Mendoza: "I Was Robbed!"

It's official: Andruw Jones has set the batting average bar to staggering new depths. How else can anyone explain the inclusion of Jason Varitek and his .219 BA to the All Star Game? Was Pierzynski too hard to spell? I realize he might cause rage wherever he roams, but AJ knows how to hit a round ball with a round bat.

I'm not the only one befuddled by this oversight. ESPN's Keith Law is also wondering how...

Jason Varitek (was chosen) over various multicellular organisms capable of wearing a catcher's mitt.

Is it more of an insult to the All-Star Game to put someone playing as horribly as Varitek is on the AL roster, or to Varitek himself by drawing even more presumably unwanted attention to his hitting woes?

Varitek has been so bad at the plate this season that he's below replacement level for catchers -- that theoretical player who any team could grab from Triple-A to fill that roster spot. And it's not as if Varitek is a perennial All-Star who fans would expect to see in the game; he hasn't made the squad at all since 2005 (and hasn't deserved to), and only appeared in one other All-Star Game before that, in 2003. (....Besides Pierzynski) the players could also have chosen Ivan Rodriguez, who is having a good enough year in a weak crop of AL catchers, has made 14 All-Star teams and is one of the most recognizable names in the game.

Game 88 Thread: July 6 @ Giants, 1p

Eric Stults (2-1, 2.21) vs. Matt Cain (5-6, 4.13).

COMMENTS: Today is "PG&E Solar Day" at AT&T Park. The Giants are giving out CFL light bulbs to their first 20,000 fans. For safety's sake, I hope they're giving out coupons for light bulbs, not actual light bulbs. Because—no offense, Giants faithful—a stadium full of projectile-wielding fans + unpopular opposing team = hijinks. Just ask Dodger fans!

Anyhoo, the Dodgers' July luck ran out yesterday after the bullpen couldn't protect a 2-1 lead. No first place for you! At least not for another day. Although Cain is a potential future Giants ace, for some reason he's 0-3 with a 4.88 ERA over six lifetime starts against the Dodgers. Which means he'll probably throw a no-hitter today.

Probable Dodger starter Stults came back to earth his last start, giving up four runs over 5 1/3 innings to Houston. A win today would give the Dodgers the series against the Giants and perhaps first place. A loss would prove the Giants aren't the NL West doormats we thought they would be. So what's it going to be, Dodgers? First place or doormats?

Game 87 Thread: July 5 @ Giants, 6p

Chan Ho Park (4-2, 2.45) vs. Barry Zito (3-12, 5.99).

COMMENTS: Yesterday's win over the Giants was unusual for the Dodgers in some ways: They weren't wearing Dodger blue caps (due to MLB's stars-and-striped-logos-on-navy-caps policy), they came from behind, and Derek Lowe actually got some run support.

The Dodgers have won four straight, making them undefeated in July—a small thing but thine own, especially in light of Rafael Furcal's potentially season-ending (and Dodger-career-ending?) surgery. Andruw Jones did not impress in his return but Nomar Garciaparra did, going 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs.

In fact, the Dodgers hit seven doubles yesterday, and today they've got a decent chance for another offensive outburst against the Giants' struggling curveballer. Zito's struggles this season have been well chronicled, but he should at least be happy to be starting at home. Oh wait, he's 0-8 at AT&T Park. Never mind, Barry.

Brad Penny isn't ready to return to the Dodgers' rotation, so Park gets another spot start. Before Park's last start I was down on his chances, and he promptly shut out the Angels for six innings en route to an unexpected Dodgers victory. To which I say: eh. (Get it?)

0.5

Zero point five. Half a game. We're talking first-week-of-the-season closeness. But there are so many questions! Will Joe Torre finally decide on a fixed lineup? Will Nomar Garciaparra stay healthy? Will Andruw Jones show up? Will Ned Colletti make a trade? Will the NL West continue to be the laughingstock of baseball? Stay tuned!

Colletti in Hot Seat, Ng in Catbird Seat?

"Can Kim Ng break the gender barrier?" by Tim Brown at Yahoo! Sports

photo by US Presswire

Welcome Back, Andruw!

