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Hard to believe Kirk Gibson’s legendary, series-changing home run in Game 1 if the 1988 World Series was 20 years ago today.  I remember it well: I was 18 and on a college tour with my parents somewhere on the East Coast.  At that moment, I was watching the game with my mom and explaining the improbability of the Dodgers winning the series without Gibson in the game.  It ranks as my favorite Dodgers moment of all time, and I can still hear Vin Scully in my head saying incredulously, “The impossible has happened!”  How can that not give you chills?  Hard to believe that was the first come from behind, walk-off HR in World Series history.

I wish I could pull the clip from Ken Burns’ “Baseball” documentary, as he put together a great piece on “the moment,” interviewing everyone associated with this game, but instead I found the clip on YouTube.  Rather than rehashing a moment we all know so well, I thought I would share other’s takes on the home run from the Detroit Free-Press (this is great) and the Los Angeles Times.

So where you, Dodger fans?  Let’s hear your stories!  And Gibby, dust off those cleats and meet us out at the Ravine…we need you for Game 5!

Wow. Seriously, is there a better way word to describe this deal? Maybe unfathomable. Unbelievable. Extraordinary. Am I dreaming? Did the Dodgers really get Manny Friggin’ Ramirez for Andy LaRoche and a 21 year-old Class A minor league pitcher that’s already been through Tommy John surgery? Did I mention that the Red Sox are also reportedly picking up Manny’s salary? That’s like the bow on top of this gift from Theo Epstein. I was working at the X Games today, and my phone was ringing off the hook as fellow Dodger fans called to celebrate the news. Congrats to SI’s John Donovan for breaking the news.

Read my comments on an earlier Manny Ramirez post from Alex earlier today, and I was critical of adding Manny to the Dodgers for fear of the cost of what we’d have to give up as well as what might happen behind the clubhouse walls. I never imagined that we would get possibly the greatest hitter of his generation for practically nothing. Two months of Manny while in a tight pennant race is just too good to pass up, even if he’s just average. Plus, you have to remember that Manny’s teammates have loved the guy a great majority of the time. It’s the media and the front office that usually have the problem with him (and for extremely valid reasons, I might add). But the Dodgers know it’s just for two months, and Manny’s in a contract year, so he’ll be on his best behavior. Congratualtions Ned. I never thought you had this in you!

A few thoughts on “The Trade” from Dodger executives, the media and our fellow bloggers:

- From Tim Kurkjian (ESPN): “Three potential Hall of Famers were traded within 24 hours (Ramirez, Griffey Jr. and Ivan Rodriguez. The last time this happened was 1966 when Robin Roberts, Orlando Hernandez and Fergie Jenkins were moved…and that was over the course of several months.”

- From a giddy Frank McCourt: “He (Ramirez) is an elite athlete. As close as you can come to being an artist of the game….Certainly a baseball classic.”

- Understatement of the year from Joe Torre: “Manny in the middle of the lineup will certainly get people’s attention.”

- From Dodger Thoughts (the blog of all Dodger blogs): “If Ramirez replaces Pierre/Jones in the lineup, this deal makes the Dodgers a more serious contender to finish over .500 in 2008. (I kid! I think they can do even better.) It weakens the Dodgers beyond 2008, but honestly, there’s time enough to solve that.”

- From the good folks over at the Sons of Steve Garvey: “The right personnel on the field does not include Andruw Jones or Juan Pierre–BOTH OF WHOM ARE STARTING TONIGHT in what I hope is to allow the obligatory “farewell waves to the crowd” for at least one of those players. Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp simply cannot ride the pine if we hope to make a run.”

This last quote from “Steve Sax” really says it all. This move has got to mean that Jones has earned a permanent spot on the bench. The man is a strikeout machine and it’s becoming abundantly clear that Andruw has lost his mojo. Permanently.

Wow. Today was a crazy day for the Dodgers.

