I never cared much for The Clash, but the title to their most famous track is pertinent to almost every player on the Dodgers roster. It makes for a good entry title too. I'll get to all that in a bit.

First, I need to make a couple of housekeeping notes. Following this post, I will be in offseason mode since I don't give a whit about the World Series. I've already endorsed the Philadelphia Phillies to repeat and wish them all the best against the Cranks or the Angels. I think they'll prevail over either of those two pretender clubs.

What "offseason mode" means to my audience is diminished written output by yours truly. I will feature more literary posts (and/or book reviews) and the occasional Hot Stove gem. I don't like to deal in rumors so I'll only address key signings probably in one (maybe two) cumulative post closer to Spring Training. Until then, I'll be submitting entries only once or twice a month after this one.

Now a final word about the Dodgers. And I'm going to approach this by giving my OPINION in list fashion by position. However, let me first be clear: What I believe NEEDS to happen doesn't necessarily mean it's REALISTIC to EXPECT it to happen due to contract obligations and also how my hair brained ideas may fly against the face of logic. But, I'll entertain dissenting opinions. So here goes.

The most glaring of the positions to address is Dodger starting pitching. They ALL need to go, with the exception of Clayton Kershaw. Now, granted, Hideki Kuroda, Kershaw, and Chad Billingsley are all under team control. John Garland has a mutual option with the club. They need to keep him before resigning the volatile Vicente Padilla. Randy Wolf will cash the cow in another market. Maybe the Astros, again?

If I had my druthers, the staff would line up in this order: Kershaw, Garland, and Kuroda. Of the three, only Kershaw has an upside with the other two being overpriced, 4^th and 5^th starters at best. I'm not high of Kuroda or Garland and feel both are overrated, but at this point they are arms in the queue. Chad Billingsley is a fat enigma. GM Ned Colletti should have traded him away for Cliff Lee. I think that's obvious by now. Billingsley seldom gets past the 5^th inning.

I'm an old school war horse when it comes to pitchers and like Nolan Ryan, I feel a starter should go at least 7. I think the Dodgers staff proved in the end that a quality team needs optimal performance from their starters before going to the bullpen and not the other way around. Billingsley needs to go.

That leaves a couple holes in the throwing armor. I'm not personally huge on signing free agent pitchers. I believe more often than not, they prove out to be busts. But the Dodgers, with many recent transactions, have significantly diminished their farm talent and filled it with a lot of "has beens". They don't have much to bring up and so I would fill the 2010 rotation gaps with a modest run at the Diamondbacks free agent Doug Davis and Seattle's Erik Bedard.

Neither of these tools really excites anyone and both will come on the cheap this offseason. Davis is consistent if not flashy, and Bedard has been an ace before his arm troubles so he knows what it takes. If he falters, the Bums can go the minor league route with James MacDonald again. Yeah, that's a lot of lefties, but there aren't many options this offseason. But that won't happen. The Bums will keep Billingsley, probably go with Eric Stults, and fail to acquire an Ace.

The Bullpen is easy. Keep 'em all. Jonathan Broxton just needs to get nastier in his attitude while on the mound. If he can do that, he'll morph into a dominant closer. I don't know if George Sherrill is content to be a set up guy, but I don't think he has the stuff to be a closer. Both have fat contracts that won't be easy to move in an offseason gravid with free agent closers. Should they trade Sherrill to Boston for Jonathan Papelbon and move Broxton in a package for a quality starter and/or second baseman? I'm dreaming. But I'd do it, if at all possible. The middle relief is intact and very good with Corey Wade hopefully bouncing back for 2010.

Now the infield. And strike me with a bolt of lightning, but the Dodgers need a catcher.

Russell Martin has been in a two year slump. It's time to face it. I don't think he warrants much of a raise and might benefit from the competition generated by having an offensive mentor catcher ... (dare I say, Bengie Molina?) ... behind him (or even in front of him). If the Giants jettison Molina and I'm Ned Colletti ... I make that signing.

