Was Joe Torre to Blame for Dodgers Loss in Game 4 of NLCS?

Bill Plaschke had a good summary from Dodger Stadium - it was the PITCHING that did us in last night, and some of the choices were really perplexing…

The Wade and Kershaw choices were the strangest ones for me. Wade threw over 30 pitches the night before in the Dodgers win in game 3 - was it really necessary to bring him in ahead of Kuo? The Kershaw situation was another strange one…Clayton doesn’t have experience in the postseason and had only acted as a relief pitcher three times in the entire 2008 season - definitely not a seasoned veteran for mid-game appearances.

Bottom line - we may have stocked up on hitting with the likes of Manny Ramirez and Casey Blake this year, but pitching may be the piece that costs the Dodgers the chance at the World Series. Don’t blame Torre, blame the pitching dilemma we are in - an issue that is the responsibility of the Dodgers front office.

Welcome Back, Welcome Back, Welcome Back

Ever since I read Dylan Hernandez’s article on the return of Greg Maddux in the LA Times, I just haven’t been able to quite get the theme song to “Welcome Back Kotter” out of my head (twice in one season, no less!). Tell me that this doesn’t ring true:

Welcome back,
Your dreams were your ticket out.
Welcome back,
To that same old place that you laughed about.
Well the names have all changed since you hung around,
But those dreams have remained and they’re turned around.
Who’d have thought they’d lead ya (Who’d have thought they’d lead ya)
Here where we need ya (Here where we need ya)
Yeah we tease him a lot cause we’ve hot him on the spot, welcome back,
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back.

Seriously though, Maddux is a stud. If the Padres crappy offense could have just scored some runs, the guy would have a MUCH better record than the 6-9 record he’s currently been sporting, along with that 3.99 ERA (which was a lot lower before he was recently hammered by the Rockies and Twins). No word yet on who the Dodgers gave up to get Maddux, but you’ve got to believe that he’s psyched to be coming back to LA where the newly turbo-charged Dodgers offense is waiting.

Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back…

Torre Says Penny Likely Out For Season

Dodger manager Joe Torre indicated Saturday that pitcher Brad Penny was likely out for the remainder of the season, according to published reports.

“I can’t think Penny is going to come back,” said the Dodgers manager. “It’s nothing anybody has said. It’s off what happened this year. Coming off the DL, it’s been a slow process. He had only one rehab start, but it just seems it doesn’t feel right to him.”

A buildup of scar tissue that was spotted during a recent MRI. During his rehab, Penny has not returned to original form and was recently shelled for three home runs (six runs in total) over three innings. Definitely not the Brad Penny we remember from earlier in the season.

Pitching Prospects Linger While San Diego Deals Maddux

Could an NL West pitching deal be in the works? If so, it better happen fast as the non-waiver trading deadline will be here at 4:00 ET today

The Dodgers have clarified their trade priorities in the past several days, indicating that improving their pitching situation is a high priority. Yesterday, Dodger manager Joe Torre even indicated that Hiroki Kuroda, who is xxx, could be moved to the bullpen if his performance doesn’t improve. Such a move underscores how important a consistent pitcher would be down the stretch for the Dodgers.

Enter Greg Maddux. While reports indicate that talks stalled late yesterday, the Dodgers were indeed indicating interest in Maddux, who has insisted that he can only be traded to another West Coast team (and can do so thanks to his “no trade” clause). Right now, only the Dodgers appear to have an interest in acquiring a starting pitcher.

The Dodgers also have the option of placing a waiver claim on Maddux in August. How does that work?

After tomorrow, teams can still trade players, but any player they are trying to unload must pass through waivers first. When a team places a player on waivers, any team can enter a claim for him, but if more than one team enters a claim, priority goes to the team that has the lowest winning percentage and/or is in the same league as the player being claimed. The team that placed the player on waivers can work out a deal with the team that claimed him, pull him back off waivers (which means said player can’t be traded for the rest of the season), or just dump the player and his contract on the claiming team.

Maddux, 42, has a 4-8 record this season with a 4.29 earned-run average. He has chalked up 351 career victories and played with the Dodgers last season before signing with San Diego as a free agent.

Kershaw Wins, Jones Loses, Dodgers Sweep

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.

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