Andruw Jones (so far): 0-for-4, 4 K's

UPDATE:

Andruw's final line: 0-for-5, 4 K's, 5 LOB.

Ominous Rumbling or Empty Threat?

From Diamond:

Dodgers open to trading the "kids"

Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti will be looking for a shortstop among other things before the July 31 non-waiver trading deadline, and the team is willing to adjust its philosophy of keeping their young players off-limits.

"We're more open-minded to who we may have to move," Colletti said.

Asked if he were referring to the young players, Colletti said, "They're not really young kids anymore."

Colletti's comments echoed what owner Frank McCourt told me earlier in the week when asked about the possibility of trading some of the kids. He said the ones they will hold onto are "the ones who are prepared to put in the work, listen to coaches and get better every day." The kids who they would be willing to part with are "the ones that can't do those things."

"They're not really young kids anymore"? That was fast. Just a little while ago they had to kick down doors just to play in the majors.

And the Player-Announcer Divide Grows Wider

First it was Milton Bradley wanting to "introduce himself" to a Rangers announcer. Now the Mets' Jose Reyes is getting himself some of that announcer-confronting action. From the New York Post:

ST. LOUIS - Jose Reyes and Keith Hernandez had to be separated on the Mets New York Mets ' charter plane Sunday night after a tense confrontation over Hernandez's critical comments about the All-Star shortstop.

A team source described the situation aboard the plane as "very heated." One player told The Post that he thought Reyes and the popular former Met - now an analyst for the club's SNY TV network - were close to exchanging punches until others stepped in.

Nomar, Andruw In; Sweeney, Repko Out

From Diamond:

The Dodgers have placed pinch-hitting specialist Mark Sweeney on the disabled list with a strained right hamstring. Jason Repko has been optioned. Rafael Furcal has been transferred to the 60-day disabled list.

Game 86 Thread: July 4 @ Giants, 1p

Derek Lowe (5-8, 3.88) vs. Sandy Koufax Jonathan Sanchez (8-4, 3.79).

COMMENTS: Oops, it's Jonathan Sanchez, not Sandy Koufax, that Derek Lowe will be facing in today's Giants-Dodgers series opener. But you can understand how I made that mistake, as throughout his career Sanchez has basically been Koufax's statistical dopplegänger:

Statistic	Sandy Koufax	Jonathan Sanchez
No-Hitters, career	4	4
Opp BA, career	0.205	0.196
Highest K/9, season	10.54 ('62)	10.71 ('02)
Most Strikeouts, game	18	16

Of course, in Koufax's case we're talking about major league career, whereas with Sanchez we're referring to his college career (at Ohio Dominican University - Go Panthers!). And thankfully, like most of us, Sanchez wasn't quite the same person in college that he is today in his professional career.

In anycase, the Dodgers go into this holiday game with an undefeated month and a 3-game winning streak on the line. Hopefully at the end of the game we'll be celebrating not only the 4th of July, but also the 4th win of July.

Happy Independence Day!

Post-Game 84 Thread: Dodgers Still Undefeated in July!

Today's win against the Astros secured the series win, and keeps the Dodgers undefeated this month! The last time the Dodgers won three games in a row, not involving a hapless Cincinnati Reds team, it was two months ago (May 1-3, vs. FLA/COL).

This sudden outburst of runs has us almost giddy, or maybe it's the holiday giving us rare doses of sunshine. Might our bats finally be declaring their independence from the shackles of binary tyranny? Could we be on the verge of an NL West revolution? Will we launch our own fireworks over the Bay in San Francisco this weekend? (At least we get to see 3-12 Barry Zito on Saturday!)

And a quick shout-out of thanks to Karina, for filling in for us and posting a comment in today's Game Thread early on with the announced lineup for the game. SoSG is a bit short-staffed this holiday weekend, so we appreciate everyone pitching in. See y'all tomorrow afternoon!

Game 85 Thread: July 3 @ Astros, 11a

Chad Billingsley (7-7, 3.38) vs. Brandon Backe (5-8, 5.12).

