LATEST TEAM INFO:
After the offense suffered through back-to-back two-hit shutouts to the Mets, the Dodgers’ offense has managed to score 29 runs in the past five games. Over the past weekend, the Dodgers took 3 of 4 from the reeling Expos. Unfortunately last night, the pitching staff faltered and blew a 5 run lead in the 7th to the Brewers – giving up 8 runs in the 7th, including two three-run homers off Giovanni Carrara. The Dodgers now stand at 25-20, four games back of the first place D’Backs.
Manager Jim Tracey has moved Adrian Beltre to the two hole and dropped Cesar Izturis to eighth. Izturis has batted 1 or 2 in the order up to this point in the season where he hit .280 in April. He hasn’t shown much ability to steal as he’s been gunned down 6 times in 8 attempts. Tracey is hoping to take some pressure off the 22-year-old rookie who is batting .206 (14-68) in May and is 4 for 27 in his last 7 games. Hopefully moving up to the top of the lineup with also get Beltre some better pitches and heat up his quiet bat.

LOCAL PERSPECTIVE:
While Dodgers pitching staff has been sparkling so far, the Dodgers offense has been really pitiful. The fans have started to jeer Shawn Green who is currently the poster boy for the struggling offense. Despite being 8th in the NL is batting average, they are 13th in runs scored. They’ve been shutout a major lead leading 8 times. They lead the league with 55 GIDP (vs. 27 for the Reds) – in game one of their series against the Mets, they grounded into inning ending double plays in four straight innings. They are 15th in walks, home runs and stolen bases. The only positive so far has been that they are 3rd in the league in doubles. There is hope though in my mind. Shawn Green belted a pair of homers yesterday against the Brewers and Brian Jordan is recovering from some nagging injuries. Beltre has also been a major underachiever thus far. I think the Dodgers offense has yet to play to a decent level though I don’t expect them to score as much as a rock star with Pamela Anderson.

RUMOR MILL:
Though there have been a couple of trade rumors on our message boards, we’re just past the quarter season mark and the season is still young. Furthermore, GM Evans will have a tough time making many deals as he’s handcuffed with several poor contacts with no trade clauses plus a thin minor league system from the Kevin Malone era. The rumor that does sound interesting is Omar Daal for Juan Encarnacion. However with Hideo Nomo pitching poorly and the brittle condition of Kevin Brown, I don’t think Daal will be dealt as of yet. To me the best acquisition for the Dodgers offense would be just average performance from Shawn Green and Adrian Beltre – they have been major underachievers up to this point.

INJURIES:

Brian Jordan (LF) - Status: playing gimpy
The baseball player trapped in a football players mentality is battling numerous injuries including a strained ribcage muscle and a sore knee. He returned to action last night and collected three hits and a homer. Unfortunately his sore knee prevented him from catching a potential rally killer in the 7th. If you have Jordan on your team, keep a vigilant watch as his knee will need surgery and he is hoping that it will holdup for the season.

Mark Grudzielanek (2B) - Status: In lineup
Mark had a bump on the back of his right hand drained of fluid after Sunday’s games against the Expos. He’ll be able to play with the pain and shouldn’t miss any time.

Dave Roberts (CF) - Status: Back in lineup
Dave has returned to action after missing some time due to a strain in his right quadriceps. He is performing quite well so far and will steal you some bags.

Jesse Orosco (RP) - Status: 15 day DL
The old man was placed on the DL back on May 15th with a strained oblique muscle. Guillermo Mota was called up from AAA Las Vegas to take his place

QUICK VIEW:
Add:
Shawn Green – seek a trade if you don’t own this underachieving slugger
Adrian Beltre – value should increase in the 2 hole – more RBI, runs and SB opps
Kevin Brown - has looked sharp in his last two starts
Drop:
Cesar Izturis – struggling rookie dropped to the 8 hole
Bench:
Hideo Nomo – though his rotation spot is secure for now - he ranks third in the NL with 34 walks, including 14 in his last 3 starts

LATEST TEAM INFO:
Nearly a quarter through the 2002 season, the Dodgers are 22-17, trailing the first place Giants by 3.5 games. Little has changed recently as the men in blue have relied upon brilliant starting pitching while the offense continues to sputter along. They’ve outscored their opponents by a measly six runs (138-132). Their offense ranks second to last in the NL in walks, runs and home runs. A team that was expected to have good team speed with Izturis, Roberts, Green and Beltre rank 3rd to last in stolen bases. On the other side of the ball the Dodgers have the best team ERA in the NL and the team defense has been solid (fewest errors in the NL). The Dodgers pitching staff leads the league with 5 shutouts while they’ve been shutout a major league leading 7 times!

