Billingsley Delivers in Game Number 2

Kemp and Billingsley have proved that Spring Training stats don’t mean diddly.

Chad Billingsley looked as dominant as we have ever seen him in his 2012 debut tonight.  Returning to his All Star form of a few years ago, Billingley had so much movement on his pitches tonight that it almost seemed unfair to Padre hitters.  His curve worked, darting from 12 to 6 often.  His fastball had natural sink to it that was filthy.  His most effective pitch may have been that slider he was tossing tonight that couldn’t be touched.  Striking out the side twice in the first three innings, it was a relief to see him silence his critics.

Photo by Christopher Hanewinckel, US Presswire

What was impressive tonight was Chad getting ahead of the count consistently.  He retired 16 Padres in a row from the 4th into the 9th inning.  Most encouraging was that he walked only one while striking out eleven. 

Yes, folks.  I know it was only one game.  But a promising one, that’s for sure.  Those skeptics that say the Dodgers don’t have decent starting pitching beyond Kershaw are going to be surprised when Billingsley emerges as one of the top no. 2 starters in the league.

I always felt that the Dodgers 1-2 punch was just as formidable as the Giants Lincecum and Cain tandem.  I dare say that this year those two just might out-perform that duo up north.  Chad’s biggest problem over the years has been psychological.  Getting past that 7th inning has always been a struggle for him.  He hits a wall there and can’t get past it.  His delivery adjustments this spring appear to have paid off on day two of the season.  With an 11 strikeout performance, Billingsley breezed past the seventh inning and into the ninth, coming up two outs short of  a 3-hit shutout.  It was an impressive 108 pitch performance.  This start by Bills was a much needed deep outing that allowed the taxed Dodger bullpen a much needed night off.

What remains to be seen is if Billingsley’s performance is that of a truly changed pitcher or if his success tonight was the combination of the advantage of facing a very poor offensive team and having a home plate ump with a liberal strike zone.  Maybe it was the beautiful full moon in the black San Diego sky this evening.  I will admit that Jerry Meals was very charitable with the strike calls tonight.  Regardless of Meals calls, Bills was throwing some filthy stuff.  Not many teams were going to be able to do much against that repertoire of pitches he was throwing.

On the offensive side, Andre Ethier was the offensive hero with two 2-run RBI hits (a double and triple), but it is important to note that Matt Kemp who struck out nearly 1/3 of his spring training at-bats, has yet to strike out in nine plate appearances thus far.  Going 4 for 9 in the first two games, and coming within an eye lash of hitting his second homer of the season tonight in his plate first appearance, Kemp exudes confidence out there.  He knows he’s a superstar and he’s playing like one.  There is an intangible in his swagger out there.  He thinks he’s going to get a hit in every at bat.  Just three days ago we were questioning his approach at the plate as he was swinging at slop low and away during the close out series of spring training against the Angels.

But tonight’s performance belongs to Chad.  If he continues to pitch at even 70% of what he gave tonight, this team is going a long way.

A Win on Opening Day, A Lot To Smile About

It wasn’t pretty, but it certainly was an entertaining affair.

Matt Kemp hits his first homer of the year on Opening Day

Matt Kemp showed that he could turn on the switch and leave Spring Training in the rear view mirror. Going  2 for 5 with a single and two run homer,  Matty’s strength is absolutely super human.  It’s not easy to go opposite field at Petco and that ball just kept carrying.  Kemp started 2012 like he left off last season, as the dominating presence on the team.

Dee Gordon flashed the leather and speed between three strikeouts.  His defense was stellar.  His speed meteoric.  He was fooled on several pitches.  I’ll take it.  Gordon was a difference maker tonight.

The Pawdres of Petco played like dogs and gifted the Blue Crew two runs on two errors in the fourth inning.  Their swift centerfielder Cameron Maybin simply dropped a flyball that he had to rundown.  He was obviously surprised at the ability of Gordon to give it a ride to the center field warning track.  By the time he retrieved it, Gordon was having thoughts of an inside the parker, only to be held at third by Tim Wallach’s stop sign.  Dee's speed influenced the Bartlett error two batters later.  The Padre shortstop had to rush on the play to have a prayer at getting Gordon out at the plate, and as a result, he muffed the grounder to his right.

