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Sunday, March 30, 2014

Meltdown on Park Boulevard - Dodgers Lose 1st Game of the Year


This team shouldn't have to rely on winning 1 to 0 games.   We have too much offensive potential, and spend way too much money to get just one run.

Having said the above, I won't fret too much about Brian Wilson's meltdown on the mound this evening.  He came into the game in the 8th inning to close the door, but instead left open a gaping hole that allowed the Padres to score 3 runs.  Seth Smith hit a game-tying home run that appeared to rattle Wilson.  Then, a flurry of walks, hits and defensive misplays buried him.  Overall, he gave up 3 runs (2 earned) on 2 hits, 1 walk and 2 errors on the field (one of which was his own).

Unfortunately, the Dodgers loss wasted an excellent outing by Hyun-Jin Ryu.  After shaking off some early butterfly's in the game, Ryu went on to go 7 strong innings.  He gave up just 3 hits, walked 3, struck out 7 batters while not allowing a run.  It was an excellent way to start the season back in the States.

The Dodgers offense was nowhere near as good.  The top-5 batters in the order went a collective 1 for 19.  They struck out 7 times and left 4 runners on base.

Frankly, it's way to early to worry about much of anything.  The team is 2 and 1 for the season, and there are still 159 games left to play before the season ends.  BTW, the Dodgers lost 3 to 1.  Go here for a complete sumamry of the game via YahooSports.

I thought I would add that Don Mattingly is absolutely correct about what he said in postgame discussions.  You have to feel good about giving our bullpen the lead going into the late innings.  Sure, it didn't work this time around, but overall I'll take a game like this any time.  After all, more often than not, the Dodgers bullpen will shut it down.

Fortunately, there is still plenty of Dodger Baseball left to be played.

Pic at the very top of Hyun-Jin Ryu, via @Dodgers on twitter.


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* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

Dodgers Reset their 25-Man Roster

With the regular part of the 2014 MLB season about to begin in North America, the Dodgers have just released their newest version of the their 25-man roster.  Check out their 25-man roster for the Australia games here.

They placed Clayton Kershaw on the 15-day DL, and optioned reliever Jose Dominguez to AAA.

Note that Josh Beckett and Matt Kemp (along with Kershaw) will soon be placed back on the 25-man roster, so expect more changes over the coming days and weeks.  I suspect Mike Baxter will be the odd man out when Kemp is ready to go.  The moves the Dodgers make when Kershaw and Beckett are ready are a little more complicated.  Since Withrow and Rodriguez have options they may be the logical choices for being sent down.

Now, here is the current 25-man roster:

Pitchers (12):
Zack Greinke
Dan Haren
J.P. Howell (L)
Kenley Jansen
Brandon League
Paul Maholm (L)
Chris Perez
Paco Rodriguez (L)
Hyun-Jin Ryu (L)
Brian Wilson
Chris Withrow
Jamey Wright

Catchers (2):
Drew Butera
A.J. Ellis

Infielders (5):
Dee Gordon (L)
Adrian Gonzalez (L)
Hanley Ramirez
Justin Turner
Juan Uribe

Outfielders (5):
Mike Baxter (L)
Carl Crawford (L)
Andre Ethier (L)
Yasiel Puig
Scott Van Slyke

Infielder/Outfielder (1):
Chone Figgins (S)

Disabled List (6):
Josh Beckett, RHP (15-day, right thumb contusion, retroactive to March 19)
Chad Billingsley, RHP (15-day, right elbow surgery, retroactive to March 19)
Scott Elbert, LHP (60-day, left elbow surgery, retroactive to March 22)
Onelki Garcia, LHP (60-day, left elbow surgery, retroactive to March 22)
Matt Kemp, OF (15-day, right ankle surgery, retroactive to March 19)
Clayton Kershaw, LHP (Teres Major strain, retroactive to March 23)

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* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *

Sunday Dodger Videos: The Earthquake, Uribe and the Dodgers New Plaza Area

Here are this Sunday's Dodger Videos.

ICYMI: Listen to Vin Scully call the recent earthquake.

Video Link:

Watch Juan Uribe demonstrate a bobblehead for photographer Cho Mi-ye: 3-28-14; from StadiumBound.

Video Link:

Watch the Dodgers (Stan Kasten, Janet Marie Smith & Tommy Lasorda) unveil a new plaza area, which includes a Tommy Lasorda's Italian Trattoria restaurant and a hot-off-the-grill THINK BLUE BBQ.

Video Link:

Robin Thicke shares a special message for Dodger fans.

Video Link:

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* Dodgers Blue Heaven home page *