Tag: Los Angeles Dodgers (Page 12 of 30)

      Is Jason Schmidt done?

      August 8, 2009 /

      Schmidt

      Here’s an example of what I’ve been reading from pretty much every sports publication that is reporting on Jason Schmidt’s recent injury:

      Los Angeles pitcher Jason Schmidt’s comeback was put on hold Friday after four starts. The Dodgers placed him on the 15-day DL because of problems with the surgically repaired shoulder that sidelined him for the entire 2008 season.

      The move is simply a nicer way of telling the public how bad he’s been. Schmidt originally signed for three years and $47 million. He is in the last year of his contract, though the Dodgers have been eating it since he was acquired from the Giants. Schmidt, who was once a Cy Young-contender, has been sidelined for the the last three years with a shoulder injury and has only pitched a handful of times for the Dodgers. His recent return to the rotation has proved unsuccessful and, as their roster is full of talent, Schmidt has been given the the boot.

      He is by far the worst signing in Dodgers history and I’m sure Giants fans are laughing their asses off. Still, I give the guy credit for coming back and giving it his best shot. Schmidt will be a free agent at the end of this season and, since no team will take the risk, this is likely the end of his career.

      MLB

      Ten Predictions for the MLB second half

      July 20, 2009 /


      The second half of the 2009 MLB season has kicked off and with that, I’m going to make some predictions that are sure to be proved wrong in a couple months.

      Feel free to whip out your crystal ball in the comments section but before you do, please do everyone a favor and take off your favorite team prescribed glasses and be objective for once in your life, will ya?

      1. The Blue Jays will trade Halladay…to the Phillies.
      Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi is reminding everyone who will listen that he doesn’t absolutely need to trade Roy Halladay – which he doesn’t. But the bottom line is that he’ll probably get more in return for the “Doc” this season than he would next when Halladay is set to become a free agent after the 2010 season. And despite Ricciardi stating that he’s open to trading Halladay within the division, he’s not stupid. He’s not going to trade Halladay to the Red Sox or Yankees and risk becoming public enemy No. 1 in the eyes of Jays fans for not only getting rid of their best and most popular player, but also trading him to a division rival in the process. In the end, I think Ricciardi will trade Halladay to an NL team and my guess is that it will be Philadelphia that will eventually puts a package together to acquire him. Although they might balk at the $7 million that’s remaining on Halladay’s contract, the Phillies are built to win now and need more starting pitching to make another run at a World Series. They also have enough appealing prospects to entice Ricciardi to make a deal.

      Continue reading »

      MLB

      Erin Andrews hit by a foul ball, nationwide panic ensues

      July 10, 2009 /

      I don’t know how this slipped through the cracks here at TSR yesterday, but ESPN reporter Erin Andrews apparently took one on the chin (huh-huh, huh-huh) during a Mets-Dodgers game on Wednesday:

      Andrews — who serves as a sideline reporter for ESPN — was struck in the chin by a foul ball hit by New York Mets player Alex Cora during the 4th inning.

      Erin was hustled to the hospital a few innings later, but only suffered a bruised chin.

      UPDATE: ESPN just released the following statement:

      “She’s totally fine. The producers on site suggested she go to the hospital as a precaution. Doctors released her soon thereafter. She flew home as scheduled and is looking forward to working MLB All-Star events and the ESPYs in the coming week.”

      Nothing good happens at Mets games these days – NOTHING.

      General Sports, Women

      NL & AL team awards at halfway point

      July 7, 2009 /

      Tom Verducci of SI.com put together his individual and team awards now that baseball is at its halfway point. Below are some of his team awards.

      AL Biggest Surprise: Texas Rangers.
      The team with four straight losing seasons has never been more than 3 1/2 games out of first place all season. Kevin Millwood has been a true workhorse and ace for a pitching staff that has held up very well under coach Mike Maddux.

      NL Biggest Surprise: San Francisco Giants.
      They might not even hit 100 home runs and they might be the least patient hitting team in the league, but the Giants are a legitimate wild card threat because their pitching is spectacular.

      AL Biggest Bust: Cleveland Indians.
      Yes, injuries have helped take this team out of contention, but the Indians shouldn’t be this bad. The bullpen has been frightening.

      NL Biggest Bust: Arizona Diamondbacks.
      Suddenly, they are a stagnant organization, and the A.J. Hinch hiring as a completely inexperienced manager has looked about as risky as it sounded at the time.

      AL Best Plan A: Detroit Tigers.
      They fast-tracked Porcello, traded for Edwin Jackson, moved Brandon Inge to third, acquired Gerald Laird and Adam Everett and paid Gary Sheffield to go away, a symbolic move that the organization knew the team had grown too old and unathletic. The emphasis on pitching and defense has been spot on.

      NL Best Plan A: Los Angeles Dodgers.
      They cut their payroll by $18 million and wound up with the best record in baseball. The Orlando Hudson signing was a gem, not to mention those of Casey Blake, Mark Loretta, Brad Ausmus and Randy Wolf, gamers all.

