Game 85 Thread: July 7 vs. Phillies, 7p

(thighs)

Brett Anderson (5-4, 3.00) vs. Chad Billingsley (0-2, 7.71).

Old friend alert! And not just any old friend but Billingsley — Chadley, His Royal Thighness, Billz, member of the famed "Jacksonville Five" (along with Jonathan Broxton, Joel Guzman, Andy LaRoche and Russell Martin) — that guy, who gave us eight fine years with the Dodgers.

Now, as his old team is oh, about two starters short, Bills has the chance to make us regret letting him go in the first place (also Dan Haren, who the Marlins could trade, so we may face him soon enough).

Going against Chad is Anderson, who has been a real lifesaver. He's coming off consecutive wins over the Giants, Marlins and Snakes. Let's add Philly to that junk heap.

Game 34 Thread: May 14 vs. Rockies, 7p

Tonight's stadium giveaway.

Brett Anderson (2-1, 3.52) vs. Chad Bettis (0-0, -.--).

Back to a normal start time, but also back to the Rockies and rain. Will we play tonight?

Who the hell is Chad Bettis? There's not much info available about him, so I'll just assume he's a hybrid between Chad Billingsley and Jerome Bettis. Which means he must have monster thighs.

Anderson should be fresh, having thrown only 63 pitches in last weeks' rain-shortened win in Colorado. The bullpen will be sans Pedro Baez, who was placed on the DL with a strained pec. When does Kenley return?

UPDATE (Sax): Despite threatening rain, it looks like the game is on, according to the TWC pre-game coverage:

Thanks to the SOSG stringer for the screengrabs!

What The Heck, Let's Add Another Injury To The List

Billingsley emerged from the outback with a new elbow ligament and much more hair.

Clayton Kershaw, Josh Beckett, Brian Wilson, and Yasiel Puig are all hurt. So why not add Chad Billingsley to the Dodgers' long list of injuries (or at least, injury scares):

Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley, who missed most of 2013 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, had to come out of a Sunday rehab start for Class A Rancho Cucamonga in his second inning.

"His first inning was really good," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "He felt a little sensation [in his elbow] in the second inning. As a precaution, they got him out of there."

Billingsley returned to Dodger Stadium, where he was examined by Dr. Neal ElAttrache while the Dodgers were playing the Giants.

"We were concerned, but we got good news during the game," Mattingly said. "Doc looked at it, and felt good about it."

The Rancho Cucamonga start was one of five planned in Billingsley's road back to the big leagues. It's not known how this setback will alter that plan.

Steve Dilbeck of the LAT had a bit more on Bills, though it didn't make me feel any better:

“It gave us a little scare when we heard about it,” Mattingly said. “Then we got the good news during the game that [Dr. Neal ElAttrache] looked at it and felt pretty good about it. Hopefully this is just part of the process of him kind of getting where he has to go.”

Billingsley was only scheduled to throw 20-25 pitches. In his 1 1/3 innings, he was charged with two runs on one hit and a walk. He struck out one.

Spring Training 2014 Trip

Hey there, two days in the middle of the week.  What's that?  You have nothing to do?  Not working?  I know.  Lets drive 6 hours to Arizona to watch the Dodgers!  How about we wake up at 4 am in order to make the opening day of Spring Training.  ROAD TRIP!

At an Arizona rest stop.  Be careful where you pee.

So this probably wasn't the best for my sleep wake cycle, but what the heck.  Mrs. Cora was on board, so there is no turning back.  We packed up the car and headed out to Glendale Arizona.  Since I was so late to make plans, all of the good hotels around Glendale were booked, so we stayed in Peoria, which actually wasn't that bad and only a 10 min drive from Glendale.

We made it to Salt River Field in Talking Stick Arizona (home of the Dbacks and Rockies) right before game time.  The traffic into the stadium reminded me of Dodger Stadium. It was really crowded and not well organized.  Plus parking was 5 bucks (free at Camelback).  But we made it to the gate and bought some lawn tickets.

