Chad Billingsley (5-0, 2.21) vs. Barry Zito (0-2, 3.99).
COMMENTS: Did you get a chance to take a break from Mannymania (the sad kind, not the happy kind)? Good, because it's time to start refocusing on the team. Last night was a bummer, but the bullpen was overdue for a hiccup (okay, a pukefest) after such a smooth stretch.
If there were ever a time for Billingsley to cement his status as the Dodgers' ace and stopper, tonight would be it. Chad the Brave represents stability and consistency—everything these past two days haven't been. Seven strong innings would indeed be a soul-soother.
Zito continues to improve with each start, so he may match Billingsley pitch for pitch. But our bats are primed, fresh off a nine-run night. Russell Martin (2-for-3 with an RBI) and maybe Casey Blake (a home run short of the cycle) are heating up. Now we just need Rafael Furcal (0-for-5 with 3 K's) to get off the ice.
Times are tough for Dodger fans, and you know Giants fans would just love to crap in the punch bowl this weekend. It's already a pity the team's 50th-anniversary celebration of the 1959 World Champion Dodgers was overshadowed last night. Here's hoping the 2009 Dodgers' new winning streak gets the attention it deserves.
284 comments:
1 – 200 of 284 Newer› Newest»Lakers and Dodgers both better damn well win. I'm running low on puke bags.
MLASF, you little ray of sunshine you.
All I want for my birfday is a W against the hated ones.
I thought the term was "piss in the punchbowl."
I guess Giants fans are more comfortable with #2.
Does anyone see the irony of the possibility of Giant fans throwing syringes on the field?
Also, our favorite ex Dodger, current tub of lard Brad Penny is now proud property of Carl Crawford. Pretty sure Carl would have more SBs tonight if he would stop hitting extra base hits.
i have faith in chad, wait did i just say that?
Furcal, SS
Hudson, 2B
Ethier, RF
Kemp, CF
Martin, C
Loretta, 1B
Blake, 3B
Billingsley, P
Pierre, LF
What up homies?
The youngin's take control of Dodger baseball today.
OK, so this may be a half baked idea, but umm here we go:
From wikipedia:
The town of Pierreville has gained notoriety in recent years owing to the increasingly widespread industry of illicit cannabis culture.
The ubiquity of marijuana culture has earned Pierreville the nicknames of "Cocotteville" (Budtown) and "la Petite Colombie" (Little Colombia).
So the Dodgers should switch the all you can eat pavillion to left field and allow pot smoking. And every fan gets a hemp Pierreville t shirt. Marketing problem solved, right?
Problem solved!
there goes the no no
Two pitches, two outs. That's efficient.
quick
Good defense.
Now it's time to make Barry Zito pay for his big mouth.
karina i couldnt agree more
O-dogg with the leadoff double!
Damn you, Randy Winn.
My mistake, it was Furcal's leadoff double.
Who said tonight's games was going to be a pitchers' duel?
I am a fan of the Aaron Roward Slump.
im a fan of that inning
Thank goodness for Chad. Another easy inning.
Hey All. I don't if anyone is really in the mood, but I did write this. I hope it makes everyone smile a little.
"No one man stops baseball," Vin reminded us last night.
And the Dodgers are more than one player, no matter his might.
How did you feel when you heard the news yesterday?
Shocked? Mad? Disappointed? Sad?
I know for sure one thing is true.
We all love the Dodgers, through and through.
Here are some things I love about the boys in blue.
I love the hustle of Russell.
I love that Brox is tough as rocks.
I love how Furcal catches and throws a baseball.
I love how the defense of James saves us games.
I love that Orlando runs as quick as a tornado.
I love to observe Kershaw's curve.
I love that Mientkiewicz sits in the dugout after his shoulder popped out.
I don't even mind that A.E. won't take a picture with me.
I love the Dodgers now as much as I did on Wednesday.
Nothing could ever take those feelings away.
And Hey Billingsley is pitching tonight.
See, everything will be alright.
inspiring natalie
Russell singles. He doesn't do anything half-assed.
Too bad Loretta just hit into a DP.
It should have been you, Uribe.
Love it, Natalie.
Wonderful, Natalie! Just what we need to get us back in the groove.
What rhymes with "Kemp"?
i was hoping something bad happened to zito on that bunt
Glad you guys enjoyed it. :) I love that Kemp ain't no wimp.
Bills with 31 pitches through three.
Natalie, are you glad you went to the game last night?
Lakers 50, Rockets 48 at the half.
is xavier paul left handed or right handed?
Yeah, I'm glad. I think if I didn't have tickets, I wouldn't have wanted to go to a game anytime soon. It was good to go and sort of deal with all my feelings without avoiding it. And like I mentioned in my little recap last night, after the first inning, it mostly felt like a normal game. Not that Manny wasn't on my mind or the other fans' minds.
