GOOD NIGHT, L.A.. BASEBALL.Byline: STEVE DILBECK So long, see ya, have a swell next two months. Let's all wave goodbye as our two Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, baseball teams head into the sunset. It's a little ahead of schedule, and plenty sooner than they'd want to admit, but it's time It's Time was a successful political campaign run by the Australian Labor Party (ALP) under Gough Whitlam at the 1972 election in Australia. Campaigning on the perceived need for change after 23 years of conservative (Liberal Party of Australia) government, Labor put forward a to own up to the obvious. The Dodgers are done. The Angels are done. They just don't have it this year. Two teams struggling to be average. Two teams struggling to register a pulse. It's hard to say which team has been more disappointing. Certainly, coming off a memorable World Series victory, the Angels' mediocre play has been stunning. But the Dodgers have the best pitching in baseball and still hover around .500. If we had a real commissioner, it would be against the law. As we all know, the Dodgers cannot hit. Now if you work for the Dodgers and actually mention this, you are either sent to the woodshed wood·shed n. A shed in which firewood is stored. intr.v. wood·shed·ded, wood·shed·ding, wood·sheds Slang To practice on a musical instrument. Noun 1. (pitcher Carlos Perez) or are fired (hitting coach Jack Clark Jack Clark may refer to:
In a clever move to prevent having to ax another hitting coach, the insecure Dodgers replaced Clark with George Hendrick The Dodgers, of course, remain very much in the wild-card race in the National League. At least, mathematically speaking. Speaking like a coherent person with two functioning eyes and a general semblance of sanity, they are more over than the typewriter. They are about to make like ``Gigli'' and disappear. ``There's 52 games to play,'' said Dodgers manager Jim Tracy
Tracy said this before Jeromy Burnitz
Sean Thomas Casey (born on July 2, 1974, Willingboro, New Jersey), nicknamed "the Mayor," is a first baseman in Major League Baseball currently a Free Agent after not being re-signed by the Detroit drive in the left-field corner, and then lost his glove as he chased after the ricocheting ball. He went after it with both arms churning like a sprinter, looking rather naked, ``Gloveless'' Jeromy Burnitz. And while it is true the Dodgers still have time to charge back into the race for the wild card, they have shown us absolutely nothing to lead anyone to believe it can happen. Last time they were at Dodger Stadium • • [ , they left for what players called a make-or-break nine-game road trip. Time to dig deep and find what the Dodgers had. They promptly went 2-7. Averaged a whopping one run per game the first seven games of the trip. Since June 21 when the Dodgers were 44-29 and tied for the National League West lead, they have gone a staggering 12-26. In the process they have fallen 13 1/2 games back of the Giants in the West and 6 1/2 behind the Phillies for the wild card. They not only have to get incredibly hot just to take the wild-card lead, they have to pass six other teams in the process. This could happen. And Mike Tyson could start a new career as a successful money manager. Despite Tuesday's 5-2 victory over what's left of the Cincinnati Reds - four runs coming against Danny Graves (4-12, 5.30 ERA) - there is little to believe the offense will suddenly come to life. If it does, Hendrick goes immediately into the Hall of Fame. Hendrick's first official act Tuesday was to call a pregame meeting of all position players, no doubt afraid no one would show for a hitter's meeting. The offense looked limp to begin the season, and then Brian Jordan and Fred McGriff fell to injury. They could not handle the loss and have appeared flat, lifeless. Their Triple-A team is the Las Vegas 51s The Las Vegas 51s (formerly the Las Vegas Stars) are a minor league baseball team. They are the AAA affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They play at Cashman Field (capacity 9,334) in Las Vegas, Nevada. The team competes in the Pacific Coast League. . The Dodgers should be renamed the Los Angeles 16s, as in their dead-last ranking in every major NL offensive category. The Angels have an entire set of other problems. Management elected to keep last year's team almost entirely intact, which seemed almost sentimental, but failed to bring any new fire to the clubhouse. The Angels' biggest problem has remained starting pitching, but the more shocking disappointment has been the offensive plummet. The power has fallen, the little ball has shrunk beyond recognition, the general spirit seemingly spent by last year's storybook sto·ry·book n. A book containing a collection of stories, usually for children. adj. Occurring in or resembling the style or content of a storybook: storybook characters; a storybook romance. run. They blew a 5-1 lead in Boston on Tuesday, leaving them 12 games behind the Red Sox for the wild card in the American League. Go ahead, give 'em all one of those float-queen waves. Blow 'em a kiss. Find other summer sporting diversions. College football is starting up. The kids will be called up to Dodger Stadium and Edison Field soon. There are always beach balls to bounce around the stadium. As for playoff baseball, forget it. Dodgers and Angels, done. |
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