Pretty nice piece from TWC Sportsnet here. Nice to see Beckett seems comfortable with his new life, one season after throwing a no-hitter with the Dodgers.
Showing posts with label Josh Beckett. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Josh Beckett. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 14, 2015
Sunday, August 03, 2014
Post-Game 112 Thread: The Black Hole Of 4 and 5
As the movie poster says, "You can't escape the most powerful force in the universe." That may be true for Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, and Hyun-Jin Ryu; however, when we throw up Dan Haren or Josh Beckett this second half of the season, much like a black hole, you can't escape the suck.
Beckett had yet another non-quality start, this time going 4.0 IP before being pulled three batters into the fifth, having given up two more runs to put the Dodgers down 3-1. Beckett did have 6 Ks to go with his 3 BBs, but was as shakey as a pizza parlor and Mattingly had no choice but to go to the pen early...which proved fateful when Brandon League and Chris Perez combined to give up four runs in the last two innings to put the game out of reach. Not even Matt Kemp, who homered again and went 2-for-4 on the day, could claw back this deficit.
You might have heard this once or ten thousand times during the broadcasts, but when a last-place team comes out and spanks you Friday, and again Sunday (and our Saturday win was only due to extra-inning heroics), it doesn't give one a lot of confidence. Nor does the back half of our starting rotation, which seems universally catastrophic. Better fire up those waiver wire deals, Neddie.
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)".
Depressing Starting Pitching News
Lefty reliever Paco Rodriguez was recalled to replace Maholm in the bullpen. Rodriguez had a 4.40 ERA at Triple-A Albuquerque, where he threw a perfect inning Friday night. This is the third recall this year for Rodriguez, who also was on the Opening Day roster.
Maholm underwent an MRI that revealed the tear. The Dodgers said treatment plans are still to be determined, but the injury almost certainly will require reconstructive surgery. Maholm tore the ACL in his left knee in high school.LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers left-handed reliever Paul Maholm suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee Friday night and is lost for the rest of the season.
If you go to the link, you can see the play where Maholm got hurt, but it's not something you'll want to see. I feel bad for Maholm, as you never want to see a guy in blue go down like that. Get well soon, Paul.
In other depressing news, Dan Haren, who has lost the groove that Stella had found, has no choice but to take his next start Wednesday, against the Angels:
"As I sit here today, Danny goes," manager Don Mattingly said Saturday. "I guess anything could change. You don't know what could happen between now and then. There's no plans, no talk of changing."
Haren allowed seven runs (six earned) on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings Friday, earning his fifth straight loss. Haren has a 10.03 ERA in that five-game losing streak, allowing 36 hits and six home runs in 23 1/3 innings. Opponents have hit .340 with a 1.016 OPS in that stretch.
After going 5-3 with a 3.28 ERA in his first 11 starts, Haren has going 3-6 with a 6.52 ERA in has last 11.LOS ANGELES -- Right-hander Dan Haren had another rough outing Friday in an 8-2 loss to the Cubs, but as of now the Dodgers are still planning to start him Wednesday against the Angels.
After Red Patterson, the next option for the Dodgers is Zach Lee, who is 6-10 with a 5.22 ERA in Triple-A ball this year. Gosh I'm hoping Beckett can figure it out, quick.
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Post-Game 107 Thread: Matt Kemp Would Indeed Like Fries With That
Matt Kemp is either not listening to the noise about trade talks. Or maybe he is? Either way, Kemp powered the Dodgers to a series-opening victory against the Braves, knocking a two-run HR in the second inning off of ex-Dodger Aaron Harang, and then another two-run HR in the seventh off of Anthony Varvaro, who took the loss. The latter broke open a back and forth game that was settled in a 4-4 tie; Carl Crawford (1-for-3 with 2 RBI and a run) started the scoring that inning by grounding to second, scoring Yasiel Puig, but then Kemp's HR to center scored Adrian Gonzalez and made the score 7-4.
The Dodgers tacked on another run in the eighth when Adrian Gonzalez (3-for-5 with 2 RBI and 2 runs) doubled in Dee Gordon from second.
