Game 112 Thread: August 3 vs. Cubs, 1p

Josh Beckett (6-5, 2.74) vs. Edwin Jackson (5-11, 5.79).

Edwin Jackson was a 19-year old Dodger prospect in 2003; he lasted three seasons with the Dodgers and posted a 6-4 record with a 5.50 ERA and a 75 ERA+. It wasn't until 2009, two stops later, when Jackson made an All-Star Game; he's languished overall with a career 4.57 ERA / 92 ERA+. With the Cubs the last two seasons, he's worse: 13-29 with a 5.31 ERA and a 73 ERA+. Still, given the issues with four and five in our rotation, including #4 starter Josh Beckett this afternoon, might we be singing "I Want You Back" to Jackson?

If you ask me, the register is just too high, even for Jackson. Not to mention that crazy sunburst collar. (The afro is sweet, however; Edwin should look into that.) With our exhausting of the bullpen yesterday night, it would be great if Beckett could go long and save some arms for the upcoming two-game "series" vs. the Angels. I'm not even asking for a no-hitter, Josh. Just a solid outing.

And then maybe we'd sing, "I Want You Beck(ett)".

Post-Game 133 Thread: Back Streaking Again

DODGERS 4, CUBS 0

The Dodgers got back to their series-winning ways this afternoon, taking the rubber match with the Cubs behind solo shots from Hanley Ramirez and Andre Ethier, as well as a fifth-inning Cubs implosion ignited by a throwing error by Cubs pitcher Edwin Jackson, which lead to a two-run frame. Ricky Nolasco had another impressive performance, 8.0 IP of 3 H, 0 R ball (1 BB, 11 Ks), and Kenley Jansen closed it out in the ninth.

Not that this game wasn't without intrigue, however. First of all, it was hot as all get out at the Stadium. But besides that, Yasiel Puig, who started the game in right field, was pulled from the game in the fifth inning for "disciplinary reasons". It was unclear whether that was because Puig didn't go hard into second in the first inning, abdicating an attempt to break up the double play (which the Cubs pulled off); or whether his K in the 3rd was just too painful. Or, as ESPN suggests, but I didn't note, perhaps because Puig made some fly outs in right that appeared to be a little too cavalier. Either way, seeing Skip Schumaker in the fifth was odd. So let's hope this isn't anything serious, just a Puig blip.

To his credit, Puig was mature about his early dismissal:

"I wanted to finish the game, but I agreed with the explanation," Puig said. "The meeting went well. We talked about what every player needs to do to prepare for every pitch."

And here's Beto Duran:

Puig said meeting with Mattingly was good "he explained what I have to do. Give 100% dont matter if your tired"

— Beto Duran (@DuranSports) August 28, 2013

Dodgers rest up tomorrow before three with the Padres at home, starting Friday.

Gagne + Math Proves Chin-Feng Chen Very Probably Juiced

Former Dodger Eric Gagne claims 80 percent of his teammates were juicing. Then today, Adrian Beltre, Robin Ventura, and Edwin Jackson commented that they aren't in the 80%:

"He should have mentioned names," Beltre said. "I know for sure I'm not one of them. I haven't read the book. I'm not interested in it. He should have come up with names instead of a percentage."

Beltre, teammates with Gagne when the pitcher won the Cy Young in 2003, said he doesn't have any interest in reading the book, especially when informed it's in French.

"My French is not too good," Beltre said. "Everybody has the right to say whatever they say. If they feel the need to write a book about it, what can I say?"

Gagne first admitted publicly to using HGH in 2010.

In the book, Gagne does not provide any names of players he says used PEDs. Baseball began stricter testing in the spring of 2006. Players are subject to HGH testing during spring training and in the offseason, but not during the season.

Beltre was not the only one to respond to Gagne's claims. Chicago White Sox manager Robin Ventura finished his 16-year career with the Dodgers in 2003-04, playing in a total of 151 games.

"Apparently, I'm the 20 percent," Ventura told MLB.com. "I don't, I mean, I was never around it. So it's just one of those (things) that maybe he knows something I don't."