JP takes one for the team. Vin calls his trying to steal a base "the battle within the war."
XP bats L, throws R.
i would like to see him get a whole game in
One silver lining of the whole Manny debacle is that people have been moved to express themselves at sites like this. It's been pretty gratifying.
Close play.
I would think Torre would make that happen at some point. Kid can't learn by pinch-hitting twice a week.
lets go dre
great tag
So Hudson takes the walk.
And Slappy is out at third.
"never the first or the last out can't be on the third base". Old baseball axiom.
Oh, another good thing about going to the game. You knew exactly how everyone else was feeling without having to ask. It was kinda another thing everyone had in common, makes you feel a little closer to the people sitting next to you.
Blast out at third. :(
Great tag by Uribe.
hey everybody. How we doing?
Nic! A little better every game, I think.
hello
hey PC
That's good. I guess it's true that time heals all wounds.
Nice pick by Loretta.
It's been a wonderful game, so far.
Aflac: Barry Zito won 23 games in 200. Who are the only 3 lefties to win more games in a season since 1980?
Not necessarily heals, Nic...softens?
Thanks, Loretta! Wow!
I'm taking it Loney has crap numbers against Zito.
"2002"
Any wound is gonna leave a scar. You usually forget about those after time.
That hbp didn't help.
What happened, Chad? Rancho Ardiendo for the Giants.
and he's a lefty too. I hate when i can't see the young Dodger players on TV.
watching the game tonight, but not Vinny :(
Nic, loved your piece in the other thread. Moving.
Come on Chad!
Awesome!
NICE CHADLEY
Bills just wanted to wake the crowd up.
Bills got rid of the mess with class.
Thanks Orel. I'm not much of a writer at all. It kinda just poured out of me.
Good to see Russell's bat heating up.
Lakers up 62-54
I was writing it and then I saw sax's post and almost wasn't gonna post it because it paled in comparison.
Don't worry about that, Nic. I write a whole blog even though virtually everything I write pales in comparison to what you see on this site.
Thanks Erin.
Nic, I think we all appreciate what you wrote b/c sometimes it's hard for us to express how we are feeling and it's great when we see someone else express it so well for us.
I actually haven't read what you wrote. Which thread is it in?
Im surprised anybody read it. It was super long.
Last nights post game I think.
Russell had him by a mile.
Just read it, Nic. Nice job.
Thanks again Erin.
Contest: How many Sons have seen Star Trek already? (For the record, I have not)
Chad got a hit!
I guess 3.
I'd guess three Sons have seen it.
It's killing me that it doesn't open until next week down here. I have to settle for seeing Wolverine tomorrow, even though I don't really want to.
Jp with the five hole single.
San Diego lost and Colorado is losing late.
You can do it, Andre!
Rancho Ardiendo for Ethier.
Rancho Ardiendo, Ethier up, hope is in the air.
Damn it.
Chad in trouble
Seems to have lost the strike zone against Sandoval.
Nice catch. But you gave up the sac.
Vin has to keep repeating that the giants are 12-0 when they score first this year.
Okay, now let's get on the board.
Nice leg single by the bison.
Oh brother. Well, let's get Kemp in.
Torre really doesn't trust the bullpen. Or his pinch hitters, I guess.
I think you're all watching the Laker game, so...
100.
I'm still here, Erin.
Cool, Natalie. Well, let's hope they can get out of this inning unscathed.
Here comes the double play.
Darn. Well, let's get the last out.
Ugh.
Both of their runs have scored on sac flies.
Hey, you two fine women come here often? Mind if I pull up a chair?
Seems like maybe Billingsley was left in for one batter too many. 113 pitches now.
Hey Sax, as long as you're buying, you can sit wherever you'd like.
Join the party. Maybe you can get us out of this inning.
Come on, Chad. Rancho ardiendo...Pierre barely makes that catch for the final out.
How'd they score a third run?
Hey, you did it, Sax.
infield single.
Okay, it's time to rate the GBA performance!
Pablo Sandoval single scored the third run.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I hate GBA being sung at baseball games. It's going to really annoy me when I finally get to use my season ticket plan this year.
home is not pronounced "hoy-yome".
Totally inaudible in the beginning, as well.
I give it, a 4.
She did a pretty good job. Cute girl.
A 4! Maybe I'm too generous or you're too harsh.
Alright, let's go JP.
Erin, I'm late in posting my recap from blogger night, but during the night, it was asked "why GBA?" and the general answer was that people liked it during the playoffs.
The only other thing they could say was that the talent agents like it since their talent (who also sings the national anthem before the game) gets tv coverage. But are we doing this tradition for the Dodger fans? Or the talent agents?
They also added that we were undefeated (at the time) when singing it.
You could taste the displeasure in the room. I think most Dodger bloggers / true fans hate it.
Walks are good.
Double plays are bad.
Dammit raffy, GIDP now?
Not a good inning.
