Los Angeles Dodgers Talk From Around The Web
Don Mattingly's first day as Dodgers interim manager featured a humorous gaffe. Los Angeles batted out of order against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday but Andre Ethier took advantage of the mix-up, leading off the fourth inning with his first spring homer. The Dodgers and Diamondbacks called it off with the game tied at 4 after nine innings.
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Brian Giles says the pain in his arthritic right knee is getting worse, and the 39-year-old outfielder informed the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday that he will retire. Giles is a career .291 hitter with 287 home runs and 1,078 RBI in 1,847 games. The two-time All-Star also played for the San Diego Padres, Pittsburgh Pirates and Cleveland, calling his trip to the World Series with the Indians in...
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Dodgers (1-3-1) at Royals (4-2)
12:05pm, Surprise Stadium, Surprise, AZ
As the crowded Dodger non-roster invitee list gets a little less crowded with the retirement of Brian Giles (per Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times)...
The Dodgers arrived in Taiwan this morning, and begin their three-game series early Friday morning, at 2:37am. Here are a few shots from their welcoming press conference (both courtesy of Jon SooHoo / LA Dodgers):
The Los Angeles Dodgers, including Manager Joe Torre, Pitcher Hong-Chih Kuo and infielders James Loney and Chin-lung Hu, address the crowd at their welcoming press conference in Taiwan
James Loney addresses the crowd at the Dodgers’ welcoming press conference in Taiwan
In other news, Roberto Baly of Vin Scully Is My Homeboy translated a report from Venezuelan newspaper El Universal on Ronald Belisario:
Belisario has missed three dates with the U.S. embassy for paperwork, which is the reason he has yet to report to Camelback Ranch.
The benefit of the doubt is slowly slipping away from Belisario's grasp.
Earlier this offseason, there were reports that the Chiba Lotte Marines of the Japanese Pacific League were interested in Eric Stults. Per NPB Tracker, that interest is apparently gone, given the relatively high cost of a potential transaction:
Sanspo said that Lotte gave up on him because his salary + transfer fee would be over $1m
(Here's a Babelfish translated versionof that link.) Stults is currently battling for the fifth starter spot in the Dodger rotation and, because he is out of options, is likely to get a longer look than pitchers with options, like Scott Elbert or James McDonald.
Here are the lineups, the order of which hopefully will stay the same today:
| Dodgers | Royals | |||
| SS | Furcal | LF | Podsednik | |
| DH | Johnson | C | Kendall | |
| RF | Ethier | RF | DeJesus | |
| CF | Kemp | 1B | Butler | |
| 3B | Blake | CF | Ankiel | |
| 2B | DeWitt | DH | Guillen | |
| 1B | Mientkiewicz | 3B | Fields | |
| C | Ausmus | SS | Betancourt | |
| LF | Repko | 2B | Bloomquist | |
| P | McDonald | P | Meche | |
After McDonald, scheduled to pitch for the Dodgers are Russ Ortiz, Ramon Troncoso, Travis Schlichting, Javy Guerra, and Armando Zerpa.
Minor Leaguers on the Dodgers' roster today are Dee Gordon, Brandon Watson, Andrew "Adam" Lambo, Kyle "Sticks" Russell, Jaime Pedroza, Brian Cavazos-Galvez, and Austin Yount (son of Robin).
Among the scheduled pitchers today for Royals are Aaron Crow, Edgar Osuna, and former Dodgers Matt Herges and Joakim Soria.
Among Royals we won't see today are Mike Moustakas, David Lough, Danny Duffy, Derrick Robinson, Ernesto Mejia, Mario Lisson, and Steven Lerud, as they were assigned to minor league camp.
Tomorrow, scheduled to play at Camelback Ranch against the Reds, Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to start, followed by Carlos Monasterios, Jonathan Broxton, George Sherrill, Luis Ayala, and Brent Leach. Cuban phenom Aroldis Chapman is among the Reds scheduled to pitch in that game.
No TV today (tomorrow is on Prime Ticket), but you can listen online here.
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With Spring Training in full swing, the Dodgers injuries are starting to tally. However, fans shouldn't panic—this sounds like the same record we have listened to for years. For the past decade, the Dodgers have had preseason injuries that make the news, and most often they make the news simply because it's Spring Training, and nothing else is going on.
Russell Martin, Casey Blake, and Cory Wade are already making headlines with reported injuries, but the Dodgers organization and the players don't seem concerned.
Casey Blake took the day off against the Rockies with sore ribs but is confident he will be ready for Opening Day. He is able to swing a bat slowly with limited pain. He mentioned that if this situation occurred in the regular season, he would probably play through it, and if it were playoffs, he wouldn't miss an inning.
Martin suffered a torn groin but mentioned the pain was so mild it seemed as though it was just early-spring soreness. The doctor-recommended recovery time is four to six weeks. Martin received a cortisone shot Tuesday to expedite the healing process, and those familiar with the catcher and his work ethic know he will be doing whatever he can to get back in game shape by the start of the regular season.
Los Angeles does seem to be taking it slow with reliever Cory Wade. His chronically ailing shoulder was examined via MRI, and tests revealed no structural damage. He also received a shot to the shoulder, and manager Joe Torre says Wade will be taking several days off as a precaution and will then be re-evaluated.
It seems every year players return from the break a little stiff in the joints and in need of a little work. As the Spring progresses, don't fret over reports of injuries unless the Dodgers make no light of the situation. Blake and Wade will be ready to follow-up on their productive campaigns from last season, and Martin will be ready to turn things around. Dodgers fans, have no fear.
Read more Los Angeles Dodgers news on BleacherReport.com
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Are you afflicted with Dodger Myopia? Do you only see up close, but fail to see the big picture?
I say: ”Blake DeWitt will be a solid 2B and has the power to hit 20-25 HR.”
You say: ”No way he does that – your’re crazy!”
I say: “James Loney will start showing some power and hit .300.”
You [...]
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On his first day as Dodgers interim manager, hitting coach Don Mattingly said Wednesday that the team has made overtures about him eventually becoming Joe Torre's permanent replacement. With Torre en route to Taiwan to manage a Dodgers split squad for three exhibition games, Mattingly is in charge of the team in Arizona and will work at least five games as manager.
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Nomar Garciaparra loved wearing a uniform. But his body broke down too soon, and we're left to wonder why.
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