The other offensive power in the Dodgers lineup was Yasiel Puig, who went 4-for-5 with 2 runs, but massively failed in the seventh inning by striking out only a home run away from the cycle. Clearly, Puig needs more practice, certainly if he wants to improve his team-leading batting average from .317. Said Harang, "I made some bad pitches over the middle of the plate that he could hit." Uh, yeah.
Josh Beckett was once again not great, lasting only 4.1 IP and giving up 9 H and 4 ER, with 4 BB and 2 Ks. But Jamey Wright, Brandon League (who got the win), J.P. Howell, and Kenley Jansen combined for a scoreless 4.2 innings to preserve the win. Dodgers move to three games up on the Giants, who lost again.
UPDATE: And holy smokes, how could I forget this? The Dodgers just won four games in a row for the first time all year! In honor of this feat, a picture of an In-N-Out 4x4:
Kemp photo: Jae C. Hong / AP
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Game 107 Thread: July 29 vs Barves, 7p
Kung Fu Panda
Josh Beckett (6-5, 2.52) vs. Aaron Harang (9-6, 3.31)
If there's anything that SoSG has done over the years, it's beat a dead horse using memes and superstition. You wouldn't have it any other way. Thus, we'll look to continue the burger-themed GT what brung us on our current successful run.
By way of getting shellacked by the Pie Rats yesterday, Gnats are 2 games back and looking like they're fading fast, having lost five games in a row, with little hope to ketchup. They mustard been crazy to think Dan Uggla was the person to solve their defensive problems.
The pitching from the front three Dodger starters has been nothing short of epic, but the Noffense is always a threat to rear its head, so this home stand will be an important test. We're counting on Big Mac to help the Dodger hitters with the second part of that.
Either way, landing in Dodger fans' Happy Meals tonight will be a classic give-away:
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Post-Game 102 Thread: Pirates Plunder Dodgers
It was almost a game. Pirates had two solo shots in the second; Dodgers return with two runs in the top of the third (Adrian Gonzalez and Andre Ethier RBI). Pirates get two more runs in the bottom of the third; A.J. Ellis knocks in two in the top of the sixth.
but with A.J. Ellis on second and one out, the Dodgers keep Paul Maholm (who took over for Josh Beckett in the fourth) to bat. Maholm Ks, and Dee Gordon flies out. And then immediately afterward, Maholm gives up two leadoff singles, is replaced by Jamey Wright, but the floodgates are open and the Pirates score four runs.
The Dodgers come back to make it 8-6, in the top of the seventh, with a two-run A-Gon shot. And we get one more back on a solo Scott Van Slyke shot in the eighth to make it 8-7.
And then Don Mattingly gets his second ill-fated idea of the night, to go to Chris Perez in the bottom of the eighth. Perez gets one out and then delivers four straight walks; Brandon League tries to relieve Perez and gives up two straight singles. 12-7 is the score through eight, and that's all she wrote.
Mattingly tried very, very hard to go with the freezing cold hand tonight, depending on Maholm and Perez to...screw things up. What a missed opportunity.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Game 102 Thread: July 22 @ Pirates, 4p
Josh Beckett (6-5, 2.26) vs. Vance Worley (2-1, 3.38).
The Pirates' offense, undoubtedly frustrated after seven innings of extended-rest Ryu, today face a fresh-off-the-DL Beckett, who is currently being held together with spit and baling wire. "I feel like as long as I'm not messing up my mechanics and I feel like I can get people out, I'm just going to ride it out until the end of the year," he said. It's not exactly Mel Gibson's speech in Braveheart, but as long as Beckett can keep filling that number-four slot, we'll take it.