It was kind of overcast, which was good, because it is damn hot in Arizona.  I have never sat in the lawn section (the only tickets available), but it was great.  Especially after that long drive, it was nice to lay back and stretch out the legs.  The stadium is nice and apparently configured by the same architectural firm as Camelback Ranch.  However the hot dog and fries were DISGUSTING.  Nonetheless, I had a great time watching the first game of the season, despite the loss.  After the game, Steve Yeager was down in the bullpen and he kindly autographed a baseball for me.

Disgusting food. Fries where horrible.

Man Child

Warming up

Free Sunscreen!

Is this where he got hurt?

The next day, we woke up bright and early to get to Camelback Ranch just after it opened.  Of course there were a whole bunch of people there already, especially autograph seekers.  It was nice to be surrounded by a bunch of loyal Dodger fans.  In fact, SOSG reader "Chad Beardingsly" recognized my SOSG shirt and kindly stopped to say hello.  The players and coaches hit the practice fields early.  My impressions on watching the players was that Josh Beckett had some real zip on the ball during the bullpen sessions.  Paul Maholm on the other had didn't, but could have been working on off speed stuff.  I actually thought Alex Guerrero looked pretty strong at second base.  Like everyone else, I am excited to see what comes out of the competition during spring training and the rest of the year.  The second game of the season against the DBacks at Camelback Ranch was a little slow, but at least we won.  It also might have been more palatable because we bought seats in the shade behind home plate.  I didn't think that Juan Uribe's home run was going to go over the fence.  I was only imagining Charley Steiner's crazy call in my head.  It was also neat to see Guerrero go 2 for 4 and see him collect his first major league hit and RBI.  The other highlight was seeing Team Killeen in the house, BJ armed with pen and paper and Scott armed with a humongous camera lens.

Justin Turner

Tim Wallach

Andre and Matt

Hanley

Because of the impending rain and the fact that I had to work really early on Saturday, we decided to stop by Camelback Ranch for only a couple of hours before heading home.  There seemed to be less people in the morning, but started to get crowded by the time we left at 10 am.  We did sneak over to the White Sox fields where there were far less fans there.  We seemed to get closer to the field and actually sat down and watched them train.  Also, you can snag a foul or home run ball when they take batting practice.  Alas, we had to leave Blue Heaven in Arizona, and jumped in the car for the long drive back.  The drive back was pretty bad too since there were so many accidents due to the rain.  It took us about 8 hours to get back because of all of the detours we had to make.  But we made it and it was a fun trip to cram into the week.  Below are some more pictures I took.  Enjoy!  GO BLUE!

Donnie mobbed by reporters.  Where are you BJ?

Bills and Elbert

Elbert and Bills

Go get 'em boys.

Davey and Wally

Big Mac Attack!

Steve Yeager

Shawn Green

Donnie with the high fives down the line

Ignite That Hot Stove

Hiroki Kuroda? David Price?

ESPN.com completed its divisional review with the NL West, and says the Dodgers-- "heavy favorites in the West"--will be dealing this winter:

On June 21, the Dodgers were 30-42, they were 9.5 games out of first place, Don Mattingly was about to be fired and the team with baseball's highest payroll was a complete disaster. Then the Dodgers won six in a row, kicking off one of the most remarkable stretches in baseball history: They would go 42-8 over a 50-game stretch during which they posted a 2.45 ERA and averaged 4.9 runs per game.

Yasiel Puig was a lightning rod for the surge, having been called up in early June, but Hanley Ramirez returned from the DL and was the NL's best hitter the final four months, Clayton Kershaw had another Cy Young-caliber season and Zack Greinke showed why he was worth the big free agent money. The season ended with a disappointing loss to the Cardinals in the NLCS, with Kershaw getting shelled in Game 6 and Dodgers fans wondering what would have happened if Ramirez hadn't fractured a rib in the first game of the series.

