OPENING WEEK, OPENING THOUGHTS, DODGER FANS ARE BEHIND YOU BRIAN
Does it feel good to have baseball back ? After taking 3 of 4 from the hated ones to open the season then getting swept in a mini 2 game series on the road to Colorado, the Dodgers are back here in Cali to start a 3 game series to our neighbors down south. During the 6 games the pitching has been able to hold it’s own, though questions still arise about Jonathan Broxton, in spite being 3 for 3 in save opportunities.
Now, as for the opening homestand. I had the chance to attend Opening Day and the final game of the series. I can honestly tell you all that where I was sitting in those 2 games, our sections we’re incident free. And that’s the way baseball should be. . The Dodgers and Jints, I mean Giants rivalry( Hey, I gotta get my blue blood going here….) goes back to their days in Brooklyn and New York, and both teams have given each other and their fans their share of heartbreaks too. I’ve attended a few Dodgers/Giants games up north myself and though I have been told some nice pleasantries from time to time and some we’re personal ( Which you should expect when your a visiting fan ), never have I felt threatened to view a game. ( NOTE…I’m not so sure if anyone would want to threaten me ) and no fan should ever feel threatened to wear their favorite team’s apparel no matter how big a rivalry is. Go ahead with a little playful ” trash talk “, it’s all in fun, but life and death should never be taken into account while cheering our teams on.
As a Dodger fan, I , like many other Dodger fans, am still upset at what happened last week in Parking Lot 2 after the Dodgers Opening Day victory over the Giants. Unfortunately, I was nowhere near the incident to assist Mr. Brian Stow from what Vin Scully even called , COWARDS, ( And believe me, for Vinny himself to say anything bad about a human being, even the word COWARD, is really saying a lot here ) . After the game, I was mulling around until I got to say hi to one of my usher buddies ( Opening Day, New Year, New Season…) and having a good time, like Mr. Stow should have been entitled to as well. Instead, because of these 2 COWARDS who I refuse to call fans, Mr. Stow is in a coma clinging for his life, all because of this COWARDLY ACT !!! Unfortunately, this is not the first time this has happened at Dodger Stadium. Heck , i’m sure many of you remember a Giants fan being shot and killed in the parking lot back in 2003. It’s getting to the point where Dodger fans themselves dont want to come to the Ravine.
There was a candlelight vigil for Brian Stow outside of County USC Hospital this past Wednesday evening, and I had the chance to meet with family members of Mr. Stow, and I am happy to report that the family was in good spirits and are very thankful to all the Dodgers fans and the community for their continued and warm-hearted support. Let’s just hope that Mr. Brian Stow recovers from this blow and that any fan who comes to Dodger Stadium to see a game, even a visiting fan, can come and enjoy a great night out at THE OLD BALLGAME.
From the Top Deck
DREI’S OFFICIAL 2011 OPENING DAY PIC
FOR STOW
My fellow blogger Emma sending well-wishes to Brian
Family and friends of Brian Stow with the rally towel we signed for them
With Brian Stow’s mother.
Get well Brian, we want you back in OUR TOWN.
