The Trolley Dodger

The last two Dodger games (against the Giants, so it’s that much sweeter), the starters have:

• 24 strikeouts (Bills 11, Kershaw 13)
• 1 walk (Bills 0, Kershaw 1)
• 14 innings pitched (7 apiece)
• 2 earned runs (1 apiece)
• 6 hits given up (Bills 5, Kershaw 1)

Ahem.

Opening Day versus the Giants at Dodger Stadium. Spot the lead story.

• Chad Billingsly has 11 strikeouts and moves to 2-0.
• Andre Ethier hits two homeruns, including a three-run jack.
• Matt Kemp has hit in every game so far this season, even the one he didn’t start in.
• The Dodgers destroy the Giants 11-1.
• And for good measure, Vin Scully threw out the first pitch!

That’s a pretty awesome game, eh?

Oh, and, uh, Orlando Hudson hit for the cycle.

Yep. The cycle.

First Dodger to hit for the cycle since 1970. First cycle ever by a Dodger at Dodger Stadium.

I think I may need some oxygen.

Welcome to Los Angeles, O-Dawg!

UPDATE:

As if we needed more, it has been pointed out that,

• Chad also had 0 walks to go with all his Ks.
• This was the largest crowd ever at Dodger Stadium, 57,099.

We split two four-game series with the Phillies this season, winning four in LA and losing four in Philly. And similarly to the series against the Cubs, they both took place in a 16-day span, August 11-14 and 22-25:

1. Aug 11 @LAD W 8-6 Kendrick vs Lowe
2. Aug 12 @LAD W 4-3 Hamels vs Kershaw
3. Aug 13 @LAD W 7-6 Blanton vs Penny
4. Aug 14 @LAD W 3-1 Myers vs Kuroda
5. Aug 22 @PHI L 1-8 Maddux vs Kendrick
6. Aug 23 @PHI L 2-9 Kershaw vs Hamels
7. Aug 24 @PHI L 2-5 in 11 Kuroda vs Blanton
8. Aug 25 @PHI L 0-5 Billingsley vs Myers

Looking at the four losses in Philly:

The first was against an ineffective Maddux, who gave up 7 ER in 5.2 IP.

The second game, Kershaw gave up 6 ER and Jason Johnson 3 more. Their ace Hamels was pretty much on, giving up only 2 ER in 7 IP.

The third game saw Kuroda going 6 IP and giving up only 1 ER, with Chan Ho Park and Hong Chi Kuo shutting them down for another inning each. Unfortunately, Jonathan Broxton had one of his rare blown saves, which took the game into extra innings where Joe Beimel got the loss, giving up 1 ER, and Jason Johnson 2 ER.

The fourth was a shutout, with Billingsley only giving up 3 ER, but with five walks and three strikeouts. Chan Ho Park had two more ER. Brett Myers took care of the Dodgers with 7 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, and 8 SO.

All four losses included Kent/Ozuna and Garciaparra/Berroa up the middle and in the lineup. And while we did have Manny and Casey Blake, we had only tiny hopes about Rafael Furcal coming back someday. Jason Johnson was not on the NLDS roster, and I don’t expect he will be. Takashi Saito might be back on track after a few more days’ rest, but in any case Broxton looks to be in great shape after last night’s domination. And who knows, maybe Hong Chih Kuo will be back as well.

Some possible pitching matchups:

1. Lowe vs Hamels
2. Billingsley vs Myers
3. Kuroda vs Moyer
4. Kershaw vs Blanton

Game four might also see Lowe made available on short rest, depending on the series situation at that point.

No mistake, this will be a tough series, testing the Boys in Blue to the extreme. But I think we’ve got a good shot at beating them.

With our dominant pitching, better defense, and an awakened offense, we can beat the Phillies.

The Dodgers and Cubs played seven games versus each other this season, three at Wrigley Field. All seven took place within the span of two weeks, May 26-28 and June 5-8. Here’s the breakdown (links to boxscores):

1. May 26 @CHC L 1-3 Billingsley vs Dempster
2. May 27 @CHC L 1-3 Kuroda vs Gallagher
3. May 28 @CHC L 1-2 Lowe vs Zambrano
4. Jun 05 @LAD L 4-5 Dempster vs Billingsley
5. Jun 06 @LAD W 3-0 Gallagher vs Kuroda
6. Jun 07 @LAD W 7-3 Zambrano vs Lowe
7. Jun 08 @LAD L 1-3 Marquis vs Penny

This NLDS is a best-of-five series. So far, the announced pitching matchups are:

1. Game 1 @CHC: Lowe vs Dempster
2. Game 2 @CHC: Billingsley vs Zambrano
3. Game 3 @LAD: Harden vs Kuroda

It goes without saying that the Dodger team of late May early June is not the same one going into the playoffs. Juan Pierre led off all seven games. A mix of Hu and Maza played SS. Blake DeWitt was playing 3rd, but the league had adjusted to him by then (although he would stay up in the bigs until the end of July).

All of the pitchers back then either won or kept it close — even Brad Penny, who went 6 IP and only gave up 3 ER. June 6th was a complete game shutout for Kuroda, with 11 Ks.

Chan Ho Park and Clayton Kershaw coming out of the pen? Takashi Saito back?

Our starting pitching, backed by one of the best bullpens in baseball, can beat the Cubs.

And look at a possible NLDS starting lineup for the Dodgers:

SS Rafael Furcal
CF Matt Kemp
LF Manny Ramirez
RF Andre Ethier
1B James Loney
3B Casey Blake
C Russell Martin
2B Blake DeWitt
P

We can take them.