6-4-2 — an Angels/Dodgers double play blog
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6-4-2 — an Angels/Dodgers double play blog
A blog mostly about the Dodgers, Angels, baseball in general, and other minutiae as it may happen.
Proceeds from the ads below will be donated to the
Bob Wuesthoff scholarship fund.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Two Games
BlogItemNumber="4935035480944123665";
No Thanks, I've Had My Phil: Phillies 8, Dodgers 5Chad Billingsley was pretty miserable in this one, and there really isn't much to say about it beyond that. Oh, sure, he looked great in the first, but he all but singlehandedly sunk the team in the second and third, and did so without spotting the Phils so much as one home run. Shane Victorino triple in the third, cashing in both men on base, but the night's real improbable event was pitcher Brett Myers going 3-for-3 with three RBIs. That's always a sign that something's wrong.Manny got the Dodgers a look at the game late with a three-run homer in the fourth to put his club back by only three, but they never got any further thanks to the usual tight-as-a-drum Philadelphia bullpen. (Casey Blake hit a close-but-no-cigar fly that Victorino caught to end the seventh that would have tied the game had it been just a few feet toward the foul poles.) The Dodgers have a lot of work to do when they get back home. It sounds trite; it sounds like their luck is running out.As an aside to this story, Tony Jackson has a piece up about Shane Victorino and why he didn't stay a Dodger: twice.Update: I can't believe I got out of this without mentioning James McDonald's 3.1 excellent innings of relief. Maybe he should have started ... this was supposed to be Billingsley's "coming out" party, but it turned out to be the other thing.Yahoo box • Dodgers recapCoasting To Another Dull World Series: Red Sox 2, Rays 0The air is full of firsts lately in Tampa, but an ALCS win will have to wait. Daisuke Matsuzaka, who must be the most annoying pitcher in the world to watch as a fan, walked the bags loaded with two out in the first, but he got Cliff Floyd to bounce out to first to end the threat. Jed Lowrie's fifth inning sac fly was all the offense Boston needed, though they did pick up another run in the eighth on Kevin Youkilis' RBI double. I left to walk the dogs after that; Boston is making the postseason less and less interesting every year.Yahoo boxLabels: devil rays, dodgers, phillies, postseason, recaps, red sox
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Thursday, October 09, 2008
Young King Cole: Phillies 3, Dodgers 2
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It seemed to start with Furcal's sixth-inning error on Shane Victorino's leadoff grounder, which you could reasonably forgive. Lowe should have been able to roll with it, but instead he gave up a two-run homer to Chase Utley, and one out later, the game-winner to Pat Burrell. Jon suggested that Lowe might have been influenced by a collision at first base to end the third, though I'm pretty sure that wasn't an issue; those pointing to the error also have to add into their calculations the fact that Lowe gave up an out in the air in the first, and a flyball out to Jimmy Rollins to end the fifth.Another possibility, and I think this has a lot of merit, is that Lowe didn't polish off the bottom of the Phils' lineup in order in the bottom of the fifth.It's one game, and I'm not putting a lot on it. The Dodgers had their chances, the best being the third with two out and men on first and second; but James Loney struck out to end the frame. Tip the cap to Cole Hamels and move on; gotta get 'em tomorrow with Bills on the mound.ESPN Box • Dodgers recapLabels: dodgers, phillies, postseason, recaps
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John Moores To Sell 49% Of Padres
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As a consequence of his divorce, John Moores is selling 49% of the Padres. Rumored owners are the Jacobs family of Qualcomm and another unnamed group. More on this at Gaslamp Ball, which points out that Moores owns a total of 80% of the club now; the recent Forbes valuation put the franchise at $360M.Labels: padres
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Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Tech: What I Want (Before) Christmas: The New Blackberry Storm
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 Due out some time in November: the Blackberry Storm. I saw this yesterday (photos only) at the Verizon store in Huntington Beach, and what a nifty piece of hardware it appears to be. The only thing on my wish list that isn't there is built-in WiFi capability; for reasons unknown, they elected not to provide one, odd for a product supposed to be lined up as an iPhone killer. Nonetheless it's close enough, and as I have a serious grudge against AT&T, the iPhone is right out of the question, especially after Apple inked a deal with AT&T to extend their window of exclusivity through 2010.Given the poor performance of the latest Palm I got (the Palm T|X, which had endless problems between the screen freaking out on me, the weird new Grafitti, a crappy and apparently mandatory Palm-written UI on the Mac that's just unbearable, and no working interface to Linux apps), I think I'm finally ready to ditch the Palm line.Labels: tech
