Monday, August 10, 2009

Game 113 Thread: August 10 @ Giants, 7p

"Why should we panic? We've got a great team."
—Manny Ramirez, on some other club he played for

Hiroki Kuroda (4-5, 4.44) vs. Jonathan Sanchez (5-9, 4.49).

COMMENTS: Dodger fans and Giants fans are more frustrated than a eunuch in a whorehouse, the Dodgers having lost three of four to the Braves and the Giants having dropped two of three to the Reds. So something's got to give, be it Kuroda's late-season attempt to find his mid-season form or Sanchez trying to prove he's more Mr. No-Hitter than Mr. 5-9 Record.

This series won't reorder the standings, but it should have a psychological effect on both teams, setting the table for their final six regular-season meetings in September. And it'll certainly have an effect on the fans, some of whom are already in nail-biting mode (see our sidebar poll).

Incidentally, tonight marks the on-field reunion of the Beard and the Mullethawk. But what seemed like a cause célèbre in May seems like small potatoes in August. Both teams have too much at stake to start a Milagro Beanball War, so don't expect any retaliatory theatrics.

Manny photo by Jill Weisleder/Dodgers

400 comments:

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Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

White Sox got Rios.

Orel said...

Surprise! Not.

Paul said...

is that the most expensive waiver pickup ever?

Anonymous said...

Arroyo and Harang cleared waivers. Hmmm....

Wesley Vento said...

This just in: Brian Wilson caught stroking Tim Lincecum's hair in the Giants locker room. See photo.

Orel said...

From Doug Mienkiewicz's Twitter: "trying to cram a 7 month rehab into 3 I'm finding is damn near genetically impossible"

NicJ said...

Dodgers! Ready your breakfast, and eat hearty. For tonight we dine in hell!

Orel said...

I will hug him and pet him and squeeze him and call him Fred!

Orel said...

Furcal, SS
Martin, C
Ethier, RF
Manny, LF
Blake, 3B
Hudson, 2B
Kemp, CF
Loretta, 1B
Kuroda, P

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

When you bench Loney, isn't it a good idea to replace him with someone who can do better?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Like what Shakespeare said, "a rose by any other name". Torre's basically changing the name next to the 0-for-5 line.

Orel said...

Martin batting second pushes Manny to cleanup. Interesting.

NicJ said...

Who else is there to play first base?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I'd say Schmidt, but he's on the DL.

Orel said...

Too bad Abreu can't play first.

Josh S. said...

Whoa! A lineup shakeup!

Hudson ahead of Kemp, though? Oh well, we can't have everything.

Orel said...

Oh wait, he got sent down, didn't he?

Josh S. said...

You could go totally nutso and have Ausmus catch, Martin at third, and Blake at first, except Martin and Blake both errored last time they tried that.

Josh S. said...

Or, less crazy, Castro at third and Blake at first.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I like how we're coming up with crazy ways to make sure both Loney and Loretta can't play.

Wesley Vento said...

Ethier batting 3rd against a lefty...

Whose got the over/under on 2 Ks?

I'll take the over.

rbnlaw said...

Dudes (and ladies):
Walking through Market Square here in SF and who do we practically walk right over?

None other than the Beast Himself. By the time I realized who it was, it was too late to shout, "Hey, Juan, get in the line-up and kill the Giants!"
I was also slow on the camera phone. It was pretty cool.

He was carrying 2 shopping bags from some department store. And he's really small in person.

rbnlaw said...

Also, this just in: V. Mart catching tonight for the Sox.

Why didn't we try to get him again?

Orel said...

Rbn, you must be tall.

JuanLove said...

i like the shake-up
we need something to jumpstart us.

hopefully Manny visited Barry Bonds today to get some "juice". yesterday he looked good, hopefully this gets him back to normal

JuanLove said...

oh rbn. about my homie Juan. good stuff!

rbnlaw said...