Clayton Kershaw has certainly been coming along, and today’s 2-0 win, which featured six innings without any runs, was the best outing yet in his 10 game major league career.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, make it back to the .500 mark but still trail the D-Backs by a game as everyone in the NL west seems to win and lose in synchronicity these days.

In other news, Andruw “Tubbo” Jones finally got a $36 million dollar wake-up call. Jones and his .166 batting average will be riding the pine as the Dodgers take on the Giants in their upcoming series. He got a brief appearance against the Nationals but Andre Ethier is the man who has been asked to do what Jones can’t - hit the ball. Jones has been told to spend time with the hitting coaches and that those with better batting averages will be filling his spot until further notice.

Finally!  On Saturday morning, the Dodgers pulled the trigger and landed 3B Casey Blake from the Indians for a pair of lower-tier minor leaguers giving them a solid bat at one of the positions where one was desperately needed: third base.  He also gives the Dodgers a ton of flexibility, playing first base as well as in the outfield when needed.

Let’s first talk about Blake’s numbers: he’s hitting .289, 11 HR, 58 RBI.  Nice.  Sure, he’s a free agent after this season, but there’s no reason to think that Casey can’t re-sign with the Dodgers who will be looking for a replacement for Raffy Furcal.  Plus, this guy plays hard and the Dodgers need gamers.  I bet he and Jeff Kent are going to get along famously.

Plus the guy is a clutch hitter, hitting .398 with runners in scoring position (something the Dodgers most certainly are not this year).  If you want to get as psyched as we are about this trade, check out this article in yesterday’s Cleveland Plain Dealer: “The Mighty Casey: Blake Maintains Pace as Tribe’s Best in Clutch in ‘08″

This year, the Tribe’s versatile third baseman entered Friday’s series opener with Minnesota hitting .402 with men in scoring position, .326 with runners on second or third with two out and .600 with the bases loaded. But he is hard-pressed to explain it.

“I’m not doing anything different. … I tried to keep the same approach [as 2007], and that’s why it’s so weird,” said Blake, who is hitting .287 (92-for-321) with 11 homers and 58 RBI. “It’s one of those things. I just try to hit the ball hard somewhere.”

Blake said he hopes that fans appreciate his blue-collar work ethic and said it is a privilege to roll up his sleeves everyday and go to work.

“I’m not real flashy … I don’t believe in that,” Blake said. “I show up every day ready to play hard. … I’ve had some tough times here [with the fans] but I’m glad they’re embracing me. It’s nice to have them on my side.”

In return, the Indians will receive Carlos Santana, a catcher in the Class A California League where he has 14 homers and is hitting .323.  Also acquired in the deal is AAA pitcher Jon Meloan who is 5-10, but is also a strikeout machine, racking up 335 in 262 innings.

Sure the Dodgers gave up some potential major league talent in this deal, but the NL West is ripe for the picking and the Dodgers managed to strike first in a big way while not giving up the farm in the process.  Nice job Ned, but you’re not done yet!

While I know I’ve spouted off about the need to make a deal (especially for a shortstop), trading Matt Kemp for Jack Wilson straight-up is sheer lunacy! Kemp is one of the brightest stars of the Dodgers’ future, and trading him for an average shortstop is ridiculous. Yes, the club could win the NL West with the right move, but this isn’t going to put them over the top in terms of winning the pennant. This would be a move made by Ned out of sheer desperation and is cause for immediate dismissal. Surely the Dodgers brain trust can see the disaster that this move would bring with the fans, right? I’m trusting that after all the time Ned has spent defending the younger players, that he wouldn’t just go out and trade Kemp the moment he decided one or more were expendable.

At the very least, you would hope the Dodgers would package 1-2 of their high-profile younger players/prospects together for two of the following three holes: a #1 starter, a big bat and a quality shortstop. But trading Kemp for an average (albeit solid) shortstop, is just wrong. Hopefully this is just a rumor, but time will tell. You just never know with Ned.