The Trolley Dodger

People were dodging trolleys in LA too, back in the day. Amazing to think we had one of the great mass transit systems, from the Valley to the southern reaches of Orange County, from Santa Monica to San Berdoo. Heck, their motto was truthful — “from the mountains to the sea.”

(And then it was destroyed. Massacred might be a better term. But that’s for a different blog.)

Here’s some great footage (silent only — feel free to add your own sound effects ;) of the early trolleys in Los Angeles, posted by metrolibrarian on YouTube (see about on metro.net). As you’ll see in the first sequence, Los Angeles police are slightly more skilled at their jobs nowadays. ;D

MLB AND MLBPA DONATE $200,000 TO SUPPORT TORNADO RELIEF EFFORTS

Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) are joining together to contribute $200,000 toward relief efforts for tornado victims in the Midwest and the Southeast. The funds are being donated to Heart to Heart International, a Kansas City-based humanitarian organization that has been providing technical assistance, volunteer support and necessary resources, including their Mobile Health Clinic, in disaster areas in the Midwest and Southeast. Please join us in helping.

Donate…

The Lakers are hiring former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown to succeed Phil Jackson, according to multiple media reports.

Welcome to LA!

In an article devoted mostly to the financial “trials” of CC Sabathia, SI.com’s Jon Heyman has this on the Dodger situation:

Current Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has a decent chance not to meet payroll this month, according to people familiar with his financial situation. If MLB has to fund the player payroll, a potential case for a sale becomes stronger. With McCourt’s soon-to-be-ex-wife Jamie McCourt also trying to force a sale, McCourt seems to have one foot out the door. His claim this week that he’s living in a one-bedroom place is a funny one in that he has the penthouse at The Montage, one of Beverly Hills’ most exclusive hotels. (Since I’ve never been there, I can’t confirm the penthouse has only one bedroom.)

Now, I don’t expect he should stay at the Super 8 a half-mile down Sunset from Dodger Stadium (“Comfortable hotel, great front desk staff, Ok breakfast” said one review), but at least be forthcoming about it. Why prevaricate when you don’t have to?

Oh right, it’s Frank McCourt. That’s kind of his thing.

Speaking of CC Sabathia, Ken Rosenthal had some Dodger-related rumor-mongering to accomplish last week. Via MLBTradeRumors:

The Dodgers were one of C.C. Sabathia’s “top choices” when he was a free agent after the 2008 season, and he would “love to have the Dodgers as leverage” when he (as expected) opts out of his contract with the Yankees this winter. As Rosenthal says, impending free agents hope the Dodgers solve their ownership problems quickly so the team can resume its status as a big-market destination.

I would love to have the Dodgers as leverage when I try to decide what to watch on TV next October. At the rate things are going, June is looking iffy.

From the Bread and Circuses Department (Fiddling While Rome Burns edition), foodie Andre Ethier demonstrates proper Dodger Dog grilling technique:

Grilling is the only way to go for Dodger Dogs, although I prefer mustard, ketchup, and onions myself.