Blog Kiosk: 11/16/2016 - Dodgers Links - Congrats, Skip! Dave Roberts is Manager of the Year!

Check out this fantastic panoramic photograph of the 1916 Brooklyn Robins (Dodgers) that is currently available at Hunt Auctions (link here).  It features the entire club, with exception of the kid with the bullhorn on the far right, in those fantastic checkered Brooklyn uniforms. 

Below are more links to check out:

• This Day in Dodgers History:  In 1966 Sandy Koufax missed out on winning his second MVP award by ten votes to Pirates outfielder Roberto Clemente.  As you know, this would be Koufax's last major league season. 
• Happy Birthday, Julio Lugo!

Down Goes Furcal

Our team spark plug is down and out for at least another 8 days. Rafael Furcal has been placed on the DL retroactive to May 6. That means the earliest he can come back is May 21 against Cincinnati. This is the same type of injury that laid him out late last season. As some of us know a lower back injury has the ability to sap all the life out of you. Doing simple task like getting out of bed, using the bathroom and just walking can be difficult. Hopefully Furcal can bounce back after having a chance to rest his weary back.

As Jon of Dodger Thoughts points out, the last time we panicked over a middle infield injury we went after Julio Lugo. (We gave up highly touted prospect Joel Guzman and CSUF Alum Sergio Pedroza to get him.) Fortunately, neither of these guys have become Major League regulars yet so it hasn't hurt us, but it could easily become fodder for years to come. On the flip side, Lugo really didn't provide the kind of relief trading two perceived strong prospects would garner. The lesson we can learn here is not to panic. Don't start trading away our prospects for overpriced veterans. We still have a long way to go and I remain hopeful that within a couple of weeks Raffy will be back to his old self.

A Postseason Preview

I'm nervous with anticipation. My palms are sweating and my lips are stuttering. Why does the season have to be so long?

The Dodgers and the Mets face off tonight in a very important match-up between the team with the best record in Baseball and a team fighting for a playoff spot. Brad Penny will take the mound for the Dodgers. Tom Glavine will pitch for the New York Mets.

Other important roster changes for the Dodgers include Lugo batting 2nd and playing third base and Matt Kemp playing center field. Lets' hope that Kemp builds on his 2 hit performance yesterday.

I'm worried about the Mets recent acquisition of Shawn Green. He has absolutely killed the Dodgers this year. Paul LoDuca is still very dangerous- especially since he has found a way to continue hitting well even in the 2nd half. Jose Reyes and David Wright are infield studs.

This is going to be a tough series and will be an indicator of how good this team really is, or is not.

PhotoLink:

Ned "The Busy Bee"

This has proven to be an exciting day for Dodger Baseball. We add a new 2nd baseman in Julio Lugo and future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux to anchor our starting rotation. In return we ship Caesar Izturis to the Cubs and send rookie prospects Joel Guzman and Sergio Pedrosa to Tampa Bay. Sergio went to my alma mater, Cal State Fullerton.

Lugo immediately starts at 2nd base until Jeff Kent returns. Who knows what happens when Kent is ready to play. I think Maddux will add poise and experience to a rotation that could use some leadership. His knowledge, skills and abilities will more than make up for any age related declines we may see in his performance this year.

Caesar, Pedrosa and Guzman where out of options with this new Dodger team. I am sad to see Caesar go. He remains my favorite defensive infielder. Pedrosa was not highly touted and may find some major league playing time in Tampa Bay. The promise of Guzman was overshadowed by the success of Ethier, Repko, Kemp and Loney. How many rookie prospect outfielders do we need?

Overall, I like the trades. We get some quality players for a title run without losing any of our top prospects. The future still remains bright. Ethier, Kemp, LaRoche, Loney, Billingsley, Hanrahan, Miller, Young, DeWitt, Abreau and Hu all stay. Good job Ned.