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Dodgers and Padres to square off in China, to test out Beijing Olympic Baseball fa...
It waas announced that the Dodgers and Padres will play a 2 game exhibition series this March in China at Wukesong Field.
Note, China had long forsaken for being too western until just recently.
They were coerced into WBC participation where various athletes from other sports were given baseball equipment to get pounded by Taiwan, Korea, and Japan in the WBC first round in Tokyo in 2006.
How big of a breakthrough is this for the game?
The Dodgers have Taiwanese star players Hong Chi Kuo and Chin Lung Hu on their roster.
The A's and Red Sox are already playing their regular season openers at the Tokyo Dome this March.
Is China ready for baseball?
Or will they become the silliness that became of the Greek National Team in the 2004 Olympics (if you remember Peter Angelos's band of fun led by former Yankee Clay Bellenger) It waas announced that the Dodgers and Padres will play a 2 game exhibition series this March in China at Wukesong Field. ... more -
Torre Brings Friends Mattingly & Bowa
First off, this old-time Brooklyn Dodger fan looks damn good in the best shade of Blue. Second, Torre is bringing Don Mattingly and Larry Bowa with him to Los Angeles to help him coach the team to a now likely World Championship. Torre said, "The opportunity to manage the Los Angeles Dodgers, this is one of a handful of organizations you automatically say 'yes' to," Talk about bringing back the tradition of winning! Dodger fans have to be EXTREMELY excited about what this means for the team. Torre didn't come over to loose and it is becoming more and more clear that McCourt (owner), Colletti (GM), and now Torre/Mattingly/Bowa are in it to win it. If the Dodgers can make a few significant moves in the offseason (i like re-signing the Seanz aka The Killer Tomato aka Olmedo Seanz) they will once again be legit contenders before Opening Day. There's a feeling and buzz that is starting and if this momentum continues there is no telling what this team could do. Joe First off, this old-time Brooklyn Dodger fan looks damn good in the best shade of Blue. Second, Torre is bringing Don Mattingly and La... more
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A Rod is going to the Dodgers!
Apparently Alex Rodriguez is following Joe Torre to the Dodgers. In his move, Alex is said to be taking a small paycut from his average $33 million a year and Yankees fans won't have so much to gloat about. so basically it's a win-win! This couldn't be true, could it? Apparently Alex Rodriguez is following Joe Torre to the Dodgers. In his move, Alex is said to be taking a small paycut from his averag... more
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Grady Little gets shafted again...
Little resigns or forced out upon news of a bigger name on the market?
personal reasons? "personal" being "I'm not Joe Torre and newspapers/ESPN/FrankMcCourt want Joe Torre"
This guy gets shafted by Red Sox Nation for taking them to Game 7 of the LCS, believing Pedro can pitch an extra inning, and gets canned immediately after that postseason conclusion.
He gets hired by the new McCourt ownership, the biggest Red Sox fans ever, takes them to the playoffs in 2006... with everyone's favorite ex-Red Sox stars.
Yes, 2007's September was a disaster for the Dodgers but some of those things were out of Little's control
And now that Joe Torre is magically available, and East Coast rags/ESPN/whatever needs a story... (Think back to how the Yankees somehow forced a disasterous trade for Randy Johnson with headlines like "We're Tired of Waiting, Give Us Randy Johnson Now!" and "Randy Johnson Negotiation Watch continues!") Let's get him in L.A. have some people talk to Little about leaving for "personal reasons" while he's still under contract and wham!
Anyone miss the glory days of the O'Malley ownership where this kind of crap didn't shape the game?
Hey Mr. Lasorda, you're not Joe Torre, please leave for "personal reasons."
Frank McCourt should be ashamed of himself not just for that but encouraging ballpark obesity with his silly "all you can eat bleacher seats" too.
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The following is from espn.com's Insider Buster Olney blog about Little getting shafted. (which one might have to pay for after today)
http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=3087...
And Camille Johnston called, and very quickly, she sounded annoyed, swatting at the line of questioning like she was Joba Chamberlain and what I told her was nothing more than a swarm of midges. I laid out the information, which she dismissed as "speculation."
Actually, it was more than that. A lot more than that. "Grady Little is our manager," she insisted.
OK; I tried to ask the question in a different way. "But can you tell me he is going to be the manager on February 15th?" I asked.
Still annoyed, she began to answer in the affirmative, but then resumed her offensive on what she deemed as speculation, and retreated to the bunker that she would reportedly remain in all weekend: "Grady Little is our manager." By the end of our conversation, I was certain that she had no clue -- which is quite possible, if you're a spokesperson and your bosses aren't telling you anything. She always had the option, however, of getting more information for herself before answering the question, and, if necessary, call back with the oldie-but-goodie response that neither deceives nor destroys credibility: "No comment."
McCourt and Colletti never did return messages, and our first story on this cracked a couple of layers, but didn't go deeper than that. But we now know more. Girardi was offered the job. He turned it down to take the Yankees' job. The Dodgers, in fact, have reached an agreement with Joe Torre.
And today, Grady Little is not the Dodgers' manager, in any language. You can choose to believe, if you wish, the organization's stance that he would still be the manager if he wanted the job. T.J. Simers is not buying it.
By the way: Friends of Little say he had no clue in recent days about what the Dodgers' plans were, and he was twisting in the wind, waiting for someone to tell him something. Then again, if he had called to ask about his job, you can just imagine the answer he got: "Grady, you are the manager of the Dodgers." Little resigns or forced out upon news of a bigger name on the market? ... more -
Torre to Manage the Dodgers
The Brooklyn born kid should come back home to our boys in blue. He is a winner and will bring great things to LA.
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Torre no longer Yankees manager
Apparently the offer was just not good enough.
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Yankee's in '08
will joe torre stay? A-Rod? Clemmons?
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Torre and the Yankees
Joe Torre is a 1st ballot Hall of Famer, there is no question about that. As a player and coach he succeeded on the highest levels. I can't blame the Boss (not Bruce but George) for getting rid of Torre but I can protest against the way in which this was handled, or mishandled. It has been common knowledge for a while now that Steinbrenner has taken issue with Joe Torre for a number of reasons. However, after the 1st two losses to Cleveland, Mr. Steinbrenner made a classless move by kicking Torre out by ultimatum. Either the Yanks win or Joe gets fired. No matter what happened this post season it is hard to see how Torre couldve come back. I know that the Yankees expect a championship every year but for a guy that has meant so much to his players, the organization and the city of New York this was just not the correct way to deal with this. I'm old enough to have seen Mr. Steinbrenner pull some pretty cold moves but this was the worst yet. Joe Torre I salute you and wish you the best. Joe Torre is a 1st ballot Hall of Famer, there is no question about that. As a player and coach he succeeded on the highest levels. I ... more
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