SB Nation Los Angeles: All Posts by Eric Stephen

Dodgers move Aaron Miller from pitchers mound to outfield

2013-05-23T22:00:07Z

The Dodgers have decided to switch things up with former supplemental first round pick Aaron Miller. The left-handed pitcher has been demoted from Double-A Chattanooga to Class-A Great Lakes, and will switch to the outfield.

"This was something the organization has been talking about for close to a year. His velocity had dropped and he’s had some nagging injuries," said Dodgers head of player development De Jon Watson. "He was a two-way player coming out of Baylor when we drafted him and we liked what we saw in his bat when he pitched."

Miller hit .310/.415/.568 with 12 home runs, 47 RBI, 50 strikeouts, and 25 walks in 56 games in his junior season in 2009. The Dodgers drafted Miller 36th overall in the 2009 draft, and head of scouting Logan White at the time called Miller a pitcher in the Erik Bedard mold.

Unfortunately that comparison is true today. Miller was 6-6 with a 4.45 ERA in 25 starts in 2012 with Double-A Chattanooga, and after a move to the bullpen this season put up a 6.00 ERA in 24 innings, with 26 strikeouts and 12 walks.

Miller, 25, is the oldest player on the Loons. In his minor league career he has only been able to hit when in Chattanooga, and in 56 minor league plate appearances hit .234/.275/.426, with a home run, two doubles and two triples.

"We felt this was the right time to make the switch given his age and his desire to continue pursuing his big league dream and help this organization," Watson said.

1988 Dodgers Week 7 review: Team loses cool, games, Alfredo Griffin

2013-05-23T17:00:10Z

The Dodgers had easily their worst week of the season last week, and the team lost more than just games. The team's best hitter, Pedro Guerrero, lost his mind against David Cone and the Mets, and the club lost its light-hitting but slick fielding shortstop, Alfredo Griffin, for at least a month with a broken hand.

Griffin was hit by a Dwight Gooden fastball in the fifth inning on Saturday in a 4-0 loss to the Mets. Gooden was in the midst of a four-hit shutout of the Dodgers, and continued his stellar start to 1988. Gooden is 8-0 with a 2.77 ERA in his first 10 starts, all Mets wins, and thus far in his career the 23-year old is 81-26 with a 2.49 ERA.

The loss to Gooden was part of a weekend sweep by the Mets at Dodger Stadium that saw New York outscore the Dodgers 14-4 in three games. Frustration of a 1-5 week and a 3-8 stretch boiled over on Sunday in the sixth inning. After throwing high and inside to Guerrero with his first pitch, Cone hit him with a curve ball on the second pitch, which enraged Guerrero.

Guerrero threw his bat at Cone, who was stepping off the mound, then charged at the pitcher. Benches cleared and Guerrero was ejected. Sam McManis of the Los Angeles Times recounted the actions of Guerrero, who is sure to be suspended by MLB commissioner Bart Giamatti.

Guerrero, whose bravado has been likened to a matador, was charging like an enraged bull at Cone, who did a steady retreat before reinforcements could intervene. One Dodger restraining Guerrero was Kirk Gibson, who had struck out moments before.

"I wanted to make sure (Guerrero) didn't do anything stupid and get suspended, if he isn't already," Gibson said.

Guerrero is hitting .326/.401/.437 with three home runs, and is tied with Mike Marshall for the team lead with 26 runs batted in. Guerrero's on-base percentage had dipped below .400, to .397, for the first time since Apr. 24 before getting hit by Cone.

But perhaps even more disconcerting was the performance of Fernando Valenzuela, who had his worst start of the season on Sunday against the Mets. Valenzuela allowed five runs on six hits and two walks, and recorded just four outs. Valenzuela has allowed 11 runs over his last two starts, and on the season is 3-5 with a 3.90 ERA, with 36 walks and just 31 strikeouts in 62⅓ innings.

Valenzuela, the highest-paid starting pitcher in the game at $2.05 million this year, has averaged 35 starts, 266 innings, 211 strikeouts, 16 wins, and a 3.16 ERA over the previous six years. But now the condition of his arm is in question, and a sore subject perhaps both figuratively and literally.

"Am I satisfied he's healthy?" Lasorda told reporters. "You'll have to ask him."

The Dodgers, who began the week in first place, 2½ games ahead of the Astros in the National League West, end the week 1½ games back of Houston, who won five of their six contests last week.

Dodger Batter of the Week: In his first full week back since his oblique injury, John Shelby paced an otherwise unproductive Dodgers offense by hitting .476 (10-for-21) and drove in three runs.