1981, BLUE MONDAY, AND THE MONTREAL EXPOS
This season marks the 30th anniversary of the 1981 World Champion team that rallied from a 2 game deficit to beat the hated Yankees to claim their 4th World Series title in their 24th season in Los Angeles. In honor of the 30th anniversary , on Sunday May 1st the Dodgers will be giving out retro 1981 World Champion T-Shirts . One of the more memorable highlights of the 1981 season was during the ’81 NLCS , Game 5 against the Montreal Expos at Olympic Stadium. With the series tied at 2, it was winner take all . ( Best of 7 in the LCS would not take place until 1985 ) . The Expos, whom many of you know now as the Washington Nationals, had some good teams in the late 70′s and early 80′s , amongst the players we’re Tim Raines, Gary Carter, Andre Dawson, Jeff Reardon, Steve Rogers, and last but not least Tim Wallach. ( I wonder if he will want to observe any 30th anniversary celbrations that may take place this year…) In the top of the 9th of a pitchers duel between some 20 year old kid named Fernando ( Who would later be the teams 3rd straight Rookie of the Year ) and Ray Burris of Montreal, Steve Rogers, the Montreal ace, would come in and pitch the 9th. Rogers would retire Garvey and Cey and then, Rick Monday would hit what was then the biggest home run in Dodger history. Fernando came back out in the bottom of the 9th and retired the first two hitters before walking Gary Carter and Larry Parrish, putting the tying and winning runs on base. ( Back then folks, emphasis on pitch counts was non-existant, if a pitcher felt he could finish what he started, it was his game to finish no matter the score ) So Lasorda goes to Bob Welch, who 3 years prior, had struck out Reggie Jackson in an epic battle to end Game 2 of the World Series, to record the final out of the game, sending the Dodgers to New York in what would be the final time the Dodgers and Yankees would see each other in post season play. Who would have thought that after so many battles with each other going back to the Brooklyn days that these two would not see each other in the World Series for 30 years and counting. As for the Montreal Expos, this would be their only post-season appearance in their 35 year history. It’s too bad MLB and Bud Selig didn’t have any interest in saving baseball in Montreal. Many felt that the players strike in 1994 had a lot to do with the downfall of baseball in Montreal. The Expos had baseball’s best record at 74-40 when the strike hit, and with the post-season being cancelled, the Expos best chance of winning a world series, and perhaps the future of their franchise, was dealt a sever blow. OK, below is a clip from a Montreal news station I found on youtube giving a recap in French of game 5 of the LCS including Rick Monday’s home run.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_sOKseIMm4
And speaking of Mr. Monday…..
CARAVAN, DAY 2, HEAL THE BAY
Day 2 of the Dodger caravan would take us out to Santa Monica as we would team up with Heal The Bay in helping clean up the beach. Though the day would start off with a morning drizzle there was still a good turnout of Dodgers fans for this event. Though trash along the beach wasnt as evident as when we we’re at the L.A. River the previous day, according to the good folks at Heal The Bay, over 100 pounds of trash was accumulated throughout our over 1 hour of our beach cleanup. We would be broken up into 5 seperate groups and teamed up with a couple of Dodgers past and present. My buddy and I would be in team 5, led by Taft High Schools very own Gabe Kapler and Sweet Lou Johnson, best remembered for hitting the game winning home run in Game 7 of the 1965 World Series.
Anyone that’s ever come across Sweet Lou would tell you he really is quite a character. Most of my time during our cleanup was spent chatting with Sweet Lou and one of the reps from Heal the Bay, as well as a couple other Dodger fans as well, including my buddy Jesse.
Of the 5 groups who collected the most garbage, amazingly enough , Group 5, our group ended up on top ( Matt Kemp would later accuse us of filling up our bags with excess sand….LOL….) .
I have to give it up for our team, for they we’re the ones who really made the contributions ( I collected some too, but admittedly I was caught up in conversation with Sweet Lou ) . As for photo ops with other Dodgers….
You look like you could still play Shawn. Shawn Green
30/30 This year Matt ? Matt Kemp
It was a fun day all around, and it was a great opportunity to get up close and personal with the players and also contribute to a great cause. As for Heal the Bay, I cant thank them enough for making everyone feel so welcomed. Here’s the link should you want to volunteer your time in helping keep our beaches clean
http://www.healthebay.org/volunteer
Oh yeah, over the last 2 days I finally came across one of my fellow bloggers Emma. You can view here blog , Crzblue’s Dodger Blue World @ http://crzblue.mlblogs.com/ .