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MSTI's NLCS Preview
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If for no other reason, you should read Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness's NLCS preview for bon mots like this one:This is one of those cases where you have to take into consideration the source. Tim, no one disputes that Manny’s exit from Boston was ugly, although you still have to wonder how much of that was Manny’s doing and how much of it was Scott Boras taking time away from drinking the blood of children.Labels: dodgers, previews, red sox
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Saito Won't Close, May Not Even Make NLCS Roster
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Hard to believe, but maybe not so much after his awful performance in the NLDS.Although Saito was promised the closer's role in the playoffs, with the former all-star still struggling to refine his mechanics after missing two months with a shoulder problem, Manager Joe Torre appears comfortable using hard-throwing Jonathan Broxton to save games. In Saito's absence, Broxton saved 14 games in 17 chances with a 2.76 ERA."The way Broxton pitched the other day, he certainly embraced the opportunity," Torre said of the pitcher, who appeared in all three games of the NL division series against Chicago, pitching 3 1/3 hitless innings and earning a save.Labels: dodgers, postseason
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The Memory Hole At Cubs.com
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Follow this link (originally appearing here) and you will find... nothing. Dusty Baker's clogged bases fell into a memory hole.Labels: cubs, weird
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SI Cover Jinx: Phillies In The World Series
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SOSG tags it, something I missed earlier, but the Tom Verducci cover story (which I have not read) is sure to be interesting, anyway. Earlier: Good News, Dodger Fans: SI Jinxes The CubsLabels: dodgers, phillies
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Pickoff Moves, Lunchtime Edition
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Chicago Cubs, Anti-PlumbersYes, it was a tough loss, but was it really necessary to break Dodger Stadium plumbing?Moments after the final out (Alfonso Soriano fanning on three pitches), one of the Cubs -- maybe two, maybe all 25 -- took something large and hard, like a shoe or bat or sledgehammer, and busted a fair-sized water pipe at the back of the visitors' dugout.Water gushed out, and very quickly the floor of the area leading into the locker room was flooded.Now we live in an era when video footage of a simple bat-to-a-water-cooler or ritualistic-scattering-of-Gatorade-cups-after-getting-yanked can become endless fodder for ESPN ''SportsCenter,'' YouTube, blogs, radio talk shows and everything in between.But this pipe carnage was not caught on video or cell phone, nor was it spotted by any electronic broadcast member, and the game ended very late (after midnight in Chicago), and the National League Division Series celebration started afield, and the L.A. writers naturally swarmed the winners and not the losers, and we Chicago writers were detoured around the expanding cement-bottomed lake through another entrance to the locker room and accepted the explanation that there had been a post-game plumbing issue.Dodgers' Kim Ng To Interview For Seattle's GM PositionAccording to the Seattle Times.Angels/Red Sox Finale Beats ESPN Football... in the TV ratings, with a 9.3 share versus a 5.8 share for ESPN's NFL matchup of the week, New Orleans vs. Minnesota. However, overall ratings are down versus last year, partly because the Yankees failed to make it into the postseason.Roster NotesFrancisco Rodriguez has likely pitched his last game in an Angels uniform, as the team is unlikely to meet his rumored demands of $75M/5 years.Likewise, neither of Jon Garland nor Garret Anderson will likely return; the Angels are said to be clearing payroll for a run at C.C. Sabathia.Cleveland will look into re-signing Casey Blake when his contract runs out after the postseason.Scott Boras has opened the bidding for Manny Ramirez at $85M/5 years.Labels: angels, contracts, cubs, dodgers, front office, injuries, mariners, red sox, tv, yankees
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Tony Pierce On Classless Dodger Fans
