Category Archives: Game Threads

For discussion of today’s game

May 03

Game 31, 2014

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Dodgers at Marlins, 4:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

Paul Maholm (1-2, 4.74 ERA) goes for the Dodgers against the Marlins’ Jacob Turner (0-0, 7.50 ERA). Maholm pitched well last time out against the Rockies and is 6-6 with a 4.02 ERA against the Marlins in his career. This is Turner’s second start in MLB.

In other news, A.J. Ellis can’t run without pain yet, so his return is still a few weeks away. That partly explains why the Dodgers sent FedEx down to Albuquerque and brought Olivo up. They could have carried Fedorowicz and his .108 BA for another week, but since Ellis is going to be out longer than that they decided to bring up Olivo, who’d been tearing the cover off the ball with the Isotopes (OBP .438, SLG .661, OPS 1.099).

We won’t see old friend Rafael Furcal this trip. He’s back on rehab assignment with Double-A Jacksonville, and he was in the lineup there on Friday night. The hamstring which put him on the DL at the start of the season is fine, but he strained a groin muscle last weekend while rehabbing.

Lineup when available.

Crawford is in a 4-45 slump since Tax Day, which may explain why he’s not in left field against the right-handed Turner.

May 02

Game 30, 2014

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Dodgers at Marlins, 4:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

Josh Beckett is looking for his first decision of the season against the team which drafted him in 1999. He’s 0-0 with a 2.45 ERA this year over 22 innings. He’ll face Tom Koehler, a right-hander who’s in his first full season in the majors. He’s 2-2 with a 2.97 ERA over 30.1 innings.

Each team swept its last series. The Marlins are 14-14 after beating the Braves three straight and the Dodgers are 17-12 after defeating the Twins three times in less than 36 hours.

No one can doubt that Yasiel Puig likes being on a team. Here are three episodes from the dugout yesterday.

Lineup when available.


Update: This is horrible news:

May 01

Games 28 & 29, 2014

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Dodgers at Twins, 10:10AM PT, TV: SPNLA

Dan Haren, 3-0, 2.03 ERA v. Mike Pelfrey 0-2, 7.32 ERA.

Game Two

Dodgers at Twins, 4:10PT, TV: SPNLA

The Dodgers brought up a pitcher named Red Patterson from the Isotopes to start Game Two. Patterson was added to the 40-man roster Thursday, with outfielder Nick Buss designated for assignment. He was 1-1 with a 4.15 ERA with Albuquerque.

The Twins will pitch Kris Johnson, a lefty they called up from AAA Rochester. He was 2-2 with a 2.86 ERA for the Red Wings in four starts.

The lineup hasn’t yet been announced.

Apr 30

Game 27, 2014

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Rain and snow cause trouble for the Dodgers’ schedule.

Tuesday’s game has been rescheduled as part of a day-night doubleheader Thursday, with the second game starting at 6:10 p.m. CT, ahead of an overnight flight to Miami, where the Dodgers play a Friday evening game against the Marlins.

Worse, there is a 70 percent chance of precipitation (snow and rain) for both Wednesday and Thursday.

Dodgers at Twins, 5:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA Update: The game is free on MLB.tv

Thanks to yesterday’s rain/snowout, Zack Greinke gets an extra day off before pitching this game. He’s 4-8 with a 4.73 ERA in 22 outings against the Twins, including 18 starts. On the other hand, this season he’s 4-0 with a 2.45 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 29 1/3 innings and in the midst of a streak of 16 starts of at least five innings without allowing more than two runs.

Starting for the Twins is Kyle Gibson, who’s 3-1 with a 3.63 ERA this season. This is only his second season in the bigs, and last year he only threw 51-plus innings, going 2-4 with a 6.53 ERA. He’s still almost a rookie.

Hanley Ramirez says his thumb’s fine and he expects to play. The weather may not cooperate, though, as rain is forecast for Wednesday.

Lineup when (or if) available.

