Week seven
 

Dodgers 3 - 3
29 - 14 Overall (2 games ahead of Houston ), +83 Run Differential = 30 - 13 Pythag

The Good: Jose Offerman .500/.222/173 this week
The Bad: A 9-3 drubbing at the hands of the Rockies
The Ugly: Bullpen FIP-'s this week of 134, 173, 204, 319, and 1055

AL Player of the Week – Paul Molitor (1B MIL)
NL Player of the Week – Larry Walker (OF MON)

Dodgers are 2nd in the weekly Power Rankings


Clay Bellinger was activated from the IL and will spend a little time a A Bakersfield to before joining AAA Albuquerque.

Week eight
 

Dodgers 4 – 2
33 – 16 Overall (3 games ahead of Houston), 86 Run Differential = 34 – 15 Pythag

The Good: Home runs in 3 consecutive games for Rickey Henderson.
The Bad: Three regulars, Mike Piazza, Devon White and Dave Hollins had negative wRC+'s for the week.
The Ugly: Ramon Martinez' start vs the Pirates. 1.1 innings, 7 hits, 7 runs, 2 walks, 1 K, 1 HR allowed.

AL Player of the Week – Juan Gonzalez (OF TEX)
NL Player of the Week – Al Martin (OF ATL)

Dodgers are 2nd in the weekly Power Rankings


SP Tim Belcher left his start after 2 batters. He's expected to make his next start. Mike Munoz and Mike Christopher each pitched 2.2 shut out innings before the game was called due to rain.
For their efforts, Christopher and Munoz were optioned to AAA and Jim Poole and Darren Holmes were recalled.

SP David Nied was injured during his start in Albuquerque. He'll be placed on the 60-day IL
NOTE: This is an IRL injury



The Florida Marlins traded SP Ron Darling to the Pittsburgh Pirates for OF Jeromy Burnitz.

May review – league
 

NL Player of the Month: MON OF Larry Walker
NL Pitcher of the Month: CHI SP Greg Maddux
NL Rookie of the Month: CINN SP Bob Wickman

AL Player of the Month: BOS OF Phil Plantier
AL Pitcher of the Month: KC SP Brett Saberhagen
AL Rookie of the Month: TEX CF Sammy Sosa

May review – hitters
 

The offense slowed down a little in May, but not too severely.

3rd in runs scored, 6th in wOBA, 8th in OBP, 2nd in HR, 6th in SB

Mike Piazza continues to roll. .325/.256/136

Devon White slowed down to .300/.174/101

Jose Offerman figured out how to get on base with a .371 OBP for the month, still no power - .054

Dave Hollins is still struggling.

Glad to have John Valentin back from the IL. He had a .400 OBP in May and 9 doubles.

Rickey looked more like Rickey with a .385 OBP and 6 HR's in the month.

May review – pitchers
 

We've still allowed the fewest runs in the league and lead in starter ERA. 4th in bullpen ERA. 4th in pitching WAR and 3rd in Zone Rating.

Pedro Astacio is filling in quite nicely for Nolan Ryan. In 5 starts he has 27.1 innings and a 66 FIP-

The entire starting rotation has been a strength, as we expected. No one had a FIP- higher than 105 (Hershiser) for the month and 3 guys were below 75 (Astacio, Belcher and Langston). Martinez was 101.

Rod Beck gave up 2 more home runs, but managed an 80 FIP-

Week nine
 

Dodgers 3 – 3
36 – 19 Overall (2 games ahead of Houston), +88 Run Differential = 37 – 18 Pythag

The Good: Valentin (224), White (169), Offerman (165), Piazza (141) raked this week.
The Bad: Pedro Astacio managed just 8.1 innings in his 2 starts.
The Ugly: A 6-1 loss to the Cardinals in which we only managed 4 hits with 0 walks.

AL Player of the Week – Robin Ventura (3B CHW)
NL Player of the Week – Sid Bream (1B PITT)

Dodgers are 2nd in the weekly Power Rankings


Tony Fossas activated from the IL. Jim Poole sent to AAA.
SP John O'Donoghue was placed on the AAA IL with biceps tendonitis.

Week ten
 

Dodgers 4 - 2
40 – 21 Overall (2 games ahead of Houston), +93 Run Differential = 41 – 20 Pythag

The Good: Rickey Henderson continues to rake with a .500 OBP for the week.
The Bad: Scored in the 9th to tie the Padres, then were walked-off by Tony Gwynn.
The Ugly: Hollins and Offerman had dueling -20+ wRC+'s this week.

AL Player of the Week – Jeff Bagwell (1B BOS)
NL Player of the Week – BJ Surhoff (C COL)

Dodgers are 2nd in the weekly Power Rankings


Closer Jim Gott sprained his ankle and was placed on the IL. LP Angel Miranda was recalled.

Minor league C/IF/OF Steve Bieser suffered a broken kneecap and will miss the rest of the season.

Week eleven
 

Dodgers 3 – 3
43 – 24 Overall (1 game1 ahead of Houston), +111 Run Differential = 46 - 21 Pythag

The Good: John Wetteland's 104 FIP- was the highest for the week. Rickey Henderson's batting average has reached .300 and his OBP .400 for the season.
The Bad: Bobby Bonilla has just a .252 wOBA in June.
The Ugly: Three game losing streak. Our first of the season.

AL Player of the Week – Frank Thomas (1B CHW)
NL Player of the Week – Todd Pratt (C MON)

Dodgers are 5th in the weekly Power Rankings


1B Dave Hollins was placed on the IL with an IRL injury. OF Billy Ashley was recalled.

Relievers Mike Christopher and Mike Munoz replace Angel Miranda and Darren Holmes after a 15 inning game.



The Rockies traded RP Lee Smith to the Mariners for minor league outfielders Tommy Adams and Mark Merchant. Smith had a 5.52 ERA in 14.2 innings but a 2.55 FIP

Another reliever, Trevor Hoffman, was traded from the Reds to the Giants. Hoffman had a 5.32 ERA and 4.14 ERA. 3B Kevin Young goes back to the Reds.

And 3B Chris Sabo was traded from the Reds to Philadelphia for minor leaguers OF Bobby Llanos and IF Lou Lucca. Sabo was hitting .300/.140/91

Cinncinati continues to unload. This time, Norm Charlton, was traded. He goes to Pittsburgh for minor league C Dan Cholowski and minor league SP Mariano Rivera. Charlton has a 3.71 ERA and 2.20 FIP in 26.2 innings.

1B Andres Galarraga, who had a 104 wRC+ for Oakland, was traded to the Rockies. IF Dave Hansen (127 wRC+ at AAA) and IF Rene Gonzalez (83 wRC+ and 1.1 WAR for Colorado) go to Oakland.

CF Eddie Zambrano was traded from Boston to Anaheim. 3B Jeff Manot and LF Miguel Correra go the other way.

Week twelve
 

Dodgers 4 – 3
47 – 27 Overall (4 games ahead of Houston ), +117 Run Differential = 50 – 24 Pythag

The Good: 4 Game sweep of the Astros (3-0, 8-3, 3-1, 4-1).
The Bad: 3 game sweep by the Chicago Cubs.

AL Player of the Week – Fred McGriff (1B TOR)
NL Player of the Week – Alan Trammell (SS STL)

Dodgers are 5th in the weekly Power Rankings


Mike Munoz was optioned to AAA. Jim Poole was recalled.
Mike Christopher was optioned to AAA. Darren Holmes was recalled.
Jim Gott was activated from the IL. Jim Poole was optioned to AAA.

Yakima and Great Falls begin their rookie level seasons.


Tim Raines collected his 2000th career hit – a 7th inning ground ball single vs Rich DeLucia
Tony Gwynn collected his 2000th career hit (game log unavailable (for some reason))

Kevin Brown signed a 6-year $23.4 million extension with the Texas Rangers.

June review – league
 

NL Player of the Month: STL SS Alan Trammell
NL Pitcher of the Month: SD SP Tom Browning
NL Rookie of the Month: NYP RP Graeme Lloyd

AL Player of the Month: CHW 1B Frank Thomas
AL Pitcher of the Month: KC SP Kevin Appier
AL Rookie of the Month: MIL CF Chuck Carr

AAA Pitcher of the Month: Pedro Martinez

June review – hitters
 

I'll run through it position by position in preparation for the trade deadline

CATCHER
Couldn't be much happier. Both Piazza and Fletcher are hitting – with wRC+'s above 100. Our pitching is among the best in the league, so they seem to be handling the pitchers just fine.

In AAA Carlos Hernandez wasn't happy in losing his backup job to Fletcher, and hasn't performed well (83 wRC+). Maybe a change in scenery would be best.

