NL West Schadenfreude

While the Dodgers are invigorated from the recent call-up of wunderkind Yasiel Puig, our arch-rival, the Giants, are struggling with their own issues, namely under-performance in the starting rotation:

What was once the bedrock of two World Series championships has turned into a liability that threatens the San Francisco Giants' chances to repeat. Their rotation ranks third-to-last in the National League with a 4.89 ERA. Before long reliever Chad Gaudin came to the rescue with six strong innings in a spot start Sunday, the Giants starters had combined for three quality starts and a 6.54 ERA in the previous 18 games. USA TODAY Sports' Jorge L. Ortiz looks at the once-vaunted starting five and the issues they face: [...]

This story continues, including prominent placement in the print edition. Take a look when you're feeling sad about our Conte Cholera, as the Giants (also a Conte Customer) are reeling as well (albeit not to injuries).

Taking "Mannywood" to Another Level

Headline by Dusto Magnifico. Nice work!

From Tim Brown and Steve Henson at Yahoo! Sports:

Source: Ramirez’s substance a sexual enhancer

A source close to Manny Ramirez said Thursday that the illegal substance for which the Los Angeles Dodgers slugger tested positive was not "an agent customarily used for performance enhancing."

At least not on the baseball diamond. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the substance is supposed to boost sex drive. It is not Viagra, but a substance that treats the cause rather providing a temporary boost in sexual performance, the source said.

Ramirez tested positive for the substance during spring training, then was administered a second test more recently, and it also was positive. Major League Baseball notified Ramirez of the second positive test after Wednesday night’s Dodgers victory over the Washington Nationals. Ramirez admitted to having taken the substance and declined to appeal.

Bring on the Schadenfreude!

UPDATE: As usual, SoSGers and our commenters deliver. Nic j gets in on the "Mannywood" fun:

Takes sitting in the mannywood section to a whole new level.

Alex Cora said...
Oh and Pierre has no wood - Pierrestick.

Erin said...
Manny apparently has no wood either, if the latest report is true, so he and Juan have something in common.

Game 3 Thread: April 8 @ Padres, 7p

Chad Billingsley (0-0, -.--) vs. Walter Silva (0-0, -.--)

COMMENTS: So I think we've reached the point in the season where we can safely draw conclusions about the winter's major free agent signings. Let's see: CC Sabathia ($161m, 12.46 ERA) - bust!; Mark Texeira ($180m, 0 Hits, 0 R, 0 RBI) - bust!; AJ Burnett ($82m, 0 wins, 0 strikeouts) - bust!; Adam Dunn ($20m, 0 triples, 0 SB's) - bust!; Derek Lowe ($60m, 1 win vs 14 wins last year) - bust!; K-Rod ($37m, 0 CG, 0 Holds) - bust!

Yeah, baby. Schadenfreude sure feels good. And ok, Manny hasn't turned it on yet, but geez, give him a chance. Besides his abbreviated spring, he's only played 2 games so far.

In anycase, I missed last night's game, but let's hope today's game puts the Dodgers back over 0.500. Treat this comment thread not as if you were pulling up a stool at your neighborhood bar, but rather as if you finally reached the counter of your local DMV after taking the day off work, getting up at 5am, and waiting 4 hours in line only to be told that we're sorry sir, we only take cash, you'll have to come back another day.

Schadenfreude, Part Zwei

Schadenfreude

I didn't smile that much at someone else's misery since Barry Zero Zito. Off topic, Wikipedia summed up Schadenfreude with the following image. (And if any of you saw the Reds outfield/infield play today, the same picture applies)

All Aboard the Schadenfreude Express

Former-Dodgers-turned-Red-Sox are in a world of pain:

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Boston Red Sox pitcher Brad Penny was scratched from his first scheduled spring training start because of shoulder weakness, and right fielder J.D. Drew went to Boston for an injection in his lower back.

Penny was to have started Thursday against Puerto Rico. He stopped a bullpen session Sunday after 25 pitches.

"I don't think the shoulder strength was quite where it needed to be yet for the workload I was doing," Penny said. "It's better to take it easy right now than to get out there in the first week of April and have it flare up on me."

Penny was limited to 19 games with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, and just nine innings after June 14, because of the shoulder problems.

Julio Lugo, you are forewarned.

We're Not Talking About It

Frank McCourt is already drooling all over the carpet, salivating about the postseason, albeit more for the incremental revenue than for the glory, honor, and tribute to this great team, this wonderful city, and these incredible fans.

But we're not talking about it here at SoSG, not until it's a done deal. No playoff matchups, no prospective opponents, no schadenfreude about other teams' evaporating hopes. After all, in past seasons, the schadenfreude was directed at us.

There's still 11 games left, and a magic number of 8. Games need to be won.

For what it's worth, Tommy Lasorda agrees:

Lasorda was reluctant to talk much about a possible Freeway World Series because the Dodgers haven't yet ensured a postseason berth.

"We haven't done anything until we clinch it," he said. "We're not going to talk about something we don't have. When the season is over and we've been declared the No. 1 team in the National League West, we've done something."

Tommy went on to say that if that little red check engine light is on, they'll tell you why it's on, for free.