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It's probably worse in the bleachers — one reason I never go there — but the boorish behavior detailed by Tony Pierce is sadly all too common, an event marring Dodgers games for even Dodger fans (this one, anyway); the "X sucks" chants are not only old, but unimaginative and almost thuggish. Given the three hours I spent in traffic at my last game (one in and two out, though admittedly it was a postseason game), it's no surprise that I go to fewer and fewer of these. My understanding is that the trolley service is no help because the trolleys rely on exit paths blocked by auto traffic as well. That's too bad.Labels: dodger stadium, dodgers
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Tuesday, October 07, 2008
Hiroki Kuroda And What Makes Him Tick
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In THT:Unlike other Japanese imports, Kuroda doesn't seem to pitch backwards much. Many pitchers from Japan like to throw off-speed pitches in fastball counts and fastballs in off-speed counts, but Kuroda prefers his fastball on the first pitch and when he falls behind. He throws either his four-seamer or sinker more than 70 percent of the time 1-0, 2-0, 2-1 and 3-1. This may be a testament to his belief in his fastball, which is a very solid pitch with plus velocity. This conventional style of pitching may be the reason he didn't see a spike in his walk rates this year. If so, this could be an important indicator of future success of other Japanese pitchers.Via BTF.Labels: dodgers
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If You Didn't Know Better, You'd Swear Brandon Wood Sucked
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Get a load of this Jim Shonerd piece at Baseball America on the top 20 prospects in the PCL, including this bit on Brandon Wood (#4):Wood had a so-so season (by his lofty standards) in the PCL in 2007, and he slumped at midseason before hitting .333 with 18 homers over the final two months. But he failed to control the strike zone in three separate trips to the majors, getting regular playing time only when injuries riddled the Angels at shortstop.Wood's best tool is undoubtedly his power. He's a great mistake hitter and can hit the ball out of any part of any park. However, he still has trouble laying off breaking pitches and he still strikes out too much. He'll probably never hit for a high average in the majors and often gets too pull-conscious.After converting to third base in 2007, Wood went back to shortstop this year, the position he'd played his entire career. He has good instincts and enough range and arm strength to stay at short. He's an average runner.Additionally, about Sean Rodriguez (#11):A key component in Salt Lake's historic 23-2 run to start the season, Rodriguez slugged .567 in April and earned a ticket to the big leagues. He returned to Salt Lake in mid-June and proceeded to put up a scalding hot month of July, hitting .340/.398/.738 with 10 home runs and 26 RBIs.Rodriguez packs a lot of power in his stocky 6-foot-1, 215-pound frame. Opposing mangers praised his toughness at the plate, his ability to foul off good pitches and always be a difficult out. He was more consistent and disciplined at the plate than he had been in the past.Though he has below-average speed, Rodriguez has enough range to play second base and has developed into a reliable defender, committing just four errors in 66 games with the Bees. He has played every position but pitcher, catcher and first base as a pro, and could become an offensive-minded regular who shuttles among several spots, in the mold of Tony Phillips."We didn't expect the ball to come off his bat like it does," Tacoma manager Darren Brown said. "He looks like he's going to be a good player both defensively and offensively."... and Nick Adenhart (#19):Adenhart went 4-0, 0.87 in his first five Triple-A starts before the Angels made a much-debated decision to give him a big league start on only three days of rest. He lasted just two innings against the Athletics, got hit hard in two subsequent major league starts and then struggled for the remainder of the season in Triple-A.When he's on, Adenhart pounds the lower half of the strike zone with a 90-94 mph fastball, a hard-breaking slider and a sinking changeup. Most PCL observers remained positive about his upside, even after his command deserted him when he came back from the majors.Pitching in the altitude at Salt Lake's Covey Field didn't help him, but too often he simply wasn't able to execute enough pitches to get himself out of jams. One scout who saw Adenhart during his struggles said he needed to pitch to contact more, and that he got too predictable whenever he fell behind in the count.Labels: angels, minors
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Tony Reagins, Fix This Offense
