every time the Dodgers score a run, drink.

How do you have a job … John Kruk?

, I like John Kruk, but like Charles Barkley, it’s only a matter of time before he says something crazy on camera.
Like on Monday night during a one of the rain delays when ESPN had no other option but to show bonus coverage of the Giants-Nationals game.

Between innings, Kruk said San Francisco manager “Bruce Bochy deserves some consideration for Coach of the Year … because the Giants are what, seven-games under .500?”

Huh? Since when does seven-games under warrant anything but the hot seat?
Yeah, the Giants roster is putrid, but seven-games under isn’t exactly overachieving.
You’re better than that JK.

This KG’s pretty darn good too

In an era flooded with power hitters, and the asterisks, question marks and suspicions that follow them, Ken Griffey Jr. stands alone.
Junior, whose only career flaw has been the injury bug, hit career homer No. 600 on Monday night, becoming only the sixth player to reach the milestone.
As far was we know, and nobody can be certain in this day of never-aging, Hulk-like sluggers, Junior is clean – which is more than can be said about a couples of the other modern names on the list below.
Barry Bonds* and Sammy Sosa* have been connected to steroids on multiple occasions and Bonds heads our list of players on the WCBias All-Steroid Team.
Junior, however, hasn’t even received a vote for the team, and unlike the three above names is a sure-fire, first-ballot Hall of Famer.
In fact, the only question that looms over Griffey at this point is whether he’s legitimately the best all-around ballplayer of this generation.

600 Home Run Club
Barry Bonds* 762
Hank Aaron 755
Babe Ruth 714
Willie Mays 660
Sammy Sosa* 609
Ken Griffey Jr. 600

An Obvious Excuse to Look at Anna Kournikova Pictures on the Internet

I have a question for you: how bad are you at your job? Go on ahead and think about that for a second.

Chances are pride got in the way of your objectivity and you started thinking you're actually pretty good at whatever it is you do...in fact you're (probably) under-appreciated and (certainly) under-paid, despite the fact that you're reading this from work with 30 unreal emails in your inbox and reports stacked up on your desk. We generally don't extend this same amount of genial slack towards professional athletes...our shortcomings are understated and inconsequential, theirs are unforgivable. Consider how we all dismissed Anna Kournikova during her prime. “Sure she’s hot,” we all said, generally followed with, “Too bad she sucks at tennis.” Well AK may not have won many (ok any) Tournaments but she was consistently ranked between #10 and #15 in the world over a three-year span, topping out at #8 in 1999. So as bad as you think AK was at her job, she was still better than you are at yours. Way better.

If that makes you depressed, rest assured that you are significantly better than these four guys who are currently soaking up a bile-inducing 31% of the Dodgers' total payroll this year. That ought to make you feel a little better.

1. Jason Schmidt: $12 million.


2. Andruw Jones: $9 million


3. Nomar Garciaparra: $8.5 million


4. Esteban Loaiza: $7 million

These gentlemen have accounted for essentially nothing this year and in the case of Jason Schmidt truly nothing. While it may not be fair to hold his injury against him, it’s not like he was much better before he went down anyway. Every team has dead payroll and every team has to deal with trips to the DL and under-performing stars but these numbers are sickening (notice Juan Pierre didn't even make the S List) and indicative of Ned Colletti's inability to actually pay people what they are worth. Let's not forget that he cut his teeth with the Giants and we all know the state of their organization at the moment. At what point do we have to start demanding Ned Colletti’s head?

