Checkin' In with the IBWAA

From Howard Cole at BaseballSavvy.com:

The Base Ball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) has announced all but its Most Valuable Player awards, coming Monday and Tuesday, so giving them the benefit of the doubt on Joe Mauer and Albert Pujols, let's compare with the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America, shall we.

When I started the IBWAA, as an alternative to the BBWAA last July, I thought the closeness of our prospective votes would be telling. Now, I'm glad there's a distinction.

The groups agreed on Jim Tracy for National League Manager of the Year, and Zack Greinke, as the American League Cy Young Award. While the IBWAA went for Ron Gardenhire as its AL Manager, I've no qualm with the BBWAA's selection of Mike Scioscia. We had him second.

The BBWAA got it right with Andrew Bailey as AL Rookie; the IBWAA trumped them with Tommy Hanson as NL Rookie, so that's a push. And I'll stand by our selection of Chris Carpenter over Tim Lincecum for NL Cy proudly.

Earlier at SoSG: IBWAA

"Matt Holliday's Bad Day"

Via Diamond Notes comes this animated celebration of the most pivotal moment of the Dodgers' NLDS:

Bravo, EB aka "blueeyedgal"!

Five Dodgers to Be Thankful For

Happy Thanksgiving! In the spirit of the holiday, SoSG presents a cornucopia of Dodger youngsters. Enjoy the bounty!

1. Matt Kemp. In 2008 (.290/.340/.459, 18 HR, -0.1 UZR), it was "He's got potential." In 2009 (.297/.352/.490, 26 HR, 2.6 UZR), it was a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger. In 2010, it could be the Year of the Bison. It helps that Kemp seems to be enjoying himself when he plays (which is apparently "disrespectful" when you're a rookie, but evolves into "refreshing" when you've got some hardware).

2. Clayton Kershaw. The perpetrator of the curveball known as Public Enemy No. 1 was 11th in the NL in strikeouts. Kershaw is also mature beyond his 21 years, which bodes well for his maturation as a player. (Pitching in the playoffs in each of his first two years in the majors can't hurt either.) 2010 may or may not be the year he puts it all together, but even the intermediate steps to his reaching his potential have been thrilling.

3. Andre Ethier. Another Silver Slugger recipient, Mr. Miracle and his six walkoff hits filled the Dodgers' drama quotient in 2009. Ethier's chip-on-my-shoulder attitude seems the opposite of Kemp's buoyant demeanor, but it certainly works: Ethier's 31 home runs led the team in 2009. It seems doubtful he'll get as many game-winning opportunities next season — the Pepsi Clutch Performer of the Year flies under no one's radar. But could the Dodger outfield still hit a combined 100 home runs in 2010?

4. Chad Billingsley. As Jon Weisman has discussed, Billingsley's poor outings seem to have gotten more publicity than his good ones ("But you screw one goat..."). Lest we forget, Billingsley will be only 25 years old at the beginning of next season. Although 2009 represented a statistical regression in almost every category for him, he was still 12th in the NL in strikeouts. 2010 represents a fresh, broken leg-free start for Billingsley, and expectations will be lower — not necessarily a bad thing.

5. James Loney. He's been freed for a few years now, and although Loney has been underpowered for a corner infielder, he has been consistent. In 2009 he equaled his 2008 totals for RBIs (90) and home runs (13) while drawing more walks (70, up from 45) and cutting down on his strikeouts (68, down from 85). Loney even entered positive full-season UZR territory for the first time, rating a 1.2. His progress may not be as dramatic as Kemp's or Ethier's, but Loney is becoming a dependable "glue guy" in the Dodgers' lineup.

I really wanted to include Russell Martin on this list, but his rotten 2009 has landed him on the "hold your breath and hope he pulls out of his tailspin" list. Next Thanksgiving, Russell!

Chicago White Sox' 2010 Pennant Drive Gains Weight

He's your problem now, Ozzie Guillen:

CHICAGO (AP)—Andruw Jones(notes) agreed Wednesday to a $500,000, one-year contract with the Chicago White Sox.

Jones hit .214 with 17 homers and 43 RBIs in 82 games with Texas this year while making 53 starts as the designated hitter, 12 in left field, five in right field and four at first base.