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Bill Shaikin's latest piece is a treasure trove of interesting stuff:Rodriguez did say the Angels would be his first choice.Yeah, because where else can you make that much money while producing so very many explosions in the postseason?Teixeira and Rodriguez could walk. The Angels could spend their money on CC Sabathia and use Kendry Morales at first and Jose Arredondo to close.The Angels could move Figgins to left field, if they do not bring Anderson back. They have considered whether to compensate for the loss of Teixeira's big bat by installing Brandon Wood in the infield, trying to trade for infielder Dan Uggla of the Florida Marlins, or both.They also are expected to discuss contract extensions with Vladimir Guerrero and Lackey.After Lackey gave up two runs and lost Game 1, he pointed the finger at his offense. After he gave up two runs and got no decision in Game 4, he warned against that line of questioning."Don't stir the pot," he said.Yet, when the questioning turned to whether he would wait to see what the Angels did with their offense this winter before considering an extension, Lackey answered with one word."Absolutely," he said.Labels: angels
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On Mark Teixeira
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I don't mean to turn this into a bash-fest — sincerely, it's not meant that way at all — but while I understand Seitz's perspective on Teixeira's postseason performance, it is also incomplete:Teixeira came to the plate 20 times in the post-season, and made only 9 outs. He finished the series with a line of 467/550/467. It's completely fair to point out that he didn't deliver an extra base hit. But the fact is that he still put up a 1.017 OPS for the series, by far the best on the team. In addition, he played stellar defense at first base.In short, he was the Angels' best player in the series. Calling him a disappointment is not only inaccurate, it's unfair. It would be like criticizing a starting pitcher for holding the other team scoreless in his starts, but not pitching deep enough into games.Except that, no. The reason you get Teixeira in the lineup is because he can hit the ball out of the ballpark. You get him because Earl Weaver was right. You want a slap-hitting, high-average singles hitter (what they got in the ALDS with Teixeira)? Kenny Lofton was available in spring training, for free.Labels: angels
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Just Another Halos Postseason Collapse To Boston: Red Sox 3, Angels 2
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On October 8, 2004, I was at the doctor's office or somewhere, anyway, that wasn't at home or in front of a TV set. I had already predicted a first-round exit for the Angels, back when I was into making predictions before the postseason; I know better now, and just strap in and hold on.Round about the sixth I got a call from my wife. I had earlier cursed Vlad roundly up and down the square for his prior two 0-fer games; a "big dumb Dominican slugger who swings at sliders in the dirt" was, I think, the expression I used at the time. Helen then told me that "your big dumb Dominican slugger just hit a grand slam".It was welcome news, of course, but all it served to do was tie the game. Presaging his future postseason unreliability, Francisco Rodriguez put the winning run on base, and then in one of the most inconceivable moves in Angels postseason history, Mike Scioscia elected to have Jarrod Washburn pitch to David Ortiz in relief. That, of course, was the game and the sweep.The Angels haven't really come that far since then. Sure, they managed to get a postseason win off the Red Sox this time, but they repeatedly blew opportunities to win, played atrocious defense (they committed one error in every game but their lone victory), choked repeatedly with men on base (where's your RISP2-hitting now, Mike?), suffered from questionable managerial decisions (Howie Kendrick should not have started today), and looked totally lost the whole time.This particular game was lost once the Angels couldn't push across the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth. Unlike Scioscia, I would have let Kendrick swing away rather than bunt; with a man at second, why not? But, it's not a huge difference; Erick Aybar didn't get the bunt down, Reggie Willits committed suicide without the squeeze, and thus the end of the Angels' playoff hopes.Kendrick in particular was a problem throughout the postseason, his awful golden sombrero only the filling of a much larger crap sandwich. Today, he didn't get charged for an error when he bobbled Jacoby Ellsbury's grounder that should have been an inning-ending double play in the fifth. He also didn't get dinged for an error for failing to pick up Chone Figgins' errant throw in the fourth, which mercifully turned out to be harmless. But if it's too much to say the mantle of blame rests on him for this series, he at least needs to be its poster boy. He didn't give up four runs