Sax, I'm glad I'm not the only one. I think GBA made sense for New York after 9/11, at least for a while. But with other stadiums adopting it, it's felt like forced patriotism, and I was glad the Dodgers had avoided it.
Let's not give up hope, yet. Two more innings to go.
I can stay awake long enough to see if Ethier/Kemp/Martin do anything in the 8th, but that's it.
And if Belisario allows anything now, I won't bother staying even that long.
Just read Nic's post. Wow. Nice job, Nic. I hadn't even read your comment when I started at the keyboard last night, beer in hand and trying to get my emotions to hit the keyboard at almost erin-typeracer-like speed. What I thought would be a quick post went on for a long time...
thanks for your post, Nic. It is a crazy time, but it helps a lot to commiserate with friends.
erin, let me put another dime in the jukebox, baby. You're good for another inning. Don't leave yet.
this feels like the beginnings of a difficult week or so. i hope it doesnt take us too long to get our confidence back
belated Aflac answer: Carlton, Viola, R. Johnson
Dammit raffy, what is happening to you? You're just crumbling before my eyes here
What happened there? Gameday just says a single to shortstop.
If we drop this series to the giants--and with the way this is going, + linecum on sunday, it's not looking good--the team will be assailed with "the Dodgers are reeling" headlines nationwide on Monday.
Most of these headlines will be written in Boston. But they will all be picked up by espn.com anyway.
Eugene with an I-O!
Erin, it was a cheap hit over the box, admittedly a tough play, but Raffy couldn't get his glove on it cleanly. Not an error, but still a play that you'd expect Raffy to make two years ago.
Furcal charged but couldn't field a dribbler cleanly.
I have definitely been avoiding any national media over the past two days. I don't need them telling me anything about MY Dodgers.
If I had to pick one player who would be killing us early in the season, it wouldn't haven't been Furcal.
Good inning for Belisario.
Raffy will get hot at some point. there'll be a couple of weeks where he hits .400
at least the lakers won!
Vin's quoting Journey. Ugh.
i don't want us to need Don't Stop Believing
At least one run this inning would help.
We're stuck with that song, sadly.
Argh, I leave for the night and this is what I find? If it weren't for the Lakers heads would be rolling.
Merkin!
Here comes Merkin to cheer us up!
pitching change after ethier's ground out.
Erin, how are you holding up?
I'm still awake, but Ethier's groundout made me just a little bit more tired. I've got a busy day of lying on the beach and seeing Wolverine tomorrow. A girl needs her beauty sleep.
they used to do the Curly Shuffle at Shea, until the Stooges Estate made them pay for it. I wish we played that
Be sure to pace yourself, Erin.
Espn just did a piece about LA Going into a tailspin. At least the career stat comparisons between manny and JP made me laugh a little.
Statement pitch sets up the K of Kemp.
GAHH!!
Wow, they're already selling commemorative items from Wednesday's game: here's a commemorative frame.
Don't panic. It's the NL West.
Wait, Wolverine is a girl?
Wow, they really did take some liberties in this movie. I've gotta see this.
I'm not looking forward to playing the Phillies.
damn this guy really gets it up there
Russ walks. Time to get something going, anything.
Hey, it's the Beach Boy!
I'm sure we could go 10-40 and still get the lead back by the end of the season.
That doesnt mean I want to.
Don't worry, Sax. I'll fill you in. From what I've read, no one should have to sit through this movie anyway. But Star Trek is still a week away down here.
Let's go Marky Mark.
Russell should have gone.
Yikes, we've gotta tell Robert Daeley: Trolleys collide in Boston; 49 people hurt
BTW, I haven't seen Star Trek. But it's on the list.
The at-fault driver was texting at the time of the collision.
Loretta walks. Two aboard for the Bearded One.
Two quick walks. Come on, they're handing this to us.
Bochy is pissed.
Oh crap, it's Brad Wilson.
The reviews for Star Trek are incredible.
Two walks in a row. Will Blake decide now is the perfect time to swing at a first pitch?
No hair off your back to take out the Merkin, Bochy.
Bruce is removing his merkin.
Ewwwwww
Texting while driving. I can't admit I haven't done this myself. But I know it's bad.
oh c'mon Casey, try something
Make him throw more than three pitches, Casey.
Yesh... two strikes already.
All three were probably balls, according to Gameday.
Come on Casey...
Of the first three he swung at, I mean.
well it seems Blake is making him work a little more.
goddam mlb.tv took me to commercial!
Casey just keeps fouling
Casey wants to know the count
There's a story to be written depending on the outcome of this epic Blake at bat.
whew, foul tip.
Casey hanging in.
I had no clue beards improve contact.
10 pitches
This at bat is insane. I feel like Alex Cora is up there again...
Full count, runners are on the move
they do against Merkins
the real Alex Cora!
Please Casey, let me write the story I want to write.
200
12 pitches?
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