Dodger Pitcher of the Week: For winning the only game for the Dodgers last week, Tim Leary takes home the honors with his Thursday shutout of the Expos. It was the first win since Apr. 18 for Leary, who lowered his ERA to 2.90 on the season with his third victory.

Week 7 Record: 1-5

11 runs scored (2.17 per game)
23 runs allowed (3.83 per game)
.206 pythagorean winning percentage

Seasonal Record: 22-17

171 runs scored (4.38 per game)
133 runs allowed (3.41 per game)
.613 pythagorean winning percentage (24-15)

Quote of the year candidate: Vice President George Bush visited Dodger Stadium on Tuesday and was given a tour of the clubhouse by manager Tommy Lasorda. Of the cadre of agents surround Bush, second baseman Steve Sax quipped to reporters, "That Secret Service doesn't look so secret. They look obvious to me."

Landreaux says hello: Outfielder Ken Landreaux, the starter for the Dodgers on their 1981 World Series winning team as well as a a pair of division-winning teams in 1983 and 1985, was at Dodger Stadium to visit Lasorda on Wednesday. Landreaux, 32, hit .203 in 115 games as mostly a part-time player for the Dodgers last season and is now a free agent. Landreaux, who has in his career been in trades involving Mickey Hatcher and Brad Havens, told Sam McManis of the L.A. Times that he has contacted several clubs to offer his services, including the Angels.

Transactions:

Sunday: activated pitcher Ken Howell from the disabled list, then optioned him to Triple A Albuquerque. Howell, who had offseason shoulder surgery, made three starts for the Dukes during his rehabilitation assignment, and was not happy with his demotion. "What do I have to do to show them I'm ready? What are they looking for from me? What I don't understand is the signs of when they think I'll be ready," Howell told the Times. Do I have to go 10-0 down there?"
Sunday: placed Alfredo Griffin on the disabled list with a broken hand; recalled infielder Mike Sharperson from Triple A Albuquerque. The Dodgers might have recalled Mariano Duncan instead, but he has missed three games recently with a hamstring injury. "I think the only reason they didn't bring me up is because I'm injured," Duncan told the Times.

Game Results:

Tuesday, May 17: Expos 6, Dodgers 5
Wednesday, May 18: Expos 3, Dodgers 0
Thursday, May 19: Dodgers 2, Expos 0
Friday, May 20: Mets 5, Dodgers 2
Saturday, May 21: Mets 4, Dodgers 0
Sunday, May 22: Mets 5, Dodgers 2

Upcoming Week: The Dodgers run the Del Unser Gauntlet, opening a nine-game road trip with series in Philadelphia and Montreal.

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
23 Off	24 at Phi 2:55pm	25 at Phi 4:35pm	26 at Phi 7:05pm	27 at Mon 4:35pm	28 at Mon 10:35am	29 at Mon 10:35am
	Hershiser v. Ruffin (L)	Leary v. Palmer (R)	Sutton v. Rawley (L)	Belcher v. Youmans (R)	Valenzuela v. Heaton (L)	Hershiser v. Dopson (R)

Previous 1988 weeks in review: Apr 4-10 | Apr 11-17 | Apr 18-24 | Apr 25-May 1 | May 2-8 | May 9-15

Week 7 Stats

Player	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	BB	SB/CS	BA/OBP/SLG	OPS
Shelby	22	21	2	10	3	0	0	3	1	2/0	.476/.500/.619	1.119
Gibson	20	20	4	6	0	1	1	1	0	1/0	.300/.300/.550	.850
Marshall	20	20	2	5	0	0	1	2	0	0/0	.250/.250/.400	.650
Guerrero	23	19	1	4	0	0	0	1	2	0/0	211/.304/.211	.515
Griffin	15	14	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	1/0	.214/.267/.214	.481
Sax	26	24	0	4	0	0	0	1	2	1/1	.167/.231/.167	.397
Scioscia	19	18	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	0/1	.111/.158/.111	.269
Davis	21	20	0	2	0	0	0	0	1	2/0	.100/.143/.100	.243

Anderson	6	5	0	3	0	0	0	0	1	0/0	.600/.667/.600	1.267
Heep	8	5	0	2	0	0	0	0	3	0/1	.400/.625/.400	1.025
Hatcher	4	4	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.250/.250/.250	.500
Hamilton	3	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.000/.333/.000	.333
Stubbs	7	6	0	1	0	0	0	2	0	2/0	.167/.143/.167	.310
Dempsey	3	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.000/.000/.000	.000
Sharperson	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	.000/.000/.000	.000

