What? Me Worry?
Ahh, loved Mad Magazine and ole Alfred. Some of the funniest stuff I have ever read. Loved the Spy vs. Spy comics. How is that a subject for a baseball blog you might ask. Well, I got to thinking about it the other day when this place seemed to go off it s collective rocker about the need for urgency being 4 games back on the 16th of August which was actually
Ahh, loved Mad Magazine and ole’ Alfred. Some of the funniest stuff I have ever read. Loved the Spy vs. Spy comics. How is that a subject for a baseball blog you might ask. Well, I got to thinking about it the other day when this place seemed to go off it’s collective rocker about the need for urgency being 4 games back on the 16th of August…which was actually yesterday.
The Dodgers, coming home from an over night flight from New York, not getting in until 4:15 according to their manager, everyone’s favorite whipping boy, Dave Roberts, ran what most called a AAA lineup out to face the lowly Pirates. No one needs rest, they are professional athletes. How can guys in that physical condition need rest? They got 8 hours sleep. I did so and so for 20 years, and went out and partied and still went to work the next day. Just an example of what some of the posts sounded like.
Did they get 8 hours? Most likely not. They might have arrived at LAX at 4:15. But by the time they deplaned, got their luggage and finally arrived home, it was most likely after 5. And then they probably did not get to sleep until close to 6. I do not know about you, but sleeping during the day, even at my age, is not all that easy to do. And it is very quiet where I live. Most of those guys live out in the suburbs. So, they have to be at the stadium at say, 4:00 PM for that nights game. Davis related how Seager’s kids woke him up at 7 Am, and he had not gotten in bed until close to 6.
And they have to eat something sometime that day. So they get up around 2PM. Bright eyed and bushy tailed? I doubt that. Long trips on planes are not exceptionally restful. Charter flights even less so. You cannot lie down, or for the most part, stretch out. Legs and backs can stiffen up. But these are athletes right? Prime condition. They should get out of the plane ready to play 9. They get in their cars and drive to the Stadium. Go through their pregame routines, and get ready for the game.
Anyway, as the game went on, they had trouble generating offense, made some mental errors and one on the field. Turner’s was changed to a hit. And found themselves behind by one late in the game. By now the wolves are howling at the moon on here. They do this all the time after they score a lot, we cannot afford to lose any more ground to the Giants, Don’t they feel any urgency? I would think the players know exactly what is going on and how well they need to play.
There is not one single poster on this site who knows what the mood or the feeling is in that dugout. Urgency? I think they might have felt we can still win this. These guys have lost 70 plus games. We are clearly the better team, so lets show it. McKinney gets the run back with a HR. His first as a Dodger. And then in the 8th, Muncy retaliates for being hit with a blast deep into the RF Pavilion.
Jansen comes in, and of course everyone’s blood pressure rises 20 points. Is Jansen going to blow another?? Kenley gets the first hitter, and then the newest Pirate, Dodger castoff takes the pitch where it was thrown and gets a double with one out. Panic is now high. He moves to 3rd on a out. And Jansen gets the last hitter to roll over on one and a meek ball hit to Muncy, win # 73 in the bank.
The point is, wait until the game is over before you lose your mind. This team has a lot of focused players. Guys who have been through this before. They are professionals. They all know they have no control over what happens with the Giants, who keep finding ways to win. Bryant hit 2 HR’s last night in their win. They also know they need to take care of their own business. A 5-1 road trip proves they know the score, and winning another gut check 1 run game can do nothing but boost their confidence in the ability to overcome those kinds of games they were losing before. I also thought I would look back over the years, but only since they have been playing 162, see where they were on the 16th of August and where they ended up.
First year was 1962. Up 3.5 on the 16th. Tied for the pennant with the Giants, lost 2 of 3 in the playoffs. 1963, up 4. Won the pennant and the World Series. 1964, 12.5 back. Never in the race. Even with Koufax back at full health and Big D. Rest of the staff was pitiful. 1965 1/2 game up. Won the pennant by 2 games, beat the Twins in the series. 1966. Up 3. Dog fight the rest of the way and won by 1.5 games. Lost series. 1967 and 1968, never even close in the race. 1969 1.5 back. Ended up 8 back. Had a very bad September.
1970. 12 back. Never in the race. 1971. 6.5 back. Made a run the last 2 months, but finished 1 back even after winning 5 of their last 6. 1972. 9.5 back. Never made a run, finished 10.5 back. 1973 Up 2.5. Lost the lead by the 3rd of September, and finished 4 back. 1974. Up 4.5. They ended up winning by 4 games. They had as much as a 10.5 game lead in July. 1975 and 1976, no shot. The Big Red Machine owned the West those two years. 1977 Up 11. Won the division by 10. 1978 Up 1. Went 25 -17 the rest of the way to win by 2.5 games.
1979 14.5 back. Never in it. 1980 .5 back. Tied with the Astros on the last day. Lost game 163 to lose the division. No wild card, so no playoff. In 1981 they were on strike in August and did not play 162 games. 1982 Up 1.5. Stayed in first or tied until the 28th of September and lost by 1 game. 1983.4.5 Back. Went 26-19 over last 45 games and won by 3. The closest match to where they are now. 1984 12 back. Never in the race.