Primary needs

The Dodgers have three-fifths of the rotation locked in with Kershaw, Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu and will have Josh Beckett and Chad Billingsley returning from injuries (with Beckett expected to be ready for spring training and Billingsley perhaps in May after Tommy John surgery), but expect them to be a player in the starting pitcher.

They also signed Cuban infielder Alexander Guerrero, who is expected to compete for the second base job. Juan Uribe is a free agent, opening up a potential slot on the left side of the infield, depending on whether Ramirez plays third base or shortstop. Bullpen depth will also be a priority.

Free agents
• 2B Mark Ellis
• 3B Juan Uribe
• IF Michael Young
• IF Nick Punto
• IF Jerry Hairston
• OF Skip Schumaker
• P Chris Capuano
• P Ricky Nolasco
• RP Brian Wilson
• RP J.P. Howell
• RP Carlos Marmol

Expected losses

The Dodgers may bring back Ellis to hedge their bet on whether Guerrero is ready to jump straight to the majors. They'd consider bringing back Wilson and Howell, although Wilson will look for the opportunity to be a closer, which he won't get with Kenley Jansen around. The team could decide to bring back Uribe, but the Dodgers may still have the taste of his poor 2011 and 2012 seasons.

Potential targets

For the Dodgers, that's just something to walk around with in their very deep pockets. They do have about $30 million coming off the books, although Kershaw will get a big raise in his final year before free agency and they do have $175 committed to just 12 players (not including Kershaw). Expect them to make a huge offer for Japanese right-hander Masahiro Tanaka. Barring that, they could look to re-sign Nolasco, bring back Hiroki Kuroda on a one-year deal, or look to deal prospects for Tampa Bay lefty David Price.

Shortstop Stephen Drew is another attractive free agent who would improve the team's defense if Ramirez is moved over to third.

Outlook

No matter who the Dodgers bring in --- and they'll bring in somebody -- they'll enter 2014 as the heavy favorites in the NL West. The most interesting offseason decision they face could be whether they trade Matt Kemp or Andre Ethier – in either case, they'd have to eat some money to make a deal happen -- to erase the outfield logjam, not that the group will ever be healthy at the same time. Ethier is probably the guy they'd like to trade as he's not a center fielder and doesn't have a position with Puig and Carl Crawford in the corners."

Let's get that hot stove cookin'!

Game 137 Thread: September 2 vs. Rockies, 1p

Clayton Kershaw (13-8, 1.72 ERA) vs. Chad Bettis (0-3, 4.80 ERA)

Food for thought: If Chad Billingsley and Jerome Bettis ever had a love child, the kid would have the biggest thighs of all time.

This game time snuck up on us here at SoSG World Headquarters. Sax and I saw each other at Dodger Stadium like ten minutes ago or so, right? Weird.

Today the Dodgers take on the Rockies for a three-game set, fresh off their sweep of the Pod Rays yesterday. The elimination number for the Dbags is now 16, and the Dodgers have a healthy 11.5 game lead on them. I'm guessing that with that lead and with the expanded roster, we'll start to see some crazy lineups made to get the regulars some rest. Which also may lead to bad baseball. And likely to some poorly-constructed Game Threads here. In fact, we're resting Stubbs for the stretch run, too; we need him for the playoffs.

photo 1: Jeff Gross/Getty Images North America

photo 2: several random websites with no attribution

90 Minutes Later, Chad Billingsley's 12-Month Absence Finally Begins

Chad Billingsley finally went under the knife Wednesday for the overdue Tommy John surgery which platelet-rich plasma could not otherwise resolve:

Dodgers pitcher Chad Billingsley underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday evening and is expected to be out for about a year, the team announced Thursday.

The procedure -- an injured elbow ligament is replaced with a tendon taken from elsewhere in the body -- was performed by team doctor Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles, and took about 90 minutes. Billingsley will begin physical therapy in the next seven to 10 days.

The right-hander had the option of undergoing elbow surgery last September but chose to rehabilitate the injury and received an injection of platelet-rich plasma at the time. He was on the disabled list because of elbow inflammation three times in the past year.

