Hey everyone, it's been a while since I've last posted here so here is something from another blog of mine @ http://dodgerdrei.mlblogs.com
BLOGGIN' IN L.A.Talkin' Dodger baseball , L.A. sports, and other stuff tooHEY EVERYONE, SOME THOUGHTS, AND HAPPY MOTHERS DAY
Well this certainly has been quite a week. After winning a record 13 consecutive home games to start the season, the Nats, of all teams, are the ones who break the streak, but of course that would all pale in comparison to the news we would hear earlier in the day about Manny. There were many things that went through my mind as I heard the news, the two being mainly shock and disappointment. And as of this writing, the Dodgers are 1-2 without his presence, in which he was dealt a 50 game suspension. Now of course we all could here the wolves howling out there when the Blue Crew lost their first 2 games without him, but relax, the 2 were within reach if not for a meltdown from our bullpen on Thursday night, or the fact that both the Dodgers home winning streak and Chad Billingsley was eventually going to lose his first game. But with an outstanding performance by Eric Stults today in pitching a complete game 4 hit shutout against the hated ones, perhaps hopefully most, if not all doubts, about how the Blue will perform without Manny will be put to rest.
WHAT I'VE LIKED SO FAR
To this point, there really has not been much flaws in our lineup all the way down to our #8 hitter, Casey Blake. Even Rusell Martin is starting to come around. And not enough can be said about contributions from our bench, especially Mark Loretta and Brad Ausmus, who have been more than what I could have bargained for to this point. Loretta has gotta be what, 7 for 12 off the bench, and Ausmus , well, he's been a steady backup for Russ.
The starting pitching has also been outstanding as well, save for a couple of rocky outings from Kershaw and McDonald. Even Eric Stults has been a pleasant surprise filling in quite nicely for Hiroki Kuroda and Jeff Weaver has filled an nicely as well. If Weav and Stults can continue their run and maybe give us more innings, with Billingsley and Wolf going as deep as they have been, we just may have one of the deepest rotations in the NL, something that was a concern coming into the season. Now all we need is for our bullpen to remain healthy. Our one guarantee from our bullpen of course, has been Johnathan Broxton. He seems to have that " swagger " this year, like nothing is gonna get in his way, he definately is our closer this year.
WHAT I WANT TO SEE
You all didn't really think that Manny was going to completely carry the team did you ? The Dodgers dont have the best record in baseball to this point solely because of Manny, and for them to continue their success, they are going to have to continue to receive key contributions all around, especially from our other bread and butter guys Ethier, Kemp, Martin, and Loney. And Juan Pierre hasn't exactly disappointed off the bench either. Even without Manny until July 3 at the earliest, I still see a fun summer ahead for the Blue and their faithful supporters.
MY SLIDE SHOW FROM SACRAMENTO AND RALEY FIELD, 4/25 TO 4/26/2009
Recently I went up north to SacTown to catch a couple of AAA games at Raley Field to see the Sacramento RiverCats ( A's AAA afilliate ) take on the Las Vegas 51's ( Former afilliate of the Dodgers and now the Blue Jays AAA afilliate ) and as for my first AAA experience, it was really more than I expected. I also went to the California Rail museum as well. Enjoy the pics everyone
http://s195.photobucket.com/albums/z146/dreispics/?action=view¤t=390deb77.pbw
Feel free to ask about my experience at Raley Field.
AND FINALLY.......
HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL MOTHERS OUT THERE 1
Posted on May 9, 2009 at 8:43 PMPermalinkComments (0)
Speaking of the pics, perhaps this might help...
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
MY 2009 MLB PREDICTIONS
Hey all. Sorry I'm a week late , but here are my picks for the upcoming 2009 MLB season, from my blog @ http://dodgerdrei.mlblogs.com/
FINALLY............
