Results tagged ‘ Sandy Koufax ’
The Week That Was: Opening Week Recap
American Flag being heled by members of the U.S. Armed Forces On April 1st 2012
Opening week is in the books and it has been a real memorible one. We have seen Sandy Koufax throw out the first pitch, Clayton Kershaw hit his first career home run as well as shut out the Giants. We saw the debut of Hyun Jin Ryu and Zack Greinke pitching and Carl Crawford do work as the lead off hitter. Yes what an eventful week it was for the Dodgers. As Los Angeles prepares for their week long road trip lets look back at Opening Week.
Epic Moment of Opening Week: As if Opening Day wasn’t big enough with the game the Cerimonial first pitch was huge. Magic Johnson was prepared to throw out the first pitch until Don Mattingly came out and made a change. The cange turned out to be non other than Sandy Koufax. The Whole stadium erupted including myself. It was crazy to see and how the way the whole thing was played out wasell done including the video on how the ball got there.
Play of the week: There were a lot of good plays this week but I believe this has to go to Clayton Kershaw and his Home Run. The fact that no one expected him to hit a home run and how the way he got under it was something else. Hit a home run and have a complete game shut out against the hated Giants? What more can you ask for?
Carl Crawford was hurt?: From the time of the trade last season and on the huge question mark was at Left Field and carl Crawford. Crawford missed the rest of the 2012 season with Tommy John Surgery when he was with the Red Soxs. When the Dodgers traded for him people expected him to be out at least until June. When Spring Training came there was talk that Crawford playing April 1st until he had a set back which had many fans wondering if Crawford will even play Opening Day. Well late Spring Training Crawford played and made it to start on Opening Day and it seems as if he wasn’t hurt. Crawford has been playing really well Opening week batting .450 leading off for the Dodgers. Carl Crawford is doing this playing little games to really get him going and being eased into the line up. If he can stay healthy then there’s no doubt that he can help this team get into a position to strike.
Slow start for Kemp and Cruz: Matt Kemp and Luis Cruz have really been in a funk to start out the season. Matt Kemp who really had all of Spring to heal up seems to not get it together at the moment. When ever they have an opprotunity to do some damage and get runs on the board they either strike out or hit into a double play. Yes it’s early in the season but you can’t do that with runners in scoring position at all. Kemp and Cruz will get their act together but right now the slow start really hurts.
Zack Greinke Debuts: Zack Greinke was the most sought after Pitcher during free agency. When the Dodgers signed him he was expected to be number 2 behind Clayton Kershaw. April 5th Greinke made his Dodgers Debut and did not disapoint at all. Zack managed to pitch 6 innings striking out 6 batters and only giving up 2 hits. Batting wise he went 1-2 (Error was charged in his first at bat) and even manage to some what break up a double play. Zack Greinke had a good game and makes another start in San Deigo April 11th. I would love to see if he can follow up with a repeat of last week.
Zack Greinke had 6 Strikeouts, Gave up 2 hits and also went 1-2 batting in his Debut April 5th vs the Pirates.
현 진 류(Hyun Jin Ryu): Another Pitcher the Dodgers signed in the off-season was the Korean stand out Hyun Jin Ryu. Through out Spring Training Ryu had to quickly adjust to MLB baseball. The exhibition game vs Anaheim he was fantastic which had many fans really looking forward to seeing him pitch. His debut game was something else. April 2nd Ryu made his first career start against the Giants and was knocked around quite a bit. Ryu gave up 8 hits in a 3-0 loss to the Giants. If anything this is all apart of the process of him adjusting to the MLB. His last start Sunday vs the Pirates was a better game. Yes he gave up 5 hits and a bomb to Andrew McCutchen but he struck out 6 in 6 innings. While some say he had all of spring training to adjust many have to remember he pitched limited games and it’s still an adjustment when the regular season comes because he’ll be pitching more frequently. Hyun Jin Ryu will be in a learning process for a few starts before he can really get it together.
What will we learn from the Dodgers on the road: Getting an early road trip in will show what the Dodgers can do in streatches like this. If anything we’ll see if the Dodgers can fix their problems with the slow start and leaving runners on base. San Deigo and Arizona will be interesting to see. My main concern is the Arizona series just for the fact the D-Backs have had the Dodgers numbers quite a few times before.
