After reading his piece and reviewing his various proposals, I am heavily in the NO camp with regard to his more extreme ideas. Part of this comes from being a baseball traditionalist…I’ve always been resistant to change in Major League Baseball, and love all the quirks that are part of the game (like the AL’s designated hitter rule). I was heavily against inter-league play at the time it was introduced, fearing that it was a temporary gimmick that would cause more harm than good when it would be eventually repealed. Plus, I would argue, that’s what makes the World Series so special. I was wrong in this case; interleague play is here to stay and I love seeing the AL teams come through Chavez Ravine each year. And the World Series hasn’t lost its luster as a result.

Rosenthal’s argument on radical realignment is based primarily on the competitive imbalance in the AL East, with the domination of the Yankees and Red Sox over their opponents:

“The Yankees and Red Sox will remain financial super-powers for the foreseeable future. Even scarier, both teams have become so efficient, they eliminated any intellectual edge that certain low-revenue teams had gained.”

“If all clubs possess similar brainpower, then dollars become decisive, dooming the AL East also-rans. A cynic might suggest they would be better off pocketing revenue-sharing money than trying to compete.”

Ok, fine; obviously there is a severe financial chasm that exists between the high and low-revenue clubs. I could be on board with potentially making some limited shifts in the AL East to address the issue, but where I disagree is Rosenthal’s solution of blowing up all the divisions in favor of prioritizing regional rivalries which he says draws more fans. I would argue that the scarcity of these games is what fans love and what matters most is how the teams are performing. Is there more buzz about Lakers-Clippers games than Dodgers-Angels games? Not when one team is consistently mediocre (unless you’re the Clippers). It’s just another game. Dodgers-Angels games just feel different…they almost have a playoff feel to them with fans from both sides excessively energized, and I wouldn’t want to lose that.

Rosenthal makes some interesting points about competitive balance and the financial benefits from moving the Red Sox to another division (presumably the AL Central) and moving one team from the AL Central to the AL East (he suggests the Tigers, which I’m sure makes Rosenthal persona non grata in Detroit right about now).

If competitive imbalance is truly a problem, I’d be more in favor of looking at scheduling and weighting teams’ opponents for the upcoming season based on how they finish the current season, like the NFL tries to do. Win the World Series, and you’re playing the toughest out-of-division schedule the following year.

Fortunately Bud Selig doesn’t seem too interested in Ken’s theories, so radical realignment appears to be just the musings of a baseball reporter with too much time on his hands during Spring Training.

LOOKS LIKE WE’RE JUST ABOUT SET: Dodger infielders Rafael Furcal and Ronnie Belliard arrived in camp this morning along with non-roster players Doug Mientkiewicz, Brian Giles and Russell Mitchell. While Giles was answering questions about the last time he was counted on as a left-handed pinch-hitter (1997 with Cleveland), Dodger outfielder Manny Ramirez came over and gave him a big hug, declaring “We go waaaaay back.” Giles and Ramirez were teammates in Cleveland from 1995-98. The only player who has not yet reported to camp is reliever Ronald Belisario, who is still stuck with visa problems. Dodger starter Jeff Weaver has left camp to be with his wife Jillian as the couple is expecting their first baby any minute.    

LINE ‘EM UP!: Dodger Manager Joe Torre announced the start of his Spring Training rotation today and he and pitching coach Rick Honeycutt have tapped Vicente Padillato start the March 5 contest against the White Sox. Following Padilla in the starting rotation to start the Cactus League will be Eric Stults, Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley and Hiroki Kuroda. No word yet on who will pitch in the “B” game on March 2, but it’s safe to say that those heading to Taiwan will be looking to increase their workload at that point.

POINT AND SHOOT: MLB Network today announced that it will be televising 78 Spring Training contests over four weeks beginning March 2. The Dodger games will air on MLB Network five times via tape delay: March 6 vs. Chicago (AL), March 9 vs. Colorado, March 17 vs. Chicago (AL), March 26 vs. Kansas City and April 3 vs. the Angels. In addition, MLB Network will also broadcast the Dodgers and Diamondbacks live from Camelback Ranch – Glendale on March 10 at 3 p.m. EST/12 p.m. PST.

KODACHROME: Saturday morning is 2010 photo day for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Among the many media and sports entities that will be on site are KCAL, Sony, Associated Press, Getty Images, MLB Photos, UPI, US Presswire and Topps.

