SB Nation - Travis Schlichting

How Dodgers Became Dodgers: Where Pedro Astacio Becomes Blake DeWitt

Eric Stephen — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Ed Andrieski - AP

Blake and DeWitt are two of seven players currently on the 40-man roster who have links to Dodgers past.

Major league 40-man rosters were set last Friday in preparation for the upcoming Rule 5 draft in two weeks. With the free agency period just starting, there are many open spots on rosters throughout baseball. The Dodgers, for instance, have 33 players on their 40-man roster. Over the next few weeks, free agents will be signed and some players will be non-tendered, so rosters will change, but for now let's look at the 33 Dodgers and how they became Dodgers.

Almost half of the Dodgers currently on the 40-man roster -- 16 of 33 -- were drafted by the team with their own draft pick:

Draft(ed) Dodgers
Player	Year	Round	Pick

James Loney	2002	1	19
Jonathan Broxton	2002	2	60
James McDonald	2002	11	331
Eric Stults	2002	15	451
Russell Martin	2002	17	511

Chad Billingsley	2003	1	24
Xavier Paul	2003	4	121
Matt Kemp	2003	6	181
Lucas May	2003	8	241
A.J. Ellis	2003	18	541

Scott Elbert	2004	1	17
Javy Guerra	2004	4	118
Cory Wade	2004	10	298

Brent Leach	2005	6	196
Trayvon Robinson	2005	10	316

Clayton Kershaw	2006	1	7

These are pretty straight forward original transactions, as are these other four amateur free agents:

Amateur Free Agents
Player	Date	Origin
Hong-Chih Kuo	6/19/99	Taiwan
Ramon Troncoso	6/20/02	Dominican Republic
Chin-Lung Hu	1/31/03	Taiwan
Kenley Jansen	11/17/04	Curacao

That makes 20 of 33 Dodgers who are with are with their original club. In addition to them, there are six more Dodgers that joined the club independent of other players. That is, their acquisitions aren't linked to anyone else:

Free Agents
Player	Date
Rafael Furcal	12/19/05
Juan Pierre	11/22/06
Travis Schlichting*	10/7/07
Hiroki Kuroda	12/16/07
Ronald Belisario*	1/13/09
Charlie Haeger*	1/17/09
*minor league free agents

This is where we get to the fun part of this exercise, as reminded by Rocknjosie in her excellent Fan Post last month. There are seven Dodgers left that were acquired as the result, directly or indirectly, of previous transactions. These are listed in chronological order based on the earliest transaction.

Andre Ethier
Date	Transaction
6/1/88	drafted Mike Piazza in the 62nd round (#1390 overall)
8/4/96	signed Luke Allen as an undrafted free agent
12/8/96	signed Todd Zeile as a free agent
5/14/98	traded Piazza and Zeile to Marlins for Gary Sheffield, Bobby Bonilla, Jim Eisenreich, Charles Johnson, and Manuel Barrios
11/18/00	signed Franklin Gutierrez as an amateur free agent
1/15/02	traded Sheffield to Braves for Odalis Perez, Brian Jordan, and Andrew Brown
1/17/03	traded Allen to Colorado for Jason Romano
4/3/04	traded Romano to Tampa Bay for Antonio Perez
4/3/04	traded Gutierrez and Brown to Cleveland for Milton Bradley
12/13/05	traded Bradley and Perez to Oakland for Ethier
Total Related Players: 9

Blake DeWitt
Date	Transaction
11/21/87	signed Pedro Astacio as an amateur free agent
6/14/91	signed Ismael Valdez as an amateur free agent
8/28/94	signed Luke Prokopec as an amateur free agent
8/19/97	traded Astacio to Rockies for Eric Young
12/12/99	traded Young and Valdez to Cubs for Terry Adams, Brian Stephenson, and Chad Ricketts
12/31/01	traded Prokopec and Ricketts to Toronto for Cesar Izturis and Paul Quantrill
12/17/03	Quantrill signed as a free agent with the Yankees
6/7/04	drafted DeWitt with a compensation first round pick (#28 overall)
Total Related Players: 6

Ivan DeJesus
Date	Transaction
7/7/94	signed Adrian Beltre as an amateur free agent
12/17/04	Beltre signed as a free agent with Seattle
6/7/05	drafted DeJesus with a compensation second round pick (#51 overall)
Total Related Players: 1

Jason Repko
Date	Transaction
1/16/96	signed Scott Radinsky as a free agent
11/23/98	Radinsky signed as a free agent with St. Louis
6/2/99	drafted Repko with a compensation supplemental pick (#37 overall)
Total Related Players: 1

Manny Ramirez
Date	Transaction
12/12/98	signed Kevin Brown as a free agent
6/3/03	drafted Andy LaRoche in the 39th round (#1171 overall)
12/13/03	traded Brown to Yankees for Jeff Weaver, Yhency Brazoban, Brandon Weeden, and cash
2/23/06	Weaver signed as a free agent with the Angels
6/6/06	drafted Bryan Morris with a compensation first round pick (#26 overall)
7/31/08	traded LaRoche and Morris to Pittsburgh in a 3-team trade; received Manny and cash from Boston
Total Related Players: 4

Casey Blake
Date	Transaction
8/13/04	signed Carlos Santana as an amateur free agent
6/7/05	drafted Jon Meloan in fifth round (#166 overall)
7/26/08	traded Santana and Meloan to Cleveland for Blake, and cash
Total Related Players: 2

George Sherrill
Date	Transaction
6/7/05	drafted Josh Bell in the second round (#74 overall)
6/7/05	drafted Steven Johnson in the 13th round (#406 overall)
7/30/09	traded Bell and Johnson to Baltimore for Sherrill
Total Related Players: 2

Speed Check - AFL vs. MLB

Harry Pavlidis — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 02:45:10 -0000

Stephen Strasburg's fastball is raising some interesting questions. While Strasburg was on the mound on Monday, a Tweet and an email (so old fashioned) came in asking about the Surprise, AZ, PITCHf/x data. Was it hot?

Strasburg throwing 101 was a surprise to many, and seeing him sit near 98 for a few innings raised more questions. I took a look at the two PITCHf/x installations in the Arizona Fall Leauge (Surprise and Peoria) this morning at the Hardball Times.

The basic conclusion was, no, the system in Surprise isn't hot. Relative to Peoria, that is.

Assuming the two systems are pretty much on par, the opportunity came up to compare AFL pitchers to themselves as MLB pitchers. Using release speed (55 ft. from home plate) I was able to compare data from 14 pitchers.

Nothing fancy and statistical, but, as you browse the baker's dozen + 1 set of images below, I think you'll probably reach the same conclusion I did.

The years shown in the parentheses indicate the MLB seasons the pitcher appeared in. The scale is to the game (actually at bat) and varies by pitcher. September 2009 call-ups will have a vastly different x-axis scale compared to a pitcher who worked back in 2007. But it's the y-axis (MPH) that matters.

Bryan Augenstein (2009)

Randor Bierd (2008)

Josh Butler (2009)

Michael Dunn (2009)

Matt Harrison (2008-2009)

Wilton Lopez (2009)

Ian Kennedy (2007, 2009)

Joe Martinez (2009)

Andrew Miller (2007-2009)

Mike Parisi (2008)

Dustin Richardson (2009)

Travis Schlichting (2009)

Mitch Talbot (2008)

Donald Veal (2009)

AFLf/x ain't hot if you ask me.