Baseball 2009 is finally here !!!! And it couldnt come soon enough. I am so looking forward to Opening Day in San Diego tomorrow, and yes, I will be making the trek down south to see the Blue Crew do battle with the Friars. It will be the first time that I will be attending Opening Day in a stadium other than Dodger Stadium so of course I am really looking forward to it. Tomorrow is also a big day in that the Friars will be kicking off their 40th anniversary with some pre-game festivities. I don't expect it to be as elaborate as the Dodgers 50th last year, but it should still be fun to watch. I'm wandering if Steve Garvey will be honored tomorrow as well......Anyways, it's been an anxious 6 months of waiting for me, the last time I saw a game in a stadium was Game 5 of last years NLCS, where I was "privledged" to watch the eventual World Champion Phillies celebrate their trumph over us on our home field. Though last season ended on a bitter note, 2008 was still a fun season, highlighted of course by the acquisition of Manny Ramirez, who helped sparked a late season run by the Blue Crew and a triumphant first round sweep of the Cubs in the NLDS. As we all know by now, Manny is back, and much of the lineup from last years playoff team is intact, with really the only change being at 2nd base, where Orlando Hudson will be perhaps making the Furcal-Hudson tandem the best 1-2 punch in the league. One of the main concerns by many heading into this season will be pitching. Can Chad Billingsley assume the staff ace duties this year ? Will Randy Wolf be healthy throughout the '09 campaign ? Will this be Kershaw's breakout year or is he still a diamond in the rough ? Is J-Mac a legit 5th starter ? Can Guillermo Mota retain his form of '04 as the Dodgers middle reliever ? Will Broxton really step up in the closers role ? In spite of all these concerns, the Dodgers are still the favorites to win the NL West but it wont be easy. Here are D-Drei's picks for 2009
NL WEST
1. DODGERS 2. D-BACKS 3. GIANTS 4. ROCKIES 5. PADRES
NL EAST
1. PHILLIES 2. METS (WC) 3. BRAVES 4. MARLINS 5. NATIONALS
NL CENTRAL
1. CUBS 2. CARDINALS 3. BREWERS 4. REDS 5. ASTROS 6. PIRATES
In the junior circuit, while many like the Evil Empire to win it all, I still feel Boston's pitching staff has a slight edge over NY"s
AL WEST
1. ANGELS....2. A'S 3. MARINERS 4. RANGERS
AL CENTRAL
1. INDIANS 2. TWINS 3. WHITE SOX 4. TIGERS 5. ROYALS
AL EAST
1. RED SOX 2. YANKEES (WC) 3. RAYS 4. BLUE JAYS 5. ORIOLES
As for the WS , my heart says Dodgers over the Angels, but realisticaly, I think this could finally be the Cubs year to win it all. Their strong starting pitching remains intact, and the addition of a switch hitter in Milton Bradley (remember him Dodgers fans ? ) can only help a right-handed heavy lineup, provided he too can avoid any major injuries . CUBS over the RED SOX, and all talk of the curse are laid to rest ( perhaps....)
Posted on April 5, 2009 at 4:28 PMPermalinkComments (0)
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And on a final thought, my prayers go out to the family of Nick Adenhart, RIP Nick, you are now amongst other Angels.......
FINALLY............
Baseball 2009 is finally here !!!! And it couldnt come soon enough. I am so looking forward to Opening Day in San Diego tomorrow, and yes, I will be making the trek down south to see the Blue Crew do battle with the Friars. It will be the first time that I will be attending Opening Day in a stadium other than Dodger Stadium so of course I am really looking forward to it. Tomorrow is also a big day in that the Friars will be kicking off their 40th anniversary with some pre-game festivities. I don't expect it to be as elaborate as the Dodgers 50th last year, but it should still be fun to watch. I'm wandering if Steve Garvey will be honored tomorrow as well......Anyways, it's been an anxious 6 months of waiting for me, the last time I saw a game in a stadium was Game 5 of last years NLCS, where I was "privledged" to watch the eventual World Champion Phillies celebrate their trumph over us on our home field. Though last season ended on a bitter note, 2008 was still a fun season, highlighted of course by the acquisition of Manny Ramirez, who helped sparked a late season run by the Blue Crew and a triumphant first round sweep of the Cubs in the NLDS. As we all know by now, Manny is back, and much of the lineup from last years playoff team is intact, with really the only change being at 2nd base, where Orlando Hudson will be perhaps making the Furcal-Hudson tandem the best 1-2 punch in the league. One of the main concerns by many heading into this season will be pitching. Can Chad Billingsley assume the staff ace duties this year ? Will Randy Wolf be healthy throughout the '09 campaign ? Will this be Kershaw's breakout year or is he still a diamond in the rough ? Is J-Mac a legit 5th starter ? Can Guillermo Mota retain his form of '04 as the Dodgers middle reliever ? Will Broxton really step up in the closers role ? In spite of all these concerns, the Dodgers are still the favorites to win the NL West but it wont be easy. Here are D-Drei's picks for 2009