LOCAL PERSPECTIVE:
Local fans are distracted by the powerhouse Lakers who are putting a beating on the Spurs and the rest of the NBA. Not even a visit by Mike Piazza and the Mets could bring out much of a crowd to Chavez Ravine. While fans are clearly hyped by the success of Ishii and Perez, they are clearly frustrated with the lackluster offense. Shawn Green’s struggles have the fans on his back – in game one of the Mets series, Green struck out three times and grounded into two double plays. In game 2 of the series, he looked totally overmatched by Pedro Astacio’s fastball which may also be a credit to Astacio who pitched a complete game 2 hitter. Dave Roberts has been a pleasant surprise at leadoff, showing more patience recently after a slow start. He has a .378OBP, .284 average and 8 steals.

RUMOR MILL:
Not much heard in terms of rumors. The Dodgers clearly need offensive help but GM Evans still has to deal with Kevin Malone’s poor financial decisions and contracts of the past. He’ll have a tough time dealing with overpaid players and no trade clauses.

HOT/NOT
Hot:
Kaz Ishii 6-0 2.93ERA 49Ks
Odalis Perez 4-1 1.75ERA .75WHIP
Eric Gagne 12 saves 1.29ERA .62WHIP 27Ks in 21IP

Not:
Dodgers offense
Shawn Green .246-3-21 37Ks in 37 games .699OPS

INJURIES:
Lots of nagging injuries around the Dodgers clubhouse.
Shawn Green is battling a sore left hand after being hit by a Tom Glavine fastball on May 7th. I’d sit Green until he shows that he’s hitting the ball with some authority.
Dave Roberts suffered a right quadriceps strain on Sunday in Florida, an injury that he battled with during the spring – he’s missed the last two games.
Brian Jordan is battling a sore back.
Terry Mulholland was placed on the DL but has no business on any fantasy roster to begin with.

ON THE FARM:
Jeff Williams was called up to replace Mulholland in the pen. At AAA Las Vegas, C-Todd Greene (.347-11-41), 1B-Chin-Feng Chen (.301-7-30), OF-Mike Kinkade (.377-6-30) and 2B-Joe Thurston (.385-5-17) have the 51s sitting in first place despite poor team pitching.

Latest Team Info:
After being swept in their opening series against the Giants, the Dodgers have gone 11-4. As is typical with the Dodgers, pitching has led the way. Nomo, Ishii and Perez have pitched extremely well. The starters have allowed 2 runs or less in 13 of their last 15 starts. Overall, the pitching staff has an ERA of 3.08 which is 3rd best in the NL, behind only the Mets and Giants. The hitting has been better than I expected though Shawn Green hasn’t hit his stride yet. Lo Duca, Karros, Beltre and Jordan have been the top producers thus far.

Local Perspective:
I still worry about run producing ability of this lineup. The table setters of Cesar Izturis and Dave Roberts have a combined .308 OBP through 17 games. They’ve walked a combined 7 times between them. The Dodgers are 1-2 in one run games this season and have been shutout 3 times already. One answer that has been found is the closer. Eric Gagne has been dominating as the new closer, there is no committee in LA. He already has 7 saves. In 11 innings, he’s struck out 11, only walked one and hasn’t allowed a run.Who’s

Hot:
Adrian Beltre had an 11 game hit streak ended tonight against the Padres. Over the streak he hit .366 with 2 home runs, a triple, two doubles and four RBIs.Brian Jordan has reached base in 14 consecutive games. Over the streak he’s hit .313 with 2 home runs and 9 RBIs.
Odalis Perez: 2-1 with a 1.84 ERA, .75 WHIP, 3BB, 19Ks in 29.1 innings
Kaz Ishii: 3-0 with a 1.53 ERA, 21Ks in 17.2 innings
Eric Gagne: 7-7 saves-chances, hasn’t allowed a run in 11 innings

Injuries:
Kevin Brown is back on the DL retroactive to April 14th. In his last start against the Padres, Brown tore scar tissue in his surgically repaired elbow. “The inflammation in his elbow when he came in here today is exactly where it was yesterday – no worse, but no better,” said manager Jim Tracy. Expect the Dodgers to be extremely cautious with the 38 year old right-hander who has now been on the DL 4 times in the last 13 months. Omar Daal takes Brown’s spot in the rotation. With the starters pitching so well, the Dodgers will be able to be patient with Brown’s rehab.

