Monday, August 08, 2005 |
Pickoff Moves
Maybe They Really Want To Win The Division After All: Padres 3, Nationals 0
The Pads swept the Nationals 3-0 in a remarkable 3-0, 10 K shutout yesterday at RFK, Jake Peavy besting Esteban Loiaza. The game marks a four-game winning streak for the Padres, who haven't had a similar winning streak since June 18-23.Update: Forgot to note this, but with this win, the Pads now are above .500 for the first time since July 27.
Roster Notes
- The Giants put Kirk Rueter on the 15-day DL with gout in his big toe (a likely story!), recalling Brian Cooper from AAA Fresno. Cooper obligingly appeared on and was chased from the mound when the Dodgers pummeled San Francisco 9-0 at the first recorded appearance of the Magic Tickets. Essentially, it's calling up a warm body to take some punishment in a lost season, yet surprisingly, he held the Astros to one run over seven innings in yesterday's game.
- The Texas Rangers signed Aaron Sele to a minor league contract.
- The Yankees' pitching woes continue, with Randy Johnson's back putting his next start into doubt, and Carl Pavano going to see Dr. Andrews about his balky shoulder. Money can buy you a lot of things, but guaranteed health isn't one of them.
- Inexplicably, the Diamondbacks have signed 1B Tony Clark to a two-year contract extension.
- The Times reminds us of long-lost Brett Prinz, whose "strained shoulder" Richard reminds us has to be the worst ever judging by the time he's been out. He appeared in Mesa's Saturday 5-1 loss, and gave up two earned runs with one inning of work.
Honesty
Erstad said he expected to start Tuesday and could have played Sunday if needed. When asked whether he could do everything he needs to do on the field, Erstad laughed."There are some things I can't do, like hit homers," he said.
-- Los Angeles Times
Neyer: Dodgers Are No Contenders
We knew that. Really, we did.Friends, that's not the lineup of a contender. Yes, Milton Bradley and Jeff Kent are both fine examples of the big-league ballplayer. But Izturis has a .308 on-base percentage (and yet he's still leading off!), Robles and Repko belong in the Pacific Coast League, and Phillips and Navarro are both light-hitting catchers (Phillips was playing first base, apparently because Jim Tracy just can't bear watching Hee Seop Choi strike out anymore).I know everybody can't have lineups like those of the Red Sox and Yankees. But we're talking about the Dodgers here. Big market, big crowds, big TV audience. Yes, I know there have been some injuries, but my point here is: 1) long-term, the Dodgers should have better players than they do, and 2) as weak as the National League West might be -- and it's mighty weak, indeed -- I don't think a lineup that begins with Cesar Izturis and ends (not including the pitcher) with Jason Repko can be taken really seriously as a contender. I picked the Dodgers to win this season because I figured Eric Gagne and J.D. Drew (among others) would be reasonably healthy, and GM Paul DePodesta would make whatever midseason adjustments were necessary. But neither of those things happened, and in a normal division the Dodgers would have been virtually eliminated two months ago.
Bob
: 8/08/2005 01:41:00 PMNewer› ‹Older
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