Pitchers	10	8	0	2	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	.250/.250/.375	.625
Totals	208	190	11	45	4	1	2	10	11	8/2	.237/.286/.300	.586

Pitcher	G	W-L	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	ERA	WHIP	FIP*
Leary	1	1-0	--	9	7	0	0	0	10	0.00	0.778	0.67
Hershiser	1	0-1	--	7	5	1	1	2	8	1.29	1.000	2.89
Belcher	1	0-1	--	5	7	4	4	1	5	7.20	1.600	0.89
Sutton	1	0-1	--	4⅓	8	4	4	3	2	8.31	2.538	7.04
Valenzuela	2	0-2	--	8⅔	16	11	11	8	4	11.42	2.769	5.89
Starters	6	1-5	--	34	43	20	20	14	29	5.29	1.676	3.30
Crews	3	0-0	--	7⅓	7	0	0	0	2	0.00	0.955	2.34
Holton	2	0-0	--	3⅔	2	0	0	1	0	0.00	0.818	3.71
Howell, J	1	0-0	--	2	0	0	0	0	1	0.00	0.000	1.89
Orosco	2	0-0	--	1⅓	3	0	0	0	2	0.00	2.250	(0.11)
Pena	3	0-0	--	5⅔	4	3	2	4	2	3.18	1.412	5.01
Relievers	6	0-0	0	20	16	3	2	5	7	0.90	1.050	3.14
Totals	6	1-5	0	54	59	23	22	19	36	3.67	1.444	3.24

*FIP is estimated

Don Mattingly will reportedly manage Dodgers Friday, but how much longer?

2013-05-23T02:10:23Z

After Don Mattingly benched Andre Ethier and uncharacteristically called out his team prior to Wednesday morning's 9-2 win in Milwaukee, it seemed like the desperate last-chance moves of a manager who already knew his fate was sealed. But the axe won't come for Mattingly on the off day Thursday, per Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times:

Don Mattingly will be managing the Dodgers on Friday when they open a three-game series at home against the St. Louis Cardinals, according to two people familiar with the team’s plans.

However, a commitment that Mattingly will manage Friday doesn't mean a managerial move isn't in the works for some time in the close future. After all, Mark Saxon of ESPN LA noted that CEO Stan Kasten is traveling and won't return to Los Angeles until Friday. Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register noted that general manager Ned Colletti is on his way to Chattanooga to see top prospects Yasiel Puig, Joc Pederson, Zach Lee, and others. So the delaying of Mattingly's ousting may simply be for logistical reasons.

More: Mattingly benches Ethier Dodgers beat Brewers, 9-2

But the sentiment is Mattingly will eventually be gone, just as Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports speculated on Sunday and reiterated on Wednesday. Even veteran beat writer Tony Jackson chimed in that Mattingly's actions sounded "suspiciously like those of a manager who knows he's about to be fired."

Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times wondered if Mattingly's scorched earth Wednesday was akin to the manager firing himself. At the very least, Wednesday indicated a shift in tone from Mattingly, long considered a players manager, and a growing disconnect with the front office:

Mattingly benched outfielder Andre Ethier on Wednesday, explaining the decision thusly: "For me, today, I’m putting out my lineup that I feel is going to be the most competitive and going to compete the hardest."

That is two "I," one "my" and one "me" in an industry that emphasizes "us" and "we." Players and the front office notice those words.

In stark contrast, this is how Mattingly explained the weekend decision to demote catcher Tim Federowicz rather than clear a roster spot by cutting either infielder Luis Cruz or catcher Ramon Hernandez: "That was the move that the organization thought was the best."

Ethier took offense to the benching and Mattingly's comments, especially since he didn't hear them from the manager himself. But the right fielder took the high road and said he expects Mattingly to continue to be his manager, per Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:

"Why not? We're not out of this, by far," Ethier said. "With a good run in the next month or two we'll be back there where we need to be by the All-Star break."

This weekend at Dodger Stadium should be interesting, at the very least.

Michael Crabtree injury: 49ers WR has surgery to repair torn Achilles

2013-05-22T22:51:31Z

The 49ers number one receiver could miss the entire 2013 season after tearing his Achilles during OTAs. He is expected to miss at least six months.

The San Francisco 49ers came very close to winning the Super Bowl last season with Michael Crabtree. They might need to try to make a return trip without him. USA Today is reporting that a source has informed them that Crabtree tore his Achilles tendon during team activities and could require possible season-ending surgery.