Wednesday, July 02, 2014
What A Difference A Day Makes
One day after climbing the mountain, and reaching first place all alone after three weeks of grinding Giants down, the Dodgers lost one game to the Indians. And yet, if you listen to ESPN.com's Mark Saxon, the naivete of Dee Gordon and Yasiel Puig, coupled with the brittleness of veterans Josh Beckett and Dan Haren, is enough to fall right back into second-place depths of despair:
Such opportunities probably include explaining to Dee Gordon that taking off from third base on a shallow fly ball to left with nobody out might not be the smartest base-running play and that attempting to swipe second with nobody out in the sixth with your team trailing by four also might not be the right call.
While he was in a teaching mood, Mattingly probably pointed out to Yasiel Puig a couple of overeager running plays, one of which proved successful, the other turned into the tail end of a bizarre triple play.
But what Tuesday really showed the Dodgers is how tenuous life can be when you're relying on two aging starting pitchers to hold up the back of your rotation.
Granted, every start Josh Beckett and Dan Haren have made this season for the Dodgers has ranged between "serviceable" and "historically brilliant." Without their contributions, the Dodgers would still be flopping around many games out of first place and dogged by the "underachiever" label.
But earlier this season, Haren, 33 and with a chronic bad back, said, "I feel discomfort 24 hours a day, seven days a week pretty much, at this point of my career," and the 2,000 career innings suddenly seem to be catching up to Beckett, 34. LOS ANGELES -- Don Mattingly said Tuesday night's 10-3 loss to the Cleveland Indians "just shows us that we've still got a lot to continue to work on." He mentioned a plethora of "teaching opportunities."
It's one game. Gordon and Puig make one scratch one's head sometimes too often, true (STOP BUNTING, DEE). But Haren just had a great outing and 1-0 victory, and if I'm not mistaken, Beckett just notched a no-hitter a short time ago. It's one day. Let's just get back to winning, and there won't have to be this despair.
Post-Game 86 Thread: Again, Fantastic Four Denied
We just can't win our fourth in a row. The sixth time was not the charm for us, as Josh Beckett gave up three runs in the first and two more runs in the third, putting us in a 5-2 hole (we inched back two runs in the bottom of the first, off a skillfully-tweeted Adrian Gonzalez HR):
"How 'bout that Gonzalez homer?!"
— Sons of Steve Garvey (@sosgsosg) July 2, 2014But any hope of a Dodgers comeback, and overcoming this curse of the fourth consecutive win, was lost in the bottom of the fourth. With none out and already having scored one run in the inning, we had Yasiel Puig on first and Dee Gordon on third, and Gonzalez at the plate. Gonzalez then unbelievably flied into a 7-2-4 triple play, which not even Don Mattingly's meek challenge call could overcome.
Jamey Wright gave up two more runs in the sixth, and Paul Maholm gave up three more runs in his two innings of slop, but who the hell is counting at that point. It's amazing how all the confidence of June evaporated in the first game in July, but here we are: back in second place, and struggling to figure out why we have tetraphobia. I just hope we figure it out before Friday...the Fourth of July.
Tuesday, July 01, 2014
Game 86 Thread: July 1 vs. Indians, 7p
It seems like just yesterday that we heralded the onset of another attempt at the elusive four-game win streak. Today, we stand on the precipice of doing just that. Thus a repetition of the now-talismanic Game Thread image.
And who better to tee off on than Justin Masterson? Per MLB's game preview:
Masterson's start was pushed back two days after it was revealed he has been bothered by a sore knee all season. The struggling sinkerballer's up-and-down year continued when he gave up five runs on seven hits in four innings vs. the D-backs.Problem is, though, Josh Beckett has been suffering "general soreness." Apparently nothing specific, and nothing related to his arm or last year's surgery, but something the team is monitoring. If he can't go, sounds like Red Patterson would be called into action. In that case, you may be seeing Will Ferrell's image again soon.
Don't make Will angry.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Post-Game 81 Thread: Dodgers Win A Duel
Brian Wilson just won his first game this year. On his own bobblehead night. That's weird.
