The marathon that is baseball

A baseball season can seem endless – but only if your team is losing and more so if they are miserably out of the race before the All Star break.

That is not the case with the Dodgers, who take a 2.5 game lead in the NL West into this weekend’s series against the Giants, who have dominated the Dodgers so far this season.

A glance around the standings reveals some interesting pennant races going on.

In the AL East, the Yankees are only a game behind Tampa Bay. Alex Rodriguez, written off after health and suspension woes, has found new life at 39.

In the AL Central, the Kansas City Royals are trying to get back to the promised land and have a 3.5 game lead on the Twins. The Tigers are a striking distance 5.5 games back.

The big surprise is in the AL West where the Astros are up 3.5 games on the Rangers in an all-Texas battle with the Angels trailing by 5.5 games.

In the National League, St. Louis leads the NL Central by 4 games over the Pirates and the amazing Cubs are seven games off the pace. Chicago has a lot of young talent so don’t count them out.

In the NL East, the Mets are up 1.5 games on the favored Washington Nationals and baseball is now back in style in the Big Apple with both the Yanks and the Metropolitans sniffing at post-season play.

In the NL West, the Dodgers are trying to make it three straight division titles but the defending World Series champion Giants are staying close. Arizona and San Diego are still in striking distance though the Padres have already jettisoned their manager.

If the season were to end today, Tampa Bay, Kansas City and Houston would be division winners in the AL with the Yankees, Twins, Rangers and possibly Blue Jays fighting for Wild Card berths.

In the NL, the Dodgers, Cardinals and Mets would win division crowns and the Pirates, Giants, Nationals and Cubs would be fighting for the Wild Card.

It’s going to be a long, hot summer.

Dodgers on a historical mission to win the NL West

Historians will tell you that the California cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego were all founded as part of the California mission chain started in 1769 by Father Juniper Serra under the direction of King Charles III of Spain.

The missions were built near the coast to establish towns, trade with sea faring ships and convert the native Indians to Christianity.

There were 21 missions in the chain but the missions in Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego produced the largest modern-day cities.

They didn’t play baseball in the 1700s but today’s San Diego Padres get their name from the Franciscan friars who pioneered the state.

Rather than battle for souls, today’s battle between the three cities is for supremacy in the National League West division of major league baseball.

The Dodgers have won the last two division championships but San Francisco owns the biggest prizes, having won three of the last five World Series titles.

Going into Sunday’s games, the Dodgers hold a 2.5 game lead over the Giants and a six-game bulge over the Padres, who they defeated 4-3 on Friday night.

San Diego opened the checkbook to upgrade their squad this season and figure to give the Dodgers and the Giants a run for their money in 2015.

Kershaw has righted his ship

Like Mark Twain, the reports of Clayton Kershaw’s demise were greatly exaggerated.

After winning the NL MVP and Cy Young awards last year, the Dodger southpaw struggled out of the gates in 2015, posting a high ERA and a losing record.

In his last three starts, Kershaw has looked like, well, Kershaw.

On May 26 he beat the Braves, giving up four hits through seven innings and striking out 10.

On June 1 he beat the Rockies in Colorado, no small feat, holding the Rocks to five hits through seven frames and striking out seven.

On June 6, Kershaw exorcised some of the demons from last year’s playoffs, tossing a one-hitter against the Cardinals through eight innings and striking out 11.

Now 5-3, his ERA is still higher than he would like (3.36) but he pitched shutout innings against the Braves and the Cards, surrendering two runs against the Rockies. That’s two runs in 22 innings.

His 101 strikeouts are third in the major leagues behind Cleveland’s Corey Kluber and Tampa Bay’s Chris Archer.

Teammate Zack Greinke is having a strong year and Brett Anderson, Mike Bolsinger and Carlos Frias have put in solid work in the 3-5 spots in the rotation.

The Dodgers go into tonight’s game against Arizona with one game lead in the NL West.

Dodgers hanging on to slim lead in NL West

June is nearly here and the Dodgers, winners of the NL West the last two years, are right in the thick of it. Going into tonight’s game against the Braves, LA held a slim 1.5 game lead on the Giants, who have been on a tear.