It's a weak market for the corners and the Dodgers have weak power at their corners. I'm not sold on James Loney. I see little growth there. Casey Blake is the Mike Lowell of the West. If the Dodgers can package Loney and Martin in a deal that nets Marlins slugging second baseman Dan Uggla with some prospects, I make that deal. But that likely won't happen. I would hang onto Blake one more year because of his defense.

Rafael Furcal is not the best option at shortstop, but he's not going anywhere with his fat contract. And he does the job. He should go, but he stays.

The Dodgers don't figure to resign Orlando Hudson or Rafael Belliard at second base. Both we're streaky players though without Belliard, the Bums would've missed the postseason. They need more offense there. If they can't get Uggla and Blake DeWitt proves incapable of taking the reins; I feel they should consider Akinori Iwamura for a year if the Rays let him loose. Iwamura can bat lead off and hit for decent power. He'd be a nice compliment to Furcal in that sense. But that sort of dreaming on my part is an admitted long shot.

The outfield is intact. Unfortunately, the Dodgers can't ditch Manny. I would. Manny is the weak link and at this point, a liability. Ideally, the Dodgers trade him by eating a lot of his salary (like Boston did) and gathering prospects in return instead of letting him walk at the end of what figures to be a tumultuous 2010. They'd almost have to trade him to the AL. But Manny as damaged goods now? Eh, I'm dreaming. Maybe Cleveland would take him back under those conditions since they are prospect rich now, but it's likely that Juan Pierre wastes another year on the bench even though his 2009 performance mandates his reclamation of the left corner. It's more likely Pierre is packaged off in a deal, maybe for a pitcher. But Manny needs to go.

Figuring into any of these wishes and prayers is the McCourt divorce. Whichever party lands control of the Dodgers (My guess is that it'll be Frank), it stands to reason they'll be a lot poorer for it and that consideration should be factored into any Dodger fan's hope for team improvement.

For the Dodgers, 2009 figures to be a lackluster year because of bad contracts mixed with sour economics. They may still contend for the N.L. title with the pieces they have. But I feel it is more an opportunity for them to return to the fundamental, home grown through the farm mentality that has kept the Dodgers so very talented for years. After these bad contracts expire, the Dodgers would do well to embrace a thrifty philosophy through better scouting with the occasional splurge when warranted. We can only hope that Ned Colletti sees things the same way. 

Until next time ... Go Phillies. *Sighs*

I am going to suspend my vent and my thoughts about how the Dodgers can improve next year until I can gather my mind grapes together and ostracize emotion from the process of thinking so I can craft a clear and intelligent post on the matter. I think Saturday will give me enough time. Until then, I find myself rooting for the Phillies once again in the World Series. But the remainder of this entry will be devoted to my trip to Old Dodgertown. That's right, Vero Beach.

Dodgertown was still there even if the adjacent golf course looked as brown and neglected as a dusty fur bear skin on a crumbled cabin floor. The complex was eerily quiet in the midst of what appeared to be a repressed local subdivision.

The clubhouse and player residences are apparently still active, but during our tour (mere hours before the Dodgers dropped Game 5 to the Phillies) the only voices we heard we ghostly wind whispers of the past.

Painters and landscapers were on hand during our tour keeping the place fresh in appearance, but I couldn't understand why. The Dodgers had left there for Glendale, Arizona over two years ago and no one is slated to play in Vero to my knowledge. To me, the upkeep seemed like trying to keep doomed Atlantis afloat. I found the experience very sullen and perplexing.

Vero Beach still had street signs commemorating Dodger immortals. I just think it was every bit as sad as when the Bums abandoned Brooklyn. Vero Beach suffers the same fate and the town has yet to recover. 

I'm optimistic for 2010. That is, as long as the Phillies aren't in the playoffs opposing the Bums. Let the ghosts stay in the past and the Dodgers rev it up for tomorrow! 

I've not felt like writing much lately. I'm certain many in my audience can appreciate the ups and downs of the writing process. Mix in a tough personal week in the real world and writing becomes, at best, a problematic whimsy. I feel better now ... but I don't have much to say. I'm going to be uncharacteristically less than verbose.