Andre Ethier was called out at the plate in the first bad call of the year.  In fairness to home plate umpire Gary Darling, it was a bang-bang play and he had a tough angle.  Replays showed that Ethier’s hand touched the plate before Volquez applied the tag on him.    

Clayton’s fastball didn’t even reach 90, but he showed that heart of a lion and team leadership of a person that clearly understands he is the staff ace.  Insisting that he take the ball on opening day, even though he was suffering from a severe flu,  Kershaw tossed a gritty three innings before wisely being lifted for a pinch hitter by Mattingly.  It is best for Kershaw to rest up and get better.  We’ll see him hopefully at full strength at the home opener.

A.J. Ellis off to a good start

Props to A.J. Ellis for calling a great game and handling six pitchers.  He made a great hustling defensive play on a wild pitch strike three by throwing out bulky Yonder Alonso as he trudged down the line with a pinpoint accurate throw.  His 11 pitch ninth inning at bat that ended in a laced single to right field is the type of at bat that will clearly help the team this season.  It didn’t result in a run this time, but there will be times this year that it will.

Other positives to note:

Juan Rivera let his hot hitting in Spring Training continue on into the regular season with a 2 for 4 performance.

Josh Lindblom’s two innings of no-hit ball in the 4th and 5th resulted in him earning a well deserved win.

Matt Guerrier served up an inning ending double play grounder and Javy Guerra’s 1-2-3 ninth that shut down the Pads who didn’t threaten at all in the final frame.

Concerns:

The bullpen was burned up in day one, meaning that Billingsly needs to pitch deep in to tomorrow’s game.  Based on his spring performances in Arizona, that doesn’t seem likely.

Kenley Jansen’s velocity was down and Cameron Maybin tatooted his inside fastball for a 2 run homer.  That is two consecutive starts that he has given up a homer.  Hopefully Jansen straightens himself out.  It was nice to see him recover and finish the inning without any further damage.  I hope there is no injury concern here.  Jansen’s fastball was 5-6 MPH slower than at the end of last season.

A Magic Presence

New Dodger owner Magic Johnson shared a front row seat next to outgoing owner Frank McCourt.  His boisterous presence was noticeable and even mentioned by Matt Kemp on the post game show.  This could be a fun year!

Magic Johnson reacts to a fantastic inning ending web gem by shortstop Dee Gordon

Here We Go!

I love this time of year.

Photo by Jon Soo Hoo, Los Angeles Dodgers

Six months of staying up late most nights.

Sleep patterns change.  The poor east coasters adjust their lives in a major way or make an effort to not see the score until the DVR can be played in the morning.  Here on the west coast, my bed time changes from about 10pm each night to around midnight.  The six am alarm clock chime becomes harder and harder to shut off.

The perseverance of grinding through anxious and tense moments.

WIll everything fall in to place.  Can this team of ragtag vets and young kids trudge through 6 months and come out on top?Will Guerra ever pitch a 1-2-3 ninth? Dee Gordon, will he take walks and keep the ball on the ground?   Will Matt Kemp return to his MVP type level?  Will Ethier regain his form? Where is the real Chad Billingsley?  Is this starting staff strong enough?

The heartbreak.  

The lows and the highs of the 162 game marathon.  The frustration and anger after a tough loss and that thought  of “we’ll get ‘em tomorrow” after a tough defeat.  Man, losing streaks are killers.  The beauty of the game is that there is always tomorrow and the knowledge that redemption is just around the corner.

The second-guessing.  

Come on Donnie, pull the double switch. Why not Jansen before Guerra?  How long to we have to endure Uribe hacking away? Marc Ellis in the 2-hole?  Should Gwynn be in as a defensive replacement?    Isn’t it time for Jerry Sands to be called up?  

The Giant loathing.  

The scoreboard watching.  Rooting for that second team - whoever is playing the Giants.  Are you kidding me?  Krukow said what?  How can people stand listening to those two homers in the Gint broadcast booth?  That Coke bottle slide and Giant mitt in left field.  Beat L.A. chants...yawn.

The excitement.

