"Endre" Ethier Does It Again

by Eric Stephen on Sep 15, 2009 11:44 PM PDT in Game Recaps Comment 18 comments

Andre Ethier is making this a common occurence

Its not fair to expect magical things from Andre Ethier every time he bats in the late innings, but he just keeps delivering! Ethier ended tonight's game by depositing a Phil Dumatrait fastball over the wall in right field, turning a 4-3, 13th inning deficit into a thrilling, 5-4 Dodger victory.

Ethier also came up big in the ninth inning, doubling with one out with the Dodgers down 3-2. A Matt Kemp single tied the game and sent it into extra innings. But the story was his sixth walk-off hit of the season, and fourth walk-off home run. The Dodgers as a team have 12 walk-off wins this season.

Ethier's home run was his 30th of the season, and his ninth inning double was his 40th of the season. He is just the fourth Dodger in history to have 40 doubles and 30 home runs in the same season:

Player	Year	2B	HR
Babe Herman	1930	48	35
Raul Mondesi	1997	42	30
Eric Karros	1999	40	34
Andre Ethier	2009	40	30

Lost in the Andre Ethier show were these subplots of tonight's game:

Randy Wolf came back from a hyper-extended left elbow to pitch seven strong innings, allowing just three runs, gladly picking up his 15th no-decision, tied for the MLB lead
Zach Duke was even better for the Pirates, allowing two runs and four hits over 7.1 innings while striking out seven
Ramon Troncoso and George Sherrill combined for a perfect eighth inning, and were followed by another perfect inning from Jonathan Broxton, who struck out the side
James McDonald pitched three scoreless innings, his longest relief outing of the season. McDonald has a 2.40 ERA as a reliever with 42 strikeouts in 45 innings.

The players get right back at it tomorrow for an early 12:10pm start. Hiroki Kuroda will face Kevin Hart, on Manny Ramirez bobblehead day part deux. Joe Torre said in the pregame show that Russell Martin, Casey Blake, and Rafael Furcal were all likely to rest Wednesday.

Oh yeah, the Rockies lost to the Giants again, pushing the Dodgers' division lead back to five games over Colorado.

Magic Numbers
To win NL West: 11
To clinch a playoff spot: 10

WP - Ronald Belisario (4-3): 1 IP, 1 hit, 1 unearned run, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts

LP - Phil Dumatrait (0-1): 1 batter, 1 home run

Box Score

0 recs | Comment 18 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

I can not believe what just happened...

I was at the game tonight and I decided to leave after the the Pirates scored in the top of the 13th to take a 4-3 lead. As i’m driving home I hear Steiner go nuts after Ethier wins the game and I feel like I have just been punched in the stomach. I have been to 5 games this year and have not seen a single win or even a home run. I am never leaving early again.

Sorry for the rant, but I feel absolutely terrible

by Bluetrek on Sep 15, 2009 11:51 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

You son of a bitch! :)

by Eric Stephen on Sep 15, 2009 11:52 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

how could u sir!

"That is not how you play the game!!!" -Jack in the Box

by shaqfor3 on Sep 16, 2009 12:19 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well after blowing that golden opportunity in the 12th and then giving up a run the following inning it certainly didn’t appear they deserved to win the game but with Ethier always seems to bail them out :)

by KSeal on Sep 16, 2009 2:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You say you’ve been to 5 games and haven’t seen a win or home run. Maybe you should take one for the team and watch on TV. I was at the game and stayed until the glorious end. Best game I’ve been to this year.

by hthr on Sep 16, 2009 5:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

hate to say it

but you got what you deserved!

by LA Taco on Sep 16, 2009 8:14 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

If you left after the 10th like I did you would have at least caught Andre's homer on TV. You really made a muck of things.

Posted this on last thread, but last time I took off early on a Dodger game (my father wanted to beat traffic and it would have been a long walk home), my favorite player at the time hit a HR to win the game: Steve Sax. Pretty much made it to the end of every game since then. I was hoping to channel some of that same energy while allowing my daughters to get some sleep for school tomorrow (Daddy, when are we going to go home? . . right after Manny . . . or Kemp . . . or Ethier hits a home run (God I love this team) and thought Hudson or Pierre would loop one out after we left so I booked out of there (also I noticed the beer price ratio is something like 10:1, while taking in a sud watching on TV so that worked out too).

Little did I know the power would go to Endre.

Of coarse, last time I stayed for the completion of an extra inning game, Endre ended it with a walk-off home run, so maybe this team is so damn good they didn’t need the extra MOJO, or maybe I just made the right decision both times to channel the ENDRE!

by Dodger Dude on Sep 16, 2009 12:35 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Here is Charley Steiner's call

http://multimedia.dodgers.com/audio/09_september/15%20September%20Andre%20Ethier%202%20run%20HR%2013th%20inning%205-4%20LA%20.mp3

by Eric Stephen on Sep 15, 2009 11:53 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I’m sitting here giggling like a little school girl as I listen to this over and over.

You wanna know how great baseball is? The greatest basketball player ever left his sport to play baseball.

by Jesse Sparks on Sep 16, 2009 1:32 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Endre gets the number one spot on Sportscenter tonight.

In the top ten rollcall.

by Tripon on Sep 15, 2009 11:55 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

The WPA map for this is insane.

Ethier has a .826 WPA in this game.

by Tripon on Sep 16, 2009 12:00 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

i like the sharp increase at the end

"That is not how you play the game!!!" -Jack in the Box

by shaqfor3 on Sep 16, 2009 12:19 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

me too

by PHAT JULIO on Sep 16, 2009 12:26 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Never leave a fleece blanket game night in September

Just saying.

by bhsportsguy on Sep 16, 2009 12:17 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I was thinking that just now!

by delias man on Sep 16, 2009 12:34 AM PDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

i read the text out at a bar and thought we had lost 5-4

when i got back i discovered i has misread the text and immediately watched the highlights, what a game! I love how steiner always says “they’re going to beat him to a pulp” lol

William Doolittle at your service, a.k.a. will do.

by Ollie on Sep 16, 2009 1:26 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs