Crawdaddy: An Appreciation

Crawdaddy is dead; long live Crawdaddy. Thanks to loyal SoSGer Johnny Blanchard for this in-depth take on Carl Crawford's meaning to the Dodgers:

Carl Crawford is gone, long live Carl Crawford. Here was something that happened some time ago. Per baseballreference.com:

August 25, 2012: [Carl Crawford] traded by the Boston Red Sox with Josh Beckett, Adrian Gonzalez, Nick Punto and cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers for players to be named later, Ivan De Jesus, James Loney and Allen Webster. The Los Angeles Dodgers sent Rubby De La Rosa (October 4, 2012) and Jerry Sands (October 4, 2012) to the Boston Red Sox to complete the trade.

This is part and parcel of our new era, Dodgers fans. This was basically the big move that the new ownership (AKA Magic!) gave us, as a sign of our commitment to winning. The sign that the Dodgers were going to be the behemoth that we were supposed to be all along. Look at that trade right there again. Even before opening up the stats pages, you already know that this trade has been an unqualified success. They swung for the fences — our Dodgers — and we crushed it.

The Dodgers from 1986 to 2006 stunk. Oh sure, we got the World Championship in '88, but let’s face it, that team sucked. Orel Hershiser and Kirk Gibson were it, with a bunch of crap otherwise. Past Kirk and O, our next biggest contributors per WAR were Tim Leary and Tim Belcher and John Shelby. Tim Leary had no track record; Belcher was a rookie; Shelby was acquired in a good trade to get rid of Niedenfuer, although there was really no indication Shelby would be a great player, and really he wasn’t in 1988. It’s really a joke to look back on how poorly the Dodgers were run back then. After the '70s and early '80s, the Dodgers were good but not great, and certainly not performing like the elite top 3 team they should’ve been. And then came the '90s, which were fine I guess, but I knew when we made the playoffs in the mid-'90s we were the inferior team to whomever we played. AND THEN we traded a Hall of Fame player ("Mike Piazza") that our galactically stupid fans booed before he left because he had the gall to ask for money commensurate with his talent. Then came the early 2000s and basically mediocrity until the wonderful McCourts showed up.

Frank McCourt tried to do what was right. This is true, amazingly enough. He didn’t know anything about baseball (other than the Red Sox were wicked awesome), so he went out, and you’ve gotta give it to the Bostonian jerk, he hired the smartest guy around, one Paul DePodesta. Now, despite your opinion, typical Dodger fan, Mr. DePodesta was our best upper management type since I would assume the '80s, judging on the stupidity of our moves during those years. You may hate math and calculators and spreadsheets and numbers, but those sorts of things are the things that typically entail what is called "a plan." So DePodesta put together a plan, wherein we signed good players that were actually worth the money and got rid of pieces of garbage that were overvalued and/or aging steroid freaks (see Encarnacion, Juan — the man who ranked in the top 10 in outs made in 2002 and 2003 and LoDuca, Paul who was 32 when we traded him and about to be a free agent after magically having a 25 home run season in 2001, when he turned 29, after hitting 35 in his entire professional career prior to that), and in return we got a great pitcher (see Penny, Brad) who was 26 years old. Those are the sorts of things someone does when he has a plan.

But, alas, Paul DePodesta was fired the next year, essentially because Bill Plaschke had it out for him, and Bill Plaschke had it out for him because he was a nerd. No sources are needed for this assertion because everyone is aware of this that follows the Dodgers and Plaschke wrote a column acknowledging it, for Pete's sake. So, the dumb fans booed away because they traded away Paul Lo Duca, a non-Hall of Fame catcher, and the Dodgers lost a smart general manager with a plan, back when those general managers were not as prevalent as now, 2005.

OK, fast forward, we had old Ned Colletti, and whatever, he was fine, but not exactly on the forefront of the sabermetric revolution. He played along with McCourt's desires to suck money out of the Dodgers and they did OK, mostly because of our great farm system of the 2000s. Blah, blah, blah, it wasn’t actually that bad and Manny Ramirez dropped into our laps, and they had a great late 2000s, being a lot closer to the World Series than most fans realize. In any case, they were starting to have a plan, which was to build a farm system, essentially because it was cheaper than acquiring old talent, thanks to Frank McCourt. Amazingly enough.

And then "Magic" bought the Dodgers in May 2012, and the Dodgers finally had someone with a plan. Does anyone out there realize this is the golden era? Do you people know we are in the good old days? Who cares if we have tons of money but the guys who run the team are idiots? We had idiots running our team from 1986 until 2006, give or take. And starting in 2012 until this moment, we have a plan. And the first big move was to use our financial power to get a great player (see Gonzalez, Adrian), along with useful, good Major League players (see Punto, Beckett, and Crawford) that helped our team.