The team has yet to make comment on the possible injury and whether or not it will require surgery.

Per Niners Nation, the team won't be giving word on the injury any time soon either:

The 49ers do not comment on injuries, so this is something we'll have to wait and see on for more information. We don't know the full details, but either way this sucks. There is nothing good out of this, but the 49ers do have a bevy of young receivers that will be leaned on heavily if Crabtree is in fact done for the year.

More: Niners sign rookie receiver Quinton Patton

Crabtree had a breakout season in 2012, catching 85 passes for 1,105 yards and nine touchdowns. The record-breaking receiver at Texas Tech continued his high-end production during the playoffs, catching 20 passes for 285 yards and three touchdowns in three games, including 109 yards and a score against the Ravens in the Super Bowl.

An Achilles tear used to be seen as a much worse injury than it is today -- one that would almost automatically put a player on the sidelines for a year -- but both Terrell Suggs of Baltimore and Da'Quan Bowers of Tampa Bay were able to return late in the year after tearing their Achilles in the spring. Suggs was able to play half of the regular season and all four Baltimore playoff games, though he was not as productive as he had been in previous years.

The 49ers acquired receiver Anquan Boldin from the Ravens to bolster Colin Kaepernick's receiving weapons, after no receiver on the team topped 500 yards other than Crabtree. They'll now rely more heavily on Boldin, Mario Manningham, and second-year pro A.J. Jenkins if Crabtree is forced to miss a significant amount of time with his injury.

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• Santa Clara, Houston awarded Super Bowl 50, 51

• Jets to decide QB before camp?

• Rob Gronkowski's surgery is successful

• NFL, Microsoft partner for interactive broadcasts

• Ben Muth: How to generate pressure with four rushers

• RGIII's wedding registry broken down by position

Dodgers vs. Cardinals TV schedule, starting pitchers

2013-05-22T22:18:16Z

The Dodgers return home beginning Friday night to host the Cardinals at Dodger Stadium, giving the Dodgers a test against the team with the best record in the National League. The Cardinals' pitching staff has been so good this season that their starting five was placed on the cover of this week's Sports Illustrated.

In a weird twist, the SI cover jinx struck before even the cover was out as two of those five starters are already on the shelf. Jake Westbrook was placed on the disabled list with right elbow inflammation on May 14, while Jaime Garcia needs season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. Here is a look at what is left of the St. Louis rotation, facing the Dodgers this weekend.

Friday, 7:10 p.m. (Prime Ticket)

Chris Capuano has made two consecutive excellent starts, though he is still dealing with the strained left calf that sidelined him for roughly three weeks. He gets the opener against Lance Lynn, who is 6-1 with 57 strikeouts in 55 innings this season.

Saturday, 4:15 p.m. (Fox)

The Dodgers' dysfunction will be on full display to a regional audience on big Fox on Saturday afternoon. Ted Lilly returns from the disabled list, and the Dodgers hope he performs more like his first start than his second. The Cardinals start John Gast, who aside from sharing a name with my Spanish teacher in my junior year of high school has a 1.16 ERA in seven starts in the PCL and has won his first two major league starts this season.

Sunday, 1:10 p.m. (Prime Ticket)

The series finale gives us one of the best pitching matchups of the young season so far. The Dodgers send 25-year-old ace Clayton Kershaw and his MLB-best 1.35 ERA to the hill, facing 22-year-old Shelby Miller and his 1.74 ERA. Miller in nine starts this season has 62 strikeouts and 15 walks in 57 innings.

Dodgers respond with 9-2 win over Brewers

2013-05-22T20:16:54Z

After suffering through a road trip, and a month, when nearly everything went wrong, the Dodgers finally got a lot to go right on Wednesday. The Dodgers found their big inning, Hyun-jin Ryu returned to his dependable self, and the Dodgers beat the Brewers going away 9-2 on getaway day at Miller Park.

The Dodgers have had the fewest big innings of any team in the National League, but they broke the game open on Wednesday with a five-run second. They sent 11 men to the plate in the frame, which included five hits, two walks, and couple of misplays by middle infielders Rickie Weeks and Jean Segura. But unlike in recent days the Dodgers were able to take advantage and plate five runs in the inning.

It was just the second time this season the Dodgers have scored at least five in an inning. They scored seven runs in the fifth inning on May 4 in San Francisco. Not bad for a team that had scored five runs in a game just once in their last eight games and in three of their last 15 contests.

