LA Angels defeat Kansas City Royals 2-1. Royals pitching confounded the Angels most of the night. Instead of seeing Gil Meche who had to be scratched because of shoulder fatigue, they got Robinson Tejada. With one out in the first inning, Maicer Izturis hit a single. From there Tejada retired the following 15 batters. Finally in the eighth inning Vladimir Guerrero came through on a bases loaded single that scored two. Jered Weaver kept the affair close only giving up one run in the fourth inning. He went seven innings giving up nine hits and an intentional walk with six strikeouts. more ›

LA Dodgers defeat Cincinnati Reds 6-2. It was Manny Ramirez bobblehead night at the Stadium Wednesday night, and it was a complete sell out of 56,000. Those 56,000 though thrilled with receiving their bobblehead nonetheless were disappointed when they found out Manny wouldn't be starting the game thanks to being hit Tuesday night by a pitch on his left hand. With the game tied at two in the bottom of the sixth inning, Russell Martin hit a sharp single with runners on first and second that prevent anyone from scoring. more ›

LA Dodgers defeat Cincinnati Reds 12-3. The Dodgers unleashed on Reds starter Homer Bailey who as Vin Scully noted throughout the broadcast was a one-pitch pony. They scorched Bailey for nine runs in 2 2/3 innings. However the nine runs didn't come without a price when Bailey hit Manny Ramirez on the left hand during the third inning. Manny was taken to the hospital for x-rays which were negative. Meanwhile Randy Wolf pitched 7 1/3 innings giving up only two runs on four hits and a walk with four strikeouts. The Dodgers bats helped his cause by giving him 12 runs of support, the most this season. Wolf got his very first win at home this season, and the Dodgers are now the first team to 60 wins. more ›

LA Lakers over Utah Jazz 120-110. The same script from game one followed in game two. The Lakers pulled away from the Jazz in the second quarter, but the Jazz made it close with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Lakers woke up and snatched the win convincingly in the final minutes. The biggest difference was in this game Kobe Bryant received his MVP trophy before the game and played like he needed to prove he deserved the award. Kobe led all scorers with 38 points but also notched eight rebounds and six assists. Before we get too excited remember a playoff series doesn't start until the visiting team beats the home team. The Lakers will try to step on the throats of the Jazz on Friday night. more ›

LA Dodgers (19-14) defeat NY Mets (16-15) 5-4. This game had a little bit of everything. Horrible starting pitching, shaky defense, home base stolen, an inside-the-park homer and great relief pitching. Hiroki Kuroda was in trouble right from the opening gun. He amazingly came out of it relatively unscathed going 3 1/3 innings with eight hits and four runs two of which were earned. Just when the Mets looked like they would win the game in came Hong-Chih Kuo (2-1) in relief fanning eight, walking one and giving up no hits. And then there's Blake DeWitt. He went 3-4 with four RBIs including an inside-the-park homer, the first for a Dodger since Dave Roberts did it against the Chicago Cubs in 2003. It is also worth noting that 500-year old Moises Alou of the Mets stole home on the back end of a double steal. The Dodgers have now won 12 out of their last 14 games. more ›

LA Dodgers (18-14) over NY Mets (16-14) 5-1. If Rafael Furcal continues to produce how he has so far this season, he will hands down be the MVP of the league. Furcal led things off for the Dodgers with a lead-off solo homer on a 0-2 pitch, and NL player of the week Matt Kemp added a two-run shot in the fifth inning. But none was given as much fanfare as Blake DeWitt's first major league home run to lead off the fifth which demanded a curtain call. The hottest team in the majors have now won 11 of their last 14 games and have cut what was once a seven-game deficit to the Arizona Diamondbacks to three games. more ›

Dallas Stars defeat Anaheim Ducks 3-1. The Ducks continued to be outplayed by the Stars as goalie Marty Turco came within seven seconds of shutting out the Ducks. Duck's center Brian Sutherby, who had scored only one goal early on in the season, thought he had tied the game in the second period but was called off after a video review for kicking the puck in the net. Down three games to one, the Ducks now have to take care of business at home tonight to avoid being the fourth consecutive reigning Stanley Cup Champion to not make the second round of the playoffs. more ›

LA Dodgers defeat Pittsburgh Pirates 8-1. I left work late, so I missed the six runs the Dodgers scored in the first two innings. Apparently Matt Kemp avoided a run down by playing dead. Really. Brad Penny pitched a strong 5 2/3 innings and closer Takashi Saito pitched a perfect ninth to come back from his disastrous outing Monday night. James Loney has now gotten a hit in the first 15 games, and Rafael Furcal went 4-4 with a walk tonight. more ›

LA Angels defeat Cleveland Indians 9-5. Mike Napoli hits his first grand slam in the second inning to get things rolling for the Angels. They didn't need to rely on a closer this time. But I'm sorta pissed at them since because of them the Dodgers game was blacked out on MLB.tv. more ›

LA Galaxy defeat San Jose Earthquakes 2-0. The Galaxy still looked to be reeling from Sunday night's 4-0 loss against the Colorado Rapids when San Jose scored a goal in the second minute. Fortunately for the Galaxy the goal was waved off by an off-sides call, and the Galaxy went on to score two goals in the first half. David Beckham scored his first goal in the MLS in the ninth minute assisted by Landen Donavon and Donavon scored a goal in the 37th minute assisted by Beckham in the Galaxy's victory. more ›

The Dodgers must really not like Derek Lowe. more ›

The Pirates came into town as losers of eight straight games; oddly,
they swept the Giants in San Francisco only two weekends ago, and even
managed to scratch a win off St. Louis, but that was a week and a half
ago. The Dodgers happily handed the Bucs three straight losses, and
so they leave town with their losing streak intact and extended eleven
games. They're nowhere near the National League record for futility,
held by the godawful href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CLV/1899.shtml">1899
Cleveland Spiders, a franchise that defined the depths of dispair for
all time by going 26-128.

That streak might not be the worst in the Senior Circuit, but it's a
local maxima; the Bucs haven't lost so many in a row since erstwhile
manager Fred Haney (and later, Angels GM) led the href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/PIT/1955.shtml">1955
Pirates to a 55-99 record. What's even more embarrassing for the
Bucs is that they got swept ,
one of the few teams that even Pittsburgh should have, in theory, been
able to beat.
more ›

Not even a four-run lead going into the 7th inning seemed safe for the Angels last night -- even though they were shutting out the worst team in baseball. And sure enough, in the 7th the Kansas City Royals knocked in three runs off of Anaheim starter Ervin Santana at the Big A. more ›

Depending on the extent of the tear in Gagne's elbow, which won't be known for at least another week, Gagne might need to have Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career. We're hoping he can just come back in 8 weeks at near-Gagne strength, but his second-degree elbow strain must absolutely be treated with extreme care. more ›