LOS ANGELES -- Chad Billingsley made the Dodgers postseason rotation. He'll start a Game 4 against the Cardinals in St. Louis, if necessary. Normally, you wouldn't think it would be an issue whether your All-Star starter was in the postseason rotation, but Billinglsey's horrendous second half left the question unanswered until manager Joe Torre made it official on Tuesday.
Torre said that Vicente Padilla will start Game 3, followed by Billingsley.
"Padilla to me has been throwing the ball really well," Torre said. "I was probably just a little more comfortable with where Padilla is right now, and I know Billingsley is getting there. Otherwise he wouldn't even be considered for No. 4, if I didn't think I was more comfortable watching him."
MINNEAPOLIS -- Johan Santana had never seen the Metrodome before the Twins took him from Single-A in the Rule 5 draft.
"When I first got there," Santana told FanHouse, "my first impression was, 'How can you play baseball in a place like this?'
"I came from Single-A and from Venezuela, and we don't have any of that stuff. ... I couldn't figure it out. How could this thing [the roof] be up in the air? And then it feels like you're in a bubble. And then you play baseball."
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday -- it's running Friday this week.
Earlier this week, Brad Lidge's nightmare 2009 season continued, when he allowed a walk-off homer to Andrew McCutchen. Ed Price covered the outing the following morning. The abysmal performance by the Phillies' closer underlines the only weakness of the defending World Series Champions.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That Brad Lidge is showing no signs of getting himself straightened out. Lidge blew his eighth save opportunity of the season on Saturday in a 4-3 loss to the Braves. Lidge started the ninth with a one-run lead. He proclaimed that everything is still OK. Lidge, who has a 7.27 earned-run average, insisted he's just having some bad luck.
"The ball is not bouncing the right way," Lidge said. "Last year it bounced the right way every time, and this year it has not."
Despite his struggles, the Phillies remain in first place. Since the start of the expanded playoff format, the highest ERA for a closer (minimum 20 saves) on a playoff team was Joe Borowski's 5.07 with the 2007 Indians. The most blown saves was Huston Street's 12 for the 2006 A's.
SAN FRANCISCO -- Chad Billingsley, the Dodgers' No. 1 starter, will miss his scheduled start against the rival Giants on Wednesday because his left hamstring is still too sore.
Billingsley, who had to come off the mound after getting hurt on Friday, threw in the bullpen for about 15 minutes, but he didn't feel strong enough to take his turn in the rotation.
"The last few pitches I tried to go game-speed and had to shut 'er down," Billingsley said, adding that it felt like a grabbing pain.
The Dodgers have not decided who will start in Billingsley's place, but the first option is to have Jeff Weaver start and a cast of relievers back him up, since the Dodgers have an off day on Thursday. Billingsley's next turn would be on Monday, and that start remains a possibility. Billingsley said he doesn't feel he needs to go on the disabled list.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Adam Kennedy: 5-for-7. Mark Ellis: 4-for-6. Orlando Cabrera, Kevin Youkilis, and J.D. Drew: 3-for-5 each. Six other players with two hits. Five more with a single hit. 35 in all, and nary a home run to be found. Boston's Clay Buchholz and Oakland's Vin Mazzaro each gave up nine hits in the game, and Boston was able to piece together five runs in the third to end up with a 6-2 lead after six innings. But as they say, that's when things got interesting.
Every Sunday, MLB FanHouse empties out its notebook in Baseball Brunch.
Yes, the Dodgers' solar system revolves around Manny Ramirez. He's their star on the field and their main attraction.
But they wouldn't have Ramirez, nor many of the players who carried the team in his absence, were it not for a farm system that has been remarkably productive.
"It's nice that management kept us all here," ace Chad Billingsley told FanHouse. "There's some teams that maybe just start trading guys away. And believing in us, that's a huge thing."
In the 2002-03 drafts, Los Angeles took Russell Martin, James Loney, Jonathan Broxton, Matt Kemp and Billingsley. Those five players made their big league debuts within an 11-month span, from July 2005 to June 2006.
The Mariners are still hanging around in the AL West, though, so it's not exactly a sure thing they'd be willing to part with Washburn. He does make quite the hefty salary, but his contract is up at the conclusion of this season, so moving him wouldn't really save the Mariners much money.
LOS ANGELES -- Chad Billingsley made the Dodgers postseason rotation. He'll start a Game 4 against the Cardinals in St. Louis, if necessary. Normally, you wouldn't think it would be an issue whether your All-Star starter was in the postseason rotation, but Billinglsey's horrendous second half left the question unanswered until manager Joe Torre made it official on Tuesday.
SAN FRANCISCO -- 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Every Sunday, MLB FanHouse empties out its notebook in 
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