Dodger Roster Breakdown

Eric Stephen — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:15:09 -0000

by Mark J. Terrill - AP

One Type B free agent greets a Type A free agent on the mound

View full size photo »

There will be plenty of time this offseason for moves, but here's an overview of the current Dodger 40-man roster. There are 43 players currently on the 40-man roster, including four on the 60-day disabled list. That will change quickly after the World Series as players file for free agency. I have split them into a few groups:

Free Agents (13+1)

Type A*: Orlando Hudson, Randy Wolf

Type B*: Ronnie Belliard, Guillermo Mota, Vicente Padilla, Will Ohman**

Others: Jim Thome, Brad Ausmus, Jason Schmidt, Mark Loretta, Juan Castro, Eric Milton, Doug Mientkiewicz, Jeff Weaver

*Eddie Bajek of Detroit Tigers Thoughts has done a great job of figuring out the Elias Rankings, and has posted them at MLB Trade Rumors. In order to receive compensation for Type A or Type B free agents, the club must offer them arbitration. Type A free agents net a first round pick from the team that signs them, provided the pick isn't in the top 15, in addition to a supplemental pick in between the first and second rounds.

If a team signs more than one Type A free agent, the players are ranked by their Elias ranking, they give up picks in the lower rounds as well. For instance, the Yankees last year gave up their first three picks for signing C.C. Sabathia, Mark Teixeira, and A.J. Burnett, all Type A free agents. Type B free agents net only a supplemental pick.

There is always the risk that a player will accept arbitration (like Darren Oliver did with the Angels last season). If he does, the maximum salary cut a player can take is 20%, so for Guillermo Mota, for instance, the least he would make in arbitration in 2010 would be $1.88 million (80% of his $2.35 million 2009 salary). In the case of Hudson and Wolf, they had low base salaries so this isn't an issue, but there is still quite a risk because they are still likely to command a high salary in arbitration.

**I'm counting Will Ohman in this exercise, even though he is no longer on the 40-man since his option was bought out last week, but the Dodgers, however unlikely, can still offer Ohman arbitration if they so choose.

What should happen: Offer arbitration to Hudson, Wolf, and Belliard only

Options (2)

Manny Ramirez has a $20 million player option for 2010. He has until November 10 to accept or decline this option.
Jon Garland has a $10 million mutual option for 2010. If the Dodgers decline, his buyout is $2.5 million; if Garland declines, his buyout is $1 million. As a condition of Garland's acquisition, the Diamondbacks will pay either buyout if the option is not exercised. Even if either side opts out, Garland is a Type B free agent, and the Dodgers could offer him arbitration if they so choose.

What should happen: Manny comes back, Dodgers let Arizona pay Garland $2.5m to walk away, don't offer Garland arbitration

Arbitration Eligible (9)

Player	Service Time	2009 Base Salary
George Sherrill	4.147	$2,750,000
Jonathan Broxton	4.020	$1,825,000
Andre Ethier	3.153	$3,100,000
Russell Martin	3.150	$3,900,000
Hong-Chih Kuo	3.114	$437,000
Chad Billingsley	3.110	$475,000
Matt Kemp	3.049	$467,000
James Loney	3.012	$465,000
Jason Repko	3.067	$500,000

Look for: Repko to get non-tendered

Under Contract (4)

Player	2009 Salary	2010 Salary
Rafael Furcal	$10,500,000	$8,500,000
Juan Pierre	$10,000,000	$10,000,000
Casey Blake	$5,250,000	$6,000,000
Hiroki Kuroda	$10,000,000	$13,000,000

Under Team Control (15)

Player	Service Time	2009 Base Salary
Ramon Troncoso	1.119	$401,000
Clayton Kershaw	1.105	$404,000
Cory Wade	1.096	$402,500
Eric Stults	1.072	$402,000
Blake DeWitt	1.048	$405,000
James McDonald	1.004	$400,750
Ronald Belisario	1.000	$400,000
Chin-Lung Hu	0.153	$401,000
Xavier Paul	0.151	$400,000
Charlie Haeger	0.125	$400,000
Scott Elbert	0.097	$400,000
Brent Leach	0.090	$400,000
A.J. Ellis	0.081	$400,000
Travis Schlichting	0.055	$400,000
Lucas May	0.000	------

Here are some important dates to remember for the offseason:

Day After World Series Ends: begins 15-day period for eligible players to file for free agency

November 20: Date reserve lists must be set (adding players to 40-man roster for purposes of Rule 5 draft)

December 1: Last date to offer arbitration to free agents to receive compensation

December 10: Rule 5 draft

December 12: Deadline to tender contracts to players under team control or pre-free agency arbitration-eligible players

It will be a long offseason, but the hot stove is always interesting.

Dodgers Season In Thirds

Eric Stephen — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:40:13 -0000

More photos » by Jae C. Hong - AP

2 months ago: Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre watches baseball practice in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. The Dodgers face the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 1 of the National League division series Wednesday. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Browse more photos »

Now that the regular season is over, here's a look at the Dodger season in thirds.

Here's an overview of the team numbers:

	W-L	Pythag Rec	Runs For	Runs Allowed	BA/OBP/SLG	ERA
Games 1-54	36-18	35-19	295 (5.46/gm)	208 (3.85/gm)	.285/.367/.414	3.75
Games 55-108	30-24	30-24	244 (4.52/gm)	214 (3.96/gm)	.272/.340/.418	3.45
Games 109-162	29-25	33-21	241 (4.46/gm)	189 (3.50/gm)	.253/.330/.402	3.03

The offense took a dip in the final 54 games, but the pitching was outstanding.

Here is a look at individual seasons in thirds, position by position:

Catcher
Russell Martin
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	47	46	173	23	46	9	0	0	20	29	7/3	.266/.377/.318	.695
2nd 54	50	47	172	22	46	4	0	3	13	24	1/3	.267/.373/.343	.716
3rd 54	46	43	160	18	34	6	0	4	20	16	3/0	.213/.298/.325	.623

Brad Ausmus
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	11	8	35	6	11	1	0	0	3	2	1/0	.314/.368/.343	.711
2nd 54	12	9	32	3	11	3	0	1	4	2	0/0	.344/.400/.531	.931
3rd 54	13	10	28	0	6	0	0	0	2	1	0/0	.214/.241/.214	.456

A.J. Ellis
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
2nd 54	3	1	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.000/.000/.000	.000
3rd 54	5	1	6	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0/0	.167/.167/.167	.333

Infield
James Loney
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	54	51	208	24	59	12	0	2	41	22	3/1	.284/.348/.370	.718
2nd 54	53	51	198	27	59	9	2	5	27	23	3/1	.298/.371/.439	.810
3rd 54	51	45	170	22	44	4	0	6	22	25	1/1	.259/.352/.388	.740

Orlando Hudson
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	54	54	216	39	71	17	2	3	32	32	4/0	.329/.410/.468	.878
2nd 54	50	48	195	22	49	11	2	4	21	10	2/0	.251/.299/.390	.688
3rd 54	45	41	140	13	36	7	2	2	9	20	2/1	.257/.350/.379	.729

Rafael Furcal
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	46	42	189	27	47	8	0	1	11	18	3/3	.249/.314/.307	.621
2nd 54	54	50	216	33	61	10	3	5	21	23	3/1	.282/.350/.426	.776
3rd 54	50	49	208	32	57	10	2	3	15	20	6/2	.274/.339/.385	.724

