Hiroki Kuroda (0-0, -.--) vs. Clifton Phifer Lee (0-0, -.--).
The Dodgers and 'Steaks take their competition for the ultimate prize to the cold, wet confines of Citizens Bank Park (while that other L.A. team is gladly trading freezing rain for sunshine after going down 2-0 to the Yankees).
Plan A for the Dodgers: Beat Cliff Lee, who was 14-13 with a 3.22 ERA during the regular season. Hmmm, Plan A might not be so easy. Plan B: Get into Philly's bullpen. After all, it worked in Game 2 (and almost in Game 1). But how many pitches will it take to knock out Lee?
Quite a few, as it turns out. In 24 of Lee's 34 starts this season, he threw over 100 pitches. Three times he threw 122 pitches, and once he threw 124. So will the Dodgers swing early or try to go deep into counts? Will they have a Plan C?
Kuroda hasn't pitched in a real game in nearly three weeks, but Joe Torre made a wise choice for the Dodgers' toughest start of the season. Kuroda combines the experience of a veteran with the toughness of, well, someone who took a nasty line drive to the head and came back stronger than before. It doesn't hurt that Kuroda was actually more effective on the road this season, going 6-3 in away games and 2-4 at Dodger Stadium.
So grab that poncho and melt that Cheez Whiz — we're going to be in Philadelphia for a few days.
GO DODGERS!
cheesesteak photo from Roadfood.com; other photos by Rob Carr/AP
435 comments:
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Cliff Lee has his first Phillies meltdown today. You heard it here first.
Today's lineup
Furcal, SS
Belliard, 2B
Ethier, RF
Manny, LF
Kemp, CF
Loney, 1B
Blake, 3B
Martin, C
Kuroda, P
Lineup courtesy of Ken Gurnick, per his MLBlog
Beat me by a fraction, MLASF! Now I don't have anything else to live for the rest of the afternoon.
I'm hungry, the family didn't bring me any food, and I have 3 hours to kill.
I'm going out.
Then my work here is done.
@Sax
I don't see a Lee meltdown happening bit I sure wan't it to happen!
why the hell did i add a ' to want?......hmmmmmmmm
@Sax i choose to believe in your prediction.
Where's Nostry? Neeebs?
I hope you guys are happy. I felt like I was missing out, so I watched a few episodes of Glee this morning.
Effing.
Great.
Lee had a few bad outings for the phils this year so it's possible. Kemp has to wake the hell up though he usually kills lefties.
Raiders beat Eagles.
Just Pt. 1 of California sticking it to Philadelphia today.
I'd swap Martin for Belli in the two spot.
Belli's a bit too much of a free swinger for that all important spot as a table setter.
As for Cliff Lee...
Cliff Lee Shclif Lee. Fehhhh.
I predict Dodger toughness and resiliency.
plan D is the sucker actually rains out, and we dont have to deal with cliff lee for the duration of the game
Holla!
Let's take the lead in this series and not look back. Dodgers eat aces for breakfast.
Mr. C: "I hope you guys are happy. I felt like I was missing out, so I watched a few episodes of Glee this morning.
Effing.
Great."
One of us! One of us!
Baseball Tonight guys (Olney, Vina, Showalter), asked to predict their players of the game: Lee, Utley, Feliz. Wonder who they think will win?
CBP is an octagon!
They said we could not beat Lincecum. They said we could not beat Carpenter. They say we cannot beat Lee.
They said a man could not eat 68 hot dogs in ten minutes.
I like the way Neeebs and Mr LASF talk.
Go Dodgers!
I could eat 50 eggs.
They say Manny hits .429 against Lee, including a ton of extra base hits.
@dusty
could and should are entirely different galaxies
Here we go.
KABC is thankfully relatively in sync with TBS.
Dammit!
Crap
Good contact, but we need to be seeing more pitches.
A lefty is pitching to a lefty in a lefty-favored park. Who the hell gets the edge?
Orel, my father-in-law thanks you for the sync tip. He's been listening to Vin since he moved here from Peru in 1962, and couldn't bear the burden of listening to these TBS idiots again tonight.
Lee: 13 pitches in the first.
Lee: 13 pitches in the first.
Always glad to help, DB!
AZ has a Peoria?
Hey LADs fans...
Tight strike zone again?
Hey SFDF!
One down.
'sup sfdf
How was John's? Louie still bartend there?
Kuroda 0-Victorino 1
effing Victorino
Well hiro is getting hit pretty hard so far.
I don't know if it's DirecTV or what, but Vin is always two-three seconds ahead of TBS for me. But it's vastly better than listening to the idiots on television, so I'm just going to deal with it.
Hey Orel...
Pick off attempt to first and hit Victorino in the face!
TBS thru Charter Cable and AM 790 are almost exactly in sync, Erin. Rare, but appreciated.
fack
Davey lopes how do you sleep at night?
Oh fuck
Shit, Victorino steals second.
Hi Mr. C...don't know Louie...
but...
I ate at 'different' sounding place today...
'Squat and Gobble!'...
Yep...in the Castro...)
