Panic? at the Stadium
Matt Kemp and Garret Anderson collide in the outfield in Cincinnati fueling General Manager Ned Colletti's statements. AP Photo/Nick Wass
While Colletti’s rant on KABC Radio has exploded through the Dodger blogosphere, everyone here at Dodger Stadium is over it.
“I don’t really want to talk about it anymore,” Kemp said. “It’s old news to me. It’s squashed. Why would I want to talk something that’s already squashed?”
“To me whether it’s something that’s said in the clubhouse or said to somebody, I never think it’s any big deal,” manager Joe Torre said.
“The only thing you want these players to do is to make sure when it’s time to play the game they’re playing the game. That’s my job is to see if what’s going on is affecting the players and how we go about our business. If that’s the case I’ve got to address it.”
While Colletti was nowhere to be found before the game, Torre went to bat for his boss.
“The people who do know Ned know he’s a passionate guy,” Torre said. “He’s a very proud individual, and he wants the product to be better.”
Torre added that the issue is over.
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s ancient history.”
It remains to be seen whether the comments will affect the team as a whole, however there is no doubt the Dodgers are struggling. The team has the most errors and the worst fielding percentage in the Major Leagues while their 5.11 ERA is fifth worst in baseball and 5.20 bullpen ERA is sixth worst in baseball.
To shorthand: they are a bad baseball team right now. Kemp even admitted that he is part of the problem.
“I’ve been getting myself out,” Kemp said. “Being impatient. Getting out of my game plan.”
When Torre was asked about the poor offense in Washington and New York, Torre pondered, “Maybe a little lack of discipline where we got a little anxious.
“It seemed so easy for us in Cincinnati when we scored all those runs in three games. I think we lost our patience at the plate. We swung at a lot of bad balls.”
Having said all that, the calendar still says April. The Dodgers are only five games out of first place in the NL West and have 141 games to make things up.
“Everybody’s going to hit a little wall,” Kemp said. “We’re just hitting ours early - get it out the way. Now it’s time to win.
“We’re good. I wonder why people are panicking. We’ve got around 140 games left. No need to panic. Put the cap on the panic button.”