@Orel and Juanlove:
1. I'm 6'3".
2. I stared at him for a good 10 seconds thinking, "I know that guy."
If I wasn't such a big dumbass, I would've got the picture. After all, he's no Ethier.

We're heading out to Zeke's Sports Bar, about 2 blocks from Phone Company Park. Big Giants' bar usually filled with Dodgers' fans up for the game. Should be fun.

I'll be taking pictures and sending them to the SoSg to share.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Rbnlaw, if you want to go someplace interesting, take a look at Lefty O'Douls. My dad raves about it, so when I was in the Bay Area a few years ago, I checked it out. It's a great breakfast place, and even for dinner if you can stand cigar-huffing drunks.

Kyle Baker said...

Hey, what's wrong with cigar-huffing drunks? I resemble that remark.

MR.F said...

Dusty always struck me as a remark-looking guy.

Josh S. said...

Bills scratched Wednesday.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Aw nuts.

Kyle Baker said...

re: Bills Scratched Wednesday:

*scrambles to change sidebar vote*

NicJ said...

I vote for jmac to get the start. That big park will eat up some mistakes he might make. He was nails for those two innings in relief the other night.

NicJ said...

Either way it's probably going to be ugly unless lincecum falls apart.

Ken said...

if we get swept, we should be worried.

Mike Sharperson Lives! said...

rbnlaw; always fun to pass by momo's and get heckled by the upper crust.

JuanLove said...

http://i44.tinypic.com/sy0d21.jpg

Mike Sharperson Lives! said...

SF local coverage... and still the Mini Sirloin Burger commercial. However, I must say I prefer the teriyaki-burger/bikini model ad.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Don't we all, MSL, don't we all.

NicJ said...

Russ looks pretty intense sitting there in the dugout.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I just realized why Torre sat Loney. It's because of the lefty-righty matchup (though it shall forever be a matchup I cannot endorse).

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Leadoff walk for Raffy.

Josh S. said...

Russ tries the previously successful "Hit it to Fred Lewis" strategy, to no avail this time.

Orel said...

Martin again with the hard-hit ball right at someone.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Is it just me, or are people cheering that Sanchez is throwing balls?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Maybe it's that there are Dodger fans near the boom mics, or that one pitch gave Ethier a buzz cut.

karina said...

@MR LASF: "Don't we all, MSL, don't we all."

Speak for yourself!

Orel said...

At least it doesn't appear Sanchez has his best stuff tonight.

Orel said...

Low strike to Ethier.

Orel said...

New avatar, Karina! Hope it's good luck!

karina said...

Loney should be getting extra time at the batting cage, he's been very short of his royal moniker.

NicJ said...

Andre swings at ball four

Orel said...

Uh-oh, HLACK might be on to something....

Josh S. said...

Oh, Andre...

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Ethier's the one who should sit on the bench against the lefty. He stinks at hitting south-paws.

Orel said...

TV radar says Sanchez's fastball is at 94 mph.

Josh S. said...

Ah, stale pregnant Manny jokes.

Orel said...

Why does Manny lay off those?

karina said...

@Orel: i meant to change the Dumbledore's avatar forever, because a) it wasn't working b) Mr. Customer found this very nice image. Problem was i always forgot to change it and as you know, i never change avatars in game threads.

NicJ said...

Man it is loud over there.

Orel said...

Full count!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

How is Sanchez at 18 pitches after two full counts and a walk?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Jeez, Manny, take the bat off your freaking shoulders.

Orel said...

My DirecTV just blacked out for Manny's K!

Josh S. said...

AAAHH!!! TV cut out!

Oh, Manny struck out. Lovely.

NicJ said...

Next time.

Orel said...

Manny's just lulling them into a false sense of security.

karina said...

Martin only took a couple of pitches

Orel said...

Glad it's not just me, Josh.

Josh S. said...

It was Prime Ticket. I don't have DirecTV.

Orel said...

Bad tequila commercial alert!

Orel said...

Kuroda would be well served to start with a 1-2-3 inning here.