Dee Gordon gets on base in the bottom of the ninth while being down by a run.  It's Maury all over again, "Go, Go" chants return to the ravine.  Mr. Walk Off Andre strides to the plate in extra innings.  Clayton tossing a no-no in the eighth-will he get his first one this year?  Gwynn with a web gem to save the game.  Matt with a late inning bomb to seal the victory.  Kenley throwing heat to retire the side.

Controveries.

Bring back the Kool-a-Koo.  Picante dogs vs. the original Dodger Dog.  Ban the wave.  The dreaded trade deadline combined with the concerns that Ned will trade away the farm for a Octavio Dotel. 

The fanfare and uniqueness of Dodger Stadium.

Dennis Gilbert sitting in the front row and celebrities spotted throughout.  A grilled Dodger dog, peanuts and a coke.  The ushers, the vendors, Roger tossing peanuts, spotting Tommy on the field level hob-nobbing with the fans.  Those dreaded beach balls and paper airplanes.  The pastel seat colors. Five tiers of seats and those awesome shots up to the top of the park from the pitchers mound.  The miriad of colors beyond the pavilion as Sunset silhouettes the backdrop of Dodger Stadium.

The other men in blue.

Oh no! Not Cowboy Joe again.  Can McClelland speed up his calls behind the plate, Geez!  Donnie’s gonna get run if he keeps giving Rapuano lip...Oh, he’s gone!

Cederstrom’s zone is the size of a postage stamp.  

The beauty of the game.

Throwback jersey nights and the history and nostalgia of the grand old game.  Is there a better place to be than in the Left Field Pavilion when Kemp hits a game winning bomb?  The greenest grass in the world and the whitest whites on the home unis.  The poetry and grace of a Dee Gordon defensive gem. Promotional nights, caps, towels, bobbleheads. The soothing organ tones while Honeycutt strolls to the mound to calm a struggling reliever.  The banter amongst fans over roster moves, pending trades and lineup changes.  After game fireworks.  Vin Scully’s tone and poetic prose that flows naturally from his voice night after night.

Photo by Gina Ferrazi, L.A. Times

Man, I love this game.

A Different Twist on the Beach Boys/Dodgers 50 Year Celebration

The Beach Boys and Dodgers are celebrating 50 year anniversaries this year.  Today the Dodgers announced promotions that celebrate both L.A. institutions,  Dodger Website LINK HERE.  in that spirit I provide the one of the most ridiculous posts in the history of this Blog.  A positive Beach Boys spin on the upcoming 2012 season.

Wouldn’t It Be Nice to see the Dodgers show a consistent winning form All Summer Long.  With a chemistry of Good Vibrations as they celebrate 50 years in Dodger Stadium, God Only Knows how the new ownership change will effect them the Summer Days and Summer Nights of the 2012 season  

As I contemplate the season In My Room in a state of Transcendental Meditation, I believe it is safe to say that the boys will be having Fun, Fun, Fun and Daddy Frankie won’t be trading the T-Bird away this time.  We know now that Frank’s profits In the Parkin Lot will be limited and out of his control as Magic and Co. move into the club level offices.

Bleacher Beach is no more, but there will continue to be Good Vibrations as the Dodgers Wipe Out the competition.  San Diego will have a winning percentage of about .409. Don’t Worry Baby about the Defending Division Champion D-Backs, cuz Momma Says they won’t repeat.  By June, around Graduation Day, the Rockies will have fallen out of contention. Giant fans will be lamenting the day that the Blue Crew Catch a Wave of momentum and run away with the pennant.

So Help Me Rhonda, Barbara Ann and all California Girls Dodger fans.  We’ll Dance, Dance, Dance our way to the Fall Classic.  By the time we celebrate a Blue Christmas this year, the Man With All the Toys will we be saying “Do You Remember” a season of heroic performances.  Right about then the front office will Get Around to signing top notch free agents that’ll set us up for years of Fun, Fun, Fun in the seasons to come.

Is it time to be concerned about Matt Kemp’s strikeouts?

photo by Jennifer Hilderbrand, US Presswire

I saw something yesterday.  It looked like a replay of 2010.  Matt Kemp was swinging at the low and outside junk and swinging and missing as he swung from the heals.  It was a concerning development.  Maybe I’m just over-reacting, but I have seen this more than once this spring.

