Chad Billingsley (9-4, 3.14) vs. Braden Looper (7-4, 4.78).
COMMENTS: Ah, the Brewers' Miller Park: home of friendly fans and Secret Stadium Sauce. Although the Dodger Dog will always be first in our hearts (and stomachs), a Milwaukee Brat slathered in the good stuff can also bring one to baseball nirvana. Highly recommended for the next time you're in the greater Milwaukee area.
Gastronomical delights aside, this is Billingsley's last chance to become a ten-game winner before the All-Star break. He's had some hard luck lately and he may not be the National League starter — that honor belongs to Tim Lincecum — but Billingsley's trip to St. Louis is well deserved.
Looper has had a strange career arc, relieving for the first nine years of his career (including closing for the Marlins and Mets) until the Cardinals turned him into a starter in 2007. As a result, he has started against the Dodgers only once, in 2007, when he got the win.
top photo from Flickr user katherine of chicago
332 comments:
1 – 200 of 332 Newer› Newest»in other news, jayson werthless is replacing beltran in the ASG. i'm furious right now.
hopefully Bills goes nuts on milwaukee tonight. you too kemp!
I've been looking forward to this series. The Brewers are probably my second favorite team since my dad's side of the family is from the Milwaukee area.
I don't have any loyalty issues or anything. I just find the Brew Crew generally likable.
Fair enough, Josh S. It's nice to face a team that we don't outright loathe every once in a while, isn't it?
Ryan Braun is awesome. He's fromt he valley. granada hills to be exact. home of yours truly!
I used to take up residence in GH as well.
Ryan Church for Jeff Francouer. "The Last Straw" continues.
"Ryan Church for Jeff Francouer."
I heard the trade was rescinded after Church missed Turner Field.
(rimshot)
I agree with Mr. Shippe. Milwaukee is a fine team and, from what I hear, a nice city. All my in-laws are from there. And when I say, "from there," I mean it. None of them live there anymore.
Also, did anyone else get the offer from MLB-TV of 10 days of free MLB-TV for voting in the last chance? I signed up and can watch games now even though it starts tomorrow.
Sweet.
Was just watching former Dodger, Edwin Jackson, taking on the Injuns. I kind of like this MLB-TV thingy.
Say, think we could deal to get Jackson back? Nah, probably too expensive.
I got it too. That's a pretty sweet reward.
I think I'm in love with MLB.tv
It's...beautiful
So the ten days of free MLB TV falls when there's three days of (essentially) no baseball? Or is it ten days from when you sign up?
I'm curious because I didn't get the offer. I did get an offer of Gameday Premium for $5 for the rest of the season, but I'll never end up using it.
I had MLB.tv in Puerto Rico, but the internet connection sucked so bad everywhere down there that it was hardly worth it. It's pretty cool, but since I'm at home, I'll just stick with my Extra Innings package.
From Dodger Thoughts...
Rafael Furcal, SS
Andre Ethier, RF
Manny Ramirez, LF
Casey Blake, 3B
James Loney, 1B
Russell Martin, C
Orlando Hudson, 2B
Matt Kemp, CF
Chad Billingsley, P
It runs from the 11th (tomorrow) to the 21st, though rbnlaw is right, you can use it right now.
mlb.tv is very handy for someone who lives outside of the LA area and does not have DirecTV.
A one-game sample size is hardly anything to go by, but I think Joe may have found the definitive lineup. He should run with this order for the foreseeable future.
(Cue the "Kemp batting 8th" complaints.)
Yeah, MLB.tv is great as long as you're not in PR. When I'm in Idaho in two weeks, for example, I will use it religiously.
Also, FYI, MLB Extra Innings is not exclusive to DirecTV.
Has anyone ever noticed problems with KCAL going in and out of HD? The pre-game looks fine right now, but in recent games the broadcast has seemed to shift back and forth.
I'm not local tonight, but I don't have MLB tv. Gameday it is.
Raffy just got under it.
ANDRE
But Andre did not!
He did not get under it.
that's a nice start!
Both outs went all the way to the wall. Looper was lucky.
I thought I heard some jeers of "steroids" from the crowd while Manny was up. After all, it's not like a Brewer would use a banned substance (cough, Mike Cameron, cough).
That's all for me. I'm outta here.
i have been to county stadium and miller park and liked them both, but i will say that stadium sauce tasted like mustard to me
I'm craving a hot dog because of this game thread.
Related to the game, it's nice they are back to first inning scoring.
'Dre Day!
karina,
agreed
and agreed
crud - don't walk the bums, Bills
Did you know Braun has a line of shirts that look a lot like Ed Hardy's?
Oh Chad. Come on.
cmon man, dont be scared of these guys
left that one up a little
stay tough on Cameron here
Great.
god i hate Mike Cameron. he is such a bum, but he always seems to get hits at the wrong time.
