Dodgers Notes from Spring Training: Spring Game 1/ Home Game 1

Throughout Spring Training the Dodgers PR department sends out helpful daily notes from Camelback Ranch, and I am happy to pass them along.  See what they've written below.

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CHICAGO WHITE SOX (0-0) vs. LOS ANGELES DODGERS (0-0)
Saturday, February 23, 2013 – 1:05 p.m., Camelback Ranch – Glendale
RHP Dylan Axelrod vs. LHP Clayton Kershaw

(twitter link: @jphoornstra)

START ME UP: Today the Dodgers begin their 40-game exhibition schedule as they host the White Sox at Camelback Ranch – Glendale at 1:05 pm MT. Manager Don Mattingly has scheduled seven pitchers to throw in the game. Left-handed starter Clayton Kershaw will be followed by Ronald Belisario, Stephen Fife and Matt Magill in addition to non-roster invitees Kelvin De La Cruz, Gregory Infante and Mark Lowe…days until Opening Day: 37!

• Minor league left-handed pitcher Victor Garate will be available to pitch and will be wearing uniform number 95.
• The club will play 36 games in Arizona before playing its final four exhibition games in the greater Los Angeles area against the Angels and Single-A Rancho Cucamonga.
• On Monday, Feb. 25 the Dodgers will play host to the Cubs at 1:05 p.m. MT and Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully will be in the booth to call the club’s first televised game on PRIME TICKET. Of the seven televised Cactus League games between PRIME TICKET (four broadcasts) and KCAL (three broadcasts), Scully will be on air on Feb. 25 vs. CHC (PRIME), Feb. 28 vs. LAA (PRIME), March 7 vs. TEX (PRIME), March 17 vs. MIL (KCAL), March 18 vs. ARI (PRIME) and March 26 vs. COL (KCAL).

(pic credit: Jon Soo Hoo/LA Dodgers 2013)

KERSH-AWESOME: Today, starter Clayton Kershaw will toe the rubber for Los Angeles. The left-hander will attempt to become the first pitcher to win three consecutive Major League ERA titles since Greg Maddux accomplished the feat from 1993-95 as a member of the Braves.

• While Kershaw finished second in the NL Cy Young voting in 2012, he picked up one of baseball’s most prestigious honors this offseason with the Roberto Clemente Award, which recognizes a Major League Baseball player who best represents the game through positive contributions on and off the field, including sportsmanship and community involvement. Kershaw and his wife, Ellen, founded Kershaw’s Challenge, a charitable organization that encourages people to make a difference by giving back to at-risk children and communities in need. The charity has provided assistance to a variety of organizations, including to its cornerstone charity, “Arise Africa,” which helped the Kershaws build and now sustain an orphanage for children in Lusaka, Zambia called “Hope’s Home.”

PITCHING PREVIEW: Pitching has traditionally been a strength of the Dodger organization and last season, the club ranked third in the Majors with both a 3.34 team ERA and a .238 opponents’ batting average.

• Last season, Ronald Belisario tied for the Major League lead with eight wins as a reliever (Rex Brothers and Nate Jones), going 8-0 with a 2.54 ERA in his team-leading 68 relief appearances. The right-hander also led the club with 71.0 innings pitched and his eight wins were the most by a Dodger reliever since Guillermo Mota’s eight in 2004.
• Stephen Fife made five starts for the Dodgers in 2012, posting a 0-2 record with a 2.70 ERA (8 ER/26.2 IP). The right-hander was recalled on July 17 and made his Major League debut that night against Philadelphia, allowing one run on four hits in 6.0 innings
• Right-hander Matt Magill started 26 games at Double-A Chattanooga and posted an 11-8 record with a 3.78 ERA in 2012. The Simi Valley native held right-handed hitters to a .202 batting average and recorded career highs in starts, innings pitched (146.1) and strikeouts (168).

(pic credit: Jon Soo Hoo/LA Dodgers 2013)

INTO THE SWING OF THINGS: The Dodger lineup today features World Baseball Classic participants Adrian Gonzalez and Luis Cruz of Team Mexico and Hanley Ramirez of Team Dominican Republic. The trio is scheduled to stay in the game longer than the rest of the lineup in order to prepare for the WBC, which kicks off on March 2.

• The Dodgers will face Team Mexico in an exhibition game on March 6 at 1:05 p.m. at Camelback Ranch – Glendale.
• Currently, Team Italy is training at Camelback Ranch – Glendale and Dodger infielder Nick Punto will suit up for the Italians during the WBC. In addition to Cruz, Gonzalez, Punto and Ramirez, reliever Ronald Belisario will lace ‘em up for Team Venezuela.

HI, MY NAME IS: Skip Schumaker, who is starting in center field and batting sixth today, will make his first start in Spring Training for the Blue Crew. The utility man hit .276 in 107 games, appearing in all three outfield positions and second base for the Cardinals last season. The California native had spent his entire Major League career (2005-2012) with St. Louis.

YOU SEE THIS FACE?: Dodger center fielder Matt Kemp advanced to the finals of MLB Network’s #FaceofMLB contest on Twitter by defeating Atlanta’s Jason Heyward in a vote. In next week’s finals, which will run from Monday through Friday, Kemp will face off with Cincinnati’s Joey Votto in MLB Network’s bracket to decide who the Face of MLB is. The current bracket matchups can be viewed here.

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Dodgers Notes from Spring Training: Full-Squad Workout #7

Throughout Spring Training the Dodgers PR department sends out helpful daily notes from Camelback Ranch, and I am happy to pass them along.  See what they've written below.

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(pic credit: Jon Soo Hoo/LA Dodgers 2013)

SEVENTH HEAVEN: Today, the Dodgers held their seventh and final full-squad workout before beginning their 40-game exhibition schedule tomorrow against the White Sox. The team worked on pick offs and rundowns followed by Aaron Harang, Kenley Jansen and Javy Guerra throwing live BP. Chris Capuano, Chad Billingsley, Hyun-Jin Ryu and Paco Rodriguez all threw bullpens under the watchful eye of Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.

• The club will play 36 games in Arizona before playing its final four exhibition games in the greater Los Angeles area against the Angels and Single-A Rancho Cucamonga.
• The Spring Training edition of Dodgers Magazine will debut tomorrow at Camelback Ranch and features the heart of the Dodger lineup on the cover; Matt Kemp, Adrian Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez and Andre Ethier. For those unable to pick one up in Glendale, magazines are also available online at Dodgers.com/magazine.

THIS IS GETTING REAL: Tomorrow is Opening Day at Camelback Ranch with the Dodgers taking on the White Sox for the first of three times during the Cactus League slate. Clayton Kershaw, the 2012 MLB ERA champ, will take the hill for Los Angeles against Chicago right-hander Dylan Axelrod, with RHP Mark Lowe, RHP Ronald Belisario, RHP Stephen Fife, RHP Matt Magill, LHP Kelvin De La Cruz and RHP Gregory Infante expected in relief.

• With Matt Kemp and Carl Crawford likely having their first Cactus League action delayed until around March 1, Don Mattingly announced that tomorrow’s outfield would feature Andre Ethier in right field, Skip Schumaker in center field and Jerry Hairston Jr. in left field.
• On Sunday, the two clubs will meet again at 1:05 pm local time (12:05 pm in Los Angeles) with starter Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu making their Dodger debuts against Chicago right-hander Erik Johnson.
• The Dodgers have played the White Sox in four of the last five years during Interleague Play with Chicago holding a 7-5 advantage in the series.

(pic credit: Jon Soo Hoo/LA Dodgers 2013)

COULD BE LEGENDARY: Dodger alumni Ron Cey, Tim Leary, Fernando Valenzuela, Maury Wills and Steve Yeager will help celebrate a new season of Cactus League play at Camelback Ranch - Glendale’s inaugural Legends Weekend. Former greats from both the Dodgers (tomorrow) and White Sox (Sunday) franchises will be on hand to sign autographs and greet fans from 11:30 am-12:30 pm before being introduced in pregame ceremonies.  I previously posted about the Legends Weekend last week- check out that information here.

CLASSIC BASEBALL: Yesterday, the final rosters were submitted for the 2013 World Baseball Classic with the Dodgers well represented in the once-every-four-year event with Adrian Gonzalez and Luis Cruz playing for Team Mexico, Hanley Ramirez for the Dominican Republic, Ronald Belisario for Venezuela and Nick Punto for Italy. In addition, former Dodger skipper Joe Torre will pilot the U.S. squad. Players will leave camp on or near March 1 with pool play for the World Baseball Classic beginning on March 2 in Taiwan and Japan and on March 7 in Pools C and D in Puerto Rico and Arizona.

• Three places that Tommy Lasorda is likely to be found: Bucca di Beppo, Grimaldi’s and now the visiting clubhouse at Camelback Ranch, ever since it became occupied by Team Italy. The Italians will be here working out until March 5, when Team Mexico moves in prior to their exhibition game on Wednesday, March 6 at Camelback Ranch. 
• Charley Steiner will be calling the Pool D games in Phoenix for MLB International, featuring the United States, Mexico, Canada and Italy. Steiner will call the first of 16 Spring Training games on AM 570 Fox Sports Los Angeles tomorrow alongside Rick Monday, while Jaime Jarrin, Fernando Valenzuela and Pepe Yniguez can be heard in Spanish tomorrow on KTNQ 1020 AM.

