I'm always happy for long suffering fans even though I hate the team for obvious reasons. If the Dodgers can keep the young core together, especially the pitching with Kershaw and Billingsley, we can battle it out for years to come in the division. They need McCourt to sell the team but I'm not holding my breath waiting for Selig to ever take a stand on anything or help anyone out. You guys basically replaced us as NL West champs but managed to get by the Phillies which we couldn't do, largely because we have Broxton and you have Wilson the S&M freak.
The Dodgers should have made the playoffs this year. I don't know why Ethier, Kemp, Loney, Broxton, etc. all stopped producing, but it doesn't make a lot of sense. I don't buy that the McCourt nonsense had such a big impact on the Dodgers that they all turned to garbage. The truth is, the Dodgers are the most talented team in the NL West. Somehow, they managed to finish in 4th place, 12 back of SF and 10 back of SD. You can mock San Diego's blowing the division lead, but they don't have even close to the level of talent that LA does.
Kemp is dating Rihanna now isn't he? So maybe the LA celeb limelight got to him? But that dosent explain the bullpen goign down the shitter and the rest of the team barely hitting. I'm thinking the McCourt divorce keeps the Dodgers from making any significant moves this postseason, as it did at the deadline. They are steadfastly refusing to add payroll for the right players, and in the end the excuse has been the divorce. He needs to sell, but he won't. I'm not sure he could sell them at this point, the team is so engrained in their divorce proceedings.
There's no question it affected the team's ability to make changes and acquire players, but I just don't understand why the players already on the roster stopped performing. Kemp, Loney, and Ethier is a nice core, but they disappeared in the second half of the season. Throw in Martin getting injured and missing the rest of the season, and Broxton and Sherrill turning into trash... Kemp: June .230 July .245 August .228 September/October .209
I was talking to a friend who is a Dodger fan(we arent good friends, prick). He is convinced the Dodgers players stopped giving a shit around July when Torre announced he was leaving. If their manager didn't give a fuck, why should they? I dunno if that theory holds much weight, but I could see where he is coming from. I honestly think alot of it has to do with the rest of the NL west really stepping it up in the second half of the season and LA just being blown by. It happens.
Having watched most of the games, I think it was a series of events. The biggest one being the bullpen, if you factor in the blown games this year that weren't blown the past two years that's 10-15 games right there. Broxton just went off the cliff, from All-Star closer to not getting anyone out, and Torre kept using him like he was Rivera until somewhere in August. Sherrill couldn't get anyone out, guys like Belisario and Troncoso who came out of nowhere in 2009 also coudn't get anyone out. Kuo was closing by the end of the year. Ethier started out on fire with Manny behind him, then broke a finger and by the time he came back Manny was out, he never regained his stroke. For some reason they didn't keep Hudson at 2B and never filled the spot adequately, Furcal and Kemp were inconsistent much of the year, Martin went out for the year in early August. Even with all of that they were close enough by August 1 to go get Ted Lilly, but we were in free fall by then even though he pitched well. So I don't know if it was preventable when you look at all of it, you can't replace your bullpen, Ethier, Manny, Martin and Hudson all at the same time. The starting pitching was real good and mostly young, which gives me hope if, as I said, they can keep the young guys in place.
Kuo was the only bullpen guy who pitched well. I posted this article a few months ago, but it bears repeating.
I think that's more of a reflection on the greatness of Manny--like him or not--than Ethier. I think David Ortiz was similar in Boston in relation to Manny behind him, most decent hitters would be. I'm sure a broken finger didn't help him. PS--Love the avatar. That gif was money, whoever did that. Easily the highlight of my post-season.
IATA, how you feeling? It's been a great run. The best sports moment of my 31 years thus far is Renteria's HR. I've watched it about 100 times. The greatest part about it is the lone Giant fan 1st row beyond the wall and his reaction to the HR. The guys gotta be pushing 80 years old and he pumps his fist like it's one of the greatest moments of his life.
My neighbors called the landlord on me for screaming and shit. I told them that this was the world series and if they dont like, too bad. Now I just need to make sure I complain tonight when they have their weekly loud retarded music and danceoff. This has been like the best couple weeks of my life, srsly, no joke. Giants amazing playoff run, finding out I'm having a kid, promotion at work. I recorded the winning game on PVR and will never ever remove it. I'm gonna buy the DVD set once it comes out, I never want to forget this season. Best season of my life. I remember 1989, the Bay Bridge series. I was a boy of just 5 years, face no more then a foot away from the screen listening to Al Micheals blab about whatever and then I hear him say theres an earthquake, which I hadn't felt at that point. Then I snapped out of my trance and was whisked out fo the house by my mother as the ground rumbled. Then I ended up missing the Series because our house was condemned, as were alot in our neighborhood, due to dmg and mudslides. Then I remember 2002. I went to all 7 games thanks to my job, Budweiser. My partner and I had won a complete series package for getting the highest reviews and highest satisfaction surveys. We were fuckin rockin in Anaheim, and then the collapse. We left in the 6th inning of game 7, it was too hard to watch. And now this year. This has been incredible. From being 6.5 back, to winning the division on the last day, to being the underdog in all 3 series...Takign out Atlanta and Philly on the way to the Series. Listening to every sportswriter say the Rangers would be champs and the Giants lucked into the series. Well fuck them. Giants are world champions.
