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Zack Greinke still rolling, but gets no support in Dodgers' 1-0 loss
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- Dodgers Matt Kemp late scratch as ankle sore again
- Can Chris Capuano still pitch himself into Dodgers postseason plans
- Unveiling a division title banner Dodgers are better than that
Zack Greinke still rolling, but gets no support in Dodgers' 1-0 lossBy Steve Dilbeck Good news, there’s good news to be found on the Dodgers: Zack Greinke looked sharp in his final start of the regular season. Bad news, yeah, some of that too. A little too much perhaps. Despite Greinke’s strong outing, the Dodgers fell to the Colorado Rockies, 1-0, Saturday night as their offense again fell flat in front of 52,879 at Dodger Stadium. The bad news started even before the first pitch, when the Dodgers ran out to their positions to start the game … and there was no Matt Kemp. Kemp was scheduled to start in center field, but was a late scratch because his left ankle was sore. The Dodgers called the move precautionary, but it is the same ankle that forced Kemp to sit out 53 games, although a few were added when his hamstring tightened up again. Recurring injury has been an unfortunate theme for Kemp this season. He has appeared in only 73 of the Dodgers' 161 games. Saturday’s game offered little from a Dodgers team that scored 11 runs Friday. The Dodgers managed only three hits against six pitchers and went quietly most of the warm fall night. Their biggest scoring opportunity came after they loaded the bases with one out in the sixth inning on an error, a Hanley Ramirez single and a walk. But reliever Adam Ottavino came on to get Juan Uribe to foul out and Scott Van Slyke to fly out to right field. Greinke continued his terrific play in the second half, giving up a run and four hits in six innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out seven. The Rockies scored in the fourth inning on doubles by Troy Tulowitzki and Nolan Arenado. Van Slyke made a diving attempt, but came up short on Arenado’s drive. Greinke ended his regular season with a 15-4 record and a 2.63 earned-run average. Saturday was his first loss since July 25. In his 12 games since then, he is 7-1 with a 1.58 ERA. He has not given up more than two runs in any of those 12 starts. Paco Rodriguez, who has struggled this month, was back to form, pitching a perfect eighth inning. He retired the side in order, including two strikeouts. Brian Wilson retired the Rockies in order in the ninth. See, just all kinds of good news. Dodgers' Matt Kemp late scratch as ankle sore againBy Steve Dilbeck And for today’s scare, the Dodgers bring you Matt Kemp. Kemp was a late scratch Friday night, the Dodgers said he was removed for precautionary reasons because of left ankle soreness. This is the same ankle that earlier caused Kemp to sit out 53 games. He came off the disabled list Sept. 16 and had started every game but one since. Kemp has been on the DL three times this season because of a hamstring strain, soreness from off-season shoulder surgery and the ankle issue. While rehabbing the ankle, he also irritated the hamstring again. In the 11 games since coming off the DL, Kemp has hit .314 with one home run and six runs batted in. Kemp has appeared in only 17 of the Dodgers' first 161 games. The Dodgers are already playing short one outfielder. Andre Ethier remains out because of shin splint-like symptoms in his left leg. Can Chris Capuano still pitch himself into Dodgers' postseason plans?By Steve Dilbeck One inning doesn’t figure to change much in the Dodgers’ overall postseason plans. Still, that was a pretty interesting inning left-hander Chris Capuano threw Friday night. Pitching for the first time since Sept. 6 when he suffered a mild groin strain, Capuano looked very sharp, retiring the Rockies in order with two strikeouts. He needed only 12 pitches, nine that went for strikes. It’s an awfully late push for a bullpen role, particularly for a career starter who hasn’t really pitched in relief since returning from Tommy John surgery in 2010. The Dodgers already have two left-handed relievers in Paco Rodriguez and J.P. Howell. But at least Capuano has worked himself into the fringes of the postseason picture.
That would leave Brandon League, Carlos Marmol, Stephen Fife, Edison Volquez and Capuano all competing for the final pitching spot on the roster. Unveiling a division title banner? Dodgers are better than thatBy Steve Dilbeck Well, that was one lousy idea. I mean, come on, these are the Dodgers. The Los Angeles Dodgers. One of baseball’s most storied teams. Their standards are supposed to be higher than those of the Padres. Yet there they were Friday night, unveiling a sign across the center-field wall that proclaimed: LA 2013 NL-West Division Champions. Really? This is what they do now at Dodger Stadium? Hang signs announcing a division title? I don’t think so. At Dodger Stadium they hang World Series banners. And whether it’s been 25 years or not, you don’t overreact to a division title. All that guarantees you is being invited to the first division series. The Lakers hang NBA championship banners at Staples Center, not division titles. NCAA championship basketball banners are draped from the ceiling at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion, not conference championships. USC rings the Coliseum with NCAA championship football banners, not conference titles. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being proud of what this team has accomplished this year,” said Manager Don Mattingly. “But it’s not where we want to end up.” They should be proud, but a pregame ceremony to unfurl a new outfield sign proclaiming them division champions seems a bit much. Ambitions run higher here. The Dodgers have been to nine World Series and won it five times since moving to Los Angeles in 1958. Back at the beginning of the year, one of the Dodgers owners sat in his office and said: “We want to go to the World Series. If we don't accomplish that, yes, it is not a good season for us. Guys should be saying that. As the ownership group, that is what we are saying.” It was Magic Johnson, owner of five NBA titles. It was an audacious but true statement. And it's what they should still be saying now, not getting all giddy over a division title that sends you to the postseason dance. The real challenge starts Thursday. And the reward is a World Series banner. The kind they hang at Dodger Stadium. DODGERS.COM Directory: documents documents -> Concept stage documents -> Concept stage documents -> The great global switch-off documents -> Nonprofit grant application documents -> The Truth about the Rwandan Genocide documents -> Annual InStructional unit plan documents -> Chaos equipment included Download 276.95 Kb. Share with your friends:
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