Casey Blake
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	49	44	164	27	49	12	1	9	34	18	0/0	.299/.374/.549	.922
2nd 54	53	50	195	32	54	11	3	3	27	25	2/4	.277/.353/.410	.763
3rd 54	37	37	126	25	33	2	2	6	18	20	1/0	.262/.367/.452	.819

Mark Loretta
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	38	10	59	11	17	3	0	0	10	11	0/0	.288/.408/.339	.747
2nd 54	38	11	69	5	13	3	0	0	10	6	0/0	.188/.253/.232	.485
3rd 54	31	11	53	3	12	2	0	0	5	3	1/1	.226/.259/.264	.523

Juan Castro
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	19	12	44	12	15	2	0	1	7	5	0/0	.341/.400/.455	.855
2nd 54	17	10	38	2	11	1	0	0	2	1	0/0	.289/.308/.316	.623
3rd 54	21	7	30	4	5	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	.167/.167/.200	.367

Blake DeWitt
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	9	3	17	1	3	0	0	0	0	1	0/0	.176/.222/.176	.399
2nd 54	14	0	15	1	2	1	0	1	1	1	0/0	.133/.188/.400	.588
3rd 54	8	3	17	2	5	2	0	1	3	1	0/0	.294/.316/.588	.904

Doug Mientkiewicz
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	7	0	5	0	2	1	0	0	2	0	0/0	.400/.400/.600	1.000
3rd 54	13	1	13	0	4	0	0	0	1	1	0/0	.308/.400/.308	.708

Ronnie Belliard
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
3rd 54	24	19	77	13	27	7	0	5	17	6	1/0	.351/.398/.636	1.034

Chin-Lung Hu
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
3rd 54	5	1	5	2	2	1	0	0	2	0	0/0	.400/.333/.600	.933

Tony Abreu
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
3rd 54	6	2	8	0	2	0	0	0	1	3	0/1	.250/.455/.250	.705

Outfield
Andre Ethier
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	52	49	188	31	49	12	0	7	31	27	3/0	.261/.363/.436	.799
2nd 54	54	52	212	34	60	13	1	15	38	23	2/3	.283/.357/.566	.923
3rd 54	54	49	196	27	53	17	2	9	37	22	1/1	.270/.362/.515	.877

Matt Kemp
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	53	51	200	33	62	9	4	6	30	21	12/2	.310/.377/.485	.862
2nd 54	53	53	200	30	66	7	2	9	39	19	10/2	.330/.387/.520	.907
3rd 54	54	49	206	34	52	9	1	11	32	12	12/4	.252/.293/.466	.759

Manny Ramirez
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	27	27	92	22	32	9	0	6	20	26	0/0	.348/.492/.641	1.133
2nd 54	28	25	96	14	26	7	1	6	20	12	0/0	.271/.369/.552	.921
3rd 54	49	47	164	26	44	8	1	7	23	33	0/1	.268/.400/.457	.857

Juan Pierre
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	46	30	140	27	53	10	3	0	21	13	11/4	.379/.439/.493	.932
2nd 54	50	31	147	15	37	5	1	0	4	7	12/5	.252/.308/.299	.607
3rd 54	49	15	93	15	27	1	4	0	6	7	7/3	.290/.343/.387	.730
Jason Repko
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
3rd 54	13	1	13	0	4	0	0	0	1	1	0/0	.308/.400/.308	.708

Jamie Hoffmann
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	9	3	17	2	3	2	0	1	7	0	0/0	.176/.158/.471	.628
2nd 54	5	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.200/.200/.200	.400

Xavier Paul
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	11	2	14	3	3	1	0	1	1	2	0/1	.214/.313/.500	.813

Mitch Jones
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
2nd 54	8	3	13	1	4	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	.308/.400/.385	.785

Pinch Hitters
Jim Thome
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
3rd 54	17	0	17	0	4	0	0	0	3	0	0/0	.235/.235/.235	.471

Starting Pitchers
Randy Wolf
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	12	12	3-1	75.2	64	30	27	22	58	3.21	1.137
2nd 54	11	11	2-5	64.1	62	28	27	17	48	3.78	1.228
3rd 54	11	11	6-1	74.1	52	23	23	19	54	2.78	0.955

Clayton Kershaw
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	10	10	3-3	56.0	40	27	27	32	55	4.34	1.286
2nd 54	12	12	5-3	68.2	47	14	13	39	68	1.70	1.252
3rd 54	9	8	0-2	46.1	32	14	13	20	62	2.53	1.122

Chad Billingsley
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	11	11	6-3	74.0	58	25	23	32	76	2.80	1.216
2nd 54	12	12	5-3	69.2	63	40	38	31	64	4.91	1.349
3rd 54	10	9	1-5	52.2	52	29	27	23	39	4.61	1.424

Hiroki Kuroda
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	2	2	1-1	10.2	7	3	3	4	8	2.53	1.031
2nd 54	12	11	3-4	66.1	69	38	35	12	52	4.75	1.221
3rd 54	7	7	4-2	40.1	34	18	11	8	27	2.45	1.041

Eric Stults
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	9	9	4-2	45.0	46	24	24	25	30	4.80	1.578
3rd 54	1	1	0-1	5.0	5	3	3	1	3	5.40	1.200

Vicente Padilla
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
3rd 54	8	7	4-0	39.1	36	15	14	12	38	3.20	1.220

Jon Garland
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
3rd 54	6	6	3-2	36.1	37	16	11	9	26	2.72	1.266

Charlie Haeger
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
3rd 54	6	3	1-1	19.0	13	7	7	4	7	3.32	0.895

Eric Milton
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	3	3	2-0	14.1	15	5	5	5	10	3.14	1.395
2nd 54	2	2	0-1	9.1	15	7	5	1	10	4.82	1.714

Jason Schmidt
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	4	4	2-2	17.2	16	12	11	12	8	5.60	1.585

Relievers
Jonathan Broxton
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	23	5-0	12	26.0	8	4	4	10	41	1.38	0.692
2nd 54	23	2-0	12	22.2	17	11	11	11	33	4.37	1.235
3rd 54	27	0-2	12	27.1	19	9	7	8	40	2.30	0.988

George Sherrill
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	3	0-0	--	2.1	0	0	0	1	5	0.00	0.429
3rd 54	27	1-0	1	25.1	19	2	2	10	17	0.71	1.145

Hong-Chih Kuo
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	7	0-0	--	5.1	5	4	4	4	4	6.75	1.688
2nd 54	5	0-0	--	4.2	0	0	0	2	6	0.00	0.429
3rd 54	23	1-0	--	20.0	16	6	6	7	22	2.70	1.150

Ramon Troncoso
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	21	1-0	3	33.1	31	7	7	10	22	1.89	1.230
2nd 54	30	3-0	2	31.1	30	11	7	12	18	2.01	1.340
3rd 54	22	1-4	1	18.0	22	12	11	12	15	5.60	1.889

Ronald Belisario
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	26	1-2	--	31.1	22	10	8	15	30	2.30	1.181
2nd 54	17	0-1	--	17.0	15	5	5	5	16	2.65	1.176
3rd 54	26	0-3	--	22.1	15	6	3	9	18	1.21	1.075