      AL Worst Plan A: Oakland Athletics.
      Oakland does a nice job of collecting assets on the cheap, but the plan doesn’t seem to come together. Old horses Jason Giambi, Orlando Cabrera and Nomar Garciaparra have 729 plate appearances and OPS+ marks of 92, 69 and 83. Matt Holliday isn’t as valuable now as when Oakland acquired him. And the Athletics continue to have major problems keeping players healthy. Oakland does have a bunch of good arms that could pay off big soon, and there’s still time to invoke a good Plan B before the trade deadline.

      NL Worst Plan A: Washington Nationals.
      Why is Adam Dunn here? The Nats have too many outfielders who are poor defenders, too many starting pitchers who can’t go deep enough into games, too many relief pitchers who can’t get enough hitters out and too many dumb mistakes.

      I’m happy to boast that the team’s Verducci picked as his biggest surprises (Rangers and Giants), were two of the five teams I chose as my “deep sleepers” in the offseason. (Hey, this back isn’t going to pat itself, you know?)

      Of course, I was the one who also ranked the Diamondbacks as the seventh best team and the Indians the ninth best team in the league for TSR’s 2009 MLB Preview. (Hey, this body isn’t going to throw itself under the bus, you know?)

      MLB

      National League All-Star voting–who is leading and who should be

      July 4, 2009 /

      Last week we picked apart the American League all-star voting. Well, this week we will look at the National League, and after last night the starters have all been selected (aside from pitchers). You ready?

      First base
      Leader: Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals
      Mike’s pick: Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals.       Well, this one is a no-brainer. Is it possible that Albert gets better with age? Yes, and his numbers border on staggering. 81 games in, he’s batting .336 with 31 homers and 82 RBI and a slugging percentage of .748. That projects to 62 homers and 164 runs batted in. What’s more, dude has a .993 fielding percentage. There is little doubt Pujols is the best player in the game, and he gets to flaunt it in front of his hometown crowd a week from Tuesday.

      Second base
      Leader: Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies
      Mike’s pick: Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies.       This one is also a no-brainer that the voters got correct, though as a Mets fan it pains me to say that. Utley has 17 homers, 54 RBI, he’s batting .303 with 16 doubles and a .980 OPS—all unbelievable numbers for a second baseman. This guy is a gamer.

      Shortstop
      Leader: Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins
      Mike’s pick: Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins.       This is getting to be a trend, but the numbers in the National League don’t seem to lie, do they? Hanley is batting .344 with 13 homers and 58 RBI, 26 doubles, 12 stolen bases and a .972 OPS. By comparison, he is hitting 119 points higher than JJ Hardy and 132 points higher than the slumping Jimmy Rollins. Case closed.

      Third base
      Leader: David Wright, New York Mets
      Mike’s pick: Mark Reynolds, Arizona Diamondbacks      . Wright was leading the league in batting for quite a while, and he’s currently hitting .333 but with just 5 homers and 42 RBI. By comparison, Reynolds has clubbed 22 home runs with 57 RBI while batting a respectable .271. At a power position, I’m giving the nod to the guy barely anyone gets to see play.

      Catcher:
      Leader: Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals
      Mike’s pick: Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves.       This is close, because Yadier’s brother Bengie has 10 homers and 46 RBI for the Giants, but McCann is batting .311 with 8 home runs and 33 driven in, with 15 doubles and a respectable .988 fielding percentage.

      Outfield
      Leaders: Raul Ibanez, Philadelphia Phillies
      Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
      Carlos Beltran, New York Mets
      Mike’s picks: Raul Ibanez, Philadelphia Phillies
      Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
      Brad Hawpe, Colorado Rockies      Ibanez is having a career season, batting .312 with 22 homers and 59 RBI, and Braun just continues to rake, with 16 home runs, 58 driven in and a .326 average. But Beltran, while he plays in the biggest media market and makes mega-bucks, is not going to get my all-star nod over Brad Hawpe. Beltran is hitting .336, but has just 8 homers and 40 RBI. Hawpe is hitting .328 with 13 homers and 56 runs batted in, 25 doubles and a stunning .993 OPS. If Manny Ramirez was playing most of the season, he’d probably be on this list, but I can’t consider a guy who’s only played 28 games, regardless of why he missed all that time.

      Starting pitcher
      As you all know, pitchers are chosen by the managers and will be announced this Sunday.
      Mike’s pick: Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants. Last year’s NL Cy Young winner got off to a slow start, but has been mowing hitters down lately, to the tune of 8-2 with a 2.37 ERA and league-leading 132 strikeouts with just 28 walks in 114 innings. Arizona’s Dan Haren is a close runner-up, with a 7-5 record for a crappy D-Backs’ team, and a league low 2.19 ERA with 113 K’s and 0.81 WHIP.

      Relief pitcher
      Mike’s pick: Heath Bell, San Diego Padres. When this former Met helped christen Citi Field by mowing down his ex-teammates in April, I thought it was just a phase. But dude leads the NL in saves with 22, and is 3-1 with a 1.34 ERA and 36 strikeouts in 33 innings of work. And here’s the best stat of all—Bell has saved or won 74% of his team’s wins. If he keeps that up, Bell will contend for the NL Cy Young and even garner some MVP votes.

      Barstool Debates, Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, Happy Hour, MLB

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