Saturday, August 06, 2005 |
The Boom Boom Room: Dodgers 12, Pirates 6
It's pretty obvious what should be on the minds of these two clubs, and it's not one another--at least not until the National League Championship Series, anyway. Both want the wild-card team to come from their own division so that they might be able to sink their talons into the soft, yielding flesh of whichever team limps out of the West as "champion." (And yes, the quotes will be mandated by the Commissioner's office owing to their sub-.500 record.)We're a long way from the NL West finishing with losing year just yet, but neither would I be surprised. Earlier, Jon engaged our doubts with a call for impatience and cynicism; a bad season surrounded by losers above and below have seemingly fueled incompetence and diffident play in addition to all the injuries. In short -- how in the hell does Derek Lowe justify even as many as two earned runs against the popgun offense the Pirates have to offer? And what of the bullpen, which should be even more shamefaced? Carrara -- 'k, we know he's done, we get it. But Dessens? It's like listening to a racist joke told by an uncle who you thought knew better: not only is it not funny, it's shocking.
I suppose the good news is the Dodger offense, but you can expect outbursts against what passes for pitching in Pittsburgh. As recently as last year, Ryan Vogelsong was in the Pirates' rotation, with the 6.50, 6-13 record to prove it. Oliver Perez, a prized pitcher brought in from the Brian Giles trade with the Padres, had a phenominal 2004 -- by far, he was the best pitcher on the staff, and had one of the top ten seasons for lefthanders since 1900. Then he "slept wrong" on his pitching shoulder, and hasn't been the same since, surrendering 20 home runs so far this year, with a 6-5, 6.16 ERA record. This is a team that just can't get anything good going, and when it does, collapse pursues it like a bill collector after a credit card junkie.
Still, these are major league players, and so I can't entirely discount Olmedo's 3-5, 6 RBI night that included a home run. Ricky Ledee also showed his worth by driving in a couple -- although you'd think that buried-at-the-bottom-of-the-lineup Dioner Navarro could have induced one more bouncer through the infield than he did, and likewise for Oscar Robles, whose recent slump cost him the leadoff spot. With a team this bad, you take your pleasures where they lie.
Speaking of taking your pleasures, the Boston Herald tracks the usual anonymous sources now coming out of the woodwork following Derek Lowe's zipper malfunction, claiming he boozed and slept his way off the Red Sox in his walk year:
Even though he was the hero of the playoffs and the World Series, Derek Lowe's off-field antics – chiefly his drinking and womanizing – doomed his chances to remain with the Red Sox, sources say.And for this, the Dodgers gave up a first-round pick.Lowe, who went to the Los Angeles Dodgers this season after the Sox showed no interest in re-signing him, just walked out on his wife of seven years and their three kids to move in with Left Coast TV sports gal Carolyn Hughes.
The move shocked his heartbroken bride, Trinka, but according to those who know D. Lo, it wasn't entirely out of character.
``He has a drinking problem,'' said Someone close to the ex-Sox hurler. ``And a lot of his problems come when he drinks. And he wouldn't deal with it and that's why the Red Sox wouldn't re-sign him.''
Our MetroWest Daily News colleague Lenny Megliola reports today that Sox owner John Henry was less than impressed when Lowe brought a galpal – not wife Trinka – to a Boston event they both attended last year.
``Lowe was told that the family-oriented Henry would be upset that he'd be so bold as to show up with a girlfriend,'' Megliola reports. But Lowe was unfazed.
``He's a guy, he'll understand,'' Lowe said, according to Megliola, who added that the open cheating was the final nail in the Sox coffin for Derek.
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