Dodger fans are wondering if the deep pocket owners will go get another pitcher to replace Hyun Jin-Ryu and Brandon McCarthy, out for the season with injuries.

Zack Greinke (5-1, 1.48 ERA) has been the ace of the staff while Clayton Kershaw has been slow out of the gates, posting a 3-3 record and 3.86 ERA. Kershaw tossed seven innings of scoreless ball and struck out 10 against the Braves on Tuesday. If he keeps that up, fans in Chavez Ravine may call off the death watch.

The Dodger rotation is a little shaky with Brett Anderson (2-2, 3.47 ERA), Mike Bolsinger (3-0, 0.71 ERA) and Carlos Frias (3-2, 5.34 ERA) trying to shore up the gap caused by injuries.

Kenley Jansen is back in the pen as the closer, which has stabilized the young reliever corps. 

Offensively, the Dodgers are leading the National League in homers and other than when they are playing in San Francisco they are swinging hot bats. The Giants have swept all six games at AT&T Park this season with the last three shutouts.

Adrian Gonzalez is having another torrid year, hitting at a .344 clip with 10 homers and 35 RBI. Alex Guerrero (.313, 8 HR), Andre Ethier (.311, 6 HR), Justin Turner (.287, 5 HR) Howie Kendrick (.298, 4 HR) and Joc Pederson (.257, 12 HR) have pushed the Dodgers to the top of the home run list in the National League. Turner and Guerrero made Juan Uribe expendable and the third sacker was traded to the Braves today.

Ethier is the feel good story of the year. After losing a starting position to Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford, the veteran outfielder stepped into the batting order and is raking while Puig and Crawford have been on the DL. The Dodgers are deep this year and having a player of Ethier’s ability step into the starting lineup is a luxury for Don Mattingly.

Rainy days and Thursdays in LA

It rained in Southern California last night, so when they rolled out the tarp (which had to be dusty) and the Dodgers leading 4-2, I went to bed.

What I missed was Carlos Gonzalez jacking a three-run homer off of Yimi Garcia in the ninth as the Rockies took a 5-4 win and snapped an eight-game losing streak against Los Angeles.

Combined with San Diego’s win against Washington, LA’s lead in the NL West shrunk to four games. Still, the Dodgers have been on a tear, putting together a 22-12 record built on a 15-4 record at home.  Away from Chavez Ravine, the Dodgers are struggling at 7-8.

San Diego, two games above .500, figures to stay with the Dodgers all season.  San Francisco, Arizona and Colorado shouldn’t, but you can never count out a team that has three rings in five years.

Clayton Kershaw (1-2, 4.26) takes the hill tonight. He has struggled but not as bad as those numbers indicate.

Kershaw will right the ship and have a decent season, if not another Cy Young season.

Closer Kenley Jansen comes off the DL today but Mattingly won’t rush him into a closing role. He will ease the big righty back into the bullpen rotation, which will make a good pen even better.

On the injury front, Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford are still healing but frankly the trio of Andre Ethier, Scott Van Slyke and Alex Guerrero has it covered. Take the time to heal guys.

An interesting dynamic is happening at third base where Juan Uribe’s grip on the hot corner is starting to slip. Guerrero and Justin Turner are earning more playing time with their bats and Uribe may soon find himself in pre-injury Ethierville, the odd man out.

Howie Kendrick is solid at second but Jimmy Rollins is looking more and more like a stopgap measure at short until Cory Seager is ready to come up from the minors. Joc Pederson is still earning his stripes in center but his 10 dingers and 21 RBI show he can hit at this level, even handling the leadoff role.

The glue holding it all together is first sacker Adrian Gonzalez, off to another phenomenal year. Gonzo is hitting .367 with 32 RBI and nine dingers. Steady as Swiss watch.

Then there’s Zack Grienke. Greinke is 5-0 with a 1.52 ERA and is currently the ace of the staff. He becomes a free agent at the end of the season and if he continues to pitch like this he will seriously inflate his asking price.

