NPUT: Well said.

Nice treat, Extra Innings is free at the moment & one of my favorite pitchers is pitching today for houston.

Well, the offense is still blah, but at least the starters are starting to pick it up, just 3 runs in their last 19 innings.

Valdez really did sport a Furcal-like arm out there today. There were a few plays that I figured would be infield hits where he gunned the guys by a full step.

Wilson Valdez was all-world today.

speaking of wilsons, does anyone think it might be time to give someone else a shot at 3rd base (LaRoche), betemit is just not getting it done and we need production from that position. I don't how to say it but he just looks so bad up there sometimes, and he takes the most akward swings.

Furcal in center:)

When Furcal is activated, who gets sent down/cut?

6 I think he should be given more than a week to prove himself

but this is going back to last year. he didnt hit much in spring either.

I think that Kemp has been marked for a demotion.

Martinez can't be sent to Las Vegas without his permission (outside of a rehab assignment). He wouldn't give it.

I cant see Ramon Martinez being DFA'ed no matter how he does. He just seems to have a lock on a roster spot.

Maybe Wilson Valdez will get the Cody Ross treatment this year. Do really well, then get DFA'ed the following week.

"3rd: J Rollins inside-the-park home run to deep center, C Ruiz and B Myers scored."

Ahhh I knew I picked the right SS for my fantasy team!!

Meanwhile (and Dodger-related), how has Mr. Garciaparra looked the last couple of days? Does he seem to be slowed down at all by that newly-enlarged family of his?

And turn back into a pumpkin on somebody else's watch.

Actually a more likely scenario is that Marlon Anderson will be DL'ed with some mysterious ailment if Valdez is still playing well by the time Furcal is back.

Has Anderson even played in the field yet? I forgot he was on the team.

Martinez won't go to Las Vegas.

Valdez at third is just a repeat of the Robles situation - he can field and hit the occasional single, but he is not a solution there.

A roster with Furcal, Martinez and Valdez simply can't happen. I'm glad Valdez had a good game, but it doesn't change that reality.

Eckstein just threw out Carlos Lee from his knees. Very scrappy. Garner should think about fining Lee, though.

My guess is that the Dodgers will try to assign Valdez (he will have to clear waivers) and send him back down to Vegas to be ready to be called up if necessary.

Tony Jackson reported in his blog after the game that Wilson Valdez will start at short and Ramon Martinez will play 3B for the Dodgers tomorrow as Betemit gets his first day off.

While Betemit is doing a pretty nice job in the field, his bat remains in cold storage, 1-16 with 4 walks. Again, its early but I wonder if Betemit will start on Opening Day with Francis on the mound for the Rockies.

Just finished watching the TiVo'd game, and gosh, I agree, Valdez was outstanding on both sides of the job today. I think BH above has it right, that they will try to send Valdez down and hope he clears waivers. Unless another team has an injury rosters are pretty much set so he may make it to Vegas. Would be a little bit of a shame, but they don't have room for him and it's really more important to get Furcal back. Still, props to him for a great game today. And to Derek Lowe who looked light years better than opening day.

Wow, Lieberthal almost hit that one out, though he wasn't "robbed of a home run" as Lewin mistakenly said, by Linden. Good to have someone like Lieberthal to come in when Russell gets a breather.

I would give Betemit a little more time before declaring it time to get rid of him. He's at least fielding well which is more than I would feel about LaRoche out there, frankly. But hey, if Valdez can play third, hm, maybe that's another option.

Why the hell are we going with both Martinez and Valdez in the lineup against a tough lefty? We can live with Saenz getting a hand full of starts over at third. I realize he's more of a fastball hitter, but really we can't just rely on the Giants offense being even worse than ours every time out in order to win.

21 I agree with Jon 18 that anyone either than Wilson, Andy or Nomar at 3B is just a mistake in the long term, we cannot have a situation like last year where we spent time with Cesar and Julio playing there.

This from LuGo:

"Look, everybody knows I don't have the strongest throwing arm. But if you're going to analyze every play, you might as well camp out here at my locker. Teams are going to run on me, it's going to happen a lot."