I don't give two figs about the AL Championship Series. I've no opinion about it. I don't like either team which means one of them will probably go on to win the Series.

I was pleasantly surprised to see the Dodgers throttle St. Louis. But I was also bummed that they drew the Phillies again. Shades of Shane Victorino and Matt Stairs clobbering clutch home runs die hard. I hope they do not re-occur.

My only criticism is of Joe Torre starting Clayton Kershaw for Game One. I think he should've started Randy Wolf because the Kid still seems a bit raw to me and this is the time of the season for the veterans to pick their game up and lead by example. Has Vicente Padilla been the bees knees or what!?! The Dodgers need to bring him back for Game 5 ... not Kershaw.

I say Dodgers in SEVEN if they can bring the bats alive.

The following is a poem that came to mind when I saw Matt Kemp batting the other day with runners in scoring position. I love the tenacity of his game so I'm not picking on him. Sometimes, poetry comes unbidden.

A Swing And A Miss

by J. Patrick Lewis©

Published In: Light Quarterly (1954)

The fastball

          that you hope to poke

          is smoke

The curveball

          that you thought was there

          is air

The knuckler

          wobbling up to you

          can dipsy-do

The screwball

          an ironic twist

          hits your fist

The sinker

          comes as a surprise:

          it dies

The let-up pitch

          you can't resist?

          you missed

The spitball

          that by law's forbidden

          (is hidden)

The baseball postseason begins amidst the crisp cracking of hockey sticks and the frequent Sunday and Saturday slinging of the pig. As the world turns and the sun seems to retreat, so too does the 2009 Major League Baseball season. Here is a rare, mid-week post which, like the previous entry, shall be lacking in literary value.

I craft today's entry for three reasons.

First, I want to congratulate the Dodgers for not blowing it ... so far.

Secondly, I must state for the record that as far as baseball is concerned, my focus has always highlighted team play over statistics and individual achievement. Thus, there will be no personal "suggestions" at this web page about who deserves to win the MVP or got wrongly jilted out of Cy Young consideration. In my mind, awards are a necessary ridiculousness and better left for higher minded people.

However, I am not above being a "bracket guy", which brings me to the main purpose of today's post. I want to pick my playoff predictions before the games begin. I suppose I can start with the American League.

The tiebreaker between Minnesota and Detroit was the most thrilling contest I've seen in awhile. The fact that the Tigers lost because Gerald Laird struck out on a pitch that would've walked in the potentially winning run was the tipping point karma that gave the game to the Twinkies. Inasmuch as I wanted to see the Tigers prevail, I think that Minnesota has the chemistry, hunger, and necessary multitalented skill to knock off the Evil Empire. The Metrodome dies hard and I think will live to see the Championship round. Twins in five.

I think the Angels, given all of the adversity they've endured this season, have the ability and the drive to win it all. I'm not a huge Angels fan either. But I have to admire the level of play they maintain and how they seem to benefit from riding waves of emotion. This rumored idea that they are somehow jinxed and cannot beat the Red Sox is as pleasantly silly as the notion of an 80 plus year curse. I think the Red Sox are out of gas despite a furiously fantastic end to the season. But the Angels may be too much and I think this one goes to the Halos in five.

So do you want a shocker pick? It's in the series I don't care about at all. I think the Phillies flame out on a Rocky Mountain high. Philadelphia is so overrated in a bad division that I think the impressive Rockies will roll them in three. That and I want to see the Dodgers play the Rockies because Los Angeles owns Colorado.

As for the Dodgers, they are locked into what is probably the best match in the early going. If they can beat the Cardinals ... a highly problematic task given their streaky chemistry of late ... there's no reason to believe they can't win it all. But St. Louis is loaded ... their only weakness being a mediocre bullpen. If the Dodger offense is locked down by Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright they way it was locked down by San Diego pitching recently; St. Louis will send the Bums to the beach early this year. Going against the gut, I say Dodgers in four.

