The Great Los Angeles Snoozefest

It’s only the preseason, but goddamn that was a snoozer. You would think that winning a game 13-4 would set off absolute pandemonium, but the sound of boredom set through the crowd during most of the game.

With the exception of the moments when the 13 Dodgers crossed home plate, the sporadic plays of beach balls amped up the crowd the most. I was actually caught up in one of these episodes when the Angels suddenly scored two runs in the sixth inning. I honestly didn’t know it happened until I looked up.

Having said that, there were some things that gave me cause to be hopeful. In the bottom of the sixth, Matt Kemp hit a three-run homer on a second-pitch fastball that hung out over home plate. He is starting to be more discriminating in which balls hit and starting to realize his potential. He’s not completely there yet, but once someone gets injured in the middle of the year he’ll fill in quite nicely.

Speaking of injuries, another note of optimism is that neitherLuis Gonzalez (El Viejito) nor Nomar Garciaparra (Mr. Hamm) were injured in this game. I want to start a pool to see which one of these old-timers will get injured. My bet is on Viejito. Watching him run the bases tonight was like watching a ’72 Pinto doing 80mph on the freeway. I wanted to yell out, “I think I can, I think I can,” but my minute sense of decency held me back. Something to note: Viejito would be older than said Pinto.

That’s basically all there was to the game. I left after the sixth inning because it just got too cold and my friends were falling asleep (see above picture). Like I said before Monday is when it starts to count, and I’ll be on it like Angelina Jolie on foreign orphans.

image courtesy of me! me! me!