INFIELD
First base
Here's an opportunity to improve. The improvement could come from within, or we might be compelled to make a move
Dave Hollins has struggled all year. He's currently on the DL with an injury, but is expected back soon.
Bobby Bonilla has gotten the majority of time at first while Hollins has been injured, and Bo-Bo has had his own struggles.
Mike Bush, Brian Traxler and Billy Ashley are the likely replacements (along with Chris Donnels discussed later). None figure to win a spot on a first place team expecting a deep playoff run.

Second base
Jose Offerman has had the majority of playing time at 2B. The defense hasn't been great (-3.9 ZR and 14 errors). We knew defense wasn't his strength. Offensively, he has a solid .342 OBP, but no power (.059 ISO), which we're leveraging by hitting him ninth in front of Rickey and Piazza. He's got a .282 BABIP so there's not a lot of hope for improvement for his .238 batting average – he's just not driving the ball. He's also been good on the bases with 16 steals in 21 attempts and a 2.9 (BsR).
Eddie Pye who started the season in LA, has struggled in AAA (77 wRC+). Rafael Bournigal has a 99 wRC+ in Albuquerque but he'd be behind Mike Benjamin (who'll aslo be discussed later).

Third base
Gary Gaetti has been more than we anticipated. He's bounced back to a 104 wRC+, after a 73 last year, to go along with gold glove caliber defense (+3.7). He's on a 3.3 WAR pace for the year.
Chris Donnels has also had time at 3B, 1B and 2B. He's struggled in sporadic playing time (79 wRC+) but he has a .417 OBP has a pinch hitter and hit a huge pinch hit grandslam against the Astros.
Mike Bush, mentioned above, is the AAA 3B along with Eddie Pye, also mentioned above.

Shortstop
John Valentin might be the team MVP. Since starting the season on the IL he's second on the team in WAR. His defense has been as fantastic (+5.3 ZR) as his hitting.
Mike Benjamin is the backup SS, though he gets most of his time coming in to replace Offerman at second. He's a plus defensive player at both SS and 2B. He's not much offensively, though his 50 wRC+ might be selling him a little bit short.
Eddie Pye (previously mentioned)and Clay Bellinger are in AAA. Bellinger has been on the IL most of they year, and isn't expected to be more than a backup to the backup.

OUTFIELD
Left field
Rickey Henderson isn't quite back to his MVP production of a couple years ago, but we'll take a 137 wRC+, near .400 OBP, and excellent base running (27 steals and 3.8 BsR). He's starting to slow down a bit of defense (-3.4 ZR) but his offense more than makes up for that.

Center field
Devon White is the MVP of the team right now if Valentin isn't. Just league average hitting with a .300 OBP but coupled with +16 defense in CF and 15 steals for a +5.2 BsR that makes for a very valuable player.

Right field
Bobby Bonilla has already been discussed. His league average hitting is a far cry from the 140 wRC+ we've come to expect.

Outfield
Mike Huff and Bill Bean have combined for a solid left-right combination off the bench. A combined 105 wRC+, average to better corner OF defense and positive base running is just about what we could have expected out of them. JT Bruett has also been with the team all season. He's taken advantage of the few trips to the plate he's been called upon for. More frequently, he's asked to play RF late in close ball games where he has a +.9 ZR in just 38 innings. He also starts whenever Devon White needs a day off and gets a few pinch running opportunities. He hasn't stolen a base, but has a positive BsR.


We've got the second best record in baseball (and second best pythag record) and we haven't had everybody hitting on all cylinders yet. So we're pretty comfortable, but always looking to get better.

June review – pitchers
 

STARTING PITCHING
One of the top rotations in baseball. Nobody has an ERA over 3 or, more importantly, a FIP- of 100.

Mark Langston has been phenomenal. With Tim Belcher right behind him. Orel Hershiser maybe isn't quite the Hershiser of old, but we'll take the 200 innings of 80 FIP- pitching he's on pace to give us. Ramon looks like last year's injury took a bit out of him but a 92 FIP- out of your 4th starter will play. Pedro Astacio has jumped right in and shows that he belongs in this rotation. And Nolan Ryan seems to be about ready for minor league rehab. The rotation is deep and good.

Right after saying that, I'll back track a bit. David Nied and John O'Donoghue are both on the minor league DL hurting the depth a bit, but O'Donoghue should be back soon. Nied really struggled before his injury, both in LA and in AAA, so we can't count on his return. O'Donoghue had a 70 AAA FIP- before his injury. Pedro Martinez (79 AAA FIP-) continues to flash amazing stuff, but his control both drives up his pitch count getting him out of games too soon and puts more batter on base than we'd like. But when we're talking about 7th and 8th starters, you know things are going ok.

RELIEF PITCHING
The bullpen has been a slight disappointment. When they have the league's 4th best ERA, you know there were lofty expectations.

Rod Beck's numbers are skewed by a terrible first week puncutated by 4 home runs allowed. He's only allowed 4 since and has a nearly 10:1 K/BB rate. John Wetteland has been good, but we feel like he hasn't quite reached his full potential. Jim Gott has done just what we expected from him – racking up 10 saves in 10 opportunities.

Left-handers Tom Bolton and Tony Fossas have both been an improvement over previous versions of our lefties. Each is walking fewer than 2.5 per 9 and Fossas, especially, has been great so far. Though neither is that player you bring in and have 100% confidence that they'll sit the opposing team's best left-handed hitter back on the bench in the late innings of a close game.

Darren Holmes and Mike Christopher have both contributed to the big league team. Holmes got his first career save this week though he's struggled with control – though he was much better in Albuquerque. Christopher got his first MLB win earlier in the year but the home run has been his problem – though just 1 in 26 AAA innings.

Mike Munoz and Jim Poole have kept runners from scoring, but 7 walks in 9 innings between them doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. Poole has a 100 FIP- in AAA which is a bit better than Munoz' 104. Neither guy has performed like we expected.

Lastly, we were starting to get excited about the stuff that Angel Miranda was showing in AAA but he's expected to miss most of the rest of the season.

Mike Mimbs has acquitted himself well to AAA since being called up a few weeks ago with a 72 FIP-and left-hander Omar Daal has shown flashes as Albuquerque's closer, but I'd be nervous giving either meaningful innings in LA down the stretch.

There's no such thing as too much good pitching.

Week thirteen
 

Dodgers 4 – 2
52 – 28 Overall (5 games ahead of San Diego )

NOTE: I somehow missed writing up this week. Oh well.


The Rockies trade Fernando Valenzuela to Florida for P Matt Peterson. Valenzuela has not appeared in the majors this year.

The Marlins trade IF Rich Amaral to the Reds for CF Jose Texidor and IF James Lofton.

Week fourteen
 

Dodgers 5 – 1
52 – 28 Overall (5 games ahead of Houston), +131 Run Differential = 55 – 25 Pythag

The Good: Nine hitters had a wRC+ over 100 this week. Billy Ashley hit his first home run of the season. Complete game shut out for Ramon Martinez.
The Bad: Devon White just a 55 wRC+ on the week.

AL Player of the Week – Sammy Sosa (OF TEX)
NL Player of the Week – Barry Bonds (OF SFG)

Dodgers are third in the weekly Power Rankings


Dave Hollins was activated from the IL. Billy Ashley was sent to AAA.

Nolan Ryan began a rehab assignment at AAA Albuquerque. It didn't go well. Ryan faced 4 hitters, giving up 2 hits and a walk, before being removed with a back issue.



The Red Sox trade 1B Mo Vaughn to Kansas City for OF Johnny Damon and P Greg Harris

The Reds acquire RP Joe Boever from the Rockies for CF Cobie Cradle and OF TJ Staton.

Colorado trades IF/OF Scott Brosius to Chicago for P Kelly Downs and IF Ray Martinez.

The Phillies trade LRP Mark Davis to Seattle for CF Joe Mathis.
The Phillies trade LRP Bob Patterson to Seattle for 1B Joe Pomierski and RHP Nate Minchey

The Houston Astros acquire RP Jay Howell and CF Dax Jones from Cleveland for catchers Lee Henderson and Dave Toth

The Angels acquired IF Jeff Blauser. They send IF Damion Easley, IF Gary Hagy and LHP Andrew Lorraine to Atlanta.
NOTE: We had looked into acquiring Blauser.

Week fifteen
 

Dodgers 3 - 4
55 – 32 Overall (5 games ahead of San Diego), 129 Run Differential = 59 – 28 Pythag

The Good: Jose Offerman continues hitting. He's up to .372/.059/100 on the season.
The Bad: Our first losing week of the season.

AL Player of the Week – Lenny Dykstra (OF KC)
NL Player of the Week – Larry Walker (OF MON)

Dodgers are 3rd in the weekly Power Rankings


Mike Benjamin was placed on the IL. Rafael Bournigal was recalled.
NOTE: This is an IRL injury

Darren Holmes was optioned to AAA. Mike Christopher was recalled.