Josh Beckett just outdueled Adam Wainwright. Beckett went 7.0 IP with 0 ER and 4 H (2 BB, 4 Ks). Wainwright succumbed in the eighth inning when Juan Uribe had a leadoff single, Drew Butera sacrificed Uribe to second, and Miguel Rojas and PH Justin Turner had consecutive singles to score Uribe. Wainwright, who didn't allow a hit until the sixth inning, settled down and struck out Dee Gordon and Yasiel Puig. But it was too late, the Dodgers had broken through with one run.
Kenley Jansen came out for the ninth and struck out Nutshot, but then allowed a one-out single to Matt Adams, who was lifted for PR Peter Bourjos. However, Butera and Rojas combined to catch Bourjos stealing after Bourjos overslid the bag and was tagged out (a call that was upheld on review). The Dodgers had already benefitted from an earlier review call, when Matt Kemp threw home to catch Allan Craig at home for the third out in the top of the seventh.
So a lot went the Dodgers way tonight...notwithstanding the outcome of the Reds @ Giants game up north. At the halfway point of the season, the Dodgers look to finally be getting some momentum?! We'll take it!
Game 81 Thread: June 26 vs. Cardinals, 7p
Josh Beckett (5-4, 2.28) vs. Adam Wainwright (10-3, 2.08)
Aw jeez, these guys again? At least Hanley's already hurt this time.
It's worth noting that this has been promoted as a "great pitching matchup," which just goes to show how far Beckett has come. A couple months ago, it may have been described as "a horror show of a mismatch."
Oh, and it's weird hair-face bobblething night, too. Hooray.
UPDATE: Uribear's back!
Juannie the Pooh returns! http://t.co/g16scCYLDA
— TheConman (@akaTheConman) June 26, 2014Sunday, June 15, 2014
Post-Game 71 Thread: Dodger,s Sloppy, Drop Game
So much for startin' somethin'. With all the fire of a candle in the wind, the Dodgers played the seventh inning of what was a 2-1 game like a bunch of Little Leaguers, basically ceding the game. Let's recap the action:
First, Miguel Montero gets a one-out single when Adrian Gonzalez takes a couple of steps toward a grounder that he can't possibly retrieve, and Josh Beckett forgets to cover first, leaving Dee Gordon (who fielded said ball) to try and outrun Montero to first (Gordon failed). Then a basehit to left is fielded by Matt Kemp so lackadaisically, that Montero scurries all the way to third, with Aaron Hill stretching his hit into a double. Finally, Martin Prado hits a ball to Gordon, who blows the play, notching yet another error and allowing two runs to score. Once 2-1 Arizona, now it's 4-1, and the Dodgers look like a bunch of imbeciles. (I'm not even mentioning Drew Butera running right through the stop sign in the bottom of the seventh, getting tagged out at third base, and limiting the Dodgers' rally to one run.)
Yesterday, we had the DD working for us. Today, it was more like ADHD. Part of the reason why we haven't won four in a row yet this year is because we can't seem to sustain concentration for more than a couple of games at a time, tops. We can't keep expecting the Rockies to make comeback victories on the hapless Giants, and not take advantage of this ourselves. Time for sloppiness to end, guys.
Game 71 Thread: June 15 vs. Diamondbacks, 1p
Josh Beckett (4-3, 2.35) vs. Bronson Arroyo (6-4, 4.22).
With five wins in their last seven games, the Dodgers have closed the division lead gap to 6.5 games, the lowest it has been all month. Do we wanna be startin' somethin'? Because, holy mullets, Bronson Arroyo is today's opposing starter! Arroyo is 5-5 with a 3.75 ERA lifetime against the Dodgers, and though he's run rings around us before, the Dodgers' recent resurgence (including yesterday's impressive come-from-behind victory) means we will likely continue a fine Dodger tradition this afternoon and start scribbling all over ol' Saturn Nuts at the Stadium.
The Dodgers are 10-3 against the Diamondbacks this season. Let's keep this rolling, ladies and gents!
Friday, May 30, 2014
Game 56 Thread: May 30 vs. Pirates, 7p
Josh Beckett (3-1, 2.43) vs. Francisco Liriano (0-5, 5.83)
In one of the weirdest trivia tidbits ever, tonight's starting catcher, Droopy Terra, caught both Beckett's and Liriano's no-hitters. (Wait, that guy who's 0-5 with a 5.83 ERA threw a no-hitter? Butera is magic.)
