Category Archives: Dodgers History

May 08

Game 32, 2017

Posted on by

Pirates at Dodgers, 7:10 PM PT, TV: SPNLA, ROOTPIT

It’ll be righty Trevor Williams (1-1, 5.40 ERA) for the Bucs against Brandon McCarthy (3-0, 3.10 ERA) or Alex Wood (2-0, 3.28 ERA). Williams has been in the bullpen and hasn’t started since Spring Training, so he may be on an 80-pitch limit. Yesterday would have been McCarthy’s day to start. That had been pushed back a day due to a mysterious weight-room injury to his non-throwing shoulder but the rainout denied him that. Wood’s last game was April 26, when he made his third start.

Is Cody Bellinger the latest version of Eric Karros, who got a chance in 1992 and made the most of it?

Today in Dodgers history:

  • 1941 An Army-Navy Relief game between New York’s two National League teams raises over $60,000. Dolph Camilli’s homer is the difference in the Ebbets Field exhibition as the Dodgers edge the Giants, 7-6.

Lineup when available.

Wood’s doing the pitching and NL Player of the Week Cody Bellinger is playing 1B.

May 07

Game 32, 2017 (PPd.)

Posted on by

Dodgers at Padres, 1:40 PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FSSD, KTLA

It’s not clear (ha!) whether the weather will allow this game to be played, but if it is it will be RHP Brandon McCarthy (3-0, 3.10 ERA) for the Dodgers and Trevor Cahill (2-2, 3.60 ERA) for the Padres. This may portend well for the Dodgers:

McCarthy’s greatest success has come against the Padres. He is 8-1 with a 3.79 ERA in his career against San Diego, and he beat them, 10-2, on April 6 in Los Angeles.

Two years ago Cahill was in the Dodgers’ minor league system rehabilitating his career; now he’s pitching against them in the bigs. He lost in the opening series of the season to them. He’s been striking out a lot more hitters than usual this year: 30 percent of them instead of the 17 percent he’s averaged over his career. It may be his curveball: opponents are 2-34 against that pitch this season.

Regarding the weather, there’s this:

There have been only two rainouts in Petco Park history, the most recent coming on July 19, 2015, between the Padres and the Rockies. The other took place in 2006, two years after the park opened.

Today in Dodger history:

  • 1959 At the Los Angeles Coliseum, the Yankees defeat the Dodgers, 6-2, in an exhibition game played to benefit Roy Campanella, who was paralyzed in an auto accident prior to the team moving to the West Coast in 1958. The game, which draws the largest crowd ever for a baseball game, 93,103 fans with another estimated 15,000 turned away from the sellout, begins with an emotional ceremony in which Pee Wee Reese pushes the wheelchair-bound catcher into the darkened stadium that is totally illuminated by fans holding candles or matches.
  • 1960 The Sherry boys become the tenth pair of siblings to appear as battery mates in a major league game when Norm replaces John Roseboro behind the plate in the top of the eighth to catch Larry, who is starting his first inning in relief. The backstop will hit a two-out home run in the bottom of the 11th inning, assuring his brother of a victory in the Dodgers’ 3-2 walk-off win over Philadelphia.
  • 1969 Willie Davis, furious with the Wrigley Field Bleacher Bums because of their continual verbal abuse of him, tells his Dodgers teammates that he wants to hit a home run in the middle of the group, which he does in the sixth inning to tie the score. The LA center fielder exacts a bit more more revenge on the heckling horde when his 12th-inning two-run round-tripper proves to be the difference in the 4-2 defeat of the Cubs.
  • 1970 At Shea Stadium, Wes Parker hits a triple off Jim McAndrew to beat the Mets in the tenth inning, 7-4. The three-bagger completes the cycle for the Dodger first baseman.
  • 2011 After a first-inning walk in the Dodgers’ 4-2 loss to the Mets, Andre Ethier goes 0-for-4, ending his 30-game hitting streak. The L.A. outfielder falls one game short of the franchise record set in 1969 by Willie Davis, who enjoyed a 31-game hitting streak that season.

Lineup when available.

May 06

Game 31, 2017

Posted on by

Dodgers at Padres, 5:40 PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FSSD

Lefty Clayton Kershaw (4-2, 2.61 ERA) twirls for the Dodgers and lefty Clayton Richard (2-3, 4.29 ERA) goes for the Friars. Kershaw beat the Padres on April 3, giving up only a solo HR to Ryan Schimpf over seven innings. Richard shut the Dodgers out for eight innings on April 4.