A five-time All-Star who has slumped in recent years, Jones was released by the Los Angeles Dodgers in January and signed with the Rangers the following month.

He agreed to a $36.2 million, two-year contract with Los Angeles in December 2007. Now 32, he can make an additional $1 million in performance bonuses under his agreement with the White Sox.

“This is an opportunity to add a power bat to the roster while improving our outfield depth,” White Sox general manager Kenny Williams said. “With the addition of Andruw, Mark Kotsay and Omar Vizquel, we feel our bench is taking shape to be a strong asset heading into the 2010 season.”

Yep, this off-season is all about building up the bench. Oh, and really old infielders. Good thinking, Kenny!

Dodger Stadium Store Batting .500 Until 11/30

Everything's half off! From a press release:

Los Angeles Dodgers Stadium Sale Offers All Authentic Team Merchandise at 50-Percent Discount

WHAT: The Los Angeles Dodgers Stadium Sale gives fans the opportunity to purchase all authentic team merchandise, including on-field jerseys, hats, playoff gear, women’s apparel and signed memorabilia, at a 50-percent discount. Specialty items, like baseballs signed by Fernando Venezuela, will also be offered for half price. Parking at the stadium is free.

WHEN: The sale is up and running, and will take place until Friday, Nov. 27 Monday, Nov. 30. Store hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday.

WHERE: The Dodger Stadium Store at Dodger Stadium
(Left field area of the ballpark)
1000 Elysian Park Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Yes, the sale has been extended. Time to start — and finish — your holiday shopping!

BobblePlans Emerging

From Josh S., in our comments section:

I got an e-mail for 2010 miniplans. The schedule lists an Ethier bobblehead (5/18) and something called a "superhero" for Ethier (7/22), Kemp (7/8) and Manny (6/3) each.

Andre Ethier is getting his long-overdue bobblehead, but what is a "superhero"? Dusty Baker chimes in:

Also, I dug deeper, using my finely-honed detective and research skillz, and noted that the superhero thing that Josh mentioned appears to be a superhero action figure of various Dodgers as a giveaway. So like a Star Wars action figure, except with Kemp.

Guess Star Wars Night was a big hit. Dusty also quotes from a Dodgers e-mail:

"Each plan includes tickets to Opening Day vs. the Arizona Diamondbacks. The All-Star, Gold Glove and Silver Slugger plans each include one Yankee game and the Bobble-Slam plan features all four Bobblehead giveaways and is named in honor of Manny's magical moment on his first bobblehead night in a Dodgers uniform."

And:

Also, they are doing a "55 Since '55" night where one would presume it would be a celebration of the World Champion 1955 Dodgers.

The Dodgers aren't shying away from promoting Manny Ramirez again, and they're celebrating the franchise's first World Series championship. It's only November, but it's not too soon to start wishing for 2010 tickets!

Flo vs Deltalina

Team Flo	Team Deltalina
1. Josh S	1. Fred's Brim
2. QuadSevens	2. rbnlaw
3. w.d.d.i.m.	3. Scott
4. Dunkhawk	4. Wicks
5. Dr Geek	5. Greg
6. Mr Customer	6. Fanerman
7. Neeebs	7. J Steve
8. MLASF	8. Dusty Baker
9. MattyA	9. Jason
10. John G	10. djansson
11. Felix Pardalis	11. TD
12. Keven C	12. Matt
13. Matthew	13. Steve Dittmore
14. Drewdez	14. Bryan

Them's your lineups. And here's how it's gonna go down:

• The two teams will face off against one another in a series of contrived competitions.
• The first round will consist of three sub-Rounds: sub-Round I-A, I-B, and I-C (sub-Round I-C will only be necessary if the teams split I-A and I-B).
• The full details of sub-Round I-A will be revealed next Monday, and the sub-Round itself will take place Tuesday.
• After the full Round I, one of the teams will win.
• Most members of the winning team will advance to the next round...but not all.
• Most members of the losing team will be eliminated...but not all.
• That's all I'm saying for now. Monday will be the big reveal of exactly what Round I-A consists of. Until then, have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Heath Bell Dings His Old Boss

Turns out Padres closer Heath Bell has some opinions on Padres management. From the Boston Herald (via MLBTR):

Personable Padres closer Heath Bell was in Boston recently for a Reebok event and he laid out his hopes for new general manager Jed Hoyer, formerly an assistant with the Red Sox.