Erin #2 said...

Then they must be feeling pretty secure....

Josh S. said...

Pablo and Eugenio look like the before and after picture in a diet pill ad.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I'm checking in on McCovey Chronicles. They have little respect for Martin's Gameday beard.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

And commenters use crude jokes like "Russell Fartin".

Erin #2 said...

TV Announcer "He's so hot that the ball rolled foul".......

I'm not understanding how hot that is......

Josh S. said...

"Crab-like stance"

NicJ said...

The stadium doesn't even have to turn on it's "make some noise" sign

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Old friend Xeifrank is a frequent guest there, apparently.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Damn Panda.

NicJ said...

Stupid doughval

NicJ said...

Please stop the two out madness

Erin #2 said...

Is it just me or is the TV only adding on that extra ten to twenty pounds on only the "Giants" players???

*Snicker*

Orel said...

Two-out madness early on.

Josh S. said...

2OM averted!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

That was crazy. But then again, those were two of their better hitters.

Erin #2 said...

Whoooosh......thank goodness thats over!!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Crap, this is gonna be tough.

Mike Sharperson Lives! said...

Giants NBC just did a mournful mini-story on Jason Schmidt.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Crap in a bucket.

Josh S. said...

Look at the batters boxes, the front corners are pointed together.

Josh S. said...

They need to swing away. Ump is clearly favoring Sanchito.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

This is so pathetic.

Orel said...

Sanchez at 35 pitches.

NicJ said...

Man this game is going to be ugly.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Remember when Furcal led off this game with a walk? Oh happy days.

mpearse89 said...

This strike zone is BS

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Yer outta there!

NicJ said...

Russ with the throw out!!

Orel said...

Delayed steal helps Martin get his first CS in a LONG time.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

WTF? TRAVIS FUCKING ISHIKAWA?!?!

NicJ said...

Fuck

Orel said...

Yes, Kuroda just gave up a HR to Travis Ishikawa.

Erin #2 said...

Damn damn double damn

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I was gonna say if Kuroda couldn't get Ishikawa out, he stinks today.

Orel said...

home Kuroda > road Kuroda.

Erin #2 said...

Well, at least they got the base runner out before the homer......

Orel said...

Great, the Rockies are winning.

Paul said...

I am watching on the MLB mix because they have me blacked out on the normal channel. Giant fans look annoying even when I can barely see them

NicJ said...

Maybe that homer woke hiro up.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Unfortunately runs are coming at a premium. Every run the opposition gets is like another nail in the coffin.

Orel said...

Kuroda at 39 pitches through two innings.

Orel said...

Make that 40 pitches.

Orel said...

What about the guy who dropped his beer? What about him?

Paul said...

You know who is a rally starter? That Loretta kid. Ummmm I can't type that without laughing and crying

Mike Sharperson Lives! said...

It's gonna be ok, people. This is Jonathan 'I needed to throw a no-hitter to keep from getting sent to Fresno' Sanchez out there.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Holy crap, Loretta just got a base-hit.

Orel said...

Loretta, of all people, breaks up the no-hitter!

NicJ said...

Loretta just equaled loneys hits for the week.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

With Loretta, we can now feel confident we are not as crappy as the Padres.

Paul said...

Come on raffy.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Does Sanchez have some kind of mental block when pitching to Raffy or something?

Orel said...

Nice baserunning by Loretta to take third. Of course, he'll be stranded there.

NicJ said...

Good baserunning by Loretta

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Sanchez has 9 wp's. That's gonna be the only way we can score here.

Paul said...

Wild pitch voodoo

Orel said...

SHOCK

LOB

Paul said...

I don't want to see freakin pandas!

Orel said...

Tulo hit for the cycle.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Clap, clap, clap-clap-clap, clap-clap, clap-clap, Tulo!

Orel said...

Why would they throw back a foul ball hit by their own team?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Oh Vin, I could listen to his stories about public defecation all day.

Orel said...

Take that, Brian Wilson!

