Onto the next set of debacles....

Dodger season is mercifully over. They're ripping out all of the seats, teasing us with hires of '88 legends, all the while ignoring the fact that the most crucial piece to winning games (having good ball players) is going mostly ignored. They've pissed off the guy who has become the face of the franchise now. It's actually hard to figure out the philosophy of this regime, but the more you see things, the more it seems that the McBankrupt/DePendejo tandem will follow the Donald Sterling school of team ownership--invest as little as possible in the actual product, ride the waves of plush settings, and count the profits. The only piece missing is if the teams happens to win, then that's just gravy--but not essential. These are trying times for Dodgers fans, we may need something miraculous like Treebeard amassing an army to help us through this mess.

On semi-good news, the Kings are off to a fast start at 6-2. But we learned a lesson the hard way from the past baseball season about getting too excited about fast starts.

Lakers pre-season is under way. The more things change, the more they stay the same. After a few pre-season games, the defense still sucks and they don't have a legitimate #2 scoring threat. Maybe Phil will work his magic, but I still don't see this team making the play-offs regardless of what Jerry Buss says.

Peace Out.

-El Maestro

From the hotel room...

Tracy's finally gone.

Although I never loathed Tracy as much as some of the other bloggers around (firejimtracy.com), I did believe the Dodgers were winning in spite of him during the first 4 years he was there. He always left pitchers in way too long didn't have the balls to bring in Gagne in the 8th inning of close ballgames. The whole 1st base fiasco this year was ridiculous. Playing Jason Phillips at first base!?!?!?! We should give him some credit. He did help develop the likes of LoDuca, Gagne, and Izturis. He also allowed Beltre to play through his struggles (although the lure of a free agent contract probably had more to do with his success than Tracy's idiotic baseball moves). But at the end of the day, Tracy thought too much and too frequently came to the wrong conclusion. He obviously can't inspire players to play above and beyond their abilities when it counts (check the Dodgers records the past 5 Septembers). Too many times in the Tracy era the Dodgers would be in 1st place in May/June only to whither as the summer got hotter. The man overmanages and doesn't let his player just play. Put players in a position to succeed, but also let players play.

Good luck in Pittsburgh as you lead your second AAA squad in 2 years.

Peace Out.

-El Maestro