Apr 16

Game 15, 2014

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Dodgers at Giants, 7:15PM PST on SPNLA and NBC Bay Area.

Maholm (0 -1 , 8.10 ERA) v. Vogelsong (0 – 0, 8.00 ERA). Vogelsong has allowed eight earned runs on 14 hits and three walks in nine innings pitched so far this season. Maholm allowed five runs on seven hits in 4 1/3 innings in his only start so far.

If you remember yesterday’s starters, each had an ERA above 9.00. Tonight we have starters who each have an ERA below that, all the way down to 8.00. Progress!

Update: Clayton Kershaw’s frustrated by not being able to pitch and contribute $100 for each opposing batter he strikes out, he says, so he’s transferring his donation to his fellow pitchers’ strikeouts. If my addition is correct, that’s 139 strikeouts by the entire staff for $13,900.

Lineup when available.

Apr 15

Game 14, 2014

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Dodgers at Giants, 7:15 PST, TV: SPNLA.

Josh Beckett takes the mound for the Dodgers. His previous start, his first since May of last year, was against the Tigers on April 9th. He went four innings, threw 85 pitches, gave up five hits and five runs (four earned), and struck out five while walking only one. Facing him will be Tim Lincecum, who’s 0 – 1 with a 9.90 ERA. In his two starts so far, Lincecum has given up 11 earned runs on 15 hits and a walk in 10 innings. However, he’s 9 – 6 in his career against the Dodgers with an ERA of 2.94.

Lineup when it appears.

Apr 13

Game 13, 2014

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Dodgers at Diamondbacks, 1:10 PM PST, TV: SPNLA.

Haren v. Cahill. On paper this shouldn’t be a contest. Haren is 1-0 with a 0.75 ERA in 12 innings over two starts. Cahill is 0-3 with a 7.90 ERA in 22 1/3 innings over three starts. “But that’s why they play the games,” says the aphorism.

Lineup:

I think this is the first time Ethier has started in left field this season.

Apr 12

Game 12, 2014

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Dodgers at Diamondbacks, 5:10 PM PST, TV: SPNLA and MLBTV (free game today). The D-Backs send out Wade Miley, who’s 2-1 with a 4.05 ERA, and the Dodgers counter with Zack Greinke, who’s 2-0 with a 3.27 ERA.

Miley faced the Dodgers in the opening game in Sydney when he gave up three runs in five innings. With him pitching, Mattingly sits Ethier and Crawford and generally loads up the lineup with right-handers.

Lineup:

Apr 11

Game 11, 2014

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Dodgers at Diamondbacks, 6:40 PM PST, Hyun-Jin Ryu v. Brandon McCarthy, TV: SPNLA.

Ryu is 1 – 1 with a 3.86 ERA. He only lasted two innings in his last appearance against the Giants, giving up six runs in the process. McCarthy is 0 – 1 with a 7.82 ERA. He did well in his first outing through six innings and faded, and in his second start he gave up six runs in six innings.

In case you missed it, Magic Johnson caught (or otherwise came up with) a foul ball off Ethier’s bat Wednesday night and gave it to a fellow fan.

Lineups when they appear.

Apr 09

Game Ten, 2014

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Tigers at Dodgers. Anibal Sanchez makes his second start of the season; he gave up two runs over four innings in the first one and then the rains came and he was done. The Dodgers haven’t formally announced it to MLB.com, but their starter is supposed to be Josh Beckett, who’ll make his first start of the season.

No lineups yet, either.

The game time is known, though! It’s 7:10 PST, 4:10 HST, 10:10 EST, and who knows when for John_from_Aus. Televised on SPNLA.

In news of disgruntled players and front office personnel, the Giants have ended contract talks with Pablo Sandoval. It’s reported he wants a five-year deal for more than the $8.25M he’s getting paid this season. So, is the Kung Fu Panda worth $45 or $50 million bucks? He’s currently hitting .161 with 1 HR and 4 RBI. He’s 27 and will hit free agency after the 2014 season. Uribear is under contract through 2015.

Apr 07

A.J. Ellis to have surgery

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They’ve played 7 games and already Ellis is out with a meniscus tear and his batterymate Kershaw is out for a month.

It was not said how Ellis, who had four singles and four walks in 28 plate appearances to start the 2014 season, suffered the injury. Ellis was out in a bang-bang play at the plate Saturday but remained in the game, though he did not play Sunday.

Fedex will probably be recalled from AAA Albuquerque to replace him.

Old friend Nathan Eovaldi is talked up as a strong addition to your fantasy baseball team.

Apr 06

Game Eight, 2014

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Giants at Dodgers, 5:00PM PST, ESPN2.

Zack Greinke goes for the Dodgers and Matt Cain goes for the Giants. Oddly, they have identical ERAs of 3.60 for the young season. Greinke has a win and Cain has no record.

Lineup:

Hmm. No Puig. From a tweet an hour after the lineup was posted: “Don Mattingly: Yasiel Puig is on his way to get an MRI. We don’t expect it to be anything major. X-rays were negative.”

Apr 05

Ease up on Puig

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So says Dan Le Batard of ESPN the Magazine.

Puig is still young, man, and he’s going to do young-man things, no matter our sensibilities. According to ESPN The Magazine’s Tim Keown — and there have been precious few illuminating profiles written about this sports star, the American media machine still somehow having trouble climbing over the language barrier even as our country browns like a pie crust — Puig’s favorite entertainment viewing is “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.” There are very mature adults, celebrities in that part of the world, who can’t handle Hollywood’s vices and excess, and they are not 23, and they are not new to this culture, and they aren’t being asked to carry a baseball team with Magic Johnson as the owner and an $8 billion television contract, and they are not watching “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.”

It’s a good column. Don’t read the comments unless you want to read a whole bunch of privileged wannabes moralizing about the kid who oughtta know better. Le Batard’s point is simple: “how could he know better? He’s been here less than a year; he grew up on an island which has food shortages, dilapidated cars, and few people who could explain America to him. Give him a break.”