So, I guess we should only analyze the good plays and ignore the bad...

Tiger just one back. He's like a rolling stone.

Zito should be an interesting test of Kemp if he starts. Would they go with Clark instead?

Tiger's in great shape. Crazy that 2-over is leading the tournament.

Just wondering who is making their first trip (regular season) to Chavez Ravine next week.

For myself, I get to see Schmidt pitch twice next week.

So I am watching the free MLB Extra Innings and I just noticed this sideline reporter deal, is it just San Francisco and Boston or is it in all markets, I guess we will find out next week for the Dodgers, has it been going on with the Angel games.

Two days in a row, I come here to comment upon a great performance, and it is already done in spades.

I thought Wilson Valdez looked like a great, great shortstop today, and he adds three hits, to boot?

Wow.

I hope he starts again tomorrow, as I'm going to the game! Wolf vs. Zito for the sweep! (I'll be leaving my broom at home, as I wish to preserve my physical integrity.)

29- The first time I remember seeing one was Duke Castiglione for ESPN, last spring training, I think. It's a bad situation, all around. It's like soccer--there's just no way to be good at it.

Valdez was outstanding. He's an excellent defender, a fast runner, and can play multiple positions. Personally, I'd like to see Ned cut Martinez and keep Valdez. I think Valdez brings a lot more to do table than Lucille and he's young enough (28?) where he can still improve.

Well Drew let a ball slip by him for a 2-base error and Young goes all the way around to tie the score 2-2.

32 Ramon made some excellent plays last night too.

24 - So in other words, Gonzalez is admitting that he's good as a dh or a pinch hitter?

35- pretty much just good at collecting a FAT! paycheck!

36! !!!

I just got back from Vegas. Didn't see any of the Dodger games but it's nice to see a little 3 game winning streak. The craps tables were good to me this trip.

I also saw Evangeline Lilly and Dominic Monagham from Lost at the Mirage. They are both tiny people.

LuGo has nothing to apologize for. He sucks, and he knows it. But you can't blame him for accepting $7 million and a starting position.

Interesting how good the infield looks defensively and how bad the outfield looks even with second and third string short stops.

For now Grady and Ned want to establish roles for each player and give everybody a chance to relax into those roles at least through April.

Nomar's glove is looking really good, so good I think he could catch grounders at third if Betemit still isn't hitting by May. The most accurate thing I might have just said pertains to Nomar's glove--at first base.

38 - It amuses me how disproportionately well represented short people are in Hollywood. Kiefer Sutherland, Tom Cruise, Humphry Bogart, ect. Even more amusing is the fact that none of these people are short in their movies, usually because they pressure casting directors into hiring other short actors (which of course continues the proliferation of short people in Hollywood). It is a bizarre ego trip to pretend to be tall.

Is Loney 0 for 8 because he is over swinging in an attempt to show more power capability?

Napoleons every one of them.

Looks like Loney is 2 for 13, not 0 for 8.

Was at the game today and echo the comments here about the great game by Valdez. Either in the current lineup looks like the only complete outfielder out there. My friend and I both thought that the tack that Piere made to the Aurellia ball was pretty bad..Any thoughts on Grady challenging Ned on Gonzales-he looks and feels like a fourth outfielder at best.

46- Was it windy? Pierre was definitely dancing around, but it looked like that could be a wind thing.

Think Randy Wolf could relate to this?

http://tinyurl.com/ysamda

Martinez won't get cut in favor of Valdez because he's the emergency catcher. If anything, he should be traded. He's a valuable piece.

That said, I like having Valdez on the roster as well, just so that he can spell the veterans, as long as he is hitting the way he has been. This is a guy who's never been given much of a chance at the major league level. I don't think it's fair to say that he's not the solution based solely on his career MLB stats. We'll have to see how much he makes of this chance.

Anyway, I'd say Kemp goes down once Furcal comes back, unless there's a trade or an injury.

The dodgers.com story on Kent's fondness for San Francisco (FSN Bay Area calls him the "hated Jeff Kent" in its promos) shows, IMO, why Kent is one of the more interesting figures in baseball. I'm not saying you have to like the guy, but the guy always surprises--you'd think that Mr. Motorcross wouldn't make the comments he made about liking Foster City, enjoying college at Berkeley, etc. But he did.

