The Reflectory

A place to reflect on a variety of topics.

Archive for category Sports

“Busy”

Jul 16

Posted by Shmolnick in Politics, Sports, Uncategorized | No Comments

It’s been a while. I’ve been “busy.”

Busy adjusting to a new job with a longer commute but better pay. Busy twiddling my thumbs while I wait behind this gigantic creative block that has stood in my way all year.

The big block has apparently moved out of my way, and I’m back baby. So what’s been happening in the world while I’ve been “busy?” Let’s take a look.

The presidential campaign is upon us, with one party nominating a crazy old man and the other party nominating the proverbial fresh face. The corporate media (AKA “the mainstream media”) is in love with John McCain. I think they want to get down on their collective knees and suck on his straight-talk express. “WHAT A MAN!” I can hear all those TV pundits and attractive newsreaders breathlessly admiring the old coot, their eyelashes batting like a school girl’s.
Not that I’m in love with Barack Obama either, mind you. His recent statements in support of policies that I find questionable on a good day smells fishy to me, like a bait-and-switch (hey I used to work in retail). Obama’s great strength and the main reason he defeated Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination is that he presented himself as a different kind of politician, a harbinger of hope and inspiration.

Recently, however, the O-man has:

  • come out in support of a FISA compromise bill that shreds the constitution by allowing the federal government to spy on American citizens and lets the telecommunications companies (Verizon, et al) off the hook for helping the government illegally spy on us, thereby breaking his earlier promise to filibuster said legislation;
  • made a wholly unnecessary speech pledging to continue Bush’s faith-based initiatives (i.e., giving my tax dollars to religious institutions over which there is little or no oversight for how the money is spent, praise Jesus);
  • supported the truly awful Supreme Court (another corrupt institution) that completely misread the Second Amendment (“A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” You know, “a well-regulated militia.” I figure if the founding fathers had meant for people to have the right to bear arms period, the amendment would not have the “well-regulated militia” clause.);
  • was largely silent when the Supreme Court cut ExxonMobil’s punitive responsibilities for the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster (knowingly letting a drunk captain the oil tanker);
  • came out in favor of the death penalty for child rapists (yeah O-man, let’s fry the bastards!);
  • refined his stance on ending the Iraq war, which I have no problem with (however long it takes to remove our troops is okay, as long as they’re removed), but failed to mention what happens to all the private security forces in Iraq, why we need a long-term presence there in the first place, and what happens with our keen interest in Iraqi oil;
  • changed his mind about accepting public campaign financing.

Meanwhile, I have yet to hear Barack come out with a detailed and PUBLIC plan for either our energy woes (high gas prices, importing too much foreign oil, not enough focus on alternate sources of energy), or our economic woes (the economy stinks unless you’re really wealthy). Yeah yeah, I know he’s got a bunch of policy statements on his web site, but that’s hardly the same thing as getting out there in front of the cameras and making a major speech on either of these important issues. In my opinion, such a public forum as a major speech has a much stronger effect that hard-to-find policy statements on a web site. A different kind of politician?

Uh, not so much.

But when all is said and done, I’d much rather have a corporate-backed Democrat as president than a corporate-backed Rebublican president any day of the week.

____________________________

Meanwhile, my beloved Los Angeles Dodgers really suck this year yet are only 1 game out of first place in the hapless NL West division. Yet more off-season money was spent on questionable free agents (Andruw Jones, not even hitting his weight). Super Joe Torre was hired to bring a championship to LA, but marquis manager is no miracle worker. But hey, we’re only one game out of first! We got us a pennant race baby! Well at least until we discover that we have no good substitute for the now-injured closer Saito.
Well my stop is coming up soon on this train, so I’ll end here.


LA Dodgers 2007 Recap

Oct 4

Posted by Shmolnick in Sports | No Comments

The baseball season is all but over for this year’s edition of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and once again we are on the outside of the post-season looking in, pressing our dirty hands and tear-stained faces against the glass, wishing that it was our beloved Bums in there playing for a championship in place of our hated NL West division rivals. Alas, it was not to be for this year’s Dodgers. However, for the many suffering and disappointed Dodger fans, it’s never too early to take a critical look back at the season and point a hopeful eye to the future.

What Went Wrong

Here is my own list of events and decisions that most affected the Dodgers’ year, in order of impact, with the full knowledge that hindsight is always 20-20:

  1. The failure of Ned Colletti to sign or trade for a legitimate middle-of-the-order power hitter. Yes I said this at the start of the season, and I’m repeating it here. It’s the number one reason we failed this year. Kent is no longer the power threat he once was, and we had nobody else playing every day to fill the void. Ned was forced to cobble together a small ball team.
  2. Injuries to Jason Schmidt then Randy Wolf. This basically ruined the starting rotation. I’m not pointing fingers of blame at this time; could Stan Conte done a better job evaluating Schmidt before we signed him? Could anyone have detected Schmidt’s looming problem? If not Schmidt, then who else could Ned have signed? Full disclosure: I cheered this signing like many others. We got some really bad mojo on this one, unfortunately. While Schmidt barely registered a dent on the pitching staff, Randy Wolf had a good first half of the season, then went down. Replacing both of these arms in the rotation proved too difficult for Ned Colletti, whose inability to fill in those holes forced Grady Little to continue to trot Hendrickson and Tomko out there.
  3. Grady Little’s mismanagement. I like Grady. He’s a good guy. But he was bad this year. Bad bad bad. His lineups were terrible and inconsistent. He doesn’t know how to handle in-game pitching decisions. He favored non-producing veterans over better younger players. He rarely played the hot hand. He overused Russell Martin. I do believe Grady’s poor managing was responsible for several games in the loss column.
  4. Not putting Rafael Furcal on the DL at the beginning of the season. Because we had no power, Ned and Grady put together a small-ball team that looked good on paper. The most important player in that strategy is Raffy. Raffy hurt his ankle in ST. He never came out, and as a result had a poor season. Had they put him on the DL in April, the guy would have been fresh and producing in say, AUGUST, when the rest of the team tanked.
  5. Keeping the most talented kids down too long. This is related to Grady’s poor management, but here I’m talking specifically about Billingsley and Loney, and Kemp to a lesser degree. When Schmidt went down, Billz should have immediately gone to the rotation. This is now looking like a kid who will win 15+ games next year. His development would have been helped by starting earlier in the year. Loney is going to be good; hell he’s good now. Imagine a full year of him? Might have helped, huh? Nomar should have gone to third earlier with James taking the starting spot.
  6. Ned’s panic moves. Thank JD Drew for this one I guess. Maybe Ned did the right thing by signing Nomar to a two-year deal, I don’t know. But surely he panicked when he inked Juan Pierre to a multi-year deal. Surely there were better options for left field than Luis Gonzalez. He hamstrung the team and limited his own options by these deals. A more experienced GM might not have panicked; we’ll never know.
  7. The defense, especially in the outfield, was terrible. This is a function of Ned’s panic signings, and once signed, they weren’t gonna sit. Depending on who plays LF next year, this is bound to improve. Also, Kent has no range left at second base. If he retires, defense automatically improves at 2B.

What Went Right

It’s never all bad news. 2007 wasn’t a complete bust for the Dodgers. Some good things happened, and those good things could be good omens for the future.

  1. Russell Martin became an impact player.
  2. Chad Billingsley matured.
  3. James Loney finally won the first base job.
  4. Matt Kemp finally showed us what he could do.
  5. The back end of the bullpen solidified (Broxton’s tired arm at the end of the season notwithstanding).
  6. Luis Gonzalez’ contract was for only one year.
  7. Penny wasn’t as bad in the second half of the season as last year. He’s a keeper.
  8. The personnel picture became clearer as the kids came into their own and our holes were better revealed.

Offseason Moves the Dodgers Must Make

Many of us salivate in anticipation of another offseason. Why? The offseason gives the General Manager a chance for a do-over. Each season is essentially a do-over. Offseason moves excite us, worry us, drive us insane, make us cheer; it’s all we have until the spring comes again. Here’s what I think the Dodgers should do this offseason:

  1. Fire Grady Little. Wrong man for the job. Makes questionable in-game decisions. This doesn’t appear to be happening, as both McCourt and Colletti have pubicly said that Little’s returning in 2008. This is too bad. I have serious doubts about that man’s ability to manage a team to a World Series victory. Part Two of this item is to hire a manager who will be good with the young players. I’d love to see Kirk Gibson come back to LA in this capacity, but at this point, anybody is better than Grady Little.
  2. Sign an impact power hitter in his prime. A REAL power hitter. A 30-35 home runs a year guaranteed at a minimum power hitter. ARod is my first choice. He’s perfect for the Dodgers at this time. If he doesn’t hit the market, Ned needs to trade a couple of kids for a bat, preferably a third baseman. With the depth of young talent the Dodgers have to offer, I have a difficult time understanding how Ned cannot swing a deal for a power hitter. Even if means parting with one or two of our prized kids, he needs to make this deal if ARod doesn’t walk. Mark my words: without that bat in 2008, expect a repeat of 2007, with a possible shot at a wild card placement.
  3. Fire some of the coaching staff. Third base, I’m looking at you. Hire coaches who are better than the ones we had this year.
  4. Get rid of all deadwood. Saenz, Martinez, the detritus picked up in August – all of ‘em must go. Buh bye. But be smart about offering arbitration. Perhaps Sweeney could be useful off the bench, but other than him, these guys are not helping anymore. I wish there was a way for us to deal Nomar, but I see him coming into ’08 as the incumbent third baseman, and LaRoche will have to steal the position from him the way Loney had to steal first base this past season. Hopefully, Nomar is dealt to the American League by mid-season.
  5. Sign position players who will improve both our situational hitting AND our defense. I know, I’m asking for the moon.
  6. Trade Derek Lowe while he still has value. I’m just tired of the constant “gee this guy should be better given his talent” tease that this guy afflicts us with. If we can get something useful back for him, or for somebody like Ethier (who I like but who can be replaced in the outfield by a free agent power hitter or by Delwyn Young) then turn around and deal for somebody like Snell, that would be a good thing. Hey, we have to have something of value to offer potential trading partners, especially since Loney, Kemp, Kershaw, Billz, et al are not going anywhere.