Since Billingsley is in the second year of his three-year, $35M deal, the Dodgers paid about $2.1M per win across 2012 and 2013 (Bills is a combined 11-9).

Since Bills pitched a total of 161.2 IP, that also equates to around $144K per inning.

Or, for every out recorded, Chad Billingsley earned roughly the equivalent of the median US household income (according to CNN).

Get well soon, Chadley!

Billingsley Lost For Season

Yet another blow to the Dodgers came this afternoon, when the Dodgers announced that Chad Billingsley would undergo the Tommy John surgery many believed he needed late last year. Billingsley will go under the knife tomorrow and will be out for 12 months.

NEW YORK -- Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley will undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday and will be sidelined for 12 months, the club announced Tuesday.

Dr. Neal ElAttrache will perform the operation at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Los Angeles.

Billingsley was a late scratch Sunday with lingering elbow pain he felt after a Friday bullpen session and was then placed on the 15-day disabled list.

He missed the last two months of last season with a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow, but instead of surgery, Billingsley opted for several platelet-rich plasma injections and rest. He resumed throwing last October, hit 93 mph in a simulated game last November and didn't miss any time during Spring Training.

"I think he was pretty confident coming into Spring Training having had a good winter and been able to throw," said manager Don Mattingly. "Then when he didn't have any problem between starts, we got confident. I'm sure he's disappointed. We are, too. It's not missing a start. It's a year."

But management held its breath all along, hoping that Billingsley's elbow would hold up longer than the two starts he made this month.

"You can't make a guy do anything," said Mattingly. "The fact it seemed like it was working was energizing for him."

That said, Billingsley's uncertain health was a key factor in the club's successful pursuit of free agents Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu.

The Dodgers went into Spring Training with eight highly paid starting pitchers, then dealt Aaron Harang to the Rockies on April 6 for Ramon Hernandez because they were convinced Billingsley was healthy.

Now with Billingsley joining Greinke (broken collarbone) and Chris Capuano (pulled calf muscle) on the sidelines, Stephen Fife was called up from Triple-A Albuquerque to take Billingsley's spot in the rotation. Ted Lilly will be activated from the disabled list Wednesday night in what had been Greinke's slot.

"We're still in good order," said Mattingly. "We'll end up with five guys that are accomplished starters [Clayton Kershaw, Ryu, Josh Beckett, Lilly and Capuano] and Greinke on top of that. Nobody wants to hear our complaints. A lot of teams would like to have five accomplished Major League starters."

Take notes, biology students: platelet-rich plasma is not a panacea. Or even a remedy, in this case.

If there's any hope in this, it's that (a) Billingsley is finally getting the attention that his poor elbow needs, and (b) Mattingly isn't belly-aching about it. Just move on and play the cards we're dealt. Even if the hand here we've been dealt seems pretty shitty.

Post-Game 18 Thread: True Grit

DODGERS 7, ORIOLES 4

After getting ass-whupped by the Orioles in Saturday's doubleheader, stretching the loss streak to six, the Dodgers looked like they were out of any sort of mettle and were ready to phone in the final 145 games of this season. The Orioles jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first off of Stephen Fife, an emergency call-up in place of Chad Billingsley, who hit the DL (with an elbow pain issue that probably should have been resolved with surgery over the off-season, instead of nutpunching us now...but that's another gripe for another day).

The Dodgers eked out a single run in a three-walk third inning, then watched Adam Jones promptly rope one to left center in the bottom of the inning. Still down by three runs.

And here's where things got crazy (at least, for the Dodgers). The Dodgers, averaging fewer than three runs per game, erupted for four runs in the fifth (Mark Ellis, two-run RBI single to center with the bases loaded; Adrian Gonzalez, double to left scoring Carl Crawford; Matt Kemp, single to left scoring Mellis). The Dodgers then went on to extend their 5-4 lead with a RBI single in the seventh from AJ Ellis, and a run in the ninth from a Jerry Hairston sacrifice fly.

