Comments on: Unable to silence Phillies bats, Dodgers go down quietly

By: Andrew Pelt

Andrew Pelt — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 00:58:07 +0000

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By: jl

jl — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:13:18 +0000

It’s all about the Donnie Baseball curse. Yankees won the world series the year before he joined as a player and didn’t win again until the year after he left. Then they went on a tear winning what 4 out of 5 years and then didn’t win again after he returned as a coach. Now he’s gone and here we are again looking at another potential NY world series title. It’s not Joe or the team – they are just fine – It’s Mattingly – give him his walking papers as see things turn around – they always do.

By: ciskokidd

ciskokidd — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:39:33 +0000

I am amazed by all the Dodgers doubters. Sure the Phillies won the series and played extremely well, but that does not diminish how well the Dodgers played all year long.
The Dodgers have a great young ball club with an excellent manager and one or two starting pitchers from being the premier team in the National League. I know Phillies fans like to tout their great hitting and it is great, but their ball club is also short in the pitching department which will be clearly evident against the Yankees who have the best pitching staff in baseball and a better hitting ball club than the Phils. CC will match Cliff Lee pitch for pitch and then what? Hamels? Please. After that you think that Martinez can tame the Yanks?
My prediction for the series sad to say is a Yankees sweep. I’m not saying the Dogers would fare better. The Yankees are unstoppable this year and I HATE the Yankees, but the truth is the truth.
One more step next year BIG BLUE!!

By: Jim B

Jim B — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:25:51 +0000

Well if the Dodgers are done with Joe Torre…we would definitely welcome him back as the St. Louis Cardinals manager. I have always had a great deal of respect for Joe and his love for and knowledge of baseball…plus he’s a class act…unlike the embarrassing demeanor of Tony LaRussa. I’ve never seen a manager be so much a jerk in so many interviews or press briefings after a game. It’s a disgrace to the good people of St. Louis to have their beloved Cardinals manager act that way toward the very people that are there to help put people in the seats to help pay his salary. Plus, what ever happened to the days of the Cardinal manager flying out of the dugout to argue a call with an umpire JUST to fire his team up to stop being complacent and get out there and win the game? I love the Cardinals and the idea of Joe Torre being back “home’! AND I’m kinda fed up with LaRussa! Anybody else?

By: steve

steve — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:15:00 +0000

I’m a Tiger fan. You all know what took place this year! I’m sure if the Tigers got that far that the Dodgers did, it would have been a heck of a lot better. But then, again the fans would have said the same negative stuff as to why they didn’t advance.
Perhaps we all should realize that only 1 out of 30 teams wind up Champions. Perhaps we should all wonder about the amount of decent players that appear in sports lineups today! With so many players, obcviously many don’t even belong there, they really should be in the minor leagues fighting for the few chances of going up to the majors!
Then again, that’s business in the MLB…money, money, money. Perhaps we need to return to a smaller league, fewer teams and weed out those cities where attendance just isn’t cutting it. Take the best players and put them on various teams to bolster a higher level of competition.
The sport, as in other sports surely needs a better image for fans to see a higher quality of game! The current menu that we witness year in and year out is far from the quality of entertainment we REALLY should be watching!

By: Robert C

Robert C — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:46:44 +0000

I’m proud of the guys. If you’d of told me back n April that they would have the best record in the league with Martin not hitting for average or any kind of power, Frucal not hitting period, Manny missing 50 games and Kuroda out for important parts of the season, I’d of laughed. But they did it. Billingsly and Kershaw stand to be greats of the future. Billingsly needs to learn to pitch from the stretch and Kershaw needs to learn he can win without striking everybody out. Kemp needs to lower his strike outs, Looney is still a great clutch hitter (and our best post season hitter two years in a row) but needs to do it all year and needs to add some power. Etherier….Leave him alone. I think the improvements need to be made at second (will it be Belliard or Hudson, are they the future?) And is Blake at third getting to old. Is “the other Blake” ready to hit, and step in at third? or second? I say keep Bills and Kershaw, sign Wolf. Hope Frucal can come back with a bat, he’s still a great arm and a decent defensive SS even if he doesn’t. Find a true ace, even for a year or two until Kershaw and Bills mature. Plug the holes at third and second with at least one 30 homer threat. We are stuck with Manny, and that may not be all bad, for a year. Dangle Kuroda, Pierre maybe Belliario (he’s is a great arm tho’) and a couple top minor leaguers that don’t fit right now but keep that nucleus together (Looney, Kemp, Ethier, Billingsly, Kershaw, Broxton and Martin)there something sweet about a mostly home grown team.

By: Ding

Ding — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:04:00 +0000

Well then Let’s just hope that Kershaw or Billingsley becomes second Oral Hershiser. Wish for one leg player to hit a improbable HR
When you are not good enough you need a miracle…Maybe Los “Angels” teams can collaborate…

By: Don Dufo

Don Dufo — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:01:05 +0000

Who still goes to bed each night uttering, “I wanna be a Yankee. I wanna be a Yankee. Oh, pleeze…I wanna be a Yankee.” ??? You’re right. Manny. It’s time for the Yankees to have their turn with him. Ya think?