Doing a very cursory glance at the 2003 and 2004 Dodgers squad, I'm counting 66 players, including Gagne:

• Paul Lo Duca
• Fred McGriff
• Shawn Green
• Alex Cora
• Cesar Izturis
• Adrian Beltre
• Jeromy Burnitz
• Jayson Werth
• Milton Bradley
• Juan Encarnacion
• Jolbert Cabrera
• Mike Kinkade
• Brian Jordan
• Ron Coomer
• Rickey Henderson
• Wilkin Raun
• Todd Hundley
• Larry Barnes
• Jason Romano
• Chad Hermenson
• Bubba Crosby
• Koyie Hill
• Daryle Ward
• Dave Roberts
• Steve Finley
• Jose Hernandez
• Jason Grabowski
• David Ross
• Robin Ventura
• Olmedo Saenz
• Brent Mayne
• Hee-Seop Choi
• Joe Thurston
• Antonio Perez
• Chin-Feng Chen
• Kevin Brown
• Wilson Alvarez
• Andy Ashby
• Paul Shuey
• Paul Quantrill
• Scott Mullen
• Steve Colyer
• Troy Brohawn
• Victor Alvarez
• Tom Wilson
• Jose Flores
• Jeff Weaver
• Odalis Perez
• Kazuhisa Ishii
• Jose Lima
• Hideo Nomo
• Edwin Jackson
• Guillermo Mota
• Duaner Sanchez
• Brad Penny
• Elmer Dessens
• Eric Gagne
• Brian Falkenborg
• Giovanni Carrara
• Yhency Brazoban
• Darren Dreifort
• Tom Martin
• Rodney Myers
• Mike Venafro
• Masao Kida
• Scott Stewart

If you take Gagne out, that leaves 65 players, 52 of whom are juicing. We now can put three of the 65 in the "non-juicing" category. This means of the 62 players left, if 52 of them are juicing, it's now up to an 84% chance that a remaining name is an offender.

I think from this math, we can safely assume that Chin-Feng Chen was juicing. And that probably explains how he popped from a career .000 average in his first three years to a .250 average in his final year (2005). Now I understand.

Someone check my math on this, please.

World Series Game 4 Thread: Cardinals @ Rangers, 5p

Edwin Jackson (1-0, 5.84). vs. Derek Holland (1-0, 5.27).

"The Cardinals and Rangers have scored a total of eight runs in their first two games. Expect them to exceed that in Game 3 alone," I wrote yesterday. Game 3's total runs? 23. Herewith:

FIVE THINGS THAT WILL HAPPEN IN GAME 4

1. Um, fewer than twenty-three total runs. Pujols fewer than three homers. Going out on a limb here.

2. A former Dodger (Jackson? Furcal? Theriot? Beltre?) does something productive, annoying Dodger fans everywhere.

3. Shot of Nolan Ryan with MASSIVE TENSION HEADACHE.

4. Yadier Molina signs an endorsement deal with Maybelline eyeliner.

5. Ogando vs. Craig (Part 4) settled by arm wrestling.

photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images

Hey Ned, I Hear Pat Burrell's Available

"You look at catchers, they're hard to find," says Ned Colletti. Which is why you probably shouldn't trade a future star catcher for a brittle third baseman. Colletti is on record as saying he regrets trading Carlos Santana for Casey Blake. So do we.

After saddling the Dodgers with Juan Uribe and Ted Lilly for the next three years, after starting a black hole in left field for much of this season, and after watching the Dodgers' milquetoast offense produce less heat than a can of Sterno, Colletti has traded Trayvon Robinson, one of his top offensive prospects — and a switch-hitting outfielder at that.

The return for Robinson? The next A.J. Ellis, a starter who can barely break 90 mph, and a middle reliever (who are pretty easy to find). After Colletti's impatience with the likes of Santana, Edwin Jackson and James McDonald, let's hope he isn't merely trying to undo the damage of falling over himself to acquire "experienced players" (i.e., old farts).

Next year is the final guaranteed year in Colletti's contract, and the Dodgers' ownership turmoil places his future beyond 2012 in further doubt. Colletti's done well to flip Rafael Furcal for a Cardinals prospect, and locking up Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier is an obvious short-term goal (if not currently a pipe dream).

Barring a miracle or five, the 2012 Dodgers won't be much better than this year's team. If Colletti's wheeling and dealing simply prevents next year's team from being much worse, the new ownership would be justified in replacing him. The Dodgers are the Titanic, and these B-level prospects are deck chairs. How much longer can Dodger fans tread water?

The Cardinals: The Place To Go After Graduating From The Dodgers

Cardinals shortstop Rafael Furcal (left) talks with teammate Edwin Jackson in the dugout before a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

Oh man, does this photo hurt.

Jackson has a 299 ERA+ with the Cards this year, after one 7.0 IP, 1 ER start.

photo by Chris Lee, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Assorted Ex-Dodger Trade Rumors

ESPN.com's Trade Deadline rumors is heating up as we enter the last four days. And while the Dodgers haven't really been mentioned (except peripherally in the Roy Oswalt and Ted Lilly discussions), there are a couple of ex-Dodgers rumored to be moving:

• Edwin Jackson: Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports that the D-Backs are not done dealing yet and will listen to offers on Edwin Jackson, who will be a free agent after the 2011 season. One of those offers may be from the nation's capital. ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney tweeted Monday that the Nats have made progress in their effort to trade prospects for Jackson, the architect of an eight-walk no-hitter.