Carl Crawford hit .278/.320/.400 for us from 2012-2016. He even stole 48 out of 61 bases, which is a good rate. I am unaware that he was a clubhouse cancer. He was not a great outfielder, but not horrible. He had a bad arm. Having a bad arm is the least important thing for a left fielder. (As a side note, as regards winning, having a great arm in the outfield, especially left field, is spectacularly overrated. This is one of those things that stupid fans think is important but it is really just a very obvious thing when a guy can’t throw well. Meanwhile, ask those stupid fans what exactly makes Carl Crawford a vastly superior player to Juan Pierre. I guarantee you those fans find it hilarious to say that Crawford has a noodle arm. So did Pierre. Pierre had less than half of Crawford’s career WAR in about the same number of years.) Carl Crawford hit .353/.421/.882 in the 2013 NLDS, which kinda helped us win that series.

So, I don’t know, maybe I'm fighting a straw man here, and everyone appreciated Carl Crawford’s contributions. I guess what I'm saying is that Y'ALL need to know that the Dodgers being "forced" to take Carl Crawford’s contract is exactly why it’s awesome to be a Dodgers fan right now.

Photoshop by @EephusBlue

Dodgers DFA Carl Crawford

Not letting a sunk cost of $35M get in the way of fielding a productive lineup, the Dodgers designated Carl Crawford for assignment on Sunday before the Braves game.

"It's one of those things where you look at the player, and Carl has had a great career, 14 years and had a lot of great moments," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. "I know he was proud to be a Dodger. He will be missed. What he brought to the club in terms of experience in postseason games, the impact he had on the young players and the veteran players, the experience he brought will be missed, certainly. But it's one of those things where father time I think catches up with everybody."

With the emergence of outfielder Trayce Thompson, Crawford had received little playing time of late, even as Yasiel Puig has been dealing with a hamstring injury. On Friday, the Dodgers reinstated outfielder Scott Van Slyke from the disabled list, while Howie Kendrick has spent significant time in left field this season.

Father time may catch up with everyone, but injuries kept Carl Crawford from being unable to outrun said father in the first place. Crawford played over 116 games in his first season with Los Angeles (2013), but it was downhill from there, with 105 games in 2014, 69 last year and only 30 this year. He had negative WAR the past two seasons.

Crawford was an all-star four seasons, all with Tampa Bay. By the time he got here, we were stuck with a Crawford that had a hamstring injury, sprained ankle, and torn oblique, among other ailments. $35M is a lot of money--maybe not so much for the Dodgers, but still--and with more fit guys able to suit up, it makes sense to start simplifying our outfield a bit.

Post-Game 21 Thread: Koehler Beats Kershaw, Inexplicably

The leaky faucet prevailed.

MARLINS 6, DODGERS 3

Clayton Kershaw was cruising through five scoreless innings. Tom Koehler was okay, but passed balls and errors had given the Dodgers two runs in the first, and Kershaw added to that with an RBI double in the fourth. This was just how you'd expect a Kershaw start to go.

The sixth inning...was not. Kershaw gave up five consecutive hits (Miguel Rojas double, Dee Gordon single, Martin Prado RBI single, Christian Yelich RBI single, and then a mammoth Giancarlo Stanton three-run HR) which threw this game to the shitter. Koehler, who had been pulled from the game for PH Rojas, got the victory. Kershaw was tagged with the loss. JP Howell let aboard a single which came around to score (partially because Yasiel Puig cavalierly played a fly out in right that I think he thought was the third out, allowing Yelich on second to advance to third, and later score on a bloop ball to shallow center).

This game was unwatchable in the second half, but I stuck with it because I wanted to hear Vin Scully's voice. But there were injustices all around in this game, including Carl Crawford's horrible routes in left field. It was like watching Adventures in Little League Play out there. Come on, Carl: if you're only going to play fifteen games a year, the least you can do is play well in the field. (Crawford did go 1-for-3 with a run scored.)

Post-Game 3 Thread: In Sweep, Maeda Impression

DODGERS 7, PADRES 0

The Dodgers are 3-0 and have scored 25 runs in 27 innings played. Plus they've allowed ZERO runs against, with scoreless efforts across 10 different pitchers (Yimi Garcia has had two appearances, in games 1 and 3).

And if that's not enough to absolutely astound one, starting pitcher Kenta Maeda hit a home run in today's winning effort, to momentarily lead the team in home runs (Yasiel Puig hit one as well, in the eighth inning, to tie Maeda for the team lead.

WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!

Okay, deep breaths. Yes, it's only the second time in MLB history that a team has started a season with three shutouts (1963 Cardinals--who ended up missing out on the NL pennant by six games to the Dodgers, who won the World Series over the Yankees). It's a Dodgers club record for scoreless innings to begin a season (obviously).

And Maeda: wow. He was all smiles when he returned to the dugout after his fourth-inning shot, and the Dodgers' silent treatment didn't last very long before erupting in joy. But Maeda's line: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 4 Ks and 0 BB, wasn't too shabby either.

Justin Turner and Joc Pederson each had two RBI; Puig, Maeda, and Carl Crawford each had one RBI. Puig is now batting .600 with a 1.992 OPS. A.J. Ellis went 0-for-4 to drop his average to .125 on the season, but he did get a contested tag in at the plate to get Cory Spangenberg on a grounder to first, thereby maintaining the scoreless streak.