On the Farm:
Before being called up due to Brown’s injury, Guillermo Mota was 1-1 with a 3.18 ERA at AAA Las Vegas. He also has 12 strikeouts in 11.1 IP and only 3 walks. 1B Chin-Feng Chen is ripping the ball to start the season. In 16 games, .295 average, 12 runs, 5 HRs 13 RBIs. Look for him to be called up if Eric Karros goes down.

Quick View:
Add:
Omar Daal – replaces injured Kevin Brown in rotation
Kaz Ishii – with his nasty stuff will take hitters time to adjust
Brian Jordan – should produce solid numbers behind Shawn Green

Drop: none

Latest Team Info:
The Dodgers big move of the spring was the trade of Matt Herges to the Expos, clearing the way for Eric Gagne to step in at closer. Gagne forced the issue with an outstanding exhibition season in which his fastball has been clocked consistently at 96 mph, and their roster-flexibility problems also spurred the trade. Gagne has mainly started this spring; his closing experience is limited to 11 games for the Canadian national team seven years ago and most pitchers don't jump into the job in the major leagues. But none of that apparently matters to the Dodgers, who believe the 26-year-old Canadian right-hander will be fine after a crash course. The Dodgers are expected to ease in Gagne, having him share save opportunities and setup duties with right-handers Giovanni Carrara and Paul Quantrill. Expect some struggles but expect Gagne to be successful. A recent converted closer success story is Jason Isringhausen when he was given a chance to close with the A’s after being a starter with the Mets.

Jim Tracy’s lineup:
CF: Dave Roberts
SS: Cesar Izturis
C: Paul Lo Duca
RF: Shawn Green
LF: Brian Jordan
3B: Adrian Beltre
1B: Eric Karros
2B: Mark Grudzielanek
P: Kevin Brown, Hideo Nomo, Odalis Perez, Andy Ashby, Kazuhisa Ishii
Closer: Eric Gagne

Local Perspective:
With the announcement of Odalis Perez as the 5th starter, Omar Daal demanded a trade. Daal, guaranteed $5 million this season, has no contractual right to demand a trade, but after being informed he would open the season in the bullpen and not the rotation, he told Manager Jim Tracy he wanted out. "It would be best for me and best for the team to go somewhere else and be a starter," Daal, 30, said. "I won't be happy in the bullpen.... I'm upset about this. I'm mad." Don’t expect anything to happen anytime soon unless GM Dan Evans gets a great offer, which is unlikely. With Gagne now penciled in as closer, Ashby and Brown recovering from elbow surgeries and Ishii unproven, Daal will be staying put for now. His fantasy value is very low at this point, not that I was high on him to begin with.
There are serious concerns from fans and sportswriters alike about Jim Tracy’s decision to bat Roberts and Izturis at the top of the order. Izturis has a paltry .294 on-base percentage in five minor league seasons. Roberts has a .292 OBP in 75 games with Cleveland. At 29, don’t expect any miracle improvement from Roberts this season. The Dodgers are looking at easy outs at the one and two spots in the order. Combine that with Karros (.303 OBP in 2001) and Grudzielanek (.328 career OBP) at the bottom and this is an anemic lineup on par with the offensively challenged 2001 Mets. This should temper your expectations even for the middle of the order. With poor hitters at the top of the lineup, RBI chances will be hard to come by for Lo Duca and Green. Expect a lot of frustrated Dodger pitchers who will get little run support unless GM Evans is able to upgrade the offense.

Rumor Mill:
The door can be closed on the Antonio Alfonseca rumors with his trade to the Cubs and Gagne’s insertion into the closers role.

Injuries:
None to report.

On the Farm:
The Dodgers are considering moving Chin-Feng Chen to first base from the outfield. He’s never been a considered a good defensive outfielder and has a weak throwing arm. If Karros hits like he did last year, Chen may see some time this year. Last season, Chen hit a combined .290 with 22 homers and 91 RBIs between A and AA ball.