Guillermo Mota
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	20	2-1	--	20.2	26	15	15	12	10	6.53	1.839
2nd 54	28	1-1	--	32.1	15	3	3	6	18	0.84	0.649
3rd 54	13	0-2	--	12.1	12	7	7	6	11	5.11	1.459

Jeff Weaver
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	9	3	3-1	26.2	29	12	12	15	18	4.05	1.650
2nd 54	10	2	2-3	30.1	33	16	14	10	24	4.15	1.418
3rd 54	9	2	1-0	22.0	25	6	6	8	22	2.45	1.500

James McDonald
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	10	4	1-1	18.2	17	14	14	16	9	6.75	1.768
2nd 54	15	0	2-1	20.2	17	9	5	6	14	2.18	1.113
3rd 54	20	0	2-3	23.2	26	11	9	12	31	3.42	1.606

Scott Elbert
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	3	1-0	--	6.1	10	5	5	1	6	7.11	1.737
2nd 54	4	0-0	--	7.2	3	1	1	2	7	1.17	0.652
3rd 54	12	1-0	--	5.2	6	5	5	4	8	7.94	1.765

Brent Leach
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	13	1-0	--	8.0	7	5	5	4	10	5.62	1.375
2nd 54	25	1-0	--	12.1	9	8	8	8	9	5.84	1.378

Cory Wade
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	18	0-3	--	18.2	19	10	10	9	13	4.82	1.500
2nd 54	9	2-0	--	9.0	9	7	7	1	5	7.00	1.111

Will Ohman
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	21	1-0	1	12.1	12	8	8	8	7	5.84	1.622

Claudio Vargas
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	8	0-0	--	11.0	7	2	2	4	10	1.64	1.000

Travis Schlichting
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	2	0-0	--	2.2	1	2	1	5	2	3.38	2.250

Mark Loretta
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	1	0-0	--	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	0.000

Kemp & Ethier Rule The Day For Dodgers

Eric Stephen — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 06:06:04 -0000

More photos » by Matt Sayles - AP

Andre Ethier made a spectacular catch to preserve the lead in the top of the eighth inning tonight.

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Matt Kemp stole the show early, and Andre Ethier saved the Dodgers late, holding off the Diamondbacks 4-3 at Dodger Stadium in the second game of their four-game series.

Kemp homered in the first, then singled and stole second in the third, scoring when a throw from rightfielder Justin Upton hit Kemp at second base. Kemp motored around third, scoring easily, a la Kirk Gibson. This was the third game of the season in which Kemp had both a home run and a stolen base.

Kemp has also homered in four straight games and five of his last six, giving him a career high 23 on the season. Is a 30/30 season in reach? It sure looks like it.

Vicente Padilla was solid, giving up only a run in 5.1 innings. Early on, it looked like his night would be a short one, as he loaded the bases with nobody out in the first inning. However, he gave up just one run that inning, retiring 16 of the final 19 batters he faced.

Scott Elbert, on his first day back up with the big club, gave up two runs in the sixth to tie the game, but the Diamondbacks would score no more off the Dodger bullpen. Ronald Belisario picked up his third win of the year, pitching 1.1 scoreless innings, although he did allow an inherited run to score.

Justin Upton, who rivals Kemp for the title of best young outfielder in baseball, had three hits in five at-bats for the second straight game. Upton has been unbelievable over his last 20 games, hitting .427/.489/.756 with 20 runs scored and 18 driven in. He has reached the point where I don't want him batting against the Dodgers in any situation, yet I can't turn away when he's at the plate.

Andre Ethier drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh with a bases-loaded walk, and then saved the Dodgers' bacon in the top of the eighth with a wonderful running catch at the wall in right field, saving at least a game-tying double, if not more, by Brandon Allen.

Jonathan Broxton picked up his 30th save on the season, becoming just the fifth Dodger to do so, joining Eric Gagne (three times), Todd Worrell (three times), Jeff Shaw (twice), and Takashi Saito. Broxton has struck out 13 of the last 28 batters he has faced.

Hiroki Kuroda pitched five innings for Class A Inland Empire tonight, and per Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times, is tentatively slated to start Sunday night against San Diego.

Chad Billingsley faces off against Max Scherzer tomorrow night. Jim Thome is expected to be activated tomorrow, and although the corresponding move hasn't yet been announced, Beto Duran of ESPN 710 noted that Travis Schlichting was placed on the 60-day disabled list to make room on the 40-man roster. However, that move has not yet been announced.

UPDATE: Schlichting to the 60-day DL has been reported by Jim Peltz and Kurt Streeter of the LA Times.

WP -Ronald Belisario (3-3): 1.1 IP, 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 strikeout

LP -Leo Rosales (1-1): 1.1 IP, 2 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 1 strikeout

Sv - Jonathan Broxton (30): 1 IP, 1 hit, 2 strikeouts

Box Score

Dodgers Season In Thirds

Eric Stephen — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Lori Shepler - AP

Matt Kemp has been stellar all season for the Dodgers

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I know this is a day late and a dollar short, but Wednesday night's game was the 108th Dodger game of the season, marking the two-thirds point of the season. I thought it would be a good time to compare the first 54 games of the season to the second set of 54.

Here's an overview of the team numbers:

	W-L	Runs For	Runs Allowed	BA/OBP/SLG	ERA
Games 1-54	36-18	295 (5.46/gm)	208 (3.85/gm)	.285/.367/.414	3.75
Games 55-108	30-24	244 (4.52/gm)	214 (3.96/gm)	.272/.340/.418	3.45

Looks like there was a little more power in the second 54-game stretch, and a little more onbaseability in the first 54 games.

We'll take it position by position after the jump.

Catcher
Russell Martin
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	47	46	173	23	46	9	0	0	20	29	7/3	.266/.377/.318	.695
2nd 54	50	47	172	22	46	4	0	3	13	24	1/3	.267/.373/.343	.716

Brad Ausmus
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	11	8	35	6	11	1	0	0	3	2	1/0	.314/.368/.343	.711
2nd 54	12	9	32	3	11	3	0	1	4	2	0/0	.344/.400/.531	.931

A.J. Ellis
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
2nd 54	3	1	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.000/.000/.000	.000

Infield
James Loney
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	54	51	208	24	59	12	0	2	41	22	3/1	.284/.348/.370	.718
2nd 54	53	51	198	27	59	9	2	5	27	23	3/1	.298/.371/.439	.810

Orlando Hudson
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	54	54	216	39	71	17	2	3	32	32	4/0	.329/.410/.468	.878
2nd 54	50	48	195	22	49	11	2	4	21	10	2/0	.251/.299/.390	.688

Rafael Furcal
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	46	42	189	27	47	8	0	1	11	18	3/3	.249/.314/.307	.621
2nd 54	54	50	216	33	61	10	3	5	21	23	3/1	.282/.350/.426	.776

Casey Blake
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	49	44	164	27	49	12	1	9	34	18	0/0	.299/.374/.549	.922
2nd 54	53	50	195	32	54	11	3	3	27	25	2/4	.277/.353/.410	.763

Mark Loretta
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	38	10	59	11	17	3	0	0	10	11	0/0	.288/.408/.339	.747
2nd 54	38	11	69	5	13	3	0	0	10	6	0/0	.188/.253/.232	.485

Juan Castro
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	19	12	44	12	15	2	0	1	7	5	0/0	.341/.400/.455	.855
2nd 54	17	10	38	2	11	1	0	0	2	1	0/0	.289/.308/.316	.623