But before we start going nuts here, let's remind ourselves it's the Padres we've just swept. Onward to San Francisco for three.

photo: Denis Poroy, Getty Images

Great Moments In Dodger History: April 5, 2016

Top 4, Dodgers @ Padres, LA 2-0 lead. With one out and Yasiel Puig on second, Carl Crawford faces a drawn-in infield.

image from flip flop flyin

Post-Game 2 Thread: Kazmir Model

Cashmere model.

DODGERS 3, PADRES 0

Scott Kazmir had a model Dodgers debut today, one-hitting the Padres through six innings, and the Dodgers jumped to another shutout victory in San Diego. The Dodgers' offense came from Yasiel Puig, who took advantage of a hopelessly lost Jon Jay in center field to leg out a 2-RBI triple in the fourth. Puig was knocked in by Carl Crawford who found a hole on the left with a drawn-in infield ("drawn-in infield" always seems pretty sketchy, if you ask me). But it was Kazmir who was most impressive; if we can fill the big shoes of Zack Greinke with a decent #2, that would be a nice pick-me-up.

Pedro Baez, Chris Hatcher, and Kenley Jansen each had a scoreless frame with two Ks; add those six Ks to Kazmir's five Ks, and the Dodgers have 11 Ks total on the day. (Joc Pederson, .250 on the season, also had 2Ks on his own, but that's another story).

The Dodgers are the only team in the majors to have not allowed a run this season.

Post-Game 132 Thread: Kershaw Koncludes Giant Sweep

Buster Posey, post-game (note how he has turned away from the 12-year-old asking for an autograph). Hat tip Cliff Beefpile!

DODGERS 2, GIANTS 1

It took 132 pitches and was definitely white-knuckled at the end there, but Clayton Kershaw struck out Marlon Byrd with two on in the bottom of the ninth to secure his 15th K, tied for his career high, as well as give the Dodgers the victory. With the win, the Giants were summarily swept in the three-game series, sending them to their fifth straight loss. The Giants now sit 6.5 games back in the NL West, as well as 6.5 games back in the wild card. I would never count these cockroaches out, but obviously we could not have asked for a better outcome in this series--particularly not after being no-hit by the Cubs on Sunday evening.

Like last night, the killer blow came from an unlikely hero with a solo HR, and this time it was off the bat of Chase Utley--his first as a a Dodger and only his sixth HR all year.

The Dodgers' other run came from Carl Crawford, who had an RBI double in the second inning which Angel Pagan misplayed, giving Crawford another base and making sure Justin Turner scored from first without a throw home. Pagan later had an RBI single, but still ended the game a loser.

We will see if Mattingly's extended usage of Greinke (last night) and Kershaw (tonight) leaves our pair of aces drained for the home stretch. However, the returns in this series were pretty solid. Now we make the long trip down to San Diego for four games.

Four Dodgers In "Top Jocks" List

The new “Top Jocks” list was published in Forbes magazine (I fell upon a copy of Forbes Asia, July 2015), and there are quite a few Dodgers (and former Dodgers!) populating baseball’s 27 representatives (in the top 100). Floyd Mayweather took the top role (and Manny Pacquiao was #2), but here’s where baseball lined up (total / salary / endorsements):

• 19 Jon Lester ($34.1 / $33.4 / $0.7)
• 30 Robinson Cano ($27.6 / $24.1 / $3.5)
• 34 Clayton Kershaw ($26.9 / $25.7 / $1.2)
• 38 Albert Pujols ($25.9 / $23.4 / $2.5)
• 40 Ryan Howard ($25.6 / $25.0 / $0.6)
• 42 Cliff Lee ($25.2 / $25.0 / $0.2)
• 43 Miguel Cabrera ($25.1 / $22.1 / $3.0)
• 48 Prince Fielder ($24.3 / $24.0 / $0.3)
• 50 Joe Mauer ($24.0 / $23.0 / $1.0)
• 51 CC Sabathia ($23.9 / $23.0 / $0.9)
• 53 Zack Greinke ($23.7 / $23.7 / $0.1)
• 56 Justin Verlander ($23.4 / $22.7 / $0.7)
• 58 Mark Teixeira ($23.0 / $22.5 / $0.5)
• 58 Masahiro Tanaka ($23.0 / $22.5 / $0.5)
• 60 Felix Hernandez ($22.9 / $22.7 / $0.2)
• 61 Cole Hamels ($22.7 / $22.5 / $0.2)
• 65 Matt Kemp ($22.2 / $21.0 / $1.2)
• 69 Adrian Gonzalez ($21.5 / $21.1 / $0.4)
• 70 Jacoby Ellsbury ($21.4 / $21.1 / $0.3)
• 75 Matt Cain ($20.8 / $20.4 / $0.4)
• 75 David Wright ($20.8 / $20.0 / $0.8)
• 77 Carl Crawford ($20.7 / $20.4 / $0.3)
• 78 Jayson Werth ($20.6 / $20.4 / $0.2)
• 79 Hanley Ramirez ($20.3 / $20.0 / $0.3)
• 85 Adam Wainwright ($19.8 / $19.7 / $0.2)
• 87 David Ortiz ($19.7 / $15.7 / $4.0)
• 97 Max Scherzer ($18.9 / $18.7 / $0.2)