So there is my crystal ball for what it's worth. I wouldn't be shocked if all my picks go awry. I may have to shoot myself if it comes down to a Twins & Rockies World Series. I'll have a similar update for the next round and more poetry by the weekend. Excelsior!

The only pertinent issue left for the reader to decide after finishing with this entry is who is having the deeper meltdown ... The Dodgers or yours truly?

I've not been able to think about writing an entry. And poetry? Poetry begone at this point! There is nothing poetic about the image of The Great Blue Collapse of 2009. Well, unless you want to craft a sonnet about Joe Torre with a violin in the role of Nero on the steps of the dugout as Dodgertown burns like Rome.

Unlike many of my good natured Dodger blogging colleagues ... I am PISSED at the team's lackluster performance down the stretch. It's embarrassing. They should've won 100 games.

I know that untimely injuries to Ronnie Belliard and Casey Blake may have derailed this train. In my mind questionable decisions Torre made down the stretch to prematurely rest his starters for the playoffs during the Pittsburgh and San Diego series may come home to roost by Monday. But I think the biggest let down ... has been Manny.

The Manny spark is gone. The exhilaration engendered by his arrival last year has fizzled into the Hollywood Nocturne. This doesn't resemble the same enthusiastic team. I think they're trying too hard and pressing because Manny is slacking. And for once, I don't think it's intentional on his part.

As I observe Manny bat, he seems a bit less patient and perhaps a bit slower. He's Papi in reverse, where Ortiz got hot late, Manny has stumbled. Undoubtedly, the suspension upset his groove. His age may be a factor. Given his surreptitious behavior, perhaps more is going on with Ramirez then we'll know right now. But he has exhibited no signs of leadership in the club house.

He's demonstrated nothing more than his typically Manny, devil may care attitude and I think that's shameful. The Dodgers need a fiery leader and it seems to me that mantle of leadership has fallen to Blake ... or perhaps, Jim Thome. They're quality guys but not exactly extroverts.

Even if the Bums stumble into the division title, a five game slide is not the way you want to start the post season. If they win one of the next two games against a blistering hot and hungry Rockies squad, they need to dispense with any celebrating and focus on the next series. It would be an unforgiveable shame if the Dodgers lose the division crown because they could not defeat the hapless Pittsburgh Pirates once in late September.

That's it ... I can't write anymore. I haven't lost faith but I may be losing my mind. Go Dodgers ... for the love of God!

I found myself harried at the prospect of scraping up an entry for this week's update. I didn't have a poem or inspiring scrap of prose to exhibit, so I hope you aren't expecting one.

I didn't really want to discuss Jeter hurdling the Iron Horse because that goes along with the cliché about beating expired equines, so I'm not going there. And I suspect it is bad luck to harp on the Dodgers ongoing version of a Twenty First Century Breakdown ... here's wishing someone in the Second Division could beat the Rockies at least once a week.

And finally, I don't even want to try to make written sense as to why I find the Washington Nationals so interesting that I'm watching their games!

So this week, I had nothing ... and still HAVE nothing. But my bullpen bailed me out. That is, the MLB.com website is featuring a surprising article today by Jonathan Mayo about poetry in baseball.

Hot diggity damn.

It makes the page only after almost all the pennant races are secured and there is nothing else to feature. I bookmarked the link as fast as I could half expecting it to vanish.

Here:

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090911&content_id=6909956&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

I was unaware of Lemon and Broshuis. We've already discussed Fernando Perez much earlier here at Of Sonnets & Sliders. I was unaware of Miguel Batista and found his story the most interesting although a gander at Neil Wagner's blog reveals a remarkable man who has a creative and unique look at the world as well as an impeccable taste in poetry (even if I do disagree with his assessment of Czeslaw Milosz's poems). Wagner's blog can be found here:

http://indiansprospect.mlblogs.com/

Well, that's all I have today. Here's to the NL West coming down to the last series betwixt the Blue and the Purple Mountain Majesties.