Blake DeWitt
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	9	3	17	1	3	0	0	0	0	1	0/0	.176/.222/.176	.399
2nd 54	14	0	15	1	2	1	0	1	1	1	0/0	.133/.188/.400	.588

Doug Mientkiewicz
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	7	0	5	0	2	1	0	0	2	0	0/0	.400/.400/.600	1.000

Outfield
Andre Ethier
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	52	49	188	31	49	12	0	7	31	27	3/0	.261/.363/.436	.799
2nd 54	54	52	212	34	60	13	1	15	38	23	2/3	.283/.357/.566	.923

Matt Kemp
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	53	51	200	33	62	9	4	6	30	21	12/2	.310/.377/.485	.862
2nd 54	53	53	200	30	66	7	2	9	39	19	10/2	.330/.387/.520	.907

Manny Ramirez
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	27	27	92	22	32	9	0	6	20	26	0/0	.348/.492/.641	1.133
2nd 54	28	25	96	14	26	7	1	6	20	12	0/0	.271/.369/.552	.921

Juan Pierre
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	46	30	140	27	53	10	3	0	21	13	11/4	.379/.439/.493	.932
2nd 54	50	31	147	15	37	5	1	0	4	7	12/5	.252/.308/.299	.607

Jamie Hoffmann
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	9	3	17	2	3	2	0	1	7	0	0/0	.176/.158/.471	.628
2nd 54	5	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.200/.200/.200	.400

Xavier Paul
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
1st 54	11	2	14	3	3	1	0	1	1	2	0/1	.214/.313/.500	.813

Mitch Jones
	G	GS	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
2nd 54	8	3	13	1	4	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	.308/.400/.385	.785

Starting Pitchers
Chad Billingsley
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	11	11	6-3	74.0	58	25	23	32	76	2.80	1.216
2nd 54	12	12	5-3	69.2	63	40	38	31	64	4.91	1.349

Clayton Kershaw
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	10	10	3-3	56.0	40	27	27	32	55	4.34	1.286
2nd 54	12	12	5-3	68.2	47	14	13	39	68	1.70	1.252

Randy Wolf
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	12	12	3-1	75.2	64	30	27	22	58	3.21	1.137
2nd 54	11	11	2-5	64.1	62	28	27	17	48	3.78	1.228

Hiroki Kuroda
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	2	2	1-1	10.2	7	3	3	4	8	2.53	1.031
2nd 54	12	11	3-4	66.1	69	38	35	12	52	4.75	1.221

Eric Stults
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	9	9	4-2	45.0	46	24	24	25	30	4.80	1.578

Eric Milton
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	3	3	2-0	14.1	15	5	5	5	10	3.14	1.395
2nd 54	2	2	0-1	9.1	15	7	5	1	10	4.82	1.714

Jason Schmidt
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	4	4	2-2	17.2	16	12	11	12	8	5.60	1.585

Relievers
Jonathan Broxton
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	23	5-0	12	26.0	8	4	4	10	41	1.38	0.692
2nd 54	23	2-0	12	22.2	17	11	11	11	33	4.37	1.235

Ramon Troncoso
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	21	1-0	3	33.1	31	7	7	10	22	1.89	1.230
2nd 54	30	3-0	2	31.1	30	11	7	12	18	2.01	1.340

Ronald Belisario
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	26	1-2	--	31.1	22	10	8	15	30	2.30	1.181
2nd 54	17	0-1	--	17.0	15	5	5	5	16	2.65	1.176

Guillermo Mota
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	20	2-1	--	20.2	26	15	15	12	10	6.53	1.839
2nd 54	28	1-1	--	32.1	15	3	3	6	18	0.84	0.649

Jeff Weaver
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	9	3	3-1	26.2	29	12	12	15	18	4.05	1.650
2nd 54	10	2	2-3	30.1	33	16	14	10	24	4.15	1.418

James McDonald
	G	GS	W-L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	10	4	1-1	18.2	17	14	14	16	9	6.75	1.768
2nd 54	15	0	2-1	20.2	17	9	5	6	14	2.18	1.113

Brent Leach
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	13	1-0	--	8.0	7	5	5	4	10	5.62	1.375
2nd 54	25	1-0	--	12.1	9	8	8	8	9	5.84	1.378

Hong-Chih Kuo
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	7	0-0	--	5.1	5	4	4	4	4	6.75	1.688
2nd 54	5	0-0	--	4.2	0	0	0	2	6	0.00	0.429

Cory Wade
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	18	0-3	--	18.2	19	10	10	9	13	4.82	1.500
2nd 54	9	2-0	--	9.0	9	7	7	1	5	7.00	1.111

Scott Elbert
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	3	1-0	--	6.1	10	5	5	1	6	7.11	1.737
2nd 54	4	0-0	--	7.2	3	1	1	2	7	1.17	0.652

Will Ohman
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
1st 54	21	1-0	1	12.1	12	8	8	8	7	5.84	1.622

Claudio Vargas
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	8	0-0	--	11.0	7	2	2	4	10	1.64	1.000

Travis Schlichting
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	2	0-0	--	2.2	1	2	1	5	2	3.38	2.250

George Sherrill
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	3	0-0	--	2.1	0	0	0	1	5	0.00	0.429

Mark Loretta
	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2nd 54	1	0-0	--	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0.00	0.000

Dodgers June In Review: Riding Out The June Swoon

Eric Stephen — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 07:04:43 -0000

More photos » by Lori Shepler - AP

Andre Ethier was the man in June for the Dodgers, with 9 HR and 22 RBI.

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After an amazing 20-win May, a bumpier ride was expected in June. After all, the Dodgers had not had a winning June in six years. The offense plummeted in June, averaging 3.6 runs per game after a 5.4-per-game May. However, stellar pitching and some amazing clutch-hitting kept the Dodgers afloat for a winning June.

Dodger Batter of the Month: It really was a putrid offensive month for the Dodgers, as only two Dodgers posted an OPS above .800. Matt Kemp posted a nice .305/.350/.474 line with seven steals in eight attempts, but this award easily goes to Andre Ethier. Ethier found his power stroke, hitting nine home runs and hitting .268/.333/.619 while driving in 22 runs. Ethier had three different walkoff hits in June, and for good measure added a three-homer game as well.

Dodger Pitcher of the Month: Clayton Kershaw rebounded from his shortest outing of the season to post three solid efforts to end the month, and ended up with a 2.36 ERA for the month and 28 strikeouts in 26.2 innings. Honorable mention goes to Ronald Belisario, who allowed two runs in the month while striking out 13. Also, Guillermo Mota was stellar as well, allowing only one run, although as Kensai noted at Memories of Kevin Malone, Mota's outings have been in much lower leverage situations this season.

June Record: 14-12 (.538)
93 runs scored (3.58 per game)
97 runs allowed (3.73 per game)
.479 pythagorean winning percentage

June NL West Standings
Club	W-L	Pct	GB	RS	RA
Rockies	21-7	.750	---	154	105
Giants	17-10	.630	3½	118	89
Dodgers	14-12	.538	6	93	97
Padres	9-17	.346	11	91	144
Diamondbacks	9-17	.346	11	124	128

The Dodgers really gave back some ground to the Rockies and Giants, but of course the beauty of a big lead is that it takes a lot to get caught. The return of Manny Ramirez will certainly be welcomed, from an offensive standpoint, but the Dodgers have a comfortable enough lead that they don't need to get their panties in a bunch, at least not yet.

