LA Times' Dodgers Dugout Newsletter

Have you heard of Dodgers Dugout? Not to be confused with Robert Timm's fine site that was born around the same time as SoSG, Dodgers Dugout is the LA Times' Dodger newsletter written by Houston Mitchell (in NYC his name is pronounced "Howston Mitchell").

Here's a blurb from the LA Times:

Are you a Dodgers fan? Sign up for the new Dodgers Dugout, a free email newsletter from the Los Angeles Times on all things Dodgers. Click here to sign up.

A fresh newsletter usually comes out at the start of every series the Dodgers play. Now would be a good time to jump on as the boys enter the stretch run. Click here to see the online version of the latest edition and to subscribe.

Post-Game 137 Thread: Van Slyke Gets Gift

DODGERS 7, ANGELS 5

Scott Van Slyke had two RISP and one out in the top of the seventh, with the Dodgers up 4-3 in a back-and-forth game. His "double" on a chopper up the middle, deflected by Angels pitcher Trevor Gott, went into left field on the carom, scoring Justin Ruggiano and Corey Seager to put the Dodgers up 6-3. We did not look back, winning 7-5 (Greinke with his 16th win).

Stroke of brilliance: In the fifth inning, with Mike Scioscia sending in left-hander Jose Alvarez to replace starter Nick Tropeano, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly countered by pulling Andre Ethier for PH Ruggiano. Ruggiano doubled to left to score two and put the Dodgers up 3-1.

Offensive incompetence: The Dodgers were an astounding 7-for-22 with RISP, which is impressive for the .318 average (better than the Dodgers usually do with RISP), but horrible given there were 15 opportunities wasted. Let's tally the LOB by batter, shall we?

• Carl Crawford, 1-for-4, 5 LOB
• Chris Heisey, 0-for 1, 3 LOB
• Chase Utley, 2-for-6 (with 3 Ks), 4 LOB
• Adrian Gonzalez, 0-for-4 (with 3 Ks), 5 LOB
• Justin Turner, 2-for-6, 3 LOB
• Andre Ethier, 0-for-2, 2 LOB
• Corey Seager, 1-for-3, 3 LOB
• A.J. Ellis, 1-for-4, 3 LOB
• Joc Pederson, 3-for-4, 2 LOB

That's 30 LOB for the team. We've got to learn how to score some players from the bases.

Upside, however: The Dodgers are now 8.5 games up on that other team, thanks in part to Mike Leake's meltdown in Arizona today (see below; Grumpy Cat was the Diamondbacks' special guest, throwing out the first pitch). Magic number is 17!

Game 137 Thread: Sept. 7 @ Angels, 6p

Zack Greinke (15-3, 1.59) vs Nick Tropeano (1-2, 5.51).

Dodgers trending up (1st place; 20-13 since August). Angels trending down (3rd place; 14-20 since August). Let's keep it that way.

Puig Gone Until Playoffs; Kendrick Back Much Sooner

Mark Saxon of ESPN.com says Yasiel Puig's hamstring will keep him out until the postseason. The good news is, offensive firestarter Howie Kendrick might be back sooner:

The first time Yasiel Puig strained a hamstring, he missed 38 games. When he suffered essentially the same injury to the other hamstring, his right, a few months later on Aug. 27, the Los Angeles Dodgers had just 36 games left in their schedule.

The math is fairly straightforward, and on Friday, Dodgers manager Don Mattingly admitted the team is uncertain whether Puig would return by the end of the regular season.

Puig traveled to Arizona on Friday to begin the lengthy process of rehabilitating his hamstring. [...]

The news is better on second baseman Howie Kendrick, who also is out with a strained hamstring. Kendrick has been making progress and is likely to play in minor league games in a matter of days. He could rejoin the Dodgers within a week.

Post-Game 136 Thread: 19, Again?

DODGERS 5, PADRES 1

Wait a minute, didn't I just post that the Dodgers, with a win today, were supposed to be up +20 games over .500? So what gives with the PGT picture?