SP John O'Donoghue was activated from the minor league IL


Oakland acquired LHP John Candelaria from the Phillies for RHPs Willie Adams and Don Wengert and OF Darryll Ratliff

Dodgers acquire Snyder

The Dodgers traded AAA OF Bruce Dostal and Rookie league IF Miguel Cairo to the Texas Rangers for OF/1B Cory Snyder.

With Hollins' and Bonilla's struggles this year we wanted to add a hitter to the roster. Snyder can play both corner OF positions (4/10) and 1B (5/10).

Snyder has hit .337/.169/115 in 338 PA's with Texas this year while playing 75 games at 1B, 5 in LF and 4 in RF. He's earning just $306,000 this year and is a free agent after the season.

Dostal was a fleet defensive OFer who could steal bases and spent 2 Septembers with the major league club. But he'd slowed down and been surpassed. Miguel Cairo is a light hitting middle infielder without standout defensive skills.

Snyder isn't expected to join the team until after the All-Star Break.

NOTE 1: The Rangers originally agreed to just Dostal in the trade, but that felt light, so I put 15 or so minor league players up for random selection. Cairo was the one I least wanted to lose.
NOTE 2: Snyder was a IRL Dodger in 1993 and 1994.

All star teams announced
 

AL All-Stars
C: Chris Hoiles, Mike Stanley, Jerry Willard
1B: Jeff Bagwell, Fred McGriff, Paul Moliter, John Olerud, Frank Thomas
IF: Tony Phillips, Robby Thompson, Gary Sheffield, Barry Larking
OF: Albert Belle, John Kruk, Lenny Dykstra, Steve Finley, Ken Griffey jr, Wes Chamberlin, Tim Salmon, Deion Sanders

SP: Kevin Appier, Erik Hanson, Jack McDowell, Jose Rio, Brett Saberhagen, Curt Schilling
RP: Mark Eichorn, Michael Jackson, Paul Quantrill, Bryan Harvey

NL All-Stars
C: Sandy Alomar jr, Jim Leyritz, Mike MacFarlane, Russ McGinnis
1B: Cecil Fielder, Dave Winfield
IF: Craig Biggio, Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell, John Valentin
OF: Moises Alou, Barry Bonds, Lance Johnson, Ray Lankford, Robin Yount, Larry Walker

SP: Tim Belcher, David Cone, Danny Darwin, Alex Fernandez, Kevin Gross, Mark Langston, Greg Maddux, Terry Mulholland, Pete Schourek, John Smoltz
RP: Dennis Eckersley, Doug Jones, Roberto Hernandez, Duane Ward

All-star game
 

Deion Sanders led off with a triple. But three errors in the 6th inning help the NL to score 4 runs on their way to a 7-4 victory over the AL.

Ray Lankford wins the MVP with a 4-4 performance including a double and home run.

Dodger pitcher Mark Langston pitches an inning, allowing 2 hits, a walk and 1 run. He also gets a strike out.
John Valentin goes 0-3 with a strikeout.
Tim Belcher did not pitch.

Week sixteen
 

Dodgers 2 – 2
57 – 34 Overall (4 games ahead of the Padres), +135 Run Differential = 62 – 29 Pythag

The Good: This week's pitching and defense. We allowed just 7 runs in 4 games. Chris Donnels' pinch hit bases loaded triple against the Expos.
The Bad: Cory Snyder was 0-8 in his first week as a Dodger.

AL Player of the Week – Kevin Mitchell (OF KC)
NL Player of the Week – Russ McGinnis (C PITT)

Dodgers are 4th in the weekly Power Rankings

Also, Tom Bolton is 4th in the majors in road ERA


OF Cory Snyder was added to the active roster. OF JT Bruett was optioned to AAA.


Dave Winfield got his 3000th career hit vs the St. Louis Cardinals.


Houston adds SS Dick Schofield and RHP Jay Witasik. St. Louis gets Trent Hubbard in return.

And Atlanta ships SP Tom Glavine to Montreal. The Braves pick up 2B Mark Grudzielanek and RHP Stan Spencer.

Colorado trades RP Marvin Freeman to Milwaukee for 1B Hayland Hardy and RHP Mark Kiefer.
Colorado trades OF Mike Deveraux to California for C Jorge Fabregas and CF Aaron Iatarola.

The Reds and Rockies continue to be very active this trade deadline. This time they team up for a deal. This time it's IF Mike Sharperson going to Cincinnati for 1B Jamie Dismuke and C Jon Fuller.


Nolan Ryan, after being pulled from his 3rd consecutive rehab start, calls it a career. He finishes with 302 wins, 4906.1 innings, 5133 strike outs, and 118.5 WAR

Week seventeen
 

Dodgers 5 – 2
62 – 26 Overall (5 games ahead of San Diego), +146 Run Differential = 67 – 21 Pythag

The Good: Dave Hollins and Bobby Bonilla had wRC+'s over 100. Ramon Martinez gave up 1 run and just 8 base runners in 16 innings.
The Bad: Jose Offerman had a 7 wRC+ and committed his 18th error of the year.

AL Player of the Week – Albert Belle (OF CLE)
NL Player of the Week – Andres Galarraga (1B COL)

Dodgers are #2 in the weekly Power Rankings


Mike Christopher is optioned to AAA. LHP John O'Donoghue is recalled.
John O'Donoghue is optioned to AAA. RHP Darren Holmes is recalled.


Dodgers Acquire Mercker
The Dodgers and Braves pulled off a trade. LA hopes to fortify their bullpen with the addition of left-hander Kent Mercker. Going to Atlanta are RP Tom Bolton and #7 prospect IF/OF Chris Latham.

Mercker has thrown 30.2 innings this year in 37 games. He's got 15 saves and a 2.93 ERA. More importantly, he has a 71 FIP- based on a solid 8.2 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9. He has a 108 FIP- in 168 career innings. He'll be eligible for arbitration for the first time next season.

Bolton was pitching well with a 2.40 ERA (99 FIP-) in 34 innings.

Chris Latham played both the OF and IF for Rookie Yakima. He has a 123 wRC+ on the back of a very strong 24% BB rate.

NOTE: Atlanta offered the trade for OF Todd Hollandsworth. Using the Decision Maker, I offered: Hollandsworth, Latham+, Ashley, Mondesi and Cedeno.



The Rockies keep dealing. This time it's LHP Dennis Cook going to the Giants for C Craig Mayes.

The Pirates traded 1B Sid Bream to the Padres for LFP Luis Arroyo and RHP Darryl Meek.

The Marlins traded OF Roberto Kelly to the Atlanta Braves for RHP Mark Thompson, LHP Mike Myers and CF Chris Durkin.

The Braves are this week's trade leaders. They also move OF Ron Gant with 3B Bob Smith to the Cubs for OF Brooks Kieschnick and OF Dan Madsen


Ryne Sandberg, of the Brewers, get's his 2000th career hit.


Former Dodger, Dave Hansen, was the PCL All-Star MVP. He went 2-2 with a HR. His former teammates, Raul Mondesi, Billy Ashley and Brian Traxler, combined to go 2 for 8.

July review – league
 

NL Player of the Month: SFG LF Barry Bonds
NL Pitcher of the Month: LAD SP Ramon Martinez
NL Rookie of the Month: ATL LF Al Martin

AL Player of the Month: CHW 1B Frank Thomas
AL Pitcher of the Month: CAL SP Roger Clemens
AL Rookie of the Month: CLE SP Garret Stephenson

July review – hitters
 

The offense continues its downward trajectory. Falling to 8th in runs scored, 9th in OBP and wOBA, and 3rd in WAR.

Valentin (138), Bonilla (113) and Donnels (149) were the only regulars with wRC+'s of over 100 for the month.

Offerman's 96 wRC+ stands out, but Dave Hollins finished the month at 66 and didn't homer.

July review – pitchers
 

The pitching and defense continue to impress. Still fewest runs allowed in the league, first in starter ERA, bullpen ERA and FIP as well as Zone Rating. Second in pitching WAR.

Ramon Martinez was, as the Pitcher of the Month award alludes to, great in July.

The rest of the rotation was pretty good as well.

Some runs scored while Hershisher was on the mound, but he had a .330 BABIP during the month, so we'll chalk that up to some bad luck.

The big 3 of Beck, Wetteland and Gott continue to mow hitters down

Week eighteen
 

Dodgers 3 – 3
65 – 39 Overall (4.5 games ahead of Houston), +153 Run Differential = 70 – 34 Pythag

The Good: Taking 2 of 3 from the NL Central leading Cubs
The Bad: Losing 2 of 3 to the rival Giants. Both by one run. One a 10th inning walkoff.

AL Player of the Week – Darren Daulton (C KC)
NL Player of the Week – Roberto Kelly (CF ATL)

Dodgers are second in the weekly Power Rankings

Mike Benjamin is sent to AAA for rehab.