Nick Punto walked and singled in the second inning, the second inning this season he has reached base twice in the same inning. He also doubled and walked in the fifth inning on May 4. Punto reached base three times on the day.

The Dodgers' nine runs scored matched their season high, also on May 4 in San Francisco.

Ramon Hernandez, who played just once in the previous 20 games and for the first time since May 7, homered and reached base four times on the day with two hits and two walks. I thought Hernandez was finished and, judging by manager Don Mattingly's use of Hernandez, I wasn't alone, but no better way to snap out of an 0-for-17 slump for the backup catcher.

Ryu pitched into the eighth inning for his first time as a Dodger, with really the only blip on his radar a solo home run by Ryan Braun in the sixth inning. That capped quite a frame for Braun, who robbed Adrian Gonzalez of a home run with a catch at the wall in the top of the inning.

Ryu also allowed a run in the eighth, and on the day struck out four and walked two. and through his first 10 MLB starts has a 3.30 ERA, averaging 6.27 innings per start, with 60 strikeouts and 22 walks.

Notes

The last Dodgers backup catcher to reach base four times in a game was Dioner Navarro, who had a single and three walks on July 23, 2011.
Matt Kemp had two hits and a walk, reaching base three times for the first time since May 12. He also stole a base in the ninth inning, his seventh steal this season without being caught.
Scott Van Slyke, who started in right field against a right-handed pitcher in place of Andre Ethier, doubled twice, walked and drove in a pair of runs. Van Slyke did not have a single on the road trip, but hit .333 (4-for-12) with two home runs and two doubles in his four games played, including three starts
Carl Crawford went 2-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored and two driven in to extend his hitting streak to a modest four games. During that span Crawford is hitting .333 (5-for-15) with three walks.
Ronald Belisario has allowed 9 of 13 inherited runners to score this season

Up next

The Dodgers have Thursday off before welcoming the Cardinals to town. Chris Capuano gets the start for the Dodgers in the series opener at Dodger Stadium on Friday night, facing Lance Lynn for St. Louis. The only question is who will be managing the Dodgers?

Wednesday's particulars

Home runs: Ramon Hernandez (1); Ryan Braun (9)

WP - Hyun-jin Ryu (5-2): 7⅓ IP, 6 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts

LP - Wily Peralta (3-5): 1⅔ IP, 7 hits, 6 runs (4 earned), 2 walks, 2 strikeouts

Matt Kemp gives $250,000 to Oklahoma tornado relief

2013-05-22T18:00:09Z

Matt Kemp made news Monday night not only with his home run, his second home run of the season to snap a drought of 97 plate appearances, but also by pledging to donate to help those affected by the devastating tornadoes in Oklahoma this week. Now, Kemp has pledged even more.

Kemp on Monday said he would donate $1,000 per home run he hits between now and the All-Star break, but on Wednesday the Midwest City, Oklahoma native also said he would give $250,000 as well. Kemp released a statement, per former big leaguer and current ESPN announcer Chris Singleton:

"Dear Families of OKC,
On Monday, out of concern and emotion I committed $1,000.00 for every home run I hit until the All-Star Break. It was a quick and small gesture in advance of what I knew would be my greater contribution through your rebuilding process. I am keeping my pledge and in addition, donating $250,000.00. May God bless you through this and the many generous donations coming to your aid." -Matt Kemp #PrayforOklahoma"

Dodgers vs. Brewers Game VI chat

2013-05-22T17:00:18Z

Starting Lineups

Dodgers		Brewers
LF	Crawford (L)	RF	Aoki (L)
2B	Ellis	SS	Segura
1B	Gonzalez (L)	LF	Braun
CF	Kemp	C	Lucroy
RF	Van Slyke	CF	Gomez
SS	Punto (S)	1B	Betancourt
3B	Uribe	2B	Weeks
C	Hernandez	3B	Bianchi
P	Ryu	P	Peralta

Game Info

Time: 10:10 a.m.

TV: Prime Ticket

MLB Gameday

Starting Lineups

Dodgers		Brewers
LF	Crawford (L)	RF	Aoki (L)
2B	Ellis	SS	Segura
1B	Gonzalez (L)	LF	Braun
CF	Kemp	C	Lucroy
RF	Van Slyke	CF	Gomez
SS	Punto (S)	1B	Betancourt
3B	Uribe	2B	Weeks
C	Hernandez	3B	Bianchi
P	Ryu	P	Peralta

Game Info

Time: 10:10 a.m.

TV: Prime Ticket

MLB Gameday