It's gotta be the camo

Coming into today, San Diego Padres pinch-hitter Tony Clark had as many extra-base hits as I have this season.
Despite the big zero in the EBH category, the Padres went to the pinch-hit extraordinaire late and Clark delivered with a go-ahead, three-run homer off Billy Wagner to give San Diego its fifth straight win, 8-6, and a four-game sweep of the New York Mets.
So is it time to start celebrating in San Diego? Sure it is, the Padres haven’t won 8 of 10 in forever, it seems.
At the same time, the past four games came against the Mets, the fourth-place team in the NL East, who went 2-5 on their trip to Cali.
And the Padres are still nine games under .500 and seven games out in the NL Worst — so hold that ticker-tape parade Friar fan, you’ve still got some work to do.
AP Photo/Denis Poroy

Take Me Out To The Ballgame

Hopefully all of you have someone like the Olivas in your life. The Olivas are G Slim's older-brother's in-laws and two of the hugest Dodger/Laker/SC/UCLA fans I have ever met in my life. On any given day I probably get between 8 to 10 emails from the Olivas and the Sniders discussing everything from the Dodgers to Tiger Woods, all of which either spark some kind of controversy or encourage some good natured ribbing.

Judging by all of the back-and-forth emails you might assume that we are all good friends and see each other regularly. And you'd be half-right. I have met los hermanos de Oliva one time in my life, at an Oscar de la Hoya fight (against Felix Trinidad?) at their place in LA which must have been in either 1997 or 1998 because I remember Greg and I driving down from the dorms at UCSB to take in the fight. Sports obviously has a way of bringing us all together, even when we aren't.

Cesar took his kids to their first ever Dodger game Friday evening and had the pleasure of seeing Hideki Kuroda's dominance of the Cubs and he had this to share with us afterwards-

Just to let all of you know, we took the kids to the game last night.
Not only did the Azul win, but Little Marty Mars boy Kuroda-son went Cy Young on the Cubbies and made them look like J Snides Church softball team. That was a nice way to break my kids into Dodger Baseball. A 4 hit, 11 strike out complete game shutout.

We went to the top of the park store and bought the twins their first Dodger hats and took in the view of the field from the top deck. What a gem! That has to be one of Los Angeles most beautiful postcard snap shots.
I know the kids won't remember this, but my wife and I sure will.
Awesome night, just plain awesome.

The email and the pics got me thinking--did I remember my first game? I called my dad who told me he took me to a few games when I was a baby but those obviously never registered. The first game I can recall was a thriller against the Cardinals in either '86 or '87 and I remember the Dodgers winning either 8-7 or 7-6 thanks to some heroic pitching by Matt Young in the 9th but the details escape me. Thankfully, nothing escapes the good folks over at retrosheet.org and with a few clicks most of the details came back to me, look at this 9th inning mastery, with Young clinging to a one-run lead:

CARDINALS 9TH:
Ozzie Smith singled to center
    Pendleton singled to shortstop, Smith to third
    Clark struck out; McGee struck out; Pagnozzi struck out
    Final Score: Cardinals 6, Dodgers 7.

What retrosheet failed to record was the ecstatic eight year old boy jumping up and down into his dad's arms, a fan forever, for better or for worse.

Way to start them young, Cesar. I'll expect an email Monday morning.

Still waiting for that Triple Crown ... in baseball

Well, Big Brown couldn’t deliver after all.
The horse’s letdown today at the Belmont Stakes ensured there won’t be a Triple Crown for at least another year.
What is it with our infatuation over the Triple Crown anyway?
Every year we talk about it, but horse racing hasn’t seen a Triple Crown winner since 1978 when Affirmed (ridden by Steve Cauthen) pulled off the feat a year after Seattle Slew (ridden by Jean Cruguet) went for the three-peat.
This was supposed to be the day the Triple Crown came galloping home by a landslide.
Instead of a runaway, Saturday's race turned into a throwaway once Big Brown pulled up down the stretch.
But I digress ... Let's talk about an actual sport.
Major League Baseball has been in a nice little Triple Crown dry spell of its own the past 40 years.
Carl Yastrzemski last won the Triple Crown in 1967 for the Red Sox when Yaz hit .326 with 44 homers and 121 RBI.
And like Affirmed, Yaz was preceded a year earlier by Frank Robinson, who won the Triple Crown with Baltimore after hitting .316 with 49 homers and 122 RBI.
The National League hasn’t had a Triple Crown winner since good ol’ Joe Medwick (St. Louis) way back in 1937.
In fact, the only NL Triple Crown winner with a big name is Roger Hornsby, who won it in 1922 and 1925 for St. Louis.
The AL’s Triple Crown list, however, is littered with Hall of Famers. Ty Cobb won the Triple Crown in 1909 despite hitting only nine homers. Jimmie Foxx (1933), Lou Gehrig (1934), Ted Williams (1942, ’47) and Mickey Mantle (1956) also pulled off the trifecta.
The West Coast, however, is still looking for its first Triple Crown winner, so you’re not alone there Big Brown.