With my fellow blogger Emma
Wanna check out some more pics ?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dodgerdrei/sets/72157626064653738/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/healthebay/sets/72157626061182970/
DODGER CARAVAN, DAY 1, L.A. RIVER
We’re getting close to Spring Training folks !!! But before ST starts, the Dodgers once again embark on their annual caravan with this season’s theme giving back to the community. One of the activities in line for todays caravan was a volunteer clenup of the L.A. River, which players past and present we’re in attendance to lend a hand to the 250 Dodger fans who took time to volunteer today.
It was a fun day to be amongst fellow Dodger fans and it really did feel good to do something good for OUR TOWN as we can say we contributed to the continuing efforts to make the L.A. River a place where hopefullly there will be a longer trail for bikers and joggers to take a nice stroll.
Oh yeah, speaking of Dre…
DRE AND DREI
LOOKING BACK, APRIL 15, 1983….WELCOME BACK STEVE !!!
In another one of my flashbacks to those so-called ” I Was There ” games, we go back to 1983. In the Dodgers 6-2 win over the Padres, that evenings game would be significant in that it would be former Dodger Steve Garvey’s first game back at Dodger Stadium. He would be given a 5 minute ovation ( Or it seemed that way ) before making his way toward home plate but not before saluting the crowd back. The only player left in the 1983 season from that famous long standing infield was SS Bill Russell.
That evening would also be the first time seeing those god-awful ugly taco brown tops the Padres sported on the road. So ugly we’re these uni’s that the Padres WS appearance the following year gave it the type of national exposure that would ultimately lead to it’s timely death.
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, APRIL 1983
LOOKING BACK…MY FIRST BALLGAME, 1982
Hello Dodger fans !!! Can you believe we’re one month away from Spring Training ? Do the off-seasons seem to get shorter every year ? If so, I certainly have no problem with that as I’m sure many of you feel the same.
To pass the time between now and during Spring Training and Opening Day I will be looking back upon games I attended both at Dodger Stadium and on the road and I hope that I can hear of some of the games you attended as well. OK, to lead off, we’re gonna go back to August, 1982 .
The first game I would attend would be on my 8th birthday, August 5th with my mom and some guy she was dating ( He would end up being my stepdad 4 months later…) Of course as a kid going to his first ballgame just being there was special enough. Little did I know that we we’re in a heated battle for the NL West with that night’s opponent the Atlanta Braves, managed by some guy named Torre. Fernando pitched that night but was knocked out in the 5th by a line drive that hit his knee ( Boy was I miffed, I was so excited to see Fernando . Anytime he pitched it always seemed there was more electricity in the air. ) The Braves had a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs when Rick Monday’s grounder went through Jerry Roysters leg and tying the score. The Dodgers would win in the 10th on Ron Cey’s sac fly. It would be the Blue Crew’s 5th straight win over Atlanta , whom they would beat 8 times in a row en route to erasing a 10.5 game deficit in 2 weeks !!!
That first game was also special because, the previous year, 1981, everyone was just nuts about the Dodgers and though I was only 7, even in grade school everyone and the nuns ( Yes I went to Catholic school…) we’re excited about the Dodgers. It was during that year’s World Series against the Yanks that my uncles kept asking me to give them a high-5 so that the Dodgers would win ( It was also my uncles who taught me to hate the Evil Empire…..) . Also whetting my appetite to see a Dodger game live was the first time I ever saw Dodger Stadium on the way to see my mom’s boyfriend ( My stepdad grew up in Echo Park…) . And that day finally came, and it’s been my summer home since.
OTHER NOTES
It would be one year after Lopes left, so I never saw the longest running infield in action as I would miss it by one year.
Steve Sax’s rookie year, he would be the 4th straight Dodger to win the ROY Award
That ’82 season would be the year I was introduced to the Dodgers/Giants rivalry, thanks to Joe Morgan. Had we won that final game and tied Atlanta, we had tickets to the one-game playoff the next day, and I would have played hookie. That day to play hookie from school to go to the game would have to wait ’till Opening Day in ’88.