  There had been speculation on a three-team deal involving the White Sox and Nationals, but Gilbert said there had been no such discussions as of Monday afternoon. Gilbert adds that the D-backs would still like to move catcher Chris Snyder and reliever Chad Qualls and would not be opposes to trading first baseman Adam LaRoche.

• Chan Ho Park: The Yankees are trying to unload veteran reliever Chan Ho Park, reports ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. The Yankees will likely get little back for a reliever who has allowed seven home runs in just 32.1 innings. The 37-year-old is earning $1.2 million this year.
• Jayson Werth: Rumors began to fly Monday afternoon that the Phillies and Padres had agreed on a deal that would land Werth in San Diego, but ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports via Twitter that the two clubs have not agreed to a deal, citing one source as saying "not true...had discussions...not close."

Sights & Flights from Opening Day

"Hey, did anyone drop a Gold Glove? Oh wait, it's mine!"

Sterling smiles, Silver Sluggers.

LeAnn Rimes (national anthem) and will.i.am (ceremonial first pitch) chill before the game.

Former Dodgers Don Newcombe and Edwin Jackson.

Both teams execute a complicated stand-under maneuver.

Is it still Opening Week? Whatever, I'll take it!

Rihanna rocks Dodger Blue.

Reed Johnson fits right in with Kemp and Ethier.

1&7: Jon SooHoo/Dodgers via dodgerfan.net; 2&5: Jill Weisleder/Dodgers; 3&4: Reed Saxon/AP; 6&8: Jeff Gross/Getty Images

Ain't Gonna Happen, Part 2

In no surprise based on last week's disavowal of interest, Chien-Ming Wang is going to the Nationals, not the Dodgers.

The Washington Nationals have agreed to terms with former New York Yankees right-hander Chien-Ming Wang, according to media reports.

MLB.com and MASNsports.com, the Web site for Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, which broadcasts Nationals games, both reported the agreement, citing sources.

The Nationals are scheduled to hold a news conference Friday at their spring training home in Viera, Fla., according to the reports.

Meanwhile, over the weekend, Arizona reached terms with former Dodger Edwin Jackson, avoiding arbritration by offering $13.4M / two years. (I don't think this technically qualifies as "ain't gonna happen", but it does serve as a reminder of another that got away):

Jackson went 13-9 with a 3.62 ERA in 33 starts for the Tigers last season, making his first All-Star team. He was acquired in a three-team deal in December that also moved All-Star center fielder Curtis Granderson from Detroit to the New York Yankees.

Jackson gets an $800,000 signing bonus and a $4.2 million salary this season. He is slated to earn $8.35 million next year.

The 26-year-old Jackson is 38-39 with a 4.66 ERA in 139 career games over seven seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tampa Bay and Detroit.

Edwin Jackson Returns to NL West in Three-Way (the Unsexy Kind)

Granderson To Yanks, Edwin Jackson To D'Backs, Scherzer To Tigers (MLBTR)

Would have loved to have seen E-Jax back in Dodger Blue, but until proven otherwise, I'm assuming the Dodgers don't have the money or trade chips to make significant deals.

AvB 11: Edin Jackson Still Without a W

The alternative title I considered for this week's update was "Anything You Can Suck at I Can Suck at Better". Consider: the Babes had zero home runs; the Abes had a 7.25 ERA; the Abes batted 0.212 and won that category. But in the end, both teams sucked the same amount, and Week 11 ended in another sister-kissing tie.

Not that Edwin Jackson didn't do all he could to help the Abes lose. While some may think I pick on Jackson too much (read here), I think he again warrants our special attention given his start last Wed vs the Padres:

Pitcher	IP	H	R	ER	HR
Edwin Jackson (L, 0-8)	0.1	5	5	5	2

Jackson (0-8, 8.20 ERA) - hereforeto be called "Edin Jackson" until he gets a W - has been so consistently crappy that he has not one but two outside chances at immortality:

• Most losses without a win to start a season (13, Anthony Young)
• Worst ERA for a pitcher with 15 or more decisions (8.25, Hideo Nomo)

But the bottom line is that the Babes performed so poorly that the Abes had a rare chance at victory - and blew it. In fact both teams were so bad that this week's Player of the Week award is about as meaningful as being named the most talented Baldwin brother. Nonetheless, the award goes to Ted Lilly (W, 8IP, 1ER, 3Ks).