62 ABs, 17 Hits, 2 HRs, 12 RBI, 2 BBs, .274 Avg., .288 OBP and 24 Strikeouts.

Yes, I know.  Small sample size, Spring Training, usually pitchers are ahead of the hitters.  All of those excuses are relieving to some extent.  The problem I have is that we haven’t seen any marked improvement from Matt as we get nearer and nearer to the season opener.

Here’s hoping that he switches on a light switch and goes 5 for 5 against the Padres on April 5th and everyone writes an “I told you so,” comment to me on this thread.  As a follower of Matt since his days at Jacksonville, I seem to forget that he’s not that kid with raw talent anymore.  He’s not the guy engaged in trash can wars with Jeff Kent.  Kemp is now a seasoned veteran with a dozen years of Major League experience and one of the highest paid players in the game.  He should know what he’s doing.

I’d just feel better if he laid off the low and away stuff or shortened up and hit that stuff to the right side of the field.

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Bullpen Blues

I know a lot of guys are impressed with Todd Coffey and his personality is a definitely a good fit for the team.  Unfortunately, his stuff isn’t impressing lately.  He has been downright awful the last two weeks.  Is it possible that the Dodgers are re-thinking his inclusion on the 25 man roster?  Is it important to send Eovaldi to the minors to get in is work?  Perhaps management needs to think about that situation with a little more in depth.

Speaking of awful, it's a good thing that Ronald Belisario is suspended for a few weeks.  He certainly needs some work in the minors for a while.  Belisario is simply not the pitcher he was three years ago when he regularly sawed off bats with that sinking fastball.  Hopefully someone can pinpoint a mechanical flaw that he may have.  The velocity is still there but the sink is gone.  These are the days we miss a guy like Brad Ausmus in the organization, (who is back with the Padres correcting delivery flaws of Padre pitchers).

MacDougal, Elbert and Jansen stunk up matters in Anaheim yesterday too.  Let’s hope that they are simply getting the bad outings out of the way before starting the season starts in two days.

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The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes include the following starting pitchers on their roster:

Chris Reed, Zach Lee, Garrett Gould, and Angel Sanchez

It’ll be a good year to see some California League baseball this year.  The Quakes pitching is stacked with top level pitching prospects.  If you get a chance, go out and see these kids, Lee, Gould and Reed are on the fast track to the big leagues and I believe they should be pitching at the Ravine in 2 or 3 years, (maybe sooner).

What's the Big Deal About Opening Day?

I have a confession to make.  I have never ever attended an opening day game.  Call me cheap or what have you, but I never pulled the trigger and actually attended an opening day game.  The one time I landed opening day tickets was to a San Francisco Giants home game.  I promptly sold them for a hefty profit.  It makes me wonder what kind of fan I truly am.

I came close to attending a home opener in 1976.  My brother, friends and I landed Left Field Pavilion seats for April 12, 1976, against the Padres.  It turned out to be the one and only time I was absolutely drenched at Dodger Stadium.  The second time a game at Dodger Stadium was rained out.  We waited for three hours in the rain and finally left just before they called the game.  It was to be a nationally televised and I distinctly remember watching Tommy John get interviewed under an umbrella in front of the center field camera near the warning track.  I think it was Tony Kubek doing the interview, but I could be wrong.

Tommy John

We stood there in the unsheltered Pavilion arguing amongst ourselves whether to stay or go.  The guard at the exit had told us that if the game was played after we left, we’d not be reimbursed for our tickets.  Francis Friedman told me to wait it out, “We never get rained out, just one time in 14 years,” she said.  Half of our group wanted to stay and half wanted to go.  I just remember that my clothes were soaking wet and I was miserable.  We left and they called the game a few minutes later.

I guess if I was living in L.A., I would have definitely attended a home opener by now.  The opportunity just hasn’t occurred.  I mean, if you think about it, it’s just one of 162.  It is 0.061 % of the season.  It is so insignificant that I can’t really remember many meaningful opening day games.  Well, maybe a few come to mind.

                                                           AP Photo, E.J. Flynn

I remember when Kevin Brown faced Randy Johnson on opening day in 1999 and both of them got schalacked and Raul Mondesi had a game winning hit in extra innings.  I remember in 1977 how the excitement of opening day fanfare and pageantry had its air deflated like a popped balloon when Don Sutton gave up a homer to the Giant leadoff hitter, Gary Thomasson on the very first pitch.  As memorable as that was, before I looked it up I thought it was 1978 and that Ed Goodsen was the hitter.