Credit Mattingly for finally putting Gonzalez in the three spot, switched with Kemp. That move was compensated however by Donnie pulling Fife with 4.2 IP, denying Fife his first major league victory (the Dodgers were up 5-4 at the time).

A come-from-behind victory? An end to the six-game nightmare? A shot at gaining on that six-game deficit in the NL West (hey, let's not get too far ahead of ourselves; Rox lead the Snakes 3-0 through three, and the Giants are up on the Padres by the same score in the fourth). But hey, a salvaged win @ Camden Yards, in front of SoSG Dusty Baker? I'll take it.

(PS. Lakers (down nine in the fourth quarter), you could stand to take a lesson from these Dodgers today.)

Game 18 Thread: April 21 @ Orioles, 10:35a

Chad Billingsley (1-0, 3.00) Stephen Fife (0-0, -.--) vs. Jake Arrieta (1-0, 5.40).

We sit six back of the NL West-leading Rockies. That's a greater gap than what the Mets, Cubs, or Mariners have in their respective divisions.

And let's be clear: we're barely halfway through April, and the season already looks precariously lost.

While I try to get over how beautiful Oriole Park at Camden Yards could have turned into the Dodgers' own house of horrors, I have to wonder how short a Rope Don Mattingly is on, I Confess. But it's no Easy Virtue watching our team skid Downhill like this. This season has been one for The Birds. At least we've got Psycho and Eric Collins calling this game, I suppose.

The Sons of Steve Garvey aren't taking this lying down, however. We've sent our own Son, Dusty Baker, to Baltimore on assignment, in order to lift our team's spirits (and hopefully kick Ronald Belisario in the nuts). Get to work, Dusty!

UPDATE 7:57a: Edited to reflect Billingsley's move to the DL.

Post-Game 13 Thread: On Jackie Robinson Day, Dodgers Out At Home

Out by about three miles.

PADRES 6, DODGERS 3

On an evening with so many pathetic moments, it's hard to isolate exactly which Dodgers moment tonight most disgraced the legacy of Jackie Robinson, whom we honored across baseball on this fine day. Was it:

• Opposing pitcher and former Dodger Eric Stults knocking a three-run HR off of Chad Billingsley in the top of the second?
• Having the Dodgers claw back with a run in the third (Adrian Gonzalez ground-rule double to right center, scoring Carl Crawford), a run in the fourth (Crawford singling in Luis Cruz), and a run in the fifth (AJ Ellis singling in Matt Kemp),...but squandering further scoring opportunities by settling for fenceposts in the scorecard?
• Watching Ronald Belisario allow his three runners to reach in the seventh (two on walks), only to see Paco Rodriguez come in and walk the next batter, scoring the go-ahead run, and allowing one more to score before ending the inning (down 5-3)?
• Getting AJ Ellis and Andre Ethier on base to start the eighth, and having Cruz sacrifice them both into scoring position...only to watch PH Skip Schumacher hit back to Padres pitcher Luke Gregerson...and have Ellis try and score from third as Skip is being thrown out at first? Because the lumbering Ellis, who never should have left in the first place, was thrown out at home to end the threat AND the inning?

Yeah, it probably was Ellis, on one of the most boneheaded plays so far in this short season. Even if Ellis had scored, we still would have been down by a run with two out, requiring a single. Idiotic.

We're supposed to WIN on Jackie Robinson Day, boys. We're not going to win when we're all competing for the most hair-brained move of the night.

Matt Kemp went 2-for-5 including a key strikeout in the seventh and the game-ending fly out to right. Kemp is batting .200. I know it will turn around for Kemp, but I'm really thinking he may need a day off here. There's just too much weight on his shoulders, certainly to carry this team of lunatics, not to mention turn around his slump. We're only 13 games in, a game above .500, and I'm not sure if I can take it, either.