in the first inning, as Ervin Santana in game 2, but he has stranded thirteen runners and struck out seven times. Maybe it's inexperience, but I'm unimpressed with Kendrick's play this postseason, to say the least.It's been a great season; 100 wins doesn't happen every year, and it was the first time for the Angels. But it's also frustrating for what might — and should — have been. All the Angels had to do was to play their game, the way they had in the regular season. Instead, they collapsed as inexplicably (and almost as rapidly) as the Hindenburg went down.Yahoo box • Angels recapEnough with the game. To the valedictories:Francisco Rodriguez: Now we all know why management wasn't too keen on getting a deal done. Your postseason outings after 2002 have been far too uneven to justify the big ticket in the same sense that Billy Beane decided it was time to part company with Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder when they weren't going to get it done with either of those two in the rotation. I can still see the Angels making a serious bid for your services, but don't expect top dollar; that will come from the Wilpons or some other team with bulging bank accounts who won't mind when you give up a crushing game-losing home run in the first round of the playoffs. Maybe that won't happen in the NL, who knows, but the arrogance backed up by a rather spotty record when it's down to eight teams is a pretty weak bargaining chip.Mark Teixeira: You're a Scott Boras client, so I'm sure the only thing you give a damn about is money. I have no idea whether Arte will re-sign you; my previous supposition was that the Yankees will likely be the high bidder, but you'll have to balance that with the other players they'll have around you, most of whom will be aging or unknown as of 2009. And did I mention that the rotation will be even more of a mess in 2009, especially if, as has been rumored, Mike Mussina retires? That leaves Chen-Ming Wang... and... the widely castigated Ian Kennedy? Joba Chamberlain? That's okay, Mark, you decide. Besides, I'm sure the Yanks will be happy to pay top dollar for a guy who turned into a singles hitter in the postseason.Vlad: You've been the face of the franchise in some exciting but ultimately fruitless times. Enjoy 2009, because I have a feeling it will be your last with the team.Garret Anderson: Goodbye, and thanks for the great memories. I'm quite certain you think you still have a good bat, and who knows but that you're right. I just don't want the Angels to be the team that discovers you're wrong.Jered Weaver: Please do not turn into your older brother. Thank you.Kelvim Escobar: Please be healthy next year.Jon Garland: Learn how to strike guys out. I know, you probably don't need to with the market for free agent starting pitching being so hot this offseason, but you might want to do it anyway so you can avoid getting booed at home. You won't be here next year in all probability, but I appreciate the wins. You did about what I expected.Howie Kendrick: Go to winter ball, don't break your leg, work on your defense, and for God's sake figure out what they know about your swing.Reggie Willits: I wish you could hit for power. You're probably my favorite young player from last year. This is a harsh thing to say, but you just can't seem to play center field, you don't have the bat to play either corner outfield slot, you don't have the moxie to take an infield job, and ... well, what does that leave us, exactly? Pinch-hitter? No, you're not good at that, either. You'll be on the team again next year, probably as a fourth outfielder, but that role doesn't suit you well, because you need a fairly steady stream of at-bats, and it's not clear that you've made the adjustments needed to be productive at this level. Oh, this is uncomfortable.Juan Rivera: Tough year to be going into a contract year, Juan; I liked you as an Angel and feel bad for you that you broke your leg at a very inopportune time. You probably want a starting job, and even though the Angels have one to offer, it's not clear you can fill that role.Mike Napoli: You are the man. Rest, and let's get to it again next year.Jeff Mathis: Work on your swing, pitch recognition, and throwing to second.Maicer Izturis: Good luck with that hamstring.Robb Quinlan: 'Bye.Brandon Wood: Just be ready for 2009. I'm not sure what that means, but Rob Deer at short wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.Tony Reagins: Thanks for trying with Teixeira. I don't mean to sound spoiled, but the difference between one win against Boston and none is essentially meaningless. The Angels' offensive strategy does not work in the postseason. Fire Mickey Hatcher, regroup around an offensive strategy that actually works, and let's talk once the club has developed some young hitters with plate discipline.Labels: angels, postseason, recaps, red sox
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