Opening Series Observations: They’ll Be Fine
First off let me go ahead and say that Baseball is back you guys and it feels great to see the regular season in full swing. Being back in Dodger Stadium to see the Dodgers in action was great to see. How I missed waiting for 7:10 to roll around and hear Vin Scully start off the broadcast with “It’s Time For Dodger Baseball!”. The Dodgers opened up with the hated San Fransisco Giants. This was bound to be an interesting series either way. The Dodgers were eliminated from playoff contention by the hands of the Giants last season. Since then the Dodgers have spent money to improve pitching in order to contend. Spring Training we saw good individual performances from players like Luis Cruz, Hyun Jin Ryu, and Josh Beckett. Opening Day was a historic one for the books. From Sandy Koufax throwing out the first pitch to Magic Johnson being there to see his team take on the Giants. Clayton Kershaw and Matt Cain had a pitchers duel up until the bottom of the 8th inning when Clayton Kershaw nailed his first career Home Run to give the Dodgers the lead. After that it was all Dodgers from there as they scored 3 more runs in that same inning. Dodgers got a 4-0n victory on Opening Day over the Giants giving Kershaw a complete game shut out. Kershaw was also the first player since 1953 to throw a shut out and hit a Home Run in a opener (Bob Lemon, Cleveland Indians). After that it seemed like the magic was all gone and the Giants showed why they’re the defending World Series Champions defeating the Dodgers the next two games. Yeah the opening series wasn’t something we expected at all especially losing to the Giants.
Looking back at this series I saw a few things that caught my eye. Starting off with the good Carl Crawford had a great series. Opening Day and last night Crawford was getting on base weather it was via hit or drawing a walk, He got on base. Clayton Kershaw obviously had a great game on Opening Day with his historic game. Mark Ellis also started off good as well which shows that him and Crawford can put this team in good position to score some runs. The defense from the Infield on Opening Day also showed tons of potential and had a good outing last night as well.
As for the bad there was a good amount to point out. Matt Kemp has struggled batting this whole series going 0 of his last 10 at bats. Even though it’s early that is not good. Especially when you have runners in scoring position that can break open a game. Hyun Jin Ryu made his major league debut Tuesday night but gave up 8 hits in a 3-0 loss. You can say it was pitching and a number of errors that night but with Ryu he is still transitioning into the MLB. Last night was also very bad with the Dodgers being 1-13 with RISP dispite Lincecum giving up a career high of 8 walks. The Dodgers look to be swinging for the fences instead of getting the base hits that are needed to get runs in. Josh Beckett also was up and down last night giving up two Home runs.
Theres alot the Dodgers can take from the first series of the season. It’s only the begining 3 games so theres no need to panic at all. If anything the Dodgers are trying to get it all together right now and they will In my opinion. Beckett and Ryu will have everything settled down, Kemp, Ethier, and Gonzalez will find there grove, Injured players such as Ted Lilly and Chad Billingsley are on the way back, and Don Mattingly will have a set line up. Yes it always sucks to lose to San Fransisco but it’s the begining. Let the Media and everyone else overhype issues. The Dodgers will be fine folks.
Start of Spring Training: It Begins
And It Begins. That’s right folks Baseball is finally here. The Dodgers full squad are at Camelback Ranch in Glendale Arizona and preparing for their upcoming 2013 campaign. This year there’s a lot of high hopes for the Dodgers after the ending of last season and the off-season moves that were made. Regardless of the signings there’s still questions that loom around this team but it seems like for the most part are working towards answering those. Theres a lot of headlines going into Spring Training this year…You can say more than last season at that and yes it is Interesting.
chemistry Talk
One of the biggest things that’s being talked about with the Dodgers is chemistry. Many fans and media seem to mention this a lot and wonder how the Dodgers will mesh on the field. Other players seem to be talking too, Most noticeably Giants First Baseman Brandon Belt who said “All I can say is you can’t buy chemistry.” That quote has had many Dodger fans talking but the players aren’t fazed by it at all. Matt Kemp however had something to say about Belts comments with a few words of his own. The Dodgers for the most part look like they’re getting the whole chemistry thing down but once they get on the field that’ll be a whole different thing. I honestly don’t believe the Dodgers will have an issue with chemistry. Hanley, Adrian, Kemp, Ethier, Cruz and so on have played in the second half of the 2012 season and only a few pieces will have to mesh which they’ll have all spring to get it together.
Clayton Kershaw named Opening Day Starter
Clayton Kershaw was named the Dodgers Opening Day Starter by Don Mattingly (Insert your pretend surprised face here). This was something that we ALL knew for months unless there was something we didn’t know. Baring any injury Kershaw is the Dodgers guy and there shouldn’t be any shock or anything like that.
Hyun Jin Ryu Impresses
Many Dodger fans have been waiting to see what Hyun Jin Ryu brings to the Dodgers and when he was given the chance in a Bullpen session he didn’t disappoint. Ryu placed the ball where he wanted very well, had good command with his fast ball but the curveball needed more work. Mattingly, AJ Ellis, and Rick Honeycutt were all very impressed with his bullpen session but the knock on Ryu was his conditioning which has gotten better. In Korea training and conditioning is a much slower paced conditioning schedule so it’s all apart of the adjustment that Hyun Jin Ryu will have to make. Feb 25th is when we’ll see Ryu pitch in a live game.