Surprising how many Dodgers there are on the list, though I suppose I shoudn’t be surprised with the Dodgers’ much-ballyhooed $270M payroll. It also calls out in the sidebar that Zack Greinke’s earning 99.8% of his money from salary and only 0.2% from endorsements is the opposite of Usain Bolt’s, who earns 99.9% of his money from endorsements and appearances, rather than prize money.

Post-Game 16 Thread: Greinke Gets Us Back In W Column

Just another Greinke victory, ho hum

DODGERS 3, PADRES 0

Coming off a sweep in San Francisco, Zack Greinke took the hill in San Diego and shut the Padres down over seven strong innings. A second-inning single from Juan Uribe (his first of the year; we can't lose this guy from our team!) was enough to have the Dodgers coast to victory. But Carl Crawford added a solo HR in the seventh (hope Crawford can deliver for us this year!), and Joc Pederson added a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning (hope Pederson can realize his potential this year!).

The only concern for us Dodger fans is Yasiel Puig, HBP on the knee in the second inning, and then reaggravating his hamstring injury in the sixth (when he exited). Hold your breath! Division lead is at 0.5 games, as Colorado also won (and leapt into second place, a half-game ahead of San Diego).

photo: AP

Post-Game 7 Thread: Guerrero Plates Ethier in Extras

I had a 4-0 lead, and I didn't win?

DODGERS 6, MARINERS 5 (10)

The Mariners hit four home runs tonight off of Brandon McCarthy (who amazingly notched 10 more strikeouts and now leads the team with 19 total): two from Nelson Cruz, and one each from Kyle Seager and Dustin Ackley. McCarthy went 7.0 IP and gave up 5 ER as well, so his ERA sits at a healthy (as in, "Juan Uribe is looking awfully healthy tonight!") 6.75.

But the Dodgers still won, amazingly, stoking an impressive comeback led by Alex Guerrero. Guerrero sacrificed Adrian Gonzalez in the bottom of the fourth inning, paving the way for Joc Pederson to single home two more runs that inning. Yasiel Puig (3-for-5) then hit a solo HR in the fifth, followed by a Howie Kendrick RBI single (again scoring Gonzalez) later that inning.

And there it sat at 5-5, until the tenth inning, when Guerrero scored Andre Ethier (who entered the game in the top of the tenth on a double switch) for the winning run. Ethier led off the tenth with a double; Gonzalez was intentionally walked with one out, followed by an unintentional Kendrick walk. Carl Crawford struck out to set up Guerrero's two-out, walkoff single to center.

Yimi Garcia gets the win, the Dodgers finish off the game with 15 Ks total, and win by outhitting the Mariners 9-6. Mariners starter James Paxton now has a bit more time to fix the kerning on his uniform:

Post-Game 1 Thread: Rollins Trumps Kemp Homecoming

DODGERS 6, PADRES 3

Lots of moments of trepidation out there today, particularly after former Dodger Matt Kemp (who was greeted with a nice ovation from the Los Angeles crowd) doubled home a run in the first inning; new Dodger Jimmy Rollins hit a leadoff single and then advanced no further; and the Dodgers looked absolutely listless in their support of Clayton Kershaw (6.0 IP, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 9 Ks, 4.50 ERA).

Then came the fourth inning, when Adrian Gonzalez homered; Howie Kendrick tripled; and Carl Crawford doubled to make it 2-1 Dodgers. The Dodgers crowd came alive and things looked promising...until Kemp again struck a double to score two in the top of the fifth (3-2, SD). Kemp ended up 2-for-4 with 3 RBI and man it is just bizarre seeing him clad in non-Dodger Blue.

And then it was weird: everything went to the Guggenheim group's off-season narrative. In the top of the sixth, rookie Joc Pederson (1-for-3 with a walk and a K) made a great grab in center field which reminded us what outfield defense is supposed to look like. And right after that, Kemp misplayed a Kendrick double which scored A-Gon and tied the game at 3 in the bottom of the seventh.

The bottom of the eighth was the dagger. Pederson walked, and though A.J. Ellis weakly popped out his sac bunt attempt, PH Andre Ethier reached on a missed catch error by Padres pitcher Shawn Kelley. Rollins then came up and worked a 0-2 count back to full before homering to right on the eighth pitch of the AB. 6-3 Dodgers; Rollins ends up 2-for-4 with 3 RBI, 1 BB and 1 K. Chris Hatcher closed out the ninth (with a leadoff HBP, saved by a UJTD GIDP), and the Dodgers take the Opening Day victory. Happy times, all (except for Juan Uribe, 0-for-4, and Yasiel Puig / Ellis, both 0-for-3)!

photo collage taken by SoSG Alex Cora

Let's Soak This Division Title In

Major League Baseball Standings, as of June 8, 2014:

The Giants were 43-21. The Dodgers were in second place, 33-31, 10 games back.