By: yankees

yankees — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 14:00:32 +0000

The Dodgers are not good. Period.
They are the best team in a 2nd class league.
GO YANKEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By: NRESQ

NRESQ — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:32:04 +0000

There ain’t a whole lot to learn without front line pitching. Period.

By: NRESQ

NRESQ — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:27:21 +0000

The only pitching the Dodgers will get is if someone gives away a pitcher (like all the other players the Dodgers get off the market). Face it, the McCourt’s aren’t going to pay market price for real pitching. They had the chance to get Halliday before the deadline for nothing but money, i.e. not giving up any of their core group, but they didn’t want to have to pay Halliday CC Sabbitha money in a new contract. Think the Dodgers could have used Halliday to go up against Lee?
Bottom line, as someone said above, the Dodgers look good on paper; but they aren’t built for the post-season. Pitching wins in the playoffs! Oh well, the Dodgers will continue to draw 3+ million every year to fund the McCourt’s real estate purchases and now their divorce. Sell the franchise already!

By: Ding

Ding — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:14:30 +0000

Dodgers have good nucleus & will come back to this same stage…To go all the way with this core you need to add #1 starter
Stop the hoping like Jason Schmidt, who we knew had some issues before the signing. It’s like you went cheap when you already sepent $100. $120 would have landed you a true ace.
We came a long way… get some perspective & let’s get it done

By: Philly John

Philly John — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:58:50 +0000

To the comment that ‘the Dodgers gave away the games’ is absurd, they were beaten by a better team. The Dodgers didn’t give it away, the Phillies took the series. The Phils scored 35 runs in 5 games to the Dodgers 15 and the only game the Dodgers won, the Phils pitching (after Pedro) ‘gave it away’. I salute the Dodgers for their season, but the better team (two years in a row) won the series.

By: Ben

Ben — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:55:18 +0000

Was a Dodger fan in the 40′s and 50′s. Great team who always wound up on the short end to the Yankees. Now a Phillies fan, started in the 70′s and have seen the good the bad and the ugly. To all those who are whining, grow up.
Only one thing will help base
ball; a commissioner who will accept the facts that umpires are
human and make mistakes. Baseball needs instant replay. The object is to get the calls right. An out when the runner is safe, or visa versa, screws up the game. Football has learned and it has become a better game, tennis uses it; but other than checking for the home run or foul ball, our childish commishioner fights progress. Since the owners give him his job, it’s up to them to tell him to get with it. Otherwise, the excuses that this umpire is sick or has a headache, bellyache, won’t cut the mustard. If a ballplayer doesn’t perform, they get somebody else; no reason it should be different for umpires.
GO PHILS !!!

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:41:42 +0000

The Dodgers are headed in the right direction. They are young and improving each year. They have to learn how to win the big game. Its a process, people. Good things are coming for a long time. Kershaw is going to be a huge stud for many years. Billingsley will develop into a solid #2/3 starter. Kemp, Either, Loney, Broxton, etc are all really young and can only get better.
Needs: #1 starter and back end starter.
Go Blue!

By: Deborah

Deborah — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:31:46 +0000

The Dodgers were first struggling to maintain and then worsened to struggling to survive right after the All-Star Game. This was the same pattern for the club in 2007 — they just took a nose dive — and it’s what brought Joe here to replace Little. Ned was in a fix last year — it was a toss-up — we needed both bats and pitching — we chose the bat (Manny) over pitching (our chance for CC Sabathia). We took a gamble and we came up short — The season started out well enough — the Dodgers adjusted quickly and magnificently with the 50-game Manny-out debacle — they learned to stand on their own two feet and win in spite of a Manny no-show — that shows a lot of character — I repeat — I a lot of character. After a little bit of time, everyone was patting Torre on the back, crediting him for his ingenuity on his bull-pen — and no one was thinking about the damage it was doing to the starting pitchers — After the All-Star game (coincidentally, after Manny returned), the bats just up and left the club — almost non-existent. The Dodgers rarely were able to put back-to-back wins by the “bats” — some of their multiple wins (2 games or more) were made by stellar pitching — again, the strain on the starters. By the time the regular season ended, our starting pitchers were spent — the bats came together in the first round vs. the Cards — there was nothing left in the bats (or pitching) against the Phillies. Ned thought that inspiration would carry the day for him to fix the pitching this coming off season. It was a crap shoot — and we came up snake-eyes. We tried — we almost made it — we came up short. In the traditional words of the Brooklyn Dodgers: “Wait ‘Til Next Year.” Go BLUE!!!

