Monday’s great game!
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Sorry for posting this the day after the fact…it was a long night that finished the right way – with a Dodger victory!
Thanks to a guy named “Doc” at work, I was able to watch Monday night’s game from a great position – loge level, first base side, row A…fantastic seats in foul ball territory (one landed one aisle over and about 5-6 more were in our “area”)…of course, the only souvenirs I walked away with were a soda cup and a white Dodger soft serve helmet…
The game got off to a great start as Randy Wolf pitched 3 perfect innings before giving up a hit to leadoff the 4th inning…even though Wolf gave up a 2-run homer in the top of the 5th, he made up for it with a 2-run single in the bottom of the 5th!
The bullpen went to work in the 7th inning when Ronald Belisario came in and struck out the first two batters he faced…it was great to see the Rockies a bit off balance – seeing Randy Wolf and his high 60’s curveball for six innings and then facing Belisario and his mid-90’s heat in the seventh…
It was then Ramon Troncoso’s turn in the 8th, pitching a scoreless frame and then handing the ball to Jonathan Broxton who was throwing even more heat (high 90’s with a couple of pitches reaching triple digits on the Dodger Stadium radar gun)…
The only inning where we got into trouble was the 10th when Jeff Weaver gave up hits to the first two batters he faced, but proceeded to strikeout the side to get out of the jam…the fans were going crazy!!!
Brent Leach, Guillermo Mota and James McDonald each pitched a perfect inning to setup the heroics in the bottom of the 13th…
Casey Blake led off with a single to right field that Brad Hawpe trapped on a diving attempt…Andre Ethier, the Dodger’s leading “walk off man” with three game winners this season, stepped to the plate…
Strike one called…everyone in the stadium disagreed with the call…
Ball one…low and away…
Strike two called…another questionable call from the fans’ perspective, but we all have a worse view compared to the home plate umpire…
Pitch #4 was fouled away…
It was at this point that my friend put on his jacket and called it the “rally jacket”…I told him he should have put it on in the 9th inning so we could have gone home earlier…
The 5th pitch was a thing of beauty – for Dodger fans…Ethier ripped a line drive to right field that I thought was going to hit the wall…so did Brad Hawpe as he stopped and prepared to play the rebound off the wall…
…except the rebound never came…
The ball barely cleared the wall in right field…HOME RUN!
The crowd was going crazy…the Dodger bench emptied onto the field, awaiting Ethier at home plate…the helmet was off…the grin was ear-to-ear…he was pointing to someone at home plate…the final leap to touch the plate was complete…the dogpile began…what a game, what a game…
While Ethier stole the headlines in the paper this morning, the true heroes of this game were the guys coming out of the bullpen…in fact, the entire pitching staff…
17 strikeouts were recorded in the 13-inning game…the bullpen did not allow a run in the final 7 innings…the ONLY hits the Rockies got came off Jeff Weaver in the 10th…we brought the heat and the Rockies could do nothing with it…I love it!
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Jarrod Washburn to Dodgers? But for Who?
Filed under: 2009 Season, Dodger Trade Rumors, Juan Pierre, dodgers pitching
Jarrod Washburn
So the hot trade rumor right now involving the Dodgers involves Mariners starter Jarrod Washburn, according to the Los Angeles Times’ Ben Bloch:
Colletti Speaks Out on Possible Peavy Move
Was listening to Dan Patrick this morning on the way to the office and was fortunate enough to catch part of his interview with Ned Colletti. Dan launched into questions regarding the possible Peavy move to Chicago, and Ned was his usual laid-back self when responding. A couple of interesting tidbits did come up, including:
- Colletti had been keeping tabs on the situation and last spoke to Padres GM Kevin Towers about a month ago
- Towers was going to make the Dodgers pay a lot more than other clubs given the proximity, rivalry, etc. (no shocker there)
- The asking price from the Dodgers included THREE players on their current roster, plus one top prospect
Whatever, Towers! Ned was clearly right to say no to that deal, as I’m sure the three players on their current roster would include at least a couple everyday starters that, if traded, would have created a small mutiny among the Dodger faithful. No need sacrificing the future for another starter today. If anything, I’m way more concerned about the bullpen these days than I am the starting rotation. Oh, Ned answered a bunch of Manny questions as well, but nothing earth-shattering was reported here, other than he was just as dissapointed in Manny as everyone else is.
SWEEP! Dodgers Over “The Mess”
- Sweep!
Ahhh…how sweet a sweep is! So many great memories from tonight’s game, including a strong starting performance from Weaver after having been bounced like a pinball between starting and the bullpen, Ethier’s walk and subsequent move to third on J. Martin’s clutch hit allowing him to score, O-Dog’s 11-game hitting streak, Leach’s clutch pitching performance, earning him his first career victory. Good times, good times.
Gotta Love a Comeback
Eric Milton takes the mound today for the Blue for the first time since 2007. The 33 year-old pitcher underwent elbow ligament replacement surgery following a 6-6 season with the Reds where he posted a 5.17 ERA. Milton’s been burning up AAA so far this season with seven starts, going 3-2 with a 2.83 ERA. Milton is probably best known for his no-no for the Twins against the Angels (where he threw down 13 Ks with just two walks against a roster filled with more no-names than I can recall ever seeing on a major-league line-up). Here’s a link to the box score from that game (courtesy of Baseball Almanac).
Interestingly, Milton almost had a second no-hitter in 2007 when he was pitching for the Phillies and playing the Cubs. According to reports of the game, Phillies center-fielder botched a short fly-ball in the top of the 9th, leading to a double.
Now I’m certainly not saying that Milton is ready to throw another no-hitter for the Dodgers, but I love that Ned and Joe are bringing him in for this particular game. The Marlins are clearly in a major slump after their much-ballyhooed 11-1 start, going 14-12 since then, including losing their last five straight. No pressure for Milton and tons to be gained for both the man and the team. You gotta love a comeback (especially in Hollywood), and it would certainly be great for the Dodgers starting rotation to have Milton deliver some quality starts with Weaver in the bullpen and Kuroda still making his way back from the DL.