Catalanotto, they guy who was cut to make room for Andruw Jones in Texas
Way too many three-ball counts for the first inning, Chad.
gotta clean it up, Bills
The Mets must have really hated Ryan Church. They traded him for Jeff Francoeur. Omar Minaya's quote: "We were able to get a righthanded hitter."
keep taking pitches, guys - the walks will come
The Dodgers are just hitting fly-outs.
Kemp seemed to listen, so he grounded out.
Maybe bills just likes the number 9
Way to go, King James! new game, people!
We are gonna need to start getting guys on. Solo shots aren't gonna cut it tonight. Unless everyone hits one.
J. Martin, now you worry me. You were 0-3 and ended with a pop up to first on a full count.
damnation
He is saving his good pitches for the ASG.
and that clears the pitcher too.
gotta be better than that Bills
Three HRs in four innings, game is close so they can win it.
nice, Matty
we gotta adjust to all these sinkers and splitters
karina, your boy Bronson Arroyo is pitching a gem against the Mets tonight
Fred's Brim: i'm actually watching that game on TV. He's not my boy, he's just very handsome :)
I've had a crush on a Reds player for years, but it's not him.
hehe Brandon Philips?
Nah, I bet she's going old school and crushing on Joe Morgan. :)
Thanks, Dre for the lead off single.
Manny!!!
OK lets pile on the runs now
Shit. I missed it when I flipped the channel. Oh well.
Manny!
Wrong, Fred's Brim, keep guessing!
Erin: that was he funniest thing i heard all week!
MANNY! Dodgers 4- Brewers 3
haha Erin, do it again! they are showing something cool on channel 4 right now...
Well, so far the only Venezuelan I see on their roster is Ramon Hernandez. Are you sticking with your countryman?
Crap, I totally forgot Andre was on base, too! I just thought we had it tied.
Having Manny on the team sure is nice.
It sure doesn't suck, fanerman. :)
Hey! Russell Martin! I flipped back just in time to see it clear the fence.
Russ with #2!!
The Red Sox managed to sneak one run across the plate in the bottom of the eighth of a pitcher's duel, and they just won it, so I am a happy camper.
karina, it's gotta be Aaron Harang - he's dreamy...
J. Martin HR! your last at bat is forgotten!
way to go, son!
Erin, what was on Channel 4? that was just a trick to get you to change channels :)
You think Francoeur is happy about being traded? He grew up in or near Atlanta and has always played for the Braves.
Yeah, I figured you were lying, FB. I flipped to 729 instead to see the end of the Sox game, but it had the same effect anyway.
no way - the Braves have a better shot than the Mets at making the playoffs these days.
i dont understand that trade at all, except that Minaya and Manuel just dont like Church
hehe for all I know, the Dodger game is on channel 4
jeez Chad, tighten it up, will ya?
Yes, Erin. It's Ramon Hernandez and this crush has lasted for years, since he was Rookie of the Year in venezuelan winter baseball, he was very young, like 19 or 20 years old, i was a teenager, around 14.
Here, he only plays first base and once, a ball almost hit me because i stopped paying attention to the game and was looking at him. He dances with his neck between innings, so cute!
Now i feel like a silly teenager (i'm blushing)
oh i forgot it was the 6th inning
turn it around, Chad
wooooooOOOOOOOOooooo Karina and Ramon, sitting in a tree, K I S S I N G!
Yeah, he gets traded away from his hometown team to a team that is just flailing about at the moment. Not a good day in the Francoeur family.
And yeah, that trade really just says that these teams don't like these guys and want someone else to deal with them.
He's already at 101 pitches.
It's all right, Karina. We all have our crushes.
Watching our rotation this week makes me think we do need to go out and get an ace.
Chad needs to get his crap together right now.
Cameron, you bastard, you'd already had your RBI tonight. No more!
Wow. Billingsley really could have benefitted from getting that call from the ump.
Rancho Ardiendo with nobody out. Trouble. Let's get a ground ball here.
And apparently Billingsley and Kershaw are numbers one and two in most walks allowed in the N.L.
SHIT. Chad has nothing.
Mota coming in with the bases loaded and nobody out. I really don't like this.
i'm only playing around Karina - i dont mean to offend. i wont do it any more
Mota? this is not beneficial for our collective blood pressure.
I'm not offended, Fred's Brim, i know you are just teasing me (and make me blush)
100.
agreed, Erin - he's not the best with inherited runners to begin with
he's gotta bet going for Ks and ground balls
Eric Collins making the argument for bringing in Broxton right now, since the game is on the line. I can't say I entirely disagree, though it does mean that we would need someone for the 9th if the game is still close.
did the Brewers fans boo Mota the way the Mets fans did?
Well the game is tied. Now we have to stop it here. DO NOT let them take the lead.
Sorry Chad, you made your bed...
I didn't hear any booing. They were probably too excited about the situation.
I hope he doesn't pitch thos bad in the ASG.
EXCELLENT.