By: Mabel

Mabel — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:22:01 +0000

The Dodgers have a good young nucleus to build around (e.g. Ethier, Kemp, Martin, Kershaw, Billingsley, Broxton) but they’re still undisciplined. They strike out too much, they’re prone to bonehead errors and they don’t know how to pace themselves. Torre has helped with discipline greatly since he came on board, but he needs to bring in a few stable veterans to create a more tempered influence in the clubhouse. Keeping Jim Thome or maybe trading for someone like Chipper Jones or Trevor Hoffman might help in this regard. As for the pitching, Billingsley and Broxton need to be told to lose at least 25 lbs each and we need to re-sign Sherill to help motivate Broxton and have as a backup in case he falters. We won’t have the money to sign Roy Halladay or another ace via free agency, but perhaps we could package James Loney and prospects in a trade.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:17:42 +0000

The Dodgers should have traded away Billingsley, Martin and some prospects for Cliff Lee and Victor Martinez. Chad has good stuff, but he is way too emotional to ever make it through an entire season without blowing a game and going into a sports depression. Watching him finish the season when it’s clear he didn’t trust his stuff was just awful. And Martin has been a huge disappointment this year. Between his pop fly hitting, his miserable defense, and his inability to outthink the hitters on pitch selection he was constantly finding ways to ruin games for us.
Had Ned made those moves, we might have had a shot at going to the world series despite the favored home plate officiating and the Phillies sign stealing.

By: Ding

Ding — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:06:58 +0000

Dodgers need to get a #1 starter… Kershaw of Bilingsley may become a #1 or #2 starter in comming years but… In 1988 Hershiser was the conerstone & reason they won the World Series. Get Roy Holliday… If you don’t want to give up younsters then sign John Lackey. This team is good enough to make it back…If no big move is made we will be saying wait til next year again.

By: Philly John

Philly John — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:06:39 +0000

By: kelprod

kelprod — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:37:30 +0000

The Phillies are the current World Series champs and clearly the best team in the national league. They have strong starting pitching and not a single soft spot in their batting order. If you like baseball, and regardless of who wins, a Phillies/ Yankees World Series is going to be fun to watch….and I REALLY like the Phillies chances against the Yankees- the first 2 games have the DH and the games in Philly will require the Yankees pitcher to bat.

By: Crash

Crash — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:23:51 +0000

I’m still tired from cheering on the current and defending Champions of the World Series and all known galaxies at the ball park last night! Dodgers, nice run! You have a classy manager in Torre and a bunch of classy ballplayers once you get rid of the “THEE CHEATER”, Mr. Gotta Take a Shower. (Don’t know why Torre and the other players put up with him.) Angels, Yanks, we’re not giving up our title without a fight. Can’t wait til Wednesday!

By: jamesup

jamesup — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:49:49 +0000

The Dodgers would have won if they played like they did the first 14 games of the season. The team didn’tproduce its best performance. James

By: KatJeter

KatJeter — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:43:40 +0000

It wasn’t the Yanks who treated Torre like crap, it was the Steinbrenners! I love my Yanks, but would have a hard time not cheering Joe Torre if we met him in the World Series.

By: A-Dog

A-Dog — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:43:25 +0000

err make that game 3, they all run together when your drinking your sorrows away.

By: A-Dog

A-Dog — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:38:15 +0000

We would have had 1 good pitcher, and probably missed the playoffs. We have the talent, they just didn’t step up when they needed to. We beat ourselves. The bad umpiring behind the plate in game 4 didn’t help us either.

By: tom sullivan

tom sullivan — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:26:55 +0000

dodger fan , ok by now the national league knows the phillies are the beast, how can the otherv temas catch up, utley, howard ,rollins, werth, victorino are in their peak years, i think the national league better get use to seeing the phils in the series, good job the phillies organization, the rest of the national leagus has to catch up now to the phils, beast of the national league

By: fast eddie

fast eddie — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 10:24:45 +0000

… I think Torre and Lasorda should go to the white house and have a beer with the Pres….

By: Dmo

Dmo — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:59:26 +0000

Pitching Pitching Pitching! That is what my Dodgers need! Like right now!

By: Old Gator

Old Gator — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:27:27 +0000

Now just imagine whaqt it’s like to root for a team whose owners make the McCourts look profligate. Marlins fans go through this every single year. We watch good ballplayers who are still bargains walk away to other teams on such a regular basis that if we want to see any live baseball at all, it’s pay exorbitant prices for diluted beer and triple-A baseball at JoeProDolShark stadium or start haunting the sandlots. The Feesh were one decent (not even stud) reliever away from topping Colorado for the wild card this year but he strolled cross-state to Tampa in March when Loria wouldn’t shell out a million – yes, that’s ONE million – for him. That, plus Loria’s been hobbled by a divorce himself – only it was always his ex who had the money. How these guys conned the county into building that new ballpark when our schools are deteriorating and our homeless problem is getting out of control is beyond me – they should’ve become the San Antonio Sidewinders two years ago. Ah well.
Meanwhile, the Phillies really made the Bums look bad. I know that even with a 3-1 lead it’s bad luck to predict a sure outcome but frankly, I think the Borg are going to have their hands full with Philadelphia – even after they’ve filled their bellies and arteries with those horrible sandwiches of theirs.