1985. 9 Up. won by 5.5. 1986 10 back, never in the race. 1987. 9 back, never in the race. 1988. Up 3.5. Won by 7. 1989. 12 back. Never got close. 1990. 9 back. Picked up 4 but finished 2nd to the Reds 5 games back. 1991 Up 1.5 Knocked out of a tie with the Braves on the last day when Joe Morgan hit a HR off of Terry Forster. 1992..we all know they were never close in that year. 1993. 20 back. 1994 and 1995 were both strike-shortened years. They were up 2 games in 1995 and ended up winning by 1, but were beat in the first round of the playoffs.
1996. Tied. Ended up losing the division by 1 to the Padres. Beaten in the playoffs. 1997 1.5 back. Finished 2 out. 1998 18 back. Never got close. 1999 15 back. Finished 3rd, 23 games back. 2000. 6.5 back. Finished 11 back. 2001. 3.5 back. Finished in 3rd, 6 games back. 2002. 8 back. Finished in 3rd again, 6 games back despite winning 92 games. 2003. 10.5 back. Never got close. Finished 15.5 back of SF. 2004. 5.5 Up. Won the division by 2. Helped by a dramatic walk-off Grand Slam on the next to the last day against the Giants by Steve Finley.
2005. 5 back. Ended up in 4th, 11 back. 2006. Up 2.5. Ended up tied with the Padres, Beaten by the Mets in the playoffs. 2007. 6.5 back. Finished in 4th, 8 back. 2008. 1 back. Won division by 2. Beat Cubs in NLDS, Lost to Phils in NLCS. 2009. 5 Up. Won division by 3. Lost NLCS to Phillies again. 2010. 11 Back. Finished 4th 11 Back. 2011. 13.5 back. Picked up 2 games but finished in 3rd. 2012. 1/2 game up. All downhill after that finished 8 back of the Giants. 2013. 8.5 Up. Won division by 11. 2014. 4 Up, won division by 6. 2015, 2.5 up. Won division by 8. 2016. 1/2 game up. Won division by 4. 2017. 18.5 up. Won division by 11. You can lose ground as this team did. But they had an insurmountable lead.
2018. 2 back. Tied for division lead on last day, won game 163 to win the division. 2019. 19.5 games up. Lost NLDS to Nationals. So, there you have it. Only one season where they were about where they were yesterday, 1983. So no, I am not really worried about the Dodgers. This team has way more talent than any of those teams had. Granted, the only minus to me is the lack of remaining games against the Giants. But the healthier they get, the better I feel. Relax guys. The real fun is just beginning.
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Discussion (193)
Disagree, not disagreeable
How dat Mitch White ?!
What a gutsy performance to spell the bullpen. First Dodgers reliever to go 7.1 scoreless since 1960! Hats off to the kid.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why was Bruihl removed with 2 out in the 2nd inning? The next hitter was a lefty and we brought in White who is a righty. Since Bruihl was due up in the 3rd & could have been removed for a pinch hitter it would seem to be a better move.
I’m gonna have to sleep on it tonight to see what I’m going to complain about. But I’m sure Roberts did something stupid tonight
White went 7 1/3 shut out innings. I think he can easily step into a starting role and not need an opener. With another BP game tomorrow, then Butane, Scherzer and Price. Offense did a good job. Muncy with 2 dingers, Pollock getting 3 hits including a HR, and Seager cracking a 2 run shot. Bottom of the lineup no help. Lux still could not hit water if he fell out of a boat.
If anyone deserved a night off, it’s CT3. I guess if you’re gonna rest a bunch of guys, you might as well do it against the Pirates, who you own at home. It’s already a great day when the Giants and Padres both lose. Hard for me to decide which is sweeter, the Padres losing the Rockies or the Giants losing to a good team. I hope the Mets can continue their funk for exactly 4 more days.
I am really rooting for Mitch White to take the next step tonight. I’m really feeling that quality start if the guys can get him a lead to work with. I’ve always liked him for the weird reason that he went to the same college as my nephew. I think his stuff is capable and that he just needs to dig deep and find a little bulldog in him. Maybe he should hang out with Vesia or Bueller more.
Bear, you really should read “The Catcher in the Rye”. It’s a classic for a reason and it’s an easy and entertaining read. No matter your reading preference, I’m sure you’ll find it enjoyable. I remember laughing a lot while reading it and not wanting to put it down. It’s a short read, you can knock it out in a couple of days and I’m sure you won’t regret the time spent on it.
I spent some time reading testimony from the case today, catching up on Day 1 and Day 2. I guess there’s no new “evidence” on Bauer, everything has already been heard before. Clevenger’s life got turned upside down as a result of this and he looks like the biggest creep with the most to lose. I found it interesting that Bauer’s defense team has argued that he doesn’t meet the requirements of the restraining order. I’m not going attempt to translate the legal reasons, but to put it in layman’s terms, you have to be more than just a “bootie call” to meet the requirement for domestic abuse. The relationship has to be more than purely physical in nature. I’ll save my opinions on how his accuser handled her responses to Bauer’s attorney’s question since I don’t what to start another S-Show. But, let’s just say she didn’t do a great job.