Oh, and Dusty Baker's Toothpick? This is for you (if not the rest of us):

photo: Mark J. Terrill / AP

Post-Game 8 Thread: Bills, Bills, Bills

DODGERS 4, PADRES 3

Chad Billingsley made his 2013 Dodgers debut tonight and though he wasn't perfect (retired the side only in the second inning; had a lot of trouble locating his curve (Vin Scully said only two curves fell for strikes)), he was good enough. Six innings, five hits, 1 ER, 3 Ks and 3 BB. Welcome back, Chadley!

It helped that Bills got run production early. Carl Crawford hit the second pitch of the game into the left field stands for a leadoff HR; Luis Cruz got his first hit of the year in the second inning and AJ Ellis knocked him home with another HR to left. The Dodgers added a fourth run in the fifth inning, when Crawford hit a one-out triple and Mark Ellis singled him home.

The Padres' starter, former Dodger Eric Stults, was even shakier than Billingsley: 101 pitches over five innings, giving up eight hits with 4 Ks. Even Matt Kemp (batting .167) and Justin Sellers (batting .190) got singles off of Stults. The Dodgers had a season-high 13 hits tonight. That said, the Dodgers wasted a ton of opportunities to seal the deal: 1-for-8 with RISP, and an absurd 12 LOB. Ugh.

You know who else was shaky? Brandon League, who gave up three hits in the bottom of the ninth, and then struck out Chris Denorfia...but AJ Ellis allowed a passed ball, scoring the Padres' third run and giving the home team a fourth out. Yonder Alonso went all the way to a full count, before flying out to left fielder Skip Schumacher to end the game. Whew!

Rubber match tomorrow night, Zack Greinke vs. Jason Marquis. A Marquis matchup, if you will!

Game 8 Thread: April 10 @ Pads, 7p

Chad's back! Recycled joke!

Chad Billingsley (0-0, -.--) vs. Eric Stults (1-0, 0.00).

After yesterday's calamitous debut at Petco — "Wasteful at bat and sloppy on the mound," per Ken Gurnick — the Dodgers look to tone down the DPs and tone up the pitching.

Billingsley, who has a 2.62 career ERA against the Pads, somehow avoided Tommy John surgery due in part to an off-season regimen of platelet-rich plasma injections. He comes off the DL (displacing Tim Federowicz) to face old friend Stults, who threw five scoreless innings against the Mets last week.

The Dodgers went 11-7 against the Padres last season. If they want a winning record against them again, now would be a good time to start, don't you think?

UPDATE: Looking for the game on TV? Click here.

photo by Mark J. Terrill/AP

Baseball Predictions, Part 6: Keith Law

More punditry from ESPN! And Keith Law predicts the Giants repeat as NL West champs, with 92 wins, three ahead of the Dodgers (a reverse of what Dan Szymborski predicted (link insider only):

The San Francisco Giants brought the same crew back for 2013, usually not an ideal strategy but likely to prevent enough runs to at least win one of the wild-card spots with just an average offense. Tim Lincecum could be the difference between a division title and a spot in the play-in game. (In case you missed it, I discussed Lincecum's outlook on this week's podcast with Giants beat writer Andy Baggarly.)

The Los Angeles Dodgers have pitching depth, with seven viable starters if you believe Chad Billingsley can avoid Tommy John surgery (I don't), and when their lineup is healthy, it's one of the better ones in the league. However, Hanley Ramirez was probably the position player they could least afford to lose other than Matt Kemp.

Law also predicts Stephen Strasburg gets the Cy Young over Clayton Kershaw.

I don't want to fight the Law, but I don't agree.

Spring Training Pics, Killeen-Style

Big thanks to BJ Killeen for sharing these fantastic photos taken by her husband Scott Killeen at Camelback Ranch. Especially love the one of Vin's peepers!

Spring Training Pregame Day 1

So we got home in one piece and I was able to download the pictures from three different cameras (mine, mama Cora, and Mrs Cora).  Overall we have about 2000 pictures from the three days of baseball goodness.  As I am trying to go through them all, I'll post some of them today and throughout Spring Training.  But to get us started, from Day 1 pregame...

Yeah Arizona!

At 9 am when gates open.  Only ones tailgating (game is at 1 pm).