Will Beckett be able to pull a Johnny Vander Meer and throw two straight no-nos, or would that tear a hole in the fabric of the universe? As cool as that would be, I think most of us would be happy with just getting a victory.
--
Let this also serve as a GT for Kings/Blackhawks Game 6. Puck drops at 6pm.
Photo by Jon SooHoo, via @Dodgers.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
That Beckett Free Pizza Thing Didn't Work Out So Well
From Deadspin, a recap on that Domino's free-pizza-for-a-no-hitter promotion, which (unlike the revitalized Beckett, I might add) had redemption difficulties:
MLB.com was unprepared for the crush at 3 p.m. EDT today, when registered users were first allowed to try and claim their coupon code. The site was slow, and down, and timed out, and did whatever it could to keep you from your hot, savory pizza (carryout only). There were only 20,000 codes available—far too few to sate the gaping maws of baseball fans. By the time most people got through, it was too late: All the codes had been claimed.Josh Beckett's no-hitter was a story of redemption—the redemption, by you, of a coupon code in exchange for a medium two-topping pizza from Dominos. Americans love free pizza, but there's a necessary corollary: they hate not having free pizza.
What follows, on the link, is a cavalcade of angry tweets aimed at Domino's and MLB.
Did any of you SoSG readers try? And were you, like the Reds, shut out?
Things Looking Up For The Dodgers?
A no-hitter by Josh Beckett, a perfect game through seven innings by Hyun-Jin Ryu, and yet another solid outing by Zack Greinke. It's enough to start getting people thinking that the Dodgers are about to turn a very important corner, as these three wins may point to something big finally happening.
ESPN's David Schoenfield called it right after Beckett's game:
That was a different Beckett than the one we see now. That was a 23-year-old kid from Texas with the monster fastball and cocky attitude that had made him the second overall pick in the 1999 draft. Now he's crafty 34-year-old, working in the low 90s, mixing in more cutters and changeups then he did as a fireballing youngster. Back with the Marlins and during his early years with the Red Sox, Beckett would throw his fastball more than 60 percent of the time. That percentage has slowly declined, dropping to less than 40 percent his year. He doesn't blow you away any longer.
Actually, it makes you wonder: What if Beckett had learned to "pitch" earlier in his career? The promise of that 2003 postseason perhaps created unrealistic expectations for his career. He's been inconsistent -- posting a 5.01 ERA his first year with the Red Sox but winning 20 games and finishing second in the Cy Young voting his second season in Boston. That was 2007, when he further cemented himself as a big-game pitcher when he tossed his third career postseason shutout, won both his starts in the ALCS and then his lone start in the World Series as the Red Sox swept the Rockies. He wasn't as effective in the 2008 and 2009 postseason, and then had the chicken-and-beer issues with the Red Sox in 2011 and Boston happily shipped him out of town in that 2012 blockbuster trade with the Dodgers.
Will he get another chance in the postseason? The Dodgers are difficult team to peg right now. They're 27-24, below expectations, even though they've had strong performances from Beckett, Zack Greinke (7-1, 2.01 ERA), Yasiel Puig (hitting .349/.438/.623), Adrian Gonzalez (.277, 12 home runs) and Dee Gordon (.293, 30 stolen bases). The rotation, despite great work from Beckett and Greinke, has been mediocre overall as Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu have both missed time. The bullpen has struggled with a 4.15 ERA.
This could be the time the Dodgers make a nice run, however. The rotation is now intact. Puig is on fire. Sixteen of their next 23 games are at home (although the Dodgers are just 9-13 at home). Beckett's strong start is just another reason to still think the Dodgers are as good as everyone predicted back in March.Dodgers announcer Charley Steiner, perhaps caught up in the moment, called it the greatest game Beckett ever pitched. I'm not sure I'd agree with that. Beckett, after all, pitched a five-hit shutout against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium to clinch the 2003 World Series. Earlier, in the NLCS against the Cubs with the Marlins facing elimination, he pitched a two-hit, 11-strikeout shutout.