We did indeed win (thanks in part to a great Padres gift, an error thrown by Padres pitcher Nick Vincent down the right field line, scoring three runs for the Dodgers), and we did indeed go up +20 games (78-58 to be exact). But our 7.5-game lead now means our magic number to win the division is 19.

So Brett Anderson's 5.2 IP (4 H, 1 ER, 4 BB and 4 Ks) did help the cause (even if Anderson did have to exit the game early with a leg cramp). "Real" RBI came from Andre Ethier (first-inning sacrifice fly) and A.J. Ellis (run-scoring single in the sixth). And the Dodgers head north (but not all the way north), to Anaheim, for three games starting tomorrow.

+20! Magic number at 19! Let's keep it going.

Game 136 Thread: Sept. 6 @ Padres, 1p

Brett Anderson (8-8, 3.43) vs. Andrew Cashner (5-13, 4.15).

7 1/2 games up with 27 games to play seems pretty good (it's the biggest division lead in the National League, and the second-biggest lead in the majors, only to KC). But +19 over .500, our season-high, still could sound a lot better if we could stretch it to +20 (and hopefully gain a game in the process). The Giants' playoff odds are down to 2.6%, but even stranger than that is that the Dodgers (whose playoff odds are 98.6%) have the best World Series winning percentage odds, across the majors (at 17.7%). Am I getting too excited here? Brett Anderson can either bring me back to reality, or show us how rosy the end of the season might be.

Buster Posey: Rude To 12-Year-Olds, Now Acting Out All Over

Sounds like the pressure is getting to Buster Posey, aka Oyster Pubes:

[...] Posey was stinging in two places after getting drilled on the arm by a Jorge De La Rosa pitch and fouling a ball off the inside of his left foot.

After the plunking, Posey uncharacteristically flung his bat toward the Giants’ dugout before taking first base.

“You ever been hit by a baseball?” Posey asked a reporter who asked about the bat toss. “It just didn’t feel good. That’s just the frustration.”

Hope Pubes didn't take out his frustration on any more 12-year-old kids.

Game 135 Thread: Sept. 5 @ Pads, 5:30p

Alex Wood (3.67, 9-9) vs. Tyson Ross (10-9, 3.27).

7.5 games up! Potential playoff matchup team Mets dealing with Matt Harvey's innings limit. Go Blue!

Game 134 Thread: Sept. 4 @ Padres, 7p

STILL WEIRD.

Mike Bolsinger (5-3, 2.83) vs. James Shields (10-6, 3.78).

Despite last night's dispiriting lose-from-ahead loss, the Dodgers have won eight of their last ten. More importantly, SoSG and our awesome readership are on a five-GT streak of 100+ comments. We've made 978 comments over five games. Let the streaks continue!

Game 133 Thread: Sept. 3 @ Padres, 7p

Mat Latos (4-9, 4.76) vs. Colin Rea (2-2, 5.95).

O happy day! Jose Peraza has a sore hamstring (that's the sad part, and what's up with this team and hamstrings?), and super-prospect Corey Seager is getting his long-awaited callup to the majors. What's the big deal? Take it away, Ken Gurnick:

Seager, 21, was taken with the No. 18 selection in the 2012 Draft, and he's rapidly progressed through the Dodgers' farm system. He turned heads last season by batting .352 in 80 games at Class A Rancho Cucamonga, and he followed up by hitting .345 in 38 games for Double-A Chattanooga.

Seager, a shortstop, is the younger brother of Seattle third baseman Kyle Seager, and he's batted .307 with a .368 on-base percentage and a .523 slugging mark during his Minor League career.

So let's get all Lisa Simpson and go Corey crazy!

More Praise For Kershaw's Wednesday Beat-Down

Great infographics, both from ESPN:

Something Fishy Going On With Don Mattingly?

