Game 42 Thread: May 14 vs. Marlins, 7p

Get well soon, Jose.
Paul Maholm (1-3, 4.71) vs. Not Jose Fernandez (0-0, -.--)

The Dodgers were supposed to face Jose Fernandez tonight, but he is likely the next victim of the Great Tommy John Surgery Epidemic of 2014. That absolutely sucks for baseball, because the kid is really, really good. But it's also kind of a relief for the Dodgers, at least tonight, because the kid is really, really good and would have threatened their ability to complete the sweep.

Instead, the Marlins have called up Anthony DeSclafani to make his debut tonight. This is troubling for two reasons: The Dodgers usually have difficulty against rookie pitchers making their debuts, and I can't for the life of me think of a good riff on his name without referencing Gwen Stefani.

Also newsworthy is who may be backing up DeSclafani tonight: Old friend Randy Wolf (he of the epic Star Wars farewell). Wolf opted out of his DBacks contract and was immediately signed by the Marlins earlier today. I think a rude welcome back is in order, don't you?

Paul Maholm (who keeps clinging to his rotation spot thanks to injuries on our side) is likely not going to be sharp, so we'll need Puig to continue on his epic tear and hopefully lead the rest of the offense in picking Maholm up.

SWEEP THE FISH!

Wild Side of MLB

Jared Diamond's article, "Birds, Mammals, Mike Trout: Who Would Win?" in yesterday's WSJ was right up the alley of this blog's readers:

On Tuesday, 20-year-old Angels phenom Mike Trout will play in his first All-Star Game. But Trout, who leads the American League with a .341 batting average, is already a prominent member of a far more exclusive club: the All-Star team of fish.

Of the thousands of players in Major League Baseball history, only a select few had names (or overwhelmingly used nicknames) that were the same as a type of fish. Trout joins ex-Angel Tim Salmon and former All-Star Kevin Bass in the aquatic outfield. Hall of Famer Catfish Hunter—arguably the top fish ever—is on the mound.

The Fish do have some competition from around the animal kingdom. Hall of Famers Robin Yount and Goose Goslin highlight a powerful lineup of Birds. But their pitching takes a hit with Craig Swan taking the mound in place of Goose Gossage. (Our selections barred teams from having duplicate creatures.)

And then there are the Mammals, a solid squad led by Nellie Fox and Rabbit Maranville. Rob Deer provides power in the middle of the lineup, while Randy Wolf and Robert Person round out the pitching staff.

Left out of the animal-kingdom All-Stars was outfielder Marlon Byrd, who could have had dual citizenship if only he spelled his name differently.

Looks like former Dodgers are well represented on Team Mammalia!

Game 13 Thread: April 19 @ Brewers, 10a

Aaron Harang (0-1, 5.91) vs. Randy Wolf (0-1, 10.61).

Breakfast baseball! The Dodgers are hoping Harang, who struck out nine straight in his last start, can do that, say, three times in a row today. The welcoming arms of Minute Maid Park await this weekend, but it sure would be sweet as waffles if we could squeeze out a win and avoid the sweep before getting there.

Old friend Randy Wolf stands between saving a little face and the official end of the Dodgers' hot start. Let's see if he still has any love left for the Blue.

Game 120 Thread: August 15 @ Brewers, 5p

Ted Lilly (7-12, 4.71) vs. Randy Wolf (9-8, 3.48).

Fellow Star Wars geek Randy Wolf remains, kind of, the one that got away. Not that Wolf is a top-of-the-rotation starter; instead, he's a solid innings-eater. Let's compare him to this evening's Dodgers' starter, Ted Lilly:

WOLF

• age: 34
• throws: left
• current contract: 3 years/$29.75M (2010-12), plus 2013 club option
• 2009 ERA+: 124
• 2010 ERA+: 98
• 2011 ERA+: 115

LILLY

• age: 35
• throws: left
• current contract: 3 years/$33M (2011-13)
• 2009 ERA+: 144
• 2010 ERA+: 113
• 2011 ERA+: 78

Did the Dodgers miss out? Or did they just trade one role player for another? Let's see which one gets the upper hand.

photo by Juan Ocampo/Dodgers

Game 43 Thread: May 17 vs. Brewers, 7p

Hiroki Kuroda (4-3, 3.21) vs. Randy Wolf (3-3, 4.11).

