65 thoughts on “Game 94, 2024

  1. Dodgers (55-38)
    Phillies (60-32)

    Banda
    LHP|#43
    1 – 1, 2.05 ERA
    vs
    SP Aaron Nola R
    10-4, 3.48 ERA

    Lineup:
    DH S. Ohtani L
    C Will Smith R
    1B F. Freeman L
    LF T. Hernandez R
    RF Andy Pages R
    SS Miguel Rojas R
    CF James Outman L
    3B Chris Taylor R
    2B Gavin Lux L

      • Color me unworried about the regular season. Since adoption of the mild card, post-season is a farce, but can occasionally be fun.

    • All the injuries have caught up with us. We’ve just been treading water for some time. Fortunately, so has the rest of the NL West. But right now we are an under equipped mediocre or worse team and one that is not enjoyable to watch.

    • I choose the regular season over the devalued post-season, so this is hard to accept. Help is on the way, though, with Mookie and others.

  2. Solo bombs so far, but these little fielding glitches could get us is real trouble.

  3. Fillies counter by having the righty hit the dinger, thwarting Doc opening with southpaw.

  4. Gnats lose to last-place Scrub Jays again, solidify hold on sole possession of fourth place.

  5. Today would have been the 93rd birthday of former Dodger Dick Gray (1958-1959), who hit the first home run in L.A. Dodger history. It came in the second game of the 1958 season at Seals Stadium in San Francisco. He died at the age of 81.

    Here is the first paragraph about him from a long and interesting article on the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) site:

    "The highlights of Dick Gray’s big-league baseball career all came in its first week – the first home run in Los Angeles Dodgers’ history and, two days later, the first major league home run hit in Los Angeles. But the highlights faded, the momentum could not be maintained and Gray’s career ended shortly." [1960 with the Cardinals].

  6. On the Schadenfreude side yesterday, Gnats All-Star "ace" got bombed by last-place Scrub Jays.

  7. Today in Dodgers History
    July 11th

    1953 At Ebbets Field, Giant rookie Al Worthington throws a four-hitter, blanking the Dodgers, 6-0, marking the only game this season Brooklyn does not score a run and ends Brooklyn's record NL streak of homering in 24 consecutive games. The 24-year-old right-hander's whitewashing makes the National League freshman the first to throw successive shutouts at the start of a career, a feat that Karl Spooner will also match next season.

    1958 The Los Angeles city council declares today 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game Day' to celebrate the iconic baseball song's fiftieth anniversary. In a pregame ceremony at the LA Memorial Coliseum, the Dodgers honor lyricist Jack Norworth, presenting him with a lifetime pass to any American or National League game.

    1961 On a windy day at Candlestick Park, the NL beats the American League, 5-4, in the first two All-Star Games. The contest features a record seven errors and the memorable sight of a 165-pound pitcher Stu Miller balking after being blown off the mound by a gust of wind, an exaggerated fact perpetrated over the years, according to the right-hander.

    1978 Steve Garvey becomes the first two-time MVP in All-Star history. The Dodger first baseman's game-tying, two-run single, and a triple help the National League beat the AL, 7-3, in the Jack Murphy Stadium contest.

    1980 Rangers General Manager Eddie Robinson considers the deal a bargain when he obtains an underachieving Charlie Hough from the Dodgers at the waiver wire price of $20,000. The 32-year-old knuckleballer will not disappoint, spending 11 seasons with Texas, posting a 139-123 record and an ERA of 3.68.

    1998 Padre reliever Trevor Hoffman, brother of Dodger manager Glenn Hoffman, saves the Padres' 4-1 victory at Chavez Ravine. The reliever's appearance marks the first time a player has faced his sibling as the opposing team's skipper in major league history.

    2000 At Turner Field, the AL beats the National League, 6-3, in the 71st All-Star contest, dubbed the All-Scar game due to the many stars absent from both lineups because of injuries. Yankees' shortstop Derek Jeter and Braves' third baseman Chipper Jones provide the offensive punch, each going 3-for-3.

    2006 Before starting the fifth inning of the All-Star Game in Pittsburgh's PNC Park, Vera Clemente is escorted onto the field by 1960 World Series hero Bill Mazeroski to accept the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award on behalf of her late husband. With the scoreboard showing Roberto's replays, tears flowing from AL skipper Ozzie Guillen, and the heartfelt ovation from the crowd, the ceremony honoring the Pirates' Hall of Famer becomes a truly memorable moment in the history of the Midsummer Classic.