6-4-2 — an Angels/Dodgers double play blog

Clayton Kershaw's final tuneup of the offseason went well, save for his fourth inning, which was about as rough as the prior three were effortless. After giving up only two base runners in the first three frames, Kershaw gave up a one-out, opposite-field solo blast to Torii Hunter into the former right-field bullpens, a place I have seen maybe a handful of balls leave the yard in my years as an Angels season ticket holder, and none hit by a righty.

Kershaw then gave up a single, a double, and a sac fly to tie the game; his offense got him an early but short-lived two-run lead when the Dodgers scored a ingle run on Rafael Furcal's leadoff double, cashed in on Russell Martin's single and a wild pitch in Garret Anderson's at-bat. Anderson, who took the batter's box to warm applause, eventually struck out, but he finished the game 1-for-2. Whether he advanced his cause to be the Dodgers' lefty off the bench remains to be seen, however, as they have a better option in Xavier Paul.

Reed Johnson provided the Dodgers with their second run of the night, with a two-out solo shot. Santana then walked Blake DeWitt, but struck out Furcal to remind him of what that feels like. The Angels actually racked up the K's in this game, fanning thirteen on the night.

Maybe the game's saddest moment was its conclusion; even though the Angels won this particular intercity (?) skirmish, the real victim was late-inning sub Chin-Lung Hu. Hauled in as a sixth-inning replacement for Furcal, he played adequately up until the ninth. With Justin Miller pitching, Cory Aldridge hit a leadoff triple, Peter Bourjos doubled him in to tie it, and Ryan Sandoval managed an infield single to put men on the corners with nobody out. Miller then fanned Robb Quinlan (who doesn't look too good to make the 25-man following a weak spring), and got Terry Evans on a hard lineout to right. Hainley Statia then came within millimeters of being the goat who blew the Angels' third chance at a win when he bounced weakly up the middle; but Hu gave up the game on a bobbled bouncer up the middle, a bad hop sending the ball just under his glove. He managed to slow it down, so it only got about three feet behind him, but by that time the winning run had already scored and the game was over. You have to feel some pity for the guy; he's been at this a long time, and it really looks now like he's just never gonna be a major league player.

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Other stuff:

• The scoreboard operator and the MLB.com scoring stringers didn't agree after the avalanche of position player changes hit starting in the fifth. In particular, the box score shows Michael Ryan batting first as an 8th inning pinch-hitter; the scoreboard operator (correctly) showed that player as Andrew Romine. Likewise, Ryan Sandoval appeared to replace Matsui in the seventh, or maybe it was Ryan; trying to figure out who was right was, at times, quite a chore. I gave the scoreboard operator the benefit of a doubt, especially when I could make out the player's uniform. It's spring training for everyone, I suppose, and the stadium people have less time than anyone to get ready.
• Food: I tried the turkey drumstick at the Clyde Wright Barbecue. I won't be having it again: a real disappointment. Too much meat, too expensive, undercooked in places, and served with a too-sugary barbecue sauce. I've had good Memphis barbecue before; the local exemplar used to be Interstate Barbecue on Knott Ave. in Garden Grove before they changed hands, though I understand the new owners have taken over the old recipes. (Update: it's called Mike's Barbecue, and they're still there on Knott.) There are apparently some kinks to work out still.

  I made some rounds; the CHIX store in section 103 appears to have a chicken salad that I might be able to eat. I'll try that next time I'm in the park.

• I was unable to watch the TV broadcast tonight, but the Rev says Victor Rojas was a huge step up from Steve Physioc and Rex Hudler.

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Labels: angels, dodgers, recaps, spring training