IT’S TIME FOR DODGER BASEBALL: The Dodgers and White Sox will face off for seven innings in the first “B” game of Spring Training on March 2 at 11:00 am on Field 1.

LEGENDS NIGHT: Boy is that an understatement. This Saturday, Dodger Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax and Dodger Manager Joe Torrewill raise money and awareness for Torre’s foundation “Safe at Home” by taking part in an event at LA Live’s Nokia Theater. Tickets can be purchased via ticketmaster.com or charge-by-phone lines at (800) 745-3000.                                                                   

JOE COLLEGE: This Sunday is the inaugural “Dodgertown Classic” at Dodger Stadium, featuring two of our local Pac-10 schools in action on the diamond. The University of Southern California will take on the University of California, Los Angeles in the main event at 2 p.m. The undercard at 10 a.m. will put baseball powers Vanderbilt and Oklahoma State on display. Tickets for the event cost $5 and can be purchased in advance at dodgers.com and in person at USC and UCLA campus box offices. Day of game tickets can be purchased at Dodger Stadium for $10.

SINGLE-GAME TICKETS ON SALE MARCH 6: Dodgers single-game tickets go on sale on Saturday, March 6 at 10:00 am online, by phone and at Dodger Stadium. The team will hold an on-sale event in Lot P at Dodger Stadium with Dodger legends Ron Cey and “Sweet” Lou Johnson, and all fans purchasing at least one ticket will receive two free tickets to the Dodgers’ exhibition home opener against the Indians on April 1. Dodger Dogs will be available for $2 and merchandise kiosks will be open as well.

LOOKING FOR A TEE TIME?: Eric Karros will host the 12th annual St. Francis Medical Center Foundation Golf Classic tomorrow at Trump National Golf Course in Rancho Palos Verdes . Proceeds will benefit outreach programs and charitable care for children and families in the Southeast Los Angeles community. For more information contact Grace Mendez, SFMC Foundation, (310) 900-7331.

Hershiser goes into the  tournament on a bit of a roll, finishing second in a celebrity charity poker tournament to kick off the new North American Poker Tour.  The tournament benefited Three Squares, a Las Vegas charity that provides food to more than 270 organizations around the great Southern Nevada area.  Model Joanna Krupa also participated, so I included a photo of her as well (you’re welcome).

Click here to view the embedded video.

Younger sports fans may find this hard to believe, but there was once a day when ESPN did not exist (or when your parents refused to get cable television, as was the case with me).  In the mid-1980s, that meant you had to get your national sports highlights from the one and only George Michael, host and executive producer of The George Michael Sports Machine, syndicated nationally on NBC.

George was the guy who brought us the plays of the week for 30 minutes each and every Sunday night.  And I’m not talking about just the NBA, MLB, NFL and NHL.  No, George brought us the weird and the wacky…the stuff you would never, ever see in an era before YouTube.  George was the guy who would show you belly-flop competitions, crazy bull-riding accidents, miraculous full-court shots by high school basketball players, a woman shooting a bow and arrow with her toe…you name it, George had it in his “Plays of the Year.”

George was also known for his style when setting up each clip.  After verbally describing an upcoming story, George would push an over-sized button, which activated what appeared to be a computerized reel-based sports computer.  I remember when I was 15, this seemed pretty cool, but the sports machine slowly drifted into cheesy and eventually to classic.  George Michael was always true to himself and his style, and I’ve always appreciated that about him.  Rest in peace, George!

Photo Credit: Dominican Today

“We’re not going to make any outlandish-type decisions in a rough economy.” [said Dennis Mannion]

He [Manion] said that would rule out Lackey “unless there is an effective way to make that kind of deal.”

Given the financial uncertainty in the ownership ranks of the Dodgers, I’m not surprised that club president Dennis Mannion is out of the John Lackey sweepstakes, but I am surprised the Dodgers are out before any offers have been made.  As I wrote earlier, Ned Colletti has a history of going after value picks, and giving Lackey a long-term, big money contract would be out of character.  However it’s a bit early to call any Lackey contract an “outlandish-type decision” at this stage of the game.

While I would argue that what the Dodgers really need is a #1 starter and true ace of the rotation, the Dodgers feel that they have that with the combination of Billingsley and Kershaw at #1 and #1a.  They need a #3 starter to replace Randy Wolf, followed by Kuroda and a #5 starter from their ranks of potential candidates.  In theory, given another year of maturity for Bills and Kersh, this would be a better starting five than we had the previous season.

