Dodgers Need To Become More Offensive

Are the Dodgers finally missing Manny Ramirez??

Although they continue to lead the National League in runs, scoring has been difficult to come by of late for the National League West leaders. They totaled 10 runs in their last five games and 18 in their seven games in June. This lack of offense was never more apparent than over the weekend when Los Angeles split a four-game set with the Phillies, leaders in the NL East, at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers lost the opener, 3-0, managed 4-3 and 3-2 victories and then lost the finale, 7-2. LA stranded 17 runners in each of the last two games. Following an off day today, they play host to the Padres Tuesday and Wednesday and then head to Arlington, TX for a three-game series with the red hot Rangers, leaders of the American League West, over the weekend.

“We came through this series of games, I think, very well” Dodger Manager Joe Torre said on Dodgers.com. “I think this ball club certainly can use a day off. And we were hoping to have a day off following a win, but considering how this series went, I’m certainly not disappointed.”

Carlos Ruiz, Shane Victorino, and Ryan Howard each hit home runs Sunday to eliminate any chances of a series victory by the home team. Ruiz and Victorino homered off starter Randy Wolf, who yielded six runs (all earned) in six innings and Howard’s dinger welcomed newcomer Travis Schlichting to the big leagues. Schlichting was making his first major league appearance after being brought up from Double A Chattanooga on May 31 when Eric Stults went on the disabled list. Juan Pierre and Cory Blake each doubled and singled for the Dodgers, who failed to get much of anything going against Antonio Bastardo, former Dodger Chan Ho Park, and Ryan Madson. Andre Ethier was the hero in both Dodger victories, smashing a game-winning home run in the 12 th inning Saturday and ripping a two-run, ninth-inning double to turn certain defeat into victory on Friday. “I knew I put a pretty good swing on it,” Ethier said on the Dodger website of his game-winning homer. “I was watching (center fielder Shane Victorino), and when I watched him jump up, it was a good feeling.”

Torre feels the Dodgers held their own against the defending World Champs and, perhaps, sent a message that if the two teams meet again in the playoffs, the outcome may turn out differently. “We held our own with them – we beat them on their field and split with them here,” he said on Dodgers.com. “I think that was important for us to beat them on their field and that was based on the fact that they swept us four games last year plus the two in the playoffs. If we do meet them in the postseason, I think that’s at least going to be something that we don’t have to concern ourselves with.”

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Dodger Chatter: Eric Milton,the team’s fifth starter, was put on the disabled list retroactive to Saturday with tightness in his back, and infielder Blake DeWitt was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque. Milton failed to cover first on a ground ball to the right side Friday in his last start, raising Torre’s suspicions that the lefthander was ailing. DeWitt, who hit .264 in 368 at bats for the Dodgers last year, was hitting .267 for the Dukes with two homers and 18 RBI. He left LA earlier this year with a .167 average after 10 games.

By: Bob Trostler
Los Angeles Dodgers Correspondent

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