Dodgers Unable To Suspend Disbelief, Lose 11-9
by Eric Stephen on May 7, 2009 11:17 PM PDT
in Dodgers Game Recaps
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PrintAfter all the whirlwind events of this day, a day dominated by news of the Manny Ramirez suspension, the game was supposed to provide a welcome relief. After a six-run first inning, highlighted by a Matt Kemp grand slam, Dodger fans everywhere breathed a sigh of relief.
We're going to be OK without Manny Ramirez.
Randy Wolf pitched six strong innings, giving up only a solo homer to Josh Willingham in the sixth inning. When he left with a 6-1 lead, I was ready to write about the club's 14th straight win at home.
We're going to be OK without Manny Ramirez.
However, the bullpen provided no relief tonight. Six different pitchers allowed 13 hits and ten runs in only three innings, as the floodgates of an exhausting day simply burst open, turning a 6-1 lead into a 11-7 deficit entering the bottom of the ninth.
However, this resilient team rallied for two more runs, and amazingly put the tying run on base. Casey Blake batted with two outs needing only a home run -- that's right, only a home run -- to complete the cycle, on the 39th anniversary of Wes Parker's cycle at Shea Stadium (or as it has come to be known this year, "the other cycle"). Blake didn't homer to give the Dodgers the win; in fact, he popped out to end the game. But the important underlying point about the offense was that I still had confidence that they would come back. That's got to count for something right?
We're going to be OK without Manny Ramirez.
Tomorrow brings the Giants to town for a weekend series. Last time I checked, 13-1 at home is still pretty stellar, and the ace Chad Billingsley starts tomorrow against Barry Zito.
We're going to be OK without Manny Ramirez.
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One last Manny update.
FINAL UPDATE: Spoke with several sources with knowledge of the tests and it appears that Ramirez is both guilty of offense and of some poor judgement. His doctor checked the list, but apparently the old list — HCG was added to baseball’s banned list this off-season. That said, HCG is a big testosterone booster (up to 100% according to Millard Baker, a steroids expert) and is often used to "kick start" the body’s natural production of testosterone after a cycle of steroids.
– Will Carroll
But we have had several people say that is wrong
Including one of the sports expert doping doctors that said it is used during cycles to prevent testicular issues.
by trainwreck84 on May 7, 2009 11:24 PM PDT up reply actions
Unfortunate
I like it better when Carroll is predicting Chad Billingsley’s body will explode.
by Eric Stephen on May 7, 2009 11:25 PM PDT up reply actions
We're going to be OK without Manny Ramirez...
it’s Zito tomorrow.
2009 LA Kings Hockey: thanks to Joe Sakic's snowblower, WE'RE BETTER THAN THE AV'S!!!!
by DodgerBlueBalls on May 7, 2009 11:25 PM PDT reply actions
You might miss the beginning of the Xanadu Era at Chavez Ravene...
2009 LA Kings Hockey: thanks to Joe Sakic's snowblower, WE'RE BETTER THAN THE AV'S!!!!
by DodgerBlueBalls on May 7, 2009 11:28 PM PDT up reply actions
I was about to make a Obi Juan Kinobi joke
then I realized that is Star Wars.
by trainwreck84 on May 7, 2009 11:31 PM PDT up reply actions
Wouldn't have guessed
with your screen name :)
by Eric Stephen on May 7, 2009 11:31 PM PDT up reply actions
Like I said in the other thread
If the Dodgers play .500 the rest of the way they finish with 87 wins. The Giants would have to play .548 the rest of the way to finish ahead of the Dodgers.
Paris Hilton, Burberry plaid, reality TV, mullets, Zima, Dubya, and the Sonics being sold to Oklahoma City. - Yahoo Answer results for "7 Signs of the Apocalypse"
We need to cut Lincecum's hair
It is the source of his powers
by trainwreck84 on May 7, 2009 11:36 PM PDT up reply actions
It worked for/against you
I’m all for it!
by Eric Stephen on May 7, 2009 11:38 PM PDT up reply actions
I went from looking like Bret from FOTC with his helmet on
To Annie Lennox. I am now sad. : (
by trainwreck84 on May 7, 2009 11:40 PM PDT up reply actions
For Silverwidow
Dylan Hernandez clarifies somewhat the whole “money saved by Manny’s suspension” angle for 2009:
Because Ramirez agreed to be paid only $10 million this season — the other $15 million was to be deferred — the Dodgers are saving just $3.1 million this year
He doesn't say it in so many words, but in case anyone thought otherwise,
…costing him $7.7 million of his $25-million salary…
The other $4.6M gets lost during the deferred years.
Eric - Nice write up. We're still East bound and down, I mean World Series Bound & not down!.
Is Papi Ortiz still stuck on 0 hrs? Prob time bb releases all tests’ results ya think.. Shame though. Baseball is way bigger than this. Dodgers & Giants will prove it this weekend, I believe. : )
i blame this loss on the fact that i took a nap at the start of the 4th inning.
Dodgers - 2008 NL West Champions
Cardinals - 2008 NFC Champions
What jumps out of the Box Score - Furcal' line...
Raffy’s hitting TONIGHT not helping matters one bit. Predicion for our new Leader: 7+ hits vs Giants next 3 days!
Another thing - Not seeing Manny's name makes it so real.
I know he left town and went home without addressing the team BUT MANNY knows he better not stay in Fla long. He’s gotta rejoin & travel with the DODGERS starting Monday -At the latest. HE KNOWS IT. Period.
He'll be back in a couple of days.
Supposedly, he just can’t be in uniform during game time.
So, he can be in the stands with the fans! Make him work for his salary during his downtime. :)
Another BPro
Jjack (Cleveland): Who is more likely to be a MLB regular Niko Vasquez or Devaris Gordon?
Kevin Goldstein: Gordon. Bet on the tools.
Now we need to find out how is Niko Vasquez!
Good story about Baseball's current drug policy.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-manny-drugs8-2009may08,0,4903769.story
The doping suspension of Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez on Thursday has revived a debate that Major League Baseball undoubtedly hoped it had put behind it: Is the sport’s anti-drug program finally harsh enough to deter potential dopers, or is it still too lenient?
Baseball “has come a long way in the last seven years,” said Dr. Gary I. Wadler, a New York sports medicine expert and a key official of the World Anti-Doping Agency. “But it’s still not where it needs to be.”
The real problem
is still Torre and “new old-school” (its hard to call thinking that is merely post 1975 “old-school”) thinking. Where was the leverage point in this game? The 8th inning. So, where was Broxton? Sitting on his butt waiting for the game to be “set-up” for him to “close.” Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. And thus, we lose.
I agree
I didn’t like the bullpen use starting in the 7th. If J-Mac or Leach were available, they should have started the 7th when it was 6-1. Then if the game got closer and higher leverage, Troncoso would have been available then, or even Wade or Belisario.
It’s a shame we didn’t get Broxton in the 8th, even if it meant Belisario would have had to pitch the 9th
I haven’t caught up with the comments since the start of last night’s game, but I doubt I was the only one who thought a sequence of “Kemp homers, Ethier, Loney and Martin score” sounded like the young players taking change.
Too bad about the bullpen / bullpen management, but at least no one should be writing about the offense missing Manny, at least for the first game on the heels of the suspension.
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