Here are the Scoreboards (behold the difference Jackson makes):

Week 11 Only: The Abes The Babes Avg 0.212 0.211 Runs 18 16 HRs 3 0 RBIs 18 12 SBs 1 3 ERA 7.25 2.83 Wins 1 2 Saves 0 0 Ks 14 42 Total 4 4

Cumulative: The Abes The Babes Avg 0.245 0.266 Runs 241 215 HRs 37 39 RBIs 204 210 SBs 16 36 ERA (woEJ*) 4.75 (4.10) 4.26 (4.26) Wins 11 21 Saves 0 0 Ks 261 326 Total 1 7 *ERA without Edin Jackson

The Babes lead the Abes in Weeks Won 7-2-2

With 15 weeks left in the regular season, there's still time for the Devil Rays to pull Jackson from the rotation and give the Abes a fighting chance. Because remember - you can't spell "Edwin Jackson" without "No Wins".

AvB 8: Circus Rained Out; Bush Quick to Respond

Before the 2006 season, when then-Dodger Edwin Jackson took his Circus of Hanging Curveballs (known in Canada as 'Suck du Soleil') to Tampa Bay, he apparently didn't change his m.o.: suck early, and suck often. In the 16 months since, Jackson (0-6, 7.78 ERA) has aggressively established himself as the worst starter on both the Devil Rays and the Abes, and is a big reason why thusfar Abes vs Babes has been All Babes, No Abes.

So when Jackson's Week 8 start was rained out, allowing the Devil Rays to skip his turn in the rotation, it looked to be good news for the Abes. However, two other Abes starters - Milwaukee's Dave Bush and Oakland's Joe Kennedy - quickly stepped up to assume Jackson's role, each giving up 7 ERs in their respective starts.

This all meant another loss in Week 8 for the Abes, a week that nobody seemed to want to win - in fact, neither team notched a win. The Babes' Carl Crawford becomes the first 2-time recipient of the Player of the Week award with a solid but relatively modest week (0.571, 0HR, 4RBI, 1SB).

After a brief whiff of victory in Week 5, it looks like the Abes are back to their losing ways. They trail the Babes in cumulative Stat Categories 7-1 and Weeks Won 5-1-1. For the Abes' sake, let's hope someone named Pujols or Santana enters the '08 presidential race soon.

Here're the Scoreboards:

Week 8 Only: The Abes The Babes Avg 0.263 0.283 Runs 20 17 HRs 2 3 RBIs 11 19 SBs 1 3 ERA 8.62 3.77 Wins 0 0 Saves 0 0 Ks 7 29 Total 1 6

Cumulative: The Abes The Babes Avg 0.251 0.268 Runs 187 164 HRs 26 32 RBIs 145 155 SBs 14 28 ERA 4.80 3.87 Wins 6 13 Saves 0 0 Ks 174 222 Total 1 7

And here are the full details on both the Abes' and Babes' pitchers:

Abes Pitchers:

Player	President	Team	ERA	Wins	Saves	Ks
Randy Johnson	Andrew	ARI	4.54	2	0	47
Tyler Johnson	Andrew	STL	1.08	0	0	11
Jim Johnson	Andrew	BAL	9.00	0	0	1
Joe Kennedy	John F	OAK	3.62	1	0	21
Edwin Jackson	Andrew	TB	7.78	0	0	31
CJ Wilson	Woodrow	TEX	2.16	0	0	17
Dave Bush	George	MIL	6.13	3	0	46
TOTAL			4.80	6	0	174

Babes Pitchers:

Player	Maxim Girl	Team	ERA	Wins	Saves	Ks
Trever Miller	Sienna	HOU	5.65	0	0	16
Wade Miller	Sienna	CHC	10.54	0	0	6
Andrew Miller	Sienna	DET	0.00	1	0	2
Justin Miller	Sienna	FLA	1.93	0	0	6
Jason Miller	Sienna	MIN	0.00	0	0	1
Joe Smith	Kim	NYM	1.25	1	0	25
Matt Smith	Kim	PHI	11.25	0	0	1
Anibal Sanchez	Roselyn	FLA	4.80	2	0	14
Jonathon Sanchez	Roselyn	SF	5.52	1	0	21
Ted Lilly	Avangeline	PHI	3.20	4	0	56
Heath Bell	Katherine	SD	1.20	0	0	34
Byung-Hyun Kim	Yunjin	FLA	7.02	2	0	11
Juan Cruz	Penelope	ARI	2.35	2	0	19
Sean Green	Eva	SEA	2.70	0	0	10
TOTAL			3.87	13	0	222