Overall Record: 49-29 (.628)
380 runs scored (4.87 per game)
297 runs allowed (3.81 per game)
.621 pythagorean winning percentage

NL West Standings (thru June 30)
Club	W-L	Pct	GB	RS	RA
Dodgers	49-29	.628	---	380	297
Giants	42-34	.553	6	311	285
Rockies	41-36	.532	7½	392	360
Padres	34-42	.447	14	291	374
Diamondbacks	31-46	.403	17½	341	382

Favorite Game of the Month: In the span of one week, the Dodgers had three comeback wins in games they had no business winning (against the Diamonbacks, then the Phillies twice), and of course there was the Ethier three-dinger game, but my favorite game of June came on the penultimate day of the month. The Dodgers trailed the Rockies 2-0, but scored the tying runs by a two-RBI single by pitcher Randy Wolf, after he induced a balk by trying to call time. Then, the Dodgers used all seven members of their bullpen to pitch one inning apiece before Andre Ethier -- who else? -- ended the game with yet another walk-off home run.

The Pen Is Mightier: The Dodger bullpen was lights out in June, allowing only a 2.31 ERA and 1.018 WHIP. Only three members of pen had an ERA above 2.16 for the month -- two were optioned to the minors (Cory Wade, Travis Schlichting), and the other was closer Jonathan Broxton, who still struck out 21 batters versus 11 baserunners in his 11.2 innings.

Empty Bench: Not counting the six games in which a bench player started at designated hitter, the eight active Dodger regulars in June started 195 of 211 possible games, or 92.4% of the time. Perhaps that is a good thing, since the Dodger bench only hit .190/.257/.230, with six runs, five RBI, and six walks for the entire month.

Amazing Stat of the Month: Russell Martin did finally hit his first home run of the season in June, but he managed to go through June without driving in another Dodger, in all of 94 plate appearances. He has just the one RBI in his last 115 PA, since Memorial Day.

Making Their Debuts: Career minor leaguer Mitch Jones, a 31-year old journeyman who hit 221 homers in ten minor league season, finally made his long-awaited major league debut on June 16. The Dodger Stadium crowd, alerted to Jones's status on the video board during his first major league at-bat, gave Jones a rousing ovation, even as after he struck out. Jones has hit .308/.400/.385 in very limited action, but if you can't root for a guy like Jones, there is something wrong with you.

Travis Schlichting, on the day I asked him about his arrival in the major leagues, made his MLB debut against the Phillies on June 7.

Upcoming Month: The club welcomes Manny back on Friday, July 3 in San Diego, then continues on a road trip to New York and Milwaukee, before the All-Star break. A nine-game homestand with the Astros, Reds, and Marlins follows. The Dodgers end the month with four in St. Louis, followed by a trip to Atlanta. For the month, there are 11 home games and 14 road games, which will even the scales at 52 games both at home and on the road starting August.

Previous Monthly Reviews: April | May

June Stats

Player	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS	wOBA
Ethier	97	11	26	5	1	9	22	9	1/3	.268/.333/.619	.952	.383
Kemp	95	12	29	2	1	4	11	7	7/1	.305/.350/.474	.823	.362
Loney	94	12	24	4	1	3	11	10	2/0	.255/.327/.415	.742	.325
Blake	95	15	25	6	0	2	15	8	2/1	.263/.314/.389	.704	.305
Furcal	90	9	20	5	0	2	6	12	1/1	.222/.314/.344	.658	.296
Pierre	110	11	29	5	0	0	4	5	11/2	.264/.319/.309	.628	.301
Hudson	99	10	22	6	0	2	10	6	2/0	.222/.269/.343	.612	.274
Martin	79	7	15	1	0	1	1	14	0/1	.190/.326/.241	.567	.262
Starters	759	87	190	34	3	23	80	71	26/9	.250/.319/.394	.713
Jones	13	1	4	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	.308/.400/.385	.785	.361
Castro	16	2	5	0	0	0	0	1	0/0	.313/.353/.313	.665	.304
Loretta	40	3	7	2	0	0	4	3	0/0	.175/.233/.225	.458	.212
Ausmus	18	0	2	1	0	0	1	1	0/0	.111/.200/.167	.367	.180
DeWitt	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0/0	.000/.333/.000	.333	.235
Hoffman	7	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.143/.143/.143	.286	.128
Ellis	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.000/.000/.000	.000	.000
Bench	100	6	19	4	0	0	5	6	0/0	.190/.257/.230	.487
Pitchers	25	0	4	0	0	0	3	0	0/0	.160/.160/.160	.320
Totals	884	93	213	38	3	23	88	77	26/9	.241/.308/.369	.677	.300

Pitcher	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	FIP
Kershaw	5	2-2	--	26.2	22	7	7	15	28	2.36	1.388	2.63
Weaver*	1	1-0	--	5.0	6	2	2	0	4	3.60	1.200	4.12
Billingsley	6	3-1	--	38.1	32	18	16	19	34	3.76	1.330	4.19
Kuroda	6	1-4	--	37.1	32	18	17	6	33	4.10	1.018	3.15
Milton	2	0-1	--	9.1	15	7	5	1	10	4.82	1.714	2.61
Wolf	6	0-2	--	32.2	33	19	19	11	17	5.23	1.347	5.89
Starters	26	7-10	--	149.1	140	71	66	52	126	3.98	1.286	3.92
Mota	13	1-1	--	16.0	7	1	1	2	11	0.56	0.563	2.86
Weaver*	4	1-1	--	8.0	11	1	1	1	9	1.13	1.500	1.25
Belisario	14	0-0	--	14.1	11	2	2	2	13	1.26	0.907	1.86
McDonald	3	1-0	--	5.2	5	1	1	1	6	1.59	1.059	3.75
Leach	15	1-0	--	9.0	3	2	2	4	7	2.00	0.778	4.60
Troncoso	14	0-0	1	16.2	11	5	4	9	8	2.16	1.200	5.26
Schlichting	2	0-0	--	2.2	1	2	1	5	2	3.38	2.250	12.04
Broxton	12	1-0	7	11.2	8	5	5	3	21	3.86	0.943	1.33
Wade	8	2-0	--	9.1	8	7	7	3	7	6.75	1.179	7.01
Relievers	26	7-2	8	93.1	65	26	24	30	84	2.31	1.018	3.52
Totals	26	14-12	8	242.2	205	97	90	82	210	3.34	1.183	3.83

*Jeff Weaver's stats were split into his starting and relieving duties.

Sean Connery SNL picture above via www.HFBoards.com

Adjusting To The Show

Eric Stephen — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:36:23 -0000

More photos » by Gus Ruelas - AP

Performing on the baseball field, as Jamie Hoffmann is doing here by hitting his first major league home run, is not the only thing players have to worry about when getting called up to the major leagues.

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Starting tonight, the Dodgers will draft players who will all aspire to be major leaguers someday. Most will not make it. For the select few that do manage to make the big club, their journey will include years of travelling to small cities throughout America as they make their way through the minor leagues.