From there, the Dodgers went 58-37, or .610 ball. Along the way, we hadn't had a win steak of more than 6 games all year (though we hadn't lost more than three in a row (while the Giants lost as many as six in a row, twice). Meanwhile, the Giants went 42-52, or .447 ball.

And that's why we won the West.

I'm not sure if this was a monumental collapse by the Giants, or more a strong run by the Dodgers. Or both.

------

The Cardinals' loss yesterday guarantees the Dodgers will have home-field advantage for the NLDS, according to the LAT:

The victory, coupled with a loss by the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals, guaranteed the Dodgers home-field advantage for at least the first round of the playoffs.

"It's the first step," Kershaw said. "We know that."

That means Kershaw's next start will be Oct. 3, when the Dodgers open the NL division series at Dodger Stadium."

------

ESPN.com's David Schoenfield notes that the Dodgers' offense is coming alive at the right time. It's a great piece (especially the insight on HanRam's swing) so I will let you revel in most of it:

1. Matt Kemp looks like 2011 Matt Kemp. Last postseason, Kemp was watching from the dugout with crutches. Now, he'll enter October as one of baseball's hottest sluggers, with a .303/.360/.589 line and 16 home runs in the second half. He's sixth in the majors in wOBA since the All-Star break -- only Buster Posey and Victor Martinez are high among guys on playoff teams -- and third in home runs.

2. Hanley Ramirez is swinging the bat well. It's all about health for Ramirez, but he's also worked to lower a leg kick that got too high early in the season. Hitting coach Mark McGwire has worked with him to lower the leg to go back to something more like his approach in 2009, when he won the batting title. Ramirez has hit .357 in September -- granted, with no home runs -- but he's spraying the ball all over the field. Remember, last year's NLCS might have turned out differently if Ramirez hadn't been injured in Game 1 (he didn't play the second game after suffering a hairline fracture in his rib and struggled in the series, hitting .133).

3. Adrian Gonzalez leads the majors in RBIs. OK, RBIs are overrated, but Gonzalez has performed his best with runners in scoring position, hitting .330/.389/.546. Like Kemp, he's also hit better in the second half: .308/.362/.530 compared to .251/.309/.429 in the first half.

4. Yasiel Puig looks to be over his slump. I still think the sudden loss of power was a result of his hip injury, but he hit his 16th home run on Wednesday, lining an 0-2 sinker from Tim Hudson out to right field. After going homerless in June and August and hitting just two in July, he has three in nine games. Puig should also benefit from having gone through last year's postseason, in which he seemed a little too hyped up and emotional, taking every strikeout like it was the end of the world. He hit .227 with 10 K's in the NLCS, but look for him to do a better job of getting on base in front of Gonzalez and Kemp.

5. Carl Crawford is hitting. This might be the biggest surprise, since Crawford hasn't really hit much since leaving Tampa Bay. But he's hitting .324/.367/.458 in the second half and .433 in September and turned Andre Ethier into the forgotten man in the Dodgers outfield. He's even running a little more, with 22 steals, his most since 2010.

6. Better depth than 2013. Between Juan Uribe (.311 overall and .378/.403/.554 in September), Dee Gordon and Justin Turner, the Dodgers have better infield options than in 2013, when Nick Punto and Mark Ellis had to play. Gordon had the hot start and made the All-Star team, but it will be interesting to see how Don Mattingly works Turner into the lineup considering his .333/.397/.482 line and .374 batting average in the second half. Plus, you have Scott Van Slyke to start in left field versus left-handers or coming off the bench as a pinch hitter. And Ethier becomes the most expensive $15 million pinch hitter in the game.

OK, the lineup isn't perfect. A.J. Ellis and Drew Butera haven't provided much offense from the catcher slot. Another small secret weapon: Greinke, Kershaw and Dan Haren are all pretty good hitters for pitchers, so they have a chance for some offense from their pitchers.

There are concerns in the rotation once you get past Kershaw and Greinke, and Kershaw will have to prove he's a big-game pitcher after getting shelled in that season-ending Game 6 loss to the Cardinals last year. Plus, the middle relief is a concern, the defense isn't great and Mattingly's postseason tactics last year were questionable.

But this looks like a lineup that will score some runs in the postseason, and the Dodgers do have the best pitcher in the game. We'll see how that sauce tastes in a few weeks.

I'm guessing the sauce isn't going to be weak sauce, that's for sure.

Post-Game 156 Thread: Three Is A Magic Number

DODGERS 8, CUBS 5
PADRES 8, GIANTS 2

When this video gets to the second verse ("A man and a woman had a little baby; yes they did, they had three in the family; and that's a magic number"), I feel the good vibrations of the seventies warm me up all over.