THE NINTH INNING
After the final out of the 2010 season. Hopefully at this time next year, it will be a dogpile with a champagne bath. Forever Dodger Blue, ’till the bitter end….GO DODGERS !!!!
FINAL ANALYSIS
To say that this season was a disappointment would be an understatement. Yes, we did not make a big splash in the off-season in terms of a big name pickup, but with the core of last years team returning, we certainly did not expect to finish under .500 for the first time in 5 years. And as of the all-star break we we’re 10 games over .500 2 games behind the surprising Padres for first place, and I will go on record to say that I felt we would overtake the Friars and be celebrating a 3rd straight NL West title. But this team just didnt have it together in 2010, and with the divorce pending, and the expectation that we will not be making a serious run at a big name bat in the off-season , many are already expecting the worst come 2011. OK, that may be stretching things a bit, but not many fans in L.A. are whetting their appetites for the 2011 season . Here is Drei’s report card on your 2010 Dodgers
OFFENSE
GRADE…D
Much was expected out of this lineup, most of whom returned from the ’09 squad, but Russel Martin continued to struggle with the lumber and unfortunately was lost for the season due to the home plate collision back in August and his status for ’11 in limbo. James Loney, after a torrid start average wise, slumped , Furcal was never healthy for the entire season, Blake’s time as a regular may have met father time, and of course our Opening Day outfield. Manny was, well, not the Manny that we grew to love in that summer of ’08, Andre, after posing an early season threat for the NL Triple Crown, injured his pinky and was not the same hitter upon returning, and finally, Matt Kemp. Though Matt would set a career high for home runs with 28, he would also set a career high in strikeouts and a career low for batting average as well. As for the bench, there certainly was not much help either particularly with GA and Belliard, as GA could never regain any of his early career form and Belliard could not retain the magic that won him the starting job at 2nd base late last year.
STARTING PITCHING…..B
In the beginning of the season we all thought that our offense would score enough runs and that the uncertainty of our starting 5 would be an issue. Well, Kershaw certainly came of age this year, Bills showed down the stretch that he’s ready to claim the role of the ace again, Kuroda of course was our workhorse, Lilly was a great pennant drive acquisition, and if only Padilla could have stayed healthy the whole season he too showed some brilliance at times. Yes, we could have used stability in the 5th starter, but this starting 5 certainly deserved better down the stretch, particularly the front 3 of Kershaw, Bills, and Kuroda.
BULLPEN……C-
The progress of Kenley Jansen and the emergence of Hung Chi Kuo saves the bullpen from a D. Otherwise, Sherrill, Belisario, and of course Broxton, key components to ’09, certainly get a D for disappointment.
COACHING….C
In Torre’s swan song, he did what he could with the cards he had only to finish with his first losing record since 1993.
And finally….
THE FRONT OFFICE….F
That big fat F of course, go mostly to ownership, and I’ll let you he fans chime in on this one….
WHAT WENT RIGHT
As I alluded to earlier, the starting pitching certainly held it’s own down the stretch and I’m looking forward to the combo of Bills and Kershaw to anchor the staff in ’11. I’m hoping that Kuroda will return for another season. I’d like for Lilly to return, but he’s more than likely to want a multi-year contract based on his 2nd half performance.
KEMP OR BROXTON ?
Who was the biggest disappointment ? Yes the two certainly did disappoint, and you can make an arguement who was the bigger of the 2, but since Matt played in all 162, I’ll go with Broxton. Now many of you feel that it started during that fateful Sunday night game against the Yankees, I’ll go one step further, Game 4 of last years LCS. After retiring the first batter in the bottom of the 9th, up came Matt Stairs. Yeah, we all know what happened in ’08, and (IT) happens, but Broxton this time around didn’t even bother challenging Stairs, walking him on 4 pitches. 3 batters later and 2 on and 2 out and a chance to tie the series at 2, Jimmy Rollins lines a double to the alley and well , you know the rest. Yeah, Broxton had a good first half of ’10 and made it as an all-star, but that one question that I’m sure I’m not alone in asking, does he have the makeup to shut it down when it counts ? As for game 4 last year, in all honesty, I really dont think the whole team recovered either.