Paul Molitor collects his 2500th career hit. A 3rd inning double vs Bill Wegman in a 16-3 win loss to the Yankees.

Pittsburgh trades OF Wayne Kirby to Colorado for 3B Sean Berry and OF TJ Staton.

George Brett was claimed off waivers by Philadelphia from San Diego

The White Sox sent C Ron Karkovice to Montreal for OF Kevin Bass

Florida trades C Rich Rowland to the Padres for RHP Omar Olivares and 1B John Fantauzi

The White Sox traded SS Manny Lee and RHP Steve Olsen to the Mets for SP Charlie Hough

The Phillies traded OF Jim Olander and CF Alan Burke to the Yankees for LHP Brian Taylor and OF Christopher Hart.

The Brewers traded CF Chuck Carr to Minnesota for SP Jack Morris and CF Steve Hazlett

And, just before the trade deadline


Fletcher has a .339/.087/93 line on the season in 409 plate appearances. A +12.8 ZR in 843 innings at SS (and 25 innings at 2B) has him at 2.7 WAR on the season.

The Dodgers give up IF Rafael Bournigal (.388/.085/102 in AAA) and IF/OF Lamarr Rogers (.484/.083/127 in A and .270/.60/48 in AA).

Fletcher is making $1.7 million this season and will be a free agent at the end of the year after signing a one-year deal with the Red Sox.

We were looking to upgrade over Offerman who has been up and down offensively all season and has a -6 ZR at 2B. Fletcher and Offerman are similar offensively, but Fletcher is much better with the glove. We expect that they will split time at 2B. Offerman will, obviously, stay on the roster and Fletcher will replace Bournigal (and Benjamin once he's back from the IL).

Fletcher was in the midst of a lot of turmoil in the Red Sox' locker room and the Red Sox were eager to get rid of him. We hope coming to a winning team with a solid clubhouse will alleviate those issues.

NOTE: As usual, the random decision maker selected Rogers from the Make This Work Now list. As was Bournigal who was a “throw-in” because the deal felt too light on my end.

We also considered trades for Randy Velarde and Bip Roberts centered around Billy Ashley. We also looked into 1B Randy Milligan, C Mike Stanley and C Mike MacFarlane but didn't come to any agreement.



UP NEXT: Three games in Houston.

Week nineteen
 

Dodgers 3 – 3
68 – 42 Overall (3 1/2 games ahead of Houston), +156 Run Differential = 74 – 36 Pythag

The Good: Gave up a total of 8 runs in the 6 games this week. Dave Hollins homered – his 4th of the year.
The Bad: Losing 2 of 3 to the Astros; 1-2, 3-1, 0-2. Lou Whitaker was 4-10 in the series with 4 doubles. Loaded the bases with 1 out in the 9th inning of game 3 and didn't score.

AL Player of the Week – Jeff Bagwell (1B BOS)
NL Player of the Week – Mark Grace (1B CHI)

Dodgers are second in the weekly Power Rankings

*Mark Langston (1.50) and Orel Hershiser (1.62) are 2nd and 4th in the majors in home ERA.

Next week: 3 games with the Padres.

Week twenty
 

Dodgers 4 – 3
72 – 45 Overall (4 games ahead of the Padres), +151 Run Differential = 77 – 40 Pythag

The Good: Mike Piazza walkoff homer vs the Padres.
The Bad: A Tom Browning bases loaded ground rule double. Back-to-back runners thrown out at second in a 4-1 loss to the Padres giving them the series win.

AL Player of the Week – Paul Molitor (1B MIL)
NL Player of the Week – Randy Johnson (SP MON)

Dodgers are 3rd in the weekly Power Rankings

*Nolan Ryan leads the majors in service time (26 years, 121 days).

SP David Nied was removed from the IL and optioned to AAA Albuquerque


Cal Ripken gets his 2000th career hit. A seventh inning single vs Bill Wegman in a 6-2 win over the Yankees.

Week twenty one
 

Dodgers 4 – 2
76 – 47 Overall (2.5 games ahead of Houston (who is on an 8 game winning streak), +155 Run Differential = 81 – 42 Pythag

The Good: Mark Langston 10 shut out innings vs the Braves in a game we won on a 15th inning Mike Piazza home run.
The Bad: Ramon Martinez' 2 inning start vs the Cardinals.

AL Player of the Week – Phil Plantier (OF BOS)
NL Player of the Week – Kevin Maas (OF FLO)

Dodgers are 4th in the weekly Power Rankings


IF Mike Benjamin's rehab assignment ended. He was optioned to AAA Albuquerque.


Jose Canseco hit his 300th career home run off of Rheal Cormier. It was his 15th of the year

Week twenty two
 

Dodgers 4 – 2
80 – 49 Overall (3.5 games ahead of Houston), +158 Run Differential = 84 – 45 Pythag

The Good: An 11-9 win over the Cardinals in which we gave up 7 runs in the 7th and scored 6 in the 8th.
The Bad: A 3-run 9th inning home run by Trey McCoy ruins a Tim Belcher gem in a 4-2 loss to the Pirates

AL Player of the Week – Jay Buhner (OF SEA)
NL Player of the Week – Cecil Fielder (1B MON)

Dodgers are second in the weekly Power Rankings


Cal Ripken jr hit his 300th career home run vs Rick Helling of the Rangers

August review – league
 

NL Player of the Month: COL LF Moises Alou
NL Pitcher of the Month: HOU SP Dennis Martinez
NL Rookie of the Month: ATL SP Steve Karsay

AL Player of the Month: KC C Darren Daulton
AL Pitcher of the Month: CAL SP Tom Candiotti
AL Rookie of the Month: TEX OF Sammy Sosa

August review – hitters
 

The offense continues to scuffle. Down to 11th in runs, 10th in OBA and wOBA. But 5th in WAR (thanks to defense and adjustments for our stadium).

Cory Snyder (107 wRC+), Rickey Henderson (105) and Bobby Bonilla (103) were the only regulars over 100 for the month of August.

Dave Hollins showed some life with a 99 for the month as did Jose Offerman at 84.

August review – pitchers
 

Pitching and defense are keeping us afloat.
1st in: Runs Allowed, Starter ERA, Bullpen ERA, FIP and Zone Rating. 2nd in pitching WAR

Mark Langston had a 0.95 ERA and 57 FIP- in 46 August innings.
Hershiser, Belcher and Astacio all had ERA's below 3.00 and FIP-'s below 100.

Darren Holmes' 3.27 ERA was the “worst” for the bullpen.

September callups
 

Roster expansion. I love roster expansion.

I play out all games in September to utilize the expanded roster – because it's fun.

AAA Albuquerque is currently 72-48 but 14.5 games out of first in the PCL south

C Carlos Hernandez will rejoin the major league roster. It's always good to have another catcher on the roster. He's hit .321/.138/80 (OBP/ISO/wRC+) in Albuquerque and has 0.4 WAR.

IF Mike Benjamin is out for a week with a knee contusion. So he's not called up right now. But IF Eddie Pye is. Pye started the season in LA and hit .333/.138/117 in 30 plate apperances. With Albuquerque he just managed .351/.120/88 while playing all 3 infield positions.

Speedy OF JT Bruett will also join the Dodgers. He spent 3 and a half months on the big league roster to start the season. Used mostly a defensive replacement, he hit .480/.000/146 in 26 plate apperances. With Albuquerque he got to swing the bat a few times and put up a .419/.155/129 line in 193 plate appearances while playing positive defense at all 3 OF positions.


As for pitchers
Left-hander John O'Donoghue pitched 3 innings in LA early in the season. In AAA he both started (14 times) and relieved (9 times). He totalled 92.2 innings with a 3.79 ERA and 85 FIP-.

Joining him will be righty Mike Christopher who has been up and down this year. He's got 11 big league innings and 55 AAA innings with a 6.47 ERA but 75 FIP-

Another lefty, Mike Munoz is recalled. Like Christopher he has spent time in LA this year – throwing 6 innings. In his 44 minor league innings he has a 5.08 ERA and 95 FIP-


And Pedro Martinez will be added to the 40 man roster. Martinez is our top prospect and was rated the #7 prospect in all of baseball prior to the season. Martinez made 17 starts, pitching 109 innings with 2.8 BB/9 and 10.1 K/9 good for a 2.89 ERA and 74 FIP-. He moved to relief late in the season to prepare for this call up. He made 15 apperances recording 46 outs. He dropped his BB/9 to 1.8 and raised his K/9 to 11.8. That's a 1.78 ERA and 68 FIP-. We think he might play a big roll down the stretch for us.