YOU SEE THIS FACE?: Dodger center fielder Matt Kemp advanced to the finals of MLB Network’s #FaceofMLB contest on Twitter by defeating Atlanta’s Jason Heyward in yesterday’s vote. In tomorrow’s finals, Kemp will face the winner of today’s semifinal matchup of Andrew McCutchen and Joey Votto in MLB Network’s bracket to decide who is the Face of MLB. The current bracket matchups can be viewed here.

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2013 Topps Turkey Red - Dodger Baseball Cards

How do you know that the Baseball season is upon us?

When a flurry of new Baseball card sets start arriving, one after another.

Earlier this week, Topps released their second 2013 Baseball card set, and it's called Turkey Red.  If you do not already know, this set is fashioned after a 1910-1911 tobacco premium cabinet card set that was produced by Turkey Red brand cigarettes.  They originally measured 5 3/4" x 8" in size and are highly sought after by vintage collectors for their tremendous artwork.  Personally, I think they are the most attractive cards ever produced.  I currently do not have any vintage Baseball players in my collection, but I do have a handful of boxers; including the great Jack Johnson.  If you are interested in seeing some of the vintage versions of the set I suggest heading over to the T3 Turkey Red website run by a collector working on building a master set.  Click here to go there.

These new Turkey Red cards were available only online through Topps and are the same size as todays modern Baseball cards.  They sold out quickly and are already highly desired.  BTW, in a couple of weeks Topps Heritage Baseball will be released, then Topps Tribute a couples of weeks after that, then Topps Gypsy Queen a couple of weeks after that.

Below are the Dodger cards in the base set.  Unfortunately, there does not appear to be any Dodger autographed cards in the set.

11 Clayton Kershaw

16 Andre Ethier

18 Matt Kemp

81 Zack Greinke

88 Adrian Gonzalez

91 Josh Beckett

98 Hanley Ramirez

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Dodgers Notes from Spring Training: Full-Squad Workout #6

Throughout Spring Training the Dodgers PR department sends out helpful daily notes from Camelback Ranch, and I am happy to pass them along.  See what they've written below.

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Clipper Blake Griffin sports some Dodger pride as he slam dunks a basketball.  According to the Dodgers on twitter, Griffin was filmed by them for Opening Day.

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IT’S GETTING CLOSER...: The Dodgers went through their sixth full-squad workout today, stressing team defense in addition to the regular round of batting practice and side sessions. Right-handed hurlers Josh Beckett, Kevin Gregg, Matt Guerrier, Brandon League and Shawn Tolleson tossed live batting practice along with southpaw J.P. Howell on Fields 1 and 2.

• Once again, the Dodgers’ inaugural doubles ping-pong tournament raged on and today rare footage of the battles were captured and will be sent to ESPN’s SportsNation.
• The Dodgers will begin the 2013 regular season April 1, taking on the Giants in 38 days, 22 hours and 30 minutes.

WELCOME MATT: Today the Dodgers announced that catcher Matt Wallach was invited to big league camp, replacing Eliezer Alfonzo, who missed the start of camp due to a family issue and subsequently contracted Dengue fever. This is Wallach’s second consecutive non-roster invite to Major League camp and last year he hit .232 with four homers and 17 RBI in 59 games for Double-A Chattanooga. The California native turned 27 on Sunday.

CLASSIC BASEBALL: The 2013 World Baseball Classic is right around the corner as most players taking part will leave camp about March 1. The Dodgers will be well represented in the once-every-four-year event with Adrian Gonzalez and Luis Cruz playing for Team Mexico, Hanley Ramirez for the Dominican Republic, Ronald Belisario for Venezuela and Nick Punto for Italy. In addition, former Dodger skipper Joe Torre will pilot the U.S. squad. Pool play for the World Baseball Classic begins March 2 in both Taiwan and Japan, home to the two-time defending champions (2006 and 2009).   

• Team Italy arrived at Camelback Ranch today and took over the visiting clubhouse on the Dodgers’ side. The Italians will be here working out until March 5, when Team Mexico moves in. Team Mexico will face the Dodgers in an exhibition game on Wednesday, March 6 at Camelback Ranch.  