And, most importantly, if he can stay healthy, it's clear the guy can still hit. He's basically carrying most of our sputtering offense on his shoulders.

WWSH

I want Diamond Leung to write a feature about Mr. Wilson. I think he'd do a nice job.

6

I saw him during winter ball & he didn't impress there either, hopefully he'll figure things out.

Grady's been a big believer in Kemp; he has been ever since last spring when he all but gushed about him. I think he had a major role in the call up from AA, which was unexpected by most, and the same goes with Kemp's current bench roles. Kemp does look pretty good, for the most part, at the plate, and I think he'll continue to do well enough against lefties that Grady will keep him on the big-league squad over Wilson, who did have a great game today.

WWSH

The next episode in Michael Lewis's series about having kids is up at Slate. Every one of them is funny.

http://www.slate.com/id/2157863/

50 - I was just saying the other day that Kent was my favorite Dodger. I like grizzled, crusty guys, somehow that grumpiness always is endearing to me. The idea that Kent doesn't particularly like playing baseball and probably wouldn't do it if the money wasn't so good is also fascinating to me. In an age of hackneyed cliche and pocket quotes, the man is an iconoclast. He carried an otherwise miserable team in '05 and I think he will be top 5 offensively at his position this year.

I'm sort of sorry I switched over to the A's/Angels' game, given what happened in Texas. Sammy Sosa. He looked so horrible in the Serie Del Caribe, it's even more surprising.

53. Grady's been a big believer in Kemp;

I'm a huge Matt Kemp fan. I cringe each time I see his name mentioned in a proposed trade (even the folks here who are just daydreaming :-) ). I think he's not just going to be a star at this level, but a superstar. The Dodgers just need to show some patience. I live and die with this team and that will continue no matter what happens. But I'm going to be real upset if they let this kid get away. In fact, what upset me so much about the LuGo signing was I was hoping Ned would have the guts to take a gamble on the kids. Teams such as Florida and Tampa Bay play kids to save money. The Dodgers; however, are in the enviable position of having both money and talented youngsters. With our pitching staff I would have rather seen Ned put the $51 million he's giving LuGo/Pierre in McCourt's pocket and given us an outfield of Loney/Kemp/Ethier with Bigbie/Clark and backups. These are not just any kids as far as I'm concerned. They appear to have enough talent that I'd much rather watch them sink or swim that be forced to watch LuGo/Pierre.

The Padres are in their camo jerseys. Anybody know why Kouzmanoff isn't playing?

"than be forced to watch LuGo/Pierre."

Re: 57

Luckily for us, I think Grady will throw a fit if Ned trades Kemp away. And I think Ned will listen to him--this is the advantage of having field and general managers who get along with each other.

WWSH

i'm not a big fan of shifting the young players all over the field as if that has no effect on their development. laroche played in lf tonight, and abreu played at 3b. they are trying to move loney to the outfield. long-term, the goal should be a lineup of c-martin, 1b-loney, 2b-abreu, ss-furcal, 3b-laroche, lf-ethier, cf-pierre (just because of the contract - a trade would be nice), rf-kemp. it all fits together very nicely and i really don't get why they are trying to fool with it. i understand the need to try and bridge the gap between now and the future and compete at the same time, but this is getting silly.

Re: 55

Same here--Kent is awesome. The infamous "washing my truck" thing shows he isn't perfect, but it's not as if the guy claims he's a model citizen. I was also fascinated by the "I don't like playing baseball" bit. I actually think Kent was overstating the case there--I think he does care about the game a lot, but he's such an iconoclast that he wants to pop as many hoary veteran leadership/love playing cliches as he can. His comments on how mutual distaste among players can improve on the field performance in relation to him and Bonds was priceless, and I can't think of a more ferocious attack on the chemistry card than that.

WWSH

Wilson's smile at the end of the game was good to see.