Week twenty three
 

Dodgers 1 – 5
81 – 54 Overall (.5 games ahead of Houston), +147 Run Differential = 86 – 49 Pythag

The Good: Pedro Martinez' major league debut – 1 perfect inning with a K.
The Bad: 5 game losing streak

AL Player of the Week – Lenny Dykstra (CF KC)
NL Player of the Week – Wayne Kirby (CF COL)

Dodgers are 6th in the weekly Power Rankings


OF Willie Ansley broke a rib and will miss the rest of the season.


Willie McGee got his 2000th career hit, a seventh inning single vs Chuck McElroy

Week twenty four
 

Dodgers 6 – 1
87 – 55 Overall (3 games ahead of Houston and San Diego), +180 Run Differential = 93 – 49 Pythag

The Good: Got revenge by sweeping the Marlins and outscoring them 33-7 in the 4 game series. Tim Belcher and the defense held the Marlins to 1 hit. Al Martin getting the hit with 2 out in the top of the ninth. Devon White hits a walk-off homer to cap the comeback from down 0-5 vs the Marlins. Billy Ashley had 2 pinch hit home runs.
The Bad: Al Martin's 3 run home run our lone loss of the week. New primary RFer Cory Snyder dropped two flyballs in the Marlins series.

AL Player of the Week – Frank Tomas (1B CHW)
NL Player of the Week – Craig Biggio (2B CHC)

Dodgers are 3rd in the weekly Power Rankings

Brett Saberhagen currently has the highest K/BB ratio on MLB history at 12/1 (13 BB and 157 Ks)


OF/1B Bobby Bonilla was lost for the remainder of the season with an IRL injury
OF Billy Ashley was recalled from AAA Albuquerque


Twins first baseman Kent Hrbek hit his 300th HR vs Rod Nichols.


Up Next: 3 games in San Diego

Week twenty five
 

SAN DIEGO SERIES
Game 1: Hershiser and the defense hold the Padres to 2 hits in 6 innings. John Valentin's 2 run double in the 7th inning tacks on to the 2 run lead.

Game 2: Hits are hard to come by with 10 total in the game. The last of which by Steve Beuchele drives in Tony Gwynn to win the game.

Game 3: Mark Langston goes the distance in a 3-0 win. Ricky Henderson's 7th inning double drives in 2 to allow some breathing room.

Cory Snyder was 6 for 10 in the series with 2 RBI and 2 BBs
Rickey Henderson was 5 for 11 2 with 2 RBI and 2 BBs
Dave Hollins was 4 for 12 with a home run.
Three first inning home runs in game one in Coor's. Five total in the game.


Dodgers 4 – 2
91 – 57 Overall (3.5 games ahead of Houston, 5 games ahead of San Diego), +198 Run Differential = 98 – 50 Pythag

The Good: Took 2 of 3 from San Diego.
The Bad: Shut out in Coor's Field 1-0

AL Player of the Week – Gary Sheffield (3B MIL)
NL Player of the Week – Barry Bonds (LF PITT)

Dodgers are 2nd in the weekly Power Rankings


Mike Benjamin was recalled from AAA Albuquerque.

Waiver trade with Florida completed
Looking for another outfielder who can play CF we trade RP Dave Pyc to Florida for Rick Parker
Parker has experience at every non-battery position on the field. He's also an above average base runner. He's struggled this year with Miami (he was the 44th pick in the expansion draft) hitting just .252/.035/27 in 127 PA's. He had a 111 wRC+ in 163 AAA PA's. He'll be eligile for arbitration for the first time at the end of the season.

Dave Pyc, a 22 year old left-handed pitcher, spent time between AA and AAA this year. He had 80 FIP-'s at both levels.

Up Next: 4 games with Cincinnati; 3 games with Houston

Week twenty six
 

HOUSTON SERIES
Game 1:
Cory Snyder goes 4-5 2 RBI
A 2-out 9th inning wild pitch scores Devon White
Houston's Dave Winfield hits a first inning 2-run homer, and a 10th inning RBI triple
Dave Fleming shuts us out for 7 innings
We lose 3 – 4

Game 2: A 5 – 11 embarassment.
Back-to-back home runs by Lou Whitaker and Rick Wilkins after a Piazza 2-run homerun tied the game took the wind out of our sails.

Game 3: A 0 – 2 loss. Juan Guzman goes the distance allowing just 6 hits.

We did not lead in the series.


Dodgers 3 – 4
94 – 61 Overall (.5 games ahead of Houston, 3.5 ahead of San Diego), +199 Run Differential = 102 – 53 Pythag

The Good: Took 3 of 4 from Cincinnati outscoring them 21 – 11
The Bad: Swept by the Astros getting outscored 17 – 8


AL Player of the Week – Dean Palmer (1B Texas)
NL Player of the Week – Moises Alou (OF COL)

Dodgers are 8th in the weekly Power Rankings


Kirby Puckett collected his 2000th career hit, a single vs Kelly Downs
Alan Trammel got his 2500th career hit, a 3rd inning home runs vs Mark Gubicza

Week twenty seven (final week)
 

Three Games vs the Cubs
9/27: Down 0-5 we got back to 4-5. In the 8th we left two runners on. In the 9th had a runner at 3rd with Henderson and Piazza up. Didn't score.
9/28: 6th consecutive loss. 2 errors and 2 wild pitches lead to 3 runs. Billy Ashley hits into a game ending double play. We've fallen a game behind the Astros.

**Ken Griffey jr hit his 62nd home run of the season, breaking Roger Maris' record.

9/29: Trying to end a 6 game losing streak against an on fire Greg Maddux is a tall task. We aren't up to it. 0-5 Maddux goes the distance giving up 3 hits. 7 straight losses, we're down 1 game with 4 left. Down 0-3 Pedro Martinez gives up a home run to Craig Biggio, then hits Jim Leyritz resulting in a brawl and suspension for Martinez. The Astros also lose, and we remain 1 game back.

Four Games vs the Giants
9/30: A lead! We have a lead! 2-1 in the 6th. A win! We won! 3-1!!!. Houston loses 5-4 to Atlanta. The Astros were off and now lead by half a game.
10/1: Another win. 7-3. Mark Langston complete game. Houston loses 3-0 to the Reds. We're up half a game!

Willie Wilson hit his 2500th career hit, a single off of Mike Maddux

10/2: Back and forth. Scoring in the first four innings. That's where the scoring stops for the Giants. Dodgers win 10-4. Cory Snyder has 6 hits, 3 doubles, a homer and 7 RBI in the last two games. Houston loses again and the Dodgers are up 1.5 games with a magic number of 1.
10/3: Houston loses in terrible fashion. Bottom of the ninth, 2-2, 2 out. The Reds' Mike Bordick doubles. Pinch-hitter Reggie Jefferson is walked. Kevin Young singles on a pop-up and the Astros' SS Luis Alicea commits an error allowing the game-winning, and season-ending-for-the-Astros, run to score. Just minutes before the Dodgers begin their game vs the Giants. The scrubs lose to the Giants 2-7 but

The Dodgers are the NL West Champions!

10/4: Not that it matters, but Houston wins 4-2, meaning the Dodgers finish 1 game ahead of the Astros.
Also, The Mets and Cubs finished with 99-63 records in the NL East.

10/6: Powered by a Mark Grace grand slam, the Cubs defeat the Mets 5-1 to win the NL East.

September review – league
 

NL Player of the Month: SFG OF Barry Bonds
NL Pitcher of the Month: NYM SP Kevin Tapani
NL Rookie of the Month: ATL OF Al Martin

AL Player of the Month: CHW 1B Frank Thomas
AL Pitcher of the Month: TOR SP Jose Rijo
AL Rookie of the Month: CLE RP Greg McMichael

NL leaders
 

BATTING
wOBA: Barry Bonds .447, Moises Alou .432, Ray Lankford .409
OBP: Barry Bonds .421, Delino DeShields .419, Moises Alou .414
ISO: Barry Bonds .316, Cecil Fielder .247, Larry Walker .244
WAR:Barry Bonds 8.8, Ray Lankford 7.7, Larry Walker 7.5

Batting Average: Moises Alou .368, Lance Johnson .346, Delino DeShields .336
Hits: Moises Alou 236, Greg Jefferies .223, Delino DeShields 212
Doubles: Moises Alou 50, Craig Biggio 49, Mark Grace 49
Triples: Lance Johnson 15, Willie Wilson 13, Luis Alicea 11, Roberty Kelly 11
Home Runs: Barry Bonds, 49, Cecil Fielder 43, Larry Walker 34
Runs: Greg Jefferies 121, Barry Bonds 119, Kenny Lofton 119
RBI: Barry Bonds 130, Kirby Puckett 118, Larry Walker 117
Walks: Lance Blankenship 128, Rickey Henderson 116, Ray Lankford 99
Steals: Kenny Lofton 79, Delino DeShields 57, Lance Johnson 54

