A Nice Day For A Swim

The Dodgers locked up the National League West yesterday with a 7-6 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. The celebration started on the field when Skip Schumaker secured the last out in Left Field in the bottom of the ninth inning, continued in the Dodgers locker room with the popping of champagne and some dance moves by Yasiel Puig, and then carried over to the swimming pool that sits beyond the right Center Field fence in the Diamondbacks park. Some of the Dodgers were jumping into the pool (fully clothed)and splashing around and jumping back out. Evidently the Diamondbacks had asked them not to do this before the game and the Dodgers probably would not have even thought about it until the Diamondbacks asked them not to. The big story should be the Dodgers won the National League West not that they went swimming. Some of the Diamondbacks took exception to the swim, most notably Willie Bloomquist, and referred to it as a "classless" act. Reliever Brandon McCarthy responded on Twitter that the Diamondbacks needed to work on what would win them the National League West next season rather than what the Dodgers did after the Dodgers won the West this season. William L. Marcy, a Senator from New York, first said in 1832 "to the victor belongs the spoils." The Dodgers won and can celebrate however they would like to and at least they did it with style. I hope Willie Bloomquist enjoys watching the Dodgers in the playoffs.

Reds And Diamondbacks And Dodgers, Oh My!

The Dodgers got swept by the Reds last weekend which in the greater scheme of things really, did not mean that much. The Reds needed the wins much more than the Dodgers at this point and time in the season but I am looking at any potential Playoff matchup. The Reds still have to leapfrog either the Pirates or the Cardinals to win the Wild Card spot or even winning the National League Central is not out of the question. The Dodgers have taken the first two games from the Diamondbacks with 8-1 and 5-3 wins and have shown some rarely seen power for this season. In the 8-1, win Juan Uribe went deep three times and Adrian Gonzalez hit his 20th. Starter Ricky Nolasco improved to 8-1 with the Dodgers, 13-9 overall. In Last night's 5-3 win, Pinch Hitter Scott Van Slyke hit a two run walk off homer in the 11th inning to seal the deal. It gave reliever Chris Withrow his third win of the season against no losses. Newly signed Edinson Volquez had a solid showing in his second start for the Dodgers. The Dodgers now own the largest lead, 13 games, of any team in baseball with only 18 games to go in the season.

Rocky Mountain High

Clayton Kershaw got his 14th win in yesterday's 10-8 win over the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field but it was Kershaw's second bad outing in a row. Kershaw hasn't historically pitched well at Coors Field with a career ERA of now over 5 and this game was no different. This being Coors field, he was still able to pick up the win. He gave up 5 runs in 5 innings and gave up a career high 11 hits. Kershaw helped his own cause by going 2 for 2 at the plate and drove in a pair of runs. The offensive stars were Andre Ethier (3 for 4 and his 11th homerun and 3 RBI's) and Juan Uribe (3 for 5 and 2 RBI's) and the defense turned 4 Double Plays behind Dodger pitching. Kenley Jansen pitched the ninth inning, giving up a solo homerun before earning his 25th save. Yasiel Puig left the game in the sixth inning when he strained his knee but Manager Don Mattingly said he was going to held out of Tuesday's game anyway. That gives the Dodgers a 12 1/2 game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks with 25 games to play.

September Roster Moves

The Dodgers were able to expand their rosters to a max of 40 on September 1st and they quickly recalled five players from Albuquerque. They recalled Shortstop Dee Gordon, Outfielder Scott Van Slyke, Starter/Reliever Stephen Fife, and Relievers Peter Moylan and Chris Withrow, who will be recalled on Tuesday when he is eligible. All five have spent time with the Dodgers this year with the exception of Drew Butera who was acquired from the Minnesota Twins on July 31st. The most interesting and important acquisition they made over the weekend was acquiring infielder Michael Young from the Philadelphia Phillies for minor league pitcher Rob Rasmussen, one of the Dodgers Top 20 Prospects according to dodgers.com. They are not looking to supplant the Dodgers infield rotation or Juan Uribe at Third Base, but Young can play multiple positions, provide veteran leadership, and be a quality right-handed bat off the bench.

Another Series, Another Sweep

The Dodgers swept the San Diego Padres this weekend and with 26 games to go, hold an 11 1/2 game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Zach Greinke was the pitching star in yesterday's 2-1 win, going 7 innings and giving up two hits and the one run, striking out 7 and walking 2. He improved to 14-3 on the season. He also had a hit and is batting .347 and even stole his second base on the season. He went in with the head first slide, beat a good throw, and is the first pitcher on the Dodgers since Orel Hershiser in 1987 to have two stolen bases in a season. Yasiel Puig hit his 14th homerun in the bottom of the 6th inning to provide the winning margin. Kenley Jansen closed it out for his 24th save.