Starting pitching, with Hyun Jin-Ryu still on the DL and Brendan McCarthy out for the season, remains the Dodgers’ biggest hole.  Carlos Frias and Mike Bolsinger are serviceable but expect the wheelers and dealers to go out and get another arm before the trade deadline.

Bench depth is as deep as the Grand Canyon

Some years ago we took a family vacation to Arizona and made our way to the Grand Canyon. 

Though I had grown up in California and lived for a time in Utah, I had never made the trip.

A big hole in the ground, I told myself. But getting to the Grand Canyon and taking in the width and breadth of the place was a different story. It is deep and amazing.

Which brings me to the bench Don Mattingly has sitting behind him.

It’s nothing short of amazing.

First closer Kenley Jansen and No. 3 starter Hyun -Jin Ryu start the season on the DL, and Brendan McCarthy and Joel Peralta soon join them. No problem, Carlos Frias and Mike Bolsinger emerge as viable starters. The pen? No problem. Yimi Garcia, Pedro Baez, Adam Liberatore, Paco Rodriguez, Juan Nicasio, J.P. Howell and Chris Hatcher step into the breach.

Then comes the outfield. Stars Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford go down with injuries. No problem, Andre Ethier, Scott Van Slyke and Alex Guerrero are inserted into the lineup and hit like they were starters all along.

Toss in Justin Turner, who can hit while getting out of bed, and the Dodgers are hitting with power and average.

Turner, Ethier and Van Slyke have led the team in their last three wins and are all swinging hot bats. 

Turner hit a critical pinch-hit homer to lead one victory, Van Slyke hit a walk-off three-run dinger the next night and Ethier went 5-for-5 with a solo shot to center in last night’s 11-1, 21-hit explosion over the Marlins.

Adrian Gonzalez and Howie Kendrick are hitting, Jimmy Rollins has yet to heat up and Yasmani Grandal has found his stroke six weeks into the season.

All this has happened while Clayton Kershaw has sputtered to a 1-2 record and 4.26 ERA. The reigning Cy Young and MVP winner will eventually get his bearings but until he does, Zack Greinke is making his own bid for hardware, posting a 5-0 record and 1.52 ERA.

Aside from the starting rotation, this team is as deep as that big hole in the ground in Arizona.

Pederson coming into his own

Last season, the Dodgers brought up rookie Joc Pederson for his proverbial “cup of coffee” at the Show.

He was over matched.

In 28 plate appearances he hit a dismal .143 with no homers and no RBI.

The kid who turned in a 30/30 year in AAA was definitely not ready to make the leap to the major leagues.

Yet, Pederson went into spring training as the heir apparent in centerfield and made Matt Kemp expendable for a trade to San Diego.

Maybe those analytic masterminds knew what they were doing.

Pederson has been on tear the past several weeks and now has nine dingers and 19 RBI and is hitting a respectable .264 while playing a ball-gobbling centerfield.

The Dodgers are up four games in the NL West and they have done it with a surprising show of power (considering the loss of Kemp and Hanley Ramirez) and have showcased a deep bench.

For example, Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford have been sidelined with nagging injuries and Andre Ethier (.288) and Alex Guerrero (.350) have stepped in. Guerrero has gone yard six times and Ethier four times.

Another case in point is Justin Turner, who has hit four homers and is hitting at a .314 clip coming off the bench.

The bullpen has been strong and Zack Greinke (5-0, 1.56) is off to a hot start. Clayton Kershaw is uncharacteristically struggling at 1-2 with a 3.72 ERA. Brett Anderson (2-1, 3.52) and Carlos Frias (3-0, 2.13) are holding down the fort until Hyun Jin-Ryu comes off the disabled list.

Catcher Yasmani Grandal, acquired from the Padres, is also heating up. Grandal was hitting .179 on May 1 then took Don Mattingly’s advice to stop pressing. In a week, Grandal lifted his batting average to .307, sparked by a two-homerun, eight RBI game on Thursday.