Chili Buss Isn't Nick's Nickname - It's his Real Name!

Josh Suchon, the current Albuquerque Isotopes play-by-play announcer (and former Dodger Talk host) shares something about recently called-up outfielder Nick Buss that we all should know. 

His real name is Chili Buss.  It's not his nickname, it's his real actual name.  Per Josh Suchon on his blog Out of Ink:

The name on the birth certificate is Nicholas Chili Buss. His dad always wanted unique middle names for his kids. The first three kids had normal middle names. Nick was the last chance for something different. His dad once played in a charity golf tournament with former major leaguer Chili Davis and always liked the name Chili.

So, there you have it.  It's almost like Nick's (ahem, Chili's) Dad always knew he'd be in the Major Leagues.  After all, you don't pick the name Chili unless it's tied in some way to the ballplayer and you've got dreams of big league diamonds on your mind.

Be sure to read Josh's full story.

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Welcome to the Blue, Nick and Alex!

As the Dodgers struggle with keeping their outfielders healthy, they decide to call up a couple of extra farmhands to help them out.  Announced today, both Alex Castellanos and Nick Buss have been sent to the Dodgers.

Nick Castellanos first came up to the team in 2012, and Nick Buss is joining the Major League roster for the very first time in his career.

In celebration of this announcement I made the above two fantasy cards for them.

From a Dodgers press release:

The Los Angeles Dodgers today recalled outfielder Alex Castellanos and selected the contract of outfielder Nick Buss from Triple-A Albuquerque and, in a corresponding move, transferred right-handed reliever Jose Dominguez to the 60-day disabled list.

Buss, 26, will be making his Major League debut and batted .303 with 17 homers and 100 RBI in 131 games with Triple-A Albuquerque this season to earn selections as both a midseason Pacific Coast League All-Star and a spot on the postseason All-PCL Team. The Michigan native led the circuit in RBI and ranked among the league leaders in hits (139, T-10^th), runs (84, 6^th), triples (11, 2^nd), total bases (241, 3^rd), steals (21, T-13^th) and slugging percentage (.525, 4^th). Buss, who was primarily a corner outfielder, ended the season on a roll by hitting .323 with five home runs and 29 RBI in 43 games after the All-Star break. Buss, who bats left handed, is in his sixth professional season and was originally selected by the Dodgers in the eighth round of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft out of USC.

Castellanos batted .257 with 19 home runs and 61 RBI in 105 games with Triple-A Albuquerque and also appeared in four games with the Dodgers, going 2-for-9 (.222) during a June big league stint. The 27-year-old stole 19 bases in 24 attempts with the Isotopes this season, while having success against right-handed pitchers with a .282 batting average (75-for-266), a .378 on-base percentage and a .519 slugging percentage. Castellanos made his Major League debut in 2012, has gone 6-for-32 (.188) with a home run and three RBI in 20 MLB games and was originally acquired by the Dodgers in the Rafael Furcal trade with St. Louis on July 31, 2011.

Dominguez has been on the disabled list since July 23 with a left quad strain and posted a 2.16 ERA (2 ER/8.1 IP) in nine appearances with the Dodgers this season.

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Blog Kiosk: 9/14/2013 - Dodgers Links - A Julio Urias Baseball Card is Coming Soon, Dodger Injuries and Magic Johnson

Check out this awesome broken bat pic from Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2013.  See more of his photos from yesterday here.

• "Michael Young Hitting ‘em Hard," via Daniel Bailey at the Daily Gammons.

Here is a look at MLB’s batters with the highest line drive rates over the past 30 days. Michael Young of the Los Angeles Dodgers is leading the way.

• "Magic: 'I still pinch myself every day': Johnson discusses his love of being a Dodgers owner, hopes for the team and fans," via Barry Bloom at MLB.com.

MLB.com: How much fun is this, Earvin?
Johnson: You can't describe how much fun it is. First of all, to know that you are part-owner of the Dodgers, it just blows you away. I still pinch myself every day. I just can't believe it, you know? And then to have half a season last season, make nine changes [on the field] in a little bit more than half a season, and this season start off slow and now to be in first, playing some solid and good baseball -- this is all we wanted. We wanted it all for the fans and for the players.

• "Dodgers say Hanley Ramirez has irritated nerve in his back ," via Steve Dilbeck at the LA Times.  According to Tony Jackson at Dodger Scribe, he has a history of sciatica.  I know exactly how this feels.  You get this intense pinching nerve pain that runs from your back all the way down to your legs.  It can often be difficult to walk, as a result.
• The injuries are coming back.  Via Eric Stephens at True Blue LA, "Giants 4, Dodgers 2: Andre Ethier hurts ankle in loss".  He irritated his sprained ankle.
• "Dodgers' Chris Capuano suffers minor setback to bullpen debut ," via Steve Dilbeck at the LA Times.