The Dodgers are so bad we're running out of ways to write about their weak-ass shit. They've scored two runs in their past three games. Yet...tonight they might actually have a shot at scoring more than one run. Old friend Randy Wolf was rocked by the Padres in his last start, giving up five earned runs in 3.1 innings. Am I right, or am I just blowing smoke up Eeyore ass?

Sax's note: Gluttons, meet punishment. SoSG Alex Cora and I are back at it tonight, both on field level, third base side (in separate seating areas; after last night's french fry territory debacle, we opted to bring our respective spouses and sit with them instead. BECAUSE THEY SHARE, AC). At least we'll score some bobbleheads.

Checking In On The One That Got Away

The Dodgers' most prominent missed opportunity this off-season was renewing the contract of Randy Wolf, who had been a solid innings-eater among an inexperienced starting rotation, going 11-7 with a 3.23 ERA in 34 starts during his second Dodgers tour of duty. Wolf led all National League left-handers in 2009 with 24 quality starts. Letting Wolf go meant that beyond Chad Billingsley, Clayton Kershaw, and Hiroki Kuroda (added to a later addition of Vicente Padilla), our starting rotation was looking a little thin. So off Wolf went to sign a $30M, three-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers, leaving us behind.

Checking back in with Wolf eight starts into the season, it's not clear that his impact, had he stayed with the Dodgers, would have been that all that positive. Wolf is 3-3 in eight starts with the Brewers, the last of which was bombing at the hands of the Phillies, who torched Wolf for six earned runs, two home runs, and two triples, in what ended up being a five-inning performance at Miller Park. Wolf's ERA this year of 4.66 is well north of his 4.14 career ERA.

In fact, Wolf has lasted only five innings three times this year, and is averaging just over six innings a start over his eight starts. Wolf has 22 Ks this year. Although Kershaw and Billingsley are averaging around 5 2/3 innings per start, they have 52 and 39 Ks each (Kuroda, who has 37 Ks over seven starts, is averaging 6 2/3 innings per start). And all three of those starters have ERAs south of Wolf's (2.66 for Kuroda; 3.55 for Kershaw; 4.03 for Billingsley)

Look, I miss Randy Wolf. Particularly as we flopped around at the beginning of this season trying out Russ Ortiz, Charlie Haeger, and Jon Link (not to mention Vicente Padilla, on the DL with a 1-1 record and a 6.65 ERA), it clearly would have been a nice luxury to have Wolf on this year's staff as a viable fourth starter. But was it worth an extra $30M over three years and $9M - $10M this first year? At this admittedly early stage of the season, I'm not so sure.

Dodgers Still Pining For Pineiro

According to ESPN.com's Rumor Central (no link), the Dodgers and Mets are both still chasing Cardinals starter Joel Pineiro (apologies to Neil Tennant and Chris (not Derek) Lowe):

Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports said via Twitter that the Dodgers are working on a way to sign Pineiro in light of their fiscal constraints. Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse tweeted that the Mets and Pineiro are talking about a two-year deal for about $15.5 million.

Pineiro was believed to be looking for three years at a salary right around what the Brewers gave Randy Wolf, which is more than $9 million per season. At this point, has his price come down?

If we can get a Randy-Wolf-like performance (2009 W-L of 11-7, with an ERA+ of 122) from Pineiro (2009 W-L of 15-12, with an ERA+ of 118), at a discount to what Wolf's signing price with the Brewers, that's excellent. Last season, Pineiro pitched almost an identical number of innings to Wolf (214.0 vs 214.1) but notched only around half as many Ks as Wolf (105 vs 160). Still, with the holes we've got in our starting ro'? I'll take it.

Dodgers' Lack of 4 / 5 Starters Not Lost On Olney

Old news to us Dodgers fans, but Buster Olney points out that the Dodgers need a couple more starters, stat (insider only):

1. Dodgers, No. 4 and No. 5 starters. If the season started today, L.A.'s rotation would be Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley, Hiroki Kuroda and … well, they are looking for help. They've got some young internal candidates, but continue to hang in the conversations for veterans. The perception of some agents is that the Dodgers -- who are in nickel-counting mode because of the impending divorce of the McCourts -- want to wait until they wade through their mass of arbitration cases and get a clearer picture of exactly how many pennies they can spend on starting pitching.

In fact this is the "biggest hole" Olney mentions that needs filling, across all MLB teams. That makes me feel a lot better, indeed. But if you believe ESPN's Rumor Central that oft-mentioned Dodger target Joel Pineiro is "...believed to be looking for three years at a salary right around what the Milwaukee Brewers gave Randy Wolf, which is more than $9 million per season," you've gotta guess that Pineiro isn't a reasonable option.

Dylan Hernadez at the LAT says the Dodgers are interested in Noah Lowry, who hasn't pitched since 2007 and has had two surgeries in 2008 alone. Eric Stephen over at TBLA invokes biblical references to underline the apocalyptic (okay, maybe not that bad, but still) implications of chasing a pitcher "who isn't very good." Hey, it's not like the Dodgers don't have a track record of doing this, anyway.

I regret losing Randy Wolf more and more each day. Maybe we can use a three-man rotation all season long?

Woulda Coulda Shoulda

From MLBTR:

ESPN's Buster Olney says Randy Wolf would've re-signed with the Dodgers for a two-year deal in the $14-16MM range.

We'll always have 2009, Randy.

It Bears Repeating

Thanks and kudos to SoSG reader Josh S. for this brilliant comment:

CLAYTON KERSHAW

So...you got your reward and you're just leaving, then?

RANDY WOLF

That's right, yeah. Got some old debts I gotta pay off with this stuff. Even if I didn't, you don't think I'd be fool enough to stick around here, do you? Why don't you come with me? You're pretty good in a game. We could use you.

KERSHAW

Come on. Why don't you take a look around. You know what's about to happen, what they're up against. They could use a good pitcher like you, you're turning your back on them.

WOLF

What good is a reward if you can't spend it on beer and brats? Besides, trying to win the World Series with this ownership is not my idea of courage. It's more like...suicide.

KERSHAW

Okay. Take care of yourself Randy. I guess that's what you're best at isn't it?

WOLF

Hey, Clay. May divorce be with you.

And That's Why You Should Have Offered Arbritration To Randy Wolf (arm falls off)

There goes one of the bright spots in our starting rotation from last year. Randy Wolf to the Brewers:

Free agent left-hander Randy Wolf and the Milwaukee Brewers have agreed to a three-year contract worth $27 million, major league sources tell ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney.

Wolf, 33, pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season, going 11-7 with a 3.23 ERA in 34 starts.

(Sigh.)

What Is Momentum?

It's been a wild and crazy postseason for the Dodgers.

They've beat up on aces, and they've been beat up by other aces...only to feast on the bullpen. They've held MVP sluggers in check, but they've been killed by a number-eight hitter. They've received a couple of gift errors and parlayed them into wins, and they've been three-hit into submission.

If the Dodgers ever had momentum, it was after sweeping the Cardinals in the NLDS. Yet they lost Game 1 of the NLCS. After their come-from-behind victory in Game 2, they got their asses kicked six ways to Sunday in Game 3. So maybe momentum only carries as far as the first inning of the next game.

Which brings us to tonight's matchup. The guy you want starting, Randy Wolf, is the team's steadiest, most consistent pitcher. But Mr. Reliable also gives up most of his runs in his first three innings of work. Which isn't exactly when you want to spot the Phillies a few runs.

The hangover from last night's game doesn't have to carry over to tonight's. And if Wolf can get off to a strong start, Game 5 will seem more like a new opportunity than an accident waiting to happen.

Anchorman

Randy Wolf on the mound last night: 7.0 IP, 1 ER 5K.

Randy Wolf at the plate last night: 1-for-1, 2 RBIs, 1 BB.

photos by Jill Weisleder/Dodgers

Lumber and Leather

First inning: Andre Ethier hits a three-run homer.

First inning: Matt Kemp makes a running catch.

Fourth inning: Randy Wolf hits a two-run homer.

Fourth inning: Orlando Hudson hits a two-run homer.

photos by Jon SooHoo/Dodgers

Randy Wolf Confirms Star Wars Geekdom

Is this what Randy Wolf's house looks like?

From a Randy Wolf chat at Dodgers.com:

goblucru: How big of a Star Wars fan are you?

Randy Wolf: I'm humble enough to admit that my teammates have used the word "nerd" with me plenty of times. I'm a pretty big Star Wars fan. Big enough to have a full size Darth Vader in my house, and yes, the chicks really dig that. [...]

iamrussell: Did you ever dress up to go see a Star Wars movie in theaters?

Randy Wolf: I said I was called a nerd, I never said I was one!

