It's been a roller coaster ride this season for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and their real-life equivalents in the Dugout Chatroom have felt it. They were accused of being yokels from the past, they acquired and perverted one of the most popular players in the game, and they discussed at length Andre Ethier's "tINCFoUTaCU".
Tonight is the last Dugout of the Dodgers' 2008 campaign. It's like those episodes of Buffy that didn't really involve a monster and were just there to move along the season-long arc. Not dorky enough for you? It's like the Cowboy Bebop episodes without Vicious.
I guess it was dorky enough before. Tonight's Dugout is after the jump.
Every four years, Major League Baseball's postseason intersects with a presidential election. This is one of those years. In the spirit of the season, we here at MLB FanHouse have divided the playoff teams up for a series of debates.Matt Snyder and Will Brinson discuss the NLDS between the Cubs and Dodgers.
We'll run through different aspects of each team -- starting rotation, bullpen, defense, starting lineup, bench, manager, and end with a prediction. We'll do it with numbers and snarky commentary (most of which was used by Brinson), and we'll get right to it after the jump.
I don't care how good he's playing he still looks weird in that uniform. Like when I'm playing MLB The Show 08 for the PS3 and turn on the fantasy draft. Juan Pierre is an Oriole and he's driven in 160 runs before the All-Star Break!
In tonight's Dugout, after the jump, the heel turn continues as Manny learns valuable lessons about humility, Internet phenomena, and bottled water licensing agreements.
Only a day after the pivotal Dugout of the season, the passage of time and the inevitability of happenstance thrusts the trade of Manny Ramirez on us. And not just a trade: a trade full of organization-bashing and apathy after a season devoted to disproving the character we'd developed. Our Manny has always been a bit slow, but he's also always been the kind of guy who means well and tries hard, even when he's goofing around. He's misunderstood. He's just "being Manny."
Well, "being Manny" has a different definition now.
As the Farnsworth story comes full circle, the MannyTheTorpedoes story comes to an end. Next week: Dontrelle Willis wins the Pulitzer Prize and Bill Pecota reveals that he prefers football. Tonight's Dugout, the end of an era, is after the jump.
Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Scott Proctor hasn't had a very good season out in LALA land. In 33 appearances Proctor has a 6.82 ERA and a WHIP of 1.89, which isn't exactly dealing to say the least. Well, after giving up the go ahead run against Jhonny Peralta on Saturday in a six run 11th inning, Proctor didn't hold his feelings back in the post game chat with reporters.
"I'm not talking about that. There is nothing (wrong), and I'm tired of people making excuses and saying I'm hurt. My job is to get outs, and I'm (expletive) pathetic. It's embarrassing to know this team battled like that all day and I pitched like that. It's (expletive) stupid.
"I'm embarrassed for myself in front of my teammates."
Now, now, Scott, don't be so hard on yourself. Sure, you're having a craptastic season and you've been easier to score on than Lindsay Lohan on ecstasy, but that's no reason to rip yourself in public. That's the media's job, and trust me, they'll do it for you.
Everybody goes through rough stretches in this game, and you're just going through one of them right now. Take a few days off, go to the beach, spend time with the family. Whatever you have to do. I promise*, things will get better. *By promise I mean I'm just saying anything to help make you feel better because you really do suck right now.
Earlier this week, New York Yankees senior VP Hank "George" Steinbrenner came down like a decrepit stadium on the role of pitchers in interleague play, saying that it was an antiquated rule that caused one of his best pitchers to miss time with the team. The "blogging-o-sphere" immediately got their panties in a bunch over the comments, but you know what? Hank Steinbrenner is exactly right. Are we supposed to let tradition halt evolution? Should we still be playing games in the dark? Should we just play old tapes of Red Barber over new games and hope the play-by-play matches up?
Of course we shouldn't. Hank, the boys at The Dugout are here for you. Today's Dugout (which can be read by clicking the "read the dugout" thing that follows this paragraph) blows the roof off of the hypocritical, so-called web-logging-o-sphere. Grow up, National League. You baby.
The trade deadline is in less than three hours, so if there's going to be a blockbuster deal, we'll be hearing about it soon. Until then you're just going to have to deal with these small deals that are taking place. Deals like the Dodgers getting Scott Proctor from the Yankees for Wilson Betemit.
The Yankees are on the verge of acquiring infielder Wilson Betemit from the Dodgers for right-handed reliever Scott Proctor, according to a major-league source.