PITCHING
FIP: Greg Maddux 2.34, Randy Johnson 2.69, Mark Langston 2.83
WAR: Greg Maddux 10.7. Randy Johnson 8.5, Doug Drabek 7.7

ERA: Mark Langston 1.67, John Smoltz 2.30, Pete Schourek 2.41
ERA+: Mark Langston 248, John Smoltz 185, Pete Schourek 176
rWAR: Mark Langston 11.5, Greg Maddux 9.8, John Smoltz 9.0

Wins: Greg Madduz 24, Kevin Gross 19, John Smoltz 19, Kevin Tapani 19
Saves: Darryl Ward 39, Mike Fetters 35, Randy Myers 35
Innings: Greg Maddux 268.0, John Smoltz 250.2, Doug Drabek 250.0
Shutouts: Greg Maddux 5, Kevin Tapani
Strikeouts: Randy Johnson 295, Greg Maddux 239, Juan Guzman 236
K/BB: Bob Tewksbury 5.7, Greg Maddux 5.0, Kevin Tapani 4.3

FIELDING
OF Zone Rating: Devon White 30.0, Luis Gonzalez 29.6, Lance Johnson 21.9
IF Zone Rating: Steve Sax 13.3, John Valentin 12.6
Caught Stealing %: Dave Valle 44.6, John Oliver 40.2, Sandy Alomar Jr 38.8

Al leaders
 

BATTING
wOBA: Frank Thomas .459, Ken Griffey Jr .456, John Olerud .445
OBP: Frank Thomas .443, Tony Phillips .442, Lenny Dykstra .436
ISO: Ken Griffey Jr .359, Frank Thomas .303, Tim Salmon .267
WAR: Ken Griffey Jr 9.7, Lenny Dykstra 9.0, John Olerud 8.2

Batting Average: Lenny Dykstra .355, Frank Thomas .343, Paul Molitor .340
Hits: Lenny Dykstra 226, Kevin Mitchell 219, Paul Molitor 213, John Olerud 213
Doubles: John Olerud 54, Wally Joyner 51, Ken Caminiti 46
Triples: Deion Sanders 15, Juan Samuel 13, Joey Cora 12, Rob Ducey 12, Steve Finley 12
Home Runs: Ken Griffey Jr 64*, Fred McGriff 48, Frank Thomas 47
Runs: Lenny Dykstra 168, Ken Griffey Jr 144, Jeff Bagwell 137
RBI: Keith Mitchell 165, Ken Griffey Jr 146, Frank Thomas 145
Walks: Tony Phillips 128, Randy Milligan 117, Frank Thomas 110
Steals: Chuck Carr 84, Otis Nixon 61, Luis Polonia 50

PITCHING
FIP: Brett Saberhagen 2.51, Kevin Appier 3.08, Roger Clemens 3.14
WAR: Brett Saberhagen 9.2, Kevin Appier 7.7, Jose Rio 7.0, Erik Hanson 7.0

ERA: Erik Hanson 2.49, Brett Saberhagen .254, Tom Candiotti 2.80
ERA+: Erik Hanson 191, Brett Saberhagen 189, Tom Candiotti 171
rWAR: Erik Hanson 9.8, Brett Saberhagen 9.3, Tom Candiotti 9.3

Wins: Tom Candiotti 24/Erik Hanson 24, Kevin Appier 22, Brett Saberhagen 22, Bill Swift 22
Saves: Brian Harvey 43, Gregg Olson 34, Lee Smith 33
Innings: Tom Candiotti 266.1, Kevin Appier 256.1, Erik Hanson 253.1
Shutouts: Brett Saberhagen 5, Kevin Appier 4
Strikeouts: Jose Rijo 218, Kevin Appier 191, Pete Harnisch 186
K/BB: Brett Saberhagen 9.6, Jose Rijo 4.4, Erik Hanson 3.3

FIELDING
OF Zone Rating: Otis Nixon 25.8, Steve Finley 17.7, Deion Sanders 17.3
IF Zone Rating: Omar Vizquel 22.3, Ozzie Smith 17.8, Cal Ripken Jr 14.5
Caught Stealing %: Chris Hoiles 41.0, Terry Steinbach 40.9, Ron Karkovice 40.0

Playoffs
 

This year's playoffs

Al playoffs
 

Kansas City (111-51) vs Toronto (96-66). Kansas City 9-3 vs Toronto during the regular season.

Kansas City looks like 1993's best team. They had the best record by 11 games. They had the best run differential by 175 runs. Only two other teams (Los Angeles and Toronto) outscored their opponents by more than 175 runs. The Royals were dominant.

Offensively, they lead the AL is almost everything: runs scored (1055 more than 100 more than the next highest scoring team), wOBA, batting average, OBP, and SLG. They were second in home runs. 4th in stolen bases and base running. Dominant.

CF Lenny Dykstra (167 wRC+ and 9 WAR) was their best player. C Darren Dauton (151 and 7.2) and 2b Tony Phillips (150 and 7.7) were almost as good. No regular had a wRC+ lower than Mike Pagliarulo's 101.

The pitching and defense was almost as good. They gave up the fewest runs in the league and were first in pitcher WAR. Their defense was second in Zone Rating and sixth in effeciency.

Brett Saberhagen (189 ERA+, 52 FIP-, 9.2 WAR) and Kevin Appier (160 ERA+, 62 FIP-, 7.7 WAR) headed up the starting rotation. John Smily (109, 87. 3.5) was also solid. Jim Pittsley (141, 95, .9) between the rotation and bullpen will be the 4th starter in the playoffs replacing Tom Gordon (who was injured in July). The relievers, Michael Jackson; Hipolito Pichardo; Gene Nelson; and Steve Farr all had FIP-'s below 75.


Toronto was also very good offensively. Second in runs scored and wOBA to the Royals. They were lead by 1B John Olerud (180 wRC+ 8.2 WAR). DH Fred McGriff (149 and 5.6), LF Julio Franco (128 and 4.4) and C Don Slaught (120 and 3.5) are the other main offensive threats.

The pitching and defense were also very good, but behind the Royals'. They were second (to the Royals) in runs allowed. And fourth in pitcher WAR. They weren't helped by their defense which was 9th in both Zone Rating and Efficiency.

Jose Rijo (142 ERA+, 67 FIP-, 7.0 WAR) is the unquestioned ace of the staff. He's joined by Pat Hentgen (110, 89, 3.0), Todd Stottlemyer (106, 93, 2.8) and Mike Moore (114, 99, 1.7). Closer Xavier Hernandez (165, 60, 2.0) and Jesse Orosco (227, 67, 1.1) are the best in the bullpen.

Nl playoffs
 

Los Angeles (97-65) vs Chicago (100-63). Chicago won the season series 8-4.

Chicago is a pretty well-balanced team. They had the 5th best run differential (The 4th place Mets, who the Cubs beat in a 163rd game, were the only top 4 team in run differential not to make the playoffs).

They had a strong offense – first in the NL in runs scored. They were 4th in wOBA. Their strength was getting on base, their .334 OBP was the best in the NL. But they didn't hit for much power and were only tenth in the NL in home runs. The base running was middle of the pack. Fifth in stolen bases and eighth in BSR.

Second baseman Craig Biggio (137 wRC+ and 5.2 WAR) was their best hitter. Leadoff hitter and CF Lance Johnson (131, 7.1) also had a standout season. 1B Mark Grace (128, 3.4), Brady Anderson (120, 3.9) and Jim Leyritz (116, 3.1) round out the offensive threats.

They gave up the sixth most runs in the NL and were sixth in ERA and sixth in WAR as well. Defensively they were, unsurprisingly, sixth in Zone Rating and...fifth in Defensive Efficiency.

The pitching staff was led by Greg Maddux (168 ERA+, 55 FIP-, 10.7 WAR), the likely Cy Young winner. Greg Swindell (143, 82, 4.8), Alex Fernandez (128, 86, 4.9), and Bobby Witt (94, 93, 3.2) are the likely other starters. Closer Mike Fetters (102, 89, 1.0) was their best reliever. Lee Gutterman, Jeff Parrett, and Phil Leftwich all had negative WAR on the season. Maddux was used in game 163 vs the Mets so will not start game 1 of the series.


The Dodgers' offense, ninth in the NL in runs scored and wOBA, is in stark contrast to the other teams in this years' playoff and especially stark contrast to the Cubs' offense. We were tenth in OBP but fifth in home runs. Put base running (fourth in BSR and sixth in stolen bases) was also a strength.

Preventing runs is where we shine. The 501 runs we gave up were 31 fewer than any other team and 129 fewer than any other playoff team. The pitching did its part. We lead in ERA, starters ERA and relievers ERA and were second in pitcher WAR. They were helped along by a defense that rated first in Zone Rating and first in Efficiency.

Dodgers playoff roster
 

Who are we bringing with us to face the Cubs?