One question I’ve been mulling in my head this off-season is what I really think about Chad Billingsley in my heart of hearts.  Will he develop into a dominant #1 starter, or will his head always get in the way of his natural talent?  I’ll save that for a future post.

Dodgers Celebrate Game One Victory

Whew!  I was nervous about this game before it started, and Game One of the Dodgers-Cardinals series was far tenser than even I expected, and much more than the 5-3 final score indicated.  A couple of key moments that really stood out for me:

- The Dodgers holding the Cardinals back in the bottom of the first.  This game could have gotten really ugly, really fast.  Instead, Wolf held serve and left the inning down 1-0, keeping the crowd in the game.

- Matt Kemp powers a two-run blast in the bottom of the first inning after a Rafael Furcal single, giving the team the confidence the needed to show them their bats were back (especially after recent lackluster series against the Nationals and Pirates).

- Torre’s handling of Albert Pujols – clearly the best player in the game today.  The Dodgers also had a bit of luck on their side – at least twice during the game, Puujols was the last out of the inning, breaking up the one-two punch of him and Matt Holliday.

- Luck.  There was a shot byRyan Ludwick that if fair, would have been a grand slam in the fifth inning.  There was also another shot by the Cardinals down the left-field line in the fifth or sixth inning that landed just foul and easily could have cleared the bases.

- The dominance of the Dodgers bullpen.  After what can best be described as a shaky start by Wolf, the bullpen delivered as advertised with great performances by Weaver, Belisario, Kuo, Sherrill and Big Brox.

But what made the game so tense was all of the baserunners.  In all, LA and St. Louis stranded a combined 30 baserunners (a new MLB record), including 13 in scoring position for the Dodgers and 10 for the Cardinals.  As I mentioned to Orel from the Sons of Steve Garvey during the game, whichever team looses this game is really going to feel like one got away. 

But this is why I LOVE playoff baseball.  Every pitch means the world to two clubs and their fans.  One false move, and the momentum swings in a different direction.  You could literally see the swagger and sparke in the eyes of the Dodgers as the game went on.  Game One was exactly the reason why home field advantage was so critical for the Dodgers, and hopefully they can keep it going in Game Two today!

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

There’s nothing like a three game series against the hated San Francisco Giants to get the blood going, and Vincente Padilla (3-0, 2.01) starts the series off against Jonathan Sanchez (6-12, 4.16).  According to the Giants media notes, Sanchez has been pitching well as of late, going 2-1 with a 1.16 ERA, holding opponents to a .154 average in his last five starts on the road against the Mets, Phillies, Rockies, Astros and Brewers.  Sanchez also has the lowest ERA of any pitcher in the NL on the road since August 4th (the next closest is Chris Carpenter with a 1.69 ERA, and Randy Wolf is fourth with an ERA of 1.96).

On another note, Ken Gurnick has a good article on Ned Colletti and his shrewd wheeling and dealing, that has brought George Sherrill, Ronnie Belliard, Vincente Padilla, Jon Garland and Jim Thome to Los Angeles.  From the story:

“Frank McCourt owns the Dodgers and Joe Torre manages them, but this is Ned Colletti’s club. He traded for Andre Ethier and Manny Ramirez, he refused to trade away Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw, and he signed Randy Wolf and Vicente Padilla.

Since the general manager took over four years ago, the only team in the league with more wins is Philadelphia. Colletti inherited a club that finished 20 games below .500, and in four years, the Dodgers are 50 games above .500. Colletti’s best win-loss record of the four seasons will be this year — after trimming the payroll by $20 million.”

Here’s hoping that Ned’s work will finally lead this team back to the World Series.

Photo Credit: Examiner.com

17 Dodger runs, two hit-by-pitch incidents, and an angry Brewer (Prince Fielder) attempting to storm the clubhouse to have words with Mota?! WOW.

Most interestingly, Manny Ramirez had a solid outing (HR, 2-run double) before being hit by a pitch in the 7th inning. For some reason, the Dodgers have elected to rest him tonight as evidenced by the Dodgers starting lineup for Thursday’s game:

Rafael Furcal, SS
Juan Pierre, Lf
Andre Ethier, RF
Casey Blake, 3B
James Loney, 1B
Matt Kemp, CF
Russell Martin, C
Orlando Hudson, 2B
Jason Schmidt, P

Not sure if Torre wants to give Pierre some more playing time or if he needs to rest Ramirez for some reason but it would be interesting to find out from any game notes and see if he makes it in the game tonight…