What to Look for in 2008

Really, we need ARod to walk away from New York so the Dodgers can sign him. The Dodger lineup looks downright scary with ARod in the four hole. Without ARod, or a slightly lesser version of ARod (power hitter), the Dodgers will once again be at the mercy of Ned, Grady, the kids, and more small ball. Of course it’s all guesswork right now, but I think we can count on a couple of things next year, barring injury.

  1. Grady Little’s managerial moves will infuriate us on a daily basis.
  2. Rafael Furcal will have a career year or close to it. His ankle will be healthy and don’t contract years do wonders for a player’s performance?
  3. Nomar will open the season as the starting third baseman. Unless he’s traded (please please please).
  4. Loney and Kemp will get better. 20 home runs apiece if they play every day is not unreasonable.
  5. Billingsley will get better and finish the season as the recognized staff ace or close to it, barring injury.
  6. A key Dodger will get hurt for a large part of the season. This ALWAYS happens to our Bums. Every goddamned year. And it will happen next year too.
  7. Juan Pierre will remain on the team, will start every day, and will have similar stats as this season.
  8. The outfield defense will improve with the departure of Luis Gonzelez. Slightly.
  9. Ned’s last opportunity to make the playoffs. If the Dodgers fail next year, I’m certain Ned will be shown the door after the season. I think McCourt gives him one more year to prove himself.

Anyway, those are my thoughts right now. It always feels good to purge, especially at the end of another poor Dodger finish.

Pennant Fever

Sep 9

Posted by Shmolnick in Sports, Uncategorized | No Comments

Is there anything more fun than watching a mid-term congressional election in which the opposition party has a real chance to seize political power from the evil party currently holding the reins of government?

Yes.

It’s called a pennant race, and my beloved Los Angeles Dodgers are in the thick of one.

LA Dodgers!

I live in the northeast and I’m regularly inundated with the same tired old refrain on “Yankees! Red Sox! Mets! Yankees! Red Sox! Mets! Yankees! Red Sox! Mets!” So it’s especially gratifying when I get to watch my Bums whoop some Met butt on television.

The Dodgers have been one of the streakiest teams in Major League baseball this season, and find themselves holding onto first place in the National League West division by a thread. Sudden holes in their starting pitching (thanks to hotheaded ace wanna-be Brad Penny’s second half meltdown and a sudden injury to promising rookie Chad Billingsley) is forcing Manager Grady Little to improvise with only a few weeks to go in the season.

Last night rookie Hong Chi-Kuo, in his first major league start ever, pitched a marvelous six shutout innings over the resurgent New York Mets in front of hostile Shea Stadium crowd. Aided by three additional shutout innings from the bullpen, the Dodgers banged out five runs to defeat the Mets and cling to a game and a half lead over the hated rival San Diego Padres. Even the slumping Nomah hit a home run, although lackadaisical and overpaid outfielder JD Drew was a nonfactor (again).
Of course if you read the New York sports pages, you could hardly guess who the Mets were playing. But the damage has been done – the Mets can be beaten. And if the Dodgers can hold onto the NL West title, perhaps this bodes well for the playoffs.

Of course, the rollercoaster ride that has been the Dodgers’ season is surely not over, and like any good Dodger fan, I am holding my breath in preparation for the inevitable collapse. After all, they still have to play second-place San Diego, and the Padres (or “Madres” as they are derisively called by some Dodger fans) have positively owned the Dodgers all year.

Some keys to a successfull conclusion to this Dodger season:

  • Grady Little has to stop resting his best players. I read in the LA Times the other day that manager Little likes to rest his top ballplayers after a good day. Uh Grady, that’s real nice of you but we’re in a pennant race.
  • JD Drew, who mysteriously leads the team in RBI’s in spite of a dramatic loss in power and a seemingly lazy attitude toward the game, must wake up and contribute some clutch at-bats.
  • Nomah! I like this guy, and I’ll bet that he won’t be on the team next year, but his home run last night must be a harbinger of things to come. I agree with the ESPN broadcasters who said during last night’s game that if Nomar gets hot, he can carry a team.
  • Brad (or is that Bad) Penny needs to figure out how to win ballgames again. The guy was lights out during the first half of the season, but has something like a 6.09 ERA during his last ten starts (so I read but not confirmed). With the holes in the rotation, the Bums need Brad to find his pitching arm again. Come on Brad, you can do it!
  • Jeff Kent, ahhh poor Jeff Kent. I think that age has finally caught up to the venerable second basemen. That and nagging injuries have robbed Kent of his former ability to provide consistent power in the lineup. Maybe the prospect of post-season play will allow him to dig deep and find a little more of what made him the Dodgers’ best offensive player last season. I feel badly for the guy, it must be tough knowing you can’t do the job physically anymore.
  • The mood of the baseball gods. They are notoriously fickle, and haven’t looked favorably on the Dodgers. At least not since 1988.

Yes, pennant fever is in the air. And when the Dodgers are knocked out, I’ll put my sports fandom on hold until spring training 2007.

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming.