The Kids are Alright

Well, thank you Andre Ethier.. On a night where Manny had three doubles, Matt Kemp an RBI triple, James Loney 2 RBI's, and Chad Billingsley pitched into the eighth inning, Andre Ethier is the star that shines brightest. Andre continued his torrid start on Tuesday night against the Giants with an RBI double in the ninth inning that saved the Dodgers' bullpen. Ethier is rapidly ascending into the upper echelon of hitters in the National League and maybe all of baseball. His at-bat in the ninth was the Ethier prototype. Down 1-2 in the count, Ethier battled and fouled off pitch after pitch, eventually working the count full. Ethier then proceeded to hit a shot over Aaron Rowand's head to untie the game. Typical Andre Ethier. It's hard not to love this guy (huh Jess?) and a look at his stats so far this year show why (Granted this is a small sample size, 77 at-bats, but it's still impressive) :

• a triple slash line of .312/.436/.584
• an OPS of 1.022
• 15 BB to only 12 K's
• 11 extra base hits, including 5 HR's putting him on a pace to hit 39 (again this is a small sample, I'm not expecting him to hit even 30 HR but I'm just pointing out how impressive he has been so far)
• 21 RBI. I'm not a huge fan of RBI since it's so context specific. However, when you're knocking in an average of one run a game, it's very impressive. I think it's reasonable to expect 100 RBI from him this year if he keeps hitting in the 4 hole and Manny continues to post an ungodly OBP (.494 through Tuesday night).

Overall there is alot to like about Andre. As Vin said the other night, his swing is so short and all his power comes from his wrists. I think his power is still developing, and at age 27, he is just entering his prime. It's safe to say he is the Dodgers' second best hitter and, besides Manny, there is not another Dodger I would want up in a big situation. It's about time the man gets some major recognition. If he keeps hitting like this even the guys at ESPN won't be able to avoid it. And that's saying alot..

Andre Ethier is the N.L. Player of the Week

Well this will sure make Mrs. Ethier happy (Here's to you Jessi). I have been swamped with schoolwork the past few days, and that has stopped me from posting about the great Sunday in LA. But since talking about the Lakers and Dodgers is more fun than writing my paper on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, I figured it was time to take a break and talk about the good news.
First off:

• The Lakers cruised in their playoff opener against Utah. Even though the Jazz made a few runs in the second half, I never felt like the game was in doubt. That's a good feeling to have during a playoff game. Trevor Ariza had a great game for the Lakers and Kobe (besides the 6 turnovers) also played well. Pau had his typical good game and Lamar and Shannon "Chris" Brown contributed off the bench. Bynum was constantly in foul trouble, however, I expect a strong performance from him in Game 2 on Tuesday night. The Lakers should be able to control the game and take a 2-0 lead into Salt Lake City on Thursday.
• What a week for the Dodgers. A week that started with the first Dodger cycle in almost 40 years ended with a two homerun performance from Matt Kemp. In between Andre Ethier had two two homerun games, Chad Billingsley picked up two wins, Manny hit his first two homers of the season, Clayton Kershaw struck out 13 Giants, the O-Dog became a fan favorite, Broxton earned a five-out save by striking out 4 Rockies' batters, and Russell Martin started to warm up a bit. Oh and the Dodgers have won eight straight, including a perfect 6-0 on the homestand. Simply awesome. And I am probably missing some other good performances. Will the Dodgers keep this pace up? Obviously not. But can they continue to be one of the best teams in baseball? I think so. The Dodgers have a good staff and a lineup that has shown it can put up a whole bunch of runs on any given night.

Overall, there is plenty to be excited right now in LA. The Lakers just started a two month journey in search of their 15th championship and the Dodgers might be the best team in the National League for the first time since before I was born (I don't count 1988, because even though the Boys in Blue won the World Series that year, there is no way they were better than that loaded Mets team). It's safe to say I am enjoying this run, while also trying to keep perspective. The Dodgers started out 12-2 in 2005, and we all know how that ended. But I don't think these two teams are even in the same league. Only time will tell, but early on this seems to have the makings of a special year in Los Angeles. Now back to Zionism and Palestinian nationalism.. Wish me luck.