Which is probably how Don Mattingly and the Dodgers felt, having survived "Bullpen Day" at Wrigley Field, starting Jamey Wright for two innings, then letting Carlos Frias take a turn, before parading in Chris Perez (who got the win, retiring four batters), Paco Rodriguez, Pedro Baez, and Kenley Jansen. Wright only lasted two innings and gave up three hits and 1 ER. Frias was a bit shakier (3.0 IP, 3 H and 3 ER), but nowhere near his last outing; plus he got out of a fifth-inning jam with the tying run on second by pulling off a big strikeout of Chris Valaika (Frias was actually seen on camera pumping himself up before the fateful pitch). Scattering only five Cubs runs over the course of the day, the Dodgers were able to actually survive throwing a spaghetti-like bullpen arms against the wall, just to see which ones could stick long enough to register 27 outs.

And that of course was due to the offensive heroics of the rest of the lineup, who seemed to take to the challenge by rising up. Yasiel Puig was 2-for-5 with 4 runs scored; Adrian Gonzalez was 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI; and Matt Kemp was 4-for-5 with a run and 4 RBI, two of which came on a third-inning HR to right field. Hanley Ramirez went 2-for-4, Carl Crawford went 2-for-5, A.J. Ellis got when 1-for-5 to raise his average (don't get me started). In fact, the only 0-fer in the starting lineup was Dee Gordon (0-for-5). All in all, a pretty good day with the bats: 16 hits in total in the victory.

What's more, the Padres took to their camouflage outfits and completed the sweep of the Giants, dropping Ryan Vogelsong and the Giants 8-2. According to MLB.com, "in eight games since their euphoric 9-0 rout of Los Angeles on Sept. 12, the Giants are batting .201 (52-for-259) with 14 runs scored. They've mustered two runs in five of those games and have been shut out twice."

So the Dodgers' magic number for winning the NL West is now three. And serendipitously enough, the Giants' magic number for securing a wild card spot (over Milwaukee; the Pirates are tied with the Giants for the two wild card spots) is also three. So three truly is a magic number.

Hat tip to Dusty for referencing this song (I think!) in the GT. I didn't see it until afterward, but it appears we're on the same wavelength. As Sons should be, I suppose.

Post-Game 153 Thread: Good Dodgers!

Happy-sided Two-Face!

DODGERS 8, CUBS 4

The Dodgers flew to Chicago last night, but they opted not to show up until the seventh inning. Down 4-1 thanks to an uncharacteristically off Zack Greinke (5.0 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 1 BB and 5 Ks), the Dodgers decided to break out the whupping sticks and not lose to a sub-.500 team.

Hanley Ramirez started off with a one-out single; Carl Crawford followed with a single; Juan Uribe reached on a force out that scored HanRam. But the floodgates opened when Andre Ethier, PH for A.J. Ellis, hit a double to left-center that scored Crawford (and probably should have scored Uribe, who went to third), to make it 4-3. Justin Turner grounded out to third, scoring Uribe and tying the game. And then Dee Gordon doubled in Ethier (5-4 LA), and Yasiel Puig singled Gordon in. 6-4 Dodgers, thanks to a five-run seventh inning.

The Dodgers added a run in the eighth (Drew Butera with a bases-loaded walk), and in the ninth (Matt Kemp with a sacrifice fly to left field). The Dodgers may have showed up late, but they won the game and picked up a half-game on the idle Giants, to extend the lead to 2.5 games with nine to play (ten for San Francisco). Let's hope the good side of the Dodgers' duplicitous nature continues to turn up.

Post-Game 150 Thread: Dodgers Cruise To Victory Over Rockies

Reference to Cruise #1

DODGERS 11, ROCKIES 3

Roberto Hernandez was ineffective at Coors Field, but it didn't matter as the Dodgers rolled to a huge victory at Coors Field.

The sixth inning began as a 3-3 tie before an absolute eruption by the Dodgers, who cruised to victory as follows:

• Carl Crawford HBP
• Juan Uribe single
• A.J. Ellis single
• Justin Turner 2-RBI double
• Dee Gordon RBI single
• Yasiel Puig walk
• Adrian Gonzalez 2-RBI single
• Matt Kemp K, for out #1
• Hanley Ramirez RBI double
• Carl Crawford sac fly
• Juan Uribe RBI double
• A.J. Ellis ground out

8 runs. 12 batters. Seven batters reached base without the Rockies recording an out.

Now of course, the only thing everyone wanted to talk about was Kemp and Puig appearing to have a disagreement in the visitor's dugout, with Kemp yelling at Puig as Puig walked away. It got to the point that even the LAT's Steve Dilbeck mocked the kerfuffle, and subsequent speculation.

I'm not a lip reader, but if I'm reading correctly, I think Kemp had ordered Puig a pizza, and Yasiel didn't like the mushroom topping, forcing Kemp to get mad that he'd paid the extra 95-cent charge for mushrooms. I get it, man.

11-3 final, and with the Giants' loss the Dodgers stretch their lead to four games.