Most of the decisions well be obvious

Catchers Mike Piazza and Darren Fletcher
Infielders Jon Valentin, Gary Gaetti, Scott Fletcher, Jose Offerman and Chris Donnels
Outfielders Rickey Henderson, Devon White, Cory Snyder, Bill Bean and Mike Huff
Starting Pitchers Mark Langston, Tim Belcher, Ramon Martinez, Orel Hershiser and Pedro Astacio
Relievers John Wetteland, Rod Beck, Jim Gott, Kent Mercker and Tony Fossas

That makes 22.

Non-pitchers who are on the bubble: 1B Dave Hollins, OF Billy Ashley, OF JT Bruett, C Carlos Hernandez
With Bonilla on the IL and Hollins not hitting all year we are short a first baseman. Snyder can play there, but then who plays right field? A platoon of Bean and Huff? Billy Ashley? Do we platoon Donnels and Ashley at 1B? Move Piazza to first and let Fletcher get most of the catching duties?

The Cubs' lone left-handed starter is Greg Swindell. Swindell is a finesse pitcher who doesn't K many and hardly ever walks anyone. That's not a good matchup for Mike Huff who posted a .374 OBP with just a .250 batting average. It might be a chance for Billy Ashley to take some cuts. Dave Hollins had a huge split this year (.366 vs L, .277 vs R) and his ratings back it up.


We'll be bringing all 5 starters. But, which 4 should start? Langston and Belcher for sure. The other three are similar. The Cubs offense is based off getting on base, and were 3rd in the NL in walks. Hershiser limits walks the best and Ramon walks the most, so that's a consideration.

For the bullpen, the Cubs have 3 excellent left-handed hitters (Johnson, Anderson and Grace) who hit at the top of their order. So another left-handed reliever could be important.

We have Mike Munoz, Jim Poole, John O'Donoghue and Angel Miranda as lefties. None pitched very well in limited MLB time this year.

Mike Christopher, Darren Holmes, Pedro Martinez and David Nied are right-handed possibilities.


After much deliberation, we decide to add Dave Hollins, Billy Ashley and Pedro Martinez to the playoff roster for the 1st round vs the Cubs.

OCTOBER 7th
 

Game #1 Dodgers at Cubs

Today's starting pitchers are Mark Langston (L) (15-7, 248 ERA+, 68 FIP-) and Greg Swindell (L) (13-7, 143 ERA+, 82 FIP-)

We go with our regular lineup with a slight twist.
LF Rickey Henderson – OBP, Power, Speed.
C Mike Piazza – Another pretty complete hitter. Makes contact, Power. Does hit into double plays.
SS Jon Valentin – Maybe our best hitter this season. We stack our best hitters at the top of the order.
1B Cory Snyder – 139 wRC+ as a Dodger, crushes lefties. Better at 1B than RF
RF Billy Ashley – Looking for a 1B. We think Ashley can have success vs Swindell who pitches to contact.
3B Gary Gaetti – Much better vs lefties than righties.
CF Devon White – Much better vs righties than lefties.
P Mark Langston – hitting 8th so a better 9 hitter in front of Rickey and Piazza
2B Scott Fletcher – we go Fletcher over Offerman to get his glove in the lineup.

We hit Ashley 5th instead of Gaetti expecting that we'll face a right-handed reliever late in the game, and we will pinch hit Bean, Donnels or Fletcher here in a big spot. Having the left-handed hitter 5th instead of 6th breaks up the lineup so it's not right-handed batters 1 through 6.

NOTE: Cubs C Jim Leyritz is serving the final game of his suspension resulting from a brawl after a Pedro Martinez hit by pitch.

Let's do it.

Game #1
 

Top 1
Rickey coaxes a leadoff walk from Swindell and steals on the 1-2 pitch to Piazza.
And Piazza crushes an inside slider to LF for a home run. 2-0 Dodgers.
Valentin draws a walk
But Snyder hits into a 6-4-3 double play.
Ashley taps back to the pitcher for the 3rd out.

Bottom 1
Lance Johnson grounds out to SS
Brady Anderson strikes out.
Mark Grace pulls a single past a diving Scott Fletcher
Langston walks Biggio
Then goes full count to Ron Gant, but get's the called 3rd strike on a checked swing.

2-0 Dodgers

Top 2
Gaetti and White make outs on the first pitches they see
Mark Langston strikes out on 5 pitches.

Bottom 2
Dave Valle, Scott Brosious and Dave Silvestri go down in order.
We're glad that the Cubs have Swindell leading off the next inning.

2-0 Dodgers

Top 3
Mike Piazza draws a two-out walk, but the other 3 Dodgers don't get the ball out of the infield.

Bottom 3
Greg Swindell strikes out.
Lance Johnson hammers one toward RF. Fletcher stops it, but can't make the play and is charged with an error.
Brady Anderson strikes out for the second time
And Mark Grace smokes one right at Snyder at first.

2-0 Dodgers

Top 4
Cory Snyder leads off with a single to LF
Ashley K's and Gaetti pops up.
Devon White singles to clear the pitcher's spot.
Langston strikes out.

Bottom 4
Ron Gant and Dave Valle hit back-to-back one out singles, but two fly balls end the inning

2-0 Dodgers

Top 5
Scott Fletcher nubs one in front of the plate, but Dave Valle throws it away and Fletcher ends up on second.
A wild pitch moves him to 3rd
Rickey rockets one to 3B that Gant stops with a dive, but there's no play. Fletcher scores. 3-0 Dodgers
Piazza follows with a single to center. Runners at 1st and 2nd.
Valentin grounds into an easy double play leaving the inning up to Snyder who pops up to LF. We settle for 1

Bottom 5
Swindell, Johnson and Anderson go quietly.

3-0 Dodgers

Top 6
Ashley leads off with a walk. We contemplate pinch running for him and then bringing in Bean who is a better defender thinking that Swindell won't be in the game next time Ashley bats. But, we hold off on making the change.
Gaetti singles to LF and White singles to RF driving in Ashley. 4-0
Langston gets his bunt down and it's runners at second and third for Fletcher. We give some thought to putting the pressure on by pinch hitting here, but we stick with Fletcher's glove at 2B.
Fletcher pops to shallow right, and Gaetti holds at third. A wise choice as Rickey singles to RF scoring both Gaetti and White.
That's it for Swindell. Kip Gross relieves.
Piazza greets him with a home run.
Valentin walks and Snyder homers. 10-0.
That's it for Gross. Steve Tracshel relieves.
Ashley K's to end the inning.

Bottom 6
Mark Grace singles and steals on a Biggio strike out.
Gant K's then Valle singles Grace in before Brosious pops to White to end the inning.

10-1 Dodgers

Top 7
Gaetti ground out before Devon White doubles. At 102 pitches through 6 innings we decide to pinch hit for Langston.
We have to choose betwee Bill Bean, Chris Donnels and Dave Hollins. We prefer Hollins vs lefties and we have fewer infielders so we go with Bean who walks.
Fletcher strikes out on a 3-2 pitch bringing up Henderson with 2 on. He draws a walk and Piazza is up with a chance to add a grand slam to his two home runs. He hammers a ball to deep right center but it falls into Brosius' glove on the warning track.

Bottom 7
Bill Bean stays in the game in LF. Rickey Henderson gets to watch the last few innings.
Pedro Martinez comes in to relieve. We think a 10-1 game is a good opportunity for the rookie to make his playoff debut.

He walks Silvestri. The Cubs elect not to hit for Traschel who can't get a bunt down. Johnson and Anderson hit a couple of mediocre flyballs to end the enning.

10-1 Dodgers

Top 8
Valentin and Snyder are quick outs but Billy Ashley smashes a home run to left. 11-1
Chris Donnels hits for Gaetti, getting his first post season plate appearance. He strikes out.

Bottom 8
Donnels stays in the game at 1B. Valentin moves to 3B. Fletcher goes to SS and Jose Offerman comes in to play 2B.

Boi Rodriguez hits for Grace and strikes out.
Gary Varsho hits for Biggio and his hit by 1-2 pitch. No fights break out this time
Turner Ward his for Gant and lines out to Ashley.
Pedro strikes out Valle to end the inning

11-1 Dodgers

Top 9
Offerman strikes out in his first playoff plate appearance.
Bean flies to RF
And Fletcher strikes out to end the inning.
We wanted to get someone on so Darren Fletcher could pinch hit for Pedro and replace Piazza but we don't get our wish.

Bottom 9
Darren Fletcher comes in to catch. Piazza moves to 1B (so I still have a catcher if Fletcher gets injured), Donnels moves to 3B. Valentin and Snyder get some time off. Jim Gott, who hasn't pitched in 6 days comes in to, hopefully, get the final 3 outs.