Don Mattingly has been linked to reports of his candidacy as manager of the Miami Marlins, and even the Dodgers' own website is happy to report on this:

LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers manager Don Mattingly on Wednesday dismissed any talk of him leaving Los Angeles, despite rumors swirling about him going to Miami as a potential replacement for Marlins interim manager Dan Jennings.

Mattingly said he first heard of the rumors when his son, Preston, called him about them Wednesday morning.

"He's the one that informs me what's going on. I have no idea where that comes from," Mattingly said. "I'm happy. I'm not worried about anything as far as that goes. I'm happy here. I feel like I'm a Dodger. That being said, that's about all we need to talk about as far as me."

Hmm, is that all? Mark Saxon of ESPN.com keeps pontificating:

Then again, the new front office of Andrew Friedman inherited Mattingly from former general manager Ned Colletti. Mattingly had no previous ties to any of the major three decision-makers above him in baseball operations -- Friedman, general manager Farhan Zaidi or vice president for baseball operations Josh Byrnes. Also, no team has ever had a payroll anywhere close to the Dodgers' -- approaching $300 million -- so there's no telling how far they might have to go to save Mattingly's job.

Mattingly is signed through 2016. He grumbled about his uncertain status shortly after the 2013 season, after the team declined to announce his option had been triggered with a first-round win over the Atlanta Braves. After an awkward press conference, with Colletti sitting right next to him, the Dodgers rewarded Mattingly with a three-year contract extension.

And here's where those Ron Roenicke fears start multiplying.

Post-Game 132 Thread: Kershaw Koncludes Giant Sweep

Buster Posey, post-game (note how he has turned away from the 12-year-old asking for an autograph). Hat tip Cliff Beefpile!

DODGERS 2, GIANTS 1

It took 132 pitches and was definitely white-knuckled at the end there, but Clayton Kershaw struck out Marlon Byrd with two on in the bottom of the ninth to secure his 15th K, tied for his career high, as well as give the Dodgers the victory. With the win, the Giants were summarily swept in the three-game series, sending them to their fifth straight loss. The Giants now sit 6.5 games back in the NL West, as well as 6.5 games back in the wild card. I would never count these cockroaches out, but obviously we could not have asked for a better outcome in this series--particularly not after being no-hit by the Cubs on Sunday evening.

Like last night, the killer blow came from an unlikely hero with a solo HR, and this time it was off the bat of Chase Utley--his first as a a Dodger and only his sixth HR all year.

The Dodgers' other run came from Carl Crawford, who had an RBI double in the second inning which Angel Pagan misplayed, giving Crawford another base and making sure Justin Turner scored from first without a throw home. Pagan later had an RBI single, but still ended the game a loser.

We will see if Mattingly's extended usage of Greinke (last night) and Kershaw (tonight) leaves our pair of aces drained for the home stretch. However, the returns in this series were pretty solid. Now we make the long trip down to San Diego for four games.

Game 132 Thread: Sept. 2 vs. Giants, 7p

Clayton Kershaw (11-6, 2.24) vs. Mike Leake (9-6, 3.53).

Two games, two one-run victories for the Dodgers, who have overcome not only the arch-rival Giants to win the series, but also have overcome another round of baffling substitution and bullpen choices (the bullpen has actually been great these last two games, bailing Don Mattingly out), not to mention the evil plans of Ron Roenicke, Sleeper Agent^TM. If Kershaw can reduce Mike Leake to his ordinary vegetative state (see above picture), things might actually be looking up here.

Not to Take You Away from SoSG....

... But BR's article about CAL RIPKEN'S 2131st GAME is worth a read.

Lou Gehrig's record stood for a half-century, and it felt like it had been there forever. Cal Ripken Jr.'s record has stood for 20 years, and it feels like...wait, has it really been 20 years since that fabulous night when he passed Gehrig by playing in his 2,131st consecutive game? "It seems like yesterday in one way," Ripken said. "And then there's the realization that it's been 20 years."