Post-Game 148 Thread: Sweet Seventeen

DODGERS 17, GIANTS 0

One night after receiving one of the team's most ignominious defeats, the Dodgers came back and bounced back in a huge way--not only shutting out the Giants at home, but almost doubling the number of runs that the Giants had scored on us last night. It was a shellacking of monumental proportions. The Phone Park seagulls started circling at first pitch, given the smell of raw sewage that engulfed the Giants early on.

Hyun-Jin Ryu had a horrible first inning yesterday in which the Giants batted around and scored four runs. The Giants' Tim Hudson eerily received the exact same treatment tonight in his first inning: nine batters, including three doubles (just like last night!), the first of which punctuated the evening when Yasiel Puig legged out a double on a bloop single to Angel Pagan in center field. Look, I know Pagan has been a sparkplug for the Giants--their late-season resurgence can be strongly correlated to his return to their lineup--but today, out in center field, he looked absolutely lost. When A.J. Ellis finished off the first-inning fireworks with a bloop RBI single to center, Pagan's route was absolutely horrific, like he misjudged the ball completely off the bat, and then didn't know what to do. And I thought we had the unorthodox center fielder!

But the Dodgers didn't let up. Zack Greinke came out and allowed a leadoff double to Pagan, and then with one out, Oyster Pubes hit a single to right field. Matt Kemp fielded the ground ball perfectly, blew a bubble with his gum, and then fired home a strike to nail Pagan at the plate by a mile. What's more, Pubes didn't even take second base on the play, and was stranded there when Pablo Sandoval made the third out next. That was the Giants' best chance to get back into this game, because the pummeling went on from there.

Four runs in the second, with eight Dodgers taking swings. A third RBI for Matt Kemp made it 9-0 in the third inning. Juan Uribe homered in the fourth inning to add one run, and then Zack Greinke doubled off the wall in center, coming around to score on a Dee Gordon single, to make it 11-0 in the fourth inning.

And Greinke wasn't done. Not only did Greinke go a very solid 6.0 IP of 4 H, 0 R ball (0 BB, 5 Ks), he also hit a two-run HR in the sixth inning to make it 13-0. And the sixth inning wasn't over easy, either: Carl Crawford hit a bases-loaded shot to short that was initially called an 6-3 out, before the Dodgers challenged and got the call overturned to a RBI single. 14-0. Bruce Bochy brought in his son, Brett, who promptly walked Juan Uribe to make it 15-0.

The one solace Giants fans tried to take came in the top of the seventh, when Yasiel Puig struck out on a foul tip with one out and Dee Gordon on first. Derisive jeers were then summarily shut up when Scott Van Slyke came out and hit a monster shot to left field, to make it 17-0.

So let's total up this carnage, looking at the starting lineup alone:

• Gordon: 2-for-7 with 3 runs and an RBI;
• Puig: 3-for-5 with 3 runs;
• Adrian Gonzalez: 1-for-5 with a run and RBI;
• Kemp: 3-for-4 with 2 runs and 3 RBI;
• Hanley Ramirez: 4-for-5 with a run and 2 RBI;
• Crawford: 2-for-4 with a run and 3 RBI;
• Uribe: 2-for-4 with a run and 2 RBI;
• Ellis: 2-for-5 with a run and RBI;
• Greinke: 2-for-3 with 2 runs and 2 RBI.

Let's look at that scoring history again (it's so long (that's what she said), I had to take two separate screenshots):

The Dodgers had two HR and five doubles. We had 10 two-out RBI. We went 11-for-19 with RISP. And it could have been much worse: we left 15 on base. Still, it was historic: the Dodgers' largest margin of victory and most one-sided shutout since moving to LA; the most runs ever scored by an opponent at AT&T Park; the most hits (24) of any team at AT&T Park; the most hits against the Giants since 1932. The 24 hits were one short of the LA Dodgers' franchise record.

Now, just like the Dodgers must have told themselves last night, it's only one game. But wow, what a game it was; a statement game that sent chardonnay-loving fans home early and pulled the lead back to two games in the west, with 14 to play. But even with all these runs notched, tomorrow's rubber match could bring it back to a mere one-game lead.

Perfect time for a SoSG Fest, if you ask me. We'll be blogging live from the event!

Post-Game 146 Thread: Who's Your Crawdaddy

This photo does not scream, "sweet stroke, Carl!". But hey, if it works, it works.

DODGERS 4, PADRES 0

Carl Crawford had a field day in the rubber match of this series, going 4-for-4 with three doubles and 2 RBI, leading the Dodgers to a 4-0 victory. Crawford went 9-for-12 in the series and has lifted his average from .230 to .289 by batting .434 the past month. Those hits and RBI make up for a lot of noodle-armed throws from left field, which makes Crawford a premium over Juan Pierre.

Also contributing RBI were Hanley Ramirez (who was sadly picked off first right thereafter) and Juan Uribe. Yasiel Puig batted leadoff tonight in Don Mattingly's attempt to jumpstart the slumping player; Puig went 0-for-4 with 5 LOB.