Betemit, 26, is a switch-hitter who can play multiple positions and possibly be the Yankees' third baseman next season if Alex Rodriguez departs as a free agent.
It's official! The Yankees are now poised to overcome the Red Sox in the AL East. July 31st, 2007 is a day that will live in infamy in Boston.
If you're a Yankee fan, how does that sentence make you feel? Replacing Alex Rodriguez with Wilson Betemit? Yikes.
As for the Dodgers, they wanted another arm in their bullpen, and now they've gotten one. If there's anything to be concerned about with Proctor, it's the fact he might be burned out. He made a 83 appearances for the Yankees last season, and has already made 52 more this season.
The Dodgers are also still talking to the Athletics about acquiring Joe Blanton, but they are wary of Blanton's recent performance and Oakland's desire for more prospects than the Dodgers are willing to give up.
Minor League Spotlight is the MLB FanHouse's look into baseball's minor leagues. But you probably figured that out already.
By now I'm guessing most Yankees fans have heard the name "Joba Chamberlain," but let me introduce him to the rest of the baseball world: aside from having one of the best "baseball names" in the history of man, he's the primary reason why the Yankees are looking to unload Kyle Farnsworth, Scott Proctor and/or Brian Bruney. Chamberlain was the 41st overall pick of the 2006 draft -- a sandwich pick as compensation for Tom Gordon leaving town. He was considered by some to be a top 10 talent, but he fell due to injury concerns.
Now, in his first professional season, he's tearing up the minors: In his first seven starts with Class A Tampa, he struck out 51 in 40 innings while posting a 2.03 ERA. In his next seven starts at Double-A Trenton, he struck out 64 in 39 1/3 innings while posting a 3.43 ERA. In his first start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, he struck out 10 in fie scoreless innings. What's even better than the fact he's mowing down batters is the fact that he's doing it with outstanding control: he has 125 strikeouts and just 27 walks in his combined 84 1/3 innings.
Although it seems clear that his long-term future is in the rotation, he's moving to the bullpen effectively immediately. Why? Newsday speculates that it's insurance in case the Yankees don't acquire any bullpen help by tomorrow's trade deadline. That's right, instead of going for broke by trading for a proven but expensive option like Eric Gagne, the Yankees may opt to throw a 21-year-old rookie into the fire.
Times are a changin' in the Bronx, that's for sure. And honestly, for the better. Instead of simply throwing dollars at a problem, the Yankees might roll the dice and discover they have the next Joel Zumaya or Jonathan Papelbon on their hands -- a young reliever who can dominate from Day 1.
File this under: "Do NOT try this at home!" That looks not only incredibly dangerous (a foul tip to the face would be especially painful) but also completely irresponsible -- where did that last long flyball land? Best-case scenario is an empty parking lot where nothing can burn; worst-case scenario, the open window of an orphanage.
A couple of weeks ago, I wondered what the Lions have done to outshine other traditionally terrible teams as the Most Laughable Professional Sports Team in America (note: the award is entirely fictional, and given by me under circumstances completely of my choosing). If you need any more proof, peep what could be found on the Detroit Free Press' website.
Yankees reliever Scott Proctor set his game equipment on fire after New York's loss on Saturday. If the Lions did that, there would be a bonfire at Ford Field almost every Sunday. That would give a whole new meaning to Fire Millen, eh?
That's it. The newspaper that covers the Detroit Lions dedicated a page on their website just to get that shot in.This isn't an excerpt from a larger story about Proctor. This is just your basic set-up ----> punchline. What was the point? I mean, I'm all for good fun. But not only is this unprofessional (is the Press a newspaper or a third-rate joke book, or worse, a blog?), but its unnecessary, unoriginal, and unfunny.
It's been a roller coaster ride this season for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and their real-life equivalents in the Dugout Chatroom have felt it. They were accused of being yokels from the past, they acquired and perverted one of the most popular players in the game, and they discussed at length Andre Ethier's "tINCFoUTaCU". 
Only a day after the 
Los Angeles Dodgers reliever 
Earlier this week, New York Yankees senior VP 
The trade deadline is in less than three hours, so if there's going to be a blockbuster deal, we'll be hearing about it soon. Until then you're just going to have to deal with these small deals that are taking place. Deals like the Dodgers getting 
Minor League Spotlight
A couple of weeks ago, 