Mark Saxon jumped on the bandwagon, right after Ryu's outing:
If ever the Dodgers had a chance to get on a roll, it’s now, behind a rotation humming and purring its way through the schedule. And if ever they needed to fix their defensive shortcomings to appease those pitchers and go all-in on stopping the other team from scoring, it was now.
So, if it’s uncomfortable to see one of the team’s most talented players -- Matt Kemp -- stuck to the bench and, according to scouting reports, one of the organization’s weakest hitters -- Erisbel Arruebarrena -- playing every day, keep the prime directive in mind. The Dodgers are about pitching and defense ... always were, really.
They just lost some of their identity while they were jousting with the Washington Nationals for most errors in the league.
So, that’s why Andre Ethier and his two home runs are playing center field every day. That’s why Arruebarrena was tapped as Hanley Ramirez’s replacement. That’s why the Dodgers won’t think about moving Yasiel Puig out of right field, where they think he’s the best defender at his position in the league.
The organization has been in frantic, fix-the-fielding mode for a while now.
“It wasn’t about trying. We were trying, but it was just costing us too much,” Mattingly said. “I know it’s not sexy to play good defense and nobody talks about it too much. But when you watch games, it can cost your pitchers an extra 25 pitches and force you to use your bullpen in different ways.
“It tells you you’ve got to catch the baseball. This pitching is that good that we’ve got to be able to catch the ball for them.” What that really tells us is that the Dodgers have a very good starting rotation that is trending toward special. After all, this was 17 hitless innings from the Nos. 3 and 4 starters. The next two guys to pitch are both Cy Young winners -- Zack Greinke and Clayton Kershaw.
But look, there are still signs of worry. The Dodgers might have had three error-less games right there, but the Monday game saw the Dodgers' 4-0 lead evaporate into a scary one-run victory, and even yesterday's 6-1 lead got a lot closer before the Dodgers prevailed 6-3. We're not out of the woods just yet, guys.
Good luck tonight, Clayton!
Beckett's No-Hitter Keeps On Giving
20,000 free pizzas to America isn't enough! Now Josh Beckett is giving out ticket discounts to his next start at Dodger Stadium on Friday vs. the Pirates:
In celebration of Josh Beckett delivering the 11th no-hitter in Los Angeles Dodgers history, the Dodgers are offering a limited number of $11 Infield Reserve, Preferred Reserve and Left Field Pavilion tickets to Josh Beckett’s next start Friday against Pittsburgh.
But wait, it's the 21st no-hitter in Dodgers history; shouldn't the discount be $21? And why aren't Jerry Reuss and Bill Singer and Sandy Koufax also listed on the Dodgers' graphic? Hmmm...
Beckett Earns POW Award
Along with Adam Wainwright of the Cardinals, Josh Beckett's no-hitter has earned him a Player of the Week Award:
Beckett, 34 years old, became the oldest pitcher to throw a no-hitter since 40-year-old Randy Johnson threw a perfect game against the Braves in 2004. The right-hander also joined an honor roll of six other players -- Johnson, Dave Stewart, Don Larsen, Lew Burdette and Hall of Famers Bob Gibson and Sandy Koufax -- who have won the World Series Most Valuable Player and thrown a no-hitter in their careers.Beckett also won his other start last week, finishing the week with a 2-0 record and a 2.57 ERA. He previously won the American League Player of the Week Award in July 2009 when he was with Boston.
Beckett's achievement comes one week after Yasiel Puig's POW award. (As of this post's writing, the mlb.com site hadn't been updated for Puig's week [update: it now has been updated to show both Puig and Beckett], but the never-inaccurate* Wikipedia entry has the details.) It definitely seems like the Dodgers might be starting to get some momentum (finally), right?
Congrats, Josh!
(*) Except when it's not accurate. Photo: Eric Hartline / USA TODAY Sports
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