Dan Haren also continued his late-season rejuvenation: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, with 1 BB and 5 Ks. J.P. Howell and Kenley Jansen had a scoreless inning each.

With the Dodgers' victory, the magic number shrinks to 15 to win the NL West, as we retain a 2.5 game lead. Off-day tomorrow means we get to watch the Giants (who will likely sweep the Snakes tomorrow, and drop the lead to two games, with 16 to play), before heading into Phone Park for a key weekend series. Remember, Sunday is SoSG Fest 2014! Check the sidebar for details.

photo swiped from mlb.com

Post-Game 140 Thread: A Kick To The Nuts

NATIONALS 8, DODGERS 5 (14)

There are PGTs that cause us Sons of Steve Garvey to skirmish and squabble in the staff room, descending into cage matches to determine which Son gets to pen the day's journal entry.

This was not one of those PGTs.

In fact, this loss was so painful, none of us Sons wanted to touch it with a ten-foot pole. 14 innings of back and forth ball looked like they were heading the Dodgers' way: a game-extending run by Justin Turner in the bottom of the ninth off of a Jayson Werth fielding error in right field; and a Carl Crawford HR in the bottom of the 12th to tie the game at 5-5. But three Nationals runs in the top of the 14th were just too much to overcome. In a boxing match with two division-leading pugilists, Washington got the knockout punch in the final round, and the Dodgers were down and out.

Crawford and Turner each had three hits; Dee Gordon and Yasiel Puig had two hits each. But the Dodgers went 2-for-9 with RISP and left 12 on base, wasting a nice effort from Carlos Frias (6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB and 4 Ks). Kenley Jansen's bid for a four-out save went haywire when he came back out for the ninth, with Bryce Harper singling, Adam LaRoche with a two-run HR, and Denard Span singling in a third run to make it 3-2 Washington. Yes, the Dodgers answered in the bottom of the ninth when Werth fumbled a fly ball in right field, but letting the Nationals back into the game in the ninth was a dangerous play.

We may end up seeing the Nationals again, should we hold on for the post-season. After dropping the rubber match in this fashion, I'm pretty concerned.

Post-Game 144 Thread: Idle Hands Are The Dodgers' Benefit

DODGERS 9, PADRES 4

While the Giants sat around gazing at their NL Wild Card lead, the Dodgers went out and got to work...beating the Padres behind the arm of ace Clayton Kershaw, who won his major-league-leading 18th game. Kershaw's 18-3 record is apparently the best since Orel Hershiser's 19-3 back in 1985, so if he isn't thought of as a legitimate MVP contender, it's a conspiracy. Kershaw even tried to argue with manager Don Mattingly to come out and pitch the the ninth inning, but Mattingly preferred to watch Pedro Baez give up a run (a solo Yasmandi Grandal shot) in the top of the ninth.

The fourth inning was fruitful for the Dodgers, when Yasiel Puig's single and A.J. Ellis' ground out scored two to extend the lead to 4-1. The fifth inning kept the Dodgers rolling when Matt Kemp doubled in Hanley Ramirez, and Carl Crawford hit a three-run HR to open up a 8-1 lead. And that was more than what Kershaw needed, rolling to victory on an efficient 89 pitches (3 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 Ks).

A 3.5 game lead this late in the season is great, but we are going to need some margin heading into SF this weekend. Hold on to your hats.

Post-Game 137 Thread: Ryu Defeats The Enemy

DODGERS 7, PADRES 1

The Dodgers looked to be traveling down a familiar road of late in Petco Park: low offensive production wasting a solid starting pitching effort, this time from Hyun-Jin Ryu, whose return from the DL was much needed: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB and 7 Ks. The Dodgers had scored one in the first on a Scott Van Slyke single to right, but gave the run right back in the bottom of the first inning. Then the Dodgers scored another run in the fifth off a Matt Kemp RBI single, but proceeded to squander a rally when SVS GIDPd to end the inning.

But this time, we broke through in the eighth inning. Adrian Gonzalez led off with a single and Kemp doubled him over to third. Carl Crawford walked, and then Juan Uribe (who also recently returned from the DL) moved everyone up 90 feet with a single to right (3-1 LA). Jesse Hahn came in to pitch and threw wild during an A.J. Ellis AB, allowing Kemp to score (Ellis would end up walking the bases loaded again). Darwin Barney then singled to right, scoring two to make it 6-1 Dodgers. All of this came with none out, so even though the inning ended poorly (Andre Ethier single but Ellis tagged at the plate, followed by Yasiel Puig and Hanley Ramirez Ks), at least we opened up a big lead this time; after going 1-for-900000 in the first two games, the Dodgers went 6-for-14 with RISP in this one.

Uribe added an RBI double in the ninth to make it 7-1, and Pedro Baez pithed two innings to have the lead hold up. Avoiding the sweep allowed us to keep 2.5 games ahead in the division (and make it a winning "road trip" of five games), before our series at home against Washington.

Welcome back, Ryu, and welcome back, Uribe!

seamless graphics work by SoSG Sax