NicJ said...

Never thought I'd hear vin say urinate

Orel said...

Still touching the bag when he caught it?

Mike Sharperson Lives! said...

Tell me whats better than a bad call going the Dodgers way in San Francisco. That made my night.

Orel said...

Yup.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Now all that stands in between Kuroda and a 1-2-3 inning is a panda.

Orel said...

Why does Vin say Panda but not Bison?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Boy, Pablo likes to pound for a lot of people.

Orel said...

Giants really like to drag their dead relatives onto the ballfield.

Orel said...

Aflac: Who are the three L.A. Dodger pitchers to throw a no-hitter against the Giants?

Orel said...

Andre doesn't strike out! That's progress.

NicJ said...

The female pa announcer reminds me of the olympics

Orel said...

Can't hold Manny down! Our SECOND SINGLE of the night! Look out!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Manny-single!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I'm sure Koufax threw one against the Hated Ones.

Orel said...

Beard walks. 1st & 2nd, one out.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

O-Dog homer right here. I called it.

Orel said...

Fan energy has finally gone down a bit.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I think it took a while for the fans to realize there wouldn't be a no-hitter.

Orel said...

Hell, it took me a while to figure that out.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Full O-Count

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Bases juiced for Kemp!

Orel said...

Wow, Sanchez has lost his control.

Paul said...

Ducks on the pond for the bison!

Orel said...

Now it's really quiet.

NicJ said...

Come on Mattie get us on the board!

Orel said...

C'mon, Bison!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

HOLY CRAP WE JUST SCORED RUNS!

Orel said...

BISON!

NicJ said...

FUCK YA!!!!!!!!

Orel said...

Wonderful. (Said without sarcasm, for once.)

Paul said...

Nice!!!! Virtual high fives!

Orel said...

Vin is so calm he could be announcing for the other team.

Orel said...

slap
slap
slap

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Sometimes I think he is.

But it sure as hell beats Bizzaro-Vin (that's my new name for Jon Miller).

Orel said...

Let's keep it up!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

I like running down McCovey Chronicles and seeing a long list of "Fucks".

Orel said...

Loretta saying James who?

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Well I sure as hell was wrong about Loretta. Either that or I inspired him to show me wrong. Either way I like it.

Orel said...

I'm guilty of that too, MLASF!

Erin #2 said...

Woot Woot Woot

NicJ said...

Get back loretta!!!

Paul said...

Lorettta!! A hitting machine!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

And Kuroda is working the bunts!

Orel said...

MLASF, I noticed you're writing for SCSH. Congrats!

Orel said...

Sanchez at 73 pitches.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Thanks Orel! I didn't want to say anything for fear of plugging.

NicJ said...

I feel like turning off the tv now and quitting while I'm ahead

Orel said...

Aflac: Koufax, Reuss, Gross

Orel said...

If only it were that easy, Nic.

Orel said...

If only it were that easy, Nic.

Orel said...

A few mentions are fine. Just no carpet-bombing.

Orel said...

Nice to see Kuroda settle down!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

If that's the case, then go to SoCalSportsHub.com, where I'll be writing about the Dodgers.

PLUG!

NicJ said...

Doesn't get any better than 1-2-3. Now let's get back to work on sanchez while he is still in.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Martin-single, followed by Ethier-fly out.

Mike Sharperson Lives! said...

Johnny Miller discussing 'what could have been' if the Giants had paid for Manny. I say they'd still suck.

Orel said...

Crank one, Manny!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Nice takeout by Martin.

Orel said...

But we'd be worse!

NicJ said...

Russ really knows how to break up a dp.

Paul said...

Sweep the leg Russ!!

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

Beard made all that moot. Though the affects on the lineup are yet to be seen.

Orel said...

So much for taking advantage.

Mr. LA Sports Czar said...

How can Kuroda NOT get Ishikawa out? And how am I so wrong about the 1B's today?

Paul said...

Do not like lead off walks. Double play time

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