Twenty years. It's a lifetime for the guy who might be the best shortstop in baseball today. Carlos Correa was born two weeks after the game that changed Ripken from a great player headed to the Hall of Fame into a legend with a nickname. When Ernie Johnson says "Iron Man" on those TBS baseball telecasts, we all know who he's talking about. We all remember. It's about that streak. It's about that night—that magical night that lives on in history. "There's never been another game like it," Rex Hudler said. "And there'll never be another game like it."

Hudler was the starting second baseman for the California Angels that night at Camden Yards. He went 0-for-2 with a strikeout, before Spike Owens pinch hit for him. "By far the greatest moment in my career," he said. "And it had nothing to do with me." It truly was a game like no other ever played. And this Sunday, September 6, 2015, will mark the 20-year anniversary.

Even before Sosa, McGwire and their kilos of 'roids, the real Iron Man resuscitated baseball from the '94 Strike. If there's a better streak in sports - with all due to respect to Unbreakable Orel H - I don't know about it.

Buster Posey Won't Sign Autographs, Crushes 12-Year Old Boy's Spirits

Giants catcher Buster Posey crushed the spirit of a 12-year-old boy, on multiple occasions, by blowing him off in a simple request for an autograph. Eric Lichtblau of the NYT has the story:

For all the controversies, the kids still had their heroes — at least until we got to Wrigley Field.

[My son] Andrew had idolized Buster Posey, the San Francisco Giants catcher, ever since he came back from a season-ending injury in 2011 to win the Most Valuable Player Award the next year. A pair of Cubs-Giants games we would see at Wrigley Field were marked on Andrew’s calendar for weeks, and he came to the park in one of his Posey jerseys and Giants cap, waving an orange sign he made reading: “Posey for Prez!”

It wasn’t a good night for the Giants, with Posey flying out to seal a loss. Afterward, Andrew waited excitedly at a hideaway in the stadium where I’d heard visiting players sometimes emerged after showering to catch the bus. Sure enough, 20 minutes later, a tall, bearded man walked out alone. “Mr. Bumgarner!” Andrew yelled. “Can I get your autograph?” Smiling, Bumgarner, the M.V.P. of last year’s World Series signed balls and caps for Andrew, Matthew and three other boys nearby. Four other Giants soon followed and did the same. Then came Posey, security guards at his side. “Mr. Posey! Mr. Posey!” Andrew yelled. “Could I get your autograph?” I held the “Posey for Prez!” sign over his head. The All-Star waved him off. He always seemed to be smiling in his commercials, but now he just looked annoyed as he walked away. “Maybe he’s just having a bad night,” I offered.

The next day, after another Giants loss, Andrew was back at the same spot, waiting and hoping for a different result. Again, Posey walked right past the handful of boys pleading for an autograph. He didn’t even look up this time. “What a jerk,” Andrew said. I was still holding his “Posey for Prez!” sign. Andrew grabbed it out of my hand, crumpled it up and stuffed it into a garbage can outside Wrigley.

Somewhere amid the trash was a life lesson for a crushed 12-year-old about the way heroes can disappoint us.

And this is why you shouldn't have heroes nicknamed "Oyster Pubes." Heck, even MadBum signed autographs! What's eating Oyster Pubes?

Funny enough, NBC Bay Area tried to do a piece defending Posey's arrogant behavior by following tweets. Lichtblau fired back to the few Oyster Pubes defenders:

Reeling Giants Sink To Clichéd Mudslings

Regarding the Dodgers' 14-inning, 5-4 victory Monday night: really, SF Comical writer Bruce Jenkins, is this the best you can do?

It was understandable that only a few hundred fans were around to witness the end of a 5-hour, 29-minute affair, but this was a night of monumentally inappropriate attendance in Southern California. Even in the heart of a close game, around 8:30 p.m., there were thousands of empty seats. That just doesn’t happen anywhere else when two storied rivals contest the heart of a pennant race.

We had 40,851 attendance at that game. On a Monday night.