Well, what can I say? My teams are pretty well defined by now. The Cardinals have locked it up. The Devil Rays and White Sox have cashed in whatever chips they had left and made productive trades to jettison a bit of dead weight, overpaid salary (yes... Scott Kazmir is dead weight). The Red Sox look like they'll contest Texas down to the wire for the Wild Card which at this point seems to be a toss up for me given the streaky inconsistencies of both of those clubs.

My Dodgers, however, continue to be consistently mediocre. I loved the John Garland trade although it may have been nice if they could've pulled it off a month ago. The reasoning behind that might have been Arizona holding the Dodgers hostage. Who knows? The Jim Thome trade remains a puzzler simply because I think Ronnie Belliard's acquisition may actually have more of an impact instead of featuring a long time DH in a pinch hitting role. But at this point, the offense is so anemic that I suppose any bat will do. I hope the Dodgers hang on ... it's problematic at best.

Now, let's talk a bit of poetry.

William Carlos Williams is not one of my favorite poets. He rose to prominence with his craft during the Modernist period of Literature in the 1930's and at the time was dwarfed in the spotlight by Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot. Sadly, it may have been the only period when the modern world gave a hoot about experimental poetry.

But Williams remained ardent in his desire to not only push the limits of poetic craft against the long reign of formalist poets, he also sought to make his poems more American in essence by focusing on American concerns and issues as well as typical everyday occurrences in life as his favored subject matter.

On reading the one included below, I'm not entirely convinced Williams was a baseball fan. I could be wrong about that since the sport is distinctly and American invention. But aside from the title, the setting seems to me it can be anywhere that has a crowd: a train station, shopping mall, or rock concert. But I felt given his heavyweight status as a sage of modern poetry, this poem deserved to be featured below. To learn more about William Carlos Williams, click this link: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/119

And now, the poem:

The Crowd at the Ballgame by William Carlos Williams

Published: The Dial (08-1923)

The crowd at the ball game

is moved uniformly

by a spirit of uselessness

which delights them --

all the exciting detail

of the chase

and the escape, the error

the flash of genius --

all to no end save beauty

the eternal -

So in detail they, the crowd,

are beautiful

for this

to be warned against

saluted and defied --

It is alive, venomous

it smiles grimly

its words cut --

The flashy female with her

mother, gets it --

The Jew gets it straight - it

is deadly, terrifying --

It is the Inquisition, the

Revolution

It is beauty itself

that lives

day by day in them

idly --

This is

the power of their faces

It is summer, it is the solstice

the crowd is

cheering, the crowd is laughing

in detail

permanently, seriously

without thought

Well, it's homestretch time. And by the Hammer of Thor, the Dodgers are really rolling the dice. I'm thinking they may somehow still pull it off.

What is happening is that the Giants and Rockies are in a bloodbath and the improbable circumstance that has San Francisco winning is currently to the benefit of Los Angeles. When I saw Tim Lincecum was pitching against the Rox, I knew even if the Dodgers boned it against the Reds (and they didn't disappoint), the lead would remain unchanged.

The good thing is that the rotation seems set. Wolf earned a new contract and is the Ace right now. Kershaw is adequate. Billingsley still looks like he's out of gas but I maintain always had 5^th inning demons right out of the gate. They should switch him off with Weaver for a start or two.

I don't like Padilla all that much, but he's a working cog. I pretend that Colletti got him as a player to be named later in a fake Andruw Jones trade. Finally, Charlie Haeger is my man! I want to see that knuckler rock even if it gets rocked out of the yard. With the starters addressed, the bullpen can settle a little. Now it's time for the batters to mash.

I think Russell Martin needs to take the "J." initial off of his uniform. I believe he put it on there to honor his father, but it's inhibiting his swing. Maybe he could put it under the lid of his cap or something, Matt Garza style. All I know is that Martin, Loney, and Furcal need to get it going. More homers out of Manny would be nice too, but he's still hitting well in the clutch.

If they can keep getting strategic wins versus rival losses and also start hitting like they did in April, the Bums got it in the Bag.