Davey Lopes was classless for not joining The Infield for that opening pitch the other night. He should have been able to put uniform aside in favor of team heritage and memories, and for the fans. He lost me on that one.
jaysus
Utley singles. Can't believe they held up Victorino.
Come on, Kuroda. Don't blow any momentum we had coming in here.
Freaking sweet spot pitches!...
This is about how I expected things to go.
DP, DP, DP, DP.
@DB: I get it. It was a good gesture for the Phillies and their fans.
This is already tense
erin@5:26...I heard plenty of that at Squat and gobble...lol
No control. Who is next in the pen?
Well. That was a short game.
I've had enough of Howard.
Fuck...Time to change pitchers...NOW!!!
That's game
throw strikes and you dont get in meatball situations
@sfdf
"squat and gobble"
that's...unique.
My company tends to put me up at that hotel just a few doors down from John's when I'm in town, so I've spent many a hazy evening.
Can padilla pitch again?
this is useless.
Torre has Phil Jackson syndrome...leave 'em in until they 'solve' their own problems...or...until things get too far out of hand...
SEE?...
Now it really is game
What did they see in that simulated game that convinced them they could put hiro in this game ad waste a roster spot?
Does Hiroki think he's pitching against the Pirates?
How many ex-Dodgers involved in the scoring so far? Just two?
So we go tomorrow down 1-2, with Wolf pitching against schmuck #2. I think we can tie it up.
Haha bills warming up, that's comforting.
Awesome, listening the Aguilas game on the radio and they are losing 5-0, bottom of the 6th.
Dodgers also losing 5-0....but this game is not lost yet.
3-0 to Ibanez.
actually, if you're going to have a laugher, there's worse things you could do than have bills go out there and get some work.
I don't see me lasting long in this game.
Cliff Lee is getting cold on the Phillies' bench. All part of the master plan.
This game is a real pisser so far...
Mr. C...I work @ Townsend and 3rd...but I have to be in FIDI much of the time...I know John's fairly well too...
S & G is a crepe place...semi-chain around town...good enough for the $$...I guess they didn't used to have tables, ergo the name...
Thats only two outs!?
Ks Ibanez. Two out.
@ Orel-
I get it, but I don't respect it. It was a poor gesture to his old fans. In baseball, more than a lot of other sports, people rise above the minutia to show greater respect of the history and heritage of the game, and Lopes didn't take that opportunity. No wrong answer, but he lost some respect in my estimation. Opposite of Gibson last year on turn back the clock: 80s night when he was wearing a D-bags uni but stepped out and did a coupla trademarked fist pulls for the crowd after the jumbotron had shown the sequence where hit jacked one out in 88. He showed that there was more to the game than the immediacy of the game that day, and I respected him for it.
how do these games get out of control like this? it's like it's on fast forward, like a Rick Pitino Kentucky team
Escapes. You can bet Torre will start him next inning.
So Lidge to come in in the bottom of the frame. I guess this is last licks. Three outs left.
Werth's HR was the killer in that inning. 2-0 we could actually deal with.
Karina-
It's 4-0, not 5-0. SO all is not lost!
Well look at it this way
if somehow we come back it will be a huge hit to their confidence and a boost to ours.
And if we don't we still can get it back to LA with a win tomorrow.
Good argument, DB. I think Vin said Lopes told the team any other time of year, I'm up for it. But not during the playoffs.
Might as well throw hiro back out. Why waste bills, wolf is pitching tomorrow.
The optimistic side of me says that coming back from a 4-0 first inning deficit would be pretty crushing.
I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen, but it keeps into the game.
lets get a couple back
Manny first-pitch swinging in yesterday's game, pops up with the bases loaded. Tonight, looks at a 90-mph fastball right down the pipe.
We know manny sucks, Philly.
DB do you know the Lees from Benton, AR?
IF Kuroda stabilizes, which is possible, we can chip away.
Full count to Manny.
Manny singles! IT'S ON
here we go
FB-
Don't know the Lees but knew Lee was from there and that he was a Razorback. I want not to like the guy but I can't.
Praying for a cliff lee blister.
well, ok.
Let's get something on the board, anyway.
A base hit? What be this demonry?
Two runs here and its a ballgame
Power Hitter: Matt Kemp
road loney activate.
Where have all the Bison gone?
Insult to injury: Loney GIDP.
Well...
That should do it.
well, we'll find out if we're toast or not in this half inning.
How many are second guessing Torre's decision to start Kuroda?
Here comes babe ruiz.
Yeah, we're toast.
Ruiz doubles. So much for stability.
@Dusto - At TBLA, plenty
PULL THIS SCHMUCK!
Burnt toast.
god i am so tired of the phillies, especially Ruiz. he has to come back to normal at some point
its time to check Carlos Ruiz for steroids. (and James Loney for Hemeroids)
@dusto
Meh. I'd have similar questions if it were Garland or Bills, frankly.
Hindsight is 20/20.
Kuroda can't even throw it to 1B.
SCOTT ELBERT???? Warming up. WTF?
I don't see why you don't pull Kuroda, with Ruiz at third.
I wonder what's going on in the NFL right now...
