Lowest of the Low

When the Giants scored 4 in the first, we all knew the game was over after they had talied 2 runs earlier in that half frame.  The Dodger offense is punchless, inept and not of major league caliber.  Boy am I going to hear it tomorrow at work.  I can hardly wait to come in.

A.J. Ellis and Nathan Eovaldi discuss things during the Giant 4-run first inning (Getty Images)

We have hit the lowest of the low.  Had you told me in March that the Dodgers would have a 2 game lead on the division on June 25th, I probably would have been doing cart wheels.  But none of us can possibly believe that this is going to continue.  I don’t think there has ever been a season anywhere similar to this one.  This team is in first place, barely, but in first place.  It sure doesn't feel like it.   I can easily argue that the entire starting lineup needs to be turned upside down.   Blow the whole thing up.  This group isn't working.

 James Loney?  Gotta go, can’t hit (unless it’s into a DP), fails repeatedly in the clutch.  Juan  Uribe?  Useless, punchless, lost at the plate. Adam Kennedy? A waste of roster space, not only is he not hitting, he’s not catching the ball either. Chad Billingsley? A complete mental case that is as inconsistent as any starting pitcher that I can remember.  Nathan  Eovaldi? A hard luck pitcher that doesn’t have a chance.   Learning to pitch in the big leagues on the big stage without any help.  Tony Gwynn, Juan Rivera, Jerry Hairston?  All should be part-time player reserves that are being forced to play day in and day out.  Andre Either? A good offensive player without any protection in the lineup.  Dee Gordon?  Trying to learn to play major league ball at the major league level.  Matt Kemp, Mark Ellis, Matt Guerrier, Javy Guerra, Blake Hawksworth, Justin Sellers?  All D.L. fodder.

The roster could easily be blown up and replaced with AAA players and I don’t see them doing any worse than they are right now.  Can we honestly say that Loney will do better than Sands or Van Slyke at first base?  Or that DeJesus won't perform better than Uribe?  Jon Ely is having a great year in Albuquerque, do you think, unlike Billingsley, that he could have held that  5-0 lead last Friday?

This team is bad.  They’ve been bad for a while but were held together by smoke, mirrors, chewing gum and spit.  Don Mattingly and his coaching staff did a heck of a job keeping this unit winning, but he's no miracle worker.  Also, the Giants weren't really playing very good ball either, so the lead held longer than expected.  Ned Colletti has given his manager nothing to work with.  Now I fear he'll deplete what little is left in the farm system for a Carlos Lee (who is 36 and only has 4 homers in that bandbox in Houston).

  

Pablo Sandoval in Monday nights action (Getty Photo)

Barry Zito throwing a 3 hit shutout through 7 innings is an embarrassment.  Having 8 hits over three games in Oakland against a weak A's squad is shameful.  Being no-hit by the lowly Mariners is pathetic.  For heaven's sake, the Padres are playing better than the Dodgers at this point of the season.

The Dodgers are slump busters.  You want to get out of a funk, play the Dodgers.  if you’re 2-8 with a 6.02 ERA, (like Lincecum), a dose of Dodger baseball is all you need to get on the right track.

And if I haven't depressed you enough, the Diamondbacks are 5 games out of first place now.    It was an ugly night in Frisco...a very ugly night.