But you are a geek, Randy! One of us! One of us!

photo from The OOHYEAH Collection

Post-Game 94 Thread: Howler

DODGERS 12, REDS 3

Scary moment: Manny Ramirez got plunked on the left hand by an errant Homer Bailey pitch in the the third inning. Thankfully, X-rays were negative and Manny is listed as day-to-day.

Other than that, Bailey was the Dodgers' MVP, giving up nine runs (six earned) over 2 2/3 innings. Matt Kemp (batting eighth again) and Rafael Furcal (four RBIs) each hit home runs. Randy Wolf cruised, allowing two runs over 7 1/3 innings.

Billingsley vs. Arroyo tomorrow. The Dodgers are a season-high 26 games over .500 and they've got four straight and a series win. Time to think sweep!

original Wolf photo, Ramirez photo by Chris Pizzello/AP

I Told You He Was Hardcore

Randy Wolf signs an autograph during Wednesday's Loney's Lounge event.

From my Game 79 vs. Rockies, July 1: Post-Game Quotes post:

Randy Wolf was wearing another Star Wars T-shirt after the game. The Force is strong with this one.

photo by Juan Ocampo/Dodgers

May the Force Out Be With You

Randy Wolf seems to be a Star Wars fan (or at least he dresses like one), so it's only natural he would invoke the Force when explaining last night's two-out gaffe. From Dodgers.com:

It was vintage Randy Wolf.

The left-hander tossed a 68-mph curveball on a 1-2 count past the bat of a guessing Chris Iannetta for strike three and the third inning was seemingly over.

Catcher Russell Martin just rolled the ball toward the mound and the batterymates trotted back toward the Dodgers' dugout.

But there was just one problem -- it was just the second out of the inning.

"For some reason, we just both thought there was three outs," Wolf said with a laugh after the game in which the Dodgers won, 4-2, over the Rockies in 13 innings. "I have no idea why. I think I like Jedi-mind-tricked him into thinking there was three outs."

(Emphasis mine.) The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded, but I'd like to think Martin was just eager to go into Toshi Station to pick up some power converters.

Dodger Pitchers and Home Cooking

Pitching is the Dodger topic du jour. The bullpen has been under the heat lamp lately (and will likely continue to be so after throwing 6 2/3 innings in yesterday's extra-innings affair). Some think the bullpen is overcooked; some think it's still fresh. And now, from ESPN.com's Jayson Stark, comes some surprising news about Dodger starters at home:

The Phillies have gotten just 16 starts all year in which their starting pitcher got at least one out beyond the sixth inning. Only the Nationals (15) have fewer. And only nine of those starts have come at home, tying the Phillies with the Dodgers for the fewest in the big leagues.

(Emphasis mine.) We were hopeful when Clayton Kershaw and Hiroki Kuroda turned in back-to-back pièces de résistance, but Randy Wolf and Chad Billingsley failed to continue the trend. With the team back eating home cooking this weekend, the Dodgers would be well served if their starters could break their prix fixe pattern by consistently pitching deep into games. And that's something everyone can agree on.

UPDATE: Context is everything. From an excellent post by Jon Weisman at Dodger Thoughts:

But the next person who asserts that Dodger starters don't throw enough innings needs to look at the league-wide numbers for starting pitchers and the bullpen issues for other teams, and then explain how this really constitutes a noteworthy disadvantage for the Dodgers.

Weisman shows the Dodgers are in the middle of the NL pack, with their starters averaging 6.04 innings per start. (The Cubs lead the league at 6.63.) I wonder what the AL numbers are.

Post-Game 67 Thread: What do Randy Wolf and a waffler have in common?

No decisions!

DODGERS 3, A's 2

Randy Wolf left the game with a one-run lead after throwing 87 pitches over six innings, but Rajai Davis* took advantage of some seventh-inning defensive confusion to tie the game and deprive Wolf of the win.

No matter, as pinch-hitter Mark Loretta knocked in James Loney in the bottom of the inning to give the Dodgers the lead, which the bullpen (Brent Leach, Ronald Belisario and Ramon Troncoso) AGAIN preserved.

This weekend the Dodgers venture into the unfriendly confines of Angel Stadium of Anaheim. We've got more interleague intrigue and Weaver vs. Weaver. Should be interesting, if not actually fun.

After the game, home run-hitter Orlando Hudson gave the team some pointers:

*His first name means "king" in Sanskrit!