As for my other teams of interest (in order of the most favored):

Just when I thought the White Sox might have decided they were hungry for the Division after all, they suddenly remembered that they were old, slow, and uninspired. Every last one of them, with the exception of Beckham, Pods, and Pierzynski should be trade bait. I still maintain that Alex Rios is going to be a fantastic bust hanging on the regrets of a payroll spreadsheet for years. The good news is that when the Sox ditch all the dead weight and let the kids play, they have a decent starting staff for next year in Peavy, Buehrle, Floyd, and Danks with a 5^th to be hammered out later. The bullpen needs a bit more work even if it means dangling Jenks whose a bit salary fat anyway.

I blinked and the Cardinals had a 9 game lead. Now they're playing the Nats which is usually a given 3 game sweep. The Cards, I must say, are the best all around team in the NL and will expose the Phillies for the frauds that they are in that NL East division of weaklings.

And then there are the Red Sox ... looking mighty again. Granted, they are at home. They aren't without their problems, but barring a Mets like collapse, they should have the Wild Card swen up.

The Sox ditched the bad Penny this week and got Billy Wagner. Billy Wagner is a bad *** and one of the best closers in history. His veteran presence will not only improve the swagger of the bullpen and the demeanor of the staff; but it will slap the smug smile off of Jonathan Papelbon's face. My wife is a big Pap fan. I'm not.

That cat thinks he can cruise into the bullpen in the 5^th inning while everyone else is out watching the game. I think Wagner being there changes all that. I'm not saying Wagner will replace Pap as a closer, but he may teach him a little bit of humility especially when Pap had the bases loaded in the opening game of this recent Blue Jays series. I kept thinking I heard activity in the bullpen ... phantom activity. Billy? Is that Billy in the house Johnny? Watch it now, watch it!

The Devil Rays mailed it in this week. They traded Kazmir to unload payroll and also to rid themselves of an overrated pitcher. It was a good move. I don't think they could've gotten value for him outside of a pennant race. The Blue Jays should've done the same with Halladay who hasn't looked good recently. The Rays will trade Crawford and hopefully Burrell and get back to small ball. It's what they're good at. See ya next year.

So there's the rounds. I appreciate all the new readers including Julia at Julia Rants and Emma at CrzyBlue and others who have kindly linked me to their page. I don't want to make a post without some kind of literature involved, so here's a poem written about the Brooklyn Dodgers by Dan Parker (don't know much and can't find much about him, sorry) in 1942, but it can be revised if you like to cheer for them down the 2009 stretch. Go Blue!

Leave Us Go Root for the Dodgers

by Dan Parker ©

Published: New York Daily Mirror (1942)

Murgatroyd Darcy,

the belle of Carnarsie,

Went 'round with a fellow named Rodge.

At dancing the rhumba or jitterbug number,

You couldn't beat Rodge at this dodge.

Throughout the cold weather,

the pair danced together,

But when the trees blossomed again,

Miss Murgatroyd Darcy,

the belle of Carnarsie

To Rodgers would sing this refrain:

Leave us go root for the Dodgers,

Rodgers.

That's the team for me.

Leave us make noise for the boisterous boys

on the BMT.

Summer or winter or any season,

Flatbush fanatics don't need no reason.

Leave us go root for the Dodgers,

Rodgers.

That's the team for me.

Here's a bit of an odd duck poem. A knuckleball in the mix as it blends bad hitting with vampires. But X.J. Kennedy is a rather prominent poet who apparently is sincerely a baseball fan or just poking fun at the game. I'm inclined to believe the former. And even though he wrote this poem many years ago, I still think he's spot on when attributing this affliction to the Dodgers lineup.

So if in the next day or so, Manny's bat turns around and bites him in the neck after yet another strikeout or if Andre Ethier muscles a swing foul that snaps the lumber in two and both ends of the wood sprout wings and fly off into a lazy Hollywood Nocturne, then I'll know Halloween has come early to Dodgertown.

Enjoy. And Go Blue. Viva Charlie Haeger, the next great Knuckler!