58 Normal day off, he'll probably sit against some righties to let Branyan do his thing.

Count me in the pro-Kent camp as well, he's as much of a straight-shooter as they come. He simply comes to the park, does his job, and works hard to be the best. I love how candid he is in interviews and that he doesn't care what people think of him. Some people call him a jerk for that, but I find it refreshing.

The idea that Kent doesn't particularly like playing baseball and probably wouldn't do it if the money wasn't so good is also fascinating to me

The idea that someone would play a child's game for millions of dollars is fascinating to you...?

Re: 65

It's the blunt honesty that's fascinating about that quote. When MLB had that "I live for this" ad series, there's a reason they used that motto, as opposed to "I'm paid for this."

WWSH

Kent always scared me when he was on the Giants, and even then I didn't hate him. He was always the guy who scared me most on their team, more than Bonds. As a Dodger I enjoy his work ethic, his surliness, his fire, the occasional humor that sneaks out under his mustache and mostly the fact that he can kill the baseball when he's healthy.

I hope we're not taking years off Uncle Miltie's life with this conversation.

---

Btw, off topic but there's actually a movie right now on that bastion of quality made for TV movies, SciFi Channel, called "Kaw" - a rip off of The Birds, with killer crows. I'm not making this up. This came after the movie Pterodactyl, about a killer, you know.

Evangeline Lilly is 5'5", about average for a woman. Naveen Andrews is 5'8", definitely below average...

68 - As I understand the average heights are 5'6" and 5'10", so both are ever so slightly below average. However, Dominic Monaghan is 5'7" which is well below average.

The other difference is that Evangeline Lilly is incredibly hot. Whereas Monaghan is, well, he's a darn cute hobbit, but, Lilly, wow. There sure were a lot of beautiful women on that plane that crashed in Lost.

It's only $50 to get a message on the Dodger Stadium advertising ribbon. And it looks like it's tax deductible!

http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/la/community/messageboard.jsp

65 - I find it fascinating that 14 or 15 seasons of a hall of fame caliber career, Jeff Kent admits that he doesn't like playing baseball. That is bracing honesty. In the ESPN era of absurd media scrutiny, most athletes have nothing to say, yet here is a great baseball player, a real vet, expressing the opinion that beyond all most fans don't understand: baseball is a job. Your point about it being a child's game is what makes his comments so fascinating. I spend 8 hours a day, 5 days a week in a cubicle. I dream about playing baseball everyday, money be damned. So to hear someone talk about how the job isn't all that great, well I dig it. I don't know whether to write it off as the human condition, or accept the fact that it has its drawbacks too. At any rate,I really like Kent.

Wilson. He had a great game. There I said it. I eat all my former comments.

Well, even I will admit that Kent not liking baseball is somewhat endearing. But the fact that he plays for the money still doesn't really mean much to me.

I think I tend to believe that Kent's perspective is the rule, and that players who play primarily "for the love of the game" are the exception.

ESPN WebGemed Kent's over the should catch. Number three behind Tony Pena's acrobatics, and Travis Buck's diving catch.

26. Zito should be an interesting test of Kemp if he starts. Would they go with Clark instead?

>>> Left-handed-hitting Andre Ethier came into the season as the everyday right fielder, and why not. He batted a team-high .308 last season and didn't need to sit against left-handers, batting .375 against them.

But the right-handed-hitting Matt Kemp made the team, and Little doesn't want the 22-year-old prospect to get stale on the bench. Kemp will start today against left-hander Barry Zito. <<<

http://tinyurl.com/2rtwh9

It will be an interesting test for the Dodger minor league pitchers when they move to California League, after just a few days, I think if Kershaw and the rest have an ERA under 4 during their stay, that will be a pretty good job.

76--
That article makes it seem like Gonzalez is going to start on Sunday.

Pretty much confirms that Kemp/Ethier are platooning as long as Kemp's on the roster.

Gonzo/Pierre are everyday.

At age 39, I would think that Mr. Gonzo should need some rest every few games to keep his skills from eroding(?)...and isn't Easter Sunday the perfect time for a day off with the triplets...so how about a day off tomorrow!

So to hear someone talk about how the job isn't all that great, well I dig it. I don't know whether to write it off as the human condition, or accept the fact that it has its drawbacks too.

