Thursday, September 27, 2007 |
Swing Lowe, Sweet Chariot: Rockies 2, Dodgers 0
"We've still got a positive view of the kids," Colletti said Tuesday. "But I'm open to doing whatever we have to do for the right deal."Kemp, of course, is seventh in VORP among right fielders (19.2 VORP in 293 PA), an amazing feat considering that, among the top ten, every other player has more at-bats, even the Dodgers' number two man by VORP, Andre Ethier (15.3 VORP in 499 PA). So, who are these players Colletti is planning on getting to replace that production? If the rumors of a Kershaw/Kemp for Johan Santana deal are accurate, this team deserves to fail....
"The kids aren't perfect, they're not complete yet," Colletti said. "I will not trade them for a chance to win for one year. But for a chance to win for many years? I'd do it in a heartbeat."
Moreover, what a great environment to set for your kids, both at the major league level and in the system still hoping to come up: not only have you told them you haven't enough confidence to keep them around and play them, but that they're merely chits for getting, in your view, actual "good" players that will give the team "a chance to win for many years" (as opposed to those rotten kids). The folly in the Dodgers' front office is increasing, and if the caller I listened to in last night's "Dodger Talk" segment is any indication, there's real lust for such an idiotic trade among a certain benighted segment of the fanbase.
As for me, Eric Enders — who sponsors Kemp's Baseball-Reference page — has said it all:
In honor of Ned Colletti and Grady Little, the men who sabotaged the Dodgers' 2007 season by propping up the decrepit carcasses of Juan Pierre and Luis Gonzalez so Bison Kemp and his 125 OPS+ could rot on the bench.Matt Kemp isn't to blame for the Dodgers' season any more than he was for last night's loss — heck, he wasn't even in the lineup. Juan-For-Five went 1-for-5, and Chin-Lung Hu, owner now of 15 major league at-bats, went 0-for-4, thus continuing the tradition of harmless Dodger one and two batters. The only hard-hit balls came, not surprisingly, from Andre Ethier and Delwyn Young, and both of them ended up stranded.
NL Races
- The Padres demonstrated the value of going down the stretch in first place (in the Wild Card) by eviscerating the Giants 11-3, with the Padres annihilating Patrick Misch. The game marked Barry Bonds' final appearance in a Giants uniform at home; he went 0-for-3 before being pulled in the sixth.
The Padres finish their season with four in Milwaukee, and with both teams clinging (the Padres more successfully but still tenuously) to postseason hopes, the Pads will send Jack Cassel (4.00 ERA, 1-1) to the mound against Milwaukee's rookie phenom, Yovani Gallardo (9-4, 3.59 ERA). Speaking for the Cubs side of the house, go Padres.
- The Rockies' win gave them a franchise-best ten-game winning streak dating back to their home sweep of the Dodgers. The Phillies also won, a 5-2 win over Atlanta, so they remain tied with the Rockies in the Wild Card, and both teams remain a game back of San Diego. Atlanta's loss brings their elimination number to one.
- Of all the crazy things going on right now, none of them tops Arizona's 5-1 loss to the godawful Pirates, their second straight loss at the hands of a Bucs team that had come off a season-worst nine-game losing streak. That puts the Padres a game back, and the Rockies two games back, in the NL West.
- Incredibly, the Mets were swept at home by the Nationals, taking a 9-6 loss, and causing much panic among Mets fans; no team has ever blown a seven-game lead with 17 to play, but Willie Randolph is on the brink of doing just that. It would rank as one of the game's biggest heartbreakers in history. With the loss and the Phillies' win, the top two teams in the NL East are separated by only a single game.
- In the NL Central, the Cubs lost 7-4 to Florida. Luckily for them, St. Louis battered Milwaukee 7-3, finally whittling one off the Cubbies' magic number; it's now at three.
Labels: dodgers, recaps, rockies
The better question may be whether Colletti can correctly assess what will improve the team over the long haul.
I say this, of course, as someone who'd love to see Colletti doom the Dodgers to another decade of mediocrity.
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