Dodgers have a little Captain Hadley in them

Finally, the big hit was delivered, by none other than Chad Billingsley. When a pitcher leads the way on offense, the Dodgers win. I hope Kershaw takes extra batting practice today.

The seven runs the Dodgers scored makes it easy to dismiss the frustration of the first three innings, when the Dodgers stranded five runners. But I remember the concentrated dismay I felt, when it seemed that the Dodgers would let Boggs get the best of them. But the thing is the Dodgers will always have innings like that. Always. That's just part of the game when you get lots of men on base but don't hit a lot of home runs. It just gets hard to take when the stranded runners start piling up on top of the frustrating losses that have piled up on top of the blown saves that are piling up until you just want to scream STOP PILING!!!

I suppose the best news of the game was that Billingsley appears to be fully healthy again. He hit trouble in the sixth, again, but overall I think his mound work was a rousing success. Also successful was Jon Broxton, who didn't make me think he was back to his old form but also didn't stir up any trouble. And he continued his mastery of Pujols, who is now 1-10 lifetime against Broxton.

The best moment of the game came when Vinny started talking about protective cups, and which players wore them, and which didn't, and then he mentioned that Jose Oquendo the third base coach of the Cardinals said he never wore them, and then the camera showed Oquendo, and what the heck are we supposed to be looking at as the camera lingers on him? I think if the cameraman had zoomed in for a closeup of Jose Oquendo's crotch and then Vinny had said, "Well, it's hard to tell from this angle" it would have been the greatest moment in Dodger history.


Game 120 Unfair Win Shares ( Dodgers )

Billingsley -- 1
Ethier -- 1
Hudson -- 1

On the telecast last night they gave Ethier player of the game honors. I would have gone with Billingsley. In fact I really want to give him two unfair win shares, but Hudson deserves one as well and of course Ethier can't be denied after his Pierre-style cycle. In the end two runs in six innings just isn't good enough to earn multiple shares for Chad, even if he did deliver the biggest hit of the night.


Game 120 Unfair Loss Shares ( Cardinals )

Boggs -- 1
Pujols -- 1
Holliday -- 1

Like Billingsley, starter Boggs may deserve two unfair shares, but again two hitters demand attention. Both Holliday and Pujols were 0-4. Pujols hit two wicked grounders to third that might have been hits if they didn't smack right into Blake ( who understandably couldn't field either cleanly ) but that's the way it goes sometimes for hitters. I give Billingsley and Broxton credit just for keeping him on the ground in those two at bats.

What do you think of when you hear the name Boggs now? Wade Boggs, the great third baseman for the Red Sox back in the 80's? Or Boggs from the Shawshank Redemption, one of the sisters who repeatedly violated Andy Dufresne during his first two years in prison? For me it's the latter. But wouldn't that be a great text message question thing for during the telecast last night? Now THAT would have been the greatest moment in Dodger history.