“I just would like to know what direction we’re going in,” he said. “I think (Hoyer) and (owner Jeff) Moorad are going to sit down and have meetings about what direction they want to go in and how much money they’ll spend. I hope (Hoyer) has got full rein. I hope he does. I know (former GM) Kevin Towers didn’t always have it. He’d want to do something and the CEO wouldn’t always sign off on it.

“I’d like to see the team say, ‘Here’s your allowance, $40 million, $50 million, $80 million, spend it on what you want.’ Kevin Towers, the last couple of years, it didn’t seem like he could always do what he wanted. He was kind of a puppet.”

(Emphasis mine.) It's admirable that Bell is paying attention to his bosses, but where is he getting his information? Does he have an inside source, or is he going off of publicly available information? How does Padres management feel about their closer calling their former GM a puppet? Will Hoyer get his allowance? Dodger fans can only hope the McCourts' divorce debacle won't get as messy as John Moores', but at least Jonathan Broxton will have the good sense to keep his mouth shut.

"I bet the duck's in the hat"

Heyman Makes a Funny?

From Jon Heyman at SI.com:

Giants. [Johnny] Damon is a target. And [Jason] Bay makes sense, even from a marketing standpoint in that area.

Is Heyman suggesting that one reason the Giants should sign Bay is so they can run WELCOME TO THE BAY AREA ads?

Heyman has a more realistic take on the Dodgers' offseason:

Dodgers. The storied major-market team appears to be looking for innings eaters (yawn!). Whether it's because of their iffy ownership situation or a plethora of arbitration cases -- they have nine -- don't look for L.A. to spend big this winter.

And that's all the conjecture that's fit to print.

The Angel and Devil Revisited

This clip has a special meaning to me for two reasons:

1. HALL AND F'ING OATES!

2. A few of the Sons and myself used Hall & Oates as our defacto theme music during a couple of LEGEN - wait for it - DARY baseball road trips. Along with this gem...

Off-Season Competition: Flo vs Deltalina

It's not too late to sign up for the first (and possibly last) off-season competition of 2009! Remember, untold amounts of sweat were sweated by you to earn you the right to play this game (i.e., your 3D Tic-Tac-Toe victory), so use that right.

Here's how the teams/participants stack up so far:

Team Flo:

1. Josh S
2. QuadSevens
3. w.d.d.i.m.
4. Dunkhawk
5. Dr Geek
6. Mr C
7. Neeebs
8. MLASF
9. MattyA
10. John G
11. Felix Pardalis
12. Keven C
13. Matthew
14. Drewdez

Team Deltalina:

1. FB
2. rbnlaw
3. Scott
4. Wicks
5. Greg
6. Fanerman
7. J Steve
8. Dusty Baker
9. Jason
10. djansson
11. TD
12. Matt
13. Steve Dittmore
14. Bryan

Ideally we'd like at least 12 per side, although it's not a necessity. But having an even number per side is important. So if you're interested, sign up by commenting below, along with your allegiance: Flo or Deltalina.

UPDATE (2:08pm PT): Registration for Team Deltalina is now closed. Team Flo has two one no spots remaining.

UPDATE (6:33am PT Nov 22): Registration for both teams is now closed. Stay tuned for more details next week.

Dodgers No Likey Lackey?

Hey, actual baseball news! From Bill Shaikin at the LA Times:

Even with starting pitching as their most pressing need, the Dodgers do not plan to pursue John Lackey, the best starter available in free agency. [...]

[Dodgers president Dennis] Mannion would not say what the Dodgers' payroll might be next season or whether the team made money last season. He noted that the team did not raise prices on season tickets or parking last season and would not do so next season.

"You can't ignore the fact the economy will be level at best for next year," he said. "We're not going to make any outlandish-type decisions in a rough economy."

He said that would rule out Lackey "unless there is an effective way to make that kind of deal."

