Yesterday was an incredible day of a number of different sporting events taking place at the same time. I had a main rotation of afternoon NFL games and Dodger baseball coupled with a longing for the Padres to accomplish the unthinkable...to tie the Giants and make history with 2 possible playoff games for the division and wild card. However, watching the Dodgers start hitting and seeing their bullpen hold Arizona in the 7th and 8th inning, I noticed that fight that has not been there since the All Star break and you saw guys get after it on the last day of the season. You saw them play to win and to win for Joe Torre.
To me, Joe Torre was more than the Bigelow tea commercials and the name linked to the Yankees. He was the Dodgers for three seasons and he wore the Dodger Blue well. He put a name and a face to the Dodgers in the East Coast and on ESPN. However, Joe was really, Phil Jackson without the players. Let's face it, if there were other circumstances and the Dodgers had more of those "it" guys on the roster, the season could have a different outcome. If we had chosen to just pay Randy Wolf, we wouldn't have to try and sign Ted Lilly, which will be impossible.
Joe Torre really tried to make us winners for the 3rd year in a row. It didn't happen, because there was no chemistry in the clubhouse and guys just didn't seem to trust their stuff like John Broxton and Matt Kemp. Despite all of the home runs for Kemp, it doesn't if you strike out as many times as he did.
The biggest disappointment was Ethier after a monstrous start and his injury he was never the same.
I'd like to believe that next year, with Don Mattingly at the helm, there is a guy that knows about playing baseball and coaching baseball players. I think that there is a reason for optimism. However, we've got holes in the pitching staff and not a lot of prospects to fill out our infield, so I remain hopeful as I always am that the Dodgers get a good pitcher and power hitter this year.
Go Dodgers! Go anyone in the playoffs not the Giants!
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