Baseball players are transient by nature. Their stay at any particular level can change at any time. Minor leaguers are constantly trying to improve, to advance to the next level, so any effort to set roots in a particular stop is counterproductive to the ultimate goal of making the major leagues. Dodger relief pitcher Travis Schlichting began the season in Chattanooga, Tennessee, playing with the Dodgers' AA affiliate, and was called up to the Dodgers on May 31 when Eric Stults was placed on the disabled list. He had a three-month lease on an apartment with a pair of teammates. "Everyone understands how it works," Schlichting says of the temporary nature of minor league life, "you never know where you are going to be from time to time."

Major League Baseball's collective bargaining agreement calls for any player called up to the majors to be put up in a hotel for their first seven days at home. In addition, the called up player receives seven days of per diem -- roughly $90 per day -- as if they were on the road. Scott Akasaki, the Dodgers' Manager of Team Travel, oversees these accommodations. When a player gets called up or sent down, Akasaki is one of the first to know. For instance, the callup of Blake DeWitt wasn't announced until Sunday afternoon, but Akasaki was making plans regarding DeWitt before the game on Saturday.

Akasaki noted that the Dodgers' relationship with hotels is important. "The hotels know that callups and injuries are a part of it," he said. Getting a room or two on a moment's notice is often necessary, as was the case with catcher A.J. Ellis. Ellis was recalled from AAA Albuquerque in the middle of a road trip, on May 29, while the club was in Chicago. Even though hotel rooms are reserved in advance, Akasaki noted it isn't difficult to secure an extra room if needed.

Outfielder Jamie Hoffmann has been living out of a hotel for a month. After Jason Repko was placed on the minor league disabled list on May 12, Hoffmann was promoted from Chattanooga to Albuquerque. The Isotopes were in the middle of a road trip at the time, and before he could play a home game in AAA, Hoffmann was called up to the Dodgers to replace the injured Xavier Paul. Hoffmann, who still had an apartment in Chattanooga through the end of May, has been a quick study in the major league lifestyle. "I'm getting used to them making my bed for me, and living out of a suitcase, that's for sure," he said.

Having to deal with a life-changing event like becoming a major leaguer -- a lifelong dream for many players -- is not as simple as adjusting to more talented competition. There are many distractions, from dealing with an existing apartment lease in another city, or arranging tickets for your parents or family members to come to watch you play. In many ways, being on the field -- even in front of larger crowds than they've ever played for -- provides welcome relief. Schlichting noted how calm he has felt in the bullpen, although the daily tasks of filling up the bullpen cooler with drinks and stocking the bullpen with sunflower seeds and gum have provided a regimented distraction.

Hoffmann seems to have perspective on getting called up to the major leagues. "I wouldn't say it's distracting," he said, "It's the same game, just a lot better competition, a lot more fans, some funner cities. You just have to relax." With all that goes into becoming a major leaguer, perhaps that is the best advice.

Dodgers Week 9 In Review: Still On Cloud 9

Eric Stephen — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:39:53 -0000

More photos » by Lori Shepler - AP

Andre Ethier was the Dodger offense in Week 9

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Previous Weekly Recaps: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

The Dodgers in many ways had their worst week of the season in week nine, as they struggled offensively, and were outscored during a week for the first time all season. They did not lead a game by more than one run at any point during the week. Yet, despite this relatively poor week, the club finished 4-3, and have still not had a losing week all season.

The main reason the Dodgers finished the week with a winning record was their ability to come back from deficits. They won games with win expectancies of 2.0%, 4.0%, and 9.5%, respectively. Of the 18 runs the club scored during the week, 11 were scored in the 8th inning or later.

Dodger Batter of the Week: Andre Ethier provided the bulk of the offense this week. After a lackluster May, Ethier powered six extra-base hits during the first week of June, and had walk-off hits in back-to-back games. The last Dodger to have walk-off hits in back-to-back games was Nomar Garciaparra, who turned the trick in May of 2006. James Loney, with an .833 OPS, was the only other Dodger to have an OPS over .701 for the week.

Dodger Pitcher of the Week: Guillermo Mota hasn't given up a run in three weeks, but he often pitches in low-leverage situations so it would be hard to justify giving him this award. Chad Billingsley won his only start, pitching a scoreless six innings. However, I'm going with Jonathan Broxton this week, since he faced 13 batters and retired 12 of them, eight via strikeout. Broxton got a win and two saves for his efforts.

Week 9 Record: 4-3
18 runs scored (2.57 per game)
23 runs allowed (3.29 per game)
.380 pythagorean winning percentage

Overall Seasonal Record: 39-20
305 runs scored (5.17 per game)
223 runs allowed (3.78 per game)
.652 pythagorean winning percentage

Manny Suspension Countdown: 30 games down, 20 games to go; 25 days until July 3 at Petco Park

Welcome Aboard: Travis Schlichting made his major league debut on Sunday against the Phillies, allowing one run -- a home run to Ryan Howard -- in 1.2 innings, walking three while striking out two.

Welcome Back: Hiroki Kuroda came back after eight weeks on the disabled list, to pitch two strong games, allowing only two runs in his two starts. Blake DeWitt also returned to the team, on Sunday, after spending about five weeks in Albuquerque.

Upcoming Week: The Dodgers have off days Monday and Thursday, and play the Padres in between for two games. Then the club travels to Texas for it's shortest road trip of the season (three games) as interleague play starts again.

Week 9 Stats

Player	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
Ethier	27	5	10	3	0	3	5	1	.370/.393/.815	1.208
Loney	25	3	8	1	1	0	4	3	.320/.393/.440	.833
Furcal	22	3	5	1	0	1	2	2	.227/.292/.409	.701
Pierre	30	2	9	1	0	0	1	1	.300/.344/.333	.677
Kemp	24	2	7	1	0	0	1	1	.292/.320/.333	.653
Hudson	21	1	3	1	0	0	2	3	.143/.280/.190	.470
Blake	19	2	4	1	0	0	2	0	.211/.200/.263	.463
Martin	18	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	.056/.105/.056	.161
Castro	7	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	.286/.375/.286	.661
Hoffmann	6	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	.167/.167/.167	.333
Loretta	14	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000/.000/.000	.000
Ausmus	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000/.000/.000	.000
DeWitt	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000/.000/.000	.000
Pitchers	10	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	.200/.200/.200	.400
Totals	231	18	52	9	1	4	17	13	.225/.271/.325	.596

Pitcher	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
Billingsley	1	1-0	--	6.0	4	0	0	4	9	0.00	1.333
Kuroda	2	0-1	--	11.0	5	2	2	6	11	1.64	1.000
Milton	1	0-0	--	4.1	8	3	1	1	3	2.08	2.077
Kershaw	1	0-1	--	5.1	4	2	2	3	5	3.38	1.313
Wolf	2	0-1	--	12.1	15	11	11	3	5	8.03	1.459
Broxton	4	1-0	2	4.0	1	0	0	0	8	0.00	0.250
Mota	4	0-0	--	5.1	2	0	0	1	3	0.00	0.563
Troncoso	3	0-0	--	4.0	4	0	0	2	1	0.00	1.500
Weaver	1	1-0	--	2.0	3	0	0	0	2	0.00	1.500
Wade	3	1-0	--	4.2	2	1	1	3	4	1.93	1.071
Leach	4	0-0	--	2.2	2	1	1	1	3	3.38	1.125
Schlichting	1	0-0	--	1.2	1	1	1	3	2	5.40	2.400
Belisario	3	0-0	--	2.2	4	2	2	0	1	6.75	1.500
Totals	7	4-3	2	66.0	55	23	21	27	57	2.86	1.242

New Arms of the Week - First of June

Harry Pavlidis — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:00:23 -0000

More photos » by Tom Gannam - AP

Jess Todd was one of two Memphis Redbirds who got the call last week.