Apr 29

No game today

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For your rainout viewing pleasure, here’s a sketch Jimmy Fallon did with Robinson Cano on Cano’s first return to Yankee Stadium after departing for the Mariners as a free agent last offseason.

Apr 27

Game 26, 2014

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Rockies at Dodgers, 1:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

It’s a battle of lefties this afternoon. Hyun-Jin Ryu (3-1, 2.12 ERA) is on the bump (I keep hearing that term for the mound from our local TV sportscasters, who must have gotten it from somewhere) for the Dodgers against the Rockies’ Jorge De La Rosa (1-3, 6.38 ERA).

For an added attraction,

A victory would be the 10,000th in Dodgers franchise history, according to Elias Sports Bureau. Only the Giants, Cubs and Braves have reached that plateau.

The Yankees haven’t? Really? Not quite. They’ve got 39 wins to go. As Dodgers Insider has pointed out, the Dodgers’ records and Elias’s differ by 13 wins.

Lineup:

Apr 26

Game 25, 2014

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Rockies at Dodgers, 6:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA (Note the one-hour-earlier-than-usual start time.)

The Dodgers are 3-5 on the homestand, 1-5 in extra innings games and the bullpen has suffered eight of the team’s 11 losses. To try to stop the slide, today the Dodgers will pitch Paul Maholm, who’s 0-2 with a 5.60 ERA so far this season. He’s also a career 1-8 against the Rockies, although the last time he pitched against them was three years ago. The Rockies counter with Juan Nicasio, who’s 2-0 with a 4.30 ERA this season. He’s 3-2 with a 3.67 ERA in eight lifetime starts against the Dodgers.

Here’s Gordon’s infield double from yesterday’s game:

Lineup when available.

Apr 25

Game 24, 2014

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Rockies at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

The Rockies send out right-handed Jordan Lyles (3-0, 3.04 ERA) to start against the Dodgers’ right-hander Josh Beckett (0-0, 2.57). Lyles has only started once at Dodger Stadium, in 2011. He was shelled, giving up seven runs on seven hits including three home runs in 5 1/3 innings.

The Dodgers are 5-7 at home overall and 3-4 on this home stand. The Phillies came in under .500 at 8 – 10 and left even at 11 -11. The Rockies come in at 12 – 11 and one game behind the Dodgers. The Dodgers need to win two of three just to break even on this home stand.

Lineup when available.


Notice that Crawford is hitting sixth. Here’s Mattingly’s reasoning.

Apr 24

Game 23, 2014

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As if there weren’t some interesting prospects there, this may be sufficient reason for a road trip to Albuquerque to see the Isotopes.


Assembly instructions here.

Phillies v. Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

It’s the Phillies’ Kyle Kendrick, who is 0-1 with a 3.50 ERA, facing Dodgers right-hander Daren Haren, who is 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA.

The Dodgers defense has been awful, as we’ve all seen. They’ve committed 22 errors in their first 22 games, which won’t cut it.

“I’m assuming, if we’re going to get to where we want to go, it’s not going to be with 10-8 and 7-6 games, it’ll be 4-2 and 3-1 where a mistake can cost a run when they don’t come easily,” Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. “You don’t get as much attention for playing solid defense. They don’t say, ‘Bills [Chad Billingsley] really backed up the bases well today.’ But we have to change what we’ve been doing. We need a much better concentrated effort. There are going to be certain physical limitations for certain players, but we can’t afford mental mistakes. We need to be in the right position and communicate. These guys know what to do. We’ve got to make sure we put enough focus on it. I’ve expressed it to them once and will continue to.”

Lineup when available.

Apr 23

Game 22, 2014

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Phillies at Dodgers, 7:10PM PT, TV: SPNLA

Cole Hamel makes his season debut for the Phillies, while Zack Greinke brings his 3-0, 2.42 ERA record to the party.

Adrian Gonzalez’ hitting streak ended at 16 games as he went 0 for 3 in yesterday’s 10-inning loss.

Lineup when available.