NL WEST
1. DODGERS 2. D-BACKS 3. GIANTS 4. ROCKIES 5. PADRES
NL EAST
1. PHILLIES 2. METS (WC) 3. BRAVES 4. MARLINS 5. NATIONALS
NL CENTRAL
1. CUBS 2. CARDINALS 3. BREWERS 4. REDS 5. ASTROS 6. PIRATES
In the junior circuit, while many like the Evil Empire to win it all, I still feel Boston's pitching staff has a slight edge over NY"s
AL WEST
1. ANGELS....2. A'S 3. MARINERS 4. RANGERS
AL CENTRAL
1. INDIANS 2. TWINS 3. WHITE SOX 4. TIGERS 5. ROYALS
AL EAST
1. RED SOX 2. YANKEES (WC) 3. RAYS 4. BLUE JAYS 5. ORIOLES
As for the WS , my heart says Dodgers over the Angels, but realisticaly, I think this could finally be the Cubs year to win it all. Their strong starting pitching remains intact, and the addition of a switch hitter in Milton Bradley (remember him Dodgers fans ? ) can only help a right-handed heavy lineup, provided he too can avoid any major injuries . CUBS over the RED SOX, and all talk of the curse are laid to rest ( perhaps....)
Posted on April 5, 2009 at 4:28 PMPermalinkComments (0)
Report any abuse or spam
Leave a comment
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And on a final thought, my prayers go out to the family of Nick Adenhart, RIP Nick, you are now amongst other Angels.......
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
DRE AND J'S LATE NIGHT DINING STORIES
Here's a link to my yelp rants of late night dining stories with my co-worker and buddy JJ, aka, the Jiangster. It's an ongoing thing where we take turns once a month choosing late night eats, usually Asian eats on Valley Blvd. in the 626, however, when you click on the link, you'll probably be sent to my other yelp reviews as well, which you can feel free to browse too. In fact, on the left of the page, you'll see another link to Dre and J's Late Night Dining Stories. The Jiangster and I , for the most part, have varying tastes, and these reviews are done in a somewhat satirical manner, perhaps also not being politically correct at times. I hope you enjoy these reviews
Oh yeah, sorry we dont have any profile pics for you, I thought I'd just give you a list of Linkin Park songs, since the Jiangster was once quoted to describe 'Dre, when he had his goatee, that he " reminded him of Mike Shinoda...", to which 'Dre responded back " NO WAY !!! Mike is not ugly and fat except in the wallet...If I remind you of Mike, than you're Joe Hahn !!! ". Come to think of it J, you could pass for Mr. Hahn .....
NEXT POST.....
MY 2009 BASEBALL PREDICTIONS !!!!
Oh yeah, sorry we dont have any profile pics for you, I thought I'd just give you a list of Linkin Park songs, since the Jiangster was once quoted to describe 'Dre, when he had his goatee, that he " reminded him of Mike Shinoda...", to which 'Dre responded back " NO WAY !!! Mike is not ugly and fat except in the wallet...If I remind you of Mike, than you're Joe Hahn !!! ". Come to think of it J, you could pass for Mr. Hahn .....
NEXT POST.....
MY 2009 BASEBALL PREDICTIONS !!!!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
HELLO EVERYONE, MY RANDOM THOUGHTS
It's been awhile since i've dropped by, so I wanted to see what's up with everyone. Baseball season is just around the corner, i'm really excited. Yeah, Manny Ramirez is out for at least a week, but I wont let that dampen my excitement towards the season. Now if only the Blue Crew can solidify their pitching rotation...... March Madness is here, now if only my Bruins can remember how to turn it up during Madness time, speaking of, how many of you out there are in any office pools ? I have North Carolina taking the whole thing. Well, to all of you playing in any pools, good luck, and let the Madness begin. I shall have my baseball predictions up soon. And now, I leave you with some music from D-Mode. Enjoy everyone
Friday, January 2, 2009
HAPPY NEW YEAR
Happy New Year everyone !!! If many of you are like me, you certainly gave up on making new year's resolutions a long time ago. Now as for the New Year, I can only wish that all of us can make it through 2009 without any serious, or in many cases, any MORE serious economic windfalls. And we can only hope that CHANGE will happen starting the day after 1/19/2009. 2008 was for the most part pretty memorable for me in that I got to travel along the upper northwest part of the US and down the midwest toward Texas mostly by Amtrak. And as some of you may know, traveling and going to different ballparks or other sporting venues is what I really enjoy doing. Most of what I was able to accomplish was due largely in part to the travel certificates that many relatives gave me last Christmas. I really dont see myself doing any sort of long distance traveling this year, except perhaps staying local and maybe visiting some Minor League Parks this year. Heck, perhaps it would be a good change of pace as opposed to long distance cross country travel.