The Schadenfreude Chronicles: Giants' Eliminated from Race for NL West Crown

I know, I know, the Dodgers could easily be going through this elimination of their own in the next week or so. But it was still nice to see the Giants get officially eliminated from contention for the NL West title (even if it came at the hands of the Snakes, who also lead the Dodgers by six games). Wild Card hopes for SF still exist (down 13 games with 16 to play), but should also be extinguished by week's end. Stay tuned--we'll report on it.

Luke Hochevar Schadenfreude Update

From "Eight September call-ups worth watching" by Keith Law at ESPN.com:

Luke Hochevar, RHP, Kansas City Royals

Hochevar's promotion is the result of reputation more than performance. It also is a reflection of the fact that he already was on the 40-man roster because of the major league deal he signed when he was drafted first overall by the Royals in 2006. Hochevar's stuff has been down all year. His fastball has been sitting at just average velocity, and his breaking stuff hasn't been very sharp. Consequently, he has disappointing strikeout rates and high walk numbers. This call-up might be a prelude to a rotation spot for Hochevar in 2008, but there's no evidence he will be ready for it.

UPDATE:

Hochevar pitched three innings against the Yankees today: 3 hits, 0 runs. Hmmm....

Giants Schadenfreude

No, not Fahrvergnügen. Schadenfreude. Witness SI.com's piece, headlined "Foggy bottom: With or without Bonds, Giants are simply a bad team"

SAN FRANCISCO -- Bruce Bochy has so much power, it's almost comical. His Giants are in last place in the NL West, yet with seven small words spoken in his slow drawl, he can take the air out of the entire room:

"Barry won't be in the lineup tonight."

And with that, 98 percent of the sporting world ceased to care about the third game of the Giants-Braves four-game set. Because without Barry Bonds -- stuck on career home run No. 753 for the sixth straight game -- the Giants are exposed for what they are: a bad team.

On days Bonds plays, the world hangs on every pitch. On days he doesn't, the electricity is sucked out of the foggy air like a deflating hot-air balloon. What's left is a team with the third-worst record in baseball at 42-57, 12½ games behind the division-leading Dodgers.

With Bonds in the lineup, the Giants are an unremarkable 36-44. Without him, they're just as bad at 6-13. They're 25th or worse in the majors in virtually every offensive category, including home runs, total bases, RBIs and slugging percentage -- and that includes Bonds' offensive output.

There's more fun and games, just follow the link above.

Jon Weisman recently posted a very balanced, thoughtful, and mature retrospective on the McCourt era of the Dodgers, which, at this stage, we could never do. As you know we at SoSG think Team McCourt has shown us a C+ performance at best, from parking mishaps to poorly-timed firings to fleece blankets with the wrong championship dates. (Rob over at 6-4-2 shares our distaste for the punch-and-hide owner, as he had to bite his tongue during the McCourt Q&A session). But admittedly, it's hard to knock the fact that Frankie took time out to meet with avid Dodger fans last week, and at least receive some questions, particularly when considering the disastrous organization that Sabean has built (eroded?) up north. Dodger fans should be thankful, at the very least, that we have the lesser of two evils.

But we can always hope for more, I assume. Bring us back a World Championship, and I'll be a bit more positive.

Rookie Watch Begins

Ah, rookies. Like being set up on a blind date with someone named "Candy," the rookie ballplayer offers a world of promise.

Alan Schwarz at ESPN.com offers a look at the "Majors' best rookies (not named Matsuzaka)" (for whom Schwarz predicts at least 16 wins with a 3.20 ERA "for a postseason contender"—glad to see expectations aren't running amok):

• 1. Delmon Young, RF, Devil Rays (pride of "Camirillo [sic] HS"!)
  
• 2. Alex Gordon, 3B, Royals
  
• 3. Matt Garza, RHP, Twins
  
• 4. Troy Tulowitzki, SS, Rockies
  
• 5. Tim Lincecum, RHP, Giants
  

And for the Schadenfreude-minded, Schwarz updates us on former Dodger super-prospect Joel Guzman:

Cold Plate Special: Joel Guzman, D-Rays
This former Dominican bonus baby once made scouts drool more than padded bleachers. A do-it-all slugging shortstop with the Dodgers, Joel Guzman never developed much after that and wound up being traded to Tampa Bay last July as a mid-range prospect going south. He's still immense (6-foot-5, 250 pounds), just 22 and has as much raw power as any young player you'll find. Yet problems with plate discipline and inside stuff have handcuffed him at the higher levels, and he looks more like the Ruben Rivera than much else.

Can Ned dodge the bullet of trading Guzman? (shakes Magic 8-Ball) ASK AGAIN LATER

UPDATE: Keith Law profiles Gordon and other prospects here.

Mets Could Lose Zambrano; Dodger Fans Could Have Company in "Bad Trade" Department

From "Mets non-tender Zambrano: Talented, but oft-injured starting pitcher is now a free agent" at mets.com:

Since his acquisition in 2004 in a controversial trade that cost the Mets Scott Kazmir, [Victor] Zambrano had produced a 10-14 record and 4.42 ERA in 39 appearances -- 35 starts. He has been a perpetual project in his career, seldom pitching consistently at a level comparable with his potential.

Can you taste the Schadenfreude? Finally, a trade that might rank down there with Pedro-for-Delino.