My point is, opening day is really a bunch of hoopla with little significance.  Yes, I know that it is the birth of a new season.  Sometimes it has more of a “wow” factor because a new player acquired in the off-season makes their Dodger debut.  Orlando Hudson made a splash in his one Dodger season on opening day with a cycle.  So what’s so significant about the first cycle in 38 years?  

Orlando Hudson hits for the cycle on opening day, 2008.  (Photo by Jon Soo Hoo/Los Angeles Dodgers)

I’m not backing down from my stance.  Game number 1 is no different than game number 37, or 52, or 112.

There is the periodic new player that cracks the starting lineup that makes opening day a memorable one...like 1981, when Fernando was an emergency starter for the injured Jerry Reuss.  We know the rest, he reeled off eight consecutive wins and five shutouts at the beginning of the season.

Photo by Rob Brown, L.A. Herald Examiner

Yes, opening day has very little significance.  Unless of course a star player emerges with an amazing performance (like Fernando) and a mania develops that he and the fans ride all the way to a World Championship.

Phooey, opening day?  Big deal...

I gotta get me some tickets.

Is it Time to Retire No. 34?

I know that the Dodgers have a policy to retire only the numbers of Hall of Famers.  But when Jim Gilliam passed away in 1978, they broke tradition and retired his number 19.  That opens the door enough for me.  The Dodgers need to retire Fernando Valenzuela’s number 34.

What Fernando Valenzuela accomplished between 1981 and 1987 ranks among the best seven year stretch of any Dodger pitcher ever.  Always the victim of poor run support, Valenzuela should have been a twenty game winner five times during that stretch.   A true competitor and finisher of the games he pitched, his determination and drive combined with having a manager that wasn’t shy in allowing him to pitch beyond thresholds of normalcy probably cost him his Hall of Fame career.  

Had Valenzuela been coddled and treated with care as pitchers are today, he likely would have been a premier pitcher for longer than that a seven year stretch.  Valenzuela averaged 140 pitches per start in 1985.  An unheard of amount of pitches by today’s standards.  To make matters worse, he threw that screwball that required that additional twisting torque that had to be a major contributor to his arm problems in later years.

Fernando Valenzuela and Ron Cey celebrate following his game 3 World Series victory in 1981

In game three of the ‘81 World Series, an absolute must win game after being down 2-0,  Fernando threw over 200 pitches.  Imagine that, 200 pitches in the modern era.  That is unreal.  (NOTE:  It has since been noted that  Fernando's pitch count was at 149). That is guts and courage.  That is one of the clutchiest pitching performances ever witnessed in the Fall Classic because Valenzuela simply didn’t have 40% of his normal stuff that day.  His pitches weren’t working, but he gritted out a win on determination and savvy, the things that normally are found in a veteran of many seasons.  Not a rookie pitching in his first (and sadly, his only) World Series game.

When Valenzuela’s turn came up in the rotation, it was an event and a day the Dodgers expected to win.  It was a day when visiting ball parks filled to capacity, even in cities that didn’t draw well.  Not only was Fernando a drawing card, but he was as exciting as any player ever to watch.  He unified a fan base and glorified a community with pride.  To this day, his popularity is still evident with sales of his jersey and memorabilia.

In 1990, in what many consider his defining moment, Fernando tossed that no-hitter at home against St. Louis.  In a season, 4 years beyond his prime, Fernando dug deep once more and came up with one more gem of a game.  It was fitting that he did it, since he certainly should have accomplished the feat early in his career.

I know that the Dodgers have honored Fernando with several bobbleheads and promotions but wouldn’t the ultimate honor would be a retirement of his jersey.  Fernando doesn’t have the numbers to make the Hall of Fame.  His induction to Cooperstown will never happen.  Voted in the L.A. Times poll last year as the 9th greatest sports figure in Los Angeles history, Fernando is the only non-Hall of Famer on the list.  To that I say, “Let’s honor him at home.”  Let’s add number 34 to the left field pavilion facade and never allow another player to wear his number.  “El Toro” was a great Dodger during a special era.  He should have his jersey retired.