Both pitchers have done well against the opposing team: Kershaw is 15-6 lifetime against San Diego with a 2.03 ERA in 30 starts; Richard is 7-4 with a 1.93 ERA against the Dodgers in 20 games.

On this day in Dodgers history:

  • 1937 Dodgers and Giants fans attending afternoon ball games at both the Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field are thrilled to have the opportunity to catch a glimpse of the Hindenburg when the passenger airship appears over New York, nearing the end of its maiden voyage of the season from Germany. A few hours later, the majestic German zeppelin will explode on a landing strip in Lakehurst, N.J., killing 36 of its passengers.
  • 1947 In a small office high up behind home plate at Ebbets Field, National League president Ford Frick meets with seven Cardinal players individually, revealing he is aware of their secret plan to strike as a protest to Jackie Robinson playing for the Dodgers.
  • 1978 After going deep as a pinch hitter on May 2, Lee Lacy becomes the first major leaguer to pinch-hit home runs in consecutive at-bats. The Dodgers’ super sub will make it three in a row on May 17.
  • 2009 With a 10-3 victory over Washington, the Dodgers break the major league mark for consecutive victories at home to open a season with their 13th straight win in L.A. The previous record of 12 was established in 1911 by the Tigers.

More Dodgers history of a sort: Here’s Bill Shaikin’s column about Vin Scully’s induction into the Dodgers’ Ring of Honor.

Lineup when available.

May 05

Game 30, 2017

Posted on by

Dodgers at Padres, 7:10 PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FSSD

RHP Kenta Maeda (2-2, 6.58 ERA) goes for the Dodgers. He lost to the Padres on April 4, but he’s since found a cut fastball and its use led to a very good outing against the Phillies last week: seven innings, five hits, two runs and a win. He’ll face RHP Jhoulys Chacin (3-3, 5.82 ERA), who hasn’t allowed a run in 14 2/3 innings at home this year.

The Dodgers are expected to activate Joc Pederson from the 10-day DL, which means someone has to be sent down to OKC to make room. Might be Bellinger, might be one of the relief pitchers. We’ll probably know by early afternoon.

On this day in Dodgers history:

  • 1955 In his first major league start, Dodger rookie starter Tommy Lasorda ties a record, throwing three wild pitches in the first inning of the team’s 4-3 victory over St. Louis at Ebbets Field.
  • 1962 Bo Belinsky throws the first no-hitter in Angels history and the first one ever tossed at Dodger Stadium, beating the Orioles, 2-0. The 25 year-old southpaw is only the tenth rookie to throw a no-hitter.
  • 2009 The Dodgers tie the major league record of 12 consecutive wins at home to start the season with their 3-1 victory over Arizona. L.A.’s 12-0 start at home equals the mark set by the Tigers in 1911.

Kershaw, McCarthy and Bill Shaikin try their hands at financial analysis of the Dodgers’ methods of acquiring starting pitching.

Lineup when available.

Note Bellinger is at 1B. Here’s why:

Apr 15

Game 12, 2017

Posted on by

Wait a minute. After 11 games of the season Andrew Toles and Yasiel Puig lead the Dodgers in home runs with three each?

Diamondbacks at Dodgers, 6:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, FS-A, MLBN (out-of-market only)

Lefty Patrick Corbin (1-1, 1.80 ERA) goes for the D-Backs and righty Kenta Maeda (1-1, 6.30 ERA) goes for the Dodgers. In Corbin’s last appearance he went six scoreless innings and gave up just four hits against the Indians. Maeda hasn’t gotten past the fifth inning in either of his outings so far this season but got the win last time out despite giving up four runs.

Today’s big event won’t be the ball game, really. It will be the unveiling of a statue of Jackie Robinson at the Left Field Reserve Plaza entrance, where nearly 20% of all fans enter the stadium.

Jackie’s widow, Rachel, and children, Sharon and David, will attend the ceremony. Hall of Famer Frank Robinson will also be there, along with Dodgers icons Tommy Lasorda, Sandy Koufax, Vin Scully and Jaime Jarrin.

Lineup when available.