Oh yeah, 2009. Hey, so it's no secret we're in an economic recession . And yeah, many out there are probably beginning this first business day of the year searching for employment. And if that's the case, I wish you the best of luck. With the job market , or any market for that matter, being what it is at this moment, it's times like this that remind us that hey, our jobs , the ones we currently hold, are our main incentive to want to get up in the morning .
Now, changing gears to the outside world and one I never tire of, sports.... ( I'll admit it, I'm not always about reality, and its something that can heal the pain of reality if at least for 3 hours of my life a day, are you reading this Rich Rodriguez ? ) The NFL Wild Card Playoffs get under way this weekend, and there are some pretty intriguing games this weekend. Unfortunately for me, none of those games will involve my 49ERS for the 6th straight year. As crazy as it sounds, if only for a break here or a lucky bounce there, the Niners coulda been the ones hoisting the NFC West Crown, finishing only 2 games behind the Arizona Cardinals for the division. The Cardinals, a team that gave up over 30 points in a game 5 times this season. If the Niners dont blow a 9 point lead to the Eagles in October or have the right play call in the Monday night game at Arizona....If Shaun Hill would have been our starter from the beginning of the season... WHAT IF'S ..... And so, for the 6th straight year, the 49ERS are nowhere to be found in the month of January. I surely hope Jed York ( Officially the new GM) is right when he told his team after their season ending victory against the Redskins that this is the last time the 49ERS end their season in December because as a long time Niner fan knowing nothing but success from the 80s and 90s, I'm certainly getting tired of not watching my team in post-season play.
And now, my picks for this weekend...
Indy over SD, Atl over AZ, Bal over Mia, and Philly over Min. Wow, I'm picking the road teams to win it all this weekend. Oh yeah, they're all favored too. I guess there must be a lot of parity in the NFL this year.
Have a Great Weekend everyone, and a Safe, and HAPPY NEW YEAR to all !!!!
Oh yeah, 2009. Hey, so it's no secret we're in an economic recession . And yeah, many out there are probably beginning this first business day of the year searching for employment. And if that's the case, I wish you the best of luck. With the job market , or any market for that matter, being what it is at this moment, it's times like this that remind us that hey, our jobs , the ones we currently hold, are our main incentive to want to get up in the morning .
Now, changing gears to the outside world and one I never tire of, sports.... ( I'll admit it, I'm not always about reality, and its something that can heal the pain of reality if at least for 3 hours of my life a day, are you reading this Rich Rodriguez ? ) The NFL Wild Card Playoffs get under way this weekend, and there are some pretty intriguing games this weekend. Unfortunately for me, none of those games will involve my 49ERS for the 6th straight year. As crazy as it sounds, if only for a break here or a lucky bounce there, the Niners coulda been the ones hoisting the NFC West Crown, finishing only 2 games behind the Arizona Cardinals for the division. The Cardinals, a team that gave up over 30 points in a game 5 times this season. If the Niners dont blow a 9 point lead to the Eagles in October or have the right play call in the Monday night game at Arizona....If Shaun Hill would have been our starter from the beginning of the season... WHAT IF'S ..... And so, for the 6th straight year, the 49ERS are nowhere to be found in the month of January. I surely hope Jed York ( Officially the new GM) is right when he told his team after their season ending victory against the Redskins that this is the last time the 49ERS end their season in December because as a long time Niner fan knowing nothing but success from the 80s and 90s, I'm certainly getting tired of not watching my team in post-season play.
And now, my picks for this weekend...
Indy over SD, Atl over AZ, Bal over Mia, and Philly over Min. Wow, I'm picking the road teams to win it all this weekend. Oh yeah, they're all favored too. I guess there must be a lot of parity in the NFL this year.
Have a Great Weekend everyone, and a Safe, and HAPPY NEW YEAR to all !!!!
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