Quick View:
Add: Eric Gagne, Odalis Perez
Drop: Matt Herges, Omar Daal

Latest Team Info:
It’s been an ugly spring thus far for the Dodgers (6-12). They are batting a paltry .237 and have committed 29 errors in 21 games. Luckily this is only the spring. The problem is that the Dodgers have some big question marks with opening day bearing down on them. With a team history of strong pitching, the Dodgers have to be grateful to have the excess starting pitching which had 3 pitchers battling for the 5th spot in the rotation. If Ashby and Brown are healthy, they form a nice front three with Nomo. Unfortunately, Kazuhiro Ishii has been smoked this spring for an 11.11 ERA in 5.2 IP – he was penciled in as the #4 starter. He gave up six runs (3 HRs) in two thirds of an inning in his last start. Odalis Perez acquired in the Gary Sheffield trade has had a strong spring and will start if he makes the opening day roster (he does have an option left so he could be sent to the minors). That leaves Daal, Ishii and Gagne for the fifth spot.
At the other end of the game, manager Jim Tracy has no bona fide closer. Apparently, he is open to the idea of letting Gagne close games, which he did for the Canadian national team; we’ll see what happens though as Ishii and Daal both have had poor springs and Tracy may need Gagne to start. Herges, Quantrill and Carrara aren’t a good solution to close games. Herges hasn’t even been able to handle the pressure of closing spring games. See rumors for more closing possibilities.In the field, Centerfield is death valley. The candidates are McKay Christensen (a .341 OBP in 6 minor league seasons), Dave Roberts, Marquis Grissom and Tom Goodwin. Grissom and Goodwin are carryovers from the Malone era and are basically dead weight with unmovable salaries. At this point Tracy is said to be leaning toward a platoon of Grissom and Roberts. Grissom’s stats from last year make me cringe. After June 1st, he hit a woeful .190. His 16 walks and 107 Ks in 448 ABs are just unacceptable. The only positive thing that I’ve heard from manager Tracy is that if Grissom starts, he won’t bat leadoff. Roberts may bat some leadoff and has good speed – he could get the bulk of the ABs against right-handed pitching.
Another question mark is Eric Karros. Before last year, he had been good for 30-100 for 4 of the last 5 seasons. But last year he battled a back injury for most of the year and now he must prove that it was his back and not a slower bat. The Dodgers need production from their first baseman but his numbers have declined substantially each of the last 2 years.

Local Perspective:
The Dodgers are now recovering from the Kevin Malone era, which proved that you couldn’t buy a championship. The farm system is depleted and there is still some hangover from bad contracts (Dreifort, Grissom, Goodwin). The positive spin for Dodger fans is that last year the team only finished six games off the pace of the D’Backs and you could make an argument that this year’s team is better. If Brown and Ashby are healthy, it will be a big improvement upon last year. It’s hard to imagine Karros playing worse and a breakout season from Adrian Beltre is possible after rushing back last year from a botched appendectomy. The big change in the lineup is the departure of the often unhappy Gary Sheffield and the addition of Brian Jordan. Jordan is a gritty player who brings his football mentality to the game of baseball. He’ll play through injuries and should put up solid numbers. However he doesn’t command nearly the respect that Sheffield would with pitchers and Shawn Greens numbers may come down a bit from last year. Jordan needs to stay healthy and put up 30-100 for the team to have a fighting chance in the West.

Breakout Player:
Adrian Beltre suffered through a botched appendectomy last spring, which caused him to lose 35 pounds. He rushed back to the lineup due to the sickening numbers his replacements were putting up (33 games, 2 HR, 12 RBIs). After struggling in the first half, he managed to hit .280 after the break and had a respectable year .265-13-60. But this year the Dodgers are expecting a big year from this 23 year old and they will need his offense to help alleviate the loss of Sheffield. In the offseason, Beltre underwent weight and agility training and is poised for a breakout year. He hits to all fields and is thought of as a 30-30 threat. I expect at least .280-25-90-20 from him this season. He is an emerging star at third base. Given his poor season last year, you have the opportunity to steal a top player with a later pick.

Rumor Mill:
With Ruben Rivera dismissed from the Yanks for selling Derek Jeter’s glove (the real question is what did he need the $2500 that badly for), the Yanks are said to be interested in McKay Christensen as a backup outfielder. Christensen is having a good spring and is out of options. Not much fantasy impact here.
The Dodgers are still without a closer and may have interest in Florida’s Antonia Alfonseca. However Alfonseca is said to be carrying about 15-20 pounds of extra weight into camp and is recovering from back surgery. Nothing imminent yet. Florida is interested in Perez and Gagne. Omar Daal was also rumored to be trade bait but with Ishii’s spring ineffectiveness, Daal will likely stay put for now.Injuries: Luckily no truck washing incidents to report. Ashby and Brown are recovering from elbow surgery and must be closely monitored this spring. Brown had some stiffness in his elbow a week ago but seems to be fine for now. Brown was also hit on the knee by a line drive in his last start; the x-rays on his knee were negative. He may not be ready for opening day – he still has only been throwing between 2-3 innings per start.

Quick View:
Add: Kevin Brown, Shawn Green, Paul Lo Duca, Adrian Beltre
Drop: Darren Dreifort, Marquis Grissom, Tom Goodwin