With no new evidence I would hard pressed to think the PPD would press charges. You would think that would be wrapped up pretty soon, except for the fact that this involves a guy who has come out pretty hard against the commissioner in the past. Then the external factors, politics and new CBA right around the corner. There’s no telling how this will end. I still think the path of least resistance is to suspend him for the year and come back when people’s attention is diverted to the next news cycle. Then the fan in me still hopes for the off chance that he’s pitching in big games down the stretch and is a postseason hero.
Wouldn’t that be a strange ending for the strangest of seasons?
The Giants and Padres have already lost. I think the team should put their beast offensive lineup in. That means T. Turner Should definately be in the lineup and should leadoff. Forget days off today. We want the Dodgers to be 3 games out when the game is over! Put a scare into the Giants tonight.
No surprise. Trevor Bauer will be taking the 5th in his restraining order trial. His attorney has asked the Judge if he could make it a blanket claim and not take the stand. He did cite a case in support. The Judge will render her decision on the 5th tomorrow AM. I am not following the trial, but just got a push notification from Twitter, and thought I would share.
I think we already knew that today Turner and Taylor would have a day off tonight, everyone else already had it, only they were the only ones who had not rested
I know many on here are very pro-Gabe Kapler, but I bet that the 2nd guessers will be out for Gabe tonight. After 10 innings, the Giants had already used 23 of the 26 players on the roster. They used 9 pitchers and all 14 of their position players. Their only players that did not enter were starting pitchers, Gausman, Wood, and Webb. What made it even more special was pitcher Tyler Chatwood striking out to end the game. They had nobody else to bring in.
Also what kind of moron is Kapler for taking out Rogers and putting in Jake McGee. McGee blew his 4th save tonight. What a bum. (sarcasm alert).
Mets used all position players except catcher James McCann, and used 7 pitchers of their own.
Tonight’s lineup:
LF AJ
1b Max
3b Justin
SS Corey
c Will
CF Cody
RF Billy
2b Gavin
P Bruihl
No Trea or CT3
Hidden blessings I reckon. Usually never on here after work, but torrential downpours and flash flooding in the area so my 2.5mi “cardio & body weight exercise” around the lake got cancelled. Getting to see the midgets lose more than makes up for that. Thanks Mets! Now time for us to DO SOMETHING about it.
cheers
pb+
Posey strikes out. Slater flies out. Yaz to 3rd two out. Chatwood up. Chatwood strikes out. Mets win 6-2.
GIANTS LOST.
Former Dodger Jake Reed in to pitch the 12th. Yaz on second, Posey, Slater and a pinch hitter coming up. Giants have no position players left, looks like Chatwood or another pitcher will have to hit in that spot. Only 3 players who have not played, Wood, Gausman and Webb.
Pillar pegó jonron de 3 carreras en la entrada 11 ante Chatwood, con suerte gana Mets
Pillar… You are the best, thanks!!
HOME RUN METS! 5-2 ……. gosh I hope that holds.d
edit
6-2 now thanks to a 150 batter, gotta love it.
Smith K’s, Mazeika singles on the 7 the pitch. Smith to 3rd. Pillar up. Pillar hits a 3 run HR, Mets up 5-2 with one out in the 12th.
Giants coming up in the 11th, down 2-1. Familia now pitching for the Mets, LaStella, Bryant and Belt are a combined 0-11 with 4 K’s today. LaStella singles in the tying run. Bryant K’s Belt grounds out, LaStella to 2nd. Crawford up. 0-4 so far.
Padres lose again to the Rockies 7-5. Mets and Giants tied in the top of the 9th.
Muncy: 1B, 2B, 3b
Betts: RF, CF, 2B
Belli: CF, RF, 1B
TT: 2B, SS, CF
CT3: SS, 2B, 3B, LF, CF, RF
Pollock: LF, CF
Lux: 2B, SS, 3B
It seems that everyone is willing to play where it is necessary and where the team needs it with the exception of Seager who only wants to play SS
I cannot remember a year where I have seen this many players. DFA’d, placed on release waivers, put on the IL< or lost via a waiver claim in years. Seems like guys are dropping like flies. Spring went back on the IL after less than a month off of it. Jack Morris suspended by the Tigers and their broadcasting partners, Bally Sports, after making a racial slur against Shohei Ohtani yesterday.
Giants getting great work from their pen today. 1-0 in the 7th. Mets just living up to the criticism leveled at them by their owner today. Rockies up on the Padres in the 7th, 7-5.
Hopefully it won’t take as long to figure out Lux can’t play third as it did with Joc at first base last year! Tough first game back for Gavin. But I’m not giving up on the young man. He struggled his first year in the minors when he first signed so I want to see how he adapts next year. Can’t give up on a guy who was the minor league player of the year. Hang in there Gavin and remember swing at the fastballs in the zone and take the ones that aren’t!
I’m not worried but it would sure be nice to see the Giants lose a game or two. Man, who are those guys !