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This week we introduce nine young pitchers from three countries. PITCHf/x data after the jump.

Antonio Bastardo (PHI) Undrafted Free Agent 2007 - 9/21/85 Hato Mayor, Dominican Republic - Started 2009 closing games in Double-A and made two starts in the Majors this week

Tommy Hanson (ATL) - 22nd round 2006 Riverside Community College - 8/28/86 Tulsa, OK - We've seen Tommy's PITCHf/x before thanks to an exhibition start in April; the only shock about his call-up is that it coincided with the release of Tom Glavine

Blake Hawksworth (STL) 28th round 2001 - Bellevue Community College - 3/1/83 North Vancouver, BC - Second stint in Triple-A Memphis was a big improvement over 2008

Steven Jackson (PIT) 10th round 2004 by Arizona - Clemson University - 3/15/82 Eutawville, SC - Waived by the Yankees in May, was part of the Randy Johnson trade in 2007

Matt Maloney (CIN) 3rd round 2005 by PHI - University of Mississippi - 1/16/84 Sandusky, OH - Known for his command, acquired from the Phillies in 2007 in the Kyle Lohse trade

Vin Mazzaro (OAK) 3rd round 2005 - Rutherford High School - 9/27/86 Hackensack, NJ - Proved tough to hit in his second brief stint in Triple-A and was a two-start pitcher this week for the A's

Travis Schlichting (LAD) 4th round 2003 by TB - Round Rock High School - 10/29/84 Denver, CO - Drafted as an infielder, the Dodgers are his third team, and first to call him up

Jess Todd (STL) 2nd round 2007 - University of Arkansas - 4/20/86 Kilgore, TX - Moved to the bullpen for 2009, had 32 K and 7 BB in 24.1 innings for Memphis; played in 2008 Futures Game, so this isn't his first look via PITCHf/x

Wes Whisler (CHA) 2nd round 2004 - UCLA - 4/7/83 Noblesville, IN - Not overwhelming stuff (just 4.8 K/9) but attractive Triple-A ERAs (3.92, 2.81)

Key:
CH = change-up
CU = curveball
F2 = Two-seam fastball (sinker)
F4 = Four-seam fastball (fastball)
FC = Cutter
FS = Splitter
SL = Slider or Slurve
pfx_x = spin movement in inches, lateral (negative is to catcher's left)
pfx_z = spin movement in inches, vertical (negative top spin/more sink than gravity)
deg = spin axis, adjusted for arm angle
rpm = spin rate

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Wes Whisler	CH	5	0	5	79.7	6.5	4.4	122.1	1,483.3
Wes Whisler	F2	3	2	1	89.1	10.2	3.6	109.4	2,143.6
Wes Whisler	F4	17	12	5	88.7	5.8	9.4	147.2	2,217.5
Wes Whisler	SL	5	2	3	84.5	1.7	4.2	158.3	865.9

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Steven Jackson	CH	18	7	11	84.5	-7.3	5.7	231.8	1,765.2
Steven Jackson	F2	41	19	22	90.9	-6.5	8.2	218.1	2,119.4
Steven Jackson	F4	9	4	5	91.2	-3.1	11.1	194.9	2,333.3
Steven Jackson	SL	10	0	10	83.8	1.3	3.8	147.6	887.0

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Antonio Bastardo	CH	14	0	14	84.9	7.1	9.4	142.4	2,223.1
Antonio Bastardo	F4	161	63	98	92.9	5.3	11.3	154.5	2,571.6
Antonio Bastardo	SL	29	18	11	83.0	-2.0	3.1	222.1	808.2

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Blake Hawksworth	CH	6	3	3	82.5	-9.7	1.6	260.5	1,808.6
Blake Hawksworth	CU	7	2	5	76.3	2.4	-5.8	22.8	1,069.6
Blake Hawksworth	F2	14	10	4	92.8	-10.3	5.0	244.0	2,361.6
Blake Hawksworth	SL	1	0	1	87.0	-2.3	2.7	219.8	691.4

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Travis Schlichting	CH	4	4	0	86.4	-8.1	4.4	241.7	1,762.7
Travis Schlichting	F2	24	15	9	94.0	-7.3	7.7	223.3	2,220.9
Travis Schlichting	F4	6	3	3	93.8	-4.5	9.8	204.6	2,229.4
Travis Schlichting	SL	6	1	5	83.6	2.7	0.9	105.9	581.3

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Tommy Hanson	CH	1	1	0	83.8	-2.8	8.0	199.3	1,600.6
Tommy Hanson	CU	29	15	14	76.0	7.1	-7.4	44.1	1,738.1
Tommy Hanson	F2	4	3	1	92.4	-9.0	6.0	236.3	2,250.8
Tommy Hanson	F4	92	35	57	93.6	-5.8	8.8	213.5	2,229.7
Tommy Hanson	SL	32	8	24	84.4	3.0	0.7	110.3	736.8

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Matthew Maloney	CH	34	0	34	80.3	10.3	5.8	119.3	2,107.5
Matthew Maloney	CU	6	1	5	72.5	-2.9	-5.8	276.5	1,063.9
Matthew Maloney	F4	45	4	41	89.2	7.8	10.3	142.8	2,538.2
Matthew Maloney	SL	4	1	3	78.7	0.9	-2.1	26.9	435.8

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Vin Mazzaro	CH	15	14	1	86.7	-6.8	3.4	243.2	1,466.0
Vin Mazzaro	CU	17	5	12	82.3	2.6	-2.8	41.1	720.1
Vin Mazzaro	F2	139	71	68	93.5	-9.3	5.8	237.4	2,292.4
Vin Mazzaro	F4	4	1	3	94.4	-6.7	9.2	215.7	2,379.1
Vin Mazzaro	SL	34	7	27	86.5	0.0	2.7	182.3	616.0

Pitcher	Pitch	#	v LHH	v RHH	MPH	pfx_x	pfx_z	Deg	RPM
Jesse Todd	CH	2	1	1	82.9	-3.9	0.5	261.9	760.8
Jesse Todd	F2	19	12	7	90.1	-3.7	2.8	232.3	951.4
Jesse Todd	F4	24	12	12	90.3	-2.5	4.8	205.8	1,107.9
Jesse Todd	SL	16	7	9	84.7	2.7	-0.6	103.1	662.6

Background info from Baseball Cube and Minor League Ball

SB Nation - Travis Schlichting

How Dodgers Became Dodgers: Where Pedro Astacio Becomes Blake DeWitt

Speed Check - AFL vs. MLB

Dodger Roster Breakdown

Free Agents (13+1)

Options (2)

Arbitration Eligible (9)

Under Contract (4)

Under Team Control (15)

Dodgers Season In Thirds

Catcher

Infield

Outfield

Pinch Hitters

Starting Pitchers

Relievers

Kemp & Ethier Rule The Day For Dodgers

Dodgers Season In Thirds

Catcher

Infield

Outfield

Starting Pitchers

Relievers

Dodgers June In Review: Riding Out The June Swoon

June Stats

Adjusting To The Show

Dodgers Week 9 In Review: Still On Cloud 9

Week 9 Stats

New Arms of the Week - First of June