Scott Brosius singles.
Dave Silvestri strikes out.
Pinch hitter Ivan Calderon reaches on Scott Fletcher's error.
Tony Fossas comes in and gives up a single to Brady Anderson to load the bases
Boi Rodriguez K's to end the game

Final Score: 11-1 Dodgers

Couldn't have asked for much better than that.

OCTOBER 8th
 

Game #2 Dodgers at Cubs

Today's starting pitchers are Tim Belcher (R) (15-8, 149 ERA+, 79 FIP-) and Alex Fernandez (R) (15-10, 128 ERA+, 86 FIP-)

Today's lineup.
No doubt about LF-Rickey, CF White, SS-Valentin nor 3B Gaetti.
Piazza (C or 1B) and Snyder (1B or RF) will also be in the linup though we're not sure where.
Second base will be manned by either Fletcher or Offerman
The last spot will be either Fletcher at C, Hollins at 1B or Bean or Huff in RF

We rate Fernandez as 5/5/6 vs both lefties and righties. He had a 3.0/5.6 ratio of BB/9 and K/9 vs lefties and 1.7/7.4 vs righties.

Offerman is a switch hitter who gets a significant amount of his offensive value from drawing walks. We go with Fletcher's defense and ability to drive the ball.

Dave Hollins struggled this year, and the damage he did do was mostly against left-handed pitchers (.814 OPS vs .589 against L)

Mike Huff's strength vs right-handed pitchers is drawing walks. This may not be a great matchup for him

We rate Bill Bean and Darren Fletcher as equal batters vs right-handed pitchers. Bean is a plus defensive outfielder while Fletcher is a below average defensive catcher. Bean in RF would also improve our defense at first (Snyder over Piazza) and catcher (Piazza over Fletcher). Bean it is.


LF Rickey
C Piazza
SS Valentin
1B Snyder
CF White (Better vs R than L)
RF Bean
3B Gaetti
P Belcher
2B Fletcher

Game #2
 

Top 1
Last night Rickey and Piazza staked us to a two run lead. Tonight both go back to the dugout empty handed.
Valentin doubles off the top of f the wall, but Snyder lines out to SS.

Bottom 1
Lance Johnson lines out to Devon White
Brady Anderson flies out to Rickey
Craig Biggio grounds out to Gaetti

0-0

Top 2
White looks at a called strike 3
Bean doubles down the left-field line
Gaetti goes down looking.
On a 2-1 pitch, Belcher grounds to SS, but Silvestri throws it away and Bean scores.
Fletcher hits a high flyball to straight away CF but it's caught on the warning track

Bottom 2
Leyritz flies out to Rickey
Gant flies out to White
Was hoping Grace would fly out to Bean in RF, but he doubles over White's head.
Dave Valle ends the inning with a soft line drive to Gaetti.

1-0 Dodgers

Top 3
Rickey singles to CF but is erased on a Piazza double play.
Valentin K's to end the inning.

Bottom 3
Silvestri, Fernandez and Johnson hit 3 harmless ground balls.

1-0 Dodgers

Top 4
Snyder and White both K
Bean doubles, this time to RF
Gaetti singles to CF, but Bean doesn't try for home
Belcher ends the inning with a K

Bottom 4
Anderson leads off with a double
Biggio flies out to CF but Anderson doesn't advance
Leyritz K's.
Gant draws a walk
Grace ground it down the RF line, but Snyder is there to make the play

1-0 Dodgers

Top 5
Fletcher swings at a questionable 3-1 pitch and grounds to first
Rickey swings at a worse pitch, and also grounds to first
Piazza gets a decent pitch and singles to CF
A Valentin bloop down the RF line moves Piazza to 3rd.
Snyder drives the first pitch he sees into right center for a 2-run double.
Devo tries to do the same, but grounds out to second

Bottom 5
Dave Valle singles past a diving Valentin
Silvestri also singles into left to put runners at first and second for Fernandez but he can't get the bunt down.
Lance Johnson drives the ball down the RF line to score Valle, but Silvestri holds up at 3B
Anderson flies out to shallow right, abd Silvestri holds up again
Belcher retires Biggio on a ground ball to Valentin to end the threat

3-1 Dodgers

Top 6
Bean is retired for the first time as he K's
Gaetti singles to give Belcher a chance to bunt, which he does successfully.
We give a second of thought to pinch hitting for Fletcher, but up by two we prefer to keep his glove in the game.
He hammers a pitch to LF but Anderson tracks it down.

Bottom 6
Leyritz and Gant hit ground balls to Gaetti, which isn't a sound offensive strategy.
Grace tests Fletcher to similar results
Three up. Three down

3-1 Dodgers

Top 7
Rickey grounds to SS, but Silvestri boots it.
Piazza follows with a line drive single to RF. Rickey doesn't test Leyritz' arm and remains at 2B
Valentin flies to RF, but not deep enough for Rickey to advance.
Snyder hits a double play ball to Gant at 3B, but he can't make the play and the bases are loaded for White.
Devo works the count full and flies to right. Third time is a charm as Rickey scores.
Bean grounds the ball past Biggio and Piazza scores on Leyritz.
Gaetti smashes the first pitch over the left field wall and I relax about 5 levels.
With the extra breathing room, we bring in Hollins to pinch hit.
The Cubs replace Fernandez with Phil Leftwich.
Hollins walks to extend the inning but Fletcher pops up to end it.
We settle for 5 runs

Bottom 7
Wetteland comes in to face the bottom of the order. He hasn't pitched in a week.
His first two pitches result in a ground out to Gaetti and a single by Silvestri.
Turner Ward comes in to pinch hit. Wetteland strikes him out.
Kent Mercker is called on to face Lance Johnson who promptly lines a single to right
Anderson is retired on a comebacker to the mound

8-1 Dodgers

Top 8
Left-hander Steve Wilson is the new pitcher
Henderson greets him with a double of the LF ivy.
Piazza's deep drive to CF moves Rickey to 3B
Valentin K's and Snyder BB's on 4 pitches
Devon White flies out to Leyritz to end the inning.

Bottom 8
We bring in Rod Beck to get some work
Biggio ground out to his counterpart at second.
Leyritz doubles down the RF line
Gant grounds to Valentin, who throws it away. Leyritz scores and Gant ends up on second.
Valentin, more gracefully, handles Grace's popup
Beck K's Valle and go to the top of the ninth

8-2 Dodgers

Top 9
The left-handed Wilson stays in, so we bring in Ashley who singles up the middle
Gaetti follows with a single to RF. Ashley holds at second.
Mike Huff hits for Beck and walks to load the bases
Fletcher grounds into a double play, that scores Ashley
Rickey checks his swing and walks
Piazza knocks Gaetti home with a single
Valentin's single scores Rickey and that's it for Wilson. Kip Gross comes in
We decide to get Chris Donnels an at bat. We settle for a 3-run inning as he grounds out to first.

Bottom 9
Ramon Martinez is in to pitch.
Rickey gets an inning off. Mike Huff takes over in LF, Ashley mans right and Chris Donnels stays in at 1B
Ramon goes full to Silvestri and walks him
He goes full to PH Brosius and gets him to hit into a fielder's choice.
As does Johnson on a 1-1 pitch
He falls beind Anderson before getting the final out on a groundball to Valentin

Final Score: 11-2 Dodgers

AL Game #1 – Toronto at Kansas City

Jose Rijo and Brett Saberhagen both pitched into the 9th inning. Rijo did so without giving up a run, Jesse Orosco and Xavier Hernandez helped to finish off the shutout. Saberhagen goes all the way but gives up 3 runs in the third inning with 2 of the runs coming on Fred McGriff's homerun.

OCTOBER 9th
 

AL Game #2 – Toronto at Kansas City

This time both pitchers pitch 7 innings. Appier (and teammates) gives up 2 runs on the 9 hits they get against him. Todd Stottlemyer is charged with 4. Spike Owen was the offensive hero for the Royals. He went 3-4 and drove in the 3rd run for the Blue Jays.

OCTOBER 10th
 

Game 3 Cubs at Dodgers

Today's starting pitchers are Greg Maddux (R) (24-8, 168 ERA+, 55 FIP-) and Pedro Astacio (R) (11-10, 156 ERA+, 81 FIP-)

The first question was who was going to be the starter. Orel Hershiswer or Pedro Astacio. We chose Astacio because, with Maddux on the mound this looks like the hardest game for us to win. Hershiser and Astacio are, in our minds, roughly equivilant pitchers but Orel has a bit better control, which, as mentioned previously, we think will play better vs the Cubs' lineup. So, we're not punting this game, but trying to maximize our possibility of winning the series. Slightly confounding is that if the series goes 7 games, we'll have this matchup again.

The lineup, we go with the same lineup as Game 2, for, largely, the same reasons.


EDIT: 10-10 was the 100th post in the thread. Cool enough