ODIOUS, OMINOUS OUTING : NATIONAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES 1996 SAN DIEGO VS. ST. LOUIS.Byline: Kevin Modesti Well, the Dodgers did produce one highlight Sunday. In the top of the eighth inning, with Doug Dascenzo Douglas Craig Dascenzo (born June 30, 1964, in Cleveland, Ohio) was a Major League Baseball outfielder. He is an alumnus of Oklahoma State University and a graduate of Brownsville Area High School in Brownsville, Pennsylvania. sprinting home from second base on a single by Steve Finley Steven Allen Finley (born March 12 1965, in Union City, Tennessee) is a Major League Baseball center fielder who bats and throws left-handed. He currently is a free agent, and has been working out on a regular basis since his release, hopeful a call will come from a team looking , right fielder right fielder n. Baseball The player who defends right field. Noun 1. right fielder - the person who plays right field outfielder - (baseball) a person who plays in the outfield Raul Mondesi threw a 150-foot strike to Mike Piazza Michael Joseph Piazza (born September 4, 1968 in Norristown, Pennsylvania) is an American Major League Baseball player who currently plays for the Oakland Athletics. He began his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers and played for the Florida Marlins, New York Mets, San Diego Padres to prolong a scoreless tie. So dramatic was the moment that nearly an hour later, even as the San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. Padres celebrated a 2-0, 11-inning victory and a three-game series sweep, some of the 53,270 Dodger Stadium • • [ fans were still calling for Mondesi. ``Rauuuul!'' they chanted. ``Rauuuul!'' I'm sure that's what they were saying. Yes, the fans had their game faces on, including a couple painted Dodgers blue and white. It was almost as if this was a meaningful regular-season finale between teams tied for first place in the National League West, instead of a contest between clubs already guaranteed at least a wild-card playoff berth. And the fans, as usual, were right. It was a meaningful game. It means the Dodgers are in big trouble heading into the division series against the Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. From to the present, the Braves have played in Turner Field. . Is this any way to go into the playoffs? Having lost four straight and seven of your last 11 games? Having scored five runs on 24 hits in your last 39 innings? With Wednesday's likely starting lineup For the line of action figures, see . A starting lineup in sports refers to the set of players actively participating in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes coming off a .232 homestand (.201 if you exclude Eric Karros By the time they face the first pitch from Atlanta's John Smoltz John Andrew Smoltz (born May 15, 1967 in Warren, Michigan) is a Major League Baseball player currently playing with the Atlanta Braves. He is predominantly known as a starter and former Cy Young Award winner. , the Dodgers will have gone a full week without a home run. Maybe the first hint they'd be in trouble Sunday was something Karros said after Saturday's 4-2 loss. ``Hopefully,'' he said, ``tomorrow we can start turning things around.'' Game 162 is a little late. But it's the only game they had. Sorry, nothing turned around, even against the formerly struggling Bob Tewksbury Tewksbury was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 19th round of the 1981 draft. and rookie Dario Veras. Part of it was sheer fatigue. Piazza, in particular, needs the two days off before the playoffs but said that might not be enough. Manager Bill Russell Noun 1. Bill Russell - United States basketball center (born in 1934) William Felton Russell, Russell decided Sunday's game was worth winning and played his catcher for nine innings. Part of it was bad timing. Three rally-killing double plays, one on a grounder by Karros after Piazza struck out with the fans on their feet in the ninth. Other explanations for the sudden collapse of a team that was winning at a .750 clip for more than a month? I don't have any. Too much pressure on the final weekend? Too little to play for once the wild card was clinched Friday? Distracted by Fan Appreciation Day prizes? To paraphrase a shoe company, you don't win the wild card, you lose the NL West. And if you're the Dodgers, along the way you lose your batting stroke and what had been some considerable momentum going into the playoffs. Not that the Dodgers have nothing to look forward to. ``For this club, the best thing probably is to get away for a day or two,'' Karros said. Before Sunday, the Dodgers first baseman had preached the importance of going into the playoffs on the rise. ``Now,'' he said, ``I'm going to say it doesn't matter what happens in the regular season. That's going to be my rallying cry.'' The Dodgers were determined not to be gloomy, even after becoming perhaps the first team in major-league history to head into the playoffs without anything like a champagne celebration. They clinched a postseason spot on a night they could have won the division. Who felt like a party? Sunday, they hung around the clubhouse a little longer than usual but only to let the parking lot clear. ``We're in the playoffs. Obviously we must have done something right to get there,'' Piazza said, cutting through the gloom. ``This team should be proud of itself. We had a lot of adversity and overcame it.'' They just didn't feel like dancing. The Padres danced enough for all of Southern California, turning the Dodger Stadium pitching mound into their own private mosh pit. For the first time in the three games since they drew within division-clinching range, Dodgers officials did not make an eighth-inning announcement Sunday afternoon asking fans to remain off the field after the last out. They didn't need to. They could see as clearly as anybody where this one was heading. And where the Dodgers are heading - home - if they don't figure out something soon. Tuesday San Diego (Hamilton 15-9) at St. Louis (Stlmyre 14-11), 1:07 p.m. (ESPN ESPN Entertainment and Sports Programming Network ) Thursday San Deigo (undecided) at St. Louis (Andy Benes 18-10), 1:07 p.m. (ESPN) Saturday St. Louis (Osborne 13-9) at San Diego (undecided), 4:37 p.m. (NBC NBC in full National Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. commercial broadcasting company. It was formed in 1926 by RCA Corp., General Electric Co. (GE), and Westinghouse and was the first U.S. company to operate a broadcast network. ) Sunday St. Louis at San Diego, 8:07 p.m. (ESPN)-x Monday, Oct. 7 St. Louis at San Diego, 1:07 p.m. -x (ESPN) DODGERS VS. ATLANTA Wednesday Atlanta (Smoltz 24-8) at Dodgers (Martinez 15-6), 1:07 p.m. (ESPN) Thursday Atlanta (Maddux 15-11) at Dodgers (Valdes 15-7), 5:11 p.m. (Fox) Saturday Dodgers (Nomo 16-11) at Atlanta (Glavine 15-10), 1:15 p.m. (Fox) Sunday Dodgers at Atlanta, 10:07 a.m. (ESPN) -x Monday, Oct. 7 Dodgers at Atlanta, 4:11 p.m. (Fox) -x -x if necessary CAPTION(S): Photo, Box Photo: Padres catcher Brian Johnson hugs and hoists pitcher Trevor Hoffman, who earned a save. Hans Gutknecht / Daily News Box: National League Championship Series 1996 (see text) |
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