T-Shirt of the Week: Go to Hell Baseball

The Free Barry Campaign has already begun. ... One of Barry Bonds' long lost fans shows his support of the slugger Friday at the federal courthouse in San Francisco, where Bonds renewed his claims of innocence in pleading not guilty to 15 federal charges of lying to a grand jury about his performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds, who I was worried had gone missing there for a minute, goes to court in March ... possibly for a chance to play the next contestant on BG's "Name That Criminal."
AP Photo/Marcio Jose

Wait 'Til Next Year

About 8 or 10 years ago Baseball Tonight ran an ad featuring a Cubs Bobblehead with a voiceover intoning over and over again, “This is our year…we’re going all the way this time…this year for sure…watch out World Series, here we come…we sure do look good this year...” and the whole time the bobblehead’s beard kept getting longer and longer until eventually the head fell off entirely and rolled out of the camera’s view.

As a Dodger fan that commercial terrified me then and it still scares the hell out of me now. It’s been 20 years since the Dodgers have tasted the fruits of victory and if the current season is any indication, it’ll be at least 21 before we find ourselves deep in the post season again. What did Chicagoans think in 1928 when it had been two decades since The North Siders had captured the Fall Classic? Did they have any idea they were in for another eight decades of disappointment? To think that the Cubs' 100 seasons of futility (even though they look damn good so far this year) started innocently enough before snowballing into something of truly historic proportions means it can happen to your team too.

It can happen because draft picks don’t pan out. It can happen because the wrong free agents are signed. It can happen because bad trades are made. It can happen when runners are left on base. It can happen because of injuries. It can happen because of superior competition. It can happen because of fate.

Don't think I'm going to stop watching, there's still plenty of reasons to pay attention --Billingsley's emergence, Kershaw's debut, Russ Mart--but in all likelihood it's another case of wait 'til next year.

WEST	W	L	PCT	GB	HOME	ROAD	STRK	L10
Arizona	32	28	.533	-	21-12	11-16	Lost 3	2-8
LA Dodgers	28	32	.467	4	16-14	12-18	Lost 3	2-8
San Francisco	25	35	.417	7	13-19	12-16	Lost 2	5-5
San Diego	25	37	.403	8	15-17	10-20	Won 2	6-4
Colorado	22	38	.367	10	12-14	10-24	Won 2	2-8

How do you have a job ... MLB marketing staff

This week’s contestant on “How do you have a job?” is the MLB marketing staff, which has a brilliant campaign it’s still trying to pitch — even after an injury to the "Big Papi" behind it.
The campaign coincides with the All-Star Game in New York and puts one lucky loser at home plate to tell David Ortiz where to hit a homer prior to the Home Run Derby. Apparently that lucky loser would win a a Chevy Tahoe if it’s hit there.
This just in, ain’t nobody winning that Tahoe if Ortiz is hitting.
Dude’s out indefinitely with a partially torn tendon in his left wrist.
Say it with me y’all. Hey MLB marketing staff, how do you have a job?

Dodgers vs. Mets Recap

One win, one heart-wrenching loss, and one more run-of-the-mill-we-got-our-asses-kicked-loss, in that order. I snapped this picture of Russ Mart getting blow down at right when I took a quick cross-country flight so I could watch Johan pitch yesterday. My camera is pretty tight obviously.

WEST	W	L	GB		STRK	L10
Arizona	32	25	-		W 2	4-6
LA Dodgers	27	29	4.5		L 2	2-8
San Francisco	24	33	8		W 1	6-4
San Diego	23	35	9.5		L 1	6-4
Colorado	20	37