“But the last couple felt like it wasn’t quite 100%,” he said. “The optimistic plan was to maybe be available Sunday or Monday out of the ’pen, but we’re going to give it a rest tomorrow and come get back on the mound Sunday or Monday one more time before we declare it ready for a game.”

• "Piquing too soon: Dodger injuries raise concerns," via Jon Weisman at Dodger Thoughts.
• Vladimir Guerrero has announced his retirement, via Jeff Todd at MLB Trade Rumors.
• The Chronicles of Fuji shows us the Yasiel Puig Sports Illustrated for Kids Baseball card he got in the September 2013 issue of magazine.
• Chris Olds at Beckett shares a bunch of preview pics from 2014 Bowman and it appears to include a Julio Urias autographed rookie card.

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An Infographic to Tell You What You Didn't know about Some Baseball Fans

I found this infographic to be both hilarious and disturbing at the same time.  See it below.  For a more detailed view, go here.

A personalization firm called Gravity created an infographic that compares the interest graphs (an online representation of the specific things in which an individual is interested) of Dodgers, Giants, Red Sox and Yankees fans. It provides some interesting results.  See their write up here, as well as, a much more legible pic.

Some of the things I learned is:

• We apparently love Kate Upton, and NASCAR.  
• Dodger fans love the movie Twilight.  I know that sounds bad, but check this out.  Giants fans love Justin Bieber.  Ha!!  And get this, Red Sox fans are absolutely obsessed with My Little Pony.  
• Here is something else that cracks me up, Giants fans love illegal drugs and thievery, but abhor adult entertainment; such as exotic dancers. 

Below is the Infographic.

(see larger view here)

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An Auto'd Lasorda Pic with "Ol' Blue Eyes" on Auction to Benefit Jeter's Turn 2 Foundation

Derek Jeter's "Turn 2 Foundation" currently has an auction up at Steiner Sports.  Go here to check it out. There's only a couple of days left, so get cracking.  There are 52 different collectibles available; including a Jeter game-used glove, a meet & greet with Jon Cena and autographed memorabilia from players from throughout the league.

One item that caught my eye is the below autographed photo of our very own Tommy Lasorda with Frank Sinatra.  See it below.  The auction can be seen here. 

(Auction Link)

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Blog Kiosk: 9/13/2013 - Dodgers Links - Respect for Scully, Billingsley on the Mend and Ticket Prices Going Up

Cooper loves his Magic bobblehead.  Pic via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2013.  See more of his pics from yesterday, here.

• "Vin Scully receives respect from unlikely source," via Ron Cervenka at Think Blue LA.

But if you do know to look for it and you do notice it, it will put a smile on your face every time it happens – and it happens before almost every Dodger home game and has for years. All four umpires will turn and face the Dodger Stadium press box and will either wave or tip their hat to the man who has been so appropriately named ‘The Voice of Baseball’ – Vin Scully.

• Howard Cole at LA Weekly makes 15 bold Dodger predictions. 
• Remember this guy?  Chad Billingsley is on the mend, via a tweet from Austin Laymance of MLB.com.

Chad Billingsley (Tommy John surgery) has started a throwing program. #dodgers
— Austin Laymance (@JALaymance) September 12, 2013

• "Dodgers buy into class system in raising prices for 2014 tickets ," via Steve Dilbeck at the LA Times.

The Dodgers said more than 45,000 seats are increasing by less than $3, but they are making it more costly for the premium tickets. Like a little bit of the Staples Center approach.

Though general admission parking remains unchanged, premium season parking increases from $300 to $400 for the season. Front-row seats between the bases go up by $30 (from $80 to $110), and rows 2 through 8 increase by $20 ($80 to $100).

• "Hanley leaves with mild hamstring tightness," via Austin Laymance at MLB.com.  I understand that this was just a precautionary move.
• Tim Dierkes at MLB Trade Rumors writes, "Free Agent Profile: Ricky Nolasco".  Based upon his recent performance with the Dodgers, I'd love for him to stay in Blue.
• "Adrian Gonzalez has been the anchor," via Mark Saxon at ESPN.

"I think you look back at the season and you think that Adrian's really been the glue that kept us going, kind of kept us hanging around," Mattingly said after Gonzalez drove in the winning run in the 10th inning of the Dodgers' 3-2 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Thursday. "It could have been a lot worse with all the injuries. Adrian was able to kind of steady the ship almost and just keep us around." 

• "Kershaw's curve ridiculously effective," via Kenton Wong at ESPN.

The key pitch in Kershaw’s repertoire is his curveball. Opponents are hitting .084 against it this season, making it the best hook in the National League.

Despite only throwing it 12 percent of the time, more than a third of Kershaw’s 208 strikeouts this season have come on curveballs (71). That’s because he saves it almost exclusively to finish off hitters. Of the 381 curveballs he’s thrown this season, 279 have come in two-strike counts (73 percent). 

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