Non Roster Players
Usually in Spring teams have players who get signed to minor league deals and give them a shot to make the 40 man roster. This year the Dodgers are hoping to find a gem that will make the Opening Day Roster like years before. This year the Dodgers are looking for a vet in a young Bullpen and there’s a few arms that stick out to the Dodgers. One of them being Peter Moylan who was with the Braves last season but only played in 8 games. Moylan also has an issue with staying healthy which is something he’s working towards doing. Another is a player the Dodgers just signed to a Minor League deal in Mark Lowe. Lowe played 38 games with the Rangers last season until getting injured. Lowe has an escape clause in his contract if he does not make the Dodgers come Opening Day where Moylan is willing to pitch in Triple A if he doesn’t make it. Both of them will have to battle with Josh Wall and Stephen Fife. Outside of pitching you have players like Tony Gwynn Jr who was on the team last season fighting for a spot on the 40 man roster. Alex Castellanos, Ellian Herrara, and Yasiel Puig are currently on there right now so a spot for Tony Gwynn jr will be pretty difficult at this moment.
Sandy Koufax back with the Dodgers
Saving the best for last. Sandy Koufax back with the Dodgers as an Advisor and was it a sight to see him back in a Dodger uniform. It was a treat having a Dodger great back in Uniform talking with players and helping pitchers like Hyun Jin Ryu and Zack Greinke prepare for the upcoming season. I think this is overall a great thing for the Dodgers to do. Koufax is one of the best Dodgers and to have him involved with franchise is great for not only the Dodgers and it’s players but for the Fans as well.
Its Finally Here!! Dodgers vs Padres
The Start is finally here!! Opening Day for Dodgers Baseball. After the last pitch of the 2011 Season All Dodger fans waited and a lot of things have happened between the final out of the World Series to now. Frank McCourt agrees to sale the team, Sitting through the Anaheim Angels make a big signing, Owner Auctions, Big players signings, Magic Johnson and Group buying the Dodgers, You name it it happened. Yesterday signaled the end of Spring training for the Dodgers and the begining of the real deal. It will be a wild season for the Dodgers but for many of us We’re ready for the challenges.
Today the Dodgers open with a 4 Game series against the San Deigo Padres and while the game is in San Deigo you can expect A LOT of Dodger blue in the stands for the weekend. Cy Young Award Winner Clayton Kershaw becomes the first Cy Young Award winning Dodger pitcher to Start Opening day since Sandy Koufax in 1964. Dodgers have beaten the Padres in the Season Series 13 times while SD only beat the Dodgers 5. This is the 11th time these two teams will meet on Opening day as they split Opening Day meetings 5-5 with the last meeting being a Padres victory in San Deigo. So much excitement for today’s game.
I expect this series to be highly in the Dodgers favor but it will all come down to Dodgers Pitching. In the Pre-Season games vs the Angels the Bullpen really got worked and while most were rookies it still becomes a worry of mine. If the Dodgers Bullpen can hold up then theres no reason why the Dodgers shouldn’t take this series. Overall I believe the Dodger bats will be good for this game today and the series.
Prediction: Dodgers take the Series 3-1
Dodgers Opening Day Facts
Next Week!! Thats right we are One week away from Opening Day as the Dodgers travel to San Diego to take on the Padres. In a Stadium where it’s expected to be A LOT of Dodger fans in attendence in San Diego there will also be fans at Dodger Stadium watching the game on the big screen at Dodger Stadium that day as well. As we approach opening day I looked up some Dodgers facts when it comes to Opening Day and came across some that you may or may not know about the Dodgers on Opening Day. Some quite Interesting and Schocking as we count the Few days till the Start of the Dodgers Baseball Season.
-Through out their time in Brooklyn and Los Angeles the Dodgers have played 128 Opening Day games. April 5th will be the 129th Opening Day Game the Dodgers have played.
-In those 128 Games the Dodgers have played their record on Opening Day is 63-61-4. The Boys in Blue are currently on a 4 game winning streak on Opening Day with 3 of the 4 wins over the heated San Fransisco Giants.
- The Dodgers open with the Padres. Dodgers and Padres met only 10 Times on Opening day prior to April 5th. Dodgers and Padres Split the Games against each other on Opening Day 5 to 5 (Last game on Opening Day 4-5-2004 Dodgers loss 8-2)
-Clayton Kershaw will be starting on Opening Day. The Last Cy Young Award Winner to pitch on Opening Day was Sandy Koufax on April 14th 1964 vs the St Louis Cardinals (9 Innings Pitched, 6 Hits, and 5 Strike Outs in a 4-0 Dodgers win)
-The Largest Margin of Victory on Opening Day was 14 Runs in 1969 vs the San Diego Padres (14-0)
-The Largest Margin of Defeat on Opening Day was 15 in 1912 by the Hands of the Then New York Giants (18-3)
-The First Game at Dodger Stadium on Opening Day of the 1962 Season was a 6-3 Loss against the Cincinatti Reds. Johnny Podres was the Pitcher for the Dodgers on that day.
(Credit to Baseball almanac for facts and stats)
Matthew
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