So their is my final say for 2010. We can only hope that 2011 our Boys in Blue can show that 2010 was just an abberation. We can only hope.
DREI’S MAY RECAP
After a rough start, The Blue Crew seems to have answered their critics. And the best is yet to come. In spite of Furcal missing practically all of May, and Ethier just recently going on the DL with a broken finger, and the fact that we still don’t have a fifth starter, to this point we have posted a 16-6 mark in this merry month of May. While we have been enamored by Dre’s accomplishments, who had Triple Crown numbers at the time he went on the DL, let’s not forget the rest of the offense either. Also playing a huge role in the turnaround was Jamie Carroll, who has done more than an admirable job filling in for the injured Rafael Furcal.
But what has impressed me the most is the resurgence of our pitching all around. I am also convinced the Chad Billingsley is getting his confidence back, having allowed 2 runs or less in his last 5 starts. Kuroda and Kershaw continue to give us nightly quality starts, and Josh Ely has been a pleasant surprise coming from Albuquerque. Questions still arise about a number 5 guy, and even when Padilla does come back, everyone will still be talking about trading for Roy Oswalt. ( I called that a month ago !!! ) . Our bullpen still has some questions as well with Trancoso not looking like the ground ball pitcher he was last season, and Sherrill, perhaps with him going on the DL today we will find out if his sudden meltdown is beyond poor mechanics.
Just some concerns to get out of the way before we head to the dog days of summer. Otherwise, we should be in good shape for the upcoming dog days of summer, as we currently stand 2 games behind the Padres for 1st place in the NL West. ( Believe it or not, the Padres currently hold the NL’s best record at 27-18 ) Now , for some of Drei’s May highlights from around The Ravine…..
Victory Knot: A new item is the Victory Knot, an extreme take on the traditional soft pretzel. Enough to feed about four hungry fans, this giant pretzel is made with two pounds of dough, topped with sea salt and served with three dipping sauces – chipotle honey mustard, sweet cinnamon crème and beer cheese – in a full-size pizza box. The Victory Knot is available at Campy’s Corner on the Field Level, Stand 204 dodgers.com
DRE !!!!
James Loney with Prime Ticket’s Michael Eaves after Loney big night in the Dodgers 6-2 triumph over the Pirates 4/30
My buddy Josh and I hangin out with former Dodger centerfielder Ken Landreaux
MATTY !!!!
Sunset over The Ravine 5/7
MINI DRE !!!!
Me with my Mini Dre
Gone But Not Forgotten….
Lima Time will forever live on in the hearts of all Dodger fans. RIP Jose Lima 1972-2010
EXTRA INNINGS WITH DREI
STARTING TO HEAT UP ?
It’s good to see the Blue on it’s first winning streak of the season, after winning the last 3 of the 4 game series against the Bucs. Even the pitching has shown some signs of life. Of course as soon as I say that, Kershaw has perhaps the worst outing of his young career against the Brewers . Shake it off kid, it happens to everyone. I’m really looking forward to seeing if Billingsley can go a 3rd straight game with a quality start. You really didn’t thing the Brewers offense, anchored by Prince Fielder and Ryan Brawn, an offense which had been shut out in all 3 losses to the Friars in their 4 game set, was going to remain dormant , did you ?
IT’S BEEN A GOOD DRE
How ’bout Andre Ethier? If the season ended today, he would be the first Triple Crown winner since Carl Yaztremski did it in 1967. His current stats, .367, 9 HR, and 26 RBI’s. Did you see his 2nd HR of the game this past Sunday travel half way up the RF Pavillion . That may have been the furthest I’ve seen any of his HR’s travel. Speaking of Andre…….