Yeah, I'd much prefer Elbert to Billingsley. WTF?
I said earlier today (and ever since the rotation was announced) that Billingsley should have started. I wanted Kuroda to prove me wrong about that.
time for a Rollins homerun
gots to go, hiro.
Elbert's warmup pitches are wild as hell
Elberts in the pen bouncing balls off the backstop.
Why not start warming up Elbert in the top of the second?
I'm out for awhile...I can't watch this shite anymore...
ok, I'm done.
First pounding of the postseason.
Hiro, we love you and you've had a rough year, but you's gots ta go.
FUUUUUUUCK.
"The bell is not the only thing with a severe crack in it tonight." —Vin
Is this a nightmare?
unreal
why can't we do that? Jimmy Rollins is terrible
Karina with prescient powers. (Sp)
Torre is really going to have to explain why Kuroda even started the second. He has NOTHING. But the decision to leave him in with Ruiz on third is really terrible.
Watch more "Glee," Mr. C!
Oh, and Joe, get the fuck over whatever shit you have with Bills.
Falcons vs bears!?! Crap, guess I'm stuck with this until basketball start.
I'm with Mr. C. I'm out.
I think that made me hate victorino even more.
@Orel
Now that you mention it...
I'm about to commit hari kari after Hiro's performance.
I had to shut off Vin, it was so bad.
MLASF, I have done the same
Elbert thinks Russ is underground.
Scott from Joplin is not entertaining.
everybody's staying away from Hiro like he's cursed or just ripped a big fart
I can't stand how pathetic this team looks tonight.
And I've never been more angry with Joe Torre.
When I said I wanted the dodgers to go deeper into the playoffs I didn't mean lose in 6
where's James McDonald to come in and pitch 4 no pressure innings?
this is embarrassing
Bills up.
This is all a bunch of handedness shit. Fuck that. Go out and pitch well and get people out and forget who throws with which fucking hand.
Elbert BB, WP. We just need someone to eat innings at this point.
How many strikes will Elbert throw?
Oh, look! Billingsley is warming up. What a great idea!
Philly comes out with a huge lead in game one, and we attempt to claw our way back the whole game. Then we only win game two because of an Utley error. And now they're crushing us in game three. It's not wonder the national media gives no respect to the Dodgers.
Switch off vin and put on yakkity sax, it makes the game tolerable.
Did they see what we saw in the bullpen. Fing ridiculous.
was Jeff Weaver our good luck charm?
Scott Elbert certainly isn't
No innings eaters on the roster (Weaver, Garland, Mota).
Cliff Lee was caught napping in the dugout
Maybe Lee will be tight in the next inning because of the long wait. You know, when we're down 9-0.
Upcoming: Ryan Howard grand slam.
Erin, I agree. I rarely if ever question Papa Joe, but this is just on him. Why run Hiro back out in 2nd? If you do, why not have someone else warming up? If you have someone else warming up, why not Bills over Elbert? And why not have Weaver on the roster at all? Oh, and why start a pitcher who has had major injuries all year and has not thrown a competitive pitch in forfucking ever?
What's the worst playoffs loss ever?
6-0 Phils
"No innings eaters on the roster (Weaver, Garland, Mota)."
Exactly, Josh S.
Will the Dodgers actually believe they can come back in this game?
Joe, you are so on my list. This is just unbelievable. Now Billingsley comes in? What a fucking waste.
I hate Joe Torre!
The Redemption of Chad begins...now!
I think we'll witness Bills' redemption as the legitimate ace on the team.
Nic-
Remember that spanking D'bags gave to Yankmes back in the early 2000s in the playoffs?
At least we are technically wasting a cliff lee start, an injured moyer could of won this game with this kind of run support.
I don't know how Joe can justify any of this. If anything, like you said Dusty, if he brings Kuroda out in the second, he needs to have someone warming.
KempKershaw, Bills is in! This is your time, man.
Joe won't care what Billingsley does here. Kuroda will probably still make his next start, assuming we get to it.
Billingsly to pitch no-hit ball until 2 outs in the 7th
Now Billingsley has to bat for himself, since his spot is up third in the top of the third.
So does bills meltdown in the 6th still or does it get defered to the 7th?
Also, Chad could feasibly homer in CBP.
A strike! Wow.
@Nic "At least we are technically wasting a cliff lee start, an injured moyer could of won this game with this kind of run support."
I like this thinking.
Torre's bobblehead is going into the corner, facing the corner.
Chad escapes. Of course, this just means we're going to lose 6-5.
I know it's just one game, but it's the way we are losing. It's embarrassing and not good for confidence. And I don't care if players say they don't let these things affect them. I don't believe them.
Nice start, Chad.
Chad, buddy! How ya been?
What? Me talk shit about you? Never!
Bills Ks!
I knew bills should have started this game, I just was waiting till this moment to tell everyone.
I swear....
Boy this NFL thing really is something.
Can we believe?
Nic, I never said it in the blogosphere, but I did say it to anyone who would listen. I would have been happy to have been proven wrong by Kuroda, though. I wanted him to do well, I just didn't see why Billingsley wouldn't start a damn game.
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