Map of the facility.  Dodgers on the right side, Sox on the left.

More pictures after the jump...(if this jump thing works...)

Sizing Up The 2013 Dodgers

It's Top Ten season for ESPN.com's Buster Olney. And the Dodgers don't end up too bad, all things considered.

First up, the pitching rotations. And Buster Olney places ours third in the majors: (link insider only):

3. Los Angeles Dodgers

Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Josh Beckett, Chad Billingsley, Ted Lilly/Chris Capuano/Aaron Harang/Hyun-Jin Ryu. For Greinke and Beckett, this is the perfect situation, because they don't have the burden of being The Guy. Kershaw is the National League's best pitcher and he fully embraces all that comes with being the staff leader, from the media responsibilities to those moments when retaliation is needed. Greinke and Beckett can just worry about pitching, which is probably how they prefer it to be. The reason the Dodgers are ranked third -- and not higher -- is that it's not really clear what Don Mattingly is going to get out of Billingsley, Lilly or the starting pitcher who isn't dealt.

Linchpin guy: Beckett. Like other veteran starters who have moved from the AL to the NL, he should benefit from the shift, and Beckett is smart and savvy enough to be able to take advantage of those weakest spots at the bottom of the lineup. Beckett had a 2.93 ERA in his seven starts with the Dodgers, after being acquired from Boston, and now he gets a full-season reset button. He could be excellent. It's evident from Beckett's FanGraphs data that he relied a lot more on his cutter in his last few starts; it's a small sample size, but his strikeouts-per-9 ratio jumped from 6.64 with the Red Sox to 7.95 with the Dodgers.

Olney's got Detroit and Washington ahead of us, with only the Giants mentioned from the rest of the NL West (ninth).

Next up, the outfield, where the Dodgers rank fourth (link also insider only):

4. Los Angeles Dodgers

It's the outfield with the most star power, for sure: Matt Kemp in center, flanked by Carl Crawford in left field and Andre Ethier in right. Kemp was plagued by injuries and limited to 106 games, and still managed to hit .303 with 23 homers, and Ethier finished the season with 20 homers and 89 RBIs. Crawford missed almost all of last season with elbow trouble before having Tommy John surgery, and he may not be ready for the very beginning of the 2012 season. If each of the three match their best seasons from the past, this group could be the best in the majors, with power, speed and defense. But a significant factor will be how Ethier and Crawford fare against the parade of left-handers they will see, especially in the later innings of games.

Ethier had an OPS of .606 versus lefties last season, and Crawford had even worse numbers (OPS of .566) against lefties while playing for Boston in 2011. Kemp did a ton of damage against lefties last year, with a 1.105 OPS, and the Dodgers will need him to continue that trend, because he's going to see a ton of lefties while hitting among Crawford, Ethier and Adrian Gonzalez.

Something to remember: The Dodgers' payroll is going to be far beyond the luxury tax, and the team's management has a distinct win-or-bust, Steinbrenneresque style of operation right now. If Crawford or Ethier struggle against lefties and the Dodgers suffer in the standings, it's hard to imagine the front office waiting patiently for them to figure out their swings. They're more likely to pursue a right-handed-hitting outfielder who can help balance the lineup -- which might explain why they were open to retaining Shane Victorino for 2013.

The unknown of Crawford is the key, clearly. Although a fully-healthy Kemp and a consistent performance from Ethier would also come in handy. Victorino? Come on.

Oh yeah, the Angels, Nationals, and A's are ahead of us, with the Diamondbacks at #9.

Infield? We didn't make the top ten (link insider only, if by now you haven't figured this out). Washington snagged #8, and the Giants finagled #9.

Nor did we place in today's post, the top ten lineups. Angels lead the pack, with the Nationals fifth and the Rockies seventh.

Well, two out of four ain't bad (though the Nationals certainly look pretty good, on Olney's paper). The Angels only placed in two of the four top ten lists as well. Let's see how we fare in Olney's next sets of top tens (peanut vendors, concession stand line lengths, and flush-free urinals).