DODGERS - 4/25/03
Tied-3rd place in the NL West
9-13, 8.5 games behind the Giants


Last Week's Results (2-4)
4/18: 5-1 loss to Giants
4/19: 9-3 loss to Giants
4/20: 16-4 win over Giants
4/21: 2-1 win over Reds
4/22: 3-0 loss to Reds
4/23: 3-2 loss (11 innings) to Reds

Week in Review
It was another poor week for the Dodger offense as the Dodgers dropped both of their series for the week, one to the first place Giants. The offense exploded for 16 runs in game 3 of the Giants series, but scored just 8 runs in the other 5 games combined. The Dodgers have failed to score three runs 10 times in their first 22 games. They are 1-9 in those games.

Beltre in the Doghouse
Third baseman Adrian Beltre, the perennial player on the verge of a breakout season, rode the bench for the 4th time in 7 games on Tuesday. He is off to a poor start hitting just .164 with 2 homers and 4 RBI in 20 games. He looks lost at the plate once again as he's walked twice while striking out 13 times in 67 at-bats. Beltre went 0-14 this week.

On Sunday, Beltre apparently had heated words for manager Jim Tracy in a closed door meeting. Encouraged to express his feelings, Beltre told Tracy that if the Dodgers are so frustrated with him, "there are 29 other teams out there." Tracy wants Beltre to accept responsibility for his situation, something the Dodgers believe he hasn't done in his Dodger career. More than anything, they'd like to see consistency from him, which he hasn't shown over the last 3 seasons.

I think it's pretty apparent that Beltre won't live up to his potential as a Dodger and they may be sorry that they didn't ante him up for Scott Rolen last season. His trade value can't be very high at this point, but his days still may be numbered. There's no reason to have Beltre on your roster at this point in the season.

Local Spin
Most of the LA attention is focused on the Lakes-Timberwolves series so the Dodgers are on the backpage for now. Fans are obviously concerned about the team's poor offensive production. Management, media and fans are pretty much fed up with Beltre and his "potential." People pretty much laugh when people mention Beltre and breakout in the same sentence. He just hasn't shown the ability to stay consistent over a full season - he hasn't improved his ability to control the strike zone. He definitely has trade value but it's about as low as it can be right now.

Injuries
Odalis Perez (P) - Status: will start tonight against the Pirates(ankle)
Perez's ankle is apparently healed enough for him to make his start. Earlier in the week, Perez annoyed some club officials by suggesting that he would be better served putting him on the DL. Hopefully the club knows best here.

Kevin Brown (P) - Status: active but weak (mystery illness)
Brown has suffered from flu-like symptons and upper-respiratory problems since his first start of the season. He confirmed that he's having no problems with his elbow or back which is a positive. He had a strong start against the Reds last night but the offense didn't produce once again. Keep him in your lineups.

Hot (last 7 days)
Alex Cora (2B): .421 (8-19), 2R, 1RBI
Dave Roberts (CF): .391 (9-23), 4R, 2RBI, 4SB
Shawn Green (RF): .360 (9-25), 4R, 3-2B, 3RBI
Fred McGriff (1B): .333 (8-24), 1R, 4RBI
Kaz Ishii (SP): 6IP, 7K, 4BB, 1R

Not (last 7 days)
Adrian Beltre (3B): .000 (0-14)
Paul Lo Duca (C): .091 (2-22), 2R, 0RBI
Cesar Izturis (SS): .211 (4-19), 2R, 1RBI
Andy Ashby (P): 4IP, 7R, 4K, 2BB

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Check back every Friday for the latest Dodger news. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions about this column, please use the comments section below or feel free to e-mail me at dodgers@fantasyinfocentral.com.