The Abominable Baseball Bat

by X.J. Kennedy ©

Published: The Phantom Ice Cream Man (1975)

I swung and swung at empty air

And when I heard the umpire

Behind me shout, "Strike three - you're out!"

My bat turned to a vampire.

The whole team had to pry it loose.

Poor Ump looked sorta flat.

Now ever since, my bat and I

Walk every time we bat.

You can learn more about X.J. Kennedy by clicking this link:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/634

Back in March of this year, Micheal D'Antonio released a new book (pictured above ... it's SUPPOSED to be a literary baseball blog after all, you know) where he tries to de-vilify former Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley. And the thought occurs to me now ... why is there an obsession to reach back to Brooklyn Dodgers history when the Los Angeles incarnation has plenty to offer even if there are very few books about the Dodgers post NYC.

But I can appreciate the allure of Branch Rickey, and the nostalgia of building the Dodgers out of nothing. I can understand writers wanting to cover Jackie Robinson and the Boys of Summer. And I find the argument of O'Malley being a victim of an inflexible New York political mogul presented by D'Antonio in his book a compelling theory. Read more about it here:

http://www.amazon.com/Forever-Blue-Baseballs-Controversial-Brooklyn/dp/1594488568/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250356190&sr=1-1

So I will read the book, probably in the off season. There's too much going on right now ... like my predicted Dodgers Meltdown!!!

Most of you know that a pennant race is a strategic thing. The top dog stays on top even if they are losing, so long as the bottom feeders don't win on the days that the leader loses. That hasn't been happening.

The Los Angeles Dodgers, coming off of a long stretch without a free day, did well to take two out of three from the Giants. A sweep would've been better. But I'll take it. However the once lavish 9 game lead has eroded to a mere five and I predict, even slimmer to none if things don't change in a hurry.

Who knew that the Rockies would charge so hard and so consistently? Former Dodger manager and current Rockies skipper, Jim Tracy should be given manager of the year right now. He has already (at this writing) leapfrogged the Giants and has his eye on the wounded duck.

Of course, the Giants are there too. Dodgers brass WISH they had the Giants pitching staff. I WISH they had the Giants pitching staff. San Francisco has not convinced me that they've addressed the offense enough to make the playoffs. They're doing well, but the Rockies are rolling.

So what does Joe Torre do? Well, he's doing the best he can. What else can he do but try various combinations? He is not causing problems and has actually been proactive in trying to electrocute his team out of their post All Star nosedive. Why the slump? Well there are many reasons.

First I would say that the Manny meltdown didn't cause this collapse. Maybe having him back did because I'm pretty sure his hand is not right. Does Torre have the stones to bench him for the unstoppable Juan Pierre? It might be worth a shot, but it's not like Manny is being Manny. He's not. Controversy aside, that cat has been trying.

Yet, Ramirez and Pierre cannot strike people out. They cannot fool the other teams batters. And neither can the Dodgers staff. That's where the mistake was. GM Ned Colletti was unable to address a flawed, M.A.S.H. unit pitching staff. I think scouring the waiver wire for cast offs at this point is better than what they have. When your best pitcher is Randy Wolf (no disrespect) you have problems.

Kershaw is still a rookie. Billingsley can't go more than 5 innings and is not hurt. Kuroda, and Schmidt work better in the Senior Citizens League. And the bullpen is exhausted and I'd wager that Broxton's confidence is shot.

Complicating matters is the club isn't hitting. Torre cannot find a number 2 hitter because Hudson and Martin are in slumps. James Loney is about useless. And Furcal isn't where he was. Why he doesn't try Casey Blake second, Ethier third, Ramirez 4^th, and Kemp fifth just blows my mind. And at this rate, with continued performances by all these players without any reinforcements or serendipitous rediscovery of the longball; the season stands to be blown as well.

Blown. Collapse. Choke. It can all come crumbling down in a meltdown worthy of the Mets in recent years.

Maybe the long arm and curses of the New York area are hard for the Dodgers to shake after all?