THIS OR THAT ?
In the recent edition of one of my early season in-between features, THIS OR THAT, Friday, 4/30, on MY TOWN Night, UCLA was featured, so a few Dodgers were asked SC or UCLA. Andre….
Neither. Sun Devils ( Arizona State ) all the way. ( Let’s remember, he’s a Phoenix native and played collegiately at ASU )
HEY PETE, NICE TO HEAR FROM YOU
When one mentions Pedro Guerrero to me, here’s what comes to mind
1) My youth. As a kid in the early 80′s, Pedro Guerrero was my favorite Dodger. OK, debatable between him and Fernando, and maybe Sax. But those we’re some good players, and some good times. I always looked forward to seeing Pete’s power display.
2) His home run tear of June, 1985, when he tied a then NL record of 15 home runs in a month, a record he shared with Mike Schmidt. And finally
3) His freakish slide into 3rd base in the final day
of ST, 1986, tearing his knee up and causing him
to miss most of the season. And finally….
4) The darkest day of my life as a baseball fan. Watching Pete throw his glove down in disgust like a Bad News Bear while watching Jack Clark’s 3 run home run in the 9th inning of Game 6 of the 1985 NLCS sail way beyond him and into oblivion. Of course, time has healed all wounds but that shot of him whenever I decide to inflict past wounds on myself reminds me that not all athletes are in it for just the money and that there actually is some true passion behind these players.
Pedro Guerrero wasn’t exactly a model citizen, and today he would be the first to admit as much. Most Dodger fans back in the day remember that he did not exactly leave the Blue in good terms, at one time clashing with Kirk Gibson . Pete also realized that the good life he lived, along most ballplayers, or any celebrity , does not last forever. Now that Pete has been humbled, he is asking for a second chance, a chance to return to baseball.
Guerrero sincere he’s turned life around
Ex-Dodger wants to return to game, says he’s changed man
http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100503&content_id=9764478&vkey=news_la&fext=.jsp&c_id=la
I really hope for the best for Pete. And should he land a job in the Majors someday, I really hope it’s back where it all started for him, back here with the Blue. Best of Luck Pete, we’re all rooting for you.
WISHING DAVE A SPEEDY RECOVERY
Former Dodger outfielder and current Padres assistant Dave Roberts was recently diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma. Fortunately, it was caught in it’s early stage and will continue to work with the Padres throughout this season. Just one favor Dave…. You’re Friars are surprising a lot of us in the NL West, can you help bring them back to earth ? All kidding aside, Best of Luck to you Dave, one of the finest ballplayers I’ve had the chance to meet.
Me with Dave Roberts, 4/30/2006
OUTSIDE THE PARK
It’s not often that I comment here on my blog about something beyond baseball or any other sport, but I thought it be cool to share with you what the Phoenix Suns will be doing this evening, donning uniforms that say Los Suns, in honor of their vast Latino community . Good for you . That law is flawed anyway. While I’ve never had a bad experience in the state of Arizona and I will not go so far as to boycott any Dodger/D’Back games at Dodgers Stadium, I’d like to know what is Governor Brewer trying to prove with this bill. If anything, all this is going to do is create more chaos and perhaps potential lawsuits to those it could affect who are here legally but don’t have documentation while driving. ( Like you’re gonna keep legal documents in the glove compartment of your car at all times ? ) I applaud the Phoenix Suns organization for doing this, use your national status to show that this great country of ours welcomes all.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/basketball/nba/05/04/suns-immigration.ap/index.html?xid=si_nba
IN MEMORIUM
Ernie Harwell, whose broadcast career started with the Brooklyn Dodgers, succumbed to cancer yesterday at the young age of 92. Harwell leaves behind countless admirers and is now amongst the broadcasters heavens with Jack Buck, Harry Carey, Harry Kalas, Phil Rizutto, et all. RIP Ernie ( 1918-2010 )
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