Baseball of course has its drawbacks. Kent may not work 9-5, but he's basically working 4-11 pm most likely. Constant travel, away from home, in the media spotlight all the time...

Golf--I dont see many drawbacks. The players can pick what events they wish to play, the paydays are incredible--and get this all you have to do is play golf at courses that the average citizen only dreams of playing at.

A pro baseball player I think has the most drawbacks of any pro sport.

Football I think has the least. Best pro job in sports is the 2nd string QB. Good money, minimal travel, generally lots of popularity, and you're protected in practice.

78. Gonzo/Pierre are everyday.

Not surprising. What surprises me is that so many here seem to actually expect Little to bench LuGo before the first week of the season is completed after his GM gave LuGo a $7 million contract. It ain't gonna happen.

80 - Well, that one football job has no drawbacks. It is becoming very clear that football is dangerous to the point of suicide. Playing pro football, especially in the lines, takes decades off your life and probably significantly reduces your quality of life because nearly all of them are disabled.

D4P, the fact that Kent is the only one of the majority to admit he plays for a paycheck is another reason why he is refreshing and interesting.

This team is so overloaded with trade bait, Dodger Stadium is starting to smell like salmon eggs. But what would the Dodgers trade for? There is redundancy almost everywhere, old guys blocking young guys, young guys competing for the same position, insurance on top of insurance. By 2009, we could probably field two pretty good major league teams. Colletti talks about adding power, but assuming he's committed to his proven vets Nomar, Pierre and LuGo, he has nowhere to put it without pushing another great prospect further down the depth chart.

If Loney's playing outfield, where Kemp is already pushing his way into the lineup, what's Colletti's plan?

But what would the Dodgers trade for?

I could see packaging LaRoche for a 3b who could produce now. That's the most glaring weakness, and if they fill it they could really make a run.

Time to start dreaming about Cabrera again.

D4P, the fact that Kent is the only one of the majority to admit he plays for a paycheck is another reason why he is refreshing and interesting

I agree with that, but COME ON! It's Jeff Kent!

Apparently Dodger minor league catcher Juan Apodaca. Can anyone confirm this or find any other info?

86 insert clause "has decided to leave baseball" sorry!

Kent is tough. He brings an attitude and it's about beating you. I love it when they boo him at AT&T, because I think it makes him play even better. I figure he really does like baseball, though I doubt we'll see him riding his bike around Dodgertown someday.

Would people please stop proposing trades? It's become the most annoying thing on Dodger Thoughts.

80

Quotes from Gary Sheffield in The Detroit Free Press:

Asked why he plays he said, "I'm a buisnessman. Baseball is a job. I just play it because I know how to play."

68, 69 and I'll bet they are at least an inch under their listed heights. I'm only 5' 9" and I was much taller than both.

I'll probably miss most, if not all, of today's game and the Masters. I'm heading out for dim sum this morning, then over to family for Easter dinner. I hope Tiger pulls it out today. Plus a sweep for L.A. would be great.

89 - That comment was more irritating than any trade proposal. Please consider that you don't get to dictate what's annoying or not here.

I notice that we are still only carrying 11 pitchers. Has anybody heard when we will go to 12? With another pitcher plus Furcal coming back that eliminates 2 roster spots.

Why assume we'll go to 12 pitchers any time soon? When the Dodgers need a 5th starter they'll use Tomko (and/or, someday, Billingsley).

Meanwhile, I guess my soccer league is a bunch of heathens (and in my case and a few others on my team, Jewish folk) and we're playing a game today on Easter Sunday. See you all sometime during the D's game.

(Btw, since the only game the Dodgers have lost in SF over the past year is the one I went to, I've decided I'm a jinx and thus am not going to the game in person today. That way if they lose I won't be blamed and if they win, that'll..er, prove it?)

During ST Grady was asked how many pitchers he would break camp with and he initially said 12 then later said he might start with 11 and go to 12 later.

95 - That doesn't make 12 inevitable, much less rational. Short of an utter collapse in the rotation, it will be hard enough for the No. 11 pitcher, Hendrickson, to get enough work. Which is a good thing.

New post coming up top.