FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Operative description of the day: It turned out to be a beautiful day for baseball, especially for Dodgers fans who saw their team unmercifully take the Cardinals pitching staff out to the shed for 20 runs, 20 hits and seven walks in a 20-6 win. There wasn’t an empty seat in the house as 7,227 mostly Cardinals fans turned out for this classic matchup that turned into a three hour, 15 minute marathon that featured nearly 50 players.

However the highlight of the day for me came before the game when I found myself at the pre-game media buffet line with none other than Hall of Fame Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully, one of the true giants of broadcasting. Coming from the Bronx and having a sister and good friends who went to Fordham, we struck up a conversation over St. Louis style barbecue ribs. Like that wasn’t big enough, who else did I walk right by on my way back to my seat? It was Tony La Russa’s close friend Bill Parcells, now the boss of the Miami Dolphins. Also spotted in the pressbox were broadcasters Jaime Jarrin, Mike Shannon, Charley Steiner and Hall of Famer Red Schoendienst. And for the Cardinals, bringing out the lineup card to home plate was Hall of Famer and alltime great pitcher, Bob Gibson, a very close friend of Dodgers skipper Joe Torre. As basketball players like to say; “I went out on a make.”

GOOD IMPRESSIONS: With so much offense, the entire Dodgers team made a good impression. Best of all was right fielder Matt Kemp who hit a ball off of the wall left of center field and although it bounced right to centerfielder Rick Ankiel, Kemp turned on his speed and slid easily into third base with a triple. Big bodies like Kemp’s aren’t supposed to move tha fast. In all, Kemp was two for four with two runs and three RBIs. He’s a star in the making with a fulltime job and shot up my draft list today.

Shortstop Rafael Furcal also had a good day, blasting a home run around the foul pole down the rightfield line off of Braden Looper. He also chipped in an RBI single and was 2 for 3 with two runs scored.

One of the lone bright spots for the Cards was Brian Barton, he of the aerospace engineering degree,  who was two for three with a triple. His spring average is up to .381 and he’s looking more and more like someone the Cards will either keep or be able to find a trading partner for. The Mets come to mind.

Joe Mather played first base today and was one for three. He too has been hitting well while playing mostly in left for the injured Chris Duncan. The departure of Scott Spiezio opens up a spot as backup first baseman and Mather, also hitting .381 this spring after clubbing 31 homers in the minors last season, is making a case.  

Delwyn Young raised his average to .095 (yes, .095) with a monster home run that landed on the patio of the Cardinals office beyond the left field fence. I’ve seen more than 20 games here in the past and that was by far the longest homer I’ve seen here.  He’s out of options and the LaRoche injury could open up a job for him if only he can start hitting. Perhaps today was an indication that he’ll start to hit.

Shortstop Chin-Lung Hu was on first base twice, first as a pinch runner and then after ripping a single to right, prompting the comment “Hey, Hu’s on first.” The Taiwan native also made an excellent play in the field gunning down the slow footed Josh Phelps at first on a grounder that he fielder 10 feet behind the infield dirt in the hole between short and third.  

Former Blue Jay and Yankee prospect John Ford-Griffin was two for two with two runs scored too. Like I said, almost every Dodger did something today.


BAD IMPRESSIONS: Braden Looper’s forte has been his daytime pitching, going 7-1 with a 1.80 ERA in day games last season. Today, not so much. Looper allowed eight runs, seven earned,  in 2 1/3 innings. He surrendered the blasts to Young and Furcal and walked three as well. He’s supposed to be the Cardinals No. 2 starter this season, which should cement in your mind the relative value of Cardinals starters on draft day.

Cesar Izturis had another tough day in the field, being charged with two errors, the first of which was an easy inning-ending ground ball that he simply booted extended the third inning enough to let the Dodgers score seven runs. Izturis is a Cardinal because of his glove and his glove alone. If he continues to be so carefree at short, La Russa will have no choice but to find someone else, and that should be Brendan Ryan.

There was an Adam Kennedy sighting. The second baseman cleared the bases with a three-run double in the fifth, accounting for the last St. Louis runs of the day.  

Troy Glaus continues to hit, and has his average at .412 after lacing a two singles to left.  

MIXED IMPRESSIONS:
Hiroki Kuroda got the win and even struck out two batters in the first inning, but he allowed three runs, two earned, and five hits in his two innings. In no way was this a big enough sample size to make a judgement, but he’s not someone whose stuff blows anyone away.

Longtime journeyman George Lombard hit his second home run of the spring and singled for the Dodgers in his three at bats, but has no chance of seeing Chavez Ravine this season.

Reliever Tom Martin made a stellar kick-save of a grounder in the third inning to throw out Yadier Molina.
 
Ryan Ludwick also had a rough day in the field, committing the third Cardinal error, although he could have been charged with one that was hung on Izturis who failed to cover second on a hit to right. At the plate he was one for five with a double, but saw his lofty average fall to .333. Couple his recent struggles with Barton and Mather’s successes and Ludwick’s roster spot is in jeopardy.

Sadly for me this concludes my series of reports from spring training. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading them as much as I did writing them for you. Please come back to my regular blog in which I talk about interesting happenings in the world of sports, both on the field and in the fantasy sense. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.