May 24

Game 47, 2016

Posted on by

Before we get to the game details, have a look at a new book featuring a whole bunch of Dodgers from the 1960s teams: “The Last Innocents: The Collision of the Turbulent Sixties and the Los Angeles Dodgers.”

Leahy places these men’s lives within the political and social maelstrom that was the era when the conformity of the 1950s gave way to demands for equality and rights. Increasingly frustrated over a lack of real bargaining power and an iron-fisted management who occasionally meddled in their personal affairs, many players shared an uneasy relationship with the team’s front office.

Since that was the period in which I became a fan, I’m looking forward to reading this.

Now, on to today’s game.

Reds at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, CIN TV

The Dodgers sent Stripling down to AAA after his three-inning relief stint on Sunday in order to bring another starter back up, and it’ll be Mike Bolsinger, (0-1, 6.23 ERA). He’ll pitch against Daniel Wright, who’s making his MLB debut after a nine-inning complete game win at AAA Louisville May 16.

This is hard to believe, considering how hard-fought those Dodgers-Reds games were in the 1970s and 1980s, but over the last decade the Dodgers have a 45-23 record against the Reds, their best winning percentage against any team in the National League.

Lineup when available.

May 10

Game 33, 2016

Posted on by

Link to Scully interview accompanying above

Mets at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, MLBN (out-of-market)

The Mets’ Jacob deGrom (3-1, 1.99 ERA) of the Flowing Locks starts against the Dodgers’ Alex Wood (1-3, 5.18 ERA) of the Moussed Pompadour. The right-handed deGrom only has 16 strikeouts in his four starts, which seems low. Lefty Wood would undoubtedly trade his 28 Ks for a couple of wins; he hasn’t had one in his last five starts.

Lineup when available.

Apr 15

Game 11, 2016

Posted on by

Giants at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA, NBC Bay Area, MLBN Free Game (out of area only)

Kersh v. MadBum for the ninth time. The Dodgers’ lefty is 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA this season, and Bumgarner is 1-0 with a 3.27 ERA. ‘Nuff said.

Giants catcher Buster Posey has stepped into the batter’s box against Kershaw more times than any player in the Major Leagues, but he has struggled with a .228/.256/.329 line in 75 plate appearances. That’s his worst OPS against any pitcher with a minimum of 25 plate appearances.

The Dodgers’ Adrian Gonzalez has fared even worse against Bumgarner. The first baseman’s .151/.191/.200 in 47 plate appearances adds up to his worst OPS against any of the 49 pitchers he’s faced 25 times or more in his career.

It’s Jackie Robinson Day around the majors, so every player will be wearing uniform number 42. Jackie’s wife Rachel and daughter Sharon will be at Dodger Stadium for the game, and I hope you saw the Ken Burns documentary about Jackie earlier this week on PBS. As far as I’m concerned, Rachel was the star. There’s one oddity about this celebration, though; there are fewer African-American players in baseball now than there were 10 or 15 years ago, and this season there are only fourteen black pitchers in all of baseball. Where are the Bob Gibsons and Dave Stewarts and Vida Blues and Doc Goodens and Fergie Jenkins and Mudcat Grants? Gone to the NBA?

Lineup:

Even this early in the season it’s becoming very apparent that Dave Roberts is not averse to platooning or playing the matchup game. There are very few if any lefties in his lineup against the left-handed Bumgarner.

Apr 18

Game 11, 2015

Posted on by

Rockies at Dodgers, 6:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

Fun facts: Zack Greinke is 19-1 against the NL West since joining the Dodgers. He starts today against the Rockies’ Jordan Lyles. Lyles hopes Puig’s hamstring is still tight: he’s 3-5 career against Lyles with a home run and three RBI.

Another fun fact: A-Gon has been on base at least twice in each of the Dodgers’ first ten games. That ties him with Jackie Robinson for the second-longest streak of its kind in franchise history. Zack Wheat has the record at 13 games way back in 1923.

Lyles is 1-0 in his two starts this season, going 12 innings while giving up 4 walks and striking out 5. He’s got an ERA of 2.25. Greinke is also 1-0 in his two starts, going 13 innings while walking one and striking out 11. His ERA is a microscopic 0.69.

Here’s André’s throw from right field last night which got Rosario at the plate:

Lineup when available.

Puig’s back in right field. Ethier shifts to left.