Disappointing but not surprising. Expect more yammering about needing an ace, but what the Dodgers' starting rotation can really use is more Randy Wolf-type consistency — sans Wolf, who will probably sign with another team. While Chad Billingsley's fate remains unclear — trade bait? Comeback Player of the Year candidate? — I'm hoping Clayton Kershaw can continue to fulfill his destiny as the most exciting homegrown Dodger pitcher to emerge in years. Add to that a couple of rotation-fillers, and 2010's pitching situation is beginning to look a lot like 2009's, just another year older and (hopefully) wiser.

Great Movies I Saw Once and Never Want to See Again

Schindler's List
Saving Private Ryan
Oldboy

and

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire

Seeing each of these movies was the emotional equivalent of getting kicked in the gut for two hours, but I'm glad I saw them. I just don't think I could handle a second viewing.

Flo vs Deltalina: State Your Allegiance

Don't be distracted by the graphic. Focus. Because the following text is critical.

Do you meet the requirements in fine print below? If so, it's time to quit waffling and state your allegiance. Flo or Deltalina. There is no "either." There is no "neither." And for cryin' out loud, there is definitely no "I'm not sure". If you're still not sure, leave now. You sicken me.

The above photos, along with these two posts should be all the information you need to make a decision. So stop worrying about hurt feelings and tell us in the comments if you're with Flo or Deltalina (as per my example comment). And as you may suspect, there is a larger reason for this. Tune in tomorrow or early next week to see what you've committed to.

I meet the following requirements:

1. I have nothing better to do right now (or possibly ever) than make a surface judgment on the two ladies then summarize my conclusion in the comments section.
2. Over the next few weeks I agree to dedicate at least 5 minutes per week participating in something undoubtedly absurd and ridiculous on this website.
3. Once I pick Flo or Deltalina, I shall forsake the other for all eternity.

Hold The Mayo: Kung Fu Panda Going Jenny Craig?

That's right, Pablo Sandoval has allegedly reported to Spring Training early, in an effort to shed some of those unsightly extra pounds:

Sandoval, you see, already started spring training 2010 at the Giants' complex in Scottsdale, Ariz. on Nov. 1. He was roughly 3 1/2 months early. Why?

Sandoval put up those gaudy numbers despite carrying way too much weight for a person listed at 5-foot-11 and (generously) 245 pounds. So, Panda wants to slim down into a leaner, not-so-mean hitting machine.

In a tremendous post by Giants' blogger Joan Ryan (also the author of "Little Girls in Pretty Boxes"), she goes into fine detail about Sandoval's recent lifestyle changes, a diet and exercise regimen that Giants trainer Dave Groeschner calls unprecedented for the club.

It's called: "Operation Panda." Of course it is.

"There are no guys who show up in November to get ready for the season,'' Groeschner said. "But this is something Pablo wanted to do."

KFP going for a little less KFC? Unthink, indeed. But lest we Sons lose one of our favorite whipping boys of our arch-rivals, let us consult chowhound and yelp for some of their recommendations for the Scottsdale area:

• The Roaring Fork, known for its apple cobbler;
• Cowboy Ciao, known for its duck sliders;
• Fiesta Burrito, with its adobada burritos.

Have at it, Pablo!

Caption Contest

Caption Matt Kemp and his new buddy during the latest "Under the Lights" event at Dodger Stadium:

photo by JonSooHoo/Dodgers

3DT3: Congratulations Readers!

After checking the videotape, the officials decided to give the game to the Readers. So congratulations Readers on once more hammering the Writers into submission on our home turf. And to add insult to injury, you needed only two dimensions to beat us:

Stay tuned for more...

A Fine Time-Killer

Via Big League Stew comes this gem:

The Best of Baseball Reference's Sponsorship Comments (Baseball Junk Drawer)

DT regular Eric Enders makes the list. Check it out!

3DT3: Round 10

Dude, what happened? Who knocked over the frickin' game board?!? Quad? Rbn? Mr C? I knew we should have cut off the alcohol after Round 5.

(shakes head in frustration)

Ughh. Alright, I guess we have to start over. Give me a minute to reset the board. Dammit.