Your birdshit stadium averages around about the same attendance, 41K, this year on a Monday night (of which you've had few Monday night home games, thanks to your cushy schedule).

Shut up.

Might I remind you how sparse your home crowds are:

And why may no one want to come near AT&T Park? Oh, yeah:

It's the birdshit.

Post-Game 131 Thread: Madison Hacked on Joc's Jack

DODGERS 2, GIANTS 1

Zack Greinke threw 114 pitches, holding the Giants helpless into the seventh inning. By then, the Dodgers already wielded a 2-0 lead thanks to a majestic solo shot to center field off the bat of Joc Pederson. Pederson, who had been demoted to ninth in the batting order for this game, looked ebullient rounding the bases--Joc's emotion looked a lot like the type of energetic boost that this team so desperately needs (and has been missing from stoics like Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley, fwiw). Pederson's HR off of "Ashley" Madison Bumgarner handed Bumgarner his seventh loss of the year.

Two runs was all the Dodgers needed, as well. When Greinke exited the game with two on and a run already in (to make it 2-1), Luis Avilan got Brandon Belt to ground into double play to shut off the threat. Kenley Jansen came in for the ninth and seal the win.

Dodgers are now 5.5 games up in the West, with one more game in this series tomorrow. Let's go, Dodgers!

Game 131 Thread: Sep. 1 vs. Giants, 7p

TONIGHT! The irritable force meets the indecipherable object!
Zack Greinke (14-3, 1.61) vs. Ashley Madison (16-6, 2.97)

If it's possible to die from prolonged exposure to INTENSE GLARES, then we're all dead tonight. (sad trombone)

But wait! The sad trombone was silenced last night, though most of you were probably asleep when it happened. Last night's win put the Dodgers up 4.5 games in the NL West. Even if Debbie Downer Sax's worst fears come true and the Dodgers lose this series, they'll still walk away with a 2.5 game lead. Plus, it's September 1st! The reinforcements are arriving! (mildly upbeat piccolo)

Of course, there's still the whole Roenicke thing...

Post-Game 130 Thread: Dodgers Finally Grab Spotlight Off Broadway

DODGERS 5, GIANTS 4 (14)

The Dodgers won a game. Against the Giants.

Adrian Gonzalez had a walk-off single with the bases loaded and none out in the bottom of the 14th, lacing the first pitch from Yusmiero Petit to left field to score A.J. Ellis. Ellis, Jimmy Rollins, and Chase Utley had all reached in succession off of Mike Broadway, who ended up with the game's worst line (0.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 Ks). With the bases loaded, even third base coach Ron Roenicke couldn't hold up the Dodgers from scoring--and really, it was about time, after this five-and-a-half hour ulcer-creating tightrope walk.

What was good--actually, what was amazing--was that the Dodgers' bullpen actually did pretty okay. Nine innings of work, post-Brett Anderson's five-inning, 3 ER start, and Pedro Baez, Luis Avilan, Kenley Jansen, Jim Johnson (two innings!), and Chris Hatcher (three innings!) all put in great scoreless efforts. Juan Nicasio blew the save in the eighth inning, allowing the Giants to score off a Marlon Byrd double.

But after that, the scoring completely shut down for both teams, though it seemed like it was the Dodgers who were regularly narrowly escaping jams AND blowing chances to win. Losing would have been dispiriting, particularly to Justin Turner (who doubled in a run in the first inning off of Jake Peavy), Adrian Gonzalez (whose two-run HR tied the game at 3), and Andre Ethier (who put the Dodgers ahead 4-3 until Nicasio's effort).

But six innings of scoreless bullpen work from our boys? Pretty damn impressive, and certainly needed. Dodgers' lead grows to 4.5 games; Giants' losing streak extends to three games; and though we won't have any arms for the rest of this series, Zack Greinke (Tuesday) and Clayton Kershaw (who PH unsuccessfully tonight; Wednesday) might be able to go beyond five innings?! Either way, we'll take it.