(pic link: Andre's hotrod- Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2013)

YOU SEE THIS FACE?: Dodger center fielder Matt Kemp is currently battling the Braves’ Jason Heyward in MLB Network’s #FaceofMLB contest on Twitter. The winner of the matchup moves to the final round of MLB Network’s bracket to decide who is the Face of MLB. You can view the current bracket matchups here. Fans can vote until 3:30 a.m. PT (Friday) by tweeting #MattKemp. Believe it or not, Kemp is currently trailing Heyward in the voting.

THE FIRST OPENING DAY: Opening Day at Camelback Ranch is Saturday and the Dodgers will be the home team against their cross- complex foes, the Chicago White Sox. Clayton Kershaw will start for the Dodgers and the White Sox will counter with Dylan Axelrod. Prior to the game, the Dodgers and White Sox coaches and starters will be introduced to the crowd following the pregame ceremony honoring Dodger legends.

THE DODGER BARD: The Dodgers have a new special assistant in camp this season, former big league catcher Josh Bard. Bard joins General Manager Ned Colletti’s staff as Special Assistant, Player Development and will work with Dodger Major and minor leaguers.  The switch-hitting catcher had a .254 batting average in 10 seasons in the bigs with Cleveland (2002-05), Boston (2006), San Diego (2006-08), Washington (2009) and Seattle (2010-11). In 2012, he was a catcher for Triple-A Albuquerque in the Dodger system. 

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Dodgers Blog Kiosk: 2/21/2013

Check out more photos from Jon SooHoo of yesterdays rainy Spring Training day.  Featured above are Yasiel Puig and Luis Cruz.

• Mark Saxon at ESPN takes a look at the 2013 projections for Clayton Kershaw.

He has learned to minimize pitches and manage counts better each year, something [Chad] Billingsley has not come to grips with yet. He’s much more pitch-efficient than he used to be. 

• This was the best tweet of the day, yesterday.  From Jon Weisman of Dodger Thoughts.

(twitter link)

• Baseball Prospectus provides their rank for the projected 2013 season, and place the Dodgers in 1st place in the National League West.
• Ken Gurnick at MLB.com has some info on the Dodgers ping-pong tournament yesterday.

The Dodgers began a team Ping-Pong tournament Wednesday, featuring eight doubles teams in a double-elimination bracket.

The first victory of the competition went to Peter Moylan and Mark Lowe, who defeated the duo of Carl Crawford and Tony Gwynn Jr.

Each team made up an off-the-cuff nickname to call itself, with the pair of Mark and A.J. Ellis going by "The Law Firm.

• Michael Beller at Sports Illustrated provides his 2013 Dodgers Fantasy Preview.

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Discovering Negro Leaguer, Pete Hill

With it being Black History Month and February quickly coming to a close, I thought I would finally post some photos I received a while back that feature Negro League Hall of Famer Pete Hill. 

As you may know, I've always had an interest and fascination with Negro League Baseball, and from time to time post memorabilia of the players and teams that still exist.  Well, several years ago I had made a brief mention of a Pete Hill Baseball card from the early 1900's, and was soon after contacted by a distant relative of Mr. Hill.

As I was told, members of the Hill family had recently discovered their connection to the Hall of Famer, so they went about the task of learning more about him.  They wanted to celebrate his achievements and share what they had learned with those willing to listen.  I can only imagine the elation the family felt.  After all, it's not every day that you discover that the blood of a Hall of Famer runs in your veins. 

Soon, they delved into their family archives and came across vintage images of Pete Hill.  This in itself is rare since actual period images of Hill, as well as other Negro League greats from that time period are scant.  Check out Pete Hill's portrait photo below.

A great story written by Kevin Kirkland of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette describes the process the family went through to not only discover their connection to the man, but the steps that were taken to right a historical wrong.  You see, the Hall had made some gross errors on his plaque.  They had his name wrong, his birth date wrong, and his place of birth wrong. 

So no Hill descendant was in Cooperstown, N.Y., that day in 2006 when the plaque was unveiled. They might never have known they had such a famous relative -- or that his name, birth date and other biographical information were wrong -- if not for some sharp-eyed baseball historians and a cousin's love for genealogy.

Now, thanks to their research, Mr. Hill's determination and the genealogical sleuthing of a Virginia historian/journalist, the Hall of Fame announced in late July that it will commission a new, correct plaque and unveil it on Oct. 12 -- more than a century after John Preston Hill was born in Culpeper County, Va.

I suggest reading the entire article, it's a great story about a family discovering their roots and the work of some Baseball history buffs wanting to correct some inaccurate information.

I'd like to belatedly thank Major Hill for pass along the photos that are shared here.  BTW, the highway marker at the very top was erected a few years ago in Virginia thanks to the work of Major Hill and Negro League historian Gary Ashwill.  Ashwill details his research on Pete Hill and his work on the above marker here.

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