COMMENTS: The Dodgers remain undefeated in July and a win today would give them a series win over the Houston Astros. Today's early game means morning baseball, allowing the Dodgers to fly to San Francisco for the weekend series with the third-place Giants. And by Thursday afternoon, we'll either be talking about how Jeff Kent's extra-inning HR Tuesday, coupled with Hiroki Kuroda's masterfully efficient performance last night, is giving the Dodgers new hope for the second half of the season...or, we'll be lamenting yet another sad offensive showing, likely capped by a pop-up to the pitcher in a Mark Sweeney pinch hit situation with the winning run on third. As I write this, I realize, I've gotta start drinking as soon as I get up Thursday morning...bring on the hard stuff (that goes for you too, Chad!).

1.5

The Dodgers haven't been this close to first place since the second week of the season. But Furcal is toast. But also...the Diamondbacks are finally under .500. Can the Dodgers hold it together? The NL West race may ultimately be disappointing, but at least it won't be boring.

Furcal to Go Under Knife. Congrats, D'backs

From Diamond:

Furcal to undergo surgery, miss eight weeks

Shortstop and leadoff hitter Rafael Furcal will undergo back surgery tomorrow and miss about another eight weeks. The microdiscectomy operation will involve removing a part of a bulging disk in his lower left back in order to reliever pressure. "It's a blow, but it's reality," Manager Joe Torre said. "We anticipate this will solve everything." Nomar Garciaparra is expected to be activated from the DL by the end of the week to play shortstop, but Torre conceded he won't be able to go everyday. Class AA Jacksonville shortstop Ivan DeJesus Jr. is also being considered.

Rays Sweep Red Sox; Longoria Is a Stud

RAYS 7, RED SOX 6

With apologies to Erin at Beantown West, how can you not love the league-best Rays, with their $44 million payroll and young hotshot Evan Longoria? I hope they win the American League this year. What about you?

Which team do you want to be the AL champ this year?
	Rays
	Red Sox
	Yankees
	White Sox
	Twins
	Tigers
	Angels
	A's
	Rangers
Free polls from Pollhost.com

photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images

Suddenly, Kershaw Doesn't Seem So Bad

Over in New York Town, six-year minor league veteran Warner "Wandering" Madrigal had a most auspicious major league debut in the Rangers/Yankees game.

0.1 IP

5 H

6 R

6 ER

162.0 ERA

He was replaced by the kid from Rookie of the Year, who struck out the rest of the side (after the kid lost his special powers!)

Apparently, Wikipedia is now covering 100 percent accurate statistics in real time. Or knows the future. Either way, you can read all about it here.

Best Wishes, Ken Howell

From Diamond:

Dodgers coach Howell has toe amputated

Dodgers bullpen coach Ken Howell had a part of his third toe on his right foot amputated at USC Medical Center on Tuesday due to a foot infection. Howell is expected to be discharged from the hospital by Friday.

Dodgers Option Clayton Kershaw

From Diamond:

The Dodgers have optioned 20-year-old rookie left-hander Clayton Kershaw to Class AA Jacksonville the day after he made his 17th professional start of the season without getting a win. Kershaw found out about 10 minutes ago and was packing his things. "It's disappointing, but it's a business," he said. "I'm going to Jacksonville to keep pitching like I'm supposed to. I didn't expect it. Right now, I'm just disappointed." Mark Sweeney saw Kershaw with media gathered around his locker and told Kershaw, "Keep going, buddy."

So that's what Sweeney is good for, moral support! Seriously, it's a sure bet Kershaw will back this season. Even though wins are overrated, it will be nice if he can go to the minors and get this particular monkey off his back. We'll keep a seat warm for you, Clayton!

That's D, as in Disabled List

Steve Henson of Yahoo! Sports has the midterm MLB grades, and the you can't spell Dodgers without a big fat "D" grade:

Grade: D-plus

Los Angeles Dodgers: The vaunted young talent is developing as expected, but the veterans acquired for obscene sums of money to complement the kids have been huge disappointments. So Joe Torre is left with an anemic offense and an inconsistent rotation. Two years ago the Dodgers were in a similar plight, then inexplicably went on a July tear and made the playoffs. So anything is possible, especially in the forgiving NL West.

The Giants also get a D-plus grade, but luckily for us, the Diamondbacks only get a C. Aim for the mediocre!

That's Some Fine Handiwork There

photo from the Baseball Hall of Fame