[h1]Dodgers want deluge of offense as Manny storm approaches[/h1]
By Doug Padilla, Special to the Daily News
Posted: 06/08/2009 08:57:39 PM PDT
Call this the calm before the Manny Ramirez storm that is set to blow into the area on or around July 3.
Certainly there will be a media frenzy when the Dodgers' suspended slugger returns from a 50-game forced hiatus, but that is far from what the team is anticipating.
What the Dodgers are looking toward instead is a deluge of offense when the cog in the heart of the order returns.
Once cruising without their muse, the Dodgers seem to be in survival mode now. Had it not been for a pair of improbable rallies over the weekend against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Dodgers could be licking their wounds from a four-game series sweep.
It has taken some brilliant pitching from both the starting rotation and the
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bullpen; otherwise the best record in baseball probably would belong to somebody else and that lead in the National League West would be less than rock solid.
The pitching can't carry the team all season, though, and the guys who swing the bats know it.
"Any time you can come from behind and steal wins, play good in one-run games, it's a good test for you," said third baseman Casey Blake, who had been 3-for-22 (.136) over his previous nine games before going 2-for-4 Sunday. "It can only make you better in the long run.
"It's nice to get a couple of wins when you're really not hitting the ball well. It says a lot about our pitching staff."
Ramirez is still three-plus weeks from a return, barring a rainout. The fact
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the Dodgers still have to go to Texas over the weekend to play the Rangers and to Chicago on June23-25 to play the White Sox means rain could still alter plans for Ramirez's July 4 Evereturn.
The Dodgers are going to have to show some results at the plate before then. Ramirez isn't expected to just return and light up scoreboards right away, but this being Ramirez, anything is possible.
"We'll be fine; we're going to score runs," manager Joe Torre said. "So many questions are being asked about it that I think everyone is self-conscious about it and trying too hard.
"Hopefully, we come back (today) with a breather (Monday) and start swinging the bats a little better."
Ah yes, Monday's day off. It was the Dodgers' first in 17 days. Whether it was perfectly placed to charge the battery of a sagging offense remains to be seen, but the consensus seems to be that it certainly won't hurt.
"That's the tough part about playing on the West Coast, when you get the day off and have to travel that day, you don't get the full day off," Blake said. "To have a full day off is so huge. You get to spend the whole day with your family and (it's) great."
Add in another off day Thursday, and the Dodgers won't be allowed to use exhaustion as an excuse for scoring only 2.6 runs per game over their past 11 games.
"We were hoping to have a day off following a win, but considering how the (Phillies) series went, I am certainly not disappointed," Torre said. "It's unusual to have a day off at home."
Home is where the Dodgers have made their move this season. Even with Sunday's defeat, they are 22-8 at Dodger Stadium, the best home mark in baseball.
And even if it takes some late-inning heroics like the Dodgers had to produce for victories Friday night and Saturday afternoon, Torre won't mind. Those type of games might be mentally exhausting, but they have so much value later in the season.
"If we do this all season and win all these (close) games, I have a tendency to think that going into the postseason having all this practice with these pressure situations can't hurt us, that's for sure," Torre said. "In October, it's all about pressure and all about one-and-out mentality, do-or-die."
It's only June and already the Dodgers are planning for October. As long as they can hang on until the Ramirez tornado gets here in July.
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Troncoso earns key role in 'pen[/size][/h2][size=+1]RELIEVER: After barely making the roster out of spring training, he's now the setup guy for closer Broxton.
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By MICHAEL BECKER
The Press-Enterprise[/size]
LOS ANGELES - When selecting the 25 players for their opening day roster, the Dodgers had few more difficult decisions to make than what to do with Ramon Troncoso.
Since 2007, the Dodgers tabbed Troncoso, 26, as a future contributor at the major league level. But had his future arrived?
To enough of the decision makers, it had. Despite competition from a major league veteran (Jeff Weaver) and a highly drafted prospect (Josh Lindblom) the final pitching spot went to Troncoso.
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AP photo
Ramon Troncoso shows all the signs of confidence a short reliever needs, according to Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti.
The Dodgers are now reaping the benefits of that decision. No unit has been more integral to the success of the Dodgers this season than the relievers. And no reliever has surprised Manager Joe Torre more than Troncoso, who has risen from a middle reliever to the team's eighth-inning setup man in the span of two months.
"Probably our last pitcher on the staff at the start of the season -- and here he is," Torre said. "He doesn't shy away from pressure."
At no time was that more evident than during a chilly May evening in Chicago, when Torre called on Troncoso to pitch the final two innings of a one-run game against the Cubs.
With closer Jonathan Broxton unavailable, Troncoso loaded the bases in the ninth inning before striking out the final two Cubs to earn the two-inning save.
"He was just having fun out there," said Broxton, who watched from the bullpen after throwing 38 pitches the previous night. "And that's the big thing. I told him, 'Good job. That was fun to watch.' "
Had it not been for injuries to Hong-Chih Kuo, who excelled last year in the setup role, and Cory Wade, Troncoso may not have gotten the opportunity to show his late-inning mettle.
Said Troncoso: "I was here. They gave me a chance, and I took it."
The Dodgers even considered making Troncoso a starter during the offseason, but placed him in the bullpen after he struggled early in spring training.
It wasn't until the final week in Glendale, Ariz., that Troncoso began to right his struggles. His sinker was sharp. He showed durability and the ability to pitch multiple innings at a time. During conversations with Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti, the Dominican reliever portrayed the type of self-confidence relievers must possess to be successful late in the game.
"He doesn't have fear," Colletti said.
This season, the Dodgers are 13-5 in one-run games, including 11-1 at Dodger Stadium. Troncoso is a major reason. He's allowed just seven runs in 37 innings and has pitched nine consecutive scoreless innings over his past six games. Troncoso's biggest contribution of late has been his ability to bridge the gap to Broxton, who has 13 saves, a 1.24 ERA and is holding opponents to a 0.94 batting average.
"You're going to have injuries throughout the 'pen, throughout the whole 25-man roster," Broxton said. "That's when you find out what kind of team you have and who can step up and take over some of those spots. He's been great for us. We lost Kuo, but he stepped in and has done an unbelievable job for us."
Reach Michael Becker at [email protected]