Very nice, Mota. I'm sorry I doubted you.
good job, G-Mo
Nic, Charlie Manuel will probably leave him on the bench and pitch Joe Blanton instead
nice, Matty!
now don't get picked off
Sorry, Mota...but my Gameday almost makes me very mad:
[IMG]http://i28.tinypic.com/25iw3o0.png[/IMG]
I hate it when Gameday does that, Karina.
dammit Raffy - that was worthless
Come on, Andre. Don't leave a man on third.
At least he moved Bison to the third.
Dre's not so good vs the lefties these days
Damn it.
I refuse the idea Dodgers lose tonight, not after 4 home runs, including two courtesy of King James and Martin.
I didn't want a close game tonight. Looks like the dog won't be going on a long walk, since I'm not getting out of here before it's dark.
Epale all, just getting caught up on the comments.
Epale, Orel.
Karina, I'm with you. We're winning this.
Wow, we scored all our runs on HRs???
We need Shawn Green to come in and hit four home runs!
Good on Wade.
Good inning, Wade.
Let's go, offense. We got Ramirez, Blake and Loney in the eighth. Let's do this.
great inning Cory!
howdy, Orel
Back in a sec. Taking the dog for a quick walk. Switching to radio.
take the walk, Manny!
Come on, guys. We just need a run.
Middle of their order coming up in the bottom of the eighth. Bottom of our order coming up in the top of the ninth.
Epale, Orel!
big spot for young Brent!
i like the bottom of our order!
Loretta at first? Did i miss a double switch?
I like the bottom of our order, too.
I didn't hear them mention Loretta at first.
oh jeez - i forgot for a second that Trevor Hoffman is a Brewer
The huge wad of chew in Gamel's mouth seriously grosses me out.
As does the lack of a second "T" in his name.
Now we have a real problem. Why can't Chad Billingsley ever hold on to leads?
and we'll get to see Mr Hoffman
This one goes on bills.
I really, really hate losing. We need to do something in the ninth.
Bills may have got someone on the team traded with this poor performance.
i dont know, Erin. it seems like he overthrows at times, and he also nibbles too much. i dont think he has enough confidence in his stuff right now and is scared to challenge guys. I wish he would attack more, but maybe he would get battered around if he did
Come on, Troncoso. They can not add on here.
would Belli have stared this inning if he was available?
This one's on the pitching staff.
Good lord. How about some outs?
By the way, Rick Monday said that Brent Leach has been "maybe under the radar gun" since spring training.
the bottom of this order is killing us
We need a ground ball. Turn the double play, get some runners on in the ninth, and win this game.
Orel, any idea what that means?
Okay, step one accomplished.
Pitcher's best friend!
Now, do we have anymore homeruns left?
What would be the best way for me to figure out the Dodgers' record in games in which they have a HR?
It means Rick Monday sometimes has trouble with the English language. He meant Leach has been flying under the radar, I assume.
well they got your request started right, Erin
Orel, that's a tough one.
Orel, do you have access to the Elias database?
We need a 1+1 game.
You got it, Erin.
FB, no.
Martin single!
Okay, baserunner. Good start.
When I was at the game in San Diego last week a dodger fan commented while Heath bell was walking out of the pen "man Hoffman got fucking fat!" all the dodger fans in the area had a good laugh.
That was close.
Ooh, just barely got Hudson at first.
Orel, I found a link for you. Hold on.
Needling them where it hurts, Nic.
I did not expect that.
Dodger game logs
Kemp can bunt!?!!?
Bison, you're the only one member of the former :baby blue" who hasn't homered. It could be sort of nice right now.
Holy moly, Kemp! Awesome!
That'll do. Thanks, Erin!
I'll take that, though.
Loretta, please don't blow this.
Should Kemp run?
TIE GAME!!!
Why is kemp bunting there, setting up the dp?
Torre looks like a genius with the double switch there.
I've always said that the difference between bravery and stupidity is the outcome. That's what happened with Kemp's bunt there.
Lyons just called Kemp the fastest player on the Dodgers.
Poor Pierre.
Shucks.
New game, again...
Damn it Furcal. Thanks for killing the momentum.
All right, let's hold 'em, boys.
Damn. Alright let's get it to extras!!
nice work, guys - let get 'em in extras
but goddamn double plays
Giants are up 4-0 in the third.
Nice underhand by Hudson!
Orel, I just quickly counted and came up with a 29-13 record when we hit a home run. Is that what you got?
O-Dog!
i like the underhand flip!
What the hell is up with the Giants.
Hudson couldn't get that one. And he's a bit shaken up by it.
nice pic by Loretta!
ok one more, guys!
Damn that was almost a DP ball.
"Orel, I just quickly counted and came up with a 29-13 record when we hit a home run. Is that what you got?"
I hadn't even started counting! Thanks for doing my homework, Erin!
Actually, that pretty much scuttles my theory. I had a suspicion that somehow the rest of the offense relaxed after someone hit a home run.
Kendall is a slow runner, which helps.
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